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About This Blog
Michael Merschel: Michael Merschel edits books coverage for The Dallas Morning News. November 2010
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Forgive the dearth of posts. Your humble books editor has been hidden away for a couple of afternoons, forced to ponder Important Journalistic Thoughts with some genuinely legendary journalistic figures. It is conducive to creating a good newspaper but not all that helpful at generating blog posts. It did get me thinking, though, about great writers who got their start at newspapers. Newspapering has always appealed to those who like to write and get paid for it at the same time. I personally had always intended to follow Ernest Hemingway's advice that a newspaper career wasn't a bad thing for a young writer and could actually do some good, if he got out soon enough. But I also read somewhere that inside every journalist is a book -- and in most cases, it's best it stays there. There have been a few exceptions to that latter rule. Years ago, I saw a wonderful compilation along these lines that put together a hypothetical newspaper staff of literary greats who did time as ink-stained wretches. I'm sure it's out there on the Internet somewhere, and if you find a link, please submit it. Until then, here is a pale imitation of that original piece. The "help wanted" sign is in the window of the "All-Time Gazette," if you want to nominate your own staff member. PUBLISHER: Mark Twain Maybe the greatest of American writers cut his teeth as a reporter out West. "Innocents Abroad" had its roots in a newspaper assignment. He also went bankrupt investing in a new type of printing press. (Note to publisher currently employing Texas Pages editor: Please do not emulate.) NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: John Steinbeck "The Grapes of Wrath" began as a series of stories for the San Francisco News.
The Kansas City Star still claims him as their own.
He began his career as a reporter for "The Mirror of Parliament." CITY EDITOR: Edna Buchanan Now a successful mystery author, she earned fame as a crime reporter, whose lead, "Gary Robinson died hungry" is one of the greatest ever. (Context here, courtesy Calvin Trillin.)
Mr. Gonzo got his start as a sports reporter for the base newspaper when he was in the Air Force. EDITORIAL EDITOR: Frederick Douglass His autobiography helped him change history -- as did his newspaper, The North Star. ("Front Page" montage by NATALIE CAUDILL/Staff Photographer; Hemingway, Dickens images from Dallas Morning News files.) Archived Comments |
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FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT (Mexico City Bureau): Katherine Anne Porter. Her work at the Rocky Mountain News almost killed her during the flu outbreak that rocked the nation, so we'll send her to the warmer climes that truly inspired her.
When Jim Lee and I compiled Literary Fort Worth, we ran into that traditional split between literature and journalism--but we found some of the best writing about our city was done by the journalists. And we happily included the work of a lot of them. I think Fran Vick is doing the same for Literary Dallas.
Acutally the series of "articles" he did for the Sf News, was published as "The Harvest Gypsies". Using these stories and his encounter with tom collins, he had to write The Grapes of Wrath