Friedrich --

A novelist friend who teaches creative writing at a local college tells me that she recently mentioned William Faulkner in class, and asked who in the class knew his work. It turned out that not only were none of the kids familiar with Faulkner's fiction, only a couple of them had even heard his name before.

Another novelist friend, who also teaches creative writing at a local college, tells me that his students don't read much fiction (apart from a few big-name thrillers). So what makes them want to write? "They read news reports about the latest hot writers and the latest big advance," he tells me, "and it strikes them as a glamorous career possibility."

Best,

Michael