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Writer Beware also has a blog, http://accrispin.blogspot.com Victoria posts there about once a week.
'Publisher Seeking Authors!' Danger, Will Robinson?
by Earl Merkel
October 16, 2009, 9:05 am
A writer e-mails me to ask about ad ("Publisher Looking for Authors!").
I reply-- but is your answer different? Respond, and I'll forward your comments...
Well done.
by Earl Merkel
October 2, 2009, 7:50 am
There's a myth --started, I suspect, by writers-- that all writers write "not because we want to, but because we have to." The compulsion to write is, we tell people, an "artist sort of thing."
Uh-huh. Ri...
Me, neither. Ever a rightwing hack, he ended his career as a columnist as a totally discredited Bush apologist. But if you like crotchety old white guys telling everyone else how to talk, his "On Language" column wasn't bad.
Never really was impressed with Safire's fact-finding.
by Earl Merkel
September 27, 2009
Another good one bites the dust.
If you're not familiar with William Safire's ON LANGUAGE columns, you're simply not as good a writer as you could be. Period.
He was also a take-no-prisoners -type of columnist...
Profile Information
- Hometown:
- Chicago
- About Me:
- Earl Merkel is the author of Virgins And Martyrs (Five Star 2008, under the name "E L Merkel"); Final Epidemic (PenguinPutnam/NAL), a Barnes and Noble national bestseller re-released in hardcover by Elmtree Press/Tifda Publishing in January 2008; and Dirty Fire (PenguinPutnam/NAL).
Earl spent more than a decade as a journalist, columnist and commentator; today, he contributes to a variety of newspapers and magazines, usually after their editors have had time to extinguish the reader-reaction brushfires from his previous submissions.
During his career, Earl has dodged gunfire, teargas canisters, and verbal brickbats as a journalist; spent years "comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortable," as an investigative reporter, newspaper columnist and satirist; and has advised some of the largest corporations in the world on the merits of open and honest communications -- not always with success.
As the "more" on the nationally broadcast talk-radio program Money & More, where he served as co-host and executive producer, Earl left the money-talk to the experts. He admits that he's far more comfortable in other areas --talking with authors like Lawrence Block, Ken Burns, Robin Cook and Neil Gaiman about their books; arguing current events and politics with such guests as Steve Forbes, Jack Welch, Dick Morris, Oliver North and Newt Gingrich; and even cracking-wise with the likes of Mark Steyn, Neal Cavuto and Michael Medved-- than he is dealing with financial matters.
"In my own finances, I'm anything but a good example -- but I'm a great bad example," he laughs.
Earl is also the author of The Infamous Chicken Little Article, which is rumored to have gotten him temporarily banned from the op-ed page of a major American newspaper --but which subsequently has become an underground classic on the Internet among journalists, and which is regularly cited in journalism-school classes when a dose of cold (but hilarious) reality is required. One version of it --there have been a few updated rewrites posted around the 'Net-- is at http://www.absolutewrite.com/fun/chicken_little.htm
As a ghostwriter, Earl has had books published by such major houses as Simon & Schuster and HarperCollins-- without, he hopes, these houses ever knowing it.
- I Am A:
- Writer
- Books And Authors I Like:
- TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, by Harper Lee-- sheer genius.
Anything by James Lee Burke-- if the guy wrote a telephone directory, I'd read it.
Ditto for the Master, John D. MacDonald.
Ditto for Lawrence Block, especially in his Keller series.
Far too many contemporary authors (some of them friends) to list here. And if I'd forget to list any of 'em, I could inadvertently trigger a vendetta wherein the blood would run ankle-deep in the literary streets...
Earl Merkel's Blog
'Publisher Seeking Authors!' Danger, Will Robinson?
'Publisher Seeking Authors!' Danger, Will Robinson?
by Earl Merkel
October 16, 2009, 9:05 am
A writer e-mails me to ask about ad ("Publisher Looking for Authors!").
I reply-- but is your answer different? Respond, and I'll forward your comments.
--Earl Merkel
-----------------------
Original E-Mail to Earl Merkel:
Sent: Thu, Oct 15, 2009 10:17 am
Subject: FW: publisher looking for authors
Dear Earl: I received this through my writing group. The article talks… Continue
by Earl Merkel
October 16, 2009, 9:05 am
A writer e-mails me to ask about ad ("Publisher Looking for Authors!").
I reply-- but is your answer different? Respond, and I'll forward your comments.
--Earl Merkel
-----------------------
Original E-Mail to Earl Merkel:
Sent: Thu, Oct 15, 2009 10:17 am
Subject: FW: publisher looking for authors
Dear Earl: I received this through my writing group. The article talks… Continue
Posted on October 19, 2009 at 4:30am — 1 Comment
Letterman Blackmailed? No-- T'was Just A Misunderstanding...
by Earl Merkel
October 2, 2009, 7:50 am
There's a myth --started, I suspect, by writers-- that all writers write "not because we want to, but because we have to." The compulsion to write is, we tell people, an "artist sort of thing."
Uh-huh. Ri-i-i-ght.
Yeah-- that explains why so many of us stare at the morning's blank computer screen, motionless hands poised over the keyboard, until our eyeballs bleed.
And then we do random Google searches, check our e-mail, surf for… Continue
October 2, 2009, 7:50 am
There's a myth --started, I suspect, by writers-- that all writers write "not because we want to, but because we have to." The compulsion to write is, we tell people, an "artist sort of thing."
Uh-huh. Ri-i-i-ght.
Yeah-- that explains why so many of us stare at the morning's blank computer screen, motionless hands poised over the keyboard, until our eyeballs bleed.
And then we do random Google searches, check our e-mail, surf for… Continue
Posted on October 3, 2009 at 2:30am — 1 Comment
William Safire, RIP: Language Loses An Outspoken Champion...
by Earl Merkel
September 27, 2009
Another good one bites the dust.
If you're not familiar with William Safire's ON LANGUAGE columns, you're simply not as good a writer as you could be. Period.
He was also a take-no-prisoners -type of columnist-- and one who backed up his opinions with carefully researched fact. No "nabob" he, Mr. Safire will be missed by those who savor both finely honed writing and the practice of column-writing as a blood-sport.
--Earl Merkel
----------------------… Continue
September 27, 2009
Another good one bites the dust.
If you're not familiar with William Safire's ON LANGUAGE columns, you're simply not as good a writer as you could be. Period.
He was also a take-no-prisoners -type of columnist-- and one who backed up his opinions with carefully researched fact. No "nabob" he, Mr. Safire will be missed by those who savor both finely honed writing and the practice of column-writing as a blood-sport.
--Earl Merkel
----------------------… Continue
Posted on September 28, 2009 at 10:49am — 2 Comments
Who Cries For The Slain Pro-Lifer?
by Earl Merkel
September 13, 2009, 2:40 pm
As a recovering journalist, I still find my decades-old j-school training occasionally reminding me how lazy --even cowardly-- I often feel these days. It nags particularly loudly when I catch myself personally avoiding that most rare of today's journalistic attributes: an impartial fairness in dealing with an uncomfortable story.
I try to ease that guilt by telling myself that I'm no longer subject to either unyielding deadlines nor old-school, "rep… Continue
September 13, 2009, 2:40 pm
As a recovering journalist, I still find my decades-old j-school training occasionally reminding me how lazy --even cowardly-- I often feel these days. It nags particularly loudly when I catch myself personally avoiding that most rare of today's journalistic attributes: an impartial fairness in dealing with an uncomfortable story.
I try to ease that guilt by telling myself that I'm no longer subject to either unyielding deadlines nor old-school, "rep… Continue
Posted on September 14, 2009 at 9:42am — 6 Comments
My I-view with Rod "Blago" Blagojevich...
by Earl Merkel
September 11, 2009, 6:09 am
Did he try to barter Obama's Senate seat? Well, he says, yes-- not, he insists, for money... but for love. The interview referenced below is in the second bloc of our show, but you guys might enjoy the rest of the program, too. Still, if you just want to hear Mr. Blagojevich choke-and-stutter, it's at about 12:50 min into the program. <<i>chuckle> Please note the opening and closing musical "bumpers" we used, in honor of Blago's oft-procla… Continue
September 11, 2009, 6:09 am
Did he try to barter Obama's Senate seat? Well, he says, yes-- not, he insists, for money... but for love. The interview referenced below is in the second bloc of our show, but you guys might enjoy the rest of the program, too. Still, if you just want to hear Mr. Blagojevich choke-and-stutter, it's at about 12:50 min into the program. <<i>chuckle> Please note the opening and closing musical "bumpers" we used, in honor of Blago's oft-procla… Continue
Posted on September 12, 2009 at 1:51am —
Comment Wall (12 comments)
- At 9:04am on July 22, 2009,
Preetham Grandhi said… - Hi Earl, I want to introduce you to my debut novel "A Circle of souls" which is a murder, mystery, psychological thriller and a tale of justice and hope. Do visit www.acircleofsouls.com to read more about the book. Make sure you sign up to win an autographed copy of the book. You can also read more reviews by clicking on the More Reviews button at the website. Thanks for your time in advance.
Best regards
Preetham Grandhi
Early Endorsements for “A Circle of Souls”
Linda Fairstein, NYT Bestselling Author: "A fascinating debut - this novel takes the reader to the darkest places in the human soul, from a writer with the authenticity to lead us there. A stunning thriller and an important read."
Judge Judy Sheindlin, star of the Judge Judy Show: "The seminal work of this fine author kept me glued to my chair until the adventure was over and the mystery solved. A great read!"
Book Synopsis:
The sleepy town of Newbury, Connecticut, is shocked when a little girl is found brutally murdered. The town s top detective, perplexed by a complete lack of leads, calls in FBI agent Leia Bines, an expert in cases involving children.
Meanwhile, Dr. Peter Gram, a psychiatrist at Newbury s hospital, searches desperately for the cause of seven-year-old Naya Hastings devastating nightmares. Afraid that she might hurt herself in the midst of a torturous episode, Naya s parents have turned to the bright young doctor as their only hope.
The situations confronting Leia and Peter converge when Naya begins drawing chilling images of murder after being bombarded by the disturbing images in her dreams. Amazingly, her sketches are the only clues to the crime that has panicked Newbury residents. Against her better judgment, Leia explores the clues in Naya s crude drawings, only to set off an alarming chain of events.
In this stunning psychological thriller, innocence gives way to evil, and trust lies forgotten in a web of deceit, fear, and murder.
- At 11:33pm on May 21, 2008,
Mitzi Szereto said… - You're very welcome!!
- At 9:01am on April 4, 2008,
Earl Merkel said…
- Jeff:
I thoroughly enjoyed the LIM interview also.
Thanks for the good wishes about VIRGINS AND MARTYRS. Pub date is April 15, but the wait was eased somewhat when, earlier this week, I was informed that the April 1 issue of Library Journal gave a "starred" review to V&M, in the book's first national review. T'was a nice way to start 'er off.
I'll check in on your website, and urge others to do likewise.
Best,
--Earl Merkel
- At 3:24am on April 4, 2008,
Jeff Markowitz said… - Earl
I greatly enjoyed the opportunity to interview with you at Love is Murder. The audio is now featured on my website. Good luck with the new release. I hope all is well.
Jeff
- At 11:47pm on March 27, 2008,
Earl Merkel said…
- Hey, Allan:
Yeah, the picture was taken on Day-O, a Sabre 30 I kept in Florida for years, but ended up using only 10-12 times each year when I could get down there. I sold it, transferring my flag to Witchcraft, my Precision 23, which was the largest sailboat I could get on a trailer, and now ply the Chicagoland waters at least several times each week from March through November.
Final Epidemic is available in hardcover (a relatively recent re-issue, ISBN 13: 978-0-9800977-0-2), and I understand there's a brisk trade in the original Penguin/NAL mass paperback (ISBN 10: 0-451-20730-0).
My latest novel, VIRGINS AND MARTYRS (ISBN 10: 1-59414-635-7, under the name "E.L. Merkel"), has an April 15, 2008 pub date... so with the marketing and related promo travel, I suspect I'll be seeing less of Witchcraft this spring that I'd prefer. Unless, that is, I can convince the publisher to schedule only port cities on the tours. They'd save on hotel-room costs, for sure.
Best, and good to meet you.
--Earl Merkel
- At 9:19pm on March 18, 2008,
Allan E. Ansorge said… - Is the boat yours?
Could you foward a book number for Final Epidemic please?
- At 1:26pm on March 17, 2008,
L.J. Sellers said… - Hi Earl
I keep seeing your name on the mystery lists and thought I would introduce myself. You've had quite a career. I'll bet it puts some zing in your stories.
- At 3:50am on March 17, 2008,
Rick Mofina said…
- How the heck are you Earl
- At 1:56am on February 15, 2008,
shirley dicks said…
- Good to hear from you and I wish you a happy valentines day today. Good luck on your books in this coming year. I'm going to try and do more marketing myself this coming year and already have one college asking if I'd speak and so I'm going to try. Haven't done any speaking since I lost my youngest son three years ago. He and I used to speak out together and he was a great speaker, much better than I am or will ever be, so I know it willl be hard to do so without him. ANyway, good talking to you. Shirley
- At 10:07pm on February 3, 2008,
Earl Merkel said…
- Hey, Beth-- many thanx, and I'm honored to be added!
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