There are many works that seek to compile interviews with writers, but none I have found approach them from this unique angle. Rather than have the authors muse over a variety of topics and soliciting the same stock responses, Margaret-Love Denman and Barbara Shoup--like all good writers--have a singular, distinct focus: inquiring into the artistic process of some of America's finest artists. The answers they receive are therefore both focused, informative, and encouraging to anyone who is curious about the many things that go into the making of art, and the variety of ways that writers achieve what they set out to do.

This is an incredibly real, wonderful book about the craft of novel writing featuring interviews with many different writers. I had published 3 novels with a major publisher and won a national award, and then became quite stuck;I couldn't finish anything in good enough form. This book helped immensely; every problem I faced artistically was discussed by one novelist or another. I felt as if I were sitting around a round table of peers and friends, talking through difficulties in the craft and celebrating its joys. NOVEL IDEAS was very important in helping me over the bump. My copy is dog-earred and much underlined. Many thanks to the authors!

What a breath of fresh air in a market that is flooded with books that offer formulas for writing and getting published! Instead, Novel Ideas offers the reader real life experiences of those who have gone before them and lived to tell. Those of us struggling with the writing life will find solace in the words of those interviewed and guidance in the chapter text itself. It was like having the modern version of the Algonquin roundtable at my fingertips!