In the late 1980s,while attending the University of New Mexico, I found myself in Harvena Richter's creative writing class. This book, written by her and based on her father's private notebooks, was our text. And what a text! Containing insights into how a writer's mind works, where to look for inspiration and how tough it can be be to write for a living, WRITING TO SURVIVE is where I turn when I have a creative block of any kind. It has shown me how to look at the simple and true and use them as a stepping stone to overcome whatever creative roadblock is in my path. It contains notes on writing, journal entries detailing times of despair when words would not flow...along with the joy of triumph over a sale or kind word. Conrad Richter truly wrote to survive. Times were hard and often the food on the table depended on the sale of a story. It is a insider's look at what makes a writer write and a wonderful tribute to one of the most underrated American authors...one who deserves to be rediscovered.