Salon.com Interview Posted
There’s a lot to like about King Kaufman’s column at Salon.com. I especially appreciate his sensibility. He finds worthwhile sports angles and writes with the thinking fan in mind. He also reads books and writes thoughtfully about them. Mr. Kaufman interviewed me this week and I sincerely enjoyed the conversation. I can’t say that about every interview. But he asked such thought-provoking questions. What a terrific opportunity for me. Mr. Kaufman has posted a column at Salon about “Chief Bender’s Burden” that includes some Q&A. By the way, by the time I saw the piece reader feedback had already started to accumulate. I’m clearly not Kaufman’s only fan.
This post was added on Friday, May 23, 2008 by Tom Swift at 07:32 and is filed under Media Alert.
"Any idiot can face a crisis. It's day to day living that wears you out." -Anton Chekhov
cycledork (May.23 08 at 19:50)
You sounded really good in the interview and I thought I could hear your voice. That said, I understand that, for instance, quotes can get cleaned up before they make it to print. Other amendments can sometimes sneak in as well. As someone with years of experience, as a journalist, how well are your thoughts reflected on the other side of the notebook? I realize that not everyone who has interviewed you is a journalist, but I wonder what your specific experience in this interview and what your general experience as biographer has been.
Tom Swift (May.27 08 at 10:33)
It’s a good question, c-dork, but I am afraid my answer reveals more about me than it does about the journalists. I am sincerely grateful for every ounce of interest the book has received. The publicity is crucial, surprising and extremely flattering. But I have a hard time reading/listening to articles/programs that are about me or about my work.
Usually I skim enough to know what was covered and pull out blurbs/links that can be used for promotional efforts. I leave the review of the reviews to my more stable better half. For example, when the Chicago Sun-Times review came out I missed two of the best lines in the piece. It wasn’t until you mentioned one of them and another reader pointed out the other — more than a week later — that I looked closely enough to see them for myself.
As I write those words it occurs to me that this reply is probably fodder for some sort of psychiatric evaluation.