Literary Figures: Novelists

He's written six historical spy novels, all taking place in Europe just before World War II. They include Night Soldiers, Dark Star, The World at Night and his new one, Kingdom of Shadows.

British novelist A.S. Byatt. Her novel Possession was a bestseller, and her novella Angels & Insects was turned into an arthouse film. Byatt's new novel is The Biographers Tale (Knopf). This interview was recorded before a live audience at the Free Public Library in Philadelphia.

Hes just published his first novel The Death of Vishn. The book follows the lives of the many inhabitants of a Bombay apartment building—including Vishnu, the homeless man who lives in the buildings stairwell. Based on the writers childhood in Bombay, the book has met praise from critics for its inclusion of Hindu mythology and cinema. When not writing, Mr Suri is a Professor of Mathematics at the University of Maryland.

Iranian born novelist Salar Abdoh. His first novel The Poet Game, (2000, Picador USA) is a fictitious account of an Iranian secret agent sent to New York City to investigate rumored terrorist plots, in the wake of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. The main character, Sami Amir poses as a terrorist to try and stop the attacks. Salar Abdoh fled Iran with his father and brothers following the revolution in 1979. Abdoh earned a master degree in Creative Writing from the City College of New York. He lives in New York City.

Novelist Jay McInerney (“MAC-in-UR-knee”). He broke onto the literary scene with his bestselling novel “Bright Lights, Big City,” about the excesses of the a Manhattan yuppie in the 1980s. His new book is a collection of essays about the pleasure of wine. It’s called “Bacchus & Me: Adventures in The Wine Cellar” (The Lyons Press).

Writer Vernor Vinge. The author of 16 books of science fiction, he gained a cult following for his early role in writing about cyber-culture and the Internet. His new book “Across Realtime,” (Orion Audio) came out earlier this year. He talks about the difficulty of writing science fiction when technology out dates itself as rapidly as it does. He teaches computer science at San Diego State.

Journalist S.V. Date is based in Florida where he is Tallahassee bureau chief for The Palm Beach Post. He’ll discuss the recount in Florida for the Presidential election. Date is also the author of the new novel “Smokeout” (Putnam)

Novelist Stephen King. Last year, the prolific and popular horror writer experienced something that could have come out of one of his books: he was struck by a car while walking along a rural road in Maine and nearly killed. Six operations and a long recovery followed. Five weeks after the accident King started writing again, and published over the internet only, the novella, “The Plant.” His new book is “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft” (Scribner).

Writer Armistead Maupin, creator of the award winning newspaper serial turned TV series “Tales of the City”. Maupin's new book “The Night Listener” (Harper Collins, 2000) is his first novel in eight years. It examines the relationship that grows between a cult writer and one of his younger radio fans; critics have noted the autobiographical subtext to the story. Maupin won the 1998 Peabody Award for his work in television and has written several novels and two collections of essays. He lives in San Francisco.

Novelist David Leavitt. His new book is “Martin Bauman; or, A Sure Thing.” (Houghton Mifflin) It is a look at the Manhattan publishing scene as viewed through the eyes of 19-year-old Martin Bauman. Leavitt’s own first book, “Family Dancing,” was published when he was just 23. Leavitt’s other books include “The Lost Language of Cranes,” “Equal Affections,” and “While England Sleeps.”