Behind the Book Cover Neal Pollack on Working with Big Publishers, Indie, Amazon—and Everyone in Between
Neal Pollack, whose alter ego is "the Greatest Living American Writer," is the author of 11 books of fiction and nonfiction.
His latest, Pothead, covers his journey from drug-addled literary sensation to sober Austin dad. He's written thousands of articles for publications current and defunct, prominent and obscure, whoever pays. To continue with the randomness, he's a three-time Jeopardy! champion and a certified yoga instructor.
Neal and I have known each other for years, with essays appearing in some of the same books (one of which I edited). A truthteller who reveals the often brutal reality of modern-day publishing, Neal is perhaps most brutal and truth-telling when it comes to himself.
In this conversation, we talked about what happens to Gen X midlist authors, what happens when you seek literary fame and how the most important thing to do when launching a book is to enjoy it.
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