Award-Winning Writer Explains Her Entire Process — Susan Orlean

In this interview, Susan Orlean discusses her writing process, emphasizing the importance of structure, research, and editing. She details her unique method of using index cards to organize information and identify themes within her stories. Orlean highlights the significance of crafting compelling leads to capture the reader's attention and the need to balance personal excitement with the reader's need to know. She also shares insights on overcoming the temptation of overwriting and the challenges of writing a memoir versus writing about other people. Orlean emphasizes the value of brutal self-editing, reading work aloud, and setting daily word quotas to maintain discipline and enhance the quality of her writing. The conversation also touches on the role of libraries in preserving memory and adapting to cultural changes.