project of Willamette Writers
The Authors Road is a
"Writing and reading decrease our sense of isolation. They deepen and widen and expand our sense of life: they feed the soul." Ann Lamott
INTERVIEWS
Terry Allen
Jean M. Auel
Cara Black
Michael Blake
Lois McMaster Bujold
Philip Caputo
Laura Chester
Karen Cushman
Ivan Doig
Robert Dugoni
Carola Dunn
Larry Engelmann
Jonathan Evison
Jim Fergus
Diana Gabaldon
Herbert Gold
Daniel Handler
Jim Harrison
Juanita Havill
Ernest Hemingway
Tony & Anne Hillerman
Pam Houston
Lawson Inada
Laurie R. King
Sinclair Lewis
Jack London
Haki Madhubuti
George R.R. Martin
R.C. Matheson
Tom McGuane
Alejandro Murgía
Audrey Niffenegger
Verlena Orr
Nancy Pearl
Paulann Petersen
David Quammen
Mary Roach
Tom Robbins
Mort Rosenblum
Lemony Snicket
John Steinbeck
Dennis Stovall
Gail Tsukiyama
Frederick Turner
Mark Twain
Cynthia Whitcomb
Daniel H. Wilson
Patricia C. Wrede
On the Road with Authors Road
(a three minute movie)
For nearly five years we’ve driven around America meeting and video interviewing many of our best storytellers.
We've spoken with novelists, poets, screen and playwrights, a songwriter, science and sci-fi authors, journalists, publishers, a librarian, experts on five dead masters, and more. And in these chats you will find inspiration, insight, brilliance, and a few good laughs.
It’s a remarkable journey of discovery, and one we’re very proud to share.
We traveled with our trusty sidekick, Ella, in a truck we named “Rocinante Tres” (like Don Quixote’s horse and John Steinbeck’s camper-truck in Travels with Charley), hauling a 5th wheel trailer we call “Hardscribble Hacienda” (after the home of an old friend, writer Hugh Mulligan).
On our travels some folks have asked us why we are doing this. Here are our answers:
- We are doing this project because we’re avid readers and writers who love to travel and are curious about the dynamic changes in today’s writing and publishing scene.
- We are doing this because storytelling is humankind’s most ancient, sacred and vital art.
- We are doing this to create a body of work about the art of writing and the current world of publishing . . . and share it.
- We are doing this because it gives our lives purpose, and we are giving back to the community.
- We are doing this to honor one of America’s greatest natural resources — its writers.
You can navigate to interviews by genre (above) or by name (left). Many of our authors write in more than one category. All are worth exploring, no matter what you normally read . . . or write. We hope you enjoy meeting them.
Salli, George & Ella in the doorway of Hardscribble Hacienda
The year 2015 turned out to be a time of change for us. There were deaths and births bringing changes and new responsibilities. Before long Roscinante and Hardscribble were turned in for a vehicle more parkable in a city, and we found ourselves in a home on a creek south of Portland, Oregon with not one, but two dogs. But it was soon Ella's time to leave us after 16 good and goofy years—we still have Weezie to walk and snuggle with.
We 'officially' retired and are now writing, doing art, reading, volunteering and dreaming about the road, and writers and the friends that we made. Our writers are,for the most part, still writing and we invite you to look them up and see what they've done since our interviews. But a few of them are no longer with us: Michael Blake, Ivan Doig, Larry Engelmann, and Jim Harrison. We are honored that we got to interview them, and blessed with their friendship no matter how brief.
Will do more interviews? We don't know. But we are still doing slide presentations and talks about our adventures on the road, the writers we met and the many things we learned at group meetings, independent bookstores and libraries. If your are interested in having us come share out stories with your group, please get in touch: info@authorsroad.com
