SEJournal Online is the digital news magazine of the Society of Environmental Journalists. Learn more about SEJournal Online, including submission, subscription and advertising information.
The 'Unreadable' Thing: John McPhee On The Craft Of Writing
By HOWARD BERKES
You might think writing comes easy to John McPhee.
He's been at it more than 40 years, after all, producing 27 books, writing for The New Yorker since 1964 and teaching writing at Princeton since 1975. And, oh yes, he has that Pulitzer Prize. All those years and words and accomplishments ought to add up to confidence – even hubris, perhaps – when turning a sea of complex detail, facts and characters into smoothly flowing narrative.