April 14, 2010 Richard Bausch has never read a book of advice about writing fiction, and yet his novels and short-stories—not even to mention his writing awards—could fill a small library. In this month’s issue of The Atlantic, Bausch explains why he distrusts the vast, ever-growing, and frequently bestselling genre of how-to manuals for aspiring writers. Along the way, he makes a passionate and moving case for reading actual writers, the masters of their craft, instead:

April 14, 2010 Early adopters take note, Jay McInerney half-blogs his initial response to Apple's iPad over at The Daily Beast. Along the way, he opines on Amazon vs. Apple, quantifies his travel reading requirements, and questions the holiness of print. "I don't consider the magazine, as a physical object, to be sacred. It's that it's always been so much more convenient than its online incarnation." Not so much, anymore, McInerney says, now that the Fall issue of Vanity Fair in print and on the iPad are more-or-less the same size and weight.

April 13, 2010 Author T.J. Stiles has already received the National Book Award among other honors for his bestselling book, The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt. The Pulitzer Prize Board added to the acclaim by naming Stiles the winner in this year’s Biography category.

In announcing the honor, the Pulitzer committee called the book “a penetrating portrait of a complex, self-made titan who revolutionized transportation, amassed vast wealth and shaped the economic world in ways still felt today.”