Episode 49 - Walter Mosley

Photo Credit: Marcia Wilson

I could have talked to Walter Mosley about books, his career, and just life in general for hours. We recently chatted via phone about his new short story collection, The Awkward Black Man, which was published in September.

The Awkward Black Man highlights those nerdy guys who don't often get the girl, the ones who are uncomfortable at parties, and who, despite being highly intelligent, make a mess of things at work because they don't read social cues well.

Walter has been in the game for a long time, and he has a lot of strong opinions about things. We discussed everything from the pandemic, to the importance of rereading and why he's no fan of Nathaniel Hawthorne.

We also discussed the National Book Foundation's decision to award him the 2020 medal for distinguished contribution to American letters. He's the first Black man to ever receive the honor, which he says shows that America has changed.

Walter and I talked ahead of his appearance at the first all-virtual Miami Book Fair on November 21.

Interview highlights: Walter reveals...

- why he was surprised when he heard about the National Book Foundation award

- how he gets so much writing done

- why he doesn't hesitate to toss a book aside if it's not working for him

Click here to listen to the episode. You can also help Walter and ReadMore by purchasing the book here.

During our interview, Walter said he was reading a biography about an artist. We'll send a free copy of The Awkward Black Man to the first person to reach out to us on Twitter or Facebook to tell us the name of the artist.

If you have a won a ReadMore giveaway in the last 90 days, you are ineligible for this giveaway. Or, if you and I ever attended VBS together, you're probably ineligible. ReadMore does not have a friends and family plan! But we'll always have those special memories of those cookies and punch in the basement of FBC.