Authors United

P.O. Box 4790

Santa Fe, NM 87502



Letter to Amazon.com, Inc. board of directors

The letter, with the list of signatories attached, was sent by Federal Express to each of the ten board members of Amazon.com, on Friday, September 19, and received on Monday, September 22. The recipients are:

Patricia Q. Stonesifer

Martha's Table

2114 14th St NW

Washington, DC 20009

Thomas O. Ryder

RPX Rational Patent

1 Market St

San Francisco, CA 94105

Tom A. Alberg

Madrona Venture Group

999 Third Avenue, 34th Floor

Seattle, WA 98104

John Seely Brown

Visiting Scholar and Advisor to the Provost at USC

University of Southern California

3601 Watt Way, GFS-315

Los Angeles, California 90089

Alain Monie

Ingram Micro Inc.

1600 E. St. Andrew Place

Santa Ana, CA 92705

Jonathan J. Rubinstein

Qualcomm Incorporated

500 Somerset Corporate Blvd

Bridgewater, NJ 08807

William Gordon

Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers

2750 Sand Hill Road

Menlo Park, CA 94025

Jamie Gorelick

Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP

1875 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20006

Judy McGrath

President, Astronauts Wanted

550 Madison Avenue

New York, NY 10022

Jeffrey P. Bezos

President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board

Amazon.com, Inc.

1200 12th Ave. South

Seattle, WA 98144

Dear [name],

We are writing to you in your capacity as a director of Amazon.com, Inc. As we all know, Amazon is involved in contract negotiations with the publisher Hachette. About six months ago, to enhance its bargaining position, Amazon began sanctioning Hachette authors' books. These sanctions included refusing preorders, delaying shipping, reducing discounting, and using pop-up windows to cover authors' pages and redirect buyers to non-Hachette books.

These sanctions have driven down Hachette authors' sales at Amazon.com by at least 50 percent and in some cases as much as 90 percent. These sales drops are occurring across the board: in hardcovers, paperbacks, and e-books. Because of Amazon's immense market share and its proprietary Kindle platform, other retailers have not made up the difference. Several thousand Hachette authors have watched their readership decline, or, in the case of new authors, have seen their books sink out of sight without finding an adequate readership. These men and women are deeply concerned about what this means for their future careers.

We urge you to review our names at the bottom of this letter. No group of authors as diverse or prominent as this has ever come together before in support of a single cause. We are literary novelists, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists, and poets; thriller writers and debut and midlist authors. We are science fiction and travel writers; historians and newspaper reporters; textbook authors and biographers and mystery writers. We have written many of your children's favorite stories. Collectively, we have sold more than a billion books. Amazon's tactics have caused us profound anguish and outrage.

Russell Grandinetti of Amazon has stated that the company was "forced to take this step because Hachette refused to come to the table." He has also claimed that "authors are the only leverage we have." As one of the world's largest corporations, Amazon was not "forced" to do anything. This is an obvious fact. We all have choices. Amazon chose to involve 2,500 Hachette authors and their books. It could end these sanctions tomorrow while continuing to negotiate. Amazon is undermining the ability of authors to support their families, pay their mortgages, and provide for their kids' college educations. We'd like to emphasize that most of us are not Hachette authors, and our concern is founded on principle, rather than self-interest.

We find it hard to believe that all members of the Amazon board approve of these actions. We would like to ask you a question: Do you as an Amazon director approve of this policy of sanctioning books?

Efforts to impede or block the sale of books have a long and ugly history. Would you, personally, want to be associated with this? We, the undersigned, feel strongly that such actions have no place in a common commercial dispute. Amazon has other negotiating tools at its disposal; it does not need to inflict harm on some of the very authors who helped it become one of the largest retailers in the world.

Our position has been consistent. We have made a great effort not to take sides. We are not against Amazon. We appreciate that Amazon sells half the books in the United States. But Amazon has repeatedly tried to dismiss us as "rich" bestselling authors who are advocating higher ebook prices—a false and unfair characterization, as most of us are in fact midlist authors struggling to make a living. And we have not made any statements whatsoever on book pricing. Our point is simple: we believe it is unacceptable for Amazon to impede or block the sale of any books as a negotiating tactic.

Amazon has every right to refuse to sell consumer goods in response to a pricing disagreement with a wholesaler. But books are not mere consumer goods. Books cannot be written more cheaply, nor can authors be outsourced to another country. Books are not toasters or televisions. Each book is the unique, quirky creation of a lonely, intense, and often expensive struggle on the part of a single individual, a person whose living depends on his or her book finding readers. This is the process Amazon endangers when it uses its tremendous power to separate authors from their readership.

There has been much talk on the Internet about how traditional publishers like Hachette are "dinosaurs" defending a moribund business model. There have been claims that Amazon is leading the way to a new publishing paradigm, one that pays authors higher royalties, allows anyone to publish, and cuts out the elitist gatekeepers. We agree that Amazon has spurred important innovations in publishing, including a self-publishing model that has given many new writers a voice.

But what these commentators and Amazon itself may not realize is that traditional publishing houses perform a vital role in our society. Publishers provide venture capital for ideas. They advance money to authors, giving them the time and freedom to write their books. This system is especially important for nonfiction writers, who often must travel for research. Thousands of times every year, publishers take a chance on unknown authors and advance them money solely on the basis of an idea. By assuming the risk, publishers expect—and receive—a financial return. What will Amazon replace this process with? How, in the Amazon model, will a young author get funding to pursue a promising idea? And what about the role of editors, copy editors, designers, and other publishing staff who ensure that what ultimately ends up on the shelf is both worthy and accurate?

We are confident that you, as an Amazon board member, prize books and freedom of expression as much as we do. Since its founding, Amazon has been a highly regarded and progressive brand. But if this is how Amazon continues to treat the literary community, how long will the company's fine reputation last? We appeal to you, with hope and goodwill, to exercise your governance and put an end to the sanctioning of books, which are the very foundation of our culture and democracy.

Sincerely,

[Each one of us listed below has read, approved, and signed this letter]

Megan Abbott

Robert H. Abel

Devin Adair

William M. Adler

Elisa Albert

William Alexander

Nubar Alexanian

Sherman Alexie

Mike Allen

Jonathan Ames

Rudolfo Anaya

Laurie Halse Anderson

Roger Angle

Carol Anshaw

Anne Applebaum

Debby Applegate

Kelley Armstrong

Rilla Askew

Rick Atkinson

James David Audlin

Paul Auster

Ellis Avery

Avi

Barbe Awalt

Gillian Bagwell

Blake Bailey

Deirdre Bair

Jo Baker

Kevin Baker

Mishell Baker

David Baldacci

Melissa Bank

Linwood Barclay

Evelyn Barish

Juliana Barnet

Rebecca Barnhouse

Nevada Barr

T. A. Barron

John M. Barry

Thomas A. Bass

Quentin Bates

Elif Batuman

Douglas Bauer

Erica Bauermeister

William Bayer

Cris Beam

Greg Bear

James Beauregard

Antony Beevor

Adam Begley

Louis Begley

Hilari Bell

Madison Smartt Bell

Martine Bellen

Sam Bellotto Jr.

Aimee Bender

Karen E. Bender

Vincent Berg

Lou J. Berger

Daniel Bergner

Bob Berman

Anne Bernays

Suzanne Berne

Lauren Beukes

George Bibel

Clara Bingham

Lisa Birnbach

Michael Bishop

Lauren Bjorkman

Holly Black

Grant Blackwood

Linda M. Bland

Meredith Bland

Judy Blankenship

David W. Blight

Carole Bloom

Cas Blomberg

Roy Blount Jr.

Judy Blundell

Charles Bock

Paul Bogard

Johnny D. Boggs

Carl T. Bogus

Chris Bohjalian

Robert M. Bolstad

Raymond Bonner

Marianne Boruch

Pseudonymous Bosch

Joanhna Bourke

Betsy Connor Bowen

Jennifer Finney Boylan

Ben Bradlee Jr.

Elizabeth L. Bradley

James Bradley

Mike Bradley

Kelly Braffet

Jess Brallier

Taylor Branch

H.W. Brands

Kylie Brant

Gary Braver

Catherine Brennan

Marie Brennan

Alan Brennert

Morgan S. Brilliant

Douglas Brinkley

Courtney Angela Brkic

Pope Brock

Laura Brodie

Lora Brody

Geraldine Brooks

Harriet Brown

Jennifer Brown

Lisa Brown

Monica Brown

Sandra Brown

Tina Brown

Jesse Browner

Bliss Broyard

Cathy Marie Buchanan

Susan Buckley

William Buckley Jr.

Marina Budhos

Christopher Buehlman

Kate Buford

Cherie Burns

Chandler Burr

Benjamin Busch

Mel Byars

Sarah Shun-lien Bynum

Ernest Bywater

Pat Cadigan

Susannah Cahalan

Chelsea Cain

Kenneth Cain

Susan Cain

Wayne Caldwell

Philip Caputo

Jacqueline Carey

Peter Ames Carlin

Ron Carlson

Robert A. Caro

Cynthia Carr

Jim Carrier

H.G. Carrillo

Betsy Carter

Mary E. Carter

Susan Casey

Carol Cassella

Brian Castner

Ernest Cerino

Michael Chabon

Will Charpentier

Thomas Chavez

Susan Cheever

Ron Chernow

Harriet Scott Chessman

Jaima Chevalier

Tracy Chevalier

Jennifer Chiaverini

Lee Child

Lincoln Child

Mark Childress

Kate Christensen

Jack Christophe

Jill Ciment

Sandra Cisneros

Stephan Eirik Clark

Breena Clarke

Antoinette Nora Claypoole

Andrew Clements

Katherine Clements

Rachel Cline

Mick Cochrane

David B. Coe

William D. Cohan

Joel Cohen

Leah Hager Cohen

Ann Patricia Coleman

Michael Collier

James Collins

Suzanne Collins

Dan Connell

Tom Connor

Christopher D. Cook

Robert Cook

Stephanie Cooke

Martha Cooley

Ellen Cooney

Karen Coody Cooper

Artemis Cooper

Constance Cooper

Jen Corace

Zizou Corder

John Cork

Douglas Corleone

Kelly Corrigan

Bruce Coville

Michael Craig

Robert Crais

Sara Creasy

Sharon Creech

Elizabeth Crook

Dave Cullen

Robert Dallek

William Dalrymple

Mark Z. Danielewski

Leslie Daniels

Jack Dann

Edwidge Danticat

Ellen Datlow

Saul David

Lauren B. Davis

Lindsey Davis

Angela Davis-Gardner

Melissa de la Cruz

Jeffery Deaver

William deBuys

Barbara Dee

Jonathan Dee

Dale DeGroff

Barbara Delinsky

Nelson DeMille

David Denby

Jerry Dennis

Hannah Dennison

William Deresiewicz

Junot Díaz

Mary Lou Dickinson

David Dobbs

Anthony Doerr

J.D. Dolan

Ben Dolnick

Edward Dolnick

Linda Donn

Beverly Donofrio

James Donovan

David R. Dow

Brendan DuBois

Andre Dubus III

Sarah Dunant

Andy Duncan

Tom Dunkel

Rebecca Edwards

Jennifer Egan

Martha Egan

Robert Eggleton

Benita Eisler

Amal El-Mohtar

Kimberly Elkins

Elissa Elliott

Abby Ellin

Carson Ellis

Joseph J. Ellis

P. N. Elrod

Ken Emerson

Alexandra Enders

Terry England

Hallie Ephron

Catherine Epstein

Helen Epstein

Mark Epstein

Pamela Erens

Mark Essig

Sir Harold Evans

Cornelia Eyssen

Anne Fadiman

James Fallows

Susan Faludi

John Feffer

Ellen Feldman

Robert Feldman

Joshua Ferris

Pamela Ferdinand

Lucy Ferriss

Amanda Filipacchi

Joseph Finder

William Finnegan

Karen Finneyfrock

Suzanne Finstad

Eric Fischl

Janet Fitch

Noël Riley Fitch

Stona Fitch

Paul Fleischman

William Flesch

Ronald Florence

R. Barri Flowers

Nick Flynn

Tom Folsom

Alison Ashley Formento

Richard Thompson Ford

Amanda Foreman

J.L. Forrest

Connie May Fowler

Karen Joy Fowler

Ruth E. Francis

Diana Pharaoh Francis

Judith Frank

Thaisa Frank

Laurie Frankel

Caroline Fraser

Laura Fraser

Ian Frazier

John Freeman

Pamela Freeman

Ru Freeman

Richard E. Friesen

Gregory Frost

Laura Furman

Neal Gabler

Peter Gadol

Amity Gaige

Mary Gaitskill

Nicole Galland

Jack Gantos

Nasario Garcia

Ben W. Gardner

Barbara Garson

Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

Jaym Gates

Alison Gaylin

Elizabeth George

Nina George

Giuseppe Gerbino

Denise Giardina

Elizabeth Gilbert

Susan Jane Gilman

Jennifer Gilmore

Kathie Giorgio

Malcolm Gladwell

Lawson Y. Glenn

Carole Glickfeld

Krystyna Poray Goddu

Peter Godwin

Glen David Gold

Arthur Golden

Stephen Goldin

Beverly Gologorsky

Arquímedes González

Brad Gooch

Alison Gopnik

Jim Gorant

Mary Gordon

Meryl Gordon

Angeline Goreau

Bill Gottlieb

Steven Gould

Philip Gourevitch

Marie Grace

Cheryl Grace

D.G. Grace

Heather Graham

Linda Grant

Elizabeth Graver

George Dawes Green

Jeff Greenwald

Dr. David H. Grinspoon

John Grisham

Lauren Groff Andrew Gross

Jane Gross

Michael Gruber

Lisa Grunwald

Talia Gryphon

Kevin Guilfoile

Melissa Guion

Philip Gulley

Allan Gurganus

Beth Gutcheon

Dan Gutman

Joyce Hackett

Mark Haddon

Steven Hahn

Loretta Hall

Karen Hall

Emma Walton Hamilton

Jane Hamilton

Masha Hamilton

Mary Stewart Hammond

Patricia Hampl

Cathi Hanauer

Elizabeth Hand

Daniel Handler

a.k.a Lemony Snicket

a.k.a Lemony Snicket Sharon Hanna

Sophie Hannah

Thor Hanson

Alyssa Harad

Elizabeth Harlan

Ann Harleman

Stephan J. Harper

Stephen Harrigan

Ellen Harris

Sam Harris

C.C. Harrison

Carolyn Hart

Chester Hartman

Aaron Hartzler

Adrianne Harun

Yona Harvey

Todd Hasak-Lowy

Molly Haskell

Lyanda Lynn Haupt

Susan Carol Hauser

Katherine B. Hauth

John Twelve Hawks

Roy Hayes

Terrance Hayes

Toby Fesler Heathcotte

Jeff Hecht

Travis Heermann

Sarah Hegger

Ursula Hegi

Charles Ota Heller

Marla Heller

Kaui Hart Hemmings

Amy Hempel

Paul Hendrickson

Joshua Henkin

Mark Henshaw

Greg Herren

Peggy Herrington

Rachel Herz

Carol DeChellis Hill

Joe Hill

Anne Hillerman

Brenda Hillman

Hilary Hinzmann

Tom Hirschfeld

Jack Hitt

Sylvia Anna Hivén

Valerie Hobbs

Mary Ann Hoberman

Sheri Holman

Rachel Holmes

Elliott Holt

Woody Holton

Kay Hooper

Ed Hoornaert

Ellen Hopkins

Deborah Hopkinson

Nalo Hopkinson

James D. Hornfischer

Shel Horowitz

Tony Horwitz

Silas House

Hugh Howard

James Howe

Del Howison

Paul Huang

Susan Hubbard

Mary Hudson

Laird Hunt

Charlayne Hunter-Gault

Gregg Hurwitz

Nancy Huston

Siri Hustvedt

Elisabeth Hyde

James Hynes

Amy Ignatow

Gerald Imber, M.D.

Susan Isaacs

Allan Ishac

Steve Jackson

Diane Jacobs

Linda Jaivin

Sandy James

Michael Jecks

Jay Jennings

Sarah Jensen

Erika Johansen

Gilbert John

Fenton Johnson

Mary Johnson

Brian Jay Jones

Daniel Jones

Judith Finn Jones

Steve Jones

Sam Jordison

Judy Joseph

S.T. Joshi

Mike Jung

Sebastian Junger

A.P. Von K'Ory

Judi Kadden

Bonita Kale

Stephanie Kallos

Robert Kanigel

Andrew Kaplan

James Kaplan

Jim Kaplan

Judy Karasik

Paul Karasik

Mary Karr

John Katzenbach

Joe Kelly

Judith Kelman

Ray Kemble

Steve Kemper

Joshua Kendall

Katrina Kenison

Brad Kessler

Frances Kiernan

Martin Kihn

Sarah S. Kilborne

Daniel M. Kimmel

A. S. King

Dave King

Lily King

Owen King

Stephen King

Tabitha King

Barbara Kingsolver

Maxine Hong Kingston

Dave Kinney

Sheril Kirshenbaum

Floris M. Kleijne

Christina Baker Kline

Alethea Kontis

Lily Koppel

Anne Korkeakivi

Michael Koryta

Sally Koslow

Alex Kotlowitz

Stephen Kotowych

Jon Krakauer

Mark Kramer

Jon Krampner

Matthew Kressel

Katherine Kurs

Dale M. Kushner

Drawk Kwast

Sandra Gail Lambert

Anne Landsman

Mara Lane

Ruth Ryan Langan

Joe Lansdale

Eve Laplante

Erik Larson

David Laskin

Barbara Kent Lawrence

Lee Adair Lawrence

Eric Lax

Roland Lazenby

Linda Lear

Nicole J. LeBoeuf

Ursula K. Le Guin

Cherie Lee

Vicki T. Lee

Joan Leegant

Con Lehane

Dennis Lehane

Jim Lehrer

Kate Lehrer

Stina Leicht

Bobbie Leigh

Thomas P. Leiker

Brad Leithauser

Dinah Lenney

Michael Lent

Anne Leonard

Christopher Leonard

Peter Lerangis

John Lescroart

Diane Leslie

Michael Lesy

Jonathan Lethem

Tom Levenson

Phillis Levin

David D. Levine

Judith Levine

Marc Levy

Jim Lewis

Michael Lewis

Norma Libman

Tom Lichtenheld

Katia Lief

Terr Light

Alan Lightman

Jane Lindskold

Elinor Lipman

Jonathan Littell

Aimee Liu

Malinda Lo

Michaele Lockhart

Lois Lowry

David Lubar

Jason Erik Lundberg

Steve Luxenberg

William Lychack

Barry Lyga

Anne Lyle

Jennifer H. Lyne

Larissa MacFarquhar

Karen Mack

Kenneth Mack

Elizabeth Macklin

Kathy Macmillan

Alexander Maksik

Katrina Maloney

Greg Mandel

Tim Manley

Annam Manthiram

Jo-Ann Mapson

Meredith Maran

David Maraniss

Paul Mariani

Regina Marler

Melissa Marr

David Marshall

William Martin

Valerie Martin

Michael J. Martinez

Nina Marie Martinez

Pete Masterson

Judith Matloff

Mark Matousek

Suzanne Matson

John Matteson

Alice Mattison

Claudia Mauro

Molly Caro May

Laurie McBride

Erin Lindsay McCabe

Donald McCaig

T.C. McCarthy

Lyn McConchie

Jack McDevitt

Richard P. McDonough

Heather McDougal

Michael McGarrity

Celia McGee

Rick McGee

Michael McGettigan

Erin McGraw

Sharon Bertsch McGrayne

Jay McInerney

Will McIntosh

Maryn McKenna

Jenn McKinlay

Chris McKitterick

Ian McMahan

Terry McMillan

Maggie Meade

Marion Meade

Jodi Meadows

Jillian Medoff

Mameve Medwed

Brian Meehl

Edie Meidav

Brad Meltzer

Daniel Menaker

Daniel Mendelsohn

Susan Scarf Merrell

T.M. Merremont

Karla Linn Merrifield

Christopher Merrill

Ashley Merryman

Claire Messud

David Michaelis

Lisa Michaels

Deborah Michel

Margaret Dubay Mikus

James Andrew Miller

Sue Miller

Lyn Miller-Lachmann

R.J. Mirabal

Edith Mirante

Robert Miskimon

Stephen Mitchell

Rana Mitter

Laura J. Mixon

Seth Mnookin

David Moles

James Monaco

Anna Monardo

Elizabeth Moon

Christopher Moore

Honor Moore

Caroline Moorehead

Harry Morales

Phyllis S. Morgan

Courtney Morgan

David Morrell

James McGrath Morris

Eleanor Morse

Paula Morton

Elise Moser

Jennifer Anne Moses

Peter Mountford

Anka Muhlstein

Marcia Muller

Meg Mullins

Manuel Muñoz

Carol Muske-Dukes

Joan Myers

Laura Nadworny

David Nasaw

A. Leo Nash

Sena Jeter Naslund

Helene Gaillet de Neergaard

Antonya Nelson

Dan Nelson

Kris Neri

Jay Neugeboren

Cal Newport

Travis Nichols

Jonathan M. Nielson

Katharine Noel

G.E. Nordell

Lisa Dale Norton

Leonard Nourse

Elizabeth Nunez

Sigrid Nunez

Carol O'Connell

Brigid O'Farrell

Maryanne O'Hara

Rick O'Keefe

Regina O'Melveny Joseph O'Neill

Michael E. O'Reilly

James O'Rourke

James O'Shea

Patricia O'Toole

Achy Obejas

Nancy Ohlin

Daniel Okrent

Sally Wendkos Olds

Helaine Olen

Karl Olsberg

Mark Olshaker

Peggy Orenstein

Peter Orner

Mary Pope Osborne

A.J. Osorio

Whitney Otto

Elizabeth Oberbeck

Ruth Ozeki

Ann Packer

ZZ Packer

Nell Painter

Ann Pancake

Sara Paretsky

T. Jefferson Parker

Thomas Trebitsch Parker

Jonathan Parshall

Ann Patchett

Dorothy Patent

Greg Patent

Joe Nick Patoski

Susan Patron

James Patterson

Richard North Patterson

Paula Paul

Peggy Payne

Jackson Pearce

Mickey Pearlman

Iain Pears

Shelley Pearsall

Ridley Pearson

Kira Peikoff

George Pelecanos

Sharon Kay Penman

Sara Pennypacker

Benjamin Percy

Tom Perrotta

Joan K. Peters

William Petrocelli

Steven Petrow

Andrew X. Pham

Rodman Philbrick

Arthur Phillips

Donald T. Phillips

Jayne Anne Phillips

Leslie Pietrzyk

Steven Pinker

Jorge Pinto

Valerie Plame

Letty Cottin Pogrebin

Lesley Poling-Kempes

Michael Pollan

Elizabeth Pomada

Maximillian Potter

Ron Powers

William Powers

Douglas Preston

Richard Preston

Bill Pronzini

Stephen Prothero

Alex Prud'homme

Philip Pullman

Tom Purdom

Joyce Purnick

Anna Quindlen

Julia Quinn

Karen Quinn

Elizabeth Raby

Linda F. Radke

Karen Jeanne Radley

Michael Raleigh

Hope Ramsay

Nic Rankin

Phyllis Raphael

Diane Ravitch

Jay Rayner

Victoria Redel

Christopher Reich

Paul Reid

Gretchen Reynolds

Andrea Reusing

Adam Rex

Paul Rhetts

Janet R. Rhodes

Dr. Sonya Rhodes

Jerome Richard

Michelle Richmond

Cynthia Riggs

Margaret Roach

David Roberts

Nora Roberts

Richard Roberts

Madeleine Robins

John B. Robinson

Kim Stanley Robinson

Roxana Robinson

Gary D. Robson

Michaela Roessner

Barbara Rogan

Morgan Callan Rogers

Katie Roiphe

Carl Rollyson

Constancia Romilly

Robin Romm

Ronald Rosbottom

Joel Rose

David S. Rose

William Rosen

Lucinda Rosenfeld

Benjamin Rosenbaum

Elizabeth Rosner

Inez Ross

Deborah J. Ross

David Rothenberg

Pat Rothfuss

Chuck Rothman

Penelope Rowlands

Elizabeth Royte

Charlie Rubin

Sarah Ruden

Michael Ruhlman

Richard Russo

Amie Ryan

R. C. Ryan

Shawna Yang Ryan

Cynthia Saltzman

Martin A. Samuels

Lynda A. Sánchez

James Sanders

Luc Sante

Esmeralda Santiago

Mark Sarvas

George Saunders

Sam Savage

Jeff Sharlet

Orville Schell

Joan Schenkar

Ron Schick

Stacy Schiff

Cathleen Schine

Paul Schmid

Susan Schneider

John Schroeder

Daniel Schulman

Deborah Schupack

Christine Schutt

Lynne Sharon Schwartz

Edward Schwarzschild

John Sedgwick

Thomas L. Segerson

Scott D. Seligman

Maria Semple

Linda Gray Sexton

Bob Shacochis

Lawrence Shainberg

Kamila Shamsie

Dani Shapiro

Susan Shapiro

Bruce Shapiro

Kathleen Sharp

Anna Sheehan

Judy Sheehan

Gail Sheehy

David Shenk

Aaron Shepard

Stratford Sherman

Mike Shevdon

Jody Shields

Charles J. Shields

Peggy Shinner

Michael Shnayerson

Gary Shockley

Jennie Shortridge

Elaine Showalter

Anita Shreve

Susan Shreve

Alix Kates Shulman

Hampton Sides

Larry Siems

Joan Silber

Peter Silver

Kenneth Silverman

Dan Simmons

April Sinclair

Leora Skolkin-Smith

Holly Goldberg Sloan

Gillian Slovo

Jane Smiley

Anne Easter Smith

April Smith

Dwayne Alexander Smith

Lane Smith

Marion Roach Smith

Mark Haskell Smith

Sally Bedell Smith

Sharon Snyder

Amy Sohn

Andrew Solomon

Deborah Solomon

Sherri Somerville

Sandi Sonnenfeld

William Souder

Debra Spark

Scott Spencer

Mario Spezi

Dana Spiotta

Hilary Spurling

Walter Stahr

Nancy Star

Lynn Stegner

Garth Stein

Thomas Steinbeck

Sabra Brown Steinsiek

Leslie Stella

John Stephens

Sydney Ladensohn Stern

Ian Stewart

T.J. Stiles

Alexander Stille

S.M. Stirling

John E. Stith

Rebecca Stott

Peter Straub

Cheryl Strayed

Elizabeth Strout

Nancy Rubin Stuart

Elizabeth Stuckey-French

Ned Stuckey-French

Michael A. Stusser

Alexandra Styron

Cheryl Sucher

Mark Sullivan

Ellen Sussman

Robert I. Sutton

Terese Svoboda

Kiki Swanson

Michael Swanwick

Alison Sweeney

Jon M. Sweeney

Will Swift

Rachel Swirsky

Sam Swope

David Tabatsky

Marc Talbert

David Tallerman

Cecilia Tan

Dominic Tarn

Donna Tartt

Nick Taylor

Catherine Texier

Phyllis Theroux

Evan Thomas

David Thurlo

Lynne Tillman

Amy Timberlake

M.K. Tod

Tabatha A. Tower

Peter Trachtenberg

James Treadwell

Rose Tremain

Benjamin Treuhaft

Jonathan Tropper

Lily Tuck

Kenneth Turan

William A. Turnage

Ann Turner

Matthew Paul Turner

Scott Turow

Frederic Tuten

Cameron Tuttle

Gene Twaronite

Rachel Urquhart

Rachel Vail

Amanda Vaill

Neela Vaswani

Patrice Vecchione

John Vernon

Judith Viorst

Milton Viorst

Patricia Volk

Helena Maria Viramontes

Ken Wachsberger

Diana Wagman

Wendy Wagner

Dan Wakefield

Amy Waldman

Ayelet Waldman

Samuel Walker

Allison Wallace

Benjamin Wallace

Carol Wallace

Candace Walsh

Jess Walter

Geoffrey C. Ward

Tricia Ware

Melanie Warner

Frank Warren

Rosanna Warren

Elisabeth Waters

Ian Watson

Beck Weathers

Eric Weiner

Alan Weisman

Katherine Weissman

Rebecca Wells

Marcia Wendorf

Skeeter Wesinger

Carol Weston

Stephen White

Dean Whitlock

Jutta Wilke

Robert Willgren

Thomas A. Williams

Florence Williams

Cheryl Wilson

Robley Wilson

Simon Winchester

Terri Windling

Brenda Wineapple

Elizabeth Hartley Winthrop

Kit Wohl

Mary Wolf

Linda Wolfe

Tobias Wolff

Hilma Wolitzer

Meg Wolitzer

Patricia Smith Wood

Monica Wood

Summer Wood

Stuart Woods

Barbara Wright

Lawrence Wright

Dulce Xerach

Lois-Ann Yamanaka

Linda Yellin

Natasha Yim

Jane Yolen

Louisa Young

Robert Clark Young

Caroline Yourcheck

Barry Yourgrau

Cynthia Zarin

Michael Zeilik

Thomas Zigal

Peter von Ziegesar

Richard Zimler

Michelle Zink

Mitchell Zuckoff

Kerry Zukus

Maritess Zurbano

Markus Zusak

Next: A Letter to Our Readers