Birthdays: Mary Boykin Chestnut (1823), William Dean Howells (1837), Lytton Strachey (1880), William Lederer (1912), Ralph Ellison (1913 or14?), Octavio Paz (1914), Robert Lowell (1917), Richard Wilbur (1921), Leo Buscaglia (1924), John Fowles (1926), Beni Montresor (1926), John Jakes (1932), Judith Rossner (1935), Marge Piercy (1936), Robert Hass (1941), Jim Crace (1946), Ian McDonald (1960)

Octavio Paz won the 1990 Nobel Prize for Literature.

William Lederer is best known for his book “The Ugly American”

John Fowles is best known for his book “The French Lieutenant’s Woman”

John Jakes is noted for his series “North and South”

Judith Rossner is best known for her book “Looking for Mr. Goodbar”

Quote: “Words are your business, boy. Not just the word. Words are everything. The key to the rock, the answer to the question.” – Ralph Ellison

Tip: Most readers identify with the first character they encounter. Make sure this is your main character. Jumpstart: You’ve moved to a new home. While doing some cleaning, you find a loose board in a closet. You pry the board up and find…