Rules of Engagement
My world is increasingly filled with people who write. Perhaps this is only a matter of perspective: I remember the early days of my first pregnancy when London was suddenly crammed with pregnant women and babies, even though the official demographics show no sudden increase in births that year. Now, the streets of Cambridge are awash with writers: every backpack carries pages of a half-written memoir; every laptop opened on the coffee shop tables contains a novel which is nearing completion; the neighbor pushing his son on the swing at the park is a New York Times best-selling author. On subway journeys and in line for the bus, I eavesdrop shamelessly and conversations are filled with references to publishers and editors, allusions to dramatic devices, and bald statements about preferable narrative styles. I share my work across a range of communities. Each Monday I spend a few hours with a collection of ladies who write exquisitely formed memoirs and encourage me to write a nove