One of the hottest books over the last couple of months has been Erik Larson’s The Splendid and the Vile. After several weeks at number 1, it’s currently number 2 on the NY Times list of Nonfiction Best Sellers. As the book’s subtitle declares, it is “A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz.”
 
I’ve been a fan of Erik Larson for years, and have read or listened to his previous 5 books (including The Devil in the White City, Dead Wake and Isaac’s Storm). His book tour for The Splendid and the Vile was supposed to include a stop outside of Philadelphia in mid-March. I was looking forward to attending … until his tour ended abruptly for obvious reasons.
 
He did a web session last night – a free-flowing conversation with novelist Christina Baker Kline who is a personal friend of his, followed by a Q&A session (with questions submitted by email).
 

Of course I was enthralled during the entire event. (I mean … Winston Churchill and Erik Larson … c’mon)! He actually answered a question that I submitted (more about that below), but the real highlight for me – and the thing I want to share with you - was his answer to someone else’s question.
 
I forget the exact wording, but someone asked Mr. Larson about the biggest surprise that he discovered during his research. He mentioned two surprises. The second was the existence of Mass Observation (a massive, diary-driven running survey of everyday life and opinions in Britain). The first surprise that he mentioned was the attack by the British fleet on the French fleet at the beginning of the war.
 
Since the story of that attack is the core of the story I’m writing, I was absolutely pumped. You know, I might just be on to something.
 
Of course I then had that  “Oh God, what if Erik Larson decides to write that story?” reaction. Fortunately, in response to one of the final questions, he said he doesn’t plan to write about Churchill again … and it would be impossible to write that story without featuring Winston Churchill.
 
After doing extensive research, I literally (no pun intended) have thousands of different sources to draw upon. My question to Erik Larson was a geeky writerly question about how he keeps track of those sources for ultimate use in his attributions and footnotes during the course of his writing. He was kind enough to humor that question with an incredibly helpful account of the process that he uses. OK, Christina Baker Kline immediately followed up with: “Thanks Erik. I now have an interesting question to ask you …” But that was OK. My night – probably my week – had already been made.
 
I hope your week is going at least as well as mine.
 
Bill