Adam Freedman won Mayhaven's Award for Fiction with a collection of his short stories, Elated By Details.He is both an attorney and an author, and lives in Brooklyn, New York with his wife.
His second book, The Party of the First Part, a nonfiction work, was given a glowing review by William Safire in the New York TImes.
We are proud to work with such fine authors.
Elated By Details, your collection of very funny short stories, won Mayhaven's Awards for Fiction. Was this your first published work?
Elated By Details was my first published book, although I had published many articles - essays, humor, and travel pieces - over the years.
Were the stories written over time?
I wrote the stories over a period of about a year and a half.
I know you had other stories you could have included, what caused you to select the ones you did?
The stories I selected tended to have similar themes - arrested development, permanent adolescence, the power of delusional thinking - and narrators who were smart-alecky dreamers.
You live in Brooklyn, but where did you grow up?
I grew up in Chicago.
Did your childhood obviously influence your writing?
I draw on all life experiences in my writing - because I'll take all the help I can get. Certainly the early adult years have a special fascination for me, as seen in the title story of Elated By Details.
When did you start writing?
I started writing fiction in 1994.
Was it something you pursued in college?
No, I was long gone from college by then. I did do a fair amount of student journalism in college, but I had no interest in creative writing.
You write funny. Mayhaven is offered many manuscripts. Few of them are funny. When did you realize you could do that successfully?
When David Sedaris took me out to lunch and said that he worshipped me. Actually, writing humor isn't so much a choice as an imperative. Every time I try to write something "straight" it always veers off into satire.
Your unique descriptions of the characters in your stories make them remarkably clear to the reader. Are you a people watcher?
Who isn't? I used to love to eat in restaurants alone, pretend to read a book, and listen to the conversations. And then the police got suspicious.
I'm not surprised. Your stories reflect several cultures. Can you tell us a bit about that?
A lot of great stories (or at least great story ideas) come from a clash of cultures, and my own background draws me to such stories. My parents are British and Jewish, I grew up in the Midwest, but settled on the East Coast - and now I'm married to an Irish Catholic girl from Boston. The mind reels...
You are also an attorney. When do you find time to write?
Always a challenge. Sometimes in the mornings - believe it or not - before work. Weekends, too. A lot of my best work is done on vacation time - I'll rent a cottage in the country. I never write in the evenings.
Elated By Details is a collection of your short stories. What other kinds of writing are presently underway?
I'm working on a novel.
What kind of advice would you give to a young writer?
Read as many great books as you can. Figure out what you like - you can only write the kind of book that you would like to read.
—Information on Freedman—
Adam Freedman is getting glowing reviews from a number of sources. The latest, (www.bookslut.com) includes the following from a considerably longer review:
"Fluff pieces aside, Elated by Details is a superb debut collection. Striking a balance between light-headedness and "serious" storytelling, Freedman establishes himself firmly a contemporary storyteller with an ability to bring characters to life. Few contemporary short story writers have the skills (or ambitions) of Freedman, and one can only hope that a second collection will be forthcoming.
The Midwest Book Review: "Elated by Details reads in a deliciously extravagant and indulgent manner, luring one in for more despite the compelling grip of self-destructive human nature that so pervades the tongue-in-cheek tales." The New York Resident magazine recently carried a full-page author profile, noting Elated By Details "discusses very palpable feelings and human interactions."
Freedman was a featured guest on the "Joey Reynolds Show," a nationally syndicated talk radio show originating from WOR 710 AM in New York, and he was the featured speaker at the "Writer's Boot Camp" a writing workshop in both LA and NY. He is also being interviewed for the New York Resident, a community newspaper in Manhattan.
By the way, Freedman has developed a set of "reading group discussion questions" for other interested groups.
For up-to-date news, reviews, and appearances, please visit Freedman's website at http://www.adamfreedman.net adamjfreedman@yahoo.com