How to write a biography, with Benjamin Moser

In conversation with Pamela Druckerman

What’s it like to be a man who writes about women? Why are women’s life stories different from those of men? How does Ben choose his subjects, and what’s it like to spend years immersed in their diaries and emails? Direct from quarantine in France, American Benjamin Moser -- Pulitzer-Prize-winning biographer of Susan Sontag and Clarice Lispector -- gives advice to writers and share his experience with readers of all ages.

Benjamin Moser is the author of the Pulitzer-winning Sontag: Her Life and Work. He was a finalist for the National Book Critics’ Circle Award and a New York Times Notable Book of 2009 award, and received Brazil’s first State Prize for Cultural Diplomacy. He won a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2017.

Pamela Druckerman is the author of five books, including the forthcoming rhyming picture book for children Paris by Phone.