2026 Reading Challenge

Ask the Author: David Wineberg

“My book The Straight Dope is currently free for Prime members. A no-lose proposition. Have at it, and write review!” David Wineberg

Answered Questions (9)

Sort By:
Loading big
An error occurred while sorting questions for author David Wineberg.
What’s the best thing about being a writer?
David Wineberg The groupies waiting outside the window.
flag
How do you deal with writer’s block?
David Wineberg I go away and read something really annoying. Works every time.
flag
Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?
David Wineberg I had piled up about a thousand reviews at about 1600 words apiece. I needed to find something productive to do with them. So I refashioned portions of them into a series of essays by topic.
flag
Can you tell us a two-sentence horror story?
David Wineberg Donald Trump won. Then he lost, but it took four years of horror for the whole world.
flag
What mystery in your own life could be a plot for a book?
David Wineberg I wanted a divorce, but my religion did not permit it. Couldn't figure out how to extricate myself from this pointless relationship. Then I invented my own religion and divorced my wife. I had her beheaded just to be safe. You can never be too sure in these things.
flag
Thanks for your prompt response and the informative supporting background. I used histoir as the genre of a nonfiction book I wrote in response to my grandson's question about my life as a slave, combining our ancestors' history with my coming-of-age memoir. Some of the vignettes I used are also in Caste. Does this make sense?
David Wineberg If you can make it work, that's all that matters.
flag
Hello Mr. Wineberg, What do you think about coining a new literary genre, known as a histoir: a combined history and memoir in which the protagonist explores the effects of specific eras on a family?
David Wineberg I think this is already used by "historical fiction", where the events of the era are used to frame a biography or narrative. Chekhov, for example, was all about the effects of an era on his family of characters. It can be a very deep analysis of the era, done well.
flag
David I'm a fan of your reviews and would like to propose something. I started a Youtube Live book club called 99pages (99pagesclub.com) with the mission of making nonfiction reading fun and achievable for all. We read 99 pages weekly and have a panel discussion each week. We just did a series on Five Days by Wes Moore. Curious if you'd be open to connecting on this project and potentially joining a panel on Caste?
David Wineberg That's a lovely invitation, but wouldn't it be much better to invite the author? She's out there looking for these kinds of opportunities, while I would only provide a third hand summary or my take on her words. It would make it easier to promote the panel, too.
flag
Just finished "Ingredients" and I agree with your review. Zaiden also ignores the fact that people who have medically diagnosed issues (high cholesterol, diabetes, fatty liver) will benefit from some lifestyle and diet changes more than the average person?
David Wineberg Yes, you're right. You should paste this as a response to the review itself.
flag
David Wineberg
875 followers
To ask David Wineberg a question, please sign up.

About Goodreads Q&A

Ask and answer questions about books!

You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.

See Featured Authors Answering Questions

Learn more