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Robert Jacoby

Goodreads Author

Born

Euclid, Ohio, The United States

Website

http://www.robert-jacoby.com

Genre

Poetry, Literature & Fiction, Biographies & Memoirs

Influences

Flannery O'Connor, Joseph Conrad, Dylan Thomas, William Goyen ...more

Member Since

February 2011

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Robert Jacoby is a poet, novelist, memoirist, and lifelong journaler. His work explores memory, faith, trauma, and the long work of making a life through words.

He is the author of four books, including the novels There Are Reasons Noah Packed No Clothes and Dusk and Ember, and the nonfiction works Never Stop Dancing: A Memoir and Escaping from Reality Without Really Trying.

There Are Reasons Noah Packed No Clothes
Dusk and Ember
Never Stop Dancing: A Memoir
Escaping from Reality Without Really Trying

His poetry, fiction, and nonfiction have appeared in more than twenty literary magazines, and his flash fiction piece “The Span of Blood” was selected as runner-up in the 2018 Hau ...more

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Popular Answered Questions

How do you deal with writer’s block?

Robert Jacoby I don't know what writer's block is. …moreI don't know what writer's block is. (less)

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I am keen on your new book which is available to read on NetGalley. However, I note that in your earlier work it says: " is the story of 19-year-old Richard Issych, " - There are Reasons Noah Packed No Clothes was published in 2012 and Dusk and Ember due out later this year has 19-year-old Richard Issych, I'm thinking I need to read Noah first and wonder if he'll ever reach 20? I like to read chronologically.

Robert Jacoby Hi Richard,

Thank you for your interest in my new novel, "Dusk and Ember," and thank you for asking this important question.

The short answer is: It may…moreHi Richard,

Thank you for your interest in my new novel, "Dusk and Ember," and thank you for asking this important question.

The short answer is: It may be best to read the books in the order I wrote them. In that case, yes, read “There Are Reasons Noah Packed No Clothes” (2012) before you read “Dusk and Ember” (2019).

My long explanation is (and without giving too much away—no spoiler alerts here—it’s safe to continue reading):

Most of the action in the new novel “Dusk and Ember” takes place about 6 months before the novel “Noah.” I say “most of the action” because I do make use of flashbacks to present back story, in both novels, and there is some overlap. How could there not be? It’s the same character. But as I started working on "Dusk and Ember" (the new novel), I did not return much to the old novel (“Noah”) to check on this or that detail of a memory. This was deliberate because I wanted to convey the sense of our fluid memories, of how we can have different takes on a past event from a different point in our future lives. I also very much intended for both novels to stand alone as their own separate works. In other words, for me, it’s not necessary to read them “in chronological order”; that is, “Dusk and Ember” first and “Noah” second. If someone does that and finds “errors” in the recollections, the memories, of the character, that’s on me. Chalk it up to human fallibility and our faulty memories, of me and the fictional character.

Will Richard ever reach 20? I like to think so.

Will I ever write about him again? I don’t think so. I never intended to make a series with the character Richard Issych and his world. But I can’t say for sure. If you’d like a little more on this, read my “Letter to My Editor,” which I wrote soon after completing work on Dusk and Ember, here: https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog....

Again, thank you for asking this important question. I’m sure I’ll need to refer to my response here as more people discover my books. :)(less)

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Robert Jacoby’s books

Average rating: 3.66 · 158 ratings · 84 reviews · 4 distinct works

	There are Reasons Noah Packed No Clothes 3.60 avg rating — 63 ratings — published 2012 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Never Stop Dancing: A Memoir by John Robinette (Goodreads Author), Robert Jacoby (Goodreads Author) 4.62 avg rating — 37 ratings — published 2019 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Escaping from Reality Without Really Trying: 40 Years of High Seas Travels and Lowbrow Tales 3.42 avg rating — 36 ratings — published 2011 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Dusk and Ember 2.88 avg rating — 25 ratings — published 2019 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

* Note: these are all the books on Goodreads for this author. To add more, click here.

150 posts
Robert Jacoby's Blog

Why (I) Write

I’ve published the first essay in an open-ended series about why I write—how it began, what it has cost me, and why I’ve never been able to stop.

This first piece looks back to the beginning.

You can read it here: https://rajacoby.substack.com/p/why-i...

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Published on January 05, 2026 04:08 • Tags: writing

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Robert is Currently Reading

Robert Jacoby is currently reading

The Art of War—Spirituality for Conflict: Annotated & Explained

by Thomas Cuong Huynh (Goodreads Author)

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Dec 22, 2019 01:28PM

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The Republic of Plato

by Plato

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The Metamorphoses

by Ovid

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Dec 01, 2019 01:20PM

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Robert’s Recent Updates

Robert Jacoby wrote a new blog post Why (I) Write I’ve published the first essay in an open-ended series about why I write—how it began, what it has cost me, and why I’ve never been able to stop. This Read more of this blog post »
Jan 05, 2026 04:08AM · like

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Quotes by Robert Jacoby (?)

“Everyone uses their own dictionary.”
― Robert Jacoby, There are Reasons Noah Packed No Clothes

5 likes

“The way I always kind of look at it: everything’s important and nothing’s important. If you’re gonna have a drama, have it over something that’s worth the time. Some people take it more seriously than others, like a Lowell. But we all end up the same.”
― Robert Jacoby, Escaping from Reality Without Really Trying: 40 Years of High Seas Travels and Lowbrow Tales

2 likes

“The human race puzzles me, with striving for freedom, and then basically just giving it away.”
― Robert Jacoby, Escaping from Reality Without Really Trying: 40 Years of High Seas Travels and Lowbrow Tales

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Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Making Connections: 15. ESCAPING FROM REALITY WITHOUT REALLY TRYING: 40 YEARS OF HIGH SEAS TRAVELS AND LOWBROWS TALES by Robert Jacoby	4	33	Jan 11, 2012 01:15PM
Making Connections: 536. ESCAPING FROM REALITY WITHOUT REALLY TRYING: 40 YEARS OF HIGH SEAS TRAVELS AND LOWBROWS TALES by Robert Jacoby	3	59	Oct 17, 2012 03:37PM
Indie Book Club: Need a Review?	374	286	Apr 15, 2013 02:46PM
Making Connections: 640. THERE ARE REASONS NOAH PACKED NO CLOTHES by Robert Jacoby	3	160	Aug 19, 2014 01:32AM

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Robert’s Quotes

“Perceptive observers saw civilization thinned to a mere veneer, with barbarism surging just beneath the surface, straining for release.”
― Bruce Brander, Staring into Chaos: Explorations in the Decline of Western Civilization

tags: end-of-the-west

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“Everyone uses their own dictionary.”
― Robert Jacoby, There are Reasons Noah Packed No Clothes

5 likes

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“An interesting captain on there, McNamara. Th e United States Lines had three captains. Every company had their captains that were notorious, and U.S. Lines had McNamara. Later on, McNamara, he dies, and the Wilmington Union Hall for Masters, Mates and Pilots—cuz he was captain, he would come out of that hall—they had a party
when he died. Baked a cake.
It wasn’t every day you got to lose one like him.
Some people took this more seriously than others is the only way I can phrase this.”
― Robert Jacoby, Escaping from Reality Without Really Trying: 40 Years of High Seas Travels and Lowbrow Tales

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