Ted Conover's Blog

I wrote for the New York Times Magazine about immigration and politics in Aurora, Colorado—a suburb where years ago I worked as a newspaper intern. Back then, I wrote a feature about an “outstanding immigrant”—a senior citizen from Finland! These days Aurora is much more diverse. Colorado’s third-largest city, it’s about half non-white and the kids in its public schools speak 160 languages.

In Fall 2024, right before the presidential election, doorbell cam video from inside a rough apartment complex went viral. It featured a number of young men with guns, apparently hunting somebody—another immigrant they found and killed about ten minutes later. The left-leaning powers-that-be denied there could be a major gang problem, while right-leaning politicians, and a certain MAGA candidate, played it up as evidence of a “criminal invasion” of our cities. The truth, predictably, lay in the middle, but the way it all came down makes for a pretty fascinating story.

The post Immigrants & Politics in Aurora appeared first on Ted Conover.

I wrote an essay for The Common about a poet I first discovered in seventh grade English class. Richard Brautigan, in that poem, seemed to be speaking directly to me—that made me remember him, and when I saw that he had written a novel, In Watermelon Sugar, I devoured it. And kept on devouring, as he wrote new books.

Check out the essay if you’re a Brautigan fan, or even if you’ve revisited some writing that once enchanted you and later you think, hmmm … have I changed or has this changed, somehow?

Books of Richard Brautigan

The post Reconsidering My Weirdo Hero appeared first on Ted Conover.

Writing a book is a little bit like having a kid … once it leaves home, you don’t know really where it will go. My book Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing, now 25 years old, recently was translated into Catalán, thanks to an enterprising publisher in Barcelona called Saldonar. A TV talk show there heard about it and brought me over for an interview in January. (Starts about 30 seconds in. Alternate link here—sorry about the ads.)

The post Going on a talk show in Barcelona appeared first on Ted Conover.

Writing a book is a little bit like having a kid … once it leaves home, you don’t know really where it will go. My book Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing, now 25 years old, recently was translated into Catalán, thanks to an enterprising publisher in Barcelona called Saldonar. A TV talk show there heard about it and brought me over for an interview in January. (Starts about 30 seconds in. Alternate link here—sorry about the ads.)

The post Visiting a talk show in Barcelona appeared first on Ted Conover.

My book Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing recounts the ten months I spent working in the famous prison as a corrections officer. British GQ called to ask my opinion of the movie, which follows a group of prisoners as they stage plays for the public. (Short answer: you should see it!) The article they wrote is here. More on Newjack is here.

The post The new “Sing Sing” movie appeared first on Ted Conover.

An esteemed publisher invited me to lunch with his staff in the Financial District to talk about what I do. David Steinberger and his team asked great questions and later asked if he could put the conversation online. I like the result, here or wherever you get your podcasts.

The post Open Book podcast episode appeared first on Ted Conover.

An esteemed publisher invited me to lunch with his staff in the Financial District to talk about what I do. David Steinberger and his team asked great questions and later asked if he could put the conversation online. I like the result, here or wherever you get your podcasts.

The post Good new podcast episode appeared first on Ted Conover.

The Vintage Books paperback edition of Cheap Land Colorado comes out on July 30, 2024. It features a new epilogue with updates on the main people in the book.

Here are the places I’m scheduled to read from and sign copies of this new edition:

Tuesday, July 30, 6:00pm
NARROW GAUGE BOOKS AT MILAGROS COFFEE HOUSE
529 Main Street
Alamosa, Colorado

Wednesday, July 31, 6:00pm
OLD FIREHOUSE BOOKS
232 Walnut Street
Fort Collins, Colorado

Thursday, August 1, 6:00pm
THE BOOKWORM OF EDWARDS
295 Main Street, C101
Edwards, Colorado

Friday, August 2, 2024, 5:30pm
PAONIA BOOKS
233 Grand Avenue
Paonia, Colorado

Saturday, August 3, 2024, 4:00pm
EXPLORE BOOKSELLERS
*in conversation with Paul Andersen*
221 East Main Street
Aspen, Colorado

Wednesday, October 2, 7:00pm
MAGIC CITY BOOKS LLC
221 E. Archer St.
Tulsa, Oklahoma

Wednesday, October 9
BOOK CLUB SALIDA
Venue: A Church, 419 D Street
Salida, Colorado
(doors open 5:30, talk/slides/Q&A at 6:30)
Note: ticketed event, info will be here

The post New paperback edition appeared first on Ted Conover.

Talon Vance, 13, was taken by his mother and aunt from a suburban apartment to squat in a Colorado forest at 10,000 feet. The mom, frightened by conspiracy theories, wanted to keep him safe. I wrote about this puzzling tragedy for Outside magazine.

The post A family tragedy off-grid appeared first on Ted Conover.

I thoroughly enjoyed my conversation with writer Lisa Wells, recently out in The Common.

Here are some places I’m excited to be speaking this summer and fall:

Weds, May 24, 7:00pm
READING AT INKBERRY BOOKS
Cottonwood Shopping Center
Niwot, Colorado

Friday, May 26 (9am) and Saturday, May 27 (9am, 2pm and 7pm)
MOUNTAIN WORDS FESTIVAL
Crested Butte, Colorado

Tuesday, May 30, 6:00pm
FORT GARLAND MUSEUM TALK
Fort Garland Museum & Cultural Center, Fort Garland, Colorado

Friday, June 2, 2023
GRAND COUNTY LIBRARY | ONE GRAND BOOK
Granby, Colorado

Friday, June 23, 2023, 9:00am
JACKSON HOLE WRITERS CONFERENCE | MORNING KEYNOTE
Jackson Hole, Wyoming

Weds, June 28, 2023, 7:00pm
ONE BOOK STEAMBOAT AUTHOR TALK
Library Hall, Steamboat Springs, Colorado

Weds, August 2, 2023, 6:00PM
OFF-GRIDDERS: STAKING A CLAIM IN THE SAN LUIS VALLEY
Surf Hotel in Buena Vista, Colorado

Weds, September 29, 2023, 10:30AM
OWNING A PIECE OF “CHEAP LAND COLORADO”
SunFest, Auroria Campus, downtown Denver

The post more 2023 events appeared first on Ted Conover.