By Mary Klest

Neil King Jr., author of American Ramble and former journalist at the Wall Street Journal, walked into Barrington’s White House with a smile on his face and a backpack slung on his left shoulder. His book describes a journey he took on foot from Washington DC to New York City. After many interviews with newspapers and tv, he was excited to talk with members of the Barrington Writers Workshop about the craft of writing. This was his first and thus far only writers group audience. In an intimate setting he began by telling us that his interest in observation was with him even as a boy. He kept a journal and chronicled his days. After leaving the WSJ and having received a cancer diagnosis, he intended to explore a more personal form of writing and living simply with focused attention during his walk. But the pandemic delayed his start date for a year.

Neil King Jr. talking with members of the Barrington Writers Workshop at Barrington’s White House.

I’ve broken down some of the key ideas he talked about that we as writers can all benefit from. BWW members in attendance can share some of their take-aways in the comment box below. Here are some of mine. Continue reading →