Ten tips from decades of reading—and interviewing—the master — This story is behind Medium’s membership paywall, which means the writer earns through our Partner Program. To become a Medium member, click here. I arranged to meet Joan Didion in 1971 after reading Slouching Toward Bethlehem. I found her essays hypnotic, in a voice I’d never heard, expressing with clarity…

How to find the gift in a difficult mom — I was reluctant, at first, when asked to be a guest on the podcast, Our Mothers Ourselves. Other guests had raved about their mothers’ inspiring qualities and unconditional love. My mother, Alice Davidson, however, was the quintessential Jewish mother — critical, dominant — who never seemed satisfied with what I…

What happens when a new technology is so disruptive that secrets long buried are unearthed, creating havoc and, in some cases, wonder? — Back in the 80’s, before we had internet or mobile phones, I created a TV series on ABC called HeartBeat, about a group of women ob-gyns. After hanging around their office, I wrote an episode about an orthodox Jewish couple having fertility problems. The doctor asks if they would consider…

Tips from a literary journalist — I’ve been a reporter since the ’60s, when “Literary journalism” was being created by writers such as Tom Wolfe, Hunter Thompson, and Joan Didion, with whom I had long talks about writing. I’ve published more than a hundred magazine articles, written dozens of TV shows and nine books, including the…

You hate the company but can’t stop ordering — I love Amazon. But it’s becoming a guilty love, an addiction. It began as a crush in 1995 when Amazon started selling books online. Then came the Kindle in 2007, and I found that I enjoyed reading books on it, although some of my peers refused to do so. I…

What a woman in her seventies has learned from dating in the time of Covid — In March, when the stay-at-home order came down with a thud, I found myself in a relationship that quickly became more intense and consuming than any I’d had for a decade. In my seventies, I’d recently met a man on a dating site who seemed “possible,” if not a perfect…

It helps to think of them as a younger person — This story is part of How to Talk to Anyone, Forge’s guide to moving past the chitchat and truly connecting. When asked to write this piece, I thought it was about talking to people older than I am: people in their eighties or nineties. …

Every so often, I come across a human story that rivets me. Here’s one. Nayla Tawa, a lanky brunette with large blue eyes, was an extreme snowboarder. She flew to Kyrgyzstan to go boarding in uncharted mountains, and to make a film about villagers who were trying to create a…