The Village Voice

A Village Voice editor stripped the academic habits out of Neil Strauss's writing. Strauss's first editor at the Village Voice said they had to brush the academic dust off his writing, which still read like school essays. Being edited by someone with a reputation at stake changed how he wrote.

Strauss, author of The Game, now asks his editors what recurs throughout his work. A small pattern, such as writing "the reason is because", can change his writing for good. He values editors whose name rides on the piece. His question: "Is there something you notice that recurs throughout?"

How I Write▶ 1:13:38