This book explores the conflicted relationship writers have with their public image, particularly when they have written about their personal lives. D'Amore analyzes the autobiographical works of Norman Mailer, John Edgar Wideman, and Dave Eggers in light of theories of authorship, autobiography, and celebrity.

'American Authorship and Autobiographical Narrative makes an important and timely contribution to criticism through a careful, well-informed exploration of the relationships between authorship and celebrity in the contemporary United States. D'Amore offers shrewd analyses of the contested intersections of privacy and publicity inherent in the life writing of Norman Mailer, John Wideman, and Dave Eggers and in their ascension to iconic status in the literary world.' - William L. Andrews, E. Maynard Adams Professor of English, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Autorentext
Jonathan D Amore is a lecturer in the Department of English at St. Michael s College in Colchester, Vermont, where he teaches courses in writing, life narratives, and American literature.

Inhalt
Norman Mailer's Existential Autobiography Process and Play in 'Great Time': John Edgar Wideman's Interactive Autobiographical Project 'But Self-Awareness Is Sincerity': Authorship and Exposure, Irony and Earnestness, Dave Eggers and A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius