this month we are pleased to have pulitzer prize-winning author's colson whitehead as her guest. his most recent book is "the underground railroad". mr. whitehead what is the appropriate response when your books are praised by oprah, president obama any win the pulitzer and you win the national book award. what is the appropriate response? >> guest: well it's at the pain away. this book is taken on in a way that is expected. mostly i thank my lucky stars and i speak a little better and i'm in a better mood generally and i try to enjoy it. >> host: why does it put you in a better mood? >> guest: i have been writing for 20 some years and fiction for 20 years and sometimes you write a book and people dig it and they understand it. and then he read a book and nobody particularly cares and it disappears. i have pride in thinking i did a good job with the book and other people thinking that as well. >> host: your first book was "the intuitionist" about elevator repair people. how do you sell a book like that? >> guest: exactly. with effort. when i send it to my agent either you dig the

colson whitehead pulitzer prize winner was with us last month in this month we are pleased to be joined by jeff shaara, the military historical fiction author. he is the author of books that range from the american revolution to the korean war and will talk about all of

this month we are pleased to have pulitzer prize-winning author's colson whitehead as her guest. s most recent book is "the underground railroad". mr. whitehead what is the appropriate response when your books are praised by oprah,

. >> let's hear what colson whitehead has to say. thank you for calling in. >> thanks for listening. it's work and some days you are deathly into with the project -- definitely intend -- of it as your struggle with the paragraph and you can to one paragraph a day. that's a victory. a novel is a marathon, so even though that one paragraph, for my own way of keeping saint if i can to eight pages a week, that's going to be a good accumulation. that's like 400 years, -- 400 page, that's a novel, a door to we think about it. someday you get up on monday, don't work, see a movie, read a book, maybe those eight pages or tuesday, wednesday, saturday and sunday. sometimes it's tuesday through friday. it could be one page or three pages each day but if i get eight pages, that's what keeps me sane. some days i wake up and don't start working or if i'm not feeling it and i will improvise and, of course, that's work. doesn't take the same part of the brain but you are making progress toward the end of the book. >> you can watch this and other pro

colson whitehead pulitzer prize winner was with us last month in this month we are pleased to be joined by jeff shaara, the military historical fiction author. he is the author of books that range from the american revolution to the korean war and will talk about all of those in just a minute. but we are going to start mr. shaara with a facebook comment that a year has been this is jason who has posted on our facebook page. what exactly is historical fiction? >> well, i've actually had this conversation with other authors. typically, historical fiction, you go to a real place with fictitious characters. for example, all quiet on the western front. it is an accurate historical setting but the people are totally made up. that is a little bit different from what i do. because i take you to these places with a lot of the real people. the plsignificant historical figures. many that you know where there is george washington, robert e lee -- but it is fiction because i am putting words in your mouth. my job as a tell you a story. the way to do that is not just like a textbook or names, dates,

colson whitehead the past month and this month we are pleased to be joined by jeff shaara, from military historical fiction author. jeff shaara is the author of books that range from the american revolution to the korean war and we're going to talk about all those in just a minute but we're going to start mister shaara with a facebook comment that a viewer has and this is jason the who has posted on our facebook page, what exactly is historical fiction? >> guest: i've had this conversation with other authors. typically historical fiction is you go to a real place with fictional characters. all quiet on the western front, the red badge of courage. it's an accurate historical section but the people are made up. that's a little different form what i do because i take you tothese places with a lot of the real people . significant historical figures, names you know. george washington, blackjack purging, dwight eisenhower but it's fiction by definition because i'm putting words in their mouth. my job is to tell you a story and a way to do that is not just do it like a textbook would, names, pl