The author of more than thirty books of nonfiction as well as more than a hundred pieces of journalism published in the New Yorker over the past fifty years offers a collection of essays on the writer’s craft in which he shares memories and tips of the trade gleaned throughout his distinguished career as a writer and an instructor at Princeton University. McPhee uses excerpts of his work to provide lessons on crucial decisions regarding structure, diction, and tone that shape well-written nonfiction pieces.