Have you ever wanted to write a letter to a character in a book? What would you say to that character? Would you sympathize with their plight, or set them straight?

Our guest today, Marilyn Horowitz, author of The Book of Zev, wrote a letter to one of her main characters, Zev. Zev Bronfman, a strapping 32-year old-virgin, angry atheist, refugee from a religious Jewish life, and former engineer for the U.S. Patent Office in Alexandria, Virginia, drives a cab and sleeps around in New York City. And the trouble he gets himself into and must get out of makes for a wild ride with his co-conspirator Sarah. Sarah Hirshbaum, a beautiful, redheaded, depressed, God-hating kosher chef, seesaws between yoga and too much red wine.

Keep reading to see what Horowitz says to Zev.

Dear Zev,

Thank you for inspiring me to write this book.

Thank you for being such a cooperative and helpful character. I was troubled by your crisis of faith and wonder what would have happened to you if you hadn’t almost been killed.  Would you still be living at home? Would you have married Rivka? How long would it have taken you to come to your senses?  Would you have ever realized that you couldn’t stay in your world? Hopefully, my arranging that little Deux Ex Machina with the falling I-beam helped speed things up.

I also appreciate being allowed into your deepest thoughts and feelings, and hope that I conveyed them accurately.  I was thrilled to discover that we share the same passion for the rock band Metallica.

I know that you are an atheist, and I am a believer. But we all have moments of doubt, and when I do, I know the cure: Find yourself a good atheist and buy him or her a coffee or a glass of wine.  An hour’s chat with a lucid atheist will restore me because he or she is so sure that God doesn’t exist. I rebel against smugness, and so the reverse faith revivifies me.  Thank you for restoring my faith.

On another note, I want to apologize for creating the situations where you had to kill two people, but hopefully saving someone was worth it.  Sometimes the cure for lack of faith is great love for someone or something, and this was the best way I could come up with to open that door for you.

Lastly, I hope that you are somewhere living happily ever after, and that you have made peace with your faith either way.

Warmly,

Marilyn

Letter to Zev in The Book of Zev from his author, Marilyn HorowitzThe Book of Zev by Marilyn Horowitz
Published by Koehler Books on December 1, 2014
Genres: Thriller
Pages: 298
Purchase at Bookshop.org
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The Book of Zev is a psychological thriller that tells the story of two gentle people who change the course of history. Zev Bronfman, a strapping 32-year old-virgin, angry atheist, refugee from a religious Jewish life, and former engineer for the U.S. Patent Office in Alexandria, Virginia, drives a cab and sleeps around in New York City. After a bitter divorce, Sarah Hirshbaum, a beautiful, redheaded, depressed, God-hating kosher chef, seesaws between yoga and too much red wine. Independently, the two consult the same psychic who inadvertently sends Sarah Zev’s session tape. When Sarah contacts Zev to pick up the recording, a series of events they are confronted by a terrorist who intends to blow up the UN and Israel. They must work together to thwart his plans.

Click here to read an Excerpt of The Book of Zev .

About Marilyn Horowitz

Marilyn Ida Horowitz is a producer, writing coach, and award-winning professor of screenwriting at New York University. From her books on her trademarked writing system—now standard reading at NYU—to her appearances at Screenwriters World and The Great American Screenwriting Conference & PitchFest, Marilyn has guided the careers of literally hundreds of writers. She is currently featured in the Now Write! Screenwriting Anthology (Tarcher/Penguin) and in the upcoming The Expert Success Solution (Morgan James). Her production credits include And Then Came Love (2007), starring Vanessa Williams.

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