Michael A. Kahn

Awesome Role Models for Rachel Gold–and All Women

Posted on April 22, 2019May 1, 2019 by Michael Kahn

As I would imagine is true for most authors, by the time we write that very first paragraph of our very first novel, our brains have absorbed massive amounts of fiction in the form of novels, comic books, fairy tales, short stories, motion pictures, and television shows. And this huge warehouse of information will impact…

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Just Published: My Latest Book

Posted on April 5, 2019April 5, 2019 by Michael Kahn

I am delighted to announce that my latest book, The Art of Conflict: Tales from the Courtroom, has now been published. Co-authored with Alan C. Kohn, the godfather of St. Louis litigators and the veteran of more than 100 trials, our book provides a unique set of perspectives on the trials and tribulations of the…

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Most Important Books of All Time? Let the Debate Begin!

Posted on February 26, 2019February 26, 2019 by Michael Kahn

Last summer I wrote a post about a cool web page that had created road maps for your favorite road-trip novels, from Jack Kerouac’s cross-country trip in On the Road to The Cruise of the Rolling Junk, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s description of the journey he took with his wife Zelda from Connecticut to Alabama in…

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A Tip of the Hat to the Genius of Parody Romance Novel Covers

Posted on February 19, 2019 by Michael Kahn

My last post opened with a discussion of the evolution of romance novel covers from the chaste era of the 1950s to the soft-core porn covers of later decades. But as I moved on to the more general topic of the history of all book covers, I became so focused on their role–from the original…

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Maybe You Can’t Tell a Book by Its Cover, But You Can Sure Sell It That Way

Posted on February 15, 2019February 17, 2019 by Michael Kahn

I read a fascinating post on the Jezebel website by Kelly Faircloth in which she recounted the history–or, per the title of her post, the “steaming, throbbing history”–of the covers of romance novels, from the sweet innocent covers of the 1950s to the soft-porn bodice-rippers of later decades, many of which featured the male model…

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Now We Can All Take That Road Not Taken! The Copyright Freeze Has Melted

Posted on January 31, 2019January 31, 2019 by Michael Kahn

Once again my dual lives as a lawyer by day and an author at night have intersected in what is unquestionably a happy new year for all of us–including even Mickey Mouse. Two decades ago the Congress passed an amendment to the Copyright Act that added an additional twenty years to lives of the copyrights…

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Beers, Brands, Books, and Brawls

Posted on December 15, 2018January 31, 2019 by Michael Kahn

My bio describes me as a lawyer by day and an author at night–and I generally try to keep those two identities separate. But a recent trademark brawl over the word SCHLAFLY–a name associated with both the late conservative firebrand Phyllis Schlafly and her nephew Tom’s brewery–inspired me to write a post on that lawsuit for…

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Guess What? Now There’s an Awesome Map for Your Favorite Road Trip Novel

Posted on July 10, 2018July 10, 2018 by Michael Kahn

As I have mentioned more than once on this blog, among my favorite opening lines in all of literature is Hunter Thompson’s in his bizarre road trip tale, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. (You can read that amazing sentence at the end of my post entitled “The Magical Lure of the Intimate Voice.”) Thompson’s vivid account of…

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Opening Passages to Greatness

Posted on April 25, 2018September 23, 2021 by Michael Kahn

The other day I stumbled upon The Heart, a wonderful series in the online version of The Atlantic in which authors discuss their favorite passages in literature. Browsing through the collection, I came upon John Rechy’s discussion of his favorite, which is the opening sentence of William Faulkner’s short story, “A Rose for Emily,” which also happens…

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Make America Naughty Again

Posted on February 22, 2018February 22, 2018 by Michael Kahn

As many of my readers know, I haven’t been able to quit my day job. Fortunately, the focus of my day job is intellectual property law–a legal realm sprinkled with just enough quirky issues to keep my day job fun. One such example is the subject of my latest post on my law firm’s blog,…

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