January 2, 2010

Dear Penny, Andy, Skipper, and Dick,

What a terrible loss that Loren died!
I will so miss our conversations in which he expressed
his disdain for the powerful and self-important, his avoidance
of all cliche whether in writing or life, and his love for his family.
His perspectives so escaped any comfortable categories.
He could condemn Republican short-sightedness while he  
laughed at Al Gore for his ballooning belly.
Loren complained of stylistic excesses in the New York Times
and the New Yorker and he treated Beach Point
as the swimming hole it deserves to be.
He talked gladly about his family, but never gushed.
He greatly valued self-reliance.

When I first brought my windsurfer to your house and Andy went out
one day and seemed to have trouble, I was about to run in to help him.
Loren stopped me, "Wait. He'll figure it out."
Eventually, Andy did.

Loren was always an inspiration to me, especially
when I started writing books.
His writing was spare and precise, evocative without excessive description.
I wanted to achieve that with my first puzzle book.
I asked for help, hoping for a collaboration.
He saw right through me.
As always, he spoke simply and directly:
"You can write. You don't need me. Write the darn thing yourself."
That was the push I needed.

An inspiration, a friend, and always an interesting interlocutor,
I will miss Loren very much.



`
P.S. Karen wanted to add the following:
Please know I also will miss Loren, I remember so many good conversations
and always with delight, when he mocked our enthusiasm for "Inch" in
Ireland.  One of the very best parts of any visit to Mamaroneck was when we
stopped over to see you in your lovely garden.  With warmest condolences,