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Zadie Smith, who is rarely photographed without her head wrap.

Writers who suit themselves

When she was at Radcliffe, Gertrude Stein always wore black and refused to wear a corset. Samuel Beckett liked Wallabee boots and Aran sweaters and settled on his hairstyle when he was 17. Edith Sitwell bought furnishing fabrics and had them made into dresses. William Burroughs "branded himself" in a suit and tie. Zadie Smith is rarely photographed without her head wrap.

Steven Lang

Author Steven Lang.

Steven Lang's third novel, Hinterland, focuses on the interactions of a group of people in s amll Queensland country town that is the focus of an environmental campaign.

Wordplay

Illustration: Simon Letch.

Is there a place for apostrophes or hyphens in crossword clues? Opinions differ.

The cities that conjure up crime fiction

Humphrey Bogart as Philip Marlowe in Raymond Chandler's The Big Sleep.

Cities can provide the perfect atmospheric backdrop to a crime novel, says Booker Prize winner John Banville. Just think of Raymond Chandler's mean streets of Los Angeles.

Turning Pages

The public can explore the bedroom where poet Emily Dickinson spent much of her life in Amherst, Massachusetts.

Writers looking for a quiet, inspirational space are seeking out the worn past.