Starting Out in the Evening

The winner of the 1999 Koret Jewish Fiction Award, Brian Morton’s literary novel Starting Out in the Evening (1997) centers on a young woman who decides to write her college thesis on a once-celebrated elderly author, who is now struggling to finish his final novel. Now an acclaimed feature film, critics praise its sharp insights and witty, emotive writing. Morton is a bestselling novelist who previously lectured on the MFA program at Sarah Lawrence College and New York University. Starting Out in the Evening is one of his most popular works.

The book takes place in New York City. Seventy-one-year-old Leonard Schiller is a writer who is working on what he knows will be his last novel. Unfortunately, having been working on this book for more than 10 years, he is struggling to remain relevant. Critics no longer discuss his work, and his books are out of print. Mainly he works on the novel to satisfy his own desire to complete it; he doesn’t like leaving his stories unfinished.

Twenty-four-year-old Heather Wolfe is a postgraduate student at Brown University working on her final thesis. Although Schiller is one of her literary heroes, she is tired of waiting for him to finish his latest book. She decides to interview him for her thesis so she can find out more about the book and why it’s taking him so long to complete it.



Meanwhile, Leonard spends most of his life in his apartment. He doesn’t enjoy socializing anymore because he doesn’t feel relevant. Having always been a solitary, introverted figure, he barely has any friends. His closest companions are Ariel, his 39-year-old daughter, and Florence, a fellow elderly writer, but he rarely sees either of them.

Unlike her father, Ariel is social, bold, and rebellious, and she doesn’t enjoy reading. She openly admits that she has only read a handful of her father’s books and doesn’t plan to read any more of them. Still, she loves her father dearly, and she checks up on him whenever she can.

When Heather first approaches Leonard, he doesn’t know how to handle her. Although he is flattered by her attention, he just wants everyone to leave him alone. He can’t deny that Heather is attractive and alluring, but she reminds him of how old he is; he thinks all he is good for now is dying gracefully.



Meanwhile, Ariel frets over her impending 40th birthday. Although she is seeing Victor, he doesn’t want children. Ariel, who has always wanted a family, worries that there’s not much time left to have a baby. She stops taking birth control without telling Victor, assuming that, if she does become pregnant, he will stick around and support them both.

However, Victor dumps Ariel. When finds out that she is deceiving him, he claims he can’t be with someone who plans to trick him into having a baby. Although she is devastated, she rejoins the dating scene, hoping she can find someone new.

When Heather first meets Ariel, they clash. Ariel thinks that Heather plans to seduce Leonard to steal his money. Heather, on the other hand, finds Ariel boring and old-fashioned because all she cares about is starting a family. Leonard reflects on how different the women are. Although he knows that he is too old for Heather, her fiery spirit and independence make him feel young again.



In the meantime, Heather tells Leonard about her plans to become a literary critic. He warns her that literary criticism isn’t a glamorous lifestyle, and it’s not easy to make a success of it. Reluctantly, he takes her to New York writing parties, hoping to introduce her to people who might help her. Young, pretty, and new on the scene, everyone chats with her. Leonard is jealous, wishing he could keep Heather all to himself.

One night, Heather offers to sleep with Leonard—not to have sex with him, but to sleep beside him so that he feels less alone and anxious. Knowing he feels despondent and irrelevant, she is determined to help him shake off his emotions so he can finish his last book. After an intimate night together, Leonard feels alive for the first time in years.

Finally, Heather finishes the first draft of her thesis. Leonard doesn’t like it. He urges her to erase all the parts where she criticizes his work. Believing that writing should be authentic and uncensored, Heather refuses to give into his demands. She plans to be a literary critic; she won’t succeed without brutal honesty.



On her 25th birthday, Heather shows Leonard the final draft of her thesis. This is the last time Heather plans to write about Leonard; there is nothing left to say about him. Unless Leonard writes more novels, he will never be relevant again. Recognizing that life is what he makes of it, Leonard parts ways with Heather on a hopeful note.