ELIZABETH BENEDICT Crime: Swearing Elizabeth Benedict's five critically acclaimed novels have established her reputation as a writer of wit, warmth, and insight who "specializes in the subterranean currents of modern relationships, the secret motivations and betrayals that underlie everyday interactions" (Newsday). Her novels include The Practice of Deceit (“A lot of wicked fun” All Things Considered), the bestseller, Almost (a “Fresh Air” and Newsweek best book of the year), and Slow Dancing, nominated for a National Book Award. She’s also the author of the classic resource, The Joy of Writing Sex: A Guide for Fiction Writers, which is widely used in creative writing programs. She taught fiction and creative nonfiction workshops for 20 years at Princeton, the Iowa Writers' Workshop, MIT, and Swarthmore, and has written extensively for many publications, including The New York Times, Esquire, and Salmagundi. www.elizabethbenedict.com.