I too grew up in the South and it was big news to me to read that pie was somehow declasse. Have always preferred it to cake, as tastier, richer, juicier, infinitely more delicious. Only thing, rhubarb pie in my opinion is for people who don't have enough apples, peaches, pecans, chocolate, lemon, et cetera. Ever heard of icebox lemon pie?

A few comments: (1) there is one meat "pie" that is absolutely fabulous, and worth learning--chicken pot pie. I recommend carrots, celery, garlic, chicken as ingredients. Maybe mushrooms. Maybe some of the small sweet green peas, but only the small sweet ones. Thigh meat (without bones) is best, but scraps will do. Best to cook the chicken meat first, and thicken the gravy. The secret is in the crust.

(2) You left out cobblers. Cobblers are like pies, but they do not have to fit in round pans. Also they may be topped with a sort of buttery sugary rich crusty batter. I can make a peach cobbler that will bring you to tears, and a blackberry cobbler that is just is good for those who like blackberries.

(3) The crust. The greatest invention of the last two hundred years has been edible crust. I do not believe in proprietary information or ideas as property, so I herewith provide for anyone interested my amazingly simple unbelievably flaky pie crust, suitable for pies, chicken pot pie, and cobblers. The pie-masters of the past (like my mother and grandmother) used to used lard, as one of your correspondents at least seemed aware. I have substituted butter for the shortening, and the result is even tastier. The rule is three parts flour to one part butter. (Use just a pinch of salt). If you use two cups of flour (more than enough for a deep-dish black skillet pie), cut in two-thirds cup of butter. After cutting the butter in until the result has that fabled "cornmeal" consistency, cut in just enough icy cold water to make a dough that is tacky but not wet. You should be able to press it with a finger without the finger sticking.

Now this is VERY important: It is okay to blend the butter and flour with a machine, but when you add the water, you MUST not knead, handle, or blend the dough. Working the dough brings out the gluten and makes it tough. The secret to the flakiness is to cut the water in (with a hard spatula or table knife) WITHOUT working the dough. Takes practice, care, and time. If you are not willing to invest these, don't bother.

After the dough is mixed, flour a board and roll the dough out to about an eight of an inch (you know, pie crust thickness), and fit to your pie dish and trim the remainders and scallop or flute the edges.

No eggs necessary. Very simple, very tasty. If you want more information, I recommend Jack's Skillet, from Algonquin, my cookbook.

I usually make my pies in a black iron skillet, since the usual shallow dishes are so puny. Incidentally, the best pecan pie recipe is on bottles of regular Karo syrup, which is why so many Southerners call it Karo pecan pie. (This is truth, not shilling--I have no connection to Karo, and use it strictly for pecan pies). Use my crust, though.

I'm a novelist and poet who has published eight books in sixteen editions worldwide, including a translation into Japanese. In print publishing I met agents with no taste, editors who thought they and not the writers were the important people, publicists half my age who treated me like an ignoramus and ignored my hard-earned understanding of my most receptive audience, and in general a snotty indifferent attitude. The print publishing business, in its vanity and hauteur, has rivalled Hollywood for self-importance and self-flattery, except with far smaller stakes. Its denizens liked to pretend they were hardnosed businesspeople, even though, as I read years ago, the major houses combined returned about 3 cents a year on the dollar. Hell, a savings account does better than that.

As the previous letter-writer pointed out, the "industry" (and the fact they refer to themselves as an "industry" ought to have been a clue to the problem), like most commercial entities worldwide, made the corporate mistake of thinking that specialization always equals efficiency--resulting in morons trying to sell books who "know" selling but not books--and the other corporate mistake of assuming that the trick was in selling the "product," not in having something worth selling.

Now they're paying the piper, and for quite a few literary writers (this does NOT include Grisham, Crichton, or most of the big-money names) there will be very little mourning. What has print publishing done for us? Very goddamned little. So long, people. We aint gonna miss you at all.

I suspect "bloggers" have become the new code for hated people, like "liberal" and "community service."