Today I finished reading Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. This futuristic novel about the rise of television, the decline of reading, and the ultimate destruction of major cities via nuclear war is included on the list of Top 100 Novels of All Time. Bradbury named two of the novels main characters -- Montag and Faber -- after a pencil and a paper manufacturer. He also typed the novel in the basement of a university library using a rented typewriter.
The afterword to the novel explains that Bradbury doesn't believe in "plotting" a novel. He starts writing and lets the novels go where the characters take him -- a trait he has in common with another prolific American writer -- Stephen King.
First published in 1953, it's remarkable how accurately Bradbury predicted the future based on his 1950s view of the world.
