Winging It

The new book by Randy Fertel, out March 26, 2024.

Weaving People and Ideas to Make a Difference

Randy Fertel is a writer and philanthropist dedicated to the arts, education, New Orleans, and the environment.

Books

  • WINGING IT

    In Winging It, Fertel explores improvisation across the landscapes of popular culture, the arts, and public affairs, ranging from tap dancing, social media, hook-up culture, psychedelic trips, and hip-hop to—last, though not least—the performative and demagogic posturing of Donald Trump.

  • A TASTE FOR CHAOS

    In A Taste For Chaos, Fertel explores the undercurrent of spontaneity in literature and identifies a new metagenre called improvisations texts that claim to have been written without effort or craft, like an idea that hits you in the shower.

  • THE GORILLA MAN AND THE EMPRESS OF STEAK

    The Gorilla Man and the Empress of Steak is the story of two larger-than-life characters and the son whom their lives helped to shape.

“At the farmers market, I'm responding to color, and smell, and I'm following my intuition. In my kitchen when I'm imagining how things will lead from here, I'm improvising. In his artful and authoritative new book Winging It, Randy Fertel explores how improvisation shapes and enlivens our wider world. Yield to your impulses, act spontaneously, and get this book — it's a revelation.”

— Alice Waters, Founder of Chez Panisse and the Edible Schoolyard

  • "A masterwork — [Winging It] is voracious in scope…and about as hopeful as can be in these troubling times."

    — Bruce Boyd Raeburn, Curator Emeritus, Hogan Archive of New Orleans Music and New Orleans Jazz, Tulane University

  • "Winging It dances with the reader atop a mountain of scholarship, original thinking, and profound applicability."

    — Eric Booth, author of Making Change and The Everyday Work of Art

  • "Fertel will scare you and free you, as he peers deeply into the light and the dark spaces where improvisation exerts its powerful sway over our lives and culture."

    — Davia Nelson, The Kitchen Sisters, Radio/Podcast Producer

  • "Winging It is a work to be savored slowly and thoughtfully, especially in anticipation of the upcoming elections."

    — Jessica B. Harris, High on the Hog: How African American Cuisine Transformed America

  • "A tour de force exploration of improvisation and its many uses, beginning with what most people would associate with “improv”: a distinctive form of theater perfected by Chicago’s Second City troupe"

    — Kirkus Reviews on Winging It

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