Watts article

[jbor]

http://www.themodernword.com/pynchon/pynchon_essays_watts.html

> At this early stage of Pynchon's career, he seems to
> have been opportunistic in his search for an audience.

In fact, according to David Seed, Kirkpatrick Sale approached Pynchon to
write the 'Watts' article for the NYT Magazine:

    He wrote the piece partly at the invitation of Kirkpatrick Sale
    who was then editor of the _New York Times Magazine_, and partly,
    in the words of the current culture editor, 'from his concern for
    Watts'. Pynchon knew Sale from his Cornell days when he was editor
    of the _Daily Sun_. His article, 'A Journey Into The Mind of Watts'
    appeared in the NYT Magazine for 12 June, 1966 and was illustrated
    with photographs showing police cars cruising the area, street
    scenes, a dominoe parlour, etc. (p. 151)

Hope this helps.

Pynchon might well still have been opportunistically "search[ing] for an
audience" for his fiction in 1966 -- though after the success of _V._ that's
arguable too. I don't think it's reasonable to claim that the 'Watts'
article was composed as an opportunistic exercise, however. And, obviously,
the fact that it isn't "fiction" makes its context all the more interesting.

I don't believe that Pynchon's purpose in writing the article was to
increase sales of his novels or to bring his name under wider notice, or
even to make a quick buck (which might have been the case with the 'Esquire'
and 'Cavalier' gigs.) I think that's quite a cynical view of why he wrote
the piece.

best