Is J.D. Salinger Still Writing?

According to the Galley Cat blog, all of the frenzied talk about J.D. Salinger suing the writer, publisher and distributor of the unauthorized sequel to "The Catcher in the Rye, prompted the grand question we all want to know: What has Salinger been doing these last 44 years?

We all know Salinger is reclusive and values his privacy, Galley cat said he hasn't had a published anything since 1965, but has he still been writing?

In an 1974 interview with The New York Times Salinger said, "I'm known as a strange, aloof kind of man. But all I'm doing is trying to protect myself and my work."

The interview tried to delve into the reasons why he was silent for 20 years -- he values his privacy -- so much so that he opts to not publish the writing he creates daily.

"There is a marvelous peace in not publishing. It's peaceful. Still. Publishing is a terrible invasion of my privacy. I like to write. I love to write. But I write just for myself and my own pleasure," Salinger said.

From this 25-year-old excerpt, we can assume that he may still continue to write, but author and journalist Ron Rosenbaum wonders if we will see any of his work during our lifetimes -- even after Salinger is gone (because of the privacy Salinger uses to protect all of his works).

"It's pretty remarkable—amazing, isn't it, when you think about it—that he stopped publishing when he was only 46, half a lifetime ago. He stopped publishing but may not have stopped writing," Rosenbaum said.

For all we know," Rosenbaum added, "he may be withholding what will turn out to be the eighth wonder of American letters. Or not."