Carter, Steven 1956-

PERSONAL:

Born October 23, 1956, in New York, NY; son of Alfred M. (in business) and Sydelle (a teacher) Carter. Education: Cornell University, B.S., 1978.

CAREER:

Writer and lecturer. Has appeared on numerous television programs, including Oprah, Sally Jesse Raphael, Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, and the Today Show.

WRITINGS:

What Every Man Should Know About the New Woman: A Survival Guide, McGraw Hill (New York, NY), 1984.

(With Joshua Levine) How to Make Love to a Computer, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1984.

(With Harold Levinson) Phobia-Free: A Medical Breakthrough Linking Ninety Percent of All Phobia and Panic Attacks to a Hidden Physical Problem, M. Evans (New York, NY), 1985.

(With Julia Sokol) Men Who Can't Love: When a Man's Fear Makes Him Run from Commitment (and What a Smart Woman Can Do about It), M. Evans (New York, NY), 1986.

(With Julia Sokol) What Really Happens in Bed: A Demystification of Sex, M. Evans (New York, NY), 1988.

(With Julia Sokol) What Smart Women Know, M. Evans (New York, NY), 1990.

Lives without Balance: When You're Giving Everything You've Got and Still Not Getting What You Hoped For, Random House (New York, NY), 1992.

(With Julia Sokol) He's Scared, She's Scared: Understanding the Hidden Fears that Sabotage Your Relationships, Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1993.

(With Julia Sokol) Men like Women Who like Themselves (and Other Secrets that the Smartest Women Know about Partnership and Power), Delacorte Press (New York, NY), 1996.

(With Julia Sokol) Getting to Commitment: Overcoming the Eight Greatest Obstacles to Lasting Connection (and Finding the Courage to Love), M. Evans (New York, NY), 1998.

This Is How Love Works: Nine Essential Secrets You Need to Know, M. Evans (New York, NY), 2001.

(With Julia Sokol) Help! I'm in Love with a Narcissist, M. Evans (New York, NY), 2005.

Contributor to periodicals, including Cosmopolitan, Glamour, New Woman, and Mademoiselle.

SIDELIGHTS:

Steven Carter and his coauthor, Julia Sokol, write about fear-of-commitment issues in relationships and have coauthored numerous books on various aspects of the topic. For example, in What Smart Women Know, Carter and Sokol discuss unrewarding relationships and what "smart" women look for in a man. Genevieve Stuttaford, writing in Publishers Weekly, noted that the book contains "some commonsense recommendations." He's Scared, She's Scared: Understanding the Hidden Fears That Sabotage Your Relationships focuses on fear of commitment by both men and women and delineates the differences. Case histories study specific examples of commitment fear, and the authors include quizzes to help men and women explore their commitment issues. A Publishers Weekly contributor wrote that the authors "uncover the more subtle ways men and women sabotage love."

In their self-help book Men like Women Who like Themselves (and Other Secrets that the Smartest Women Know about Partnership and Power), Carter and Sokol provide a guideline featuring what women who are successful in relationships practice when meeting, dating, and having an intimate relationship with a man. A Publishers Weekly contributor commented that the authors provide "sound advice on how to recognize a potentially abusive man, [and] when to seek counseling." Help! I'm in Love with a Narcissist is a guide to recognizing and dealing with a mate who always puts himself or herself first. The authors discuss the causes of narcissism, how to seek outside support, and how to end the relationship if necessary. A Publishers Weekly contributor noted that "their advice boils down to taking care of yourself first."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Publishers Weekly, October 26, 1990, Genevieve Stuttaford, review of What Smart Women Know, p. 61; August 30, 1993, review of He's Scared, She's Scared: Understanding the Hidden Fears That Sabotage Your Relationships, p. 86; May 6, 1996, review of Men like Women Who like Themselves (and Other Secrets that the Smartest Women Know about Partnership and Power) p. 60; December 20, 2004, review of Help! I'm in Love with a Narcissist, p. 49.