Héctor is one of 19 contributing opinion writers the NYT has hired to beef up its roster.
His first column at the NYT was published this week.
The Los Angeles-born author and journalist spent two decades at the LAT, as a correspondent, columnist and book critic.
His books include the novels “The Tattooed Soldier” and “The Barbarian Nurseries” and the nonfiction “Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine and the Miracle that Set Them Free.”