“So the first thing is where. My first thought is the Heart of Green.” “Off to the Right?” “No, before that and down hill. At the base of the Stairstream.” “Oh. Under that cliffy flat place that leads to Blasted…
Category: Writ
My own serious stuff; the craft itself; literary (and authorial) inspiration; the art of reading.
5 Thoughts: Why (and How) We Write
HANGING BY OUR COMPUTER IS a sheet of paper I look to for inspiration. Sometimes it inspires me, sometimes it depresses me, but always it gets me back on the horse. It’s called “Why (and How) We Write.” If you…
Three Reasons Why I Like My New Yorker Rejection Slip
1. THEY RECOGNIZE THE SUPERIOR QUALITY of my work by admitting that they “regret that (they) are unable to carry it in the magazine.” You can’t regret doing something that’s not regretworthy, right? Right? 2. They spelled my name right.…
5 Thoughts: From Mix to Memory
1. A TREASURED ITEM IN HOUSEHOLDS of more than 40 years duration is the Mix Tape: an audio cassette of 40 – 60 minutes per side containing music from an LP or radio station which the user wishes to either…
5 Thoughts: Fiction- v. News-Writing
1. YOU STOP WRITING A NEWS piece when you run out of facts. But when do you stop writing fiction? When you run out of story, I suppose. 2. In news, the most important information goes up top. In fiction,…
Allegiance Considered
I pledge allegiance to the Constitution Of the United States of America And to the ideal on which it stands: One nation of individuals Indivisibly intertwined With liberty, justice and peace for all.
Posts That Never Were
THE IMMEDIACY OF BLOGGING CREATES, for the blogger, a whole new way of looking at the world. It’s not much different from the world of any writer in terms of the compulsion to record, comment on and embroider every living…
5 thoughts: James Joyce
IN HONOR OF BLOOMSDAY 2010, five thoughts on the man who made it possible: 1. James Joyce is yet another proof that one man’s mind can be bigger than his skull. (If not, generational banks of Joyce scholars would have…
Jon Stewart Slams Glenn Beck Idol
THE DEMISE OF THE HEADLINE-WRITER’S art (according to a recent article fed through both Slashdot and The Daily Beast) dictates an appeal to search engine optimization (SEO) instead of readers — something that snags on Google instead of anticipatory imagination.…
Under Oasine: Chapter Two Synopsis
NO ONE WAS MORE SURPRISED than I to have finished the second chapter of my novel[1], nor when the characters hijacked the plot (at about the 0.23 mark. Stephen King said that was going to happen eventually). Thus, in all…
Pithyism #5
ART: MANIFESTED INTENTION. (Sparked by one of those endless arguments over the meaning of “art,” this definition should cover everything from bowerbirds and whalesong to Andy Goldsworthy and the Long Now people to the cup of coffee you made this…
Under Oasine: First Chapter Synopsis
AS NOTED EARLIER, THIS BLOG will feature periodic updates on my new Work In Progress, Under Oasine: the adventures of Twiz, Ij, Hapler, and the author as they pursue a desperate quest to save their world. (I want to bang…