Firsts. Contests. Markets. Networks. Risks. Rebellions. Along with seven other flash writers, I discuss how to land your first flash publication on Michael Alexander Chaney’s excellent blog.
Pictures of naked people?
“The Shadow Knows”?
Parodies of “True Grit”?
Yes, Mom, all of these can these make you a better reader and writer.
How Mad magazine makes you a better person– here in my latest Ploughshares post, Snappy Answers to Stupid Questions.
Ellen Raskin’s design for pages of THE WESTING GAME.
If Gillian Flynn (Gone Girl, Sharp Objects) reads Ellen Raskin’s THE WESTING GAME every year or so, maybe we should, too?
What this childhood favorite can teach us about the writing process, from concept to draft to page design. Plus, some behind-the-scenes peeks at Raskin’s drafts and something called a “Swipe File.”
Oh! and you can also try out Serendip-o-matic, a brand new app!
It’s all here at my latest post for Ploughshares!
Introducing the Mother-Reader …
Everything changes after a child is born. But even the simple act of reading a book?
Parent-reader-writer-teachers weigh in here, in my latest blog post for Ploughshares.
Agatha Christie and her surfboard, “Fred.” Courtesy of the British Surfing Museum.
Speedos! Submarines! Ukuleles! Beach-Writing!
Take your writing on vacation in this post for the Ploughshares Blog.
And you can always see all of my Ploughshares Blog posts here.
On Louts, Shooting Dogs, and Antonya Nelson
It started because I wanted to shoot a dog. In a short story, that is. The stories for my first collection— then my doctoral dissertation— were character-driven epiphanies hinging on a character’s decision to act, or not to act. A story with a gun on page 1 and fired by the ending—this sounded like big, explosive fun. So I shoehorned a dog-shooting into a story that really didn’t need it.
My dissertation advisor looked over my draft and said, “If you want to shoot an animal in a story, read ‘Fair Hunt,’ by Antonya Nelson.”
Read the complete post at The Missouri Review.
The Nifty Trick of Dan Chaon’s “A Little Something to Remember Me By”
Who would condemn the grieving parents of a long-lost, likely murdered boy? Who would turn these parents’ tears to treacle, their mourning into manipulation— and make the reader hate them, too? Dan Chaon would. It’s a nifty trick. And it’s one of the reasons I adore “A Little Something To Remember Me By,” from Chaon’s second collection, Among the Missing.
Read the complete post at The Missouri Review.