I like a good heist flick (Logan Lucky is a recent top-notch addition to the genre), but Den of Thieves missed the mark for me in a couple spots, and it's important to figure out/talk about why.
Category: Essay
Writing Just for the Hell of It.
On the suggestion of an old friend, I started listening to Writing Excuses, a weekly podcast co-hosted by authors Dan Wells, Brandon Sanderson, Mary Robinette Kowal, and web cartoonist Howard Tayler. In each episode, the hosts and the guests will do a quick dive into some element of craft. In fact, the seasons are structured around … Continue reading Writing Just for the Hell of It.
Kelly Link: 2018 MacArthur Fellow
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G50xUB4MfQE Video from MacArthur Foundation I can't remember what I'd read or watched or listened to that pointed me in the direction of Kelly Link, but by the time I finished "The Summer People," (the first story in her Link's Get In Trouble collection), I was hooked. And two of the stories in the collection had … Continue reading Kelly Link: 2018 MacArthur Fellow
An Exercise in Not Working on Your Newest Short Story: Book Recommendations and Current Reads
Evening, folks.
Here are a few book recommendations for you as we speed ever-onward to the cold-weather days which necessitate hunkering down with hot drinks, snacks, and stacks of reading material...
Weekly Writing Goals #3
Good afternoon, all. I'm close to a week late in posting my weekly writing goals for the third week of January. That's okay, though. Right? Things got a bit busy, and sometimes by the end of the evening, I'd run out of gas, and just didn't have it in me to write an update. Week … Continue reading Weekly Writing Goals #3
In the Lake of the Woods by Tim O’Brien
In his novel, In the Lake of the Woods, Tim O’Brien crafts a chimera which somehow manages to be a mystery, a love story, a war story, and a magic act. At times, it’s also a piece of fictional, creative non-fiction or faux journalism. It deals with truth and memory, and longing and emptiness, and … Continue reading In the Lake of the Woods by Tim O’Brien
Basement Missive: Weekly Writing Goals, #2
Greetings all. I hope this edition of Basement Missives finds you well, and enjoying the hell out of the new year. Just a quick update and breakdown of my weekly writing goals. Saturday 01/06 → 221/566: This was a busy Saturday, and I fell short of the goal. Thankfully, I had written over my goal … Continue reading Basement Missive: Weekly Writing Goals, #2
Murakami Leads to Burton and Burton Leads Beyond
During the first trimester of Sophomore English we read Haruki Murakami's "The Seventh Man." This was my first experience with Murakami and I was hooked. I turned to my local public library system (shout out to Great River Regional), and found the audiobook of The Strange Library. In this tale, a young man returns some library … Continue reading Murakami Leads to Burton and Burton Leads Beyond
A New Year’s Basement Missive: January Goals and Stewardship
Happy New Year and Huzzah! I’m writing this at the tail end of New Year’s Day, hunkered down in my basement. Outside, temperatures continue to fluctuate somewhere between zero and -20. Thankful for a functioning furnace, wool socks, and a splash of scotch in hot honey-lemon water. Last day of winter break, and I’d be … Continue reading A New Year’s Basement Missive: January Goals and Stewardship
Summer Camp
Wood smoke and birdsong drift through the open windows of our home, and I’m transported a short jaunt back in time to a cabin on the outskirts of Fall Creek, WI.
Purdy Good 