8Sep/092

Measurements of Time

Our ability to measure and apportion time affords an almost endless source of comfort.
        -Richard Yates, Revolutionary Road, Page 225

I love the short, bizarre chapter in Revolutionary Road that opens with the sentence above. Especially the way the old man, who can't remember the date of his wife's death, and who, momentarily disoriented, panics when he feels the encroaching presence of infinity. "But soon the merciful valves and switches of his brain begin to do their tired work," Ford writes, "and 'The Spring of Nineteen-Ought-Six,' he is able to say. 'Or no, wait -- ' and his blood runs cold again as the galaxies revolve. 'Wait! Nineteen-Ought -- Four.'

Food for thought.

Filed under: Reading, Writing 2 Comments
8Sep/090

Early Morning

I'm up early again looking over the yard behind my house into the trees along the edge of the creek. Chipmunks, rabbits, and cardinals gather around the spilled birdseed under the feeder my wife hung on a decorative hook near the patio. She's away this morning -- I dropped her at the airport in Kansas City for a flight to Wisconsin -- but normally about this time she'd be headed to work. Me too, actually.

I've been reading a lot this past week but stalled when it comes to writing on my novel. I am 10,000+ words in though so hopefully I can pick it up this week. In the meantime, Brian Kiteley's The River Gods and Candice Millard's The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey have kept me distracted. Wonder why I'm into rivers all of a sudden. Both of these are fantastic books and you should read them as soon as possible. You heard it here first.

Filed under: Writing Process No Comments
4Sep/090

Moon City Review is Released

mcp-mcr.jpgYesterday I received my copy of The Moon City Review 2009. I have to say I'm impressed and I didn't know if I would be. I'm especially in love with the photography and the quality of the text from world famous authors: Julie Blackmon, Ted Kooser, Burton Raffel, Miller Williams, Michael Czyniejewski, John Dufresne, and Kevin Brockmeier. The journal is a slick re-entry into the world of publishing for the Missouri State English Department, which has struggled to compete with other literary journals on a national scale. The Ozarks has a rich history of art, writing, and culture. I'm glad someone has decided to showcase it.

You can order the anthology in my store by clicking here. My story "The Lexicon of the Sword" appears on page 104.

If you're interested in submitting your work for the next MCR -- that's 2010 -- then click over to the official MCR page and check out the call for speculative fiction submissions.

Filed under: Writing No Comments
2Sep/090

Kansas Bathtub Writers’ Collective

Are you a writer in Kansas? A writer who loves Kansas? And do you feel lonely? Drift aimlessly no more -- the Kansas Bathtub is the place for you. Begun by students at the University of Kansas, especially the M.F.A. and Ph.D. in Creative Writing programs, the Bathtub collective is a group of writers who just want to have fun and write well. We gather at least every two weeks to talk about writing, organize community programs like Writers in the Schools, and to eat good food and drink good drinks.

If you're interested in the collective, which is not officially part of KU in any way, you can find out more about them by clicking over to KansasBathtub.org.

Filed under: Writers, Writing, Writing Community No Comments
   

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