To paraphrase Alexander Pope, “’tis with our literary criticism as our watches; none go just alike yet each believes his own.”
Madame Bovary’s Ovaries, by David Barash and Nanelle Barash, is a fresh idea in the world of literary criticism. It applies the controversial field of “social Darwinism” to the understanding of literature. This book offers [...]
Archive for December, 2008
Fun on the page
December 31, 2008
Do you ever slip sly references into your fiction that only a select few will catch? For example, I intend to write one of my Finnegan novels with the bed and breakfast having the same address as a house my family lived in when I was quite small. I intend to name the characters after [...]
First comes the writing
December 30, 2008
I’d read somewhere that Kurt Vonnegut would use continuous rolls of paper in his typewriter rather than individual sheets of paper. If I remember correctly, he didn’t want the interruption of inserting new sheets just when the words were flowing. I can see the mechanical benefit of this arrangement too. Pages wouldn’t get lost or [...]
Out of the habit, only temporarily
December 29, 2008
With the holidays and family and guests coming and going, my writing routine has been significantly upset. I had anticipated this, though, and decided to use the time to give a thorough read through of what I’ve written so far of The Sleep of Reason. As I was conceiving and writing my chapters, many fresh [...]
Writing about the weather
December 26, 2008
What is the saying about writing about the weather? Is it that those who can’t write, write about the weather? Or is it when you don’t know what else to write, write about the weather?
I’ve decided to write about the weather in The Sleep of Reason. It’s not something that is necessary to the development [...]
Season’s Greetings
December 25, 2008
It is true that the earth’s axis is the reason for the season, but only in the most literal sense, of course.
This is a time of the year that is holy or special to people all around the world, and it is worthwhile to recognize that. Given the pageant of human cultures, it would be [...]
The emergence of pattern
December 23, 2008
The Sleep of Reason includes the repetition of a certain “ritual” through the course of the plot. That word is a misnomer; “activity” might be better. This activity is a complex event involving a great deal of preparation by several characters but chiefly by the protagonist. The activity itself is comprised of three parts each [...]
What did she just say?
December 22, 2008
“How exactly what happened to Tim next happened, he was not able in retrospect, quite to determine.”
from Nuns and Soldiers
by Iris Murdoch
Would an editor allow such a sentence to pass anymore? Certainly not in commercial fiction, but honestly, I don’t mind having to work to understand a writer’s meaning, especially if there is meaning behind [...]
Chapter 11 is complete
December 20, 2008
Sorry I’ve been away from the blog for so long. I’ve been suffering with a head cold that is only now releasing me from its vile grip. As is often the case for me, this release may be only temporary, and I may become a coughing, hacking beast just in time for the various holidays.
But [...]
Chapter 11 is off to a great start
December 15, 2008
I really didn’t anticipate that by now I would have much of a start on Chapter 11 of The Sleep of Reason. Chiefly, this would have been because I haven’t yet written an indepth scenario for the chapter as I have for the others by this point. But I am amazed at how well the [...]
