For your reading pleasure on a Monday morning: Colors, by Mary McCluskey Waiting, by Amy Kiger-Williams Wildlife of America, By Beth Ann Bauman And for your listening pleasure: Lydia Millet this week on The Bat Segundo Show Last week: Laila Lalami And a reminder: You have only until November 18th to enter the Night Train Richard Yates Short Story Award contest.

I don’t know what possessed me to pick up The Day After Tomorrow last night, as it’s certainly not something I would have ever paid to see but since it was a free library movie, I figured why not. Okay, so had I seen this movie when it came out in 2004, I would have said, “Yeah, right. Come on, people! This shit could … Read More

If you read nothing else today, please read this amazing essay by my pal Eve Abrams, What Has Happened to Charmaine?: Eliminating the likes of Bobby might be okay for some people. People who chose hygienic, orderly Singapore or Houston, people who are fine with gum being illegal, or who are happy without the squeegee guys. But I like a bit of mess in … Read More

Have been reading AGNI 62 and loving it. So far have read the supremely-talented Xujun Eberlin’s story, “Pivot Point”–which broke me all to pieces but left me with such a feeling of hope and triumph and Sven Birkerts beautiful essay As Above: Saul Bellow. And there is so much more to be read in this journal. You can order a copy here. Go on … Read More

 November is turning out to be the loveliest month of Autumn this year. Here’s yet another photo of the crashed car in the woods.

Allen sent me this link which once again indicates why spellchecker does not replace a good editor–Pennsylvania company recalls 94,400 lbs of beef (read this first paragraph carefully): Quaker Maid Meats Inc. on Tuesday said it would voluntarily recall 94,400 pounds of frozen ground beef panties that may be contaminated with E. coli.

Movies! Movies! Movies!

It’s been a long time since there have been a whole bunch of movies that I want to see. I mentioned a few weeks ago that Capote is one of them, but here are some others: The Squid and the Whale: In the movie the parents, Bernard and Joan Berkman, are played by Jeff Daniels and Laura Linney, and if that’s who it takes … Read More Movies! Movies! Movies!

Here is something you mustn’t miss–Quarterly Conversation with Ellen Meister. Ellen is my dear friend and I can tell you with great sincerity that her personality comes through completely in this interview (indeed, in all of the interviews she’s done). She is just exactly as intelligent, thoughtful, and humorous as she comes off. Go on and read it and be wowed.

NaNoHellMo

Do you NaNoWriMo? Have you ever? This year, so far I’ve written just over 6K since Tuesday (November 1) and am fighting against myself every step of the way. I’m a reviser. I revise as I go. I write and then I go back and rewrite. It’s just part of my process. Anyway, this is a good and a bad thing. But yesterday I … Read More NaNoHellMo

I posted this a while ago, but am reposting as a reminder and gentle nudge to you my writerly friends: I am honored to be the guest editor at SmokeLong Quarterly for the next issue, due out on December 15th. We have some amazing pieces accepted already and I am excited about being a part of this issue. For those of you who are … Read More

Salut! Ca va?

I had a weird thing happen to me the other day–I forgot the days of the week in French. Actually, I remembered six of them but could not remember Thursday (Jeudi) and I refused to look it up. I spent all day trying to remember and then asked Allen when he got home. This lapse is truly disturbing as I knew the days of … Read More Salut! Ca va?

An absolutely devastating tragedy (and yet not more in the news still–and whynot???)–Earthquake toll leaps to 73,000: Pakistan says more than 73,000 people died in the 8 October quake that devastated its north and Kashmir. Official figures a day earlier had put the death toll at about 57,000. No reason was given for the sudden jump.