Category: Reading

Published Work, Reading, Surfing, Writing

Does the Picaresque Novel Still Have a Place in American Literature? 

Maybe a better question to start this conversation would be “did the picaresque novel ever have a place in American literature?” The picaresque novel is defined in the Oxford dictionary as “relating to an episodic style of fiction dealing with the adventures of a rough and dishonest but appealing hero.” When I think of the picaresque the first story that comes to mind is Don … Continue reading Does the Picaresque Novel Still Have a Place in American Literature? 

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Inspiration, Reading, Writing

Currently Reading 

   In preparation for my first creative writing course I visited Open Books, a “non-profit, volunteer run book store. Proceeds from the sale of books and donations support the Prison Book Project.” I haven’t given poetry the full attention I should have and knew that the staff there would be able to help me select some important books to familiarize myself before the fall semester. … Continue reading Currently Reading 

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Inspiration, Reading, Writing

So You Want to Be a Writer? 

I’ll be teaching my first creative writing course in the fall at a university. I’m still learning to be a better writer and I’m expected to pass on knowledge to other young aspiring writers? Although I won’t be teaching Charles Bukowski during the semester, I figured I’d start the class with one of his poems. It may be a little melodramatic, but there is an … Continue reading So You Want to Be a Writer? 

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Essays, Reading, Writing

Faulkner in New Orleans

Reblogged from Faulkner House Books in New Orleans, one of my favorite book stores anywhere:  William Faulkner came to New Orleans early in March 1939 for three days of fishing with local friends. (The Deutches? Hermann was the model for the reporter in his novel Pylon.) Someone from the newspaper spoke with Faulkner at the friend’s home and soon after published an article in the … Continue reading Faulkner in New Orleans

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Essays, Inspiration, Reading, Writing

Keys to Hemingway’s Writing

Reading Dr. Allen Josephs’ book On Hemingway and Spain: Essays and Reviews 1970-2013, I came across a great little nugget of information that Josephs has observed about how Hemingway wrote. These were 5 keys to Hemingway’s method: 1) inventing from experience 2) omitting 3) visualizing  4)making the reader feel it  5)secretly writing poetry I try to remember these things when I write. Not because I … Continue reading Keys to Hemingway’s Writing

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Inspiration, Reading, Writing

James Joyce’s Love Letters

Beware: NOT SAFE FOR WORK or the FAINT-HEARTED.  To celebrate St Patrick’s Day I thought I would share some of the Irish Wordsmith James Joyce’s love letters to his wife Nora, love poems really. But seriously, if you are unfamiliar with these, they will make Larry Flynt blush. Read at your own risk. Enjoy!  http://arlindo-correia.com/joyce.html    Continue reading James Joyce’s Love Letters

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Inspiration, Reading, Short Stories, Submitting, Writing

Why write short stories?

The short answer to this is because all the bad asses of the literary world have: Flannery O’ Conner,  Joyce Carol Oates, Hemingway, Raymond Carver and the list goes on. But why ask this question? Because I like the short story. I like writing them and I like reading them, but the problem is that they don’t really sell. Sure, don’t write because you want … Continue reading Why write short stories?

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Published Work, Reading, Writing

Editing Native Moments 

 Printed out over 100 pages of suggestions sent to me from my editor. Amazed by how many simple errors I had. An omitted word here or there, a single quotation mark instead of double, a few misspellings, etc. Having those extra set of eyes comb over your manuscript is imperative. If I were to ever self publish, I would definitely invest in an editor. Working … Continue reading Editing Native Moments 

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