Columns

Harry Potter and the Merry Christmases, Ranked from Worst to Best

December 22nd, 2017

Christmas is in town and everyone’s gleeful, putting up decorations on Christmas trees… unless you’re Harry Potter, who is not a normal teenager. Poor Harry has experienced some pretty traumatic Christmases over the years, since the day also happens to be a plot point that figures pretty importantly in Rowling’s narrative arc.

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Why You Should Never Buy A Writer A Notebook

December 21st, 2017

It’s a no-brainer. Your friend, your mom, your person, is a writer. You aren’t going to buy them a new Macbook. You thought about gifting that vintage typewriter until you tried to lift it, learned it weighs 800 lbs, and priced it at about a dollar for every one of those pounds. No problem. You go with a notebook. Simple, practical. Supportive. Good choice, right? Maybe not. Hear me out.

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7 Books to Read After You've Watched Netflix's ‘Dark’

December 21st, 2017

This year Netflix has really brought their A-game with great television shows like Mindhunter, Ozark, and Stranger Things Season 2. But Netflix’s first German-language original series, Dark, may top them all. Co-created by Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese, Dark has drawn comparisons to Stranger Things due to various thematic similarities, though in terms of tone and aesthetic it has much more in common with the likes of Les Revenants, Forbrydelsen, and even Top of the Lake.

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Storyville: Top 10 Things for Writers to See, Do and Buy this Holiday Season

December 20th, 2017

This holiday season, take a few moments from your busy schedule to hang out with family and friends. Here are some idea of what you can do. Have fun!

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Why Coming of Age Crime Stories Work So Well

December 20th, 2017

Who among us didn't come of age as a criminal? Wait, that can't be. No, no, you were a criminal too. You just might not realize it. Whether it was that pack of gum you stole in fifth grade or the test you cheated on to pass math in junior high, you're a criminal just like me. Just like us all. 

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Emma: The Feminist Hero I Never Knew She Was

December 15th, 2017

Near this date more than 240 years ago, a legend was born. She was a quiet legend, not a flashy superhero or revolutionary politician, but the works she produced and the impact she had are hardly to be misunderstood or scoffed at. 

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Writer, Heal Thyself: Coping with 2017

December 14th, 2017

Images via Pixabay & Cottonbro Studio “Hell is empty and all the devils are here.” Shakespeare’s oft and overused quote has never seemed more applicable than in 2017, a year that has seen a deluge in tidings of geopolitical tension, racial division, mass shootings, natural disasters, and sexual harassment.

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6 Book Suggestions for the Young and Weird at Heart

December 13th, 2017

Some of my favorite holiday memories were of getting books. I like toys, but toys were temporary things. Books lived in me—that is the promise of books. They are ingested and they become part of our makeup. Toys live alongside us. They are external companions that are dragged through our lives until we bore of them, then they are discarded. Books can't be discarded thusly. If you were a fan of Piers Anthony in middle school, and later you come to realize that his books were pretty sexist and shallow, you cannot forget the magic they imparted on your days.

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Shakin’ in my Boots: 13 Horror Films with Roots in Texas

December 13th, 2017

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre might’ve put The Lone Star State on the horror movie map, so to speak, but it’s not the only scare film rooted in Texas. From crooked hillbillies to Mexican vampires to Satan-worshiping cults, here are a dozen more to add to your to-watch list.

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LitReactor Staff Picks: The Best Books of 2017 (part 2)

December 12th, 2017

Another year has come and gone. You know what that means, don't you? Time for a bunch of strangers to tell you what was good! And why should you care what the LitReactor staff thinks are the best books of the year? Trick question! You shouldn't. But what they have to say might interest you nonetheless, because they are good-looking and knowledgeable and they read like the wind. So for those who care, we submit for your approval/derision some of LitReactor's favorite reads of 2017 (part 2).

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