Columns

Edit My Paragraph! Episode Five

October 16th, 2014

In this edition we’ve got reptilians, zombies, and aliens. Perfect for Halloween, right? Right. First up, a user emailed the following paragraph:

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Caffeinated Lit: 9 Coffee and Book Pairings

October 16th, 2014

You have the day off, and you decide to spend it participating in one of the most luxurious activities imaginable: reading a book at a café while enjoying a cup of coffee. You arrive at your favorite spot, order your drink in a “for here” cup, and sit down at a quiet corner table. Tell me this doesn’t sound like heaven on earth.

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Locked Up: Books For My Father

October 14th, 2014

Allowable property includes 2 books, 2 faith group items, 1 eyeglasses/case, authorized hygiene items, legal papers, 5 photographs, 1 plain wedding band & 1 pair of shower shoes. —Colorado Department of Corrections Offender Orientation Handbook My father probably wears shower shoes in prison. He's always been conscious of hygiene. He was a doctor, an anesthesiologist if you want to get picky.

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BookShots: 'Mr. Mercedes' by Stephen King

October 13th, 2014

Bookshots: Pumping new life into the corpse of the book review Title: Mr. Mercedes Who Wrote It?: I think it's going to get a lot darker, more violent, and more intense if it heads in the direction I think it might. The king of horror, Stephen King, author of more than 50 books.

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Top 10 Ways To Make 'The Strain' Less Stupid

October 13th, 2014

The first season of The Strain just came to end. And, well, that certainly was a television show. 

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Things to Consider Before Signing a Publishing Contract

October 10th, 2014

Writing a novel is damn hard. Selling one to a publisher, in its own distinct way, is even more difficult because you're essentially convincing a company to gamble on you and your work. This is part of the reason self-publishing is booming right now. Searching for a publisher is both a hassle and a blizzard of heartbreaking rejection, so when you actually do get an offer, it's a huge moment. So euphoric that emotion can often blind the writer to those important details on what's on the actual contract.

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What The Huge Success Of ’Gone Girl’ Says About Us As A Society (Hint: It Isn’t Good)

October 10th, 2014

My problem with Gone Girl isn’t the book or the writer or the film. My problem with Gone Girl is us. Let’s start with this: Gone Girl is a great book, a really great book; one of those rare works of craftsmanship that make even we battlehardened correspondents from the front line of book reviewing drop our habitual sneers of ennui and let slip a small nod of respect.

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The Self-Taught MFA: Novel Idea or Fairy Tale, Part 2

October 9th, 2014

  I'm astounded that some crook has not had the idea of opening a writing school.                                  

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Book Vs. Film: "Gone Girl"

October 8th, 2014

Back in January, Entertainment Weekly ran a cover story on the (then) upcoming adaptation of Gillian Flynn's bestselling novel Gone Girl. The article's author Stephen Lee quotes director David Fincher (The Social Network, Se7en) on the author-penned screenplay for the film—which stars Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike as Nick and Amy respectively—indicating that drastic deviations from the source material were taken. Lee writes:

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Rocking Out With Romance

October 8th, 2014

I absolutely love a good trope, and tropes are successful for a reason—because they work! Never is this truer than with the romance genre, and one of my all-time favorite tropes in romance literature is the unattainable rock star fantasy. Rock star romances run the gamut, from sweet, tender love stories to no holds barred, sexy backstage antics. There's something for everyone, humorous to serious, all featuring the glamorous world of a rock star. 

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