Columns

Write What You Like: Why “Write What You Know” Is Bad Advice

February 27th, 2014

The primary requirement for being a writer is being told to “Write what you know” at least sixteen times. The secondary requirement is a gnawing anxiety about the future of publishing, but that’s a topic for another day. “Write what you know” is one of the cardinal rules of writing, a tip that’s as widely quoted as “I before E, except after C.” And just like that bit of spelling advice, it’s more often wrong than right.

Read Column →

Why The F*ck Aren't You Reading Scott McClanahan?

February 27th, 2014

Why The F*ck Aren't You Reading? is a feature where the columnist spotlights a writer who has a dedicated following and is well known within the writing community, but hasn't achieved the elephant-in-the-room style success of a Stephen King or Gillian Flynn—But they deserve to, dammit! Hopefully the column will help gain the author featured a few more well deserved readers. I keep coming back to this Woodrell quote any time I decide to write about rural fiction.

Read Column →

UPDATED WITH WINNER - LitReactor's Flash Fiction Smackdown: February Edition

February 27th, 2014

Flash fiction: A style of fictional literature marked by extreme brevity. Welcome to LitReactor's Flash Fiction Smackdown, a monthly bout of writing prowess.

Read Column →

Is Self-Publishing Good for You?

February 26th, 2014

Quite a few people have asked me if I think self-publishing is a good idea. It's not a question I can give a simple answer to, so this article will serve as my not-so-simple answer.

Read Column →

Culling The Classics: Lolita

February 25th, 2014

Fans of "Culling The Classics"—yes, all seven of you—may recall the trouble I got into the last time I reviewed a Russian work, when two lovely commenters from the Motherland lambasted me for not sufficiently appreciating the bulk of their literature. I did love Anna Karenina, though, so I thought perhaps I would give the Ruskies another go. Ready your molotov cocktails...

Read Column →

Is Print the Popular Kid Again?

February 25th, 2014

When the Daguerreotype was invented in 1839, artist Paul Delaroche famously stated, “From today, painting is dead.”

Read Column →

Guardians of the Galaxy: A Primer

February 24th, 2014

By now you have no doubt seen and reveled in the irrefutably awesome Guardians of the Galaxy trailer. If not, go watch it now. I’ll wait.

Read Column →

Ask the Grammarian: How "snuck" sneaked in...

February 24th, 2014

Well, it appears you all don't need more grammar advice, so this will be the last Ask the Grammarian column. Thank you to all who asked questions and who read these columns. They were fun, and I learned a lot from researching the answers to your great inquiries. I do have one last question to attend to though, so let's get to it. Emily J Chaney writes: I cannot stand the word 'sneaked'. How evil is it if I use the word snuck? Never mind. Once I typed it I saw the ugliness of the word.

Read Column →

It's Made Of SCIENCE: Guns And Bullet Ballistics

February 21st, 2014

You know what a gun is, right? Sure you do. You've probably seen at least one on television within the last 24 hours, or used one in a video game to kill a bad guy (or, as a friend pointed out, a good guy). Guns are everywhere in the media, and even someone who has never actually fired one in real life can probably point to the dangerous end with adequate proficiency.

Read Column →

Prose & Conversation: 'The Girl Next Door' by Jack Ketchum

February 21st, 2014

There's no other way to put it. This month, Richard Thomas and I read one of the most brutal, most violent, most disturbing books I've ever experienced. It was tough. The Girl Next Door by Jack Ketchum gave me nightmares and made me cling to the life I live, the life I love, with more determination than I've felt in a long time. Below you'll see what we both think of this vile, this contemptible, this utterly remarkable novel...and why we both think, despite everything, it's worth a read. 

Read Column →