Columns

Storyville: My Ten Favorite Short Stories of 2013

December 12th, 2013

Before people get their noses all bent out of shape, here are the parameters for my selections. These are not the best stories of 2013, because I obviously cannot read every story written, every literary journal, every genre anthology. These are merely my ten FAVORITE stories of 2013. For the most part, these were released in 2013, a few from late in 2012, but they are all stories that I read for the first time this year. So, some of these stories may have originally been published a few years ago, but I tried to make this as current as possible.

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Dystropia: The Christmas Edition!

December 12th, 2013

Somewhere situated between Easter Island and Papua New Guinea, perfectly pinned on a straight line between the Great Pyramid and the Nazca Lines lies the Isle of Dystropia, the place where every cliché and worn-out convention sticks out like rubble in the sand. Pawing through the debris, you'll find the trope that may just make or break your story. Each installment, we'll explore a different literary platitude, examining it for its various strengths and weaknesses. Set sail for Dystropia, where you might just learn something about your writing and yourself.

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It's Made Of SCIENCE: Evolution

December 11th, 2013

No, I did not intentionally do this close to Christmas to make a point. Pinky promise.

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10 Reasons Why the Grinch Is Better than Santa Claus

December 11th, 2013

The Grinch is such a minor holiday character. He's less than a demigod in a Christmas pantheon filled with Santa, a secret brotherhood of reindeer, a talking snowman, and who knows how many elves. It’s time to give the Grinch his due. In fact, it’s time to face the truth that Dr. Seuss created a Christmas character superior to old St. Nick. What the Grinch lacks in history, he makes up for in many other ways. Here are the reasons why the Grinch is better than Santa Claus.

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Elan Gale, Viral Narrative, and Why It Matters

December 11th, 2013

This year marked the first Thanksgiving I ever spent away from my family. I have to admit, I was not quite prepared for how lonely it would make me feel. As far as gatherings go, Thanksgiving has not ever featured very heavily in terms of priority for my extended clan, but still, my roommates were out of town and with a significant other, respectively, and spending the eve and most of the day of what is theoretically a major holiday alone in chilly New York proved to be more disheartening than I anticipated.

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Fifteen Twisted Christmas Tales

December 10th, 2013

‘Tis the season and blah blah blah. Okay, I’m not really an Ebenezer (or Scrooge, if you will) when it comes to the holidays. Christmas is cool by me. BUT, I do like celebrating this festive, historically complicated holiday on my own terms. I go out of my way to find alternative or offbeat Christmas music (and not just run-of-the-mill punk covers of “Jingle Bells” or whatnot). Books, TV and movies themed around the holidays must be a little strange to meet my approval. 

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Bookshots: 'House of Gold & Bones' by Corey Taylor

December 10th, 2013

Bookshots: Pumping new life into the corpse of the book review Title: House of Gold & Bones

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Social Media and the Law: What Can You Write and Do You Own Your Content?

December 10th, 2013

To most of us, what you can and can't write about on social media is something so obvious that we don't even need to be told. Basically:  

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Heaven Sent: Biblical Mythology and Fantasy

December 9th, 2013

Header: The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse by Boris Vallejo I’ve talked a lot about mythology in my columns and yet I’ve neglected to tackle Judeo-Christian mythology. Whether you’re a believer or not, whether it’s real to you or just fiction, there are mythological elements to the Biblical stories that rival some of the best fantasy stories.

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4 Things I Learned From NaNoWriMo

December 9th, 2013

1. Sign up I read the text message once, twice, began to read it thrice before I realized it was a waste of time. "Yes, but I'm not doing it through the website," my fingers Swyped. The initial message, from a friend: "Are you doing NaNoWriMo? If so, what's your screen name? I'll add you."

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