Ivy Cain's picture
Ivy Cain from Kansas City, Missouri is reading House of Leaves August 13, 2013 - 8:02am

Hello everyone!  One of Mr. Palahniuk's essays was featured on Reddit this morning and it was so informative that I decided to poke around in the site a bit.  It's fantastic!  I can't wait to dig in and get started.  The sticky led me to believe introductions were in order so here I am.  I've been looking for a site that will help me grow as a writer as all the feedback I get from family and friends is woefully tainted with bias.  I'm hoping to get brutally honest opinions from you lovely individuals so if you see me around... be honest, be blunt, be ruthless. 

jyh's picture
jyh from VA is reading whatever he feels like August 13, 2013 - 8:11am

 

Welcome.

Mind the stickies.

Jack Campbell Jr.'s picture
Jack Campbell Jr. from Lawrence, KS is reading American Rust by Phillipp Meyer August 13, 2013 - 9:28am

Welcome. It was an excellent essay. Most of his are.

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Class Facilitator
ReneeAPickup from Southern California is reading Wanderers by Chuck Wendig August 13, 2013 - 10:21am

Hello!

Dino Parenti's picture
Dino Parenti from Los Angeles is reading Everything He Gets His Hands On August 13, 2013 - 11:27am

Stickies are part of the landscape. Welcome!

Strange Photon's picture
Strange Photon from Fort Wayne, IN is reading Laurie Anderson lyrics August 13, 2013 - 12:17pm

Your intro title could be taken in a very sticky way, itself, so with that in mind...

Welcum!

Ivy Cain's picture
Ivy Cain from Kansas City, Missouri is reading House of Leaves August 13, 2013 - 12:32pm

Thank you everyone!

Jack, I agree.  I just worked on a few exercises to prevent the use of thought verbs and I had a great time with it.  I think it will help a lot.

Strange, now said thread also stated that you lot wouldn't bite if I kept my proclivities to myself.  Taking liberties, are we?  Touche, Sir.

 

As I'm multitasking while I work, I haven't had a chance to get a lay of the land yet.  I have a blog where I planned to pull my first workshop post from but I wondered if there was some unwritten rule against such a thing.  I thought it might be good to start with something that I feel is a decent representation to get a general opinion of talent, or lack thereof, and work up to the meatier stuff after I've managed to pay my dues with reviewing.  Any thoughts on posting something that's already had a presence online?  Not a strong presence, mind you, but it's there nonetheless.

Mess_Jess's picture
Mess_Jess from Sydney, Australia, living in Toronto, Canada is reading Perfect by Rachael Joyce August 13, 2013 - 12:52pm

Welcome to the site! Hopefully you're one of those well-behaved, polite redditors ;)

Richard's picture
Richard from St. Louis is reading various anthologies August 13, 2013 - 1:05pm

welcome. what of Palahniuk have you read? do you have a favorite? what kind of stuff do you write? I have a column here, Storyville, that may be of interest to you.

Ivy Cain's picture
Ivy Cain from Kansas City, Missouri is reading House of Leaves August 13, 2013 - 1:23pm

Jess, I lurk more than comment and I like to think I'm well-behaved.  I love that site for the interesting information like AMAs and TILs (and, of course, the cats) but honestly, I rarely get involved with the comments.

Richard, thanks for the link.  I haven't read his stuff before.  Shameful, I know.  I was a very devoted and monogamous reader for the first two decades of my life, sticking mostly to King and Koontz.  I felt like I couldn't move on until I read every last book by both.  It's only recently that I discovered I may actually enjoy other authors and he is definitely one I want to check out.  I loved the movie version of Fight Club (again, for shame) so I've eagerly added him to the list and I'm sure I won't be disappointed.  I write and read horror  almost exclusively now but I know I need to branch out if I ever want to be good at what I do.

SRead's picture
SRead from Colorado is reading Stories August 13, 2013 - 1:43pm

Welcome! I'm sure I'll see you in the workshop--I can't resist the horror entries.  :)

Jack Campbell Jr.'s picture
Jack Campbell Jr. from Lawrence, KS is reading American Rust by Phillipp Meyer August 13, 2013 - 2:33pm

Richard forgave you as soon as you mentioned reading Stephen King.

Richard's picture
Richard from St. Louis is reading various anthologies August 13, 2013 - 2:39pm

@ivy - jack is correct. i'm as big a King fan as I am a Palahniuk fan. i've read all of King's books, have a big collection of his work. i used to love Koontz, but have pretty much given up on him. as for CP, i'd start with CHOKE or SURVIVOR, both are excellent. i loved FC the movie, too. one of the few times i think the film and book were BOTH excellent. (i'd add THE SHINING to that list, even though King hated the film). i'm also a big fan of Ketchum, Straub, Barker and BEE's AMERICAN PSYCHO. i think you've found a new home.

Ivy Cain's picture
Ivy Cain from Kansas City, Missouri is reading House of Leaves August 13, 2013 - 7:48pm

I've seen Choke already so it looks like I'm starting with Survivor.  And I get the Koontz thing but like I said... I'm very devoted and I just can't give him up.

Thank you all for such a warm welcome.  I'm looking forward to becoming a regular as this place seems fantastic!

Richard's picture
Richard from St. Louis is reading various anthologies August 13, 2013 - 7:53pm

I do still like the ODD THOMAS series.

Jack Campbell Jr.'s picture
Jack Campbell Jr. from Lawrence, KS is reading American Rust by Phillipp Meyer August 13, 2013 - 7:59pm

I really liked Odd Thomas. The rest of the series is on my to read list. I have a bunch of Dean Koontz books that I brought for a dollar, but I haven't gotten around to reading them.

Covewriter's picture
Covewriter from Nashville, Tennessee is reading & Sons August 13, 2013 - 8:20pm

Did you guys read Joyride? I kind of liked it. I also, surprise, have read Koontz and King. It's not the kind of writing I do, but they are both great storytellers. Koontz has one coming this fall that could be for a broader readership.  Looking forward to it. 

Strange Photon's picture
Strange Photon from Fort Wayne, IN is reading Laurie Anderson lyrics August 14, 2013 - 4:35am

Always been a huge King fan, but honestly have only read one Koontz book and that was in my dark days. I can barely remember the story of it, and definitely not the title. I was in an institution and heavily medicated, so who knows, it may have been a phone book.

Anyway...  :)

Jack Campbell Jr.'s picture
Jack Campbell Jr. from Lawrence, KS is reading American Rust by Phillipp Meyer August 14, 2013 - 4:51am

Dean Koontz writes phonebooks? Wow, that guy really is productive.

Strange Photon's picture
Strange Photon from Fort Wayne, IN is reading Laurie Anderson lyrics August 14, 2013 - 5:01am

Seriously, though, it was something to do with a cemetery or crematorium (I think) and a guy who couldn't go out in the daylight (sort of like Powder). That's pretty much all I remember. So, between bad associations and not being overly impressed with his writing (so shoot me) I just haven't ever read anything else of Koontz's.

Ivy Cain's picture
Ivy Cain from Kansas City, Missouri is reading House of Leaves August 14, 2013 - 6:16am

Strange, you're thinking of his Christopher Snow series Fear Nothing and Seize the Night.  The latter is one of my absolute favorites.  It wasn't a crematorium but an abandoned military base.  It was set up like a small town so it likely had those things in it though.  I can't remember exact details of the first one.  That was many years ago.

I read Intensity first and was hooked.  Seize the Night came after that because I didn't know it was part of a series.  I was disappointed with the first one when I read it later but the second one was good enough to carry them both, in my opinion.  I think the Odd Thomas series is what's keeping me going right now.  He hinted at something fantastic in Odd Hours, as well as Odd Interlude, and I'm really hoping he follows through with it.  King's movies got me first.  I started reading his books while still in middle school as I remember having to get a signed note from my parents in order to check them out at the school library because I was too young.  Who knew high school libraries had a restricted section?

Strange Photon's picture
Strange Photon from Fort Wayne, IN is reading Laurie Anderson lyrics August 14, 2013 - 6:55am

Fear Nothing, that's what it was!!!

Thank you, Ivy, you've already earned your place here thanks to that helpful reminder. When I stop keeping things from falling apart, I'll be sure to kill you last. The semi-red hair gave you a low spot on the list to begin with, but this just really put you at the end. Way to go!

Now the question is where the hell did I get crematorium from??? Also, where the hell is the "welcome" badge all new victims of the Lit receive upon filing their Introduction thread? Whoever's responsibility that is is slacking, and working their way up the list...

Richard's picture
Richard from St. Louis is reading various anthologies August 14, 2013 - 7:20am

i loved his older books, Whispers and Watchers and Phantoms. 

have you read any Jack Ketchum, Ivy? You MUST. THE GIRL NEXT DOOR, wow. 

Ivy Cain's picture
Ivy Cain from Kansas City, Missouri is reading House of Leaves August 14, 2013 - 7:41am

Strange... There was a scene in a funeral home.  That's likely it.  Also... thank you for what I assume are pretty high honors in your book.  I would really appreciate being killed last.  Better yet... let me stick around for book 2 and you won't regret it.  I do have an icebreaker badge though.  Is that what you're talking about?

Richard... I loved all three of those books!  I saw Watchers first but without a doubt, the book was better.  I love Corey Haim and all but wow.  Whispers creeped me out as I think I was around 12 when I read that one.  Phantoms is also a favorite.  I had that one bundled with Servants of Twilight and Darkfall when he was putting three books in one back in the day.  I've been debating Ketchum.  He seems right up my alley but I saw An American Crime and heard his telling was more sensationalized.  I wondered how the hell that story could get any worse so I read the jacket and well... yeah.  I nearly lost my mind when I saw he teaches one of the online classes, though.  What a hell of a learning experience that would be.  Bottom line is... I just really need to stop watching movies based on books until I've read the damn book.

Richard's picture
Richard from St. Louis is reading various anthologies August 14, 2013 - 8:06am

Ketchum is hard core. He does not shy away from violence. He's an acquired taste, but no worse than Clive Barker's BOOKS OF BLOOD or BEEs AMERICAN PSYCHO. I took a class with him, and it was great. He's a very nice guy. 

Sound's picture
Sound from Azusa, CA is reading Greener Pastures by Michael Wehunt August 14, 2013 - 8:25am

Welcome Ivy!

Ivy Cain's picture
Ivy Cain from Kansas City, Missouri is reading House of Leaves August 14, 2013 - 8:50am

Richard... I have no problem with violence at all so it will be nice to read some "hard core" stuff.  One of the novels I have in a holding pattern is a really brutal piece.  I was worried that it's almost gratuitous so it hit the back burner until I'm smart enough to wield it properly.  That movie just really disturbed me and it lasted for a while so I hesitated.  I like my horror better knowing that none if it actually happened.

Sound... thank you!

Jack Campbell Jr.'s picture
Jack Campbell Jr. from Lawrence, KS is reading American Rust by Phillipp Meyer August 14, 2013 - 11:50am

The thing about a lot of Ketchum's stuff is that it convinces you that it very well could happen (or did happen), which makes it all the more horrifying.

Ivy Cain's picture
Ivy Cain from Kansas City, Missouri is reading House of Leaves August 14, 2013 - 12:04pm

Jack... I absolutely agree.  I have no doubt that it will be terrifying and awesome horror.  I just need to prepare myself for the subject matter and I've been putting it off.

JEFFREY GRANT BARR's picture
JEFFREY GRANT BARR from Central OR is reading Nothing but fucking Shakespeare, for the rest of my life August 14, 2013 - 1:32pm

I think Ketchum's work is a little thin. Aside from the violence, I don't know that I'd classify Ketchum as a very effective writer. OFF-SEASON is just atrocious, unless you're a Laymon fan, in which case it's probably right up your alley. I would recommend Joe Lansdale for a more 'full-service' writer.

 

Then again, I could be wrong. I was, once: it was July 17th, 1987.

Dwayne's picture
Dwayne from Cincinnati, Ohio (suburbs) is reading books that rotate to often to keep this updated August 15, 2013 - 5:42am

Welcome to LitReactor. 

Gordon Highland's picture
Gordon Highland from Kansas City is reading Secondhand Souls by Christopher Moore August 15, 2013 - 11:12am

I'm just glad to see another local around here. Welcome!

Jonathan Riley's picture
Jonathan Riley from Memphis, Tennessee is reading Flashover by Gordon Highland August 15, 2013 - 11:28am

I'm hoping to get brutally honest opinions from you lovely individuals so if you see me around... be honest, be blunt, be ruthless

The latter three adjectives describe this group more accuratley than the first.

Not true. We're all lovely. ;)

Welcome and enjoy.

Dwayne's picture
Dwayne from Cincinnati, Ohio (suburbs) is reading books that rotate to often to keep this updated August 15, 2013 - 2:31pm

I'm hoping to get brutally honest opinions from you lovely individuals so if you see me around... be honest, be blunt, be ruthless.

You will get what you wanted, but you might not want what you get.

Jordan Blum's picture
Jordan Blum from Philadelphia, PA is reading various novels (for review) and journal submissions August 23, 2013 - 8:52am

Welcome Ivy. I credit Chuck with being my first true literary influence. It was after reading his early work about a decade ago that I decided to pursue writing. Fight Club is a favorite of course, although I think his true first novel, Invisible Monsters, might edge it out.