Posts Tagged ‘ fiction ’

The Sheer Joy of Genre Reading: Dirda’s ‘On Conan Doyle, or, The Whole Art of Storytelling’

January 12, 2012
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The Sheer Joy of Genre Reading: Dirda’s ‘On Conan Doyle, or, The Whole Art of Storytelling’

While literally thousands of fictional characters have fallen by the wayside over the past century, Sherlock Holmes remains imperishable. Well, why, exactly? Author Michael Dirda explains the appeal of genre fiction in his new book, "On Conan Doyle, or, The Whole Art of Storytelling." Dirda's attractive little volume manages to range far beyond Sherlock Holmes or even Conan Doyle. The book is a paean to imaginative literature and the profound impact it has over the span of readers' lives, from childhood into older age. TAC's Curtis Evans explores Dirda's book and the enduring appeal of genre fiction.

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“The Magic of Words” – Prose & Poetry Update

June 14, 2011
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“The Magic of Words” – Prose & Poetry Update

In the 21st century science reigns. Some, however still believe magic exists in words. Computer scientist, Anu Garg is one of them. He’s fascinated by the magic of words and created a website dedicated to the “world of words.” He and hundreds others explore such questions “Where do words come from? Who made them up? Who dictated that a rectangular opening in a wall was to be called a window?” His love for words and belief in their magic led him to create Wordsmith.org. You can see a sample for “Wordsmith.org” below. A single word has a magic of its own. Words collected into a story or poem takes that magic to a whole new level. I hope you enjoy this weeks collection of writers whose work brings a bit a magic into a world dominated by science. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “The bad poet is usually unconscious where he ought to be conscious, and conscious where he ought to be unconscious. Both errors tend to make him “personal.” Poetry is not a turning loose of emotion, but an escape from emotion; it is not the expression of personality, but an escape from personality. But, of course, only those who have personality and

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Prose & Poetry Update

May 24, 2011
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Prose & Poetry Update

This week’s issue begins and ends with G.K. Chesterton. Up first, the “Prophet of Common Sense” on Art, Literature and accepting the status quo: “The beautification of the world is not a work of nature, but a work of art, then it involves an artist.” – Illustrated London News, 9-18-09 “By a curious confusion, many modern critics have passed from the proposition that a masterpiece may be unpopular to the other proposition that unless it is unpopular it cannot be a masterpiece.” – On Detective Novels, Generally Speaking “And all over the world, the old literature, the popular literature, is the same. It consists of very dignified sorrow and very undignified fun. Its sad tales are of broken hearts; its happy tales are of broken heads.” – Charles Dickens “The aim of good prose words is to mean what they say. The aim of good poetical words is to mean what they do not say.” – Daily News, 4-22-05 “A dead thing can go with the stream, but only a living thing can go against it.” – The Everlasting Man, 1925 Short Fiction The Disadvantage of Having Two Heads written & illustrated by G.K. Chesterton “A little boy once looked

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Prose and Poetry Update

May 17, 2011
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Prose and Poetry Update

While the Newt flames out after less than a week in the spotlight as the “Big Republican On Campus,” folks might want to think about something other than politics. How about a good story? But first, a few literary quotes on good and evil, and the love of books. “No one who can read, ever looks at a book, even unopened on a shelf, like one who cannot.” – Charles Dickens, Our Mutual Friend “When I am king, they shall not have bread and shelter only, but also teachings out of books; for a full belly is little worth where the mind is starved.” – Mark Twain, The Prince and The Pauper “The devil’s agents may be of flesh and blood, may they not?” – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Hound of the Baskervilles “We live in a world of transgressions and selfishness, and no pictures that represent us otherwise can be true, though, happily, for human nature, gleamings of that pure spirit in whose likeness man has been fashioned are to be seen, relieving its deformities, and mitigating if not excusing its crimes.” – James Fenimore cooper, The Deerslayer Short Fiction Luck by Mark Twain “It was at a

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A Fictional 100th Birthday Commemoration for Mr. Johnson

May 7, 2011
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A Fictional 100th Birthday Commemoration for Mr. Johnson

The crowd emitted an audible wail. They shook in superstitious fear as Peetie forced the six strings of his guitar to scream above his moan. Zann smiled as he watched the group, unawares, rise collectively several inches above the ground. He hadn't taught Peetie this parlor trick. Peetie was levitating crowds without their knowledge even before Zann met him.

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Zeitgeist Alters a Classic War Novel

April 16, 2011
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Zeitgeist Alters a Classic War Novel

From Here to Eternity has been in print since Scribner originally published it in 1951. That version won the National Book Award in 1952, a year it was up against The Catcher in the Rye and The Caine Mutiny, among other titles. According to the New York Times, it “is frequently cited as one of the best American novels of the 20th century.” Not content with accepting the novel’s iconic status, James Jones’ heirs have decided this American classic must bow down to the vulgarity and identity politics currently admired by modern culture. When the classic novel From Here to Eternity was published in 1951, a few things were gone that had been in the original manuscript: explicit mentions of gay sex and a number of four-letter words. … Sixty years later Mr. Jones’s estate has made a deal to reissue a digital version of the book that restores those cuts. This begs the question: Why? Clearly, these edits didn’t harm the work’s status among literary elites. So what do readers gain in re-reading, or reading for the first time, this novel with the vulgar language and mentions of gay sex restored? Some may respond that this is the book’s

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“Celebrity” by W. S. Moore, III

December 1, 2010
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“Celebrity” by W. S. Moore, III

The Culture Alliance and the American Culture once again present original fiction by W. S. Moore, III. If you think you know what happens next, you’re probably wrong. CELEBRITY The white Cavalier blended indistinguishably into the traffic flow headed north on I-471 into Cincinnati’s downtown. The driver drummed his fingers on the steering wheel during the stop-and-go approach to the bridge across the Ohio. Fifty carlengths behind the white Chevy, an automated message center arched across the highway and told other drivers to expect sudden stops, and the helicopter pilot on the radio described it as the typical backup. He didn’t mention the driver of the white Cavalier. For that matter, no one ever mentioned the white Cavalier’s driver, whose right hand now idly traced the stiffness of a coffee stain on the passenger seat’s gray cloth upholstery. Well, that wasn’t entirely true — occasionally he’d be sitting in the cubicle when the receptionist would ask for someone from accounts receivable to pick up line two, and if she did it twice, he’d take the call. But that was about all. Even the girl behind the counter at the Sunoco where he bought his daily coffee would talk to the

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TAC Fiction Review

November 26, 2010
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TAC Fiction Review

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. Enjoy a hearty helping of links to short fiction, news, reviews, criticism, a taste of poetry and other miscellany from around the Web. Short Fiction: “An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving” by Louisa May Alcott “Two Thanksgiving Day Gentlemen” by O. Henry “The Blizzard” by John Dunklee “Back Trail” by Kerby Jackson Reviews: That Jewish Novel – Benjamin A. Plotinsky reviews Gertrude Himmelfarb’s The Jewish Odyssey of George Eliot. Love and War – Alan Mintz reviews David Grossman’s To the End of the World. A Man Out of Time – Theodore Dalrymple reviews Byron Rogers’ The Man Who went into the West: The Life of R. S. Thomas. Literary Criticism – Timothy Farrington reviews Orhan Pamuk’s The Naive and Sentimental Novelist. Miscellany: “What I’m Thankful For” an interview with Mark Twain from New York World Sunday Magazine (Nov. 26, 1905) Mark Twain’s Autobiography Flying Off the Shelves Reinventing the Book: Jonathan Safran Foer’s object of anti-technology. The Fall and Rise of Science Fiction – John C. Wright briefly reviews science fiction’s literary credentials before and after the editor of Astounding Science Fiction, John W. Campbell. A Limerick History of Science Fiction – Mike Resnick describes it in terse verse. Nine

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Local Talent, by W.S. Moore, III

November 19, 2010
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Local Talent, by W.S. Moore, III

The Culture Alliance and the American Culture present original fiction by W. S. Moore, III, who “write stories about people who do unpleasant things. Some of these people use the sort of language you might use if you drop something heavy on your foot. You’ve been warned.” LOCAL TALENT When I picked her up at the club, I knew it was going to be fun. She was from out of town, she said. I asked her what her name was. She said it was Susan. I told her mine was Mike. She told me hers was Marie. I told her mine was Carl. She told me hers was Lisa, I told her to call me Ishmael, and we laughed and talked about books for a minute or two and I told her I worked at a bookstore. She said she was a graphic designer in town for a convention. I saw the wedding ring scar on her left hand, but I knew that if she was at Cat’s, it didn’t matter. Nobody went to Cat’s to be married – just to pretend for a little while. Well, that’s not entirely true. I had gone there for another reason. I had

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Prose Fiction Update

July 23, 2010
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Prose Fiction Update

For your reading pleasure, as the work week comes to a close. Spend some time this weekend with a selection of links from this week’s Fiction Friday newsletter, produced by the Culture Alliance. Here is a miscellany of short fiction, news, opinion, advice and criticism from the publishing world. Short Fiction The Taborin Scale – a novella by Lucius Shepard “The Story Teller” by Saki (H.H. Munro b.1870 – d.1916) Reviews Triple Crown by Dick Francis – A Review by Lars Walker The Prince of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafon – a review by Bill Shepard News, Interviews and Opinion Four Reasons Why Authors Should Use LinkedIn – HT: Phil at BrandywineBooks.net Audio Interview with John C. Gardner San Diego Comic-Con: Scott Pilgrim, ‘Ulysses Seen,’ and a Layoff at Del Rey A Wry Dystopian Seer – The Wall Street Journal interviews Gary Shteyngart Harlequin Builds a Non-Fiction Presence Print Sales Up Double Digits at Amazon Literary Criticism Excerpt from “Introduction on the Republication of On Moral Fiction” Moral Fiction - The Atlantic Magazine’s Mary Gordon discusses Gardner’s On Moral Fiction Writing Advice Wright’s Writing Corner: What To Do When Your Outline Breaks Announcements PW Calls for Information: War & Military – “Needed: Publishers’/editors’ written comments about

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‘Girl Who Played with Fire’ Is Impelled by Moral Obsession

April 5, 2010
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‘Girl Who Played with Fire’ Is Impelled by Moral Obsession

I found The Girl Who Played With Fire absolutely compelling, from beginning to end. Most riveting was the character of Lisbeth who (as more than one character notes) is an intense, even compulsive, moralist.

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Are We Privileging Politics In Our Entertainment Choices?

March 12, 2010
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Are We Privileging Politics In Our Entertainment Choices?

Given my conservative frame of mind, fiction that bucks today’s politically correct dogma attracts me like Paris Hilton to the paparazzi’s flash. So when David Forsmark provides a short list of “Politically Incorrect Fiction” I am incapable of not clicking the link. What I found forced me to ask myself, ‘Am I putting politics above a good story?’ Forsmark’s list includes novels by Joseph Wambaugh, Alex Berenson, Robert Crais, Steve Hamilton, Michael Crichton, and Steven Hunter. The inclusion of Hunter’s I, Sniper is what made me question my motives when it comes to what fiction I choose to read. Consider this excerpt from I, Sniper, included in Forsmark’s list: “The narrative is the set of assumptions the press believes in, possibly without even knowing that it believes in them. It’s so powerful because it’s unconscious. It’s not like they get together every morning and decide ‘these are the lies we tell today.’ No, that would be too crude and honest. Rather, it’s a set of casual non-rigorous assumptions about a reality they’ve never really experienced that’s arranged in such a way as to reinforce their best and most ideal presumptions about themselves and their importance to the system and the

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"Culture is the expression of the guiding philosophy of the day."—Murray Rothbard
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