The Art Supply Barn
On a cold morning I visit the second floor of an art store and I see folks I’ve been out of touch with for years. They are passionate, hearty, close to the world, not given to cynicism or hip irony. … Continue reading →
Category Archives: Writing
How Have TV Show Plots Affected Novel Writing Over the Last Sixty Years? (English Graduate Program Thesis II)
A second (and final) graduate thesis, which I again give to someone else to execute, would explore the evolution of novel plots since the development of television. We’ve had to be influenced by television and its time constraints. By 8:28 … Continue reading →
The Blog Evolving into the Entire Journey
Old Things My first blog entries have been oddly coalescing around past writing. I’ve wondered at the look backwards: “A Mule for Billy” and “Five Query Letters” from the 90’s, Total Annihilation: Camouflage! from my Rice days, “Case 9 of … Continue reading →
How Did “They” Get Started? (English Graduate Program Thesis I)
They’re building a new Starbucks down the street. They’re about to raise interest rates. They’re planning a new freeway through my back yard. They’re thinking of putting in a new sewer line. They’re coming out with more efficient electric cars. … Continue reading →
Flashpoint’s Daughter
What’s up with bones, daughters, and duplicate titles? Several years ago I began to wonder why so many novels had the word bone in the title, and I went through the library catalog to make an extremely long and astonishing … Continue reading →
Exhibit A: “Slime in the Mind,” by Edward Duce (The Politically Correct Theology Student Song)
Deleted from an early version of my novel Sortmind, the chapter “Twenty Years Ago at Darkforce” (its 9,600 words omitted here), recounts theology student Edward Duce’s interrogation before the Feminist Trial Board of Darkforce Theological Seminary. Duce, the future founder … Continue reading →
Total Annihilation: Camouflage!
Why should I post a play I wrote at the end of my freshman year at Rice? Because it does seem timeless to me. It seems like one of those wise childhood things we sometimes write and then forget for … Continue reading →
Case 9 of the New Fritening Experiences: Attack of the Taoists!
The following is offered in homage to my literary beginnings as a fifth grade science fiction author of such works as “February 11, 1971, DOOMSDAY,” “Blast-Off to Eternity,” “MONSTERVILLE, U.S.A.,” and “Journey to the Center of the Sun.” “Fritening Experiences” … Continue reading →
A Mule for Billy
My one and only foray into anything even resembling Texana. Don’t panic. There is no Chapter 2. Chapter 1. Growin’ Up ‘n Plantville When I wuz growin’ up ever day Ma ‘ud yell “Billy, come inta dinner, yuh hear NOW!” … Continue reading →
Trust
It’s odd to consider that, by definition, trust begins with complete strangers. Each must assess the level of honesty in the other. There is no “communal trust.” It’s always between two people. A hundred thousand people might trust a writer, … Continue reading →