Category: Uncategorized
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Introducing The Flopp-V
Not sure if this is insult or flattery. From Cute Boys With Cats; photo by Pink Eye.
The evolution of a pet name.
Small black cat introduced to main pride. Floppy (a fawnish, foppish, not quite grown into his paws) appearance noted. The name Floppy is coined. As other aspects of his personality become apparent, a ferocious energy, the ability to hold his own in a pride of three other cats, despite his sweet exterior manner invokes comparisons to the reptilian ‘V.’ Floppy becomes Flop-V. An extra “p” is later added for propriety’s sake.
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Reading with emptiness/Entering the protocols
Joshua Ferris (of And We Came to the End fame) spoke in class yesterday. He described his reading and writing process and it seemed diametrically opposed to my own. Ferris takes an enormous pad and writes little chunks all over, assembling a narrative from the fragments. Just thinking about writing that way made me uncomfortable (which likely means I should try it). The traditional method of writing, according to Ferris, is to build an idea (he called it a platonic ideal) in your head and then try to get it down on paper. I see writing as more of a thread, and as I write I’m trying to build something up from a spool of text. Ferris isn’t much of a world-builder, and admitted as much, saying there was no way he could get away with such an exotic narrator (a plural “I”) without setting his novel in such a familiar setting (i.e. an office). Another takeaway: Ferris talked about his MFA, saying that the only lesson he really took from Irvine was figuring out how to read without imputing his own aesthetic onto other people’s work. I have been struggling with how to read critically but correctly and that seems to be the key. Our professor suggested John Updike’s Rules for Reviewing (which seem to have vanished in its original form, leaving only bloggy traces):
Review the book, not the reputation. Submit to whatever spell, weak or strong, is being cast. Better to praise and share than blame and ban. The communion between reviewer and his public is based upon the presumption of certain possible joys in reading, and all our discriminations should curve toward that end.
Submission to the spell… if only it were easy
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Listening Post / Rhodesia Independence
Decisions must be made regarding Port Lightning listening posts.
Meanwhile, Independence preparations continue…
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Interior, with cats x 2
Interior, with cats x2 — these are my cats.
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The Q&A: Sasha Grey, Performer
As an X-certificate actress, Sasha Grey perfected a thrashing sensuality far more cathartic and psychologically fraught than her moaning, grunting contemporaries. Her smouldering looks and unapologetic public appearances snared millions of mostly male fans and turned the teen porn performer into a cult figure.
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WRITING PROGRAMME UPDATE
I didn’t write this, but it pertains to my article… [SETH ABRAMSON RESPONDS]
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Takeaways from Slushpile Sifting
- Alzheimer’s and parents’ deaths lose their force as plot devices/ emotion tweakers after the 100th read or so;
- Plagiarizing premises’ from famous short stories dilutes their power;
- Using graduate school as a setting or graduate students as characters seems lazy and boring;
- Plot remains paramount – well-written plotless stories dominate slushpiles;
- The ability to convey emotion through words is rare;
- You get one premise free, the others you have to earn;
- After completing a draft, figure out what the story is (the story making machinery) and then write it again;
- Having a PhD in English/CompLit etc. doesn’t mean you can write things people want to read;
