Monthly Archives: July 2011
Grab Bag: G.D. Spradlin, R.I.P.
You might not recognize the name, but surely you remember the face and the voice: “You can take it and shove it up your ass with a poker, a red-hot poker!” “I intend to squeeze you, Mr. Corleone.” Turns out, Gervase Duan Spradlin, who died Sunday at age 90, was far more than an imminently … Continue reading
Another Page: ‘Lapsing Into a Comma’
Today, I conclude my two-part series on books that can help you improve your writing and self-editing. For Part One, go here. My opinion: If you aim to write in a cogent, conversational style while still employing careful usage and grammar, your best bet is to get this book by Washington Post copy editor Bill … Continue reading
Progress Report: 7/26/11
There’s not a lot to report. I’ve been writing, writing, writing and it’s gone well, well, well, but I’m still not at the point where I’m ready to talk about the project in any substantive way. So that pretty much ends that. I spent the early part of Saturday at the Joliet (Mont.) Jamboree, a … Continue reading
Once More, With Feeling: ‘Mull of Kintyre’
Now that I think about this, I’m dead certain I’ve done this riff on the Paul McCartney and Wings song before, but for the life of me, I cannot remember where. So what the hey and all of that, I’m doing it again! If once was enough for you, I invite you to chill out … Continue reading
Grab Bag: An Honor for ‘The Summer Son’
I’m pleased to be able to say that my second novel, The Summer Son, has been selected as a finalist for the Utah Book Award in fiction. It joins two other novels — Sarah/Sara by Jacob Paul and Danse Macabre by Gerald Elias — as a finalist for the award, which will be presented October … Continue reading
Another Page: ‘Woe Is I’
I’m going to spend the next two weeks on conversational, common-sense usage and grammar guides. For one thing, I pay the bulk of the bills as a professional copy editor, so these issues are important to me. For another, perhaps the most troubling things I see in new writers — and in far too many … Continue reading
Progress Report: 7/19/11
Welcome, again, to the land of incremental progress: The official release date of Ed Kemmick’s book, The Big Sky, By and By, is a week from today, and I now have books in hand to ensure that select bookstores around the state receive copies. I’m happy to say that pre-sales have been very brisk indeed, … Continue reading
Once More, With Feeling: ‘Wendell Gee’
R.E.M. fans are a diverse, divided group. You have the originals, who fell in love with Murmur and think everything since has marked a slow sellout. You have the come-latelys, who jumped aboard with Out of Time or maybe Automatic for the People. And in the largest group, you have people like me, who took … Continue reading
The Word(s): Arbitrary Dilettante
The drill: Each week, I ask my Facebook friends to suggest a word. I then put the suggestions into list form, run a random-number generator and choose the corresponding word from the list. That word serves as the inspiration for a story that includes at least one usage of the word in question. We did … Continue reading
Grab Bag: Festival fun
Five days ago, I sat in Nutter Memorial Park in Sidney, Montana, on a stunningly beautiful 70-degree day (it’s generally at least 20 degrees hotter this time of year) and did a couple of my favorite things: I talked with friendly people who love to read books. I put my books in their hands. With … Continue reading
