UNSTICKING A STUCK STORY 0:00 / 0:00 Unsticking a Stuck Story An idea for a great character drops into your mind. Then, you compose what you believe to be a magnificent first sentence, “Two hours before Simon’s life took a nightmarish turn for the worse, he stood in his grimy bathroom, under the dim light […]
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MOVIE REVIEWS:LEAVE THE WORLD BEHIND AND LOVE & OTHER MONSTERS 0:00 / 0:00 Leave This World Behind A glutton for punishment, last weekend I watched two end-of-the-world movies: Leave the World Behind and Love and Monsters. (Yes, my social life leaves a lot to be desired.) Leave the World Behind stars four wonderful actors, Julia
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EVERYONE HERE IS KINBOOK REVIEW 0:00 / 0:00 Everybody Here is Kin Using only thirty-eight words, the first sentence of Nash’s debut novel vividly describes two main characters, their behavior, beliefs, and financial status. Nash writes, “Naomi and I slogged through sand so hot it scalded our tender feet, lugging two rusted lounge chairs and
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PODCASTBENEDETTA’S LENTILS 0:00 / 0:00 Benedetta's Lentils Benedetta, my grandmother, made the best lentil soup, food that warmed body and soul on many a cold winter evening. She’d send it home with us in a Mason jar, frequently accompanied by a delicious loaf of bread. As hard as I’ve tried, I’ve never been able to
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SAFETY, ITALIAN STYLE 0:00 / 0:00 Safety, Italian Style When I was eighteen, my cousin Giovanni visited us from Italy. I sat in the passenger seat of Giovanni’s rental car as he sped through a red light at a busy intersection. I shrieked, “Stop. Stop. You’ve got to stop!” Giovanni smiled and said,
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NO HARD FEELINGSMOVIE REVIEW 0:00 / 0:00 No Hard Feelings Jennifer Lawrence is a good actress with broad range. If you don’t believe me, check out one of her earlier, pre-fame films, Winter’s Bone. The movie is based on a gritty book by Daniel Woodrell and portrays the desperation of extreme poverty. The actress gives
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FIRST KISS Debby and The Gorilla at High School Play 0:00 / 0:00 First Kiss Names are changed to protect the guilty. My first kiss was planted on me by a seventeen-year-old guy in a gorilla suit. My junior year, our drama club decided to perform Murders in the Rue Morgue. Mrs. Sardi, the
SINKING Photo Courtesy of Stormseeker 0:00 / 0:00 Sinking (Originally published in Streetlight Magazine.) I attended a state university that required you to pass a swim test to graduate. I will not mention the name of the institution because I’m about to malign them. When the orientation materials arrived by snail mail, included
LOVE AT FIRST SIGHTMOVIE REVIEW 0:00 / 0:00 Love at First Sight On December 20th, on her way to her father’s second wedding, Hadley Sullivan (played by Haley Lu Richardson) misses her flight to London by four minutes. This is not surprising. She is late 21% of the time, which, coincidently is the average battery
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SPIDER Photo Courtesy of Julian Gobel 0:00 / 0:00 Spider MacQueen’s Quinterly published my flash fiction, Spider. You may read it in the journal. Or, here below. A medium-sized spider climbed her husband’s pant leg, his obscenely expensive pant leg. The Brioni suit had cost $4,500. When Preston’s second wife grumbled about the charge on their credit card, he
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