A girl and a house. My friend Sharon laid that one on me at lunch a week or so ago. It’s perfect. It’s so true. We reminisced over Amaya’s Taco Village enchiladas verdes about Victoria Holt and all the wonderful gothic novels of yore. The cover design always had a girl…and a house. The girl is running from the house, waves are crashing on the cliffs, and the house looms in the background. A girl Read more…
Tonight at the Cactus Cafe: Fascinating discussion on the grisly violence of the Mexico drug wars, as perpetrated by the Zetas, and how it may have been inspired by the gruesome violence perpetrated by Al Qaida operatives in Iraq. John Burnett and Lawrence Wright are two of my favorite reporters and writers.The topic was uncomfortable and enlightening. Interesting that John Burnett used the term “ultraviolence” without even a hint of irony. Life, imitating art, and Read more…
I’m not teaching at any workshops this year, for one big reason — burnout. I kinda yelled at a beginner at last year’s ArmadilloCon Writers Workshop (ably run by Stina Leicht), so I decided to just withdraw for a while. Yelling doesn’t help. The problem is, being polite and enthusiastic and providing great writing critiques won’t help either. The beginners still make beginner mistakes, each year. Different beginners, same mistakes. Yes, we all have to Read more…