Tag Archives: Fiction Writing

Review of Kent Wascom's "The Blood of Heaven," Plus a Mission Debrief

So my review of Kent Wascom’s impressive debut novel, The Blood of Heaven, appears today in the Dallas Morning News, here. It’s a rollicking book, and I have to say I keep thinking of that Hatfields & McCoys miniseries whenever … Continue reading

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On "The Road," Choking on Smoke

So I’ve owned a house in southern Colorado for ten years, and during that time have seen our summer weather go up and down, some years wet and some years dry, only it always seems to be trending toward hotter … Continue reading

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On Kent Haruf's "Benediction," Fyodor Dostoyevsky's "The Brothers Karamazov" and the Colorado Fires, Again

So this post should be a candidate for some kind of parlor game like “Try to pinpoint the logical connection (though there may not be one)”: I finished Kent Haruf’s Benediction, which includes a scare at the end (I won’t … Continue reading

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On Kent Haruf's new novel, "Benediction," and Anticipation for the Upcoming New Coen Brothers' Film, "Inside Llewyn Davis"

So Kent Haruf’s new novel, Benediction, came out last February, but I waited until I came to Colorado to buy it, because I know Kent. He lives near Salida, about fifty miles from where my summer (writing) home is, and … Continue reading

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On Reading Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code": Is It Really as Bad as They Say?

So in The Writer’s World (imagine an alternate universe of eggheads, wannabes, dreamers, drinkers, and too-often-self-obsessed thinkers) Dan Brown’s blockbuster novel The Da Vinci Code (2003) has a reputation about on par with Ed Wood movies or, for a more … Continue reading

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Sandra Cisneros in Person, Complete With Reboso, as in Her Novel "Caramelo"

So I’ve been swamped with end-of-the-semester work lately, with no time to stop and think or write, but this week at Penn State we’ve had Sandra Cisneros as a Writer-in-Residence, and she’s been fantastic—gracious, kind, and inspiring. On Monday night … Continue reading

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Review of Jim Crace's "Harvest"

So my review of Jim Crace’s new novel, Harvest, appeared Sunday in the Dallas Morning News, here. I liked the book, mainly for its style more than its subject or story, which was taken to task in an interesting review … Continue reading

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Where Do You Live? What Do You Do? & Other Ways to Define a Person

So I’m working on a new novel, which is really the only part about being a writer I like. I was just visiting a friend who went to one of my readings and commented on how cool it was to … Continue reading

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