Opening my electronic mail, recently, I found as comment from a reader: “Each time I read Gothic Spring, or any of your novels, really, I’m reminded again that you are a storyteller extraordinaire.” I’m not modest enough to bury the compliment. Writers cherish a few kind
J. K. Rowling’s criticism of Donald Trump is raising hackles on the internet. His loyal fans, once her loyal fans, are behaving like jilted lovers and threatening to burn their Harry Potter books in retaliation. Rowling says, “Go ahead. I’ve still got your money.” (Click) Pr
In a blog entitled A Polemic (1/20/17), I wrote about an artist’s duty to comment upon events of the time. In a similar vein, the editors of Harper’s devoted their February edition to “A Resister’s Guide”: 11 writers stop to consider the impact of Donald Trump’s 2017 pre
One of my favorite movies is the 1986 film, 84 Charing Cross Road starring Anne Bancroft and Anthony Hopkins. The story is based on real events and is a simple one. Bancroft’s character is a writer who lives in New York as World War II looms on the horizon. Unable to find some r
“A Polemic,” may be too grand a title for this blog. While not intending to be impassioned, I would like to lay out the reason why I labor each day to put a few ideas, most of them not my own, in to print. I owe that explanation to myself as well as to my readers. I write my
As technology keeps drawing people around the globe together, tribal instincts that once served us well, are putting us in danger. Some of the examples of tribalism are near to insanity: The owner of a convenience store in New Mexico put up a sign recently: “Obama and other Mu
This is embarrassing. I went to a book sale the other day and sold all my novels, including my personal copy of Gothic Spring. I sold it by mistake. The book is valuable to me because I use it when I do readings. The pages are dog-eared and marked with comments I wish to m
A week has passed since the 2016 US Presidential election and I’m still reeling from shock. For some reason, titles of classic novels keep swirling in my head — examples where art seems to mirror life. I worry about the future of my country, of course. The comfort is,
Some of my short stories look traditional but aren’t. When they veer too far from the recognized format, I suffer multiple rejections and irrelevant advice on how to make the story better. “Agent of God,” is an example. I floated that story around the internet for a coup
A while ago, a theater critic wrote of a performance he’d endured, “Those of us who have witnessed the play… last night will undoubtedly hold periodic reunions In the noble tradition of survivors of the Titanic.” (“Manners & Misdemeanors,” by Pete Wells, Town&Count