Photo by Yucel Moran on Unsplash . My website recently asked if I’d like some assistance composing a blog post. As I’m hopelessly behind in the book marketing department for Allegiance (promoting myself ranks right up there with a colonoscopy prep), I think: God, yes! I’ll take any help I can get! AI generously provided a menu of topics to choose from (crafting quirky characters, laughter as a writing tool, secrets revealed.) I clicked on humor as a theme. Before getting started though, I found myself glancing around for Mrs. Goode—my 4th grade teacher. … Continue reading The Art Of Unconventional Wit — With An AI Assist by Erika Raskin→
As writers, artists, creators, we can sometimes lose sight of our purpose in the struggle to generate our work. Our culture, certainly, adds to the belief that art is not valuable—we are rarely rewarded financially or honored socially. And the existential threat of AI seems to mock us saying that the work is easy, cheap, impersonal, disposable. Like fast food, fast fashion, we suddenly have “fast art.” Is it satisfying? Is it nutritious? Does it sustain us as artists? Does it sustain our audience? This idea of fast art has always been around. AI is … Continue reading Fast Art by Kate Bennis→
Anick Langelier is a Canadian artist whose paintings mix the spiritual and literary with inspiration from the Old Masters. Living in Laval, Quebec, Langelier began painting at sixteen to deal with her symptoms of schizophrenia. She was also stirred to paint after reading about Van Gogh. Langelier is self-taught although she took painting classes to learn basic techniques such as perspective and the mixing of colors. She studied art history from library books. “At the beginning my work was inspired by the Great Masters,” says Langelier. “I learned to paint by imitating a lot … Continue reading Artist Anick Langelier Looks to the Old Masters→
“If the misery of our poor be caused not by the laws of nature, but by our institutions, great is our sin.” —Charles Darwin, Voyage of the Beagle Autumn is usually a time for renewed outdoor activity as usually summer heat and humidity subside. But usually has become a problematic qualifier. It seems that nothing in nature, in politics, in religion, or in human culture can be counted on to give us reassurance that “all’s right with the world.” My wife and I traveled recently to Frank Lloyd Wright’s “Fallingwater;” an outing which … Continue reading Water, Water, Everywhere: Lessons of Water by Fred Wilbur→
1. Losing The Plot Think of being unable to tell someone what your work-in-progress is about as a seriously suspicious mole; a flashing warning sign. The ability to succinctly explain the main thrust is important—mostly for yourself, to keep you on track as you scribe away. Whether your style is Southern—with tons of Spanish moss draped over every curvy line (à la Faulkner), or bare bones, tersely measured sentences (like Hemingway’s), having a concise destination in mind limits a lot of tragic meandering. For everyone involved. 2. Boring Your Audience Minutia is draining. And minutia … Continue reading 5 Writing Pitfalls To Avoid by Erika Raskin→
Fiction is the lie that tells the truth. The truth is that there was a fire, six people died, and it was intentionally set. The spirit of Lisa prevails to help us understand … all of it. *** Lisa Landers, age seven September 26, 1969 A chess game: that was the dream. My brother Harry had been teaching me how to play. But now, instead of moving the pieces around the board, I WAS one of the pieces: little, with a round head, a pawn. A giant’s hand blocked the light as it reached down … Continue reading A Matter Of Time by Janis Jaquith→
OK. Here’s the back story. A couple of years ago, I walked into the living room one Sunday morning, and noticed one of the big pillows my wife and I use to sit on the floor while we watch TV, was out of its usual storage place under the sofa. I turned to kick it back under the sofa, and as I did, I twisted my knee. I have very bad knees. A twist usually means the immediate loss of the use of my leg. This was the case, and I fell backward, landing on … Continue reading The world’s ugliest coffee table. Probably made by Martha Stewart in prison by Wayne Bowman→
By the time I reached my teens, I was taken with the idea of writing a fictionalized autobiography, but as my college roommate, Barry, observed, no one will want to read my autobiography if I have led a dull life. He was right, of course, but I had already considered that problem and thought I had solved it with the novel—if overly precious—notion of setting my autobiographical account in the nineteenth century even though I lived in the twentieth. This would have required historical research to figure out what would be the same and what … Continue reading The Thinly Disguised Autobiography by Miles Fowler→
Once again, we had the opportunity to read a (virtual) stack of flash fiction pieces that have enlarged our worlds—and we are grateful. As usual, we employed the Venn Diagram method of settling on the winners, each listing our own top choices and then selecting from those that overlapped. It’s an interesting way of judging because deeply held favorites may not even ‘medal’. But that pretty much underscores the subjective nature of contests (or, you know, anything.) What speaks to one person might not, another. Which is all to say—that, contests aside, the truly … Continue reading 2024 Flash Fiction Contest by Erika Raskin→
Let’s just say, for the sake of argument, that you’re considering getting old. We don’t recommend this course of action, of course, because the risks greatly outweigh the advantages. But if you must age, here are a few tips to help you navigate what can be a fun time in your life, if you take the proper precautions. Keep in mind that the main skill required for this period of your life is that of settling; as in settling for things you had never considered you would need to settle for in the first place. … Continue reading Tips For Aging Women by Christine McDowell Tucker→
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