a writer's question

In an interview worth reading, I appreciated this "writer's question" directed at Chelsea Martin.

Z: Writers are well known for mining art from personal tragedy, a process which Mickey deconstructs and pokes fun at with great success by listing titles for the narrator’s theoretical art installations (“Untitled #13 – Nostradamus predicted I would feel sad today and everyday hereafter” being a particular favorite of mine). In life there’s the kind of despair that can make it difficult to attribute meaning to anything, let alone commit words to paper. But there’s also a more functional, low-level depression or malaise during which I’d wager many writers perhaps function at their “best.” 

I think it’s a state you capture brilliantly in the book, as when you write: “When I had a job, I had to pretend to be happy for at least part of the day…But now I’m home almost all the time and, having exhausted many of my friends’ capacities for compassion, I am able to devote full days to plotting petty revenge and going over my past failures ad nauseam.” Do you find you are able to accomplish much of your writing at times like this, that it almost proves inspiring in some way? 

CM: Yes, definitely. That can be a great time to write. I find there is a rawness to my writing when I’m low-level depressed. I think you can kinda tell I don’t give a fuck, and I really like that quality. When I’m in a more positive headspace I’m more cautious and analytical about what I’m writing, so that can be a good time to edit. But I try not to expect certain emotional states from myself, especially when it comes to productivity, because things like that end up being excuses not to write, or to not make myself feel better.

Economic Hardship Reporting Project

It's always a bit disappointing to see these somewhat simplistic articles get a shiny new website when my more developed and nuanced novels which take on similar topics are mostly ignored, although here's an interesting one on Americans choosing to retire overseas in order to afford a retirement.

CLH in Scotland

long live negative reviewers!

The world needs more readers who cast aspersions after reading ten percent of a book.

this ben will change your life

The mighty Tanzer pulled off the job change and blog post in the same week, and he also published a nice piece on Lavinia Ludlow's Single Stroke Seven. Thanks, Ben!

Auggie's Revenge at The Oakwood Register

Auggie's Revenge is featured at the top of page two of the local weekly, The Oakwood Register, August 10 edition.

Here's a quotation of mine from the article:

“J.K. Rowling and Stephen King are not living the lives of regular writers. For most writers, it’s a tough business that requires a great deal of perseverance and an ability to see past rejection. I haven’t tried it yet, but I feel self-publication is a valid option in the contemporary book market, and some of the most famous literary works of all-time were originally self-published or published as very small print runs by obscure presses.”

To read the entire article, follow the center-right link that looks like the front page of the newspaper and turn to page two once the pdf opens.

Auggie adds another five-star review

It was nice to see another five-star review for Auggie's Revenge.

Mike Leone's first book

Word on the street is that the writer Michael Leone's first collection, The Real Natasha, arrives from Braddock Avenue Books in September and is available for preorder. I grabbed a copy as soon as I heard the news.

Interview in American, British, Canadian Studies

American, British and Canadian Studies Journal, an open-access journal out of the University of Sibiu in Romania, published an interview with me on Fight for Your Long Day. Once you get to the site, click "Download Full Text PDF."

vivid, moving, shocking

In her annual blog on the academic novel at The Chronicle of Higher Education, Ms. Mentor called Auggie's Revenge: "vivid, moving, and sometimes shocking."