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Friday Finds for Writers

by Erika Dreifus on
6

For the weekend: some writing-related reflections, news, and resources to enjoy.

  • First up: Some marvelous items produced in connection with the latest Vermont College of Fine Arts MFA in Writing program residency. I recommend that you spend a good chunk of time with Patrick Ross’s “MFA Nugget: An Entire MFA in Writing Residency in One Post” (warning: you’ll actually end up reading more than one post) and with new graduate Sarah Seltzer’s graduation speech.
  • Still thinking about the fact that there was no Pulitzer awarded in fiction this year? So is one of the fiction jurors. Check out Michael Cunningham’s two-part commentary for The New Yorker.
  • Making the Internet rounds: Patrick Somerville’s Salon essay titled “Thank You for Killing My Novel” (subtitle: “The New York Times panned my book, then had to correct the review to fix all their errors. So why am I not angry?”)
  • As usual, I find myself agreeing with much of what Carol Tice shares in “5 Stupid Things You Do in Social Media that Brand You a Pariah.” (Numbers 1 and 5 happen to irk me especially, too.)

  • Last, but definitely, definitely not least: Algonquin Books presents its fall 2012 “Reader,” comprising brief introductions to (and excerpts from) the publisher’s forthcoming fiction titles. The introductions, which explain the genesis of each book, are written by the respective authors. I’m always fascinated by the origins of others’ fiction, so this would have pulled me in even if I didn’t already admire Algonquin’s list and didn’t know some of the authors represented this fall. Side note: If you’re looking for a forthcoming title for your book-reviewing practice, you may well find one here.

    • Have a great weekend, everyone. See you back here on Monday!

    Friday Finds for Writers

    by Erika Dreifus on
    2

    For the weekend: some writing-related reflections, news, and resources to enjoy.

  • First up: Rachel Unkefer, whose many roles include leading Charlottesville’s WriterHouse, explains why she’s adding yet another facet to her identity: poet. There’s much here that resonates as I remember the path that led me to four online poetry workshops. For instance: “Recently there have been a few nagging ideas, though, that I haven’t known what to do with. They weren’t enough to base a short story on, even flash fiction. They could have been musings in the head of a character in a novel, but they had too much weight for me to relegate them to such a minor role. And they wouldn’t go away. Looking out my window or walking in my neighborhood triggered them. Maybe these are poems, I thought, but I don’t know how to write poems.” And so a new field of study–and writerly practice–is born.
  • In praise of the semicolon.
  • Hey, book reviewers! Looking for some fall titles to review? The Millions offers quite a preview.
  • Did you miss The International Conference of the Short Story, which recently convened in Little Rock, Ark.? Me, too. Luckily, Creating Van Gogh has a conference recap.
  • Finally, author Kyle Minor has made available an online “Sketchbook: Selections from my Writer’s Notebook, 2010-2012 (45,000 Words of Interview Excerpts, Links, Quotations, Mini-Essays, and Thoughts about the Craft and Art of Making Literature).”

    • Have a great weekend, all. See you back here on Monday!

    Friday Finds for Writers

    by Erika Dreifus on
    2

    It’s Friday, folks! Here are a few noteworthy links for you to explore at your leisure this weekend.

  • Planning to write about the London Summer Olympics? Check out this style guide from The Associated Press.
  • “Opportunities” to avoid.
  • Next up: “4 Ways to Land Travel Writing Assignments by Thinking Creatively”–great post, totally aligned with my own “think outside the box” philosophy for freelancing.
  • A few “black lit mags to watch.” (via The Review Review)
  • And if you’d like to know how an essay-review on The Millions has rekindled my interest in the fiction of Etgar Keret, please hop on over to my other blog.

    • Happy weekend, all. See you back here on Monday!