Our fabulous Third Coast interns have begun their series of blog posts over at the TCBlog. Their ideas focus on revisions and the novel as a franchise.
J.D. Salinger passed away this week (or as my composition students tend to write "past away"). Thing is, no one knows if he spent the past forty years continuing to be a literary genius or just suing people for infringing on his one act of genius.
I got a rejection letter in the mail yesterday from a journal I don't remember submitting to. More pertinent, I suppose, is the fact that I didn't even know there was a journal by that name. I had to dig around in my records to find out who they were and what I'd sent them. Am I on overload, or am I pathetic?
I've only sent out two submissions this month because I've been engaged elsewhere. Actually, I've only sent out five submissions in the past three months because I've been engaged elsewhere! Does this spell doom or some other four letter word?
I loved this short story "Last Son of Tomorrow" by Greg Van Eekhout. He never uses the name 'superman' but if you were so inclined to call it "the life and death of the superman you thought you knew and understood" then you'd be highly ungifted at titling things but not far off in your meaning.
"Last Son of Tomorrow" is part of Tor.com's list of short things it's published that are eligible for the Nebula award. Things are listed here (and free to read) but you have to qualify for membership in the SFWA to vote for Nebula winners making this like the SAG Awards. Bummer.
Steve Jobs claimed years ago that Apple wasn't going to get into the e-reader race with Amazon and Sony because "people aren't reading." This week they unveiled the iPad which is a giant iTouch that functions *gasp* primarily like an e-reader. Of course they unveil this right after I get a brand new iTouch (the iPod type not the very expensive phone type). Reading on it is great, except it's too damn tiny. I can read on its default most of the time, and for webpages I can enlarge the font but it creates a peculiar side to side scrolling effect that I'd rather not have. Thankfully I'm in my twenties and can deal with this sort of eyestrain (unhappily dealing but physically capable). The iPad and similar devices are going to be necessary as I get older. Glad technology will keep up with me as my body deteriorates.
In related news I tried on some reading glasses to see what I'd look like in twenty years, and I'm happy to say that I actually look quite cute with readers.
And Google proves that a story can take the form of any medium. A painting, a photograph, a series of letters, or a search function. (see video below)
