Tag: critique

My “Friend” Keeps Sending Me Their Writing and I Need It To Stop: Am I the Literary Asshole?

Speaking philosophically, if a tree falls in the woods after too many cans of Miller Lite and there’s no one around to hear it, is it cool if the tree grabs another drink or should the tree just go to bed and sleep it off? Much to consider. I’m your host, Kristen Arnett, and I’ve […]

A Summary and Analysis of John Cheever’s ‘The Worm in the Apple’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) The short stories of John Cheever (1912-82) are among the greatest American short stories of the twentieth century. His Collected Stories runs to 900 pages and contains tales which are by turns realist, borderline magic-realist, and downright strange. In Cheever’s short story ‘The Worm in the Apple’, the narrator […]

John Barth, a Novelist Who Found Possibility in a ‘Used-Up’ Form

John Barth was a pioneer of literary postmodernism.Credit…Bettmann/Getty Nobody likes the comic who explains his own material, but the writer John Barth, who died on Tuesday, had a way of making explanations — of gags, of stories, of the whole creative enterprise — sing louder and funnier and truer than punchlines. The maxim “Show, don’t […]

“No Nights (or Chapters) Off.” And Other Grown Up Lessons From Reading to My Kids

There has been one single experience that taught me more about storytelling than anything else in my life: telling bedtime stories to my children. Live audiences can be merciless; ask any comedian. Workshopping fiction can be rough, too. But I’d submit that while your own children won’t heckle you or carve up your prose with […]

Lit Hub Asks: 5 Authors, 7 Questions, No Wrong Answers

The Lit Hub Author Questionnaire is a monthly interview featuring seven questions for five authors with new books. This month we talk to: * Hala Alyan ( The Moon That Turns You Back ) Steven Kurutz ( American Flannel: How a Band of Entrepreneurs Are Bringing the Art and Business of Making Clothes Back Home […]

I Loved “Barbie” and “Poor Things” but Neither Film Is a Feminist Masterpiece

Screenshot from “Poor Things” I’ll give you a plot and you tell me which 2023 film I’m referring to: A wide-eyed waif who lives in a technicolor world gains sentience and leaves on an existential odyssey that exposes her to the inequalities of a modern society. If you answered Poor Things , you’re right. If […]

Am I the Literary Assh*le? In Which Everyone Talks Sh*t About Everyone Else

We’re back for round three of the internet’s favorite drunken biweekly “news” report, Am I the Literary Asshole—the only advice column that asks you to consider the fact that BOGO wine isn’t just a lifestyle, it’s also a state of mind. Today I ask you to join me for a glass (or three) as we […]

Desirous of Indifference: On Peter Stamm’s “The Archive of Feelings”

The Archive of Feelings by Peter Stamm IN A 2017 INTERVIEW with The White Review , Peter Stamm remembered a “special cookie” he loved as a child. As the Swiss novelist explained: “I had the feeling that wanting these cookies so much weakened me. So I bought a whole packet and ate all of it […]

Tone Words – Ultimate Guide for Writers

Tone words are essential elements of your writing skillset, pivotal in shaping the reader’s perception and emotional response to your text. These words carry the capacity to subtly influence a narrative’s atmosphere, character dynamics, and overall message, making their selection crucial in writing. This guide is designed to provide an in-depth exploration of tone words, […]

Writes & Bites: Moynihan Train Hall and moving through your pages

The train isn’t just good for affordable, comfortable travel; it’s also a convenient mobile writing spot with a dose of scenic inspiration. This week we look at writing aboard an Amtrak train departing from Moynihan Train Hall. Hello, refreshed readers and writers. I’ve been expecting you. Welcome back from winter break! I hope the spring […]