Books I've Bought This Month

Alright, I'm trying to calm down. So far:
The Open Curtain by Brian Evenson (we snagged him for NC1, he's a master)
Infinite Jest by DFW (I know I'm behind)
The Wavering Knife by Brian Evenson
The Angle of Yaw by Ben Lerner
Epigraph by Gordon Lish
Stories in the Worst Way by Gary Lutz
In The Blind by Eugene Marten (his other book, Waste, is incredible)
The Battlefield Where the Moon Says I Love You by Frank Stanford (deep in already, wow)
Give + Take by Stona Fitch (Concord Free Press is giving this away free)
Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino
Less Than Zero by Bret Easton Ellis
Godel, Escher, Bach by Douglas R. Hofstadter
Working by Studs Terkel
40 Stories by Donald Barthelme (first three stories are very, very good)
Samedi The Deafness by Jesse Ball (also a wizard in NC1)



NO COLONY, Foodmovies, Sold Out & Writing Mode

So far NO COLONY Volume 2 is shaping up firm like Arnie. I could spout all day about the stories we've gathered, but I'll spare you. Just know: save your Christmas money.

I can't eat pizza anymore. Pizza tastes awful.

Netflix is incredible. I'm conquering the Criterion Collection. Some new favorite (non-Criterion) films: Network. Wow, the dialogue, THE DIALOGUE. I cried happy tears, no joke. Wings of Desire. Peter Falk was the best part of this movie. Some haunting images that I think will stick with me for awhile. Overall, mood and tone dominate. Worth seeing. (though not as good as The In-Laws)

Y2K is officially sold out at Powell's. Thanks to all who bought.

Question: Do you write fiction/poetry by hand or with a word processor? Get specific in the comments section. I'm going to start writing by hand, to change it up a bit. My hand will slow me down, but maybe that's good? Haven't been writing lately, anyway. Words, hundred words, then twenty words, then six words, hopefully words will pile into novels. I should start writing every day.

The days are long.

David

I wrote three paragraphs about David Foster Wallace's death, my thoughts on suicide & and the writing community, then deleted them. Here is what I'll say instead: David Foster Wallace was a writer, a human. He was loved. He is gone. I feel compassion to those close to him in any way. I've noticed some people that are markedly indifferent to his death, and I say to them: IT IS OKAY TO FEEL.



Motivation, Inspiration & Surrealism

Blake and Shane talked about motivation, creation, death, people, surrealism. Their conversation got me thinking. I want to say this: I believe that everything is cyclical. Motivation, inspiration, relationships, everything. Giant loops. Keeping track of yourself on the loop is the hard part. Sometimes you can work really hard to jump to another portion of the loop, I think. Sometimes you're stuck. I feel comfortable knowing that I'm constantly moving towards something else.

I've watched the trailer to Synechdoche, New York about ten times. It's inspired me, I feel like something is welling up. This feeling, the hum before a huge idea is such a good high.

Regarding surrealism: surrealism is an -ism. I really dislike isms, genres, labels. They're not necessary. They muddy things, force you into an assumption about something creative, which always sets you up for some kind of failure, small or large and sometimes total. Some of my favorite stories feel surreal, they feel magical, they feel like fantasy or nightmare or feel so real you are moved to the other side of the room, but I would prefer not to attach them to an ism. I think the most common thread that keeps me pulled is STORY. I've rarely loved literature that doesn't dive and move and come back up again. I think some sort of journey is important, be it emotional or physical, internal or external. I want to experience CHANGE in art. If nothing changes, if there is no total masterminded direction, then I feel empty. I can't think of an exception. Related: Joseph Campbell (who's face reminds me of David Lynch)

Blake and Shane are both self-aware, nice, intelligent, talented guys. Do yourself a favor and read their blogs, read their stories & talk to them.



Blog Changes

I've made the font larger. Hopefully it'll be easier to read. Everything that I've created on the internet that I'm proud of has been added to the right side of the page. I added my email address. The list of people on the right has changed, I've removed about half of the blogs that I don't read anymore. I'm trying to refocus this blog, make my posts longer and more thoughtful, remove clutter. So much digital clutter. Which reminds me:



Prompt

REFOCUS