Matthew Dicks's Blog, page 739

Turkey for the win

My wife's uncle and her cousin came to Connecticut to visit last weekend. My wife served sandwiches for lunch. Always looking to take care of me, she made me a bologna sandwich while she and her guests ate turkey.

I've noticed lately that bologna is getting a bad rap. In the two times that I've eaten this delectable lunch meat in the last couple months, people have been surprised by my choice, referencing it as the sandwich meat of the young. Both times, the critics admitted to enjoying...

When death interrupts the writing process

I passed the manuscript for UNEXPECTEDLY, MILO onto a friend who has yet to read it. When I asked him what was taking so long to finish, he admitted that he no longer was in possession of the book. "I gave it to my aunt, who was afraid that she might die before the book was published. She loved SOMETHING MISSING and wanted to read your next one now, just in case."

That's quite a compliment.

The Wall Street Journal recently ran an article about the new wave of novels being published...

Brandi Terry is a big fat idiot

I'm a huge supporter of writing, regardless of the type, author or genre.  Just yesterday I told my mother-in-law that I wish that everyone was writing a book. So many good stories and talented writers go undiscovered when people fail to pick up the pen.

But there's also a time to stop writing and drive the damn car.

I was listening to a story on NPR yesterday about texting while driving entitled High-Tech Solutions To Help Deter Driver Texting. Here is an excerpt from the story, which you...

Luke and Luc

Have you ever noticed the difference between the names Luke and Luc? 

Luke, pronounced as it appears, is the name of a guy who could be my friend.  Strong, independent, and manly, it is a name that bespeaks of confidence and vigor.    

Luke Duke from the Dukes of Hazzard, a man's man even with his unfortunate choice of automobile decoration. 

Luke Perry, former teenage heartthrob and often-forgotten (and rightfully so) star of Joss Whedon's film version of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. 

...

The half-finished book

Suzanne Munshower of The Guardian writes in praise of the half-finished book, celebrating her willingness to put a book down prior to finishing it if the story no longer captivates her.

I'm not sure how I feel about this.

Being a somewhat compulsive person, I often feel the need to finish a book even if I am no longer enjoying it, and many times I do just this. Sometimes it works out. There was a moment in Wally Lamb's I KNOW THIS MUCH IS TRUE when I was ready to close the book and move...

Consider the source

Sometimes the best compliments that you receive about your book comes from the most meaningful sources. 

High school English teacher Bob Stewart listed SOMETHING MISSING as #5 on his list of Top 10 books of the year.  Having great affection for English teachers everywhere, this meant a lot to me.

And last week, one of my former students wrote to tell me that he chose to include SOMETHING MISSING as part of his summer reading and wrote his first paper of the year on the book, arguing that...

Visiting Westport with Margot Berwin

Last night author Margot Berwin and I spoke about our recently published novels at the Westport Public Library in Westport, CT. As was the case a few weeks ago when we both appeared at the Wilton Library, it was great to be able to sit alongside Margot as we discussed our books, the publishing process, and writing in general. Knowing very few authors, I look forward to the opportunity to swap stories with writers and am always surprised to discover how many simultaneous similarities and...

The Island of Misfit Books

Sometimes I ponder the fate of my books.  Will anyone read them a hundred years from now?  Will libraries still have them on their shelves>  Will they even exist? 

Or even worse, will one of my books end up in a place like this?

Be prepared.

Martin, the protagonist of SOMETHING MISSING, rehearses conversations.  He must.  He is socially inept, and the only way that he can function effectively in the world is through advanced preparation.

Though I am not socially inept (I hope), I also rehearse conversations from time to time, but I do so in order to avoid this.

A float has to float

Attempting to improve on my ability to craft dialogue, I find myself listening to people more and more, eavesdropping on conversations and taking careful note of a person's choice of words.  Today I was in Carvel, waiting to order, when the woman in front of me was handed her root beer float.  She looked at it, paused a moment and then asked, "Don't you mix these up?"

Obviously, the woman was a lunatic to assume that a root beer float should be mixed like a shake.  The word float implies...