Chris Abouzeid's Blog, page 23

Should We Blind Ourselves To An Artist’s Acts?

By Randy Susan Meyers Last night I watched a TMC documentary: And The Oscar Goes To. Saying that I wept is about as meaningful as saying I sneezed—I am the easiest tears-mark in the world. Something about seeing actors fall on their proverbial knees in gratitude, brings out my crybaby ...

Heroin Tales

By Ann Bauer Author’s Note: I wrote this piece a year ago then put it away because I wasn’t ready to publish. This week, I decided it’s time. I added only one line to make the essay current (you’ll know it when you read it). Much has changed for me since ...

How to Start a Novel

By Chris Abouzeid You have an idea for a novel, but you don’t know how to start. Or you’ve already written part/most/all of it, but aren’t sure you have the right beginning. Maybe your workshop keeps telling you your opening is weak. How can you fix it? First, it’s important ...

Becoming My Own Boston Irish: James Joyce, James Brown & Seamus Heaney

By Chuck Leddy My mother was born in County Galway, on the ruggedly-beautiful, wind-swept west coast of Ireland. She was a farmer’s daughter, but never much liked the farm. She left for London, then New York City, and finally settled in Boston to be near her brother and sister. I ...

Interview with Poet Robin Smith-Johnson

By Dell Smith I was raised in a house full of books and writing. My parents wrote novels and kept journals, and so it was natural that my three sisters became writers as well. My sister, Robin Smith-Johnson, has been writing and publishing poems for years in journals like The ...

Friday Faves – Wishes Edition

By Juliette Fay If I had some wishes to spend, I might just spend a few on these. Someone I wish I’d met: Pete Seeger, famed folksong crooner and writer, dead at 94 (New York Daily News) Seeger’s grandson Kitama Cahill-Jackson told The Associated Press his grandfather had been hospitalized ...

Krazy Glue

By Bethanne Patrick Does anyone know the origin of the writerly phrase “bum glue?” (Some, of course, say “butt glue,” but I prefer the Britishism in this case.) We may not know when it was first used, but we all know what it is: The art of keeping our keisters ...

Introducing Ask Margie

Welcome to the first appearance of Ask Margie! This is your chance to ask questions of the BTM staff. Queries got you puzzled? Rejections piling up? Not sure about epilogues? Confused about point of view? Spouse resenting your hours spend at the computer? Wondering how to handle your jealousy over ...

Going From Grim to Giddy: Extreme Writer Research—Make-up Division

By Randy Susan Meyers Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking and prying with a purpose. Zora Neale Hurston Novels require texture. Beneath the surface should reside volumes of information which will remain untold, but which informs and enriches every page of your story. Research is the imaginary and real travel ...

The Sorry State Of Author Interviews

By Laura Harrington I have admired Ann Patchett for years.  After falling in love with Bel Canto, I went on to read everything else she’s written. Ann Patchett is a superb writer, much honored, and a focused and irrepressible force for good in the world of books. Last week I ...