Caleb J. Ross's Blog, page 72
October 16, 2011
How do readers choose books? [Poll Results]
I'm a data nerd. I'm a spreadsheet and chart nerd. Therefore, I could have made this lede a bit shorter and simply said "I'm a nerd." Recently, I conducted a very unscientific poll on Twitter and Facebook, asking a general group of readers how they decide what to read when choosing a book. While this is an admittedly small poll with a slight slant to be I know, even in tangentially (they are connected to me via Facebook and Twitter … →
October 12, 2011
Stranger Will tour stop #65: Richard Thomas' blog, we argue the merits (or non-) of an MFA
Today marks a special stop on my blog tour. Richard Thomas and I have it out a new installment of his dueling columns series which essentially pits two writers against one another to voice their individuals takes on a hot-button issue of the day. Our issue: to MFA or not to MFA. I've posted both of our write-ups below, which can also be seen at Richard Thomas' site. Click here to read the guest post. Also, don't forget that if you comment on all guest blog posts, … →
Stranger Will tour stop #66: Richard Thomas' blog, we argue the merits (or non-) of an MFA
Today marks a special stop on my blog tour. Richard Thomas and I have it out a new installment of his dueling columns series which essentially pits two writers against one another to voice their individuals takes on a hot-button issue of the day. Our issue: to MFA or not to MFA. I've posted both of our write-ups [...]
October 8, 2011
If you've read Stranger Will, you will definitely want to see this!
During the preorder phase of Stranger Will (around January(ish) of 2011) I decided to do something special, as I try to do with all of my book preorders. With Stranger Will, the temptation to integrate the preorder extras into the thematic content of the book itself was obvious and too persistent to ignore. A large [...]
October 6, 2011
Spinetingler Magazine reviews Click-Clack from Warmed and Bound: "This vignette is a song masquerading as short story. It achieves this with a brilliance as flawless as any modern masterpiece of music."
"Click-Clack" is a favorite of my stories. It has a rhythm and a focus that I am particularly proud of. So, it makes me all warm and bound to read Matthew C. Funk's review of the story at Spinetinger Magazine. Spinetingler, for whatever beautiful reason, has decided to review a handful of stories from the recent Warmed and Bound anthology, [...]
October 5, 2011
Caleb J. Ross Answers Reader Questions about his novel Stranger Will
Sometimes I get bored. When I get bored I tend to pretend there is a camera in front of me. This time, I pretended…FOR REAL! I rather like making promotional videos for my books. Perhaps I will continue. But then again, the new season of Nick Swardson's Pretend Time finally started so boredom may be [...]
Stranger Will tour stop #64: Nascent Novelist blog – Don't let your stories disappoint you
Today at Martine Svanevik's Nascent Novelist blog I talk a bit about my very first non-academic publication, years ago at Dogmatika.com (may it rest in peace). The lesson: I'm so glad one of my earlier tries at fiction writing didn't get out there for everyone else to see. I'm as proud of this first story [...]
October 3, 2011
Stranger Will tour stop #63: American Typo blog – Write. Don't "have written."
Today at the American Typo blog, I talk about some sound wisdom from a source I've long forgotten: too many writers don't want to write, they want to have written. It's hard to remember this at times (which may be indicative of the "writers" lack of reason for being a writer in the first place). [...]
Stranger Will tour stop #62: American Typo blog – Write. Don't "have written."
Today at the American Typo blog, I talk about some sound wisdom from a source I've long forgotten: too many writers don't want to write, they want to have written. It's hard to remember this at times (which may be indicative of the "writers" lack of reason for being a writer in the first place). [...]
October 2, 2011
Stranger Will is not a manifesto on overpopulation or bad parenting, but infographics on the subject are still fun.
Stranger Will is not a novel meant to be read as a personal manifesto. Definitely not. Stranger Will contains some direct (and no so direct) anti-parenting and overpopulation problem content, sure, but the author is not always the book. Or as Freud might say, sometimes a cigar is just a cigar. But that being said, [...]
