Rick Rofihe's Blog - Posts Tagged "bob-gottlieb"
NORTHEAST OF EDEN: 11 SERPENTINE TALES by Rick Rofihe
1. I don’t know very much about snakes, just that I grew up far enough north in North America that there were no venomous or constricting snakes around, and that if you saw a snake there was no good reason to be afraid. Still, it can’t be denied that to most people, snakes are startling—you see a stick but then you see it’s a snake. It was startling in the Bible and it’s startling on your lawn.
2. In the country, when my cat killed a bird, I told no one. When he killed a snake, I told everyone; no one ever said I should put a bell on him because he kills snakes.
3. New York City is a scary place. One begins to sense this when taking note of the many pet shops selling 90-cent mice, the preferred live food of pet boa constrictors kept by many New Yorkers. “There’s hardly a block without a boa,” said one mouse dealer. “It’s scary.”
4. G. Gordon Liddy, of Watergate fame, said in his book Will that he didn’t want to be afraid of anything so as to be able to act freely in all situations. However, he was afraid of rats and decided to overcome his fear by roasting and eating a rat. This, like many of Mr. Liddy’s actions, though amusing, and all right for Mr. Liddy, holds little promise for the common, fearful man. After all, won’t anyone who is afraid of say, snakes, probably be afraid to eat one, even a poached one with sauce? Also, do we overcome our fears, or our enemies, by consuming them or their kind? Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev didn’t say, “We will ingest you.” Further, even if you ate one snake, it doesn’t mean you wouldn’t be afraid of the next one you saw (or were served).
5. A while back, a small-city newspaper in the Northeast dropped the Doonesbury comic strip over its use of the term “knocked up”. The editors published a lot of letters concerning the matter—one, written by a person who was either a master of irony or really afraid of snakes, was headlined “Afraid of Snakes” and went like this: “Sirs: Yes, sure, keep Doonesbury going. If I want to read it or not it’s still OK. I have been reading your newspaper since 1929. I am really scared of snakes. If I see a picture of a snake in any newspaper, I soon burn the paper or throw it out of my house. If I see a snake on TV, I shut it off. Lizards, etc., are OK. If I see a snake two inches long, he takes his road and I take mine.”
6. My brother, a clothier, tells of a businessman he knew who imported goose down from the Far East to use in the manufacture of ski jackets. The fellow was wearing one of his own products one day when it began to feel askew. He tugged at it—but it tugged right back. He whipped off the jacket, flinging it on the ground—a snake egg had been imported with the down, and had hatched. (When my brother tells this story, he always gets asked: “What kind of snake?” “Did he kill it?” “Did he feel like a father?” “Did the guy make sleeping bags, too?”)
7. Snakes have no eyelids, no hips, no lobby in Washington (some creatures do!) and little support at home.
8.One summer I heard of a rural woman who became distraught upon discovering snakes in her basement. Believing that these snakes were punishment for past sins, she thought to get rid of them by confessing her life’s wrongdoings, for absolution, to anyone who’d listen. Different people told me a few things she’d divulged, always sins like “I was unreasonable with my daughter when she was growing up,” or “I was impatient with my in-laws,”—the forgiveness of which just might not drive out snakes, or even reseal a good-sized can of worms.
9. If you have a psychiatrist and you dream of snakes, don’t tell him/her about it. The symbolism may give you more things to fear.
10. Not too long ago I came upon an unfamiliar term, “land eel”, in a magazine article. I consulted an old fellow, a fisherman, about it. “Land eels?” He gave me a look usually reserved for tourists. “Eels is eels, they all got gills. If they have to travel over land sometimes, they’re still plain eels.” When I asked him why anyone would use such a term, he said: “Probably meant snakes. Some people scared t’see a snake. Some might be scared to write one down.”
11. I was talking to a naturalist from Pittsburgh about snakes and she said there were some dangerous ones in Pennsylvania’s Allegheny Mountains. “Pennsylvania?” I worried. “That’s close. I live in New York State. Are there any poisonous snakes in New York State?” Her facial muscles shifted and she took a quick long trip—two seconds to another time and place; two seconds back—before replying. “My husband lives near Schenectady.”
Rick Rofihe is the author of FATHER MUST, published by Farrar Straus & Giroux (Editor: Jonathan Galassi; Agent:Gail Hochman). For a free download of his book of nine New Yorker stories, BOYS who DO the BOP, go to the anderbo.com home page. Rick is the judge for Open City magazine's annual short story contest, the RRofihe Trophy at http://opencity.org/rrofihe.html and is an advisor for the 2011 Vilcek Foundation prizes in the field of literature.
2. In the country, when my cat killed a bird, I told no one. When he killed a snake, I told everyone; no one ever said I should put a bell on him because he kills snakes.
3. New York City is a scary place. One begins to sense this when taking note of the many pet shops selling 90-cent mice, the preferred live food of pet boa constrictors kept by many New Yorkers. “There’s hardly a block without a boa,” said one mouse dealer. “It’s scary.”
4. G. Gordon Liddy, of Watergate fame, said in his book Will that he didn’t want to be afraid of anything so as to be able to act freely in all situations. However, he was afraid of rats and decided to overcome his fear by roasting and eating a rat. This, like many of Mr. Liddy’s actions, though amusing, and all right for Mr. Liddy, holds little promise for the common, fearful man. After all, won’t anyone who is afraid of say, snakes, probably be afraid to eat one, even a poached one with sauce? Also, do we overcome our fears, or our enemies, by consuming them or their kind? Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev didn’t say, “We will ingest you.” Further, even if you ate one snake, it doesn’t mean you wouldn’t be afraid of the next one you saw (or were served).
5. A while back, a small-city newspaper in the Northeast dropped the Doonesbury comic strip over its use of the term “knocked up”. The editors published a lot of letters concerning the matter—one, written by a person who was either a master of irony or really afraid of snakes, was headlined “Afraid of Snakes” and went like this: “Sirs: Yes, sure, keep Doonesbury going. If I want to read it or not it’s still OK. I have been reading your newspaper since 1929. I am really scared of snakes. If I see a picture of a snake in any newspaper, I soon burn the paper or throw it out of my house. If I see a snake on TV, I shut it off. Lizards, etc., are OK. If I see a snake two inches long, he takes his road and I take mine.”
6. My brother, a clothier, tells of a businessman he knew who imported goose down from the Far East to use in the manufacture of ski jackets. The fellow was wearing one of his own products one day when it began to feel askew. He tugged at it—but it tugged right back. He whipped off the jacket, flinging it on the ground—a snake egg had been imported with the down, and had hatched. (When my brother tells this story, he always gets asked: “What kind of snake?” “Did he kill it?” “Did he feel like a father?” “Did the guy make sleeping bags, too?”)
7. Snakes have no eyelids, no hips, no lobby in Washington (some creatures do!) and little support at home.
8.One summer I heard of a rural woman who became distraught upon discovering snakes in her basement. Believing that these snakes were punishment for past sins, she thought to get rid of them by confessing her life’s wrongdoings, for absolution, to anyone who’d listen. Different people told me a few things she’d divulged, always sins like “I was unreasonable with my daughter when she was growing up,” or “I was impatient with my in-laws,”—the forgiveness of which just might not drive out snakes, or even reseal a good-sized can of worms.
9. If you have a psychiatrist and you dream of snakes, don’t tell him/her about it. The symbolism may give you more things to fear.
10. Not too long ago I came upon an unfamiliar term, “land eel”, in a magazine article. I consulted an old fellow, a fisherman, about it. “Land eels?” He gave me a look usually reserved for tourists. “Eels is eels, they all got gills. If they have to travel over land sometimes, they’re still plain eels.” When I asked him why anyone would use such a term, he said: “Probably meant snakes. Some people scared t’see a snake. Some might be scared to write one down.”
11. I was talking to a naturalist from Pittsburgh about snakes and she said there were some dangerous ones in Pennsylvania’s Allegheny Mountains. “Pennsylvania?” I worried. “That’s close. I live in New York State. Are there any poisonous snakes in New York State?” Her facial muscles shifted and she took a quick long trip—two seconds to another time and place; two seconds back—before replying. “My husband lives near Schenectady.”
Rick Rofihe is the author of FATHER MUST, published by Farrar Straus & Giroux (Editor: Jonathan Galassi; Agent:Gail Hochman). For a free download of his book of nine New Yorker stories, BOYS who DO the BOP, go to the anderbo.com home page. Rick is the judge for Open City magazine's annual short story contest, the RRofihe Trophy at http://opencity.org/rrofihe.html and is an advisor for the 2011 Vilcek Foundation prizes in the field of literature.
Charlotte Curtis was the first to edit and publish me....
I'm forever indebted to my original editor -- the late Charlotte Curtis of The New York Times. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVAEQa...
Vilcek Literature Prizes For Non-American-Born Writers Age 38-and-Under
THE 2011 VILCEK PRIZES IN LITERATURE: Deadline July 30
The 2011 Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Literature guidelines and application forms (were) available at
http://www.vilcek.org/print/prizes_cr...
NO ENTRY FEE.
The awards are for non-American-born writers of poetry, fiction or creative nonfiction who are living and working in the U.S., age 38 and under;
one $25,000 prize, + four $5000 prizes.
(There is also a $100,000 Vilcek Literature Prize for one non-American-born writer of poetry, fiction or creative nonfiction who is living and working in the U.S., no age restriction, but there is no application process for this prize.)
I am an advisor to The Vilcek Foundation for their 2011 Vilcek Literature Prizes, but I am not a judge for any of these awards.
Sincerely,
Rick Rofihe
Editor, http://www.anderbo.com/
The 2011 Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Literature guidelines and application forms (were) available at
http://www.vilcek.org/print/prizes_cr...
NO ENTRY FEE.
The awards are for non-American-born writers of poetry, fiction or creative nonfiction who are living and working in the U.S., age 38 and under;
one $25,000 prize, + four $5000 prizes.
(There is also a $100,000 Vilcek Literature Prize for one non-American-born writer of poetry, fiction or creative nonfiction who is living and working in the U.S., no age restriction, but there is no application process for this prize.)
I am an advisor to The Vilcek Foundation for their 2011 Vilcek Literature Prizes, but I am not a judge for any of these awards.
Sincerely,
Rick Rofihe
Editor, http://www.anderbo.com/
Ben Sonnenberg Jr., GRAND STREET Founder...
I read with interest and regret today in The New York Times of the passing of a former editor -- a very influential editor -- of mine, Ben Sonnenberg Jr., who founded and edited the excellent literary journal, Grand Street.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/26/boo...
I was lucky enough to work with Ben on two of my stories, "Born Here", now republished at
http://www.fictionaut.com/stories/ric... and "Quiet", now at
http://www.fictionaut.com/stories/ric... (and which was a Best American Short Story "nominee".)
Later, Ben generously blurbed my FSG book of stories, FATHER MUST.
Grand Street was an uncommonly, at least to me, (and this was my experience WAY before I was in it) INVOLVING publication -- I would, mentally, at least, DEVOUR its pages with gusto.
-RR
June 26, 2010
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/26/boo...
I was lucky enough to work with Ben on two of my stories, "Born Here", now republished at
http://www.fictionaut.com/stories/ric... and "Quiet", now at
http://www.fictionaut.com/stories/ric... (and which was a Best American Short Story "nominee".)
Later, Ben generously blurbed my FSG book of stories, FATHER MUST.
Grand Street was an uncommonly, at least to me, (and this was my experience WAY before I was in it) INVOLVING publication -- I would, mentally, at least, DEVOUR its pages with gusto.
-RR
June 26, 2010
SIX QUESTIONS for Rick Rofihe...
From Jim Harrington @ http://sixquestionsfor.blogspot.com/2...
Six Questions for Rick Rofihe, Publisher & Editor-in-Chief, Anderbo
http://www.anderbo.com publishes literary fiction up to 3,500 words, poetry, and "fact" up to 1,500 words.
SQF: What are the top three things you look for in a story and why?
RR: I want a story to start with either a little bit of action and go quickly to some background, or start with some brief background and then cut to some action. I want to know who the story's protagonist is, and what his or her "conflict" is, within the first half-page. Then I want the rest of the story to narrowly follow whatever its beginning is.
SQF: What are the top three reasons a story is rejected, other than not fitting into your answers to question one and why?
RR: A story might be too long—and in some cases, too short—for its actual essence. Also, a story that bites off a little and efficiently chews what's bitten off is better than a story that has a big scope but doesn't fully explore the questions it poses. And then there are stories that might have great endings, but present a tough or unsatisfying slog getting through the story's beginning and middle.
SQF: What common mistakes do you encounter that turn you off to a story?
RR: I see a lot of stories that start off in bars—those stories never seem to work. And a lot of ones involving pets—animal stories don't seem very promising. First-person stories in which the narrator's name isn't somehow revealed—those can be frustrating (though I did such myself in a story, "Elevator Neighbors", which appeared in The New Yorker.)
SQF: Do you provide comments when you reject a story?
RR: Everyone on the masthead is invited to comment on fiction stories which are under serious consideration. I share those comments among everyone, and if the consensus is to accept the story, or accept it with revisions, the author would be shown appropriate excerpts of our comments. For non-accepted stories, unless someone at Anderbo has a prior relationship to the author, we never provide comments.
SQF: I read a comment by one editor who said she keeps a blacklist of authors who respond to a rejection in a less than professional manner. I'm sure you know what I mean. What do you want authors to know about the stories you reject and how authors should respond? Along this same idea, do you mind if authors reply with polite questions about the comments they receive?
RR: There are simply too many submissions for myself and our all-volunteer anderbo.com staff to deal with to get into any back-and forth, polite or not, with a writer whose work we are not accepting.
SQF: What one question on this topic do you wish I'd asked that I didn't? And how would you answer it?
RR: "Rick, do you agree with the writers Margaret Atwood and Lorrie Moore who each would suggest that it's much more important for you as a story-writer to express the story than to express yourself?" (Yes, I do.)
Thank you, Rick. We all appreciate you taking time from your busy schedule to participate in this project.
Six Questions for Rick Rofihe, Publisher & Editor-in-Chief, Anderbo
http://www.anderbo.com publishes literary fiction up to 3,500 words, poetry, and "fact" up to 1,500 words.
SQF: What are the top three things you look for in a story and why?
RR: I want a story to start with either a little bit of action and go quickly to some background, or start with some brief background and then cut to some action. I want to know who the story's protagonist is, and what his or her "conflict" is, within the first half-page. Then I want the rest of the story to narrowly follow whatever its beginning is.
SQF: What are the top three reasons a story is rejected, other than not fitting into your answers to question one and why?
RR: A story might be too long—and in some cases, too short—for its actual essence. Also, a story that bites off a little and efficiently chews what's bitten off is better than a story that has a big scope but doesn't fully explore the questions it poses. And then there are stories that might have great endings, but present a tough or unsatisfying slog getting through the story's beginning and middle.
SQF: What common mistakes do you encounter that turn you off to a story?
RR: I see a lot of stories that start off in bars—those stories never seem to work. And a lot of ones involving pets—animal stories don't seem very promising. First-person stories in which the narrator's name isn't somehow revealed—those can be frustrating (though I did such myself in a story, "Elevator Neighbors", which appeared in The New Yorker.)
SQF: Do you provide comments when you reject a story?
RR: Everyone on the masthead is invited to comment on fiction stories which are under serious consideration. I share those comments among everyone, and if the consensus is to accept the story, or accept it with revisions, the author would be shown appropriate excerpts of our comments. For non-accepted stories, unless someone at Anderbo has a prior relationship to the author, we never provide comments.
SQF: I read a comment by one editor who said she keeps a blacklist of authors who respond to a rejection in a less than professional manner. I'm sure you know what I mean. What do you want authors to know about the stories you reject and how authors should respond? Along this same idea, do you mind if authors reply with polite questions about the comments they receive?
RR: There are simply too many submissions for myself and our all-volunteer anderbo.com staff to deal with to get into any back-and forth, polite or not, with a writer whose work we are not accepting.
SQF: What one question on this topic do you wish I'd asked that I didn't? And how would you answer it?
RR: "Rick, do you agree with the writers Margaret Atwood and Lorrie Moore who each would suggest that it's much more important for you as a story-writer to express the story than to express yourself?" (Yes, I do.)
Thank you, Rick. We all appreciate you taking time from your busy schedule to participate in this project.
How I Invented the Designer Jean in 1968 (Memoir)
Before I was 18 years old, in my small home town of Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, Canada, I invented the designer jean, about a decade before Calvin Klein http://www.calvinkleinjeans.com/ and Jordache http://www.jordache.com/ -- and even Gloria Vanderbilt http://www.thefind.com/apparel/info-g... .
But the men in our family clothing business dismissed my idea, and wouldn't back me. So I bid a sad good-bye to Mother and headed for the big city -- Halifax -- where, three years later, and, still months shy of my 21st birthday, I established two publishing companies, including Anderbo Books, today http://www.anderbo.com .
Then somehow I got it into my head to be an actor -- eventually I got to New York in 1978, and was soon in the personal class of Lee Strasberg. But, one day before class, Lee's wife Anna, seeing me with my face buried in The New York Times, said, "How can you read the newspaper with so many interesting people around you?"
I left acting; soon my writings were appearing in the Times, the Village Voice, SPY, The New Yorker, Grand Street, Open City Magazine, and on Mr. Beller's Neighborhood http://www.mrbellersneighborhood.com/... .
But as the years went on, designer jeans were -- are -- all around me, and it's not unreasonable to think of what might have been.... http://www.nsbd.ca/results.php?hide_i... .
***
Rick Rofihe is the author of FATHER MUST, published by Farrar Straus & Giroux
(Editor: Jonathan Galassi; Agent: Gail Hochman). For a free download of his book of nine New Yorker stories, BOYS who DO the BOP, go to http://www.anderbo.com/bop9.html .
Rick is a winner of the Whiting Writer's Award; judges the Open City magazine's annual short story contest, the RRofihe Trophy http://opencity.org/the-rrofihe-trophy ; and is an advisor for the 2011 Vilcek Foundation Literature prizes.
But the men in our family clothing business dismissed my idea, and wouldn't back me. So I bid a sad good-bye to Mother and headed for the big city -- Halifax -- where, three years later, and, still months shy of my 21st birthday, I established two publishing companies, including Anderbo Books, today http://www.anderbo.com .
Then somehow I got it into my head to be an actor -- eventually I got to New York in 1978, and was soon in the personal class of Lee Strasberg. But, one day before class, Lee's wife Anna, seeing me with my face buried in The New York Times, said, "How can you read the newspaper with so many interesting people around you?"
I left acting; soon my writings were appearing in the Times, the Village Voice, SPY, The New Yorker, Grand Street, Open City Magazine, and on Mr. Beller's Neighborhood http://www.mrbellersneighborhood.com/... .
But as the years went on, designer jeans were -- are -- all around me, and it's not unreasonable to think of what might have been.... http://www.nsbd.ca/results.php?hide_i... .
***
Rick Rofihe is the author of FATHER MUST, published by Farrar Straus & Giroux
(Editor: Jonathan Galassi; Agent: Gail Hochman). For a free download of his book of nine New Yorker stories, BOYS who DO the BOP, go to http://www.anderbo.com/bop9.html .
Rick is a winner of the Whiting Writer's Award; judges the Open City magazine's annual short story contest, the RRofihe Trophy http://opencity.org/the-rrofihe-trophy ; and is an advisor for the 2011 Vilcek Foundation Literature prizes.
