Ravi Mangla's Blog, page 38
November 25, 2012
November 20, 2012
Nine Variations on the Turducken
- Turduckenfu (tofu chicken inside of a tofu duck inside of a tofu turkey)
- I’m with Turducken (chicken inside of a duck inside of a turkey inside of a novelty t-shirt)
- Turduckencadabra (chicken inside of a duck inside of a turkey inside of a rabbit inside of a hat)
- Transturducken (woman trapped inside of a man inside of a chicken inside of a duck inside of a turkey)
- Trophy Turducken (chicken inside of a duck inside of a turkey inside of a blue marlin)
- Turducken Correctional (file inside of a chicken inside of a duck inside of a turkey)*
- Incepturducken (chicken inside of a duck inside of a turkey inside of a dream)
- Rosemary’s Turducken (demon baby inside of a chicken inside of a duck inside of a turkey)
- Weekend at Turducken’s (chicken inside of a duck inside of a turkey wearing sunglasses)
* pairs well with pruno
November 16, 2012
"The Ghost Bird" by Ryan Call
For a number of weeks, our family devoted itself to caring for a wandering soul, a ghost bird of indeterminate species, though how it had flocked to our home, we could not discover. It merely appeared one evening, perching there suddenly upon my sister’s shoulder, making to preen, but failing on account of its rotted feathers. We sat rigidly in our chairs at the kitchen table so as not to trouble the air—as if a disturbance might set off some further unnatural occurrence in our home—and watched as the bird settled itself to roost, first raising one leg, then another, before twisting its skeletoned head back beneath its wing and falling asleep.
- “The Ghost Bird” by Ryan Call with illustrations by Christy Call (from The Collagist)
November 15, 2012
"Rejection Notes #1: Norman Mailer" @ BULL Men's Fiction
I’m writing a series of fake rejection letters for BULL. Each piece will feature a famous writer. First up is Norman Mailer:
Dear Mr. Mailer,
Yes. We received the vial of saliva and lock of hair. Thank you. However, our rejection has nothing to do with us doubting your identity. We just didn’t feel this particular piece was a good fit for Highlights for Children. We enjoyed much of the story (the scene where the woman is performing fellatio is very well-written), but we are targeting a certain demographic, and we don’t think the overt sexuality and more contemplative themes of this piece are appropriate for our readership. We encourage you to submit again in the future.
November 12, 2012
November 5, 2012
"A Case for the Wasted Vote" @ The Rumpus
“A Case for the Wasted Vote” at The Rumpus:
Third parties are the pariahs of our political system, surviving on the scantiest scraps of media coverage and campaign contributions. To vote for a third party candidate is, in the opinion of many, a wasted vote, since the candidate has little to no chance of winning the election. However, if history is any indication, the greatest progress is often born out of defeat.
November 2, 2012
What We Tweet About When We Tweet About Writing #3
- Hey publishers. I’ve got a novella-length manuscript of literary fiction. Should I go ahead and set it on fire? Okay, that’s what I thought. - Nathan Pensky (@Nathan_Pensky)
- i wish rejection letters were accompanied by the rejector’s charcoal rendering of what he/she thinks i look like nude - Thomas Mundt (@tnmundt)
- A barista spends 3 minutes making you a $6 cup of coffee, you tip her. A writer spends a year writing a book, you complain $4.99 is too high - Robert Swartwood (@RobertSwartwood)
- Every time the arts are cut, a prison gains two wings. - D.A. Powell (@Powell_DA)
- Going to scare trick-or-treaters by giving out chapbooks, telling them if they major in English, this will be their life. - Michael Schaub (@michaelschaub)
- Lit porn parody: A Hard Man’s Good To Find. - Gary Sheppard (@garyfsheppard)
- Dear badasses of the literary world: keep in mind it’s the literary world. - Kyle Beachy (@kylebeachy)
- glad I got this Masters of Fine Arts because now I’m overqualified for everything and qualified for nothing. - Molly Laich (@MollyL)
- National Proofread Your Damn Manuscript Before Sending It Out month. - Lincoln Michel (@TheLincoln)
- I’m so happy that twitter came along. I thought I was going to have to write a book or something. - New York Tyrant (@nytyrant)
November 1, 2012
"Tot" @ Corium Magazine
My short story “Tot” appears in the new issue of Corium Magazine. The issue also features new work from Gabe Durham, Kate Petersen, Jamie Iredell, Nick Ostdick, Lydia Ship, and many others.
October 30, 2012
Ralph Nader
The empowerment and widespread exercise of citizenship is a prerequisite for a sound, democratic society. Leadership that empowers more people, that reduces the severe concentration of power and information, and that lifts a nation into missions of accomplishment which will increase justice, happiness, and opportunity—that is the leadership citizens must demand by involving themselves in a national political campaign. So too, the media should rise to their higher responsibility to report the White House and not just mimeograph its rhetoric.
Our history has demonstrated that the well-being of society springs from the growth of daily, active citizenship that provides an enabling environment for good leaders to come forth. Every significant social movement in this century has sprung from active citizens fighting for their cause—women’s suffrage, workers’ rights, civil rights, environmental and consumer protection, peace. Put in today’s terms, citizens in our country need to spend more time being citizens. That is the real bottom line.
- Ralph Nader (1984)
