Mark Stevens's Blog, page 51
June 1, 2012
Shakespeare & The Ultralights: Lessons in Fiction
He called it Europa State University. Café Europa on South Pennsylvania St. in Denver was our meeting place. We’d spend hours talking books and stories and writing. It’s a cliché to say you love words. Yes, my pal and mentor … Continue reading →
May 27, 2012
Stewart O’Nan – “The Odds”
You have Niagara Falls so you have the “going to the brink” imagery. You have the casinos so you have plenty of obvious and overt gambling imagery. And you have the border and the whole notion of crossing borders, shifting … Continue reading →
May 25, 2012
Q & A with Sherry Peterson
Gary Reilly’s life partner was Sherry Peterson, who supported for him years while he wrote fiction. Gary passed away in March 2011, leaving behind 20 novels, including The Asphalt Warrior, which comes out in June 2012. I spent many coffees … Continue reading →
May 20, 2012
Q & A with Hannah Nordhaus – “The Beekeeper’s Lament”
In The Beekeeper’s Lament, Nordhaus relays beekeeper John Miller’s observation that there are two types of people: “the kind who shy away when the hive is first opened, and the kind who lean in.” While not a big fan of … Continue reading →
May 8, 2012
Q & A With Nick Arvin – “The Reconstructionist”
Denver’s own Nick Arvin was kind enough to let me email him a few questions after I’d devoured his second novel, The Reconstructionist. Review follows this three-question exchange. Check out Nick’s insights into a writer’s willingness to make changes in a … Continue reading →
April 28, 2012
Nevada Barr — “The Rope”
Anna Pigeon’s first case? That’s how The Rope is billed. Anna Pigeon before all her many other adventures. Anna Pigeon, the early years. Anna Pigeon, the soon-to-be mystery solver. Nevada Barr holds Anna back. She’s not quite a detective yet, … Continue reading →
April 18, 2012
Hardie Karges – “Hypertravel”
In The Accidental Tourist, Anne Tyler gives us an odd and interesting guidebook writer, Macon Leary, who doesn’t exactly relish his work. He hates travel. He travels “in a desperate kind of blitz—squinching his eyes shut and holding his breath … Continue reading →
April 8, 2012
Robert Harris – "The Ghost" & "The Fear Index"
The Plausibility Index. How far are you willing to stretch to enjoy a story? It's a slick-slippery slope. I usually want my novels with their feet rooted in terra plotta firma. But occasionally, I'm willing to let go. If the … Continue reading →
March 30, 2012
Mark Coggins – "The Big Wake-Up"
"The Big Wake-Up" is light and snappy and packed with attitude. It has more graves, graveyards, gravestones, crypts, mausoleums, coffins, embalming fluid and urns than a vampire-werewolf-Hamlet film festival and it has Eva Peron. Yes, Eva Peron. Or at least, … Continue reading →
March 17, 2012
Håkan Nesser – "Borkmann's Point"
"Borkmann's rule was hardly a rule; in fact, it was more of a comment, a landmark for tricky cases." Borkmann is an old cop, one of the few that Chief Inspector Van Veeteren respects. Van Veeteren is thinking about Borkmann … Continue reading →
