Storytellersunplugged

Flamingo Frank would hate it if I wrote his obituary, especially with black crepe hung all over it. Much too dreary. But early on the dawn of August 2, 2008 -- by his own decision, you can be quite certain -- Frank T. Wydra decided he’d had enough of wrestling with pancreatic cancer and told the subversive processes that were racking his body, “Okay, you want it, you got it.” He could do that because his physical presence was the least of ... Read More

From birth, I had the best possible training for becoming a writer. I was born an only child. That I was also an angry, sneaky, antisocial creep with a rancid imagination only sealed the deal. When there was nothing good on either of the two TV channels, I had to make up my own fun, and my games usually took the form of ridiculously elaborate fantasy epics, which I would illustrate as comics or act out with my rubber dinosaurs and ... Read More

By Richard Steinberg “Oh is this a blessing or is it a curse? Does it get any better? Can it get any worse? Will it go on forever or is it over tonight? Does it come with the darkness? Does it bring out the light? Is it richer than diamonds, or just a little cheaper than spit? I don't know what it is, but it just won't quit,” Jim Steinman/Meat Loaf Yes. Like it or not, I’m back. I ... Read More

I’m not sure how relevant this essay is to writing. Perhaps it is only to the extent that it pertains to who I am. For the past month or two, I’ve been exploring my roots. I believe that you have to reach a certain age (I can see 50 on the horizon) before starting to wonder about such matters in earnest. It’s a shame, really, that this curiosity usually doesn’t manifest earlier in life, when there are more people around from earlier generations ... Read More

Friday the 13th of June was a lucky day for me.  That was the start of a three-day weekend on Cross Lake, Minnesota, as a guest of Glenn Frey.  The friendship goes back 20 years now, and though our muses have different addresses and our histories follow different maps, we are brothers in the ether.  His muse glides elegantly from one success to the next; mine lives in the woods and sweats a lot.  His maps cover the Seven Wonders of the ... Read More

Or: I Didn’t Know I Was a Dark Fantasy Series Paperback Writer Until They Told Me Or: In The End You Actually Do Have To Write the Damn Thing By Justine Musk 1 My agent called me up the other day. “I just got off the phone with Jessica,” she said. Jessica is my editor. “You know how Roc was waiting for the pre-sale numbers to see whether or not they’d want another book?” For the folk out there who ... Read More

My mind went on a diet a while ago and already it’s lost nearly 1800 words.  It started by eliminating all those empty adjectives and adverbs that just pile bulk on the body of my work without any real nutrition.  Then it tossed out the interjections (pure comfort words – WOW! huh?).  You’re allowed substitutions on this diet, and so next went a bunch of nouns, replaced by less rich pronouns.  I feel much better now.  I have more energy and I ... Read More

I think it was the DragonBar that made me remember an early lesson in my writing career.  And that happened because the carp 'n' tuna syndrome that beset my wrists after too many 18-hour marathons at the keyboard eventually led me to try voice activation software.  Dragon NaturallySpeaking with its DragonBar is arguably the leader in that field.  I had tried using it in the late 90s to write a book for a celebrity, but the error rate just killed me when ... Read More

by John B. Rosenman No, no, I’m not talking about the sensational movie starring Daniel Day-Lewis in his first Oscar-winning role. I’m talking about my left foot, which until six weeks ago was strictly dependable, except for a weak ankle that necessitated wearing an ankle brace if I engaged in physical exercise. One day I noticed that my left foot hurt. Then it hurt a lot more. Then it got better and lulled me into a false sense of ... Read More

When it comes to writing, every day is April Fools’ Day.  The Muses -- hobgoblins of the mind that they are -- play their usual tricks 24/7/365.  Clear your desk, your computer screen and your brain for them and they will clear out of town.  Cut yourself off from pen and paper and they will immediately begin dictating the great American novel to you.  They have a sense of humor, a sense of irony, and no sense of obligation whatsoever.  Swim a ... Read More