In Today’s Journal
* The Bradbury Challenge Report
* On Writing TNDJ and Literary Criticism
* Of Interest
The Bradbury Challenge Report
Participating in any challenge is a great way to have fun and grow as a writer.
The requirement is to write at least one short story per week, then let me know the title, word count, and genre per the format below. During the past week, the following writers wrote these new stories:
- Vanessa V. Kilmer “Wired To Burn” 3029 Mystery
- Christopher Ridge “Christopher Ridge vs. Corporate Zombie Bastards” 1899 comic horror
- Dave Taylor “Generation’s Day” 2,281 Paranormal
- Glynn Young “The Ventilator” 2772 General
- Glynn Young “The Father-in-Law” 1759 General
- Glynn Young “Conversation and a Whisky Chaser” 1873 General
Congratulations to all of these writers.
On Writing TNDJ and Literary Criticism
I had a couple of other items all ready to go for today’s post.
One of them was an insane ‘guest post’ written by one of my more prevalent characters (Joseph ‘Joey Bones’ Salerno). It was crazy, and probably would be entertaining for some and not for others. I shoved it back into the can.
The other was a very long piece inspired by an email and titled “A Defense of Hemingway.” That one was a rebuttal to a video a young writer sent me titled “Debunking Hemingway.” (Hence the title of my rebuttal.)
Of course I sent the rebuttal to the writer via email, but to finish and polish the rebuttal and turn it into a post for TNDJ would require a lot of work I’m not currently in the mood to supply. I’m too busy writing on the current novel.
But there are two other reasons I’m not posting the latter today:
- I’ve never cared for literary critics or literary criticism, especially the tasteless criticism of the works of a master who, owing to his current unlisted address, is unable to respond. Talking with critics calls to my attention how little time we have and how short life is and it’s a complete waste of time to me. It also makes me feel tired all over. Plus
- How many writers in the TNDJ audience would care at all about my thoughts on the matter anyway? I suspect very few, if any.
To me, it’s much better for the potential literary critic to keep his ridiculously inane, acidic thoughts to himself and simply write the way he wants to write.
After all, who’s stopping him?
The answer is “Only himself” because he’s busy criticizing someone else
And what difference will the guy’s thoughts on Hemingway’s ‘Iceberg Theory’ of writing make anyway?
- For one thing, um, it’s only a theory, something Hemingway as a writer saw fit to try to perfect. So get over it already.
- And for another, to any serious writer, criticism of other writers will have no effect at all. None. Because again, serious writers don’t engage in criticism or literary theory. They write.
Additionally, tearing down someone whom so many greatly admire and from whom literally thousands of writers have learned will almost certainly ensure fewer readers for the writer-turned-critic’s own actual stories and novels. I know his criticism had that effect on me.
I also suspect it’s a safe bet that a hundred years from now writers will still be learning craft from Hemingway through his fiction, and that the guy who made the (to me, offensive) comments in the video will, like most of us, only be an also-ran.
Of Interest
The Good, The Bad, The Ugly Kickstarters