Recommended Listening: Ursula K. Le Guin talks with host David Naimon about her classic book Steering the Craft and argues that issues of class, race, gender, and morality cannot be separate from grammar. Pair with Paul Morton’s Millions interview with the author.
On Sailing the Sea of Story
“Can’t you stay? Can’t I go with you?”
Recommended Reading: “The Shallows” by Christopher R. Alonso.
●
●
Good Ol’ Fashioned Library Feud
Due to some outcry, Robert Darnton comes to the defense of the New York Public Library's proposed expansion and revamping.
●
●
Winter Reads: The Little House Books
Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House books bring an icy take on America in winter. To Guardian reader Alison Gibbsme, "as a child, they were full of adventure and excitement; as an adult I am shocked at how full of danger they are."
Words of Wonder
Over at Aeon, Jenny Davidson explores what makes a great sentence. As she puts it, “A great sentence makes you want to chew it over slowly in your mouth the first time you read it. A great sentence compels you to rehearse it again in your mind’s ear, and then again later on.” Pair with our own Michael Bourne’s essay on sentence structure for creative writers.
●
●
On the Scroll
"Was Jack Kerouac really a hack?" To quote Truman Capote: "That's not writing, it's typing." Though not all writers agree.
●
●
Taking Risks on the Page
Over at Catapult, Idra Novey writes on how her experience as a translator changed how she approaches her own work as a novelist. Pair with Magdalena Edwards’s Millions essay on reading Clarice Lispector in English.
●
●