“Reading is the sole means by which we slip, involuntarily, often helplessly, into another’s skin, another’s voice, another’s soul.” – Joyce Carol Oates We're all allowed a little self-indulgence on our birthdays, right? I decided to treat myself and created the image above, with my most recently published novel alongside a quote from the literary giant, Joyce Carol Oates. What she says captures exactly how I feel about reading, and I always try to explain the same sentiment to my students. I …
Creative Writing Prompt: Using Legends, Myths, or Fairytales
Writing Prompt: Use a legend, myth, or fairytale as a starting point, and write your own story where you try any or all of the following: change the time/location of the story, switch the genders of the main characters, write it only in dialogue, write it without any dialogue, write the entire thing in one long sentence. I'm using a legend from Treasury of Folklore, Seas, and Rivers by DeeDee Chainey and Willow Winsham as a basis for my own story. It's about a pink river dolphin who …
The Swimmer: Analysis and Study Questions
In Neddy, John Cheever created a truly delusional man who suffers from selective amnesia while he imagines himself to be great. Neddy lives in what should be a suburban paradise, but in the superficial McCarthy-era world of deceit, materialism, and broken promises, nothing is as Neddy wants to believe it is. Even the weather eludes him. There are hints of autumn everywhere, but Neddy believes it is still summer. Yet, he takes pleasure in the possibility of a coming storm. …
The Yellow Wallpaper (Icebreaker)
“I didn’t realize for a long time what the thing was that showed behind, that dim sub-pattern, but now I am quite sure it is a woman.” - Charlotte Perkins Gilman, "The Yellow Wallpaper" This story is about a woman who is trapped by society, her marriage, and her own mental illness. She is also literally trapped inside a room with ugly yellow wallpaper, and all she can do with her time is stare at the wallpaper. Eventually, she is convinced there's a woman trapped behind the yellow …
What I Watched
Lately, I’ve been laid up, after having an unexpected, traumatic tooth extraction, and then coming down with Covid. I am fully vaccinated, boosted, practice good dental hygiene, rarely go out and wear a quality mask whenever I do – so this state of affairs has felt extremely unjust. (I am in the process of writing the whole story in far more detail, so please stay tuned for that post.) Anyhow, I have been in pain, exhausted, and unable to do much, so I have been watching more TV this last …