my wonderful husband got me a neo. oh, how i love you, neo!
i don't think i can write a novel on it--i'm too used to having a large white page in front of me (i.e. my computer screen). but i think it is perfect for flash--my mind works differently when i write flash. i don't need to see a lot of text. my focus is more on sentences, word choices.
i've been toying with an idea of a themed flash collection, reciting little snippets in my head. now i have the most perfect tool--so light, so portable, so easy to use. and, apparently, indestructible.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Monday, January 21, 2008
flash fiction--you have time for this
You Have Time for This: Contemporary American Short-Short Stories
Edited by Mark Budman & Tom Hazuka
For only $10 (amazon.com) and $11 in Canada I even have the money.
"Love, death, fantasy, and foreign lands, told with brevity and style by the best writers in the short-short fiction genre. You Have Time for This satiates your craving for fine literature without making a dent in your schedule. This collection takes the modern reader on fifty-three literary rides, each one only five hundred words or less. Mark Budman and Tom Hazuka, two of the top names in the genre, have compiled an anthology of mini-worlds as diverse as the authors who created them. "
I'm going to order this gem with my next under $39 CND order--if someone ships for free to Iqaluit, I'd better use it.
Edited by Mark Budman & Tom Hazuka
For only $10 (amazon.com) and $11 in Canada I even have the money.
"Love, death, fantasy, and foreign lands, told with brevity and style by the best writers in the short-short fiction genre. You Have Time for This satiates your craving for fine literature without making a dent in your schedule. This collection takes the modern reader on fifty-three literary rides, each one only five hundred words or less. Mark Budman and Tom Hazuka, two of the top names in the genre, have compiled an anthology of mini-worlds as diverse as the authors who created them. "
I'm going to order this gem with my next under $39 CND order--if someone ships for free to Iqaluit, I'd better use it.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
russian mat
ever wonder what iqaluit writers talk about?
yesterday's writing group discussion motivated me to look up origins of russian mat. i still didn't find anything definitive but the above wiki article is very informative. i have to admit that my understanding of mat's nuances is rather rudimentary; i've never uttered a mat word out loud, though boiling oil splashing on my hand will elicit a mighty array of fucks and shits. english profanity feels very tame to me.
this article was also very interesting, as well as the discussion after it. and this one.
points of interest, at least to me:
- the term mat comes from a word meaning "loud yell"
- The mat belongs to the ancient layers of the Russian language (the first written mat words date to Middle Ages)
- "All the basic elements of mat relate to sexual activity, which, in Russia, is considered far dirtier than defecation...." (from Erofeyev's article)
- The German and Finnish interjection for surprise or admiration—Hui!—sounds identical to the Russian and Polish swear word literally meaning "penis" (Polish chuj, Russian and Bulgarian xyй)--there's an entire article on Wiki devoted to profanities in general.
- The appeal of mat has to do with the synthetic character of Russian: using only five roots, one can form a multitude of terms to use in any real-life situation
* * *
i still haven't googled the OTHER topic we discussed. more to come. maybe.
yesterday's writing group discussion motivated me to look up origins of russian mat. i still didn't find anything definitive but the above wiki article is very informative. i have to admit that my understanding of mat's nuances is rather rudimentary; i've never uttered a mat word out loud, though boiling oil splashing on my hand will elicit a mighty array of fucks and shits. english profanity feels very tame to me.
this article was also very interesting, as well as the discussion after it. and this one.
points of interest, at least to me:
- the term mat comes from a word meaning "loud yell"
- The mat belongs to the ancient layers of the Russian language (the first written mat words date to Middle Ages)
- "All the basic elements of mat relate to sexual activity, which, in Russia, is considered far dirtier than defecation...." (from Erofeyev's article)
- The German and Finnish interjection for surprise or admiration—Hui!—sounds identical to the Russian and Polish swear word literally meaning "penis" (Polish chuj, Russian and Bulgarian xyй)--there's an entire article on Wiki devoted to profanities in general.
- The appeal of mat has to do with the synthetic character of Russian: using only five roots, one can form a multitude of terms to use in any real-life situation
* * *
i still haven't googled the OTHER topic we discussed. more to come. maybe.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Leon Rooke--poetry in Grain
in Grain, volume 35, number 2, autumn 2007 issue
yesterday: i fell in love with the three poems by Leon Rooke. immediately ordered Painting the Dog--short stories. also realised that my 3 year old understands more english than previously thought: upon hearing "Painting the Dog" he demanded a white dog to paint.
http://leonrooke.com/
yesterday: i fell in love with the three poems by Leon Rooke. immediately ordered Painting the Dog--short stories. also realised that my 3 year old understands more english than previously thought: upon hearing "Painting the Dog" he demanded a white dog to paint.
http://leonrooke.com/
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