Category Archives: writing

Wordstock 2015

I’m still earning my Portland literary street cred, y’all. Case in point: somehow, even though I’ve been in Portland for a handful of years now, this year was my first Wordstock. For folks not in the know, Wordstock is Portland’s massive literary festival. Or, one of them, anyway: just last month, we had the Pacific NorthwestContinue reading “Wordstock 2015”

The Jersey Devil ate all the Halloween candy and is ready for Thanksgiving now

Gang, the November issue of Jersey Devil Press is out, and it’s a beauty. Are you into creation mythology built on severed fingers? Have a taste for bodily invasive noodles? Feel like more heartbreaking love stories ought to involve geophagia? Harvest many organs? Like to hail Satan? Yeah, we got all that. Plus the fun sugar-skulled bulldog artContinue reading “The Jersey Devil ate all the Halloween candy and is ready for Thanksgiving now”

Against my better judgment: NaNoWriMo 2015

I don’t know quite why I’m getting myself into this, except that I don’t know what else to do. I’ve had an idea for a novel for a couple of months now, but I haven’t done anything with it because I’m still in the middle of writing a different book. When it comes to bigContinue reading “Against my better judgment: NaNoWriMo 2015”

We are Umpqua Community College

This morning, a young man went to the campus of Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon, walked into a writing classroom, and opened fire. As I write this, the most common reports are that twenty people are wounded, and thirteen people are dead, including the writing teacher. I teach at Chemeketa Community College; today, IContinue reading “We are Umpqua Community College”

On teaching writing, and teaching, and writing

I know a few teaching writers — a lot, if I’m honest — who have often bemoaned their composition courses. They understand the necessity of composition courses and don’t mind teaching them from time to time, but (these writers sometimes confess to me) they would much rather be teaching advanced literature or creative writing. I don’t blame them.Continue reading “On teaching writing, and teaching, and writing”

When to break a chapter

Yesterday morning, over on my Facebook page, I got an interesting question from my first, longest-time fan (hi, Mom!). I’d been commenting on Facebook the past few days about the progress I’ve been making on my new novel and, in the space of two posts and a comment, I had declared that I’d finished a chapter after addingContinue reading “When to break a chapter”

More on the poet who should never have been named

Yesterday, I posted about the Best American Poetry 2015 controversy, and in the comments, writer N. E. White (also a pseudonym, but one legitimately used) asked a smart question: When I submit my work anywhere [under a pseudonym], I include my real name on the submission. I thought that was pretty standard practice. Is thatContinue reading “More on the poet who should never have been named”

A suggestion for Sherman Alexie and the Best American series (and publishers in general)

For those unfamiliar with the controversy, here is a short recap, as I understand it: In the 2015 edition of the Best American Poetry anthology, this year’s editor, Sherman Alexie, unwittingly included a poem by “Yi-Fen Chou,” a person whose name I put in quotes because he doesn’t exist — “Yi-Fen Chou” is, in fact, a penContinue reading “A suggestion for Sherman Alexie and the Best American series (and publishers in general)”

It’s a surreal September for the Jersey Devil

The heat must have gotten to us. Because as Jersey Devil Press leaves summer behind and ushers in fall, we’ve started getting a little . . . weird. And this is Jersey Devil Press, so that’s saying something! But it’s a wistful, surreal kind of weird, with monster bees that seem perfectly peaceful, a woman aloneContinue reading “It’s a surreal September for the Jersey Devil”