Jul 17, 2004

updates

An accident closing all lanes of US 101 kept the girlfriend and I from successfully trekking to Sequim for their famed Lavendar Festival. But rather than hang our heads in dismay, we sallied forth, cutting a swath through Kingston and taking the ferry to Edmonds. From there it was up to Bellingham, back down Chuckanut Drive, and finally home again. Tomorrow: off to see the Mariners lose, in all likelihood, to Cleveland. At least we'll have good seats.

Oh, and a public service announcment: recently, this blog had turned into Book Critic Central; now, I've decided to post reviews on my newest blog, bibliocracy. The name is an inspired choice, thanks to a recent discussion about the role of literacy in democracy. As my brother points out, the classic Christian political position is to "put power in the hands of those who don't seek it." This strikes me as a perfect description of democracy, since your average American has to be dragged to the polls.

Update, 8/28/06: In the next few weeks, I'll be moving everything back over here, and closing down the other blog.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

"An accident closing all lanes of US 101 kept the girlfriend and I from successfully trekking to Sequim for their famed Lavendar Festival."

Actually, being an English prof and all ... it should read, " ... kept the girlfriend and *me* ... "

If you want to be correct. Not to be picky or anything. :-)

I enjoyed reading through your site! Found myself getting pissed at the one-star comments from Amazon re: The Stranger. Assholes. I took particular offense as I tend toward minimalism when I write fiction. There's a screenwriting (my other outlet) maxim that holds, basically, "Make the audience feel. It doesn't matter if it's good or bad, if you make them happy or disgusted or mad ... just make them feel." Camus made that reader feel, but the reader was revolted because he was made to feel disgusted by the character. What a shallow person.

By the way, I looove the Pacific NW, visit there when I can. Hope to move there someday. Some secluded little place along the water. With trees. Work on the fiction and the screenwriting.

:-)

Robert

Jim Anderson said...

Robert,

You're exactly right. Echoing Samuel Johnson, I say: "Negligence, dear sir. Pure negligence."

There's nothing I enjoy more than knowing someone "out there" has chanced upon the site and enjoyed it. (Even journal writing isn't entirely solipsistic.) I share your anger with the one-star hacks on Amazon; they're the same buffoons who willfully misunderstand a great writer like Tim O'Brien when he talks about "writing for the stomach."

I'm within two hours' drive of the Cascades, Mount Rainier, Mt. St. Helens, the Olympics, Seattle, and Portland. I can kayak across Budd Inlet, watch the sunset at Burfoot Park, or read in the shade on the Capitol campus. (I should do freelance travel brochure work.)

What are your publishing successes, if I may ask?