Letters Galore by Jim McKeown

Way back in 1976, someone, whom I have long ago forgotten, gave me a copy of The Letters of William Faulkner.  I never read any such collection, and I could not imagine it would be worth my time.  The friend asked me if I had read the book, but I pleaded too much work, too many things to read, but I would get to it.  After the third request, I decided to spend a rainy weekend with Faulkner.  I was completely surprised at how interesting the letters were.  In one exchange, Faulkner wrote to his agent and his publisher begging for an advance because his electricity was about to be shut off.  Exchanges with other writers became more and more frequent as time passed.  He wrote to Ernest Hemingway begging forgiveness for an error he had missed in a manuscript.

I began collecting these (usually massive) books, and today I have nearly 100 books of letters of authors and other important historical figures.  Letters by Jane Austen, John Cheever, Anton Chekhov, George Eliot, Dostoevsky, Robert Frost, Thackeray, Iris Murdoch, Boris Pasternak, J.R.R. Tolkien, Mark Twain, and F. Scott Fitzgerald are the more notable writers I have.  I also have letters of Mozart, Queen Elizabeth I, Sigmund Freud, and a few others in this category.

These are endlessly interesting, but my favorite letters in these collections include those that one author writes to another while discussing literature.  Last week I struck a vein of pure gold. The New York Times reviewed a newly published collection of Paul Auster and J.M. Coetzee.

I recently discovered Auster, and am working my way through his novels and memoirs.  I have been reading Coetzee for a few years, and really like him as well.

The thing that draws me to these collections are the open, honest, and direct words from an author about his or her life and work. To see well-known writers pleading for money, or apologizing for some slip up, or personal correspondence between the writer and his or her family and friends, all shed a brilliant light on the real person behind covers of a novel or poetry or plays.

I haven’t read the Auster/Coetzee collection yet, but I know I am in for a pretty entertaining afternoon.  If you have a favorite author, try and find a collection of their letters, I am willing to bet you will be much surprised.

Cry from a Silent Planet, A New Book by John Rowland, reviewed by Gary Lee

I had the pleasure of reading a book from an author new to me: John Rowland of the United Kingdom. The book, Cry from a Silent Planet, is intended to be one of a trilogy; the inside cover says it was first released in paperback in 2005. A South African website shows a pretty cover and gives the date as 4 July 2005. The sequel, The Sands of Hetranova, apparently has not been published yet; the third book is not yet named. Thus while I am looking forward to reading the other two, it may be a long wait.

The Fall 2012 Issue of Bohemia is Online! by Amanda Hixson

Our Bohemia staff has worked hard and is super proud of our new Fall issue. We have put together an art and literary magazine that shows our creativity and included content that we like and was fun for us to assemble. We put our hearts and souls into every issue and enjoy making them. We are writers, poets, photographers, and artists from all types of backgrounds, but are all excited to work together to bring the world our work! We create to share. We hope that there’s at least one thing in it that you really enjoy, and if so then we did our job. We still need all the support we can get by way of passing on links to the issue to your friends and family. If you know someone who you think might like our BoHo journal– we would love the rec. We are still up to the challenge of keeping this publication alive and thriving! Thank you <3

Follow this link to view an electronic copy of the Fall issue:

Open publication

Check out www.bohemia-journal.com in order to find out how you can submit work to the magazine and/or order a subscription. Our winter issue themes are “Angels & Demons” and “Twisted Love Stories.”

Read. Enjoy. Have a blessed day! BoHo forever.

________

Bohemia is a monthly journal that features artists, poets, writers, photographers. The magazine’s content reflects the best talent in our region, Central Texas. In addition, we follow our interests: which includes reporting on the arts all over the world. We are always looking for submissions.

Bohemia’s online readership is broad. The monthly issues receive hundreds of “views” and our blog receives hundreds of hits per day (and growing everyday!). You can view and download issues at issuu.com/verymandy for free. Print copies are also available to purchase and we have over 300 subscribers.

Go to our site, www.bohemia-journal.com, to find out more.

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Our local team calls itself — BoHo Waco! We are BoHo Waco! We love Waco!

And Blue Skies from Pain, A New Book by Stina Leicht by Gary Lee

I had the pleasure of reading a new book by Central Texas author Stina Leicht. And Blue Skies from Pain is the second in a series beginning with Of Blood and Honey, which I have not read.  I normally do not like second books … but this one stands on its own, and I enjoyed it.  It is a rather gritty, noir tale, set during the IRA conflict in Northern Ireland.  It is, however, a Northern Ireland with a few more sides, for both the fey (the Sidhe) and the Fallen (those of demonic descent) are in the mix.

No Country For Old Men: A Book Review By Robin Chavarria

This is what it looks like so now you know what to look for!

Normally I do not read many books. In this day and age, I am more contented with reading articles and seeing the movie when it inevitably gets made into a film. Most of the time when I touch physical media that happens to be called a book it commonly has a prefix of “Comic”. As in comic book which is more of an illustrated variation of literature. And that isn’t necessarily a bad thing!

However I digress! Very recently I had the fortune of happening upon a local bookstore and finding Cormac McCarthy masterpiece ‘No Country For Old Men.’ I had first become acquainted with it through film first back in 2007 with the release of a film of the same name. It was directed by the Coen Brothers who have an eye for detail and care for characters. It had become one of my favorites, though in all honesty, I really hadn’t given reading the book much thought since it was a solid cinematic piece. So for a handful of dollars I picked it up and took it home.

A Reading Project by Jim McKeown

As I am sure my faithful followers know, I love to read.  Consequently, my favorite Christmas, birthday, anniversary, and Thanksgiving gifts are books.  Last Christmas, my wife surprised me with an impressive stack of books.  Some of these I wanted — and she knew that – because they were new releases from some of my favorite authors.

Ten Great Sources for Storytelling by Gary Lee

1917 cover for “A Princess of Mars” by Edgar Rice Burroughs.

      I have been bitten by the writing bug. During July 2011 – June 2012, I wrote three stories submitted for publication in Bohemia (4,200 words) and about 68,000 words delivered orally. Since July 2012, the oral component is even larger, and I took 5,000 words with me to a writing workshop two weeks ago. After two weeks, that 5,000 words is now  10,000 words and growing. At that rate, this year I expect my written output to exceed my oral work.

Not Just Austin Armadillos by Gary Lee

Author Martha Wells reading her new opus.

      I just had a wonderful weekend:  writing, artwork, and poetry.  Every year, Austin hosts a literary science fiction / fantasy convention called ArmadilloCon.  This year’s venue was the Renaissance Hotel in the Arboretum.  Almost  400 people attended this year;  there were also several dozen authors and poets; and over 30 artists including John Picacio (see http://www.johnpicacio.com/ ).

       The art show boasted 595 works of art:  somewhat over a quarter of the con-goers bid on the art, with prices  from $1 to $1000.    My wife actually bid on 7 of the cheaper items, winning 5, and looked longingly at another four before deciding to not spend the money.   A hundred of us voted on the art and artists we liked best.  Julie Dillon did quite well at the Art Show, winning three awards including Best in Show (see www.juliedillonart.com  for examples of her work).   Victoria Shipman and David Pancake also won awards.

The 2012 Writer’s Workshop had 28 students enrolled (all photos by Gary Lee Webb).

      My major interest was in learning to write better.  So Sharon and I went a day early, and attended the writer’s workshop:  28 students  being taught by 18 pros.  Each student had submitted up to 5000 words of unpublished material.  In my case, I submitted the immediate sequel to “A Dish Served Cold”    (Page 38 of the July 2012 issue of Bohemia;  see http://www.bohemia-journal.com/electronic-copies to check it out on-line).  Sharon submitted the first 5000 words of an 8000-word story called “Adoption”.  We spent the morning discussing generic advice for new writers and participating in various exercises.  We then spent a working lunch and afternoon split into smaller groups:  4-5 new writers and up to three pros. 

      Two weeks before the workshop, everyone in the smaller group had received the submissions from each of the students in the group.  These we were tasked to review.  I was amazed at the depth of the comments I received:  approximately 2500 words, generally quite positive.  It *will* take me some time to assimilate all that, but I can already see ways I may improve my writing.  I appreciate the time spent by my fellow students (Thomas Burbridge, Aaron DaMommio, Leigh Berggren Reinhart) and the professionals leading us (Melissa Tyler and Martin T. Wagner).  One advantage of this approach is that I received five stylistically very different reviews, and while they were often making similar comments, they focused on different aspects.

Experienced con-goers know to visit the Con Suite: good food and interesting people. A tri-corder is useful if you are watching your weight.

      Besides the writer’s workshop itself, I attempted to get to as many panels  on writing as I could .  I also caught readings by several authors, visited the Con Suite and some of the evening bid parties, and bought several things in the “huxter” room (a/k/a, the dealer’s room).  Some panels I just attended for fun, but even those turned out to be interesting.  For example, there was a panel amounting to an hour of poetry readings  by six poets, led by Juan Perez.  Talking with Juan afterwords, I found out that he is looking for poets to fill 8 hours of time at the 2013 World Science Fiction Convention:  is anyone interested in having a *large* audience, next year?

      In short, I had a blast, and I think I learned a lot.  I spent some time with old friends, and met some new ones.  While I am looking forward to the much bigger convention in 13 months (25 times as many people at the world con!),  I am also looking forward to future writer’s workshops and the annual ArmadilloCon.

L-R: Poets Juan Perez, David Chang, Tess Mallory, Jamie Lee Moyer, Steven Utley, and Rie Sheridan Rose read their work for us.

Invasion of the … by Gary Lee

They may not quite be Bohemians, but next year 10,000 of some of the most eclectic people I know shall invade Texas.  Yes, the World Science Fiction Convention returns to San Antonio after a 15 year hiatus, Thursday 29 August 2013 through Monday 2 September (Labor Day).  The 2011 world con   (in Reno, Nevada) had over 1500 hours of programming (running concurrently in 30+ venues) for 5000 people;  I anticipate about 3000 hours of programming for this one.  Unfortunately, I cannot be in 10 places at once. 

Some Essential Reading by verymandy

This summer, I recommend that you read (or reread) these classics.

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley The Hunger Games has popularized dystopian literature again, see The Giver by Lois Lowry, Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, and 1984 by George Orwell. I enjoy this genre, and Brave New World is my favorite. The powers that be have done their best to squelch human passions in order to prevent war, but at what cost?

“When the individual feels, the community reels.”

Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger Catcher in the Rye resounds with the poignancy of youthful alienation and restlessness, an affliction that has inspired art through the ages in movies, music like punk rock, and literature like The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, and even Harry Potter. Houlden Caulfield wanders around New York City upset and emotionally lost wearing a red hunting hat.

“I don’t even know what I was running for – I guess I just felt like it.”

A.E. Stallings: Nothing is More Permanent than the Temporary by Mandy B.

“Love, then, always was a matter of revision / As reality, to poet or to politician, / Is but the first rough draft of history or legend.”

As Baylor University’s Beall Poetry Festival begins on Wednesday of this week, Bohemia took some time to catch up with A.E. Stallings, one of the poets headlining the festival.

Pinterest for Lit Nerds by Mandy B.

Pinterest has been hailed as a playground for the visual– for photography, art, and fashion. However, I’d like to claim a corner of it for literature. If you’re surfing the ‘net late at night, meander your way through several of these boards, or consider starting one of your own:

• Goodreads. If you haven’t been on the website Goodreads, it’s a social book review site that recommends books for  you based on your reading history. Their Pinterest site offer such categories as “Can’t Wait Fiction,” “Can’t Wait Nonfiction,” and “Books Moving and Shaking.” It’s a great way to discover new titles, recommended by Goodreads users numbering in the millions.

Source: goodreads.com via goodreads on Pinterest

• There are many little-known boards curating beautiful book art and typography, if you have the patience to look for them. Take, for instance, Herbie Hickmott’s Book Covers and Typography boards– both aesthetic and thoroughly varied.

• Source: samsonwho.tumblr.com via Herbie on Pinterest

• One author, Jennifer Cruise, is keeping a Pinterest board for the fictional protagonist in her upcoming mystery novel. She’s pinning the character’s apartment, her favourite things, even her panties!

• Source: google.com via Jennifer on Pinterest

• Scholastic Books has a fantastic collection of all things book-related. One can peruse photos of unique bookshelves, bookshops, vintage book covers, and book art. Scholastic even has dedicated boards to young-adult icons such as Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, and The Babysitter’s Club.

Source: contentinacottage.blogspot.com via Scholastic on Pinterest

• The only Pinterest user that tops Scholastic for book boards, in my opinion, is Random House Publishing. Random House’s collection tantalizes a book-lover’s fancy: Literary Tattoos, Literary Weddings, Books that Made Us Cry, Banned Books, and Favourite Book Quotes.

Source: list.co.uk via Mandy on Pinterest

Whether you’re pinning to  your own page or simply looking in from the outside, I encourage you to take a brief look at an ancient art through a modern lens. You never know what you could find, like collection of  typography moustaches.

Source: flickr.com via Mandy on Pinterest