Tag: humor
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William Atheling and The Issue at Hand
While he wrote fiction, James Blish secretly sent in a ton of critical essays pushing by force the entire genre to think critically about itself under the pseudonym William Atheling, Jr and the title The Issue at Hand. In it, he gave scathing rebukes of his best friends — some of his contemporary masters of science…
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Honorifics — Tap and Die 001
The driver looked cockeyed at Black Jack Dawes’s half-frozen hands that held the other reins. The driver took kings and nobles all over the Ivrian side of the world, not crusty old tradesmen in khaki dusters, range hats, knee-high boots slathered in mud, and that black cloak with those unfixed stars on it. And no…
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All Your Faves are Fanfic
When I was fourteen, I was something of a big deal in the Inheritance Cycle fanfiction.net archives. Somehow, this is only in the lower end of “Top Ten Embarrassing Sentences I’ve Ever Typed.” Anyway, for most of my teen years, I wrote fanfiction like it was my job, avidly read other people’s work, acted…
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Correction
Oh, what will it take for this old heart to be kinder – for me to smile at my mother and say, yes, yes, that’s right when she tells me that the waning moon is waxing.
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Changing the Duvets
I’ve accepted that I cannot control the gloomy chaos in my sons’ lives now that their father and I have decided to divorce. This is a huge step for me. Still, my boys deserve to know comfort—specifically the mind-altering experience of lying under a perfectly made bed. But first, I must get rid of…
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Creative Writing Jobs wiki (a.k.a. — wiki academic job )
Creative writing jobs wiki page for Academic Positions in Creative Writing that begin in 2021. See also: English Literature Positions 2020-2021 See also: Starbucks Job Board See also: How to Start Your Own Tutoring Business from a Single Craigslist Ad See also: Podcast: How to Start Your Own Editing Business from a Single Craigslist Ad,…
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Our Work Here Is Done
Not long ago, I went shoe shopping with our daughter Katherine. It was a spontaneous outing, which is unusual for me because I am no longer a spontaneous man. I don’t shuffle my playlist, I don’t keep golf clubs in my trunk, and I don’t cross roads without a walk signal. I plan for…
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The Pop Machine
1 Our school got new washrooms with automatic hand-dryers over the summer break. Us boys liked to aim them down our shirts and pants, feeling the warm air as our clothes bubbled and ballooned. It made for good times, so we told the girls. They claimed to have new hand-dryers, too. “How many…
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Confessions of a Non-Best-Selling Author
My overnight at the Convention Center started out about as uneventful as any other shift I had pulled over the past few weeks. I was already one month retired from the post office, in a funky college section of Boston called Allston, situated nearly dead center between Boston College and crosstown rival Boston University. Allston…
