On July 4th, 2012, at 9:15PM, there was a spectacular fireworks display in West Orange, New Jersey. There I was, no more than half a mile away from the launching point, watching the sparkling lights exploding into patterns of perfect spheres of light up into the pitch black night sky. There were all manner of…
Crafting My Novel: A Writer's Technique Detailed – Contrast
By design, I had written my novel to be more on the simple side. I use simple language and—save for a few pivotal and meaningful moments—you would find few passages that sound "literary". I use a lot of nature imagery and I make vague allusions to Mark's pastoral aspirations. The reason for this is to…
On Writing A Novel: Choosing The Right Effects
I recently got feedback from my short story entitled Little Marky and Mister Turtle. My readers loved it. As I sat there listening to the reactions to my story, a silly grin kept growing on my face, getting bigger by the second. And I'll tell you why. It's because people kept saying the things I…
Holiday Cheer
Under the flatly neutral white fluorescent lighting, I navigated through the sullen-faced crowds of busy parents and lonely singles that populated the Target department store half a mile away from my home. It was not difficult to ignore them. As I habitually did, I had earphones plugged into my head, and I had a hunter's…
Twenty Dollars
The term bespoke is a British word that means that an article of clothing is made to a buyer’s precise specification. Most commonly used to describe the construction of a man’s suit, bestowed upon the term is much prestige. The term comes from humble beginnings and has since found its home in the parlance of…
