Fieldwork
I Thought I Poisoned William Vollmann
April 17 ’10Last week, I had the incredible, unbelievable, amazing, opportunity to interview one of my literary heroes, William Vollmann. Who is more awesome than Bill Vollmann? He is the master of fieldwork. He goes where no sane person would ever think to venture, puts himself into incredibly dangerous situations then brings back insights that, in my […]
Bat Soup
March 1 ’10Sometimes the writer simply has to go on vacation. The pressures of constant fieldwork, the huge abundance of creative energy, the day to day maintenance of basic sanity, the constant voices in one’s head… When it all becomes overwhelming, the only thing to do is to get on an airplane and fly to Palau. And […]
WHO’S DRIVING THIS TRAIN?
January 6 ’10My favorite character from Point Dume, Felix Duarte, has hijacked my next novel and I’ve been taken hostage by a new theme.
IT IS HARD TO SAY GOODBYE
December 7 ’09PUTTING YOUR CHARACTERS TO BED SO THAT YOU CAN MOVE ON TO THE NEXT BOOK
MAN DOWN: FIELDWORK DISASTERS
November 5 ’09My weekend in the hyperbaric chamber and other misadventures. The life of a writer can be treacherous a thing.
POINT DUME has a Cover and it’s Great
October 29 ’09The new cover for Point Dume is finished. It was designed by David Shoemaker and it is the perfect image for this novel.
The Challenges of Having Sexually Active Characters
October 6 ’09The Challenges of Having Sexually Active Characters: Advice for Fiction Writers
The Perils of Fieldwork
September 28 ’09Marijuana is an important element in my new novel “Point Dume”. I’ve written on this website about hiking into the cartel grow sites and breaking down the infrastructure of the camps. I’ve preached about environmental devastation. I’ve discussed the various hybrid plants that are being developed. But I haven’t said much about my direct and […]