prolonged food coma.
blub.

Mentors, Muses, Monsters (CONTEST!!)
On Monday night, Angelle and I went to a reading/conversation with five of the contributors of MENTORS, MUSES & MONSTERS, the book from which that spectacular Alexander Chee essay came from a couple weeks ago (I blogged about it here).I had already fallen in love with Alex's essay, and then I saw the list of very heavy hitters who had con

Annual Sappy Thanksgiving Message
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!I love Thanksgiving. It is my favorite holiday because it's just like Christmas, only without any religious connotations or monetary burden vis a vis present-exchanging. In other words, it's about gorging yourself like a pig with family and/or friends. 'At's what I'm talking about. For those who are not US Americans, I urge you to consider embracing this fine holiday. If you'd like to escape American colonial connotations, consider renaming it "Stuff Your Face Day" or something. (And let me know when you're celebrating; I'll totally show up with the Death by Chocolate.)As usual, I would like to post an Annual Sappy Thanksgiving Message. H

what book(s) are you reading over Thanskgiving weekend?
(Sorry, UK friends, but take a day off in solidarity if you like!)I'm bringing the following books to my parents':-Gravity's Rainbow, Thomas Pynchon-Path of Daggers, Robert Jordan-Ash, Melinda Lo-The Lottery, Shirley Jackson(this isn't to say I'll finish all or any, but I'm sure I'll read at least part of some!)How about you? Leave me comments!

Writer Question: When Should I Take Revision Advice, and When Should I Listen to My Gut?
So I'm finally returning to that question from a couple weeks ago--when should a writer take advice on his/her manuscript, and when is it better to trust the gut?This is the classic conundrum, and one you will be confronted with again and again and again if you seek and secure publication. You will have an editor, and that editor will have viewpoints that may differ from yours, and the editor is only one of many potential viewpoints that will inflict themselves upon you. Some of them will be professionals, some amateurs; some will be right, some will be wrong. Also, the first half of that sentence doesn't directly correspond to the second. Ultimately, you're going to have to dec