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I Used To Write Her

Like someone else in a similar position recently posted, I’ve decided to suspend A Season Underneath indefinitely. The reasons are legion, but the biggest is that I am on my fourth rewrite and it doesn’t seem to be getting a whole lot better. The chapters are just sort of there, with no real story to I Used To Write Her

Another Case for Physical Books

I posted before about the kinda-sorta-in-a-way superiority of physical books as opposed to e-books. It felt like a conflict of interest as I’ve released an e-book of my own, but since a physical book(let) of a short story has been actualized (more on that later) I won’t feel the cognitive dissonance as harshly. The emergence Another Case for Physical Books

Broken Robots and Memoirs

»Seth W recently released a little zine of sketches of broken robots, called Broken Robots. You can get it for free if he has any more of them. It makes a nice addition to the decor for any of my fellow cubicle jockeys’ working quarters (see photo, where it is nicely coupled with a full Broken Robots and Memoirs

The Problem of Anvils

I will get to the falling anvils later. But first, here’s the problem of evil set in deductive logic form. My church’s small group dealt with this idea a few weeks ago, and I think it’s the best argument against the Christian God there is. God is omnibenevolent. God is omnipotent. God is omniscient. Evil The Problem of Anvils

The Good Godless Humanist

I had the thought to reboot Jesus’ message of the Good Samaritan into more modern terms after last Sunday’s sermon. Doubtlessly this has been done before, but the point of this was to use people I would expect to be good or bad neighbors in a role reversal, which I think is part of the The Good Godless Humanist

Avoid This Post Like the Plague

I saw this video over a month ago via Bill’s site. Movie cliches are more noticeable because of their easy access and immediacy. Literary cliches, not so much, but they definitely exist and they can be just as horrid. Consider the meta-cliche, “It was a dark and stormy night.” A night was dark, you say? Avoid This Post Like the Plague

Necromancer? I Barely Know Her!

To add to my image of long-suffering but borderline dorkdom, I had the thought to add the text of incantations I’ve seen in Bleach episodes somewheres online (probably Facebook), not because I think fictional magic is cool, as I have no strong affections either way for it, but because those particular ones are nicely written. Necromancer? I Barely Know Her!

A Roundup of Random Things

Cathy at Windows and Paper Walls interviewed me. It’s my first interview ever as a sort-of writer so it’s exciting for me. It will be posted Thursday but I rest assured I will annoy you all with another post about it. I just started reading Bradbury’s short story collection. The way he made you care A Roundup of Random Things

On Getting Schooled by Church Leaders

I got some great responses on my post wondering how pastors write and/or deliver sermons. Bill LaMorey from Calvary Fellowship West Hartford provided links to his personal site on how he does it, and linked to a Mark Driscoll interview where he reveals his method. How pastors do this interested me because it involves writing On Getting Schooled by Church Leaders

You Will Not Make a Living by Writing

Martha Carr has a post at Novel Publicity for fake writers (me) seeking to make a career by writing (emphasis not mine): …[T]here’s still one powerful rule that remains, and it can mean the difference between making a comfortable living as an author or just barely getting by despite the great reviews. Think of it You Will Not Make a Living by Writing

Book Review: Silence

Silence was written by Shusako Endo, who is described by the book’s notes as being Japan’s foremost novelist. This fact brings the total number of Japanese novelists that I’ve read or ever known of to a whopping one. What’s notable about his eminence—an eminence which may still hold true since his death in 1992—is that Book Review: Silence

Proceed to Destroy Your E-Reader with My E-book, Bored in the Breakroom

I’m not going to write much here or post a cute picture as I’m working off caffeine fumes and a broken sleep pattern from the night before. Bored in the Breakroom is now available—press here. Note: the Diesel bookstore link is being saucy, but the others are fine so far.

Babies Are Me

There are two notable births of late, one of which involves my new son, Nickolas Manni DiNitto, while the other involves my e-book, Bored in the Breakroom. The latter of these I will post about tomorrow, the former of which I will post a photo (look to the side). For reasons unknown the e-self-publisher I Babies Are Me

Book Review: The New Atheist Crusaders and Their Unholy Grail

Becky Garrison’s book isn’t really necessary, and I mean that in the nicest-spirited way possible. The New Atheist Crusaders and Their Unholy Grail: The Misguided Quest to Destroy Your Faith (deep breath) is Garrison’s jab back at the new atheist polemicists and their proposition—if I understand it correctly—that religion is no good because it produces Book Review: The New Atheist Crusaders and Their Unholy Grail

Book Review: All Quiet on the Western Front

Continuing my unofficial tour of all the books you read in high school and never entertained a thought about again, I come to All Quiet on the Western Front. Erich Maria Remarque’s archaic, turn-of-the-century German prose, weirded out teenage reading levels America-wide and was rivaled only by Hemingway’s casual, complacent-shrug narration about life-changing events. All Book Review: All Quiet on the Western Front

Anonymous Fiction, Part 1

Warning: cryptic content below. I’m going to attempt a little real-world experiment with anonymous fiction writing. I’ll explain more in the next post if the experiment ever advances. Please notice the emphasis on “if” in that last sentence. When you’re depending on people that you haven’t met and don’t know that they’re being depended upon Anonymous Fiction, Part 1

Huffington Post Wants Men to Walk the Dog More Often

WorldNetDaily is a huge, festering neocon sore on the Internet’s bum-bum so this is probably a bit of selective reasoning on their part, but they’re reporting that Arianna Huffington wants dudes to touch themselves. The article, written by Huffington for everydayhealth.com, ended up on AOL.com’s front page. Shocking!: The health site’s subtitle read, “Ever wonder Huffington Post Wants Men to Walk the Dog More Often

Time to Bring Back Book Banning

The other night on PBS there was a documentary on post-Soviet Russian families. A father, speaking to someone offscreen, said that his children don’t read much because there’s no interest in books any more. I didn’t see what happened after that but I inferred that when the father was younger, when the hammer and sickle Time to Bring Back Book Banning

Interview: Michael Bukowski

I first heard about Philadelphia-based artist Michael Bukowski when I came across his Yog-Blogsoth site, where he is doing his own visual interpretations of all the H.P. Lovecraft alien-gods. He also has a normal site (if you can call it normal) at lastchanceillustraion.com, that addresses his other artistic explorations. In this here little interview you’ll Interview: Michael Bukowski

Back From the Flexed-Arm State

I just spent about a week of vacation in an area of the nation where people have begun to worship a group of people named after a kind of bear. I brought back about 100 minahs of processed wood and right now my eyes have been overlayed with a sheen of lead. There were four Back From the Flexed-Arm State

Book Review: Tales of H.P. Lovecraft

I first heard of H.P. Lovecraft in the winter of my freshman year of high school, when I listened to Metallica’s Ride the Lightning nonstop. The closing track, an instrumental, was titled “Call of Cthulhu”, and I found out it was a literary reference to a creepshow universe of alien gods and people going insane. Book Review: Tales of H.P. Lovecraft

Interview: The Bike Nerd

Last year, Seth W (AKA, The Bike Nerd) got rid of most of his stuff and decided to travel outside his New York City comfort zone and into the wilderness of the rest of America — mostly by bicycle! He’s written e-books about cycling and travel and is getting ready for his “14 Cities in Interview: The Bike Nerd

Book Review: Nascence

Nascence is a compilation e-book of short stories by Tobias Buckell, who is perhaps best known for his installment in the Halo universe series of books. But this is not just any compilation – they are all unpublished stories that were rejected for publication. What also sets the e-book apart is Buckell’s autobiographical notes and Book Review: Nascence

Slashing Technology’s Tires

I’ve finally submitted my manuscript for the short story book (the title’s acronym is BitB — best guesses might get you a free copy) for Matt’s deliberation. While I have a spare moment to breathe and annoy my WordPress install I thought I would let everyone reading this know that I’m going to singlehandedly stop Slashing Technology’s Tires

Book Review: Lament for a Son

I first heard about Nicholas Wolterstorff from reading Platinga’s Warranted Christian Belief (reviewed here), and I bought Lament for a Son because I didn’t want to delve into another philosophy book quite so soon. Wolterstorff is best known for his work with Plantinga, William Alston, and others, in constructing reformed epistemology and the Faith and Book Review: Lament for a Son

Book Review: The Bible, Part 2

Read Part 1 here. The New Testament books make up for a smaller section of canon yet they read much more densely because of the theological implications of the words and actions of a Jewish preacher named Yeshua bar Yoseph, which is the original Aramaic name for Jesus Christ. Instead of the religious regulations, historical Book Review: The Bible, Part 2

So You Can Wear Books Now, Too

An illustrator I’ve worked with in the past, Dave Quiggle, recently designed a shirt for Miles To Go Clothing. The shirt is based off of Plath’s The Bell Jar, as is a lot of the shirt designs from Miles. I, for one, am dashed — combining references to classic literature and clothing design? This manner So You Can Wear Books Now, Too

No, You’re at the Right Place

So it appears the customizations I made to the default WordPress them were overridden when I installed the update — which is why you see what you see now. Hold on a sec while I fix this. EDIT: Well, looks like most everything is back in order, but I’ll be bughunting for the next few No, You’re at the Right Place

HuffPo Begs for Change, Passers-by Scoff

My friend Bill tipped me off to AOL/HuffPo searching for a whole buttload of writers to blog for free for Huffington Post’s new local local local blog network, Patch: “Anyone may apply,” Greenfield Patch editor David Cotey wrote in a post on Wednesday. “Parents, grandparents, favorite aunties, crafters, shopkeepers, baristas, hobbyists, nonprofit organizers, and government HuffPo Begs for Change, Passers-by Scoff

Book Review: The Bible, Part 1

If you haven’t read any of my previous posts about this, a friend of mine last year mentioned that I should do a book review of the Bible on here. Even though he was meant it as a joke I thought it was a pretty good idea, if not a little daunting. The only problem Book Review: The Bible, Part 1

The Appropriation of Nonsense, Part 2

Read the first part here. If you’re on Facebook, chances are you’ve listed quotes that reflect your philosophy or outlook on life. They are quotes with which we agree from people we admire, but there’s never a real opportunity to showcase the ones we don’t like — unless you have your own blog and can The Appropriation of Nonsense, Part 2

You Are a Failure

My friend Seth W just posted on his blog on failing at an endeavor out of our league. There’s some good advice for novice fiction writers, like me. It’s axiomatically unavoidable: you’re going to start out writing complete garbage, but that’s the only way you’re going to learn how to really write a good story. You Are a Failure

The Appropriation of Nonsense, Part 1

If you’re on Facebook, chances are you’ve listed quotes that reflect your philosophy or outlook on life. They are quotes with which we agree from people we admire, but there’s never a real opportunity to showcase the ones we don’t like — unless you have your own blog and can write whatever you’d like on The Appropriation of Nonsense, Part 1

Punch Your Laptop in the Neck

The Art of Manliness had a post recently on doing some writing physically instead of digitally, although one still uses the fingers with a pencil (is this mic on? anyone?). It’s obvious that it’s a post to chat-up some sponsors’ products — we all do it — but the Manliness’ penchant for the traditional and Punch Your Laptop in the Neck

The Problem of Tyre

If you’re new here, I posted near the end of 2010 that I was reading through the entire Bible in 90 days so that I could do a book review on it. Since it’s a large book (actually a compilation of books), the review will have some meat to it, but it will also have The Problem of Tyre

I’ll Trade You Your Whitman For My Ten Copies of This Cummings Anthology

Having been through media criticism courses in college, this comes as an interesting development. Seaton writes, concerning Canton and Cox’s Literature and the Economics of Liberty: Free markets, like languages, thus exemplify not anarchy but “spontaneous order.” Well-written poems, plays, and novels, on the other hand, are typically the result of a single individual who I’ll Trade You Your Whitman For My Ten Copies of This Cummings Anthology

Dear Children: I’m Dead, Here’s A Bunch of Computer Files

The “blogosphere” (aka: the blogs in my subscription queue) has been “buzzing” about the state of e-publishing, about self-publishers who have struck it rich with their e-book, and these stories are complementary goods to the insistent posts forewarning everyone that the old guard publishing industry is really, really e-worried about this and should really, really Dear Children: I’m Dead, Here’s A Bunch of Computer Files

Dude, You Write Like a Girl

In my current work in progress the protagonist is an early-twenties female, and more than a few times I had to stop myself and ask, “Would someone of her cultural makeup actually do/say that?”, and the fact that it’s in first person makes this issue much more crucial. And it brings up the entire issue Dude, You Write Like a Girl

New Look, Same Mediocre Content

If you haven’t been here in a few days, you’ll now notice that jd.com looks different, and a little more significant than the, “Hey, did you get a haircut?” sort of looking different. There are a few reasons for this, the biggest of which was that the other blank theme I used had no ongoing New Look, Same Mediocre Content

Music and Writing, Part Two

My friend Seth emailed this to me about my last post, about writers not having the outlets for promoting themselves that musicians have: The equivalent for writers playing shows I think is capturing an audience and building a fanbase online even before an author has a book written. That way when you have a book Music and Writing, Part Two

A Most Holy Update

Today marks the halfway point of my “read the entire Bible” marathon. I’m actually a few days over because I don’t plan on taking the two grace days that act as a break from reading. Why in the world someone would need a day off from something as non-strenuous as reading is beyond me. People A Most Holy Update

Throwing Spaghetti at Craigslist

Via Lew Rockwell’s blog today, Wired ran a great piece on craigslist founder, Craig Newmark. About craigslist’s stripped-down functionality, Gary Wolf writes: Each of these sites, of course, is merely one of the many sections of craigslist, which dominates the market in facilitating face-to-face transactions, whether people are connecting to buy and sell, give something Throwing Spaghetti at Craigslist

General Oswalt Patton Just Ran A Tank Over Your Forced Pop Culture References

My friend Seth W alerted his twitter followers a little while ago, directing them to this wonderful piece on wired.com written by Patton Oswalt, who played Kevin James’ buddy in King of Queens. I normally don’t like the strain of comedy in sitcoms that don’t go beyond penis jokes and battle of the sexes one-ups, General Oswalt Patton Just Ran A Tank Over Your Forced Pop Culture References

5MinuteFiction Finality

I had Lead Petersen’s blog in my RSS reader but kind of glossed over the #5MinuteFiction contest, until the other day when I decided to participate. I ended up tying first place with writer Jenn Baker. It was good times and extremely difficult to write a coherent, complete story in 5 (really, 15) minutes. Thanks 5MinuteFiction Finality

Matthew Alexander Contest Whiners

The three whiners (heh) of the Matthew Alexander contest have been picked and summarily emailed to death. Actually, they have only been emailed once but I’ve been told that my emails are pretty awful as to induce immediate termination of the reader’s life. Congratulations and enjoy Withur We.

How to Not Be Fat

In this post I’m taking a break from being gaseous about writing or my thoughts one of the dozens (literally…dozens) of books that have been published throughout history to post about your big gut and fat butt. Because honestly, dude and miss, you’re pretty fat and you need to lose weight. Now it’s fine if How to Not Be Fat

Grammar Be Difficult

This is more for my own reference than anyone else’s reading this. I tend to get snagged when I’m hitting that sweet typing spot and there’s a simple grammar issue of which I’m unsure of a rule governing it, and I have to stop and think of technicalities instead of letting the words flow. Usually Grammar Be Difficult

Mike Duran Contest Weiner

Congratulations go out to Matt Uhrich, a fellow Pennsylvanian and writer, for winning the Mike Duran contest and receiving a copy of The Resurrection. Happy reading, Matt — be sure to stretch and fluid up before the first page.

Only Neil Knows How Women Are

I was listening to one of my favorite Rush albums, Counterparts, the other day, and a line jumped out at me. From “Cold Fire”: She said, “Just don’t disappoint me You know how complex women are” It seemed like the second line could be taken two different ways, and it’s best to describe the difference Only Neil Knows How Women Are

Correction on the Mike Duran Contest

If you’ve already entered, direct thine oculars to the note at the bottom of the interview to make sure you are truly, truly, entered — then go whack a badly-rendered effigy of me, pinata-style (I am filled with Hot Tamales…they’re my favorite.).

Resolutions Were Made To Be Broken

It’s already a few days into the new year and I haven’t broken my non-resolution to read the whole Bible to do a legitimate review of it. In fact, I’m ahead of the 90 days schedule. No furtive glances or fidgety fingers for me — I’m pounding this into submission. Since it’s the era of Resolutions Were Made To Be Broken

Staycation 2010-2011

So I’m on vacation until the first work day of the new year. Among other things on the docket, mostly holiday-related, that I need to do, I thought I would plan to finish the third and final rewrite of the book — final, as in, the manuscript that is agent-ready and something that I would Staycation 2010-2011

Genitalia Fiction

The Art of Manliness posted about nine writers that are carrying the torch for men’s fiction. It’s not really a secret that most modern fiction is marketed towards women, but I wonder exactly how a story can have a gender. It’s an absurd notion on its head because only people have genders, not words on Genitalia Fiction

Oh Hey, Speaking of Trying To Get Published, Check Out This Cool Top 10 List

I recently gutted my RSS reader of a few dozen writer blogs and a few select agent blogs because the effort to keep up with all of the linguistic confusion was reaching critical mass. Few writers actually write in their blogs; there’s always some urgent contest, a vomit-dump of acronyms in every post, people scheming Oh Hey, Speaking of Trying To Get Published, Check Out This Cool Top 10 List