The Place of Literature.Art is the imitation of life by means of signs, symbols and plastic objects. Literature is the imitation of life using symbols and signs to tell stories. To understand what life means we use art as a skeleton key into what has always been the greatest of mysteries and challenges. Here in … Continue reading Notes for a 21st Century Artistic Manifesto
Culture and Art
Black Dog and Radio 4: Part 1
Around 2009 I was unwell. I didn't know it, but I was not ok. I had began to feel tired. Looking back now this comes as no surprise. For the previous six years I had been working on a novel called One Inch Punch. I had stopped taking care of myself: mentally, emotionally, physically. I … Continue reading Black Dog and Radio 4: Part 1
Literary Style
What is literary style? Literary style is what you see before you when you open the first page of a book, particularly a literary work. Literary style (or ‘writing style’ or ‘literary voice’ or the ‘writer’s voice’) is the way a writer uses words in sentences. 2. Why do writers employ a literary style? Style … Continue reading Literary Style
12 Rules For Writers
Writing is difficult, but its also something so basic to who we are as intelligent beings, that despite its difficulty, its something literally anyone and everyone can grasp. Art happens when the writer expresses something unique that emerges from the self and says something more than the contents and the tropes and methods learned from … Continue reading 12 Rules For Writers
Let the Good Times Roll
But when people say, Did you always want to be a writer?, I have to say no! I always was a writer Ursula le Guin When I ask people 'So, what's your image of a writer?', usually they talk about a guy. Even the women I ask, they tend to talk about a man. … Continue reading Let the Good Times Roll
The Length of a Piece of String
I am a bit worried about what I am writing at the moment. People see me spend long stretches working, and ask me in a roundabout way actually I am working on, and I don't really want to say. There are two reasons for my uncool evasiveness. Firstly I only have a few … Continue reading The Length of a Piece of String
On Being Who We Really Are
I hate sharing personal information. I feel deeply uncomfortable doing so. But it is important. So here goes. I happen to be a writer. This is not by choice. I tried everything not to be a writer. In my early youth I tried a career in religion, which gives one access to lots and lots … Continue reading On Being Who We Really Are
Facebook and Wasting Time.
Facebook is like the Hotel California. You can never leave. Rather than leaving or deleting, a number of events made me ‘discontinue’ my Facebook account. 1. The politicization of Facebook. Facebook was originally designed as a social media platform, somewhere folks of all stripes can connect. Mark Zukerberg also saw huge potential down the line … Continue reading Facebook and Wasting Time.
A Tiny Jot on the Horizon
Aside from being a huge fan of the Alien franchise, over the last months I have started stargazing. Despite the endless rain we have in Kerry in South of Ireland, the night sky down here is mainly free of light pollution, that is when those clouds finally clear. Given a fairly clear night, an … Continue reading A Tiny Jot on the Horizon
Be My Frankenstein
Being a rather impressionable little boy, that is, when I was a little boy, I recall one of the most terrifying creatures of my childhood was Frankenstein, not Victor Frankenstein mind, but the Monster, or The Creature, also known as Adam, something I was reminded of by a friend. For now I am not talking … Continue reading Be My Frankenstein
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