For in those days, the Lord God had suffered the wise men to know the means by which the world itself might be destroyed... Walter M. Miller Jr.'s A Canticle for Leibowitz is one of the most profound books I’ve ever read. You could say it's as deep as Dungeon Crawler Carl is shallow. It... Continue Reading →
Murakami: A Philosophy Student’s Wet Dream
She's like a spirit that's sprung up from a happy chance encounter. An eternal, naive innocence, never to be mated, floats around her like spores in spring. Murakami, Kafka on the Shore Kafka on the Shore reminds me of that old TV show LOST. Murakami introduces us to talking cats, fish raining from the sky,... Continue Reading →
Emily Wilson’s “Feminist” Take on The Odyssey
The worst grade I ever got in graduate school wasn't an F or even a zero; it was "crucifixion." No, I wasn't strung up on a wooden scaffold to be slowly suffocated. But my professor did write on the back of my paper, "If you submitted this to any historical journal, YOU WOULD BE CRUCIFIED!"... Continue Reading →
25 More Book Reviews!
In this podcast below, I give you not one, not two, but a whopping 25 book reviews! These are all books I read before starting this blog 15 years ago that I never got a chance to share. Reading (and reading a lot) is a crucial part of being an author. It's truly the only... Continue Reading →
Contact and Carl Sagan’s God
You get to thinking of the Earth as an organism, a living thing. You get to worry about it, care for it, wish it well. National boundaries are as invisible as meridians of longitude, or the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. The boundaries are arbitrary. The planet is real. Carl Sagan Carl Sagan was a... Continue Reading →
“Age of Aenya” is NOT about nudism!!!
AENYA is as diverse a world as Middle-earth; to call Ages of Aenya a book about nudism is like calling The Lord of the Rings a book about not wearing shoes. Sorry for YET another rant---I really didn't want to do this, I swear---but I recently stumbled upon an article in Planet Nude about 'nudist... Continue Reading →
The Langoliers and 2025 Year-End Review
Hey everyone, I am a bit under the weather today (a phrase coined by sailors forced below deck when falling ill and a term I learned after reading The Wager). So, given my weakened immune system, I am getting straight to the point here. My last review for 2025 is for Stephen King's The Langoliers.... Continue Reading →
The Intersection of Science and Fantasy: King, Sagan, and Dunsany
I have this crazy idea. I want to get Stephen King, Carl Sagan, and Lord Dunsany (Edward Plunkett) in a room together ... At first glance, these writers could NOT be further apart in terms of tone and subject matter. One of the books I am reviewing for this post isn't even fiction. But as... Continue Reading →
A Master of his Craft: King and Shawshank Redemption
Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption proves why King is a master storyteller. This novella is a masterclass in storytelling technique, demonstrating flawless pacing, excellent use of dialogue, and natural character development. While King can be overly descriptive in his other works, he shows remarkable restraint here, stripping everything from the writing but the bare essentials.... Continue Reading →
How AI is Creating New Scams for Writers
I have been at this forever, it seems. I began my storytelling journey 44 years ago, after turning six --- and in 2010, fifteen years ago, I started this blog. My goal was to promote my work, encourage aspiring authors to succeed in this ever-changing literary landscape, and share with readers my love for books... Continue Reading →

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