There are some things we overhear in our daily lives that stay with us, and sometimes they impact our writing. “I understand Benjamin Franklin invented bifocals. I don’t know who invented glasses, but Franklin, he […]
Writing and the Daily Grind
I’ve been thinking about how important it is for writers to write every day. I never put my writing first because I never think I have the time. Since I have to pay the rent—I […]
AWP Chicago
This year’s Association of Writers and Writing Program‘s Conference is in Chicago and 12th Street is attending! Not only does AWP have amazing panels and readings planned for us, but we’ve got some ideas of […]
Ideas About Origins
“Writing is a beautiful act. It is making something that will give pleasure to others later.” —Susan Sontag, from Reborn: Journals and Notebooks 1947-1963 Luc Sante begins his New York Times review of Susan Sontag’s newly published […]
10: The Conclusion
You’ve been waiting for it, and here it is: the tenth and final chapter of 10, 12th Street Online’s first serial novel. Tony Tallon has wrapped up a far-ranging story began last November by Mario […]
Of Course We Suck
I’m not one for celebrity autobiographies. They have a tendency to be to self-gratifying and in most cases boring. Most that are published (e.g., any Osmond sibling’s tell-all, or any book with the subtitle “In […]
A Recommendation
Over the holiday break I read—more like gorged on—Sandra Cisneros’ short story collection, Woman Hollering Creek. Many of her short stories are only a couple of pages, yet they left me feeling full, complete and utterly […]
It Gets Better After the First Time
Bread is like sex and writing. The first time is the same for all three: afterwards you feel kind of proud but also disgusted and you’re not sure you want to do it again, but […]
But What Does It Mean?
The other night someone told me a story- I think it was a love story. There was a plate in front of me and it was composed of three small offerings of sea urchin, which […]
Inaugural Poets
Officially, there have been four: Robert Frost, Maya Angelou, Miller Williams, and Elizabeth Alexander. Frost recited The Gift Outright from memory at John F. Kennedy’s inauguration. It’s a poem about place as identity, and a […]
10: Chapter 9
The following post, by Geoffrey Jason Kagan Trenchad, is the ninth installment of 10, 12th Street Online’s first serial novel. Last semester, five authors were asked to write two chapters each, not knowing what their fellow authors would write […]
Where Has It All Gone?
10? Zoe Miller’s Monday blog posts? Missing posts everyday last week? Well 12th Street is reading. The submission period has closed and all the editors and readers have taken your work and gone off to […]
10: Chapter 8
The following post, by Sarah Finch, is the eighth installment of 10, 12th Street Online’s first serial novel. It is being written by five authors, each of whom write two chapters each. You can read the first […]
Quality of Life
Lush Life, by Richard Price pub. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2008 “So, what do you do?” Whenever people asked him, Eric Cash used to have a dozen answers. Artist, actor, screenwriter . . . But […]
Words As Weapons
New School president Bob Kerrey has started a blog. It is an attempt to reach out to the students and faculty of the university after the no-confidence vote that was handed down last week. There […]
10: Chapter 7
The following post, by J.L. Balderama, is the seventh installment of 10, 12th Street Online’s first serial novel. It is being written by five authors, each of whom write two chapters each. You can read the first […]
E-Book, or E-Suck
I recently received a gift from a friend in the form of an e-book. E-books are electronic versions of print books displayed either on a computer or an e-book device, which is about the size of a […]
The Price of a Word
I read in The New York Times yesterday that Joe the Plumber has penned a book. The news was in an op-ed piece written by Timothy Egan, in which he takes publishers to task on allocating what […]
Quotes to Inspire
As we reach the end of the semester, most of us are extremely busy editing our literary papers, poems, and stories. Here are a few quotes I hope you will find inspirational: I never write […]
10: Chapter 6
The following post, by Mario Zambrano, is the sixth installment of 10, 12th Street Online’s first serial novel. It is being written by five authors, each of whom write two chapters each. You can read the first five […]
Writer's Block Sonnet
In lieu of the many comments here on writer’s block, I thought I’d contribute a little diddy: Writer’s Block Sonnet I stretch around to write a sonnet The words I choose do come doggone it. […]