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Everyone I’ve seen mention this has been told they write either like Stephen King or David Foster Wallace. Who do you write like?

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Have you checked in with The Laughing Yeti lately? Shome Dasgupta’s archive of thoughts on reading is becoming epic, and if the Internet lasts after the aliens come and go, it will certainly prove to be a worthwhile resource for the future historians.

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6 Different Languages all on the Same Block: An Interview with Shya Scanlon

Released earlier this year from the magnificent Noemi Press, Shya Scanlon’s full length print debut In This Alone Impulse, is truly of thing of many things. Using 7 line blocks of language to evoke a sublimely confounding string of styles, voices, jokes, murmurs, machines, Scanlon has truly forged from a seemingly simple set of building blocks a highly tuned and deceptively challenging machine of language and idea.

For a taste, check out Shya’s YouTube feed, which features short videos of a wide range of folks reading sections from the book. Here’s a rather rad one by A.D. Jameson, performing, ‘Hansom’:

Over the past few weeks Shya and I talked some about the construction of the book, its influence, becoming, tone, approach, as well as some of his other forthcoming works.

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Uncategorized / 32 Comments
July 14th, 2010 / 11:10 am

New York Tyrant 8

A note on the brand new issue of NYT from editor Giancarlo Ditrapano:

New York Tyrant 8 (Vol.3, No.2) is available for preorder. The book went to press today and will be back and ready to ship in two weeks. Not to blow my own horn (and I can do that, you know), but this is a pretty solid issue. Sam Lipsyte, Ken Sparling, Noy Holland, Breece D’J Pancake, an interview with Padgett Powell, Daryl Scroggins, two beautiful pieces by Brandon Hobson, Andy Devine, Ken Baumann, Sean Kilpatrick, Michael Kimball, more drawings (one sampled below) from Atticus Lish, and a shit ton of other great writers. The theme of this issue turned out, unintentionally, to be knives. Lots of knives in these stories. I swear I don’t do this shit on purpose.

A couple issues ago, we made the Tyrant 300 pages long. We are now back to a better length, less than 200 pages. I hate when journals get all bulky and are just too intimidating to even get through half of the stories. We’ll be having a launch party within the next couple of weeks so I’ll keep you updated on that. But until then, please go get your copy of the new Tyrant. Buy a subscription. Okay, here’s a deal. If you buy a 4 issue subscription or the larger 8 issue, we will throw in a copy of Brian Evenson’s novella Baby Leg. And if you buy a copy of the new Tyrant in the next 5 days, we will include a copy of Tyrant Books’ latest release, Firework by Eugene Marten. I’ve never done this discount/sale thing before but it feels good and right. No it doesn’t. It sucks and it hurts.

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Uncategorized / 73 Comments
July 13th, 2010 / 6:00 pm

How To Make Your Next Reading More Interesting (Even If Your Work Really Isn’t)

1) Wear a mask. We all do. There is nothing to hide but hide itself.

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Events / 27 Comments
July 13th, 2010 / 4:42 pm

Jodzio Book Giveaway

John Jodzio has sent us three copies of his collection If You Lived Here You’d Already Be Home for a quick giveaway contest. If you’d like to be eligible for the giveaway, tell us about the weirdest thing you or someone you know has swallowed. John will select from the comments section his favorite three later this week.

Contests / 79 Comments
July 13th, 2010 / 2:22 pm
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1. At n+1, Benjamin Kunkel offers yet another “take” on the future of the fucking book.
2. The Sot Weed Factor and To Kill a Mockingbird both just turned 50.
3. At Open Culture, all of Tarkovsky’s films are now available for free online.

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Events / Comments Off on
July 13th, 2010 / 1:08 pm

An Announcement from Maggy Poetry: Contest Deadline Extended

Regular readers know that I’m a fan of Maggy Poetry, and I meant to announce the First Annual Maggy Poetry Contest when it first began–but then I flubbed it. Lucky for me (and, maybe, you?) Team Maggy decided to extend the entry-period, so if this is something you’re interested in doing, you can still do it. This year’s judge is none other than Dara Wier. Without any further ado, I turn the floor over to the Maggy press release, which contains all of the relevant info-
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Contests / 16 Comments
July 13th, 2010 / 11:56 am
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So, New York City, tomorrow evening is this Bastille Day Soiree, hosted by NOON and Gigantic. Reading, you’ve got Josh Cohen (Witz), Diane Williams (It Was Like My Trying to Have a Tender-Hearted Nature), and Rebecca Curtis (Twenty Grand). A dude from !!! will be DJing–those guys have such branchy legs. Custom Witz and Twenty Grand cocktails. Wednesday, 7PM, The Library Bar at Gild Hall. Holy shit! I know. I know. I’ll just see you there. Text me.

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