Books
A few months ago, I was in my college apartment, halfheartedly doing homework while my roommate sat nearby, completely absorbed in a book. Bored, I asked her what it was about, and she was shocked I’d never heard of it. It was her second time reading, so she tossed the...
Every summer, it feels like the literary snobs are reawakened to criticize our beloved beach reads. You know, those breezy, feel good books we toss into our beach bags. Critics write them off as playful, formulaic and even a bit embarrassing. But, why is it that a book’s worthiness depends...
Sylvia Plath once wrote, “I felt very still and empty, the way the eye of a tornado must feel, moving dully along in the middle of the surrounding hullabaloo” – and anyone who has experienced depression understood. Plath’s work, specifically the “The Bell Jar,” shows mental illness in a raw...
We’re all becoming dumb. Well, in the sense that media literacy is dying – and with it the unreliable narrator. Unreliable narrators are (biasedly) one of the best ways to create a compelling and relatable story; they are a key part of what makes storytelling feel human. Just like in...
When was the last time you picked up a book? Based on a national trend, probably too long ago to remember. According to a 2022 survey conducted by the National Endowment for the Arts, less than half of Americans reported reading at least one book a year. This makes sense,...
When’s the last time you took a trip down to your local library? Today’s readers are usually getting their books by walking into a bookstore or utilizing Amazon’s click to buy feature. With costs rising and environmental concerns ever-present, it may be time to dust off your library cards and...
Writing authentic horror is a unique talent. Unlike film, where you can rely on sound design, visuals and jump scares, written horror fiction must unsettle the reader with words alone. That challenge requires a trained gift, and what authors sometimes uncover in their own minds ends up terrifying them most....
“Don’t judge a book by its cover” is a phrase most of us have heard over and over again. It cautions judgments based on surface-level assumptions, and it’s a good lesson to learn. But, in the world of books, we need to admit that some books should be judged by...
Every American student who had to sit through English class from Kindergarten to 12th grade knows the usual suspects: “Romeo and Juliet,” “To Kill a Mockingbird,” “The Great Gatsby,” “Fahrenheit 451” and more. Don’t get me wrong, these novels are extraordinary and have their place as some of the best...
The A Million Lives Book Festival was advertised on TikTok as a festival for independent authors to sell their books and for fans to meet their favorite authors. There was also a panel of published authors, as well as some other activities to entertain the guests. Authors brought inventory based...
If you want to write anything, but particularly a book, all you have to do is start. Don’t worry about if what you say matches what you want to say just yet, that comes with rounds and rounds of editing, which may seem daunting, but don’t let it. Editing is...
Creative writing degrees can be misleading if you don’t know what creative writing is. Some might think it’s just writing novels and short stories, which would make the degree more of a storytelling instead of writing-focused degree, but the writing part is what’s most important. These degrees usually encompass professional,...
