Alice Munro's death was announced yesterday. Her self-described "second oldest remaining friend and colleague," fellow Canadian author Margaret Atwood, has written this tribute to her on her Substack, In the Writing Burrow. It's meant for paying subscribers, but a substantial portion is free to read.
"Alice could be quite mischievous, and not only in her writing. Both of us had dark curly hair at one time. We were about the same height.
"Alice: I was standing on a train platform and a man came up to me and said, ‘You’re Margaret Atwood!' 'Yes,' I said, 'I am.' Then we had quite an interesting conversation about your working methods and where you get your inspiration.
"Turn and turn about: After we both had white hair, and after Alice had won the Nobel, people would come up to me and murmur, 'Congratulations.' 'For what?' I would say. 'You know. Winning that prize.' After a while I stopped trying to explain, and just murmured back, modestly, 'Thank you.' Though the Thank Yous were really for Alice."
The author that brought you Troll Song and Forgotten Legends now offers you the chance to read the third book in the The Wizard's Scion: The Third Wish.
“Some alphabets have been developed intentionally and purposefully to be exactly what the earliest alphabets became: efficient psychotechnologies for enhanced learning, communication and community building.”
I can't believe I legit forgot I published "A Single Touch" last week 😂 I was going through my site's dashboard and was like "oh right, I wrote that" lol
#Spring 2024 is here, with Jenny Erpenbeck – translated by Michael Hofmann – following a paper trail while Jakub Żulczyk, translated by John and Małgorzata Markoff, constructs a small epic. Grahame Williams examines a life without a plan and Lauren Caroline Smith tests her faith. Rose Rahtz reads the signs and Caroline Lucas makes the case for compelling and inspiring stories.
Today in Writing History May 10, 1999: Shel Silverstein, American poet, cartoonist, singer-songwriter, musician, and playwright died on this day. His books have been translated into more than 47 languages and sold over 20 million copies Some of his most famous children’s books include “The Giving Tree,” “Where the Sidewalk Ends,” and “A Light in the Attic.” As a songwriter, he wrote the Johnny Cash hits "A Boy Named Sue" and “25 Minutes to Go,” as well as the Dr. Hook hit, “Freakin’ at the Freakers Ball.” He also composed hits for John Prine, Buck Owens, Emmylou Harris, Waylon Jennings, and Lester Flatt.