I Listen to Podcasts. Wanna Know 6 of ’Em?

We’re all friends here, so you can admit it:

You’ve always wondered what I’m listening to while I’m folding laundry.

Give Me Your Shorts and Win NGEP!

You WILL give me names.

You had such a great time with my last NGEP contest that I couldn’t in good conscience postpone this one another day.

(Yes. You did have lots of fun. Don’t argue with me.)

Last time, I pretty broadly asked you to recommend your favorite writers. I got everything from Richard Brautigan (whom I’ve since read) to Christopher McDougall (whom I’m reading right now) to Lev Grossman (whose The Magicians is sitting on my to-be-read shelf at home).

Good show, folks, but this time around, I’m looking for something more specific:

Recommend your favorite short stories to win more
Nathanael Green Endorsement Points!

Listening to Find Your Characters

I don’t generally attribute specific sources of inspiration to my writing, but occasionally, something grabs my attention and says, “Hey! You need me!”

That’s how I had a theme song for a novel before I even started writing.

Here’s what happened.

Tell Me Your Favorite Writer and Win NGEP!

Points? I love points. Just look at my beard.

I need your help. And I promise it’ll hurt less than trying to read Ulysses.

If you tell me what writers I should be reading, you’ll
win Nathanael Green Endorsement Points!*

And the more writers you suggest, the more points you’ll rack up!

I just want to hear who your favorite authors are. That’s all.

I’m a fan of literature in general and enjoy everything from Joseph Conrad to Audrey Niffenegger. But pretty early on, I developed an especially strong hankering for fantasy fiction. I’ve read many (though by no means all) of the more common names in the genre like George R.R. Martin, J.R.R. Tolkien, Terry Goodkind, Robert Jordan, Robert E. Howard … you know, the household names that top on the must-read and best-first-fantasy-to-dip-your-toes-in lists.

Despite decades of reading, there are thousands of other excellent writers out there who I haven’t, but should, read. Maybe you’re even one of them.

So, please, dear readers of the webbernet, tell me what writers move you. Help me discover new, exciting voices for my next few book purchases.

Leave a comment and tell us what writers you think everyone should read. Plug your favorite books or plug your own books. And they don’t have to be fantasy or sci-fi, though those may earn beefier points. Just share what you like and you’re on your way to NGEP glory!

_

*I’m without a doubt making the Nathanael Green Endorsement Points (NGEP) system up as I go along and understand exactly how silly it is. They’re not worth anything whatsoever except as an inaccurate and arbitrary indication of my gratitude. Still, winning lots of points at anything rocks.

Words and Pictures Not to Miss

Congratulations to two of my friends appearing in the most recent issue of Bartleby Snopes literary magazine!

Sarah Rose Etter and Katie Reing are featured in Issue 1 Volume 2 – Sarah for her creepily awesome story “Koala Tide” and Katie for some superb photography.

Seriously, folks … this magazine is free and has some great stuff in it, so you don’t have an excuse for not downloading it right now.

Also, this photo is just one of Katie’s many that jumped out at me, and I’d recommend checking out some more of her work at her flickr account.

Storyteller as a Noble Calling

To entertain someone is to transport them to a different world. This is no small feat.

In my previous post, I talked about my belief that genre fiction can also be literary, and emotionally and intellectually deep.

But the honest truth is a lot of what we read isn’t deep. And that’s ok.

It’s pure entertainment, and that’s still valuable for a number of reasons:

Genre Fiction as Literature

What is literature?

Yes, the dentists’ brochures on flossing, the neon green flyer tucked under your windshield, and the weight-loss ad cleverly disguised as an article in your magazine are all technically literature as written materials.

But I’m talking about the definition of literature as a creative work of excellent quality and lasting artistic value. Think Hamlet and A Tale of Two Cities. Nineteen Eighty-Four, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Dante’s Inferno and Goethe’s Faust.

These are the pieces literati will hold up as paragons of literature.

But few people give credence to genre fiction as serious literature.