Nathan Bransford - The Forums

There's a hilarious short story by TC Boyle called "The Lie" about a guy who doesn't want to go to work, so he uses his infant as an excuse to stay home, claiming that it's sick. But the next day, he doesn't want to go to work again. The lie gets bigger and bigger until it gets fantastical...

PaulWoodlin wrote:I've read a series of lectures by Nabokov about Don Quixote, and he argues that people have been laughing and crying about the wrong things concerning it for centuries.

I would love to read those lectures. I'm a big fan of Nabokov.

Thanks, everybody! Such great suggestions, particularly the urge to be more specific. That's something I know my query really needs, and I'm trying to figure how to do it. It's one of those things - as the writer, it's hard sometimes to separate the important stuff from the rest and leave the lesser...

. What's the feeling on epilogues? So far my story ends with Candice being arrested and Janie walking away..then as an epilogue I have Janie's version of what really happened THAT night I love what you want to put in an epilogue, but I'm not crazy about epilogues themselves. Can you make it a final...

Dear Agent: After she broke away from a marriage to a money-obsessed, intolerant, and (as it turned out) criminal businessman two years ago, Megan Whits struggles to forget the nightmare and build a new life. How long has it been since they split? Is she struggling right now? This leaves some room ...

sbs:
I love your suggestions. And I was wary of that last paragraph, so thanks for helping me make that decision. I appreciate the feedback!

Never done this before. Thanks ahead of time! Dear [Agent’s Name], It’s been a decade since nineteen-year-old Emily Fairfield’s mother died. Ever since, she has selectively preserved only positive memories of her mother, Laurie, and cultivated her same tastes in books, movies, and music. But when sh...

I'm 27 and married and still sometimes have problems getting out of bed at night to use the restroom or something. My husband bought me a little flashlight so that I can see and make sure I'm safe. In a similar thread - I can't look in the mirror at night for fear of seeing something large and dang...

wildheart wrote: I can't let my feet hang off the end of the bed (the whole someone hiding in the darkness waiting to hurt me scares the crap out of me!)

Uh, me too! When I was seven, I thought Hitler was under my bed because my parents divorced and Dad watched a lot of History Channel.

Yep. And I agree about Kent. I'd like to see Lauren hang in there to the end also.

elancross wrote:And I love artichokes, So You Think You Can Dance, and English mints.
!

I don't know what English mints are, but I'm with you on the other two. Hello! :)

Most of my short stories come from overheard conversation, news stories (those severed feet that kept turning up on the coast in Vancouver!), and actions or scenes that I glimpse from a distance - usually situations that I don't know the context to so I have to figure it out for myself. The novel I ...

"You can always count on a murderer for a fancy prose style." (Humbert Humbert, from Nabokov's LOLITA)

Most of Lorrie Moore's short stories, particularly from her collection SELF-HELP, as well as her novel ANAGRAMS.

On a more romantic comedy/chic lit side, I recommend Caprice Crane's STUPID AND CONTAGIOUS or FORGET ABOUT IT.

I rarely read a book more than once because the joy of discovery wanes. My favorite to re-read has been The Bell Jar. Cheery, I know.