It’s true, rejection saved my writing career. How? Click here to read the guest post. Also, don’t forget that if you comment on all guest blog posts, you will get free stuff.
Tag: newsletter
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The lovely Kristin Fouquet reviews Stranger Will
Kristin Fouquet, author of Twenty Stories, which I loved, has written a very nice review of Stranger Will. But the center of her review shouldn’t be the review itself. She offers a snippet of her own life, one which shares thematic similarities to Stranger Will.
From the review:
With ease, Ross seems to dare you to turn the page. Chapter Eighteen is gut-wrenching. It reminded me of footage of Shias parading while flogging themselves. The children used soft, harmless cat-o-nine tails to emulate the self-flagellation they would later truly and painfully enact in their maturity. Ross is not so gentle with his children characters demonstrating their faith nor does he coddle his readers. His writing is fearless. The courageous reader will not be dissatisfied.
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Stranger Will tour stop #32: Eye Brains (Mel Bosworth’s blog)
Should you pursue the small press route or the large press route? Click here to read the guest post. Also, don’t forget that if you comment on all guest blog posts, you will get free stuff.
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Stranger Will gets the Booked Podcast treatment; praise ensues
A few weeks ago I was turned on to Booked Podcast via their review of Christopher Dwyer’s novel When October Falls. I am always looking for more literature podcasts, and I’ve been a fan and friend of Dwyer’s for a long time, so when the two came together I did not hesitate to jump in.Livius Nedin and Robb Olson have not been doing Booked Podcast to very long yet, but they approach the format liked seasoned connoisseurs. It is the best kind of podcast; readers talking about books. Simple. Proven.
Last week they took on Stranger Will, and were not only kind enough to give my book their time but were kind enough to offer truly humbling amounts of praise. If every I meet Livius and/or Robb in person, the beers are on me.
I highly recommend you take a listen to their discussion of Stranger Will. http://www.bookedpodcast.com/2011/05/27/episode-9-stranger-will/
Then, immediately download their past episodes. Visit the Booked Podcast site here: http://www.bookedpodcast.com. Follow the Booked Podcast twitter feed here: http://twitter.com/bookedpodcast. You will regret nothing.
A few of the kind words follow, paraphrased:
“Wholly original story. Had I not been hampered by tedious things like work and sleep I probably would have read it in a single sitting. It is very well written and deals with some very dark issues….I strongly recommend you pick up Stranger Will for a very vivid picture of a guy going through some really bad stuff. 4.5 stars, highest number of stars we’ve given on Booked Podcast.”
“pulls absolutely no punches”
“The darkest book I’ve read in some time”
“a bizarre but truly original story”
“Will and Julie’s fragmented relationship is written so well. It made me feel uncomfortable”
“So disturbing in some places that I actually shuttered. This is hi-praise coming from me, as I don’t find much disturbing”
“very good at being descriptive without being pretentious”
“we should expect to see some really, really good things from Ross in the future”
“This book will stick with me for some time”
“Bravo for taking what most people would think as an impossible task and making something good of it”
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Stranger Will tour stop #31: Alluringly Short (Erica Mena’s blog)
I am a little late posting this tour stop; I have been off the internet grid for the last few days (enjoying a few days at the lake). Though, if I were smart I would play off the late post as a simple mis-translation of the date. That would be fitting to the topic of this newest post, all about translation in literature.
Click here to read the guest post. Also, don’t forget that if you comment on all guest blog posts, you will get free stuff.
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Charactered Pieces gets Ben Tanzered
I have long known that Ben Tanzer is a fan of my story “An Optimist is the Human Personification of Spring” from my Charactered Pieces chapbook. Ben has been kind enough to tell me that very fact, saying to me that it is one of the most affecting stories he has read recently (even telling the world on his podcast). Simply stated, he likes the story, and his enthusiasm and praise is exactly the reason I write.
So, when he posted some more praise at Matt Bell’s blog, I once again felt the rush of what it means to truly be a writer. I can’t think this man enough (and Matt Bell for hosting the post).
“As the story unfolded, I knew it would go wrong, had to go wrong, and when it did, it took everything I had not to cry in the middle of the Red line “L” during the rush hour traffic, sitting saying to myself, breathe, hold it together bro, almost home, almost.
Ross and Ruland grasp that, in these stories anyway, and they hit me, and I was unprepared for it, and it’s wonderful being punched that way. It’s a gift in the way short stories are gifts. Quick and intimate. Sometimes violent. And then gone.”
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Stranger Will tour stop #30: Phil Jourdan’s blog
For the big three-ohhhh post on this blog tour I stop by Phil Jourdan’s blog. Phil is best known, to me at least, as the crazy smart philosophy guy and mastermind of the band Paris and the Hiltons. He’s a guy worth knowing now, because one day everyone will know him.
Click here to read the guest post. Also, don’t forget that if you comment on all guest blog posts, you will get free stuff.