Welcome to Friday,
Here are five things I found worth sharing this week.
Contrary as it may seem, there is a ton of value to be found in defining what you won’t do. Austin Kleon shares why that is.
How John Steinbeck tricked his kids into reading great books.
Tracing the rise and fall of literary fiction. I do find it interesting how labels come into and out of favor, while the genres they describe continue mostly intact. It seems so much of our culture comes down to simple marketing, doesn’t it?
Ted Gioia’s weird and wacky, philosophically probing essay on … Gumby. Yes, you read that right. Oddly enough, this is the third essay I’ve read recently on the pliable figure; perhaps Gumby-nostalgia is in the air?
Finally, another month, another once-popular-but-now-forgotten-writer to bring to your attention. Nancy Hale wrote over eighty stories for the New Yorker, and published eights novels during her mid-century career. She won O. Henry Awards for short stories ten times! This piece from Electric Literature introduces her, and includes one of her striking short stories.
Currently reading: “The Mystery of Marie Rogêt” by Edgar Allen Poe
Have a great weekend.
Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash
