Letters to the Earth

A few weeks ago, I was at a book signing and talking shop with the other local writers.  You know, asking them questions about their methods, picking their brains on techniques, etc.  I mentioned to Debrah Goldstein, the author whose event it was, that I wanted her picture for my blog.  Of course, then she wanted to know the blog's address.  I thought she'd forget about it, but when I wrote her later to say that Dad and myself were reading her book, she wanted a copy of the picture as well as information about my web log.  I provided her with the photo, then thought for a bit.

The problem was that my journal was really meant for close friends only, not other authors and the general public. Journalling or blogging for me started as a personal memoir in 2001, the beginning of law school.  The current personal journal goes back to 2004, because I deleted the old entries in a fit of pique and the age-old artistic desire to remake oneself.  Since then, I expanded my repertoire to include commentary on writing works in progress as well as the law.  I still kept it under a pseudonym, for obvious reasons, which made it little read. But the desire to be publicly read and to receive feedback was there.

There was also no way I was going to design an actual website, lacking both the skills and really the need.  But another Dreamwidth account where I could use my real name, put the best memoir stories and reviews from my regular journal on there, that I could tell my relatives and people in general about?  That had potential.

And so, this blog, "Letters to the Earth" (the sequel) was born.  I intend to chronicle the writing and publication of at least one novel, False Gods.  Along the way, there will be: discussion on the craft of writing; reviews of books, movies, and whatnot as I develop my critical faculties; essays on sundry subjects; and the occasional political or reporting post when I just can't help myself.

Welcome.  Read my profile, click on the tags on your left to see other entries, and generally make yourself at home.  I'll be adding more back material as I go on, and of course regularly updating with new material.  Please write me, if you feel so moved.

Best,
Mack