Marissa Bell Toffoli

Archive for the ‘short stories’ Category

Interview With Writer Duff Brenna

In author interview, books, fiction, memoir, nonfiction, short stories, writing on September 13, 2013 at 10:30 am
Duff Brenna

Duff Brenna. Photo courtesy of the author.

An introduction to Duff Brenna, author of nine books including The Book of Mamie, Minnesota Memoirs, and Murdering the Mom. He is a freelance writer and Professor Emeritus of English literature and creative writing at California State University, San Marcos. Brenna finds ideas for his own writing from reading, and also from talking to people: “I know how to listen when I’m with people. Stories often pop out of their mouths that I use to write my own version of what they were saying. I also use my own life.” Read the rest of this entry »

Interview With Writer Charles McLeod

In books, fiction, short stories, uncategorized, writing on May 15, 2013 at 12:52 pm
Charles McLeod

Charles McLeod. Photo courtesy of the author.

An introduction to Charles McLeod, author of the novel American Weather and a collection of stories called National Treasures (Outpost19/Random House UK). His fiction has appeared in publications including Conjunctions, DOSSIER, Eleven Eleven, The Gettysburg Review, Hayden’s Ferry Review, The Iowa Review, The Pushcart Prize: Best of the Small Presses, and the Norton anthology Fakes. McLeod was born in Texas, grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, California, and now lives in Colorado. Since 2000, he’s held eleven addresses in eight states. Read the rest of this entry »

Interview With Writer Mick Stern

In art, books, fiction, poetry, short stories on July 21, 2012 at 1:07 pm
Mick Stern

Mick Stern. Photo by Lucy Kehati.

An introduction to writer and artist Mick Stern, whose most recent books include The Chicken’s Guide to Crossing the Road, Fifty Thousand, and Get Out of Town. Stern received a PhD in English Renaissance Literature from New York University (NYU). He has taught English at Rutgers (New Brunswick) and other colleges. For more than twenty years, he taught screenwriting at NYU’s film school. 
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Interview With Writer Yon Walls

In poetry, short stories, writing on December 30, 2011 at 3:12 pm
Yon Walls

Yon Walls. Photo by W A Moody.

An introduction to writer Yon Walls, who recently published a novel called Seeing Collette. Walls is a poet, diarist, and novelist originally from Kentucky. She’s lived in California since 1972. Walls holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Mills College where she received the Zora Neale Hurston Writing Award twice. From 2000-2008, she taught college-level English and literature in the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento Valley areas. In 2002 and 2007, she was a teacher and writer-in-residence in Hiroshima and Kofu, Japan. Since that time, she completed Island of Swallows, a collection of poems about Japan. Walls is currently a contributing editor for Tertuliamagazine.com. Read the rest of this entry »

Interview With Writer Catherine McNamara

In books, fiction, short stories, writing on July 28, 2011 at 3:20 pm
Catherine McNamara

Catherine McNamara. Photo by Finley McNamara-Provencal.

An introduction to writer Catherine McNamara whose novel The Divorced Lady’s Companion to Living in Italy (Indigo Dreams, UK) will be released in October 2011. McNamara grew up in Sydney, Australia, went on to travel and live in five other countries, and currently resides in Italy where she works as a translator and writer. Her children’s book Nii Kwei’s Day was published by Frances Lincoln, and her short stories have appeared in numerous publications including Wasafiri (forthcoming in 2012), The View From Here, Kerouac’s Dog, Australian Reader, and Pretext.

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Interview With Writer Alexander MacLeod

In books, fiction, short stories, writing on May 31, 2011 at 9:28 pm
Alexander MacLeod

Alexander MacLeod. Photo by Heather Crosby.

An introduction to Alexander MacLeod, author of the debut story collection Light Lifting (Biblioasis, 2010). MacLeod holds degrees from the University of Windsor, the University of Notre Dame, and McGill. He teaches at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. A national bestseller in Canada, Light Lifting was released in the US in April 2011. Read the rest of this entry »

Interview With Writer Paul Maliszewski

In books, fiction, short stories, writing on April 23, 2011 at 5:10 pm
Paul Maliszewski

Paul Maliszewski. Photo by Hadley Ross.

An introduction to Paul Maliszewski, author of the fiction collection Prayer and Parable (Fence Books, 2011).  The cover description for Prayer and Parable says the stories feature people who “struggle to do right. They argue. They think. They think again. They have odd dreams. Often they fail at being good, and yet, on occasion, they realize moments of true kindness.” People much like any of  us. These stories are about life and the human condition. The artistry is in Maliszewski’s honest language, and as he mentions, the best way to experience art, is to experience it yourself. You’ll have to read the book to discover its beauties. Read the rest of this entry »

Interview With Writer Hannah Pittard

In books, fiction, short stories, writing on February 9, 2011 at 6:24 pm
Hannah Pittard

Hannah Pittard. Photo by Marissa Bell Toffoli (2011).

An introduction to the author of the debut novel The Fates Will Find Their Way (Ecco, 2011). Hannah Pittard confesses a few obsessions, and shares advice she gives to her writing students at DePaul University. She’s articulate, she’s a serious thinker, she’s got a sense of humor, and she’s out to break your heart. Read the rest of this entry »

Interview With Writer Josh Weil

In books, fiction, novellas, short stories, writing on April 11, 2010 at 1:22 pm
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Josh Weil. Photo by Ben Weil.

An introduction to the author of The New Valley. Josh Weil shares a bit about himself, and his thoughts on writing. Weil’s book The New Valley, a trio of novellas, was a New York Times Editors’ Choice, and winner of the Sue Kaufman Prize for First Fiction from The American Academy of Arts and Letters. He has stories forthcoming in Glimmer Train and Appalachian Heritage, and an essay in The New York Times. Read the rest of this entry »

Interview With Editors Laureen Mahler & John Peck

In comics, editors, fiction, literary journals, poetry, short stories, writing on March 27, 2010 at 12:53 pm
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Laureen Mahler & John Peck. Photo by John Peck (2009).

An introduction to literary magazine editors of Beeswax Magazine, Laureen Mahler and John Peck, who also run an independent letterpress and book arts studio. The dynamic married couple publishes Beeswax Magazine from their print studio, Volta Press. Mahler and Peck have backgrounds in writing and literature, which lends them unique perspective as editors and printmakers.

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Interview With Writer Ann Joslin Williams

In books, fiction, short stories, writing on March 20, 2010 at 12:50 pm
Ann Joslin Williams

Ann Joslin Williams. Photo by Liz Williams.

An introduction to the author of The Woman in the Woods, a collection of linked stories. She has a novel forthcoming in 2011 from publisher Bloomsbury, USA, and more immediately a story, “Squareball,” coming out in Arts & Letters, Journal of Contemporary Culture. Additional background on Williams is included at the end of this interview. Read the rest of this entry »