Changes since 2015-01-01T22:15:07

2015-01-01T22:15:07Z

January 1, 2014

Watching the Rose Parade this morning with my son, I was struck by a buttefly-themed float that it would be great if Nabokov had designd it? Then I started wondering, what if the entire parade was made up of writer's floats? Thanks to Tiff Fehr for playing along. Tiff Fehr

Won't you now join us in the early morning of New Year's Day, in Pasadena, for the annual Rosy Writer's Parade, which is already in progress:

"Here's Nabokov's float. He's gone with a lepidopterist theme. It's made of 200,000 hand-glued monarch wings. Amazing! VÃ©ra looks beautiful"

"Here's Nabokov's float. He's gone with a lepidopterist theme. It's made of 200,000 hand-glued monarch wings. Amazing! VÃ©ra looks beautiful"— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"Beckett's float was supposed to be next, but I don't see it. Guess we'll have to take a break while we wait."

"Beckett's float was supposed to be next, but I don't see it. Guess we'll have to take a break while we wait."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"Sorry for the pixilation on your screen but we're not allowed to broadcast Palahniuk's float. Nobody should see that. I'm going to be sick"

"Sorry for the pixilation on your screen but we're not allowed to broadcast Palahniuk's float. Nobody should see that. I'm going to be sick"— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"A Pride and Prejudice theme on Austin's float. She created a dance floor from layering over 900 whale-bone corsets. So much fainting!"

"A Pride and Prejudice theme on Austin's float. She created a dance floor from layering over 900 whale-bone corsets. So much fainting!"— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"Ayn Rand's float celebrates American exceptionalism by adding her face to Mount Rushmore, and making all parade viewers hike to it."

"Ayn Rand's float celebrates American exceptionalism by adding her face to Mount Rushmore, and making all parade viewers hike to it."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"The Dorothy Parker marching band is always a treat. I've never understood how they can smoke while playing brass instruments."

"The Dorothy Parker marching band is always a treat. I've never understood how they can smoke while playing brass instruments."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"Here's the Hunter S. Thompson flag team. The less we talk about their appearance last year the better. In fact, let's not encourage them."

"Here's the Hunter S. Thompson flag team. The less we talk about their appearance last year the better. In fact, let's not encourage them."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"Now Dame Agatha Christie's float. What a treat! Her theme this year: Orient Expressly yours, until death."

"Now Dame Agatha Christie's float. What a treat! Her theme this year: Orient Expressly yours, until death."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"Franzen's float is made of printed tweets from his detractors, which he's never read, formed into a giant middle finger."

"Franzen's float is made of printed tweets from his detractors, which he's never read, formed into a giant middle finger."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"We think this is Pynchon's float, but of course, nobody has ever seen it, so we can't be too sure."

"We think this is Pynchon's float, but of course, nobody has ever seen it, so we can't be too sure."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"And once again, Harper Lee enters the same float as the years before. You'd think she'd try a little harder."

"And once again, Harper Lee enters the same float as the years before. You'd think she'd try a little harder."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"J.K. Rowling has entered an adult mystery themed float. Teenagers along the route in wizarding cosplay are weeping."

"J.K. Rowling has entered an adult mystery themed float. Teenagers along the route in wizarding cosplay are weeping."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"It turns out that Borges' float was actually the parade itself, made up of other floats in infinite combination on infinite parade routes."

"It turns out that Borges' float was actually the parade itself, made up of other floats in infinite combination on infinite parade routes."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"We expected Melville to do a whale-themed float, but he's created thousands of hand-whittled people with their backs turned to his words."

"We expected Melville to do a whale-themed float, but he's created thousands of hand-whittled people with their backs turned to his words."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"Gertrude Stein's float 'The Float The Float The Float Float, Float?' is easier to read thanks to Alice handing out brownies earlier."

"Gertrude Stein's float 'The Float The Float The Float Float, Float?' is easier to read thanks to Alice handing out brownies earlier."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"William Gibson's float is apparently hovering over the ground, but we're not sure if it's real or a futuristic pun on the word float."

"William Gibson's float is apparently hovering over the ground, but we're not sure if it's real or a futuristic pun on the word float."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"I'm having trouble understanding David Foster Wallace's float, but I totally finished it. Just, you know, thinking about it."

"I'm having trouble understanding David Foster Wallace's float, but I totally finished it. Just, you know, thinking about it."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"Some viewers are complaining about the ending of Neal Stephenson's float, but it made perfect sense to us."

"Some viewers are complaining about the ending of Neal Stephenson's float, but it made perfect sense to us."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

Calvinoâ€™s float is a set of mirrors reflecting the crowd. When itâ€™s paused on the route, they flip inward, revealing still modernist scenes.

Calvinoâ€™s float is a set of mirrors reflecting the crowd. When itâ€™s paused on the route, they flip inward, revealing still modernist scenes.— Tiff Fehr (@tiffehr) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"Joan Didion's float seemed so delicate at first."

"Joan Didion's float seemed so delicate at first."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"Gillian Flynn's float keeps reversing and you don't know which way it will go next."

"Gillian Flynn's float keeps reversing and you don't know which way it will go next."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

China Mievilleâ€™s fan dance troupe this year features elaborate cosplayâ€”each dancer from a different eraâ€”yet riffing on the previous dancer.

China Mievilleâ€™s fan dance troupe this year features elaborate cosplayâ€”each dancer from a different eraâ€”yet riffing on the previous dancer.— Tiff Fehr (@tiffehr) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"And finally, Cory Doctorow's float, made up of 300,000 open-source creative-commoned freely-downloadable no-drm'd steampunk rose petals."

"And finally, Cory Doctorow's float, made up of 300,000 open-source creative-commoned freely-downloadable no-drm'd steampunk rose petals."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

"Thanks for joining us for the 2015 Rosy Writer's parade here in Pasadena. We'll see you next year."

"Thanks for joining us for the 2015 Rosy Writer's parade here in Pasadena. We'll see you next year."— Martin McClellan (@hellbox) January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

Changes since 2014-12-04T17:40:24

2014-12-04T17:40:24Z

December 4, 2014

I'm attempting a Kickstarter in March of next year. To that end, I've been focusing on the periperal work of putting it together. How will I promote it? What will the video be? What will the text on the page be? Part of this is writing a series of articles for Medium that I can release during the Kickstarter to help, hopefully, promote it.

The problem is that I am terrible at writing non-fiction on a deadline. I find non-fiction — serious non-fiction, not blog posts like this where I'm not so worried about looking smart or actually grappling with deeper issues other people may have more artfully handled before me — very hard to write. I write first what I'm thinking I'm writing about, and then when I think to myself "Yes, but really? Is that really what it's about?" Then I start a series of diversions. I start questioning the premise and those diversions. It grows into a frustraing mind game of guessing each clause and honing its message.really

I hope that in the end this makes the work easy to read and inciteful, but goddamn if it doesn't make the writing a slog through deep mud. It's the old philsophical problem that when you start questioning, you start questioning the act of questioning itself, and everything loses its meaning.

When I'm done with essays like these, I walk away from them feeling raw and beat-up. I go to the corner, waving the damn thing off. I'm done with it. Then, hopefully, in a few weeks or a month I'll read it again and be surprised by some of the things I've found. Hopefully not embarrased. Hopefully not finding cliches.

This is my process in writing essays. I hate it, but I think the pain is worth it in the end. It's the only way I can suss out what I'm really thinking about things.

://relvokcor.xyz/~hellbox

Changes since 2015-01-01T22:15:07

Changes since 2014-12-04T17:40:24