Intro Wherein Chuck Greaves praises the erudition of Rex Stout, David Abrams hails Agatha Christie’s ability to breed distrust in teenagers, David Huddle discusses the shining sentences of J.D. Salinger,…
Under The Influence
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Under the Influence #13
by Kurt Baumeister August 12, 2019Intro Wherein Robert Burke Warren praises the magical minimalism of Alice Munro; Gregory Spatz reflects on the wild life–and still wilder work–of James Agee; Matthew Specktor muses on the wacky,…
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Under the Influence #12
by Kurt Baumeister July 9, 2019Intro Wherein Jamie Blaine celebrates the grit of Raymond Chandler, Jesi Bender praises the prose mastery of Carole Maso, Michael T. Fournier shares how Douglas Coupland saved him from a…
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Under the Influence #11
by Kurt Baumeister June 13, 2019Intro Wherein Constance Squires shares how Iris Murdoch taught her not to be afraid of plot, Michael Gillan Maxwell discusses how Gary Snyder’s writing turned him on to philosophy, Sean…
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Under the Influence #10, Taste
by Kurt Baumeister May 10, 2019Intro Wherein triple threat (writer/editor/bookseller) Kevin Sampsell praises the humor and honesty of Steven “Jesse” Bernstein, a writer gone too soon; author Samuel Snoek-Brown confesses his love for the one…
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Under the Influence #9, Meditations
by Kurt Baumeister April 12, 2019Intro Wherein Gillian Cummings pens an achingly beautiful tribute to Sylvia Plath and death; Natalie Singer praises the sharp eye of Lia Purpura, a talent for observation so keen it…
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Under the Influence #8, Perspective
by Kurt Baumeister March 5, 2019Intro Wherein Michael J. Wilson pens a brief, brilliant love letter to Hart Crane; Joseph Salvatore praises the perspective gained from ancestors both biological (his father, and his cousin Rocky…
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Under the Influence #7, Magic
by Kurt Baumeister December 12, 2018Intro Wherein Jana Martin lauds the “Sunbelt-oddness-filled” and “hot blast evangelism” of Joy Williams, Paul Cohen tells how Saul Bellow’s words stalked him across a continent and turned him into…
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Under the Influence #6, Negative Capability
by Kurt Baumeister November 9, 2018Intro Wherein Thaisa Frank discusses Laurence Sterne, Samuel Johnson, and the Throne of Bolivia; Bill Lessard muses on Charles Baudelaire, pin-up; Hank Cherry lauds the realism and self-promotion of Denis…
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Under the Influence #5, The Literary Psyche
by Kurt Baumeister October 12, 2018Intro Wherein Michael A. Ferro regales us with tales of reading anti-plotter David Foster Wallace. Chris Campanioni makes up words (a tactic I hold in high esteem) as he discusses…
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Under the Influence #4, Nabokov’s Hyperbole
by Kurt Baumeister September 12, 2018Intro Wherein you will learn of David Leo Rice’s ten mental locks, Marcy Dermansky’s ability to see romance in the confluence of pierogis and roaches, how Stephen Dunn’s poetry makes…
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Under the Influence #3, Rediscovery
by Kurt Baumeister August 8, 2018I’m changing the format here a bit. I’ll have some words on the month’s contributions at the end. For now, let us celebrate the contributors. Kerry Cohen was just on…
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Under the Influence #2, Son of Kid of Baby
by Kurt Baumeister July 10, 2018“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose By any other word would smell as sweet;” – Juliet, Act II, Scene II of Romeo and Juliet by William…
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Under the Influence #1, The Origins Issue
by Kurt Baumeister June 5, 2018I remember the clarity of that day’s sky, horizon-filling and cornflower blue, the sunshine that dominated the quad beyond the windows of the university library. Which is ironic, since I…