A Must Read
This article says everything I've been thinking about. Why is so much of what is published seemingly mediocre literature? Check out this link.
here.
posted by Jeff Vande Zande at 8:12 AM
Friday, December 16, 2005
About Jeff Vande Zande
Jeff Vande Zande lives in Michigan's Lower Peninsula, in Midland with his wife, son, and daughter, where he teaches at Delta College.
His poetry and short stories have appeared in over fifty small press magazines and journals, including College English, Passages North, Rattle, Adirondack Review, Iron Horse Literary Review, and Fugue. Two of his poems were nominated for the 1999 Pushcart Prize, and poet Jim Daniels nominated his work for a 2003 Pushcart.
In June of 2001, March Street Press released his chapbook of poems entitled Transient. In 2002, Partisan Press released his Last Name First, First Name Last. March of 2003 saw the release of his chapbook of poems, Tornado Warning (March Street Press). And, in 2004, Bottom Dog Press released a full-length collection of his short stories. March Street Press also released a chapbook of three of his stories entitled The Bridge. All three stories take place around Michigan's Mackinac Bridge.
He can be reached via e-mail at jcvandez@delta.edu.
Michigan Writers Series Interview
- Listen
- Hearts, in Red Bridge Review (October 2004)
- Poems and Story, in Agora
- Emergency Stopping, in Agora
- Whiteout, in These Winter Tales
- Into the Desperate Country in Whistling Shade
- Tornado Warning in Gin Bender
- Transient in Pemmican
- Emergency Stopping in Pemmican
- The Temporary Absurdist
- A Place to Buy Poetry
- Short Story Acceptance
- Giving Your Short Story a Title
- Where's the New Literature?
- Oops
- Upcoming Reading
- In the Marquette Area?
- Caring for the Dogs
- Upcoming Events
- Poem Published
- Layoff in a New Anthology
Buy Books Here!
Previously Published Stories and Poems
Reviews
Writing Links
Other Michigan Writers
Previous Posts
1 Comments:
I don't know the answer to that question, but I do know that American film audiences prefer happy endings, so that's what they usually get--no Tess of the D'Urbervilles. Even the followers of the Matrix movies see a dystopian vision, but the end leaves room for hope. We know that during WWII film musicals were a big hit because people wanted to escape a harsh reality for awhile. We're in the midst of trying to survive the loss of the American Dream for many of us, so we may prefer escapist fare, rather than being confronted with more of what we face in real life. If I'm in a good mood, I can face reading or viewing something tragic or challenging for entertainment, but if I'm already feeling dragged down by my life, I want to listen to Mozart rather than Evanescence and read a mystery (where the ends are all tied up at the end) rather than Mystic River. The same goes for my writing poetry. Out of several dozen poems, I like write a few that are upbeat!
I also think that the trend to "workshop" a person's writing among critique groups may give works a more bland nature--I don't want to read (or write) work that seems to be written by a committee, or has to be politically correct. M.F.A.s may not be all that they are tauted as being (though I realize that if a person wants to teach college, an advanced degree is necessary). A person can be a successful writer without having an M.F.A., and these programs (I understand) tend to be very conservative in the style of writing preferred. (Read the latest issue of Poets and Writers and tell me if you degree or disagree).
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