Posts Tagged ‘John Steinbeck’

  • In the Beginning of Your Story

    In the Beginning of Your Story

    February 7th, 2013 | Beginnings | journalpulp | No Comments

    Establish your setting early on. Give The When, The Where, The Weather — the overall tone — as John Steinbeck does so well in the beautiful opening of Of Mice and Men: A few miles south of Soledad, the Salinas River drops in close to the hillside bank and runs deep and green. The water […]

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  • John Steinbeck In A Funk

    August 28th, 2012 | John Steinbeck, Writers | journalpulp | 8 Comments

    In 1948, after divorcing his second wife Gwyn, John Steinbeck fell into a funk during which he was able to write almost nothing, except a series of exceptional letters to his editor Pascal (“Pat”) Covici. Here’s a small sampling which I hope you find as life-affirming as I do: September 19, 1948 Dear Pat: You […]

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  • Top Thirteen Best First Sentences In Literature

    Top Thirteen Best First Sentences In Literature

    January 18th, 2012 | Beginnings | journalpulp | 11 Comments

    Here Are My Top Thirteen Best First Sentences in Literature:     13. It was a wrong number that started it, the telephone ringing three times in the dead of night, and the voice on the other end asking for someone he was not. (Paul Auster, City of Glass) 12. A few miles south of Soledad, […]

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  • How To Begin Your Story

    How To Begin Your Story

    August 17th, 2011 | Beginnings, Characterization, Plot | journalpulp | 3 Comments

    Establish your setting early on. Give us The When, The Where, The Weather — the overall tone. Is your story happy, soft, somber? John Steinbeck does this so well in the beautiful opening of Of Mice and Men: A few miles south of Soledad, the Salinas River drops in close to the hillside bank and […]

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