Given how hard it is to talk about, and write about, mental health, it seems like fiction, stories, might be the best way to get people to understand. So much of the way we talk about it is metaphorical and impressionistic after all. But I’ve noticed a dearth of good fiction that centers mental health….
I saw The Photograph recently. I liked it: solid story, likable characters, good acting. I recommend it. One thing about it jumped out at me. Somewhere about midway through the movie, one of the characters swore. He used the F-word followed shortly thereafter by the D-word. I can’t be sure, since I don’t have a…
Yesterday, I posted my twelfth story in the twelve stories in twelve months challenge. It felt good. Not much has gone right for me this year, but at least I was successful in one thing. Most of the stories were acceptable. The word counts often made for some less than ideal choices, but for the…
Months ago, I read a book called The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna by Juliet Grames. I haven’t been able to get it out of my head since. I keep thinking about the story, the themes, the setting, and, most of all, the characters. The book is historical fiction, an immigrant’s tale. It…
“Well, what have we here? We weren’t expecting you for quite some time. What happened?” “‘Scuse me?” “We thought we had another 20-25 years before you got here,” the gate attendant replied. Jack looked around at the fluffy ground and giant golden gate in front of him. “Am I dead?” he asked. “Yup.” “Wow. How’d…
