Archive for October 2022
The hungry gun
by David Benjamin “I think it would be appropriate to move the age for permitless carry to 18. There’s really no reason why a legal adult should not be able to defend themselves.” — Rachel Malone, Gun Owners of America MADISON, Wis. — An irony of the midterm election—perhaps the most ironic election season…
Read MoreWrite Away: The fatal cup of tea
I once got in trouble with the agent racket by writing a series of essays about the callousness of the rejections I received to my painstakingly composed queries. But in the process of making overtures to every branch of the publishing industry, I learned lessons about how rejections get dished out and how, as a……
Read More“Remember the Olive Garden!”
by David Benjamin “The cup of forbearance had been exhausted… now, after reiterated menaces, Mexico has passed the boundary of the United States, has invaded our territory and shed American blood upon the American soil. She has proclaimed that hostilities have commenced, and that the two nations are now at war.” — President James K.…
Read MoreNobody knows the trouble I’ve seen
by David Benjamin ‘You remind me of a man.’ ‘What man?’ ‘The man with the power.’ ‘What power?’ ‘The power of hoodoo.’ ‘Hoodoo?’ ‘You do, remind me of a man.’ ‘What man?’…” — Cary Grant & Shirley Temple, The Bachelor and the Bobby Soxer PARIS — Once, in my early worklife, on a Wednesday,…
Read MoreThe evolution of a character
by David Benjamin Once a writer has created a character, given him or her a history and subjected said character to the rigors of an entire novel, breaking up is hard to do. This brainchild has very likely taken on a life of his or her own over the course of a long story and……
Read MoreL’épitaphe d’Au Chai de l’Abbaye
“Isn’t it funny how day by day nothing changes, but when you look back everything is different.” — C.S. Lewis PARIS — We’ve lost an oasis. We had a pretty faithful routine. Each time we’ve flown into Paris, we climb to our aerie atop the Fifth Arrondissement, settle in and take an afternoon anti-jet…
Read MoreNotre escalier
by David Benjamin “Stairs can kill us, if we do not walk circumspectly.” — Blaise Pascal PARIS — When I’m out and around, I don’t think about the stairs. I just face them when I get home and slog my way up—more slowly than when we bought this place—five floors up and just beneath the…
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