Posts by David Benjamin
The little girl on the scooter and the feminine aesthetic
by David Benjamin “… And when she passes, each one she passes, goes “Aah’… ” —Vinícius de Moraes & Norman Gimbel. “The Girl from Ipanema” MADISON, Wis.—She was two blocks ahead and I was busy driving. But for a moment I froze, fascinated, drawing a testy honk when the light went green. Normally,…
Read MoreThe invisible poetry of prose
by David Benjamin One of the secrets to writing fluid prose is to be educated in the meter, rhythms, discipline and wordplay of great poems. For a writer, the consequence of not appreciating the poetry of prose is to hit the sort of sour note that turns off the reader. For three years in……
Read MoreBienfang goes to college
by David Benjamin “Meritocratic systems, with objective grading scales, are critical to that belief [that “blacks can achieve in every avenue of American life without the meddling of university administrators”]. Such scales have always been a great equalizer—offering a metric for achievement that bigotry could not alter.” —Justice Clarence Thomas MADISON, Wis.—When I dropped…
Read MoreThe church-lady factor
by David Benjamin Since its beginning, literature has been hounded by bluenoses with blue pencils, trying to excise words and ideas offensive to the current legions of decency and orthodoxy. Every writer, sooner or later, has to decide a response to the relentless force of censorship. Last year, prior to the official “launch” event……
Read MoreThe things you carry
by David Benjamin “Never meet your heroes.” —Leroy Jethroe Gibbs, Rule #73 MADISON, Wis.—“Do you have a pen?” This is a question to which I’ve never said, “No.” Pens are among the things I carry. To some degree, each of us is defined by the accessories we take along, wherever we go. Likewise, forgetting…
Read MoreThe author as housekeeper
“Housekeeping” isn’t just a matter of dusting windowsills and vacuuming the carpet. For an author, it’s an obligation, to protect readers from getting lost in the midst of a narrative full of characters, details and shifting locations. by David Benjamin My mother didn’t have time for housework. After forsaking an ill-fated teenage marriage, Mom……
Read MoreThe little boy who wanted all the suckers
by David Benjamin “If you’re playing a poker game and you look around the table and can’t tell who the sucker is, it’s you.” —Paul Newman FORT PIERCE, Fla. (November, 2023)—When the trial of ex-president Donald Trump took a strange twist here last month, eventually triggering a lengthy delay in the proceedings, one commentator…
Read MoreThe counterculture’s B side
by David Benjamin “… Every town must have a place where phony hippies meet/ Psychedelic dungeons popping up on every street …” —The Mothers of Invention MADISON, Wis.— The counterculture is back, but in a mirror image, everything in reverse. It’s been with us since 2015 but we’ve barely noticed, because of its dizzying…
Read MoreThe writer as reader
For a writer, more than for anyone in any other profession, you are what you have read. The story of your life, unless you’re Don Quixote or Captain Ahab, is not enough to captivate readers. by David Benjamin Dr. Seuss ruined my life. I was in first grade. My teacher led her class to……
Read MoreYabba dabba doo!
by David Benjamin “A little song, a little dance/ A little seltzer down your pants.” —Chuckles the Clown, “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” MADISON, Wis.—Something has happened to TV situation comedies. Or is it me? For much of my life, I’ve been a sort of sitcom maven, not just watching and chuckling but analyzing…
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