Category Archives: Uncategorized

Every schoolboy knows that good writers seldom use clichés. The word is commonly defined as ‘a word or phrase that is overused, unoriginal or boring’ but it’s important to recognize that, while most writers try their best to be original, … Continue reading →

William Safire was a conservative speechwriter who served both Spiro Agnew and Richard Nixon; it was Safire who coined the ‘nattering nabobs of negativism‘ phrase that worked so well for Agnew. For many years, Safire wrote a column titled On Language* for … Continue reading →

Our President proudly commands the biggest, workingest nuclear button in the world. Perhaps. I know that he’s a fella that has a little difficulty with complex ideas. It’s okay to call a country a shithole because it’s economically poor and … Continue reading →

When I first decided to write and publish fiction, I thought that I’d spend some time writing poetry. The idea was that writing poetry would be good practice for producing concise and powerful prose. I’ve since stopped writing poetry, though … Continue reading →

Originally posted on gadflyonthewallblog:
  This election cycle we have witnessed a subtle change to our political landscape – and it’s probably not the one you’re thinking about. ? It’s not that Republicans have gained control of a large chunk…

And depending on how you look at it, mine is amazing or awful. In a recent post here I shared that I had decided that my next book was going to be an elephant story, provisionally titled Magua the Elephant. Since I … Continue reading →

“Empirical research shows that no domestic arrangement, not even one in which the mother works full time and the father is unemployed, results in child-care parity between heterosexual spouses. The story we tell ourselves, the one about great leaps toward the achievement … Continue reading →

Well the would-be Don anyway. He’s not smart enough to be the Don, he’ll always be the one taking orders, being ‘advised’ on what to do. All he does is keep an eye on the money, or as he likes … Continue reading →