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FAQ #3: My Recipe
What literary influences/ancestors spawned 100 Cupboards?
I’ve already talked about the situational cause of this series (that late night chat and wifely challenge). But that was the story equivalent of knocking over a large pot of boiling, goopy somethings. But what were those somethings? Who put them in the pot, and why was the burner cranked so high? I blame it all on my parents. And on my teachers. But then my parents were both my teachers at some point or other, and they helped start the school where I simmered K-12. So it all lands on them.
I will now practice a little self-discipline and see if I can let a poor, exploited metaphor go. Unlikely. Read the rest of this entry »
FAQ #2: 100 Cupboards, the Origin of
What gave you the idea for 100 Cupboards?
A few years back, a college buddy of mine (holler, Mark Beauchamp) dropped by for some nostalgic laughter. The hour got late and the caffeine was flowing. At some point in the evening, while discussing his innate need to salvage strange things (and how that need affected the overall aesthetic charm of his apartment), he threw out the phrase: “One Hundred Little Cupboards.” I latched onto it, responding with something like, “That sounds like a book title.” Now, to be quite honest, I would have let it die right there. We both would have happily moved on, and the snappy book title could have gone to live where thousands of other snappy book titles had gone before. But instead, my wife chimed in. She laughed. Her eyebrows showered skepticism. “A stupid book,” she said. “Who would read a story about cupboards?” Read the rest of this entry »
Don’t Let the Chia Pet Die
I’m told that a blog is a lot like a houseplant. Some people get way too involved in their special spider fern and the thing ends up taking up more than just all of their time. It takes up half of the living room and replaces the loveseat. I (let’s be frank), am not in danger of becoming one of those people. When I leave town, I won’t be asking anyone to water my little, green friend. I will let it wilt and expect it to immediately recover when I’ve come home and dumped a bucket of water on it. Worse, when I haven’t even left town, I’ll still occasionally let it wilt and expect the same post-bucket recovery. Which is what I’m doing now. The Chia Pet hasn’t had water in a week. I promise to be a better pet plant owner.
Incidentally, now that I’m an old hand at this blogging thing, I’m suddenly feeling entrepreneurial. I have aspirations. I dream of a business called Blog For Me. I will gather a stable of writers, and then take clients too lazy (or busy) to blog, but who are desirous of all the immense gratification that comes from watching web stats rise, pie charts swell, and comments flourish. These lazy people will forward all photos and news items to their assigned ghost-blogger, who will then over-romanticize humorous, coy, and empathetic narratives around them.
I’m sure ghost-blogging for a random high school personality would be more interesting than keeping the traditional self-blog.
Regardless, I’m back. And tonight I will play Mozart to my Chia Pet. Tomorrow, I will scurry around, moving it from sunlit sill to sunlit sill. I’m even planning an earth-shattering post.
The Winner
Congratulations Ree (with thanks to random.org). You are the proud owner of a shiny Dandelion Fire. Close your eyes and soak in the applause.
As for the rest of you, I have three more copies to give away over the next couple months. Stay tuned.
Last Call
Thank you all for piling in on the Dandelion Fire giveaway. Sheesh. This is officially my last call for entries. I’ll finalize October’s giveaway on October 8th at 11:59pm (PT) and announce the decision of the Random Number Generator shortly thereafter. Pip-pip, and thanks again for the enthusiasm.