Category Archives: Writing

Speaking of Sunsets

Posted on July 14, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

Never Again The Same Speaking of sunsets, last night’s was shocking. I mean, sunsets aren’t supposed to frighten you, are they? Well, this one was terrifying. Sure, it was beautiful, but far too beautiful. It wasn’t natural. One climax followed … Continue reading →

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Nothing stops bibliophiles

Posted on July 9, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

I just learned from a friend’s social media posts that in the middle of a horrific war the book community in Ukraine actual held the nation’s largest annual book festival. The poster above is for the 2023 International Book Arsenal Festival which … Continue reading →

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A Writer’s Tale

Posted on July 6, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

Way back in 1961 a 14 year-old writer had the audacity to submit an unsolicited short story to Spaceman Magazine. That bold young author was undeterred by the rejection of his work and kept at it. Stephen King has gone … Continue reading →

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The Work of Happiness

Posted on July 4, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

THE WORK OF HAPPINESS by May Sarton I thought of happiness, how it is woven Out of the silence in the empty house each day And how it is not sudden and it is not given But is creation itself … Continue reading →

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A Hunger Artist

Posted on July 3, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

In honor of Franz Kafka’s 140th birthday, here’s his popular short story “A Hunger Artist.” Published just two years before Kafka’s death from tuberculosis in 1924, the story is often viewed as a reflection of his illness and his struggles … Continue reading →

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Summer Sunday Sundries

Posted on July 2, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

“In its June 26, 1948, issue, The New Yorker published Shirley Jackson’s unsettling story “The Lottery,” and it’s not an overstatement to say that readers freaked out. They wrote letters in droves, angry or unsure about what this slowly unfolding … Continue reading →

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A problem involving Don Quixote

Posted on July 1, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

“A Problem” by Jorge Luis Borges Translated by Andrew Hurley Let us imagine that a piece of paper with a text in Arabic on it is discovered in Toledo, and that paleographers declare the text to have been written by … Continue reading →

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Books on Maps

Posted on June 28, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

If you stop by TBTP regularly, you probably know how I feel about maps and literary websites that manage to combine books AND maps. Books On Maps: is a new project that is mashing up cartography and novels. You don’t … Continue reading →

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Rules for Writers

Posted on June 27, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

Raymond Chandler’s 10 rules for writing a detective novel: It must be credibly motivated, both as to the original situation and the dénouement. It must be technically sound as to the methods of murder and detection. It must be realistic … Continue reading →

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The water was black and warm

Posted on June 21, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

Much has been written about the great American novelist Cormac McCarthy since his recent death. I have long admired his writing, but often found his books to be grim. Ironically, my favorite work is The Road, which is about a dark a … Continue reading →

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