A Fascist and A Hero

The system doesn’t work; only a collective moral resolve –or a single representative of it– can truly come close to achieving absolute “justice”. Bureaucratic niceties, civil cowardice and the inability to distinguish friend from foe only get in the way of doing what’s right, even if that road leads somewhere outside the law.

Harry Callahan, an archetype of the modern vigilante hero. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Dirty Harry, Batman and 24‘s Jack Bauer are all representatives of this idea. If any of these characters existed in real life, they would be criticized for their moral absolutism, their overt violation of constitutional and human rights and their inhumane treatment of criminals. However, thanks to some clever and favorable narrative, we get to cheer them as our heroes. Are they?

An Inmate to Admire

Reblogged from Prison Uncensored - The Truth Behind the Bars:

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Call him Conrad. When a man is sentenced to more than two years, the next place he goes is to an assessment centre. When Conrad got here, he told the officials he wanted to go to a high security place where he heard there was a writing program.

“But your security rating is better than that. You go to an easier prison.”

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PRISON UNCENSORED is one of those blogs that exists to change your perspective, in this case of the prison system. The title of this particular post is self-explanatory, but it doesn't make Ed Griffin's story any less amazing. Not only do I recommend you read the post; I highly recommend you follow this blog. Enjoy this reblog.

Double or Nothing

Reblogged from The Re-Education of LaShonda:

Sirens wailed as I paced up and down the alley. I promised myself I’d never come back here. Add that to the long list of promises now smattered to pieces. My heels panged against the uneven pavement as my thoughts weighed the insanity of it all. How a 4th grade math teacher ever ended up owing $50,000 to a bookie is one equation that will never add up.

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I rarely get to read short fiction as good as this online. As I told the author, the choice of first-person perspective does not feel like an afterthought. Instead it's used brilliantly to tell a story about mistakes and the risks we undergo to fix them, even when deep down we know we're chasing a pipe dream. Highly recommended.

The Best Time To Post Your Blog Articles

Reblogged from GarthBox:

Is immediately.

You aren't the best blogger, neither am I, no one is. Even if you post 5,000 articles in two years, you can still be better, learn more and grow further. You learn by doing, by putting yourself (in this case, your article) out there. Post your blog articles immediately so you are forced to work on more to post and thus can continue growing and learning quicker.

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Ray Bradbury (quoted before in this blog) said a writer should do a weekly short story for at least a year; it will be impossible to write fifty two bad stories in a row, and the experience will be invaluable. Ever since I opened the Bard of Steel I've felt the same could be said about blogging. I know I've improved a lot as a writer. Have you?

Neil Gaiman Addresses the University of the Arts, Class of 2012

Reblogged from tigermoo:

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Chanced upon this speech by writer Neil Gaiman. Very inspirational and relevant to people in any art related field.

and, a venn diagram on his advice on freelancing. (image taken from here.)

-tiger

This video went viral over the last couple of days, but it is definitely worth sharing. What is it, if not the legendary Neil Gaiman (author of Coraline, Stardust, American Gods and, of course, SANDMAN) giving one of the most wonderful speeches about what it means to be an artist. Enjoy, folks.

CTZ Writers Competition

Reblogged from Evangeline Warren:

CTZ Writers Competition.

In case any of you are looking for a good way to get back into the groove of things, I have found a wonderful competition. Here's a quick description from their website:

We at Cafe Three Zero are looking for original, previously unpublished short stories from aspiring writers to be published in our third e-book ‘

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A perfect reblog for readers also smitten with this writing craft. Read the guidelines carefully, work hard and good luck! The deadline is July 31st of this year.

Jazz Friday at Café Literario

This gallery contains 4 photos.

Last night, I was presented with the opportunity of visiting one of our hottest cultural hot spots, the titular Café Literario (Literary Café in Spanish). Some good friends invited me to a free jazz piano concert, an opportunity I couldn’t … Continue reading →

The 10 best first lines in fiction | Culture | The Observer

Reblogged from A Serendipitous Happenstance:

The 10 best first lines in fiction | Culture | The Observer.

I loved this article and shared it over Twitter. Now is a good a time as any to reblog it. There is nothing quite like an effective hook in writing, particularly today when the attention of readers is so valuable and so hard to obtain.

New Directions?

Reblogged from Michael Rupured:

Starting a blog is easy. Keeping it going is a bit more challenging. The internet is littered with the carcasses of failed and abandoned blogs.

I'm sure most bloggers fantasize about hitting the big league and making lots of money at least once in a while. But the vast majority of active blogs aren't the least bit successful, at least by industry standards.

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A fitting reblog after failing to make my Thursday deadline for the second time straight. LOL Keeping a blog is tough when there's no pay and no immediate reward, but then again all writing is like that.

Haruki Murakami ‘’Norwegian Wood’’

Reblogged from Life is a journey*:

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Haruki Murakami is a Japanese writer and translator. His works of fiction and non-fiction have garnered critical acclaim and numerous awards, including the Franz Kafka Prize and the Jerusalem Prize, among others. He is considered an important figure in postmodern literature. The Guardian praised Murakami as "among the world's greatest living novelists" for his works and achievements.

I never thought that I could just pick this book up and read it.

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I don't think I've ever been interested in reading anything by Haruki Murakami, recommended as he is. There seems to be always something too self-aware in his work, something too wild for the sake of appearing creative. But I might just be interested in checking out this one book. The review certainly caught my attention and changed my mind. What about you?