Celebrate Books Capitol Style

The National Book Festival in Washington DC is early this year! This weekend, join lit lovers from across the nation on the National Mall for the 2014 Library of Congress National Book Festival. The celebration takes place on this Friday, August 29.

Featured authors and poets include E.L. Doctorow, Claire Messud, Alice McDermott, Lisa See, Billy Collins, and Baltimore’s own Elisabeth Dahl, a previous featured author at the Lit and Art Reading Series.  

This year there are even special evening events on movie adaptations, poetry, graphic novels, and Mexican literary legends.

Learn more and get the full schedule at the Library of Congress website.

http://www.loc.gov/bookfest

Let's Check Out Czech Republic

My travel story, “The Pleasures of Prague (And Proximity),” was published in a recent issue of World Wide Travel.

It’s been a few years since the visit, but it’s as vivid today as it was when we were roaming the stone streets of the ancient city. The City of a Thousand Spires was a wonderful place to spend a week. Learn all about what we did there—and see pictures—at World Wide Travel.

In addition to the many sights of Prague, we ventured off to nearby Kunta Hora, Karlstein, Chodova Plana, and Plzen.

It’s a long travelogue, so you may want to pack an overnight bag for “The Pleasures of Prague (And Proximity).”  Then, join me in exploring this eastern European treasure at World Wide Travel.

http://www.worldwildtravel.com/travel-stories/22-czechstories/378-pleasures-of-prague-and-proximity

 

Are You Big Enough?

Are you big enough for your own website?

That’s a question a lot of authors ask themselves, and one that I considered. It’s the subject of my latest feature article at Writers Weekly, the world’s highest-circulation freelance writers subscription ezine.

I used to keep individual websites for each book. Then, my agent convinced me that if you have published works to share, you’re big enough for your own author’s website.

So now, I keep it all under one roof at www.EricDGoodman.com.

Where is your online presence?

Read my article, “You’re Big Enough For Your Own Website,” at Writers Weekly.

http://writersweekly.com/this_weeks_article/008647_07092014.html

My Daughter Helps Save Trees

Nicole, my teenage daughter, has never expressed an enthusiastic interest in writing. But she was just published in The Baltimore Sun twice this week. Her letter to the editor regarding the Dumbarton trees in Rodger’s Forge was published in the July 30 edition and again on Saturday, August 2 in the “Maryland Voices: Your Turn” section.

In “Spare the Dumbarton Trees,” Nicole says that the county’s plans to expand Dumbarton Middle School at the expense of century-old trees must be scrapped.

And her letter just may have made a difference! Not only did she get two personal letters from local politicians, the Saturday edition’s Editor’s Note said that some executives have withdrawn support for parts of the plan that involve destroying the trees.

Read Nicole’s letter at the following link.

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2014-07-30/news/bs-ed-dumbarton-letter-20140730_1_trees-dumbarton-middle-school-baltimore-county-public-schools

And, a reply to her letter from another reader, “When nature is in your schoolyard,” was published in the Sun on August 3. You can read the letter here.

http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2014-08-03/news/bs-ed-dumbarton-trees-letter-20140803_1_schoolyard-bird-sanctuary-trees

 

The Good and Bad of Family Reunions

Recently, I went to a family reunion of sorts in celebration of my surviving grandmother’s 90th birthday. In the room were dozens of cousins, uncles, and family members, some of which I hadn’t seen in fifteen years. Five generations stood together in that room—a first in our family history. And best of all, we were not here for the more common sort of forced family reunion. We were here to celebrate 90 years of life well lived.

The other sort of reunion I mention reminds me of her husband’s funeral in 1988. I remember when my grandfather passed away, and the feeling that it was a shame we didn’t get together more often under happier circumstances.

The same tone was present last year at my other grandmother’s funeral. So it is refreshing to be celebrating life at a family reunion.

Not long ago, an abridged version of my short story, “Reunion,” was published in Syndic Literary Journal. Although it was written before my maternal grandmother’s death and paternal grandmother’s birthday, it hits on the theme of the unfortunate sort of family reunions and why it sometimes seems to be the most common kind.

In addition to “Reunion,” you’ll find a nice collection of fiction and poetry you can read or listen to in the latest issue. All available to read in digital ink, or to listen to in audio format.

 

LeRoy Chatfield founded the original Syndic in San Francisco and published it from 1958 to 1960. Fifty years later in 2010, Chatfield revived his Syndic Literary Journal and publishes it online at http://syndicjournal.us.

 

Go directly to “Reunion” at the following link.

http://syndicjournal.us/syndic-no-10/short-story-reunion-by-eric-d-goodman/?submit=view