Writeful

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Wednesday, July 30, 2008

F. Scott Fitzgerald's Legacy Lives in Honored Authors

The newest recipient of the F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Award is Elmore “Dutch” Leonard, the prolific author of 42 novels and countless short stories, many of them household names: 3:10 to Yuma, Get Shorty, Rum Punch, The Big Bounce, and 52 Pickup.

Leonard joins a list of impressive and diverse honorees. Given each year at the F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Conference in Rockville Maryland, the coveted award has been granted to thirteen world-renowned authors.

One such author is the late Norman Mailer. Mailer, known best for The Naked and the Dead but also for his sometimes controversial writing and views, accepted the award at the annual F. Scott Fitzgerald Conference in 2000.

John Updike received the honor in 2002. One of the most well-known writers living today, Updike has written 22 novels and more than a dozen collections of short fiction—from the Rabbit favorites to his most recent Terrorist.

E.L. Doctorow came to Rockville to receive his Fitzgerald in 1999. That was before his most recent bestseller, The March, but after the fame of Ragtime, hailed by critics as the best novel of the 1990s.

Acclaimed literary novelist Joyce Carol Oates, author of such novels as Them and The Gravedigger’s Daughter, came to the Fitzgerald Conference to receive accept her honor in 1998.

In 2001, long after A Kiss Before Dying, Ernest J. Gaines received his Fitzgerald. And the award does not go to novelists alone. Playwright Edward Albee accepted the award in 2003.

That’s just the beginning of the impressive list of honorees. Others to receive the honor at the F. Scott Fitzgerald Conference in Rockville include William Styron (the first recipient), John Barth, Grace Paley, Pat Conroy, and Jane Smiley.

The most recent recipient, William J. Kennedy, accepted his Fitzgerald at the last conference, on October 13, 2007. After receiving his award, the author of Ironweed spoke of his own writing experiences, his fondness for F. Scott Fitzgerald, and even read passages from his new, still-unpublished novel.

Learn more about Dutch Leonard and his acceptance of the F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Award by reading the recent profile in The Washington Post.

www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/26/AR2008052602219.html


Visit Dutch Leonard at his website.

www.elmoreleonard.com/

And be sure to make plans to see Elmore “Dutch” Leonard in person at the next F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Conference on October 25, 2008. Stay tuned to the conference website for details as they come.

www.montgomerycollege.edu/potomacreview/fscott/

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Bathsheba Monk Explains Everything

Here at Writeful, I strive to provide readers with a quick fix of literature at least once each week. Whether it’s advice from an experienced author, news about an upcoming literary event, a report on a conference or reading, thoughts about a writing process, or sharing a recently published work, you can count on Writeful to give you your lit bit fix.

But sometimes, you may want another writer’s perspective – someone who can explain everything simply.

Just for fun, check out Bathsheba Monk's new blog, Bathsheba Monk Explains Everything. Bathsheba has discovered the instant gratification of blogging while she finishes up her next book, a novel, Nude Walker which will be published by Farrar, Straus, and Giroux in 2010. Nude Walker is a follow up to her popular book Now You See It … Stories from Cokesville, PA.

Visit Bathsheba’s blog at the link below.

www.bathshebamonk.blogspot.com

Wednesday, July 09, 2008

Looking to Look Through a Looking Glass?

If you’re looking to look through a looking glass with a slightly different perspective, have we got a show for you.

Local theatre artist Scott Davis's original adaptation of Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass premiers at the Capital Fringe Festival on Thursday July 10 at 6 p.m., with subsequent performances on Sunday July 13 at 2 p.m., Wednesday July 16 at 8 p.m., and Sunday July 20 at 8 p.m.. A montage of drama, movement and puppetry set to Daniel Davis' musical score, Through the Looking Glass epitomizes the mantra of the festival: risk-taking, independent performing arts. Venue is The Shop, 607 New York Avenue NW, in DC.

For more, look through the online glass at www.capfringe.org.

Wednesday, July 02, 2008

The Flightless Goose on The Today Show

Last Wednesday, there was a big event on The Today Show – America’s number one morning show. No, we’re not talking about the wedding. The Flightless Goose made an appearance on The Today Show to announce the new website.

To promote our childrens’ book, The Flightless Goose, my wife Nataliya (the illustrator) and I (the author) went to Rockefeller Plaza during the taping of the show with a handmade poster announcing the publication of The Flightless Goose and launching the brand-new website.

As Matt spoke to the camera inside Studio 1A, “RunGoose” appeared above his head, curving over it like a hat. It appeared for a good 20 or 30 seconds as Matt came on and off screen.

Later during the show, Al Roker gave his animated weather report, part of it in front of the RunGoose sign.

Meredith Vieria saw our RunGoose sign and even asked us for a copy once it goes to print in the fall.

As you may have guessed, the official website for The Flightless Goose is …

www.RunGoose.com

Go to the online pond today! And visit often to be the first to know about the release date, how to get advance copies, and events surrounding The Flightless Goose.

www.RunGoose.com