…I have a new story, "Acts of Love" up at This-A Literary Zine and also here under "Words In Print."

…My son and I saw "Somewhere" today, the film by Sophia Coppola (daughter of Francis) who also directed the critically acclaimed, "Lost in Translation." "Somewhere" was a beautifully shot movie, well acted, but it was a fifteen minute film drawn out to 156 minutes. Sophia needs to get some scissors. I believe in "Show don't tell" as much as the next guy, but really? Ten minutes of one shot of a car going around in the same circle? Really?

…On Valentine's Day Youtube will turn 6 years old. Isn't that a weird thought, to think it's only been around such a short time?

…I often express my love of Esquire Magazine here on this blog. There's a fantastic article in the new issue entitled "Is James Frey the Most Important Writer In America?" by Stephen Mache. Here are some excerpts that caught my eye:

"Today is an uplifting, degrading, and all-around confusing time to be a writer in America. Even as creative-writing departments proliferate like bedbugs and each year brings a fresh claimant to the title of Great American Novel, content farms are herding the young and determined literati into anonymous sweat-shops run by all-seeing, unforgiving masters of metrics…"
"…The truth is that anyone who spends $40,000 a year to be taught how to write by writes who cannot make a living by writing, or who imagines that fairness and common sense have anything to do with the publishing industry, could probably use a lesson in how life really works…"
"…But the lessons Frey offers for ambitious writers are essential: Never apologize, never give up, and be entrepeneurial. It also helps to know how to write."