Alice on Sunday | Alice Elliott Dark | Substack

Thank you, Lynn Steger Strong, for a great conversation

Apr 28

Girls Talk #3 Yakking With Lynn

The half way point, Mimi Rose, Iowa, the guys

Apr 14

SEX, BETRAYAL, POV

I just want to talk Girls with Lynn Steger Strong

Apr 7

What's Girls To You?

A conversation with Lynn Steger Strong

Mar 31

The Girls Are Got In

In How Fiction Works, James Wood, writing about character, quotes Ford Maddox Ford’s on Joseph Conrad’s notion of “getting a character in.” “Ford and…

Mar 24

Reading for the Plot

When I shifted from writing poetry to writing stories, I thought—a rookie thought—that I’d just be able to do it. It was around 1980 and minimalism was…

Mar 3

A clean page draft—why?

Feb 18

"I won't panic."

Looking at a great scene of character transformation

Feb 4

It's 3 a.m. Do You Know Where Your Plot Is?

I don’t know how many of you remember the PSA from which I borrowed for the title of this post. Here it is: It was ominous and creepy and unforgettable…

Jan 14

All We Are Saying

I can’t remember when I first learned about peace. The word seems always to have been there, in prayers and benedictions (Peace Be With you, Pax…

Dec 31, 2023

I Saw Him With My Own Sad Eyes

I must have been older than seven, because it happened after we’d moved to my grandparents’ house. Probably eight. The girls at school told me that if…

Dec 24, 2023

To Whom This May Concern

The semester is over except for the grading and the letters of recommendation—LORS. These kept me from applying to residencies or fellowships for…

Dec 17, 2023

In his wonderment

I was teaching Goodbye, Columbus yet again, and this time around was overcome by p 100, the 2/3 point of the text. I can’t stop thinking about it. Neil…

Nov 26, 2023

Contemplative First Drafts

My tree has succumbed to yellow, at least on the furthermost leaves. Nearby maples have oranged in a day. Who else misses burning leaves in the yard? Is…

Nov 5, 2023

Alice on Sunday

Alice on Sunday

Dispatches about literature and life.

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