SCARY SCARY SCARY SCARY SCARY
April 30th, 2008I have stuff and things in Coconut 12 and Thieves Jargon.
Yesterday, I spent a lot of time reading and re-reading the Chekhov story “Mire.” It’s one of the most bizarre and exciting stories I have ever read and I can’t believe it’s not in many Chekhov anthologies. “‘How unusual this is! How strange!’ he thought, utterly amazed, hardly able to believe his senses, and feeling rather sick from the scent of jasmine.” I think I have talked about this story here before, but I feel claustrophobic when I read it and that there is a scary situation. I am thinking about reading Stephen King’s Night Shift so I can learn more about how to make scary situations. I am frightened easily and avoid thrillers, but maybe that is a mistake. Maybe it would be fun to read Stephen King to try to learn how to write a scary story like “Big Bear, California” by Rebecca Curtis.
A brand new stove is being installed in our apartment right this minute.
I am sick and fighting back with Chinese medicine.
Things I’m looking forward to:
Kiki Smith is talking at New School today at 3:15PM. We are going to see ENDGAME tonight at BAM.
TUESDAY, MAY 6th: an FSG Reading featuring RIVKA GALCHEN (with New Yorker music critic Alex Ross) at THE RUSSIAN SAMOVAR 7PM.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 7th: Columbia Journal reading with Diane Williams, Victoria Redel, Thomas Sayers Ellis, and Laura Esther Wolfson at the Bowery Poetry Club 6PM.
May 5th, 2008 at 10:11 pm
Oh man, “Big Bear” is the best. It’s my second favorite after “The Near-Son.”
I just read “Everything is Nice” from the Jane Bowles, and that was pretty scary. I like how the second character tells the narrator what the narrator is all about, and the narrator barely talks at all. I also find it creepy when characters propose situations (”Do you want to go to a wedding?) and then totally forget about them a few pages later.
Also, I’m creeped out when food is supposed to be tasty, but is instead slightly gross. (Like the “dry cakes” with the “ugly colored icing”.) Or the “piece of green candy” in the story of the same title. Damn, that one’s scary too.
July 14th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
It’s funny you mention a Jane Bowles (who by the way is amazing; I love all her short stories, though she only published less than a dozen) story as being scary, since I was going to mention one by her husband Paul.
It’s called “How Many Midnights?” and I think it’s one of the scariest things I’ve ever read, yet it’s nearly impossible to explain why.
There is also a collection by William Gay called “I hate to see that evening sun go down.” Just about every story in there is pretty scary — and good. Especially “The Paperhanger.”