Cyberflanerie: Ken Albala, Ellen Prentiss Campbell, Susan Merrell, Zack Rogow, San Miguel Writers Conference, Oxt, Leslie Wells, Burning Man's Economist

Ken Albala's Food Rant Blog.My amiga the fabulous writer Ellen Prentiss Campbell interviews Susan Scarf Merrell about her new novel and the influence of Shirley Jackson.Zack Rogow on Literary Fame(So true…)An outstanding example of a coverdesigned for KindleThe new bilingual...

Read More

Cyberflanerie: Supergeil Starring Friedrich Lichtienstein

...

Read More

Dr. Konrad Ratz (December 20, 1931 - May 22, 2014)

I was very saddened to learn of the death of my friend, Dr. Konrad Ratz, translator, researcher, and writer whose contributions to our understanding of Maximilian von Habsburg and Mexico's Second Empire I admire more than I can say. Among his many works, all of them major contributions:Tras...

Read More

Catherine L. Albanese's A Republic of Mind and Spirit: A Cultural History of American Metaphysical Religion

FRANCISCO I. MADEROAuthor of Spiritist ManualLeader of Mexico's 1910 RevolutionPresident of Mexico, 1911-1913A couple of months ago, for Tony Payan's class on Mexican Politics and Culture at Rice University, I gave a talk-- my first for this newly expanded work--- on Metaphysical...

Read More

A New Mexican Book on the Regulation of (Yep) Pot

***UPDATE July 29, 2014: NYT on the "New Jim Crow" (Not really news, but well-stated)***This blog steers far clear of politics, usually. Today I make an exception.It seems to me that it doesn't take a coconutful of brain cells to recognize that (1) what one disapproves...

Read More

Cyberflanerie: Writerly Edition (Aimee Bender, Claire Cook, Djerassi, Historical Novelists Society, Guadalupe Loaeza, Leslie Pietrzyk & More)

Pictured left, my handsome new writing assistant, Uli Quetzalpugtl. Right now he is specializing in mind-clearing walks. He will be four months old on the 25th. Yes, he is a pug. Yes, those are his real eyebrows. Aimee Bender on What Writers Can Learn from Good Night Moon(Hat...

Read More

Brave Blood: The Bullfight in Mexico by Richard Finks Whitaker

Yeah, I'm one of those animal rights people but anyway, bullfighting is… bullfighting. And for anyone who wants to know anything about it, or write about it, Richard Finks Whitaker's Brave Blood: The Bullfight in Mexico, is required reading and an essential reference work. The...

Read More

Kindle Lending or, Lo, The Inevitable Has Arrived

This just arrived in the inbox:Hello, Today we are excited to introduce Kindle Unlimited-–a new subscription service for readers in the U.S. and a new revenue opportunity for authors enrolled in KDP Select. Customers will be able to read as many books as they want from a library of over 600,000 titles while subscribed to Kindle Unlimited. All...

Read More

River of Ink: Literature, History, Art by Thomas Christensen

I've been a long-time admirer of Tom Christensen, and so I was delighted to receive a review copy of his latest, River of Ink, a collection of essays forthcoming from Counterpoint. Herewith my blurb:Truffle-rich, cumin-exotic, from Mutanabi Street to Céline's ballets, Gutenberg and the Koreans, a winged sphinx and an iron man and Nur Jahan--  oh,...

Read More

Cyberflanerie: Mexico, Dinofuzz, Head Like an Orange, Keffir, Farnam Street & etc

The always excellent food blog Mexico Cooks! offers a mezcal primer.My amiga, intrepid traveler Judith Leaver on Finishing Spanish School (Or Did It Finish Me?)Travel writer Sean Paul Kelley on José María Sánchez y Tapia.Interesting GIFs on Head Like an Orange.How to Travel with Keffir and Be a Pioneer.Hooray for Dinofuzz! (I am still recovering...

Read More

My July 2014 Newsletter Just Went Out

Whew, it only took me a year and half. But finally I'm officially announcing the new book, a batch of podcasts, another batch of book reviews, and a big event next week at Mexico City's Palacio Nacional (though that's for an older book, the novel The Last Prince of the...

Read More

Cyberflanerie: Cracking Open the Door to Creativity (A Few Resources)

Giant Golden Buddha & 364 More Free 5 Minute Writing ExercisesDebra Eckerling's new Kindle, Purple Pencil Adventures: Writing Prompts for Kids of All AgesMore for kids (of any age): Karen Benke's Rip the Page!> Her guest-blog for Madam Mayo, 5 Writers on What It Takes to be a Creative Writer> Her latest book, Leap Write In!My ever-longer list...

Read More

Francisco I. Madero: A Cien Años de su Muerte (On the 100th Anniversary of His Death)

This handsome choc-full-o-photos tome might seem just the thing for the coffee table, yet it is filled with a  magnificent collection of original scholarly work. Published late last year by Mexico's Ministry of Finance (Secretary de Hacienda y Crédito Público), the edition...

Read More

30 Deadly-Effective Ways to Free Up Bits, Drips & Gimungously Vast Swaths of Time for Writing

Where do you find the time? (Was it hiding in the crawlspace?) It’s not so much finding time as it is prying your physical presence and attention away, either permanently or for a spell, from someone, something, someplace less valuable to you—if you really do want to write,...

Read More