Failure
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The Account (A History of Jacke in 100 Objects #29)
And during those drifting years, when the peaks were low and the valleys were deep, my futility found a particular nadir during my stint on Capitol Hill, where I briefly worked for a United States Senator. I believed in government in those days, and in politicians, and in myself and other young people, and—well, you’ve Continue reading
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Authors I Love: Penelope Fitzgerald
I’ve written before about the great Penelope Fitzgerald, an author who I think gets woefully overlooked these days. Which is too bad: I love her beautiful, understated style, her deadpan sense of humor, and sneaky-great themes. You should give her books a try if you haven’t already. But really, why do I like her so much? There are Continue reading
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Confession Time! What’s The Worst Thing You’ve Ever Done?
Readers! I’m putting together the next episode of The Jacke Wilson Show and I could use your help thinking through some issues. Let me know (email or comments) your answers to the following: What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done? How often do you think about it? Why was it the worst? Why do you think about Continue reading
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Back to School Day 4 – Friday Night Fail
Our back to school week concludes with a special Friday evening post. A testament to those nights behind the school, under the lights, on a hundred-yard stretch of grass carved out of the cornfields. And the pluck and fight of a group of boys who just cannot win. And their coaches, who cannot be the heroes. Continue reading
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The Failure of the Unpublished Author: Dead or Dying?
We’re fans of failure on this blog (as we are in life). And of course, The Race: A Novella has a failed lawyer as one of its pole stars. Now Tim Parks brings things full circle with a look at failed writers, which of course we’re HUGE fans of as well, when we’re not self-hating them. (Oh boy Continue reading
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Penelope Fitzgerald and Failure (and Free Fiction!)
Still thinking about Penelope Fitzgerald and being drawn to failure. And it made me think of this passage in The Race: A Novella (available now at Amazon.com!), in which the narrator first meets the Governor’s wife: “Who’s he?” Tina said to the Governor in the foyer. “My biographer!” I explained that it was actually an autobiography – Continue reading
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