Texas State University in San Marcos owns an interesting item, for an institution of higher learning, that is. It is an old, maple canoe paddle and is highly valued there. "The paddle, part of the university's Wittliff Collections of papers and artifacts from Southwestern literature, was used by John Graves on a trip down the … Continue reading Literary Texas: John Graves
Tag: country life
Literary Texas: Larry McMurtry
Archer City's "Last Picture Show." I have a confession to make as I write this piece. I have read only one book by Larry McMurtry and that a nonfiction book titled Paradise. I cannot now find the book (a common problem for me) nor can I remember it well. I did, however, see the movie … Continue reading Literary Texas: Larry McMurtry
Literary Texas: Fred Gipson, Part 2
Fred Gipson (1908-1973) published his most famous work Old Yeller in 1956. A prolific author of short stories, fiction and non-fiction books, articles, and movie scripts, he was born in the ruggedly beautiful Texas Hill Country. It was a place he loved and could never leave for long. When, after its publication in 1956, Walt … Continue reading Literary Texas: Fred Gipson, Part 2
Of Writers, Shakers, & Black Barns
Barn at Pleasant Hill, Kentucky. Tonight I am resting comfortably in Chillicothe, Ohio. No, I am not ill, only a bit tired. It has been a busy and wonderful last several days that began with the Ozarks Creative Writers Conference in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. There I listened to two exciting keynote speakers, attended workshops, and … Continue reading Of Writers, Shakers, & Black Barns
Texas Romantic
William Wordsworth wrote his famous "I Wondered Lonely as a Cloud" in 1804 after he and his sister Dorothy took a long stroll in the English Lake District of Cumbria where they lived, and where I plan soon to revisit. In anticipation of our rapidly approaching return to England, I present Wordsworth's famous poem, as … Continue reading Texas Romantic
Having No Public
"Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self. Cyril Connolly, English Literary Critic (1903--1974) I do not write a great deal of poetry, but there are times when poetry, or my feeble attempt to write it, soothes my “savage soul.” And that is the … Continue reading Having No Public
Story Mill Ranch 