Even more than last year. I’ve been really at it in the satire field. Meanwhile, some fiction, poetry, and non-fiction continues to appear. I appreciate all the reader support during this time.
Am I A Published Writer At Barnes and Noble?
A couple weeks ago I received some exciting news.
It turns out that an essay I had written in 2021 and published in 2022 was featured in 2023, making my name appear in bookstores everywhere, including the great chain Barnes and Noble.
This felt like a great milestone. I had to celebrate.
So folks, while I have yet to have an actual work of my own appear in the shelves of such a conglomerate book peddler, rest assured, you can find me there, in a way.
If you’re curious, the essay is titled “In Maggie’s Shadow,” and appeared in issue 71 of Potomac Review. Here is a link to a snippet of it.
You can order a copy here.
The essay gained recognition in the 2023 volume Best American Essays. The essay does not appear in the book, but the editors gracefully selected it as “notable.” I’m blushing.
On the Unfolding/Continuing Israel-Palestine Conflict
A couple Sundays ago my 11-year-old told me that he learned about the war happening in Israel and how he wanted to pray for them.
Then he said, “And God will always take Israel’s side, right?” Continue reading
Why I Can’t Stop Thinking About the Roman Empire
It’s true, I think about the Roman empire a lot. There are a few reasons.
I’m a male.
I’m American.
I’m Christian.
But one of these things makes me think about the Roman empire in a very different way than the other two.
What Came Out in August? Publications
This month I have a new short story appearing in Mystery Tribune online:
Click here to read “Cherokee Knives”
And this month’s satires:
It’s Me, First Watch: Stop Referring To Me as the Instagrammer’s Cracker Barrel in Greener Pastures
I, Herman Melville, Ask That You Please Stop Teaching My Bloated Whale Encyclopedia to High Schoolers in Jane Austen’s Wastebasket
Album Names For Your Dad’s Bluegrass Cover Band in Weekly Humorist
New Essay Out! And Other Updates
It’s a new month, and summer has been productive. Here’s an update on the writing that’s been coming out from Caleb Coy Industries—a thing that I just made up.
My latest personal essay out in Change Seven. “Neighbors Now” Take a look!
My first publication in a sci-fi journal, 365 Tomorrows. A flash fiction piece called “A Thousand Tiny Steps” Take a look!
A short article, “What Kurt Vonnegut Taught Me About Writing For a Living” in Writing101
And here are some of the recent satires:
“Help Me: I Am Vehicle Illiterate” in MuddyUm
“I, Male Director of This Film, am Excited to Flesh Out This Female Character, Who is On Screen For Three Minutes” in Greener Pastures
“A Sitcom In Which Putin and Trump Share a Prison Cell, Starring Only Actual Things They’ve Said”
in Doctor Funny
“German Words For Complex Emotions You Didn’t Know About” in Slackjaw
“T.S. Eliot Reviews The Little Mermaid” in MuddyUm
“National “Weed Your Garden Day” Is Now National “Weed Garden” Day” in The Haven
“Diaries of a Dying Jellyfish That Has Just Been Discovered By Two Third Grade Boys”
in MuddyUm
“We’ve Run Out Of Ways To Make a Message Self-Destruct” in MuddyUm
“Other Things To Try In a Small Town: A Tourism Guide” in The Haven
Dave Matthews Band—Walk Around The Moon—Album Review
I was hesitant to listen to the news Dave album, as now they’re missing two original members, one who passed away and another who was dismissed. They must be the only band around that has had 7 consecutive 1 number one debut albums.
But bands change, their style and their lineup. We like bands that adapt and explore new territory. Dave is getting older, and this album really shows a man approaching old age. This is their post-pandemic album, some of the material written or recorded during the war on a virus, which drove us all a little crazy. Continue reading
My First Official Sci-Fi Publication is Here!
Hey readers. If you’ve got 2 minutes to read some flash fiction today, check out my latest publication. While I’ve had a few stories with fantasy or sci-fi elements published in the past, this new story is my first publication in a sci-fi journal.
Read A Thousand Small Steps in 365 Tomorrows here!
I Asked an AI To Be as Funny as Me
With all the talk about AI language models, here’s one thing we know so far.
AI has a problem being funny.
After writing several humor articles myself, I decided to see if an AI engine could do it too.
I had this idea for a funny article. What if Breaking Bad had been written by country singer Vince Gill instead of TV writer Vince Gillian? Then I thought, it’s almost too simple of an idea. What if I got an AI to try it out?
So I logged into ChatGBT and gave it the following prompt:
You are singer Vince Gill. Write a song about the show Breaking Bad.
This Month’s Publications
Hey readers!
Looks like it’s all satire for the month of May.
Here’s a rundown of the stuff you can read: Continue reading
