This is the second year I've been invited to deliver the opening remarks for The Big Read, the annual celebration of books and reading sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and engineered locally by the hardworking folks at WriteOutLoud, Veronica Murphy and Walter Ritter. Following is my kickoff speech for their series of events inspired by Ray Bradbury's classic science fiction novel Fahrenheit 451. Read More
One Writer's Ravings:
A Logophile's Blog
for Language Lovers
The Gory, Glorious Words of Edgar Allan Poe
March 6, 2012
I’ve always been a fan of Edgar Allan Poe, that master of mystery and the macabre, so when WriteOutLoud asked me to participate in this year’s Big Read, how could I say “nevermore”? Read More
Charlie's Introduction to TwainFest (San Diego, August 20, 2011)
October 10, 2011
Welcome to TwainFest — WriteOutLoud's annual celebration of Mark Twain's life and words.
Let me begin by saying that it is a wonderful thing, a miraculous and heartwarming thing, in this digitally throttled age of computers and cellphones and iPods and iPads and Kindles and all manner of portable hand-held devices, to address an audience that has gathered for the sole purpose of being read to.
Mark Twain could appreciate that.
Does anyone know where Twain took his future wife, Olivia Langdon, on their first date? Read More
Let me begin by saying that it is a wonderful thing, a miraculous and heartwarming thing, in this digitally throttled age of computers and cellphones and iPods and iPads and Kindles and all manner of portable hand-held devices, to address an audience that has gathered for the sole purpose of being read to.
Mark Twain could appreciate that.
Does anyone know where Twain took his future wife, Olivia Langdon, on their first date? Read More