Contranyms—When the Same Word Has Opposite Meanings NYMS! Nym is a suffix that stands for “word,” and it’s usually used for word pairs. We all
“To Conceal Is to Reveal.” The Paradox of Masquerades Hello, everyone! I did my master’s thesis on Edgar Allan Poe’s stories, and during the pandemic,
Cats and Coincidences and Dappled Things By Alicia Rasley Coincidence is trivial, tricky, falsely weird. But… it’s also magical. As fiction writers, we’re told to
The Family Motto Let’s try a thought experiment: Family motto! Don’t we all have a family motto? By this I mean the secret or open
From last week: Can’t Start a Fire without a Spark… So what if you have a flicker of interest in some new hobby or interest?
Can’t Start a Fire without a Spark…. Creating that Spark when You Think You’re Burnt Out You can decide what to love. You can spark
The Unique New Harmony In the beginning of the pandemic, my husband Jeff and I wanted to keep up our travelling hobby, but do it
After compiling that memory book for my parents, I realized that there’s something special about the physical representation of memory. I used to scorn my
Hi, everyone! This week I want to discuss what I call “Life Hooks”—the recording of memories that lets us yoke our life experiences together. I’ve
Many story songs end with an ironic twist or a moment of tragedy or despair. But one of my favorite story songs, from 1969 ends
(First post about “Taxi” here.) More about the story song “Taxi” by Harry Chapin. Let’s look at those other story elements—structure, motif, and theme. Structure
Flying in My Taxi In the previous posts, we’ve seen how different ways a 3- or 4-minute song can tell an entire story from beginning
Back to “Ode to Billie Joe” Part 2 So— Is this song a real (real, not true) story? That is, does it have a real
