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September 07, 2015A Piece of Fiction Is a Piece of Consciousness– a Conversation with Dr. Keith Oately
This summer, I pestered Dr. Keith Oately. He’s a Professor of Cognitive Science at the University of Toronto, and the author of three novels and many works of non-fiction. He’s specialized in, among ...
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January 06, 2022"Ubuntu Has Gone From a Reminder to an Urgency" Chidiogo Akunyili-Parr on Inhabiting Her Revolutionary Mother's Voice & Philosophy
Dr. Dora Akunyili was a Nigerian pharmacologist who spent her life crusading against a scourge of counterfeit drugs in her country—drugs that were responsible for the deaths of millions, including Akunyili's ...
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April 13, 2022Don LePan on Exploring the Thin Divide Between Human & Non-Human in His Thought Provoking New Novel
The line between humans and other primates can seem, from an evolutionary standpoint, paper thin. Don LePan, in his new novel Lucy and Bonbon (Guernica Editions), goes beyond simply looking at genetic ...
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May 12, 2021Now More Than Ever: Jamie Swift and Elaine Power Make the Case for a Universal Basic Income
A universal basic income isn't a new idea, and there are mountains of evidence to support its efficacy, including studies showing that individuals receiving basic incomes are able to contribute more to ...
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November 24, 2015On Writing Violence - An Addendum
I’ve been receiving a lot of positive feedback and some questions about one of my first posts for Open Book, “On Writing Violence.” One reader, Susan, asked me in the comments about how this all ...
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February 22, 2016
Read Around The World: Part Two of The Extravagant JT Reading Program That Will Never Be Started or Finished
In my last post, I discussed why I think we all (or at least me in particular) live, read, and write: to develop mutual understanding with other people. I’m someone who has often felt alienated, and ...
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November 13, 2015On Navigating the Literary Landscape - Part 1
Over the past few years, in order to buy peanut butter and bread and pay rent, I’ve taken on a number of manuscript assessments for various readers. I was first put on to them by my friend Michelle ...
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February 24, 2014
Multimedium Publishing and the Future of the Literary Press (Part 1)
It's 5:30 AM and I haven't been able to sleep, so I've decided to begin posting my final series of the month. Personally, I blame my buddy Andrew -- a DJ and record producer based in Germany. Due to time ...
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September 23, 2016For All the Men...A Playlist
Hi Open Book Readers,Music has always been a huge part of my writing process.It helps me tremendously when it comes to entering the mind of a character, or an experience, and staying there for as long ...
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September 01, 2020When Your Father is Your Biggest Fan
I don’t believe that any father was more proud of having a son for a writer than my own dad. Whenever I met somebody who knew him—it might be a waiter in a restaurant—the person would say, “Oh, ...