D. A. Hosek

Tag: tibor fischer

  • “Q & A”: The Story Behind the Story

    The genesis of “Q & A” was a passing mention in Dava Sobel’s book Galileo’s Daughter, where, when she was discussing the trial of Galileo by the Inquisition, she mentions the surreal effect of the transcript in which all the questions are written in the third person but the answers given are in the first person.…

  • “An Outsider”: The Story Behind the Story

    This is another story which has been kicking around for a while before it finally was published, Back in the ‘90s, I submitted this to Story, received a hand-written rejection letter and didn’t realize that was a sign I was onto something and didn’t do anything more with the piece for years. This story has…

  • Residency day 8

    We’re just about done with the residency. We started with the genre workshop with Tibor Fischer and Corinna Vallianatos talking about beginnings of works. We workshopped a new piece that I wrote this week and despite it being relatively rough in my opinion was well-received by everyone else. I went for a walk after lunch…

  • Residency day 1

    And I’m back. Today I inaugurated a new tradition for the first day of the residency. Unlike past residencies, I managed to make it to the meet and greet not only on time, but a bit early. There was the usual mix of greeting the old and familiar and meeting the new and the strange.…

  • Beautiful sentences

    They should teach you the important things at school; the Battle of Hastings, that’s not useful, or not the way it’s taught. If they pointed out that life was all about getting your arse kicked by more successful, better-dressed people, that might be a help. Tibor Fischer, The Collector Collector.

  • Beautiful sentences

    Teacher: not a good sign. Few people go into this profession because they want to. They’re failed somethings—bank robbers, conductors, pilots, people who never found the way out of the educational system. A teacher of English to foreign students; even worse. Someone whose only employable trait is having been born in a country where the…

  • Beautiful sentences

    The mind needs rules. Rules are the true rulers. Tibor Fischer, The Collector Collector.

  • Residency day 9

    Courtesy of MFA scheduling and my own travel plans I had a short last day of the residency. The afternoon workshop was optional for all but first term students, I’d already taken care of my contract consultation and flying out Friday night meant that I would miss the closing reception. The morning workshop was Amy…

  • Residency day 8

    Our day began with Jason Ockert teaching about writing the Short Short Story. Notably, I thought I got something actually usable out of a writing prompt. Then morning workshop. In the afternoon, we had synthesis. A diagram that we drew to draw connections between seminars and common reading was well-received by the synthesis group. I…