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Pleasures

Arts & Humanities, Books & Reading, Current Affairs, Film & Movies, Pleasures, Podcasts

Stephen King Revealed His Approach To Writing A Mystery Novel, And It’s Way More Alfred Hitchcock Than It Is Agatha Christie

He’s not interested in the “whodunit?” of it all.

By Ryan LaBee, September 10, 2023

Video: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/previews/lq5UdPhW

From media collection…

Few names are as iconic as Stephen King when it comes to the written word. Known for his spine-tingling tales of horror and suspense, which have been adapted into countless horror movies, King has enthralled readers for decades with his unique brand of storytelling.

But in a recent interview, the master of the macabre revealed a surprising twist in his approach to writing mystery novels, and it takes a deliberate page (pun intended) straight out of Alfred Hitchcock’s playbook of suspense as opposed to Agatha Christie’s guide.

The renowned author of Salem’s Lot is currently promoting his latest novel, Holly, which reintroduces his beloved character from Mr. Mercedes. It’s a gripping story about a mass murderer plowing a Mercedes-Benz through a crowd at a job fair. During an interview on The Book Review Podcast, the horror author shared his approach to crafting mysteries, emphasizing his preference for the suspenseful style of Alfred Hitchcock over the intricate whodunits often associated with Agatha Christie.

Source: https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/stephen-king-revealed-approach-to-writing-mystery-novel-way-more-alfred-hitchcock-than-agatha-christie

Books & Reading, Current Affairs, Food & Drink, Libraries, Love & Relationships, Memories & History, Music, Pleasures

Remembering Jimmy Buffett (1946 – 2023) | Library of Congress Blog

Posted by: Cary O’Dell, September 6, 2023

Jimmy Buffett

Like the rest of the world, the Library of Congress was very saddened to hear of the passing of Jimmy Buffett this past weekend. His passing was, to us, all the more poignant as Mr. Buffett’s iconic recording, “Margaritaville,” was added to the Library’s National Recording Registry just earlier this year.

From article…

At the time, Mr. Buffett expressed his great pleasure at having his song selected, providing to us not only a wonderful interview on the song and his career but also generously sharing his memories of its making.

At the time of its induction, esteemed music writer (and Buffett fan) Scott Atwell wrote for the Library the following essay. We share it below.

Editor’s Note: Read more, see link below for original item…

Source: https://blogs.loc.gov/now-see-hear/2023/09/remembering-jimmy-buffett-1946-2023/?loclr=eanshb

Arts & Humanities, Books & Reading, Current Affairs, Libraries, Love & Relationships, Pleasures, Politics, Science & Health

Stephen King Knows Anti-Vaxxers Are Going to Hate His Latest Book: ‘Knock Yourself Out’ | Rolling Stone

The horror writer talks Holly and why he chose not to erase Covid from the detective’s world

By Brenna Ehrlich, September 5, 2023

Author Stephen King wrote his latest book during the pandemic — and Patrick Semansky/AP

THIS POST CONTAINS spoilers for Stephen King’s new book Holly, which comes out today.

Stephen King is readying himself for a flood of hate when his next book, Holly, drops on Sept. 5. “I think that a lot of people are not going to like it,” he says. “I think that a lot of people — particularly people on the other side of the Covid issue and the Trump issue — are going to give it one-star reviews on Amazon.

But all I can say to those people is, ‘Knock yourself out.’”

While inviting bad reviews before publication may seem like an odd sentiment from one of the most prolific, acclaimed horror writers of all time, well… a lot of things are topsy-turvy these days.

And unlike many writers who have released books over these past few years, King — as is his custom — doesn’t shy away from that discomfort in Holly, which follows the PI he introduced in the Mr. Mercedes series, as she attempts to solve a string of disappearances during the height of Covid.

Source: https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/stephen-king-interview-holly-anti-vaxxers-1234816605/

Arts & Humanities, Books & Reading, Current Affairs, Libraries, Memories & History, Pleasures, Politics, Science & Health

Conservative book ban push fuels library exodus from national association that stands up for books

By MEAD GRUVER, Updated 4:35 AM PDT, September 5, 2023

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — After parents in a rural and staunchly conservative Wyoming County joined nationwide pressure on librarians to pull books they considered harmful to youngsters, the local library board obliged with new policies making such books a higher priority for removal — and keeping out of collections.

But that’s not all the library board has done.

Campbell County also withdrew from the American Library Association, in what’s become a movement against the professional organization that has fought against book bans.

Source: https://apnews.com/article/library-book-ban-association-withdraw-7f5743a9e464433a745697f9111d7f6b

Books & Reading, Current Affairs, Food & Drink, Memories & History, Pleasures, Religion & Spirit, Science & Health

Here’s what lucid dreamers might tell us about our sleeping minds | Science News

Dreams are one of the most universal yet elusive human experiences

By Maria Temming, August 27, 2023 at 9:00 am

From article…

When Christopher Mazurek realizes he’s dreaming, it’s always the small stuff that tips him off.

The first time it happened, Mazurek was a freshman at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill. In the dream, he found himself in a campus dining hall. It was winter, but Mazurek wasn’t wearing his favorite coat.“I realized that, OK, if I don’t have the coat, I must be dreaming,” Mazurek says. That epiphany rocked the dream like an earthquake. “Gravity shifted, and I was flung down a hallway that seemed to go on for miles,” he says. “My left arm disappeared, and then I woke up.”

Most people rarely if ever realize that they’re dreaming while it’s happening, what’s known as lucid dreaming. But some enthusiasts have cultivated techniques to become self-aware in their sleep and even wrest some control over their dream selves and settings. Mazurek, 24, says that he’s gotten better at molding his lucid dreams since that first whirlwind experience, sometimes taking them as opportunities to try flying or say hi to deceased family members.

Other lucid dreamers have used their personal virtual realities to plumb their subconscious minds for insights or feast on junk food without real-world consequences. But now, scientists have a new job for lucid dreamers: to explore their dreamscapes and report out in real time.

Source: Here’s what lucid dreamers might tell us about our sleeping minds
Current Affairs, Food & Drink, Games, Music, Pleasures, Travel

Retirement the Margaritaville Way | The New Yorker

At the active-living community for Jimmy Buffett enthusiasts, it’s five o’clock everywhere. Letter from Daytona Beach…

By Nick Paumgarten, March 21, 2022

A beach scene with relaxed elders.
“We like the idea of being happy,” the head of the Jimmy Buffett-branded communities said of the residents’ attitude.Illustration by Nada Hayek

The first person I met at the Bar & Chill was a bald guy in a black T-shirt, black drawstring shorts, and flip-flops, with a Harley-Davidson tattoo on his right arm and a claddagh ring on his left hand. He was drinking and laughing with a few friends. He gestured to the empty stool next to him and said, “We don’t bite.”

I offered an expression of if-you-insist, and he said, “Bring it.” His tone was cheerful, as you might expect at the Bar & Chill, the principal drinking-and-dining establishment that looks out on the town center of Latitude Margaritaville, an active-living community for Jimmy Buffett enthusiasts, aged “55 and better,” in Daytona Beach, Florida.

The Bar & Chill was open to the evening. A gentle breeze fanned the lanai. On a flat-screen, the Providence Friars led the Vermont Catamounts by a few buckets. A bartender brought a Perfect Margarita in a plastic cup.

The bald man, drinking a vodka soda, said his name was Phil. Phil Murphy, from Arlington, Massachusetts, aged sixty-four. Formerly a research director at Forrester, retired since 2015. “I was in the air for twenty years,” he said. He looked and sounded less like my idea of a Parrothead, as Jimmy Buffett’s diehard fans are called, than like Mike Ehrmantraut, the melancholic fixer in “Breaking Bad.”

Standing off his left shoulder, his wife, Betty, red hair cut short, added a dash of urbanity, a spritz of Allison Janney. Phil and Betty had organized an emergency fund for the restaurant’s staff during its Covid shutdown. One of their friends declared them “the king and queen of the Bar & Chill.”

Source: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/03/28/retirement-the-margaritaville-way/