#conceptual-narrative

[ follow ]
#ben-lerner
Writing
fromArtforum
13 hours ago

Ben Lerner's Transcription and the Fictional Readymade

Ben Lerner's new novel, Transcription, showcases his restless creativity and innovative formal experimentation in fiction.
Writing
fromThe New Yorker
1 day ago

He Wrote a Book About Interviewing. Here's His Interview.

Ben Lerner's 'Transcription' explores memory, language, and technology through the lens of a writer's relationship with his mentor.
Books
fromDefector
3 days ago

The Gentle Parenting Of Ben Lerner's 'Transcription' | Defector

Ben Lerner's novels explore themes of youth, sexuality, and the complexities of adulthood through autofictional narratives.
Relationships
fromInsideHook
1 day ago

What Men Can Learn From 17 Unforgettable On-Screen Proposals

Real-life proposals differ from romantic comedies, but lessons from memorable on-screen moments can guide men in crafting meaningful proposals.
fromThe New Yorker
22 hours ago

In Film, Sometimes the Greatest Drama Is Offscreen

"Cinematic Immunity" offers a workers'-eye view of Hollywood on the Hudson, revealing the intricate dynamics of filmmaking in New York City from 1954 to 9/11.
Independent films
Books
fromPsychology Today
1 day ago

Coping With the Up-and-Down Arc of a Prolific Writer's Life

Merrill Joan Gerber's latest book reflects her writing journey from the 1960s to the present, showcasing selected stories from her extensive career.
Film
fromVulture
3 days ago

The Twist in The Drama Is Not the Problem

The film features a controversial plot twist involving a character's past plan for a school shooting, sparking significant online speculation and backlash.
Parenting
fromScary Mommy
5 days ago

If You Need ChatGPT To Tell Your Kids A Bedtime Story, You're Cooked

Using AI for bedtime stories may deprive parents and children of meaningful bonding moments.
#imperfect-women
Television
fromThe Atlantic
5 days ago

TV's Failing Cure For Middle-Aged Malaise

Imperfect Women exemplifies the decline of the 'messy-mom thriller' genre despite initial viewership success.
Women in technology
fromDefector
1 week ago

'Imperfect Women' Is The Latest Entry In A Fittingly Flawed Genre | Defector

Imperfect Women critiques societal expectations of women through the lens of flawed characters and their narratives.
Television
fromThe Atlantic
5 days ago

TV's Failing Cure For Middle-Aged Malaise

Imperfect Women exemplifies the decline of the 'messy-mom thriller' genre despite initial viewership success.
Women in technology
fromDefector
1 week ago

'Imperfect Women' Is The Latest Entry In A Fittingly Flawed Genre | Defector

Imperfect Women critiques societal expectations of women through the lens of flawed characters and their narratives.
#art
Writing
fromwww.theguardian.com
1 week ago

Transcription by Ben Lerner review a stunning exploration of technology and storytelling

The novel explores themes of touch, familial inheritance, and the complexities of communication through a narrative involving a final interview with a mentor.
Writing
fromwww.theguardian.com
1 week ago

Transcription by Ben Lerner review a stunning exploration of technology and storytelling

The novel explores themes of touch, familial inheritance, and the complexities of communication through a narrative involving a final interview with a mentor.
fromHarvard Gazette
6 days ago

Writing us back from the brink - Harvard Gazette

"We're talking about political leaders who were moved by an enormous sense of responsibility and fear for the world."
Russo-Ukrainian War
#literature
fromThe Atlantic
3 days ago
Books

Unconventional Novels About Conventional People

Aging revolutionaries and conformists share parallel narratives of disillusionment and the loss of youthful dreams in recent literature.
Books
fromThe Atlantic
3 days ago

Unconventional Novels About Conventional People

Aging revolutionaries and conformists share parallel narratives of disillusionment and the loss of youthful dreams in recent literature.
#romantic-comedy
Film
fromVulture
3 days ago

The Drama Is Too Cowardly to Commit to Its Provocative Premise

The film presents a dark romantic comedy featuring complex characters and a central premise that challenges audience expectations.
Film
fromThe New Yorker
4 days ago

"The Drama" Struggles to Justify Its Combustible Premise

Charlie and Emma navigate their relationship's challenges through humor and the concept of starting over.
fromwww.theguardian.com
1 week ago

Daunting, inspiring, comforting, terrifying: the writers who can make silence as eloquent as words

A vision lay before him: Fleet Street blanketed with snow, silent, empty, pure white, and, at the end of it, the huge and majestic form of Saint Paul's Cathedral. It was a spellbinding moment: the great thoroughfare temporarily devoid of carts and carriages, the cathedral looming blurrily out of the still-falling snowflakes a real-life snow globe.
London
Writing
fromwww.theguardian.com
1 day ago

Life of Pi author Yann Martel: I thought the Iliad was a book for old farts then I started getting ideas'

Yann Martel's new novel, Son of Nobody, reimagines the Trojan War from the perspective of an unknown soldier, blending humor and domesticity with scholarly footnotes.
Books
fromwww.theguardian.com
3 days ago

Enough of this me me me': Blake Morrison on memoir in the age of oversharing

Memoirs have evolved to embrace candor and vulnerability, allowing anyone to share their personal stories of trauma and identity.
#zendaya
Film
fromThe New Yorker
3 days ago

The Drama Surrounding "The Drama"

Fans gathered for the New York premiere of 'The Drama' starring Zendaya and Robert Pattinson, showcasing excitement and anticipation despite the cold weather.
Film
fromVulture
6 days ago

Critics Aren't Sure Whether to Marry The Drama

Zendaya's performance in the controversial film is widely praised, while critics are divided on the film's originality and execution.
Film
fromThe New Yorker
3 days ago

The Drama Surrounding "The Drama"

Fans gathered for the New York premiere of 'The Drama' starring Zendaya and Robert Pattinson, showcasing excitement and anticipation despite the cold weather.
Film
fromVulture
6 days ago

Critics Aren't Sure Whether to Marry The Drama

Zendaya's performance in the controversial film is widely praised, while critics are divided on the film's originality and execution.
Digital life
fromFast Company
2 weeks ago

Is AI killing the human voice in writing?

Predictive language technologies challenge individual expression by influencing how writers generate and complete their thoughts.
fromVulture
1 week ago

Sure, They Will Kill You, But Can They Get On With It Already?

Realm of Satan captures members of the Church of Satan in droll tableaux, engaging in rituals or group sex, but often seen in mundane activities like beekeeping and hanging linens.
Independent films
fromFast Company
3 days ago

A New York Times critic used AI to write a review, but good criticism can't be outsourced

Preston's reliance on A.I. and his use of unattributed work by another writer was deemed a clear violation of the Times's standards, leading to his dismissal.
Writing
#film-vs-literature
Women
fromThe New Yorker
3 weeks ago

The Feminist Visionary Who Lost the Plot

Elizabeth Cady Stanton's experience of discrimination at the 1840 World Anti-Slavery Convention catalyzed her feminist activism, though her sense of intellectual superiority later contributed to bigoted views.
Psychology
fromPsychology Today
3 weeks ago

The Shift That Happens When You Write a Non-Fiction Book

Writing a book transforms tacit knowledge into explicit frameworks, forcing experts to articulate intuitions they've developed through experience into clear, communicable ideas.
fromwww.theguardian.com
3 days ago

Sarah Hall: Everyone wangs on about Anna Karenina I've never been able to finish it'

My earliest independent reading memory is The Story of Ferdinand by Leaf and Lawson. I loved that bull! My favourite book growing up Big books gave me the whirlies so it took a while for them to start landing.
Books
Artificial intelligence
fromThe Atlantic
2 weeks ago

The Human Skill That Eludes AI

Generative AI has paradoxically declined in creative writing quality since GPT-2, despite advancing in technical capabilities, with current models producing formulaic, flawed prose despite access to centuries of literature.
Books
fromThe New Yorker
5 days ago

The Sci-Fi Novelist Who Disappeared for Decades

Cameron Reed's science fiction explores cognitive estrangement, revealing alien worlds that reflect and challenge our own societal norms and moral dilemmas.
Writing
fromPsychology Today
1 week ago

Don't Let AI Write the Story of Your Life

Writing is essential for self-discovery, and AI's influence can strip away personal narratives and authenticity.
Philosophy
fromBig Think
3 weeks ago

The 3 types of reading (and the 2 you'll pick)

Reading exists on a spectrum from scanning to deep engagement, with most digital readers employing surface-level scanning that misses textual depth and nuance.
Books
fromenglish.elpais.com
6 days ago

Frankenstein, Jane Eyre and Snow White with a gender-based perspective: The Madwoman in the Attic' and the beginning of feminist literary criticism

The new edition of 'La loca del desvan' revives feminist literary criticism, highlighting the relevance of women's voices in literature today.
Writing
fromwww.theguardian.com
1 week ago

Permanence by Sophie Mackintosh review high-concept adultery fable

Sophie Mackintosh's novel Permanence explores desire and infidelity through a surreal narrative of a couple trapped in a fantasy world.
Books
fromSlate Magazine
6 days ago

A Major Scandal Rocked the Book World. It's Only the Beginning of What's to Come.

Hachette canceled the publication of Mia Ballard's novel Shy Girl due to accusations of A.I. writing influence.
fromThe Conversation
1 month ago

Today's obsession with authenticity isn't new - being true to yourself has troubled philosophers for centuries

All of us live in an age where we're bombarded by social media and artificial intelligence - when striving to be your authentic self becomes an increasingly difficult task. Yet, even if it has somehow become a common goal, it is unclear how many of us can truly define the "authenticity" that we say we are pursuing.
Philosophy
#fiction
Books
fromPsychology Today
1 week ago

Fiction Is Indispensable to Life's Journey

Fiction is essential for emotional connection, learning, and social cognition, allowing us to escape reality and engage deeply with narratives.
Books
fromPsychology Today
1 week ago

Fiction Is Indispensable to Life's Journey

Fiction is essential for emotional connection, learning, and social cognition, allowing us to escape reality and engage deeply with narratives.
Music
fromwww.npr.org
1 month ago

Why music has become such a big part of the romance novel reading experience

Romance novel readers increasingly use pop music playlists to enhance their reading experiences, creating a community that bridges book fandom and music fandom, exemplified by Charli XCX's Wuthering Heights album.
Books
fromBustle
1 week ago

The 10 Best New Books About Women Breaking The Mold

Successful women often defy expectations, and quieter forms of rebellion deserve recognition alongside visible rule-breakers.
Film
fromenglish.elpais.com
3 weeks ago

Insult or adaptation? Why films still struggle to adapt novels

Film adaptations of literature often transform source material through cinematic techniques, sometimes sacrificing literary depth for visual spectacle and narrative restructuring.
Writing
fromwww.theguardian.com
3 weeks ago

Light and Thread by Han Kang review a tantalising book of reflections

Han Kang's Nobel Prize-winning work explores historical trauma and human fragility through poetic prose that balances outward examination of events like the Gwangju massacre with inward psychological portrayal, leaving interpretive gaps for readers.
Writing
fromBig Think
3 weeks ago

"If it sounds literary, it isn't": The deceptively simple rules behind good writing

Neal Allen and Anne Lamott co-authored Good Writing by combining Allen's 36 writing rules with Lamott's annotations, creating a collaborative guide where Allen explains rules and Lamott provides practical examples and alternative perspectives.
Books
fromThe Atlantic
3 weeks ago

A New Direction for the Trans Novel

A dying woman's opioid-induced memories reveal her deep resentment toward her trans child, exposing how her accumulated life disappointments have narrowed her worldview to rigid gender expectations.
Philosophy
fromBig Think
1 month ago

The 3 colors: What folktales teach about how to grow wise

European folktales use red, black, and white colors to represent three modes of being that map human maturation: red as ambition and life force, black as introspection and shadow, and white as wisdom and transcendence.
fromPsychology Today
1 month ago

Burn Your Romance Novels!

The short answer is yes, unless you take fiction for what it is-fiction. When you long for something you don't have, it can lead to dissatisfaction with what you DO have. Romantic fiction has witty, heartfelt dialogue, buckets of romantic gestures, and protagonists who have a preternatural ability to read each other's minds. It's easy to forget it is not real. This can set up unrealistic expectations both conscious and unconscious.
Relationships
fromMedium
1 month ago

Things that don't matter when you write

To deny one's own experiences is to put a lie into the lips of one's own life. It is no less than a denial of the soul. The concept I stick to - my core principle - is simple: I write in plain English, and only when I actually have something to say.
Writing
US politics
fromPsychology Today
2 months ago

A War of Narratives

Clear, simple narratives improve understanding; truth-focused, superior narratives are necessary to counter disinformation and avoid equating falsehoods with facts.
Books
fromThe Atlantic
3 weeks ago

How Not to Recommend a Book

Reader's advisory—the skill of matching specific books to individual readers' preferences—is essential for successful book club experiences and literary recommendations across libraries, bookstores, and online platforms.
Video games
fromwww.theguardian.com
2 months ago

It's a loving mockery, because it's also who I am': the making of gaming's most pathetic character

Baby Steps uses deliberate frustration and an inept, awkward protagonist to transform player irritation into empathy, identification, and unexpected affection.
fromHer Campus
1 month ago

The Space Between Then and Now: Modern Storytelling

Storytelling is shaped by the way we engage with it. In the past, narratives unfolded slowly, giving the audience time to reflect and analyze at their own pace. Classic games, podcasts, and films provided the audience with time to settle into the narrative, and for emotions to build up gradually. These slower forms of media created room for reflection and engagement, allowing audiences to process narratives thoughtfully.
Digital life
Film
fromwww.theguardian.com
1 month ago

People feel like they're in on the joke': the new wave of pseudo-biopics

Filmmakers increasingly create pseudo-biopics that borrow recognizable elements from real people and events while changing names and details to avoid legal liability and maintain creative freedom.
Books
fromHarvard Gazette
1 month ago

That's a book? - Harvard Gazette

Italo Calvino used tarot card decks as a computational system to generate interconnected narratives, predating modern AI by decades and demonstrating how structured systems can create complex literary works.
fromThe Independent
1 month ago

17 great movies ruined by terrible endings

10 Cloverfield Lane Mary Elizabeth Winstead, John Goodman and John Gallagher Jr are locked in an underground bunker for the majority of this left-field sequel to Cloverfield, with thrilling results. In the film's final throes, Winstead's character exits the bunker, and finds that her captor was telling the truth about an alien invasion above - a twist that completely and ruinously dissipates the hard-earned tension that came before.
Film
Books
fromThe Atlantic
1 month ago

How to Put Sex in a Novel

Contemporary literary fiction increasingly avoids depicting heterosexual intimacy while queer novelists freely explore sex's complexities, as exemplified by Jan Saenz's unconventional novel about selling experimental orgasm-inducing pills.
Books
fromThe Atlantic
1 month ago

When Did Literature Get Less Dirty?

Philip Roth's Zuckerman Unbound functioned as a response to the controversial reception of Portnoy's Complaint, with Roth's protagonist expressing regret over writing sexually explicit material that drew accusations of anti-Semitism and misogyny.
fromwww.theguardian.com
1 month ago

The National Year of Reading celebrates the joy' of books. But let's not forget they can also be deeply troubling, too | Charlotte Higgins

Research has linked reading for pleasure in childhood to a host of positive educational and socioeconomic outcomes. But now 14 years after the Department for Education, in a more innocent time, commissioned a chunky report on the matter—reading books for pleasure is an activity in crisis. The culprit usually blamed for this falling-off is the smartphone and its many short-term distractions; the mere presence of a smartphone in the room, recent research suggests, has an impact on our ability to concentrate.
Books
fromJezebel
1 month ago

Turns Out, When You Write a Novel About Killing a Politician, People Tell You How They'd Do It

When the people who are after me get here, they'll arrest me and put me on trial, or they'll disappear me to some black site. Or they won't bother with any of that and they'll just kill me. All of these seem like plausible outcomes, but in the novel's prologue, the narrator seems much more confident of her success: I am a fucking genius, a gorgeous fucking genius, and the only thing left to do is sit down and write.
Books
Film
fromThe New Yorker
2 months ago

"Dead Man's Wire" Is a Tangle of Loose Threads

A DJ's improvised on-air intervention and a TV reporter's determination highlight media influence and legal, law-enforcement complexities, though broader ambitions remain underdeveloped.
fromSilicon Canals
1 month ago

7 things people do when telling stories that make others tune out immediately without realizing it - Silicon Canals

We've all been there. Someone starts telling a story, and within seconds, your mind starts wandering. Maybe you pull out your phone, suddenly remember an urgent email, or find yourself mentally reorganizing your weekend plans. The storyteller doesn't notice. They keep going, completely unaware that they've lost their audience. After interviewing over 200 people for various articles, I've noticed patterns in how people communicate their experiences. Some captivate you from the first word, while others lose you before they've even gotten to the point.
Writing
Film
fromInsideHook
2 months ago

In Defense of Movie Sex Scenes

Onscreen sex scenes can be narratively essential but are often gratuitous, harmful, or disruptive when objectifying participants, reinforcing stereotypes, or damaging a film's flow.
Writing
fromThe New Yorker
2 months ago

Joseph O'Neill on Why a Story Should Be Like a Poem

People conceal shameful deeds and also quietly perform unrecognized good acts; withholding specifics preserves mystery and influences how others perceive moral character.
Writing
fromThe Atlantic
2 months ago

Taking the Internet Novel Offline

Depicting internet-mediated life requires new narrative strategies that ground online behavior in familiar forms like family drama to keep readers engaged.
Writing
fromThe Atlantic
2 months ago

The Writer's Secret Weapon

Swimming and physical exertion enhance creative thinking by muffling sensory input, boosting neurotransmitters, and enabling deeper, more original idea generation.
fromThe Atlantic
2 months ago

A Biography Without 'The Boring Bits'

Sophia Stewart poses a choice that many biographers struggle with: "what to do with the boring bits."
Books
Books
fromThe New Yorker
2 months ago

How Do You Write About the Inexplicable?

Rational skepticism coexists with a persistent tendency to personify evil and read coincidences as omens.
Books
fromMedium
1 month ago

How to start writing (like it's easy)

A profoundly immersive book can deeply alter readers and provoke self-doubt about one's own creative abilities.
fromThe Atlantic
2 months ago

The Writer's Magic Trick

A writer is a kind of magician. Their job is to create living, three-dimensional people out of the ordinary stuff of ink and paper. This is no easy task, because readers can't literally hear, touch, or observe a character. Everything that defines a human being in real life-the physical space they occupy, or how they smell, feel, and sound-is stripped away, replaced by description. But authors have one major, mystical advantage: They can show you what's happening inside of someone's brain.
Books
Books
fromwww.theguardian.com
1 month ago

Helen of Nowhere by Makenna Goodman review a perfect fairytale for our times

A dislocated professor abandons institutional life and retreats toward neo‑transcendental solitude in nature after losing job, spouse, and social standing.
Books
fromThe New Yorker
2 months ago

The Perils of Killing the Already Dead

Fear of the unquiet dead drove communities to mutilate and restrain corpses across cultures long before and beyond nineteenth-century vampire lore.
#infinite-jest
Books
fromSlate Magazine
2 months ago

Are We Just Recycling Old Stories, Ideas, and Styles?

21st-century culture is abundant and accessible but suffers an innovation deficit, leaving a "blank space" where original cultural creation should emerge.
Books
fromwww.theguardian.com
2 months ago

Is listening to an audiobook as good as reading?

Audiobooks and comics are legitimate, effective forms of reading that expand access, boost literacy, and contribute significantly to the publishing industry.
Books
fromThe Atlantic
2 months ago

What a Fantasy Can Reveal About Real Life

Fictional lies and imagined worlds can reveal deeper human truths through protagonists who fabricate realities, exposing inner desires, vulnerabilities, and psychological unraveling.
Books
fromThe Atlantic
2 months ago

George Saunders Has a New Mantra

George Saunders writes with a luminous, frequently supernatural imagination that pairs large-heartedness with unsparing wit and a ritualized, anywhere-capable writing practice.
Books
fromThe New Yorker
2 months ago

A Debut Novel About the Quest for Eternal Youth

The boundary between responsible adult and dependent child has frayed as caregivers flail through midlife while youth confront a crumbling, dishonest world.
Books
fromBig Think
2 months ago

5 literary conspiracy theories - debunked

Literary conspiracy theories question authorship, use pseudonyms, and misattribute works, sometimes entertaining but often distorting historical understanding.
Books
fromDefector
2 months ago

Fanfiction's Total Cultural Victory | Defector

Fifty Shades of Grey's transition from fanfiction to mainstream publishing transformed the industry, proving fanfiction-originated romances can be highly lucrative and culturally influential.
Books
fromPsychology Today
2 months ago

Curing Zombies in "The Bone Temple"

Monsters evolve to mirror the cultural anxieties and ambitions of their eras, revealing societal fears about race, empire, mental health, and scientific cure.
Books
fromHarvard Gazette
2 months ago

The stories behind the books - Harvard Gazette

Harvard's library collection includes books that use layered images, movable elements, and raised type to create interactive, tactile, and accessible reading experiences.
[ Load more ]