The Re-re-read: Craft Talks on Classic Literature

In the chapter called "The Castaway," beautiful language intersects with astonishing if not entirely intentional cruelty. Does the beauty make up for the cruelty? Also, how to depict God in a few easy steps.

Ann Gelder on Bluesky: @anngelder.bsky.social

Melville's griping about the terrible state of whale-painting in the 19th century prompts some thoughts on "Show, don't tell" and readers' expectations of visual imagery. 

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Through the peculiar exhortations of Stubb to his whale-boat crew, Melville weaves a complex web of relationships, creating a complex and realistic fictional world. With a special appearance by the Office Space boss.

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In this week's extra-short lesson, we remember the importance of sound and rhythm in our writing. And we mention Bigfoot.

Ann Gelder on Bluesky: @anngelder.bsky.social

Ahab is a goldmine of terrific characterization techniques. In this episode, he loses control of his own soul, which runs amok in the night and gives us some new ways to think and write about this very old concept.

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How a patch of pedantry raises the stakes in the whale hunt, or when tone is more important than plot.

Ann Gelder on Bluesky: @anngelder.bsky.social

Even if you haven't read Moby-Dick, it's highly likely you know who Ahab is, what he looks like, and what his very serious problem is. What can we learn from Melville about creating a larger-than-life character? The way we first meet the character is very important.

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In the first of a series of talks on Moby-Dick, we discover how--and why--Ishmael's introduction to Queequeg sounds like Monty Python's parrot sketch. 

Ann Gelder on Bluesky: @anngelder.bsky.social

In our last episode on Dracula (before we begin a new series on Moby-Dick), we ruminate on Dracula's strangely anticlimactic death scene. Is Stoker just tired of all the drama and rushing to get to the end? Or is there another, possibly quite interesting twist here?

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In which the host speculates on what might happen if Dostoevsky wrote Dracula, focusing on the theological dilemma posed by vampire-hunting. A fun thought exercise for Novelists of Ideas.

Ann Gelder on Bluesky: @anngelder.bsky.social