Rebecca’s Reflections

In the Beginning There Were Pigeons

In the Beginning There Were Pigeons

“In all things, it is the beginnings and the endings that are the most interesting.” Or, so wrote Japan’s famed medieval poet-monk Yoshida Kenkō (1283–1350). Kenkō illustrated this bit of aesthetic wisdom with advice on how to appreciate a romantic affair. The...

Edited Out, Part Four: Tanizaki and the Homeless Cuckoo

Edited Out, Part Four: Tanizaki and the Homeless Cuckoo

Editing a manuscript can be painful. You have to be willing to cut passages that you have labored over for days, sometimes longer. Some great writer equated this process to “murdering your darlings.” You’ll hear some attribute this quotation to Ernest Hemingway....

Home is Where the Views Are

Home is Where the Views Are

I can’t remember when I decided I would retire to North Carolina. The idea came on gradually. Maybe it was after I spent that month in the Tennessee cabin writing the first draft of The Kimono Tattoo. It was only a month, but I felt such an affinity for the hillsides...

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