The Slightly Less Than (Mostly) Official Event Wrap-Up: Justin Cronin

…and like those heroes of a post-apocalyptic world, fighting for their lives in the face of an unstoppable viral horde bent on the destruction of humankind, only the bravest dared face the, let’s be honest here, overly chilly and damp weather and questionable road conditions to bear witness to the Thurber House Special Event with Justin Cronin.  And special it was, for the author was insightful and funny, and the audience did murmur and titter, and freshly pressed paperbacks were purchased and signed, and Yelp! did provide cross-promotional synergy.  And lo! they did behold…

-excerpt, An Overly Silly First Draft of This Blog

A Thurber House Special Event featuring Justin Cronin

This was a really cool event, and Cronin’s book, The Passage, is a really great example of how a great idea can come from anywhere, even, and perhaps especially, when you don’t expect it.  After reading the audience a teaser chapter from the second part in his trilogy-to-be, Cronin told a couple stories about the making of the first book.  It starts with his daughter basically telling him she is worried his previous novels may be boring.  Upon asking her what she would have him write about she responded by telling him to write a book about a little girl who saves the world.  For a while after that, the two of them made a game out of thinking up ideas for this story and it was only after a while of doing this that he realized there might be something worth publishing.  An inauspicious start to be sure but Cronin really created a fully realized, well-planned, and epically scaled story from that simple start.  The Passage is a genre book for sure, mixing elements of thrillers, horrors, dystopian stories, sci-fi, and so on, but it is also just a really well written story about people, and I highly recommend it.

This event also wrapped up the Winter/Spring season for Thurber House.  Not to worry, though, the Literary Picnics start June 8!  The Thurber Treat is up first, so all the writers out there need to check out the rules for the writing contest and enter their stories!

Thurber House Receives Grant From the National Endowment for the Arts

The National Endowment for the Arts awarded a $15,000 grant to Thurber House, the non-profit literary center and museum in downtown Columbus. The grant, the first Thurber House has received from the NEA in its 27-year history, will support select writing programs and the Thurber Prize for American Humor.

The NEA grant will support the Children’s Summer Writing Camps, Young Writers’ Studios, Adult Writing Workshops and the Thurber Prize for American Humor.

Through these programs, Thurber House works to fulfill its mission: To celebrate the written word for the education and entertainment of the broadest possible audience, and to continue the legacy of James Thurber.

Next Week: A Thurber House Special Event with Justin Cronin!

Prepare to be swept up in an epic post-apocalyptic story of the destruction of mankind by its own creation, and the potential salvation that lies with a small group of survivors.  Justin Cronin comes to Columbus Tuesday, May 17 for a Thurber House Special Event with his New York Times best seller, The Passage.

After a breach at a secret U.S. government facility unleashes the monstrous product of a chilling military experiment, it takes little time for the world as we know it to die, and another to be born – a new primal landscape of predators and prey.  The Passage has been likened to Stephen King’s vastly popular novel, The Stand.

Cronin is the author of two previous novels including Mary and O’Neil, which won the Pen/Hemingway Award and the Stephen Crane Prize, and The Summer Guest.  Movie rights to The Passage, as well as the next two installments in the trilogy, were recently purchased by Fox 2000.  He currently lives with his family in Houston, Texas where he is a Professor of English at Rice University.

Tickets for this event are now Buy One, Get One Free!  Tickets are $15 and the event takes place at 7:30 p.m. at the Columbus Performing Arts Center, 549 Franklin Ave.  To redeem this special offer, click here, or call Thurber House at 614-464-1032 ext. 11.

Announcing the Thurber House 2011 Literary Picnic Series!

The summer season is upon us again and it’s time for the Thurber House Literary Picnics to begin.  We have a wonderful line-up of authors on the schedule for this season and with the addition of the excellent food by Party Panache it’ll make for a literary/culinary delight!

Picnics are every other Wednesday on the Thurber House lawn. Catered dinner is served at 6:15 p.m. and the readings start at 7:00 p.m. You can also feel free to bring your own picnic fare! Come early for special tours of Thurber House by our Young Docents, which start at 5:20 p.m!

Here’s the line-up:

• June 8: A Thurber Treat, hosted by Nancy Gilson, Arts Editor for the Columbus Dispatch
• June 22: Robin Yocum, Favorite Sons
• July 6: Leah Stewart, Husband and Wife
• July 20: New Voices: Amanda Flower, Ellen Waddell, and Lee Kravitz
• August 3: Bob Hunter, Chic

Don’t forget to bring your lawn chair, blanket, wine or other favorite beverage, and enjoy an evening of fun and friends. For more information on the full Literary Picnic author schedule, menus and how to order tickets, visit our website or call (614) 464-1032, ext 11.

Joe Blundo Master Class

Thurber House is pleased to offer an Adult Writing Workshop Master Class taught by Joe Blundo, author of the beloved column, “So To Speak.” He will lead a master class in humor and column writing on Saturday, May 21 from 1-3 p.m.  Class size is limited to 25, and the deadline to enroll is Tuesday, May 17 – so get your application in soon!  You must be over 18 years old to participate.

“So To Speak” has been a Columbus Dispatch fixture since 1997. His trademark mix of humor, insight, information and humanity is one of the paper’s most popular regular features.  Blundo has one book, Dancing Dads, Defective Peeps & Buckeye Misadventures, which is a compilation of some of his favorite columns. In 2002 he won the National Society of Newspaper Columnists’ contest for humor writing in large newspapers.

For more information about the class or to register click here.

The Slightly Less Than (Mostly) Official Event Wrap-Up: James B. Stewart

Annnnd we’re back!

I would first like to apologize to those of you waiting with bated breath for the Kristin Hannah blog that never showed up.  In the interest of staying true to the lessons of last night’s event, here’s a bit of truth.  I dragged my feet a bit too long getting it written and before I knew it, it was time for the next event!

By way of distracting you from the seething anger building inside you over my blatant procrastination, I’d like to share with you a classic paradox I was reminded of while ruminating on last night’s talk.

A man says that he is lying; is what he says true or false?

Cool, huh? I’ll wait patiently while you untie that knot in your brain.

Evenings with Authors:  James B. Stewart

Perhaps the funniest thing Stewart said last night was early into one of his stories.  Given the subject matter, these were mostly the kinds of stories that end with people letting out that groan/laugh combo sound they make when they hear something they find both absurd and slightly horrifying   He started in, paused, and commented that someone had asked him earlier why he doesn’t write fiction.  No answer to that question, by the way, just a significant look to the audience that garnered by laughter and applause.

A bit of background to explain the above:

Tangled Webs is a look into the problem of perjury in the modern judicial system by way of the documented (though rarely convicted) instances of major perjury that have taken place during some of the biggest trials in recent years.

James’ statement only becomes funny in light of some of the facts and quotes from his book that he shared with us.  Here’s a sampling:

Bernie Madoff’s continual lies kept his investigation going for so long that he was able to swindle another 45 billion on top of the 20 billion he had already.

After spending a full weekend conferring with her family and lawyer about an incriminating email, Martha Stewart said, when asked what was in the email, “I don’t remember”.

Apparently the excuse that has become the go-to for any athlete involved in steroid scandals (besides flat-out lying) is that they thought it was flax seed oil.

The thing I found most interesting about the whole talk, though, was how little this seemed to be a truly legal or regulatory problem, in the sense that there aren’t any new laws that can be written to solve this.  Perjury and that lack of prosecution of perjury, according to Stewart, is a problem inherent in current social norms.  Not only is it basically assumed that people, especially powerful people, will probably lie under oath, but the act is looked on as an annoying speed bump in the judicial process.  Stewart spoke of a U.S. Senator reacting to the Scooter Libby trial that said they hoped he would be indicted for a real crime and not just a technicality, like perjury.