Friday, September 30, 2011

2011 Reading List Monthly Update: September

Books completed in September 2011:

"The Great Gatsby" (F. Scott Fitzgerald) 9/5/11
"The Remains of the Day" (Kazuo Ishiguro) 9/11/11
"Nova" (Samuel R. Delany) 9/12/11
"Mrs. Dalloway" (Virginia Woolf) 9/20/11
"French Hole" (Dennis Cooper) 9/29/11


2011 Reading List total:

1. "Welcome to my World" (Johnny Weir) 1/12/11
2. "Cold Hand in Mine" (Robert Aickman) 1/14/11
3. "The Mechanics of Homosexual Intercourse" (Lonely Christopher) 1/20/11
4. "Illuminated Shadows" (James Champagne) 1/20/11 *
5. "Eat When You Feel Sad" (Zachary German) 1/23/11
6. "The Marble Index" (James Champagne) 1/25/11
7. "Brigit" (Andrew Champagne) 2/15/11
8. "Gravity's Rainbow" (Thomas Pynchon) 2/25/11
9. "Demons by Daylight" (Ramsey Campbell) 3/4/11
10. "Neuromancer" (William Gibson) 3/7/11 *
11. "Don Quixote" (Kathy Acker) 3/16/11
12. "Snow Crash" (Neal Stephenson) 3/31/11
13. "Shoplifting From American Apparel" (Tao Lin) 4/1/11
14. "Franny and Zooey" (J.D. Salinger) 4/7/11
15. "The Failure" (James Greer) 4/8/11
16. "The Gospel of Anarchy" (Justin Taylor) 4/16/11
17. "Dhalgren" (Samuel R. Delany) 4/21/11
18. "There Is No Year" (Blake Butler) 4/25/11
19. "Star Maker" (Olaf Stapledon) 5/1/11
20. "Death in Venice" (Thomas Mann) 5/3/11
21. "The Celestine Prophecy" (James Redfield) 5/9/11
22. "Selfish, Little: the Annotated Lesley Ann Downey" (Peter Sotos) 5/11/11 *
23. "The Quantity Theory of Insanity" (Will Self) 5/15/11
24. "Principia Discordia" (Malaclypse the Younger) 5/18/11 *
25. "Topology of a Phantom City" (Alain Robbe-Grillet) 5/21/11
26. "The Archaic Revival" (Terence McKenna) 5/23/11
27. "The Wasp Factory" (Iain Banks) 5/27/11
28. "Stories Toto Told Me" (Baron Corvo) 5/29/11
29. "The Oblate of St. Benedict" (J.K. Huysmans) 6/2/11
30. "Ubik" (Philip K. Dick) 6/8/11
31. "Ecpyrosis: The Best of Starfire Vol. I" (Various) 6/12/11
32. "Messengers of Deception: UFO Contacts & Cults" (Jacques Vallee) 6/15/11
33. "Earth Inferno" (Austin Osman Spare) 6/18/11
34. "The Book of Satyrs" (Austin Osman Spare) 6/18/11
35. "A Scanner Darkly" (Philip K. Dick) 6/20/11
36. "Nineteen Seventy Four" (David Peace) 6/21/11
37."Nineteen Seventy Seven" (David Peace) 6/24/11
38. "Nineteen Eighty" (David Peace) 6/28/11
39. "Nineteen Eighty Three" (David Peace) 7/2/11
40. "Q.B.L. or the Bride's Reception" (Frater Achad) 7/7/11
41. "Graves" (Thomas Moore) 7/9/11
42. "The Book of Lies" (Aleister Crowley) 7/13/11
43. "The Book of Pleasure (Self-Love): The Psychology of Ecstasy" (Austin Osman Spare) 7/14/11
44. "The Focus of Life" (Austin Osman Spare) 7/16/11
45. "Anathema of Zos" (Austin Osman Spare) 7/16/11
46. "Querelle" (Jean Genet) 7/19/11
47. "Myths of the Near Future" (J.G. Ballard) 7/29/11
48. "Empire Star/Babel-17" (Samuel R. Delany) 8/12/11
49. "The Waves" (Virginia Woolf) 8/19/11
50. "Lost Worlds" (Clark Ashton Smith) 8/26/11
51. "Grimscribe: His Lives & Works" (Thomas Ligotti) 8/28/11
52. "The Great Gatsby" (F. Scott Fitzgerald) 9/5/11
53. "The Remains of the Day" (Kazuo Ishiguro) 9/11/11
54. "Nova" (Samuel R. Delany) 9/12/11
55."Mrs. Dalloway" (Virginia Woolf) 9/20/11
56. "French Hole" (Dennis Cooper) 9/29/11

*= book I've read at least once in the past

currently reading:

"Tropic of Cancer" (Henry Miller)
"Vineland" (Thomas Pynchon)

Monday, September 26, 2011

Trinity Finis

This afternoon I completed Metatron's Arch, an epic fantasy novel composed of three volumes: Illuminated Shadows (written from July 13th of 2000 to October 7th of that same year), followed by The Marble Index (written from August 8th of 2010 to January 2nd of 2011), and The Age of Nothing, which I began on January 28th of this year and finished today. The three volumes combine to form one enormous 882 page novel. Each volume was written out entirely by hand. I'm not sure if I'll ever try to get it published: I don't feel like typing the whole thing out, then there's the question of editing it (as volume I in particular is kind of weak, seeing as I was only 20 when I wrote it, and is thus very derivative). And I always just saw it as a fun thing to work on in between my more serious literary projects. In any event, it's a good feeling to finally wrap up a story I've had in my head for eleven years now, and to bring it all to a close. Actually, it feels good not having any writing projects to speak of at all right now.

Thursday, September 1, 2011

2011 Reading List Monthly Update: August

Books completed in August 2011:

"Empire Star/Babel-17" (Samuel R. Delany) 8/12/11
"The Waves" (Virginia Woolf) 8/19/11
"Lost Worlds" (Clark Ashton Smith) 8/26/11
"Grimscribe: His Lives & Works" (Thomas Ligotti) 8/28/11 * (first time I've ever read this newly revised edition though)

2011 Reading List total:

1. "Welcome to my World" (Johnny Weir) 1/12/11
2. "Cold Hand in Mine" (Robert Aickman) 1/14/11
3. "The Mechanics of Homosexual Intercourse" (Lonely Christopher) 1/20/11
4. "Illuminated Shadows" (James Champagne) 1/20/11 *
5. "Eat When You Feel Sad" (Zachary German) 1/23/11
6. "The Marble Index" (James Champagne) 1/25/11
7. "Brigit" (Andrew Champagne) 2/15/11
8. "Gravity's Rainbow" (Thomas Pynchon) 2/25/11
9. "Demons by Daylight" (Ramsey Campbell) 3/4/11
10. "Neuromancer" (William Gibson) 3/7/11 *
11. "Don Quixote" (Kathy Acker) 3/16/11
12. "Snow Crash" (Neal Stephenson) 3/31/11
13. "Shoplifting From American Apparel" (Tao Lin) 4/1/11
14. "Franny and Zooey" (J.D. Salinger) 4/7/11
15. "The Failure" (James Greer) 4/8/11
16. "The Gospel of Anarchy" (Justin Taylor) 4/16/11
17. "Dhalgren" (Samuel R. Delany) 4/21/11
18. "There Is No Year" (Blake Butler) 4/25/11
19. "Star Maker" (Olaf Stapledon) 5/1/11
20. "Death in Venice" (Thomas Mann) 5/3/11
21. "The Celestine Prophecy" (James Redfield) 5/9/11
22. "Selfish, Little: the Annotated Lesley Ann Downey" (Peter Sotos) 5/11/11 *
23. "The Quantity Theory of Insanity" (Will Self) 5/15/11
24. "Principia Discordia" (Malaclypse the Younger) 5/18/11 *
25. "Topology of a Phantom City" (Alain Robbe-Grillet) 5/21/11
26. "The Archaic Revival" (Terence McKenna) 5/23/11
27. "The Wasp Factory" (Iain Banks) 5/27/11
28. "Stories Toto Told Me" (Baron Corvo) 5/29/11
29. "The Oblate of St. Benedict" (J.K. Huysmans) 6/2/11
30. "Ubik" (Philip K. Dick) 6/8/11
31. "Ecpyrosis: The Best of Starfire Vol. I" (Various) 6/12/11
32. "Messengers of Deception: UFO Contacts & Cults" (Jacques Vallee) 6/15/11
33. "Earth Inferno" (Austin Osman Spare) 6/18/11
34. "The Book of Satyrs" (Austin Osman Spare) 6/18/11
35. "A Scanner Darkly" (Philip K. Dick) 6/20/11
36. "Nineteen Seventy Four" (David Peace) 6/21/11
37."Nineteen Seventy Seven" (David Peace) 6/24/11
38. "Nineteen Eighty" (David Peace) 6/28/11
39. "Nineteen Eighty Three" (David Peace) 7/2/11
40. "Q.B.L. or the Bride's Reception" (Frater Achad) 7/7/11
41. "Graves" (Thomas Moore) 7/9/11
42. "The Book of Lies" (Aleister Crowley) 7/13/11
43. "The Book of Pleasure (Self-Love): The Psychology of Ecstasy" (Austin Osman Spare) 7/14/11
44. "The Focus of Life" (Austin Osman Spare) 7/16/11
45. "Anathema of Zos" (Austin Osman Spare) 7/16/11
46. "Querelle" (Jean Genet) 7/19/11
47. "Myths of the Near Future" (J.G. Ballard) 7/29/11
48. "Empire Star/Babel-17" (Samuel R. Delany) 8/12/11
49. "The Waves" (Virginia Woolf) 8/19/11
50. "Lost Worlds" (Clark Ashton Smith) 8/26/11
51. "Grimscribe: His Lives & Works" (Thomas Ligotti) 8/28/11 *

*= book I've read at least once in the past

currently reading:

"Nova" (Samuel R. Delany)
"The Great Gatsby" (F. Scott Fitzgerald)