Mara Buck's Blog
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Nov.07.2009
By the numbers on my dashboard, I see that quite a few of you have visited the art on my media page. I really appreciate your dropping by. For a weekend mini-vacation, I invite all of you to stroll through a fresh posting of my visual art. Come as you are. Guaranteed easy on the feet!
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2 comments
Nov.06.2009
I have been many things, but my favorite me was Me-The-Bookseller. For a time, I ran an out-of-print book search service for university libraries, and when librarians’ lists arrived I would check my personal stash for potential sales, and then scurry to The Strand in New York City. What a...
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Nov.04.2009
The puppy is a sorbet. “What breed’s that?” you ask. “Anything like a bichon? I thought she was a Doberman.” Well, yes, that she certainly is. What I mean to say is that I write about the puppy as a personal sorbet, a palate cleanser between dealing with the ‘big stuff.’ War, disease,...
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Nov.03.2009
The puppy is a glutton for candy corn. I mistakenly toss her a couple kernels from the seventy-five-percent-off Halloween sale bag and it’s an instant addiction. Quick, dial the support group! She craves More! More! More! The normal doggie repertoire of tricks --- sit, lie down, roll...
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Oct.30.2009
The essence of childhood trudges through woods. Encumbered yet steadfast, she stumbles on bravely, resolutely scouting the darkness, encased within a ham, banging into trees. All children that ever were, she is. We ache for her and see ourselves and the best we can hope for is that our costumes...
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2 comments
Oct.27.2009
I believe that literature is defined by the presence of the writer within the work itself. His or her soul lights the nuances, sparks the paragraphs, is palpable in every word. When I speak of soul, I make no religious reference, but rather embrace that essence of each which marks us as...
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Oct.25.2009
The puppy is a literary little beast. She climbs onto the back of the chair and hangs over my shoulder as I type. Her paws are unsettlingly close to the keys. “Whatcha writing?”
“It’s all about you.”
“You’re going awfully fast. You’re not thinking very hard or looking anything...
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Oct.23.2009
My New York. There are flashes of memory as pulsing as the disconnected views from a subway window. Riding the A train to the Cloisters with Duke Ellington in my head and The Brothers Karamazov in my hands. Hanging out in Sheridan Square in the wee hours to snatch the Village Voice hot off...
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Oct.22.2009
(Ref: My blog of 10/21/09) The important question of whether or not posting content on a Red Room blog or member page constitutes “publishing” was handled most expertly by the lady who should know, Ivory Madison. She gives excellent advice in her comments to me following that blog, so I strongly...
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Oct.21.2009
Throughout her prolonged adolescence the puppy has consistently maintained an elevated opinion of herself. I make the mistake of reading my recent blog to her and she picks up on my critique of her non-show-worthy physical attributes.
She flashes me that furrowed-brow stare I have come...
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Oct.21.2009
One of the small literary presses contends that posting a story on one’s Red Room page or on one’s RR blog constitutes publishing in their eyes and makes such content ineligible for submission to them. They make no mention of first serial rights or anything substantive.
Any accurate info on this...
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15 comments
Oct.19.2009
“I am a great artist,” I say to the puppy. “Surely you can appreciate your good fortune and accept the responsibility of living with me. My paintings will bring world peace. My writings will cure cancer. My infinite wisdom will end hunger. You must not annoy me. You must allow me to work...
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Oct.18.2009
Tana French has written a wonder of a book. A writer’s dream. Many accolades. Many stellar reviews. Prizes. Bestsellerdom. All thoroughly well-deserved in my eyes. So why should I feel an overpowering need to spring to her defense? Having just finished IN THE WOODS, I clicked onto...
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Toni Morrison says, “If there is a book you really want to read but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.” So I have. HIGHWAY TO OBLIVION.”
About Mara
A naïve Maine native, I arrived at NYU eager to become a lawyer (until l met one!) so switched to Art History (all those beautiful slides!), studied anatomy and painting at the Art Students League, wrote art criticism for “The Villager” and handled foreign...
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Causes Mara Buck Supports
Kennebec Valley Humane Society, Amnesty International