Category Archives: writing

Post-Pyrrhic and Punch-Drunk

arts, books, politics, sex, work, writing 2018.07.02 Sean Shannon Leave a comment

Five weeks ago, I blogged about a very problematic turn of events for me. On the one hand, the leading book review organization Kirkus Reviews had posted an incredibly positive review of my first novel, The Prostitutes of Lake Wiishkoban. For many authors, getting this kind of a review can be career-making , and it was coming as I headed into a summer where I didn’t have any teaching work. Getting this review in front of as many people as possible became a top priority for me,…

The New P-Word

arts, books, politics, sex, work, writing 2018.05.28 Sean Shannon 1 Comment

A little over a week ago, I received one of the best pieces of news I’ve gotten in several months. Kirkus Reviews, a very prominent book review magazine, posted an online review of my first novel, The Prostitutes of Lake Wiishkoban, that was highly complimentary of my work (to say the least). Quotes like “Shannon’s … fiction debut is an entertaining, provocative bildungsroman that successfully turns an unconventional premise into a thoughtful exploration of freedom and identity” are the kind of thing that authors like me dream…

Whiskey Tango Facebook

freespeech, internet, politics, work, writing 2018.04.02 Sean Shannon Leave a comment

Apple CEO Tim Cook on Facebook data leak: Regulation is necessary (Yahoo! Finance) Part of the preparatory work I do as a teacher of college-level English is to make myself aware of the technological and pop culture elements of society that my students are likely to be aware of and use in their everyday lives. This process is known as gaining “cultural literacy,” and although it’s ultimately not as important in my preparation as knowledge of the intricacies of the English language, I’d argue that…

Shades of Marketing

books, personal, work, writing 2017.02.11 Sean Shannon Leave a comment

The art of grabbing the attention of agents and publishers to try to get your book published is not easy, and while a large part of me still wishes that I’d been able to get The Prostitutes of Lake Wiishkoban published “traditionally,” I can’t say that I miss the rigmarole of emailing agencies and publishing houses all that much. In addition to dealing with a shrinking number of opportunities for traditional publication, trying to market a book to literary agencies and publishers is a process full of…

Coming Off the Bench

personal, politics, writing 2017.01.29 Sean Shannon Leave a comment

Today marks three months since Mom’s passing. As hectic as the six months of her illness and hospitalization were for me, I knew that they wouldn’t even hold a candle to the craziness that was about to hit me after I got that fateful phone call, and I was right. These past three months have been a real rollercoaster, and even though there have been some high points in there — like the publication of my novel, The Prostitutes of Lake Wiishkoban (please buy your copy today)…