Why The Old Man and the Sea is a Great Environmental Novel: new Hemingway essay at Vol. 1 Brooklyn
May 22, 2025 § 2 Comments
Pleased to note that my new literary essay, “And Afterwards it Belongs to You: Why “The Old Man and the Sea” is a Great Environmental Novel” is now up at Vol. 1 Brooklyn. I hope you enjoy it!
Below is a photo of one of our Cuba writing groups discussing The Old Man and the Sea at the Finca Vigía, outside Havana, followed by some photos of the Terraza de Cojímar, the real-life setting for the book, which is unchanged from the 1950s when Hemingway was a regular here and truly stands as one of the great physical landmarks of world literature.
If you haven’t re-read The Old Man and the Sea recently, I highly recommend it. It’s a towering work of literature certainly, but also just a highly enjoyable read page to page and an incredibly life-affirming one too in these days of global environmental crisis. Read it again and I think you’ll see what I mean. Especially if you’re planning a trip to Cuba!
New fiction craft essay at Writer’s Digest
January 5, 2025 § Leave a comment
Link below to this short piece featured by Writer’s Digest. If you’ve taken a fiction class with me you’ll likely be familiar with this line of thinking, though perhaps you haven’t seen it put exactly this way before. In any case I think it’s an essential thing to keep in mind if you want to create original work in this spoiler-obsessed story culture. There’s also a link in the bio you can use to preorder the new novel, which I strongly encourage!
“What is Dramatic Irony: And How to Use it to Create Page-Turning Fiction”
Kirkus Reviews’ verdict on THE AFTERLIFE PROJECT
December 12, 2024 § 2 Comments
A real shot in the arm in the form of this highly favorable review by Kirkus!
This is something every novelist hopes for (you really never know with Kirkus) and to have it happen this early in the process feels like a good omen.
The novel comes out on June 3, 2025, but allow me to suggest (for various reasons, most having to do with the vicissitudes of publishing algorithms) that you preorder it NOW at your local independent bookstore or via Bookshop.org, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or (for audiobook) Audible
New profile in UCSD/GPS alumni magazine
November 21, 2024 § 4 Comments
My thanks to reporter and editor Douglas Girardot for this article from the School of Global Policy & Strategy (GPS) at the University of California, San Diego. I got a master’s degree in international environmental policy here way back when and have never lived to regret it. Honored that they chose to feature an alum who has pursued, shall we say, a slightly ‘unconventional’ career path for a graduate from this distinguished program.
3 top fiction reads of 2024
October 14, 2024 § Leave a comment
Last year I put together a list of three of the books I most enjoyed reading for this interesting emerging literary organization called Shepherd, which has been conceived as a competitor to Goodreads. This year’s selection was harder to narrow down, but here it is, my list of my three top reads for 2024! (Note that these are books I read in 2024, not necessarily ones that were published in 2024. I tend to read new books a year or two after they come out.)
I think it’s important for writers and readers to support organizations that are trying to get the word out about good books. For one thing, it’s a way to circumvent the powerful media channels dominated by conglomerate publishing; instead of the books they say we should be reading, why not listen to each other? Word of mouth, not well-funded marketing campaigns, after all, is a much more reliable way to find good books.
Of course anyone who loves to read is going to be relying to a major extent on the conglomerates; it’s just baked into the system. I try to buy books from small and independent presses whenever possible, but many of my favorites were put out by the Big 5 corporate imprints. And while it’s true that Goodreads is owned by the Amazon corporate empire, Goodreads and Amazon offer some of the best (and often the only) ways for relatively unknown writers to make their books discoverable to the world at large. This is why I’m pretty assiduous about rating and briefly reviewing the books I’ve read and enjoyed on these sites—and if you care about books and authors, you should too!
Still, Shepherd is a refreshing upstart, and I love what they’re doing for books and authors, so I tend to respond when they approach me to make this kind of list. Some time ago I compiled my list of the best historical novels of early colonial New England; and here are my three top fiction reads of 2023. Enjoy!
The Fiction Chronicles: a series of short videos for writers and close readers
April 30, 2024 § Leave a comment
Hello all,
I’m pleased to announce “The Fiction Chronicles,” a series of short videos for fiction writers and avid readers exploring such topics as why humanity needs fiction, what fiction can do that film cannot, the virtues of escapist fiction, and highlights from great classic and contemporary novels and stories that showcase the power and reach of this very special narrative art. This is something I’m having fun putting together, and the plan is to keep adding videos in the months leading up to the release of my new novel, THE AFTERLIFE PROJECT. So if this kind of thing is up your alley, stay tuned!
If you do watch and enjoy any of these videos, please feel very free to embed any of them in your own blogs, emails, social media posts, etc. I’ve made them with the hope that they be shared widely, and with anyone who might find them useful or interesting. For the same reason it’s helpful to me if you “like” the videos and subscribe to my YouTube page if you want to see more. Visit my YouTube page here.
With great appreciation!
Tim
Book deal!
January 23, 2024 § 2 Comments
Those of you who’ve been keeping track will know that this deal has been a long time in development, and I couldn’t be more thrilled. Coming to you in print, audio, and ebook in early 2025. Will be posting more about it here in the lead-up, obviously, but if you wanted to stay up to date on progress you can sign up for my “very occasional but always interesting” newsletter by using the form on the home page or sending me a quick message.
Meanwhile, if I see you in person I’m buying the drinks!
San Miguel Writers Conference, Feb ’24
December 9, 2023 § Leave a comment
Excited to be speaking and teaching at the San Miguel Writers’ Conference & Literary Festival in the new year, February 18 – 23, 2024, in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico! San Miguel is an amazingly beautiful small city full of history, art, and food. The conference will have a terrific slate of keynote writers including Chris Pavone, Guillermo Arriaga, Christina Baker Kline, Silvia Moreno-García, and Molly Ringwald. Among other things I’ll be leading an “authors in conversation” session with the keynotes and teaching both a master class, “Beyond Conflict: Sources of Narrative Drive in Fiction,” and a writing workshop, “Point of View in Fiction: POV and Psychic Distance.” It’s going to be an exciting, fun, and enriching week of writing and high-level literary discussion. If you’re a writer and can swing it, you should really consider attending!
Saludos, and I hope to see you there. Maybe we can grab a mescal!
Three top fiction reads of 2023
November 1, 2023 § Leave a comment
I put together a list of three of the books I most enjoyed reading this year for this cool literary organization called Shepherd, which has been conceived as a competitor to Goodreads. Some time ago I compiled my list of the best historical novels of early colonial New England; this year they asked me to compile my three top fiction reads.
I think it’s important for writers and readers to support organizations that are trying to get the word out about good books. For one thing, it’s a way to circumvent the powerful media channels dominated by conglomerate publishing; instead of the books they say we should be reading, why not listen to each other? Word of mouth, not well-funded marketing campaigns, after all, is a much more reliable way to find good books.
Of course anyone who loves to read is going to be relying to a major extent on the conglomerates; it’s just baked into the system. I try to buy books from small and independent presses whenever possible, but many of my favorites were put out by the Big 5 corporate imprints. And while it’s true that Goodreads is owned by the Amazon corporate empire, Goodreads and Amazon offer some of the best (and often the only) ways for relatively unknown writers to make their books discoverable to the world at large. This is why I’m pretty assiduous about rating and briefly reviewing the books I’ve read and enjoyed on these sites—and if you care about books and authors, you should too!
Still, Shepherd is a refreshing upstart, and I love what they’re doing for books and authors, so I tend to respond when they approach me to make this kind of list. Enjoy!
Tim Weed’s 3 favorite reads of 2023
The best historical novels of early colonial New England
New Cuba Travel opportunities
August 7, 2023 § 1 Comment
Hello all, just a quick note about a number of upcoming opportunities for travel to Cuba , either on programs I’ll be leading/directing or on a private small-group trip I can help you set up using the network of friends and contacts I’ve developed over many years of off-the-beaten track travel to the island. I hope some of you will take me up on it!
The first of the programs I’ll be leading is a special “friends” trip from November 28 – December 6, 2023. This is going to be informal and fun, and packed with the kind of unforgettable cultural interactions and off-the-beaten track adventures that are possible to arrange given the truly wonderful network of friends and contacts I’ve developed over the course of many years traveling to Cuba. Email me if you’re interested in these dates. I’m happy to answer any questions you may have or simply loop you in. The core group is already in place but there is still time reserve a spot!
The second “formal” opportunity is the exciting new incarnation of the Cuba Writers Program, March 8-16, 2024. This dynamic, generative workshop for writers comes with with a parallel track filled with amazing Cuban cultural experiences and adventures. This program is also open to any non-writing family or friends. Here’s the link for info and application instructions. Feel free to email me if you have questions, or use the form on the website.
If you’re not sure whether or not you’re interested, here are a few relevant links to explore:
Details on Cuba travel and testimonials from past travelers.
A photo diary of a recent (January 2023) Cuba trip.
An essay I wrote awhile ago about my long love affair with the island.
If you’re not available for the above dates but would like to explore the idea of designing a custom, independent small-group trip to Cuba for your own circle of friends and family, don’t be shy about getting in touch. I’ve set up many of these over the years and they always result in amazingly rewarding, life-changing experiences.
Below is a selection of random pics from past Cuba trips to give you a visual sense of the wide range of experiences one might encounter . . .
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Tim Weed 