Pif Magazine
ISSN: 1094-2726

Pif Magazine
1426 Harvard Ave. #451
Seattle, WA 98122-3813

From: FKelleghan@aol.com
Date: November 1, 2000
Subject: On a Scale of One to Three by Douglas Lain

"On a Scale of One to Three" is a disturbing and thought provoking piece. I congratulate you for publishing it. Lain's style is so deadpan that I wasn't sure whether to laugh (I did at times) or to buy a gas mask.

Way to go.

Fiona Kelleghan
South Miami, FL

From: ivy@zoo.net.au
Date: November 2, 2000
Subject: Rules of Torture by Richard Weems

I really enjoyed what Richard Weems has written and I agree whole-heartedly with his philosophy when he says he wants his students to be "writers in the present-tense - working and thinking about writing."

Thanks for this. Very helpful.

Cheers,

Ivy

From: davrad@hotmail.com
Date: November 2, 2000
Subject: Rules of Torture by Richard Weems

I love Richard Weems!! I plan to use every one of his exercises with my classes, I'm so pleased to find someone else who makes a class write-write-write!!

May he continue to post at PIF in good health and creative spirits.

Shann Palmer

From: prose_ax@att.net
Date: November 2, 2000
Subject: Prose Ax Review by Stefene Russell

First of all I'd like to thank you for an overall good review of our site. Second, you mention the story "Flag Day" in the second dose and mentioned the author's name incorrectly. The correct name is K.J. Stevens, instead of A.J. I'd also like to mention something about banners on certain sites. Yes, yes, I know ours is quite ugly and distracting. However, it is not put there for the purpose of making money. It is there in order to get a free website. Otherwise, we'd have to pay for our webhosting. I believe other zine sites have to display banners or pop-up banners in order ot have a free site, too, and do not make any money off of it. Just to let you know...

Again, thanks for the review.

J. Calma

From: Gdgart@aol.com
Date: November 3, 2000
Subject: Lish, Gordon: Notes and Reflections of a Former Student by George Carver

Loved George Carver's memoir on being a student of Gordon Lish. Over fifteen years ago, I read an article about Lish in Esquire and it inspired me as a workshop coordinator. He's tough, yes--even impossible--but you can't kiss wannabe writers for the fact that they put words on paper. My banker does that, too, but I wouldn't call her a writer.

Great writing workshops start like a boot camp, to weed out the dabblers. The rest of the time is spent finding out from the remainder which ones want to play for your approval and which are committed to the art. Of the latter, the workshop coordinator demands everything.

Coddling the aspiring writer produces nothing but failure--a bad product with a bogus stamp of approval.

The difference, to my thinking, may be more in the style of dealing with the ones who are committed to becoming better writers. I prefer to be inspirational, as in, "this work is shit, but you're not. This is what you have to do to improve it (or, a variation: "you need to scrap this and start all over again"). If you work hard at it, you can do it. If you don't, you're dabbling, and you heard it here first." Along with this must come some strategic nurturing--helping the aspiring writer to understand that what he or she wants is attainable, but only through the most rigorous self-discipline.

As a writer who came up the hard way, I know that becoming a writer is process; it demands constant improvement and attention to detail. I do get offended by those who put a few sentences on paper and expect a Pulitzer or Nobel, when in fact they have clearly not paid their dues.

George Grace

From: jennifer@HULmail.Harvard.EDU
Date: November 7, 2000
Subject: Construction by Michalle Gould

I thought there were some good images here, very nice moments (particularly the last two lines).

I was immediately turned off by the opening, however, specifically the question, "After all, does not architecture hold a mirror to the human condition?" I met this question with a feeling of dread that the writer was telling me what the poem was going to be about, that there wasn't going to be a progression from one place to another (when I read anything, I like to end up in a different place from that which I've started). It was hard to shake that feeling while reading the piece. If it were possible to make a suggestion to the writer, I would suggest that she begin the piece from, "In the shape of the opera..." because the first two lines do not seem to add anything to the piece; indeed, they seem to cloud its movement.

Thanks,
Jen Keats

From: ralskim@hotmail.com
Date: November 13, 2000
Subject: Prose Ax Review by Stefene Russell

Just wanted to say I read the story in ProseAx, "Flag day" by K.J. Stevens, and I thought the story was one of the better ones I've read in a long time . I like the story line, and the imaging of the words. I hope to see more of K.J. Stevens in print. Thank you for the good read.

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