Writing
Reading and writing are two of my greatest passions in life. There's something magical in the ability of words to create living images of things we have never seen. Our power to use words is what defines us as human, and it's a gift that I wish more people would nurture.
That doesn't mean my writing consists of sugary narratives about majestic mountain peaks or fluffy vignettes about pathetically cute forest animals. I think that good writing tries to chart new ground (in terms of content more than form). There are too many topics that we refuse to discuss or that we avoid thinking about altogether. I feel that a major purpose of the literary writer is to break through these taboos and get the reader to think about aspects of life and human nature that would otherwise remain unexplored. Literature should be frightening, exhilarating, and liberating.
I suppose this is a warning that if you read all the words around here, you may encounter offensive language, questionable themes, and so forth. I wager you'll live. While it's not my intention to offend anyone, it's also not my duty to please everyone.
This area changes as I post new works or remove old ones, so feel free to bookmark this page and come back again later.
Most of all, have a good time reading and always think for yourself! Questions, comments, feedback, etc., are always welcome! (hint, hint... mmeiss@indiana.edu)
| André's Club | The draft of my first novel, presented here in its entirety. Because I hope to have this book published someday, you'll need a username and password to proceed. E-mail me (mmeiss@indiana.edu) about it and we can work something out. I am anxious for critical readers! |
| The Passion of Pitt Elementary | A tongue-in-cheek novelette about dramatic events in the social life of the sixth grade class at Pitt Elementary. This is a rough draft. |
| Religious Experience | A short story about a skater kid who undergoes a crisis of faith. Well, there's a little more to it than that. This is a finished work--criticism is greatly appreciated! |
| Possession | A short story about a man for whom routine is very important. I wrote this to explore the use of an unreliable narrator. Any resemblance to Udall from As Good As It Gets is entirely coincidental. I don't see much connection at all, but a few readers have. Go figure. |
| Hearing the Blues | A very short story about a bully in the park that I wrote in a creative writing class as an experiment in working with different points of view. |
| Fragments | A few story fragments written as exercises in a creative writing class... plus a few bonus "evil haiku". |