2/6/2017: Write Out Loud @ San Diego, CA – The Things We Do for Love

Thank you, Google Alerts, for letting me know that on Monday, February 6th in San Diego, CA, Write Out Loud will be reading my short story “Paris, at Night” as part of their story concert series.  You can read more about it on BroadwayWorld San Diego.  Here’s the excerpt:

Paris at Night by Sung J. Woo – read by Walter Ritter

This futuristic story presents a couple about to celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary. She dreams of seeing Paris at night; he ponders, “What can I do to make this happen?” A surprising examination of the power of love, and the importance of memories…

And here’s a bit about the company that’s putting it on.

Write Out Loud – an organization founded in 2007 with a commitment to inspire, challenge and entertain by reading short stories aloud for a live audience – announces THE THINGS WE DO FOR LOVE, the fourth production in their 10th Anniversary Season. Write Out Loud Story Concerts bring literature to life – aloud – with rehearsed readings by professional actors. Each program explores specific themes by weaving a variety of stories, poems and music together into a literary tapestry. David Fenner, Jeffrey Howard Ingman, Veronica Murphy and Walter Ritter will perform. A pre-show reception starts at 6:15pm with a 7:00pm curtain.

One of the other stories that they chose is by P.G. Wodehouse, so this is quite an honor.  I only wish I could be there to hear it performed.

[additional link – San Diego Reader]

Favorite Songs of 2016

Better late than never: Here’s a list of my top songs for this year, in an order that might be surprisingly mixable. These are not necessarily from 2016; I just happened to have heard them in the last twelve months.

Fronteras, by Gaby Moreno on Ilusion
Million Reasons, by Lady Gaga on Joanne
Lady Wood, by Tove Lo on Lady Wood
Move Your Body, by Sia on This Is Acting
Hold My Hand, by Jess Glynne on I Cry When I Laugh
Until the Day Dims (Heavy Hands Remix), by The Woodlands on Heavy Hands Remix
Gimmie Love, by Carly Rae Jepsen on Emotion
A Happy Place, by Katie Melua on The House
Fight Song, by Rachel Platten on Wildfire
School Friends, by Now, Now on Threads
James, by Maggie Rogers on Blood Ballet
We’ve Only Just Begun, by the Carpenters on The Essential Collection
Open, by Rhye on Woman
Hold You Tonight, by The Woodlands on Gems and Bones
Hollywood, by Grouplove on Big Mess
Almost Makes Me Wish for Rain, by Lucius on Good Grief
Still Falling for You, by Ellie Goulding on Bridget Jones’s Baby Soundtrack
Used to Love You, by Gwen Stefani on This Is What the Truth Feels Like
Mayhem, by Imelda May on Mayhem
Lone Ranger, by Rachel Platten on Wildfire
Maybe This Christmas, by Tracey Thorn on Tinsel and Lights
She’s Got You, by Rhiannon Giddens on Tomorrow Is My Turn

The highlight this year is Tove Lo’s “Lady Wood,” which has some serious sonic landscapes.  Tove Lo also wrote another song here, the Ellie-Goulding-helmed “Still Falling for You.”  Ms. Lo is at the top of her game.

Kelly Crigger’s The Comfort Station

I got an early look at Kelly Crigger‘s latest book, The Comfort Station, and I was not the only one who found an engaging, well-crafted novel:

The Japanese enslavement of Korean women during the occupation is seen through the keen eyes of Ki-Hwa Kim, our heroine who learns the true meaning of courage and perseverance. Packed with memorable descriptions and enticing characters, Kelly Crigger’s The Comfort Station is the kind of historical fiction that teaches as well as entertains.
-Sung J. Woo, author of Everything Asian

Good historical fiction doesn’t just bring us to another time and place to make us consider the lives and journey of the past – it brings us into the past and immerses us in those lives and journeys. Kelly Crigger’s The Comfort Station is such a book. Crigger writes with passion for, and knowledge of, World War II and Pacific bastion of Rabaul. More importantly though, he writes the characters that make up The Comfort Station with fullness and dimensionality. Not to be missed.
-Matt Gallagher, award winning author of Youngblood

A lyrical novel about a young girl taken captive and forced to serve as a comfort woman. The plot is fast paced and intriguing, but still takes the time to explore the people and places in a beautiful, poetic manner. It’s hard to know if I appreciated the quality of the prose or the excitement of the story more.
-Alana Terry, author of The Beloved Daughter

Now here’s a photo of my cat Mac with the book, since we all know how much the internet loves cats.  Looks like he’s already halfway into the book…

Haiku: Rectify, Season 4, Episode 8 – “All I’m Sayin'”

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He eBayed Furbys
and went camping by himself.
Jared, organize!

*

Mr. Stern, hero
gets Daniel a second chance.
Tax lawyer? Oh please.

*

Janet watches Ted
as he turns the key to close
and open their lives.

*

The ceramic man,
Teddy offers, in good faith.
Tawney’s next in line.

*

Say the word, Danny,
and Amantha will appear.
Even on a bike.

*

Daniel, daydreaming
Chloe and baby, waiting.
Hope is the future.

Haiku and Reviews: Don’t Breathe, Kubo and the Two Strings, Southside with You, Hell or High Water, Sully, Don’t Think Twice

After racing through The Crown, we’ve filled the void with some very good movies lately.
imgres
Don’t Breathe
Robbing a blind man
should be easier than this.
Rocky times ahead.
The camera moves like a snake in this absolute nailbiter of a thriller.  Yes, there are some familiar jump scares and boneheaded moves by the victims, but no complaints from me.
imgresKubo and the Two Strings
A boy and his “ax”
with Monkey and Beetle, too
fight for their story.
Never have I seen such smooth stop-motion.  I didn’t even realize it was stop-motion until I looked it up; I was certain it was all CGI.  The story gets muddled at the end, but well worth the journey.  The supporting characters are a riot, and also quite affecting.
imgresSouthside with You
Michelle and Barack
before Jesse and Céline
walk and talk and love.
This movie very much channels Richard Linklater’s Before Sunrise, but that’s not a bad thing at all.  In fact, it’s a wonderful thing.  Parker Sawyers, the actor who plays Barack Obama, doesn’t impersonate him and yet somehow embodies him.  I don’t quite understand how he pulled this off, but it’s a remarkable performance.
imgresHell or High Water
a pair of brothers
robbing banks to rob them back
sad justice for all
It’s what The Big Short wishes it could’ve been: an evisceration of the financial crisis with heart, humor, and tragedy.
imgresSully
The human factor:
did it save or did it hurt?
One man knows the truth.
My wife had the best line after seeing this movie: “Laura Linney really phoned in her performance, didn’t she?”  All joking, of course.  Linney is fine in it, in the limited time she has.  The film goes into the back story in ways I didn’t know, so it was not only entertaining but quite informative.
imgresDon’t Think Twice
It is time to ask:
Does improv improve with age?
Heavy thoughts with smiles.
I can’t recommend this film enough.  Gillian Jacobs is the heart of this movie and she’s so perfectly cast.  Keegan-Michael Key is as fine a dramatic actor as he is a comic one.  Don’t miss this one.

Love Love Reading from Magers and Quinn

Last year, one of the cities I visited on my book tour for Love Love was Magers and Quinn in beautiful downtown Minneapolis.  I remember signing a release form at the end of that reading for something to do with audio — and guess what, that’s exactly what this is.  Recorded on 9/21/2015, my reading and a short Q&A.  Thank you, Magers and Quinn!  You guys are aces.