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Nov 7, 2023Liked by Catherine Hiller

Some famous works have undergone revivals of interest because of recent events. Margaret Atwood after the repeal of Roe v Wade. The emergence of AI has revived interest in ā€œ2001: A Space Odyssey.ā€

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I now remember the name of the journalist who interviewed me for his NY Times Magazine piece on John Updike. It was James Atlas, who went on to have a very distinguished literary career.

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This is heartening--I'm about to plunder my kill files. The abortion story is prescient and horrifying. Wow. You've really sensed the growing authoritarianism of the moment.

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I'm now amazed at how dark that abortion piece is. "Kill files"? That's a frightening concept! Maybe think of them as "unfinished business" or "works in progress."

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Yes! Unfinished for sure . . .

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Come writers and critics

Who prophesize with your pen

And keep your eyes wide

The chance won't come again

And don't speak too soon

For the wheel's still in spin

And there's no tellin' who

That it's namin'

For the loser now

Will be later to win

For the times they are a-changin'

(Bob Dylan - The Times They are a-Changin' - 1963/1964)

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Your sonnet is objectively brilliant! Great advice in this piece, I'll get out my old treasure maps and see what I might have missed.

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"Objectively brilliant." Wow. Thanks!

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