Stacey May Fowles

Revenge of the Sexy Nerds: The cult of Lady Gaga and the mainstreaming of outcast culture

“Unlike her pop-tart contemporaries (and like Madge), Gaga understands that female sexuality, much like fame, is nothing but performance and artifice. Like a pop music JT Leroy, in tricking the media machine into making her famous, she has proved it to be meaningless.” (more)

Drinking With Men Who Are Not Russell Smith: One woman’s perspective of the price of loving the culture we call “books”

“What Smith missed in his column is that for some of those publishing ‘hotties,’ sexuality is a tool used in pursuit of respect — and there is a deep sadness that sets in with the realization that so few really care about your manuscript or your theories or what you studied at university, but instead are deeply interested in how well you ‘entertain.’” (more)

The National Post: Rules For Writing Fiction

“Don’t dismiss pop culture as beneath you. Watching an episode of America’s Next Top Model can be just as useful in studying human strife and conflict as reading Tolstoy.  Especially now that André Leon Talley is a judge.” (more)

Open Book Toronto: The Proust Questionnaire

“More time. More sleep. More passion. More martinis. More puppies.” (more)

(photo by petercruise)