tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-71601762018-08-28T13:32:03.716-04:00The Leftwich Committee for the Proliferation of Thought and Opinionneal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.comBlogger260125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-10565803636559403072009-01-02T20:29:00.003-05:002009-01-02T20:38:32.839-05:00

As regular readers have probably figured out, Leftwich is in a serious state of dormancy. I've moved on to other endeavors, but I realized tonight that I never put up a post to let the Leftworld know what happened. So here it is.In late 2007 I launched Slant Six Creative, and that has been taking up quite a bit of my focus (including writing regularly for the site). I've also been writing at my

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-47357428313611529182008-07-20T22:25:00.002-04:002008-07-20T22:27:34.016-04:00

(cross-posted, of course. many thanks if you're still checking this page.)Some thoughts on the man who just might be America's greatest living writer.My reading habits tend to the obsessive. I start and fail to finish a lot of books, but when I find an author whose work hits me at that magic moment where the quality of the work and the resonance of what it says converge, I seek out all I can find

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-62251010958349492372008-04-28T22:52:00.002-04:002008-04-28T22:54:35.703-04:00

cross-posted with my Slant Six blog...I'm a huge fan of the mystery writer Ross Macdonald. Like better-known greats such as Dashiell Hammett, James M. Cain, and Raymond Chandler, Macdonald had an unmistakable gift for voice and tone. To the extent that he's famous, it's for his Lew Archer books -- a series of gritty yet surprisingly elegant and philosophical tales of love and corruption set

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-42490293893234861882008-03-06T22:48:00.002-05:002008-03-06T22:51:39.576-05:00

This is what the hell is up: The National performing Mistaken For Strangers. One of the best bands around performing one of their best songs, and flawlessly.Also featuring some of the finest lyrics I've ever read:Well you wouldn't want an angel watching over/Surprise, surprise, they wouldn't wanna watch/Another unelegant innocent fall/Into the unmagnificent lives of adults

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-2968822382320042562008-02-25T22:09:00.003-05:002008-02-25T22:12:52.275-05:00

note: this is cross-posted with my blog at Slant SixA good editor might make your writing. A bad editor will ruin it.Raymond Carver has long been one of my favorite writers. His terse, emotionally complex prose isn't to everyone's taste, but I've found it to mine. Recent revelations about his relationship with his editor, Gordon Lish, make me wonder just who it is I've been appreciating all these

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-31334216061692778392008-02-14T11:26:00.003-05:002008-02-14T11:57:41.672-05:00

If you're stuck for that last minute gift, there are some surprisingly great e-cards over at the Kate Spade site. E-cards are usually hella lame, but not in this case. Also, recent updates to the Slant SIx blog include a look at what Hillary Clinton vs. Barack Obama means for creative folks. Then later today I'm planning on putting up a post about the new Shelby Lynne album. I'll cross-post that

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-62520618059510660532008-02-05T11:02:00.000-05:002008-02-05T11:04:27.008-05:00

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-8008734244884621092008-01-14T14:55:00.000-05:002008-01-14T14:58:11.334-05:00

The This Divided State guys have launched the website for their new film, Killer at Large. Check it out here. I had a nice lunch with Bryan and Steve while they were working on this, and the discussion was lively and enlightening. My money's on this one being well worth your time.

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-62261330660705321842008-01-14T14:43:00.000-05:002008-01-14T14:49:15.872-05:00

New York magazine has a quick but pithy Q&A with David Mamet, and I highly recommend it. Not the least of the reasons being for this exchange:You also directed a Ford commercial. Why? I did it for the money. Why do you think I did it?And you needed the money that badly?Well, it’s nice to have, because you can buy things with it.So the whole business of “selling out,” you think it’s bullshit?No,

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-11648722667326821752008-01-09T21:36:00.000-05:002008-01-09T21:55:35.114-05:00

Those of you who have known and/or read me for the past 3-4 years know that I'm a veteran when it comes to writing about the presidential primary process. Crazy as it sounds, I actually got paid to do it last time (albeit not much). I correctly predicted Howard Dean's rise (though not his fall) and I correctly predicted Wesley Clark's entry into the race (though not his ineffectiveness). I've

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-2396506879583121272007-12-05T15:18:00.000-05:002007-12-05T15:39:56.816-05:00

I have instructions from Rob to "post something bitter." I'll attempt to do that soon, but in the meantime here's an explanation for the prolonged absence:Slant Six CreativeFor the past couple of months I've been working to get this up and running, and now it's in sufficient shape that I'm ready to start revealing it slowly to the world. That starts with however many folks are left who still

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-80656881865817367552007-10-16T23:41:00.000-04:002007-10-16T23:45:50.075-04:00

Kind of hard to believe I haven't posted here in over a month. The truth is that I've been neglecting this space for good reason. I have a new venture underway that will start to occupy more and more of my time over the next few months/years. I hope that when I'm ready for an official announcement you'll all be interested. All, what, five of you?Leftwich will, of course, always remain active in

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-14620171438471330502007-09-12T22:10:00.000-04:002007-09-12T22:26:18.690-04:00

It's time to take stock of my work, for you and for me.Comics work continues. The third issue of Borrowed Time is in process, and we hope to release it early next year. I also have two other potential projects brewing, though I can't say much about them at the moment. I'll be psyched if they happen, though. I'll be at SPX next month to help the process along. I'm taking on more and more

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-47101778848189462292007-09-09T22:33:00.000-04:002007-09-09T22:41:44.950-04:00

"Everybody has a marketing plan; his marketing plan is racism. It just shows you what bloodsuckers do: they abuse something like the Virginia Tech [tragedy] for show ratings. You can't talk to a person like that."I'm fascinated by this, Nas' reaction to Bill O'Reilly. In less than 50 words Nas has produced an almost impossibly accurate, succinct summation of the current state of political

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-32869988593774886162007-08-29T22:28:00.000-04:002007-08-29T23:28:21.555-04:00

Here's a good story.This man wrote a book. He brought the force of his creative vision to bear on a piece of work and turned it into something people liked. Then he realized one day that some bottom-feeding types in the "entertainment industry" had jacked his idea down to the last detail, repackaged it, and sold it to Network Television. Now, they're making a pretty penny while the brains of the

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-66564250442733035242007-08-23T20:52:00.001-04:002007-08-23T20:54:48.093-04:00

Just watch...

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-69844106736920742122007-08-07T23:42:00.000-04:002007-08-07T23:45:34.150-04:00

Tonight I sent my (soon-to-be) agents the first draft of my book proposal for The Vegan Bachelor. The information is becoming organized, the focus becoming clear. Much work remains, but it's a pretty nice feeling to reach that first plateau.

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-62451512585835134402007-08-07T11:19:00.000-04:002007-08-07T12:15:31.600-04:00

Awhile back I was walking Derby through the woods near my house and I got real agitated. Anyone who knows me well knows that I'm no particular fan of development, and especially of development designed to tempt Young Money with promises of coffee shops and granite countertops. That's what's going on near my house, and it's deeply annoying.Annoying, but no big deal. What's really galling is that

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-89385663981324046552007-07-11T22:53:00.001-04:002007-07-11T22:53:50.582-04:00

Lynn asked me to put together a list of my essential daily (or near-daily) reads in terms of design, creativity, business, technology, and related concerns. In response, I combed through my feeds and settled on the sites that I simply could not do without.It only makes sense to share, so here you go. Not necessarily in any order, though I'm happy the Art Dump comes first.The Art DumpArt, design,

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-42261365152888207862007-07-11T09:44:00.000-04:002007-07-11T09:48:54.245-04:00

The good people at Pentagram recently completed a slate of work related to the construction of the New York Times building. It's all rather impressive, but the true stroke of genius was getting legendary photographer Annie Liebovitz to document the construction process itself in a series of photos that are, at times, breathtaking.See what I mean by by clicking here.

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-64783315845781336692007-07-06T23:15:00.000-04:002007-07-06T23:17:15.717-04:00

Yes, yes. That's more like it.

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-5465964387897064562007-06-28T22:54:00.000-04:002007-06-28T23:10:13.818-04:00

Remember when comics were cool? Really cool?When I check out some of the gems on this site, it just makes me sad that mainstream comics even exist anymore. There are still great comics, of course, but it isn't the same as it was even fifteen years ago. You're no longer going to find the best comics at the local newsstand or grocery store, meaning that most of them will simply never find a mass

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-90289477851265261052007-06-25T23:13:00.000-04:002007-06-25T23:22:27.800-04:00

Maybe I'm wrong here – I'm no professional after all – but I'm damn proud of that picture. Even more so at the large size. It's part of this 46-pic set from the Panasonic Open, a skateboarding/BMX/FMX event that stopped in Baltimore this past weekend. I wrote a cover story about it for PressBox, then used my media pass to check out the goings-on Saturday (more info here). All in all it was a hell

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-31995916327743427572007-06-19T22:40:00.000-04:002007-06-20T00:24:43.097-04:00

It's long-past time for me to have mentioned one of the best things going right now in terms of art and comics on the web: The Process, by my friend and collaborator (on Borrowed Time) Joe Infurnari.Joe's a true artist, and one of the best of them working in comics today. Whether or not you're a fan of Borrowed Time I highly encourage you to give The Process and the rest of the work on his site a

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7160176.post-42895653887895502662007-06-19T22:20:00.000-04:002007-06-20T00:25:56.241-04:00

I believe I've mentioned the name Richard Ford once before. I've been trying to do more non-Internet reading lately, and in keeping with that resolution I picked up Rock Springs last week on something of a whim. I'm only three stories deep but I feel safe in saying this: pick it up.Ford is a lot like Raymond Carver (the two were acquainted) in that his stories deal with the complex, often

neal shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08273887817430634288noreply@blogger.com3