Christopher Coake

One of the guiding songs for the novel I’m (interminably) working on is one I’ve loved since my parents bought the record in my childhood: “Two Doors Down” by Dolly Parton. Gonna listen to it all day long, in honor of the loss of one of the very best of us.

Breaking a long Bluesky silence to offer some friendly advice: if you're a potential MFA applicant, writing a program director with questions, how about not using ChatGPT to draft that email?

Any authors out there getting emails purporting to be from famous-ish writers "just looking to connect"? So far I've heard from "Peter Ackroyd," "Steve Martini," "Chris Hedges," and "Pat Barker." All are clearly AI chatbots. "Pat Barker" used a waving emoji. The darkest timeline keeps sucking on.

Haven’t posted here in a while. The world’s a dumpster and social media posts are either a wail of grief/rage or someone reporting a publication, (or robots) and right now all of those options feel like they’re not great for my mental health. But I do miss you, friends.

Reno is a complicated and sometimes troubled place, but I love it here, not least for the weapons-grade rainbows

Everyone, my colleague, the brilliant poet Steve Gehrke, has a book arriving next month--please preorder it! He's an astonishing artist. mainstreetragbookstore.com/product/visi...

I dare you to gaze upon these pictures. www.reddit.com/r/OldSchoolC...

I can’t make the world better in any major ways today but here’s my dog, Inspector Bucket, who is not as well read as he might seem.

At Sierra Trading Post I saw a five-year-old girl look theatrically both ways and then shove several rainbow-colored gift cards into her overalls. I ratted her out to her dad. Take that, lawlessness and chaos. I'm Batman.

Seems like a good day to share this poem, originally published in About Place journal. Here's to turning over the mussel shells.

Absolute assclownery.

David Lynch has died. You wouldn't read my work and think of him, necessarily, but he's one of those artists who shaped the world for me, telling me more about what was possible. A true great. Also he did this to us. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uozh...

I will not name the university with the most annoying recommendation-submission portal, but I can let you know they wanted me to check any boxes from a long list that might describe the student. Like “Go-getter” and “natural leader.” Where’s the box for “fuck you, read my letter”?

Many of you surely know how to do this, but in case you don't: I just learned how to populate a List with all of my friends and pin it to my home page. Makes getting rid of FB a little easier. Now this place feels a little more familiar.

Hey friends. A favor. @joshruben.bsky.social was one of the first people to put his name behind Bad Hand and he needs our help. The fire took his home. Let’s surround him with love and support. www.gofundme.com/f/show-love-...

We're on track to hit 40K total books sold by March of this year. We launched in mid-2022. Distribution to bookstores and libraries starts this year. Giddy up.

Reminder: Big news will drop this Tuesday.

My kingdom for an edit button!

I archived my Facebook account and scheduled it for deletion. I feel surprisingly emotional about it? But maybe like an addict who just dumped all his booze down the sink? I don't know. It was a hellscape but I put in a lot of time there. RIP, I guess.

In 2018, Bad Hand Books was a joke I told myself after I was laid off. I said if I ever had the chance, I’d take my bad hand and own it. After coverage in NY Times, Esquire, NPR, Paste, the Associated Press and a Shirley Jackson Award, and now an international distribution deal, I’m still laughing.

Someone on Reddit posted this and it's the simple stupid laugh I needed. www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9nv...

RIP to Jimmy Carter, one of the most decent people ever to hold office in this country.

Check out this awesome story by UNR MFA student Drew Willis!

So pleased to welcome Dr. Afsheen Farhadi to the creative writing faculty at the University of Nevada, Reno. He'll be joining us in fall 2025! afsheenfarhadi.com

My story "Souvlaki," published in New Letters this fall, can be read here. It's a tight 3k words about winter, grief, and food-delivery anxiety. Check it out: www.newletters.org/souvlaki-by-...

Yesterday I met a very very old cat who likes to gaze at the fire for hours on end.

Seems like overnight the idiom "set foot" has shifted into "stepped foot." I see it everywhere now.

One of my MFA students crocheted me a birthday axolotl. We have such a wonderful cohort here at UNR right now. I’m very touched. Also please help me name the axolotl.

Writerfolk, please consider/tell students about the MFA at University of Nevada, Reno. Fiction and poetry. Fully funded. Genre-fiction friendly! Deadline Dec 15. We're a small, close program, with an emphasis on community. www.unr.edu/english/grad...

A list of bands in order of efficacy: 3. Placebo 2. The Cure 1. Prevention

"If someone else wrote your book and you read it, would you still think it was good?" I felt like I'd been punched through the chest

I’m home sick from my afternoon class, so here’s some free writing advice to satisfy my teacher-brain: avoid using empty phrases (“it was” and “there was” in all their forms) whenever you can. You’ll usually have to write a more vivid/specific sentence in order to remove the phrase. You’re welcome.

Starter pack for #literaryfiction writers to find each other! Comment/repost and I'll add you go.bsky.app/ARue8c8 #literaryfiction #WritingCommunity #Writers #Authors 💙📚

“What radicalized you?” Bro I was told to treat people the way I would want to be treated in kindergarten and it made sense idk what else there is to say

A good Saturday record - @thatkarimahmad.bsky.social and Michella approve.

A new long poem is up in the latest (quite amazing) issue of Paperbag www.paperbagazine.com/IssueNo15/St...

I’m so proud of my former student joshgalarza.bsky.social, whose debut novel THE GREAT COOL RANCH DORITO IN THE SKY is a finalist for the National Book Award in Young People’s Literature. You should of course all read it! Rooting hard for Josh on the 20th— www.joshgalarza.com

I'll be posting this a few times this month: Writerfolk, please consider/tell students about the MFA at University of Nevada, Reno. Fiction and poetry. Fully funded. Genre-fiction friendly! Deadline Dec 15. We're a small, close program, with an emphasis on community. www.unr.edu/english/grad...