Author Archives: robertpkruger

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About robertpkruger

Writer, editor, and software developer. Former president of ElectricStory.com.

Writing that Moves: Amontillado Wrap-up

In the last half of “The Cask of Amontillado,” Montresor leads Fortunato down through several more levels of catacombs, and the bones become more numerous and the air more stale, so that the torch glows rather than flames. Beforehand, though, … Continue reading

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Climate Change: Framing a Scientific Issue

This is not a political entry, but it is about politicization, to elaborate on my post about a liberal credo. I was debating climate change with someone today who, I thought, was not confronting the real questions and stubbornly making … Continue reading

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A Suggested Credo for Liberals

There’s really not much point being a liberal if you don’t acknowledge… that science trumps politics, that being an individual and striving to treat others as individuals trump group identity, that being a victim is a situation to get out … Continue reading

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Writing that Moves: Amontillado, Part 5

Note that we’ve only gone a few hundred words into the story, but I’ve written a few thousand looking at its technique. You may quibble here and there, but I hope I’ve impressed you with how much is going on … Continue reading

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Writing that Moves: #1 Reason Your Story Fails

Simple: you don’t really know your characters.

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Writing that Moves: Choosing Detail

Contrary to what you may have read, the author mentioned the curtains for a reason and made them blue for a reason! Either that, or he was a crappy writer. I’m interrupting my look at “The Cask of Amontillado” to … Continue reading

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Writing that Moves: Amontillado, Part 4

For those who are coming to this late, I’m critiquing Poe’s story on the level of craft, to demonstrate things to look for in writing when you are reading stories you’d like to emulate. There were no attendants at home; … Continue reading

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Depression and Evo Psych: Fighting Yourself, So the Group Can Win

There are several models of depression that psychologists have arrived at from consideration of its potentially adaptive function. Some are weaker than others; some are mutually compatible. When I posted a Facebook link to the Wikipedia article giving an overview … Continue reading

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Writing that Moves: Amontillado, Part 3

This continues my look at the technique used in Poe’s story. Since this is a longer excerpt, I’m placing it below. General Notes: The narrator recounts how he found and began to deceive Fortunato during a carnival. The narrator does … Continue reading

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Writing that Moves: Amontillado, Part 2

This continues my look at the technique used in Poe’s story. I’m doing these not so much to critique the story but to test and build up a vocabulary to help myself and others read with attention at the level … Continue reading

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