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The Witness and the Liar: Morality in The Road and The Shape of the Sword
Cormac McCarthy and Jorge Luis Borges. Let's analyse one book and one short story that have more in common that it first appear. The same premise…
Jun 17
•
Livia J. Elliot
1
1:00:57
Cultural Nuance Matters: Translation Considerations in Tender Is The Flesh
A translator’s job is weighing linguistic trade offs to make a choice. That choice affects style, rhythm, theme, cultural nuances, and even…
Jun 10
•
Livia J. Elliot
6
Book Review: The Hour of the Star, by Clarice Lispector
A technical masterpiece, an emotionally devastating tale of poverty, empathy, and how we aim to craft meaning though the world—more often than not—does…
Jun 8
•
Livia J. Elliot
2
Look Around You: Why McCarthy Switches to Second Person in The Road
“Write in a single tense and grammatical person,” most writing advice would say—and yet some authors do it, deliberately and purposefully. Let's study…
Jun 3
•
Livia J. Elliot
3
May 2026
Take It Literal: Literalised Metaphors in Speculative Fiction
What makes a work of literature speculative? Many authors argue this 'quirk' are literalised metaphors and their ability to sneak in thematic…
May 27
•
Livia J. Elliot
2
Book Review: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
Historical fiction with a speculative element, and a compelling exploration of meaning, the power of words, and the duality of humankind.
May 20
•
Livia J. Elliot
3
2
Book Review: Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie
Ancillary Justice is an intriguing novel concerned with identity, civilisation, empire, and colonisation... but it shies away from developing the themes…
May 17
•
Livia J. Elliot
1
Language Makes Horror Bearable: The Linguistics Behind Tender is The Flesh
Like Marcos himself said in the book: "Words carry the weight necessary to mold us, to suppress all questioning." Today's episode discusses how can…
May 13
•
Livia J. Elliot
2
1
39:59
Book Review: A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr
A Canticle for Leibowitz is a devastating post-apocalyptic novel that remains current because of its central theme: humanity’s own nature. Click for the…
May 10
•
Livia J. Elliot
17
4
5
Book Review: Tender Is The Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica
Tender Is The Flesh. A complex, layered dystopian novel that examines language as a tool for the normalisation of horror.
May 6
•
Livia J. Elliot
2
April 2026
The First Sentence Fallacy: How Great Openings Earn Their Power
“The first line of a book should hook you” is fairly common advice—but there is more to it. First lines are memorable not on their own, but because…
Apr 29
•
Livia J. Elliot
2
13
2
Know the Rules, Break the Rules: What Embassytown Teaches About Meaningful Dialogue Formatting
Dialogue formatting guidelines are there for a reason, but with a good enough counter-reason, you can break the rules and craft something memorable…
Apr 22
•
Livia J. Elliot
3
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