Birthdays: John Buchan (1875), Guillaume Apollinaire (1880), Eleanor Dark (1901), Caroline P. Miller (1903), Christopher Isherwood (1904), Julio Cortázar (1914), Irving R. Levine (1922), Barbara Ehrenreich (1941), Will Shortz (1952), Nikky Finney (1957), Stephen J. Dubner (1963), Paula Hawkins (1972)

Caroline Miller’s first novel “Lamb in His Bosom” won the 1934 Pulitzer Prize for Literature.

Will Shortz, since 1993, is the crossword puzzle editor for the New York Times.

Nikky Finney is the winner of the 2022 National Book Award for “Head Off & Split” poetry.

Quote: “Without poets, without artists… everything would fall apart into chaos. There would be no more seasons, no more civilizations, no more thought, no more humanity, no more life even; and impotent darkness would reign forever. Poets and artists together determine the features of their age, and the future meekly conforms to their edit.” ― Guillaume Apollinaire, Selected Writings

The novel wins by points, the short story by knockout.” – Julio Cortazar

Tip: Don’t give your reader a laundry list of things: She went to the store, then to the doctor, then worked out at the gym… Break things up with something more interesting.

Jumpstart: I was just so done with everything. With life. I wanted to scream. But that’s not proper. Not polite. So I…