Gordon MacMillan
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gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Gordon MacMillan
@gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
470 followers 260 following 400 posts
Worked at Twitter. Content & social strategy. #books #writing #politics. Second novel Blind Dates. First novel Songs for your Mother. Blog: https://tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/07/why-you-should-be-reading-mansfield-park.html
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Reposted by Gordon MacMillan
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
What do you read after Lonesome Dove?

Not the sequels.
Not the prequels.
Cormac McCarthy’s Border Trilogy is the better answer. Three novels, one sustained reckoning with land, loss, and the end of the West.
#booksky

tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2026/02/afte...
Loved Lonesome Dove? Skip the sequels and discover why Cormac McCarthy’s Border Trilogy is the modern literary Western readers should turn to next.
February 7, 2026 at 6:53 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
What do you read after Lonesome Dove?

Not the sequels.
Not the prequels.
Cormac McCarthy’s Border Trilogy is the better answer. Three novels, one sustained reckoning with land, loss, and the end of the West.
#booksky

tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2026/02/afte...
Loved Lonesome Dove? Skip the sequels and discover why Cormac McCarthy’s Border Trilogy is the modern literary Western readers should turn to next.
February 7, 2026 at 6:53 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
You got an offer from a literary agent. It is an amazing moment. Now you have to decide if this is the right person to guide your writing career. They might not be. tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2026/01/how-...
The moment you get a literary agent. how do you decide if they are the right literary agent for you
February 2, 2026 at 3:08 PM
Reposted by Gordon MacMillan
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
It’s been 15 years since the last book, and we’re still trying to wash the taste of "King Bran" out of our mouths. We don't just want the next chapter; we need the narrative restored to its former glory. tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2026/01/wait...
January 30, 2026 at 6:46 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
It’s been 15 years since the last book, and we’re still trying to wash the taste of "King Bran" out of our mouths. We don't just want the next chapter; we need the narrative restored to its former glory. tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2026/01/wait...
January 30, 2026 at 6:46 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Julian Barnes is one of those writers we don’t talk about enough.
Dry, elegant, emotionally precise. If you’re new to him (or overdue a revisit), these are the books to start with:
#RecommendedReading #JulianBarnes #blueskybooks
tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2026/01/juli...
January 24, 2026 at 8:45 PM
Reposted by Gordon MacMillan
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Ever reread a novel that once wrecked you?

Not for comfort, but to meet it again with new eyes.

This post is about the quiet, painful pull of returning to the books that broke us, and what we find there now.

tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2026/01/read...
Why We Revisit the Books That Broke Us A thoughtful exploration of rereading emotionally powerful novels and what they reveal about who we’ve become.
January 7, 2026 at 6:19 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Ever reread a novel that once wrecked you?

Not for comfort, but to meet it again with new eyes.

This post is about the quiet, painful pull of returning to the books that broke us, and what we find there now.

tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2026/01/read...
Why We Revisit the Books That Broke Us A thoughtful exploration of rereading emotionally powerful novels and what they reveal about who we’ve become.
January 7, 2026 at 6:19 PM
Reposted by Gordon MacMillan
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Five books for the in-between:

Blue Nights
Stoner
Gilead
Outline
Foster

A new post on liminal reading and why these are the ones I return to. #booksky
tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/12/read...
A cozy reading corner featuring a stack of five books on a wooden shelf: "Blue Nights" by Joan Didion, "Stoner" by John Williams, "Gilead" by Marilynne Robinson, "Outline" by Rachel Cusk, and "Foster" by Claire Keegan. Beside the books are a ceramic mug, reading glasses, and a folded wool blanket, all illuminated by natural light from an adjacent window.
December 19, 2025 at 2:24 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Five books for the in-between:

Blue Nights
Stoner
Gilead
Outline
Foster

A new post on liminal reading and why these are the ones I return to. #booksky
tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/12/read...
A cozy reading corner featuring a stack of five books on a wooden shelf: "Blue Nights" by Joan Didion, "Stoner" by John Williams, "Gilead" by Marilynne Robinson, "Outline" by Rachel Cusk, and "Foster" by Claire Keegan. Beside the books are a ceramic mug, reading glasses, and a folded wool blanket, all illuminated by natural light from an adjacent window.
December 19, 2025 at 2:24 PM
Reposted by Gordon MacMillan
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Donna Tartt hasn’t published in a decade. She rarely speaks, never posts. And yet her influence is everywhere. Why we’re still obsessed: tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/12/titl... #DonnaTartt #DarkAcademia #TheSecretHistory tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/12/titl...
Three books in over thirty years. No interviews. No social media. So why can’t we stop talking about Donna Tartt? A look at how silence fuels literary myth.
December 10, 2025 at 5:48 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Donna Tartt hasn’t published in a decade. She rarely speaks, never posts. And yet her influence is everywhere. Why we’re still obsessed: tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/12/titl... #DonnaTartt #DarkAcademia #TheSecretHistory tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/12/titl...
Three books in over thirty years. No interviews. No social media. So why can’t we stop talking about Donna Tartt? A look at how silence fuels literary myth.
December 10, 2025 at 5:48 PM
Reposted by Gordon MacMillan
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
What happens when crime novels get lyrical, and sci-fi starts sounding like elegy? In 2025, genre is less a boundary than a suggestion.

From Babel to Station Eleven, writers are dismantling the old labels. tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/12/the-...
A collage of books and authors known for genre-crossing fiction, symbolising the evolving landscape where literary and genre fiction now freely merge.
December 8, 2025 at 10:29 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
What happens when crime novels get lyrical, and sci-fi starts sounding like elegy? In 2025, genre is less a boundary than a suggestion.

From Babel to Station Eleven, writers are dismantling the old labels. tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/12/the-...
A collage of books and authors known for genre-crossing fiction, symbolising the evolving landscape where literary and genre fiction now freely merge.
December 8, 2025 at 10:29 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
For some reason Spotify thinks this is New Order. It’s definitely not.
December 3, 2025 at 3:09 PM
Reposted by Gordon MacMillan
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Every time I get a rejection, I think about the one that told Sylvia Plath she didn’t have “enough genuine talent.”

Publishing is full of short-sighted “no’s”.

Here are some of the most brutal, and baffling rejections tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/11/reje...
A composite image featuring the covers of Animal Farm by George Orwell, The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, Lord of the Flies by William Golding, Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, and Carrie by Stephen King — all now-classic works that were famously rejected before achieving literary acclaim. The visual contrast across designs underscores their distinct genres and eras, from political allegory to horror.
November 27, 2025 at 11:14 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Every time I get a rejection, I think about the one that told Sylvia Plath she didn’t have “enough genuine talent.”

Publishing is full of short-sighted “no’s”.

Here are some of the most brutal, and baffling rejections tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/11/reje...
A composite image featuring the covers of Animal Farm by George Orwell, The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, Lord of the Flies by William Golding, Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, and Carrie by Stephen King — all now-classic works that were famously rejected before achieving literary acclaim. The visual contrast across designs underscores their distinct genres and eras, from political allegory to horror.
November 27, 2025 at 11:14 PM
Reposted by Gordon MacMillan
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Why does every bestseller sound the same?

Clean. Marketable. Totally forgettable.

Here’s a manifesto against beige prose, and 5 books that really aren’t: tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/11/why-...
Exploration of the rise of beige prose in contemporary fiction and a short list of bold, voice-rich novels that challenge the trend.
November 19, 2025 at 6:11 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Why does every bestseller sound the same?

Clean. Marketable. Totally forgettable.

Here’s a manifesto against beige prose, and 5 books that really aren’t: tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/11/why-...
Exploration of the rise of beige prose in contemporary fiction and a short list of bold, voice-rich novels that challenge the trend.
November 19, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Reposted by Gordon MacMillan
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Not another list of writing books.

These 5 titles didn’t teach me structure. They disrupted it. Broke things open. Got my writing unstuck.

Books that saved my writing (and didn’t come from the usual lists): tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/11/book...
List of five unexpected, under-the-radar books that offer fresh creative insight and help writers reconnect with language and craft beyond traditional advice.
November 16, 2025 at 5:07 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
Not another list of writing books.

These 5 titles didn’t teach me structure. They disrupted it. Broke things open. Got my writing unstuck.

Books that saved my writing (and didn’t come from the usual lists): tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/11/book...
List of five unexpected, under-the-radar books that offer fresh creative insight and help writers reconnect with language and craft beyond traditional advice.
November 16, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Reposted by Gordon MacMillan
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
The Booker goes blokey: what David Szalay's Flesh tells us about masculinity in fiction #booksky tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/11/the-...
The booker winning novel, Flesh by David Szalay. Sees a return to "blokey fiction
November 12, 2025 at 12:35 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
The Booker goes blokey: what David Szalay's Flesh tells us about masculinity in fiction #booksky tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/11/the-...
The booker winning novel, Flesh by David Szalay. Sees a return to "blokey fiction
November 12, 2025 at 12:35 PM
Reposted by Gordon MacMillan
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
The literary comeback of 2025: Why everyone's quoting Sontag again

tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/11/the-...
November 10, 2025 at 4:43 PM
gordonmacmillan.bsky.social
The literary comeback of 2025: Why everyone's quoting Sontag again

tangledprosewritingthroughit.blogspot.com/2025/11/the-...
November 10, 2025 at 4:43 PM