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Rebecca Makkai

@rebeccamakkai.bsky.social

9.1K followers 240 following 940 posts

Pulitzer finalist for THE GREAT BELIEVERS; new novel, I HAVE SOME QUESTIONS FOR YOU, out now. Artistic Director at StoryStudio Chicago. Trying to give everyone the benefit of the doubt. You should, too. rebeccamakkai.substack.com https://rebeccamakkai.com

rebeccamakkai.com

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 9h

Do not get me started on the various manglings of Imre Kertész

Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 9h

I realized I should add: LAH-slow. (As in the English adjective “slow”). The “sz” in both names is a simple “s” sound, absolutely not a “z” or “zh.”

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Reposted by Rebecca Makkai

Catharsis Theater: Relief for the Human Heart @catharsistheater.bsky.social · 10h

(1/5)
🌟 “We needed to do something.” Lori’s story is a reminder that grief, rage, and love can become engines for change. From buses to food pantries to ACT UP, she showed how ordinary courage feeds extraordinary legacies.
👉 rebeccamakkai.substack.com/p/we-needed-...

@rebeccamakkai.bsky.social

"We needed to do SOMETHING"

in memoriam, Lori Cannon

rebeccamakkai.substack.com

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 11h

This is TONIGHT! Register for free to come in person, or watch the livestream!
www.newberry.org/calendar/wri...

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Reposted by Rebecca Makkai

Governor JB Pritzker @govpritzker.illinois.gov · 1d

If you come for my people, you come through me.

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 17h

You’re doing the lord’s work! 😂

Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 17h

Okay, my best attempt: CROSS-naw-hor-kaw-ee
But the first four vowels are all the same. So keep the “o” sound from “cross” and repeat it three more times. (Somewhere between “aw” and “ah”)
“Hor” gets the second most emphasis.

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 17h

😂😂😂

Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 17h

They’re literally a full syllable short

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 17h

Őn magyar?

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 17h

Nice try, NYT, but absolutely not

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 17h

Anyone who needs me, I’ll be here all day teaching people how to pronounce Krasznahorkai 🇭🇺

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 1d

Since I can’t give that two-hour answer again and again, I want to invite you to my two-hour class for writers (and other artists), Five Things I’ve Learned about Writing While Parenting on December 7 at 8pm EST. Sign up below!
myfivethings.com/class/rebecc...

Writing While Parenting - Five Things I've Learned

Join me in this live two-hour class and discover the Five Things I’ve Learned about how to navigate the joys and demands that come with creating art while at the same time keeping the people you love ...

myfivethings.com

Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 1d

The first (especially if it’s asked by a condescending stranger) is “What a weird question — would you ask a man how he juggles being both a banker and a father??” and the second (especially if it’s asked by a fellow writer, one whose eyes are full of despair) is… well, it’s a two-hour long answer.

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 1d

I’m doing another online seminar for 5 Things I Learned… Specifically: When people ask how I balance parenting with a writing career, two answers come to mind. 🧵

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 2d

She was also hilarious. I wrote about her, and I promise it will make your day better if you take a minute to learn how driving a bus led to decades of activism and charity.
rebeccamakkai.substack.com/p/we-needed-...

"We needed to do SOMETHING"

in memoriam, Lori Cannon

rebeccamakkai.substack.com

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 2d

In early August, the indomitable Chicago AIDS activist Lori Cannon passed away. She was an irreplaceable resource while I was writing The Great Believers, and inspiration, angel, and friend to thousands. 🧵

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 2d

This sounds so fun: Create an oracle to get creatively “unstuck” and build more meaningful patterns in @sarahkokernot.bsky.social's @storystudiochicago.bsky.social class… One class, in person, starts October 29!
www.storystudiochicago.org/classes/clas...

Genre Series: The Answer Is Already Here: Make Your Own Writing Oracle with Sarah Kokernot - StoryStudio Chicago

In this class, we'll explore the oracles of inquiry, collage, and bibliomancy to gather inspiration for new ideas, get "unstuck” on creative projects, build more meaningful patterns in your work, and ...

www.storystudiochicago.org

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 5d

It's essential to record ICE violence when we see it. It's often useful to post it.
We do NOT want to stoke these guys' egos by making them look tough.
So couldn't we, like, give them dumb bunny ears in the videos? Or put words over their photos like "Daddy issues" and "teenie peenie"?
Both?

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 6d

Haunt your readers in time for Halloween in @ruthjoffre.bsky.social's @storystudiochicago.bsky.social class… One class, Zoom, starts October 16!
www.storystudiochicago.org/classes/clas...

Genre Series: How to Build a Haunted House with Ruth Joffre - StoryStudio Chicago

Welcome, architects of the weird! Are you ready to haunt your readers? This class will give you all the tools you need to build a haunted house from the ground up.

www.storystudiochicago.org

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 6d

If your book’s almost done, learn how to revise and where to submit in @bess-winter.bsky.social's @storystudiochicago.bsky.social class… Four classes, Zoom, starts October 30!
www.storystudiochicago.org/classes/clas...

The Last Ten Percent: Revision and Submission Intensive with Bess Winter - StoryStudio Chicago

This four-week online course, intended for intermediate to advanced fiction writers who are seeking their first publications, focuses on that last ten percent of short story writing: revision and subm...

www.storystudiochicago.org

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 7d

You know your story, but how do you tell it? Take Lane Regan’s @storystudiochicago.bsky.social class and learn to write your memoir… Five classes, Zoom, starts October 30!
www.storystudiochicago.org/classes/clas...

Memoir Foundations with Lane Regan (Fall 2025) - StoryStudio Chicago

You know your story, so how do you tell it? How do you even begin to write it? Where does it start and how does it end? What is the story and who are you and why do you want to tell it? In this course...

www.storystudiochicago.org

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Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 7d

I like this one!

Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 7d

I can't do that! Because there are devices in my house that take one random type of plug and if I throw away the one I have, there's no way to identify and get the charger I need!

Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai.bsky.social · 7d

Like I keep hoping someone out there makes a cube with every different kind of outlet where you can plug your plugs in and it'll tell you what kind they are. Like a charger identifier.