Tom McAllister 's avatar

Tom McAllister

@tmcallister.bsky.social

470 followers 205 following 1154 posts

Author of novels HOW TO BE SAFE and THE YOUNG WIDOWER'S HANDBOOK. New book of essays coming from Rose Metal Press in Spring 2025. Co-host of Book Fight! podcast. Barrelhouse NF Editor. Basically an ok guy, according to some

Tom.mcallister.ws

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

I love that the only way to get people to talk about a new book is to have competing takedowns to drive "discourse" between thousands of bozos who read a maximum of 1 book a year

0 replies 0 reposts 3 likes

Reposted by Tom McAllister

Mike Meginnis's avatar Mike Meginnis @mikemeginnis.bsky.social
[ View ]

This podcast was a really fun conversation for me to record. I talked with my colleague Nataša Ďurovičová, who recently retired after 22 years at the International Writing Program, about her life and career, as well as some fascinating history in the realms of cinema, translation, and writing.

1 replies 1 reposts 1 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

Hard to believe that there are people post-Bush still trying to do Daily Show style gotchas on "hypocrisy." They don't care! They have never cared!

1 replies 0 reposts 18 likes

Reposted by Tom McAllister

J. Robert Lennon's avatar J. Robert Lennon @jrobertlennon.com
[ View ]

In today's newsletter, I talk about artworks everyone assumes mean the opposite of the thing they do, why you can't roll up the sleeves of your unstructured jacket anymore, why we all Just Said Drugs, and how to make a viral hit for grindset bros. Subscribe, it's free!

0 replies 3 reposts 1 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

Just tucked away in the middle pages of a very old South Jersey Courier-Post-- all digitized thanks to the local library system!

1 replies 0 reposts 1 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

People are absolutely on top of the identity of Big Suit Man

0 replies 1 reposts 3 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

about 80% of my personality is pointing at stuff and going "look at this weird thing." I assume people love it

0 replies 0 reposts 9 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

oh yeah if I saw that posted on here I'd be clicking it immediately

0 replies 0 reposts 0 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

Have to admire her commitment to the bit

1 replies 0 reposts 5 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

Boop Doop Girl in the front row, scowling

1 replies 0 reposts 19 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

Have to see just how big this suit is

2 replies 0 reposts 7 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

had to have been the highlight of their day

0 replies 0 reposts 4 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

Waiting on Ashley Feinberg to write a detailed explainer of the Boop-Doop girl

1 replies 1 reposts 48 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

this newspaper headline is the 1930 version of encountering an incomprehensible trending story about some Twitch streamer with 4 million followers

37 replies 438 reposts 1657 likes

Reposted by Tom McAllister

ex-Lethality Jane's avatar ex-Lethality Jane @lethalityjane.bsky.social
[ View ]

Fuck all your doomposting. No one who has ever accomplished anything did it by giving up and whining that there was nothing to do, the bad guys won and we are all doomed. Defeatism is death.

28 replies 176 reposts 807 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

We've had so many faculty meetings about how to bring AI into the classroom, and I don't think anyone has ever made a compelling case, besides (maybe) "they're going to use it anyway [shrug]"

0 replies 0 reposts 1 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

If I were Donald Trump’s heart, I would simply give myself a well deserved break

0 replies 0 reposts 8 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

Yeah we're trying to take advantage while they still exist. Also got a heat pump installed last year via a no interest 8 year loan from PSEG

0 replies 0 reposts 0 likes

Reposted by Tom McAllister

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

Our house isn't perfect for it, because there are two huge oaks in neighboring yards, but fortunately we're still able to get good enough coverage to be worth it (and if one of those oaks goes down, then we're really at capacity)

1 replies 0 reposts 0 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

Getting solar installed soon. The sales rep is walking me through the process. "The only problem," he says, "Is sometimes you get an inspector who's a real butthole. You know, like when someone's just a huge butthole? If the guy's a butthole, then it might take twice as long."

4 replies 0 reposts 13 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

For sure, they probably gave him the flags as a graduation present

0 replies 0 reposts 0 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

like sure people generally are predisposed to love their kids, but that doesn't mean they have to LIKE them

0 replies 0 reposts 5 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

got an 18 year old dork driving up and down the main street in town with two giant "TAKE AMERICA BACK" Trump flags attached to the back of the behemoth $80,000 truck his parents have either bought him or let him borrow, and I'm just thinking about how sad it would be to be a parent to such a person

2 replies 0 reposts 10 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

I teach college level creative writing, and so many young writers have grown up with TV Tropes (and discussion of same on Tumblr, etc) that it has entirely changed the way they think about narrative (mostly in bad ways, imo)

0 replies 0 reposts 1 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

if you or a loved one have written a brilliant braided essay, this post is not about you, it's about all the other ones

0 replies 0 reposts 2 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

Prepping for a new (to me) MFA course in personal essay, have been reading 100s of essays the past few months; remarkable to see how up until 2012 or so, 90% of essays just pursued long, complex thoughts in contiguous paragraphs. Since then, it's all braiding & white space & suggestions of meaning

2 replies 0 reposts 4 likes

Reposted by Tom McAllister

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

I just realized it says "rewatched" here but I stand by my comment

2 replies 0 reposts 1 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

When you watch a classic old movie everybody loves and it's actually as good as they say? A true gift, nothing better

1 replies 1 reposts 4 likes

Reposted by Tom McAllister

John Cotter's avatar John Cotter @johncotter.bsky.social
[ View ]

I seem to have won the Colorado Book Award in Creative Nonfiction. I am genuinely surprised by this. From my publisher's insta:

8 replies 8 reposts 48 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

Watching people you've known for years grow and change and embrace whole new worlds within themselves? Hate it, do not recommend. Everyone should stay the same

0 replies 0 reposts 7 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

Obviously also I am embarrassed that my former (longtime) employer is hosting this bullshit event for a bullshit person

1 replies 0 reposts 0 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

do have to admit the man has an incredible gift for being a wrestling heel; Rick Rude at his peak couldn't do it so easily

1 replies 0 reposts 1 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

hate to say it but if people weren't rushing the stage and cramming this shithead inside a garbage can immediately, Philly has gone soft

1 replies 0 reposts 4 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

no reason not to give it the old George Lucas treatment and go back and update all these jokes imo

0 replies 0 reposts 3 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

does Steve Carlton still live in an insane bunker in the mountains, or was that just a 70s thing

1 replies 0 reposts 0 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

with a friend, also a teacher, at a big gathering, end up in a conversation with a stranger who's pretty drunk. Eventually the guy starts going on about how noble the teaching profession is, which whatever. "Teachers," he says, "Are the real fucking heroes." Sips his beer. "Except for my parents."

1 replies 0 reposts 4 likes

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

I love that every year every team has to enter a contest to make the worst possible new jersey

0 replies 0 reposts 0 likes

Reposted by Tom McAllister

Reposted by Tom McAllister

Tom McAllister 's avatar Tom McAllister @tmcallister.bsky.social
[ View ]

every chapter titled Tom McAllister

0 replies 0 reposts 3 likes