From Harper’s Weekly Review:
In Oregon, the trial of Nancy Crampton Brophy, a woman charged with murdering her husband after self-publishing an essay titled “How to Murder Your Husband,” began.
Years ago, when I lived in an old building with no insulation, I had an upstairs neighbor who was psychotic and made a shocking amount of noise during his more hostile breaks. Before things quieted down — he was removed from the apartment in a straight-jacket — I wrote a short story plotting a wild variety of modi. It’s called, “I’m Going To Kill My Neighbor.”
I didn’t kill him. Which is why I’m sitting here at my computer on a bright, sunny New York day, telling you about this, instead of teaching a course in satirical writing at Bedford Hills.