25 Comments
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Ben Wakeman's avatar

I’m excited for this one.

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Chloe Hope's avatar

Same

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Adam Nathan's avatar

Thanks, Ben. This one’s a little different, although it shares the same DNA.

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Rona Maynard's avatar

I don’t know what a knuckleball is, and it doesn’t matter. This is pure delight, full of twinkly turns of phrase that seem effortless because they feel more like living than writing.

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Holly Starley's avatar

I had a similar reaction :)

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Kathleen Clare Waller's avatar

This is brill, Adam. Love the concept of the personified yips! I started in the middle and can now go back to catch up...

So many good stories in baseball. I like the way you use this as your medium. Auster does this sometimes. King as well maybe? Any other inspiration or just your observation?

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Adam Nathan's avatar

More.... baseball always struck me as a game as much as a sport. And there's too much time to think about everything and get yourself wound around the axle. I love that and watching players under that pressure.

Okay, I need to get back to story #12!

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Kathleen Clare Waller's avatar

I love it for that reason, too. I miss it abroad...hard to keep up with baseball in Europe. But we're moving to Japan in the summer and can't wait to head to the park and support our local through this gaze you speak of.

Good luck with the writing today!

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Adam Nathan's avatar

Three last things.

One I so envy you getting to live in Japan. I have three bucket list travels. Ireland, India and Japan.

Two, apparently the greatest. player in the history of baseball by every measure is currently playing in Japan.

Three, see Shōgun on Hulu if you can. I watched it for four hours yesterday! it's one of my favorite books ever The storytelling is insanely good, and this series is doing complete justice to it. It never does plotwise what you think — and it looks more like Canada where it was shot than Japan, the sets still make me long for your time there.

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Kathleen Clare Waller's avatar

1. Let me know when you visit.

2. I've heard this; I'm completely behind on baseball latest but even my Brit hubby knew this about the Japanese player. Legend-making.

3. Great rec, will do.

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Adam Nathan's avatar

Thanks so much, Kathleen! I think sooner or later everyone ends up with a baseball story. For me it was a single image of a sassy, talentless kid backing up a Little League coach and mocking him until the coach struggled himself to simply hit the ball to the other kids that started this adventure. That the kid had to keep running to the backstop and it didn't phase him a bit was the fish pulling on my hook. 🎣

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Lor's avatar

“Afterwards, thousands of workers lined up to kiss the Beetle’s hood ornament goodbye. It was a birth then a funeral.” Ooh, maybe ‘the yips’ is a contagion, picked up when everyone kissed the Beetle, then mutated . Well, I would not be at all surprised. Here in VT, there are many Beetles put out to pasture in the farm fields, some ,in groups of three or more, looking quite suspicious.

So many great sentences, Adam. This one is my favorite ;

“Reginald Perry’s first pitch was a bee pulling out her landing gear and dropping inside a tulip.”

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Adam Nathan's avatar

If you have pictures of those forlorn Bugs, I’d love to see them!

There’s some story DNA in that first paragraph. 🤐

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Kimberly Warner's avatar

Is there such a person as a yip exorcist?

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Adam Nathan's avatar

yes and no. but you have a few pages until we get to the exorcism itself.

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Ricardo Alberto's avatar

Oh, God! I hope I never get the yips.

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Adam Nathan's avatar

Don't read any further!!! 😄

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Adam Nathan's avatar

Soundtrack. Another problem to check off the todo list.

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Chloe Hope's avatar

Good lord, the yips sound absolutely terrifying!

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Holly Starley's avatar

Right?! When it came to the part about how knowing would more likely bring them on, I had to brave on.

Adam, can they transfer to other skills? 🫨

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Adam Nathan's avatar

You already have them.

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Julie Gabrielli's avatar

Brilliant! So happy it’s spring break and I can finally catch up.

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E.T. Allen's avatar

Yippie!

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Lor's avatar

Re: photos, check your DM.🧐

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