Dr. Mark Axelrod

Dr. Mark Axelrod

Professor, Director, John Fowles Center for Creative Writing
Wang-Fradkin Professorship in Scholarly Excellence (2012-2014)
Editor, Mantissa: Journal of the John Fowles Center; 2018, Member, European Academy of Sciences and Arts and Fulbright Specialist
Wilkinson College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences; Department of English
Office Location: Smith Hall 08G
Office Hours: M/W 10 am.-1 p.m. and by appt.
Phone: (714) 997-6586
Website: http://www.axelrod.com.ar/
Scholarly Works:
Digital Commons
Education:
Indiana University Bloomington, Bachelor of Arts
Indiana University Bloomington, Master of Arts
University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, Ph.D.

Biography

Mark Axelrod is a graduate of both Indiana University and the University of Minnesota.  He has been the Director of the John Fowles Center for Creative Writing for which he has received five National Endowment forcollage of Axelrod's book covers the Arts Grants.  He has received numerous writing awards including two United Kingdom Leverhulme Fellowships for Creative Writing as well as screenwriting awards from the Sundance Institute, the WGA East, and the Nicholl Fellowship.  He recently received awards from the Irvine International Film Festival, the Chicago International Film Festival and the Illinois International Film Festival for his screenplays.

He has published four novels, Capital Castles (Pacific Writers Press), Cloud Castles (Pacific Writers Press), Cardboard Castles (Pacific Writers Press), Bombay California (Pacific Writers Press), and has recently completed a novel in three books titled, The Posthumous Memoirs of Blase Kubash. He has also written several collections of short stories, including Dante's Foil & Other Sporting Tales, (Black Scat Press), Borges' Travel, Hemingway's Garage (Fiction Collective 2) which was translated into Spanish.

He has published four books on screenwriting, Aspects of the Screenplay (Heinemann), Character & Conflict: Cornerstones of Screenwriting (Heinemann), , I Read It At The Movies (Heinemann) and his latest book, Constructing Dialogue (Bloomsbury). He is a regular reviewer for The Review of Contemporary Fiction, the Times Literary Supplement, and has a blog on the HuffingtonPost.  He has been published in numerous journals in the United States and Europe, including the Iowa Review and the New York Quarterly and his collected works run to 125 volumes.

He is the recipient of two Fulbright Awards which have enabled him to teach in Brazil and Sweden.

Selected Book Publications

  • Dante’s Foil & Other Sporting Tales (short stories) Black Scat Publishing (2015)
  • Golden Handcuffs Review, Fall 2014; Vol. 1, No. 19
  • No Symbols Where None Intended: Literary Essays from Laclos to Beckett (Literary essays), Palgrave Macmillan (2014)
  • Waiting for Godeau (translation of Balzac’s, Mercadet), Black Scat Publishing (2013)
  • NEXT THING: ART IN THE 21ST CENTURY—Ed. Pablo Baler, Farleigh Dickinson University, Contributor (2013)
  • CONSTRUCTING DIALOGUE: FROM CITIZEN KANE TO MIDNIGHT IN PARIS, Continuum Press, New York (2013)
  • Borges' Viajes Hemingway's Talleres (short stories), Editorial Thule, Barcelona, Spain (2009).
  • I Read it at the Movies (screenwriting/adaptation) Heinemann Publishing (2006).

 

Selected Film Work

  • “Stayin Alive” Original Screenplay, Cuckoo Clock Productions, Hamburg, Germany
  • “Fool’s Sanctuary” Adaptation of the novel by Jennifer Johnston, Kettledrum Productions, Los Angeles

Recent Creative, Scholarly Work and Publications

THE POETICS OF SCANDINAVIAN LITERATURE: LITERARY ESSAYS FROM STRINDBERG TO BERGMAN (Literary Criticism, Palgrave Macmillan, proposal accepted 2023, publication TBD)
ADAPTATION SCANDINAVIAN STYLE: FILM ADAPTATION FROM HAMSUN TO DINESEN (Film criticism, Bloomsbury, proposal accepted 2023, publication TBD)
MALARKEY, LOST AMONG THE ROMANS (Novel, Begun 2023)
MALARKEY, LOST AMONG THE GREEKS (Novel, Completed 2023)
MALARKEY, LOST AMONG THE ARGENTINES (Novel completed, Summer 2023)
MALARKEY, LOST AMONG THE PARISIANS (Novel, rvsd. Summer 2023)
MAD DIARY OF MALCOLM MALARKEY (Novel, Dalkey Archive Press, Published, January 2023 LINK:https://dalkeyarchive.store/products/mad-diary-of-malcolm-malarkey?_pos=1&_sid=69882ea9f&_ss=r)
CARDBOARD CASTLES (Novel, translated and published by Old Lion Publishing, Kiev, Ukraine, December 2023) LINK: https://starylev.com.ua/about-us
THIS IS NOT A SCREENPLAY (Novella, Completed 2023)
MALARKEY, LOST AMONG THE FLORENTINES (Novella, Completed winter, 2023) (Submitted to Rizzoli Editore, Milan and Arkadia Editore, Cagliari for possible translation and publication, Spring 2023)
DIYALOG YAZMA SANATI (Film studies, CONSTRUCTING DIALOGUE originally published by Bloomsbury UK, translated and published by Küsurat Publishing, Istanbul, Turkey, Summer 2021) LINK: https://www.kitapyurdu.com/kitap/diyalog-yazma-sanati/595628.html
READER’S BLOCK (Essay on David Markson, University of Miami (FLA) & Dalkey Archive Press, 2023 TBD)
BOOK REVIEW. FORGOTTEN NIGHT BY REBECCA GOODMAN, (World Literature Today, July 2023 issue) LINK:https://www.worldliteraturetoday.org/2023/july/forgotten-night-rebecca-goodman
MALARKEY (Screenplay, Rvsd. 2022, optioned to Viereck Productions, Santiago, Chile & Los Angeles) LINK: Contact: Viereck, VdeB Films, (56) 2 224 9643 or 242 5395 e-mail: eviereck@hotmail.com
MALARKEY, LOST AMONG THE FLORENTINES (Script, Completed winter, 2023)
GENEVA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Short List Best Feature Screenplay, This is not a screenplay) LINK: https://geneva-film-festival.site GIL (SPAIN) INTERNATIONAL SCREENWRITING AWARDS (Short List Best Feature Screenplay, Sherman Oaks, Argentina) LINK: https://gil-international-screenwriting-awards.webnode.es) ITALIAN CULTURAL CAPITAL FESTIVAL (Honorable Mention Best Feature Screenplay, Malarkey, Lost Among the Florentines, 2023) LINK: https://filmfreeway.com/italianculturalcapitalfestival POLISH INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Short List Best Feature Screenplay, Of Gold and Ashes, 2023) LINK: https://festiival.info GENEVA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Short List Best Feature Screenplay, Malarkey, Lost Among the Florentines, 2023) LINK: https://geneva-film-festival.site BRAZIL INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Short List Best Feature Screenplay, Women Of A Certain Age, 2023) LINK: https://www.filmfestivalsgroup.com/brazil PARIS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Winner Best Feature Screenplay, This is Not a Screenplay, 2023) LINK: https://www.parisintlfest.com GERMANY INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL--BERLIN (Honorable Mention, Best Screenplay, Of Gold and Ashes, 2023) LINK: https://www.filmfestivalsgroup.com LONDON INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Honorable Mention, Best Screenplay, Napoleon Awakening, 2023) LINK: https://www.filmfestivalsgroup.com/london ONYKO FILM AWARDS--ODESA, UKRAINE (Finalist, Best Screenplay, Of Gold & Ashes, 2023) LINK: https://onykofilmsawards.com BERLIN INTERNATIONAL SCREENWRITING FESTIVAL (Short List, Best Screenplay, This is Not a Screenplay, 2023) LINK: https://www.berlinscriptfestival.com GENEVE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (Short List, Best Screenplay, Malarkey, Lost Among the Florentines, 2023) LINK: http://jeneve-awards.org BRITISH INDIE FESTIVAL FILM & MUSIC (Short List, Best Screenplay, This is Not a Screenplay, 2023)
WAITING FOR CHATGBT (Proposal submitted to Atlantic Magazine, Sept 2023) MYTH & RITUAL IN AMERICAN FOOTBALL (Proposal submitted to Atlantic Magazine, Sept 2023)
WAITING FOR BECKETT (One-act play, 2022-2023; Being considered for possible future production at Arena Stage, Washington, D.C.)
Finished Part II, of the novel, MALARKEY'S WAY; or, LIFE AND DEATH IN THE TIME OF COVID.
Published the book, ANATHEMAS AND ADMIRATIONS, MEMOIR
WOMEN OF A CERTAIN AGE (NOVEL)
BECKETT'S BAR, PUSHKIN'S VODKA (SHORT STORIES, VOL III SECRET HISTORIES)
Continued writing Part III of MALARKEY'S WAY; or, LIFE AND DEATH IN THE TIME OF COVID
FESTSCHRIFT FOR DAVID MARKSON (CHAPTER ON THIS IS NOT A NOVEL) PUBLISHED BY DEEP VELLUM PRESS
A Life Devoted to Writing: Festschrift in Honor of Dacia Maraini ConSenso publishing & De Rada Italian Institute
UNTHEORIES OF FICTION: ESSAYS FROM DIDEROT TO DAVID MARKSON Palgrave Publishing Fall 2020
BECKETT’S BAR, PUSHKIN’S VODKA (Short stories, Verbivoracious Press 2020 TBA)
ADMIRATIONS & ANATHEMAS (Memoir, Verbivoracious Press, TBA, 2020)
MALARKEY’S WAY OR LIFE IN THE TIME OF COVID, VOL. III (Novel, In Progress)
CAFÉ NIETZSCHE, AXEL’S CHARHOUSE VOL. IV (Short stories, 2020)
THE MAD DIARY OF MALCOLM MALARKEY (Dalkey Archive Press, TBA)
THE FALL & RISE OF MALCOLM MALARKEY, NOVEL VOL II 2020
BREAKING NEWS! POLITICAL SATIRE IN THE ERA OF THE TRUMP REGIME (2020)
PARIS MATCH (NOVELLA 2020)
VOYAGE AROUND MY ROOM (TRANSLATION 2020)
Finished Part I of the novel, MALARKEY'S WAY; or, LIFE AND DEATH IN THE TIME OF COVID.
Publication of the book, UNTHEORIES OF FICTION, by Palgrave-Macmillan.
BLACK HUMOR (Loneliness of the Long-Distance Sniffer, Black Scat Books)
BEDTIME NONSENSE (Café Cortázar, Café Gorki Park, Black Scat Books)
WORLD LITERATURE TODAY (September 2020)
MOONLIGHT ON THE WABASH (SCREENPLAY; Submitted to Sundance)
THE REAL HOUSEWIVES OF SCANDINAVIA (One-Act play, In Progress)
UNTHEORIES OF FICTION: LITERARY ESSAYS FROM DIDEROT TO DAVID MARKSON (Literary Criticism, Anthem Publishing, NO DATE SET)
NOTIONS OF OTHERNESS: LITERARY ESSAYS FROM ABRAHAM CAHAN TO DACIA MARAINI (Literary Criticism, Anthem Publishing, Spring 2019)
POSTHUMOUS MEMOIRS OF A LIVING WRITER, (Non-fiction, Verbivoracious Press, NO DATE SET)
A UKRAINIAN ODYSSEY (Novel/memoir, In Progress)
BECKETT’S BAR, PUSHKIN’S VODKA VOL. III (Short stories, Verbivoracious Press, NO DATE SET)
WOMEN OF A CERTAIN AGE (Screenplay, In Progress)
BEST OF LE SCAT NOIR (Fiction, Black Scat Press, February 2019).
GOLDEN HANDCUFFS REVIEW (excerpts from novel, MALARKEY, Summer 2019)
THE FALL & RISE OF MALCOLM MALARKEY: PART II (Novel, IN PROGRESS).
PROOST’S GROCERY & OTHER FICTIONS
2019 MADNESS IN FICTION: Literary Essays from Poe to John Fowles (Palgrave Macmillan)
LIE LIKE TRUMP (Satire, Under Marco Ejevarilla, Boffo Press, December, 2018)
DARWIN’S GHOSTS. Ariel Dorfman. Book Review, Los Angeles Times,
FOR ISABEL: A MANDALA. Antonio Tabucchi. Book Review, Dalkey Archive
LATIN AMERICAN LITERATURE (Literary essays, Jorge Luis Borges & Clarice Lispector), Karavan Magazine, Stockholm
LITERATURE TODAY: VOL 8 “Homage to an Immigrant Mother” (December 28, 2018)
WOMEN OF A CERTAIN AGE (NOVEL & SCREENPLAY IN PROGRESS)
SUPERMAN IN AMERICA & Other Absurd Plays, Black Scat Press, February, 2017
BALZAC’S COFFEE, DAVINCI’S RISTORANTE, Verbivoracious Press, June, 2017.
ADMIRATIONS & ANATHEMAS: POSTHUMOUS MEMOIRS OF A LIVING WRITER (IN PROGRESS)
“The Trump Tweets.” Le Scat Noir, Black Scat Press, #227 September, 2017.
Anathemas & Admirations: Posthumous Memoirs of a Living Author (essays, 2016)
Mad Diary of Malcolm Malarkey (novel, 2016)
FOR MADMEN ONLY: LITERARY ESSAYS FROM POE TO FOWLES (PALGRAVE) (IN PROGRESS)
POETICS OF PROSE: LITERARY ESSAYS FROM LERMONTOV TO CALVINO (PALGRAVE, release date, Fall, 2016)
WAITING FOR GODEAU, Translation of Balzac’S MERCADET (BLACK SCAT PRESS, reissue, July, 2016)
Pedestrian Writings 2015-2016
Balzac's Coffee, DaVinci's Ristorante (short stories)
POETICS OF PROSE: LITERARY ESSAYS FROM LERMONTOV TO CALVINO, Palgrave, Macmillan
Verklempt by Peter Sichrovsky (Book Review, Times Literary Supplement, September, 2016)
Literary Licenses, Exhibition of Graphic Work, Center for the Study of Political Graphics, (July, 2016)
Center for the Study of Political Graphics, Los Angeles, CA
Museum of Latin American Art, Long Beach, CA
Exhibition of Graphic Work, Museum of Latin American Art, (May, 2016)
Malarkey (Feature Film screenplay in pre-production, 2016)
“BLIND DATE,” Short Film Adaptation based on the short story of the same name by Pablo Baler (JULY, 2016)
Journal of Experimental Fiction (summer, 2016)
Eleven-Eleven: Journal of Literature & Art, Winter online issue #20 (January, 2016).
Se Una Notte D’Inverno un Viaggiatore, Italo Calvino (Revista Xenia, Genoa, Summer, 2016)
Deconstructing Donnie (Revista, Nuovi Argomenti, Mondadori, Rome, July, 2016)
Huffington Post.Com (multiple publications, 2016)
BIG THOUGHTS ARE FREE: MILAN PANIC:THE LITTLE IMMIGRANT FROM SERBIA, Authorized Biography, Peter Lang Publishing, New York.
NOTIONS OF THE FEMININE, Palgrave Macmillan, New York.
MALARKEY Original Screenplay
LITERATURE TODAY VOL. 3, Jun 20
BLACK SCAT REVIEW #11, San Francisco, CA.
TWO THIRDS NORTH, Cinnamon Press, University of Stockholm, Stockholm SW
CONTRIBUTOR, HUFFINGTON POST 2009-Present
NO SYMBOLS WHERE NONE INTENDED, Palgrave Macmillan, New York.
WAITING FOR GODEAU, Translation of Balzac's MERCADET, Black Scat Press, San Francisco.
CONSTRUCTING DIALOGUE, Screenwriting text, Continuum Publishing
FOOL'S SANCTUARY, Screenplay treatment, Kettledrum Productions, Los Angeles
GOLDEN HANDCUFFS REVIEW Winter–Fall, 2014; vol. 1, no. 19
JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL FICTION, JEF Books, Geneva, Illinois
BLACK SCAT REVIEW #9, San Francisco, CA.
STOCKHOLM REVIEW OF LITERATURE, http://thestockholmreview.org/ (September, 2014)

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