Accelerated Paces

Dodging down back-alleys in bomb-torn Beirut. Wheeling past God and traffic in Mombassa, Kenya. Slipping around the edges of Alzheimer''s disease, the Gulf War, and the eternity of CNN. Set somewhere between here and the heat-death of the universe, Jim Oaten''s debut collection serves up random samples of literal and literary truth scooped up at top speed. Whether peeking out from the backseat of Mom and Dad''s car or surveying the grimy wings of mental wards, ''Accelerated Paces'' hurdlesthat uneasy terrain between creative fact and honest fiction. These short stories and pieces ignore borders as they jaunt thorough external trips and internal voyages. This is both creative non-fiction and creative fiction, which follows the idea of crossing boundaries and blurring borders. This collection is an explicit demonstration of how the two genres interplay, of how a non-fiction event can inspire a fictional piece, and, interestingly enough, the reverse as well. Stamp your passport, andstep on the edge. Buy a ticket, and take the ride. "Whether it is a description of role-playing a cat in a mental health centre, careering through the streets of Mombasa in a taxi, or even attedning a Robert McKee story seminar, Oaten''s writing constantly teeters on the blissed-out edge of chaos." - Quill & Quire