She’s progressive. She’s a hottie. And she is a major Frank Zappa fan, posting little-known clips of the late composer-rocker on her blog each Friday. So what’s not to like about Litbrit, aka Deborah Newell Tornello. The 47-year-old Gator grad started her blogging career as a commenter/contributor to Shakespeare’s Sister, the nationally known progressive outlet. The Ruskin resident was a book writer but found blogging more satisfying. “Blogging is more instant gratification for a writer than sitting down and writing for a year,” Tornillo says. Her day jobs? Full-time mother and advertising director for her husband’s nursery company. She writes about pop culture, politics and feminist perspectives, but her media critic pen is sharp, too. Here’s a taste: “As a self-described word-wonk, I’m always up for the bite of nice, chewy neologisms, but when it comes to using them in writing, I regard them the same way I do a platter of chocolate-chip cookies: indulge in more than one or two and you’re risking that sick-to-the-stomach feeling. When doled out or consumed in ill-considered bulk, that which is fresh and tasty becomes cloying, then stomach-turning. Witty turns to clever-assed, the kissing-cousin of shtick. And so it is with the neologism-choked ‘writing’ of Michelle Malkin.” litbrit.blogspot.com
This article appears in Sep 10-16, 2008.
