John Counts
@johncounts138.bsky.social
Investigations editor for MLive. Punk rock crooner. Writer. BEAR COUNTY, MICHIGAN, Northwestern University Press. Book riffage at https://jcounts.substack.com
Wild characters/wild events ... A recent interview I did in @hypertextmagazine.bsky.social ....
www.hypertextmag.com/creating-wil...
www.hypertextmag.com/creating-wil...
Creating Wild Characters and Events: An Interview With John Counts - Hypertext Magazine
I grew up reading William Faulkner and Flannery O’Connor, who filled their places with wild characters and events. It made me want to create a place and fill it with wild characters and events, too. I...
www.hypertextmag.com
June 23, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Wild characters/wild events ... A recent interview I did in @hypertextmagazine.bsky.social ....
www.hypertextmag.com/creating-wil...
www.hypertextmag.com/creating-wil...
"The book capture small town life in the Great Lakes - the characters, their challenges, and the absurdity of it all. At times funny, sad, and touching." ❤️🐻
I just finished Bear County, Michigan - a wonderful collection of short stories by @johncounts138.bsky.social. The book capture small town life in the Great Lakes - the characters, their challenges, and the absurdity of it all. At times funny, sad, and touching. I very much enjoyed it.
May 8, 2025 at 1:52 PM
"The book capture small town life in the Great Lakes - the characters, their challenges, and the absurdity of it all. At times funny, sad, and touching." ❤️🐻
All songs are little stories. And short stories share a musicality of language. I talk here a little about the album I wrote based on my book Bear County, Michigan. jcounts.substack.com/p/i-wrote-an...
I wrote an original soundtrack to my short story collection, 'Bear County, Michigan.'
On music and stories
jcounts.substack.com
April 18, 2025 at 4:15 PM
All songs are little stories. And short stories share a musicality of language. I talk here a little about the album I wrote based on my book Bear County, Michigan. jcounts.substack.com/p/i-wrote-an...
To achieve Rimbaud's “ derangement of all the senses" -- sometimes it means LSD. Sometimes it means getting the mumps. Here's what I've been reading for riffage:
jcounts.substack.com/p/we-were-al...
jcounts.substack.com/p/we-were-al...
We were all 'Just Kids' like Patti Smith at some point
On the derangement of the senses
jcounts.substack.com
March 18, 2025 at 2:09 AM
To achieve Rimbaud's “ derangement of all the senses" -- sometimes it means LSD. Sometimes it means getting the mumps. Here's what I've been reading for riffage:
jcounts.substack.com/p/we-were-al...
jcounts.substack.com/p/we-were-al...
Looking ahead to some BEAR COUNTY events -- next up is at Road Less Travelled Books in Farmington, Mich.
March 2, 2025 at 5:27 PM
Looking ahead to some BEAR COUNTY events -- next up is at Road Less Travelled Books in Farmington, Mich.
City Pulse in Lansing says: John Counts’ new book, “Bear County, Michigan: Stories,” grabs you by the throat and shakes you with the collection of interconnected short stories. www.lansingcitypulse.com/stories/mich...
Michigan police reporter turns stories into darkly comic fiction - City Pulse
Before “rural noir” became a popular literary term, there were writers like Flannery O’Connor,
www.lansingcitypulse.com
February 26, 2025 at 2:05 PM
City Pulse in Lansing says: John Counts’ new book, “Bear County, Michigan: Stories,” grabs you by the throat and shakes you with the collection of interconnected short stories. www.lansingcitypulse.com/stories/mich...
I've been with @mlive.com for almost thirteen years now. They've been incredibly supportive as I've released my first book of short stories BEAR COUNTY, MICHIGAN. They were kind enough to run this interview with me: www.mlive.com/news/ann-arb...
Letter from the Editor: Fact, fiction, journalism and ‘truth’ – our editor’s new book reflects a fascinating journey
John Counts' 'Bear County, Michigan' goes to deep, dark places. Some are torn from the headlines.
www.mlive.com
February 21, 2025 at 3:58 PM
I've been with @mlive.com for almost thirteen years now. They've been incredibly supportive as I've released my first book of short stories BEAR COUNTY, MICHIGAN. They were kind enough to run this interview with me: www.mlive.com/news/ann-arb...
Reposted by John Counts
An exciting morning! @johncounts138.bsky.social was up in Cadillac, being interviewed about his new collection of short stories, BEAR COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
www.9and10news.com/2025/02/20/g...
www.9and10news.com/2025/02/20/g...
Good Day Northern Michigan, Thursday, Feb. 20
Check out featured local stories from Good Day Northern Michigan's Thursday, Feb. 20 edition.
www.9and10news.com
February 20, 2025 at 6:05 PM
An exciting morning! @johncounts138.bsky.social was up in Cadillac, being interviewed about his new collection of short stories, BEAR COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
www.9and10news.com/2025/02/20/g...
www.9and10news.com/2025/02/20/g...
I had the chance to talk to @rsdeeren.bsky.social about the journalism-fiction intersection, Michigan lit and other cool stuff.
"There is nothing simple about small-town life."
@rsdeeren.bsky.social talks with @johncounts138.bsky.social about his debut collection "Bear County, Michigan" @nupress.bsky.social
@rsdeeren.bsky.social talks with @johncounts138.bsky.social about his debut collection "Bear County, Michigan" @nupress.bsky.social
Away From the "Centers of Ambition": An Interview with John Counts on "Bear County, Michigan" - Chicago Review of Books
In his debut short story collection, Bear County, Michigan, investigative journalist John Counts gives his readers the vivid, complicated, and wholly human lives of the residents of Bear County, in…
buff.ly
February 18, 2025 at 7:08 PM
I had the chance to talk to @rsdeeren.bsky.social about the journalism-fiction intersection, Michigan lit and other cool stuff.
BEAR COUNTY, MICHIGAN is out now! Here's an interview I did with Ann Arbor's cool alt weekly, Current magazine: www.ecurrent.com/music/michig...
John Counts’ “Bear County, Michigan”: A Story of Struggle and Hope - Current Magazine
John Counts knows what desperation looks like. As a crime reporter, he’s seen it and heard it firsthand in courtrooms where defendants plead for second chances. But his latest work of fiction, "Bear C...
www.ecurrent.com
February 17, 2025 at 12:55 PM
BEAR COUNTY, MICHIGAN is out now! Here's an interview I did with Ann Arbor's cool alt weekly, Current magazine: www.ecurrent.com/music/michig...
Today we officially release “Bear County, Michigan” into the world. I am celebrating quietly at home alone with five dogs —James, Ivy, Pepper, Charley and Cookie.
February 16, 2025 at 12:51 AM
Today we officially release “Bear County, Michigan” into the world. I am celebrating quietly at home alone with five dogs —James, Ivy, Pepper, Charley and Cookie.
Is it baseball season yet?
February 11, 2025 at 11:29 AM
Is it baseball season yet?
Bear County, Michigan comes out in one week! I did a Q/A with the @detroitnews.bsky.social about it! www.detroitnews.com/story/entert...
Q&A: Journalist and musician John Counts on his new book 'Bear County, Michigan'
The Whitmore Lake-based author also wrote an album to accompany his collection of short stories set in a fictional, rural Michigan town.
www.detroitnews.com
February 9, 2025 at 11:45 AM
Bear County, Michigan comes out in one week! I did a Q/A with the @detroitnews.bsky.social about it! www.detroitnews.com/story/entert...
Proud of the awesome work my investigative team does: www.mlive.com/public-inter...
‘A broken system.’ Mental health patient complaints go nowhere in Michigan
Michigan's mental health complaint system leaves patients and families feeling hopeless and demoralized.
www.mlive.com
February 6, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Proud of the awesome work my investigative team does: www.mlive.com/public-inter...
Reposted by John Counts
A resident in Altadena, California, who had been displaced by the Eaton fire, returned home last week to find a 525-pound black bear still nestled in a crawl space underneath his house. The bear had arrived before the fires, and the destructive conditions had delayed efforts to remove him.
A 525-Pound Bear Found a Crawl Space That Was Jussst Right
An Altadena, Calif., resident came home after being displaced by the Eaton fire to find a large black bear still hanging out underneath his property.
www.nytimes.com
February 4, 2025 at 7:42 PM
A resident in Altadena, California, who had been displaced by the Eaton fire, returned home last week to find a 525-pound black bear still nestled in a crawl space underneath his house. The bear had arrived before the fires, and the destructive conditions had delayed efforts to remove him.
In every movie you’ve ever seen, if there’s a scene in a classroom, it’s always moments before the bell rings.
February 1, 2025 at 8:24 PM
In every movie you’ve ever seen, if there’s a scene in a classroom, it’s always moments before the bell rings.
Reposted by John Counts
We love to see major outlets review books from university presses, and we're particularly thrilled by this look at Elita by Kirsten Lunstrum.
A Pacific Northwest take on Nordic noir, it's the quintessential winter read.
www.washingtonpost.com/books/2025/0...
A Pacific Northwest take on Nordic noir, it's the quintessential winter read.
www.washingtonpost.com/books/2025/0...
January 31, 2025 at 1:22 PM
We love to see major outlets review books from university presses, and we're particularly thrilled by this look at Elita by Kirsten Lunstrum.
A Pacific Northwest take on Nordic noir, it's the quintessential winter read.
www.washingtonpost.com/books/2025/0...
A Pacific Northwest take on Nordic noir, it's the quintessential winter read.
www.washingtonpost.com/books/2025/0...
Pepper thinks she fits in this little bed. #blacklabs
January 31, 2025 at 1:38 PM
Pepper thinks she fits in this little bed. #blacklabs
Reposted by John Counts
Fewer tires in the fire?
Burning spent tires in power plants and paper mills has been a big disposal method in Michigan. But it's waning, and a change in state law only hastened the decline. I took a look the state of the recycling/reuse industry.
www.mlive.com/environment/...
Burning spent tires in power plants and paper mills has been a big disposal method in Michigan. But it's waning, and a change in state law only hastened the decline. I took a look the state of the recycling/reuse industry.
www.mlive.com/environment/...
Michigan abruptly stopped burning millions of old tires. What’s next?
Millions of scrap tires have ended up incinerated at power plants and paper mills. With the practice declining, how will the state keep them out of landfills?
www.mlive.com
January 28, 2025 at 6:33 PM
Fewer tires in the fire?
Burning spent tires in power plants and paper mills has been a big disposal method in Michigan. But it's waning, and a change in state law only hastened the decline. I took a look the state of the recycling/reuse industry.
www.mlive.com/environment/...
Burning spent tires in power plants and paper mills has been a big disposal method in Michigan. But it's waning, and a change in state law only hastened the decline. I took a look the state of the recycling/reuse industry.
www.mlive.com/environment/...
Meet Pepper, who looks like she went 12 rounds with the U.P. backcountry while hunting this past fall. #labs #literature
January 28, 2025 at 9:42 PM
Meet Pepper, who looks like she went 12 rounds with the U.P. backcountry while hunting this past fall. #labs #literature
I'm starting to do interviews for the book. One Q I keep getting is how working in journalism influenced the short stories (it has, of course). I feel like journalism and fiction used to be closer (Mark Twain, Hemingway, Katherine Anne Porter, etc.), but are now very separate worlds.
January 28, 2025 at 12:16 PM
I'm starting to do interviews for the book. One Q I keep getting is how working in journalism influenced the short stories (it has, of course). I feel like journalism and fiction used to be closer (Mark Twain, Hemingway, Katherine Anne Porter, etc.), but are now very separate worlds.
January 27, 2025 at 1:18 PM
Hi. My name is John. I'm new here. I will be posting only about books and black Labs. Thanks. John.
January 27, 2025 at 1:11 PM
Hi. My name is John. I'm new here. I will be posting only about books and black Labs. Thanks. John.
Reposted by John Counts
Exciting week at our house! New book of short stories by @johncounts138.bsky.social has arrived. They’re all set in a fictional version of Up North Michigan.
January 12, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Exciting week at our house! New book of short stories by @johncounts138.bsky.social has arrived. They’re all set in a fictional version of Up North Michigan.