words from the inside out

On becoming a label whore

2012-01-31T20:11:00.002-05:00

So I bought my first Coach bag over the weekend.

This is a big deal for me. First, I have never been the kind of girl to want things just because everyone else has them or because they're the cool things to have. Particularly not with clothes or accessories. If I buy trendy things at all, it's usually ages after the trend is truly trendy, when I have been beaten into submission by the overabundance of said item permanently imprinting itself on my consciousness. You know, sort of like how I am finally warming up to Adele's "Rolling in the Deep."

However, I have recently experienced an irrational yearning for... gasp... trendy things. Like Ugg boots. (I bought Bearpaw boots because they're cheaper but still well made and holy jesus are they amazing. Why did I wait?? Like wearing slippers everywhere.) Or a Coach bag.

I do not spend big money on handbags, people. I set my bag down on the floor of restaurants, kick it under tables at weddings, and cram my lunch into it on weekdays. Really, the notion that I would "invest" in a nice handbag is a joke. Also, I carry the same handbag all year round, every year, until it wears out.

So why, you may be asking, did I just spend an absurd amount of money on a Coach bag? I honestly have no idea. I did learn that part of the reason they're so expensive is that they're very well made and come with a lifetime guarantee. But I just keep repeating that to people in order to justify my unholy love of The Precious.

I absolutely adore my new bag. I can't even pretend that I'm not insanely infatuated with it. Which means, I suppose, that it was a worthwhile purchase, considering I bought it at a discount, am 36 years old and have a good job (meaning I can theoretically afford it and, damn it, I'm old enough to buy ridiculous, expensive things for myself).

But I continue to be plagued by the question... who have I become? Why am I fulfilled by a Coach bag?

Disturbing. And yet... I love my bag. So much. Did I mention that?

Revisions Series

2012-01-25T21:44:00.002-05:00

Remember when I was all, "Dudes, you should go check out this Maggie Stiefvater post on revisions right now"? Well, Maggie has turned it into a multi-author series (all starting from this post here). Ten authors post dissections of early and final drafts, explaining why and demonstrating how they shaped their first drafts into the final product. Very, very cool. I highly recommend all you writer-folks check it out.

Logan's ancestry revealed!

2012-01-24T18:07:00.001-05:00

You all know my dog, Logan, right?We adopted him when he was about two years old and I've always been curious about what mix of breeds he is. He's unusual enough looking that even vets tend to stop mid-sentence and go, "What *is* he?"

For xmas, Ben got me a dog DNA kit from this company Wisdom Panel. Basically you swab your dog's mouth, mail the sample off and three weeks later, voila! You get your dog's family tree, back two generations.

I would never have guessed Logan's.

I can definitely see the Italian Greyhound. His body shape mimics the Italian Greyhound's and his head shape is like a more fleshed out version of the Greyhound's. And he does have really crazy fur, which I could attribute to the Lhasa. And he has no concept of stepping *over* things that are on the floor, which I can chalk up to the Lab, assuming my stepmother's Lab is any indication. :) But, really, a Lab mix? Never would have guessed.

The even funnier part, to me, was their analysis on the Mixed Breed component:

To be clear, he is not necessarily all of those breeds but those are listed by strength in terms of how they showed up on the DNA analysis and therefore, by most likely possibility.

A Cane Corso? Really??? They're huge dogs (80-100+ lbs) that are more like mastiffs. Logan is small! Petite! He is pretty fierce, though. Despite his size, my understanding is that he rules the daycare yard (not that dominance is always tied to size, etc.).

Anyway, I thought it was pretty interesting and would definitely recommend the product to anyone who is curious and has $70 to burn.

(Lab ears, maybe?)

*photo credits: TAB Photograpic

This is all I ever wanted from life

2012-01-19T18:54:00.000-05:00

There's a song on Snow Patrol's latest album called Life-ning that lists out things the singer wants from life. For example:

Words of reassurance
But only if they're true
Just some simple kindness
No vengeance from the gods

The chorus is simple: just the line "This is all I ever wanted from life" repeated.

It's a beautiful song and it's been circling my head for the last few days. I started thinking, what would Megan (the main character in TLOS) have written for her verses of this song? And what would the main characters of the book I'm currently working on write?

Understanding what motivates your characters is absolutely essential to writing a good story and crafting good character development. I make sure I understand that at a foundational level before I put any words on the page--like, what does this character want most? What is the thing that drives his/her decisions and actions? But thinking about it in terms of this song and the breadth of desires addressed in its lyrics and what I learned about the singer by listening to them brought it to a whole new level for me.

Writing mini-workshop

2012-01-18T20:34:00.002-05:00

Do you read Maggie Stiefvater's LJ ()? Let's back up: do you read Maggie's books? I highly recommend them. In fact, two of them made my top reads of 2011 post. But anyway, back to Maggie's LJ. She wrote a post showing the first draft of a chapter from THE SCORPIO RACES and then the final draft, commenting on what revisions she made and why. She also comments extensively on the first draft version, explaining why she wrote what she did and giving some transparency into the mechanics of the scene.

Really, really valuable stuff there. Like a mini workshop on writing.You can check it out here, if you're interested. Also, it will give you a taste of THE SCORPIO RACES. :)

Dazzled

2012-01-11T19:49:00.004-05:00

A new Snow Patrol album came out yesterday. I'm a huge Snow Patrol fan and I've been eagerly anticipating this new album. It's pretty good. I haven't been able to give it a good listen yet but I've liked the stuff I've heard so far and I can already tell a couple of the tracks will be added to my Snow Patrol favorites.

But while I was listening to it, I realized that I was so freaking excited about it, so ready for it to be great, that it would have taken more work (so to speak) for the songs to disappoint me than it would for them to make me love them. Snow Patrol has already earned my trust and so now I approach anything they do with open arms, ready to fall in love with it.

I'm like that with books, too. I expect and anticipate that every story--especially those by tried and true beloved authors--will kindle something in me, excite me, make me fall in love with it. Like I'm halfway there before I open the cover.

I don't think I'm alone in this, and I think that's kind of cool. We allow ourselves to be dazzled on a regular basis. I like the idea of all of us fans, us lovers of stories and songs and other works of art, having "embrace this" as our default setting.

Friday Five: Top 5 Reads of 2011 Edition

2012-01-06T20:39:00.001-05:00

Yesterday, I was reviewing my Goodreads page in anticipation of this post and daaaaaaaaaaaamn 2011 was a good year for reading for me! LOTS of books that were rated 4 or 5 stars. For my full list of 2011 books and ratings (and a good number of reviews), please see my Goodreads page. I've highlighted my top 5 (in order) for you below. Title links are to my Goodreads reviews and purchase links are at the end of each.

CHIME by Franny Billingsley (YA fantasy) I gave this book eleven out of five stars and it was definitely my top read of 2011. I read it as an ebook but I put the paper book on my xmas list because I want to read it again (and again and again) and underline all my favorite parts (which will probably be every other word or so). B&N | Amazon | Indiebound

EDINBURGH by Alexander Chee (Literary Fiction)This was my top read of 2011 until I read CHIME. It is one of the most beautifully written, heartbreaking books I have ever experienced. Every sentence is like its own story, every paragraph contains its own heartache. It was a difficult read because it was so emotional, but so very worth it. The kind of book that leaves you feeling forever changed. B&N | Amazon | Indiebound

THE SCORPIO RACES by Maggie Stiefvater (YA)This one kind of snuck up on me. I really enjoyed it while I was reading it, but my love for it has grown in the intervening months since I finished it. I gave away a couple of copies to friends at xmas, actually. It's a beautiful story that's told precisely the way it needed to be. Stiefvater is a master at spare storytelling--leaving her pages uncluttered by extraneous anything (details, scenes, dialogue). And I really, really loved the characters. Just a really gorgeous story. B&N | Amazon | Indiebound

FIRE by Kristin Cashore (YA fantasy)I'd been apprehensive to read this book. I loved GRACELING, the first book in this series, and this one seemed to center around a character from GRACELING whom I didn't care for. Boy, was I wrong! I loved this book ten times more than GRACELING (and that's saying something!) and the focus of the book is on an entirely different set of characters (all of whom I fell in love with), though that particular character from GRACELING does play a significant role. Loved it. B&N | Amazon | Indiebound

THE SHADOW READER by Sandy Williams (Adult Urban Fantasy)I've loved this book from the moment Sandy posted the opening scene on her blog back in the day. In fact, I love it so much, I am TSR's self-proclaimed #1 fan. Sandy's developed a rich, unique world and written a great adventure with a compelling love story. I've read it cover-to-cover about four times now and it's just as good as it was the first time. B&N | Amazon | Indiebound

I had a really hard time narrowing down that fifth book for my top 5 list (so! many! good reads in 2011!) so I'd like to add a couple of Honorable Mentions:

FOREVER by Maggie Stiefvater (paranormal YA romance) -- The conclusion to the Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy was perhaps one of the loveliest books I've read.

WITHER by Lauren DeStefano (dystopian YA) -- Incredible worldbuilding, really unique concept, excellently written characters. An amazing debut. Also, one of my all-time favorite covers.

MATCHED by Ally Condie (dystopian YA romance) -- Again, top notch worldbuilding, unique concept and that gorgeous, spare prose that I'd give my left arm (okay, maybe my pinky toe) to be able to write.

Hello again, my friends

2012-01-05T20:11:00.001-05:00

I have returned from my blog hiatus! I have emerged from the Revisions Cave of Doom(tm)!

I really hated to disappear like that but, due to a variety of converging factors, I had to give something up in my life and tragically, it couldn't have been my day job. ;) But anyway, I'm back! TLOS is once again out in the world, awaiting its fate and I'm gorging myself on some reading while taking a short break before diving back into my new project.

What the heck is new with you? Along with blog posting I also had to (sadly!) give up blog reading while I was on hiatus, so I am completely behind on all the news and views. Please, if you have had momentous news, fill me in!

Okay, I lied. Plus, win a free book!

2011-10-25T07:00:00.001-05:00

I'm being pulled in a lot of different directions right now and I've been feeling tremendously guilty about not updating the blog regularly. So I decided to go on a short blog hiatus and give myself permission to let that one thing go for a bit. However, as evidence of how chaotic things are right now, I completely forgot that today is the release day for... *drum roll*...

HOORAY!! THE SHADOW READER is finally on shelves!!I had the opportunity to read an early version of THE SHADOW READER (back when it was titled FISSURED, in case any of you recognize it by that earlier name) and people, let me tell you: this is a seriously great book. In fact, I've read a few early versions of it and I still can't wait to download it to my Nook and read it again. It's that good.

Here's the description from Sandy's website:

There can only be one allegiance.

It’s her time to choose.

Some humans can see the fae. McKenzie Lewis can track them, readingthe shadows they leave behind. But some shadows lead to danger. Otherslead to lies.

A Houston college student trying to finish her degree, McKenzie hasbeen working for the fae king for years, tracking vicious rebels whowould claim the Realm. Her job isn’t her only secret. For just as long,she’s been in love with Kyol, the king’s sword-master—and relationshipsbetween humans and fae are forbidden.

But any hope for a normal life is shattered when she’s captured byAren, the fierce and uncompromising rebel leader. He teaches her theforbidden fae language and tells her dark truths about the Court, all topersuade her to turn against the king. Time is running out, and as thefight starts to claim human lives, McKenzie has no choice but to decideonce and for all whom to trust and where she ultimately stands in theface of a cataclysmic civil war.

THE SHADOW READER has something for everyone - action, romance, humor. I really can't recommend it enough. It's one of my top reads for 2011.

So! Are you itching for a copy yet?? Leave a comment on this entry letting me know one of your top reads for 2011 (or whatever else you'd like to say) by the end of the day Friday, 10/28, and I'll draw one winner. Open to anyone, anywhere.

Back to my regularly scheduled blog hiatus. ;)

Taking a break

2011-10-24T20:57:00.002-05:00

A week in paradise

2011-10-18T18:21:00.002-05:00

I spent last week at a cottage on Eleuthera, one of the islands of the Bahamas. Eleuthera is not a tourist destination. It's not very developed and has a small population. In addition, we were there during hurricane season, so many of the few restaurants, etc. were closed for the season.

You know what we did have, though? This:

This was the view from the enormous deck of our cottage. That rocky stuff is actually exposed coral, which was really cool to walk along and explore. Also? Gorgeous at sunset:

I'm not really a beach person, but the beaches there are unbelievable and never crowded. In fact, we had them to ourselves most of the time--literally.

It was a truly lovely, relaxing vacation. It's a beautiful place to go if you want to just hang around and relax. (Not so much if you're looking for activity of any sort!)

I also got some great writing in while I was there. Nothing outstanding from a word count perspective, but all the words I wrote felt exactly right and I'll take that over high volume output any day.

Unfortunately, we were stuck in the Newark airport for 7 1/2 hours on the way back home (grrrr). But we did get to fly from Nassau to Newark with this guy:Yep. Gene Simmons from KISS. (And by "with" I mean "on the same plane as." He was in first class with his brand new wife and we were in coach.) Let me tell you, people: This dude is really, really scary looking up close in real life. Avoid the temptations of plastic surgery!! It does not wear well into older age!!!

So! What were you guys doing last week? What did I miss? Please let me know if you posted any news!

My bad, I thought it was still OCTOBER.

2011-10-05T19:29:00.003-05:00

This is the sight that greeted me in aisle seven of the grocery store last night. Seriously, Stop and Shop? IT IS NOT EVEN COLUMBUS DAY YET. Do you have any idea how disrespectful that is to Halloween? (Frankly, I don't care about Columbus Day's feelings because we should not even be celebrating that holiday but that is a rant for another day.) Also? I do not need to be having agida about Christmas shopping when I should actually be having agida about my annual Halloween party.

Christmas, you are on notice. BACK OFF. Your time will come.

Let the journey begin

2011-10-03T21:30:00.003-05:00

Remember how I was saying I was wrestling with a new story idea because I hadn't really nailed the conflict? Well, I had another story idea over the weekend and at first I was all, "Phew! Problem solved!" And the new-new story idea was way more in my comfort zone (paranormal, definite series potential).

But here's the thing: Every time I try to write a little bit of that story in my head? The other story keeps coming out.I've tried a hundred ways to Sunday* to integrate the two ideas and it's a no go. I've tried, again, to further develop the conflict in the new idea. It's being coy. But you know what? This story is strong inside me. These characters are right. there. and I can feel their stories from start to finish. So...I'm just going to go with it.

When it comes to big projects, I'm a planner. And writing a novel definitely counts as a big project. I'm pushed waaaaaaay outside my comfort zone when I'm typing away at my keyboard and there are large-ish dark spots obscuring my perfect plans for how the story moves forward. But that's how I wrote TLOS and some of the best parts of that book came during in-the-heat-of-the-story discovery. So I'm going to try to let go a little and trust that the rest of what I need to make this story live and breathe is waiting among the words I feel coiled within me.

Here I go again. Starting a new journey, writing a story I never thought I'd write. Working title (abbreviated, because it's temporary): JAI. Let the adventure begin!

*What the hell does that mean, anyway?

Why hello there, NYC

2011-09-29T19:47:00.002-05:00

We're heading into the city tomorrow night to see Matt Nathanson in concert. I CANNOT WAIT!

This will be the third time I've seen him live. I've gushed about his music repeatedly, but really. He is just so very talented: upbeat songs that have you tapping your foot, no matter what your mood is; insightful, clever, and emotionally-charged lyrics; quiet songs that touch the deepest parts of you, equally heartbreaking and hope-filled.

His first big label album is Beneath These Fireworks. If you're looking to start at the beginning, I recommend starting here. He has several earlier albums but a lot of them are the same songs recycled from one album to the next and almost all of the best ones are on Beneath These Fireworks in what I feel is their best versions (with the exception of some really excellent stripped down live acoustic versions I've heard of a few of the songs). In any case, I fell in love with Matt on this album. Really great, insightful lyrics backed by solid music.

After that came Some Mad Hope. OH MY GOD HOW I LOVE THIS ALBUM. I wrote this about it in '08 when it came out: "I'm *madly* in love with Matt Nathanson's latest CD, Some Mad Hope. I can't recommend it enough. Great melodies, Matt's enjoyable everyman voice and clever lyrics that are swelled with hope even as they're prodding at those bruised places inside you." The song Sooner Surrender is one of my all time faves to this day. Even if you didn't buy the album, you might recognize the song Come On Get Higher. It got a loooooooooooot of air time.

Matt is touring now to promote his latest album, Modern Love. It's a great album and I definitely recommend giving it a sample on Amazon or iTunes. There are some really great songs on it. Two, in particular--Kept and Kiss Quick--absolutely kill me. And he's got this great rock song called Mercy. Like I said, it's a great album.

I'll stop my fangushing now and leave you with this video of Matt performing his current single, Faster (a fun sexy song), on Conan earlier this week.

The gestation of our creative thoughts

2011-09-27T18:47:00.001-05:00

Lately, I've been really focused on a challenge I'm having with the new story idea. I can't seem to nail the conflict I need to push the story forward and I just keep circling and circling around the same few uninspired ideas. I get agitated (ZOMG WHAT IF I NEVER HAVE A GOOD STORY IDEA AGAAAAAAIIIIIINNNNN) and try to force myself to produce the solution--to simply manufacture inspiration on command. Which, of course, is silly. That's not how truly inspired storytelling is born. If I force myself to pick an idea, the chance of it being the right, the very best, idea is slim.

I am reading Rainer Maria Rilke's Letters to a Young Poet. I think every creative person should read this book, perhaps multiple times, as I have done. Today I read the following passage:

Leave to your opinions their own quiet undisturbed development, which, like all progress, must come from deep within and cannot be pressed or hurried by anything. Everything is gestation and then bringing forth. To let each impression and each germ of a feeling come to completion wholly in itself, in the dark, in the inexpressible, the unconscious, beyond the reach of one's own intelligence, and await with deep humility and patience the birth-hour of a new clarity: that alone is living the artist's life: in understanding as in creating.

It was exactly what I needed to hear. I've gotten exactly nowhere after two weeks of shining a spotlight on my thoughts, demanding a solution to my creative challenge. Now I will give my creative self some dark, quiet space and see what ideas take root.

2011-09-22T18:27:00.003-05:00

I recently watched the 2011 version of Jane Eyre, starring Mia Wasikowska (Alice in Wonderland), Michael Fassbender (Inglorious Basterds), and Jamie Bell (Billy Elliot). It was excellent. Mia Wasikowska brought the same sense of presence and understated passion (if that makes any sense at all) as she did to her phenomenal performance of Alice in Alice in Wonderland. And Michael Fassbender was FANTASTIC as Rochester: volatile, passionate, tortured, soulful.

The screenplay adaptation was well done. I brought out my highly scribbled-upon copy of the book and, as I flipped through, was impressed with how much of the dialogue and narrative description were carried out verbatim on the screen. There were a few choices that I thought could have been made a little differently to portray Rochester in a slightly more balanced light--there are a few scenes where he is absolutely irredeemable and every time Jane (and I) fell in love with him in subsequent scenes, I found myself thinking back and wondering how we could fall for someone who could be such an asshole at times (pardon my candor).

Also? The score, by Dario Marianelli, is divine. I've been listening to it both at work and at home. It features British violin virtuoso Jack Liebeck, whose solos haunt my mind hours after I turn off my iPod. The Jane Eyre score just might be the theme music to my new book. :D

I would definitely recommend the movie to any fans of the novel.

Book review: CHIME by Franny Billingsley

2011-09-13T18:46:00.001-05:00

Chime by Franny Billingsley
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I give this book eleven stars out of five.

I picked this up after reading this proclamation by Kristin Cashore: "I will spend my whole life trying to write a book as beautiful as Chime, by Franny Billingsley." After reading it myself, I can only say the same.

It took me a couple of chapters to settle into Briony's narrative voice, only because it was so unique. Briony tells her story with rhythm and imagery that is closer to poetry than prose, and a startling, heartbreaking candor. Once I aligned myself to it, I loved every single word.

CHIME is the story of love and loss, heartache and guilt, and wishing with every fiber of your being that you could be, had always been, someone different...until the slow but startling realization that it was only you who you needed to be all along, after all. And, amidst all that, is a gorgeous love story.

CHIME is one of the most lovely and delicately written stories I've ever read.

Highly recommended.

View all my reviews

2011-09-12T20:38:00.000-05:00

I just ordered a pile of books for an upcoming baby shower. I always get books. I love picking them out, I love supporting the authors, and I love giving a gift that will be cherished and used over and over again. Plus, kid's books are expensive and I want every kid to have a ginormous library so I feel I have to do my part.

I always, always, give Don and Audrey Wood's THE LITTLE MOUSE, THE RED RIPE STRAWBERRY AND THE BIG HUNGRY BEAR. I've read that book so many times, I can recite it from memory. I own my own copy as an adult, though I first discovered it when my brothers were small (they're 22 now). The illustrations are incredible.

My latest fave to give is Neil Gaiman's INSTRUCTIONS. I want a copy of this for myself, too. Such fantastic advice for any age. :)

The book I would give if it wasn't out of print? Steven Kellogg's THE BOY WHO WAS FOLLOWED HOME, which you may recall me mentioning recently.

I also own A ROSE FOR PINKERTON by Steven Kellogg, THE ALWAYS PRAYER SHAWL by Sheldon Oberman, and THE BUTTER BATTLE BOOK by Dr. Seuss, which is my very favorite Seuss book (but which isn't really a kids book at all).

What are some of your favorite children's books? Do you still own any as an adult?

Friday Five: Things I Loved This Week

2011-09-09T17:51:00.001-05:00

1. This blog entry from Maggie Stiefvater--specifically, the example she cites from LINGER--which was a total "Aha!" moment for me. Oh, if I had read this before I'd revised TLOS! ;) Highly recommended for all my writer friends.

2. This blog entry about writer's block from Kristin Cashore, whose blog I just recently started reading after my deep love affair with her fantastic book FIRE.

3. This quote, which was a usage example for Dictionary.com's word of the day earlier in the week: "A tragic indication that even the most noble attempts to inculcate children with the basic principles of universal humanism -- that, whatever our differences, we are more alike than unalike -- will founder against the rocks of deeply held prejudices of their parents." -- Gary Younge, "Sesame sans frontieres", The Guardian, October 14, 2002

4. This dress, which is even prettier and more retro-50's in person, which I get to wear tomorrow night to a charity gala. I love dressing up!

5. My red Moleskine notebook, which I have been using to make long hand notes on my new book idea. The story is developing nicely and, after a little bit of research, I'll be ready to plot.

Two great reads

2011-09-07T18:01:00.001-05:00

I've been taking advantage of my writing break to gorge myself on books. Oh, how I miss the days of doing nothing but reading in my spare time! (Not that I'd give up writing for anything in the world, but still...) I recently read two books that were absolute five star reads for me and I wanted to share them with you (although, neither one of them are recent releases so maybe you've already discovered their genius for yourself!).

Fire by Kristin Cashore

From Kristin's website:

Fire, Graceling 's stand-alone prequel-ish companion book, takes place across the mountains to the east of the seven kingdoms, in a rocky, war-torn land called the Dells.

Beautiful creatures called monsters live in the Dells. Monsters have the shape of normal animals: mountain lions, dragonflies, horses, fish. But the hair or scales or feathers of monsters are gorgeously colored-- fuchsia, turquoise, sparkly bronze, iridescent green-- and their minds have the power to control the minds of humans.

Seventeen-year-old Fire is the last remaining human-shaped monster in the Dells. Gorgeously monstrous in body and mind but with a human appreciation of right and wrong, she is hated and mistrusted by just about everyone, and this book is her story.

Man, oh man, did I love this book. I loved every single thing about it. The characters, the prose, the plot, the pacing, the love story--perfect, all of it. I didn't want the book to end and the story is still clinging to my mind and heart. I really liked Graceling and wanted more of Katsa's and Po's story, not someone new, and so was reluctant to read this book. I'm so sorry I waited. It's so excellent. I can only gush about it in an almost nonsensical way. Gush gush gush.

Go! Buy! Love! B&N | Amazon | Indiebound (Incidentally, you do not need to read Graceling before you read Fire.)

Matched by Ally Condie

From Amazon:

For Cassia, nothing is left to chance--not what she will eat, the job she will have, or the man she will marry. In Matched, the Society Officials have determined optimal outcomes for all aspects of daily life, thereby removing the "burden" of choice. When Cassia's best friend is identified as her ideal marriage Match it confirms her belief that Society knows best, until she plugs in her Match microchip and a different boy’s face flashes on the screen. This improbable mistake sets Cassia on a dangerous path to the unthinkable--rebelling against the predetermined life Society has in store for her. As author Ally Condie’s unique dystopian Society takes chilling measures to maintain the status quo, Matched reminds readers that freedom of choice is precious, and not without sacrifice.

I also really loved this book, but in a very different way than Fire. I looooooved the way this book is written. I wished I had written this book. The prose is so lovely and spare--the only words on the page are the exact ones that need to be there to let you into Cassia's mind and heart. And the love story in Matched is beautiful. It unfolds slowly, delicately, savoring each moment. Also, the worldbuilding is really cool. I read the last words, hugged the book to my chest and dove for my computer to order the sequel...only to find I had to wait until November. :( Highly recommended.

Go! Buy! Love! B&N | Amazon | Indiebound

2011-09-06T19:34:00.002-05:00

I'm harvesting new story ideas. I love this time, so ripe with possibility. I try to open myself, my awareness, as wide as possible to allow in any glimpse of an image, any whisper of a sound that might turn into or feed a spark of idea.

I got the idea for TLOS listening to a song in Irish Gaelic and reading a sign in Spanish at the same time while riding the bus home from work one afternoon, in a period of my life just like this. That combination of the mood of the song, the quality of the afternoon light and the tangling together of Gaelic and Spanish in my mind birthed Megan, TLOS's main character. Or, more accurately, it birthed the concept of Megan. Megan, herself, changed quite a bit from that day until I typed the words 'the end.'

I'm playing with a new story concept now, one that came to me while I was watching Cirque du Soleil's Quidam this past weekend. (Incidentally, the show is great and I highly recommend it if it visits your area. The imagery is incredible.) It's...(wait for it)...another YA. I KNOW. Miss "I'll never write a YA!" is considering her second. But there it is. Like with TLOS, I go where the story takes me and this is definitely a YA story. And now that I've done it once, I'm not so afraid of it. ;)

How about you guys? Where have you gotten your story ideas?

Well, Irene has passed.

2011-08-28T17:03:00.001-05:00

Just a quick post to say that the storm is over and the only damage we've suffered is the expected power outage. (And a messy yard full of leaves and sticks, but I'm not going to complain about that!)

I hope everyone else fared as well!

Today was completely nuts.

2011-08-26T18:10:00.001-05:00

So, yeah. There's this hurricane coming? You might have heard? O.o

Anyway, I had the most absurd thought today. It was, "OMG WHAT WILL I DO IF MY NOOK RUNS OUT OF BATTERY DURING THE HURRICANE????" Just like that, all caps lock and panic ridden.

People, I have a TBR shelf a mile long of actual, physical, paper books. Books that don't require batteries or a computer or a device in order to access their precious words. You know, books. As in, the only way I ever read up until a year ago?

I mean, really. What was I thinking? Apparently I have fully embraced the digital age of publishing.

Stay safe, everyone.

Time Capsule

2011-08-22T19:45:00.001-05:00

I cleaned out part of the garage this past weekend, including a pile containing my very first scrapbook. Hoooo lawd! There were about a hundred certificates and ribbons and papers and whatnot from my grade school years, but also some fun memories.

Such as:

...this Trapper Keeper cover. I'm not sure what it was about this cover that prevented me from tossing it back in 1985. I know I had several others. Maybe I couldn't bear to put those cute kitties in the trash?

I also found a camp t-shirt that was signed by all my summer camp buddies, including one of my childhood friends who passed away about fifteen years ago. I had no idea that shirt was in there and it took my breath away to see her message scrawled across the shoulder in green marker.

There was a time capsule thingy I'd done in 1987, proclaiming my favorite book was A WRINKLE IN TIME by Madeleine L'Engle. (Though I didn't need a moldy time capsule to tell you that book was one of my childhood favorites. Absolutely captivating.)

And this:

My very first author autograph!! Steven Kellogg, one of the most wonderful author-illustrators (imho), came to my school in 1985 and signed this for me. The hippo is in relation to my very favorite book of his, THE BOY WHO WAS FOLLOWED HOME. I still own a copy as an adult. Tragically, it's out of print now (though there are used copies available on Amazon--go! go!!).

Well, goodbye me-from-1985-to-1987! It's good to know we've still got a few things in common. ;)

Friday Five

2011-08-19T18:25:00.002-05:00

1. This episode of Epic Rap Battles of History is pretty amusing. Dr. Seuss vs. William Shakespeare. :) Thanks to Ben for showing it to me.

2. I got a new wallet, which I love love love!!! (link is to red but mine is black) It's from Susan Nichole vegan handbags. I really like this company. I have a backpack from them also. Their bags are stylish and well constructed but totally animal and planet friendly. Their faux leather is very leather like. Word to the wise though: Their bags tend to run big and they're not the greatest at posting contextual pictures on their site.

3. I finally have a draft of my query letter, praise Jesus. One more tweaking tomorrow morning then I'll be looking for another set of eyes on it, then TLOS goes out into the world! *angsts*

4. Today is my mom's birthday. She got some very promising news today on something that she really, really, really needs to go her way. Maybe you could send some positive energy into the universe for her? Pretty please?

5. My latest TV* obsession is Friday Night Lights. We're early into the second season and I am in LOVE with this show, despite the fact that I don't care at all about football, am not a fan of TX (though I like some of the people who live there!), and wouldn't re-do high school no matter how much money you paid me. The writing is top notch and the acting is excellent. I'll probably do a longer post on the show's writing in the near future. Do you watch it? Do you have a favorite character? No spoilers please!!

Booklamp

2011-08-18T21:54:00.001-05:00

Today's Publisher's Lunch linked to an article on Booklamp, a Book Genome project that's supposed to do for books what Pandora has done for music.

I love Pandora. I've discovered several new artists through them--people whose music I've bought and continue to be a fan of.

In case you're not familiar with Pandora, the idea is that you put in a song or musical artist that you like and Pandora then creates a "station" based on music that is similar. Pandora is based on the Music Genome Project and, per their website, "each song in the Music Genome Project is analyzed using up to 400 distinct musical characteristics by a trained music analyst." Pandora also has a feature that lets you give a thumbs up or thumbs down to songs and it tailors your station based on these ratings. Basically, it learns your preferences based on what you "like" or "dislike" and those ratings help Pandora to understand what music goes together.

Booklamp is trying to do a similar thing, which I think is super cool. I played around on their site for a while tonight. They're definitely not at the Pandora level yet, but they've got a good start.

For example, I pulled up Kelley Armstrong's FROSTBITTEN. This is an urban fantasy and the protagonist is a werewolf. Booklamp recommended several werewolf-related books, which was great. It also recommended other urban fantasy authors, like Keri Arthur. I think that's also a good recommendation. Keri's and Kelley's styles are somewhat different--Keri tends to have more graphic sex scenes and more of them, for example--but, on the whole, I would say that it's a good bet that someone who enjoys Kelley Armstrong's UF series would enjoy Keri Arthur's work.

However, I also got a western. Granted, I haven't read it, but I'm not sure that a western by Louis L'Amour is the best match for a somewhat gritty urban fantasy starring werewolves.

I also did a search on Keri Arthur's DESTINY KILLS, which is an urban fantasy about dragon shapeshifters. This brought up Keri's whole catalog--reasonable, but nothing I needed "StoryDNA" to figure out. Aaaaand THE DEAD-TOSSED WAVES by Carrie Ryan. Although I haven't read it yet, it's the sequel to THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH, which I did read and loved.

Now, FHT was YA, had to do with zombies and definitely had a literary feel. So, where's the match? Okay, DESTINY KILLS has a little to do with water and, judging by the title, maybe DTW does, too. And DESTINY KILLS is UF, and DTW presumably continues with the zombies. But I don't know if literary YA is what people are going to be looking for when looking for a book like DESTINY KILLS.

One thing I did like about their site is that when you pull up a book that you want similar recommendations to, you're given the "StoryDNA" components for that book and each one has a slider. So if the book you pulled up happened to have a plot about sailing but you don't care about that, you can drag that slider to zero but keep the other aspects of that book that you did like as part of the active search mechanism. Sort of like the thumbs up/thumbs down feature of Pandora. You can also tell Booklamp that you're not interested in a book selection.

Bottom line: It's got a ways to go but I really like the idea and I think they're off to a great start. I'm interested to see where the project goes from here.

Have any of you used it? Do you use Pandora? Thoughts?

Book review: LUMINOUS by Dawn Metcalf

2011-08-15T20:15:00.001-05:00

Luminous by Dawn Metcalf

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book is extraordinary. I mean that in the truest sense of the word. Everything about it--the worldbuilding, the characters, the plot, the prose--is a measure beyond the ordinary. Nothing is quite what you expect, but in the very best way. I think if you love Neil Gaiman's work, you'll love this.

I really, really loved Dawn's prose. It's lyrical and filled with striking and unusual imagery. You won't find any cliched phrases here. The worldbuilding is nothing short of awesome. Original, well developed, and very imaginative. The plot is solid and well executed. And the characters really come to life.

Consuela is a complex character and Dawn does a great job of exploring her complexity throughout the story. We see Consuela--Bones--in a variety of situations and not all of them put her in the best light. I really liked that about her. The characters of V and Tender really captured my heart, as well. There is a particular quirk about V's character that allows you see/hear some of his innermost thoughts and I **loved** it. He was written so beautifully. Tender, too, who is, perhaps, the most complex character of the book. Very well done.

All in all, an excellent read for teens or adults. Highly recommended.

View all my reviews

How do you feel about reboots?

2011-08-10T18:46:00.001-05:00

It seems like everything is getting a reboot lately, especially in the comics-to-movies world: The Punisher in 2004, The Hulk in 2008 after having just been done in 2003, and Spiderman is now being rebooted after a successful franchise that ended in 2007.

It seems reboots are not just affecting the comics world, however. I recently learned that Lionsgate is going ahead with a reboot of Dirty Dancing.

People, you cannot possibly imagine my horror.

Dirty Dancing! Patrick Swayze *crai*! Jennifer Grey's old nose! "Nobody puts Baby in a corner!" "This is my dance space, this is your dance space"! I could quote from this movie all day. So many classic scenes! Such great music! This movie does not need to be redone!!!!!

LIONSGATE, THIS IS CRAZY TALK. JUST STOP THE MADNESS.

And you? Thoughts on reboots?

*******************************************

2011-08-04T17:54:00.001-05:00

Yeah. So I was diligently revising on my lunch hour the other day, feeling really good about my progress, when BAM! I scrolled down to the next page and all my text was asterisks. Suddenly, I had written an entire novel in stars.

That sounds cool but it was not, people. It was not.

I hadn't backed up in a couple of days, either (IDIOT) so now I get to re-do stuff I've already done. *le sigh* Let this be a lesson to you: Back up your stuff every day you work on it! Every day! Without fail!

Speaking of backing up, what do you use for backing up your work? I use Dropbox and am very happy with it.

Also, don't forget to enter for a chance to win a copy of BITE THE BULLET by L. A. Banks on my previous post.

L. A. Banks

2011-08-02T18:22:00.001-05:00

As many of you may already know, Leslie Banks, a.k.a. New York Times bestselling author L. A. Banks passed away this morning after a battle with a rare form of cancer.

I had the opportunity to meet Leslie briefly at the 2009 Romantic Times Booklover's Convention. She was a warm, friendly woman who had already seen a lot of success but was still eager to help any new writer she could. She was very professional without seeming standoffish. She had a big personality without being intimidating. She was the kind of woman who immediately made you think, "That woman Gets Things Done." I am deeply saddened by this news of her early passing and even more so by the fact that her family will have to shoulder the tremendous expense of her medical bills, which her health insurance did not fully cover.

I have an extra copy of the second novel in her Crimson Moon series, BITE THE BULLET, which I will be giving away to a random commenter in the hopes that it makes you fall in love with her writing and you will purchase more of her books, thus easing her family's financial burdens. If you would like to enter, simply leave a comment on this entry by the end of the day on Friday, August 5th. Contest open to anyone, anywhere. Book info below. Feel free to cross-post.

Bite the Bullet

Sasha Trudeau considers herself a soldier first and a werewolf second. But while her secret government-sanctioned task-force faces its greatest challenge so far, Sasha faces something much more primal: the undeniable pull of the moon—and her own desires.

With rogue wolves savaging both the human and paranormal worlds, Sasha’s team of elite operatives has one job: destroy the rogues and isolate the deadly toxin that’s poisoned their blood. But the challenge is far more complicated than Sasha could have imagined. Soon she is thrust into a full-scale supernatural war for supremacy—and the only man left who Sasha can turn to might be the biggest danger to her of all. . .and in more ways than one.

Really valuable writing advice

2011-08-02T17:58:00.000-05:00

Can be found over at Nathan Bransford's blog today. Seriously, people. He's got the real story over there today.

Welcome to Jersey Shore

2011-08-01T19:19:00.000-05:00

So we're at dinner last night on the patio at this decent restaurant in a decent town. Now, the word "decent" can be interpreted a thousand different ways, but for the purposes of this blog post I'm using it to mean "typically drama free and populated by people who are reasonably educated and sober." Anyway: Us. Patio. Dinner.

There are two guys at the table behind us who, not long after we order, are joined by a girl. A few minutes later, another girl joins them. This second girl is wearing a black one piece bathing suit with so many parts of it cut away, it might as well be a two piece, and a teensy tiny aqua colored beach wrap skirt type thing. Please understand, I'm being generous when I apply the word 'skirt' to this piece of material. Oh, and how could I forget? She has fantastically huge matching aqua-colored feather dangle earrings. (I love that everything about this chick requires endless strings of adjectives.)

Eyebrows are raised. But you know what? We're out on the patio, it was a gorgeous day, they'd probably just come from the beach...whatever. The fact that she was in a restaurant in swimwear wasn't really a big deal on its own.

Several minutes later, we start hearing talk of, "Where is Crystal?" Almost immediately, 'Crystal' emerges from the restaurant onto the patio, bursts into tears, and shouts to the table behind us that she just got into a fight in the bathroom "because of you guys" and she just wants to go home.

Let the drama begin.

There is more crying on Crystal's part, lots of cajoling on the table's part to get her to come sit down and calm down. Crystal refuses and is getting louder and more incoherent by the minute. It's fantastic. We are suddenly on Cops or some outdoor patio version of Jerry Springer. Crystal is clearly drunk out of her mind. She is now screaming at her table of friends (who continue to calmly encourage her to come sit down) and kicking/shoving the portable fencing enclosing the patio. Crystal storms off down the street.

Many, many eyebrows are raised.

The non-bathing suit wearing chick whispers an apology to the rest of the patio. The table debates who's going to go get her drunk ass. No one leaves. It's remarkable. It's as if they believe that she'll simply keep walking forever and eventually become Not Their Problem. Like there is some barrier between Crystal and the patio now, like we are all protected.

Ben and I just wait for Act II.

Ten minutes pass. During this time, the table discusses how crazy Crystal is, how drunk she gets, how many times she's tried to get into fights with bathing suit girl, and so on. It is a marvel to listen to.

Crystal returns.

Now she's on a mission. She is going to "KICK THAT GIRL'S ASS." She breaches the patio and rushes the restaurant door. One of the guys at the table, "Joe," finally gets up and chases after her. The next time I see them, Joe is carrying Crystal fireman-style over his shoulder while her drunk ass brain tries to catch up to what the hell has just happened to her.

Over the next thirty minutes--THIRTY MINUTES--bathing suit girl shouts into her cell phone at Joe while he tries to get Crystal into a cab. Apparently it never occurs to her to simply stand up and walk around to the front of the building. "NO, SHE CAN'T GO TO MY MOTHER'S HOUSE! IT'S JIMMY'S BIRTHDAY TODAY. THE DOG. SHE'S GIVING HIM A PARTY. MY MOTHER WILL FUH-REAK IF SHE SHOWS UP THERE. NO! SEND HER TO WINDSOR. WIIIN. SOOOOR. DID YOU JUST FUCKING HEAR ME? SHE CAN'T GO TO MY MOTHER'S HOUSE! JUST SEND HER TO FUCKING WINDSOR. JUST PUT HER ON....CRYSTAL? BABY? YOU GOTTA TRY TO BE A LITTLE SOBER RIGHT NOW, OKAY?" And so on and so forth.

Finally, Ben leans across the table and whispers to me, "I've never see Jersey Shore, but I'm pretty sure this is what it's like."

For Harry Potter Fans

2011-07-20T20:18:00.001-05:00

This is hilarious (thanks to my brother-in-law for the link).

What's your story about?

2011-07-19T20:32:00.001-05:00

We recently watched the movie Hereafter, starring Matt Damon and directed by Clint Eastwood. It was enjoyable enough--interesting premise, good performances (Damon's especially). It was a little slow and definitely character driven but I'm happy with character driven movies so I was content to see where it took me. I think Eastwood is a top notch director. I think some of his work is some of the best out there. I trusted that he would bring it all together at the end.

Unfortunately, I was disappointed.

***WARNING: Here be spoilers!***

The movie centers around Matt Damon's character, George, who can communicate with the dead a la John Edward or Suzanne Northrop. The way he connects with the particular spirits linked to a person is by touching the person with his hands. In fact, any time he touches someone with his hands, he immediately connects with a related dead person and begins receiving that spirits messages. Awkward! Imagine: poor George brushes your fingers while he's paying you for the coffee he just bought and suddenly your dead mother is in his head, begging him to deliver a message--likely an apology for some intimate, personal moment George really doesn't need to know about you, given the fact he doesn't even know your name. George once made a living doing readings but it consumed him and he quit, instead taking up a more "normal" life as a factory worker. The film does a good job showing how his ability is a curse as well (or instead of) a gift and showing that all George wants is to have a simple, normal life.

This is what Hereafter's story is about: George's struggle to find a way to either accept or overcome his ability and achieve a "normal" existence.

Naturally, part of a "normal" existence for George includes a romantic interest. The movie does devote a fair amount of time to showcasing George's painstakingly careful attempt to embark on a normal relationship with a very cute, sweet girl, played by Bryce Dallas Howard (whom I just LOVE!), and it's inevitable crash and burn when she forces him to do a reading for her. But there is no question that the story is about George's life as a whole--not just his love life.

Interspersed with George's story is the story of a reporter halfway around the world, Marie LeLay (played by Cecile De France), who gets a glimpse of the hereafter (see what they did there?) and becomes obsessed with her experience. We see her relationship and career fall apart in the wake of her search for an answer to the timeless question of what happens when you die.

(There is also a third storyline of a boy who loses his twin brother but that's neither here nor there for the purpose of this blog entry so I'm not going to discuss it.)

Eventually and, I'm sorry to say, quite predictably, Marie and George meet and when George accidentally touches her hand--gasp!--he is not contacted by dead spirits! At last he has found a woman with whom he can have a "normal" relationship! Now, don't get me wrong. My heart broke for George over and over in this film, and even once for Marie as well. I was thrilled to see them find each other. But I was also ready to see the rest of the story.

And then the credits rolled.

Oh, Clint. What were you thinking? You forgot what your story was about. Hereafter was about George's *life*, not just his love life. Great! He found a partner! He's going to get laid for perhaps the first time in thirtywhatever years! I'm so happy for him! But how is he going to make a living? Will he come to terms with his ability? Will he go back to giving readings? Will he ever see his ability as a gift as well as or instead of a curse? Will he repair his relationship with his money-hungry brother, who was so obsessed with the fame and fortune to be gained by his ability? These are the questions that needed to be answered. George's story was not about finding a girlfriend, it was about finding peace within himself. And, unfortunately, that story was never finished.

I found myself thinking about this in regards to my writing, especially in light of my recent revelations about TLOS and the work I'm doing with my revisions. As a reader, the only stories I truly love are the ones where the author really gets what the story's about. As a writer, I'm working hard to get that right. It feels like a lot of blood, sweat and tears sometimes but when I have experiences like I did with Hereafter, I know it's totally worth it.

Good things come to those who wait

2011-07-11T12:28:00.000-05:00

I'm very, very happy to say that, after two freaking years of writing this book, I have finally, finally, figured out what I am actually supposed to be doing with my main character. *big sigh of relief*

It's possible I've posted something similar to this before but this time I mean it. Like, fer realz. I have learned a million things while writing this book but the biggest and most valuable--and hardest--is how to really revise a book. I definitely didn't get that with my first book. I couldn't shake this sense of permanence once I'd laid the words down on the page and the idea of unraveling them and weaving them back together in a new, albeit better, way was out of reach for me at that time.

This is not to say that I'm perfect at revisions now and I have nothing more to learn. Oh-ho-ho no. I still feel like a kindergartner when I sit down at my keyboard, most days. But at least now I understand what it takes to really improve a book and how much potential is still lying in wait after the first blush of the rough draft--even if that first draft is really good.

One of the final things I've really been struggling with is Megan's character arc. I knew it hadn't reached its full potential and I even knew where I needed to take her in order for her and the story to really come full circle and pack more of a literary punch. I just couldn't figure out how to make that happen, not without adding, like, 20,000 more words into a story that was already bumping up against the upper limits of word count guidelines.

Today, I did. The hilarious thing? It's not even hard! It doesn't even require many words! *jumps up and down* I am so freaking happy an relieved. You know how you sometimes get that sense of rightness when you're writing? Where you can feel a piece of your story slide into place and you can almost hear an audible click? Yeah. That. :D

By the time I start querying this sucker, it will have taken me about two years to write and revise it. It feels like an eternity. I've almost given up three times now, no joke. But I honestly wouldn't change a thing about my journey with this story. I've learned so much and, sometimes, I really think you just need some time to sort things out.

Book review: SPELL BOUND by Kelley Armstrong

2011-06-28T18:15:00.000-05:00

Spell Bound by Kelley Armstrong

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

[Note: A rating of 3 stars and above signifies a satisfying read for me.]

Kelley Armstrong's newest Otherworld novel SPELL BOUND is an enjoyable read. Picking up the moment that WAKING THE WITCH leaves off, Savannah leads us on a whirlwind adventure as she tries to discover what happened to her mysteriously vanished powers and, more importantly, who she is without them.

SPELL BOUND seemed, to me, to have two main purposes: to force Savannah to do a lot of growing up in a short amount of time, and to set the stage for an epic showdown in the forthcoming final Otherworld novel.

The issue of Savannah's maturity (or, in many cases, lack thereof) was definitely the heavy hitter and I enjoyed reading her realistic emotional struggles and witnessing her missteps. That sounds a bit sadistic but Savannah's slow-to-come realization that she has behaved like a spoiled princess was very well written. Armstrong didn't pull any punches when it came to Savannah's friends and family calling her out, which only made Savannah's process of coming to terms with who she'd been and who she wanted to be that much sweeter.

Adam Vasic gets a lot of screen time (so to speak), which I loved. He's a fun, strong character and a great match for Savannah. Their dialogue is sharp and entertaining, with the exception of one bad habit of Savannah's: she cuts Adam off constantly. I'm sure it's realistic--conversations are a much more fluid thing in real life than they are on the page--but it became a bit tiresome and irritating for me after a while. In addition to Adam, we get to see a some of Paige and Lucas, and there are cameos from just about every major character in the series, which was really fun to read.

I would have liked to give SPELL BOUND four stars but unfortunately, I just didn't feel the same sense of urgency and risk with the bad guy plot that I normally do with Armstrong's books. It could be that the book's events were given a bit of a back-burner feel because it was Savannah telling the story and the most important thing to her was the mystery of her missing powers (which isn't the primary driver spurring on the bad guy, action-based plot).

SPELL BOUND is a very enjoyable book, one that I would recommend to any fans of Armstrong's Otherworld series. I'm eager to find out what happens in the final book--to see whether or not Savannah can step up and become the person she wants to be and to witness the epic supernatural showdown that's been building all through this book.

View all my reviews

Available July 26, 2011 Pre-order at B&N | Amazon | Indiebound

Book releases: Bridger and Campbell

2011-06-27T21:03:00.000-05:00

Hi again! Just another couple of quick book release signal boosts. I'm drowning in day job work and revisions for the short term but will be back very soon with actual! content!

First, today is the release day for my friend David Bridger's urban fantasy QUARTER SQUARE. I've been reading about David writing Quarter Square for what feels like forever and I'm excited I can finally read it!

English carpenter Joe Walker thinks his life is over when he discovers his wife and best friend having an affair. Restoring an abandoned theatre offers little hope for a fresh start...until he follows a group of strangers through a hidden door into a world he never could have imagined.

In the haven known as Quarter Square, Joe encounters a community of supernatural street performers who straddle the mortal world and the magic realm known as the Wild. Here, Joe finds a sense of belonging he's never known before—and a chance to uncover the truth behind the frightening visions that have haunted him since childhood. He also meets Min, an enchanting singer who quickly captures his heart.

But as Joe settles into Quarter Square, he learns their haven is under attack, while an ancient enemy threatens to tear him and Min apart. Now, Joe must learn to wield his own powers in order to save the life he's come to love...

Buy QUARTER SQUARE at Carina Press!

--------------------
Copyright © 2011 by Harlequin Enterprises Limited
Cover Art used by arrangement with Harlequin Enterprises Limited
® and ™ are trademarks owned by Harlequin Enterprises Limited or its affiliated companies, used under licence.

Next is a release I'm a few days late on announcing: my friend J.A. Campbell's YA debut SENIOR YEAR BITES.

Senior year is supposed to be fun: boys, dances and graduation.

It's significantly harder to enjoy it when you’re dead.

Truth or Dare is supposed to be fun too. It’s not even close to dangerous, so playing at Steph's house didn't seem like a bad idea. My dare? Spend the rest of the night in the graveyard next to her house. It was only a couple of hours until false dawn, my proscribed return time, so no big deal right? Right.

I survived the attack, but it took me a few days to figure out what was going on. I mean vampires might stalk pop culture, but they're just myths. Yeah. Not so much.

School is a lot more difficult when you're a nocturnal creature of the night. I was managing, but I couldn't keep it hidden from my friends for long. After I managed to accidentally save one of our cheerleaders from her drunk and ill-intentioned boyfriend. Steph decided that we should be cool, like superheroes, and fight crime.

Only I’m a vampire, not a hero, and we live in a sleepy New England town, so crime's a little harder to come by. At least it is until a serial killer moves into the area. He’s got the authorities stumped, but then again, the cops don't have a teenage, blood-sucking, non-hero on their team.

Senior Year Bites is available at
Decadent Amazon
Amazon UK
Smashwords

Blah

2011-06-26T14:36:00.000-05:00

I'm a third of the way through this latest round of revisions/rewrite.

I am getting really, really sick of TLOS and yet, I still love it. *sigh* Oh, the joy of revisions. *headdesk*

Awesome stuff you should know! And win!

2011-06-23T16:28:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone! I wanted to draw your attention to a few awesome things today.

First is the announcement of Amazon's Essential Books for Young Adults feature. This Market Watch article (via Publishers Marketplace) does a nice job of explaining the new feature, which has 2 components: Editorial Essentials and Customer Selected Essentials (voting based). I have been very candid about my misgivings regarding Amazon's ethical compass, which has given me a bit of a shaded outlook on the company as a whole, despite the fact that I am a Prime member. However, I am absolutely thrilled by their Editorial Essentials selections. Obviously, there are a gorgonzillion superfantastic YA books out there that could have been selected but I was especially, especially happy to see these made it onto the list: SPEAK by Laurie Halse Anderson (banned in some places!), THE ABSOLUTELY TRUE DIARY OF A PART-TIME INDIAN by Sherman Alexie (also banned in some places!), WILL GRAYSON, WILL GRAYSON by John Green and David Levithan (OMG PEOPLE IT IS NOT POSSIBLE FOR ME TO LOVE THIS BOOK MORE), THE GOLDEN COMPASS by Philip Pullman (another banned book! take THAT book-banners!), and THIRTEEN REASONS WHY by Jay Asher (which is extraordinarily moving and everyone of any age should read in order to remember why it's important to be kind to each other). Click through the links above to see the remainder of the list or to buy any of the fabulous titles listed here.

Next up, you can win something really cool over at the Magic and Mayhem blog! The Magic and Mayhem authors have created a really slick urban fantasy sampler and you can enter to win a copy by leaving a comment on Shawntelle's informative post on the sampler making process. I've had the pleasure of reading Sandy Williams's book THE SHADOW READER and let me tell you, people: it's worth trying to win the sampler for her first chapter alone. Amanda's and Shawntelle's books sound awesome too, so get thee over to the entry and comment!

Last, but certainly not least, I wanted to say congratulations once again to the lovely Kaz Mahoney on the exciting announcement she made over at her blog. Yay! Moth is a really fun character and I'm looking forward to reading more of her adventures.

No post tonight.

2011-06-16T18:47:00.001-05:00

I must bake dog biscuits and revise, revise, REVISE!

Instead, I will leave you with this napping baby meerkat.

(zoo week is almost over, people. just let me get it all out of my system and then we can move on.)

The origins of Sirius Black, revealed at last

2011-06-15T20:25:00.001-05:00

No, not that Sirius Black. Sirius the Eyelashdoodle. Remember him?

If you'll recall, Sirius belongs to my friend Julie. Julie claims that he is a Goldendoodle. I used to call him an Eyelashdoodle because he has the most freakishly long eyelashes I've ever seen in my life.

That is...until I went to the San Diego Safari Park.

There, I discovered Sirius's true nature. He is a Cape Buffalodoodle. Allow me to prove it to you.

Here are Sirius's freakishly long eyelashes:

I drew that blue box around them to help you see them since, even though the suckers are two inches long, they are a little hard to distinguish with the whole black-on-black look he's sporting.

Now here is a Cape buffalo I met at the San Diego Safari Park:

CHECK OUT THEIR EYELASHES:

I mean, come on people. That's two different Cape buffalo, both with Sirius's freaktastic eyelashes. Indisputable.

This raises some serious (see what I did there?) questions. Where did Sirius come from? How did his poodle-parent get access to Cape buffalo in the first place? What was the courtship process like? Were they discriminated against for being an inter-species couple? The implications are mind boggling.

Juls, I hope for your sake that Sirius doesn't start sporting a pair of fantastically curved horns to go along with his buffalo lashes. That could get a bit unwieldy. In the meantime, I expect you to start owning up to his heritage. For the love of rhinos, it's 2011. Designer dogs are all the rage now. ;P

California vacay recap, in which Very Special Things happen

2011-06-13T22:27:00.002-05:00

I am back from CA! We had a lovely, restful vacation in Palm Springs and, despite my misgivings, I LOVED the desert. More importantly, my sinuses loved the desert. I've been back in CT for 3 1/2 days and I've had 2 megrims and 1 killer sinus headache already. (Those are migraines for those of you who don't speak Ye Olde Englishe.)

On Sunday, we had a lovely barbecue with our friends Peter, Bill and Jason, who happen to have a vacation home in Palm Springs. I hadn't seen them in over a year and it was great to catch up. Bill volunteers at the San Diego Wild Animal Park (he's a cheetah expert posted by the cheetah habitat to answer any questions visitors may have).

WHICH BRINGS ME TO THE VERY SPECIAL THING THAT HAPPENED!

Oh em gee, people. The Wild Animal Park is a phenomenal facility and you should all visit it someday if you can. It's unbelievable. The animals are in these amazing, enormous habitats that both allow visitors to observe them and allow them to exist in an environment that's very close to their natural habitat. They're given privacy. Natural barriers are used wherever possible instead of cages and fencing. It's just freaking amazing.

One of the coolest exhibits they have is this open area that mimics the Serengeti (or whatever)--many different types of animals co-exist in the same enclosure as they would naturally. Rhinos, giraffes, cape buffalos, gazelles, zebras, etc. with a watering hole and native vegetation and OH MY GOD IT'S SO AMAZING.

And...

For some extra money...

You can do this:

That's Willow. She's eating Acacia leaves (not my hand). But that's not all, people. Oh-ho-ho no, it's not. Because I also did this:

!!!!!!!!!!!!! THAT IS A PICTURE OF ME FEEDING A GREATER ONE HORNED RHINO. !!!!!!!!!!!!!

*dies of teh excitement*

Dudes. We freaking fed two giraffes, Willow and Kizzy, and Kaia the rhino. Like, WITH OUR HANDS. I touched a rhino. I! Touched! A! Rhino! I gave her apples! I petted her nose! I touched her funny wiggly lip! I saw her baby tusks! I watched her wet nostrils sniffing around the slats for more snackies when there were no more!

I am in love.

I have to say that the giraffes were hilarious and adorable as well. I shall now torture you with more pictures:

Ben wanted a kiss from the cute widdle giwaffe (whose head weighs almost half of my entire body weight).

Check out the tongue action! It's a little hard to see because her purple tongue is blending in with Ben's shirt but it's curled around the acacia leaf!

bebbeh!!

Honestly, I could bring Blogger to a screeching halt with all the freaking adorable pictures and video I have. I suppose this will do...for now. ;)

We had a few more adventures but it's getting late and I've got to get to bed. More updates to follow!

I am not dead!

2011-06-01T18:13:00.001-05:00

Or wounded! Or in a mental institution, etc., etc., as certain very very kind and wonderful persons may have worried, thus prompting them to PM me.

Let's get caught up, shall we?

> My Day Job is still a hot mess. Pro: Not working a zillion hours at the moment. Con: Job-related stress is off-setting the "return" of "work-life balance."

> Revisions are progressing. Vewy, vewy slooooowly. They are challenging and frustrating and tiring, which hopefully means I'm doing them right. I just finished combining some scenes (thanks to a BRILLIANT suggestion from Sandy Williams!), which had a large trickle-down effect on some other scenes. Up next: rewriting the beginning for the third time (!@&#^$!!!) and changing where Megan lives for the third time. Which seems like no big deal but is, in fact, a very big deal.

> I went camping this past weekend! Outside! In the forest! With a tent! I saw moose poop! I cooked dinner in foil! I broke down a tent in the rain! My dog slept on my pillow, sometimes sort of on my face! I ate smores! It was an exciting adventure, involving many exclamation points! There was one incident with a malfunctioning propane cylinder, but Ben recovered quickly enough to mourn the fact that he didn't gain any superpowers from having his hand sprayed with propane for an extended period of time. Ah, well. Better luck next time.

> I've also read a few books since we've last chatted. Due to my posting-lameness, I haven't cross posted any reviews but you can find them all on my Goodreads page. (oh em gee, do i heart goodreads)

> Got my house powerwashed. Woo!

> Rekindled my love for sushi (vegetarian, of course) and Corona light.

That about catches us up.

Love and kisses to all!

A new book idea

2011-05-14T07:46:00.001-05:00

What a freaking week. My entire life basically stopped in order to accommodate a big report deadline for the Day Job. I still have a bit of work to do this weekend but by Monday, it will be done! Woo!!

In other news, I had this hilarious conversation with Ben last night:

me: Hey, I had a new book idea today!
Ben: Oh yeah?
me: Yeah, but here's the weird thing: it was for a romance.
Ben: A bromance??
me: No!! A ROmance.
Ben: Oh. *thinks* Like the Fabio kind?
me: No, a contemporary.

Let's discuss, shall we? A) A bromance book. This sends me into fits of internal giggles every time I think about it. Imagining scenes, pitches, query letters... B) I love that Fabio apparently has his own romance genre. C) Just to clarify, the reason I said it was weird was because I've never written one. I mean, I wrote a UF that had a very strong romantic element. And I didn't really think I'd ever write one, which is just ridiculous because I never thought I'd write a dystopian YA and here I am, revising it. Still. Ugh. Somebody kill me. *ahem*

So, yeah. Perhaps I'll be writing a contemporary romance next! Or maybe space opera! Who knows, really?

I'm off to a busy weekend. I hope you're all doing well!

Friday Five: Mumford and Sons Edition

2011-05-06T17:30:00.000-05:00

I swear every post from now until the hereafter won't be about Mumford & Sons but I am going to continue gushing a bit and list my five favorite lyrics (of the moment, at least) from their album Sigh No More (available for a mere $5 through the month of May at Amazon!):

(in no particular order)

1. from the song Roll Away Your Stone:

It seems that all my bridges have been burned
But you say that's exactly how this grace thing works
It's not the long walk home that will change this heart
But the welcome I receive with the restart

2. from the song After the Storm:

There will come a time, you'll see
With no more tears
And love will not break your heart
But dismiss your fears
Get over your hill and see
What you find there
With grace in your heart and flowers
In your hair

3. from the song Timshel:

Death is at your doorstep
And it will steal your innocence
But it will not steal your substance

4. from the song Sigh No More:

Love, it will not betray you,
Dismay or enslave you
It will set you free
Be more like the man
You were made to be

5. from the song Thistle and Weeds:

Plant your hope with good seeds
Don't cover yourself with thistle and weeds
Rain down, rain down on me

Music PSA: Mumford & Sons

2011-05-03T18:04:00.001-05:00

People. I have a new music obsession. Fear not! My love for Breaking Benjamin is eternal and undiminished. But I have just discovered Mumford & Sons and let me tell you: I. Am. In. Love.

Where do I start? Okay, the basics. They're a folk band. They actually sound like an Irish folk band but they're British. And oh yes, my friends, there is a banjo and it is played a lot. DO NOT LET THIS DETER YOU. The music is amaaaaaaaazing. The lyrics are poetry--insightful, gorgeous. OH EM GEE I HEART THEM SO MUCH.

Guess what? Their MP3 album Sigh No More is on sale at Amazon for $5 this month. $5! I got so excited, I wanted to buy it again. And that's not all! Other $5 albums, all of which I have obsessed over at some point, include: The Fray, The Fray; Incubus, Make Yourself (the lyrics of the title song are words to live by, my friends); Sara Bareilles, Little Voice; 30 Seconds to Mars, A Beautiful Lie. All recommended purchases.

But I digress. I was gushing about Mumford & Sons.

This is my favorite song off the album (at least, my favorite as of this moment), After the Storm. Sorry about the video--I couldn't find a decent enough live performance (because of crowd noise, not because of them--they sound great live) and there's no official video yet.

And you may have heard this one on the radio. It's brilliant! It's called Little Lion Man.

So anyway. Check 'em out.

/psa

And now we're going to try a different approach.

2011-05-01T12:17:00.000-05:00

It's aliiiiiiiiive!

2011-04-28T17:42:00.001-05:00

I'm coming out of my self-imposed exile for a brief moment to let you all know that WINTER DID NOT KILL MY TREE!!!

Thanks so much to all of you who provided thoughtful comments, suggestions and encouragement. I also have to give a shout out to my stepfather, who performed the actual surgery.

Hooray!

That quiet place

2011-04-15T17:26:00.001-05:00

I don't believe in the Muse, but I do believe in inspiration and this week I've been finding a lot of it over at Marjorie M. Liu's blog. Today she posted this quote:

“You must have a room, or a certain hour or so a day, where you don’t know what was in the newspapers that morning, you don’t know who your friends are, you don’t know what you owe anybody, you don’t know what anybody owes to you. This is a place where you can simply experience and bring forth what you are and what you might be. This is the place of creative incubation. At first you may find that nothing happens there. But if you have a sacred place and use it, something eventually will happen.”

- JOSEPH CAMPBELL

I've been spending a lot of time in my version of what Campbell is referring to. It's helping me sort through the stuff I'm dealing with and work through the questions I need to answer in order to tell Megan's story the best, most true way. I expect to be there for a while yet, maybe another week or two, but when I emerge I will be more whole and so will Megan's story.

See you on the flip side.

Guinness makes everything better

2011-04-06T17:58:00.001-05:00

So I don't talk very much about my Day Job 'round these parts. That's intentional. Unlike some individuals, I'm fully aware of the fact that a blog is not a private, personal diary. Anyone in the universe can read anything I write here. I think a good rule to follow when composing a blog post is, "If I were going on television and everyone I knew in the world were going to watch me, would I still say X, Y, and Z?" But I digress. The point is, I have a Day Job. I post in my real name with my real picture next to it. Therefore it behooves me not to talk shit about my Day Job on my blog. End of story.

However, I'm going to talk a little bit about my Day Job right now.

My Day Job is in a period of transition right now. Re-orgs are pretty common in Corporate America and my department has gone through a veritable identity crisis in the last several months. I now report to my third boss in as many months. One teammate has already left the team. It's safe to say we are a bit of a hot mess right now.

This Day Job Drama(tm) has completely derailed me. I had *no idea* how much being happy and relatively stress free in my Day Job centered me in the rest of my life. For the past few years, since I've been writing, I always thought that writing was my anchor (aside from Ben). Turns out? Not so much. At least, that's not how it's feeling right now. And that, in itself, has kind of thrown me for a loop.

Though, to be fair, I've hit a bit of a wall with revisions. I went from thinking I was thisclose to having a polished draft ready to send to agents to realizing I need to do another major rewrite. And the things I need to fix in this one are really, really challenging me. (read: sucking the life out of me) It's all going to be for the better and the things I need to change offer some exciting possibilities for the story, yadda yadda. It's just a lot of hard work and pressure and, frankly, something that's shaking my faith in my abilities a bit.

So, yeah. When I get into true crisis mode, I retreat. I pull farther and farther into myself and become a cave troll. Or something. I hide. Hence, blog scarcity.

That's the end of today's sob story slash revelation slash thank god i'm drinking a guinness right now.

Really?

2011-03-28T20:12:00.001-05:00

Anyone have a copy or two of Lynne Truss's EATS, SHOOTS & LEAVES they can spare for the journalism world? These two headlines were taken from today's news:

Police: 14-Year-Old Hospitalized, Struck By Car (The Hartford Courant)
Don't worry--as it turns out, he was struck by the car before he was hospitalized, not after. Because being struck by a car in the hospital would be awkward and disturbing.

photo credit: SOAPnet (from a General Hospital episode, apparently...who knew?)

First a spat, then boy, 3, goes missing (CNN)
Again, rest assured. Only the three-year-old went missing (after a fight with his mom), not the boy and a spat. Phew! For a second there, I thought we had some sort of bizarre serial kidnapper on our hands!

Now it's really the word order and choice, not the punctuation, that's screwing up those headlines. But still. Lynne Truss's clever book would probably be of some kind of assistance...

sigh

2011-03-26T16:33:00.000-05:00

Revisions status:
1. Despising passive sentences.
2. Realizing that, although I'd "worked on it," I still have Issues trusting my reader.

Love the growth, hate the process. *sigh*

(LOVE having fricking AWESOME crit partners. <3)

Book review: WITHER by Lauren DeStefano

2011-03-26T11:26:00.001-05:00

Wither by Lauren DeStefano

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book. The premise is intriguing and well carried out. I loved the exploration of the relationships between Rhine and her sister wives, and especially between Rhine and Linden. Nothing is black and white in this book--nothing is only good *or* bad (except, perhaps, a single character though I'm waiting to see how that plays out in future stories) and DeStefano handles the characters' reactions to living in that kind of world and swimming in those emotional depths both deftly and realistically. Also, her prose is gorgeous. Filled with rich detail and poetic composition without feeling over-written.

Added bonus: This may be my favorite cover of all time. It's clear the designer was intimately familiar with the story. The cover is a rarity in that it's both visually striking--serving the purpose of selling the book--while holding great meaning to the reader, even after the story's been read.

I can't wait to see where the next book takes us.

View all my reviews

Lauren DeStefano signing

2011-03-25T16:10:00.001-05:00

I'm heading out in a few minutes to attend the Lauren DeStefano signing at R J Julia. I haven't yet read Lauren's debut, WITHER, but I've heard a lot about it and I *love* the premise. It's one of those ideas that has me kicking myself for not thinking of it first. :) Also? Look at how FREAKING GORGEOUS the cover is:

From Lauren's website:

What if you knew exactly when you would die?

Thanks to modern science, every human being has become a ticking genetic time bomb—males only live to age twenty-five, and females only live to age twenty. In this bleak landscape, young girls are kidnapped and forced into polygamous marriages to keep the population from dying out.

When sixteen-year-old Rhine Ellery is taken by the Gatherers to become a bride, she enters a world of wealth and privilege. Despite her husband Linden's genuine love for her, and a tenuous trust among her sister wives, Rhine has one purpose: to escape—to find her twin brother and go home.

But Rhine has more to contend with than losing her freedom. Linden's eccentric father is bent on finding an antidote to the genetic virus that is getting closer to taking his son, even if it means collecting corpses in order to test his experiments. With the help of Gabriel, a servant Rhine is growing dangerously attracted to, Rhine attempts to break free, in the limited time she has left.

You can read an excerpt from Chapter 1 here. I just read it and now I'm dying for more. I can't wait to get my hands on it tonight! If anyone else is going to be at the signing, keep an eye out for me...

B&N | Amazon | Indiebound

Food is my frenemy

2011-03-23T17:49:00.001-05:00

So I've joined Weight Watchers again. I do this periodically, when the numbers on the scale creep past my personal Do Not Pass Go line. I have about thismuch willpower when it comes to food and about 99% of that is used up sticking to my vegetarianism. So...yeah. Food is my frenemy.

I really like Weight Watchers. Once I settle into the system and get myself onto a food routine, I'm rarely hungry and never tortured. Also, it's great at teaching portion control and steering you towards healthier foods, like fruits and vegetables.

It does have at least one negative side effect, though. I'm really, really bad at sharing now.

I was eating some potato chips last night--another thing I love about WW, which is that you can theoretically eat anything you want as long as you "pay for it" with your points. I do *not* do well with deprivation diets. But back to the chips. So I'm eating the chips and I go put something away in the pantry. I turn around and see my husband chewing.

Me: @.@ DID YOU EAT ONE OF MY CHIPS?!!?
Ben: O.o Yeaaaah...
Me: WTF??? I paid 3 points for those! I intend to eat every single freaking one! NO MORE! NO MORE FOR YOU!!!

At that point, I'm pretty sure I ran to the counter and hovered over them protectively until they were gone. *sigh* Something else to work on, I guess. ;)

Tonight we're off to have dinner with a former work associate of Ben's. The dinner itself won't be a problem. I've already scoped out the menu and allotted the necessary points. I've even got Tupperware stashed in my purse to scoop half of my entree into as soon as it hits the table (temptation is NOT my friend). What I'm really looking forward to is the Chocolate Raspberry Mocha-tini. Oh yeah, baby. Sixteen points--over half my daily allowance--and worth every single one. ;D

Dreams of change (and Mark Henry)

2011-03-19T09:33:00.000-05:00

Last night I dreamed that Mark Henry and I were pregnant. And when I say that "we" were pregnant, I don't mean as a couple. I mean we were *each* carrying babies inside us.

I'll wait for a second, while you have the same "WTF??" moment I did.

Aaaaand we're back. To top it all off, I was having twins. I'm sure that part came from the lovely Sandy Williams, who actually is pregnant with twins.

If memory serves, dreaming that you're pregnant is supposed to be symbolic of upcoming change or transformation in your life. In my dream, Mark and I were both very excited and happy about our pregnancies, despite the fact that I don't want kids in real life*, so I'm going to assume the dream was a portent of positive change in our lives. Twins for me...an agent and editor, perhaps? (pleasepleaseplease) Or maybe something else. Who knows. I'll try not to get my hopes up. Maybe it was just the Chinese food I had last night. ;)

*Direct quote from me to my doctor this week: "I live in terror of finding out I'm pregnant."

Friday Five: Spring Edition

2011-03-18T17:19:00.000-05:00

It was in the 70's today! Sadly, I still have snow in my yard. *sigh* The warmer weather made me realize there are several things I'll miss about winter, though:

1. The absolute bliss that is cranking my heated seat up to nuclear on a cold day.
2. Boots! *crai* I can't believe I have to put away my beloved Clarks Mia West boots for, like, six months!!!
3. Sweaters and turtlenecks. I love to be layered and bundled up.
4. Blankets! *crai crai crai* I don't know about you, but I can't properly relax if I'm not draped in at least one blanket. Summer makes this nearly impossible. Writing is at least ten times harder while blanketless.
5. The snow. I KNOW. This is a little bit of crazytalk. But the thing is, I don't have to weed snow. Or mow it, or fertilize it, or rake it. And in my yard, it doesn't get dirty. It just stays a pretty, white blanket that covers up all the crab grass, and the old mulch that needs replacing, and the bushes that need pruning, etc. Granted, this year the snow maintenance really tested our limits but there's no doubt I'm going to miss that handy excuse to largely ignore my yard for months on end.

I'm definitely a fall/winter girl. No doubt about it. I loathe sweating. I prefer overcast days to sunny ones. I love the rain. I heart thunderstorms and snowstorms. And I'm cold pretty much all the time, which is remedied by sweaters and blankets, not short sleeves and air conditioning. *sigh*

How about you? What will you miss about winter? What's your favorite season?

Japan

2011-03-15T19:46:00.001-05:00

Many people have been asking me if I went to any of the affected areas when I was in Japan in October.

We spent most of our time in Tokyo (middle right of map) and Kyoto (middle left of map). Tokyo has been impacted by the earthquake--they're still having aftershocks there. We did also spend a night in Aizu-Wakamatsu which, as you can see above, is a little more than halfway between Tokyo and Sendai (top of map), the area that has been devastated by the tsunami. Aizu is too far inland to have been affected by the tsunami, I think, though I'm sure it was hit hard by the earthquake.

I am so saddened by this destruction. I cannot possibly imagine what it's like for the people in the affected areas. Please consider donating to the Red Cross (which is both on site in Japan and also donating funds to the Japanese Red Cross Society) or to another organization that will be assisting Japan and its people with their recovery. They have a long, difficult road ahead of them and desperately need whatever you can spare--even if it's just $5.

A plethora of book reviews

2011-03-08T21:37:00.000-05:00

So, as you may have noticed, I've been doing a lot of reading and not a lot of blog posting (other than cross posting my Goodreads reviews). I was waiting for TLOS crits to come back and, to distract myself, I immersed myself in my TBR shelves. It was so wonderful! It has also helped me inch towards my goal of reading 52 books this year. Woo!

The crits are trickling back in now, though, so I'll be back at work with TLOS in the evenings (and on my lunch and on the bus and...) so my reading time will be trimmed back. And hopefully it'll start looking more like a blog and less like a Goodreads mirror around here. :)

One last note before I quit yammering about my recent reads, though... I cannot stop thinking about the book EDINBURGH by Alexander Chee. My original review/post was just a couple of lines because, as sometimes happens with books that really churn me up inside, I was having a hard time articulating my thoughts and feelings about the book. But I really think that pretty much the entire world should read this book--that everyone could learn something about love and loss by reading this book. So I'm going to give it a little more blog space (and a few more sentences) here...

Twelve-year-old Fee is a gifted Korean-American soprano in a boys' choir in Maine whose choir director reveals himself to be a serial pedophile. Fee and his friends are forced to bear grief, shame, and pain that endure long after the director is imprisoned. Fee survives even as his friends do not, but a deep-seated horror and dread accompany him through his self-destructive college days and after, until the day he meets a beautiful young student named Warden and is forced to confront the demons of his brutal past.

My (slightly) expanded review:

This story broke my heart a hundred different ways. One of the most beautiful, piercing novels I've ever read.

Chee's writing is breathtaking, gracefully shepherding the reader through the abuse Fee endures and the slow, inevitable breakdown he suffers before finding the courage to reinhabit his life.

Highly recommended to everyone.

Go. Buy. Love. Amazon | B&N | Indiebound [incidentally, at the time of this post, Amazon is offering it in trade paperback at a $6.00 bargain price...)

Book review: THE ROAD by Cormac McCarthy

2011-03-08T21:11:00.001-05:00

crossposted from Goodreads

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had heard a lot--and a lot of disturbing things--about this book, so I wasn't really sure what to expect. No, that's not true. I expected a grim, disturbing, desolate, make me want to kill myself sort of story. That wasn't what the story was at all.

Don't get me wrong--this *is* a grim tale with some disturbing elements to it (e.g., cannibalism). But it's poetically written (though I found some of the passages a bit inaccessible at times) and has a thin, golden thread of hope running through it.

View all my reviews

Book review: EDINBURGH by Alexander Chee

2011-03-07T22:14:00.001-05:00

(cross-posted from Goodreads)

Edinburgh by Alexander Chee

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This story broke my heart a hundred different ways. One of the most beautiful, piercing novels I've ever read.

View all my reviews