As the new year approaches...
... I am reading, and loving, Shannon Hale's Book of a Thousand Days.
Happy new year from Florida.
Happy new year from Florida.
Posts
August Randutiae (Some Rather Cranky)
Every once in a while, I become overwhelmed by the crush of books I'm supposed to be reading (for research; as a favor for someone; because soon they'll be due back at the library; because everyone's telling me I should), and my soul revolts. I spend a week or so mulishly resisting reading anything at all. Then I skip over all the things I'm supposed to be reading and instead read whatever I damn well please. This is the reason I'm currently reading the Betsy-Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace.
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My sister codename: Apocalyptica the Flimflammer recently instructed me to think about the derivation of the word "cantaloupe." I did and came up with "singing wolf," which delighted me, but I'm finding it hard to research the further derivation of the name. (I mean, in the 8 minutes I've devoted to it just now. ^_^) According to my OED, Cantaluppi was the Italian town where cantaloupes were once famously grown, but why was the town called…
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My sister codename: Apocalyptica the Flimflammer recently instructed me to think about the derivation of the word "cantaloupe." I did and came up with "singing wolf," which delighted me, but I'm finding it hard to research the further derivation of the name. (I mean, in the 8 minutes I've devoted to it just now. ^_^) According to my OED, Cantaluppi was the Italian town where cantaloupes were once famously grown, but why was the town called…
Writing Tools (Bright and Dark)
A few weeks ago, I showed you all the book map that I built for my office wall. This tool has proven itself to be invaluable. I consult it constantly as I'm working. It's a stupendous structural aid as I reorder the events of this book and refocus the plot. I WANT TO MARRY IT.
However, as the sight of it recently made a writer friend depressed ("I could never do that," the friend said), I feel I should add that this is the first book I've ever been able to do it for. This book is short (for me) and relatively simple. Had I tried to stick a plot map on my wall for Bitterblue, it would've taken an enormous amount of time that would have been better spent writing, it would've been more confusing than helpful, plus, I wouldn't have had enough wall space.
Each book is different and requires its own unique tools.
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That being said, I've finally come to accept that one particular unenjoyable aspect of writing is going to be present with every single b…
However, as the sight of it recently made a writer friend depressed ("I could never do that," the friend said), I feel I should add that this is the first book I've ever been able to do it for. This book is short (for me) and relatively simple. Had I tried to stick a plot map on my wall for Bitterblue, it would've taken an enormous amount of time that would have been better spent writing, it would've been more confusing than helpful, plus, I wouldn't have had enough wall space.
Each book is different and requires its own unique tools.
***
That being said, I've finally come to accept that one particular unenjoyable aspect of writing is going to be present with every single b…
Margaret Mahy, 1936-2012
New Zealand writer Margaret Mahy died on Monday, July 23. She was 76 years old.
Margaret Mahy could write emotions like sadness, fear, the desperateness of courage, so that you felt them as you read. A few lines from Alchemy (2004):
Certainly the sound of her sadness had spread itself backward and forward through time.
The feeling he had been trying to create – the feeling that the day was just another day – began to shiver out of line.
He could not see an inch beyond his nose. Squinting down in its general direction, he found he could not even see his nose. All the same, still whistling and hissing to himself, reminding himself how real he was, then nodding and muttering agreement with himself, Roland stepped forward yet again, before pausing and groping backward.
She described physical sensations brilliantly. In these lines from 24 Hours (2000), Ellis wakes up with a hangover:
Ellis did not open his eyes. It seemed safer to linger in the darkness behind his lids, for his head felt as …
Margaret Mahy could write emotions like sadness, fear, the desperateness of courage, so that you felt them as you read. A few lines from Alchemy (2004):
Certainly the sound of her sadness had spread itself backward and forward through time.
The feeling he had been trying to create – the feeling that the day was just another day – began to shiver out of line.
He could not see an inch beyond his nose. Squinting down in its general direction, he found he could not even see his nose. All the same, still whistling and hissing to himself, reminding himself how real he was, then nodding and muttering agreement with himself, Roland stepped forward yet again, before pausing and groping backward.
She described physical sensations brilliantly. In these lines from 24 Hours (2000), Ellis wakes up with a hangover:
Ellis did not open his eyes. It seemed safer to linger in the darkness behind his lids, for his head felt as …
Book Recs + A Final Post of Tour Pictures -- Again from Seattle
A couple books I recently loved:
Mystery of the Tempest: A Fisher Key Adventure, by Sam Cameron, which is kind of a brilliant, modern-day Hardy Boys-esque adventure in which the young detectives are identical twins, one straight, one gay. It's awesome to read adventurous hijinks in a familiar form (of the Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew ilk), but with diversity, on several axes. Book two, The Secret of Othello, comes out in November.
And: What I Didn't See, stories by Karen Joy Fowler, is spectacular. Some realism, some fantasy, some Shakespearean and fairy tale themes, some historical fiction, especially about the Booth family (of first theatrical, then assassination-of-Abraham-Lincoln fame). My favorite stories in the collection: "Booth's Ghost" and "Halfway People." I understand that the paperback is coming out this summer.
For those interested, the New York Times has changed its mind and decided my books are a series after all, so if you're looking for my …
Mystery of the Tempest: A Fisher Key Adventure, by Sam Cameron, which is kind of a brilliant, modern-day Hardy Boys-esque adventure in which the young detectives are identical twins, one straight, one gay. It's awesome to read adventurous hijinks in a familiar form (of the Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew ilk), but with diversity, on several axes. Book two, The Secret of Othello, comes out in November.
And: What I Didn't See, stories by Karen Joy Fowler, is spectacular. Some realism, some fantasy, some Shakespearean and fairy tale themes, some historical fiction, especially about the Booth family (of first theatrical, then assassination-of-Abraham-Lincoln fame). My favorite stories in the collection: "Booth's Ghost" and "Halfway People." I understand that the paperback is coming out this summer.
For those interested, the New York Times has changed its mind and decided my books are a series after all, so if you're looking for my …
Tidbits on Release Day
Today is Bitterblue's release day! Happy reading to my readers. Happy birthday to my girl. It's been a long time coming. For them that's interested, here's just one of the many seeds that planted in my mind and helped Bitterblue grow:
Years ago, I saw Bernini's sculpture of Apollo and Daphne at the Galleria Borghese in Rome. What's happening in the sculpture is that Apollo is chasing Daphne, and to escape him, Daphne is turning into a tree. (Can you see that her fingers are branches and leaves?) The sculpture made an enormous impression on me. A tree strikes me as a beautiful thing to turn into in a moment of danger... and an infuriating thing for Daphne to have had to become. A horrible, unjust sacrifice, that she should have had to give up her mobile, human form because some brute was trying to rape her. It got me thinking about transformative sculptures, and what it means to turn into something else, and what place sculpture might have in my book. In Bitter…
Years ago, I saw Bernini's sculpture of Apollo and Daphne at the Galleria Borghese in Rome. What's happening in the sculpture is that Apollo is chasing Daphne, and to escape him, Daphne is turning into a tree. (Can you see that her fingers are branches and leaves?) The sculpture made an enormous impression on me. A tree strikes me as a beautiful thing to turn into in a moment of danger... and an infuriating thing for Daphne to have had to become. A horrible, unjust sacrifice, that she should have had to give up her mobile, human form because some brute was trying to rape her. It got me thinking about transformative sculptures, and what it means to turn into something else, and what place sculpture might have in my book. In Bitter…
Adventures in Walking. Stuff and Things. Plus, My Tour Schedule
I signed lots of books for lots of people in a very short time on Thursday, and a number of souls, probably noticing the mania in my eyes, kindly expressed concern for my health. On the off chance that any of those same people later saw me being wheeled through the Houston airport, please allow me to reassure you that I did not fall into a faint from too much signing or anything like that. No, what I did was, I stepped creatively off of a curb. In the horrible moment after it happened, a moment during which I replayed the dreadful snapping noise over and over in my mind and discovered that I truly could not stand, I feared that I'd broken my ankle (which it turns out I hadn't), and all I could think was that my book tour started in 12 days. My book tour started in 12 days, and I had to go and miss the curb and do something SO FREAKING STUPID. It's not like I was rushing headlong down a hill while attached to a spastic dog. It's not like I was jumping off a boat onto a …
Birth of a Book
Hey everybody, sorry for the radio silence this past week. I've been on the road. I plan to be back next week, hopefully with some info about the Bitterblue release. Until then, I thought I'd share this beautiful little video of a book being born. Make it big on your screen; it looks great. Thanks, Jess.
Some Musings on Three Books I Love
I recently reread the Hunger Games books, in anticipation of the first movie. I don't have time to write the post I'd like to write, but I'm going to give myself an hour or so to work through some of my broadest thoughts here on the blog. My reread was different from my initial readings. Nothing and no one in the books can feel the same when you know what's coming, know their fates. To be frank, my reread was devastating.
When it comes down to it, these books are about war, evil, totalitarianism, trauma and its aftermath, madness, desperation, loss. They're about how the most seemingly incorruptible good can be shattered into awfulness given the right (wrong) circumstances. They're about being broken so often that you can never fully heal, and about the enormous resilience and courage it takes to keep clinging to hope.
A disclaimer that should be obvious: there will be plenty of Hunger Games/Catching Fire/Mockingjay spoilers in this post. To those readers unfam…
When it comes down to it, these books are about war, evil, totalitarianism, trauma and its aftermath, madness, desperation, loss. They're about how the most seemingly incorruptible good can be shattered into awfulness given the right (wrong) circumstances. They're about being broken so often that you can never fully heal, and about the enormous resilience and courage it takes to keep clinging to hope.
A disclaimer that should be obvious: there will be plenty of Hunger Games/Catching Fire/Mockingjay spoilers in this post. To those readers unfam…
Do What Makes You Happy
First, it's come to my attention that Amazon has the prologue and first chapter of Bitterblue online, for anyone who wants a sneak peek.
MORE IMPORTANTLY: As you may or may not know, in conjunction with the soon-to-be-released Hunger Games movie, THERE IS NAIL POLISH. I've always been led to believe that the ultimate goal for an author is the movie deal. Now I understand that the movie deal is merely a MEANS TO A MUCH HIGHER END: NAIL POLISH. And listen, I think my books would make for some great nail polish. There are so many bright and sparkly colors! While I was trying to convince a friend of this the other day, she mentioned that Bitterblue couldn't really pull off nail polish. I must agree. (Um, if you are BONKERS about spoilers, don't read the next sentence, but really it's a joke, not a spoiler, and would be understood by anyone who'd read the first few chapters:) Helda would do Bitterblue's nails and send her off to bed, then in the morning, Bitterb…
MORE IMPORTANTLY: As you may or may not know, in conjunction with the soon-to-be-released Hunger Games movie, THERE IS NAIL POLISH. I've always been led to believe that the ultimate goal for an author is the movie deal. Now I understand that the movie deal is merely a MEANS TO A MUCH HIGHER END: NAIL POLISH. And listen, I think my books would make for some great nail polish. There are so many bright and sparkly colors! While I was trying to convince a friend of this the other day, she mentioned that Bitterblue couldn't really pull off nail polish. I must agree. (Um, if you are BONKERS about spoilers, don't read the next sentence, but really it's a joke, not a spoiler, and would be understood by anyone who'd read the first few chapters:) Helda would do Bitterblue's nails and send her off to bed, then in the morning, Bitterb…
Resolutions
I just stumbled across a list of books about body image, health, and dieting and had the urge to list them here on my blog, now, at the New Year, when the societal pressure toward weight loss rises to a fever pitch. In case it is helpful for anyone to know that books like this exist:
Andersen, Arnold, Leigh Cohn, and Thomas Holbrook. Making Weight: Healing Men's Conflicts with Food, Weight, Shape & Appearance. Carlsbad, CA: Gurze Books, 2000.
Campos, Paul. The Obesity Myth: Why America's Obsession with Weight Is Hazardous to Your Health. New York: Gotham Books, 2004.
Cash, Thomas. Body Image Workbook: An 8 Step Program for Learning to Like Your Looks. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger, 1997.
Dixon, Monica. Love the Body You Were Born With: A 10 Step Workbook for Women. New York, NY: Berkley Pub Group, 1996.
Doty, William G. Myths of Masculinity. New York: Crossroads, 1993.
Erdman, Cheri. Live Large! Ideas, Affirmations, and Actions for Sane Living in a Larger Body. San Francisco,…
Andersen, Arnold, Leigh Cohn, and Thomas Holbrook. Making Weight: Healing Men's Conflicts with Food, Weight, Shape & Appearance. Carlsbad, CA: Gurze Books, 2000.
Campos, Paul. The Obesity Myth: Why America's Obsession with Weight Is Hazardous to Your Health. New York: Gotham Books, 2004.
Cash, Thomas. Body Image Workbook: An 8 Step Program for Learning to Like Your Looks. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger, 1997.
Dixon, Monica. Love the Body You Were Born With: A 10 Step Workbook for Women. New York, NY: Berkley Pub Group, 1996.
Doty, William G. Myths of Masculinity. New York: Crossroads, 1993.
Erdman, Cheri. Live Large! Ideas, Affirmations, and Actions for Sane Living in a Larger Body. San Francisco,…
The World's Smallest Reading/Writing Lesson
Look look! Hebrew cover from Kinneret-Zmora! ----->
So, a gazillion years ago, I wrote a post about Megan Whalen Turner's A Conspiracy of Kings, which included a picture of my own copy of the ARC. Afterwards, people kept asking me what was up with all the post-it flags, and I got all inspired and enthusiastic about writing a big long post about How to Read Books like a Writer. I was going to tell you all the things I'd flagged in A Conspiracy of Kings, then tell you why I'd flagged them. Unfortunately, Bitterblue yada yada, in other words, I never got the time, in addition to which, now that I look around, I can't find my copy of A Conspiracy of Kings anywhere. *directs suspicious glances at my sisters and other ne'er-do-wells*
So instead of that big grand post, I'm going to give you a teeny crappy post. :D? I'm going to share one tiny example of something I just flagged in the excellent book I'm currently reading, The Likeness, by Tana French:
When …
So, a gazillion years ago, I wrote a post about Megan Whalen Turner's A Conspiracy of Kings, which included a picture of my own copy of the ARC. Afterwards, people kept asking me what was up with all the post-it flags, and I got all inspired and enthusiastic about writing a big long post about How to Read Books like a Writer. I was going to tell you all the things I'd flagged in A Conspiracy of Kings, then tell you why I'd flagged them. Unfortunately, Bitterblue yada yada, in other words, I never got the time, in addition to which, now that I look around, I can't find my copy of A Conspiracy of Kings anywhere. *directs suspicious glances at my sisters and other ne'er-do-wells*
So instead of that big grand post, I'm going to give you a teeny crappy post. :D? I'm going to share one tiny example of something I just flagged in the excellent book I'm currently reading, The Likeness, by Tana French:
When …
What I've Been Reading (and some music TV)
Okay, this is an even more random edition of What I've Been Reading (and Watching) than usual -- I hope some of it speaks to some of you out there!
1.
Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges (2006, 2nd revised edition), by Loren Pope. The college application thing is such a rat race, isn't it? So stressful, so depressing, so many assumptions about what's best (name-brand schools), so many messed-up notions about how to decide who is and isn't "smart." When I was choosing a college, I bought into all of that completely. I thought it was all about rankings and scores. I think differently now. And yeah, I'm happy with the path I took, not that it matters, because I wasn't really in a place then to take any other kind of path. But if I had to go to college now, knowing all I've learned, I might choose one of the colleges in this refreshing book I've been reading, called Colleges That Change Lives: 40 …
1.
Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges (2006, 2nd revised edition), by Loren Pope. The college application thing is such a rat race, isn't it? So stressful, so depressing, so many assumptions about what's best (name-brand schools), so many messed-up notions about how to decide who is and isn't "smart." When I was choosing a college, I bought into all of that completely. I thought it was all about rankings and scores. I think differently now. And yeah, I'm happy with the path I took, not that it matters, because I wasn't really in a place then to take any other kind of path. But if I had to go to college now, knowing all I've learned, I might choose one of the colleges in this refreshing book I've been reading, called Colleges That Change Lives: 40 …
"I don't believe in an afterlife, but I still fully expect to see my brother again"
Last Christmas, at my parents' house, my nieces (who were about 16 months old at the time) kept telling us that they wanted to be read to, but every time their mother, codename: Cordelia, began a new book, they would get distracted, wander around, then come back a few minutes later with another book, asking to be read to. They didn't seem to know what they were looking for.
Then Cordelia picked up Where the Wild Things Are. It was their first time ever seeing this book. Both girls went still; both girls watched and listened, entranced, to the entire story.
I felt that something I knew in my heart about books -- especially our very best books -- had just been proven true.
Here's a recent Fresh Air interview with Maurice Sendak. It's about 20 minutes long. As my sister codename: Apocalyptica told me when she sent me the link, it will make you happy and it will make you cry.
Then Cordelia picked up Where the Wild Things Are. It was their first time ever seeing this book. Both girls went still; both girls watched and listened, entranced, to the entire story.
I felt that something I knew in my heart about books -- especially our very best books -- had just been proven true.
Here's a recent Fresh Air interview with Maurice Sendak. It's about 20 minutes long. As my sister codename: Apocalyptica told me when she sent me the link, it will make you happy and it will make you cry.
"'Hail Mary,' prayed Lovejoy between her teeth, 'Mary, make me cocky and independent.'"
A few things today.
First, I and mine got through the hurricane unscathed, but the news reports make it clear that we were lucky. My heart goes out to everyone devastated by this storm. Especially our neighbors to the north in Vermont! The Big Picture at The Boston Globe put together a great slideshow of photos from Hurricane Irene -- check it out.
Second, a FAQ: Are you on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, etc.? No. This blog is my only online presence; I am not on any other social media sites.
Third, my title today is a favorite line from An Episode of Sparrows, by Rumer Godden, which I just read. I've talked about Godden before on the blog and want to recommend a few of her books again, in addition to AEoS: A Candle for St. Jude; China Court; Greengage Summer; and In This House of Brede. (If you're planning to read your first Godden, maybe don't choose that last one first -- it's very long, takes place in an abbey, and practically nothing happens. I wouldn't want yo…
First, I and mine got through the hurricane unscathed, but the news reports make it clear that we were lucky. My heart goes out to everyone devastated by this storm. Especially our neighbors to the north in Vermont! The Big Picture at The Boston Globe put together a great slideshow of photos from Hurricane Irene -- check it out.
Second, a FAQ: Are you on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, etc.? No. This blog is my only online presence; I am not on any other social media sites.
Third, my title today is a favorite line from An Episode of Sparrows, by Rumer Godden, which I just read. I've talked about Godden before on the blog and want to recommend a few of her books again, in addition to AEoS: A Candle for St. Jude; China Court; Greengage Summer; and In This House of Brede. (If you're planning to read your first Godden, maybe don't choose that last one first -- it's very long, takes place in an abbey, and practically nothing happens. I wouldn't want yo…
Dreams, Whales, Books
I've been rather itinerant for the last week or so... did some visiting, some birthday celebrating, and so much reading that you'd think I'd be reading in my dreams. Instead, I had a dream that Shah Rukh Khan raided my suitcase, stole my pants, wore them in a rainstorm and ruined them. This is nearly as random as the dream I had once that Eminem was my boyfriend: when he came to visit, my father chased him around the house in a rage. Or the dream I had last night that I found a pair of glasses, needed to know whose they were, and hired a private investigator to find out. The role of the private investigator was played by Matt Damon. This is usually the situation when actors appear in my dreams -- the actors appear not as themselves but playing the role of someone else. Not the case with Shah Rukh. He was himself when he stole my pants. The nerve!
Anyway. Itinerant. I went on a whale watch, with 7 Seas Whale Watch in Gloucester, Massachusetts. (The link automatically…
Anyway. Itinerant. I went on a whale watch, with 7 Seas Whale Watch in Gloucester, Massachusetts. (The link automatically…
Chime, Outnumbered and Stuff
Kangaroo summoning and socks seem to be going head to head as the best birthday presents in my birthday poll. As I recall, that was the case last time, as well. (I actually voted for the least popular item, the foot-fungus-ridden seven league boots. Because being able to travel seven leagues in one step feels worth the itch right now... ^_^)
In other news, I will spend my whole life trying to write a book as beautiful as Chime, by Franny Billingsley. Seriously, folks, this is one of those books where my post-it flags became so numerous that I started to feel like I was flagging the whole book. The delicacy of these characterizations, the depth of feeling captured, the familiarity of some of our most basic and self-destructive feelings -- guilt for hurting the people we love, turning to self-hatred, then deciding to try to heal -- this book is gorgeous. (Also, randomly -- and referring back to a previous post -- it strikes me that it's a book that Terrence Malick could make i…
In other news, I will spend my whole life trying to write a book as beautiful as Chime, by Franny Billingsley. Seriously, folks, this is one of those books where my post-it flags became so numerous that I started to feel like I was flagging the whole book. The delicacy of these characterizations, the depth of feeling captured, the familiarity of some of our most basic and self-destructive feelings -- guilt for hurting the people we love, turning to self-hatred, then deciding to try to heal -- this book is gorgeous. (Also, randomly -- and referring back to a previous post -- it strikes me that it's a book that Terrence Malick could make i…