Visit P.J. Hoover at the Book Roast today and enter to win a copy of The Emerald Tablet (Blooming Tree, 2008). Answer this question in the comments at the Book Roast: "Whose mind would you like to be able to read, and why?"
Resource Recommendations
Writing Past Dark: Envy, Fear, Distraction, and Other Dilemmas in the Writer's Life by Bonnie Friedman (HarperCollins, 1993). From the promotional copy : "The first book for writers that explores the emotional side of writing--dealing with everything from envy to guilt to the dreaded writer's block." Note: Worth twice the cost for the chapter on envy and the "anorexia of language" alone. I've noticed lately that community morale is a tad shaky. If you're going through a hard time, please don't think you're alone or that no one cares. Be good to yourselves and each other, and, if the TV news is freaking you out, just turn it off for a while. Seriously. Hugs.See also Fear of Browsing by Kristi Holl from Writers First Aid. Peek: "If I found my books on the shelves, I'd wonder why they hadn't sold. If I didn’t find my books on the shelves, I hoped they were sold out, but I never had the nerve to ask if they’d ever been on the shelf in the first place."
The Forest for the Trees: An Editor's Advice to Writers by Betsy Lerner (Riverhead, 2000). Everybody Hurts says: "Far more than a how-to manual, this book offers inspiration, inside views, and a colorful, anecdotal look at the publishing world-all delivered in the smart, funny, unpretentious voice that has helped to make Lerner one of the most prominent names in the business."
Reminder
Enter to win a paperback copy of Never Trust a Dead Man by Vivian Vande Velde (Magic Carpet Books/Harcourt, 2008)(originally published in 1999) from Cynsations. To enter, email me (scroll and click envelope) with your name and snail/street mail address and type "Dead Man" in the subject line. I'll touch base if you win. Deadline: March 18! All Cynsational readers are eligible!GregLSBlog
My husband and sometimes co-author, Greg Leitich Smith, recommends A Kiss in Time by Alex Flinn (HarperCollins, 2009), The Books of Pellinor (Candlewick, 2005-2009), and discusses literary coincidences--the latter being a must read for those with any interest in cannibalism, the Titantic, or the way fiction mirrors/predicts reality.
More Personally
Authors Unplugged: author P.J. Hoover reports (with exciting Q&As) on my lunch with her, and fellow authors Jody Feldman and Jo Whittemore at Z'Tejas on 6th Street in Austin. Peek: "We each brought questions for the others. I agreed to do the abridged version, though those around us...definitely got the unabridged version. I think we were getting a few strange looks." See Jody's report.
Review: 'Eternal' by Melissa Medore-Moore from San Antonio Express-News. Peek: "The offer of redemption sets this tale apart from others that feed upon the current fascination with vampires and the occult that possesses preteens and teens." Note: at at time when review columns are being trimmed, it's so wonderful to see such thoughtful coverage devoted to YA literature in a daily newspaper.Once Upon A Romance's Review Of... Tantalize by Cynthia Leitich Smith from Amy Lignor. Peek: "Not only is this a good read for 14-year-olds, but I believe that mothers will truly enjoy the wit as well."
Eternal by Cynthia Leitich Smith: a review by eplteenlibrarian from The Cool Cafe @ Englewood (Colorado) Public Library. Peek: "The ending to the love story (because it does become one, though a twisted one) is moving and hopeful in a way you don't expect."
Thanks to Melissa Walker for the (above) photo of the almost sold-out display form a bookstore in Utah.Thanks to Janet Fox at Through the Wardrobe for letting me know that Tantalize (Candlewick, 2007) and Eternal (Candlewick, 2009) are on the shelves of her local bookstore in College Station and to Debbie Reese at American Indians in Children's Literature for letting me know that Tantalize is at her local Meijer in Urbana, Illinois.
Thanks also to Cecil Castellucci for the snapshot of a young girl at an LA restaurant reading Rain Is Not My Indian Name (HarperCollins, 2001).
And thanks to Don Tate who highlighted Cynsations ("Your Blog Is Fabulous") at The Brown Bookshelf. Don says: "There are so many social networks now, and the kidlitosphere has grown so large that it's hard to keep up with all that’s going on. So Cynsations and/or SpookyCyn has become my main source of industry news." See more recommendations!
