Rock-star-turned-RA
has another teen-pop mystery
on her hands.
Size 12 and Ready to Rock by Meg Cabot. Morrow, 2012, 384 pages.
Rock-star-turned-RA
Kate Feiffer's Signed by: Zelda (with wonderful cover art by Kelly Murphy) is her second novel for young readers and comes on the heels of nine pictures books, four of which are illustrated by her father, the great Jules Feiffer. Besides her own great track record as a children's book author and her wonderful lineage, I was intrigued by Signed by: Zelda because one of the main characters is
Rascal on a warmer day |
Morgan Mandel |
Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death. James Runcie. 2012. Bloomsbury. 400 pages. (Grantchester Mysteries Series #1)
Canon Sidney Chambers had never intended to become a detective. Indeed, it came about quite by chance, after a funeral, when a handsome woman of indeterminate age voiced her suspicion that the recent death of a Cambridge solicitor was not suicide, as had been widely reported, but murder. (1)"A Question of Trust"
It was the afternoon of Thursday 31 December 1953, and a light snow that refused to settle drifted across the towns and fields of Hertfordshire. Sidney was tired, but contented, after the exertions of Christmas and was on the train to London. He had seen the festival season through with a careful balance of geniality and theology and he was looking forward to a few days off with his family and friends. (82)"First, Do No Harm"
One of the clerical undertakings that Sidney least enjoyed was the abstinence of Lent. The rejection of alcohol between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday had always been a tradition among the clergy of Cambridge but Sidney noticed that it neither improved their spirituality nor their patience. In fact, it made some of them positively murderous. (148)"A Matter of Time"
It was the seventh of May 1954 and Sidney had, at last, perfected the art of boiling an egg. (218)
Locket Hall, with its grand E-shaped exterior of Ham Hill stone and mullioned windows, had been built at the beginning of the sixteenth century and was one of the finest stately homes in the vicinity of Cambridge. (282)"Honorable Men"
Sidney was talking to himself again. 'Vanity, vanity, all is vanity, saith the Preacher,' he muttered as he walked towards the Arts Theatre for the first rehearsal of a modern-dress production of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. (331)The second novel in the series, Sidney Chambers and The Perils of The Night, will be released in May 2013.
How many got new Kindles for Christmas? Looking for great reads?
Gone Girl is a fast-paced, suspenseful, and terrifying thriller written by Gillian Flynn. The story follows husband Nick Dunne as he searches for his wife, Amy, when she disappears on the morning of their fifth wedding anniversary. When the media paints Nick as the prime suspect in his wife's disappearance, he must figure out what [...]
The Story of IDENTITY ISSUES
Hi! My name is Claudia Whitsitt! I’d like to tell you about my latest mystery, Identity Issues. Thanks for reading!
It wasn’t until the threatening letter arrived (from Botswana) that I became a bit concerned about the theft of my husband’s passport some years previous. The letter, clearly meant for someone else, was disturbing. But in all his business travels, Don had never been to Botswana, nor did he have associates there. We blew it off. Then came the late night wrong numbers (also from Botswana) demanding my husband’s contact information. My interest peaked, but there weren’t enough dots to connect. The caller sought a man by the same name, a man not my husband. I never succeeded in convincing the persistent caller of his mistake and merely tolerated in his bi-annual calls. They became nothing more than an irritating interruption of my much-needed sleep.
After the calls faded, a parent who shared my surname visited me at Parent-Teacher conferences. Who’s named Whitsitt? C’mon, really! She claimed her husband shared the same first and middle name as my husband, along with a matching birth date and countless other similarities. This identity theft had come back to haunt us. FOR REAL. Right in our own backyard. That short twenty minute conference with the other Mrs. Whitsitt, who wound up making startling accusations, marked the conception of Identity Issues.
That disquieting meeting would have been enough to spark my writing of the book, but more puzzle pieces fell into my lap. Too many questions with too few answers and a simple schoolteacher from Michigan re-invents herself as an author of suspense.
I’ve always loved writing and even attempted to write an entire book when at the age of ten. But I found myself compelled to write this story in a way I’d never experienced before. It wouldn’t leave me alone. So, in September of 2006, I fired up my laptop and put fingers to the keyboard. To my surprise, the book poured out of me. Since the initial parts of the story were true, it seemed easy to recount the details. And I LOVED WRITING! In the process, I researched. Both the true elements of the story, to verify the facts, and the fiction portion, to add credibility. I wonder how many readers will be able to tell when the true story drifts into fiction. Can you?
Identity Issues is available exclusively at Amazon.com. Click here!
Random House has released writer guidelines for four digital imprints, seeking submissions from romance, new adult, mystery, thriller, science fiction, fantasy and horror writers.
Follow these individual imprint links to submit your manuscript: Loveswept (romance & women’s fiction), Alibi (mystery & suspense), Hydra (sci-fi, fantasy & horror), Flirt (new adult). There is no official word count, but the editors are looking for both shorter submissions that range between 15,000 and 30,000 words and longer works that range between 40,000 and 60,000 words. Here’s more from the publisher:
You may present any manuscript in which you control exclusive copyright. We are open to previously-published manuscripts as long as the submitting author now controls all electronic and print publishing rights. Please submit the entire query form at the link below. If we are interested in considering your full manuscript, you will be contacted with further submission instructions. We make every effort to respond to submission inquiries within 2-4 weeks after submission of the submission query form; please do not resubmit previously submitted queries, as this may create delays.
New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.
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I have known Giovanni Gelati for quite some time. He's interviewed me more than once on The G-Zone BlogTalkRadio Show. We've written together (A Prince in Trenton, Seriously?). Our latest collaboration is The Defective Amish Detective - Volume 1 - The Whoopie Pie Affair. It is a humorous story, that one might call a cozy mystery. Both of us had the goal of telling a fun story, while holding the Amish with utmost respect. With the "defects" of our main character, it ended up being a story with a lot of heart.
Now for the first time, it is my turn to interview Giovanni. Some of the questions pertain to the story, so if you haven't read it, you can get it here: http://goo.gl/UuI5v
If you haven't, don't worry, there's no spoilers.
Sean Cummings dropped by the virtual offices to chat about his new release, Poltergeeks. Check out what he has to say!
[Manga Maniac Cafe] Describe yourself in 140 characters or less.
[Sean Cummings] Middle-aged introvert with obsessive compulsive tendencies. Life long cat person who is morphing into the crazy old man on your street.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] Can you tell us a little about Poltergeeks?
[Sean Cummings] Poltergeeks is book with a strong female protagonist who is snarky, fearless, loyal to those closest to her and who is desperate to prove herself to her over protective mother. It’s a book that is brooding vampire-free where there are romantic elements that differ from a lot of the love triangle formula you see in many young adult books these days. Julie and her best friend Marcus are quintessential geeks (Marcus, more so) who are quite happy about their social standing and comfortable in their own skin. There’s a bit of high school in the book but most of the story takes place on the streets of my hometown of Calgary. The reader is introduced to some very eccentric characters and Betty Priddy tops the list – she’s a blast to write about and the fact that she’s an immortal spirit who steals bodies at death’s door so she can manifest in the mortal plane creates a couple of interesting choices by which she pops into Julie’s life. This is a fun and funny story that gets very dark, very quickly. It’s non-stop action because the clock is ticking for Julie if she plans to save her mother’s life.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] How did you come up with the concept and the characters for the story?
[Sean Cummings] The book started with the title, actually. The word POLTERGEEKS just popped into my head and I started jotting down ideas. Given that it’s been nearly thirty years since I was in high school I took a gamble when I decided to write something aimed at young adults and I wanted to make the characters as genuine as possible. So there’s mother-daughter angst. There’s a protagonist who wants very much to prove herself. There’s a missing piece to my protagonist’s life in that her father died when she was very young. All of this started to gel once I sat down and worked on an outline and the actual plot took shape very quickly once I sat down with a sheet of paper and a pencil. I wanted to write something different than a lot of urban fantasy featuring teenagers, so I adopted a mindset very quickly that my characters, though low on the social scale at school should still be quite comfortable with their standing in life. In Julie you have the hero’s journey. In Marcus, you have the Watson to Julie’s Sherlock Holmes.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What three words best describe Julie?
[Sean Cummings] Feisty. Fearless. Irresponsible at times. Grounded in her friendships. Extremely loyal. Extremely self-sufficient. Comfortable in her own skin. She’s also a very, very powerful witch – more so than other witches her age. And finally, she’s snarky. A good female protagonist in an urban fantasy needs to be snarky, and Julie’s level of snark jumps right off the page.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What are three things Marcus would never have in his pocket?
[Sean Cummings] That’s a good question. He would never have car keys in his pocket because he’s all about saving the planet. He wouldn’t have a Starbucks gift card because he hates evil corporate entities save for McDonald’s. He wouldn’t carry lip balm unless he’s analyzed its chemical components first.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What is Julie’s single most prized possession?
[Sean Cummings] The faint, wispy memories of her late father who died when she was four. He’s the missing piece in her life – his non-presence has shaped the person that she’s becoming. His legacy is coming back to haunt her in a very dark and dangerous way.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What are your greatest creative influences?
[Sean Cummings] Comic books top the list. Anything written by Alan Moore because he re-imagined what a comic book can possibly be with Watchmen. Stephen King, obviously, but also authors like Robert R. McCammon, John Saul and Simon R. Green. Believe it or not, Buffy didn’t influence me, though I did enjoy the show immensely.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What three things do you need in order to write?
[Sean Cummings] 1) Silence. I need absolute silence. 2) Coffee. I need that kick start first thing in the morning. 3) Early morning. I can’t write after twelve in the afternoon. I’m a morning person and my creative juices are always flowing when I’ve crawled out of bed to begin pounding away at the keyboard.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What is the last book that you read that knocked your socks off?
[Sean Cummings] The one that stands out the most is BLACKBIRDS by Chuck Wendig. I believe that in Miriam Black, Wendig has completely re-written the rules for what’s possible in dark fantasy with a strong female protagonist. Like, completely and utterly demolished them. No, I’m serious. He hopped his ass into a Sherman Tank and bloody well smashed through them with his main cannon firing. Miriam Black is unbelievably damaged goods – she touches your skin, she sees your death. BOOM! How can that NOT mess your mind up? How can you NOT smoke a three packs of cigarettes a day or guzzle whiskey to numb everything. It’s gritty, frightening and at times downright hilarious. This is the first book in a long time where I don’t have a bloody clue the direction the main character is going to go because Miriam doesn’t really have a clue where her life is leading her either. BLACKBIRDS is the best book of the year – hand’s down. I expect you’re going to see a lot of authors writing books with similar style characters because they’ve been influenced by Wendig’s writing. God knows, I have.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] If you had to pick one book that turned you on to reading, which would it be?
[Sean Cummings] Oh that’s easy. WHEN THE WIND BLOWS by John Saul. It’s the first "adult" book I ever read and the irony is that its main characters are children. All of Saul’s books deal with themes that can resonate with someone writing young adult. The setting is always a small town where everyone knows each other. There’s always something dark and terrible in that house two blocks away from your house. There’s always something evil lurking in the shadows and it usually revolves around young people.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What do you like to do when you aren’t writing?
[Sean Cummings] I’m a massive English football fan. Love love love the game! So I watch it on the dish Saturday and Sunday mornings at an obscenely early hour when I should be writing. I like to hang out with my son. I read, obviously. I watch a lot of science fiction and fantasy with the better half. I basically immerse myself in being a happy middle aged man who lives in a nice neighborhood (finally).
[Manga Maniac Cafe] How can readers connect with you?
[Sean Cummings] I’m on Twitter (saskatoonauthor). My website is sean-cummings.ca. I’m on Facebook. My email is info AT sean DASH cummings DOT ca.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] Thank you!
You can order Poltergeeks from your favorite bookseller or by clicking the widget below
Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.
I love the title for Stephen Blackmoore’s February release – Dead Things just sounds so cool!
In stores February 2013
Necromancer is such an ugly word, but it’s a title Eric Carter is stuck with.
He sees ghosts, talks to the dead. He’s turned it into a lucrative career putting troublesome spirits to rest, sometimes taking on even more dangerous things. For a fee, of course.
When he left L.A. fifteen years ago he thought he’d never go back. Too many bad memories. Too many people trying to kill him.
But now his sister’s been brutally murdered and Carter wants to find out why.
Was it the gangster looking to settle a score? The ghost of a mage he killed the night he left town? Maybe it’s the patron saint of violent death herself, Santa Muerte, who’s taken an unusually keen interest in him.
Carter’s going to find out who did it and he’s going to make them pay.
As long as they don’t kill him first.
What are you waiting on?
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Title: Venom Author: Fiona Paul |
May Contain Spoilers
From Amazon:
Love, lust, murder, mayhem and high society converge in one thrilling debut
Cassandra Caravello has everything a girl could desire: elegant gowns, sparkling jewels, invitations to the best parties, and a handsome, wealthy fiancé—yet she longs for something more. Ever since her parents’ death, Cassandra has felt trapped, alone in a city of water, where the dark and labyrinthine canals whisper of escape.
When Cass stumbles upon the body of a murdered woman—with a bloody X carved across her heart—she’s drawn into a dangerous world of secret societies, courtesans, and killers. Soon, she finds herself falling for Falco, a poor artist with a mischievous grin . . . and a habit of getting into trouble. Will Cassandra find the murderer before he finds her? And will she stay true to her fiancé or succumb to her uncontrollable feelings for Falco?
Beauty, romance, and mystery weave together in a novel that’s as seductive and stunning as the city of Venice itself.
Review:
When I read that Venom is set in Renaissance Venice, I couldn’t wait to read it. I love Venice, and think that it’s a great backdrop for any story. Fiona Paul’s descriptions of the city and culture give Venom a splash of color and excitement; with her vivid descriptions, I could almost hear the water splashing from the oars of the gondoliers and the hustle and bustle of the city. With its network of twisting , turning canals, Venice is the perfect setting for murder, mystery, and the constant threat of danger. It’s also home to glamorous parties, wealthy nobles, and exquisite architecture. I loved all of the details packed into this novel, from the graveyards to Cass’s smoldering old home.
Cass is an orphan. She is being raised by her elderly Aunt Agnese, a strict matron who expects Cass to behave as her station demands. Cass, however, wants nothing to do with all of the gentle pursuits expected of her. Embroidery bores her to tears, she has no patience for timidity, and she wants to question everything around her. She longs to live. This gets her into quite a bit of trouble, and Agnese is worried that Cass will cause a scandal and get them both kicked out of her cousin’s house, where they both live until he achieves his majority. While Cass does try to rein in her wilder side, when she stumbles upon the corpse of a murdered woman she just can’t help herself. She needs to know who she was, and why she was in her friend’s family crypt, instead of her friend, Livi, who died after losing a fight against an illness.
Cass immediately sets the expectation that she is an impulsive, bold girl, and she lives up to that. She wants to live life instead of just sitting still and watching it spin by her. She is curious and wants to know what makes the world tick. Her recklessness gets her into so much trouble, and her aunt’s sternness just makes her long to do everything that is reckless and exciting. When she meets Falco, an artist, she is instantly attracted to him. He is mischievous and spirited, and completely different from her boring, studious finance, Luca. Even though there is no hope that they could ever be together because of their class differences, Cass is still drawn to Falco again and again. When the murderer sends Cass a note that she will be the next victim, she feels an even greater compulsion to be with Falco and to savor all of the forbidden attraction that she feels for him. While I completely bought into the intensity of her emotions and the undeniable charisma between the two characters, I had a hard time liking Falco. Sweet and fun-loving one moment, he could also be sarcastic and evasive the next.
There were two plot points that kept me from enjoying Venom as much as I would have liked. Both are commonly used plot devices in YA fiction that I just can’t connect with. The first was Cass’s recklessness. She is impulsive to the point that I began to wonder how she survived into her late teens. She frequently waited until dark, when all of the aging residents of the household were sound asleep, to creep out of the house and sneak into the graveyard behind the palazzo. She repeatedly engaged in this dangerous activity, so she could think or write in her journal. I don’t know about you, but hanging out in a graveyard in the wee hours of the night, alone, with a lantern to announce my presence and my location, just doesn’t seem an intelligent activity to pursue. Add in one brutal murderer, who has sent a note to you proclaiming the intention to make you the next victim and, I’m sorry, but you obviously have serious issues making a rational decision or you have a death wish.
The second plot point that made me want to rip my hair out – both Luca and Falco, Cass’s love interests, expected her to accept them at face value, to believe in them and trust them, while not trusting her enough to share potential life saving secrets with her. This drove me crazy. Cass catches Falco in a blatant lie, one that causes her to question his character and everything that he has told her, and still he won’t tell her the truth. All the while proclaiming his intense love for her. Luca does the same thing later in the book. Both young men claim to love her, and both are well acquainted with her stubbornness. She isn’t going to meekly do what they say and stop putting herself in danger. They both know this about her personality, yet they both remain silent, putting her life at risk. Whenever I run into this plot device, it just comes across as condescending to me. These guys claim to care for her, but they are keeping secrets that are going to get her killed. Trust is a two way street. I can’t imagine spending the rest of my life with a guy would can’t be upfront with me. This isn’t romantic; it’s manipulative. Rant off.
While Venom left me disappointed, fans of Hush, Hush and Fallen should enjoy this suspenseful and atmospheric mystery.
Grade: C+
Review copy provided by publicist
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So Giovanni had this idea and he issued a challenge to me. The result:
Princess Elizabeth's Spy is the second mystery in the Maggie Hope series by Susan Elia MacNeal. When last we left our WWII heroine, Maggie Hope in Mr. Churchill's Secretary, she was leaving her post as a typist for Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of Britain to begin espionage training for MI-5 (Military Intelligence Section 5). Maggie, after all, is a gifted mathematician with a degree from Wellesley College and was on her way to graduate school at MIT when the war broke out while she was visiting England.
Quick, breezy read, but
Cute epistolary
Even though I guessed
I can't even do
The Doorbell Rang. Rex Stout. 1965. 207 pages.
Hi Everyone!
Lists can be extremely useful, especially when they are constantly being updated!
Here are two such.
The first, compiled by the enterprising and enthusiastic Brain Grove, is a list of US publishers who are currently accepting submissions for children’s books – http://j.mp/SVbnCk – he also, very helpfully, adds links toeach entry to take you straight to the site. I also recommend his ebook on query /submission letter writing.
The second, a veritable database, is continuously being updated by the very proactive authors, Delin Colon and Lisa Kalner Williams – http://bit.ly/writerinterviewopps …
If you haven’t joined www.jacketflap.com, I highly recommend it – an excellent networking site for all things related to children’s literature and books.
Get busy and good luck!
One of the most prized, and most difficult, tasks a new author undertakes is the quest to find his own voice. It is a desire to be unique and original, to sound like no one else. Because voice has to do with sound, right? Voice is the sound we make out loud. But then, what [...]
You're even reading
Susan Vaught’s latest release, Freaks Like Us, recently hit store shelves. Susan stopped by the virtual offices for a chat. Check out what she has to say!
[Manga Maniac Cafe] Describe yourself in 140 characters or less.
[Susan Vaught] Long hair, pacifist, likes chocolate, reads a lot, has parrot, too many dogs, three cats, loves writing, likes football, works in an asylum.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] Can you tell us a little about Freaks Like Us?
[Susan Vaught] Freaks Like Us is a fast-paced mystery, with most of the story taking place in the 24 hours after Jason Milwaukee’s best friend and sort-of girlfriend disappears. To find her, Jason has to battle his mental illness, his self-doubt, and prejudice from other people involved in the search.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] How did you come up with the concept and the characters for the story?
[Susan Vaught] I have been wanting to write through the eyes and voice of a character with schizophrenia for many years, but it took me a long time to develop just the right personality so readers could relate to Jason. The other characters came more naturally, and they all contend with issues I have either faced in my own life/family, or treated in my years of practice as a psychologist. The mystery element of the story unfolded as the story moved along, surprising me at the end of the first chapter!
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What three words best describe Jason?
[Susan Vaught] Brave, Loving, Determined
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What three things will Jason leave the house without?
[Susan Vaught] Three things he wouldn’t leave the house without would be Sunshine’s locket, his house key, and Agent Mercer’s private telephone number. If it’s really supposed to be what he WOULD leave the house without, then the answer would be . . . just about everything else. Jason can get pretty distracted and forgetful. Lunch money, his phone, his homework—all of that might get accidentally abandoned on any given day.
[ED – oops, yes it was a typo. Thank you for the wonderful answer ]
[Manga Maniac Cafe] If Jason had a theme song, what would it be?
[Susan Vaught] Possibility, by Lykke Li. I think the haunting sound and the words/emotions have real meaning for him.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What is Jason’s most prized possession?
[Susan Vaught] Sunshine’s gold locket. It means more to him than anything other than Sunshine herself.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What are your greatest creative influences?
[Susan Vaught] Life, music, and other people’s brilliant art. Whenever I read a great book, hear a wonderful song, look at an amazing painting or sculpture, watch a good film, or encounter good art in any other format, it inspires me to make more of my own—not copy what I experienced or encountered, but try to come up with something brilliant, beautiful, and lasting, to pass on that gift of inspiration.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What three things do you need in order to write?
[Susan Vaught] A clean house or writing cabin, no distractions, and the exact right song. I absolutely cannot write without good music.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What is the last book that you read that knocked your socks off?
[Susan Vaught] Daughter of Smoke and Bone, by Laini Taylor. I reviewed it on my website. I love the originality of the writing, and the flesh-and-blood feel of the characters…even those that don’t exactly have flesh and blood.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] If you had to pick one book that turned you on to reading, which would it be?
[Susan Vaught] John Christopher’s Tripod series. The first book in the series was The White Mountains. I remember falling deeply into that world, into the struggles of those characters. I believe it was the first set of books I read where kids were in real jeopardy, and made a difference.
[Manga Maniac Cafe] What do you like to do when you aren’t writing?
[Susan Vaught] When I’m not writing, I’m usually working. My day job is at an inpatient psychiatric hospital. I also help tend the many birds and animals on our farm. What I’d like to do—ha. Be at the beach!
[Manga Maniac Cafe] How can readers connect with you?
[Susan Vaught] Through my website, at www.susanvaught.com . I enjoy hearing from my readers!
[Manga Maniac Cafe] Thank you!
You can purchase Freaks Like Us from your favorite bookseller or by clicking the widget below.
The Case of the Runaway Corpse. Erle Stanley Gardner. 1954. 210 pages.
HOLY HELL THESE PEOPLE
Nice post!
Boy can I relate, Morgan! It's been unusually cold but sunny on the Southern Oregon coast for the past two or three days. It was 40 degree when we left to walk our dogs in a local park at 9:00. There's a beautiful pond in the middle of the trees, with a path for walking. It was SO COLD, the ducks, coots and geese didn't go in the pond! Still I'd rather have this than rain!
Happy New Year
I know just what you mean!
I tell people all the time that the best gift to give a writer is a review...it's better than seeing a sale, or anything else, to get a review. Because you know someone read you--and they cared enough to SAY something about it. Love reviews! Great post!
Love and stuff,
Michy
I had a little sunshine come into my life this morning, so I really understand what you're saying. Excellent post, and thank you!
Marja McGraw
Morgan, I wouldn't have walked in the cold. Am not a winter person and get my exercise at the gym and playing tennis indoors! I know the sun felt good.
Thanks for sharing!
Monti
Mary Montague Sikes
I believe it was something like 16 degrees here this morning. Carlene's 40 would have seemed warm to me!
No we're at 18 degrees at almost 1:30pm.
Glad you all can relate to both of what I mentioned.
Morgan Mandel
http://www.morganmandel.com
I know what you mean. I have been to Alaska. I could take the cold in the winter, but I would miss the sun.
Morgan, I am in awe of you. You went out to walk on such a cold day! I've been walking every morning and have discovered that I really like walking. I didn't go this morning, though. I did get some exercise, though, since my aunt is coming tomorrow so I've been cleaning house (including the toilets!).
What a great analogy! A kind word or a positive review really can bring a ray of sunshine into an author's world.
Good post, Morgan. Sunshine and kindness are both good for the author's--or anyone's--soul.
True, kindness does not only apply to authors in need of it!
Morgan Mandel
http://www.morganmandel.com
It was unusually cold here in East Texas when I went for my walk this morning, too, Morgan. Still cold, and I have not received a new review to warm me up. (smile) So glad to see you got a good one.
Kudos to you Morgan for both the post and that you got out and walked. It is so hard to get myself going but once I do, I enjoy it a lot like what you mentioned. Reviewers also have a special place in my heart for sharing their thoughts. I really learned a lot from a negative comment on a review. It was really helpful and constructive.
Wendy
W.S. Gager on Writing
Hey Morgan,
I really got how you compared the warmth of sunshine to a kind word from a reader or peer. The difference is absolutely night and day.
You'd think we were all fully-formed and wholly confident, but this is a strange business. No matter how much you enjoy writing and how good you think your stories are, a few negative words can have you doubting everything.
I keep a file of "kind words." They really help when the mean girls come along, or some other micro-disaster.
Have a great 2013.
Maggie
http://mudpiesandmagnolias.blogspot.com
I do keep clips from my reviews and share them on Twitter from time to time. They keep me going!
Morgan Mandel
http://www.morganmandel.com
Happy New Year, Morgan! We went hiking on New Year's Day to Starved Rock Park. The sun made it absolutely wonderful. And I agree the reviews/notes/comments from folks are what keeps me going as a writer. I need to know someone understood and/or enjoyed my hard work.
DL Larson
This is so true. A good review can make up for a lot of gray, cloudy days.
We are all in agreement on this one. Praise warms an author's heart!
Morgan Mandel
http://www.morganmandel.com
Morgan, you could send a little of that cold over. Here, we have 40 degrees Celsius (over 100 F) with strong gusty winds. Worst bushfire day since the bad one in 2009.
I did my walking after 10 pm when the temperature lowered to 24 C (75 F).
:)
Bob
Morgan,
It's so true, and I absolutely agree. We write in solitude and then are thrust into the marketing whirlwind. A kind word from a reader goes a long way.
Margot
www.mjustes.com