It was Katrina Kenison (
The Gift of an Ordinary Day, Mitten Strings for God) who introduced me to Jennie Nash (
The Threadbare Heart, The Only True Genius in the Family, The Last Beach Bungalow, The Victoria's Secret Catalog Never Stops Coming, Raising a Reader). Katrina was sure that Jennie and I were like-minded souls, and Katrina (who knows many things, who can be trusted) was right. Jennie and I became instant friends and we have remained close, though she is a west coaster and I am an east coaster, and though she has lately been writing novels for adults and I have lately been writing for young adults. We share motherhood stories, frustration stories, breakthrough stories, and when my mother passed away, Jennie sent a gift—a purse knitted from yarn that, Jennie said, looked like the colors of the sky on the day my mother passed away. (Jennie also sent red lipstick for my first ballroom showcase number.)
When Jennie, then, sent an email today, brief as brief could be (it simply said:
Writing about you today), I clicked on the link. It took me to
The Huffington Post. It took me to t
hese words, from dear Jennie.Thank you, Jennie.
In the pinnacle of my literary geekiness, I’ve started reading acknowledgements pages in books.
You can learn a lot—how many people it takes to make a book, how many friends contribute and the professionals who supported the writer.
Today, Joie Jager-Hyman tells us about everybody who helped her book get written--proving once and for all that no book is an island. --a non-fiction look at the college application process.
Welcome to my deceptively simple feature, Five Easy Questions. In the spirit of Jack Nicholson’s mad piano player, I run a weekly set of quality conversations with writing pioneers—delivering some practical, unexpected advice about web writing.
Jason Boog:
I know your writing group played a large role in writing this book. Can you describe that experience? What was the moment or aspect in your book that your writing partner helped you the most? How can writers find these kinds of relationships?
Joie Jager-Hyman:
My writers group helped me at every step of the process. Continue reading...
Some sequel lovin' for y'all today. Interesting note--these are all sequels to things I read in June as part MotherReader's 48 hour challenge.
First off, woot! A new SASS book!
The Finnish Line by Linda Gerber
Mo is very glad to be escaping her Olympic-champion family to (hopefully) ski jump in peace while studying in Finland. While there, she realizes she can't escape her family's fame. She learns a lot of skiing history and tries to reconcile her feelings about her family with how her host sister is used as a commodity by her host parents.
We learn a lot about injustice--both in how the Roma are treated in current Finnish society and in how women can't compete in the Olympics for ski jumping.
One of the better titles in this series. I especially liked the examination of Roma/Finnish clashes and the history of skiing.
Then we have the sequel to
The Salem Witch TryoutsCompetition's a Witch by Kelly McClymer
Pru may be on the cheerleading squad, but she's still stuck in remedial magic and can't cheer at any non-mortal games until then. She needs to study her cheer off if she's going to test out early. That might be a bit of a problem, as the super nosy (mortal) next door neighbor has a super hott son. And Pru's kewl status is hanging in the balance, especially with the squad's dismissal of all things mortal.
But if she can't get her squad to listen to her, how can she get them working together to win the regional cheer competition?
Gotta love a bubbly book about magic AND cheerleading. Lots of fun, but Pru's obsession with kewl is more annoying than ever. It' COOL! Not KEWL! "Kewl" is so "
Cartman joins NAMBLA"
By: Beth Kephart ,
on 8/3/2010
By: Jason Boog,
on 5/9/2008
By: Jennie,
on 11/8/2007
How blessed you are to have such friend, such a supporter.
人生中最好的禮物就是屬於自己的一部份............................................................
What a lovely post she wrote about you! And congratulations -- two books in one year? That's pretty spectacular.
Many congratulations to you, Beth. The work you do is a gift to us all, and I'm glad you are getting more acknowledgments for your beautiful words.
I love 'Mitten Strings from God' - I have it near my bedside and I often pick it up and read a random chapter. I have never read anything by Jennie Nash - but I will get some of her books soon.
So kind.