Hello and hello and hello dear ones! Three hellos for this is the third time I am logging in to write a blog post. The other times, I got carried away with something or got interrupted with our always wonderful Internet connection! So here I am today, to share some tidbits and some snapz. :) Nothing you haven't already heard from me, as I keep updating "What's on my mind?" every now and then. :)
So what is up and running around you? Don't answer me with "Cats and Dogs". For Cats aren't necessarily running around always.Let's see what the Feline Hero of the GHMC Ladies' Hostel was upto last weekend. ;)
He is two feet long - tall, saying humanwise. And walks royally around, when he visits His Ladies. He's the daddy cat starring in my poem When the Kitten Meets His Dad.Want me to share it here? Will try. But here's the King Felis non-domestica. Non-domestica, for we don't entertain his presence at our hostel. What doesn't make him adorable is that he doesn't keep his coat clean. But he isn't shy into settle himself in our beds conducting the materials on his coat to our sheets, in case we forgot to close a window, or left the door ajar. His progeny and their mothers aren't different, they are more often the ones who do this.
So here he is:
King Felis non-domestica
This time, he has found a stashed pillow just outside our room. It was dark and I shot the pic with flash to get him in it. Seems like he didn't lik
From Robert McCrum in Guardian.co.uk:
...The ruthless cut-off of 40 does not address the complex trajectory of creative growth: for every novelist or poet who explodes skywards with a first or second book, there are many who only achieve mastery as they reach the shady side of the slope. The onset of middle age, or the approach of oblivion, is perhaps as sharp a spur to literary effort as the intoxicating self-belief of youth.
After reading Cindy’s contribution last month concerning birthdays, my mathematical mind took off on its own musings about numbers and age.
People use numbers to represent age in a way that is not only different from the way we are taught to round numbers, but also conflicts with the linear relationship age has with time. When else would someone round 23.95 to 23 instead of to 24? *
Contrary to the way we were taught to round numbers, we all represent age by rounding down to the last year. Now, I’d be the first to admit that it would be impractical, not to mention irritating, to hear a grown person saying, “I’m 32 and a half.” Think about it: in just one day, your 40th birthday, you go from rounding down to 39 to rounding down to 40. Really you just aged one more day, or several more minutes.
Time is continuous, but we treat age as though it is discrete. If you graphed age as a function of time, it would not be a straight line, but instead a floor function. And birthdays are the points of discontinuity, (points where the graph is not connected).
In English, we say “I am 25,” to mean “I have lived 25 years so far.” Other languages, such as Spanish and French, approach age slightly differently by phrasing it, “J’ai 40 ans,” (which translates from French to English as “I have 40 years”). “Having 40 years” really means you have lived for 40 years, but you’re experiencing your 41st year of your life! "Being 25" means you're in your 26th year.
This is different from the way we approach years as a function of time. When we say the year 2010, we indicate that it is the 2010th year since we started counting. When we say it’s June 4th, we indicate that it’s the fourth day in the month of June. However, if I were to say I’m 11, I’m really living the 12th year of my life.
Of course I understand the motivations behind common age-naming practices. You could call it vanity. You could call it fear of aging. We want our age to be represented by the smallest number possible, and for practical purposes, we need it to be a cardinal number. But if we’re already rounding down to the nearest year, why not take it further? Why not round down to the nearest 5 years? Try it! If anyone accuses you of lying, tell them you just round differently.
This piece was written for my brother Matthew, who this week switches from rounding down to 29 to rounding down to 30. Don’t worry. I’ll remind him that he’s really living his 31st year!
*I would love more examples of instances when we do round down like this. Please use the comment section to share them.
My posts are often targeted at young writers—the ones that contact me most often with questions. But today I’m talking to writers of a certain age. Yes, you. You may not even be that old—but you’re old enough to ask yourself whether it’s too late to become a writer.
If this doesn’t apply to you—well, then, go write something!
All of my life I have been transforming myself, and each time I did, I asked myself, 'Am I too old to be doing this?'
Even when I was only 27, and thinking about going back to school to become a dietitian. I wondered--should I spend three years in school at MY age? And I thought to myself, in three years, you'll be thirty, whether you do this or not. And so I did it.
I began writing in third grade, and continued through high school. But I got away from the writing habit in college, when I was buried under school work and a nearly full time job. I wrote term papers and case studies and eventually papers for professional journals. But I left poetry and fiction behind.
I got back into writing as a working mother of young children. I was still busy, but I had something to say. I found out that I still had a lot to learn. So I made time to write and learn my craft.
Eventually, I became a fairly successful freelance writer. But I knew that freelance writing would always be a part-time gig, and I longed to go back to fiction. So about ten or twelve years ago, I made a conscious decision to focus on novels. Given that I also had a day job, it meant giving up some freelance work. And I asked myself, "Am I too old to be doing this?" But I did.
I published my first novel four years ago, and I’ve released a book a year since then. I have been a full time writer for two years now.
In my opinion, it’s never too late to transform yourself, if you focus on process instead of outcome. Writing isn’t like ballet--it’s never too late to begin. I intend to keep at it until they pry my cold, dead hands from the keyboard.
What you shouldn't do is wait until the perfect time to do it. There are easier seasons in your life to launch into a new endeavor, but there will never be a perfect time. So don't wait until you finish school, until you retire, until the children are all grown, until your life magically untangles itself. It takes time to become the best writer you can be. Start now.
On the one hand, I know I will never live long enough to write all my stories down. I regret that. On the other hand, maybe that’s how long it took to gain the skill and life experience I needed to be the writer I am.
I receive so many questions from readers. Keep them coming! Here’s a collection of those that I didn’t feel warranted a full post, but yet still deserved an answer. Also, keep in mind that some of these may have been answered more extensively in other posts, so don’t forget to search our archives for more detailed information.
I was wondering how important it is for an unpublished author to have a website. Is it really necessary at all or should you wait until you have a book on its way to the store bookshelves? I've had some of my friends tell me I should have one to show agents and editors I'm serious about my writing. Is that the truth?
I honestly don’t think it’s important at all. Work on writing your book, the web site can always (and needs to) come after a deal is made.
If a Canadian (or British, or Australian, etc.) writer ends up with an American agent, who I assume would go after American publishers first, in what currency will the writer be paid?
Typically payment is made in the currency of the publisher or agent. Checks I issue to my clients, from contracts they have, are issued in the American dollar.
Does the age of the author matter to you? Especially in the romance genre—if the author’s age is 50+, will that adversely affect your ability to successfully represent?
Do a quick search through previous blog posts, but this is a subject I’ve definitely discussed in detail. In a nutshell, no. I’m looking for a great book and in many instances there’s no reason for me to ever even discover how old an author is.
Is it a no-no to include the blog name at the end of my query?
Not at all. I think including your blog name and/or web site in your query only makes sense, and let’s put it this way, it can’t hurt anything.
When sending pages in an email (not as an attachment) is it a good idea to format it like a regular full or should I format the pages like an email message? (single space, etc.)
I think you should probably format as an email message, using the formatting options of your email program.
I have been working with two beta readers on my latest book. They have made many good suggestions and I have even changed plot elements based on their recommendations. What is your opinion of working with a beta reader while writing a story?
I think it’s a great idea! Beta readers, like a critique group, are a great way for a writer to learn the craft and get opinions from others she trusts.
What are your thoughts on Canadians finding representation from literary agents in the U.S.?
I don’t know why you wouldn’t. BookEnds has a number of Canadian authors as well as authors from other countries.
Jessica
Posted on 8/22/2009
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Time Machine, Three Trips: Where Would You Go?
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To survive a zombie apocalypse you have to be very brave and stupid. Stupid by actually trying to, I mean the whole world is basically against you now. Your going to have to be fit and athletic. You also need to have good aim. If you fit this description then your story begins…
Chapter 1
When a zombie apocalypse first happens, this is the most dangerous part. Many people are going to get infected because they don’t know what the hell is happening. Now you probably don’t care about the other people but the more of them that get infected the worse it is for you. For now all you need is a weapon.
If your in an office or a business area (this includes hotels, hospitals, etc) your going to have to use your fists. But really your going to run most of the time. If your nearer to the top floor do not go down the stairs UNLESS you have a weapon. It is really dangerous to go down there, you will get cornered no matter how tough you are. Though you’re going to have to get out before it gets any worse. To get a weapon try going to a janitor closest. If your no where near there go into any office and grab a keyboard, chair, anything light and gives you the ability to crack a head in one hit. Now if you are near a janitor closet go in and grab a mop and some spray, make sure the spray is flammable. If you have a lighter then you have an advantage. Matches will work too. Now you need the spray for 2 things, some idiots lock doors that you need to get through and hell no they won’t let you in. Just spray the lock and light it up. I’d hide behind something just in case it blows. If you don’t have any thing to light it up all you need is a plastic Id card and try to pick the lock. This is very easy actually. All you do is try to place the card between the lock and the wall, the door will slide open. If your running out of time, try to break the handle of the door. If all else fails try another door, in an office building they probably have an emergency exit. If the exit is over run by zombies you now have a weapon so you may now go to the stairs! Just be careful, use your mop to knock the zombies down the stairs. If your mop breaks, which might happen if you hit with it too hard, then use the longest end and use it as a spear. Aim for the head or just push em off the stairs. Once you reach the bottom floor avoid the exits until you make a distraction. If you have a lighter or matches then you have a distraction. Go to any hall away from the exits and spray a lot of fluid on the floor. Once the floor is wet smear the can in the fluid. Make sure your hands are not wet and there are no zombies around, then use your matches on the fluid before it dries and run to an exit ( try to hide behind something before you get close to the exit to make sure no zombies are around. The spray can will eventually explode, if you sprayed enough fluid on the floor. If you didn’t just make sure no zombies are around and run to the exit. If the can explodes a lot of zombies will come, now you can just run to the exits while they are checking out what blew up. Now if you don’t have matches just make a run for the exit. Continue on chapter 2.
Now if your in a house or you were shopping (this includes restaurants, malls, apartments) then just lock all the doors leading in to the building. If you encounter a zombie on your way to lock the doors in a shop, run to any aisle with tools or anything sharp. Once there grab it and try to smash its head. Be careful not to get bitten. In the store you will encounter other people that will probably help you out. If your in your house then you’re safe for now since you already have your doors locked..I hope. If your at this step you can just skip to chapter 3.
Chapter 2
If you were on the road, in a car or was just taking a walk when this happened then all you need to do is get to the nearest police department. If you just escaped from you office building or business area then you need to get to a car since the nearest police department is no where near you. If you were walking get the hell back to your car or house if your walking the dog. Anyway once your in a car go to the police department. If it’s over run or they won’t let you in then drive out of the city or the popular parts of town to the suburbs or any where that’s not as populace. You can then just find a small store or pharmacy. A pharmacy would be best. Once you find one that’s not over run go in and lock ALL doors. Not one should be left open. If the doors are broken seal them with grocery carts. If you can’t find any, get anything like empty boxes or useless items like signs and billboards and pile them on the exit. Once you completely sealed all exits you can rest.
Chapter 3
If you were the person that ran out of the office then you need to regain your energy, eat some food or candy that you can find in the store and sleep you will probably of already slept by then. Just don’t eat to much candy and drink a lot of water. If you were already in the store or house and you completely sealed off all entrances and exits you don’t need rest, you need weapons. For now you can hold off on weapons since security and protection is more important. Try wearing a plastic rain coat if you have any and wear thick boots and pants, put on some gloves and test biting yourself, if the glove gets ripped it wont help you against the zombies. If you are in a store that has no clothes then make yourself some weapons. Knives are usually sold at food stores and flammable stuff like disinfectant spray are usually there too. But if your gong to use the spray then head to the aisle with matches, the bigger the better. Then just get empty boxes and billboard signs and seal off the entrance to the food aisle, just in case the zombies breach the doors. Though you better get a lot of water and food in your aisle before you seal it off. If there is a pharmacy or a drug aisle in the store get some pain relievers and any useful drug that might help in the future, probably a cream that disinfects cuts and scrapes.
Chapter 4
Friends and family at the most part are probably dead, if they are not following this guide that is, so you you going to need somebody to help you out. If you were stuck in the store you probably already have people that are nagging at you. If your home alone or you were the person from the office and is in a store now you don’t really need help from anybody else you can skip to chapter 5. Now if you do have people the are willing to join you then your first going to have to share your supplies. This is fine because more people adds to your defences and brain power. Just give a knife or if they have good aim give em a few to throw them at zombie heads. But watch your back one of those knives might be planned for you…
Chapter 5
Your food supplies are probably getting low if you are at home. If your in an apartment building and need to escape go back to chapter 1. Now if your in a house then you might have a chance… If your house has a chimney then this is a possible exit. Just make sure you can fit. If you can’t or if your afraid of tight places head to the Attic and open a window. Try to climb up to the room using your window sill as a foot hold. If it’s too high, then try using another window. If you actually have a car then go back to chapter 2. Don’t forget your weapons. If you don’t know what weapons to use go to chapter 6.
Chapter 6
Weapons are a crucial part to surviving. Many things can be weapons. If you have a car you can just run over zombies no problem. If your at home a nail gun, hammer (If your actually gonna use a hammer make sure you have 2 since they are slow to hit with) mop, broom, keyboard, flammable spray, matches, knives and forks. For the forks you can throw them like darts, though your going to have to be a good aim and throw it hard enough to make any damage. If your at an office or hotel weapons like brooms, keyboards, flammable spray, matches, will work just fine. If your at a food store use anything like carts or knives. If your in a super center or a tool store you don’t really need help finding a weapon, they are every where!
Chapter 7
Surviving for a long time is hard and probably won’t be accomplished since your probably gonna get nuked. Your friends might turn on you or you starve or thirst to death. The only possible way of surviving is if you have a helicopter, gas, guns, food factory, water from a river with filter, and a mansion with steel walls and gates. Even if you have that stuff you will eventually die of old age anyway. It’s a horrible and sad tragedy that you will endure if you ever have to go through a zombie apocalypse. A zombie apocalypse might never happen but i could always be wrong…
Posted on 8/22/2009
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To survive a zombie apocalypse you have to be very brave and stupid. Stupid by actually trying to, I mean the whole world is basically against you now. Your going to have to be fit and athletic. You also need to have good aim. If you fit this description then your story begins…
Chapter 1
When a zombie apocalypse first happens, this is the most dangerous part. Many people are going to get infected because they don’t know what the hell is happening. Now you probably don’t care about the other people but the more of them that get infected the worse it is for you. For now all you need is a weapon.
If your in an office or a business area (this includes hotels, hospitals, etc) your going to have to use your fists. But really your going to run most of the time. If your nearer to the top floor do not go down the stairs UNLESS you have a weapon. It is really dangerous to go down there, you will get cornered no matter how tough you are. Though you’re going to have to get out before it gets any worse. To get a weapon try going to a janitor closest. If your no where near there go into any office and grab a keyboard, chair, anything light and gives you the ability to crack a head in one hit. Now if you are near a janitor closet go in and grab a mop and some spray, make sure the spray is flammable. If you have a lighter then you have an advantage. Matches will work too. Now you need the spray for 2 things, some idiots lock doors that you need to get through and hell no they won’t let you in. Just spray the lock and light it up. I’d hide behind something just in case it blows. If you don’t have any thing to light it up all you need is a plastic Id card and try to pick the lock. This is very easy actually. All you do is try to place the card between the lock and the wall, the door will slide open. If your running out of time, try to break the handle of the door. If all else fails try another door, in an office building they probably have an emergency exit. If the exit is over run by zombies you now have a weapon so you may now go to the stairs! Just be careful, use your mop to knock the zombies down the stairs. If your mop breaks, which might happen if you hit with it too hard, then use the longest end and use it as a spear. Aim for the head or just push em off the stairs. Once you reach the bottom floor avoid the exits until you make a distraction. If you have a lighter or matches then you have a distraction. Go to any hall away from the exits and spray a lot of fluid on the floor. Once the floor is wet smear the can in the fluid. Make sure your hands are not wet and there are no zombies around, then use your matches on the fluid before it dries and run to an exit ( try to hide behind something before you get close to the exit to make sure no zombies are around. The spray can will eventually explode, if you sprayed enough fluid on the floor. If you didn’t just make sure no zombies are around and run to the exit. If the can explodes a lot of zombies will come, now you can just run to the exits while they are checking out what blew up. Now if you don’t have matches just make a run for the exit. Continue on chapter 2.
Now if your in a house or you were shopping (this includes restaurants, malls, apartments) then just lock all the doors leading in to the building. If you encounter a zombie on your way to lock the doors in a shop, run to any aisle with tools or anything sharp. Once there grab it and try to smash its head. Be careful not to get bitten. In the store you will encounter other people that will probably help you out. If your in your house then you’re safe for now since you already have your doors locked..I hope. If your at this step you can just skip to chapter 3.
Chapter 2
If you were on the road, in a car or was just taking a walk when this happened then all you need to do is get to the nearest police department. If you just escaped from you office building or business area then you need to get to a car since the nearest police department is no where near you. If you were walking get the hell back to your car or house if your walking the dog. Anyway once your in a car go to the police department. If it’s over run or they won’t let you in then drive out of the city or the popular parts of town to the suburbs or any where that’s not as populace. You can then just find a small store or pharmacy. A pharmacy would be best. Once you find one that’s not over run go in and lock ALL doors. Not one should be left open. If the doors are broken seal them with grocery carts. If you can’t find any, get anything like empty boxes or useless items like signs and billboards and pile them on the exit. Once you completely sealed all exits you can rest.
Chapter 3
If you were the person that ran out of the office then you need to regain your energy, eat some food or candy that you can find in the store and sleep you will probably of already slept by then. Just don’t eat to much candy and drink a lot of water. If you were already in the store or house and you completely sealed off all entrances and exits you don’t need rest, you need weapons. For now you can hold off on weapons since security and protection is more important. Try wearing a plastic rain coat if you have any and wear thick boots and pants, put on some gloves and test biting yourself, if the glove gets ripped it wont help you against the zombies. If you are in a store that has no clothes then make yourself some weapons. Knives are usually sold at food stores and flammable stuff like disinfectant spray are usually there too. But if your gong to use the spray then head to the aisle with matches, the bigger the better. Then just get empty boxes and billboard signs and seal off the entrance to the food aisle, just in case the zombies breach the doors. Though you better get a lot of water and food in your aisle before you seal it off. If there is a pharmacy or a drug aisle in the store get some pain relievers and any useful drug that might help in the future, probably a cream that disinfects cuts and scrapes.
Chapter 4
Friends and family at the most part are probably dead, if they are not following this guide that is, so you you going to need somebody to help you out. If you were stuck in the store you probably already have people that are nagging at you. If your home alone or you were the person from the office and is in a store now you don’t really need help from anybody else you can skip to chapter 5. Now if you do have people the are willing to join you then your first going to have to share your supplies. This is fine because more people adds to your defences and brain power. Just give a knife or if they have good aim give em a few to throw them at zombie heads. But watch your back one of those knives might be planned for you…
Chapter 5
Your food supplies are probably getting low if you are at home. If your in an apartment building and need to escape go back to chapter 1. Now if your in a house then you might have a chance… If your house has a chimney then this is a possible exit. Just make sure you can fit. If you can’t or if your afraid of tight places head to the Attic and open a window. Try to climb up to the room using your window sill as a foot hold. If it’s too high, then try using another window. If you actually have a car then go back to chapter 2. Don’t forget your weapons. If you don’t know what weapons to use go to chapter 6.
Chapter 6
Weapons are a crucial part to surviving. Many things can be weapons. If you have a car you can just run over zombies no problem. If your at home a nail gun, hammer (If your actually gonna use a hammer make sure you have 2 since they are slow to hit with) mop, broom, keyboard, flammable spray, matches, knives and forks. For the forks you can throw them like darts, though your going to have to be a good aim and throw it hard enough to make any damage. If your at an office or hotel weapons like brooms, keyboards, flammable spray, matches, will work just fine. If your at a food store use anything like carts or knives. If your in a super center or a tool store you don’t really need help finding a weapon, they are every where!
Chapter 7
Surviving for a long time is hard and probably won’t be accomplished since your probably gonna get nuked. Your friends might turn on you or you starve or thirst to death. The only possible way of surviving is if you have a helicopter, gas, guns, food factory, water from a river with filter, and a mansion with steel walls and gates. Even if you have that stuff you will eventually die of old age anyway. It’s a horrible and sad tragedy that you will endure if you ever have to go through a zombie apocalypse. A zombie apocalypse might never happen but i could always be wrong…
Posted on 7/29/2009
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I was at home the other day, just sitting down to have lunch, when the telephone rang.I picked it up and the male caller immediately launched into his obviously well-rehearsed spiel, informing me that he was from blah blah research company who are conducting a survey about blah blah and would I mind answering a few questions about blah blah?
Now normally I would make an excuse to get out of this chore, especially as he offered me no incentive such as a free cinema ticket or something else of interest.Perhaps I was just in a good mood, because I heard myself say: “O.K.”
He then casually asked me my age and I answered honestly that I am 52.Well my 53rd birthday isn`t till august 29th (yes I share the same birthday with the late great Michael Jackson, although he was two years younger).
That`s when the bombshell hit! There was an audible sigh on the other end of the line, a muttered reply of “never mind” and then a click as HE HUNG UP ON ME!
There I was left with the receiver to my ear and my good mood shattered!Suddenly I lost my appetite for lunch, my bones seemed to start creaking and I felt depressed.Am I that old? Does my opinion really have no value anymore?
The only other time I felt so deflated was when I once jokingly said to a teenager who was playing a game of pool: “You`re dropping dandruff on the table” as I pointed to the sprinkling of white chalk dust on the green baize.He immediately retorted:”Well at least I have enough hair to have dandruff!”
Touche! or should that be Toupee!?
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that can't be undone, day by day. So that a life travels with you, hovers, and when you look into the faces of children—when they turn and look up into yours—the thought is (my thought is), Be safe from yourself. Do right.
I’ve talked before about how unimportant age should be when querying agents and how I feel there’s no need ever to tell an agent how old you are because, whether young or old, ageism does exist and I see no need to make things harder than they already are.
However, I recently received a question from a teenage writer asking if I have any advice for teenagers hoping to break into publishing and compete against adult writers, and it got me thinking on a number of conversations I’ve had about children or teens who’ve written great books and now are seeking publication. My first bit of advice for any teen or child wishing to get published or any parent who is thinking their child has a brilliant book that should be published is to really understand the business first. I suppose in reality it’s not much different than child stars or child talent competitions, but the truth is that you are entering the adult world and as we all know, publishing is not necessarily a kind business. Sure, you might be able to stomach the rejections and deal with the difficulties of agents, but if your book is picked up are you ready to face reviewers and whatever it is they have to say, sales and/or the lack thereof? Are you willing to accept that getting published is easy compared to maintaining a career, and are you really ready to start a career at the age of 10, 12, 15, or even 17? Are you ready to deal with adults who will edit and revise your book, ask you questions about sales and marketing and generally be treating you like an adult author.
The teen who asked the question wanted to know if I could give any advice on how to compete against adult writers, and I think that whether you’re a teen or an adult the answer is always going to be the same. As a writer, as an author seeking publication, you’re going to be required to write an amazing book, you’re going to need to understand, at least on some level, the mechanics of writing, you’re going to need to do some publicity and marketing and you’re going to need to be working on your next book. No matter what, though, the most important thing is that your book is amazing and that your next book is even better.
Jessica
posted by Neil
Lots of questions like this today...
Hello Neil:
I am planning in taking my 6 year old boy for his birthday party to see your new movie coming out soon "Coraline'
I was wondering in your opinion if this film would be too scary for 6 years old.
Thank you for your response.
Graciela Jenkins...and the only real reply I can give, is that it's a bit like saying "I'm planning to cook a mushroom omelette tomorrow, and do you feel this food would be welcomed by a six year old?"
Answer: I don't know. I don't know your six year old. They tend to like different things and respond differently. Does your six year old like mushrooms or omelettes?
And the answer to is
Coraline right for six year olds is, I don't know. What sort of thing does your six year old like?
I think a good rule of thumb would be, that if your child can cope with
The Nightmare Before Christmas and the original
Wizard of Oz then they should be able to cope with
Coraline just fine.
As a general rule, Coraline the book is much creepier for adults than it is for kids, who tend to read it as an adventure. I suspect that this will be true of the film as well.
...
(For those of you still having trouble with the last post, the author's hands are not visible. Does this help?)
Dave McKean, for too many years now a man without a website, wants me to tell you that things are finally stirring at the unusually-named http://davemckean.com/ (and that Allen Spiegel will be selling original art from The Graveyard Book at Comic-Con.)
Ah, the city with the most observant Jews (New York) gets you on Rosh Hashana. Alas.
Maybe next time. These events you just listed, including the Sep 30 event, aren't the official Graveyard Book Tour, right? Ordinarily I'd assume the Book Tour wouldn't be until the book has come out, but I know that this tour will be more of a reading/Q&A tour rather than a signing tour, and if it's not a signing, then the tour can start before the book is available.
It would be awesome if all publicity/scheduling people had a big calendar with every religion's holidays, along with demographic maps showing which places have a lot of which religion.
A few years ago Daniel Handler (Lemony Snicket's ammanuensis) and I were grumbling together about the way that, probably thousands of years ago, it was decided that all of the major Jewish Holidays would fall in High Publishing Season, and how unfair this was to Jewish authors and their readers and, nu, what were you going to do about it?
To answer your question, No, the events I listed will be the US Graveyard Book Tour events. The US publication date is September the 30th. (The UK pub date is Hallowe'en, and I'll be signing and/or reading in Dublin and Scotland and elsewhere in the UK and London.)
But there is an event to make up for my being in New York on Rosh Hashana: On November the 9th, which is a Sunday, I'll be In Conversation With the amazing Chipp Kidd, at the 92nd St Y, talking about 20 years of Sandman. And I'll be signing stuff afterwards, if the last events I did at the Y are anything to go by.
...
I ran into this quote in the New Yorker, about reviewer Katherine White. The first paragraph is from the article, the second is a quote from White:
Then, as now, some of the best prose and poetry, not to mention the best
art, was to be found in books written for children—disciplined, inspired,
elevated, even, by the constraints of the form. Katharine White loved many books
for children; above all, she admired the beauty and lyricism of picture books
and readers for the under-twelve set. But she had her doubts about books aimed
at older kids:
It has always seemed to us that boys and girls who are worth their salt
begin at twelve or thirteen to read, with a brilliant indiscrimination, every
book they can lay their hands on. In the welter, they manage to read some good
ones. A girl of twelve may take up Jane Austen, a boy Dickens; and you wonder
how writers of juveniles have the brass to compete in this field, blithely
announcing their works as “suitable for the child of twelve to fourteen.” Their
implication is that everything else is distinctly unsuitable. Well, who knows?
Suitability isn’t so simple.
The full article -- the birth of
Stuart Little compared and contrasted with the rise and fall of the first influential children's librarian -- is wonderful. It starts at
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/07/21/080721fa_fact_lepore?currentPage=1I was interviewed
in Locus this month (the one with Garth Nix on the cover), and tried to say something very much the same about Young Adult fiction: that young adults (and older kids) should be reading everything, relentlessly. They should be reading outside their comfort zones, because the training wheels have come off, and that's the only way they'll find out where their comfort zones are, reading
everything.
(Also learned from that
Locus that
Michael De Larrabeiti was dead. I interviewed him once, as a journalist, and loved his three
Borrible books -- they were (especially the first two) hugely influential on
Neverwhere.)
...
There's an article about the revised and retooled theatre production of
Mister Punch in LA today at
http://www.latimes.com/theguide/performing-arts/la-gd-perf17-2008jul17,0,4577290.story -- with a marvellous photo, which looks strangely McKeanish (see below). It's an interview done with me last week when I'd just got back from Brazil and was slightly under the weather, but the reporter has made it sound like I was still making sense.
WHERE: Bootleg Theater, 2220 Beverly Blvd., L.A.
WHEN: 8 p.m. Fri., 4 and 8 p.m. Sat., 4 p.m. Sun.; ends Aug. 31. (no perf Aug 8-10).
PRICE: $25 ($50 opening night gala)
INFO: (800) 838-3006; www.rogueartists.org...
And, because all questions posed on this blog are eventually answered:
ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha did a run of 50 black on black Disaster Area t-shirts in the late 1980s. There were also yellow on black and white on black versions but the last was sold around 2001, and they have not done a reprint since then.Someone asked what sizes the various tee shirts are. They range from xxl down to the ones where I'm not sure how I used to get them on and am certain either the shirts have shrunk or I used to be a lot smaller. So from Too Huge For Me To Wear down to Really Bloody Small.
...
My friend Kelli Bickman has a mother named Connie. Last time I saw Connie she came over and gathered up all the accumulated bags I'd got from planes over the years, the ones with the mini toothbrush and the eye-shade in, that had built up into a small mound at the back of a cupboard, and she took them away to do something good and worthwhile with them for kids. Kelli wrote the other day to say,
My Mom is the volunteer creative director for Children's Culture Connection (CCC), a non-profit organization working with 12 international charities to help children in America, Haiti, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, Guatemala, India, Peru, Kenya, Nigeria, China, Bulgaria and Russia. CCC has raised thousands of dollars to help empower and connect the children of the world, built houses in Vietnam, installed water pipelines in Sri Lanka to bring clean water to orphanages, sent kids to school, helped with medical supplies in the Amazon jungles, organized art projects with children in seven countries. and more...it is really amazing.Feeling very inspired by the lessons learned from my mother and her spirit of giving, I am working to help Children's Culture Connection raise awareness, as well as send art supplies to the children of the world. I've just re-developed my website (www.kellibickman.net) and will donate 20% of the sale of any works of art to buy art supplies for these children and help them to expand their imaginations and their world.Can you put this link on your blog? It would be greatly appreciated...I am eager to spread the good news. Of course, if anyone is interested in getting involved or donating directly to the CCC, that is most welcome. www.childrenscultureconnection.org...
And everything in this whole post pales into insignificance when placed beside...
Mr Toast as Sandman.
I received an interesting note from a reader recently that was spurred on by an interview in the Writer's Digest Handbook of Making Money Freelance Writing. In the book, the reader came across an essay by another agent who said, basically, that he’s nervous taking on new clients who are older since there’s less opportunity there to build a career, and certainly he would be nervous about revealing the writer’s age to editors.
In the essay the agent states clearly that if you’re older than 50 you’re in trouble and will have a harder time getting published, simply because of your age. I can hear the panicked gasping now. Never fear. Stop, breathe, and let me explain. The agent in question was looking at a writer’s career from a long-term perspective. Without having read the essay I think what he was saying is that most author careers can take years to build and a good agent sees that. When I take on a new client I don’t take on that client for one book. I take on that client because there was so much I loved about the one book I read and I look forward to using that book as a basis for a much bigger career in the future. If you’re 50 and planning to retire at 62, it’s very possible that your career will finally reach its high point the day you are applying for your social security.
Does that mean that if you’re 50 or older you should keep your age a deep dark secret? Or just give up and quit now? No, not at all, but I think you should be aware that some agents and editors might think this way. In the same way that some would think that a 19-year-old is too young to write a book. Which is why I’ve always said, don’t tell anyone your age. You wouldn’t include it on a resume (although it’s easy to figure out), so why include it in a cover letter?
What’s interesting about this concern is that I definitely think it works both ways. I remember being a young editor and trying very hard to appear older as often as possible. Which wasn’t easy for someone who had a baby face. So often I would hear people exclaim about what a baby I was or how young I looked or ask outright my age. I knew this put me at a disadvantage. After all, given the choice between a fresh-faced young thing or a more experienced editor in her 30s, who would you choose? What about an agent? If all things were equal and you had offers from someone who was 25, 45, or 60, who would you likely go with?
Ageism exists, but the book matters the most. Write a good book and no one will even think to ask you your age. And I hope that works both ways too. I’m looking forward to agenting far into my senior years, if you’ll have me, that is.
Jessica
By: Rebecca,
on 9/13/2007
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I simply cannot encourage you to read Philip Davis’s blog series on Moreover enough. I love it. Davis, the author of Bernard Malamud: A Writer’s Life, also seems to be a born blogger. Below is part three of his blog series, which originally appeared in here.
I thought I would get braver as I got older but (aged 54), not so. I remember the poet Joseph Brodsky saying to me, near the end of his life, “I used to be one of the Strong”—it was across a drink in a Liverpool bar—”but not now.”
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Jonathan Carroll just sent me a link to these haunting little photographic studies of age and time: http://www.bobbyneeladams.com/age.html and I stared at them and thought, I should pass this one on.
Do authors, if ever, read their own work for pleasure? Especially you, Mister Neil Gaiman.
I'm sure some of them do, just as some singers probably like listening to their own albums for pleasure and some filmmakers leave their films on. For the rest of us, by the time you've finished making something like that, you probably don't want to read it/hear it/watch it again.
I was once stuck in a house where there was (literally) nothing to read but a battered and elderly paperback of American Gods, and rather than have a bath with nothing to read, I picked it up, opened it to the Cairo scene and had a long bath reading my own book, and found it not as mortifying an experience as I thought I would. But given that that's the only time that's happened in almost a quarter century as a writer, I think it's a no. (I don't listen to my audio books for pleasure, either.)
Just to let you know, there is an English version of the Apple Mac adverts with the Mitchell and Webb guys from Radio 4 and Peepshow, have a look at http://www.apple.com/uk/getamac/ads/ - now will you get a Mac? all the best for the new year, pete
But I've got a Mac, honest. I've got a couple of them. And I got all my family Macbooks. I'm just not interested in using one as my main travelling and working computer until they weigh a lot less.
Hiya, Neil:I thought you and your readers would find this amusing, if not downright fantastic. In Vegas, on October 5-7, there will be the first ever International Alchemy Conference: http://alchemyconference.com/ According to the site, it will be the largest gathering of alchemists in 500 Years. Made me think a bit of the Cereal Convention in The Doll's House, though this will, presumably, be a bit less threatening. Then again, maybe not. :-)Pam (http://www.phantasmaphile.com/)
I just think it's really cool. I just wonder how Las Vegas will cope.
i think the million words count is misleading. does it include faq line questions, emails, etc that you've posted?
I'm sure it does. I can't see any way a word counter could figure out which words were mine and which were other people's, can you? I'm sure that wordcount also includes the occasional essays and speeches I've posted here, and, in all probability, the captions to photos. I suppose if you're worried about having been misled you could mentally change "I've written" to "I've written, reposted or cut and pasted".
Dear Neil,
Your mentioning of bangs vs. fringe was the tipping point of my curiosity and I finally had to look it up. The word "fringe" is fairly obvious visually, as that's what it looks like, but apparently "bangs" comes from "cut bang-off" which is a way of chopping the tail of a race horse so the hair is flat straight across. Or something.Being from North America I would rather my face did not reference the back-end of a horse, but I suppose there's nothing I can do about that. Especially since I've been known to wear ponytails now and again. Candace
I love it when I learn something.
Incidentally, I am reading Avram Davidson's Adventures in Unhistory (subtitled Conjectures on the Factual Foundations of Several Ancient Legends. Actually the title page is much longer than that, but I'll leave it to you to find one) every spare second I can grab reading time, and can unhesitatingly recommend it to any of you who have ever thought about being authors, or wondered about the origins of such things as Dragons or Mandrakes or where Sindbad actually sailed to, or who have ever dreamed of being sat down and told wonderful cool arcane and true things from a brilliant, crusty old author who thinks you're just as smart as he is, or you will be, once he's finished telling you something, in his own way and in his own time and the journey is always the destination. It's a maze of delightful digressions and bizarre wanderings. Wonderful stuff.
(If you're wondering if it's the sort of thing you'd like, here's the LA Times review.)
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噴泉的高度，不會超過它的源頭。一個人的事業也是如此，它的成就絕不會超過自己的信念。..................................................