Known colloquially as the ABNA. Here is a fun post:
http://johnochwat.wordpress.com/
I've stopped visiting the message boards, et. al., and have gone on to other things, like writing! No matter whether one was chosen or not, there seems to be massive quantities of sturm and drang about, and well, it's just too much.
I spent three hours making some complicated airplane reservations yesterday, taking into account 5 different parties schedules, and trying to get a good fare, and arrange good times of day for everyone to travel, and double-checking, nay triple-checking everything, and feeling virtuous and vastly relieved to have this rather sucky chore off my list.
Guest what? Someone calls today and can't arrange the time and now I have to scramble. It's a $75 re-scheduling charge (remember when airlines did this for free?) but I can cancel the rental car, and visit a good friend instead and so I think I landed (ha ha) on my feet. The problem is, these fares go up between the times one logs in.
Snow forecast late tomorrow, and we need to get to the supermarket for the superbowl dinner. Have decided to do a chicken pot pie for a change. It's "lite"--hate that word, but hope it will be good. W're also have chips and bean dip and don't get me going on that again.
All in all, it's been a good week. I am buoyed a bit by praise for the first paragraph of "Such Stuff As Dreams." As Mary Poppins always said, "well begun is half done."
Off to read Proust. Isn't that what you do every night? No?
Hey listen, I am loving this "Treatment" show on HBO. It's a pain to reserve 9:30 every night. I'll probably start watching it on demand.
Grapeshot
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Beginnings
I'm just finishing Mary Buckham's online class on beginnings. This is the third online class that I've done--the other two were "Writing a Synopsis" and "The Hero's Journey," which was about using classical archetypes to make your writing stronger.
All of these classes just emphasize how much I have to learn about writing, and even why the agents and publishers haven't been knocking down my door. It will be instructive to apply the beginnings and archetype advice to the California book. Prepare to hear a lot of kvetching about Such Stuff As Dreams.
I've been going back through Festival Madness, checking the chapter endings and beginnings for "hooks." A few changes are in order. Trying, as always to decrease the word count. It's 102,000, not too bad, but I would like more in the way of 100,000.
Donald Maass says that a "breakout novel" can be long, but so far tmine do not seem to be breakout novels, no matter how much I would like them to be. I am working on craft and thinking about craft--all to the good.
Yesterday (?) the NYTimes really trashed a novel, brutally, a well-known writer whose name has flown right out of my head. Russell Bank's The Reserve. Totally trashed. Yikes.
I made Soup from A Nail yesterday--a few bits of beef, pork and duck, onion, garlic, carrots, herbs, peas and tomatoes and some barley and I had vegetable barley soup. Originally, I thought I had more beef, but when I defrosted the "beef" it turned out to be chicken giblets, yuck, which I put down the disposal since the trash truck had come and gone. Do you remember the soup from a nail story? I don't know if our kids are being taught that "olde" stuff. Someone I spoke with this week said that none of the schools are teaching Dickens anymore. That means teenagers aren't reading A Tale of Two Cities. Such an exciting book. Too bad.
Off to get ready for Toastmasters and to take sustenance to the cows. Two plastic bags of fruit and vegetable scraps. Just what a Highland cow hankers for.
Grapeshot
All of these classes just emphasize how much I have to learn about writing, and even why the agents and publishers haven't been knocking down my door. It will be instructive to apply the beginnings and archetype advice to the California book. Prepare to hear a lot of kvetching about Such Stuff As Dreams.
I've been going back through Festival Madness, checking the chapter endings and beginnings for "hooks." A few changes are in order. Trying, as always to decrease the word count. It's 102,000, not too bad, but I would like more in the way of 100,000.
Donald Maass says that a "breakout novel" can be long, but so far tmine do not seem to be breakout novels, no matter how much I would like them to be. I am working on craft and thinking about craft--all to the good.
Yesterday (?) the NYTimes really trashed a novel, brutally, a well-known writer whose name has flown right out of my head. Russell Bank's The Reserve. Totally trashed. Yikes.
I made Soup from A Nail yesterday--a few bits of beef, pork and duck, onion, garlic, carrots, herbs, peas and tomatoes and some barley and I had vegetable barley soup. Originally, I thought I had more beef, but when I defrosted the "beef" it turned out to be chicken giblets, yuck, which I put down the disposal since the trash truck had come and gone. Do you remember the soup from a nail story? I don't know if our kids are being taught that "olde" stuff. Someone I spoke with this week said that none of the schools are teaching Dickens anymore. That means teenagers aren't reading A Tale of Two Cities. Such an exciting book. Too bad.
Off to get ready for Toastmasters and to take sustenance to the cows. Two plastic bags of fruit and vegetable scraps. Just what a Highland cow hankers for.
Grapeshot
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Fruit Salad
Listen, don't laugh. I know a couple who met over making fruit salad and remained married for half a century.
The lemon loaf cake was O.K. Could have been a little more moist according to my palate. My orange pound cake is better.
Fruit salad? No brainer. Kind of a sort of a no brainer.
a) fresh fruit, although a can of mandarin oranges or some sour cherries won't kill it
b) dried apricots, softened, or craisins are all right
c) no nuts, due to allergies and the fact that some people hate them in fruit salad.
d) a nice selection of fruits. I used apple, orange, banana, blueberries, grapes (halved) strawberries (halved) Lemon juice adds brightness and keeps the apple from turning brown and later the bananas, kiwi,dried apricot and Craisins, lemon juice and a little sugar. Often I pour a dash of German "Apfel Korn" into the salad. It's a light alcohol, but again, if you don't know your audience, so to speak, you may want to withhold the booze.
e) quality fruits--in the peak of ripeness
f) pineapple would have been food but it was $5.99 and the store didn't have any already peeled and cored.
Of course if no one is dieting, some home whipped cream would be a great topping, or if you are lazy the light whipped cream that comes in a can. Please eschew anything that calls itself topping. Yuck.
Especially good for "meat and potatoes" guys.
The lemon loaf cake was O.K. Could have been a little more moist according to my palate. My orange pound cake is better.
Fruit salad? No brainer. Kind of a sort of a no brainer.
a) fresh fruit, although a can of mandarin oranges or some sour cherries won't kill it
b) dried apricots, softened, or craisins are all right
c) no nuts, due to allergies and the fact that some people hate them in fruit salad.
d) a nice selection of fruits. I used apple, orange, banana, blueberries, grapes (halved) strawberries (halved) Lemon juice adds brightness and keeps the apple from turning brown and later the bananas, kiwi,dried apricot and Craisins, lemon juice and a little sugar. Often I pour a dash of German "Apfel Korn" into the salad. It's a light alcohol, but again, if you don't know your audience, so to speak, you may want to withhold the booze.
e) quality fruits--in the peak of ripeness
f) pineapple would have been food but it was $5.99 and the store didn't have any already peeled and cored.
Of course if no one is dieting, some home whipped cream would be a great topping, or if you are lazy the light whipped cream that comes in a can. Please eschew anything that calls itself topping. Yuck.
Especially good for "meat and potatoes" guys.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Helping A Fellow Writer Patry Francis
Patry’s Francis’s debut THE LIAR’S DIARY came out in hardcover from Dutton last spring. The trade paper release is set for January 29th, but a few weeks ago, Patry was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer. She’s had several surgeries, and her prognosis is good, but given that she won’t have much energy for promoting, fellow authors have banded together to do it for her.
Read Patry's Blog: http://simplywait.blogspot.com/
Order her book on Amazon!
http://www.amazon.com/Liars-Diary-Patry-Francis/dp/0452289157
There are no folks more generous with time, energy and good will than one's fellow authors.
Grapeshot
Read Patry's Blog: http://simplywait.blogspot.com/
Order her book on Amazon!
http://www.amazon.com/Liars-Diary-Patry-Francis/dp/0452289157
There are no folks more generous with time, energy and good will than one's fellow authors.
Grapeshot
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Pork Tenderloin with orange/onion salsa
The smoke alarm in our house erupts screaming just about every time I saute or bake at high temperature. Tonight was no exception. The cats hate it and hide. The fan over the stove is, shall we say, inadequate.
But the pork tenderloin, which cooks in a 500 degreen oven, was luscious, and the salsa gives it a big burst of flavor. We had rice and green beans which made a nice meal, and the pork is such good, lean protein that one feels virtuous. Some of these diet meals are quite edible.
I've been tweaking the opening pages of three different books, based on the course I'm taking on "beginnings." I have been doing everything wrong. I had the world's greatest opening line but it didn't fit into the book. Others are way too tepid.
I think I've fixed Promiscuous Mode and maybe even Festival Madness, and now I'm working on the California book, and I'm not unhappy with World of Mirrors, although it needs someone to love it. Well, someday.
Thisbe has ventured into the downstairs which is Annie's territory, and there will be a cat confrontation any moment.
I'm baking a lemon pound cake tomorrow for a get-together on Tuesday. If the cake is spectacular, I'll print the recipe. I've had it around for ages, but never made it, the fate of far too many recipes. If I cooked everything I clipped, we would both weigh 300 pounds.
More Jane Austen tonight. The lead character, Fanny, looked a little too modern for the role. But like all Jane Austen, tender and fun.
Onward,
Grrrapeshot
But the pork tenderloin, which cooks in a 500 degreen oven, was luscious, and the salsa gives it a big burst of flavor. We had rice and green beans which made a nice meal, and the pork is such good, lean protein that one feels virtuous. Some of these diet meals are quite edible.
I've been tweaking the opening pages of three different books, based on the course I'm taking on "beginnings." I have been doing everything wrong. I had the world's greatest opening line but it didn't fit into the book. Others are way too tepid.
I think I've fixed Promiscuous Mode and maybe even Festival Madness, and now I'm working on the California book, and I'm not unhappy with World of Mirrors, although it needs someone to love it. Well, someday.
Thisbe has ventured into the downstairs which is Annie's territory, and there will be a cat confrontation any moment.
I'm baking a lemon pound cake tomorrow for a get-together on Tuesday. If the cake is spectacular, I'll print the recipe. I've had it around for ages, but never made it, the fate of far too many recipes. If I cooked everything I clipped, we would both weigh 300 pounds.
More Jane Austen tonight. The lead character, Fanny, looked a little too modern for the role. But like all Jane Austen, tender and fun.
Onward,
Grrrapeshot
Snarky Reviews: Sunday New York Times
Zowie! With a couple exceptions the book reviews in today's (1/27/08) New York Times are downers. Drew Gilpin Fault's This Republic of Suffering:Death and the American Civil War gets a rave from Geoffrey Ward,. Don't know if I'm up for 346 pages of Death and Suffering.
All Shall Be well; And All Shall Be Well; And All Manner of Things Shall Be Well by Tod Wodicka, which got a rave in another publication was slammed. Sounds like an interesting book.
A Golden Age by Tahmima Anan, a novel about the birth of Bngladesh gets off to a "muddy start," but redeems itself. Another tempting book.
Riding Toward Everywhere by William T. Vollmann was panned by J.R. Moehringer. This, too, is a book I look forward to reading because some of my relatives went "on the bum" during the Great Depression and rode the rails. One of them later became an entrepreneur and made a lot of money, lived an interesting life in a tiny Kansas town and became a world traveller, even learned Spanish late in life.
Ezra Pound: Poet, receives an even review from Charles McGrath. Of course Pound's life is so odd and interesting and controversial that reviewers (not this one) always tend to review the man and not his biographer's work.
Ellington Boulevard by Adam Langer, not just a novel but a New York novel, is again, more of a mixed review but basically positive. I've been visiting New York since I was a young bride (is there ever an "old bride"?) but have never felt there was a novel in these visits, or even a short story. Wonder why. No drama, no conflict? Note to self: dig deeper, you fool.
I don't read horror, so I skipped the review of20th Century Ghosts. Also skipped the review of Patrick Buchanan's book, since I figured I wouldn't read it either.
Still to read; The Cure Within, another book I wouldn't be inclined to read but the review might be interesting. Ditto, Alfred Kazin, a Biography.
Pat Barker's new novel, Life Class, got a basically panning review. She was put down for not writing a novel like her other novels. What's a writer to do? This was apparently too romantic. I was particularly interested because the book is about painters and World War I, and I am getting into a novel about (among other things) a painter and some research let to an idea for yet another novel.
News on the Trade Fiction vs. Mass-Market Fiction lists. Atonement is #1 in Trade and #5 in Mass-Market. The movie and then the Academy Award nominations have really helped this book. Hooray for tie-ins. Must gladden Ewan McEwan's heart and portmonnaie.
Pillars of Earth is #3 in Trade and #15 in Mass-Market, a surprising, to me, reversal. I Am Legend is #10 in TB and # 7 in MM. (I just hit a forbidden key and lost this post, BUT, due to total paranoia I had already submitted it a couple times. Ha ha. Blogger!)
A note about the hard-cover list: Janet Evanovich zoomed to the top with Plum Lucky. I love Stephanie Plum and that series. Both Evanovich and Sue Grafton, #8 with T is for Tresspass,
are excellent writers and storytellers and deserve all the success they have achieved. Both are dead serious about their writing and craft. Sisters in Crime!
Happy reading. Stay tuned for another food post. Hey, eating and reading some of the best parts of the day, n'est pas?
Grapeshot
All Shall Be well; And All Shall Be Well; And All Manner of Things Shall Be Well by Tod Wodicka, which got a rave in another publication was slammed. Sounds like an interesting book.
A Golden Age by Tahmima Anan, a novel about the birth of Bngladesh gets off to a "muddy start," but redeems itself. Another tempting book.
Riding Toward Everywhere by William T. Vollmann was panned by J.R. Moehringer. This, too, is a book I look forward to reading because some of my relatives went "on the bum" during the Great Depression and rode the rails. One of them later became an entrepreneur and made a lot of money, lived an interesting life in a tiny Kansas town and became a world traveller, even learned Spanish late in life.
Ezra Pound: Poet, receives an even review from Charles McGrath. Of course Pound's life is so odd and interesting and controversial that reviewers (not this one) always tend to review the man and not his biographer's work.
Ellington Boulevard by Adam Langer, not just a novel but a New York novel, is again, more of a mixed review but basically positive. I've been visiting New York since I was a young bride (is there ever an "old bride"?) but have never felt there was a novel in these visits, or even a short story. Wonder why. No drama, no conflict? Note to self: dig deeper, you fool.
I don't read horror, so I skipped the review of20th Century Ghosts. Also skipped the review of Patrick Buchanan's book, since I figured I wouldn't read it either.
Still to read; The Cure Within, another book I wouldn't be inclined to read but the review might be interesting. Ditto, Alfred Kazin, a Biography.
Pat Barker's new novel, Life Class, got a basically panning review. She was put down for not writing a novel like her other novels. What's a writer to do? This was apparently too romantic. I was particularly interested because the book is about painters and World War I, and I am getting into a novel about (among other things) a painter and some research let to an idea for yet another novel.
News on the Trade Fiction vs. Mass-Market Fiction lists. Atonement is #1 in Trade and #5 in Mass-Market. The movie and then the Academy Award nominations have really helped this book. Hooray for tie-ins. Must gladden Ewan McEwan's heart and portmonnaie.
Pillars of Earth is #3 in Trade and #15 in Mass-Market, a surprising, to me, reversal. I Am Legend is #10 in TB and # 7 in MM. (I just hit a forbidden key and lost this post, BUT, due to total paranoia I had already submitted it a couple times. Ha ha. Blogger!)
A note about the hard-cover list: Janet Evanovich zoomed to the top with Plum Lucky. I love Stephanie Plum and that series. Both Evanovich and Sue Grafton, #8 with T is for Tresspass,
are excellent writers and storytellers and deserve all the success they have achieved. Both are dead serious about their writing and craft. Sisters in Crime!
Happy reading. Stay tuned for another food post. Hey, eating and reading some of the best parts of the day, n'est pas?
Grapeshot
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Epicurious Recipe - - delicious!
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/233537
The link above takes you to Pan Seared Fish in Ginger Broth which was a real winner. I cut down on the sugar and the salt, used scallops instead of fish because the local supermarket didn't have any of the recommended fish or halibut, which I thought might work.
I have to confess (see prior post) that the house reeked for 24 hours after the cooking event. Curry is a very pervasive odor as is seafood.
I use Penzey's spices almost exclusively. www.penzeys.com They have curry powders of various heat, and I use a medium hot which means I have to be judicious in its use or we eat with a box of tissues on the table. Not necessarily a bad thing, but judicious is the operative word.
The vegetable broth tasted delicous and the scallops dredged in curry and cornstarch! Zowie! We ate a salad of red lettuce with orange segments and I also cooked a little rice to add to the broth when the scallops were history.
The recipe is in my "diet" file. If you're in diet mode, skip the rice.
Last night, in a rush to get into town we had grilled roast beef and provlone sandwiches. For some reason, roast beef and provlone is a dynamite combination. I first tasted it years ago in the Stride Rite Cafeteria in Kendall Square.
Now I am really off to the gym.
Grapeshot
The link above takes you to Pan Seared Fish in Ginger Broth which was a real winner. I cut down on the sugar and the salt, used scallops instead of fish because the local supermarket didn't have any of the recommended fish or halibut, which I thought might work.
I have to confess (see prior post) that the house reeked for 24 hours after the cooking event. Curry is a very pervasive odor as is seafood.
I use Penzey's spices almost exclusively. www.penzeys.com They have curry powders of various heat, and I use a medium hot which means I have to be judicious in its use or we eat with a box of tissues on the table. Not necessarily a bad thing, but judicious is the operative word.
The vegetable broth tasted delicous and the scallops dredged in curry and cornstarch! Zowie! We ate a salad of red lettuce with orange segments and I also cooked a little rice to add to the broth when the scallops were history.
The recipe is in my "diet" file. If you're in diet mode, skip the rice.
Last night, in a rush to get into town we had grilled roast beef and provlone sandwiches. For some reason, roast beef and provlone is a dynamite combination. I first tasted it years ago in the Stride Rite Cafeteria in Kendall Square.
Now I am really off to the gym.
Grapeshot
Symphony While The Swans Come Forward
Last night's Handel & Haydn concert included selections from Henry Purcell's The Fairy Queen. As an English major I read The Fairy Queen along with Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Canterbury Tales, and all sorts of lit that remains a vague memory.
The Fairy Queen is purported to be an adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. One of the short pieces is: "Symphony While The Swans Come Forward." This is NOT the Water Music.
Does anyone but me find this title intriguing? We are waiting for the swans who are very pokey so we play a symphony while we wait? Are the swans swimming? In that case shouldn't it be "Symphony while the swans swim forward?" Glide forward? Paddle forth? Why are the swans so slow? Are they eating? Fighting? Grooming? Mating? We'll never know.
It was, by the way, an idyllically short symphony. What call it a symphony? Why not a song? Canticle While The Swans Glide Forward?
I could go on and on. Try some yourself. Waste time. Me? I'm off to the gym which I blew off yesterday. Pruning words on Festival Madness, a worthy cause. Changed the beginning again. I think it's getting there. The test will be to send out to a few agents and see what happens?
Symphony While the Agents Respond? Hell, that could be an entire year of music.
Grapeshot
The Fairy Queen is purported to be an adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. One of the short pieces is: "Symphony While The Swans Come Forward." This is NOT the Water Music.
Does anyone but me find this title intriguing? We are waiting for the swans who are very pokey so we play a symphony while we wait? Are the swans swimming? In that case shouldn't it be "Symphony while the swans swim forward?" Glide forward? Paddle forth? Why are the swans so slow? Are they eating? Fighting? Grooming? Mating? We'll never know.
It was, by the way, an idyllically short symphony. What call it a symphony? Why not a song? Canticle While The Swans Glide Forward?
I could go on and on. Try some yourself. Waste time. Me? I'm off to the gym which I blew off yesterday. Pruning words on Festival Madness, a worthy cause. Changed the beginning again. I think it's getting there. The test will be to send out to a few agents and see what happens?
Symphony While the Agents Respond? Hell, that could be an entire year of music.
Grapeshot
Friday, January 25, 2008
Fireworks and Water
We trekked into Boston via public transporation tonight for the Handel and Haydn concert at Symphony Hall. Handel's Music for the Royal Fireworks and Water Music, also Bach's Orrchestra Suite No 3 and some Purcell.
Missed the train by milliseconds and had to wait 12 minutes for the next one in the 20 degree cold. Man reading Car and Driver across from me. Notice bare skin peeking out from gap in his cotton dress shirt. No undershirt, no sweater, just a storm coat, weird hat and gloves. He chewed his fingernails while he read.
On the green line, S.O. sits next to crazy woman: a) she has no teeth, b) she has a perfect witch profile, c) she talks to herself and everyone and d) she gets up twice and does a little dance. S.O. ignores, but the man sitting on the other side smiles gently which seems to make her happy.
Concert wonderful. Too many old folks, though. Classical music will die if we don't get young people to these concerts. Woman in vicinity has drenched herself with perfume. Doesn't smell bad, just too strong.
Harry Christophers conducts in a very vigorous manner, and sometimes weird and spastic and again dancing, almost, and I'm afraid he'll fall off his podium, but he doesn't. Orchestra stands for the entire concert except for cellists, etc.
Afterward, back onto the T except there are 300 people waiting after the performance and the train doesn't come for 15 minutes and when it does, it's almost full, so there's one of those tight situations when you become intimate with perfect strangers. At least nobody weird.
We catch the Red Line after a short wait. Middle aged couple in love across from us. Isn't love strange? Isn't it wonderful? And mysterious, too. No wonder so many books, movies, songs, and such are all about love. It hold on to the mystery.
Back home, and all is well. House still reeks of last nights Pan Seared Scallops in Ginger Broth. I can still smell the curry, the scallops and the ginger. Not unpleasant, but man does the odor hang around. Burned candles all afternoon which did nothing. Too freaking cold to open the windows.
Thisbe went out on the porch for 45 seconds today, and again for about 30 seconds. Saw a turtle dove and ran back inside. I don't know about her. What kind of a cat is afraid of birds? Remember, Friday is cat blog day.
Grapeshot
Missed the train by milliseconds and had to wait 12 minutes for the next one in the 20 degree cold. Man reading Car and Driver across from me. Notice bare skin peeking out from gap in his cotton dress shirt. No undershirt, no sweater, just a storm coat, weird hat and gloves. He chewed his fingernails while he read.
On the green line, S.O. sits next to crazy woman: a) she has no teeth, b) she has a perfect witch profile, c) she talks to herself and everyone and d) she gets up twice and does a little dance. S.O. ignores, but the man sitting on the other side smiles gently which seems to make her happy.
Concert wonderful. Too many old folks, though. Classical music will die if we don't get young people to these concerts. Woman in vicinity has drenched herself with perfume. Doesn't smell bad, just too strong.
Harry Christophers conducts in a very vigorous manner, and sometimes weird and spastic and again dancing, almost, and I'm afraid he'll fall off his podium, but he doesn't. Orchestra stands for the entire concert except for cellists, etc.
Afterward, back onto the T except there are 300 people waiting after the performance and the train doesn't come for 15 minutes and when it does, it's almost full, so there's one of those tight situations when you become intimate with perfect strangers. At least nobody weird.
We catch the Red Line after a short wait. Middle aged couple in love across from us. Isn't love strange? Isn't it wonderful? And mysterious, too. No wonder so many books, movies, songs, and such are all about love. It hold on to the mystery.
Back home, and all is well. House still reeks of last nights Pan Seared Scallops in Ginger Broth. I can still smell the curry, the scallops and the ginger. Not unpleasant, but man does the odor hang around. Burned candles all afternoon which did nothing. Too freaking cold to open the windows.
Thisbe went out on the porch for 45 seconds today, and again for about 30 seconds. Saw a turtle dove and ran back inside. I don't know about her. What kind of a cat is afraid of birds? Remember, Friday is cat blog day.
Grapeshot
Thursday, January 24, 2008
The Edgar's
Kvetching about the Edgar nominees is a common pastime in the bleak midwinter. Usually it is the so-called "cozy" writers complaining that only the "dark" stuff is nominated. This is basically true, because apparently the judges don't think quilting, tea, and cats constitute serious literature but rather pretty-to-think escapist meanderings that can be awarded at the Malice Domestic convention.
I am of two minds. The "Dark" novels can be very dark indeed, and sometimes one needs escapist stories, but all media mirrors our times,. The movies nominated for Oscars this year are also dark, except for the one about the pregnant teen which escapes my fingers. Oh yes, Juno. A fantasy.
Indeed the world is dark and when is the last time you heard a sweet romantic ballad, like, say, "Bus Stop?"
The Bhutto assassination and the Iraq war and global warming are the world we inhabit, and if fiction writes that large upon the page, well, so be it.
The fifties are gone, and along with them the bomb shelters and the air raid sirens and the big bands never did return. We simply have to soldier on, realizing our literature including popular and genre fiction will hold up a mirror to our times, and even a distorted fun-house mirror still shows an image. What we may yearn for and what we have to live with.
Yesterday the Boston Globe ran an article on how couples had been ripped off to the tune of $5,000 and more for prepaying for wedding photographs to a company that went belly up. I felt a mild sympathy, but mostly I wondered who in his right mind would spend $5,000 for wedding photographs that will end up amusing kids and grandkids who will laugh at the clothes, the hair, the dresses, the silliness. And who gets the photos when the couple splits?
If you think about weddings, and McMansions and helicopter parents and $3,000 handbags and $1500 shoes, how can writing not be dark? We look in the mirror and don't like what we see.
Our novels reflect our lives and times, and the times are dark, times are generally dark and our writing reflects that darkness.
Onward,
I am of two minds. The "Dark" novels can be very dark indeed, and sometimes one needs escapist stories, but all media mirrors our times,. The movies nominated for Oscars this year are also dark, except for the one about the pregnant teen which escapes my fingers. Oh yes, Juno. A fantasy.
Indeed the world is dark and when is the last time you heard a sweet romantic ballad, like, say, "Bus Stop?"
The Bhutto assassination and the Iraq war and global warming are the world we inhabit, and if fiction writes that large upon the page, well, so be it.
The fifties are gone, and along with them the bomb shelters and the air raid sirens and the big bands never did return. We simply have to soldier on, realizing our literature including popular and genre fiction will hold up a mirror to our times, and even a distorted fun-house mirror still shows an image. What we may yearn for and what we have to live with.
Yesterday the Boston Globe ran an article on how couples had been ripped off to the tune of $5,000 and more for prepaying for wedding photographs to a company that went belly up. I felt a mild sympathy, but mostly I wondered who in his right mind would spend $5,000 for wedding photographs that will end up amusing kids and grandkids who will laugh at the clothes, the hair, the dresses, the silliness. And who gets the photos when the couple splits?
If you think about weddings, and McMansions and helicopter parents and $3,000 handbags and $1500 shoes, how can writing not be dark? We look in the mirror and don't like what we see.
Our novels reflect our lives and times, and the times are dark, times are generally dark and our writing reflects that darkness.
Onward,
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
The Disapearance
I can' t find plain, ordinary bean dip in the stores anymore, the kind that used to be with the chips. Now everything is Salsa, and we bought some bean salsa and it was way too spicy (for beans). Apparently you have to make you own now. What the hell is this?
There's convenience everything and they took bean dip off the market? I can't believe it. I'll try a new store, but I went online and couldn't find it either.
I mean, we can open a can of refried beans and dip the chips in that, but it's not the same. I'm in a total funk about this. We only ate it like once a year, but I expected it to be on the shelf.
I heard they took Hydrox cookies out of production. People up in arms. I loved them back in the day when I was always trying to gain weight and ate cookies and milk every night. Or graham crackers and milk. Or PBJ. Hard to believe I ever tried to gain weight, but I did for years. Now I can't even keep peanut butter in the house. One of my few "no control" foods. I'm in there with the knife taking huge swipes and licking off the knife. Bad.
I don't have much control with chicken wings either, but we never have excessive wings lying around to scarf down at 11:30 p.m. Wish we did. So things change and one day you're really skinny and the next day you look, well, a little chunky.
So why am I obsessed with food? With bean dip? Seems kind of stupid. That's what happens when you eat a light dinner, you think about food the rest of the evening.
I needed to get some writing done but instead I watched The Big Lebowski and even some TV after that. We watched Volver last night. S.O. said it was a woman's movie, and that might be true. Pedro Almodaro makes great women's movies. Hard to figure, him being a guy and all that.
Off to bed. No bean dip. Still sucking it up. This has been a huge period of sucking it up. One would think I would get used to it. No sir.
Grapeshot.
There's convenience everything and they took bean dip off the market? I can't believe it. I'll try a new store, but I went online and couldn't find it either.
I mean, we can open a can of refried beans and dip the chips in that, but it's not the same. I'm in a total funk about this. We only ate it like once a year, but I expected it to be on the shelf.
I heard they took Hydrox cookies out of production. People up in arms. I loved them back in the day when I was always trying to gain weight and ate cookies and milk every night. Or graham crackers and milk. Or PBJ. Hard to believe I ever tried to gain weight, but I did for years. Now I can't even keep peanut butter in the house. One of my few "no control" foods. I'm in there with the knife taking huge swipes and licking off the knife. Bad.
I don't have much control with chicken wings either, but we never have excessive wings lying around to scarf down at 11:30 p.m. Wish we did. So things change and one day you're really skinny and the next day you look, well, a little chunky.
So why am I obsessed with food? With bean dip? Seems kind of stupid. That's what happens when you eat a light dinner, you think about food the rest of the evening.
I needed to get some writing done but instead I watched The Big Lebowski and even some TV after that. We watched Volver last night. S.O. said it was a woman's movie, and that might be true. Pedro Almodaro makes great women's movies. Hard to figure, him being a guy and all that.
Off to bed. No bean dip. Still sucking it up. This has been a huge period of sucking it up. One would think I would get used to it. No sir.
Grapeshot.
Can you believe this?
Blogger has been eating my posts, so this evening I decided to key it into MS Word and then copy and paste. Guess what? Word aborted, and I was left with nothing. Nada. Are the blogging gods trying to tell me something? I can't believe it. Grrrr. Fuggedaboutit.
This brings sucking it up to a new level. Should I change the title to "sweetness and light? Or "Never a post shall be lost?"
Grapeshot
This brings sucking it up to a new level. Should I change the title to "sweetness and light? Or "Never a post shall be lost?"
Grapeshot
Proustian Moment - Nel blu, dipinto di blu
Psyched up about working out after realizing that I don’t a) have to set all the weight machines to 20 pounds and b) didn’t fall over dead during the aerobics class. Now granted, the aerobics are “low impact,” but she works us pretty good with lots of movement and arms above one’s head.
Yesterday the music began with Nel Blu, Dipinto di Blu (Volare) by Domenico Modugno.
A whole Proustian cloud of memories came percolating out of the speakers. The song was already old, but my first real memory of hearing it was in Aurora, Colorado playing water Frisbee in the swimming pool of somebody’s apartment house. I was a college student , and the party was one of those crazy affairs where everyone collapsed of tiredness and drunkenness about 3:00 a.m. and slept where they fell. It was a good song for water Frisbee, and the next morning I volunteered to make scrambled eggs for the remaining celebrants.
Grapeshot did not always cook. In those days she didn’t cook much at all, and she didn’t know you had to put a little butter or oil in the skillet to cook eggs. Yuck! Said eggs had to be scraped off the bottom of the skillet.
Flash forward a few years to San Remo Italy and my first trip to Europe as a very young bride. By then Volare was even longer in the tooth. We had changed hotels from the Londres to a modern kind of Scandinavian place a few blocks from the beach. All night long we heard Volare, again and again and again.
The next morning at breakfast, ye gods, there was Domenico Modugno himself in the dining room, and he was having a beer for breakfast. In all the wild parties I’d ever attended, no one had drunk beer for breakfast. Later at the Frankfurt Bahnhof (train station), I came to realize that beer is not an uncommon European male breakfast beverage. Make beer your breakfast beverage. Haven’t seen that advertising campaign yet.
So the song just rolled all those years (and by now they are quite a few) back and I was a college student splashing in the pool and an American girl in her first bikini strolling the beach in San Remo.
We either ate at a restaurant on the beach or at a nice bustling trattoria in town or sometimes at night in a pizza place by the Orthodox Cathedral. When we first arrived, we ate at the Londres, but that was too boring. Lots of old folks, no doubt. At the beach restaurant I first realized pasta was not a main course but a first course. In town for the first time I ate melon with prosciutto and melon with port wine. By the cathedral, we tasted Italian pizza for the first time. It wasn’t actually as good as American pizza. WTF?
Volare! Hey Proust, how about them melons?
Yesterday the music began with Nel Blu, Dipinto di Blu (Volare) by Domenico Modugno.
A whole Proustian cloud of memories came percolating out of the speakers. The song was already old, but my first real memory of hearing it was in Aurora, Colorado playing water Frisbee in the swimming pool of somebody’s apartment house. I was a college student , and the party was one of those crazy affairs where everyone collapsed of tiredness and drunkenness about 3:00 a.m. and slept where they fell. It was a good song for water Frisbee, and the next morning I volunteered to make scrambled eggs for the remaining celebrants.
Grapeshot did not always cook. In those days she didn’t cook much at all, and she didn’t know you had to put a little butter or oil in the skillet to cook eggs. Yuck! Said eggs had to be scraped off the bottom of the skillet.
Flash forward a few years to San Remo Italy and my first trip to Europe as a very young bride. By then Volare was even longer in the tooth. We had changed hotels from the Londres to a modern kind of Scandinavian place a few blocks from the beach. All night long we heard Volare, again and again and again.
The next morning at breakfast, ye gods, there was Domenico Modugno himself in the dining room, and he was having a beer for breakfast. In all the wild parties I’d ever attended, no one had drunk beer for breakfast. Later at the Frankfurt Bahnhof (train station), I came to realize that beer is not an uncommon European male breakfast beverage. Make beer your breakfast beverage. Haven’t seen that advertising campaign yet.
So the song just rolled all those years (and by now they are quite a few) back and I was a college student splashing in the pool and an American girl in her first bikini strolling the beach in San Remo.
We either ate at a restaurant on the beach or at a nice bustling trattoria in town or sometimes at night in a pizza place by the Orthodox Cathedral. When we first arrived, we ate at the Londres, but that was too boring. Lots of old folks, no doubt. At the beach restaurant I first realized pasta was not a main course but a first course. In town for the first time I ate melon with prosciutto and melon with port wine. By the cathedral, we tasted Italian pizza for the first time. It wasn’t actually as good as American pizza. WTF?
Volare! Hey Proust, how about them melons?
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
CWA Cartier Award
While we are on the topic of writing awards, Sue Grafton has received a well-deserved honor. I picked up this news in DorothyL and am quoting:
CRIME WRITERS' ASSOCIATION 2008 CARTIER DIAMOND DAGGER WINNERThe Crime Writers' Association has awarded its Cartier Diamond Dagger for 2008 to the best-selling American novelist, Sue Grafton.
The presentation of the award, made for sustained excellence in the genre of crime writing, will be made by M. Arnaud Bamberger of Cartier and will take place at a champagne reception at the Gore Hotel, Kensington, London SW7 on May 7th 2008.
SUE GRAFTON was born in Kentucky in 1940, the daughter of mystery writer CW Grafton. After receiving a bachelors degree in English Literature from the University of Louisville, she worked as a TV scriptwriter before her Kinsey Millhone alphabet series of PI mystery novels found success. The first in the series, 'A is for Alibi' was famously inspired by her own divorce. "For months I lay in bed and plotted to kill my ex-husband, but I knew I'd bungle it and get caught so I wrote it in a book instead."
Three of Ms Grafton's novels have won the Anthony Award at the annual Bouchercon World Mystery Convention; she has won three Shamus Awards, and in 2004 received the Ross Macdonald Literary Award given to a California writer whose work raises the standard of literary excellence.
All the books in the Kinsey Millhone series are set in the fictional Santa Teresa, CA, which Ross Macdonald used as an alternative name for Santa Barbara in his novels. Ms Grafton plans to carry the series all the way through to Z. The latest number one best-seller, 'T is for Trespass', was published in the US in December 2007 and will be out in Macmillan hardback in the UK in April 2008.
Ms Grafton's novels are published in 28 countries and in 26 languages, including Bulgarian and Indonesian, although she has consistently refused to sell the film and television rights, claiming her experience as a screenwriter "cured" her of the desire to work with Hollywood.
On hearing of the award, Ms Grafton said: "News of my being named the 2008 recipient of the CWA's Cartier Diamond Dagger so astonished me that I thought at first it was a practical joke. The note from my British publisher, Macmillan, was typically understated: 'I have some good news from the Crime Writers' Association. They would very much like to award you the 2008 Cartier Diamond Dagger at a ceremony in London on 7th May in Kensington.'
Good news !?! I read the message three times and then checked the e-mail address just to verify that it had been intended for me. The publicity director was gently inquiring if I might attend the ceremony. I am absolutely delighted to respond that I'll be there with bells on, as they say over here. I'm thrilled with the news and honored at the prospect. I confess I'm still slightly worried there's an error in the works, but I'll be there nonetheless."
Sue Grafton wins the Cartier Diamond Dagger in its twenty-third year. Previous winners include John Harvey, Elmore Leonard, Ian Rankin, Lawrence Block, Sara Paretsky, Colin Dexter, Ed McBain, Reginald Hill, Ellis Peters, Leslie Charteris, Ruth Rendell, Dick Francis, John Le Carré and PD James.
Way to go, Sue! I love her mysteries. She's a great writer and nobody does weather and old people better.
Grapeshot
CRIME WRITERS' ASSOCIATION 2008 CARTIER DIAMOND DAGGER WINNERThe Crime Writers' Association has awarded its Cartier Diamond Dagger for 2008 to the best-selling American novelist, Sue Grafton.
The presentation of the award, made for sustained excellence in the genre of crime writing, will be made by M. Arnaud Bamberger of Cartier and will take place at a champagne reception at the Gore Hotel, Kensington, London SW7 on May 7th 2008.
SUE GRAFTON was born in Kentucky in 1940, the daughter of mystery writer CW Grafton. After receiving a bachelors degree in English Literature from the University of Louisville, she worked as a TV scriptwriter before her Kinsey Millhone alphabet series of PI mystery novels found success. The first in the series, 'A is for Alibi' was famously inspired by her own divorce. "For months I lay in bed and plotted to kill my ex-husband, but I knew I'd bungle it and get caught so I wrote it in a book instead."
Three of Ms Grafton's novels have won the Anthony Award at the annual Bouchercon World Mystery Convention; she has won three Shamus Awards, and in 2004 received the Ross Macdonald Literary Award given to a California writer whose work raises the standard of literary excellence.
All the books in the Kinsey Millhone series are set in the fictional Santa Teresa, CA, which Ross Macdonald used as an alternative name for Santa Barbara in his novels. Ms Grafton plans to carry the series all the way through to Z. The latest number one best-seller, 'T is for Trespass', was published in the US in December 2007 and will be out in Macmillan hardback in the UK in April 2008.
Ms Grafton's novels are published in 28 countries and in 26 languages, including Bulgarian and Indonesian, although she has consistently refused to sell the film and television rights, claiming her experience as a screenwriter "cured" her of the desire to work with Hollywood.
On hearing of the award, Ms Grafton said: "News of my being named the 2008 recipient of the CWA's Cartier Diamond Dagger so astonished me that I thought at first it was a practical joke. The note from my British publisher, Macmillan, was typically understated: 'I have some good news from the Crime Writers' Association. They would very much like to award you the 2008 Cartier Diamond Dagger at a ceremony in London on 7th May in Kensington.'
Good news !?! I read the message three times and then checked the e-mail address just to verify that it had been intended for me. The publicity director was gently inquiring if I might attend the ceremony. I am absolutely delighted to respond that I'll be there with bells on, as they say over here. I'm thrilled with the news and honored at the prospect. I confess I'm still slightly worried there's an error in the works, but I'll be there nonetheless."
Sue Grafton wins the Cartier Diamond Dagger in its twenty-third year. Previous winners include John Harvey, Elmore Leonard, Ian Rankin, Lawrence Block, Sara Paretsky, Colin Dexter, Ed McBain, Reginald Hill, Ellis Peters, Leslie Charteris, Ruth Rendell, Dick Francis, John Le Carré and PD James.
Way to go, Sue! I love her mysteries. She's a great writer and nobody does weather and old people better.
Grapeshot
MWA 2008 Edgar Awards
Let's hear it for some great new novels. I have Ken Bruen's Priest on my "next read" list. Everyone involved in Crimebake and/or Level Best Books is also pulling for "The Catch" in the Still Waters Anthology. A new writer's first published story is nominated for a prestigeous award. How cool is that? Mega-congratulations to Mark Ammons.
BEST NOVEL
Christine Falls by Benjamin Black (Henry Holt and Company)
Priest by Ken Bruen (St. Martin's Minotaur)
The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon (HarperCollins)
Soul Patch by Reed Farrel Coleman (Bleak House Books)
Down River by John Hart (St. Martin's Minotaur)
BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR
Missing Witness by Gordon Campbell (HarperCollins – William Morrow)
In the Woods by Tana French (Penguin Group – Viking)
Snitch Jacket by Christopher Goffard (The Rookery Press)
Head Games by Craig McDonald (Bleak House Books)
Pyres by Derek Nikitas (St. Martin's Minotaur)
BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL
Queenpin by Megan Abbott (Simon & Schuster)
Blood of Paradise by David Corbett (Random House - Mortalis)
Cruel Poetry by Vicki Hendricks (Serpent's Tail)
Robbie's Wife by Russell Hill (Hard Case Crime)
Who is Conrad Hirst? by Kevin Wignall (Simon & Schuster)
BEST FACT CRIME
The Birthday Party by Stanley Alpert (Penguin Group – G.P. Putnam's Sons)
Reclaiming History: The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy
by Vincent Bugliosi (W.W. Norton and Company
Chasing Justice: My Story of Freeing Myself After Two Decades on Death Row for a Crime I Didn't Commit by Kerry Max Cook (HarperCollins – William Morrow)
Relentless Pursuit: A True Story of Family, Murder, and the Prosecutor Who Wouldn't Quit by Kevin Flynn (Penguin Group – G.P. Putnam's Sons)
Sacco & Vanzetti: The Men, The Murders and the Judgment of Mankind by Bruce Watson (Penguin Group – Viking)
BEST CRITICAL/BIOGRAPHICAL
The Triumph of the Thriller: How Cops, Crooks and Cannibals Captured Popular Fiction by Patrick Anderson (Random House)
A Counter-History of Crime Fiction: Supernatural, Gothic, Sensational by Maurizio Ascari (Palgrave Macmillan)
Deviance in Contemporary Crime Fiction by Christiana Gregoriou (Palgrave Macmillan)
Arthur Conan Doyle: A Life in Letters by Jon Lellenberg, Daniel Stashower and Charles Foley (The Penguin Press)
Chester Gould: A Daughter's Biography of the Creator of Dick Tracy
by Jean Gould O’Connell (McFarland & Company)
BEST SHORT STORY
"The Catch" – Still Waters by Mark Ammons (Level Best Books)
"Blue Note" – Chicago Blues by Stuart M. Kaminsky (Bleak House Books)
"Hardly Knew Her" – Dead Man's Hand by Laura Lippman (Harcourt Trade Publishers)
"The Golden Gopher" – Los Angeles Noir by Susan Straight (Akashic Books
"Uncle" – A Hell of a Woman” by Daniel Woodrell (Busted Flush Press)
BEST JUVENILE
The Name of This Book is Secret by Pseudonymous Bosch (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
Shadows on Society Hill by Evelyn Coleman (American Girl Publications)
Deep and Dark and Dangerous by Mary Downing Hahn (Clarion Books)
The Night Tourist by Katherine Marsh (Hyperion Books for Young Readers)
Sammy Keyes and the Wild Things by Wendelin Van Draanen (Random House Children’s Books – Alfred A. Knopf)
BEST YOUNG ADULT
Rat Life by Tedd Arnold (Penguin – Dial Books for Young Readers)
Diamonds in the Shadow by Caroline B. Cooney (Random House Children's Books – Delacorte Press)
Touching Snow by M. Sindy Felin (Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing – Atheneum Books for Young Readers)
Blood Brothers by S.A. Harazin (Random House Children's Books – Delacorte Press)
Fragments by Jeffry W. Johnston (Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing – Simon Pulse)
BEST NOVEL
Christine Falls by Benjamin Black (Henry Holt and Company)
Priest by Ken Bruen (St. Martin's Minotaur)
The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon (HarperCollins)
Soul Patch by Reed Farrel Coleman (Bleak House Books)
Down River by John Hart (St. Martin's Minotaur)
BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR
Missing Witness by Gordon Campbell (HarperCollins – William Morrow)
In the Woods by Tana French (Penguin Group – Viking)
Snitch Jacket by Christopher Goffard (The Rookery Press)
Head Games by Craig McDonald (Bleak House Books)
Pyres by Derek Nikitas (St. Martin's Minotaur)
BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL
Queenpin by Megan Abbott (Simon & Schuster)
Blood of Paradise by David Corbett (Random House - Mortalis)
Cruel Poetry by Vicki Hendricks (Serpent's Tail)
Robbie's Wife by Russell Hill (Hard Case Crime)
Who is Conrad Hirst? by Kevin Wignall (Simon & Schuster)
BEST FACT CRIME
The Birthday Party by Stanley Alpert (Penguin Group – G.P. Putnam's Sons)
Reclaiming History: The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy
by Vincent Bugliosi (W.W. Norton and Company
Chasing Justice: My Story of Freeing Myself After Two Decades on Death Row for a Crime I Didn't Commit by Kerry Max Cook (HarperCollins – William Morrow)
Relentless Pursuit: A True Story of Family, Murder, and the Prosecutor Who Wouldn't Quit by Kevin Flynn (Penguin Group – G.P. Putnam's Sons)
Sacco & Vanzetti: The Men, The Murders and the Judgment of Mankind by Bruce Watson (Penguin Group – Viking)
BEST CRITICAL/BIOGRAPHICAL
The Triumph of the Thriller: How Cops, Crooks and Cannibals Captured Popular Fiction by Patrick Anderson (Random House)
A Counter-History of Crime Fiction: Supernatural, Gothic, Sensational by Maurizio Ascari (Palgrave Macmillan)
Deviance in Contemporary Crime Fiction by Christiana Gregoriou (Palgrave Macmillan)
Arthur Conan Doyle: A Life in Letters by Jon Lellenberg, Daniel Stashower and Charles Foley (The Penguin Press)
Chester Gould: A Daughter's Biography of the Creator of Dick Tracy
by Jean Gould O’Connell (McFarland & Company)
BEST SHORT STORY
"The Catch" – Still Waters by Mark Ammons (Level Best Books)
"Blue Note" – Chicago Blues by Stuart M. Kaminsky (Bleak House Books)
"Hardly Knew Her" – Dead Man's Hand by Laura Lippman (Harcourt Trade Publishers)
"The Golden Gopher" – Los Angeles Noir by Susan Straight (Akashic Books
"Uncle" – A Hell of a Woman” by Daniel Woodrell (Busted Flush Press)
BEST JUVENILE
The Name of This Book is Secret by Pseudonymous Bosch (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
Shadows on Society Hill by Evelyn Coleman (American Girl Publications)
Deep and Dark and Dangerous by Mary Downing Hahn (Clarion Books)
The Night Tourist by Katherine Marsh (Hyperion Books for Young Readers)
Sammy Keyes and the Wild Things by Wendelin Van Draanen (Random House Children’s Books – Alfred A. Knopf)
BEST YOUNG ADULT
Rat Life by Tedd Arnold (Penguin – Dial Books for Young Readers)
Diamonds in the Shadow by Caroline B. Cooney (Random House Children's Books – Delacorte Press)
Touching Snow by M. Sindy Felin (Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing – Atheneum Books for Young Readers)
Blood Brothers by S.A. Harazin (Random House Children's Books – Delacorte Press)
Fragments by Jeffry W. Johnston (Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing – Simon Pulse)
Monday, January 21, 2008
Half Naked in January
What's the matter with everyone? People are wearing shorts in January--going about bare-armed. Kids, it's 18 degrees this morning, and as I am leaving the gym (hooray for me) a guy comes out in shorts and a t-shirt and walks to his car. After a workout? Is this even healthy? O.K., the football jocks like to show off their big muscular (and meaty and tatooed) arms, but enuff already. If somebody forced these folks to run around half-naked, it would be torture.
Alas, Green Bay lost. I'm for the Pats, of course. Everyone looked ruddy and kind of frostbit after the Green Bay game.
We heard the fireworks at the stadium after the Pats game.
The top of my desk looks like a haystack and there are tasks waiting. Always tasks waiting. A good thing.
Onward,
Grapeshot
Alas, Green Bay lost. I'm for the Pats, of course. Everyone looked ruddy and kind of frostbit after the Green Bay game.
We heard the fireworks at the stadium after the Pats game.
The top of my desk looks like a haystack and there are tasks waiting. Always tasks waiting. A good thing.
Onward,
Grapeshot
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Blogger Booted My Post
Of course this bit of blather made it in. Grrrrr!
This always happens. I hit submit and the whole system goes kablooie. Screw it.
I talked about the football game and the bean dip and the white chili I first ate in Wisconsin and the South Beach Diet White Chili recipe and that's pretty much it.
When will I learn to do my posts in word and check spelling and grammer and then the submission can be saved? Blogger says it saves them, but the fact is I've yet to find a saved post that wasn't submitted.
All lost posts are in the old post graveyard on the post road and you better go there posthaste and find yours.
Bah humbug
Grapeshot
This always happens. I hit submit and the whole system goes kablooie. Screw it.
I talked about the football game and the bean dip and the white chili I first ate in Wisconsin and the South Beach Diet White Chili recipe and that's pretty much it.
When will I learn to do my posts in word and check spelling and grammer and then the submission can be saved? Blogger says it saves them, but the fact is I've yet to find a saved post that wasn't submitted.
All lost posts are in the old post graveyard on the post road and you better go there posthaste and find yours.
Bah humbug
Grapeshot
Saturday NIght in Foxborough before The BIG GAME
We thought it might be instructive to go pub crawling in the stadium area on a Saturday night before the playoff game between the Pats and the Chargers. Set forth in the bracing but not ungodly cold around 10:00. Debate between the two places are know--Outlaw Barbeque and the Lafayette House.
We love to eat at Outlaw Barbeque but are usually two of five people in the place at 7:00 p.m. It seems to be a sports bar, but who knows? Maybe the crowd doesn't show until midnight? We don't actually know who the crowd is. I do know the place is NOT mentioned in the paper as home to drugs and fights and carnality, so the crowd is gentlemen bikers? Wannabe jocks? ??? No clue.
We ended up at Lafayette House and indeed the joint was jumping with lots of groups, a guitarist singing about Margaritaville, a few bar flies of various ages and general hilarity. No place to sit down and we stand at the bar. I am dressed like Nanook of the North because of the forecasted cold. Too warm. Handbag feels like a millstone.
Nice crackling gas fireplace. Cozy at hell. Hard to tell if this is a crowd of tomorrow's football fans. I can't even tell if they're from out of town. We look around, have a drink and leave. In the parking lot, we determine that except for two Rhode Island cars, the license plates are all local. Of course if you fly into town you rent a car and you are prohably downtown in an Irish bar or at the Fanieul Hall Marketplace or a hotel or the Prudential Center. Where indeed are you? I never get deep enough into the sports pages to read interviews with out of town fans or maybe there are no interviews.
Home again, home again, jiggety-jig, as ignorant as when I left.
I wrote a new paragraph to begin Festival Madness, which apparently started off like lead shoes. My assessment, not the instructors. Falling asleep I had an idea for a short story with the heroine a middle-aged clerk at J.C. Penny. Must be losing it. I can see what develops, which is usually nada.
Ham and eggs and grape tomatoes provencal this morning with the almost rest of the challah bread toasted. White Chili a la South Beach Diet tonight with chips and bean dip, the Yin and Yang of it all, and of course the big game for which I usually make meatloaf, but that will happen on Super Bowl Sunday, and here's hoping the Patriots will have a 100% undefeated season. Must admit the suspense is quite palpable.
Anyhow, onward.
Grapeshot
We love to eat at Outlaw Barbeque but are usually two of five people in the place at 7:00 p.m. It seems to be a sports bar, but who knows? Maybe the crowd doesn't show until midnight? We don't actually know who the crowd is. I do know the place is NOT mentioned in the paper as home to drugs and fights and carnality, so the crowd is gentlemen bikers? Wannabe jocks? ??? No clue.
We ended up at Lafayette House and indeed the joint was jumping with lots of groups, a guitarist singing about Margaritaville, a few bar flies of various ages and general hilarity. No place to sit down and we stand at the bar. I am dressed like Nanook of the North because of the forecasted cold. Too warm. Handbag feels like a millstone.
Nice crackling gas fireplace. Cozy at hell. Hard to tell if this is a crowd of tomorrow's football fans. I can't even tell if they're from out of town. We look around, have a drink and leave. In the parking lot, we determine that except for two Rhode Island cars, the license plates are all local. Of course if you fly into town you rent a car and you are prohably downtown in an Irish bar or at the Fanieul Hall Marketplace or a hotel or the Prudential Center. Where indeed are you? I never get deep enough into the sports pages to read interviews with out of town fans or maybe there are no interviews.
Home again, home again, jiggety-jig, as ignorant as when I left.
I wrote a new paragraph to begin Festival Madness, which apparently started off like lead shoes. My assessment, not the instructors. Falling asleep I had an idea for a short story with the heroine a middle-aged clerk at J.C. Penny. Must be losing it. I can see what develops, which is usually nada.
Ham and eggs and grape tomatoes provencal this morning with the almost rest of the challah bread toasted. White Chili a la South Beach Diet tonight with chips and bean dip, the Yin and Yang of it all, and of course the big game for which I usually make meatloaf, but that will happen on Super Bowl Sunday, and here's hoping the Patriots will have a 100% undefeated season. Must admit the suspense is quite palpable.
Anyhow, onward.
Grapeshot
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Googling Around
So I've wasted about 4 hours today with Google, doing research for the California book, and trying to find out where the Harvey Houses across New Mexico were located and figuring out where my heroine would be for breakfast and what they might serve.
Menus are scarcer than hen's teeth, but I saw some fantastic southerwestern architecture and I suppose I am getting a feel for train travel across the U.S. in the 1920's and the allure of the Harvey Houses.
In the meantime I found a really cool blog, "if the creek don't rise" and had some other ideas, so maybe nothing is lost except the words I might have written and still could write.
S.O. is dozing on the couch down here in the home office. We have a comfy old down sofa and a Danish rocker that's been rebuilt and reupholstered a gazillion times. Sofa was an old down-filled Dunbar so old it had a curved back. Also rebuilt and recovered multiple times. The old area rug from the late lamented Marshall Field is fraying mightily, but everywhere I look I see something interesting or beautiful or old or sentimental, so the room is really cool with his and hers areas and lots of book cases and music and what else could you want? We keep a bottle of Amontillado (not a cask) down here with the funky little glasses.
When S.O. finishes his nap, we're off to feed the cows. Yesterday the poor things had nothing to eat and the snow is really too deep to forage in. I don't know what happened to the hay, but we have some plastic bags of cow food, mostly bread and fruit and veggy scraps. I think we waste almost no food around here.
Tonight we're going bar hopping around Foxborough Stadium to check out the scene before tomorrow's big game. The movie Volver came from Netflix, and there's more Broccoli/ham casserold to nosh on, and a huge mass of challah bread pudding (see previous post).
Now if I could just get down to writing.
Grapeshot
Menus are scarcer than hen's teeth, but I saw some fantastic southerwestern architecture and I suppose I am getting a feel for train travel across the U.S. in the 1920's and the allure of the Harvey Houses.
In the meantime I found a really cool blog, "if the creek don't rise" and had some other ideas, so maybe nothing is lost except the words I might have written and still could write.
S.O. is dozing on the couch down here in the home office. We have a comfy old down sofa and a Danish rocker that's been rebuilt and reupholstered a gazillion times. Sofa was an old down-filled Dunbar so old it had a curved back. Also rebuilt and recovered multiple times. The old area rug from the late lamented Marshall Field is fraying mightily, but everywhere I look I see something interesting or beautiful or old or sentimental, so the room is really cool with his and hers areas and lots of book cases and music and what else could you want? We keep a bottle of Amontillado (not a cask) down here with the funky little glasses.
When S.O. finishes his nap, we're off to feed the cows. Yesterday the poor things had nothing to eat and the snow is really too deep to forage in. I don't know what happened to the hay, but we have some plastic bags of cow food, mostly bread and fruit and veggy scraps. I think we waste almost no food around here.
Tonight we're going bar hopping around Foxborough Stadium to check out the scene before tomorrow's big game. The movie Volver came from Netflix, and there's more Broccoli/ham casserold to nosh on, and a huge mass of challah bread pudding (see previous post).
Now if I could just get down to writing.
Grapeshot
Friday, January 18, 2008
Bread Pudding
Over the holidays I bought two pints of heavy cream to make the bread pudding in the Martha Stewart cookbook, and then somehow we used one of the pints--I confess a spoonfull of heavy cream makes the cereal positively heavenly.
Anyhow, today I noticed the remaining pint was one week past the date, and of course we had not enough bread in the house to make bread pudding because we are always on these freaking diets (never mind the cream on the cereal), so I ran into Shaw's and bought a loaf of challah bread, remembering, incorrectly as it turned out, that one made various b.p. recipes with challah bread. It cost $4.99. Who knew?
So home to the kitchen, and none of the recipes called for challah, and the one I found I might have used wanted 12 egg yolks! No way, Jose.
So I went to the web and typed challah bread and heavy cream into google and lo, some recipes appeared. I picked the second, because that only called for 4 egg yolks. It also called for dried sour cherries, which I happened to have, and looked pretty good.
We had fruit salad for dessert, which in my book doesn't really count. I made a nice ham and broccoli gratin, heavy on broccoli and easy on ham, so feeling virtuous nevermind the mornay sauce that it was slathered with.
The bread pudding went together quickly, and naturally we had to try a corner, just to make sure it was fit to eat and it was. The cream was still good and there's enough to pour over the pudding and really crater the diets. Ah well.
We watched Mr. Bean tonight, a mildly amusing movie, worth about the $3.99 we paid on demand. Have signed up for Netflix but were between movies with them.
Anyhow, today I noticed the remaining pint was one week past the date, and of course we had not enough bread in the house to make bread pudding because we are always on these freaking diets (never mind the cream on the cereal), so I ran into Shaw's and bought a loaf of challah bread, remembering, incorrectly as it turned out, that one made various b.p. recipes with challah bread. It cost $4.99. Who knew?
So home to the kitchen, and none of the recipes called for challah, and the one I found I might have used wanted 12 egg yolks! No way, Jose.
So I went to the web and typed challah bread and heavy cream into google and lo, some recipes appeared. I picked the second, because that only called for 4 egg yolks. It also called for dried sour cherries, which I happened to have, and looked pretty good.
We had fruit salad for dessert, which in my book doesn't really count. I made a nice ham and broccoli gratin, heavy on broccoli and easy on ham, so feeling virtuous nevermind the mornay sauce that it was slathered with.
The bread pudding went together quickly, and naturally we had to try a corner, just to make sure it was fit to eat and it was. The cream was still good and there's enough to pour over the pudding and really crater the diets. Ah well.
We watched Mr. Bean tonight, a mildly amusing movie, worth about the $3.99 we paid on demand. Have signed up for Netflix but were between movies with them.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
First Chapter
The first chapter of Such Stuff As Dreams is done! Doesn't seem too bad. Nice not to have to dump a body right away.
I am recovered from the Amazon fiasco. Lots of good writers didn't get the nod. Some good ones, did, however. I've been reading a few of the chosen ones and some are good, good, good!
Between Clubs, by John Ochwat, a golf/coming-of-age novel really struck me as excellent.
On the mystery front, Peg Herring's Shakespeare's Blood was also a good read. I liked Murder in Palm Beach (beach read), and my review disappeared. How did that happen? Hindsight Carousel was intriguing. What a crazy party. Glad I'm too old for those anymore.
Today at Toastmaster's I told them about the 2008 banned words. Had the feeling I wasn't coming across. Marching to a different drummer, as usual. If all of us who marched to "different" got up and marched together, what would it look like? A weird dance? A freak army? A religious procession? I give up. Monty Python's silly walks in parade?
So, onward with the new book. And the course I'm taking has made me realize that Festival Madness needs a new opening line. And after two editors already have it. Well, if they get past the first paragraph, maybe it will all work out. How many years have I been saying that?
In a way, it's a relief to NOT be writing about technology. It's such a turn off for some, including many editors and agents who are real technophobes. Not all of us liberal arts types embraced it like yours truly. Why was that? A good reliable paycheck, for starters. And finishers. And compelling, interesting, always a challenge, learn something new, make a machine do your bidding. Lots of reasons. Geeks always march to a different drummer, or is it to the click of a mouse?
Annie and Thisbe were "cats of the day" on some website today. Must go find. Made lasagne rollups for dinner last night. Combined two recipes, one for chicken, one for spinach. A-OK. We're eating it again tonight, along with a nice salad. Found some ranch dressing that isn't too salty.
More snow tomorrow and then, ick, rain. I worked out this morning so will stay in unless the weather is decent.
Onward, and possibly even upward.
Grrrrapeshot
I am recovered from the Amazon fiasco. Lots of good writers didn't get the nod. Some good ones, did, however. I've been reading a few of the chosen ones and some are good, good, good!
Between Clubs, by John Ochwat, a golf/coming-of-age novel really struck me as excellent.
On the mystery front, Peg Herring's Shakespeare's Blood was also a good read. I liked Murder in Palm Beach (beach read), and my review disappeared. How did that happen? Hindsight Carousel was intriguing. What a crazy party. Glad I'm too old for those anymore.
Today at Toastmaster's I told them about the 2008 banned words. Had the feeling I wasn't coming across. Marching to a different drummer, as usual. If all of us who marched to "different" got up and marched together, what would it look like? A weird dance? A freak army? A religious procession? I give up. Monty Python's silly walks in parade?
So, onward with the new book. And the course I'm taking has made me realize that Festival Madness needs a new opening line. And after two editors already have it. Well, if they get past the first paragraph, maybe it will all work out. How many years have I been saying that?
In a way, it's a relief to NOT be writing about technology. It's such a turn off for some, including many editors and agents who are real technophobes. Not all of us liberal arts types embraced it like yours truly. Why was that? A good reliable paycheck, for starters. And finishers. And compelling, interesting, always a challenge, learn something new, make a machine do your bidding. Lots of reasons. Geeks always march to a different drummer, or is it to the click of a mouse?
Annie and Thisbe were "cats of the day" on some website today. Must go find. Made lasagne rollups for dinner last night. Combined two recipes, one for chicken, one for spinach. A-OK. We're eating it again tonight, along with a nice salad. Found some ranch dressing that isn't too salty.
More snow tomorrow and then, ick, rain. I worked out this morning so will stay in unless the weather is decent.
Onward, and possibly even upward.
Grrrrapeshot
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
ABNA Hell
No email from Amazon. Most, but not all, got theirs yesterday, and my mailbox and spambox wer empty. Still empty. This really sucks. Everyone who was not notified has morale in the toilet.
This should not have been a surprise, because many never heard from Amazon as to whether their entries had been accepted or not. I really had high hopes for World of Mirrors. First the Gather SNAFU which was mostly a popularity contest, now the ABNA SNAFU which is just a SNAFU.
God knows, I worked in IT for a donkey's age and know how these things happen. Actually, under my watch they happened damned seldom and when they did they were fixed ASAP. A few days ago I was actually recalling my days in IT, or trying to recall them, because this was such a big part of my life and I can't recall anymore why is was so important to work a gazillion hours a week. It was like I wore blinders for twenty years.
Writing is for those with nerves of steel and guts of granite, egos the size of Everest and the eye always, always on the prize.
Screw it. I'm working on my California book and actually wrote a few pages last night. Feeling my way into it. Kind of fun. Nice to be writing again, even if no one will ever read it.
Snow still beautiful on the trees. We were in Wellesley this morning and took a stroll through the new Roche Bros. Holy Christmas! What a fancy store! Takes ones breath away. One's wallet, too. I paid $4.99 for some bean dip. Couldn't find the $1.99 that used to come in a can in the potato chip aisle.
Every kind of fancy pesto and gourmet goodies known to shopper. They had smoked trout, which I usually despair of finding anywhere. But no more doughnuts. We asked. Leave it to me to ask for the one old thing that is no longer carried. I am starting to feel like that that old doughnut nobody wants. Sigh.
Well, off to do more writing chores. I didn't stop writing. Probably couldn't if I wanted to. Blogging away, starting a new novel, working on a short story.
Imagine me waving my middle finger at the ABNA contest. Sticking out tongue! Making crazy faces involving crossed eyes. Shouting you-know-what! You know what? Shame on you. This is a clean blog.
Grrrrapeshot, sucking it up as is her wont
This should not have been a surprise, because many never heard from Amazon as to whether their entries had been accepted or not. I really had high hopes for World of Mirrors. First the Gather SNAFU which was mostly a popularity contest, now the ABNA SNAFU which is just a SNAFU.
God knows, I worked in IT for a donkey's age and know how these things happen. Actually, under my watch they happened damned seldom and when they did they were fixed ASAP. A few days ago I was actually recalling my days in IT, or trying to recall them, because this was such a big part of my life and I can't recall anymore why is was so important to work a gazillion hours a week. It was like I wore blinders for twenty years.
Writing is for those with nerves of steel and guts of granite, egos the size of Everest and the eye always, always on the prize.
Screw it. I'm working on my California book and actually wrote a few pages last night. Feeling my way into it. Kind of fun. Nice to be writing again, even if no one will ever read it.
Snow still beautiful on the trees. We were in Wellesley this morning and took a stroll through the new Roche Bros. Holy Christmas! What a fancy store! Takes ones breath away. One's wallet, too. I paid $4.99 for some bean dip. Couldn't find the $1.99 that used to come in a can in the potato chip aisle.
Every kind of fancy pesto and gourmet goodies known to shopper. They had smoked trout, which I usually despair of finding anywhere. But no more doughnuts. We asked. Leave it to me to ask for the one old thing that is no longer carried. I am starting to feel like that that old doughnut nobody wants. Sigh.
Well, off to do more writing chores. I didn't stop writing. Probably couldn't if I wanted to. Blogging away, starting a new novel, working on a short story.
Imagine me waving my middle finger at the ABNA contest. Sticking out tongue! Making crazy faces involving crossed eyes. Shouting you-know-what! You know what? Shame on you. This is a clean blog.
Grrrrapeshot, sucking it up as is her wont
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
January Storm
The photo looks like needlepoint, taken as it is through the screen. That is not a "real" raccoon but a sculpture of one. The snow is finally falling off the branches and you need a hard hat outside. The cows were in the snowy pasture, eating some dry hay, I hope.
The little one always comes running with her (his?) Mom whenever we show up with treats. Old Maggie likes to be first and is the hoggiest. Poor young bull never gets anything. Well, his day will come, we assume.
I made it to a workout this morning, but it's so nice to hunker down with writing tasks, maybe even some writing and enjoy the snow from indoors. Tomorrow we will have to venture forth to the grocery story. Looks like good snowshoe conditions. The main task is to keep the bird feeders full and logs on the fire and lanterns and candles at hand, because the power went out for the umpteenth time this morning. Guess the wires are broken by falling branches, a good argument for underground utilities, don't you think?
I finished Sarah Winnemucca, and was charmed to find out she came to the Boston area and gave talks in Concord. Cool. Such a sad story, our mistreatment of the Native Americans. Makes one so ashamed.
Onward. No news from Amazon. Time to freakout?
Grapeshot
Monday, January 14, 2008
And the snow came down in buckets
More power outtages. We had just started dinner when the lights went out again. Ha ha! Food was warm and we ate by candlelight. Just cleaning up the kitchen and the lights were on again. That makes about six hours w/o power today.
I sent out three queries (two email and one snailmail) for Promiscuous Mode. Got a positive response to one of the emails already. The books is such fun; I hope someone will finally get interested.
Tomorrow is D-day for the ABNA. I keep obsessing about it. Not the only one. The Amazon chat board has been obsessing for 4 weeks, and some people never shut up.
We watched Pan's Labyrinth, an odd but compelling movie. By the end, just about everyone was dead. Like an old Jacobean Tragedy. You English majors will know what I mean.
Annie goes to the vet tomorrow, and of course she has been very frisky since I made the appointment. Why is that? The cats were really cool with the fire going all day (and all evening) and their adult humans parked in the living room. Eeek. Today is not cat blog day.
Grapeshot
I sent out three queries (two email and one snailmail) for Promiscuous Mode. Got a positive response to one of the emails already. The books is such fun; I hope someone will finally get interested.
Tomorrow is D-day for the ABNA. I keep obsessing about it. Not the only one. The Amazon chat board has been obsessing for 4 weeks, and some people never shut up.
We watched Pan's Labyrinth, an odd but compelling movie. By the end, just about everyone was dead. Like an old Jacobean Tragedy. You English majors will know what I mean.
Annie goes to the vet tomorrow, and of course she has been very frisky since I made the appointment. Why is that? The cats were really cool with the fire going all day (and all evening) and their adult humans parked in the living room. Eeek. Today is not cat blog day.
Grapeshot
Persuasion
I watched the Jane Austen special on PBS last night in spite of bad reviews, and actually enjoyed it. The young woman who played Jane looked like a young vulnerable Sandra Bullock.
Naturally everyone is New England is obsessed with football, and rightly so. I include myself among the fans, because there is something so compelling about the Patriots this year.
Tomorrow, yes, finally tomorrow the ABNA contest semi-finalists are announced. If my entry doesn't make it, I am going to have to totally rethink this writing business. Right now I have the character list for the California book, and have fleshed out the major characters.
Tomorrow also starts a course on "beginnings," always problematical. I'll be forced to write some pages. Good.
Onward, to prep for inner. We had 5 hours of no power in the snow this a.m. Cats sort of amazed to see everyone sitting in front of the fireplace reading all morning. A pleasant respite, to be sure. Now I need to be a bit more productive. Kierbasa and saurkraut tonight. Turkey Kielbasa and rinsed saurkraut, with veggies. Always aiming for a little bit healthier meal without going overboard into the non-fat and chemical choices.
Grrrrrapeshot
Naturally everyone is New England is obsessed with football, and rightly so. I include myself among the fans, because there is something so compelling about the Patriots this year.
Tomorrow, yes, finally tomorrow the ABNA contest semi-finalists are announced. If my entry doesn't make it, I am going to have to totally rethink this writing business. Right now I have the character list for the California book, and have fleshed out the major characters.
Tomorrow also starts a course on "beginnings," always problematical. I'll be forced to write some pages. Good.
Onward, to prep for inner. We had 5 hours of no power in the snow this a.m. Cats sort of amazed to see everyone sitting in front of the fireplace reading all morning. A pleasant respite, to be sure. Now I need to be a bit more productive. Kierbasa and saurkraut tonight. Turkey Kielbasa and rinsed saurkraut, with veggies. Always aiming for a little bit healthier meal without going overboard into the non-fat and chemical choices.
Grrrrrapeshot
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Copenhagen
We saw the wonderful Michael Frayn play, Copenhagen, at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, MA this afternoon. The play recounts meeting betweeen physicists Heisenberg and Bohr in Copenhagen in 1941. It was wonderful, dramatic and engrossing from the opening lines to the closing. Minimal sets and costumes, just fantastic dramaturgy and acting. And you understand the science, portrayed so clearly and wonderfully.
Afterward to walked to the Border Cafe for a Tex-Mex meal that couldn't be beat, and all for $40,00, too, with brand name tequila margaritas and all the trimmings.
Back home on the Red Line, and as we travel through Harvard, Central, Kendal and even Mass General subways stops, I can't help thinking of my latest book, and how a scene takes place in each quarter. Such fun.
Now to read the Sunday papers, watch the football game and then on to Jane Austen. What a full, fun day! Everyday should be like this.
Snow tomorrow? Bring it on! We have food, wood for the fire, and book and music. What else do you ever need?
Grapeshot
Afterward to walked to the Border Cafe for a Tex-Mex meal that couldn't be beat, and all for $40,00, too, with brand name tequila margaritas and all the trimmings.
Back home on the Red Line, and as we travel through Harvard, Central, Kendal and even Mass General subways stops, I can't help thinking of my latest book, and how a scene takes place in each quarter. Such fun.
Now to read the Sunday papers, watch the football game and then on to Jane Austen. What a full, fun day! Everyday should be like this.
Snow tomorrow? Bring it on! We have food, wood for the fire, and book and music. What else do you ever need?
Grapeshot
Friday, January 11, 2008
Friday is Cat Blog Day
The rains came, ushered in by thunder and lightning. Weather not fit for man nor beast. Annie retreated to the basement and Thisbe stuck it out on the foot of the bed.
For more cat “stuff” see: http://www.alibrarycat.com/
The old bookstore in Wellesley where my writer’s group met for years had a cat in residence, Cyrano. He was a charmer and I co-opted his name and coloring for the cat in Promiscuous Mode. He found a new home when the store closed.
A good day to hunker down inside, blowing off the walk and even the trip to the gym. I have a cozy new robe and old “lounge socks” to add to the rainy day ambiance.
Hey, I got up early (for me) and ate a healthy breakfast, and that’s about it for the day. It will be an excellent day to write or to watch old movies, or the food channel, or maybe a nice long bath.
Grapeshot
For more cat “stuff” see: http://www.alibrarycat.com/
The old bookstore in Wellesley where my writer’s group met for years had a cat in residence, Cyrano. He was a charmer and I co-opted his name and coloring for the cat in Promiscuous Mode. He found a new home when the store closed.
A good day to hunker down inside, blowing off the walk and even the trip to the gym. I have a cozy new robe and old “lounge socks” to add to the rainy day ambiance.
Hey, I got up early (for me) and ate a healthy breakfast, and that’s about it for the day. It will be an excellent day to write or to watch old movies, or the food channel, or maybe a nice long bath.
Grapeshot
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Cats reading books
I wrote a story today about the books my cats wanted to read. This is for an ebook to be published for National Library Week. I hope the cats are honored, since I gave some thought to what they might really like to be reading.
We watched Mystic Pizza tonight. Forgot how sad it was. Thisbe curled up next to me. She is immense, a huge vast feline with the heart of a kitten. Tomorrow is cat blog day, but we're early.
I sent my selection for editing in to Sleuthfest. Have a feeling by now it is so overworked as to be overwritten. Completely blind as to the merits and demerits.
Due to my cold, I slept until 10:00 this morning. such unmitigated bliss, and at some point I was plotting the California book in my head, and wondering if the scenes were out of order. Strange the tricks the mind plays.
Someone brought us tiny Florida oranges that are so sweet, no seeds, you just want to gobble them up, and I'm going upstairs and eat one now. Don't think I've ever had a better orange and they are miniscule, but not clementines, even smaller than clementines. Little balls of orangey sweetness.
Let me know what books your cat likes to read.
Grapeshot
We watched Mystic Pizza tonight. Forgot how sad it was. Thisbe curled up next to me. She is immense, a huge vast feline with the heart of a kitten. Tomorrow is cat blog day, but we're early.
I sent my selection for editing in to Sleuthfest. Have a feeling by now it is so overworked as to be overwritten. Completely blind as to the merits and demerits.
Due to my cold, I slept until 10:00 this morning. such unmitigated bliss, and at some point I was plotting the California book in my head, and wondering if the scenes were out of order. Strange the tricks the mind plays.
Someone brought us tiny Florida oranges that are so sweet, no seeds, you just want to gobble them up, and I'm going upstairs and eat one now. Don't think I've ever had a better orange and they are miniscule, but not clementines, even smaller than clementines. Little balls of orangey sweetness.
Let me know what books your cat likes to read.
Grapeshot
Wednesday, January 09, 2008
Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award
In less than a week, I'll know whether World of Mirrors made the first Amazon cut. If it did, I'll be weaseling around and asking friends, fellow-writers and even my wonderful blog readers who are also Amazon customers (is anyone not an Amazon customer?) to sign in, read my first chapter and write a short review. And do tell the truth. If you think it sucks, I need to know that, too.
This is so demeaning, but of course even more demeaning is if the chapter tanked/and or cratered with the reviewer and was rejected. Right now my self-confidence if at the bottom of the storm sewer with last year's leaves and a few old mouse carcasses. You get the idea.
And I have a cold. I never catch colds. I am blaming it on not eating meat for 2 weeks, and missing all that good zinc and B-vitamins.
We had chicken cutlets with tomatos, capers and wine tonight, ripped right out of the food section of today's Boston Globe. Very tasty, and enough for tomorrow. The tomato and parseley looked so cheery, almost like Christmas was back. It's always a shock when everyone takes down the Christmas lights and the night is so dreary again.
Made reservations for Sleuthfest today, and I continue to tweak the beginning of Promiscuous Mode. I decided it didn't have enough tension and conflict for the beginning of a crime fiction novel. Why did I ever start writing crime fiction? I don't even much like to read it anymore, however, I still want to read Sue Grafton's latest. I don't get tired of her. And then there's poor old Proust who I've been dawdling over for 13 months and 772 pages.
My first readings of Proust, I totally missed all the humor. How is that possible? There is a lot of humor, not in the romantic love parts, but in his descriptions of the daily life of the family. Humor enlivens any kind of writing. Humor enlivens life.
Rant alert! Boston is a dirty town, sad to say. The "T" is dirty--people strew newspapers all over. Sullivan Square was filthy. The sidewalk was a continuous garbage can. Disgusting. We came here from Chicago which was, by comparison, squeaky clean. End of rant.
Another warm day, but rainy, and I didn't walk because of my blasted cold. It's almost worse than having a broken ankle. Onward.
Grrrrrapeshot
This is so demeaning, but of course even more demeaning is if the chapter tanked/and or cratered with the reviewer and was rejected. Right now my self-confidence if at the bottom of the storm sewer with last year's leaves and a few old mouse carcasses. You get the idea.
And I have a cold. I never catch colds. I am blaming it on not eating meat for 2 weeks, and missing all that good zinc and B-vitamins.
We had chicken cutlets with tomatos, capers and wine tonight, ripped right out of the food section of today's Boston Globe. Very tasty, and enough for tomorrow. The tomato and parseley looked so cheery, almost like Christmas was back. It's always a shock when everyone takes down the Christmas lights and the night is so dreary again.
Made reservations for Sleuthfest today, and I continue to tweak the beginning of Promiscuous Mode. I decided it didn't have enough tension and conflict for the beginning of a crime fiction novel. Why did I ever start writing crime fiction? I don't even much like to read it anymore, however, I still want to read Sue Grafton's latest. I don't get tired of her. And then there's poor old Proust who I've been dawdling over for 13 months and 772 pages.
My first readings of Proust, I totally missed all the humor. How is that possible? There is a lot of humor, not in the romantic love parts, but in his descriptions of the daily life of the family. Humor enlivens any kind of writing. Humor enlivens life.
Rant alert! Boston is a dirty town, sad to say. The "T" is dirty--people strew newspapers all over. Sullivan Square was filthy. The sidewalk was a continuous garbage can. Disgusting. We came here from Chicago which was, by comparison, squeaky clean. End of rant.
Another warm day, but rainy, and I didn't walk because of my blasted cold. It's almost worse than having a broken ankle. Onward.
Grrrrrapeshot
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Writing Tasks
I'm actually working on the beginning of Promiscuous Mode. Finding minor stuff to make it better and am considering how to bring more tension to the beginning.
Tonight we're going to listen to a motivational speaker who talks about writing, and the last time I heard him I became very productive. For a while.
On my walk today (unbelievable January thaw) I thought about the short story I'm working on and developed that a bit. Everything that isn't backsliding is progress.
Steve Kelner, a motivational psychologist and author of Motivate YourWriting!, teams up with multi-award-winning mystery author Toni Kelner, to show how to motivate your writing -- LIVE! Toni provides the examples ofher writing process and Steve explains why they work for her, so they can beused by you. Toni has written novels and short stories set in NorthCarolina, Boston, and a pirate ship and edited a bestselling anthology, so we should have lots of grist for Steve's mill -- and yours!
Grapeshot
Tonight we're going to listen to a motivational speaker who talks about writing, and the last time I heard him I became very productive. For a while.
On my walk today (unbelievable January thaw) I thought about the short story I'm working on and developed that a bit. Everything that isn't backsliding is progress.
Steve Kelner, a motivational psychologist and author of Motivate YourWriting!, teams up with multi-award-winning mystery author Toni Kelner, to show how to motivate your writing -- LIVE! Toni provides the examples ofher writing process and Steve explains why they work for her, so they can beused by you. Toni has written novels and short stories set in NorthCarolina, Boston, and a pirate ship and edited a bestselling anthology, so we should have lots of grist for Steve's mill -- and yours!
Grapeshot
Monday, January 07, 2008
Preparation
Last night I went through Jeff Herman's book and found 7 publishers and about 20 agents who will be hearing from me. Also prepping for a new writing conference, researching the California book, and looking at the beginning of Promiscuous Mode. Still, why do I feel that my progress is so damn incremental, as in friggin' slow?
Once I read that it takes patience to learn patience and I never took the time to acquire any.
A writer needs patience as well as inspiration. My next Toastmaster's speech will cover the topic "what does a writer do?" and of course the audience assumes that a writer writes, which is true, of course, but a writer has to do so much more, the research, the networking, the promotion, web sites, blogs (sic) conferences, speeches, more research, finding agents/editors, critique group. Yes, a writer can get so involved in all the peripheral stuff, that pretty soon a writer is not writing, but always preparing to write, which is what I've done the past year. Oh yeah, I completed three more drafts of the Burning Man book, and some synopses, and a class or two, but somehow this isn't writing, and writing it where it's really at, not all this schmoozing.
Proust was right. Lock yourself into a cork-lined room and write, dammit, write.
Today we joined the 'Y,' to stay in shape or get back into shape, and that will be another excuse not to plant butt in chair.
What to do? Do I need a coach? What is all this business about life coaches and job coaches and every other kind of coach? And while I am on a good bitch session, why do manufacturers change the packaging of items in a stupid-assed way? Came back from CVS gritting my teeth. New isn't always better.
We're having cheddar-broccoli soup tonight, and I wrote on the recipe "good" so that is something to look forward to. No meat to speak of for days. Probably the reason I have a cold. Maybe even why I'm grumpy. No, I'm grumpy because I'm not writing. Grrrr.
Grrrrapeshot.
Once I read that it takes patience to learn patience and I never took the time to acquire any.
A writer needs patience as well as inspiration. My next Toastmaster's speech will cover the topic "what does a writer do?" and of course the audience assumes that a writer writes, which is true, of course, but a writer has to do so much more, the research, the networking, the promotion, web sites, blogs (sic) conferences, speeches, more research, finding agents/editors, critique group. Yes, a writer can get so involved in all the peripheral stuff, that pretty soon a writer is not writing, but always preparing to write, which is what I've done the past year. Oh yeah, I completed three more drafts of the Burning Man book, and some synopses, and a class or two, but somehow this isn't writing, and writing it where it's really at, not all this schmoozing.
Proust was right. Lock yourself into a cork-lined room and write, dammit, write.
Today we joined the 'Y,' to stay in shape or get back into shape, and that will be another excuse not to plant butt in chair.
What to do? Do I need a coach? What is all this business about life coaches and job coaches and every other kind of coach? And while I am on a good bitch session, why do manufacturers change the packaging of items in a stupid-assed way? Came back from CVS gritting my teeth. New isn't always better.
We're having cheddar-broccoli soup tonight, and I wrote on the recipe "good" so that is something to look forward to. No meat to speak of for days. Probably the reason I have a cold. Maybe even why I'm grumpy. No, I'm grumpy because I'm not writing. Grrrr.
Grrrrapeshot.
Sunday, January 06, 2008
My Post-Holiday Gift to You: Maple Pecan Cookies
Maple Pecan Cookies
These are lip-smackin' good! From the Penzey's Spice catalog. www.penzeys.com.
For god's sake don't substitute margarine or faux vanila or any other abomination that the poster has suggested. Use real maple syrup. Live authentically. Remember that trans fats kill over 100,000 people every year.
http://www.recipezaar.com/203402
Grapeshot
These are lip-smackin' good! From the Penzey's Spice catalog. www.penzeys.com.
For god's sake don't substitute margarine or faux vanila or any other abomination that the poster has suggested. Use real maple syrup. Live authentically. Remember that trans fats kill over 100,000 people every year.
http://www.recipezaar.com/203402
Grapeshot
Cross Pollination of Best Seller Lists
Again this week, Atonement and Ken Follett's book are both on the Trade paperback and the Mass-Market paperback lists. Why haven't I seen this mentioned?
I finished Donald Maass' "Breakout Novel" book, which has so much great advice in it, and I even discovered what kind of book I am going to write. How cool is that?
The last cookie is gone, the decorations are as far as boxes on the living room floor, as are the extra blankets which need to return to the cedar closet. This Christmas business sure is a lot of work, and I am wondering how it did it when I worked 50 hours a week. There was always the suspense of would everything actually get done on time, which is the kind of suspense one can do without. Definitely.
We had fed the Scottish Highland Cattle bags and bags of fruit and vegetable scraps lately. The newest baby comes charging up to the fence with her (his?) mom, Maggie, just like she knows what's going on. Maggie is very relaxed and the calf seems quite independent by now. The weather has warmed up again.
Our guests had a gruelling day yesterday, with a 3 hour delay in Baltimore, and an arrival in Reno in a snowstorm, plus a trip to Gerlach through flooded Fernley. Who takes a trip can tell a tale, and usually it's not about wonderful food and great accommodations, althought this is possible once in a while.
How can it be that the delete key is no longer working? Always and forever more ways than one to skin a cat. Onward, although probably not upward.
Grapeshot
I finished Donald Maass' "Breakout Novel" book, which has so much great advice in it, and I even discovered what kind of book I am going to write. How cool is that?
The last cookie is gone, the decorations are as far as boxes on the living room floor, as are the extra blankets which need to return to the cedar closet. This Christmas business sure is a lot of work, and I am wondering how it did it when I worked 50 hours a week. There was always the suspense of would everything actually get done on time, which is the kind of suspense one can do without. Definitely.
We had fed the Scottish Highland Cattle bags and bags of fruit and vegetable scraps lately. The newest baby comes charging up to the fence with her (his?) mom, Maggie, just like she knows what's going on. Maggie is very relaxed and the calf seems quite independent by now. The weather has warmed up again.
Our guests had a gruelling day yesterday, with a 3 hour delay in Baltimore, and an arrival in Reno in a snowstorm, plus a trip to Gerlach through flooded Fernley. Who takes a trip can tell a tale, and usually it's not about wonderful food and great accommodations, althought this is possible once in a while.
How can it be that the delete key is no longer working? Always and forever more ways than one to skin a cat. Onward, although probably not upward.
Grapeshot
Saturday, January 05, 2008
Home Alone
The last of the company left this morning, much to the relief of the cats. Thisbe has been under the bed all week, and Annie has been stressed out from all the extra love and petting. Both animals appeared to know that the guests were gone. How is this possible? We've been in and out for days. Perhaps it was the early awakening this a.m. or the sight of the suitcases. Anyhow, they knew. I know. I know. Yesterday was cat blog day but I had other topics to discuss.
Now to start on all the tasks for the new year. Y membership, new wireless modem installed. Lots of paperwork and filing and ah yes, the laundry.
We have a large snow fort in the front yard and also a snow woman with the longest darkest eyelashes. Great consternation that we had no carrot for a nose. Alas, we had eaten them all, but a piece of wood was procured and painted. It's entertaining to watch a young, creative mind at work.
I'm still plugging away at Donald Maass' book, and thinking (or trying to think) of ways to up the ante and make a strong compelling character. This new novel will be much more difficult than the last four. I was kind of in the groove for writing my crime fiction series.
So, onward but possibly not upward, and maybe it only seems like onward. By the end of the day I'll have a clean desk, which as we used to say, is the sign of a sick mind.
Grapeshot
Now to start on all the tasks for the new year. Y membership, new wireless modem installed. Lots of paperwork and filing and ah yes, the laundry.
We have a large snow fort in the front yard and also a snow woman with the longest darkest eyelashes. Great consternation that we had no carrot for a nose. Alas, we had eaten them all, but a piece of wood was procured and painted. It's entertaining to watch a young, creative mind at work.
I'm still plugging away at Donald Maass' book, and thinking (or trying to think) of ways to up the ante and make a strong compelling character. This new novel will be much more difficult than the last four. I was kind of in the groove for writing my crime fiction series.
So, onward but possibly not upward, and maybe it only seems like onward. By the end of the day I'll have a clean desk, which as we used to say, is the sign of a sick mind.
Grapeshot
Friday, January 04, 2008
Tools for 2008
I just bought Jeff Herman's book about agents and editors and publishing in general and Donald Maass' book, Writing the Breakout Novel. Lots of food for thought. I have been doing so much thinking about the "California" book, that I hope I'll still be able to write it.
The Herman book has some agents new to me, one hopes young and hungry. I'm thinking maybe I need one more pass thru Promiscuous Mode. This "one more pass" business has become very tedious, however I did see some work that could be done at the beginning and further along too. It wasn't perfect, and no one has raced to ask for the whole manuscript.
Yesterday my young guest and I saw The Water Horse, which was pretty good, with excitement, scary parts, feelly parts, well, you know. I am still trying to get to the Bee Movie and other more adult films. We have tickets to Copenhagen (the play, not the city) this month, which will relieve the January tedium a bit.
It's been colder than a well digger's fundament, and the high Sierras are getting a huge storm, and Tahoe will have lots of snow if anyone can actually get there. Lots and lots of snow.
Onward,
Grapeshot
The Herman book has some agents new to me, one hopes young and hungry. I'm thinking maybe I need one more pass thru Promiscuous Mode. This "one more pass" business has become very tedious, however I did see some work that could be done at the beginning and further along too. It wasn't perfect, and no one has raced to ask for the whole manuscript.
Yesterday my young guest and I saw The Water Horse, which was pretty good, with excitement, scary parts, feelly parts, well, you know. I am still trying to get to the Bee Movie and other more adult films. We have tickets to Copenhagen (the play, not the city) this month, which will relieve the January tedium a bit.
It's been colder than a well digger's fundament, and the high Sierras are getting a huge storm, and Tahoe will have lots of snow if anyone can actually get there. Lots and lots of snow.
Onward,
Grapeshot
Tuesday, January 01, 2008
A Virtual Party
Last night we stayed in and watched the marathon of old Pink Panther movies, and after New Year's we watched an old Peter Sellers movie (1968) called "The Party." If you haven't seen it and wonder what the 60's were about, esp. the 60's in California, here is your film. I've seen this three times and I still laughed until I cried. Peter Sellers was a comic genius.
Our young guest was allowed to stay up until midnight. She began to flag around 11:30, but kept away until the New Year. I had one glass of wine and nobody else drank anything. So why do I have a headache? Must be the late hour.
O.K. I owe you soon news apropos the New York Times Sunday Book Review. Yesterday for the first time I noticed something new. The book review began separating trade paperback from mass market paperback (think bigger versus small physical books) some time ago. The Hard Cover list is still another animal.
What I noticed Sunday was that Atonement was #3 in "Trade Fiction", which being a literary novel, one would expect, just as one would expect it to go round again with the movie (quite watchable, by the way). But HARK! Atonement is #7 ont he Mass-Market Fiction list!
And that's not all! The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follet, which I would expect to find on the Mass-Market fiction list, is in Trade Fiction, hardly literary, although Follett is a good writer who spins a compelling tale. And The Pillars of the Earth is also #5 on the Mass-Market Fiction paperbacks. What gives?
Publishers must be hedging all bets and printing both in Trade Fiction and Mass-Market once the novel leaves the hard cover printing. Mass-Market used to be all genre fiction, just as Trade Fiction was mostly literary fiction.
Comments on the Best Seller List: Sue Grafton, whom I love is number one if "T is for Tresspass." Grafton is a good writer, and her descriptions of weather and old people are really so well done. She is funny, too. "A Thousand Splendid Suns" is the only Literary book on the list, and there are several "general fiction" as well as much genre. No fantasy for a change. Otherwise, about what one would expect.
Normally, I wouldn't bother to point the miscengenation between Trade Fiction and Mass-Market, but I haven't seen it blurbed anywhere. Was I baking or shopping or wrapping when the rest of the world was commenting? I never know. Try to keep up on things, but it's hard.
New Calendars today. We have the usual odd assortment, from Islands to art deco to the Farmer's Almanac, a European business weekly and the Boston events calendar.
Last night we had stuffed shells for dinner, my own recipe, in which the shells are baked in a basic tomato sauce. Stuffing was low-fat ricotta, an egg, garlic, parsley, spices, wheat germ (non-sweetened), Monterrey Jack cheese with a bit of pepperoni diced into the mix. Quite yummy. With a big green salad and homemade garlic bread, it couldn't be beat. Sometimes, simple is best. Tonight we're having a dish made with cauliflower and pasta and that, too, is simple and good.
Diet starts on Sunday, in case you want to know. South Beach diet has the best recipes, but Weight Watchers has a few good ones, too, although you have to watch both of them for non-natural foods like egg-substitute and (yech, yuck) non-fat half and half, a misnomer is there ever was one.
Make a resolution to read all the ingredients in everything you buy, and if it has weird stuff that you don't use in your kitchen and can't buy in the store, eschew it. Too much sodium? Find another brand. Eat healthy, eat hearty. Bake bread and make soup.
The extent of all my wisdom for the day, maybe the year.
Oh, and do rent "The Party."
Grapeshot
Our young guest was allowed to stay up until midnight. She began to flag around 11:30, but kept away until the New Year. I had one glass of wine and nobody else drank anything. So why do I have a headache? Must be the late hour.
O.K. I owe you soon news apropos the New York Times Sunday Book Review. Yesterday for the first time I noticed something new. The book review began separating trade paperback from mass market paperback (think bigger versus small physical books) some time ago. The Hard Cover list is still another animal.
What I noticed Sunday was that Atonement was #3 in "Trade Fiction", which being a literary novel, one would expect, just as one would expect it to go round again with the movie (quite watchable, by the way). But HARK! Atonement is #7 ont he Mass-Market Fiction list!
And that's not all! The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follet, which I would expect to find on the Mass-Market fiction list, is in Trade Fiction, hardly literary, although Follett is a good writer who spins a compelling tale. And The Pillars of the Earth is also #5 on the Mass-Market Fiction paperbacks. What gives?
Publishers must be hedging all bets and printing both in Trade Fiction and Mass-Market once the novel leaves the hard cover printing. Mass-Market used to be all genre fiction, just as Trade Fiction was mostly literary fiction.
Comments on the Best Seller List: Sue Grafton, whom I love is number one if "T is for Tresspass." Grafton is a good writer, and her descriptions of weather and old people are really so well done. She is funny, too. "A Thousand Splendid Suns" is the only Literary book on the list, and there are several "general fiction" as well as much genre. No fantasy for a change. Otherwise, about what one would expect.
Normally, I wouldn't bother to point the miscengenation between Trade Fiction and Mass-Market, but I haven't seen it blurbed anywhere. Was I baking or shopping or wrapping when the rest of the world was commenting? I never know. Try to keep up on things, but it's hard.
New Calendars today. We have the usual odd assortment, from Islands to art deco to the Farmer's Almanac, a European business weekly and the Boston events calendar.
Last night we had stuffed shells for dinner, my own recipe, in which the shells are baked in a basic tomato sauce. Stuffing was low-fat ricotta, an egg, garlic, parsley, spices, wheat germ (non-sweetened), Monterrey Jack cheese with a bit of pepperoni diced into the mix. Quite yummy. With a big green salad and homemade garlic bread, it couldn't be beat. Sometimes, simple is best. Tonight we're having a dish made with cauliflower and pasta and that, too, is simple and good.
Diet starts on Sunday, in case you want to know. South Beach diet has the best recipes, but Weight Watchers has a few good ones, too, although you have to watch both of them for non-natural foods like egg-substitute and (yech, yuck) non-fat half and half, a misnomer is there ever was one.
Make a resolution to read all the ingredients in everything you buy, and if it has weird stuff that you don't use in your kitchen and can't buy in the store, eschew it. Too much sodium? Find another brand. Eat healthy, eat hearty. Bake bread and make soup.
The extent of all my wisdom for the day, maybe the year.
Oh, and do rent "The Party."
Grapeshot
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