Booktube: And now for something completely different…

~ EMM

So, I’ve stumbled into the world that is “booktube” — a microcosm of book lovers within the greater YouTube community. I like books. I like talking about books. I got a new camera for Christmas… So, I thought I’d try something new and wade into the booktube community.

If you are interested, you can check out my videos on my YouTube channel. There are currently three. They are all about books or book-related topics.

I am not sure yet if I will cross-post the videos here, on the blog. Mostly, I’m just somewhat fascinated by the YouTube community and that there are similarities with the Twitterverse. That means I’m probably going to do video in the video place (there) and blogging in the blogging place (here). But we shall see.

Reading: inbox-outbox for 6 Dec

~ EMM ~ 1 Comment

This was a good week for books. I got some promising new stuff, and I finished two novels, both of which made me want to hug my Kindle when I finished them. Read on to find out more…

Inbox (books acquired)

  • All My Puny Sorrows (signed hardcover) by Miriam Toews — I received this book because I subscribe to Powell’s Indiespensible and this was the most recent selection. I read the summary and it sounded like a somewhat depressing book. But, then I read the interview with the author and now I’m thinking I might give it a go. Mental illness and suicide kind of freak me out a bit. When I was younger I would avoid things that freaked me out. But I’ve come to believe that it’s this fear of things we don’t understand, while completely natural, is ultimately unhealthy and prevents us from experiencing all the awesomeness that life has to offer and from treating others with empathy and kindness. So, now I confront these things head on.
  • Parable of the Sower (kindle) by Octavia E. Butler — In an effort to “put my money where my mouth is,” I’m creating a reading project for myself for 2015: reading books by diverse authors, or that feature diverse main characters. I’ll talk more about this new project in a separate blog post (or video) as we get closer to the end of the year. I bought this book because I’ve had it on my list since I saw it on a top five sci-fi book list by author Robin Sloan (Mr. Penumbra’s 24-hr Bookstore). It sounded amazing. It’s sci-fi by a female, African-American author, so it qualifies for my project. I am *very* excited to read this book.
  • Astonish Me (kindle) by Maggie Shipstead — This one had been on my list for a while. It’s a literary fiction novel set in the world of ballet dancers. I started it almost immediately. More on this below…

Outbox (books finished)

  • This Night So Dark (kindle) by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner — I just discovered and purchased this novella last week. There’s also a preview of the sequel to These Broken Stars at the end of this novella. I pretty much devoured this delicious little morsel of story, but I really want the next book. I’ve had This Shattered World on pre-order since May. It’s already been released in some countries, but it doesn’t come out in the US until the end of December 23rd. I expect I’ll have it finished before Christmas.
  • Ready Player One (kindle) by Ernest Cline — I’ve been holding off reading this because of the hype. The premise sounded so cool. So many people whose book opinions I respect gave it great reviews. I was worried that it wouldn’t live up to the hype and I’d be disappointed. I needn’t have worried. I *loved* this book. It might end up as my favorite book of 2014. The 80s pop culture references are great, but what I appreciated most was that the author took a few non-standard narrative turns that ended up giving the book more meaning than you’d expect from some 80s gaming culture nostalgia book. If you’ve had this on your list and haven’t read it yet, read this next. You won’t be disappointed.
  • Astonish Me (kindle) by Maggie Shipstead — Ballet dancers and dance culture are fascinating to me, partly because I used to dance, but mostly because I appreciate the discipline, athleticism, and commitment necessary to succeed in this world. I love getting glimpses into this world that I would never have been talented enough to enter. But, beyond that, the story is so tightly wound and so intricately woven. It’s not told in a straightforward linear progression, which adds to the suspense and drama. The ending is perfect. I could not put it down. When I finished it, I kind of want to start over at the beginning and re-read it.

Queue (what I’m reading next)

  • I still need to finish The Algebraist … it’s due on the 10th, and I don’t think I can renew it again…

I need to read about four more books this year in order to hit my annual goal of reading 36 books per year. With Christmas vacation coming up, I don’t think that will be a problem. Of course, all this reading means that little writing is getting done, but I’m okay with that for December. Just like November is a great month for writing (for me), December is always a great reading month for me. There is something about the holidays and the cooler weather that always makes me want to curl up with a book.

NaNoWriMo update: I am the Champion!

~ EMM

I did it! I slayed the word dragon!

Winner-2014-Twitter-Profile

This victory is a little bittersweet, though. While I achieved the goal, and wrote 50k words in 30 days, I am still nowhere close to having finished this novel. I’d estimate that I have at least another 25k to write.

I could keep writing, but I thought I’d take a little pause to reflect first. And, while I’m paused, I did a little word count analysis, because I’m a geek.

Here’s what I discovered…

You will likely be unsurprised to hear that I am an inconsistent writer, but when I do write, I WRITE.

  • Of the 30 days in November, I wrote on only 21 of them (70%)
  • Of those 21 writing days, I only achieved the minimum word count goal of 1667 words or better on 15 of those 21 days

So that means that on those 15 days I didn’t just write the minimum daily word count goal. No. Because I wasn’t meeting the minimum word count goal *every day*, in order to finish on time, I had to write closer to 3000 words on those 15 days. The max I did in one day was over 6.3k! (That was on that one day of 1k sprints I did last weekend.)

What can we learn from this? For starters, trying to get me to write a consistent number of words every day is probably a non-starter. I actually like having days in between to just sort of stew on my story. I also like to procrastinate. Sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference. I should revise my writing goals to take this into account…

I also thought it might be interesting to figure out how much writing I managed to squeeze in on “workdays”… It turns out that (again, unsurprisingly…) I did most of my writing on weekends and holidays.

  • There were 18 “workdays” (non-holiday weekdays) in November.
  • I managed to write on 10 of those 18 days (56%)
  • And, out of those 10 days, I only achieved the minimum daily word count goal on 5 days (50%)

So, I’d say that writing on weekdays is not really something that works well for me… Definitely something to keep in mind for future projects.

I’ve already started reflecting on my 2014 goals and I’ve come to realize that I was totally over-ambitious when I created my 2014 writing goals. So, I’m trying to be more realistic about what I should be able to accomplish next year. More on this in a future post… but just something I’m starting to think about as we wrap up 2014.

For now, I’m just going to celebrate that I actually managed to pull this off in a ridiculously busy November!

Hooray! Time for more chocolate! And maybe a walk… if I can remember how to use my legs…

Reading: inbox-outbox for 29 Nov

~ EMM

One bonus I’ve noticed since I started writing this post each week is that knowing I am going to have to report out on my “outbox” encourages me to actually finish whatever I’m reading. On the other hand, one downside is that it’s definitely highlighting the number of books that I buy. I knew I’d gotten into the habit of buying a lot of books this year, but this is ridiculous. So, if anyone out there is considering what to buy me for Christmas…, may I recommend an Amazon (or Powells) gift card?

Inbox (books acquired)

  • A Court of Thorns and Roses (Kindle) by Sarah J. Maas — This one doesn’t come out until May, but I pre-ordered it. This is the start of a new series by the author of the Throne of Glass series that I’ve been enjoying. Because of that series, she has become one of my “auto-buy” authors. I can’t wait to see what she does with this new world she’s created!
  • The Martian (Kindle) by Andy Weir — This comes highly recommended from several sources. So, when I saw the price drop to $3 on Kindle, I jumped on it. Like my other ebooks purchased when I see them on sale, I probably won’t get to this one for a while.
  • This Night So Dark (Kindle) by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner — This is a novella set in the same world as These Broken Stars and is meant to bridge to their new release (which I pre-ordered months ago), This Shattered World, which comes out at the end of December. I’ve been enjoying their YA Sci-Fi, and I like that they have kicked the “series” trend and decided to just create a bunch of loosely connected novels all set in the same world. I am so looking forward to the next book, hopefully this holds me over until then.

Outbox (books finished)

  • Grave Mercy (Kindle) by Robin LaFevers — I first heard of this one on the Book Nut blog when she reviewed it over two years ago. So, it’s been on my radar for a while. This is the first in a trilogy of books, each set in this same world but featuring different main characters. Each book features a different assassin, who tells the story from their perspective based on their role in the unfolding drama. It works because it’s historical fiction that sticks close to the key points and characters in history, while adding in the invented concept of a convent dedicated to training the “daughters of Death” (one of the nine “old gods”) to become assassins charged with carrying out the will of their god, Death, in service to the duchess of Brittany. As far as a premise goes, this sounded really great. I grabbed this when it went on sale and dove in, expecting awesomeness. Unfortunately, I immediately got hung up on a technicality. The author chose to write this in the first person, present tense POV. That is my least favorite way of telling or reading a story. This choice of narration continued to annoy me for the entire tale. I mostly enjoyed the story, but I didn’t really bond with the main character (the one telling the story) because her unquestioning acceptance of authority was a little too frustrating for someone with my personality. I’m trying to decide if I want to continue the series. The other two main characters (her “sister” assassins, both introduced in this book) sound slightly more interesting. But if the other two books (book 3 was just released) are also written in first person, present tense POV then I don’t think I want to. For now I’m just going to put the next one on my watch list and wait for an ebook sale and a deep discount. But, if the premise sounds good to you, and you don’t think you’ll be bothered by the narration, it is a good story. I got sucked in quickly and spent precious writing time reading this instead because I wanted to know what would happen (even if I did figure out who the “bad guy” was very early on in the story).

Queue (what I’m reading next)

Now that NaNoWriMo is almost over, I should have a little more time to read. Which is a good thing, because I need to finish another seven books in order to hit my reading goal for this year.

NaNoWriMo progress report (and story summary)

~ EMM

Word count update…

Yesterday: 6 x 1k word sprints completed!

Today: 3 x 1k word sprints completed!

I still have a few hours left before bed, and I’ve finally got things moving in my story. So, I might be able to sneak in at least one more sprint before bed, but it’s been a very productive weekend so far!

Par for today is 38,333 words. So, I’d say I’m almost back on track.

I never did say what I decided to write this year… So, in case you’re interested, here’s my 2014 NaNoWriMo story in a nutshell…

The idea came to me when I was trying to figure out how to make whatever I was writing for NaNoWriMo overlap enough with this final paper that I had to write for my Craft of Reading UCBx Extension class so that I wouldn’t waste any of my November word count on non-NaNoWriMo projects. Luckily, we could write our final papers as a “creative response” to one of our assigned readings, instead of a “critical response” paper like we’d been doing through the rest of the class. So, I took a key event in one of our assigned readings (a “funny cancer essay” about a guy who had been diagnosed with cancer and was told he might lose his entire arm and part of his shoulder in order to save himself*) and smushed that idea (having to face the possibility of losing an arm) with the very basic plot arc from a classic fairy tale (Snow White and Rose Red), because fairy tales also played an important role in this essay.

What I ended up with is a science fiction, expanded version of the Snow White and Rose Red story, where Nevina (aka Snow White) and her sister, Sanja (aka Rose Red), find out that their simple life, living in the cottage in the woods with their loving mother, is about to get very interesting. Their mother has a secret about their heritage that has put them all in grave danger, and causes them to have to leave their mother, and the safety of their home, and travel to the big city in order to get an important message out to some people who may be able to help them. In the process they encounter friends and foes (but have trouble telling which is which), learn about modern technology, like “augments” (cyborg-like enhancements for humans), and (spoiler!) one of them ends up having to face the possibility of losing their arm (and their humanity) in order to save them all.

I’ve finally reached the part in the story where they are in the city and the action really starts to pick up. I have a feeling this is going to need more than 50k words before it’s done. But, that’s the best part of NaNoWriMo, getting enough out there that you really want to keep going and finish it.

Bring on the short work week and long holiday weekend!

 

* in case you’re interested, the “funny cancer story” biblio info is: Rakoff, David. “Another Shoe.” Half Empty. Doubleday. 2010. p195-224.

Reading: inbox-outbox for 22 Nov

~ EMM

Last week was fun, so let’s try this again…

Inbox (books acquired)

  • Raven Boys (Kindle) — I saw that the price dropped on this to $2.99 and I had to pick it up. I’d read reviews of this and the other books in the series by one of my favorite book bloggers, “Melissa,” aka “Book Nut.” So, I added it to my “Someday/Maybe” wishlist on Amazon, which I then monitor for just such price drops. Not sure yet when I’ll get around to reading it, but it looks promising…
  • The Art of Asking: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Let People Help by Amanda Palmer (signed hardcover) — Amanda Palmer is kind of a force. I became vaguely aware of her when she became attached to Neil Gaiman, and then found myself completely impressed by her after watching her TED talk. I’ve been following her blog and social media stuff since then. When I heard she was coming to Google to promote this book, I knew I had to drop everything and go. I have to say, she’s even more impressive in person. And, after the excerpts she chose to read for the event at Google, I’m even more excited to read her book.
  • Information Doesn’t Want to Be Free by Cory Doctorow (signed hardcover) — I watched Cory’s talk when he came to Google to promote this book, but I couldn’t go in person that day. So, I didn’t get a chance to buy the book at our subsidized rate. When I saw they were selling it at the Amanda Palmer event, and they still had signed copies from his visit to Books, Inc. I grabbed one. I was very impressed and inspired by Cory’s talk and I’m excited to read this, but I probably won’t get to it any time soon. I have a feeling that Greg will probably grab it first.

Outbox (books finished)

  • Wild by Cheryl Strayed (Kindle) — I’ve found myself sort of sucked into this book this week. I should have been spending that time writing, but instead I kept saying “just one more chapter…” My NaNoWriMo word count has suffered, but who cares because I really enjoyed reading this book. I don’t really read “memoirs” because I don’t really care for that genre of book. And, I couldn’t relate much, or at all, to most of the personal backstory, but I still found myself completely fascinated by her journey and experience on the PCT. As I mentioned last week, since I first heard of the PCT, shortly after I moved to Seattle post-college, I’ve harbored an idea that someday, maybe, I would do this crazy thing. Someday, maybe, I might. This book, for all the lost toenails and thirst and disgusting dehydrated meals, for all the dirt and stink and pain, didn’t manage to discourage me. In fact, it might have only made me want to do it more. Can’t wait to see the movie!

Queue (what I’m reading next)

  • The Algebraist by Iain M. Banks (library hardcover) — I only got about a third through this epic space opera before my work book club met to discuss it back in October, but I liked it enough that I really want to finish it. It’s a library book and I’m on my last renewal at this point. I can’t get it on Kindle. So, it’s now or never.

Now… back to advancing my NaNoWriMo word count…

NaNoWriMo: Don’t call it a comeback…

~ EMM ~ 1 Comment

I started this weekend about 10k words behind the “par line” for my NaNoWriMo novel. I’m not gonna lie, I’ve considered giving up several times. I am convinced that what I’m writing completely sucks. I have a lot of catching up to do, and some days it’s pretty easy to convince myself that this is a stupid, made up goal and it’s no big deal if I just bail.

But that’s the point of NaNoWriMo — for people like me, who like to write about 25k to 30k of a novel and then bail because “it’s dumb” or because they have a better idea they want to work on instead, to stick with it. The point is that you keep writing anyway because all first drafts are dumb and suck. You keep writing and you finish your shit.

So, I came up with a plan of attack for this weekend. I need to write about 12k words this weekend in order to catch up. That sounds like a lot. You know what doesn’t sound like a lot? 1k words. 1k is easy. Hell, I’ve already written about 180 words, just in this blog post. (Look at me, wasting NaNo word count on blogging…)

I decided I’d treat this like a repeat set in swimming. This weekend’s writing set: 2 x [6 x 1k words]. That means, today I will write 6 x 1k words, taking a break after each 1k to celebrate, make some more tea, eat some chocolate, surf the web, shop for Christmas presents, take a walk, whatever sounds fun. And, if I finish my 6 sets early enough, I’ll reward myself with a movie before bed. Then, tomorrow we do it all again — another 6 x 1k words set with reward breaks in between 1k word “sprints.”

So far, I’ve completed 3 sets. The really cool thing is that each 1k seems to be taking less time to write than the previous 1k. The first “sprint” took me just over an hour and felt like pulling teeth. The next “sprint” took just under an hour, and I felt like I was finally getting warmed up. Set #3 took about 45 minutes. And I now have just over 29k words!

Don’t get me wrong. I still think what I’m writing is not that great. But I know I’m writing the “shitty first draft.” So, I’m forcing myself to be okay with that. To non-writers this probably sounds a bit insane. Why would someone force themselves to keep writing something that they don’t even think is good?

I’ll tell you why. Because, the only way to write something that is good, the only way to write something at all, is to put one word after another onto the screen/page and just keep going until you’re done. Afterwards, you fix it. You make it better. You make it not suck. But until then? You just have to write. There is no shortcut.

Reading: inbox-outbox for 15 Nov

~ EMM

There is a book blog called Book Riot that does this cool weekly feature called “Inbox/Outbox.” The column, as described by them:

In Inbox/Outbox, we document the rhythm of readers’ lives by sharing books we acquired, books we finished, and the next books we plan to read each week.

I thought this was a pretty cool idea, and I wanted to give it a try… so, here goes…

Inbox (books acquired)

  • Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (Kindle) — This book is next up for my book club at work. I’ve been wanting to read it for a while and one of my friends just gave it a five star review on Goodreads. So, now I’m looking forward to it even more.
  • Poisoned Apples: Poems for You, My Pretty by Christine Heppermann (used Hardcover) — This book has been getting a lot of good press and I wanted to check it out. The first three sentences of the book blurb had me hooked: “Every little girl goes through her princess phase, whether she wants to be Snow White or Cinderella, Belle or Ariel. But then we grow up. And life is not a fairy tale.”
  • Under the Black Flag: The Romance and the Reality of Life Among the Pirates by David Cordingly (used trade paper) — I have a story idea that may or may not involve pirates and I wanted to do a little research. This looked like a good place to start.

Outbox (books finished)

  • For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund (Kindle) — I started this on a five hour plane ride to Atlanta, and then stayed up after dinner in the hotel to finish it, even though I had to be up early the next day. The romantic story arch is copied from Jane Austen’s Persuasion, but the story is set in a futuristic, sci-fi world. There are so many reasons I wanted to read this book, and it didn’t disappoint. I was impressed by how rich of a world the author created while still remaining true to the basic plot points of Persuasion. The characters were complex and well-developed, as well. I gave it four starts on Goodreads and will probably read the next, companion book (not a sequel, but set in the same world).

Queue (what I’m reading next)

  • Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed (Kindle) — I started this one on the plane ride home from Atlanta. I want to read it before I see the movie, but originally I bought it because, since I first heard of the PCT back in the early 2000s when I was living in Seattle, I have harbored a romantic desire to hike all or at least a significant part of it. Maybe someday… we’ll see how I feel after reading this book.

In other news, I’m still working hard on my NaNoWriMo story, but I’ve fallen far behind the word count par line. I’m about to start a writing blitz with the hope I’ll catch up by the end of the weekend. In addition to reading and a business trip, I’ve been distracted by two TV series on Netflix: The 100 and The Bletchley Circle.

Now… back to work.

It’s that time of year again…

~ EMM

It’s been pretty dead around here lately. No updates. Nothing new to post.

I’ve been starting to read various books and then not finishing them for various reasons. I’m just over halfway done with my last UCBx Writing Certificate class and that’s been keeping me busy. And of course, there’s work…

And now, here we are in November, and it’s that time of year again…

No, I’m not talking about “Movember.” Yes, it’s a great cause to support, but no, I don’t care to see any time-lapse photos of your facial hair growth. I’m talking about that novel writing tradition called “NaNoWriMo” of which I’ve been a participant on and off for the past seven years.

Against my better judgement I’ve decided to give it another go this year. And, since I’m so stoked about the story I produced last year, I’m going the traditional route again this year and starting something new (as opposed to being a “NaNo rebel” and working on adding an additional 50k words to an existing project). Except this time I didn’t even have characters or a basic plot outline until last week. So, put me firmly in camp “Pantser” this year (writing by the seat of my pants, as opposed to the more organized “Plotter” approach).

If you are interested in keeping score at home, here’s a little word-count progress widget so you can heckle me when I (inevitably) fall behind and have to spend Thanksgiving weekend shackled to my keyboard, writing like a demon.

And, if you’re participating this year, feel free to add me as a writing buddy.

See you in the writing trenches, word nerds, (since I won’t have time for much else) or catch you on the flip side (aka December)!

(11/9: Updated to refresh chart…)

That 10 books meme…

~ EMM ~ 1 Comment

So, I don’t really do Facebook, and because of that, I’m a little late to this party. But, I heard there was a meme a few weeks ago where everyone was posting about the “10 books that have stayed with you in some way…”

I made a list of the 10 books that stayed with me, and then I narrowed that list down to the 5 books that are my “desert island” books. Because I like “Top 5” lists.

These are the books I read that stayed with me hard enough, that are loved well enough, loved so much that I own either a well worn paperback copy, or a deluxe hardcover edition, or maybe both. These are the books that I’d put in my go-bag for the Zombie Apocalypse. These are the books that, if forced to give away all the books on my bookshelves, I would keep hidden and never give up. By default, they are books that “stayed with me” and would otherwise be at the top of the “10 books that stayed with me list.”

May I present to you my Top 5 desert island books list:

  1. Dune by Frank Herbert — I read this book in college, for fun, while traveling with the crew team to some spring race (I don’t remember which). One of my rowers recommended that I read it. I resisted at first. Then I started reading it and instantly fell in love. This is still my favorite (hard) science fiction book. Maybe even my all-time favorite book.
  2. Sassinak by Anne McCaffrey — I’ve only mentioned this book on my blog about a hundred times… or at least that’s what it feels like. I think I first read this book in high school. I think I found it in a second-hand book shop. Sassinak has become my gold-standard for kick-ass heroines, and McCaffrey is my favorite female sci-fi writer.
  3. The entire Harry Potter series… but, since that’s probably cheating, if I could only take one: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (aka the book where things get “Sirius” and Harry goes all emo) — my favorite part of these books is always the “back to school” scenes: from shopping for supplies in Diagon Alley, to taking the Hogwarts Express, to the big back-to-school feast in the dining hall. The reason I’d pick OotP as my favorite, is that this is the book where everyone grows up. It’s frustrating and sad and thrilling and so many of the excellent peripheral characters get a chance to shine in this book. (for a quick and funny refresher on the story/plot check out BuzzFeed’s post on “What It’s Like To Watch “Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix” For The First Time“)
  4. An Acceptable Time by Madeline L’Engle — I first read this when I was in high school, I think. The opening chapters created a perfect image for me of my dream house, complete with dream mud-room and indoor pool surrounded by glass. I also love almost-grown-up Polly (from The Arm of the Starfish). She’s my model for well-written, well-rounded female protagonists.
  5. Living By Water by Brenda Peterson — I picked this up on a whim from a bargain book table at a Barnes and Noble (RIP) during my first year out of college, my first year living in Seattle. My copy is a thin, unassuming blue hardcover without a dust jacket. I remember reading it and thinking the author effectively put into words exactly why I moved to Seattle and exactly why I loved Puget Sound and the Pacific Northwest.

Now that we got that out of the way… There are other books that “stayed with me” for various reasons and that I would highly recommend to others if you haven’t read them. They didn’t make my desert island book list, but that doesn’t mean they’re not important to me. They’ve each made a serious impression on who I am, and if I had room in my go-bag they’d come with me, too. But for the most part, these books aren’t my go-to comfort food books. They’re not the ones I find myself re-reading again and again. They are:

  1. Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut — this book was assigned reading in my high school American Lit class and it was the first time I read anything by Vonnegut. It was the first time we read anything for class that I would have read for fun, and Vonnegut instantly became my new favorite author. “So it goes.”
  2. Graceling by Kirstin Cashore — I love this book and this series. This will be one of the first books I will give to my nieces (when they’re old enough). Katsa would come in right after Sassinak on my Top 5 kick-ass heroines from a novel. Come to think of it… that should be a future post…
  3. The Arm of the Starfish by Madeline L’Engle — we’ve been over this recently, so I won’t repeat myself, just go read my other post if you missed it.
  4. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson — I don’t really remember the details of this story, I only have fuzzy memories of the plot, but I remember deeply loving this book when we read it in elementary school.
  5. Little Men by Louisa May Alcott — yep. That’s not a typo. Little Women was fine, but I really loved Little Men and it stuck with me way more than Little Women did. I loved the idea of having a boarding school for boys.

So, if you haven’t read any of those books, you should go check them out. And if you already did this meme, post a link in the comments. I love learning about other people’s formative books. Maybe there are some I need to add to my reading list.