| Report from Bookaroo in India |
[27 May 2012|09:09am] |
 By Christopher Cheng
for Cynthia Leitich Smith's Cynsations
Last time I reported about networking and I mentioned Singapore and India. Here is what happened at Bookaroo in New Delhi last year:
My First Picture of India
I love India. If I had to use two words to describe my first impressions, they would be sensory explosion.
I arrived at New Delhi airport and was driven to my hotel, and all the while my brain was working in overdrive and I was thinking, “What is going on?”
 | | Welcome at midnight |
It was midnight for goodness sake and the roads were jam packed, and they drive so close to each other and they don’t use the marked lanes. Street lights I don’t remember, but there were so many car lights they weren’t needed. And the sounds! Honk! Honk! (plus a few toot toots from the wildly decorated tut-tuts!)
My Festival Appearance
It was like many other literary festivals I have spoken at. There was an outdoor bookshop, a green room, and enthusiastic audiences. But the children and parents that I was speaking to in India were wildly enthusiastic. They wanted to touch. They wanted to question.
They wanted more and more and more.
 | | At Bookaroo |
I presented a story reading session for my (then) new picture book Sounds Spooky under the overarching branches of a gorgeous tree (botanical name unknown) next to a solid stand of bamboo that provided a wonderful backdrop and sound barrier for my spooky storytelling session.
In an amphitheatre seating a few hundred, I presented a community story-creating session (one I used as a classroom teacher), gathering children from the audience, bringing them to the front of the stage and together creating an oral story. It was mid morning there (early for Indian time) so I started with about 20 people, but within minutes the amphitheatre was full and children were hollering to join our expanding story. After an hour, it was standing room only, and there were 20 children standing on stage (and hundreds more in the audience) who could recite the lines from the story we had created.
Next to a clay covered building I presented talks about my favourite subject - me and the life of a children’s author; about writing historical fiction texts; and about writing picture books. It was mostly outdoors under the warm and inviting Indian sun.
And like many festivals there were the author signings and the bookstore was alive with children, trying to locate the books. And the signing queues seemed to snake on forever.
 | | The bookstore. |
Like most festivals, I was asked to sign pieces of paper (okay), and books that I didn’t write (I declined), as well as the autograph book…but these autograph books were something special. They had the signatures of Indian cricketers too!
I have made it. I am up there on the same plane as international cricketers! (At one hotel, the lobby was vacated while I was signing the visitors book - there were a few Bollywood stars in that book).
My School & University Appearances
My school visits in India were some of the most wonderful and inspiring that I have ever been to. The schools were not elite wealthy schools but simpler schools with a passion for inspiring their students and empowering them to have a better future, schools where parents have sacrificed enormously. They were unlike any other school I have visited, and even writing this now, I pop out with goosebumps and I tingle.
These students were like super sponges. Not only had they researched as much as they could about me, some students created posters, others wrote biographies, and still others read my website so thoroughly that they could tell me about all of the animals that were with me while I was teaching at the zoo.
And the questions they asked. They were not intrusive or ones that could have been answered from reading my website. They were inquisitive and showed a real passion for finding out all there is to know about me and writing and being a ‘famous’ children’s author (in reality the fame doesn’t go past my street corner), with the most frequently asked question:“Mr. Cheng,” (so courteous and polite), “you write lots about Chinese people, so will you write about us?”
These children want their stories told to a wider audience, too. At every school visited, I was treated like a rock star. At each school entrance was a welcome sign - just for me - crafted by students, often with my picture downloaded from the internet. Morning and afternoon teas were in the Principal’s Office. I was presented with gifts that had been crafted by the students from their hand craft classes, a small glazed kiln-fired clay vase that now holds my pencils, a plaque that is now attached to our outdoor wall, a small bamboo lined mirror now on our sitting room wall, a note book for me to use crafted from recycled paper (the students were so thrilled to see that I write first drafts in note books) and much more. And in these offices, Mr. Cheng was asked if he would consider staying to teach at their school - they were serious.
I spoke in universities to students who were just as passionate and just as sponge-like as the school students but in conditions that (mostly) were very unlike our universities.
In one talk, not only was room filled inside (about ten seats wide and thirty rows deep), but there were students outside blocking the breezeway.
 | | At university |
The raised wooden podium wobbled and I had a handheld microphone (with a rather short chord) and the single speaker was tied to the window frame. The lights were sparse and there were no projection facilities. But these students too, they continued to ask, to question, wanting more.
India is a fascinating and a passionate country, and the students are passionate, too. They love hearing us speak, reading our books and they want more!
So if opportunity comes your way, grab it with both arms and go!
Cynsational Notes
With more than 35 titles in traditional and digital formats, including picture books, non-fiction, historical fiction, a musical libretto and an animation storyline, Christopher Cheng is well experienced in Australian children's literature.
He conducts workshops and residences for children and adults and holds an M.A. in Children's Literature. He is a board member for the Asian Festival of Children's Content and on the International Advisory Board and co-regional advisor (Australia and New Zealand) for the SCBWI.
A recipient of the SCBWI Member of the Year and the Lady Cutler Award for services to children's literature, Chris is a devoted advocate of children's literature, speaking at festivals worldwide.
Christopher will be covering the children's-YA book scene in Australia, New Zealand and across Asia for Cynsations. Read an interview with Christopher. Read more about Christopher's time in India at his blog.
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| What are you up to today? |
[27 May 2012|06:53am] |
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mood |
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 cheerful |
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I love hanging out with other writers. Aside from all the useful information I get to hear, I always come away from group events inspired to write better (and for longer) than what I usually does, so I was disappointed yesterday, when I was unable to attend this month's GLVWG (Greater Lehigh Writer's Group) meeting.
On the bright side, I still get to venture into Pennsylvania this weekend when I travel to the Writers Coffee House meeting later today. It takes place at the Barnes & Noble store in Willow Grove (102 Park Avenue, Willow Grove, PA 19090), hosted by the always impressive, Jonathan Maberry.
The meeting starts at noon. If you'd like to come along, I'd love to see you there.
How about you?
What are you up to today?
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| The Prickly Dish |
[26 May 2012|04:29pm] |
Man. Andrew Sullivan is in an asshole-ripping mood today. That last massive lie is at the core of Romney's political strategy. By removing that context (which is like talking about the sinking of the Titanic without mentionng the iceberg), Romney is knowingly arguing that the spending and debt levels of the last three years were some kind of choice by a president who just loves to strangle the US economy by spending much more money than we have. But the only president who made that choice was George W. Bush - by crippling revenues, even as he fought wars with no budgets and new entitlements with no end (Medicare D), rendering us bankrupt even as we desperately needed a rainy day surplus to fight the depression.
Obama did not have a serious choice; he had a fate. That fate was to pick up the pieces of the most catastrophic presidency in modern times. The final bouquet - after emptying the public coffers with no serious boost to employment, profits or growth - was the financial collapse, which both shrunk the economy, decimated revenues to 50 year lows, and automatically increased spending for the unemployed and poor in desperate need of help. Once you account for that - and the Nutting graph indeed shows that this was baked in the cake by the time Obama was elected - Obama has been, like most modern Democrats, far more fiscally conservative than any modern Republican.The President should put Sully in charge of Internet outreach. |
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| wild kingdom |
[26 May 2012|03:29pm] |
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Today there was a five inch long baby grass snake right inside my front door. I have no idea how it got in here!!! The kids were shocked and amazed! As was I. Luckily I like snakes.
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| Two things |
[26 May 2012|09:30am] |
First, you people who recommended The Exotic Marigold Hotel film, two thumbs up! I went last night with some of my Jane Austen discussion group. We all loved it.
Tonight: Avengers with the family.
A juicy discussion of fanfiction and literature by ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif?v=92.1) alecaustin here.
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| 2012 Puddle Award for Best Short Story Title: Heat eight (of nine) |
[26 May 2012|11:01am] |
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mood |
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 excited |
] |
The search for the winner of this year's Meager Puddle of Limelight Award for Best Short Story Title continues with heat eight (the last of the preliminary heats).
There are nine heats in all. The winners (or joint winners) from heats one - eight go straight through. The second place finishers battle it out in heat nine to see which title joins the others in the final round.
What's at stake?
Bragging rights for the winner? An interview and/or guest post here on An Englishman in New Jersey, as well as signed copy of my book, Fur-Face, and a couple of I are a writer! pens, as shown in the pic below. You'll need an LJ account to vote, but they're free).
Poll #1842793
2012 MEAGER PUDDLE OF LIMELIGHT AWARD FOR BEST SHORT STORY TITLE: HEAT 8 OF 9
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: None, participants: 16
From the following list, please select any short story titles which you think should progress to the final round
View Answers
| THEY CAME BEARING DANGEROUS GIFTS |
   8 (18.6%) |
| TRANSLYMANIC |
| 3 (7.0%) |
| UNDER THE PAPER |
| 4 (9.3%) |
| UNITED WE SOAR |
| 1 (2.3%) |
| VICTIM OF LOVE |
| 1 (2.3%) |
| WARBLING THEIR WAY TO WAR |
| 4 (9.3%) |
| WATER TO SHARE |
| 7 (16.3%) |
| WE CAN REMEMBER IT FOR YOU RETAIL |
| 5 (11.6%) |
| WHAT THE CARP SAW (AND COULDN'T TELL WHILE STILL ALIVE) |
| 7 (16.3%) |
| WHEN THE LIGHT WAS ON |
| 3 (7.0%) |
Links to the other Heats and the final:
Heat one
Heat two
Heat three (now returned from it's little walkabout)
Heat four
Heat five
Heat six
Heat seven
Heat eight
Heat nine
Final Round
Voting in Heats 1 through 8 will close on Sunday, June 3rd 2012 at 6:00pm (US/Eastern). Heat nine will take place soon after.
Good luck to all who take part! Vene, vidi, puddli!
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| Author Speaking Opportunities in the Asia Pacific Region |
[26 May 2012|09:33am] |
 By Christopher Cheng
for Cynthia Leitich Smith's Cynsations
This is a note about networking and contacts.
They are vital.
I have always loved exploring new countries and recently my life as a full time children's author (my first title was published in 1990) has dramatically increased these opportunities.
In late 2011, I had the privilege of speaking at Bookaroo - a children’s literature festival in New Delhi, India. I love traveling the world, but India was not a country on my radar.
How did I get offered a speaking gig at Bookaroo?
It all came about because, in 2010, I was presenting at another international children’s festival in Singapore - the Asian Festival of Children's Content. After I had finished my first day of speaking in Singapore, the Bookaroo organisers asked me to present at their upcoming festival.
As I had already accepted another festival for the same time, my fourth for the year, I had to decline but that was immediately followed with “Would you speak next year?” and so in November 2011, I landed in India.
It’s a long way to travel from Australia to New Delhi for a three-day festival so thankfully my trip was extended when the Australian Government sponsored my visit under the visiting artists programme, taking me on a tour through more Indian cities visiting school and universities.
Why all this preamble? Because it’s all about networking and getting involved and advertising you!
 | | Christopher speaking in Singapore |
We authors and illustrators can lead very sheltered lives, barely encountering another human - except maybe our children and spouses - in our daily activities as we produce our works, but we shouldn’t. We need to belong and we need to get out there. In the past 12 months, I have spoken at festivals in India, Singapore, Hong Kong, USA, the Philippines. How come?
Since becoming a full-time children’s author I have learned that for me this job is not only about writing for kids - which is the best job in the world and what I love to do - but it’s also about networking and developing contacts.
As part of my networking, I write articles for journals and blogs and newspapers, and mentor, consult, and promote. I have been a judge and an assessor on writing awards and established international children’s book awards.
 | | Edited by Christopher |
I was, for a number of years, a National Ambassador for Literacy Week (a federal government programme), and this year I am one of 18 National Ambassadors for our National Year of Reading. For me it’s all part of the ‘job’ of being a children’s author.
It’s never too early to start developing a list of contacts. I have been published for more than 20 years, and over that time I have gathered a list of industry professionals, bloggers, writers, editors, journal publishers, newspaper columnists and more.
Right from the start I maintained a contact list, grabbing contact details from the magazine and newspaper journalists. It’s a bit like detective work, growing the list. And of course there is social media too - blogs, and Facebook and Twitter. It’s all part of gathering those contacts, networking and getting connected!
Which leads me to why I was presenting in Singapore.
Most of my recent appearances came about because I received an email early in 2010 asking me to advertise a new festival in Singapore. The organisers knew that I had a solid network of contacts in the Australian children’s literature scene and of course my SCBWI membership. They had also investigated my website and found out what I can do and so a request for promotion assistance ended up becoming a speaking invitation as well.
(Which is another lesson - make sure you have a website and that the website sells you!).
Five months after the inquiry about broadcasting the festival news, I was presenting in Singapore, and sitting in the audience were the organisers of other Asian literary festivals - and not just children’s festivals either.
Enlightened festival organisers engage speakers with a children's literature focus as well as adult literature. My presentation was also an advertisement - for me - and it lead to appearing elsewhere around the region.
There are festivals exploding all over the Asia Pacific region with a children’s literature component. Many people don’t realise that there is a huge English speaking population that is located not in the Americas or Europe but here in the Asia Pacific region. Children are learning English at school, and they are hungry for English books to read, and they love to hear us speak.
So from that one email enquiry early in 2010, I was able to spread the word about a new festival, encourage other creators to attend, and have myself be contracted to speak at a number of other international literary festivals.
And remember too that speaking contracts are also really important.
So get your lists started. Read journals and blogs and e-zines. And then start sharing, and you never know where that might find you.
Cynsational Notes
With more than 35 titles in traditional and digital formats, including picture books, non-fiction, historical fiction, a musical libretto and an animation storyline, Christopher Cheng is well experienced in Australian children's literature.
He conducts workshops and residences for children and adults and holds an M.A. in Children's Literature. He is a board member for the Asian Festival of Children's Content and on the International Advisory Board and co-regional advisor (Australia and New Zealand) for the SCBWI.
A recipient of the SCBWI Member of the Year and the Lady Cutler Award for services to children's literature, Chris is a devoted advocate of children's literature, speaking at festivals worldwide.
Christopher will be covering the children's-YA book scene in Australia, New Zealand and across Asia for Cynsations. Read an interview with Christopher. Find out about his appearances and more at Christopher Cheng's Blog.
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| Happening TOMORROW (Sunday)! :-) |
[26 May 2012|08:01am] |
I love my town. I love farms. I love animals (but not to eat). I love gardens. I love learning how to live more sustainably. I love supporting local farmers. I love good, locally grown organic food.
I love this event!
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| "I couldn't make this stuff up" |
[26 May 2012|01:19am] |
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A friend was telling me today that he's having something of a midlife crisis. I confessed that I've never really understood what that means. He said, "It's like I'm looking around at my life and thinking, Is this all there is?"
I told him that by that definition I don't expect to ever have a midlife crisis.
We were walking down Sixth Avenue toward Bryant Park. Being there reminded me, as it always does, of the year I spent as a secretary at BPRC, struggling in yet another job that didn't suit me, thinking This is it. I'm done working for other people. It never works. It reminded me of how miserable Josh was back then, how we desperately tried to find local friends and community, how Xtina and I wrestled with the transition from long-distance to medium-distance and wondered why seeing each other more often wasn't making us happier, how money was always tight.
And now I have everything. So much more than I ever thought I might have. I hear there are kids who plan their futures; I never really did, or not in any plausible way. (I wanted to be a detective. I wanted to live in a self-sustaining agrarian commune. I wanted to create a language that everyone in the world would speak. But those are dreams, fancies, not plans.) I'm not sure I believed in the concept of myself as an adult. Somehow, without a blueprint, this amazing life has built itself around me. Such riches, such beauty, such wonder, such love! To contemplate it is to be both uplifted and humbled. I look around at my life every day and I'm blown away by how much there is. I don't expect to feel the slightest bit different when I hit "midlife", whenever that is.
I guess I got my crises over with early. Can't say I'm the least bit sorry.
You're welcome to comment on LJ, but I'd rather you leave a comment on the Dreamwidth version of this entry. The current comment count is  .
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| Skype Author Visit Book Signings |
[25 May 2012|09:54pm] |
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I do a lot of Skype author visits with classrooms and libraries around the U.S. and beyond, and while it’s not quite the same as an in-person author visit, I love that I get to meet so many more kids than I otherwise might. This spring, I tried an experiment to make my Skype author visits a little closer to the in-person variety — by offering classes the opportunity to order personalized, signed books from one of my local independent booksellers after the visit. It was a great success and something I’ll be doing again in the fall.
Here’s how it worked:
First, I approached Marc and Sarah at The Bookstore Plus, my nearest indie bookseller, with the idea. Would they be game to work with me to get signed books to kids who had met me via Skype? They would! (Indie booksellers are awesome that way.) We figured out the best way to set it up, double-checked prices for the order form, and talked over all the details of how much advance notice they’d need for orders, etc. Everything about how it would work.
I have a standard email that I send teachers and librarians who inquire about my Skype author visits. To book a visit, I ask them to respond to a list of questions – about what kind of visit they’d like (Q and A or longer presentation), the age & number of students in the group, what they’ve read, the organizer’s Skype username, and a contact phone number in case there are technical difficulties that day. I added one last question to that list: Would you like your students to have the opportunity to order signed books after our visit? If so, I’ll send along an order form.
Passing out order forms isn’t a requirement for my Skype visits — just an option — but many teachers and librarians took advantage of that opportunity for their kids. I emailed an order form for them to print and send home to families. Mine looks like this:
After our Skype visit, the teacher collects money (checks made out to the bookstore) and order forms and calls the bookstore to let them know an order is on the way. That allows the bookstore to order copies of books if there aren’t enough in stock. The bookstore shoots me an email to let me know they’ll be getting an order in a few days, and I schedule a time to visit to sign books. (Sadly, my nearest indie bookseller is an hour from my home; those of you with indies nearby are so lucky!)
Meanwhile, at the bookstore, the order forms and money arrive, and someone (thank you, Cherise!) gets the books ready by slipping the order form (which includes the kid’s name and how the book should be signed) into the appropriate book. It goes into a box until I come to sign. I bring my pens, and the order form tells me how each book is to be personalized. Most often, a post-Skype book signing only takes 15-20 minutes, though last weekend, there were three boxes of books waiting for me, so my husband took the kids for ice cream while I signed for about an hour.
I put the books back in the boxes as I sign, so once I’m done, they’re organized, still matched with their order forms, and ready to be mailed to the school. The Bookstore Plus in Lake Placid offers free shipping on orders over $50, and pretty much all the school-Skype orders qualify for that, so it works out well for everyone. The kids get their signed books at school, just the way they’d get a Scholastic Book Clubs order that arrives to the classroom. A great local bookstore sells some books that might otherwise have been ordered online or not at all, and I’m happy knowing that my stories are making it into more readers’ hands.
This system may not work for every author or every indie bookseller, but if you’re a writer who does Skype visits, it may be worth asking about and considering. Got questions? Fire away in the comments and I’m happy to answer if I can.
And finally…the UPS guy arrived this week with something too exciting not to share. For next fall’s visits, I’ll have one more title on the order form…
My editor at Scholastic sent along the first final copies of CAPTURE THE FLAG, my July 2012 mystery about the heist of the original Star-Spangled Banner from the Smithsonian and the three kids with a mysterious connection who race all over a snowed-in airport trying to track down the thieves. I’m excited about this one – and there’s a sneak preview of the first two chapters online now if you’d like to start reading a little early.
If you’d like your very own signed copy, The Bookstore Plus can help you out, too. I’ll be signing CAPTURE THE FLAG there on July 2nd, and they’re happy to take orders over the phone (518-523-2950) in advance.
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| Book Rec: A Long, Long Sleep |
[25 May 2012|04:08pm] |
Rosalinda Fitzroy has been asleep for sixty-two years when she is woken by a kiss.
Locked away in the chemically induced slumber of a stasis tube in a forgotten sub-basement, sixteen-year-old Rose slept straight through the Dark Times that killed millions and utterly changed the world she knew. Now her parents and her first love are long dead, and Rose -- hailed upon her awakening as the long-lost heir to an interplanetary empire -- is thrust alone into a future in which she is viewed as either a freak or a threat.
Desperate to put the past behind her and adapt to her new world, Rose finds herself drawn to the boy who kissed her awake, hoping that he can help her to start fresh. But when a deadly danger jeopardizes her fragile new existence, Rose must face the ghosts of her past with open eyes -- or be left without any future at all.
I waited a long, long time to get my hands on a copy of Anna Sheehan's A Long, Long Sleep. Really, I put a hold on a copy through the library shortly after the book came out in August of last year and then waited. And waited. And waited. Finally, in April, I called the library to ask what was up and found out something had gone wrong in the ordering process, and no one there had noticed. Happily, once alerted, it only took a bit longer for them to actually get the book in stock. And I'm pleased to say that my long, long wait was worth it.
As you may know, I'm a sucker for retold fairy tales, or stories that draw heavily on fairy tales for their inspiration. A Long, Long Sleep isn't precisely a retelling of Sleeping Beauty, but a story that explores the question of what life might have been like for Sleeping Beauty after she was kissed and awoken by the prince. I love this, because so often fairy tales end on the kiss, and ignore the real life problems that would inevitably come after. (There's another fairy tale aspect that Sheehan doesn't shy away from: darkness. I can't get into the source of this darkness without giving too much away, but I was pleased that she didn't pull her punches with the true bad guy of the piece, and that that part also fits in with the fairy tale theme.)
And Sheehan's answer to what life is like after the traditional end of the story? Difficult and confusing. Rose is a girl out of time, one trying to come to grips with losing her parents, her world, and her best friend/boyfriend, Xavier. She flounders in the world she awakens to, though her problems with fitting in don't all come from the fact that she's out of time. That was one of the other things that I liked about the book: Rose's growth. She starts the book as a girl with some serious self-esteem problems. As in, really serious, though Sheehan eases the reader into the depths of Rose's self-worth problems well. She grows stronger as the book progresses--and in a believable way.
Finally, I was really pleased with the sci-fi setting. There's still not much science fiction in the YA market, though the field is growing. A Long, Long Sleep makes good use of the sf setting, without being overly technical (something I appreciate). And this is the first time I've seen fairy tales paired with sf in a YA book (though it there are others, let me know), and I loved how they complimented each other. My only gripe about the sf would be that I would have liked to have known the actual date of the book, and where exactly events were taking place. (The 2080s are mentioned, but it's not mentioned how long ago that was.)
So, if you're looking for something different in YA fairy tales or sci-fi (or feel cautious about dipping your toe into science fiction), take a look at this one. There's room left for a sequel, and though I can't find a mention of one yet, I certainly hope there will be.
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| New book list: Recent YA high fantasy |
[25 May 2012|04:31pm] |
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Mostly because I was curious how much of it was out there in the last couple years with paranormal and dystopian being so popular, I made a list of high fantasy for young adults published in the last couple of years. I went as far back as 2010, and it’s still not that large a list. Feel free to suggest in the comments books I might have missed, but remember–only books from 2010 to the present. If you’re looking at a paperback, be sure the original version of the book was that recent. (ETA: For those who missed it, the picture is a *link* to the list, not the list itself. The full list is over on Pinterest.)
Originally published at Stacy Whitman's Grimoire. You can comment here or there.
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| Through the Gate: Submissions Wanted! (SUBMISSIONS DO MATTER) |
[25 May 2012|04:03pm] |
I sent them three poems this morning. AND SO CAN YOU! (Well, maybe not this morning, unless you are currently in the Alaska time zone). STILL. ---- Originally posted by mitchell_hart at Through the Gate: Submissions Wanted!Dear lovers of fantastical poetry, I am pleased to announce the unveiling of my new magazine, Through the Gate, a quarterly devoted to fantastical poetry. It is currently open to submissions. Please read the guidelines page if you are interested in submitting. Signal-boosting and submissions are both very much needed! Please spread the word!
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| My tweets |
[25 May 2012|12:00pm] |
- Thu, 19:50: I've really enjoyed having Martin Bashir host Lawrence O'Donnell's show this week.
- Thu, 19:52: Listening to Mitt Romney rant about President Obama hiring a team of people to raise gas prices. I've never heard such a bald-faced liar.
- Thu, 19:55: @EJDionne Welcome to Twitter! Glad to have you.
- Thu, 22:34: The Unicorn Conspiracy http://t.co/c1BEuCg7
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| 2312 Invincible Gadget Kaleidoscopes |
[25 May 2012|12:04pm] |
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mood |
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sleepy but eager |
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You Are Not a Gadget, by Jaron Lanier
Some parts of this were preaching to the choir in my case; other parts pissed me off (hey, writers, if you base an extended analogical argument on biological "facts" that are WRONG WRONG WRONGER THAN WRONG, it kills your cred and makes me want to throw your book across the room). Still other parts were deeply alienating in the stop-mischaracterizing-or-ignoring-my-subcultures-and-while-you're-at-it-quit-dichotomizing-so-much sense; a few parts were usefully provocative. I think overall there was not enough of the last of those, too much of the middle two. It did fill me up full to the brim with thinky thoughts while I was reading it, though, which is good.
(100)
Kaleidoscope, by Gail Bowen
I am so fond of these characters. This one has a lot of lectury bits, there are a few people I don't mind being lectured by. The story is good, but as usual the whodunnit is almost beside the point. Start at the beginning with this series, I think? Deadly Appearances is the first one.
(101)
2312, by Kim Stanley Robinson (ARC)
Kim Stanley Robinson is part of my two-handed handful of favorite writers, and so it's unsurprising that I loved this. I was a bit surprised by the experimental nature of the text. The reader has to do a lot of work to keep all the threads together in his/her head, and there are poetic streams-of-consciousness and lists and chapters consisting solely of extracts from fictional textbooks, but it's satisfying work. The structure-building part of my brain was quite sated by the experience. I suspect I will be even more pleased with this book when I eventually reread it.
(102, A2)
Invincible, the Ultimate Collection, vol. 2, by Robert Kirkman et al.
Overall, a joyful, galumphing read. There were some bits, though, that really had an uninflected comics-are-for-stereotypically-immature-het-male-readers thing going on. (Pro tip: If you repeatedly show your sympathetic characters complaining about something being "so gay," IT WILL TAKE ME OUT OF THE STORY and into being-irritated-world. I much prefer being in the story.) In any case, we're talking ... 10 pages? out of about 400, so I'll still be reading these.
(103)
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| The Year of the Beasts is finally here! |
[25 May 2012|10:34am] |
Hello my fine friends! It's finally here! The Year of the Beasts written by me and illustrated by Nate Powell is finally here!
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“…a poignant and entertaining mixture of storytelling and nightmare.”--VOYA
Every summer the trucks roll in, bringing the carnival and its infinite possibilities to town. This year Tessa and her younger sister Lulu are un-chaperoned and want to be first in line to experience the rides, the food . . . and the boys. Except this summer, jealousy will invade their relationship for the first time, setting in motion a course of events that can only end in tragedy, putting everyone's love and friendship to the test. Alternating chapters of prose and comics are interwoven in this extraordinary novel that will break your heart and crack it wide open at the same time.
Cory Doctorow reviewed it over at Boing Boing
Here is a nice interview I did with blogger Els de Clerq
I also did a playlist for it over at Large Hearted Boy
I prefer if you go to your local indiebound bookstore, but you can also get it online at Amazon and B&N where it is also available as an e-book. And remember, you can always order signed copies from Skylight Books. (of this book or any of my books!)
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| Summer Bucket List: Knitting and Crocheting |
[25 May 2012|09:44am] |
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I think the definition inherent to a bucket list is coming up with things you want to do before you "kick the bucket," and I respect that. So maybe creating a Summer Bucket List doesn't seem that smart on the surface. Kind of like it's inviting trouble. But to me, it's more like things I want to do before summer kicks the bucket. Still, I think some would hesitate to turn it into something that looks like just another to-do list, but you know what? To-do lists are how I get my kicks. I love making them, using them, looking back at them ... and more often than not, they help me remember exactly what it is that makes me happy, what it is that makes me satisfied.
So, that being said! My Summer Bucket List: Knitting and Crocheting. This summer, my fibre adventures will include:
- participating in Ravelympics on behalf of Team TARDIS ~ we are in an unofficial-but-oh-so-fabulous contest with Team Sherlocked, to see who can make the most British-themed items, so it's the perfect excuse to whip all my Doctor Who projects out of my Ravelry queue and toss them into the ring!
- learning more about colourwork ~ this, too, stems from Ravelympics, as one of the projects on my list is a pair of Doctor Who mittens with colourwork galore to create different silhouettes of Daleks, K9s and TARDISes, oh my!
- getting, and staying, on top of my WIPs so I don't have a constant backlog when I want to make something new for myself or someone awesome
- picking a pattern for my first sweater, finding the wool, and getting it going, once and for all
How about you? Any knitting or crocheting related tasks on your Summer Bucket List?
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