As we wend our leisurely way through The Thirteenth Tale, I'm happy to say that I have finally made some progress with the novel. As soon as I started reading, I was immediately sucked into the plot & especially the mystery. I think Diane Setterfield has done a really good job writing a modern Gothic novel. The Thirteenth Tale seems to me to have all the elements of Gothic fiction (as defined by Wikipedia)--a ruined house, madness, secrets, hereditary curses, secrets, darkness, doubles. & while, like many others I've spoken to, I was not exactly smitten with the protagonist, Margaret, I think that she is an important piece of the novel. She is a protagonist in the tradition of Rebecca's unnamed protagonist--"lacking self-confidence and overwhelmed by her new life." (Wikipedia)
How is your reading coming along? Are you enjoying it? The book has impressed me so far as exhibiting "a pleasing sort of terror", straddling the genres of horror & mystery. I've been at the edge of my seat reading, that's for sure.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Sunday, November 29, 2009
I made it! Last night at 1 AM I wrote my 50,000 word, went to the website to validate my word count, was told I only had 49,917 words, wrote some more, validated again, and lo and behold, I am a winner of NaNoWriMo 2009! (I get a printable certificate and a web badge.)Winning, by the way, just indicates that I reached my 50,000 word goal. Actually, I have a few more pages to write to wind up my last plot threads, and I can go back to the site and update my word count if I finish any time before midnight on Monday, November 30th. But frankly, I am so excited not to be working on a deadline that I'm not sure any more writing will be done this week. Just to give you an idea of me working against the clock, I wrote 6,000 words between Thanksgiving dinner and returning to work on Saturday morning. I'm exhausted!
Hurrah for NaNoWriMo!
Monday, November 23, 2009
Book on the Side: Week 2
I've got to confess: I'm behind in my reading of The Thirteenth Tale. What with writing 50,000 words for National Novel Writing Month (current word count: 32, 000) and getting ready for Thanksgiving, it has just fallen by the wayside.
So, our idea is, let's continue with our reading of The Thirteenth Tale into December, which will give us a chance to catch up & not give us, or any of you, another reading assignment during the busy holiday season. We'll start afresh with a new book in January, so if you have suggestions, don't hesitate to start letting us know!
For those of you who have been diligently reading & looking forward to discussion, I consulted with Thirteenth Tale fan Elisabeth for some commentary:
Elisabeth doesn't like mysteries, but she liked this book--she found it to be a great psychological story, like Rebecca, dark & slightly creepy. Elisabeth thought Margaret was a bit of a cold fish and Vida was sometimes annoying but feisty & more likeable. She also liked the characters of the housekeeper & the gardener. The most interesting thing about Elisabeth's experience with The Thirteenth Tale is that she first listened to it on audiobook, but disliked the reader & was not very interested in the book. However, when her book group opted to read the book, Elisabeth tried reading it in book form & loved it.
Do you agree? Disagree? Inquiring minds want to know, we want to know!
So, our idea is, let's continue with our reading of The Thirteenth Tale into December, which will give us a chance to catch up & not give us, or any of you, another reading assignment during the busy holiday season. We'll start afresh with a new book in January, so if you have suggestions, don't hesitate to start letting us know!
For those of you who have been diligently reading & looking forward to discussion, I consulted with Thirteenth Tale fan Elisabeth for some commentary:
Elisabeth doesn't like mysteries, but she liked this book--she found it to be a great psychological story, like Rebecca, dark & slightly creepy. Elisabeth thought Margaret was a bit of a cold fish and Vida was sometimes annoying but feisty & more likeable. She also liked the characters of the housekeeper & the gardener. The most interesting thing about Elisabeth's experience with The Thirteenth Tale is that she first listened to it on audiobook, but disliked the reader & was not very interested in the book. However, when her book group opted to read the book, Elisabeth tried reading it in book form & loved it.
Do you agree? Disagree? Inquiring minds want to know, we want to know!
What We're Reading...
We're librarians. We're surrounded by books all day. It's kind of like being a kid in a candy store. So, even though we're working all day & reading books for the library book groups all night, sometimes we just want to read something just for fun.
Joy just read Katherine Hall Page's The Body in the Sleigh, the latest book in her Faith Fairchild series. Joy's enjoyed following the adventures of Faith through the eighteen-odd books written about her. Joy was also tickled pink to see Ms. Page's Author's Note at the end of The Body in the Sleigh, which contains, in addition to the book's dedication to librarians (aw, shucks, you shouldn't have), the story of how this book came to be written and an explanation of what libraries & librarians mean to the author. Ms. Page won Joy's heart by starting off with a quote from Henry Ward Beecher (brother of Harriet): "A library is not a luxury but one of the necessities of life."
Joy recommends the Faith Fairchild series for those who like a good cozy mystery--with recipes, to boot! Over the years, Faith has come to seem like an old friend of Joy's & Joy hopes you'll feel the same.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Book on the Side: Week 1
How are you enjoying The Thirteenth Tale? We've been debating it amongst my co-workers. One didn't like the book--she found the characters too self-consciously odd, as though the author was trying too hard to make them quirky. Another did enjoy the book, particularly the mystery aspect of it.
Much of the novel takes place in two grand estates --- Angelfield and then Miss Winter’s. How are the houses reflections of their inhabitants?
As the story unfolds, we learn that Margaret and Miss Winter are both twins. What else do they have in common?
I've seen The Thirteenth Tale listed as 'having all the mystery of a modern day blockbuster' and as gothic fiction, in the tradition of the Brontë sisters. Do you agree with these classifications?
Much of the novel takes place in two grand estates --- Angelfield and then Miss Winter’s. How are the houses reflections of their inhabitants?
As the story unfolds, we learn that Margaret and Miss Winter are both twins. What else do they have in common?
I've seen The Thirteenth Tale listed as 'having all the mystery of a modern day blockbuster' and as gothic fiction, in the tradition of the Brontë sisters. Do you agree with these classifications?
Margaret Atwood & Graeme Gibson
Thanks to Bookworks, the UNM Creative Writing Program, & the Forest Guardians I (& quite a few others) were able to attend a reading & book-signing by authors Margaret Atwood & Graeme Gibson.
Ms. Atwood spoke first, primarily about her new novel The Year of the Flood, which is, she explained, not a sequel or a prequel to Oryx & Crake but occurs simultaneously--in a Victorian novel, The Year of the Flood would be the "Meanwhile..." chapter, discussing events happening to characters in the book which seem to have nothing to do with the primary story until, later, the stories converge. Ms. Atwood read excerpts from her new book in the voices of each of her three narrators, Toby, Ren, & Adam One. She also played recordings that had been made of the some of the hymns from the book which had been set to music, including Oh Sing We Now the Holy Weeds.
Ms. Atwood also spoke about creating the character Jimmy in Oryx & Crake as a response to people who said she only wrote about female characters & explained that she did research to create Jimmy by having young men of the same age read the manuscript & comment.
Mr. Gibson then read from his new book, The Bedside Book of Beasts: A Wildlife Miscellany, with an accompanying slideshow. A review says of his book, "A fascinating exploration of the chain of life, of survival and mortality. In The Bedside Book of Beasts, Graeme Gibson gathers breathtaking works of art and literature that capture the power, grace, and inventiveness of both predators and their natural prey. The Bedside Book of Beasts evokes a profound sense of the eternal connection between humans and the creatures they endeavor to tame."
After the readings, Ms. Atwood & Mr. Gibson took a number of questions, including suggestions for those suffering from writer's block--Ms. Atwood has had to throw away 2 books due to writer's block, & Mr. Gibson 3, but generally Ms. Atwood suggested trying to change the person (e.g. first person narration to omniscient narrator) or change the tense (e.g. past to present) before throwing away your work. One questioner asked how Ms. Atwood felt to be a 'focal point for students', citing a paper the questioner had written in high school, to which Ms. Atwood had a spirited reply, reminding us that when we read her works, she's not there.
Ms. Atwood & Mr. Gibson, who are a long-standing couple, also fielded numerous questions about their relationship's longevity & possible collaborations. Both were easygoing & very humorous on these rather intimate topics. They don't collaborate, but Ms. Atwood sees Mr. Gibson's work in manuscript form, she joked, because she is the only one who knows how to use punctuation. Ms. Atwood's relationship advice included having a sense of humor & tolerance, which, Mr. Gibson quipped, he had.
Margaret Atwood books
Graeme Gibson books
Hear interviews with Ms. Atwood & Mr. Gibson!
Ms. Atwood spoke first, primarily about her new novel The Year of the Flood, which is, she explained, not a sequel or a prequel to Oryx & Crake but occurs simultaneously--in a Victorian novel, The Year of the Flood would be the "Meanwhile..." chapter, discussing events happening to characters in the book which seem to have nothing to do with the primary story until, later, the stories converge. Ms. Atwood read excerpts from her new book in the voices of each of her three narrators, Toby, Ren, & Adam One. She also played recordings that had been made of the some of the hymns from the book which had been set to music, including Oh Sing We Now the Holy Weeds.
Ms. Atwood also spoke about creating the character Jimmy in Oryx & Crake as a response to people who said she only wrote about female characters & explained that she did research to create Jimmy by having young men of the same age read the manuscript & comment.
Mr. Gibson then read from his new book, The Bedside Book of Beasts: A Wildlife Miscellany, with an accompanying slideshow. A review says of his book, "A fascinating exploration of the chain of life, of survival and mortality. In The Bedside Book of Beasts, Graeme Gibson gathers breathtaking works of art and literature that capture the power, grace, and inventiveness of both predators and their natural prey. The Bedside Book of Beasts evokes a profound sense of the eternal connection between humans and the creatures they endeavor to tame."
After the readings, Ms. Atwood & Mr. Gibson took a number of questions, including suggestions for those suffering from writer's block--Ms. Atwood has had to throw away 2 books due to writer's block, & Mr. Gibson 3, but generally Ms. Atwood suggested trying to change the person (e.g. first person narration to omniscient narrator) or change the tense (e.g. past to present) before throwing away your work. One questioner asked how Ms. Atwood felt to be a 'focal point for students', citing a paper the questioner had written in high school, to which Ms. Atwood had a spirited reply, reminding us that when we read her works, she's not there.
Ms. Atwood & Mr. Gibson, who are a long-standing couple, also fielded numerous questions about their relationship's longevity & possible collaborations. Both were easygoing & very humorous on these rather intimate topics. They don't collaborate, but Ms. Atwood sees Mr. Gibson's work in manuscript form, she joked, because she is the only one who knows how to use punctuation. Ms. Atwood's relationship advice included having a sense of humor & tolerance, which, Mr. Gibson quipped, he had.
Margaret Atwood books
Graeme Gibson books
Hear interviews with Ms. Atwood & Mr. Gibson!
Sunday, November 15, 2009
National Novel Writing Month: Day 15
Well, we're halfway through with National Novel Writing Month, & I'm behind in my word count, but doing better than last year. My novel is called (for the moment) The Dwindling Prophecy, and it's a satire/parody of various fantasy and science fiction classics like Lord of the Rings & Dune. It's fun to write so far, but 50,000 words sure is a lot, even with help from all the name generators, title generators, poetry generators and the like.
In the meantime, I've been trolling the NaNoWriMo site, & they have a lot of resources. Want to see a list of NaNoWriMo authors that have been published, including Sara Gruen? Feeling stalled and need a pep talk? Here's the pep talks from this year, including Peter Carey, Jasper Fforde, and Lynda Barry, & the archive of pep talks from past years, including Sue Grafton, Neil Gaiman, Janet Fitch & Meg Cabot. Forums include discussions on tips & strategies, life during NaNo, plus a list of resources & writing support, and check out the special offers, including a free proof copy of your book!
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