"[I] read books because I love them, not because I think I should read them." – Simon Van Booy While on a recent bargain table binge at a local bookstore, a certain cover jumped out at me: shades of blue, the Eiffel Tower, the name Christopher Moore. I’m a fan of Moore’s Lamb, so I grabbed one of the multiple copies of his Sacre Bleu that lined the table. The fact that Vincent Van Gogh factored into the plot of…
A book is a gift you can open again and again – Garrison Keillor Today I read the sad news that screenwriter Syd Field died over the weekend. I learned the techniques of writing for the screen from some of Field’s books while in college and have carried the skills into future projects, including novel writing. It got me thinking about the various books throughout my life that have taught me and inspired me. The books that encouraged my love of…
"A library is not a luxury but one of the necessities of life." – Henry Ward Beecher Recently, at the annual used book sale hosted by the Kanawha County Public Library, I was handed a button reading “I Support the Library.” But it wasn’t just a chintzy giveaway. Today I cast a vote to show that support. For you non-locals, there is a special election happening in my county regarding an excess levy that would provide needed funding to the…
“New York is a writer’s city.” – Blanche Devereaux, The Golden Girls Several months ago, I wrote a post called How I Got My Agent, which told the tale of my becoming a client of Stephen Fraser at the Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency way back in August of last year. Funny thing about having an agent: unless you live in the same geographic location or cross paths at a writing conference, there’s a chance you’ll never meet him or…