Tumblog About Books

So I've resisted the siren call of Tumblr for a while, but... I realized that I want a place to specifically talk about books that are NOT "my books." To just plain recommend stuff that I love, but that are off-topic for this blog.

And you might get a sense of my taste if you take a look at the types of books I read and enjoy when I am NOT working. I try to read pretty widely, but there are definitely some trends that I find cropping up as I make lists of what to review. (Do keep in mind, though I review grownup books on the tumblr, I still only rep kids & YA books.)

Anyway, enjoy, comment, feel free to recommend titles to me (though my reading time is pretty limited) - I am always curious to hear what people are loving! :D


http://literaticat.tumblr.com/

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Heatwave Linkfest

It is still a brazillion degrees here with thick air. Hope you are all staying cool. Drink plenty of water! This is good advice even if you aren't somewhere hot. (Also, if you aren't somewhere hot, please invite me over.) In honor of laziness, I'm just going to throw some awesome links at you:

I really admire this classic post by Neil Gaiman. I'm going to quote liberally because I like it so much. This is in response to a fan who is pissed that George R.R. Martin is blogging about things rather than being hard at work on the next book in his series, and WHY should GRRM be doing anything other than creating the thing that this reader wants? Neil says, in part:

"You don't choose what will work. You simply do the best you can each time. And you try to do what you can to increase the likelihood that good art will be created.

And sometimes, and it's as true of authors as it is of readers, you have a life. People in your world get sick or die. You fall in love, or out of love. You move house. Your aunt comes to stay. You agreed to give a talk half-way around the world five years ago, and suddenly you realise that that talk is due now. Your last book comes out and the critics vociferously hated it and now you simply don't feel like writing another. Your cat learns to levitate and the matter must be properly documented and investigated. There are deer in the apple orchard. A thunderstorm fries your hard disk and fries the backup drive as well...

And life is a good thing for a writer. It's where we get our raw material, for a start. We quite like to stop and watch it."

And the most important takeaway? "George R.R. Martin is Not Your Bitch." 

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A wonderful review of Kate Messner & Brian Floca's MARTY McGUIRE is up on Fuse #8:

"When it comes down to it, this isn’t your typical early chapter book. Messner likes to upset expectations once in a while... It’s a smart little novel that uses just as many words as it needs to. No more. No less. For those seeking relief from the onslaught of ubiquitous royalty, here is the answer to your prayers."

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Author Extraordinaire Saundra Mitchell had great points to make about aggressive book-blogger schwag-tactics in her recent post, "The Shake-Down." Remember:

"Most authors, even big name authors, have to pay for their own schwag. We pay for it to be designed and to be printed. We pay for the books that we send out on request. When we give away other authors’ books, we pay for those, too. And of course, we pay the postage. So when I’m figuring my budget, I have to decide when and where to spend that money very carefully...  It’s a tricky, symbiotic relationship we have going on online right now. And I know we’re all still trying to figure out how it all fits, and works together...

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Finally, at 7-Imps, Jules has posted a terrific profile of two of my favorite (nonclient) illustrators, Sophie Blackall and Lauren Castillo. Ohhhh man their stuff is adorable. Please take a look.
ARE YOU AWAKE in particular makes me crack up:



“Mom? MMM? Is Daddy awake? I HOPE SO. Why do you hope so?
BECAUSE HE’S FLYING A PLANE.”

                               

“Why is he flying a plane? TO TAKE THE PEOPLE WHERE THEY WANT TO GO. But why do they want to go at night? SO THEY CAN BE THERE IN THE MORNING.
Is it morning yet? NO. Why isn’t it? BECAUSE IT’S STILL NIGHTTIME.” :-)

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Linkety-link!

A wee link roundup for you, so I can close some tabs:

The Big Black Cat did a fun interview with me, including NO questions about queries, and a little contest!

Two great links about the Pinkwater/Brown collaboration, Edward Lear for the 21st century, HIS SHOES WERE FAR TOO TIGHT! First up, a shout out from Jules, writing for Kirkus.  Also, a swell mention on Anita Silvey's Children's Book-A-Day Almanac. *swoon*

If you are a teacher, librarian or book club leader who would like a free, groovy Marty McGuire discussion guide, Scholastic would love to send it to you.

Talented client Gwenda Bond edited the all-YA edition of Subterranean Online.... and it features a story from other talented client Tiffany Trent (among others!) - Check it out.

Oh did I mention that THE REVENANT by Sonia Gensler is now officially out in the world? Yes. Yes it  is. Buy two! (Especially if you were a fan of A NORTHERN LIGHT by Jennifer Donnelly, or if you like ghost stories and romance!)

Have a great week, all - not sure if I will have time to post for a bit, but I am thinking of you.

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Link Roundup!

Let's close some tabs, shall we?

Here's a thoughtful post from Janni Lee Simner about the not-death of traditional publishing. Yes! Publishers are still good for some stuff after all, it seems. Surprise!

RomCom author Tawna Fenske pulls together some eye-opening posts about authors & money.

A great post from Jennifer Crusie about the basics of fiction writing.

Nathan Bransford warns against the "Spaghetti Agent."

And this just in from Client Pimpage Central:

Love funny stories? Love Dogs? Love Jews? Love funny stories about Dogs and Jews? UNCLE BORIS IN THE YUKON by Daniel Pinkwater is available again at last from Simon & Schuster.

The CORSETS & CLOCKWORK anthology is out from Running Press and includes stories from my own authors Tiffany Trent and Jackie Dolamore. Book Pixie has a contest to win a copy - ends 5/3.

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Link Roundup

There have been a lot of goings-on lately - time for a LINK ROUNDUP!

A totally phenomenal review of the reissue of Lizard Music by Daniel Pinkwater, from B&N Review.

Should you be blogging to help your writing career? Or is it a big waste of time?

A lengthy interview with me at the wonderful Shrinking Violets blog, about self-promotion, introversion and more.

A slightly more goofy interview at the Middle Grade Ninja, with fave movies and more - as well as what I am looking for.

If your local Borders is closing, you might take a look at this list of nearby indie bookstores.

Finally (and perhaps most importantly) - 22 Manly Ways to reuse an Altoids Tin - from tiny bbq to electronics lab!

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Link Roundup

I have to share some stuff with you guys so these rascally tabs can be closed. And I can't concentrate on writing a long blog post because Moxie the Dog is going crazy trying to find a mouse that is hidden in the walls and making noise. Argh. ANYWAY:

As most of you know, the ALA youth media awards (including the Newbery, Caldecott and Printz awards, among many others) were announced today. Many congratulations to all!

The Association of Jewish Libraries also announced their awards. Congrats to clients Margie Gelbwasser, Daniel and Jill Pinkwater for being named Sydney Taylor Notable books.

Client Kate Messner wrote a wonderful, and inspiring, and tear-inducing post that everyone who writes for kids must read. Particularly if you DIDN'T win a fancy award today.

YA author Lisa Schroeder on why "Oh Well" should be in every author's vocabulary. A great post for perspective.

Last year's Morris Award winner, my client L.K. Madigan, interviewed this year's winner, Blythe Woolston.

I'm on the front page of the HuffPo books section dishing out kids book advice with my pal David Henry Sterry. Me = loudmouth.

My friend (and non-client) Laurel Snyder reveals her beautiful new book cover. Swoon!

What is up in YOUR worlds?

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Slightly Self-Serving Link Roundup, plus a plea

NEWS, SELF-FLUFFING & RANDOM STUFF I'VE BEEN MEANING TO SHARE:

* My fave blog Editorial Anonymous is back from hiatus, with a couple posts about Agents right up top.

* Several famous authors were asked to talk about their agents in the latest Horn Book. Here's one of my clients talking about me.

* A blog in which three agents (one of whom is me) give three pieces of advice. I sort of rant a bit, but.

* Here's a superb article on productivity: If it won't fit on a Post-It, it won't fit in your day. (Full disclosure: I read it, appreciated it, then promptly disregarded it and made my to-do list on a large whiteboard.)

* In case you missed it over the weekend, here's a new Open Thread for the new year. There are A TON of really great questions being asked in comments, feel free to chime in or add your own!

* Several clients have had good news lately: Tara Kelly's HARMONIC FEEDBACK is a YA Cybils Finalist. Daniel Pinkwater's ADVENTURES OF A CAT-WHISKERED GIRL is a Smithsonian Notable Children's Book for 2010. Kate Messner's SUGAR AND ICE was Amazon's Best Middle Grade book for December. Am I missing any good client news? If so, remind me in the comments and I'll add it!


NOW FOR THE PART WHERE YOU HELP ME:

I want cheering up. So what is going on in YOUR world? Any great news to share?

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Link & Small News Roundup

Welcome to Friday Five, evening edition!  HOW did this week go by so quickly?

1) The dog is now called Moxie.  It's a lot easier to say than Macadamia was. And easier to yell, which is good, since she has learned to take flying leaps onto my desk.  (Her formal name is Edith Macadamia Bouvier, if you must know, but Moxie will do for short.)

2) Last week (ish) my client Kate Messner wrote a terrific guest post on a blog about how she finds the time to write. And people? If don't believe that it can happen for you, if you think dealing with your job or your kids is too exhausting and you'll never be able to do all that AND write a book... you should definitely look to Kate as an example. She is a 7th grade teacher, a mom of two, and I just sold her twelfth book. If she can do it, you can do it.

3) But maybe–just maybe–you don't really want to do it. John "not my client" Scalzi has a terrific post up called Find the Time, or Don't.  To paraphrase, if you really wanted to be a writer, you'd find the time to write.  If you DON'T find the time to write... that's fine. Don't be a writer. No biggie, right?

4) All this shop talk making you hungry? Have some lemon pudding cake.  Nommity nom!  Now I have a ton of reading to do and can't stand around in the kitchen, so who is gonna bake it for me? 

5) This video made me crack up. But it contains salty language. You've been warned. "What is wrong with books?"


!!!!!!! [BESTIE x BESTIE  1] !!!!!!! from Dean Fleischer-Camp on Vimeo.

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