The Business of Being a Writer by Jane Friedman Now that I’m slowly becoming a writer myself, I’m paying more attention to the business aspects of writing. Writing without getting paid is all very well, but really, if you aren’t getting paid, you might as well be writing in your journal. Writing is important for […]
So You Want to Publish a Book? by Anne Trubek This is a charming little book, but quite short. Ms. Trubek does stick to the point so there are few wasted words. Still, it could have been longer. Easily. Definitely. Certainly. There is so much to say about the publishing business, especially for people who […]
The Eighth Detective by Alex Pavesi I’m not a rabid fan of Golden Age mysteries although I have read my fair share. There are those people who not only read all of Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, Ellery Queen, and the like but go on to read the more obscure writers from that time […]
Four stars Bill and I love movies. We love cheese and crackers and wine (for me), beer (for him), and grapes. We don’t have money to spare and even if we did, I have serious cheapskate tendencies. To meet all these conflicting impulses, we developed a new hobby a few years ago. We select a […]
The Making of Home: The 500 Year Story of How Our Houses Became Our Homes by Judith Flanders Judith Flanders backed into writing nonfiction histories of how normal people lived because she started out by writing a biography of four Victorian sisters (the McDonalds as told in A Circle of Sisters) who married extremely well. […]
Chaos Reigning by Jessie Mihalik Third volume in the Consortium Rebellion Trilogy Jessie Mihalik has finished (for now) her space opera trilogy about the Consortium running the universe (not the galaxy; apparently our unimaginably vast galaxy — The Milky Way — doesn’t offer a big enough scope) and the von Hasenberg family. There are six […]
Mini Farming: Self-Sufficiency on 1/4 Acre by Brett L. Markham One star (so don’t waste your time); nonfiction gardening and self-sufficiency This book has a history. “Mini Farming” has been out for a decade, having been originally published back in 2010. At that time, it showed up at our local library in the new books […]
Violence: A Writer’s Guide by Rory Miller This book is excellent. Even if you aren’t a writer, it’s worth a read to get a better understanding of violence in all its forms. If you are a writer, well! What a fabulous resource. The author, Rory Miller, is a long-time corrections officer, Army vet, and a […]
Secondhand: Travels in the New Global Garage Sale by Adam Minter I have a longstanding interest in garbage, recycling, waste management, and sustainability. The culture of unknown civilizations can be deciphered by their garbage heaps. That’s what archeologists are: history’s garbage analysts. What we throw away shows what we use. How we discard objects and […]
Quilt As-You-Go Made Modern: Fresh Techniques for Busy Quilters by Jera Brandvig I make quilts, although my quilts aren’t sewn like anyone else’s. Technically, they are not even quilts although the finished product looks like a crazy quilt. I’m working out my procedures and eventually will write it up as a book and, before you […]