Posts
5 Interesting Links for 4-15-2011
Life
A sideways look at education that reflects the students’ skills and needs rather than a rubber stamp plan: Read the rest of this entry »
Shotgun Bride by B.J. Daniels
I received this romance through the Tell Harlequin program where Harlequin sends out examples of their different lines to get feedback from readers. If I’d had my choice, I wouldn’t have taken this one because it is an Intrigue, the one line of Harlequins I tend not to appreciate because relationships formed under extreme pressure don’t feel like they have a chance of surviving past the last page. I am delighted that Tell Harlequin made me re-examine my thoughts about this line while introducing me to an extremely talented author.
Is Shotgun Bride an Intrigue? Absolutely. There’s a link to the criminal underground, there are secrets held that threaten to break families apart, there’s even a kidnapping and big rescue. All of these elements are standard thriller fare and need to be there for the novel to qualify in this line. However, they also connect into the story, layer upon layer woven together with the skills of a master despite the short number of pages, only 212. Read the rest of this entry »
Interesting Links for 4-8-2011
Publishing
A tongue in cheek but completely accurate flowchart for getting published with a work of fiction:
http://www.katehart.net/2011/03/how-to-get-published-flowchart.html
Research
Juliette Wade pointed me to a YouTube channel of snippets of vanishing languages, something sure to offer those building a society around language some good ideas: Read the rest of this entry »
More Fun with Art
I had a spare moment the other day and sketched a simple picture on my phone.
Then I used a different program on my computer to play with coloring it in.
Interesting Links for 4-1-2011
Online Reads
Another fun story from Daily Science Fiction. L is for Luminous by Tim Pratt, Jenn Reese, Heather Shaw, and Greg van Eekhout is part of a series of alphabet stories. It’s short, funny, and poignant at the same time.
http://dailysciencefiction.com/story/tim-pratt-jenn-reese-heather-shaw-greg-van-eekhout/l-is-for-luminous
Publishing
A look at the current big events in the traditional vs. self-publishing debate that offers a decent analysis of the variety of things happening: Read the rest of this entry »
The Shadow Conspiracy II edited by Phyllis Irene Radford and Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff
The Shadow Conspiracy II edited by Phyllis Irene Radford and Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff caught my eye in the LibraryThing Early Reader program because I’d met both the editors at BayCon (and had, in fact, heard both of them read). Between that and the steampunk theme, I couldn’t turn down the opportunity, and I am glad I didn’t.This is a wonderful collection of eleven steampunk short stories by the following authors: Amy Sterling Casil, Judith Tarr, Irene Radford, Brenda Clough, Sue Lange, C.L. Anderson, Katharine Eliska Kimbriel, Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff, Nancy Jane Moore, Pati Nagle, and Chris Dolley. It contains both stories set in the more traditional arena of Europe, and ones occurring in the New World and even Africa. The characters range from society darlings, to pirates, and even on to missionaries and newspaper men. The main characters are just as likely to be male as female as well (despite the inclusion of only one male author), offering rather different perspectives on the stories and environments. The stories themselves range from psychological/philosophical pieces to adventures and mysteries.
Read the rest of this entry »
So I now have an Android phone. I wanted it to replace my Palm, which can no longer sync with my new computer. My focus was on email, contacts, notes, and task lists (something I still having achieved because I use a local Outlook install.
Warrior Wisewoman 3 edited by Roby James is an anthology of science fiction stories focused around strong female characters. These characters may not be the lead, and the definition of strength is a broad one, opening the potential for a wide variety of interesting tales.
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen is the book I have reread the most. It’s my comfort read, the one I turn to every five to ten years. While normally I talk about more recent books in the hopes of encouraging you to try out some new authors, or of getting suggestions of similar authors for me to try, something interesting happened while I was rereading Pride and Prejudice that I would like to explore.
Several people recommended J.R. Ward so I figured I’d give her a try, but when I first started Dark Lover: A Novel of the Black Dagger Brotherhood I thought I’d already read it. The beginning feels a little generic and I almost stopped, something I would have regretted. Rather quickly, the tough guy beginning changes into a fascinating story.
If you’ve been reading my reviews for a while, you’ve probably got the impression that I like Suzanne Brockmann’s writing. The funny thing is that when she was recommended to me, I gave the books to my husband first since from the description they seemed more his type of book. Now we take turns buying more (and we came in late on a HUGE backlist) for each other…okay, more like try to jump the gun because it’s nice to have a present you know will be welcome and you can both enjoy. (He just got me Tall, Dark and Dangerous for example.)
. I found a nice range of things for you this week. Enjoy.
You never know what to expect when reading a book by Elizabeth Bear, and All the Windwracked Stars is no exception. This is a post-apocalyptic novel centered around figures of Norse mythology who are trying their best to stave off the next round of apocalyptic disasters. The main character is an immortal who has managed to keep her naiveté mainly because she believes in black and white and doesn’t understand everything that has been happening around her.