by Joelle | Jan 8, 2009 | Need to Read
OUTLIERS & BLINK by Malcolm Gladwell – I recently listened to OUTLIERS and even though it blew me away, I never really blogged about it. To be honest, I’m just not sure what to say. In this book, he takes apart our idea of success and reconstructs it....
by Joelle | Jan 8, 2009 | Daily Writings
I just made my first sale of the year – an article to SCBWI. It’s called Avoiding the Character Cliché and the article is about falling into that trap and how to get out of it. Here’s a sneak preview (the first sentence): The very best way to avoid...
by Joelle | Jan 7, 2009 | Need to Read
Okay, can I just say this is the most hilarious book I’ve ever read? No, not because it cracked me up on every line (although it is pretty funny in places)…I mean the premise. ONLY Meg Cabot could get a publisher to say, “Wow, what a great idea for a...
by Joelle | Jan 7, 2009 | Daily Writings
I am what I refer to as Distantly Danish. That means my great grandparents and great, great grandparents on my mother’s side all came from Denmark, and that I have cousins there who I’ve visited and who have visited me, but Denmark would never give me...
by Joelle | Jan 6, 2009 | Daily Writings
On a lot of blogs you are finding new year resolutions, goals, and lists of things people plan to accomplish this year. When it comes to something I have total control over (or as much control as a person can actually have), then I feel comfortable making it a...
by Joelle | Jan 5, 2009 | Daily Writings
My husband has a pretty amazing pic over on his blog today.
by Joelle | Jan 5, 2009 | Need to Read
I was lucky enough to get an ARC of this book and so I got to read it in October 08. Wowie zowie! What a fantastic book. Smith’s writing is elegant and evocative and you feel the heat, dust, and tension of 1943 Texas like you’re standing right there. Back...
by Joelle | Jan 5, 2009 | Need to Read
This is a very funny Middle Grade…8-12, Grades 3-7 (it falls on the younger side, if you ask me). This is wacky and silly and exciting and boys and girls will both like it. I’m going to give it to my niece and she’ll probably have a laugh. I am not a...
by Joelle | Jan 4, 2009 | Daily Writings
I think that, like a favourite movie, it’s hard to chose a favourite writer without considering mood, genre, style, etc., but there are two writers who really are mine. They are both British. They are both men. One is alive, one has passed on. Both have written...
by Joelle | Jan 1, 2009 | Daily Writings
Let this be the year for dreams and joy and peace. Happy 2009 Everyone!
by Joelle | Dec 31, 2008 | Need to Read
This is a really interesting book in that the hero is only 7-8 years old, but it’s definitely a book for older readers. It doesn’t say how old, but I’m thinking maybe Grade 5 or 6 and up. And if you’re an adult, you can appreciate all the...
by Joelle | Dec 31, 2008 | Daily Writings
The world is round and the place which may seem like the end may also be only the beginning. – Ivy Baker Priest I love this quote because it is good for the new year, but also it is just like any good book. Taking a page out of Janet Reid’s book, or blog:...
by Joelle | Dec 30, 2008 | Daily Writings
It’s funny how when things get complicated you try and try and try to make them work and yet the path of least resistance is almost always to let things go.* What I had to let go was the idea of keeping the cat out of my office and off my desk. We have lived...
by Joelle | Dec 28, 2008 | Daily Writings
If you’re going to have cabin fever, this is a very nice place to have it… And okay…the cats aren’t stupid. They’re not out in the yard. They are here: P.S. Although I’m writing already, I’ll probably keep goofing around...
by Joelle | Dec 27, 2008 | Daily Writings
Today I read about sixty pages of an ARC that shall remain nameless. Fifty pages is usually my limit and about the time I started seriously contemplating quitting, I looked down and saw I was on page 50. I finished the chapter anyway and closed the book. Here’s...
by Joelle | Dec 26, 2008 | Daily Writings
I can always tell when I’ve had enough time off because my fingernails get too long to type (not that they’ve ever looked this good!). Time to cut them and get back to writing!
by Joelle | Dec 26, 2008 | Daily Writings
Since publishing as we know it is officially shut down for a bit, I thought it might be fun to take a quick break from blogging about writing here and have some fun. Not that writing isn’t fun, of course. A few weeks ago, my friend Alix over at Marmite and Tea...
by Joelle | Dec 25, 2008 | Need to Read
This is not going to be my usual gush-fest for books I like, but a little bit more of a review. I will say upfront though, that I really liked this book and I highly recommend it, especially if historical novels are your thing. There are several things I really liked...
by Joelle | Dec 22, 2008 | Need to Read
I am a lucky girl! My friend Alix sent me a pressie in the mail and along with a cool pen and some raspberry hot chocolate mix, she included J.K. Rowling’s new book, THE TALES OF BEEDLE THE BARD!!! Yay! I really wanted this book but I hadn’t made it to a...
by Joelle | Dec 19, 2008 | Daily Writings
Can you tell I’m on vacation? I’m posting all the time! So normally I post my Fave 15 after the new year just in case I end up reading something good at the last minute, but this year, I know how important it is for books to get an extra push in the...
by Joelle | Dec 18, 2008 | Daily Writings
I TOLD you I had good taste! Meg Cabot just listed Eileen Cook’s new book on her best books to buy for gifts list! Congratulations Eileen! And if any of you didn’t see the two or three (or ten) times I’ve mentioned it here, well, here it is again!...
by Joelle | Dec 18, 2008 | Daily Writings
A few months ago my friend Alix was looking for a new meme and so I made one up for her. That got me thinking, why don’t I just make up another one for fun AND at the same time help y’all with any holiday shopping you might still need to do. You are all...
by Joelle | Dec 18, 2008 | Daily Writings
So…publishing pretty much shuts down next week until the new year. I am starting my break a little early…just reading, cooking, enjoying the SNOW! Believe it or not, even though we live in Canada, we live in one of the mildest climates in the whole country...
by Joelle | Dec 17, 2008 | Need to Read
Ummm…yeah…I loved this book. But you knew I was going to say that because I’m blogging about it, right? It’s fabulous. I read half last night and the other half today and thought about it whenever I wasn’t reading. This book is about a...
by Joelle | Dec 17, 2008 | Daily Writings
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