Uncategorized, WritingLeave a comment

Regrets, I’ve Had a Few; or, My Writing History and What I’ve Learned from It

elise

My name is Elise, and I am a writer. Or at least I try to be. In some senses I am; I did work as a ghostwriter for nearly a decade and write upward of fifty books in that time. So I think that qualifies me. And I have notebooks and thumb drives full of first drafts and incomplete scenes and unfinished stories that I take out and read from time to time and wonder why on earth I didn’t follow through on them. And then I remember: I am a procrastinator. I also get mental blocks and writing blocks, … Continue reading Regrets, I’ve Had a Few; or, My Writing History and What I’ve Learned from It

Books3 Comments

Books About Sketchbooks

vicky

I went to India last week for work. It was an AMAZING trip. When normal people make a trip like that they come back with jewel-toned scarves and golden bangles or delicious tea and spices. I unpacked and realized I brought back six new sketchbooks*. You could say I have a problem, yes. I’ve been obsessed with notebooks and sketchbooks pretty much my whole life but it’s really taken off in the past four or five years. I do all kinds of work in my sketchbooks — I write, I draw, I do collage, I paint. I have quite a … Continue reading Books About Sketchbooks

Audiobooks, Books, Reading, Uncategorized2 Comments

Once Is Never Enough

elise

One of my reading goals this year is to reread some old favorites, so I was pretty stoked when I found out that this week’s Top Ten Tuesday topic (from thatartsyreadergirl.com) is Books I Could Reread Forever. Because I’ve already got a list of those going! But it was also a good excuse to go and peruse my bookshelves, looking for my literary comfort food—those books I can pick up and read again and again, in whole or in part, and never, ever get tired of them. Some because they’re so meaningful to me or remind me of where and … Continue reading Once Is Never Enough

Books, Reading3 Comments

Thoughts on Fiction

vicky

My coworkers and I were chatting about books earlier this week and I found myself trying to explain my love of fiction, maybe for the first time ever. I’ve never had to explain this to anyone before. I assumed most people read fiction for fun. Maybe they do. I probably read more fiction than any other category. I’ve always worked with smart people, and of course smart people come in all shapes and sizes with varied interests and concerns. Some smart people like business books, some like romance novels. But the people I work with now are, without exception, much … Continue reading Thoughts on Fiction

Audiobooks, Books, Reading, UncategorizedLeave a comment

LGBT YA Sci-Fi/Fantasy: It’s a Thing, and I Love It

elise

Toward the end of 2016, I was browsing for something to read—something to finish out the year right, to carry me through the holidays and into my weeklong staycation between Christmas and New Year’s. I hit all the usuals—the Kindle new releases and daily deals pages, my Amazon “to read” wish list, my Goodreads “Want to Read” shelf and posts from friends, my Audible wish list…. And that was where I found it, a book I’d saved some time ago thinking it sounded intriguing, but I wasn’t in any rush to listen it: We Are the Ants, by Shaun David Hutchinson. … Continue reading LGBT YA Sci-Fi/Fantasy: It’s a Thing, and I Love It

Books, Reading1 Comment

How to Talk (and talk and talk) About Books

vicky

I love to talk about books. When it was my job I used to talk about books all day every day. Now that I don’t have that luxury I try to find other ways to scratch that itch. Of course there’s this blog, where I can talk to Elise and to the rest of you about what I’m reading. It’s awesome and I love it but it’s not enough. I’m in a book club (shout out to Quitters Club Book Club!) and I love it but we only meet once a month and talk about one book at a time. … Continue reading How to Talk (and talk and talk) About Books

CPB, Non-book CPB Stuff, UncategorizedLeave a comment

CPB Goals 2018

elise

How many posts can I write about my 2018 goals? We’re going to find out!   (Don’t know what a commonplace book is? Read about it here.)   So as you saw in the previous post, my co-blogger Vicky is quite prolific with her commonplace book. Me, not so much. As with many things in my life, I love the idea of a commonplace book but find it hard to keep up with. Well, not hard exactly. The truth is that I’m lazy. I have a backlog of audiobook clips to transcribe into mine and Kindle notes to copy. I keep lists of … Continue reading CPB Goals 2018