Quoteskimming-an SBBTeaser
The quote in today's icon is the first line from "Across the Universe" by the Beatles.
It's Sunday, and although I didn't post last week, I've not forgotten about quoteskimming. And as this week marks the second annual Summer Blog Blast Tour (SBBT), organized by blogmistress extraordinaire, Colleen Mondor, over at Chasing Ray, I'm combining the two concepts into one post, savvy? Why would I do that? Well, I know I taunted you on May 5th about upcoming interviews, so let's just see how many interviews I have this week here at Writing and Ruminating:
Monday: You know her. You love her. The fabulous Laurie Halse Anderson will be here, talking about, well, books and stuff. Duh. But specifically, we'll be talking nonfiction and historical fiction. (You may want to have a gander at yesterday's book review of her forthcoming nonfiction picture book, Independent Dames.)
Here's what Laurie has to say about revision (taken from her FAQ section on her website):
I am a published author because I revise my books. Nobody writes a first draft that is good enough to be published. Authors spend most of their time revising and editing their work. I’ve been known to spend days on one page, trying hundreds of different ways to get the words in just the right order. I actually love revising my work. It’s the first draft - the yucky one - that is the hardest thing for me to write.
Tuesday: She's been a competitive cheerleader, a debutante, a model, a primate cognition researcher, a Fulbright scholar at Cambridge researching autism, and she's currently earning her Ph.D. Only one woman can fit that bill, and it happens to be the multi-faceted, multi-talented Jennifer Lynn Barnes.
What Jen has to say about writing (ganked from her FAQ page at her website:
I really cannot stress how important it is to actually sit down and write something every day. It doesn't have to be your masterpiece. It doesn't even have to be original fiction. Keep a journal. Write a scene that goes on the end of your favorite book or movie. Just write something every day.
Thursday: Boom-a-YAY! I'll be hosting the fascinating and multitalented Charles R. Smith, Jr., poet, photographer, and novelist. You may recall me raving about his award-winning book Twelve Rounds to Glory. Charles has a new book out about the Greek gods, illustrated by the wildly talented comic artist, P. Craig Russell, and a forthcoming novel, Chameleon set to launch this fall.
What Charles has to say about the power of positive thinking(from where? his website, of course):
Everything I've achieved in life, I've gotten from thinking positive. It sounds like such a simple thing, but if you believe you can do something and you are willing to put in the work, you'd be surprised at the results you get. To keep positive thoughts in my head, I've written down inspiring quotes over the years.
Here's the link to Charles's inspiration page, so you can see some of Charles's own quoteskimming at work.
Friday: Rounding out the SBBT chez moi, and just in time for Poetry Friday, award-winning concrete poet and book designer, John Grandits.
Now, here's the wrinkle. John doesn't have a website. And so, I'm going to steal a little something from his work.
From Technically, It's Not My Fault, part of the poem from which the title is drawn, wherein the main character, Robert (age 11), explains how he decided to test Galileo's theory of the constancy of gravity by dropping a tomato and a cinder block out of an upstairs window at the same time. We'll say that this one relates to thinking things through before you start something:
Boy, did I ever learn a lesson - and that's the important thing, isn't it? I mean, even if you know something for a fact, like heavy stuff falls faster than light stuff, it's best to check it with a carefully planned scientific experiment. Oh, yeah, and I also learned not to drop concrete blocks out of the attic window. But in my opinion, the experiment was totally worth doing. There was just a slight mix-up, one tiny detail that went wrong, so even though the car has a concrete block sticking out of the roof, technically, IT'S NOT MY FAULT
And from his 2007 follow-up title, Blue Lipstick, which is told from the vantage point of Robert's fifteen-year old sister, Jessie. This one comes from a poem entitled "Mondrian", and includes a bit of conversation between Jessie and her dad, and it has to do with what life is like for an artist (or writer):
I said, "I wish I could do that when I grow up - make ultra-cool radical art." Dad said, "It's not easy to be creative." And I thought to myself, "You wouldn't believe how creative I have to be just to get through the day." He said, "It's tough being an artist. You've got to struggle for years. People often misunderstand your work. You've got to be thick-skinned because critics can be cruel. You don't have any money. And in many ways you're really alone." And I said, "It sounds like high school."
Come back this week for the actual interviews, won't you? And don't forget to check the full line-up over at Chasing Ray. There are some amazing authors and illustrators lined up for this year's Summer Blog Blast Tour!
It's Sunday, and although I didn't post last week, I've not forgotten about quoteskimming. And as this week marks the second annual Summer Blog Blast Tour (SBBT), organized by blogmistress extraordinaire, Colleen Mondor, over at Chasing Ray, I'm combining the two concepts into one post, savvy? Why would I do that? Well, I know I taunted you on May 5th about upcoming interviews, so let's just see how many interviews I have this week here at Writing and Ruminating:
Monday: You know her. You love her. The fabulous Laurie Halse Anderson will be here, talking about, well, books and stuff. Duh. But specifically, we'll be talking nonfiction and historical fiction. (You may want to have a gander at yesterday's book review of her forthcoming nonfiction picture book, Independent Dames.)
Here's what Laurie has to say about revision (taken from her FAQ section on her website):
I am a published author because I revise my books. Nobody writes a first draft that is good enough to be published. Authors spend most of their time revising and editing their work. I’ve been known to spend days on one page, trying hundreds of different ways to get the words in just the right order. I actually love revising my work. It’s the first draft - the yucky one - that is the hardest thing for me to write.
Tuesday: She's been a competitive cheerleader, a debutante, a model, a primate cognition researcher, a Fulbright scholar at Cambridge researching autism, and she's currently earning her Ph.D. Only one woman can fit that bill, and it happens to be the multi-faceted, multi-talented Jennifer Lynn Barnes.
What Jen has to say about writing (ganked from her FAQ page at her website:
I really cannot stress how important it is to actually sit down and write something every day. It doesn't have to be your masterpiece. It doesn't even have to be original fiction. Keep a journal. Write a scene that goes on the end of your favorite book or movie. Just write something every day.
Thursday: Boom-a-YAY! I'll be hosting the fascinating and multitalented Charles R. Smith, Jr., poet, photographer, and novelist. You may recall me raving about his award-winning book Twelve Rounds to Glory. Charles has a new book out about the Greek gods, illustrated by the wildly talented comic artist, P. Craig Russell, and a forthcoming novel, Chameleon set to launch this fall.
What Charles has to say about the power of positive thinking(from where? his website, of course):
Everything I've achieved in life, I've gotten from thinking positive. It sounds like such a simple thing, but if you believe you can do something and you are willing to put in the work, you'd be surprised at the results you get. To keep positive thoughts in my head, I've written down inspiring quotes over the years.
Here's the link to Charles's inspiration page, so you can see some of Charles's own quoteskimming at work.
Friday: Rounding out the SBBT chez moi, and just in time for Poetry Friday, award-winning concrete poet and book designer, John Grandits.
Now, here's the wrinkle. John doesn't have a website. And so, I'm going to steal a little something from his work.
From Technically, It's Not My Fault, part of the poem from which the title is drawn, wherein the main character, Robert (age 11), explains how he decided to test Galileo's theory of the constancy of gravity by dropping a tomato and a cinder block out of an upstairs window at the same time. We'll say that this one relates to thinking things through before you start something:
Boy, did I ever learn a lesson - and that's the important thing, isn't it? I mean, even if you know something for a fact, like heavy stuff falls faster than light stuff, it's best to check it with a carefully planned scientific experiment. Oh, yeah, and I also learned not to drop concrete blocks out of the attic window. But in my opinion, the experiment was totally worth doing. There was just a slight mix-up, one tiny detail that went wrong, so even though the car has a concrete block sticking out of the roof, technically, IT'S NOT MY FAULT
And from his 2007 follow-up title, Blue Lipstick, which is told from the vantage point of Robert's fifteen-year old sister, Jessie. This one comes from a poem entitled "Mondrian", and includes a bit of conversation between Jessie and her dad, and it has to do with what life is like for an artist (or writer):
I said, "I wish I could do that when I grow up - make ultra-cool radical art." Dad said, "It's not easy to be creative." And I thought to myself, "You wouldn't believe how creative I have to be just to get through the day." He said, "It's tough being an artist. You've got to struggle for years. People often misunderstand your work. You've got to be thick-skinned because critics can be cruel. You don't have any money. And in many ways you're really alone." And I said, "It sounds like high school."
Come back this week for the actual interviews, won't you? And don't forget to check the full line-up over at Chasing Ray. There are some amazing authors and illustrators lined up for this year's Summer Blog Blast Tour!