"They are future ninjas for Christ."

John Scalzi with some Script Notes on The Birth of Jesus


I'm posting this today because several people are getting responses to their requested fulls from me today.  This blog post is to say "hey, at least I don't want you to include ninjas for Christ in those revisions. Or product placement!"

oh yes indeed!

One of the funniest things I've seen in a while. Well worth the 8 minute run time.

 Thanks to poor dead @JedCullan for the link

Time for a spring tea party!

Guess which kind of tea party we'll be hosting here at The Reef from now on?

May your Sunday be an Ode to Joy!

Ain't Misbehavin'!

This post about kicking the grammar police upside the head resonated with me.  I'm guilty of at least six of the items on this list, and most likely more.

I really loved #3 though because two of my authors dealt with that in copy edits this year.

But I still hate irregardless.

Take a look at the list and tell me what you think of it!

You'll never look at Project Runway the same way again

thanks to the amazing @BarbaraRogan for the link

Here's the story from Ms Magazine

The smiling white haired man you'll notice at about the half way marker is NYT fashion guy Bill Cunningham.

A new art form

There's a new art form out and about in the world: Amazon reviews.  A lot of authors anguish about 1-star reviews for things like prices, delivery and "too much swearing" I sympathize.  But
at least you're not getting reviews like this one.

Not to mention my all-time favorite one: the three wolves shirt, although the Bic-For-Her pens give it a good run.

And the best ones are the people who are missing the irony gene and answer the questions seriously: Tuscan Milk Q&A (last entry)

(It's going to take you some time to read these reviews...don't start if you've got to be at work in five minutes, or the kids are hungry.)



It's hard to write funny but these reviews make it look easy.  I'm not sure what to call these amazing bits of creative genius. Review isn't right, essay isn't either.

Any ideas?

A bun showed up at the office today

He looked cutty eyed at us as we were foxing.  Our Kate pulled out her barking irons and we soon sent him out to the leaf.

Getting out your Google Translator? You'll have better luck here in the Rogue's Lexicon!

I'm thinking we need these words in a writing contest one of these days!

(Thanks to blog reader April for the link!)

Tag, you're not it!

You know how you learn something new every day?

Some of those things aren't quite as fun to learn as others.

Here's a very illuminating blog post from Wendy Thomas about tagging the photos you put online.

"Mammo grahams" by Wendy Thomas

Who should you listen to?

An interesting viewpoint about listening to "unsuccessful" rather than famous writers for advice in Salon.

I think this article has a valid point but would caution readers to know the difference between writers who aren't "successful" and writers who haven't  had any success at all: the know-it-alls in advice chat rooms who've never been published but know how everything works.  Or the grammar enforcers who don't understand style.

So, rather than unsuccessful, I would say look to the yeoman writers, the people slogging away in the field every day. The people who are working hard but not (yet) raking it in.

Well, good morning to you too!

I'm at Bouchercon with 3000 other rabid mystery fans, and pretty much not thinking about anything other than books, booze, and trying to find out who decided Albany was a good location for a conference.

This morning I had a couple extra minutes before my first breakfast meeting (early breakfast meeting, breakfast meeting, brunch meeting--rack 'em and stack 'em!)

I thought I'd check in on the outside world to see what was going on.

Here's what I found when I googled the New York Times

Turns out quite a few things changed while I've been away!
















(check the right side of the image. It's the Wikipedia listing for the NYT---or was until they saw the "edit")

Have a lovely day of rest

ruthlessly lifted from Things Organized Neatly one of my favorite blogs,  and they got it here

Ring of Fire

The love story of June Carter and Johnny Cash from This American Life. Runs about 10 minutes (and is safe for work but there is music!)

"We're going to need a bigger vacuum"

@aboy!

I'm a devoted fan of twitter and the world it offers to us.  Here's a wonderful blog post by, of all people, a medieval scholar, about how he started having fun and being productive on Twitter.

The only thing to say is @aboy!

(thanks for the heads up on this Mrs. Grant!)

oh yes!

thanks to Joelle Anthony for the link!

How to get your writing career started

tip of the hat to Editor Amazing for the link found here.

"go make something"

Sacré Livres BatHomme

The American Library in Paris is sponsoring a prize for the best book of the year in English about France or the French-American encounter.

The American Library in Paris has attracted and celebrated writers for all of its ninety-two years. The Library was created in part as a memorial to a young American poet, Alan Seeger, who wrote the well-known poem “I have a rendezvous with death” not long before he died in action in France in 1916. One of the Library’s founding trustees was Edith Wharton. Ernest Hemingway and Gertrude Stein, among many other writers of note, contributed reviews to the Library’s literary magazine, Ex Libris. Stephen Vincent Benet composed John Brown’s Body at the Library. And authors of every generation have worked and spoken at the Library: Ford Madox Ford, Archibald MacLeish, Colette,  Henry Miller, André Gide, Anaïs Nin, James Baldwin, Irwin Shaw, James Jones, and Mary McCarthy, to name a few.

Today the Library is the pre-eminent center in Paris for evening talks by prominent authors who write in English. The Library now looks to extend its commitment to outstanding writing by awarding an annual literary prize under the supervision of its Writer’s Council. A generous grant from the Florence Gould Foundation has allowed us to make this idea a reality.

There are more details here!

A tip of the chapeau to blog reader Angie Brooksby for info!

#26Acts

This Yes yes yes.


When I thought about what I could do, I realized that it would have to be something completely unrelated to publishing, critiquing, querying, editing. I want to do something that has no chance of benefiting me professionally.

I'm not sure what it is yet, but I'm thinking.

I found this article at The Striped Nickle. Thanks Anna!