The Girdle of Melian

ishlists! I shared a wishlist a couple of years ago and, as I've racked up a few items since then, thought I might share one again. I've gotten all the items on my 2012 list except two: Mugs and coffee from TimPeaks , which was (sort-of) started by Tim Burgess of the Charlatans. A subscription to the Sunday New York Times . Or even the Telegraph or the Guardian . It costs about 1000 dollars to receive each one in Geneva. Scary. There's always at least one Tolkien item on my wishlist; this year it's the latest editions of some of his short stories, with new commentary, from the official Tolkien book shop. A colouring book from artist Pete McKee ! And the last item on my list is a coffee table. Not just any table, though. I need a flat surface that's about the width of a sheet of printer paper, which hovers nearby. Mainly so that when I'm settled with book (or notebook or iPad) and baby, I have a convenient place to rest my coffee mug. No

logging buddies! I'm so far behind in comments! Thank you all for coming by and commenting on my last few posts. I'm going to try visiting many of you today and as I do, I thought I'd highlight a few here: Zan Marie at In the Shade of the Cherry Tree features an interview with brilliant author Joanna Bourne today! I love what Jo says here: "I want happy endings. I want heroes and heroines. I want brave, clever, principled characters who behave well under difficult circumstances. So I write Romance." Pam at A Novel Woman shares photos, hilarious stories, and makes Montreal look good! Forgotten Bookmarks gives away a collection of vintage books every week. Ayak is an English lady living in Turkey; she blogs about her experiences at Ayak's Turkish Life . She's also a rescuer and caretaker of abused street/stray dogs. Please donate if you feel inclined! Then there's Trisha , who's rescuing cats! Pop Sensation has a great time showcas

ooks galore! I've been reading a lot in the last week or so. Here are a few of the books and stories: The Art of Asking by Amanda Palmer I tweeted about this yesterday and today. I'm always impressed by writers who can take real life and distill it into a lesson, a moral, a story . I tend to find it hard to connect the dots of real life events. Amanda does it brilliantly. Hansel and Gretel by Neil Gaiman A brilliant retelling of the classic fairy tale. Isn't it sad that when, in the middle of the tale, he writes "Gretel and Hansel" it jumps out at you? Why does the boy's name tend to come first? The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman Another retelling, of Snow White and Sleeping Beauty's stories. I love what he did with Snow White's character. I do wish dwarfs had been pluralised dwarves, but I guess they're not the same creatures as Tolkien's dwarves. Really intriguing spin on Sleeping Beauty's tale. A

ational Novel Writing Month is here! It's also Insecure Writer's Support Group 's Day, and so, inspired by Tina Hayes' NaNo Survival Kit and Lauralynn Elliott's post on Tools of the Trade , I'm sharing my own Writing Survival Kit: 1. My favourite pen and a brand new notebook. The notebook can't be too shiny and pretty though; the more attractive it is, the more I worry that my words won't be good enough for its pages. Many times I'll start writing from the back of the notebook and only return to the front pages once I'm in the swing of a story and more confident in its development. Hence: 1b. Do what works for you. There's lots of advice out there for writers, but none of it seems to come with the important caveat that a writer need not follow any of it. Use all the -ly words you wish, while typing your novel on the back of a truck in the wind (a la John Cleese in that Monty python sketch), just do what works. That said, 2. Get the