Holly GoLightly (my bike, #2) out and about.Listening to: Feeling a bit blue? Listen to some of this! (No mood can withstand some Motown!)
Today's Bliss Formula: Every time I go to the orthodontist to get my rubber bands changed, I am one month closer to getting my braces OFF. I am over the halfway point. YAY!
Starting my new very part time job at the library has just been one more excuse on my lists of excuses for not dusting off my novel and getting down in the dirt with my last, and most difficult, revision.
I mean, I had a new job to learn, right? And I am blogging, for goodness sake, doesn't that count for something!?
In the meantime, my head swims with new ideas, and I just write little notes to myself for "later." When will later come?
Sooner than I thought. Thanks to a member of my old writing group, who just won't stop asking if the writing group could start up again.
Thank Seshat* for him!
(*Egyptian goddess of writing and poetry.)
I try and try to put him off, but alas, he is more persistent than my lazy writing self would like him to be. That procrastinating writing self that would be happy (though pretending not to be) if he would just let it go.
So I emailed a couple of others, and low and behold, I have the minimum number of aspiring novelists agreeing to weekly meetings. And these are all committed and hardworking people.
Damn!
In honor of he who shall not be named (or we could call him -- lovingly -- Mr. PainInMyAss), I thought I would share a list of novels/novelists that, when I am teaching creative writing, I encourage writers to read.
1. Anything by Barbara Kingsolver. She is one of our greatest living writers, to be sure. The Poisonwood Bible, in particular, is a masterpiece of narrative voice. Pigs in Heaven is one of the most emotional books I've ever read.
2. Anything by Joanne Harris. This woman is a perfect illustration of writing from all the senses. Her books could be the very definition of sensual. I love especially Blackberry Wine.
3. White Oleander by Janet Fitch.
4. Even if you don't think you like him because of high school, read Ernest Hemingway. Pay attention to how he accomplishes so much with so little. One of his very last novels, The Garden of Eden, is very strange and wonderful and could completely change your mind about him.
5. Wintering by Kate Moses. When I read this book, I didn't know if I could ever read anything again. It still has to be the best new book I've read in a decade. Moses took ten years to research and write this novelization of the last six months of Sylvia Plath's life. But do not mistake it for some sick re-visioning -- it could easily be about any woman going through a difficult time and struggling to create great art.
6. Don't think you like science fiction? I was there once. Please read The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell. Science fiction may seem that it is about aliens and first contacts, but really, it is about our place in a specific context; it is about theology and philosophy and all those giant existential questions. Science fiction is where the important issues are explored. Science fiction is BIG and expansive.
7. Neil Gaiman. I love Neverwhere, but American Gods is worth reading, too. Mr. Neil is writing across all genres and writing personal stories that are also mythological.
8. Have you not read Mrs. Dalloway!? One of the best and most important novels EVER. Virginia Woolf changed everything with this book. If you tried before, try again. And from personal experience, Mrs. Dalloway should be read outside...by some water...when you're alone.
9. Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. I put off reading this book. I was being stubborn. Now it's a book I'll read a few times.
10. Reread The Great Gatsby. First of all, you'll be amazed to read this at a different age than most of use first read it -- 17? It has a lot more depth than a 17 year old can notice. Further, it is still 100% relevant. But admire how beautiful every sentence is. Admire the art of F. Scott Fitzgerald. My favorite scene: when Nick meets Jordan for the first time, she is sitting with Daisy on a small couch in a hallway. The breeze....oh, just read it!
11. White Apples by Jonathan Carroll. This was the first book I read -- a few years ago this happened -- that when I was reading it and when I was done, I was jealous that I hadn't written it. I wanted to have written this book. I've never had that feeling before.
12. Smila's Sense of Snow by Peter Hoeg. A Danish writer of immense skill and talent, Peter also recently wrote The Quiet Girl.
A list like this is truly impossible to write, but these are some of my favorites right at this moment, right off the top of my head.
Challenging yourself as a reader is so important to your writer self. So push your edges and read things you wouldn't normally read. I am a bit of a snob (that's what a graduate degree in literature does to you), so my challenge is to occasionally read something really, super popular. Most of the time, these books completely fulfill my expectations of their mediocrity, but once in a while, I am pleasantly surprised.
I know there are quite a few aspiring novelists/memoirists who read blisschick, so what would you recommend?
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5 comments:
Currently I am in a food memoirs phase -- one that I loved is "Talking with my Mouth Full" by Bonnie Wolf -- it's just the right interplay of memories, culture, food, growing up ... Wanted to stop by your blog and let you know how much I enjoy it -- I have been reading a while, but I felt like I should delurk.
You would think that someone with a library of over 2500 books would be able to make a recommendation..... or, come to think of it, maybe not. There are, obviously, a LOT of authors that I enjoy or appreciate - all of them different, all for different reasons. And I find new ones all the time, thank you for the recommendations.
I'm so glad that you included sci fi authors, I think they go largely unappreciated.
I've known people who only read "serious literature" and look down their noses at what they call "trash, or fluff, when they're being charitable". That soooo annoys me. How can you discount an author you haven't read?! Oh, there are bad writers, but they can appear absolutely anywhere - as can the really good writers, often where you least expect it. And there are those I know who only read the books on the best seller list or the Oprah list - I'm not saying they may not be worth reading, but, good grief, don't let someone else convince they know exclusively "what is worth reading"!
A "good book" is any book that holds your attention through an afternoon, has you laughing out loud in public even, keeps you on the edge of your seat, transports you to some other local, time or relm, teaches you something or leaves you thinking long after you've put it down. It can be a novel, fantasy, sci fi, biography, mystery, travelogue or even (gasp) romance.
I have discovered authors who have written and been published by on-line company rather then the accepted paper press - some of those can be very good. Also podcast books, where an author publishes their own book through a podcast. Is it only "good" once they've gone to an acceptable publisher? I don't think so.
I have come to appreciate authors who wrote tales reflecting their own time and place. Because years later you can pick up the book and get a picture of life in a world that actually once was. It is not that someone cannot create a world and it be just as enduring, perhaps, weirdly, more so; and certainly, you can explore a lot of questions that way. But for me there is something fascinating about an author giving you a glimpse into the past they knew.
Hmmm, I think I've totally gotten off track. Anyway, I don't have a recommendation - and appreciate yours.
Write on!
I read all the time...but rarely treat myself with a good novel. Out of your list of recommended reading I've only read "Smila's Sense of Snow"--which left me spellbound...and of course "The Great Gatsby" From Fitgerald, I prefer "Tender is the Night"--I think I've read that book three times. I used to have a beloved copy with goldleaf on the page edges...but when I moved a couple years ago I gave it to a dear friend. That's one book I sometimes miss. But one book I've really enjoyed reading was "Three Junes" by Julia Glass. It's excellent.
Peace & Love.
PS I love the MJ---that song and PYT are my favorites!!! You have awesome taste in music...always!
Thanks for the book recommendations. I am at a hard place in my writing, and a break with some good stories, might just turn me back to it. All 4 of us are writers. Joshua, my husband, writes horror and sci fi (he is currently not writing, too busy at work). Our son, Mike, is writing a fantasy novel. Our daughter, Melanie, is a poet and writes from a place seldom seen in a 15 year old. And then there's me. I really never thought about writing until last year when I was hospitalized for depression. While I was there, the words just flowed. Again, thanks for the recommendations.
B
Brandy -- It sounds like you are fortunate to live in such a creative house. Amazing about your son and daughter. City Girl -- thanks for delurking! :) And a food memoir sounds wonderful. I go through memoir stages too. At one point I read all these books by high powered, drama queen chefs. Fun stuff. Connie -- You also have awesome taste in music! :) Rebecca, I assume your books are as ordered as your new paints? :)
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