The Top 3 Books I've Read in 2011:
- Divergent by Veronica Roth: This book is numero uno for a reason, namely It Rocked. Strong heroine (like real life strong, not stereotypical strong)? Check. Fast paced plot? Check. High stakes? Check. Artfully drawn world with real characters who surprise you in the best and worst ways possible? Double freakin' check. A gorgeous dystopian that pulls no punches. This is a YA book, but really, if you haven't read YA lately (and by lately, I mean the past six or seven years), you don't know what you're missing. Fantastic.
- Sandman Slim by Richard Kadrey: Okay, here's the deal. I like all genres of fiction, from romance to literary to horror, but my preferred stomping grounds are fantasy and urban fantasy, pulp/noir, horror, and light sci-fi. Any authors who can whip a little black comedy on the aforementioned genres shoot straight to the top of my list, which is how Mr. Slim arrives at numero dos. This violently funny noir urban fantasy mashup is one of the most fun reads I've had in a good long while, and sequels have not disappointed. Highly recommended.
- 11/22/63 by Stephen King: Another recent read. I'm a huge King fan, so to those who know me, this is no surprise. What may be a surprise is that this isn't a typical King horror novel. Horrifying things happen, to be sure, particularly when King takes his readers back to Derry. However, the novel is more of a meaty exploration of greater and lesser evils and the lengths to which we'd go to uphold our ideals. A tremendously thoughtful novel.
My Top 3 Favorite Blogs for Writers:
- Nathan Bransford's Blog: Former agent, current writer, all around font of literary knowledge. Really, if you can't find it here, you can't find it anywhere.
- Miss Snark's First Victim: An excellent site where Authoress (our hostess) single-handedly provides a multitude of opportunities for critique, as well as monthly agent contests. A great resource and fantastic community.
- Query Shark: Because you need to learn how to query properly somewhere, why not in the deepest waters around?
- Runners up: Writer Beware, Terribleminds, Pub Rants, Bookends, LLC, and, though it's not a blog, if you're a writer and you're not a member of the Absolute Write Water Cooler, what are you waiting for?
My Tippy Top, Most Favorite Writing Thing of 2011:
- Scrivener for Windows: Scrivener writing software has been out for the Mac OS for years, and for years, I have been jealous of Mac users. (And not just because I can't afford one.) No longer. Scrivener arrived on my Windows laptop in fully operational capacity this fall, and I am in Love. Love, I tell you. I cannot adequately describe the ways in which I love this software, nor the reasons for that love, without making this one of the Top 3 Longest Blog Posts Ever, so follow the link if you're curious. Just know that, if used to its fullest capacity, it will make your writing more organized than ever it has been before. It. Is. Awesome. Also, I got it half-price with my NaNoWriMo winner's code from 2010 even though the code had technically expired. (They were still beta-testing when expiration time came 'round.) If you've won NaNo recently, you may want to check and see if there's a code you can use.
Some brief housekeeping to round out 2011. I put purple in my hair. You can barely see it. I am appropriately bummed. However, my fingernails are an energetic shade of reddish pink that goes surprisingly well with my skin tone and warns others of my biting chihuahua, so I've got that going for me. Tuesday: Resolutions!
See you all in 2012. Happy New Year, everyone!
Oooh, I just downloaded a free trial of Scrivener of Windows. If that sucker can get me organized, it'll be a true miracle worker.
ReplyDeleteI got Scrivener for my BDay - I struggled with the tutorial, but once I saw the 10 minute video at the website I was up and running and loving it!!
ReplyDeleteI'm loving you with the visual of your purple streaks & your red fingernails.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I'm so impressed with your reading variety.
I veer off the path sometimes but I steer right back onto romance genre in some form.
It's my roots & I don't stray very far of very long.
Maybe that's why you always add so much to any conversation with your different perspective - oh and your awesome wit, of course!
A-hem! We do TOO want to hear about snacks and sweats. Well, I do.
ReplyDeleteGreat round up. I won't be doing one, I barely acknowledge that it's a new year, so I'm always glad when you don't buck trends. Because you do it so creatively. ;)
Julie
(Nice fireworks in the background. Tell Magnum, I noticed.)
Oh, and I forgot to mention, it might not have been you over at Kewl Kate's place. Did you get a 404 error? I did.
ReplyDelete@Linda, I'm telling you, I love the thing. I hope it works for you.
ReplyDelete@Judie, Isn't it great? I write in it all the time now. Word? What's Word?
@Judy, I wish the purple streaks came out visible. I'll have to try more colors to see if I can get a better result. ;p
@Julie, The fireworks are just for the New Year. We'll be back to normal soon. Also, M&Ms and black yoga pants with white stripes.
Thank you, was THAT so damn difficult?!
ReplyDelete(Crap, there's still some M&Ms up there near the tree....)
(Yeah, I figured the new bit was seasonal.)
Have used Scrivener for years and it's so marvy! I recommend it for students too, it's great for paper writing.
ReplyDelete@Julie, Well kind of. Because my preferred snack food changes, you know. I also like junior mints, lemonheads, and pretzels. ;)
ReplyDelete@London, I've been using another program called PageFour, which is similar, but much more simplified. I still prefer it for short story writing. For novels, though, I am thoroughly smitten with Scrivener.
The SmartEdit function of PageFour looks great! Alas now I need a Mac version! lol
ReplyDeletehttp://www.smart-edit.com/
I've got mixed feelings about Scrivener. I like it, except that when I export I loose my formatting. I need an assistant to help me with crap.
ReplyDeleteNow I'm going to have to add those books to my TBR pile.
Happy New Year, D!
@London, That smart edit feature has gotten smarter since I bought my copy. I have the word frequency thing, but no cliche finder. Now I'm jealous. ;p
ReplyDelete@Kate, I haven't tried to export in it yet, so I've not run into that problem. I'll have to check it out. For working, it's a dream. (The books are good.)
Kate - When I click on "export" it gives Word as an option for formatting, if that's what you're exporting to. ?
ReplyDeleteDelia - You can download SmartEdit for free on its own! So you should be able to get the latest edition. (But not moi... cause of my macitude. Sadness.)
@London, See what I get for not looking closely enough? I'll be downloading that nifty little feature toute de suite. Thanks for the heads-up!
ReplyDeleteI'm excited that you got the purple put in your hair and totally bummed that is hasn't turned out the way you hoped. You should still feel cool though.
ReplyDelete@Kris, I always feel cool, even when I'm decidedly lame. :) I'll figure out a way to get some color in there. Darn it.
ReplyDelete