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As Juliet said, “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other word would smell as sweet.” Yet we writers place a lot of importance on names. Hours of research can go into finding the name that perfectly captures the time period, ethnicity, class, religion… you get the idea. The general …
On my drive to and from work I pass a river that runs through a park. Swans and geese dot the shore, while fishermen, hikers, and the occasional ultimate frisbeer scamper through the long grasses. It’s also a common hangout for cops, so I’m always careful to drive close to the speed limit. Yesterday on …
I’ve talked before about my lack of detail when describing characters, and a lot of that comes from my dislike of books that over-describe people. I usually don’t care what they’re wearing, how their hair is styled, or what their makeup looks like — unless it’s crucial to the story. I form a mental image …
*tee hee* Sorry, I never do April Fool’s jokes, and apparently my inability to keep a straight face in real life carries onto the internet as well. I can’t even go two seconds without giggling. No, my parents aren’t kicking me out, but I am one step closer to having my own place. Remember this …
(This was supposed to post in the morning. Sorry about the unplanned change in schedule.) Earlier tonight I joined an already-in-progress Spanish class, where I met a group of very nice people and got to practice my Spanish! I’ve been worried that I’ll lose my fluency the longer I’m away from Spanish speakers, and while …
I have my new Macbook! I went to the store Friday night fully expecting to have to wait another week before getting my baby, but they had what I wanted in stock! As you can imagine I spent the weekend installing software, transferring data, and figuring out how to carry such a honking laptop around. …
My beloved Mac, who’s stood by my side for almost seven years, will be put to rest in the next few days. Starting with that first journey from the Apple Store on Chicago’s Michigan Avenue, to a four-day trip across the US and Mexico buried beneath a pile of boxes and clothes so no one …
Not me, but I’m so excited you’d think I was the one who sold my first book. My dear friend Stacey Graham announced Monday that Sourcebooks has bought The Girls’ Ghost Hunting Guide! This is the same Stacey who lured me to Seattle to play with zombies (and convinced me to photograph myself doing yoga …
How was your weekend? Did you do anything exciting? Aside from enjoying a leisurely four-day weekend that included a yummy dinner with my family, shopping and watching Black Swan with my sister, and lots of play time with Owen, I also Skyped with Erica for an hour and a half and plotted the rest of …
To mark my birthday yesterday I wrote a post called It’s Not Easy Being Green for An Army of Ermas. The post should be up mid-morning — go check it out! ETA: Link is live. There’s a picture!