Tag Archives: TBR Tuesday

TBR Tuesday: Writing craft books

Shocker: one of my favorite types of books to read? Writing craft books. Here are a few of my favorites that I reference over and over again (Amazon affiliate links—I get a tiny percent of any purchase you might make within 24 hours of following one of these links; it costs you nothing and helps me out.)

Story Engineering by Larry Brooks I’ve used Larry Brooks’s story structure in every successful story I’ve written since I first encountered it.
Save the Cat! by Blake Snyder Like Story Engineering, Save the Cat! has become a staple in my story structure outline. (In fact, I combined the two to create the plotting roadmap freebie you get when you join my newsletter.)
Scene & Structure by Jack Bickham This model for scene structure is another that I use every. single. time.
How to Write a Damn Good Novel by James N. Frey This was one of the first books on writing craft I read that went deeper than the basic principles of line editing, and Frey’s books taught me a ton about creating character sympathy. It’ll always have a special place in my heart for that.
Writing the Breakout Novel by Donald Maass With a forward by Anne Perry, who gave a PHENOMENAL keynote at the LDStorymakers Writers’ Conference last week, this book of writing advice from an agent/author is a perennial classic. It also comes with a workbook, but having read all of his stuff, I’d actually recommend starting with The Breakout Novelist, as it covers most of the material in his other books.

What do you think? What are your favorite books on writing craft?

TBR Tuesday: College reads

Last week, I confessed that I actually enjoyed several books I read in high school. As you might suspect, I liked some of my college reads, too.

But there’s also a confession in here: although I minored in English (and like literature), I took one literature class in my entire college career. I had to read for every class, but not a whole lot of those reading lists included novels.

Absalom, Absalom! by William Faulkner The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
Definitely a complex text, but I liked how it felt. (How else does one understand Faulkner?) Who doesn’t love a tragedy about a man who lets his social inhibitions rule his life? Oh. Just me.
The Crucible by Arthur Miller Native Son by Richard Wright
I’d already seen the movie and the play by the time I read the text, so it was most interesting to compare the interpretations—but everyone loves a good witch hunt! Riveting, raw and so so real. I found this much more moving and accessible than similar works I’ve read.

 

(Can I just take a minute to criticize some of these cover designs? I mean, what the heck is that supposed to be on The Age of Innocence? You can’t read the back cover copy so you slap on some painting of something?? Is The Crucible supposed to be set in Amish country??)

Some of the nonfiction I liked included Jefferson Davis, American by William J. Cooper, Jr., and The Slave Community: Plantation Life in the Antebellum South by John Blassingame. Hm . . . these six books were actually for only two classes, the American Novel 1914-1960 and History of the American South. I wonder which came first: liking the class or liking the texts?

What do you think? What did you read in college that stuck with you? What are you reading now?

TBR Tuesday: High school reads

In high school, the cool thing to do is complain about your assigned texts. I didn’t always enjoy them, but I usually didn’t complain just because we were assigned Hawthorne, Dickens or Shakespeare. I mean, hey, it might seem a bit archaic (though you’re talking to somebody who grew up with the King James Version of the Bible, so archaic doesn’t always mean unintelligible), but we get to read fiction for school!

Also, I was a lit geek. Aside from being in the International Baccalaureate (read: “AP isn’t AP enough for us”), my extracurriculars included running the literary magazine. Yeeeah. (Hm. This may be a lot closer to “nerd” than “geek.”)

So here are a few of the text I was assigned to read in high school that—don’t tell anyone—I actually enjoyed.

The Scarlet Letter Ethan Frome Romeo and Juliet
I liked seeing the strictures of Puritan society in action and reading about a woman who refused to be defined by her past sins, and I loved the tragic irony. Made me an Edith Wharton fan ‘Nuff said, amiright?
 
Macbeth Heart of Darkness The Great Gatsby
Hey, who doesn’t like to see a jerk get his comeuppance? I loved the justice of the man who hated the taint of death in a lie lying when the truth was too dark, too dark altogether. Favorite. Book. Ever. Love the tragedy of selling one’s soul for a dream that’s already long dead.

Hm . . . I’d say the universal theme of tragedy here has something to do with being a melodramatic teenager . . . except that I’m pretty sure my tastes haven’t changed. And yet I’ve never written a tragedy. Strange.

What do you think? Did you enjoy anything you read in high school? What are you reading now? Did you know you could add I, Spy to your Goodreads TBR? Come share what you’re reading!

TBR Tuesday: Maternity leave reads & reviews

What are you reading? Here are a few of the books I’ve been reading while not sleeping. (Yay, newbornhood.)

First up, I recently read Band of Sisters: Coming Home by Annette Lyon, a birthday present to myself. The sequel to Band of Sisters, Coming Home follows the same five National Guard wives as their soldiers return home (or don’t), following the problems of re-entry. Some of the storylines that were left hanging a little bit in the first novel (especially Jessie’s!) are more fully resolved in the sequel. And, of course, I cried many times, like you’re supposed to with any good women’s fiction novel 😉 .


In case you’ve missed it, I’ve spent the last year reading nonfiction about the CIA. I really wanted to see the movie Argo, but I’m not so big on violence. When I saw that there was also a book version of Argo by Tony Mendez & Matt Baglio, I jumped on it.

If you missed the movie trailers, in 1979, Iranian “students” overran the American embassy. They held the staffers there hostage for 444 days. But six Americans escaped from the embassy and became “houseguests” of Canadian diplomats. Argo tells the story of the audacious rescue mission: turning the minor diplomatic officials into a movie crew for a fake movie to get them out of Iran safely.

If you’ve read Tony Mendez’s first book, The Master of Disguise: My Secret Life in the CIA (currently <$4 on Kindle), there’s a lot of repeated information from Mendez’s POV. However, this book does add a more in-depth account from the houseguests’ point of view. Even having read Master of Disguise, I enjoyed this account.


I read almost everything my best friend recommends to me. I’d heard some praise for Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein before she recommended it, but once she said she enjoyed it, I put a hold on it at the library that day.

So. Worth. It.

Code Name Verity is the “confession” of a captured Scottish spy, a teenage girl, in World War II. But it’s not just a story about the war. It’s the story of two friends, the spy and her pilot Maddie, and the sacrifices they make for one another—and the true price of friendship. I bawled. Okay, I read this the same week I had the baby, so it’s not like it’s hard to make me cry, but still.

What are you reading? When is the last time a book made you cry?

TBR Tuesday: Giveaway winners!

Thanks to everyone who sent birthday wishes and entered my birthday giveaway! Here are the lucky winners!

#1
Variant
by Robison Wells (hardcover)

Variant Winner: Emily Gray Clawson!

#2
Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon
(paperback)

Carrier Winner: Gaynell!

#3
Fool Me Twice by Stephanie Black
(Kindle)

Fool Me Twice Winner: James Duckett!

I’ll be emailing the winners to get delivery information today!

TBR Tuesday: The maternity leave reading list

So I’ve got some catching up to do with some of my favorite authors. But that’s not all that’s on my reading list this month!


With a Name like Love by Tess Hilmo

When Ollie’s daddy, the Reverend Everlasting Love, pulls their travel trailer into Binder to lead a three-day revival, Ollie knows that this town will be like all the others they visit—it is exactly the kind of nothing Ollie has come to expect. But on their first day in town, Ollie meets Jimmy Koppel, whose mother is in jail for murdering his father. Jimmy insists that his mother is innocent, and Ollie believes him. Still, even if Ollie convinces her daddy to stay in town, how can two kids free a grown woman who has signed a confession? Ollie’s longing for a friend and her daddy’s penchant for searching out lost souls prove to be a formidable force in this tiny town where everyone seems bent on judging and jailing without a trial.

This book has the honor of winning two Whitney Awards last May (Best Young Adult and Best Novel by a New Author), and I was fortunate enough to get to co-present one of those awards. Seems like it’s about time I caught up with this one!



I Am Not A Serial Killer by Dan Wells

John Wayne Cleaver is dangerous, and he knows it.

He’s spent his life doing his best not to live up to his potential.

He’s obsessed with serial killers, but really doesn’t want to become one. So for his own sake, and the safety of those around him, he lives by rigid rules he’s written for himself, practicing normal life as if it were a private religion that could save him from damnation.

Dead bodies are normal to John. He likes them, actually. They don’t demand or expect the empathy he’s unable to offer. Perhaps that’s what gives him the objectivity to recognize that there’s something different about the body the police have just found behind the Wash-n-Dry Laundromat—and to appreciate what that difference means.

Now, for the first time, John has to confront a danger outside himself, a threat he can’t control, a menace to everything and everyone he would love, if only he could.

Another Whitney Award–winner I need to catch up with. I’m a little hesitant since horror is really not my thing, but I can give it a shot, right?

If it doesn’t work out, I have a backup plan:


Partials by Dan Wells

The human race is all but extinct after a war with Partials—engineered organic beings identical to humans—has decimated the population. Reduced to only tens of thousands by RM, a weaponized virus to which only a fraction of humanity is immune, the survivors in North America have huddled together on Long Island while the Partials have mysteriously retreated. The threat of the Partials is still imminent, but, worse, no baby has been born immune to RM in more than a decade. Our time is running out.

Kira, a sixteen-year-old medic-in-training, is on the front lines of this battle, seeing RM ravage the community while mandatory pregnancy laws have pushed what’s left of humanity to the brink of civil war, and she’s not content to stand by and watch. But as she makes a desperate decision to save the last of her race, she will find that the survival of humans and Partials alike rests in her attempts to uncover the connections between them—connections that humanity has forgotten, or perhaps never even knew were there.

My sister gave this to my husband for Christmas, so it’s just waiting for me!



Second Chances by Melanie Jacobson

After walking out of a thankless job at a prestigious marketing firm, feisty California entrepreneur Louisa Gibson is going into business for herself. Lou’s pioneering venture, The Mormon Bachelor, is a reality dating web series sure to be fabulous advertising for her new marketing firm. And as a bonus, she can solve a problem close to home: while Huntington Beach is crawling with eligible, sun-bronzed Saints, they’ve forgotten the vital skill of dating. Lou hopes the reality show will finally inspire this group of hangout enthusiasts to pair off. But shortly before filming begins, the unthinkable happens—Trentyn, a.k.a. The Bachelor, gets a girlfriend. And Lou needs a new leading man—fast.

Enter Nick, Lou’s devastatingly handsome ex-boyfriend. He’s the stereotypical actor: shallow, self-serving . . . and perfect for the job. A whirlwind of dating ensues, with Nick at the center of it all. Things are going according to plan—that is, until Lou is forced to step in as a substitute bachelorette, becoming an unwitting cast member on her own show. Despite Nick’s attempts to reestablish their friendship and the growing spark between them, Lou is determined to keep her distance. The show must go on—but what’s a girl to do when the Mr. Wrong of the past just may be the Mr. Right of the future?

I’m two books behind on Melanie? Yikes!


And another friend I’m way behind on!

The Newport Ladies Book Club: Paige and

Band of Sisters: Coming Home

by Annette Lyon

After a bitter divorce from her unfaithful husband, Paige moves from Utah to California with her two little boys and vows to make a fresh start. She finds a job at a dental practice that helps her get back on her feet, but it’s the friends she makes at her new book club who help her realize how strong she is and who give her support to carry on as she faces the challenges of being a single mom. She also meets Derryl, a wonderful, kind, attentive man who treats her right—something her ex never did. Yet, Paige struggles to figure out who she is as a woman rather than a wife, how to help her boys adjust to a broken home, and whether she can ever trust a man or love again. As Paige leans on the book club ladies and Derryl’s ever-present care, one thing becomes clear: healing from the past requires more than a change of address. Five women became fast friends when their husbands were deployed to Afghanistan. But as they welcome the soldiers home, what should be a joyful time soon becomes painful. Kim, who had a baby while her husband was away, knows how to be a mother but has forgotten how to be a wife. Nora, accustomed to taking care of herself during the long years of her husband’s absence, resents having to forfeit her independence. Jess’s already troubled marriage turns dangerous, while Brenda struggles to manage her husband,s psychological trauma. And Marianne faces her crushing loss, compounded with worry over wayward children. Each woman must draw upon her bond of friendship and faith to find the strength, courage, and insight needed to move forward, proving that even the hardest of trials cannot break this loyal band of sisters.

So that’s 10 books so far. . . . Must! Read! More!

What are you reading? Any recommendations?

TBR Tuesday: Look, Ma, I read!

I usually don’t read while drafting a novel. But I took a break from drafting in the middle of March-a-thon for . . . well, mostly for my sanity! Here’s what I read:

I picked up Sarah Eden’s latest novel, Drops of Gold, when the Kindle edition was on sale, and it was exactly what I needed that Sunday. (At $4.99, it’s still a pretty good deal!)

When her father dies and leaves her completely destitute, Marion can think of only one thing to do–make a new life for herself. Commencing a life of duplicity, Marion transforms herself into Mary Wood–governess. In possession of a forged letter of recommendation and cloaked in the anonymity of her new identity, she enters a life of self-imposed servitude as teacher and caretaker of young Miss Caroline Jonquil of Farland Meadows. Her idyllic daydream vision of life at the Meadows is dashed when she finds a child desperately in need of hope and a cold and sorrowful home haunted by the past. With her characteristic sunny disposition, Marion casts her spell upon the household and slowly brings to life the long-forgotten joy of those within.

Layton Jonquil is a man tormented by the lies surrounding the death of his late wife, but he cannot deny his growing attraction for the beautiful governess whose goodness and optimism have touched his dormant heart. Their connection grows ever stronger, and despite the impropriety of harboring feelings for a servant, Layton’s heart whispers that this is the woman he’s destined to love. But when Layton’s fears about the past become too much to bear and the falsehoods in which they are entangled threaten to shatter his and Marion’s blossoming attachment, will true love conquer all?

My take: I don’t normally read a lot of Regency romance, but I really loved this. I especially loved the heroine’s characterization. Despite the tragedy she’s seen, she’s so full of life that it comes out in her stories, her laugh and even her unruly hair! Seriously, she’s just such a rounded, integrated character, that even if I hadn’t really enjoyed the story, I would’ve been glad I read the book.

Fortunately, I also enjoyed the story! The heroine is so well-suited to the hero’s emotional wound, as well. And yes, I cried. A bunch. (I’m a mom who never sleeps. It doesn’t take much.) But amazingly, I didn’t actually resent these tears. That’s saying a lot.


I also finished Spy the Lie by Philip Houston, Michael Floyd, & Susan Carnicero. I’ve mentioned it a couple times, but now that I’m done, I can safely say I loved how this book flouted conventional wisdom about lying with empirical facts. The typical things we think of or see on TV as indicators of lying are often unreliable. You do have to watch body language—and word choice!—very carefully when you’re trying to detect deception, and this book tells you how.

As I mentioned, I picked my copy up from the library, but I liked it so much, I put it on my list to buy.


notsAnother library read was The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson. This YA paranormal thriller came as a recommendation from a friend. The book follows Aurora “Rory” Devaux who leaves small town Louisiana for a London boarding school. And if that’s not enough of an adventure, a copycat killer is recreating the Jack the Ripper murders right in her neighborhood.

When Rory discovers she’s the only person who can stop the killer, she has to embrace a strange new life and then risk it all to keep the city safe.

The Name of the Star is the first in the Shades of London series. The second book came out just a couple weeks ago: The Madness Underneath. I’m looking forward to it!


I had one more non-fiction read from the library, an oldie but a goodie on parenting, Raising An Emotionally Intelligent Child by John Gottman. Really, my only quibble with the book is that we’re not supposed to use the emotion coaching techniques when we’re pressed for time, too tired, or in front of an audience. When you have three or four kids, when is that not the case?!

So I’ve knocked out an electronic TBR item and all my library books! Hooray for small victories!

What have you read this month? Anything you’d read over and over again—or recommend I stay far, far away from? Come share!

TBR Tuesday: What should I read?

Recommendations wanted!

Obviously I don’t have enough books to read already. I often mention how I don’t generally read fiction, especially not with a voice or genre similar to my own, while drafting. I’ve sketched out a break for the next few weeks to devote mostly on catching up on my reading.

Aside from tackling that big TBR pile (and my others, sigh), I have a few books from some of my favorite “auto-buy” authors to catch up on already:


Broken Harbor by Tana French


Perfect Scoundrels by Ally Carter


Shadowed by Stephanie Black


Smart Move by Melanie Jacobson

Sooo pretty much every living fiction author I put on my list. I need, like, an RSS feed of new books, apparently.

I’ve got a few to start with, but I’d love to get some more recommendations. My favorite genres are mystery and YA. So, I’m asking you: what are the best things you’ve read recently? What books do you read over and over again?