Susans Writers and Book Readers

[sarah1972]

Last book I finished was "Lights Out" by Ted Koppel, discussing the likelihood and preparation of a cyber attack on the US Power Grid.

Right now I am reading "Alaska Skies".

Various children books every night about a little mouse and his family for my kidddo. I also have a half finished book on climate change I want to finish.

Not much deep literature tough...

[Northern Star Girl]

Pick up a "real book"?  But what will I do with all the audio books I have yet to listen to that I have purchased?

  When I was working I would listen to my audio books regularly. Once I stopped working I do not listen to them anywhere as much. The exception can be during my road trips as when I am driving is when I listened to them most often. I haven't "read" a paper book in years, perhaps in decades.

  I mainly listen to sci-fi and fantasy books but an occasional drama/ thriller/mystery are not unheard of. Before I got interrupted by a couple trans books I was listening to R.A. Salvatore's World of Drizzt books. They are a series of series all telling the adventures of Drizzt Do-Urden, a dark Elf who is a warrior in the dark elf underground cities. However he breaks with the ruthless matriarchal societal views and must flee for his life eventually making his way to the surface and learning to live with the various societies he encounters there.
  The Drizzt books are a Sci-Fi Fantasy adventure series of books. Lots of action.

Hugs,
  Laurie

@Laurie
Dear Laurie:    Thank you for coming to this thread and giving your two cents worth.   YES, of course I like Audio Books... as you said, they are great for in the car while you are on the move.  I also like drama/thiriller/mysteriy Audio Books because they are read with great emphasis and suspensful voices.   
I do have an "electronic book" ... a Kindle...  the "electronic ink" works very well in bright sun and is easy on battery power.  In January when I was on a one month long vacation and cruise I preloaded it with a half dozen of my favorite books....  it sure was a lot easieer to pack than 5 or 6 bulky and heavy paper books.

All in all, I really do prefer reading a real paper book, curled up on a comfy chair.

Regarding the Drizzt books that you mentioned...   I have read only 3 of the many titles... I think that there are at least 8 or 9 total, maybe more.   I bought the first trilogy set (3 paper books) .... Homeland, Exile, and Sojurn.  You are correct, lots of action for sure.... and quite interesting and entertaining.

I am an avid book reader, I probably read at least 2 to 4 books a month, almost always "paper"

Thanks for your reply posting, please check in here often to contribute your thoughts.
Hugs,
Danielle

[Northern Star Girl]

Do ebooks count as real? I do prefer paper, but it's sometimes so much less expensive to buy them that I succumb to the temptation.

As for audio books—I must confess I've never listened to one (unless of course the books our parents read to us in the evenings and those we read to each other while darning socks and such count as such.)

Of the recent real paper books I've read, I really liked Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor. To me the both the narration and characters feel comfortably close and familiar. In fact, surprisingly so despite the setting being quite alien. Also, despite the severity of the underlying circumstances, walking within Onyesonwu makes me simultaneously sad, happy and serene.

@zirconia   Of course ebooks count !!!   I have a Kindle that I use on vacations so I don't have to pack heavy and bulky books.  Also the audio books are great for in the car while on road trips plus the narration and dramatic reading voices do add a lot of empahsis and suspense.
I have skimmed over Who Fears Death but did not purchase it.... yet?  If I remember correctly it has a magical sorcery theme with a sexual wrongdoing at the beginning .... perhaps I will give it a read when I get through with the several books I am working on now.. ..  sometimes I will have 2 or 3 books going all at once....  multi-tasking at it's finest.
Thank you for coming to this thread and sharing your thoughts.... please come often and share.
Danielle

[DustKitten]

Hi  I'm reading The Dosadi Experiment by Frank Herbert, the guy who wrote the Dune series. It's a good book, set in an interesting sci-fi universe, but the plot feels a bit rushed, and certain elements of the story are vague and unclear. Before that I was reading Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie, and I'm also currently reading Salem's Lot by Stephen King, mostly because I was curious about the backstory of a character introduced in The Wolves of Calla.

I write, too, though not professionally (yet). I'm almost done with the first draft of a fantasy novel, and I can generally churn out a short story in about 2-6 hours. I've been neglecting my writing lately, but I need to get back to it or I'll never be any kind of writer at all.

I do take more time to read through books now than I used to (maybe 2 weeks to a month for an average book, compared to 1-2 days in high school) but I still count reading as one of my favorite pastimes. I'll probably get a card at the local library soon to save $$ on books so I'm open to recommendations. I mostly like sci-fi, fantasy, mysteries, humor, thrillers, horror, and dystopian fiction, but I'll read anything if it's good.

[Northern Star Girl]

Last book I finished was "Lights Out" by Ted Koppel, discussing the likelihood and preparation of a cyber attack on the US Power Grid.

Right now I am reading "Alaska Skies".

Various children books every night about a little mouse and his family for my kidddo. I also have a half finished book on climate change I want to finish.

Not much deep literature tough...

@sarah1972
Dear Sarah.... hmmm, I wonder where you got the idea to buy and to read Alaska Skies??   

The author Debbie Macomber has written several sets and series of romance books set in small town Alaska... at least another 10 or more books.  The set that I am working on now includes 3 titles...
,,,  Alaska Skies, Brides for Brothers, and The Marriage Risk

My book club of mostly Alaskan women reading these Alaska romance novels by Debbie Macomber finds many commonalities and descriptions in these books that come right out of a chapter of our own lives.  Some of the relationships and circumstances in the book seem to ring true to some of our own experiences....    The setting in these books is somewhat close to the kind of close knit small town that we live in.  Everybody knows everybody else.  All of the above are the reasons why we have chosen these titles. 
It will be interesting to discuss each chapter at the future book club meetings... it will be quite fun for sure.

I hope that you will enjoy reading your first book and then perhaps go on to the additional titles.

Thank you for coming to this thread and sharing your reading list and sharing your comments.  Please check in here often to offer your thoughts.
Hugs,
Danielle

[Northern Star Girl]

Hi  I'm reading The Dosadi Experiment by Frank Herbert, the guy who wrote the Dune series. It's a good book, set in an interesting sci-fi universe, but the plot feels a bit rushed, and certain elements of the story are vague and unclear. Before that I was reading Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie, and I'm also currently reading Salem's Lot by Stephen King, mostly because I was curious about the backstory of a character introduced in The Wolves of Calla.

I write, too, though not professionally (yet). I'm almost done with the first draft of a fantasy novel, and I can generally churn out a short story in about 2-6 hours. I've been neglecting my writing lately, but I need to get back to it or I'll never be any kind of writer at all.

I do take more time to read through books now than I used to (maybe 2 weeks to a month for an average book, compared to 1-2 days in high school) but I still count reading as one of my favorite pastimes. I'll probably get a card at the local library soon to save $$ on books so I'm open to recommendations. I mostly like sci-fi, fantasy, mysteries, humor, thrillers, horror, and dystopian fiction, but I'll read anything if it's good.

@DustKitten    Thank you for coming to this thread and sharing your thoughts.
In the past I have really enjoyed Frank Herbert's writings and the very successful job he did writing the entire Dune Series.
Your review of The Dosadi Experiment is an interesting contrast to my thoughts about how the Dune series was written....  although I have not read it yet, I will put that title on my list and keep your thoughts in my mind as I go through the book.
Of course Agatha Christie does an excellent job with her material... and Stephen King's stuff is almost always superb.
As I have written, I am really enjoying the Debbie Macomber Alaska romance novels.... plus she has a plethora of other romance and fictional book series... her writing style is something that I find very enjoyable.

You don't have to write professionally to produce good material and if it is something that you enjoy doing then please yourself first with writing as you see fit.
I am no where near having the skills of even a novice writer but I do enjoy writing down my brief thoughts in poem-like form... as I have done several times earlier in this thread.   Please feel free to add some of your writings to this thread if you feel so led.... and I hope that you do.

Thanks you again for coming here and for offering your opinions and preferences.  Please come here often to comment in response to other's posts and to share what you have to offer.

Danielle

[Cindy]

I love reading and I am a frustrated writer.

I was severely dyslexic after my radiotherapy but I have taught myself to read again and I am back too normal. Losing the ability to read was something that I didn't share with people and was very upsetting!

I have written many scientific papers and several book chapters but I haven't cracked the non-science area as yet ... but I have started!

As for reading. These are a few of my current books

Spirals in Time: The secret life and curious afterlife of seashells by Helen Scales. This at first seems an odd book. It is written by a marine biologist about seashells but it explores shells from the perspective of the biology, then the way they have been used as 'coinage' and decoration and wealth in general. I found it fascinating.

Spark Joy: An illustrated guide to the Japanese art of tidying by Marie Kondo. Another odd book but one that I found incredibly useful. It is a sort of self help book but based on getting your home and belongs in order. I also found it a useful way of keeping my thoughts in order (OK I know I'm weird!).

On a more 'normal' note. I have loved the Charlie Parker series of books by John Connolly. His latest The Woman in the Woods" has just been released. For those who do not know the series, they are about a private detective who gets involved in a quite brutal crimes that eventually have a link in the supernatural. We do not know where this. series will go but the writing is excellent, the atmosphere is stunning and plots suitable strange. The first book in the series is 'Every Dead Thing" and is a stunning book.

[Northern Star Girl]

I love reading and I am a frustrated writer.

I was severely dyslexic after my radiotherapy but I have taught myself to read again and I am back too normal. Losing the ability to read was something that I didn't share with people and was very upsetting!

I have written many scientific papers and several book chapters but I haven't cracked the non-science area as yet ... but I have started!

As for reading. These are a few of my current books

Spirals in Time: The secret life and curious afterlife of seashells by Helen Scales. This at first seems an odd book. It is written by a marine biologist about seashells but it explores shells from the perspective of the biology, then the way they have been used as 'coinage' and decoration and wealth in general. I found it fascinating.

Spark Joy: An illustrated guide to the Japanese art of tidying by Marie Kondo. Another odd book but one that I found incredibly useful. It is a sort of self help book but based on getting your home and belongs in order. I also found it a useful way of keeping my thoughts in order (OK I know I'm weird!).

On a more 'normal' note. I have loved the Charlie Parker series of books by John Connolly. His latest The Woman in the Woods" has just been released. For those who do not know the series, they are about a private detective who gets involved in a quite brutal crimes that eventually have a link in the supernatural. We do not know where this. series will go but the writing is excellent, the atmosphere is stunning and plots suitable strange. The first book in the series is 'Every Dead Thing" and is a stunning book.

@Cindy   
Along the same lines as you described yourself, I am much the same way...
... "I love reading and I am a frustrated writer"

I am so glad that you had the fortitude to teach yourself to read again and not give up.   There is no doubt in my mind that would be quite personally upsetting and frustrating to be left in a condition that you could not read efficiently.

I too can fairly easily write non-fiction stuff because it is based of facts whereas non-science and fictional writings require much imagination and creative license.... of which I seem to be in short supply.   My writings as I have submitted on this thread and other threads on the Forums therefore usually only consist of brief nuggets of my thoughts that I put into "poem-like" form.   Some of that material that I have written has seen me through some of my toughest times of my life.  As a glass-half-full and optimistic sort with a can-do attitude my writings certainly reflect my positive approach to life and how I try to deal with it's manifold problems and issues.... that we all deal with.   It is that upbeat concept to life that I desire to share with others as encouragement, empathy and sympathy.

I am not familiar with your reading list that you shared but the one title that you mentioned Spark Joy did indeed "spark" my interest...(pun intended)   I will plan to look up the book and check out the review.

Thank you Cindy for sharing.   Please don't be a stranger on this thread.  Please share some of your writings and more book reports would always be welcome here.

Danielle
.

[sarah1972]

Thank you Danielle!

I admit the adventures of your live and your posts have triggered reading Alaska Skies. I am glad the adventures of Hard Luck are a trilogy, I am way past half of Alaska Skies. I can imagine how much this book compares to your real life, which makes reading the book a lot more interesting. Not sure how far you are in or if you keep in sync with your book club so I will not talk about the end of the first half.

Admittedly in recent years I have not been reading as much as in the past, and if mostly books written by journalists and more of a documentary style. Alaska Skies is a warm welcome. In on the of my next posts here, I will talk about one of the most influential books in my life....

Hugs -

Sarah

@sarah1972
Dear Sarah.... hmmm, I wonder where you got the idea to buy and to read Alaska Skies??   

The author Debbie Macomber has written several set and series of romance books set in small town Alaska... at least another 10 or more books.  The set that I am working on now includes 3 titles...
,,,  Alaska Skies, Brides for Brothers, and The Marriage Risk

My book club of mostly Alaskan women reading these Alaska romance novels by Debbie Macomber finds many commonalities and descriptions in these books that come right out of a chapter of our own lives.  Some of the relationships and circumstances in the book seem to ring true to some of our own experiences....    The setting in these books is somewhat close to the kind of close knit small town that we live in.  Everybody knows everybody else.  All of the above are the reasons why we have chosen these titles. 
It will be interesting to discuss each chapter at the future book club meetings... it will be quite fun for sure.

I hope that you will enjoy reading your first book and then perhaps go on to the additional titles.

Thank you for coming to this thread and sharing your reading list and sharing your comments.  Please check in here often to offer your thoughts.
Hugs,
Danielle

[Johnni Gyrl]

Interesting thread, I hope to see more similar ones, if they don't already exist.

I'm currently writing a fiction novel which could loosely be described as a 'gritty urban drama' type of thing. It features a transgender character (m2f) who although not the main character, manages to drive the story along in a supporting role. Don't get too excited though, as the story also features gang violence, drug use, graphic sex scenes and a ton of profanity swear words. Keeping it real, but I realize this isn't everyone's cup of tea.

More about it when I'm ready to fully connect myself with my already in use pen-name.

I self-publish on Amazon incidentally, as someone is bound to ask if I have a publishing deal. The answer is 'no' - I like to be fully in charge of my own creativity without too much censoring and you could wait forever for a one in a dozen publishing houses to get back to you with a positive reply. Though having that weight behind you in terms of marketing would obviously be a big plus, I prefer the direct route to getting my stories out there without any middle-men, bar the distributors. Just my two cents worth on the publishing industry. If anyone wants further advice about that, just hit me up.

Thanks for listening.

[Jessica]

I love reading and I am a frustrated writer.

I was severely dyslexic after my radiotherapy but I have taught myself to read again and I am back too normal. Losing the ability to read was something that I didn't share with people and was very upsetting!

I have written many scientific papers and several book chapters but I haven't cracked the non-science area as yet ... but I have started!

As for reading. These are a few of my current books

Spirals in Time: The secret life and curious afterlife of seashells by Helen Scales. This at first seems an odd book. It is written by a marine biologist about seashells but it explores shells from the perspective of the biology, then the way they have been used as 'coinage' and decoration and wealth in general. I found it fascinating.

Spark Joy: An illustrated guide to the Japanese art of tidying by Marie Kondo. Another odd book but one that I found incredibly useful. It is a sort of self help book but based on getting your home and belongs in order. I also found it a useful way of keeping my thoughts in order (OK I know I'm weird!).

On a more 'normal' note. I have loved the Charlie Parker series of books by John Connolly. His latest The Woman in the Woods" has just been released. For those who do not know the series, they are about a private detective who gets involved in a quite brutal crimes that eventually have a link in the supernatural. We do not know where this. series will go but the writing is excellent, the atmosphere is stunning and plots suitable strange. The first book in the series is 'Every Dead Thing" and is a stunning book.

Thank you @Cindy , the first two sound very interesting, especially the second.  The third is one I think would be a good read also.  That one is for couch time!  Love a mystery with a twist.
We have similar tastes.

Hugs and smiles, Jess

[DustKitten]

In the past I have really enjoyed Frank Herbert's writings and the very successful job he did writing the entire Dune Series.
Your review of The Dosadi Experiment is an interesting contrast to my thoughts about how the Dune series was written....  although I have not read it yet, I will put that title on my list and keep your thoughts in my mind as I go through the book.

I've always thought of Dune and its sequels as intricate, well-designed masterpieces woven with layers of interconnected themes. The Dosadi Experiment carries the same flavor as Dune, and shares the series' trend towards deep, layered themes, but in my opinion the book is simply too short to do its story justice. Most authors could have made a trilogy out of everything stuffed into that one book. I always felt like there was more happening in the author's mind than on the page, that there was room for much more than what the author chose to reveal; therefore I feel that the book was rushed, and far shorter than it needed to be.

What would be the best way to share samples of my work? I could offer two stories I wrote recently that are good, but not quite up to my own standards; I'm not planning to publish them so I would feel comfortable posting them here.

I self-publish on Amazon incidentally, as someone is bound to ask if I have a publishing deal. The answer is 'no' - I like to be fully in charge of my own creativity without too much censoring and you could wait forever for a one in a dozen publishing houses to get back to you with a positive reply. Though having that weight behind you in terms of marketing would obviously be a big plus, I prefer the direct route to getting my stories out there without any middle-men, bar the distributors. Just my two cents worth on the publishing industry. If anyone wants further advice about that, just hit me up.

I know most writers end up trying self-publishing, but I'm more of a masochist with my work. I feed on critical feedback and rejection letters.  I like to think that the challenge will be good for my writing in the long run, so I'm going to keep hurling myself at that brick wall until either I break, or the wall does.

That said, I've only submitted my stories five times so far (all in the last month--I've just started taking my dreams seriously), so maybe I haven't had time to let the system break me yet.

[Northern Star Girl]

snipped: 

    - - - - - - - -
What would be the best way to share samples of my work? I could offer two stories I wrote recently that are good, but not quite up to my own standards; I'm not planning to publish them so I would feel comfortable posting them here.

Dear DustKitten:  Please feel free to post shorter and more brief writings or perhaps a teaser sample here on this thread, no more than a third or maybe a half of a screen page.   For longer writings you can include a link on your posting here that goes to a blog site or similar site that the longer work resides. 
I am looking forward to reading what you have composed...
Hugs,
Danielle

[Laurie]

 Hmmmm Let's see..

  There once was a girl named Michelle.
  Her life, she thought, was going to hell.
  But then she met Laurie,
  In all of her glory.
  And now she has a new story to tell.

  (Makes a curtsy)
That'll teach ya.

Hugs,
  Laurie

[Jessica]

Hmmmm Let's see..

  There once was a girl named Michelle.
  Her life, she thought, was going to hell.
  But then she met Laurie,
  In all of her glory.
  And now she has a new story to tell.

  (Makes a curtsy)
That'll teach ya.

Hugs,
  Laurie

@Laurie

This makes her a poet lauriette!

[Michelle_P]

There once was a girl named Michelle.
  Her life, she thought, was going to hell.
  But then she met Laurie,
  In all of her glory.
  And now she has a new story to tell.

Ah, the limerick.  Truly, the very epitome of the literary arts...

*SIGH*

Ya just can't take her anywhere...

[Northern Star Girl]

Ah, the limerick.  Truly, the very epitome of the literary arts...

*SIGH*

Ya just can't take her anywhere...

@Laurie

This makes her a poet lauriette!

Hmmmm Let's see..

  There once was a girl named Michelle.
  Her life, she thought, was going to hell.
  But then she met Laurie,
  In all of her glory.
  And now she has a new story to tell.

  (Makes a curtsy)
That'll teach ya.

Hugs,
  Laurie

@Michelle_P   
@Jessica   
@Laurie
****You ladies are having way too much fun here.... but really.... thanks for having your fun here where I can monitor you. 
If things get out of hand I know some of the GMs that I can make aware of your shenanigans.   
... wait, you all are GMs.... now what am I going to do???
Hugs,
Danielle

[DustKitten]

"End and Beginning"

Countless lines
'Cross waters ripple
Calming song
Of a thousand birds
Moon slow fades
In the morning light

All soothes the old
Remembrance of dark times

Hour and age,
One like the other
Signs of change
And childhood again
Forgotten
Then returns, the same

The circle locked
Dead ashes flame anew


If I'm up for it I'll see about making a blog on Thursday. I'd been thinking about doing that anyway but I tend to procrastinate, so no promises but if I do get around to it I'll put up a couple of stories and post the link here.

[ErinWDK]

Reading interests differ rather strongly from one person to another.  Since I am unique my interests differ even more.  The last fiction book I read was "The Planter's Northern Bride" by Caroline Lee Hentz.  This is an 1854 sentimental novel.  It is also one of the books written in the south as an answer to Harriet Beecher Stowe's "Uncle Toms Cabin" of 1852.  While I am in more agreement with Stowe I sort of want to see both sides of things.  Over the years that has led me some strange places.  This one may be the strangest.

My preference is more in the range of non-fiction.  The latest book I am trying to work on is "Mary Turner and the memory of Lynching" by Julie Buckner Armstrong.  The starting point of this is a horrific spate of racial violence in May 1918 in Lowndes and Brooks counties in Georgia.  This is hard to read.  The real story here is trying to come to reconciliation.  The book was written in 2011.  At that point reconciliation had just started (over nine decades after the events) and it looked like a long road to go.  That area is STILL in the news.  Will people ever learn to just live together?

I mentioned this to friend, so he showed me what he is reading.  He is working on a PhD and these were two books by noted experts looking at deep details regarding his intended area of research.  So, old Erin is just looking at comparatively simplistic stuff.

I am trying to write something and have been beating my head against the wall on that for what is now pushing two years.  Not sure what it will take to get that off the ground.

[Northern Star Girl]

"End and Beginning"

Countless lines
'Cross waters ripple
Calming song
Of a thousand birds
Moon slow fades
In the morning light

All soothes the old
Remembrance of dark times

Hour and age,
One like the other
Signs of change
And childhood again
Forgotten
Then returns, the same

The circle locked
Dead ashes flame anew


If I'm up for it I'll see about making a blog on Thursday. I'd been thinking about doing that anyway but I tend to procrastinate, so no promises but if I do get around to it I'll put up a couple of stories and post the link here.

@DustKitten:   Thank you for posting and for sharing that nice little piece that you wrote.
The wording and the thought you expressed in it are so very appropriate and fitting for those that are going through the transition gauntlet.

I will certainly, along with the followers of this thread, be looking forward to reading more of your work... so no more procrastinating please....     

I know how procrastinators think... 
     "Why put off today what you can put off tomorrow."   

Thank you for reading and following this thread....  always feel free to post your thoughts here.
Hugs,
Danielle