Writing's on my mind, and I read how-to articles and pieces about publishing when my work is finished for the day. Five articles or blog posts recently caught my attention, so I'm sharing them. (If you're not a writer, scroll to the end of this post for a cake recipe. You won't be sorry.)
First up is an article from The Virginia Quarterly Review. Kathleen Schmidt offers insights into and predictions for book publishing in 2013. Don't skip over the book buyer/reader statistics from Bowker that were presented at the recent Digital Book World conference.
Digital Book World and Writer's Digest surveyed authors and found one-third of traditionally published authors are interested in self publishing.
Writer Chuck Wendig delivers 25 hard truths about writing and publishing. Read them all, but pay special attention to the last one: "You can’t control publishing. You can’t control the audience’s reaction to your book. Control what you can control, which means: write the best book that lives inside you."
Tracy Chevalier, author of Girl with a Pearl Earring and The Last Runaway, applies "less is more" to her writing.
Developmental editor Alan Rinzler advises authors to mine their experiences to give authenticity to their writing.
Bonus: For a great round-up of articles for and about writers and writing, bookmark The Author Chronicles' Top Picks Thursday.
http://authorchronicles.wordpress.com/2013/01/17/top-picks-thursday-01-17-2013/
In unrelated news, my France-inspired dinner party last Sunday proved a success. The Barefoot Contessa's (Ina Garten's) recipe for boeuf Bourguignon rocked, and I turned to an old friend dessert that wouldn't be out of place in France.
Sometimes my absorption with all things French crowds out my absorption with writing. Early this morning, I turned on my bitty laptop and saw a list of articles to read, including: Your Personal France. I clicked tout de suite, only to discover wishful thinking (and poor eyesight) had swapped France for Finance. A personal finance article at half-past dawn? That would be a non.
Your turn: share your favorite source for writerly information, name your favorite dessert, or both.
