Favorite Reading Spaces by J Vincent

The one place I read in every day is my bed.  I read before I take my nap and I read again when we go to bed in the evening.  On my nightstand in the photo taken today are my Nook upon which I am reading April Lady by Georgette Heyer--a regency romance. My favorite place?  Although I enjoy my reading I don’t think the setting enhances it.

The second place I read every day is in my recliner in the living room.  If you look at the photo you can see the equipment I use for my CF vest treatment and my breathing treatments--these guarantee I am in this chair and thus reading every day.  What you can’t see is the book Prague Counterpoint (Zion Covenant Series Book 2) by Bodie Thoene.  I don’t often read paper copies of books these days due to my eyes but someone highly recommended this World War II series to me. I am captivated by it even as I’m horrified at some things that happen in it.  It’s a love story, a war story, a story of Jewish survival.  Since the series isn’t available as an epub I’ve been able to get the books at Wichita Public Library. Again, the recliner is not really a favorite place to read.

In the summer I have two favorite places to read.  The first and most often utilized is the glider on our deck. The view from there is my back yard with all our bird feeders and accompanying birds including orioles and humming birds that feed up on our deck, then a berm covered with blooming sunflowers.   Beyond that is a wheat field. Whenever I look up I am so thankful to have such a peaceful place which truly does enhance reading.

My most favorite place to read is at Thirty Mile Camp outside of Creede, CO. I’ve included two photos.  The first taken a couple of years ago with my grandchildren in camp.  The second is just some of scenery before me as I read.  Too bad we’re usually only there five days.  I make up for it by ready six or seven books.

 

Are your reading places similar?  Which of mine is your favorite?

My Favorite Place To Read (Katherine Pritchett)

      Where is my favorite place to read? Well, lately, it’s been airplane seats (especially during a 26-hour travel day, with an overnight spent in the Dallas airport). It’s one place that there is not much else I should be doing. At home, I read anywhere I don’t have to watch where I’m going or handle power tools. My recliner is pretty comfy, though it occasionally lulls me into dozing as I’m reading. I read in bed a lot, too, often waking with a book on my face. I read at the kitchen table while eating my lunch. Sometimes I read on the couch with my feet up, Wimpy Dog snuggled beside me. However, the loveseat is pretty small for the both of us, and his moaning and groaning trying to get me to move over when there is no room disturbs my focus on the words. He also drools. Or maybe I did. Sometimes I sit on my front porch and read with my coffee on Saturday mornings on those rare days when I don’t have a full day of yard work or a meeting to attend. I read when I’m watching my grandson, while he’s napping (after I’ve had mine!). My granddaughters read in a hammock slung between their deck and a nice tree, shaded in all but early morning. I didn’t try it out on my last trip, though, daunted by a foot of snow and air temps hovering just at one degree.

               Still, I don’t read as many novels as I’d like. When I start to read a novel, unless it is truly horrible, I can’t stop. I’m an addict. I have to have more. Besides cuddling in my favorite places, I’ve tried reading while vacuuming, riding the exercise bike, working out on the elliptical, while loading laundry or dishes, while cooking, at stoplights, in restaurants. I look forward to work travel, because it often means I have a room to myself and can read myself to sleep instead of putting in another hour working via email. Usually, whatever else I’m trying to do suffers as I read, but I don’t care, because I’m so immersed in the world on the page that when I do try to come out, I’m disoriented, one foot still in that world. And it keeps trying to pull me back. While I conduct other tasks, my mind is pondering the foreshadowing in the novel, wondering what twist will come next, feeling the characters’ emotions more than my own.

                Therefore, I stick to magazines, as I can sometimes force myself to stop with one article (or two) or the monthly excerpts our local critique group brings to share. Otherwise, my house is adrift in the fur Wimpy Dog sheds daily, I run out of clean dishes and clothes, I sleep through the alarm, skip meetings, and my yard is knee high. To function in my life, I must try to control my addiction. But I have two flights coming up in May, and four books set aside for reading on them…

My Favorite Fictional Character?

Favorite?  Really?  Impossible!

I loved Trixie Belden, when I was a young reader.  And Madeline, in the Madeline books.  That's probably because they were high-spirited and didn't take no for an answer.  They were strong-willed and different than the other characters in the story.  I tended to be shy as a little girl.  However, once I knew you well, I could be very pushy.  Just ask the kids I grew up with.  And ask the WARA ladies, who'll tell you I haven't grown out of that pushy part. ;)

My reading has always been eclectic, from True Crime to Horror/Suspense to Romance, and everything in-between.  If it's a good story, if it has characters that touch me in some way, it's going to be a favorite.

When I think of favorite characters, I think of three heroines, all in books by Susan Elizabeth Phillips aka SEP.

• Phoebe Somerville in It Had to Be You will always be an all-time favorite.  Phoebe appears to be the Queen of Voluptuous Dumb Blondes.  In fact, she might even agree with that, to some degree.  But Phoebe isn't dumb.  She knows how to use what she's been given to her advantage, but deep down inside, she's insecure and hates those curves.  At my very first RWA Conference in Dallas in 1996, I attended a workshop given by SEP.  She explained how she came up with the character of Phoebe, and when she finished, I was in complete awe.  You see, beneath the clingy, low-cut dresses and outlandish outfits, Phoebe wears "white, old lady underwear."  What she appears to be on the outside is the complete opposite of who she is on the inside.  She's not the outrageous airhead everyone thinks she is.  She had a childhood that would cause most women to have vapors, and because of it, she has no faith in herself.  But as she grew up, she learned that, with the right clothes and "attitude," she could have men falling at her feet.  In doing so, she has the upper hand, enabling her to never let anyone know the real Phoebe.  I LOVE PHOEBE!
• Sugar Beth Carey in Ain't She Sweet is about as close as second place can be without edging out Phoebe.  Sugar Beth was raised by her mother to be Parish, Mississippi's "princess."  Believing what her mama has taught her, she left Parish, thinking the world would always be hers.  But she returns, some years later, humbled by the "real world" and the horrible choices she's made.  The trouble is, she's unable to do much of anything except be the person everyone still believes her to be.  And then she meets up with the teacher who met his teaching demise, thanks to her.  Talk about sparks!  Talk about intricate but human characters!  I laughed and I cried, throughout the book.
• Blue Bailey in Natural Born Charmer, tied for second place with Sugar Beth, is as tough as nails, but has a heart of gold.  And that's a big problem for her.  Stubborn as the day is long, she first appears in a headless beaver costume, walking down the road.  She's broke, has nowhere to go, and would be the last person to take anything from anyone.  Of course, she has no choice and must accept.  Blue can fix anyone...but herself.  But there's one person she refuses to help--the driver of the car, who offers her a ride.  To reach her HEA (which she stubbornly refuses to acknowledge is possible), she has to grow, and she insists that's the one thing she doesn't need to do.

Of course there are dozens, if not hundreds, of heroines that could go on my favorites list, but these three have yet to be unseated, in almost twenty years of reading.  I often wonder why these three characters remain at the top.  Of all the books I read and movies I see, the ones I like the most are the ones where a character grows from the opening to the ending, all the while battling that growth.  (Miss Congeniality is a good example.) They start with a goal, but by the end of the book or movie, that goal has changed into something bigger and better.

Tough as nails, with a strong backstory and an overwhelming need to help others.  I like strong heroines, possibly because that's the type of person I want to be when I grow up.  I have a long way to go.  Who doesn't?

I'll tackle heroes later in the month.  (Now doesn't that sound like fun? *wink*)  Those heroes will take some thinking, but I have no doubt I'll find at least one...or two...or three.

Are you what you are by the books you read? (Melissa Robbins)

What am I reading right now?  Perhaps it has something to do with the middle grade book I’m working on, but you can’t see my nightstand with the books on it. 

Fiction:

Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan – No surprise, I love this series like everyone else on the planet.  I was a HUGE mythology fan in the sixth grade and would have loved Riordan’s Greek series.  His Egyptian one rocks too.  They both have history, humor, and adventure.  I have seen firsthand how it inspires kids to use their imaginations.  Recently, I was at the park with my son and some of his friends and one boy, who would make a great Percy, acted out scenes from the book. 

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare – I want to be Clare when I grow up.  This is the final book in her Infernal Devices trilogy.  The characters are demon hunters in Victorian England.  The way she writes settings are unbelievable.  Even if you are not a fan of vampires, demons, or werewolves, you would still enjoy this book.  I would love to know how she plots or if she is a pantser.  It has great humor and romance and the main hero is devilishly handsome, naughty, but also has a soft side that few see. 

Nonfiction:

Writing Irresistible Kidlit by Mary Kole – Kole gives tips and advice for writing young adult and middle grade stories.  Very helpful.  Just after reading the first few chapters, I realized I already have to redo my chapter one. 

Do magazines count?  Just today, I picked up the latest issue of Britain at War.  It’s filled with articles on RAF pilots including one of my favorites, Willie Rhodes-Moorhouse, who I know from flying alongside Billy Fiske, an American who flew for the RAF. 

On my To Be Read pile:

City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare – Clare is a pretty hot YA author right now.  This is the fifth book of Clare’s other demon hunter series that takes places in NYC.  The first book of the series will soon be released as a movie later this summer.  I hope the movie does the book justice.    

Inferno by Dan Brown – I love codes, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that I like Robert Langdon books.  I hope this one is as clever as the rest.

The Twelve Clues of Christmas by Rhys Bowen – the latest book in the Lady Georgie mysteries about a penniless royal in 1930’s England who solves crimes. 

Are you what you are by the books you read?

Between the Pages of a Book (Penny Rader)

http://bit.ly/15s6tmT

This month our topic is What Do You Read?

My answer: a bit of everything

I love reading.  Have since I was a kid. I read for escape and the emotional punch and I read for knowledge and inspiration. I'd be so lost without books.  Just being in a room with them gives me a sense of, well, comfort and well-being.  If I was told I had only a year to live, I'd read as many books as I possibly could, in between visits with family and friends, maybe even with family and friends. (Reading to and with kiddoes and grandkiddoes is great fun.  Seeing kids read makes my heart happy.)

My reading kind of came to a standstill the first few months of this year.  Tax season was pretty brutal and I've been struggling with some health issues.  I'm know I'm sick and/or tired when I look at the books on the table beside me but lack the energy to pick them up. Fortunately, I'm starting to feel a bit better and sneaking in reading time whenever I can.  

Here's what I'm reading now:

Paper books (my favorite way to read):

Fiction:

• Perfect Timing by Catherine Anderson

Non-Fiction:

• You've Got a Book in You: A Stress-free Guide to Writing the book of Your Dreams by Elizabeth Sims
• Writing the Fiction Series: The Complete Guide for Novels and Novellas by Karen S Wiesner

On my Nook:

• Writing Love: Screenwriting Tips for Authors II by Alexandra Sokoloff (Thanks to our own Melissa Robbins for this recommendation during an awesome plotting program she presented to WARA.)
• Don't Know Much about Mythology by Kenneth C Davis

I have so many books I want to read. Does anyone else need to know what you're going to read next?  I like to know what I'm going to read next and after that and after that.  It actually kind of freaks me out if I don't have something lined up.

I also try to always have a book with me because I never know if unexpected reading time will open up: doctor's office or hospital, car breaks down, long line at the bank or DMV.  When my kiddoes were little, I'd read for the 10 minutes or so while waiting to pick them up from school or whatever activity I was picking them up from.  I haven't mastered the art of writing in those 10-15 minutes spurts (except for snatches of scenes that randomly pop into my head...usually when I driving), but I can read several pages in 10-15 minutes.

These are some of the books waiting at the top of my TBR piles:

http://bit.ly/14d2J9o

Paper Books

Fiction:

• Celebrity in Death by J D Robb
• Delusion in Death by J D Robb
• Calculated in Death by J D Robb  (I guess it's obvious that J D Robb's In Death series is my absolute favorite series; I just got a little behind in reading the series)
• Caught by Harlan Coben  (I adore his suspense/thriller novels.  Great voice.  Never really know what's going to happen.)
• The Wanderer by Robyn Carr (Her Virgin River series was another favorite.  Hoping her new Thunder Point series is just as good.)
• The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison
• The Half-Stitched Amish Quilting Club by Wanda Brunstetter  (Recommended by mom. The blurb makes it sound like a fun read.)
• The Wedding Party by Robyn Carr

Non-Fiction:

• The Moral Premise: Harnessing Virtue & Vice for Box Office Success by Stanley D Williams
• The Story Template: Conquer Writer's Block Using the Universal Structure of Story by Amy Deardon
• Writing for Emotional Impact by Karl Iglesias
• Romancing the Ordinary: A Year of Simple Splendor by Sarah Ban Breathnach
• The Dreaded Synopsis by Elizabeth Sinclair
• The Anatomy of Motive by John Douglas
• Organizing from the Inside Out by Julie Morgenstern
• A Voice of Her Own: Women and the Journal-Writing Journey by Marlene A Schiwy

On my Nook:

Fiction:

• If the Shoe Fits: A Contemporary Fairy Tale by Sandra D Bricker
• Legacy of the Witch by Maggie Shayne
• Reckless Magic by Rachel Higginson
• To Kill a Warlock by H.P. Mallory
• Peaches by Jodi Lynn Anderson

Non-Fiction:

• Break into Fiction: 11 Steps to Building a Story That Sells by Mary Buckham
• 101 Habits of Highly Successful Screenwriters by Karl Iglesias
• Crafting Novels & Short Stories: The Complete Guide to Writing Great Fiction from the Editors of Writer's Digest
• What Your Childhood Memories Say about You by Kevin Leman
• Kiss Me Like You Mean It: Solomon's Crazy in Love How-To Manual by Dr David Clarke
• People Can't Drive You Crazy If You Don't Give Them the Keys by Micke Bechtle
• Making Sense of People: Decoding the Mysteries of Personality by Samuel Barondes

~~

http://bit.ly/1c6f2Y4

As you can see from the lists above, I have lots of favorite types of books: romance, suspense, thrillers, y/a, paranormal, craft of writing, what makes people tick, self-improvement.

How about you?  What are you reading now?

What's waiting on your To Be Read list/pile?

I have a To Be Purchased and/or Borrowed list, too. (Kristin Hannah, Sharon Sala/Dinah McCall, Lisa Gardner, Catherine Anderson, Harlan  Coben, Marilyn Pappano) How about you?

My Favorite Things: Books

Time to read doesn't come easy.  I wish it did.  That doesn't mean I don't read.  I'd never give up finding a comfy spot and settling in with a good book.  In fact, my idea of Heaven is an eternity of reading with no interruptions, going from one book to another, one story to the next.  No need to stop to eat or bathe or do laundry or cook so someone else can eat.  Time for nothing to do but read.

Whether I make it to Heaven is debatable, but when I'm so invested in a story and its characters that I don't notice where I am, it is a little bit of Heaven.

What do I read?  Anything.  Okay, not the back of boxes of cereal or even the newspaper.  Magazines no longer tempt me.  But when it comes to books, I'll read almost anything.

I had to stop and think what I've read recently, because reading time is now usually done in bits and spurts, when there's time.  Sometimes it's at the end of the day for an hour or so, before I can no longer keep my eyes open, and I've read the same paragraph three or four times.  I'm trying to read more, and having an eReader (Kindle) has made that easier for two reasons.  First, I can stuff my entire digital library in my purse when I leave the house and have instant access to hundreds--yes, hundreds--of books.  Picking up the grandkids at school?  Twenty minutes of reading time.  Sitting at the rink, while my oldest granddaughter is at ice skating lessons?  Another thirty minutes.  The second reason is that I've found some good books for free or discounted.  Hey, bargains are on my list of favorite things, too!

So here is this year's list of the books I've read.

• Christmas on Mimosa Lane - Anna DeStefano  Not your usual Christmas story, but a deep look into characters who are struggling through the season and wish it would go away.  Yes, there's an HEA, but the main characters had to go through a lot to get there.  Years ago, I judged one of Anna's contest entries, and it was superb.  I knew she would soon be among the published (and was!) and I was delighted with this book.  I'm eagerly looking forward to reading the next book in this Seasons of the Heart series.
• Ain't She Sweet - Susan Elizabeth Phillips  I've read this book and my other two favorite SEP books (It Had to Be You and Natural Born Charmer) multiple times. Yes, I re-read my favorites often.  I love her strong and sassy heroine's that hide their weaknesses, until they finally capitulate, fall into the heroes' arms and accept themselves, warts and all.  SEP makes me laugh and cry.  I once fell off the bed, while laughing too hard.  Cereal killer?  Really?!
• 11/22/63 - Stephen King  While I own the first 25 or so of King's books (in hardcover!), it had been   a couple of decades since I'd read any of the newer ones.  This one called to me.  Let's face it.  I clearly remember the day JFK was assassinated and wondered what King would do with it.  I wasn't disappointed.  But those 880 pages did take more than an evening to read.  The time spent was worth it.
• The Ladies Room - Carolyn Brown  Yes, I was the one who suggested this book to Reese.  I'd suggest it to anyone who likes to laugh and cheer on characters, who are dealing with what life throws at them.  I laughed out loud, several times, but the humor comes from within, not slapstick funny.  Throw in the fact that these characters were not twenty-somethings, and it made it even better.

What else do I read?  Dan Brown for the excitement, YA books by a variety of authors--both older and newer, some non-fiction, Jane Austen classics, Women's Fiction.  Oh, and romance, although I lean toward single title.  Do I ever start a book I don't finish?  Yes, and recently there have been two or three.  They weren't bad books, but either the story didn't grab me or progress, there was too much repeated detail, or the writing itself didn't pull me in.

What do you read?  What type of heroines keep you turning the pages?  What kind of heroes?  Do you like light or dark stories?  And, especially, what books and types of books would you suggest to friends?

Give Me a Book...Any Book!

I can't imagine living in a time when people couldn't read.  I've always read and always made up stories in my head.  As I frequently tell my grandkids, and told their mothers while they were growing up, books are my friends.

Growing up an only child, there were times when there was no one around to play with.  Before learning to read, I had picture books and an imagination.  Oh, what an imagination!  Those really were the best times, whether spent alone or with neighborhood friends.  Our bikes were horses, my clamp-on-with-a-key roller skates were my skis, we hung by our knees at the top of the swing set--our trapeze, and there was never enough time for play.

Adults aren't expected to live their life in imaginary worlds.  In fact, it's pretty much frowned upon.  Instead, we turn to reading books that are created by the imaginations of writers.

Guess what?  Now we're the writers, so we get to let our imaginations run free!  Just call me Peter Pan...from one of my favorite stories.  With no books in Neverland, Wendy told stories to the Lost Boys.  She should have been a writer. ;)

But books aren't only used by grownups for entertainment.  We use them to gain knowledge of things we don't know.  As writers, we often use them to help us hone our craft.  Many of those have been mentioned this month on this blog.  It's worth checking them out, if only to see a new way to do something or solve a problem we're having with our own writing.  They're a great teaching tool!  Fiction and non-fiction bring us full circle.

Life doesn't give me a lot of time to read these days, but I've been trying lately to do more.  I read in the car, as I wait for my grandkids school to be out.  I read before going to sleep...and sometimes while I'm going to sleep!  There simply aren't enough hours in the day.  My favorite fiction books have been read more than once.  I just finished reading Susan Elizabeth Phillips' Natural Born Charmer for the third time.  This time I tried to pay attention to more of the writing process in it.  Not so easy to do with a book that pulls me in from the start.

Yesterday, I took Debra Dixon's GMC to read while waiting for the grandkids.  Now that I've learned how to use it, it's much easier to understand.☺  Sometimes I work on my own writing.  I'm a failure at doing nothing.  I read online articles and blogs on writing.  I research topics related to my stories.  Yes, I write contemporary romance, but there are still many things to learn, whether it's mechanics of writing, locations for stories, and currently specifics on maternal death in the U.S..

I love to be entertained and I love to learn new things.  I have shelves of how-to books, some related to writing, some to life in general.  My Kindle holds even more, including romance, suspense, YA, classics, biographies, and even cookbooks.  (Disclaimer:  I am not a "cooking" person.)  If someone took all my books away, I wouldn't know what to do.  Make me laugh, make me cry, and make me learn!  It's all about books...and life.

Reading Outside Your Genre (Penny Rader)

Pssst. Wanna know how to improve your writing? Try reading outside your genre. Yup. It’s true. For a few reasons why, check out the post snippets below:

Breaking Your Mental Blockers (Nfoster)

“Read outside your genre or regular authors. Reading the same two authors every time you read because they're your favorites can get stale. You know their plot devices, you know their character stereotypes. You're not learning anything new as you read. I'm not saying you have to, but if you're going to be a writer, you need to experiment. New authors or different genres of reading can give you that highly-valued new perception I keep talking about. … As you read, you're broadening your horizons about who, what, where and why according to someone else. No one reacts the same way, so understanding other people's characters is infinitely valuable to your mental processes.”


Fundamentals of Fiction, Part II: "Read, Read, Read!" (Marg Gilks)

“Read novels and read short stories; read poetry. Poetry will tune your writer's ear to the rhythm of language, and make your writing beautiful. Novels and short stories each have their own technical requirements; studying overall story arc in a novel will teach you about plot and structure; the length restrictions imposed by short stories will both allow you to study technique in condensed form and teach you how such important aspects as characterization and setting can be conveyed to maximum effect in a minimum of space.”


If You Want to be a Good Writer, You Need to Read (John Harmon)

“…read outside your safety zone. You should read magazines and books you wouldn’t normally pick up for your own pleasure. Sound crazy? It’s not. It’s learning, it’s stretching your boundaries. You’d be surprised at how many unique ideas you can gain from reading unfamiliar material.”


Reading Outside Your Genre (Edmund Schubert)

“From the other genres you can pick up tropes and tricks. From non-fiction you can pick all sorts of useful nuggets you can use in future novels of your own.”


Ten Steps to Finding Your Writing Voice (Holly Lisle)

“Read fiction, read nonfiction, read in the genre you love, read outside of it. Read WAY outside of it. You cannot be a snob -- don't write off any genre or type of book as being without redeeming qualities or lessons to teach you.”

~~~

So what do I read when I’m not reading romance?

• Harlen Coban – Fabulous openings and I’m always surprised by how the story turns out.



• Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series – Makes me laugh out loud. And I'm a huge Ranger fan. ;D



• Lisa Gardner – Twisty, turny thrillers with really scary serial killers.



• Kristin Hannah -- Her women's fiction stories, whether they are about relationships between sisters, mothers/daughters, or friends touch me, help me reconnect with myself. Few books make me cry. Firefly Lane did.



• Jodi Picoult – Intriguing characters. Usually a combination of law, medicine, and faith. Almost always surprised by how her books end (but not always pleasantly surprised). The ending of the last one I read p--, uh, made me furious.



• Lisa Wingate’s Tending Roses series – Lyrical and lovely. Her stories make me feel good and comforted and wishing I could write more like she does.



• Fairy tales and myths – For ready-made plots to twist and expand upon.



• Biographies and self-help books and all sorts of nonficton – To better understand why people do the things they do and find tidbits for stories.



• Writing exercises & prompts -- For inspiration, for courage, for when I have absolutely no idea what to write about.

~~~

I’d love to hear who you read outside your genre and why.

Books...other than Romance

I have a secret.  Romance writers actually read in other genres besides romance. 

Did I hear a collective gasp?  Surely not!  Just because we write it, we don't necessarily read only the same types of books.  In fact, I write what's considered series or category romance, and I rarely read other books in my sub-genre.  If I'm going to read romance, I'm more apt to pick up a single title (probably by Susan Elizabeth Phillips) or a Jane Austen novel.  Still romance but a bit different. 

A quick look at my bookshelves and...  Aha!  I see a stack of Young Adult novels, mostly by Sarah Dessen, because I was driven to buy copies of my own after reading the ones checked out from the library.  Another bookcase holds all of Dan Brown's novels, while on another shelf of that same bookcase I see a book by Bob Woodward and another by Seymour Hersh.  There's an autographed copy of Reuben on Wry written by Dave Madden, who played Reuben Kincaid on The Partridge Family and also appeared on TV's Laugh-In.  (Only the "more experienced" here will know who and what those are. ☺ The bookcase in the living room contains two shelves of Stephen King books, mixed with some John Grisham, Rosamond Pilcher, Ann Rule, and what's left of my Trixie Belden collection.  On the lower shelves are books for my grandkids.

And there are more in storage.  And even more on my Kindle that I haven't had time to read.

Yes, I love to read, and I'll read just about anything. Those of us who write are readers, too, and we often enjoy books completely unlike what we write.  It's a great way to get escape the writer's mind and enjoy the stories and talents of others.