Making a Literary Life: Potpourri

The cacophonous sound of birdsong, the dizzying brilliance of sunshine, the scent of greens bursting forth. A riot of sensory overload.

Speaking of creative chaos, here's a peek at our thoughts from this week as they bounced and collided inside of our heads. Can you keep up? Lisa Marnell
Though my pages weren't critiqued this week, I feel as though they were. Discussions with Amy, Hannah, and Lynne resonated with me. You see, I changed the setting of where a PARTY takes place in my novel, and in changing location, the story became more real, more unique, it seems to me. Also, I embraced the idea our group often ponders: write for the story (not for the market, the intended audience, etc). That too, has made my novel more true and I hope, more intriguing.

Amy MacKinnon
This is hands down the most magnificent memoir I've read. Ever. She's going to be a bestseller, I know it, I just know it. How does one learn to write like that? Patricia Wood shortlisted for the Orange Prize. Brava, Pat, but honestly, I'm not surprised; I still remember reading the deal on Publishers Marketplace and knowing I had to have that book. I wonder what's happening at London Book Fair. TETHERED's cover is out there. Has anyone seen it? I love the American Fiction blog. It provides the best links. I can't wait to go to NYC next week, it's my favorite place in the world. And then next weekend all of my Writers' Group friends and I will finally be together -- with other writers. What could be better?

Hannah Roveto
Elinor Lipman is on the road; watch for her at events next week, as well! Another tidbit from the movie, Then She Found Me: cast includes (director and script co-writer) Helen Hunt, Colin Firth, Bette Midler, Matthew Broderick and yes, Salman Rushdie. In other news, this revision of mine is flowing toward The End. A whole chapter cleaned up Monday, half on Tuesday, a whopping paragraph yesterday, then most of another today. How many inconsistencies have I cut from these pages? Too many to count; this round feels good, not worrisome in the least. Someday I will visit Wrigley Field, where one of my last scenes takes place, and it will be a familiar, lovely, sensory overload of hot dogs and summer heat. Ahhh...

Lynne Griffin
I took a risk writing a story within a story, and last Monday presented it to my writers' group. The verdict? It was unanimous--they loved it! I am flying high. I'm tied to my calendar for the next few weeks. My goal is to finish another chapter of my WIP before copy edits for LIFE WITHOUT SUMMER arrive, the first of May. I'm prepping for my panels at the Muse, buying shoes, looking forward to schmooze. And my husband and I are taking a trip, sans children, to celebrate our twentieth wedding anniversary. Back just in time to pick up my daughter at college. Imagine May 9th constituting the beginning of summer.

As you can see our moods here at the writers' group are full of anticipation and celebration. No matter your mood, there's a book out there for you. Just check out Hallie Ephron's latest tome, 1001 Books for Every Mood. It's available online now. I can't wait to see her picks. To learn more about Hallie and her process for selecting titles, visit her website.