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Entries by Karen McCoy
Paper Sculptures: Appreciation of Libraries and Books
While perusing Neil Gaiman’s blog this week, I noted a link he put to a website that showed anonymous paper sculptures someone left in the Scottish Poetry Library. They can be found here. When librarians (and aspiring writers) have difficulty marketing ourselves, it helps to remember the purpose, the core of what we do. It […]
Social Media and Online Platform Tips
In our digital age of ebooks, digital text, and yes, hybrid books, it becomes all the more imperative to develop an online presence to go along with query submissions. And yes, even us reluctant to get on the social media band wagon may need to bite the bullet and give Twitter a try (no matter […]
Potentially Bad News?
I read the Annoyed Librarian (AL) blog on occasion. Usually she (I think it’s a she, as the AL is anonymous) has some wry quip about how the library profession is self-destructing, and librarians are too worried about staying relevant to notice. I usually enjoy these diatribes, but today’s post left me a bit depressed, […]
Who’s Really to Blame? Does it Matter?
For a long time, I thought editors were to blame for books that weren’t very well-written. After all, wasn’t it up to them to clean up unecessary words, sentences, and phrases that didn’t move the story along? But the more I’ve talked with, researched, and read blogs from people on the editing/publishing side the more […]
Corrections, Delays and More on Why Authors Produce Drivel
Many apologies for the delay. New job, new house, moving to a new state, and other life events forced my writing to the backseat, which I always hate. Now that things are settled, I’ll be posting more frequently. I’d like to place a correction to my Twilight reference from the previous post. Stephenie Meyer did […]
Another Stinky Galley
I’ve commented in previous posts about some of the books I’m assigned to review. Some are interesting reads, while others are, shall we say, not. An interesting read results when an author considers their reader. This translates into straight-forward sentences (with no unecessary words dangling like useless branches waiting to trip up the narrative) and […]
Useful Blogs Updated
I’ve updated the “Useful Blogs” section to include blogs from literary agencies. I also included a really great one that features up and coming YA titles. I’m in the throes of moving, but will send more updates once we’re settled in the new place. Thanks! -The Writer Librarian
Wise Words from Sandra Cisneros
A few weeks ago I had the privilege of hearing Sandra Cisneros read at a local library. Never had I seen a writer captivate her audience so easily. She told us about her days at Catholic school (with the “happy housewives of God”) and how she was taught to be a “dutiful daughter.” She read […]
Stop Blowing Smoke up my Skirt!
I took a creative nonfiction writing class recently, where I learned a lot about format (including what a nut graf is), and how to make my descriptions more relatable. The class was taught by someone who had worked for a very popular magazine (I won’t say which) for over 30 years, so I figured if […]