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Writing, Reading, and Rural Life With a Border Collie

Category Archives: Blogging & Writing


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SURVEY: What Do You Want to Read About?

Kimber here. The other day Mom was asking me about what I like to read, blog post-wise. What am I, an oracle? Well. I just smiled and said “everything.” Especially if it comes with bacon. And free tummy rubs.

Howdy!

But that got us thinking. What do like to read about here on Pages & Pages?  What do you want to hear about? What are your interests? Your favorite kinds of posts? How can we provide content that makes a difference (even if it’s without bacon)? 

Here’s your chance to chime in. It just takes a min. All responses are confidential. Thanks in advance for participating! Feel free to expound in our Comments.


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Stuck in a Blogging Rut? Give Yourself a Boost With These 8 Tools!

Are you staring at a blank screen, hoping fresh, engaging post ideas materialize from the ether? Cranking out the same old topics post after post? Running on idea fumes?

Here are 8 easy, on-line blog idea generators to inspire some fresh, original content for your blog:

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33 Post Ideas to Ignite Your Book Blog & Keep Readers Reading!

“I’m outta blogging gas” says Mom the other day. She rolls her eyes. Sighs.

 

Why does Mom do this? I don’t know. Maybe she needs me to lick her face?

Mom says she’s tired of trying to come up with interesting, original blog posts. “I think I’m about book-blogged-out.”

Ever feel that way? Like, if you write one more book review, you’re going to have to chase the neighbor’s cat? Or wear one of those stupid doggie sweaters?

Well. You know me. How I like to help. I’m a helper, see? To start the new year off right, I came up with 33 Rocking Post Ideas For Your Book Blog That’ll Keep Your Readers Reading!

Pretty good, huh? Here they are:

1. Top book club picks

This depends on the kind of book club. Dickens’s Bleak House or Austen’s Sense and Sensibility may not do so hot in a science fiction book club. But you can blog about titles you’d like to read with your club this year and why.

 

2. Seasonal or holiday books

Not just Christmas-themed stories! How ‘bout Valentine’s Day? President’s Day or Independence Day? The first day of spring? Don’t forget my favorite, National Dog Day!

3. Author lists

Great idea for highlighting prolific authors like Gary Paulsen. Richard Paul Evans. Will Hobbs. Or Mom. Readers don’t always know about other books a good author has written. Share!

 

  1. Theme lists

Best outdoors books? Love stories? Science fiction? Mystery or dystopian? Make a list and check it twice. Then blog about it.

 

  1. Does listening to audio books count as “reading”?

There’s quite a debate about this in the book community. What say you? Why?

 

  1. Tell the Librarian!

You’ve been invited to a one-on-one lunch with the head librarian. What do you want to tell him or her? Should the library be open longer? Hire more staff? Increase its collection? What electronic resources would you like to see available? What special programs would you like to see for children, young adults, adults or seniors? Blog it!

 

  1. Buying books on-line or brick and mortar?

Ohhh boy! Plenty of blogging fodder here!

 

  1. Best-Loved Children’s Classics That Never Grow Old

Think Easy. Picture Books. Or the Juvenile Section of your library. Share your childhood faves and your kids’s faves.

 

  1. Top Read-Alouds Your Kids Will Love

Related to the above. Not every read-to-myself book makes for a good read aloud. What titles can you recommend that will have the kiddos asking for “one more chapter”?

 

  1. Best (and Worst) Book Titles

List the _______ book titles you’ve ever seen. *Most clever? Most intriguing or surprising? Catchiest? Longest? Shortest? Dumbest? Most obscure or off-target? Blog away!

 

  1. 10 Books You DO NOT Want To Start Before Bedtime (or you’ll be up all night finishing)

What books can you recommend that were so compelling and engaging, you couldn’t put them down until The End?

 

  1. Five Books I’ll Rescue First If My House Catches Fire

Which books could you not live without, and why?

 

  1. Best Book Pairings

Food and books go together like peanut butter and jelly. Wine and cheese. Chocolate and more chocolate. Share a recipe of two that ties into your latest book review.

Clock’s running!

  1. Take It or Toss it? How Long I Give a Book To Prove Itself

How long does it take you to make a decision as to whether or not you’ll continue reading a book? A few chapters? 100 pages? The end of the first paragraph? Tell us and explain why.

15. What’s on Your TBR List?

We’re book lovers and writers. We usually have piles of To Be Read books. Share what’s in yours.

 

16. Create a Bookish Award

Did you discover an under-rated but excellent read? Give it some love by creating an award! What about a new book blog that rocked your socks off? Or a new author who catapulted to the top of your Favorites list?

17. Biggest Book Turn-Offs

There are no right or wrong answers here. So rant away!

18. 5 Literary Characters I’d Die To Have Lunch With

As long as they’re not serving oysters. Ugh!

19. Favorite Author Birthdays

Make a list of some fave authors. Do a bit of biographical research. Find out their birthday. Sprinkle in a few “Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss” or “Happy Birthday Laura Ingalls Wilder” posts in this year’s calendar. Be sure to highlight favorites by these authors.

20. Books Every Teenager Should Read (or skip)

To the horror of high school English teachers everywhere, my list would start with two mega duds: Catcher in the Rye and The Sound and the Fury. It can only get better from there.

21. A Book That Surprised Me

You thought it was going to be about A, but it turned out being about B. Good or bad? Recommend or pass?

 

22. Most Inspiring Books I’ve Read in the Last 12 Months

What books touched you in a powerful or poignant way, and why?

23. Pros & Cons of Book Clubs

Some readers swear by book clubs. Others detest them. What do you think?

 

24. 10 Books I Bought or Read Just For Their Covers (C’mon. ‘Fess up. We all do it!)

 

25. The Worst (or funniest) Book Typos Ever?

Ay! Yi! Yi! This requires a sharp eye and a keen wit. But you can do it!

 

26. Glitz or Glum? Do Book Awards Mean Anything Anymore?

Have you ever chosen a book based on “Best Seller” status? Or do you just ignore it? What about other literary awards? Meaningless or helpful?

 

27. A Book Series I Didn’t Want to End

Chronicles of Narnia? The Hunger Games? The Wizard of Oz? Little House books?

 

28. Bookish Gifts I’d Like to Give or Receive

Okay, so a hot new title, a steaming mug of cocoa and a snuggly blanket top this list. But think outside the box. What bookish gift would bring a smile to your face?

 

29. A Field Trip to My Library

Think of this as a virtual “show and tell.” Pictures! Pictures! Pictures!

 

30. Write a How-To Post

The blogosphere loves how-to posts. Whip up a reading and writing related posts. Tips: How to Overcome Writer’s Block. How to Read More in 10 Easy Steps! How to Get the Most out of Your Next Library Visit.

31. Share Your Version of The Perfect Reading Room (even if you have to make one up)

What would you include in this room? Book shelves? A fridge? Floor-to-ceiling windows? A fireplace? A lock and key? Would it overlook a lake? Be a snug log cabin perched on a mountain peak, or a fancy French chateau with an inexhaustible wine cellar?

 

  1. Books I Thought I’d Hate But Wound Up Loving (or vice-versa)

Books can surprise us. Sometimes they just need a chance.

32. 10 of My Favorite Literary Hero(in)es & Villains!

Lord Voldemort? Iago? Captain Hook? How about Elizabeth Bennet? Martin Chuzzlewit? Katniss Everdeen? Blog it!

 

  1. List Hyped-Up Books That Tasted Like Toe Lint

Ever dive into a “5 star review” book and wonder, “What were they thinking?! This is awful”? Make a list.

 

There! See? A whole bunch of  post ideas to rock your book blog and start the new year off right!

 

Wait. Do I smell bacon?

XO,

Kimber


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One Small Step…

“That’s one small step.”

Just four short words. Followed by a few more. And we recognize them instantly.

Public domain

Today is the 50th anniversary of one of the most notable achievements in human history: landing a man on the moon.

It’s remarkable. Transcendent. Historic.

I remember the day. I was nine years old.

Mom herded us kids into the living room to the old black and white stereo/console. “This is an historic event!” she exclaimed. “No one has ever done this before!”

“Done what?” I asked, not quite sure what all the hubbub was about.

“Neil Armstrong is about to walk on the moon!” Mom crowed, brown eyes flashing.

I had no idea who “Neil Armstrong” was.

But everything came to a standstill. I’ll never forget those grainy images from the moon. Armstrong’s iconic comments. Walter Cronkite whipping off his glasses and kind of shaking his head in awe, astonishment, and pride. My siblings and I watched, mouths agape, not fully comprehending the enormity of the moment. That took a few years. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNE7Il3fs9M

What American astronauts and their team achieved on July 20, 1969, was, to put it mildly, an epic achievement. It set the gold standard of what good ‘ole American ingenuity, stick-to-it-iveness and know-how can accomplish.

It’s sometimes easy to lose sight of the fact that the Apollo 11 crew of Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins were part of a bigger team. Like the entire crew at Mission Control in Houston. Thousands of additional employees and support personnel. Naval personnel who retrieved the space capsule after splashdown, etc.

All eyes were on the same ‘brass ring’: successfully landing a man on the moon. And bringing him home.

July 20, 1969

We did it. Beginning with a single small step.

You may not be headed to Tranquility Base. Or Fra Mauro. But what “small step” can you take today toward your ‘brass ring’? Maybe it’s:

  • Finding a new trail
  • Exploring a new park, beach, mountain, canyon, or desert
  • Losing weight
  • Getting more exercise
  • Eating healthier
  • Spending more time with family
  • Learning a new skill or hobby
  • Reaching out to a lonely neighbor
  • Start writing a book
  • Finish writing a book
  • Saying “I’m sorry”
  • Trying a new recipe, author, composer, or hair style
  • Planning for retirement
  • Offering or receiving forgiveness
  • Taking the first step to mend a broken relationship

A big goal for me this summer is exceeding last year’s high water mark related to our library’s annual Summer Reading Program. I read 156 books last summer. I just finished book #113.

I’m on target to meet my goal. But I may need to hit the after-burners. One book – one page – one paragraph, sentence and small step – at a time.

One page at a time…

What’s today’s “small step” for you?

Image credit – Moon Landing. NASA. Public Domain.   This post also appears on my sister site, Hiker Babe.


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A ‘Champion for the Ages’

Reposting from 2018 in honor of Derby Day and the 145th Run for the Roses!

***

“Inevitable.” Isn’t that a great word? Learned it from Mom the other day. As in, the 144st annual Run for the Roses is coming up on May 5. So debates about who was the Greatest Thoroughbred of All Time are… inevitable.

Or so I’m told.

A few other things I learned:

The “Run for the Roses” is also known as The Kentucky Derby. The Derby is always run on the first Saturday in May. It’s the first jewel in the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred horse racing.

Why do I care about Thoroughbred racing? Well, I don’t. Not really. But Mom does!

She’s been reading a Walter Farley book about one of the greatest champions to ever set hooves on a race track: Man O’War. Along with legendary Triple Crown winner Secretariat, Man O’War is a top contender for Greatest Thoroughbred of All Time honors.

Back to the Farley book.

Man O’War’s remarkable life unfolds through the eyes of fictional stable boy Danny Ryan. Mom says the story is nearly as powerful and compelling as the great Thoroughbred himself. I’m not sure what the means. But it sounds good.

Here’s Mom’s review of Farley’s Man O’ War.

So when Kentucky Derby time rolls around each May, the comparisons between Man O’ War and another great champion, Triple Crown Winner (1973) Secretariat, are inevitable. At least according to Mom. Which horse gets the nod for Horse of the Century? Depends on who you ask. And what day it is.

Both possessed blinding speed. Both ran challengers off their feet. Both broke records. Both have great stories.

So whether your vote for The Greatest goes to Secretariat or Man O-War, a few things are for sure:

1) May is the perfect month for awesome horse stories!

2) Any story by Walter Farley is a great story. Inevitably.

3) Churchill Downs promises another great Run for the Roses this Saturday. (“Run for the noses”? I always kinda thought that was when Mom calls me in for dinner. But I may be wrong about that.)

4) One of the finest athletes to ever set hooves on a race track, Man O’War remains a Champion for the Ages. Just like Walter Farley.

Is it dinner time yet?

Update – May 5: Congratulations to the 2018 Kentucky Derby winner, Justify!


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Book Brontosaurus, Mobile Devices, and Pizza

View from Fremont TrailI had to laugh. Not because the situation was funny, but because there wasn’t much else to do.

Yours truly exercised executive privilege the other day and took the kiddos swimming at the local YMCA. Along with half the population of the Free World.

It seemed like a good idea at the time: a warm, blue, postcard-perfect summer day. An open afternoon. A recently renewed Y membership. A heated indoor pool. Almost-clean towels. (Nobody’s perfect.)

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Ya Gotta Have the ‘Want To’

“383 books in one year?!” people suck in their breath. “How’d you do it?”

Well. I gotta be honest. It was me.

I mean, ‘cmon. Who do you think took Mom on all those walks to the library to grab the latest truckloadsof unread titles? Who do you think nosed through Mom’s book bag(s) until I settled on something worthy and trotted it out? Who do you think sat in her lap while she turned pages? And pages. And pages.

And. Pages.

You know how modest I am. But, hey. As they say, If you’ve got it, flaunt it. And I definitely Have. It.

Oh, sure. Mom says being a fast reader – somewhere between warp speed and 100 mph with your hair on fire – helps. Ditto audio books. Creative juggling. Prioritizing. Self-discipline.

Also reading and eating. Reading (audio) and driving. Reading and washing dishes, folding laundry, cleaning out the basement, mopping the floor, cooking (audio). Reading and walking (audio). Reading in the check out line. At red lights. In the doctor’s and dentist’s waiting room. Setting aside one day a week to read. Logging off the computer. Turning off the phone. Letting voice mail handle it.

Being a voracious reader and lifelong-bibliophile who’d rather get lost in a good book than eat doesn’t hurt, either.

But. If you really, really want to read 383 books in one year like Mom, here’s the key: Ya gotta have the want to.

It all comes down to commitment. Desire. Drive. Aka: the “want to.”

But we all know the real score here. Mom got all those books read because of me. After all, I’m a World Champion Want-To-er. I’m happiest when I’m with my peeps. Reading. Driving. Walking. At red lights. Waiting. Supervising (“Quiet! Mom’s reading!”). In Mom’s lap while she turns pages.

See? Told you it was me.

I love this job. Wait. Do I smell bacon?

Kimber the Magnificent (and modest, too!)

 

What’s your “gotta have the want to” for 2019?


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20-ish Top Reads of 2018

“Clear the decks!” crows Mom. “It’s Best Books time!”

She may be a bit confused. Ever since my puppy days it’s been “deck the halls” this time of year. Well. You know how moms are. Especially when someone asks, “Which kid is your favorite?”

Okay, okay. So no one put it quite like that. But plenty have asked which books are her favorite. “It’s almost the same thing,” sniffs Mom.

Hah, bumhug! says I.

Arf you may know, Mom met her 2018 reading challenge last week: 365 books in one year. People keep asking which “kids” are her favorite from that long, long list. (For background, see: When They Tell You It’s “Impossible.” Also see: How I Read 100+ books in 90 days.)

I’m kinda curious myself. I gave her the puppy eyes look.

Works every time.

So ‘clear the decks’ for Mom’s Top Reads of 2018.

Warning: “That ‘top 20’ thing’s just not gonna happen,” says Mom.

Indeed, competition for a spot on Mom’s ‘totally subjective, 100% unscientific’ list was fierce. So bow-wow-ish, in fact, that Mom divided the list into four basic categories:

  1. Best Fiction
  2. Best Non-Fiction
  3. Best Series
  4. Favorite Authors.

Also Honorable Mentions.

Each book earned its respective spot based on quality of writing, creativity and poignancy, superior characterizations, outstanding, unique plots and overall excellence. And Just Plain Fun. (Note: No book that brainlessly, repeatedly deploys gratuitous profanity ever makes Mom’s “best” list. She calls that “sloppy-writing-lazy.” Hah, bumhug again.)

365 books in one year. And then some! November 27, 2018.

Anyway, Mom’s Top Books Read in 2018 are,in no particular order:

Best Fiction

  1. Hattie Big Sky – Kirby Larson
  2. Time for Andrew – Mary Downing Hahn
  3. A Dog Called Homeless – Sarah Lean
  4. Run Far, Run Fast – Walt Morey
  5. The Incredible Journey – Sheila Burnford
  6. There Come a Soldier Peggy Mercer
  7. Wolf by Wolf – Ryan Graudin
  8. Anchor in the Storm – Sarah Sundin
  9. The Wood – Chelsea Bobulski
  10. Man O’War – Walter Farley
  11. The Journey Back – Priscilla Cummings
  12. Sarah Bishop, Thunder Rolling in the Mountains – Scott O’Dell
  13. The Adoration of Jenna Fox – Mary Pearson
  14. Ever the Hunted– Erin Summerill
  15. Hoot – Carl Hiassen
  16. Dividing Eden – Joelle Charbonneau
  17. The Velveteen Rabbit – Margery Williams
  18. Unwind – Neal Shusterman

Re-reading a seasonal favorite, “The Christmas Box,” by Richard Paul Evans.

Best Nonfiction

  1. A Prisoner and Yet – Corrie ten Boom
  2. The Kite Runner (historical fiction) – Khaled Hosseini
  3. The Black Dogs Project – Fred Levy
  4. Before Amen – Max Lucado
  5. My Family for the War (historical novel) – Anne Voorhoeve
  6. Great Lodges of the National Parks – Christine Barnes
  7. Hidden Child – Isaac Millman

Best Series

  1. The Misty of Chincoteague series – Marguerite Henry
  2. The Silver Brumby series – Elyne Mitchell
  3. Billy and Blaze books– C.W. Anderson
  4. The Jimmy Vega mystery series – Suzanne Chazin
  5. Black Stallion series– Walter Farley
  6. The Survivors series – Erin Hunter
  7. Fire and Thorns trilogy – Rae Carson

Favorite Authors

Honorable Mentions

Well, woof the deck! Or something. All this reading and book-ing makes me hungry. About that leftover pot roast… You gonna eat that?

 


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When They Tell You It’s ‘Impossible’

No one came out and said it in so many words. But it was everywhere implied. The arched eyebrows. Dubious glances thinly camouflaged by polite nods. Watery half-smiles that didn’t quite reach the eyes.

It added up to: Good luck with that one, sis. As in, Nice pipe dream. Better chose a more reasonable, reachable goal. Aim lower. Because that’s impossible.

These were the wordless but emphatic rumblings I got when I occasionally mentioned my 2018 Goodreads Reading Challenge goal to select friends, Romans, and fellow countrymen: 250 books in one year, January 1 to December 31.

My internal response to the doubters? Watch me.

The author at age 1 year.

As you may know, I’ve been a voracious reader since early childhood. For me, a little slice of heaven includes settling in to a comfy chair in front of the fireplace with a big mug of hot whatever and a good book. Or even a mediocre one.

I incorporate reading into my daily schedule, setting aside at least an hour a day to read. I rarely turn on the TV. When I can swing it, I also set aside Sundays for reading.

Besides. I’ve never been a big fan of “aim lower.” So when people sort of rolled their eyes at my “250 books in one year” reading goal, I quietly revised my goal upwards. To 365 books in one year.

Well, guess what? I just cleared that benchmark, finishing my 365th book since January 1, 2018. (My 365th book was Mark Twain’s The Prince and the Pauper.)

Don’t believe me? You can check out several prior posts charting my reading progress over the past few months. (Like: Celebrating ~ 200 Books in 6 Months. Or: The Big Summer Stretch: 150+ in 90.; Rockin’ it This Summer With Reading, and Reading Challenge 2.0: Why I’m Going Back to Square One.) I’ve also got the Goodreads Reading Challenge log to prove it. A complete listing of every title I’ve read this year, including:

From November 14, 2018.

Cuz lemme tell ya, friends. There’s nothing that motivates me more than having someone insist or imply I can’t do something. That just revs me up to knuckle under. Dig deeper. Go farther, faster. Throttle up.

Incidentally, the 358th book I finished en route to title number 365 was The Trident: The Forging and Reforging of a Navy SEAL Leader. By Jason “Red” Redman. (He goes by “Jay.”)

When you think of the word “courage,” multiply that by a factor of about one hundred. You’re still not close to this riveting read about one warrior’s journey to hell and back.

Redman was severely wounded in Iraq in 2007 – hit by machine gun fire at point-blank range. He endured thirty-seven surgeries over four years before retiring in 2013. He is the founder of Wounded Wear, which later evolved into the Combat Wounded Coalition, a non-profit organization which supports combat wounded warriors and families of the fallen. The Trident is his poignant, brutally honest memoir about the meaning of leadership, true grit, and triumph against all odds.

In the Epilogue, Redman writes:

“Tomorrow always will come. It may not be the tomorrow you wanted or hoped for, but it will come. It is up to you to be ready for it, to shape it and make it what it will be. You can’t change the past but you control your future as long as you’re willing to…”

OVERCOME

There is nothing in life that cannot be overcome if you’re genuinely willing to try and never quit.

LIVE GREATLY

Lift up those around you, always give back, climb a mountain, jump from a perfectly good airplane, and never pass up life’s opportunities.

LOVE DEEPLY

In the end the only thing you will have left are the relationships you forged and sustained in life.

STAY HUMBLE

Pride has destroyed more men than all wars combined.

LEAD ALWAYS

True leaders lead at all times regardless of the situation they are in and who’s watching.

Redman summited my favorite mountain, Mount Rainier, in 2010. He closes with: “If you follow these principles (see above-Ed), “when your hour is called, you can go, knowing you had…. NO REGRETS.”

Like finishing 365 books in one year when most everyone thought it was the stuff of pipe dreams. (It required focus, discipline, and prioritizing. I also read fast. That helps.) But the biggest factor in completing this year’s reading challenge? It came down to having the “want to.”

Additionally, the jet fuel that propelled me across the 2018 Reading Challenge finish line I set for myself back in January? It was the dubious looks and raised eyebrows from those who implied or otherwise indicated I couldn’t do it.

365 books in less than one year! And I’m not done yet!

So. Someone telling you your dream, goal, plans or (fill in the blank) are “impossible”? No way. No one can do that. Better chose a more reasonable, reachable goal. Aim lower. The next time you hear “that’s impossible” or someone rolls their eyes at a goal you’ve set for yourself, just smile sweetly and dig in.

You might also want to read Redman’s memoir. Just sayin’.

Meanwhile, know what? I’m not done yet. The clock is still running on 2018. So why stop at 365 books? Here I go… !