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Writing, Reading, and Rural Life With a Border Collie

Category Archives: Blogging & Writing


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30-ish Favorite Authors of All Time

Hold on to your bacon, friends! Cuz Her Royal Momness has come up with a Royal Doozie this time! Yes sirree, Lassie!

You know how the more you read, the more you begin to get favorite authors? Realize that no matter what they publish, the way they write and structure their work is going to pull you in every time? Like that nice, juicy burger left unattended on the backyard barbecue, so when no one was lookin’…

What?

Oh, right. Favorite authors of all time.

This is harder than you may think. And think. And think. And think again. But some hoomans asked about our fave authors the other day. So we’re up to the task. Or the Royal Doozie, as the case may be.

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15 Summer Hits & Misses


Kimber the Magnificent: Summer’s winding down and Her Momness and I thought now would be a good time to revisit some Summer Hits and Misses. 

So we’re gonna include some Seriously Pawsome Reads and some Kitty Litter Box candidates. Fifteen in all. In no particular order.

Ready? Set? Let’s go!

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How To Make the Most of a Writing Contest

Being all Beautiful and Brilliant and Everything.

Turning a corner here today into somethin’ a little diff: writing contests.

Raise your paw if this has ever happened to you. (It’s okay. Nobody’s lookin’.):

You’re cruising the internet, local bookstore or writer’s group and come across an announcement for a writing contest. It may be fiction or non. Short story, humor, poetry. Whatever. You’re intrigued. You check out the guidelines. Polish your best material to a solar sheen. Submit. And cross your fingers.

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Book Bridges: When Moms Get Dewy-Eyed & Sparkly

It looked like this here yesterday. And like:

So Mom and I decided a soggy Saturday’s a good day to clean out the attic. (It seemed like a good idea at the time.)

Now, you may not know this about me. But I’m a Great Attic Clean-Up Supervisor. I found a comfy rug. Laid down. Watched Mom cart stuff up and down the stairs. Dust. Categorize. Box. Un-box. Re-box.

Supervisin’s a tough job. But somebody’s gotta do it.

Anyway, Mom opened this one box. And sat down. “Oh my!” says she. “Kimmi, look at this!”

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Should I Blog Every Day?

Six words that strike terror into the heart of bloggers:

Please share your latest blog post.

This according to Her Mom-ness. Me? I’m cool with a daily walk and “dinner” twel… I mean twice a day. But you know how moms are. For as long as I can remember – both minutes – Her Mom-ness has insisted that:

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25 Best Fantasy Books of All Time

Being all magnificent and everything.

Kimber here. Letting you know The ‘Ole Curmudgeon is being her curmudgeonly self today. Again. Still. Ya see, we just saw this post somewhere about “50 Most Popular Fantasy Books of the Last 3 years.” Or some such Tom Foolery.

The ‘Ole Curmudgeon: “Three years? Seriously? That’s not even a bat of the eye lash. Especially for those of us who were on a first-name basis with Moses. And eye-witnesses to the Parting of the Red Sea. Sheesh.”

Well. You know Mom.

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A Writer’s Best Friend

Mom and I, we read like, a ton. (In between peanut butter snacks, natch.) But we’re doing somethin’ a little different today. Today we’re musing about writing. Maybe cuz we’ve heard from some authors recently who are frustrated. Discouraged. Thinking of throwing in the writing towel. If that’s you – or you know someone who fills that bill – then this post’s for you. You might also want to buckle up. Just sayin’. Take it away, Mom!

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10 Tips to Get Out of a Reading Slump

Kimber here. Being all magnificent and everything. As per usual. Well. Her Momness was talking to someone about reading the other day. “I’m in a reading slump” says She Who Shall Not Be Named.

She Who Shall Not Be Named used to go to book clubs with Her Momness. But She Who said new releases have as much pizzazz as a can of soda that’s gone flat. (No idea what that is. But it doesn’t sound good.) Mysteries aren’t mysterious. Love stories have as much appeal as a plateful of overcooked eggplant. “I’m just not interested in reading” saith She Who.

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GUEST POST: ‘How my tomgirl childhood inspires my writing today at 60’

By Raven Howell

Author of Blink and Glow.

Review up tomorrow!

Author Raven Howell

Sprawled behind a rickety chair at the side of the old shack in the woods, I barely breathe. Even as a third grader, I know that keeping absolutely still and silent is the key to not being found. Crickets are settling in for the night, and an owl hoots in the distance. I also know there’s a bat that lives in this abandoned shack. I’m sweaty, dirty and there’s a rip somewhere on my pant leg. Yup, there it is. I notice it across my knee where I’ve cut myself, as I’m swiping off the spider crawling across my sneaker. Twigs crack. Someone’s coming! Probably my pursuer – the neighbor who’s “It” tonight in our evening outdoor hide and seek game.

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Age 1-1/2 years ... with a book, of course!


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How to Get the Most out of Goodreads

 

Hey buddy and buddy-ette!

Can you spare five minutes? Good. Cuz that’s about all the time I’ve got on this Reading Goods thing. Ya see, Mom has her I’m Reading: Do Not Interrupt on Pain of Death face on. You know. With those eye glass do-dads and a furrowed brow. (No idea what that means. If you do, kindly holler.) So I gotta get this in like, pronto!

Squirrel!

Wait. Where was I?

Oh yeah. Reading Goods. You may know it as Goodreads. But let’s not get picky here, Buttercup.

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