Writing Blog
A happy writing New Year!
How on earth does it happen each year? 2017 already! To all you writers out there, now that the champagne bubbles have gone flat and the fireworks and holiday parties are only a faint memory, now’s the time to buckle down and start a new writing year with enthusiasm. I know that I’m one of those…
Read MoreMy 2016 in reading
Just as we wrap up the year, I was pleased to get a little reminder of my year in reading in the form of my Goodreads Reading Challenge update. It’s nice to see all the covers of books I’ve read throughout the year, set out very nicely on this review page. And my nerdy bookworm…
Read MoreFarewell to novelist Shirley Hazzard
Earlier this month, Australian author (later turned American citizen) Shirley Hazzard (1931 – 2016) died at the age of 85. Hazzard was probably best known for her novel, The Transit of Venus, which won the National Book Critics circle Award in 1980. But for me, the book I most closely associate with Hazzard is the…
Read MoreNew-to-me authors in 2016 I’ll want to read more from…
Since discovering the excellent Book Date site, I always get great ideas for reading or posts for book lovers, such as her post New-to-me authors in 2016 I’ll want to read more from. What a great idea – each year I discover new writers whose work I enjoy, and it leads me to look up their…
Read More‘Tis the season … to gift books!
I’m not one of those people who want or expect lots of expensive gifts under the Christmas tree, but I do appreciate the ever-thoughtful gift of books! Christmas is always a good time for me to curl up, a steaming cup of tea or cocoa at hand, ready to crack open the covers of a brand-new…
Read MoreHow cool is this? #Booksonthesubway
I absolutely LOVE this idea. And now I find myself kicking myself, why one earth did I not discover this when I spent all of last August in New York? Okay, definitely time to get back to scour the subway for these books. The idea is remarkably simple. Every few days, Books on the Subway carries…
Read MoreThe art of translation
Every translation is an act of negotiation. -Umberto Eco I only recently saw this quote from the recently deceased Italian novelist, Umberto Eco. He would certainly have known about this first-hand, as his novels, especially his most famous, The Name of The Rose, were translated into numerous languages. But Eco was also a linguist and semiotician, so he…
Read More500 posts!
My kids would be cruel and ask if this is how many candles I’ll be having on my birthday cake. After all, when he was younger, my older son did actually ask me if I moved to Rome before or after they’d built the Coliseum. *Sigh* But no, a big number like this does not scare…
Read MoreHappy National Short Story Week 2016!
It’s that time of year again, National Short Story Week 2016 – running 14-20 November! Short story readers and writers like me always appreciate efforts to concentrate much-needed attention on the short story. That’s one of the reasons I always look forward to this week. And I often tend to set aside short story collections…
Read MoreWomen’s Fiction Reading Challenge
Funny that I just discovered this challenge (as 2016 comes to a close) over at the excellent Book Date web site. The Women’s Fiction Reading Challenge 2016 is a challenge to read a certain number of Women’s Fiction books in a year: you choose the level of your commitment, and it ranges anywhere from less than…
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