Author: abby mumford

general

write on con

abby mumford

i know, i KNOW, it’s thursday and i’m posting. it’s practically illegal, but i felt compelled to write because there’s some amazing stuff going on in the kid lit community and i wanted to express my gratitude (in a manner that’s longer than 140 characters).

even if you’re not part of the kid lit community (and i mean, i’m only a peripheral part), please join me in extending a HUGE thank you to the founders of WriteOnCon: Jamie Harrington, Elana Johnson, Casey McCormick, Shannon Messenger, Lisa and Laura Roecker, and Jennifer Stayrook for providing this amazing opportunity for all writers.

note: click on picture for instant access to amazing advice, talks, seminars, and vlogs.

the gist is this: these ladies gathered the most fantastic and smart and funny and influential and talented people in the industry to provide talks and speeches for an online writer’s conference. and the best parts? because it’s online, it’s FREE and there weren’t any room reservation squabbles or bad hotel coffee or flight delays. all you had to do was pop over to the blog (august 10-12), as each “seminar” and “keynote speech” and “talk” was posted there. oh, and also? everything is archived on the blog, so if work was too busy or you got sick or your kid turned into a butterfly and you had to chase him across the neighborhood or your car broke down or you fell asleep or you converted the time zone difference wrong, you didn’t miss anything! you just have to click and bam. instant access to a vast array of literary and humorous treats.

judging from the fact that i find it difficult to plan dinner 7 nights a week not to mention it takes me about 5 hours, i can’t even begin to imagine how much time it took to plan something of this magnitude. which is why i am SO grateful they did. because i’m a prime target of a conference like this. i am on the bottom rung of the ladder and the only way to climb is to learn. and one way to learn is from the benevolence of others donating their time and wisdom. and to think so many people offered to do just that? well, i can’t help but thank them and slurp up all the goodies that are flowing out of their brains.

that makes me sound like a zombie.

trust me. i’m not.

yet.

so before the zombies attack, get thee over to writeoncon.com and partake in the literary feast.

general

blogging 101

abby mumford

i’ve been doing a lot of forward thinking lately. (forward in the sense that i’m thinking of the future, not that i’m working out the complicated math problems teachers leave up on their chalkboards overnight.) this thinking has lead me to make changes in both my blog and twitter sites. most of these changes involve my name because that’s the most simple step i can take right now and, after all, doesn’t a journey begin with a simple step (after you’ve showered, dressed, eaten, and put on your shoes)?

what’s my journey? the path to publication.

which is why i’m known as myself on twitter and now, here, if you look up at the URL, what does it say? yup, abigailmumford.com. i did have to give that one a little thought because since i’m now known as abby everywhere on the interwebs, should i have made that domain name? well, my thought was this: IF i ever reach that elusive holy grail of publication, i’m going to use my full name. the name my parents bestowed upon me when i was a wee tot. (and boy, do i mean wee. i was premature and weighed in at a mean fighting weight of 2lbs, 6ozs.) so anyways, that’s why i registered my blog as abigail. but don’t be skird, just because my blog is getting all dressed up and looking spiffy doesn’t mean it’s going to be all serious and stuffy and boring. just sometimes. when necessary. but not usually.

another thing i can/have begun to change is the content. i’m sure you’ve already noticed the differences (what? you’ve haven’t read EVERY SINGLE POST from 2003? i’m shocked.) so, umm, for the laymen, i originally started cataloging my digital thoughts as a blahg. (a what?) (oh, sorry, read this post by kiersten white, which includes a very important quiz about one’s blogging style). so it started as superficial, but when i moved the O.L.D over here to wordpress, i started to whip it into shape. to whittle its waist and fine tune its tummy so that when it steps on a scale, BLOG is the read out instead of blagh. i’m not entirely sure i’ve always been successful, but what rookie is?

and so the research continues. and since i’m nice and stuff, i figured i’d share my findings with you:

*how to get more followers

*every post by tawna fenske from the week of August 6, in which she celebrates her 6 months of blogging by telling all us schmucks how she’s so darn successful. except, she does it in a much nicer and yet, dirtier, way: friday. thursday. wedneday. tuesday.  monday.

*make sure you create signature content by giving your readers YOURSELF. cause there are a lot of blogs out there, but only one YOU. so infuse your blog with eau de ME (except the me isn’t me, but you, you know?)

*natalie whipple’s take on HOW TO for social media (blogs are a part of that, you know).

in semi-related news (the news referring to growing up and stuff), i got an email from a friend (hi, hoss!) who is preparing to change apartments. she’s moving into a place where she’ll be living on her own. a very adult move, if you ask me (and her). but the most awesome part? how she ended her email:

“i hope you are well and on the verge of a life upgrade yourself.”

a life upgrade. i like it. and, you could say, i’m working on it.

book club

THE KNIFE OF NEVER LETTING GO, review

abby mumford

this book, oh this book. the title + the dark cover creeped me out.

and the premise (A dystopian thriller follows a boy and girl on the run from a town where all thoughts can be heard — and the passage to manhood embodies a horrible secret) didn’t do much to thwart the chills running up and down my spine. but i should know better than to judge a book by its cover.

because once i started reading, i couldn’t stop. the characters are so lifelike and flawed and confused and youthful and smart and scared and awesome. the plot grabs you and never lets you go. and this idea that everyone can hear what every male is thinking, but more specifically, every thought that passes through todd hewitt (the main character)’s mind, (a side effect of the noise germ) is played out beautifully through the narration and the random commentary by the other characters. in fact, it was written so believably that when i went for a walk after a couple hours of reading, i was very careful about what i was thinking because i didn’t want anyone to overhear anything inappropriate.

yeah, you could say i got sucked into the story.

and i come to find out it’s a trilogy! goody gum drops. i can’t wait to get my fingers on those books to see how this Chaos Walking series wraps up because the ending of the first book leaves you hanging. the most intense cliffhanger i’ve ever come across. it’s not even a cliffhanger or the end of a chapter, but the middle of the action. i can’t believe ness did this to me. how could you end it right there???

although, silver lining, if you’re like me and waited to read these books, we don’t have to wait long to find out how those turn out because the second book in this trilogy (THE ASK AND THE ANSWER) is available now and the third book (MONSTERS OF MEN) will be available in September.

FTC Full Disclosure: My review copy was a free book I received from Candlewick Press.  I did not receive any candy or teddy bears or money for writing this review (dang!).

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new schedule: a dialogue

abby mumford

me: hold onto your hats, ladies and gents. i’ve decided to get organized.

reader: WHAT? you’re not organized?

me: well, not really. not when it comes to my blog.

reader: WHAT? how so?

me: ok, i lied. i’m organized. it’s just that i’m not consistent.

reader: ok, phew. that makes more sense. we KNEW we knew you. and you’re one organized monkey. now what’s this consistency you’re talking about?

me: i’m going to post twice a week. tuesday and friday. i’ve had a lot of fun (and have been getting way more page views) as i’ve been posting more frequently over these past few weeks. i don’t know what led to the increase in posting by me, but i did, and you read, and i like feeling all warm and fuzzy and full of viewers.

consider yourself warned.

i’m going to start posting regularly, which means you don’t have to check back haphazardly to see if i’ve added new content or if it’s still the same dreary post as the day before. although, hmmm, if i’m posting only on two days, everyone will be pushing and shoving and clamoring to get to the front of the line to read the new post. and then the blog server might go crazy. so, umm, you don’t HAVE to come only on tuesdays and fridays. you should always feel free to stop by any day of the week.

*lays out red carpet.*

and make sure to play nice, you guys because you know what happens if you don’t.

feelings

library bound

abby mumford

i’ve always had a mini love affair with libraries. i mean, come on, you get your library card (a fun, bright color) for free and you have instant access to millions of books. for free. for me. for you. for him. for her. for them. shelves and shelves of delicious books waiting to be read. and the library doesn’t get jealous when i go to the bookstore instead and purchase my own copy. what’s not to love?

the cambridge public library recently re-opened its renovated doors and my love affair has blossomed into a full on romance. i go to the CPL at least twice a week. i go to pick up books on hold. i go to search for something new. i go to write. i go to research. i go to read the smutty gossip rags i refuse to pay subscriptions for. i go for the comfy chairs. i go for inspiration.

and the hope that one day i’ll be able to find my book on the shelf.

i was in the library on saturday trying to figure out why my account kept saying i had IT’S RAINING CUPCAKES by lisa schroeder checked out when i had returned it weeks ago. because it’s an MG book, it was located in the kids’ section on the third floor and they needed me to go up there to see if it actually was on the shelf. once i finished climbing the seemingly endless flights of stairs, i stood in line to wait for the next available librarian. and man alive, i could have waited in that line forever. the one librarian was so sweet with two little girls, sky and rachel, who were signing up for their first library cards. and to watch those little girls listen to the librarian and lean on the counter to look at the gerbil and pick out a seed ball and clap with excitement over their first card just about melted my heart. as a lover of books, it made me so happy to know that someone gentle and caring and enthusiastic was taking care of these little bubbles of joy. and while those little girls probably won’t remember, the librarian was instilling a love of books and reading with such a strong foundation that the love is sure to continue into adulthood.

another librarian was soon available and i had to tear myself away (but not before realizing what i want. i want a little kid who is PSYCHED to get their card to check out one of my books. i know how excited i get when i find a book i want. and i want someone to want my book like that. I WANT. i do.) anyways, it turns out the book they said i had checked out was sitting there patiently waiting for its next reader. so all was squared away.

and then i swung by the library yesterday to pick up a book they were holding for me (SEA by heidi kling). as i was waiting in line, i spied one of our books from work on the shelf waiting to be taken home. this was the first time i’ve seen a harvard book at the library. sure, i see them in bookstores all the time, but there was something about seeing it at the library that delighted me. i don’t really know why, but it did. and also, i saw HUNGER GAMES sitting on a cart waiting for the next patron to pick it up. i know what that book holds inside and i can’t wait for that person to get their hands on it and dive in.

it seems that no matter the day, the library continues to charm my pants off. do you have a love affair with a library? or, perhaps, with something other than a person?

spill it.