Category: general

general

book title poetry

abby mumford

janet reid (a literary agent) is hosting this crazy cool poetry contest and what with all the poetry i keep finding of late, i figured it was time i stopped avoiding all the signs and started writing some of my own. and what better way to start than with book titles? i only had to add 11 of my own words! and take a picture. so easy! so fun!

in fact, this was so enjoyable, i just may add this to my “get the creative juices flowing” exercises. they’re sort of like stretching (mentally) before a sprint/marathon session of exercising/writing.

THE DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE and
THE PRINCE OF THIEVES have a
FLASH BURNOUT
SUPERNATURALLY
FORBIDDEN
PERFECT CHEMISTRY.
AND THEN THINGS FALL APART
due to her BAD TASTE IN BOYS.
He’s GONE, leaving her with nothing but
THE PARTICULAR SADNESS OF LEMON CAKE.

how about your bookshelves? what poetry do they hold?

UPDATED: i was a finalist!!!! and i got a specific shout out!!!! check it out.

general

old school charm

abby mumford

my coworker was going through a box that had been sitting in a shared space for quite some time. by quite some time, i mean there are documents in there from as early as 1951. (see above). i will transcribe it for you because it’s been sitting in a box for far too long and it’s about dang time this charming carbon copy saw the light of day.

January 2, 1951

Mr. A.N. Murray
31 Geneva Road
Melrose, Massachusetts

Dear Mr. Murray:

Early today I learned that as of this date I will be denied the daily privilege and pleasure of working with you. This knowledge makes me feel as though I had been fired from a job that I liked very much — and I’ve had mighty little notice too. Your retirement will make my work at this Press less interesting, for I shall sincerely miss our friendly business relations.

May your ample store of good humor and wit help you hurdle the problems of retirement as they did the problems of business. And may you enjoy a long, happy, and healthy retirement.

Most sincerely yours,

BLS: EB

isn’t it exactly the type of letter you hope to receive one day? i sure hope to. and, come to think of it, it’s the type of letter i wish i’d had in my possession a couple of months ago when my beloved boss retired. i definitely and whole-heartedly would have given it to him.

and now, just now, i’ve re-adjusted my life’s plan. i want to receive a letter like this some day when i’m old and gray or, you know, tomorrow would work just as well.

may you all find something noteworthy today. go forth and search. and then report back.

general

sugar lips

abby mumford

when you hear the nickname “sugar lips”, you’d probably turn around and flip off the person who called you that. unless you actually HAD sugar lips, in which case, you’d probably nod your head at the truth of the statement. unless you were a zombie and if you nodded, your head fell off. then you’d have to figure out where your head rolled to. and you’d have to do so by flailing your arms around because (as you well know) you’ve now lost your sight, taste, hearing, and scent senses and are only left with touch. and then, provided you found it, you’d have to reattach your head using some sort of zombie voodoo because by this point, you’d be hungry again and brains are not that easy to come by.

“what’s this all about?” you ask, delicately refraining from adding, “sugar lips.”

they say you’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but when your cover looks like this, how can you not?

my judgement? evocative.

i confess i don’t know much about zombies, nor do i know how they’d get lips like those especially since i always assumed they ate brains; brains which are more gelatinous matter than sugar crystals…but what’s my point? this cover? this book? I WANT. i want it like a football player wants a touchdown or a tackle (position depending). i want it like a zombie wants brains. i want it like kate grable wants the antidote.

(see what i did there? i made clever plot references. read here for a full book description.)

fortunately, i don’t have to wait much longer as it’s being unleashed in the wild on JULY 12, but while we wait a little bit longer, the author, carrie harris is having a contest. here’s the post where she details the rules. basically she’s asking her “readers” (i use the term loosely because we haven’t read her work yet so in reality, we’re her future readers. hey cool, i’m coming to you live from the future!) to spread the news about the book’s imminent release. so consider yourself updated and make sure to go to the bookstore on or around JULY 12 to get this book before it gets you because when dealing with zombies, it’s always better to strike first.

(also, you should click the link because her website is beyond amazing.) (and also, ALSO, you’re going down, Breakey. this contest is mine!)

and just in case a zombie apocalypse happens before TUESDAY JULY 12, i’m headed to the nearest candy shop to buy the biggest sugar crystals and coating my lips in them because if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em and if you’re too wimpy to beat ’em and too scared to join ’em, it’s best to try to blend in.

how’s my camouflage?

p.s. no, that is not me. i wish i teeth like that. all the better to eat you with.

wait, wrong story.

general

i haz no words…

abby mumford

…so here, read theirs:

WRITING ADVICE by janice hardy. seriously, everything she says is this “AHA! LIGHTBULB! IS THAT YOU, OPRAH?” moment. the only downside is that she posts so frequently, i find it hard to find the time to read every post because each one deserves to be read with a fine tooth comb. or with a pen and paper for notes. or with a glass of wine. you know, how ever you roll. (also? her books are so so fun. THE SHIFTER and BLUE FIRE.)

HILARITY by allie. this is seriously funny business.

THE SPACE BETWEEN by lauren miller. a post i’ve linked to before but i’m linking to it again because i can’t stop thinking about it. it usually crosses my mind as i glance at the clock which reads 2:15am, 3:27am, 4:12am, 5:34am, etc.

CONVERSATIONS WITH STRANGERS. i came across this blog from her other tumblr site: HGRB. that is a lighthearted blog and perhaps this one started as one too, but it’s evolved into something more. she says this started as a way to combat her shyness and i must say, it’s working. she comes across as confident, witty, and interesting. plus, she always manages to say so much more than just what she writes in each short post. this is a read between the lines keeper!

READING RECOMMENDATIONS by michelle hodkin. a lot of buzz is swirling about michelle’s upcoming novel THE UNBECOMING OF MARA DYER and while i’ve read the first chapter (and sufficiently scared myself), but aside from all that, i’ve had a few interactions with her on twitter and she is awesome. not to mention yesterday she was giving away free book recommendations (based on the last 3 books you’ve read) in the comments section of the post. her point was that we should all break out of our reading habits. re-reading the comments section is a great way to add to your own TBR list.

this is what my life feels like right now.

anything else YOU’D like to add?