Category: Blog Series Page 137 of 232

There was a point this morning I really wondered if I’d be able to post this today–I had so many problems–my password manager, browser, and then operating system all had strange glitches–consecutively, mind you. I felt like a Pakled, I just wanted someone to “Make it go.” It literally took me an hour to get to the point I could start assembling the post.

Remember when computers were going to make our lives easier?

that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Writers notes: the record label remixing novels into music—This is such a weird idea, but I’m curious about it—has anyone out there listened to something like this?
The Brilliant History of Books, From Egyptian Scrolls to E-Readers—yeah, this is sort of a “history of books in 2 minutes” approach, but it’s a good summary
Picking up a book for fun positively affects verbal abilities—I almost just put “duh” here, but that seemed to counter the premise. Most readers of this post know this, but it’s always nice to get some confirmation, right? I know when I’d have a major paper in college/grad school, I’d crack open a Nero Wolfe/Archie Goodwin novel before writing—it always got my mind cranking in the right way.
The Only Way Out Is Through: On Reading Slumps—I think there’s actually a new-to-me recommendation in the last paragraph (and one I should implement)
What Makes a Book ‘Appropriate’ for School?
What to do when you run out of bookshelf space
Why William Gibson Is a Literary Genius—well, yeah.
A Reacher Relay Race: PW Talks with Lee and Andrew Child
Fran Lebowitz: ‘If people disagree with me, so what?’—a good interview with Lebowitz. I wish she’d find a way through the block, I could use something fresher than the Reader (not that I don’t occasionally re-read a piece or two from that to this day)
I Stopped Writing My Series Years Ago. But Something Kept Calling Me Back.—I’ve never heard of the series in question, and I don’t think I’ve heard of the author, but I love his story…and am tempted to dip a toe in the water of the series.
The Dragonlance Books Launched My Lifelong Love of Fantasy
The D&D Connection: Authors and TTRPGs—Witty & Sarcastic Book Club had a great series this week on D&D and the effect it had (or didn’t have) on various authors.
This Gentlemen Bastards Quote Thread! (Non-Spoiler) from @BookMeanderings almost made me abandon my books for the week to reread The Lies of Locke Lamora
How to create a reading routine that works?—Frankly, I preferred it when Nonfictionality produced articles rather than videos, but this is worth the time.
Embracing the DNF: 3 Reasons It’s Okay to Read Something Else
Announcement: Novels & Waffles is Moving to Bibliosmile.com—While I’m going to miss Novels & Waffles, I’m glad she found a way to stick with blogging in a way that works for her, and am looking forward to seeing what happens with it.

Okay, I think I’ve got the whole reading and listening adjustment to the new job handled, now I’ve got to figure in blogging—which, as you may have noticed, isn’t going as well as it has in the past. Am sure I’ll figure something out, but that “to write about” pile is growing. If anyone knows of an app that allows me to just think about a post rather than having to sit and type, please mention it in the comments!

that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Barnes & Noble Climbs Back
Is failure the new literary success?—this is an interesting little trend.
André 3000 Joins Cast of ‘White Noise’ Adaptation—Wait, what? Someone’s adapting White Noise? I’m having a hard time wrapping my mind around that—it feels like the moment has passed for it to feel relevant to movie audiences, but I’m hopefully wrong (still, Noah Baumbach’s probably a good guy to do it).
The ‘Twilight’ romance no one talks about: Bella fell for Forks and its forests. That fantasy transformed the town’s reality.—I can’t believe I’m linking to something about Twilight, but it’s not often you can see so clearly the impact of a book on something.
The Most Translated Books From Every Country in the World—huh. The U.S. entry on this list is embarrassing, but this is an interesting list.
Psychological Thriller Book Covers: What Makes A Good Thriller Cover?—Matt Witten summarizes the research he did while working on the cover for his psychological thriller. As I (almost always) say about this kind of piece: I find this stuff fascinating.
In Stephen Mack Jones’ novel ‘Dead of Winter,’ August Snow and Detroit star—a nice profile of Jones, probably my favorite new-to-me writer in 2021.
Decisions Are Hard: Picking What to Read Next—I think we’ve all been there
What are the Best Audiobook Apps in 2021?—This is a great overview of the better available apps. ‘Tho I’d quibble with the description of Chirp’s app as being “stable” is a bit pie-in-the-sky (or maybe that’s iPhone vs Android).
Why Libraries Matter
This week’s Let’s Talk Bookish prompt was a good thought-provoker about Blogger Identity Crises (and, as usual, it was too much thought for me to find time to actually do something like writing about it), these posts in response caught my eye:
Blogging Insecurity from Thoughts Stained With Ink
A Blogger Identity Crisis
Reasons Why I Love Reading

That I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Not Awkward by Matthew Hanover—right before his wedding, Scott ends up stuck at his ex’s house while her family sits shiva for her dad. I blogged about it recently and asked Hanover a few questions about it, too.

I’d like to say hi and extend a warm welcome to Mahmoud Dualeh who followed the blog this week. Don’t be a stranger, and use that comment box, would you?