holy crap, my book is here!

early copies arrived at the office this morning and i squealed like a little girl! eeeeeee!

Stuff I’ve read lately

Esther Pearl Watson, “Unlovable, Vol. 1″
I love Esther Pearl Watson’s gruesome tales of the life of ’80s teenager Tammy Pierce, and I think any girl who ever experienced high school will be able to identify—if only a little bit—with the unlovable protagonist. It’s a big, pink, sparkly square book full of cartoons. Get it!

Debra Gwartney, “Live Through This”
I’m not usually one for modern memoirs, but this one’s really good. It’s a mom’s account of losing control of her teen daughters in the grunge era. (Hence the title’s nod to Hole.) Gwartney weaves past and present into a circular story that’s honest and hopeful.

Brian Eule, “Match Day”
Awesome nonfiction book about the day med students find out where their residencies (and the next three-plus years of their lives) will take place. It focuses on three female med students and their individual challenges and relationship struggles during the year.

by the way…

Finished writing my book yesterday at 2:30 p.m. I can’t tell you how much of a relief it is to be done. Well, you know, done aside from the rounds of editing coming over the next few months. Hurrah!

Graydon Carter, George Kalogerakis and Kurt Andersen, “SPY: The Funny Years”

I found an old issue of this acerbic, New York-centric magazine for a dollar and fell in love with it. Got a good deal on this hardcover from Copacetic Comics in Pittsburgh!

THE LOWDOWN
Published: 2006, 304 pp.
Obtained via: Copacetic
Date started: 2.10.09
Date finished: 2.30.09

What I liked: The mid-’80s seem like such a heady time to start a magazine. The economy was good, and the technology was laughably low-tech. The founding editors, Graydon Carter and Kurt Andersen, are recognizable names now—Carter’s the editor of Vanity Fair, and Andersen is a novelist and the host of Studio 360. It seems like everybody who got in on the ground floor at SPY went on to do great things. Sounds like heaven.
I also loved the page scans of notorious articles, and the pranks the staff would pull using only a fax machine and moxie.
What I didn’t like: Once I finished reading, I remembered how dismal the current magazine industry is. Around 1993, the original staff had fled, and the last few years of the magazine were decidedly less funny, hence the title.
What I learned: Staying true to your ideals works for a while. But when the ride’s over, it doesn’t mean you stop moving.

Hurtling towards my book deadline

Current word count: 27,818 (out of 30,000)

Trying not to freak out too much about the fact that my book is due in less than a MONTH. I’m starting to break down the remaining stuff to do into manageable chunks. I made up a calendar with weekly goals written on it, for example, my goal for this weekend is to polish up the introduction and first chapter and get the appendix done.

I’m taking a few days off of work in the next month to give myself more time to work on the book. I’m also trying not to completely get cut off from the rest of the world. (Sorry, friends!)

One big problem in getting done with the book is that I keep finding more people I want to talk to! Gotta stop that… After next week, promise.

PS: I’m not writing recaps of books I read for now, but I am still updating my list.

Holy crap, my book’s almost real

Current word count: 25,035 (out of 30,000)

A little more than a month left until my manuscript deadline, and I have reached my Jan. 1 goal of 25,000 words a few days early! It’s incredible to see the progress I’ve made. The book still has some holes and placeholders, but my to-do list is manageable, and the end is in sight. Of course, after I turn in the manuscript in February, there’s still a few months of editing to come. :)

Barrelling towards 30,000 words

Talked to more awesome crafters, and after copying and pasting integrating their quotes, I am very near my Dec. 1 goal of 20,000 words!

Current word count: 19,843 (out of 30,000)

My to-do list is still very long, but I feel positive about where the book’s going as the deadline creeps ever nearer. The manuscript is due Feb. 10, and ideally I’d like to be able to turn in something in really good shape, so maybe I’ll aim to hit 30,000 words by January 1 so I have a few weeks to revise and edit.

Probably the biggest thing on my list is contacting the organizers of major indie craft shows. I’d been waiting on that because craft show season is in full tilt right now. But if I wait too long, I’ll be hitting the holiday season when (presumably) people aren’t going to want to be doing interviews. Conundrum!

Malcolm Gladwell, “Blink”

Malcolm Gladwell is a writer for the New Yorker, and he cracks me up.

THE LOWDOWN
Published: 2005, 280 pp.
Obtained via: Library
Date started: 10.12.08
Date finished: 11.10.08
What I liked: The question he asks in this book is how do we know the things we know? Why are first impressions so often, and so immediately, accurate? He explores the concept of thin-slicing—picking out the details that matter from the chaff our senses generate. The examples come from everywhere—the music industry, law enforcement, psychology, art history. Totally fascinating.
What I didn’t like: No complaints!
Oh, also: Seriously, listen to this episode of This American Life.

Alan Corey, “A Million Bucks by 30″

Reminds me quite a bit of the dishwasher book and the red paperclip book in that it’s written by a dude with an amazing story who isn’t really much of a writer. See the last item for more…

THE LOWDOWN
Published: 2008, 224 pp.
Obtained via: Library
Date started: 11.2.08
Date finished: 11.2.08
What I liked: This guy, broke and straight out of college, decides he’s gonna make a million bucks by the time he’s 30. He’s got some good tips on being really frugal. And I read the whole thing in a day.
What I didn’t like: He went into real estate to make his money. Boring!
Oh, also: He relies really heavily on two jokes: “Jesus H. [random word]!” and “What the [celebrity's name that starts with F]?” This gets old real fast.

my book has a title!

Crafty Superstar: Turn Your Crafts into Extra Cash, Keep Your Day Job, and Basically Have It All will be released in November 2009! And I have even more exciting news:

Current word count: 14,953 (out of 30,000)

I powered through today, integrating tons of quotes from interviews to try to hit my goal of 15,000 this weekend, and it worked! After hitting the halfway point, I just have to write about 5,000 words in November, December and January to hit my manuscript deadline (with a week or two for revisions in there, too).

I’ve been talking to so many amazing people for this book, and my list of crafters I want to talk to still keeps growing! If you happen to know a biz-savvy part-time crafter, let me know. :)