It's taken two and half years of intentional effort and help from professionals to learn to write 'tight' - and I'm still prone to languishing on the page. I rely heavily on critique partners to help me identify when my typing fingers outsprint my storytelling. Well, if nothing else, I can thank the author for giving me a lightbulb moment: I mentioned in my last post that I was disappointed with some of the writing in a book I've been reading over vacation. You know those moments in a book when you want to skim? When your interest is waning so you're flipping down the page, looking for the 'good stuff'?ĭo you know how to keep those out of your writing? Your Turn: What are your favorites from the last year / all time? If you had to choose one, what would you recommend? What should I READ? The Time Traveller's Wife (Adult Urban Fantasy) Eye of the World, by Robert Jordan (High Fantasy) Speak, by Laurie Halse-Anderson (YA Contemporary) Watership Down, by Richard Adams (Fantasy) Playing the Jack, by Mary Brown (Historical) Divergent, by Veronica Roth (YA Dystopian) The Pact, by Jodi Picoult (YA / Adult Contemporary) The Help, by Kathryn Stockett (Historical) So Shelly, by Ty Roth (YA Contemporary) Delirium, by Lauren Oliver (YA Dystopian) Here are some of my favorites.įavorite books I've read in the last year:

I tend to stick pretty close to the YA frame since that's what I write, but I will take a stab at anything if it looks good. So what are you reading? What would you recommend? I'm headed off on vacation next week (though I'll be continuing the self-editing series while I'm gone) and I haev some book vouchers so I'm thinking it's time to pick up a couple Something News to read while I'm gone.

So Shelly by Ty Roth