Kitty Names!

I received lots of wonderful suggestions for kitty names. Charlotte/Fern and Lyra/Pan were two of my favorites, but you know how these things go. The family starts playing with them, I suggest Lyra and Pan (several times, receiving blank stares in return) and lo, entirely new names come out of thin air. 

They are now Bella and Luna. 

However, the entirely new names seemed strangely familiar to me. For days, this churned around in the back of my head, and then I realized where I'd heard them before--my writer friend Elise Murphy acquired some kittens not long ago and named them Bellatrix and Luna. Doh! 

Before you accuse me of cat-name-plagiarism, my hubby came up with the names, completely unaware of Elise's choice. Bella and Luna stand.  

Thanks for all the great suggestions. Elise, what can I say. You are great at the naming thing. My next novel will feature Rachel and Jimmy. Just kidding.

Happy Thanksgiving from Some of My Favorite Authors!

Some of my favorite Kitlit authors have arrived just in time to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving!

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

From left to right: Rick Riordan, MT Anderson, Susan Cooper and JK Rowling

Thanksgiving Meme

I pulled this from my writing buddy Elise, who got it from writer Stephanie Blake. 

I'll play!

1. Sweet potatoes? With or without marshmallows?
Yes, without marshmallows. With butter and maybe brown sugar. 

2. Green bean casserole?

Just the green beans, with herb butter. 

3. Turkey or ham or turkducken or tofurkey?

Turkey. Ham is for Easter. Rack of Lamb is for Christmas. Yeah, lots of Butter.

4. Pumpkin, apple, or pecan pie?

Pumpkin and apple. Even better with coffee the morning after. mmmm.

5. Cool whip or real whipping cream?

Oh, please. If I'm going to eat that many fat calories, gimme the real deal.

6. Do you ever watch the Macy's day parade?

Yep, every year. 

7. Do you take a nap after dinner?

Hah. You'll notice almost NONE of the women will answer yes to this one. Thanksgiving is not a relaxing holiday for the cooks in the house. NO.

8. Do you participate in Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving sales)?

No way. I worked too many years in retail for that (shivers at memory).

9. What are you most thankful for?

My family, good health and friends. And the Internet. Um, and Butter.

And I'm adding one of my own:

10. Favorite use for leftovers?

Turkey enchiladas.

Play along!

Name Nominations!

We welcomed home two new kittens! They're just six weeks old and oh so cute. Right now, we affectionately call them black kitty and gray kitty. 

Um. We could do better.

We are trying to think of some wonderful girl names (if they are from Kidlit, all the better). So far I've only come up with Kit and Ruthie (American Girls).  

We clearly need your help. So, please make suggestions, following these simple guidelines:

1. There will be no non-name names. If you were going to suggest Boots, Fluffy or Charcoal, please save those for your stuffed animal collection. Or  your boyfriend. 
   
2. We've also ruled out Thelma and Louise (SO 1990). 
   
3. Ditto with Lucy and Ethel, because no one wants to be called Ethel. Not even a cat. 
   
4. No Disney characters, especially princesses. Because I have to keep food down. 

So what are you waiting for? We NEED your help. Don't let these kitties be forever known as Black Kitty and Gray Kitty! Donate a name today...(I think it's tax deductible in California).

Word Clouds as a Writing Tool

Thanks to Tabitha Olson at her blog writermusings for finding a writerly use for this interesting applet that creates word clouds.  

Wordle provides a visual representation of the words used most often in a text. You can copy and paste actual chapters from your WIP into it, and voila! A word cloud. For one thing, it's just plain fun. But as Tabitha points out, it gives you a powerful visual representation of the words you use most often. 

I decided to compare Chapter 1 and 21 of Mark of Courage, my young adult historical fantasy novel.  You can see that while my main character, Malika, remains the most frequently used word, other characters have come forward in the later chapter. Makes sense. 

I also see that I need to take a look at how often I use the words 'like' and 'just'. 

What does your word cloud look like?

Chapter 1

Chapter 21

Buy Books for the Holidays

I'm buying books for the holidays! After all, isn't one well-considered book so much better than another wine-bottle-opener-tire pressure-gauge-emergency-car-window-breaker tool? Yes, of course. 

It's all part of my mission to educate the adult world on just how much fantastic literature is out there undiscovered, because adults just don't shop the YA aisles for great reads. And they are missing so much! Here's just a few of my gifty choices...no hints about who these are for!

Ender's Game, Card

Olive's Ocean, Henkes

Octavian Nothing, Anderson

Hunger Games, Collins

Rules, Lord

Speak, Anderson

The Book Thief, Anderson

Feed, Anderson

What other great titles should I add for my adult friends? Any suggestions?

A Few Random Things from My Weekend

Meh: it's the new yadda, yadda, yadda. 

Times Online reports that Meh has been chosen for the 30th anniversary of the British published Collin's English Dictionary. According to the Times:

"'Meh' started out in the US and Canada as an interjection signifying mediocrity or indifference and has evolved, via the Internet and an episode of The Simpsons, into a common adjective meaning boring, apathetic or unimpressive in British English."

It's nice to know we can influence British culture. 

One of the benefits of living in Oregon is the fabulous natural surroundings even close-in to the Portland metro area. This weekend, we took the kids to see the salmon spawn along Eagle Creek in the Columbia River gorge. 

In New England, I could appreciate this wonder only through scratchy school science movies. Seeing them in person? Definitely not a Meh moment. 

Win The Magician's Book!

If you are a fan of the Chronicles of Narnia, then you might want to check out The Magician's Book...I know I've added it to my to-read list. 

As luck would have it, the fine folks at bookdads.com are having a contest! Enter by November 25 to win a copy...

Farewell Sweet Pea, Cats in Literature

We found her in our front bushes 18 years ago in our first rental house. My husband and I were recently married, and our daughter would not be born for another 12 years. In human terms she was nearly 100. Today, she decided it was time to join her litter mates in that Great Big Field of Mice in the Sky, or wherever it is that good kitties go when they die. 

Eighteen years is darn good for a stray cat. Still, somehow it went by a little too fast.  

In honor of Sweet Pea (and Toonces and Newman, both of whom preceded her--but not by much) here's a list of my favorite cats in literature:

The Cat in the Hat, from the book of the same name

Rum Tum Tugger, Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats

Bagheera, The Jungle Book

Bluestar, Warriors series

Grimalkin, Macbeth

Mrs. Norris and Crookshanks, Harry Potter series

Ratha, Ratha's Creature

Skippyjon Jones, from Skippyjon Jones

Tom Kitten, The Tale of Tom Kitten

Please feel free to add your favorites. 

Balancing History and Fantasy

I've just started reading Black Ships by Jo Graham, and if you are a fan of historical fantasy, it's a must-read. Her research is impeccable, the characters are engaging and the settings are richly detailed.

It got me thinking about choices. In my work-in-progress, Mark of Courage, I'm constantly seeking the right balance of historical fact and believable fantasy, which is trickier than it seems.

Mark of Courage is the story of Malika, an escaped Nubian slave girl who flees Troy along with a band of child-thieves, meets up with Odysseus and is tasked by Athena to protect the goddess's beloved general. Malika is no mere slave, of course, and discovers along the way that she has a destiny that goes far beyond saving Odysseus.

Now, there have been many wonderful books set in ancient Greece and Egypt (Nobody's Prize/Nobody's Princess by Elizabeth Freisner, Maia of Thebes by Ann Turner and Pharaoh's Daughter by Jules Lester, to name just a few). These authors chose to write their stories as straight historical fiction, leaving out the magic. I've chosen to incorporate the magic, the gods, and the monsters into my story, so reading Jo Graham's book is a real revelation.

My task is complicated by the fact that it's based on Homer's Odyssey, which is, in itself, more fantasy than history. In addition to the obvious encounters with some of the most famous monsters in mythology, Odysseus' behavior is, at times, almost inexplicably weird. He makes a lot of irrational decisions, which I attempt to explain in the context of my main character's story so that it makes sense in the world I've created.

I'm wondering if any other writers out there are trying to create this kind of balance in their historical fantasy novels? Chime in...I'd love to hear how you are finding the right balance.

Obama fun

Obama Win Causes Obsessive Supporters To Realize How Empty Their Lives Are

Alright, I'm moving on! Back to work...
(Video humor courtesy of The Onion)

Yes, We Did.

Barak Obama, 44th President of the United States. 

This morning, my six year old daughter watched as Obama took the stage with his family. Upon seeing his daughter, she said "Hey, she kinda looks like ME!" 

That will be one of my sweetest and happiest memories ever.