Magical Memoir Moments
Reposting a Tribute to My Mother-in-Law: A Mini-Memoir
Note to Readers: My first blog was created on the Santa Barbara Writer’s Conference site. When the site closed, I lost the web connection for this post written in 2008. I am reposting it so that others can appreciate the woman I considered a second mother–and so that one small piece of her legacy is…
A Perfect September Day
Corn fields ready for harvest along the Kal-Haven Trail What is more beautiful than a day in September? Today the answer was, “nothing!” I am looking out the window in my office right now as the sun is setting in the west, lighting up the weeping willow tree that has doubled in size since we…
Jonathan Franzen’s Genre-Bending FREEDOM: Part II
On September 24, 2010, Part I of Lanie Tankard’s comprehensive review of Freedom was published here. Today the review concludes with a fascinating report on Jonathan Franzen’s visit to Austin, TX, Lanie’s home. Channeling Walter Cronkite, Lanie makes you believe that “You Were There!” If you can, I suggest that you get a cup of…
Jonathan Franzen's Genre-Bending FREEDOM: Part I
Freedom by Jonathan Franzen New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, August 2010. Available in hardcover, CD, digital audio, and ebook formats. Reviewed by Lanie Tankard Author Jonathan Franzen, an avid birder, has trained his binoculars here on a different species: Homo sapiens. While he does deal extensively with our fine feathered friends in his new…
Shall I Follow Jane's Friedman's Great Example? Or Just Let Jane Do It?
Jane Friedman has 22,679 Twitter followers, some of whom could more appropriately be called devotees. It’s worth getting a Twitter account just to follow her. You’ll soon see why she has built a rabid tribe. She’s smart, ahead of the rapidly evolving book industry curve, witty–and generous. One of the things I like most about…
Judging a Book By its Cover: Rosanne Cash's Composed
Your mother told you never to judge a book by its cover. Right? Well, your publisher isn’t likely to tell you that. And, admit it, when you go into a bookstore, you don’t follow Mom’s advice either. The cover of Rosanne Cash’s memoir Composed: A Memoir arrested me. The author is sitting on a bench…
City of Tranquil Light: A Fabulous Pre-Publication Book Giveaway
I’m so excited! Today I got three shiny new hard copies of Bo Caldwell’s brand new novel City of Tranquil Light. Caldwell wrote the bestseller The Distant Land of My Father, her first novel set in WWII Shanghai, in 2001. This excellent new novel (I’ve read it) takes place in the north China plain and…
Presidential Memoirs, College Essays, Tony Blair Memoir: Memoir in the News
Memoir is in the news! Do you know how many copies of Barack Obama’s memoirs have sold? Which was more popular, Jimmy Carter’s memoir or Bill Clinton’s? Check out the answers to these and other presidential memoir questions here. An occasional writer for The New York Times, Caren Osten Gerszberg, describes the college essay, something…
Let Us Now Praise Independent Bookstores, Public Libraries, and Local Newspapers
If it weren’t for independent bookstores and my local newspaper I would not be writing this blog. So this post is all about thanks and praise. There’s a role for you to play too, so keep reading! I got the idea to praise these outstanding local institutions by reading this delightful Ann Patchett essay in…
Seven Creative Skills You Need to Master in Order to Reinvent Your Life
What do Pablo Picasso, Mary Cassatt, Rembrandt, and your favorite memoir writer have in common? A lot more than you might think. The book below will teach you not only to recognize patterns in the lives of great artists but to become a great artist yourself–a “life change artist.” Becoming a Life-Change Artist: 7 Creative…