Category: Writing
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Steely Dan, New Notebooks, and Other Dark Sarcasm
Let me start by saying that I’m listening to a lot of Steely Dan as I write this, so if it comes off as rambling, dark and sarcastic, I apologize. Every time I put on a Steely Dan record, I find myself thinking why am I not spending every minute of every day listening to Steely…
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De-Stem Your Prose: Writing Advice from SIDEWAYS
“They didn’t de-stem, hoping for some semblance of concentration, crushed it up with leaves and mice, and then wound up with this rancid tar and turpentine bullshit.” Miles (Paul Giamatti) Sideways. This is my favorite way to describe over-wrought prose. Back in college, writing “leaves and sticks and mice” in the margins was a shorthand among my friends…
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On Triathlons and The Myth of ‘Wasted Words’
One of the coolest parts about my job as a reporter is that for all the meetings I attend and hard news I write, I also get to do a whole host of feature stories, which means I get to meet a lot of interesting people. And last week, once again, I got to dip into…
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Keeping a Notebook Pt. 2
Let me introduce you to my papercraft creations: The Book of Crows: My first! The spine is a mess, but it’s still got a cool look to it. I went a little crazy in the papercraft section of Michaels, hence the knob on the front cover. HOWEVER, the knob makes it impossible to lay the…
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Galley Copies
My galley copies of The Big Rewind arrived yesterday and…wow. They’re incredible. To actually hold my own book in my hands, to see my name on a cover is such a thrill that I lack the words to describe it. For the whole night I kept picking it up and turning it over in my hands, thinking this…
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The Big Rewind….Cover Reveal!
Here it is, the cover for my debut novel, The Big Rewind! I am beyond thrilled about this. I had gone back and forth about it, choosing colors and such, with Chelsey (my editor) & Jim (my agent), who are the two most awesome people in the publishing world, but until now, the cover was…
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Farewell, PANK
PANK announced today that they would be closing down at the end of this year. This is a drag on multiple levels. One, they always had the best buttons at AWP and two, because being published by PANK is an awesome experience for any writer. I would know — they picked up my story “Hotel…
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On Keeping a Notebook
I got back into using notebooks a few years ago, when I cracked open a beautiful, untouched leather journal Jason brought me back from Italy as a present for my 23rd birthday. It took a lot to write in that journal because I, like most writers who are gifted with beautiful journals, panic “It has…
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BOOK GIVEAWAY UPDATE
I’m packing up writing craft books to ship out Monday, but I still have a few left to give away. If you’d like one, just find me on Twitter (@libbycudmore) or leave a note in the comments section. US only, please. Cory Doctorow, Content The College Handbook of Creative Writing, Third Edition (my favorite) Writers Digest “HowDunIt”…
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BOOK GIVEAWAY
In the continuing purge of stuff from my father-in-law’s basement, I came across a box of writing craft books from when I was first starting out. I love craft books even though I rarely use them anymore; their pages stuffed with knowledge and promise and possibilities. But just because I’m not using them doesn’t mean…
Libby Cudmore 