amergina

Sometimes life is synchronous.

On the same day, I saw a topic over on the Absolute Write Forums about Francine Prose's Reading like a Writer and Nicole Peeler asked two questions on twitter:

Do you think it's important for readers of genre fiction to be proficient at reading, especially close reading?

Kay, do you think people who want to be WRITERS of genre fiction should be proficient readers?

During my last term in Seton Hill's MFA for Popular Fiction, I read Reading Like a Writer as part of a class I took on reading YA literature.

Prose's book is pretty much all about close reading. ( This got long )

First things: I'm 166/596 on my thesis revision. I've hacked off about 5000 words. It feels great. I'm really liking the process of uncovering the story nearly as much as I liked discovering it.

Second: Been thinking of a sequel or sequels. Need to ponder more.

Third: Desperately need to work on my 12 and 25 word pitches. People at Pennsic kept asking me what my book was about and I could not tell them. Because Lo! I am Lame. And not gold and glittery.

Fourth: Read Perdido Street Station by China Mieville. As part of the Genre Reading course I'm taking, I had to write up two journal essays about it. I'm going to stick them here under cuts.

Without a doubt, spoilers.

( Story framing: Seducing the reader via two narrative angles )

( Of MICE and Moths )

My "did I like it or not" review of PSS is over here at Goodreads.

Fifth: I had had had to read Cast in Silence by Michelle Sagara before I started the next genre read book. Swallowed it whole in two days. Loved it. Except for the grimaces. My fangirl review is here at Goodreads, too. I CANNOT wait for the next book. Well, I can, because I know (now) how hard it is to churn one out.

Sixth: Started reading Spin by Robert Charles Wilson. Great book so far. But I'm way behind on posting about it. I need to do that tomorrow.