Readers and books and pies, oh my!

By Barbara Poelle

Thanks for having me back to guest blog! I had suspected that my inane ramblings may have excluded me from further invitation, but Paula has indicated to me that perhaps the rest of you are not quite normal yourselves, so MY PEOPLE!

And hey, how is it FEBRUARY again? It seems like it comes EVERY YEAR or something. Aside from the birthdays of some of the loveliest people, I feel like living through February is like buying a pair of pants for an oyster: funny for a minute, but then OH MY GOD why is it so cold?!?!!?

The ONLY thing I look forward to in February are the weekend days where it is too cold to make plans with friends so I HAVE to stay inside and read all day. Please, who are we kidding, I don't care much for "activities" or "others" so I am THRILLED to stay in and read anytime. However, there is something about it being bitterly cold outside, but warm with a book inside, that really makes me feel like I am getting away with something, like that time I bought a pair of pants for an oyster. Aaaaand with the Edgar nominees  out (gestures WILDLY to the Mary Higgins Clark Award Nominees where Tracy Kiely's Murder Most Persuasive is nominated) I can have a new reading list to work from. THE DEVOTION OF SUSPECT X by Keigo Higashino was stupendous,  so I feel like that might have me pinned down for best book. And come on, you HAVE to backflip for Steve Ulfelder's Purgatory Chasm, and the rest is just a grab bag of delicious reading. And I like having a list to systematically work through, like a big neon arrow saying YOU WILL LIKE THESE.

Which wait, totally brings me to a new point. Is it me, or do people still go mainly off of word of mouth when they are looking for a new book to read ? If I had a personal pie chart, or wait, I want a personal pie. Okay, I want to eat a razzleberry pie while I talk about this pie chart. Yes, razzleberry is a real pie option although I think it has cartoon ingredients and, like, 4000 calories. Anyway, get me a spoon. Okay. So pie chart while eating pie of how I hear about books:





Holy CRAP! I just MADE A PIE CHART! Is this something that people know how to do!?!?! I think I might be some kind of GENIUS!

Although now my keyboard is covered in sticky pie filling.

Here's the thing, even with the influx of ebook retailers and their helpful suggestions, I am still an old fashioned kind of gal as far as purchasing new titles. I want someone to tell me they loved it first, and that someone is usually a reader, NOT a blurb from another author. I also still loooove to wander through Hudson Books, or Barnes and Noble and just scoop up 4 or 5 titles that speak to me through the cover art and back copy. Taking those kinds of chances led me to books like FALL ON YOUR KNEES (Ann-Marie MacDonald) and THE DEVIL'S TEETH (Susan Casey).

I would LOVE to hear from you on the way you discover new readers. Oh! Let's do this: You tweet me that you have made a comment in the comments section here (and throw the link of the blog in the tweet) about how you find new authors and books and I will read all of the comments and then I will pick several to win fun new books! Wait, does that need to be another slice of pie up there? The agent giveaway slice of pie. Mmmmmm, pie.

Anyway, tweet me at @Bpoelle after you comment below so I can find you again for the drawing.

Can't wait to hear from you!

THE RUNNING DEAD

by Barbara Poelle

(From Paula: Wow. You guys are in for a treat today. Welcome back to Working Stiffs, Barbara!)

Yay! Fall is here! October brings two of my favorite things: excellent running weather and Halloween. I seem to be able to be faster when running around Halloween, mostly because of all the lurching, emaciated undead in the streets, But enough about the fashion district (RIM SHOT!) did anyone watch the premiere of THE WALKING DEAD this weekend? I am very interested to hear what people thought. 

I have always been a fan of horror, and am totally on the hunt for a Young Adult horror novel. (Remember Christopher Pike? Yeah, baby.)  I have read pretty much everything Stephen King has written- I mean if that dude jotted down the recipe for ice, I would read it for hours. Sadly, I haven’t been able to dip into as much horror this season as I would have liked. The good news is that so many of the mysteries and thrillers I have been reading have at least something horrifying in them, so I am not reduced to rubbing my gums and standing in a dark alleyway saying, “Scare me for 10 bucks, Mr.?” (Uh, Ew. Let’s never have THAT happen.)

That being said, what I caaaaan do is resort to a little bribery to scratch my spooky itch. I smell CONTEST! And PRIZES! And HOLLY ROOT! (Oddly enough, she smells like vanilla extract and rage. Sort of like really angry cookies.)

Let’s do a little cross-blog pollination with this one, so this contest will start on the 21st over on agent Janet Reid's blog.  Read this carefully to note when and where to post your entry:

Write a Halloween themed story in 100 words or fewer using the words:

UNFORSAKEN

DEADLY

WITCH

GHOST

SLAY

DECAY

(Bonus points if you can also use the word INSALUBRIOUS)

Post the story in the comments section of Janet’s Reid’s re-post of this contest at http://www.jetreidliterary.blogspot.com/ .  Contest will open on 10/21 at noon and closes at 10/22 at noon. All times are Eastern Standard.

ONE winner will receive a critique of the first thirty pages of your manuscript (any genre) from Barbara Poelle

ONE random winner will receive copies of UNFORSAKEN by Sophie Littlefield  

ONE random winner will receive a copy of DEADLY COOL by Gemma Halliday

ONE random winner will receive a copy of THE NEAR WITCH by Victoria Schwab

ONE random winner will receive a copy of GHOST COUNTRY by Patrick Lee

Barbara Poelle and Holly Root will review the entries.

Janet Reid will be the tie-breaking vote!

If you need a mulligan, delete your entry and repost. One Entry Per Person

All decisions are entirely subjective.

Oh my gosh, this is gonna be soooo fun! I can’t wait until Holly and Janet hear that they are doing this. Someone should tell them. Good thing with all of my training I can outrun both of them.

Also, if you win the critique but want to give it to a friend in the spirit of Halloween (dude, witches share newt eyeballs all the time) that is allowed!

Other than that, if any of you watched THE WALKING DEAD, love to hear from you in the comments on this blog. Otherwise, see you and your 100 word spooky tale, over on Janet’s on October 21st!

The Sun on my Face, the Books in my Hand

From Paula: I ran into the fantabulous Barbara Poelle at the Pennwriters conference, and she told me she missed blogging. Not one to miss an opportunity, I quickly extended an invite to blog here at Working Stiffs. Barbara, thanks so much for joining us today!

By Guest blogger Barbara Poelle

I am mere DAYS away from a vacation, I can already feel the sand in my suit, sun on my shoulders, and the delight of the waiter when he sees my hand in the air for yet another mai tai. Well, maybe that is more of a judgmental grimace, but SIR, I AM ON VACATION.

Despite owning an ereader for work, I am still a book girl, so per usual, I am packing an extra carry-on full of delightful titles. (I am not kidding, I even did this on our HONEYMOON).  See, despite being ensconced in prose all day, I still find reading to be my favorite leisure activity as well.  It's like the male gynecologist; just because he's dealing with lady parts all day, doesn't mean he isn't delighted to see his wife in the evening.  (For those of you who have never read a blog by me, sorry. The rest of you, you KNOW that was tame.) But here's the thing, I have a bit of room in my roller bag and I would love to find something surprising and delicious to lose myself in. Let me tell you a few titles I have so far and perhaps you can help me add a few more (and you'll notice no client pimping. A) Because I read everything by my guys already, and B) YOU should be reading everything by my guys already):

Full Dark, No Stars by Stephen King

I know, I am several months behind on this one, but COME ON, it isn't vacay without a King. I was in Mexico for my 21st birthday (and we will NEVER speak of those events again) and the morning after I decided to recover on the beach under an umbrella with THE STAND, and I read it cover to cover in one delicious, languid afternoon.  A tradition for me since.

(Okay, okay, and I cannot help ONE shameless plug...if you are looking to have a Stephen King-like adventure like I did in Mexico over a deca--uh,  a few short years ago, here is the recipe for that:

5 parts tequila, 4 parts Dos Equis, chips and salsa, shake well, preferably to Latin club music, sleep for 4 hours, then buy yourself Sophie Littlefield's AFTERTIME and the second one in the trilogy, REBIRTH. There is a reason why people are comparing the series to The Stand. After you read, you will want to thank me profusely and send me gifts. Don't deny that impulse.)

Born to Run by Christopher McDougal

Okay, so I put in my puny 20 miles a week, (often times crossing the finish line at the Boat Basin on the Hudson  for a burger and a beer-  I NEED TO REFUEL, PEOPLE) but this book explores the science, technique and even anthropology behind long distance and ultra marathon running.  Supposed to be mind blowing.

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson

This is me cheating because this title is not out until September but I have an ARC. (The first taste is free, always seems to croon from this dark alley.) OMG, I read the first 30 pages of this when agent Holly Root was shopping it, and I have been rubbing my gums and thinking about turning tricks to get just a few more pages ever since.

The Snowman by  Jo Nesbø

Okay, I'll admit it out loud...I am not a huge fan of the Larsson series. (I am hiding under my desk as I type that, should lightening strike me down.) But I have heard that Nesbø's  book, although compared to that international phenomenon, is one of the best crime novels of our time. Alright, I'm game to try.

Iron House by John Hart

I sat next to him at the Edgars! Ahem. Okay, so now that we've confirmed that Hart and I are besties, let me just say that I have been waiting for his next one and even behaved myself, letting it sit there, untouched, until vacation, as a treat. If you haven't read him, you should.

So that is a cross section of my intent, (along with a few romance titles of which I have three, so good there)...anybody have any further suggestions?