Style Guides

MLA (Modern Language Association): There are many MLA style guides available; the most comprehensive is the book published by the Modern Language Association. For basic help, a number of electronic guides are also available, such as this one at Purdue.

APA (American Psychological Association) may be a style required, and again the American Psychological Association published a book on the subject. A more condensed guide online is also available through Purdue's OWL lab.

Chicago (University of Chicago Press) is often used in newsletters and marketing-related publications: annual reports, and brochures. The Chicago Manual of Style is available as a book as well as online.

AP (Associate Press) is used by journalists and media representatives. The Associated Press Stylebook is available as a searchable online tool or in book form. A simple introduction is discussed at the OWL at Purdue.

Grammar Help

The Online Writing Lab (OWL) at Purdue University has extensive resources for grammar, mechanics, and citations.

It's fun and it's helpful. Check out Grammar Girl, Quick & Dirty Tricks for Better Writing

Arthur & George (Julian Barnes)

Funny how two people's lives can be so interesting to a reader, even before the twists and turns of the plot ensnare you in their stories. Such is the case with Julian Barnes' 2006 novel, Arthur & George. These characters as you might guess from the title are Arthur and George, seemingly ordinary blokes, until their fictionalized characters become recognizable in history as Sir Aurthur Doyle and George Edalji, a solicitor who gained notoriety in England for being unjustly accused of a crime he didn't commit. Arthur, already a world acclaimed crime writer, inventor of the one and only Sherlock Holmes, feels compelled to help George who has written to Arthur of his case. A case of two men, whose philosophies propel them forward into what become at length undesirable and barely enduring. For Arthur, whose grows up in a family of women, honor is a missive he holds upright, almost as if he lays it upon this pedestal. While George is blighted by his own adherence to the law he believes to the bitter end will save him. Barnes is a gifted writer, whose shifts back and forth between these two men's lives lived simultaneously feels natural. Albeit the tangent of their meeting begins late in the book, when the intrigue of a crime fighter against the prejudices of a small village unfolds, there is much before and after to keep a reader up late nights reading.

It's About Time Writers' Reading Series' at the Ballard Library

'It's About Time Writers' Reading Series' at the Ballard Branch Thursday, Dec. 10, 2009, 6 – 7:45 p.m.

The Ballard Branch welcomes the 244th meeting of the "It's About Time Writers Reading Series," featuring author readings and open mikes.
Full Description Celebrate the second anniversary of the Ballard Branch's collaboration with the "It's About Time Writers Reading Series!"

This month's presentation features Lyn Coffin, Oliver De La Paz and Matt Briggs, with a short lecture on The Writer's Craft. Between author readings, open mike time is available for three minutes per person.
Event Notes Library events and programs are free and everyone is welcome. Registration is not required.
Contact Info Ballard Branch 206-684-4089 or Ask a Librarian

Greg Mortenson at Seattle Pacific University

The Seattle Public Library presents Greg Mortenson at Seattle Pacific University Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009, 7 – 9 p.m.

Seattle Pacific University
Royal Brougham Pavilion
3414 Third Ave. W.
Seattle, WA 98119

Greg Mortenson discusses “Stones into Schools: Promoting Peace with Books, Not Bombs, in Afghanistan and Pakistan.”

Join us for a special evening with Greg Mortenson, author of the international bestseller, “Three Cups of Tea.” Mortenson will show images and discuss his new book, “Stones into Schools.”

Since the 2006 publication of “Three Cups of Tea,” Mortenson has traveled across the U.S. and the world to share his vision with hundreds of thousands of people. He has met with heads of state, top military officials, and leading politicians who all seek his advice and insight.

“Stones into Schools” picks up where “Three Cups of Tea” left off in 2003. Mortenson recounts his relentless, ongoing efforts to establish schools for girls in Afghanistan; his extensive work in Azad Kashmir and Pakistan after a massive earthquake hit the region in 2005; and the unique ways he has built relationships with Islamic clerics, militia commanders, and tribal leaders even as he was dodging shootouts with feuding Afghan warlords and surviving an eight-day armed abduction by the Taliban.

Mortenson will discuss his vision to promote peace through education and literacy, as well as touching on military matters, Islam, and women -- all woven together with the many rich personal stories of the people who have been involved in this humanitarian effort.

This program is presented in partnership with The Elliott Bay Book Company. Books will be available for purchase and signing.

Library events and programs are free and open to the public. Tickets and reservations are not required. Seating is limited to the first 2,000. First come, first served. Free parking is available on campus. Doors will open at 6:15 PM.

Contact for more info: *Central Library 206-386-4636 or Ask a Librarian

Other books I'm using

Telling True Stories. Eds. Mark Kramer and Wendy Call. New York: Plume, 2007.

Robert Ray. The Weekend Novelist.

Bob Mayer. The Novel Writer’s Toolkit.
Description

Twyla Tharp to speak in December

Thursday • December 10 • 7:30pm
Twyla Tharp
The Collaborative Habit: Life Lessons for Working Together (SIMON & SCHUSTER)
Reading & Book Signing
UW Kane Hall, Room 120, Seattle Campus

I just starting reading THE CREATIVE HABIT: LEARN IT AND USE IT FOR LIFE (http://www.twylatharp.org/store.shtml#) which is WONDERFUL.

826 Seattle hosts Adderall Diaries' author, Stephen Elliott Dec. 2 (7-9 pm)

Stephen Elliott Memoir Writing Workshop Dec 2, 7-9 p.m.

826 Seattle is pleased to announce that longtime McSweeney’s author Stephen Elliott will be here at 826 on Wednesday December 2 from 7-9 p.m. to talk about the generation of memoir, using the author’s recent book, The Adderall Diaries, as a jumping off point for discussing the process of figuring out your story and editing it into something someone would want to read.

• You’ll get ideas on writing memoir
  
• Understand some of the problems the memoir writer may encounter
  
• How to deal with family members and friends who may not want to be written about
  
• Writing tips for accessing memories and experiences

The Adderall Diaries is Stephen Elliott’s first memoir but his seventh book, all of them written from personal experience. Even better: admission is the price of the book, and includes a copy! That’s $25 for your own copy of The Adderall Diaries and a chance to learn from Mr. Elliott himself at this one-of-a-kind workshop. Purchase your ticket today at Brown Paper Tickets.

Barbara Kingsolver, Nov 20 (1:00-2:30 pm) at 3rd Place Books

I'm a HUGE fan of Barbara Kingsolver, so you can imagine my excitement when I learned she'll be here in Seattle this month.

She's promoting her new book, Lacuna, which is described as "a page-turner spanning three decades in Washington DC, Mexico, and Russia. An unassuming narrator illuminates the
struggle over communism and global power as he falls into the lives of Frida Kahlo, Lev Trotsky, Herbert Hoover, Richard Nixon, and more"

John Irving at Lake Forest Park Third Place Books, Nov. 3

Seattle Times Books Editor Mary Ann Gwinn interviews John Irving on the Third Place stage, part of Irving's book tour for Last Night in Twisted River. November 3, 7:30 pm-8:30 pm. Lake Forest Park, Third Place Books, 17171 Bothell Way NE, Lake Forest Park, WA 98155

A sad, sad day

Woe is me and all book lovers who have associated Pioneer Square with the Elliott Bay Bookstore. This week The Seattle Times published news that the iconic bookstore is saddled with debt and facing hard decisions. Read the full story here: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010090597_elliottbay19m.html

Future author "sightings" in Seattle

Michael Chabon looks like he'll put in an appearance: http://www.elliottbaybook.com/events/oct09/chabon.jsp
Friday, October 16 at 5 p.m. at Elliott Bay

And this looks like an excellent program at Third Place Books, Lake Forest Park, on Oct 21: Celebrate National Reading Group Month at Third Place Commons Stage, Lake Forest Park
October 21, 2009 - 7:00 - 9:00pm

Hear 5 experienced authors give their perspectives on author/book club meetings. Come with questions – and enjoy refreshments, book club tips and lists, and literary stuff!
Authors will sign their books, too.

Nancy Pearl - Moderator
Jamie Ford – Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
Diane Hammond – Hannah’s Dream
Stephanie Kallos – Sing Them Home
Jim Lynch – Border Songs
Garth Stein – The Art of Racing in the Rain


John Irving anyone?
He'll be at Third Place Books, Lake Forest Park, November 3, 2009 - 7:30 - 8:30pm
His new book is Last Night in Twisted River

Proulx coming to Seattle in October!

Annie Proulx - October 7, 2009, 7:30 pm
Benaroya Hall, downtown Seattle at 200 University Street.
The Pulitzer Prize/National Book Award-winning author of "The Shipping News" and "Brokeback Mountain," the story that inspired the movie of the same name. Seattle Arts and Lectures: http://www.lectures.org/index.php

September Nights 'o Reading

Just finished Julia Child's My Life in France. Boy is that lady a good storyteller, albeit her grand-nephew takes much credit for putting together the book. I envy her memory, and now I don't feel so bad about keeping so many old letters and photos. They jog the memory cells that have gone to sleep.

Read through the prologue of Water for Elephants before my eyelids couldn't stay open longer last night. Went to Bharti Kirchner's 826 Workshop on Writing the First Page of a Novel, and based on what Kirchner said and other books I've read, Sara Gruen would get an A+.

Speaking of 826 How to Write Like I Do workshops, I learned loads from the queen of books, Ms. Nancy Pearl, this past month on writing book reviews. Check out the soon-to-be-released schedule of workshops for 2010: http://www.826seattle.org/writelikeido/bios.html

What I'm reading

Why read just one . . .

John le Carré's The Constant Gardener (got to read it before I see the movie!)

Barack Obama's The Audacity of Hope--excellent!

Traveller's Tales' A Woman's Path

Robert Ray's The Weekend Novelist

Molly Gloss's The Hearts of Horses--so, so

And just found this site: http://www.bookbrowse.com/top_reviews/

An Artist of the Floating World (Kazuo Ishiguro)

Kazuo Ishiguro, who also wrote “The Remains of the Day,” is a highly lauded Japanese author, born in Japan, then moved to England at the age of six. The novel follows Masuji Ono, a much accomplished artist from October 1948 to June 1950. The background is a Japan recovering and rebuilding after World War II. Ono-san had joined the patriotic fervor leading up to the war. Confrontations with Mr. Kuroda, his former pupil, along with suggestions from his daughter Setsuko’s hint at past transgressions as does Ono-san believing his role in the war may hinder his daughter Noriko’s miai, or marriage arrangement. The new generation—Suichi, Setsuko’s husband, and Taro, his new son-in-law—regard the newly embraced democracy as tantamount to a happy future, even if, as Ono-san sees it, Japan remains in the shadow of America. He is old, retired, belittled by his two daughters, and so he passes his time reinterpreting conversations he’s had and sharing scenes of his past. Ono-san’s thoughts often glide in and out of these scenes even as his present life carries on, glimpses of past glories haunt the present in the same way Mrs. Kawakami’s traditional bar is soon overshadowed by multi-story offices. Unfortunately for this reader, the pacing of the novel is slow, and the meaning of those recounted episodes not evident until the reader has nearly finished the book. Still, perhaps the genius lies in the irony of a man stuck in the floating world of the past. And despite his break with Mori-san, his former mentor, Ono-san realizes the break was anything but clean. Ono-san’s words, thoughts he realizes may have been molded from his former teacher, show his life not so far removed from the one he so criticized in his former mentor. So, this inheritance--stuck as it seems in the floating world--only comes to fruition when he learns to break free.

Stiff (Mary Roach)

I remember one of my students recommending her book to me, so when it came up as a suggestion for my book club, I jumped on it, knowing only that it was a book about dead bodies. Boy, am I glad I finally had the chance to read Roach’s first book. It’s as entertaining as it is informative, one of the best combinations for remembered fodder that tends to pop up in conversations long after the last page is read. “Oh! That reminds me of this thing I read in Stiff . . .” Which I brought up recently after watching X-Files the movie, in which two women had disappeared, and Bolder and Scully track down some Russian scientists trying to keep a man alive by transplanting his head to the live woman’s body. In Chapter 9, Roach covers the history of scientists working toward this goal of keeping heads alive, using dogs, with limited success. Roach covers the gamut of what happens to donated bodies and their parts along with what we have discovered thanks to these generous dead folks. Plastic surgeons practice face lifts on donated heads, the history of cadavers’ use in anatomy classes, and experiments with dead bodies to test bullet-proof vests, air bags, army boots, just to name a few. For me, I intend to settle down to read her next books, Spook and Bonk, the next chance I get!

The Heart of Horses (Molly Gloss)

A story of a remarkable, independent-minded young girl named Martha Lessen at the turn of the century, the twentieth century, that is. She is like the horse whisperer a century earlier. And a girl, that is. Despite any intentions whatsoever, Martha warms her way into the heart of the townspeople through their unruly, bad tempered horses. For me, I loved the idea of putting a girl in such a milieu and giving her the kind of character that Martha has. But the book was slow for me, much attention paid to the horses Martha trains to ride, or “breaks to saddle.” The climax, when adventure speeds the plot up, is far too late and the ending far too conventional for me to give the book another read.

Narrative Non-fiction links

The Narrative Journal
http://poynter.blogs.com/narrative/

The Narrative Digest's Narrative Library
http://www.nieman.harvard.edu/narrative/resources.aspx

The Narrative Digest's Essays on Craft
http://www.nieman.harvard.edu/narrative/essays.aspx

The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard
http://www.nieman.harvard.edu/NiemanFoundation/Audiences/JournalistsAndWriters.aspx

Loving Frank (Nancy Horan)

Loving Frank could be said to be akin to Kate Chopin's The Awakening in that it is a woman's awakening to her own sense of self, her needs and aspirations apart from her partner's or her responsibilities as wife, lover, or mother. Written as if Mamah Borthwick Cheney was writing her own memoir in third person, the fictional story brings to light a largely secret chapter in a real-life affair with the same woman, a largely secret chapter in Frank Lloyd Wright's larger-than-life history. Beginning in Frank Lloyd Wright-country, Oak Park Illinois, in the early twentieth century, the clandestine lovers eventually leave their respective spouses to live a life together. But a description based on just the love affair or the "awakening" of a woman realized falls short of the Horan's prose, which is intoxicating with feelings of desire, guilt, shame, thrills, and quiet moments of determined resolution that this reader adored. So much so, that the page-turner disaster that closes the book and scars the infamous Taliesin house in Hillside, Wisconsin leaves shock and heartbreak in the wake of the last page read. Loving Frank is Nancy Horan's first novel. But her previous life as a journalist and the years living in Oak Park herself has brought this beautiful story alive on the page. For Horan has given voice to Mamah, a woman whose voice and life were all-too-soon silenced by the passing of years and a seemingly passing shadow towered over by the life of a world-famous architect like Frank Lloyd Wright.

The Audacity of Hope (Barack Obama)

The Audacity of Hope (Barack Obama)

You know you like a book when you tell everyone how good the writer is. And this was never more true than Barack Obama’s second book, The Audacity of Hope. He is an incredibly thought-provoking, articulate writer. And given for his present position, quite surprisingly humble. I am impressed that he published his beliefs in such a public way, his views on foreign policy, on community, and on family, among others. You’ll want to savor this as I did, enjoy the spell he casts over you, as you seem to be there in an armchair opposite the man, as if listening to him speak about each thing that is so important in this world.