New website announcement!

I realize I haven't posted here about my new website!

Briarbook Lane is home to authors Mary W. Jensen and Elizabeth Wilcox, sisters in life and story. An enchanted escape, with book reviews, writer tools, and a fairy tale book club.

This is a new blog start for me. The website hosts three blogs: my new blog "Mary's Expression", Liz's blog "Elizabeth's Musings", and "Enchanted Garden" which is our fairy tale book club. We will be posting our thoughts on our first book club title, "Mirror Mirror" by Gregory Maguire, on June 2 and invite you to read along!

I'd love it if you came over and followed us there.

Books I Read in 2018

The Goal

Last year my main reading goal wasn't for types or numbers, but simply to track what I read. I bought a cute reading tracker (on Etsy) I printed out. I ended up doing two sheets, one for shorter works and one for more standard books. My main sheet didn't fill out, but I had to print off a second one for shorter works. Read a lot more graphic novels than I expected.

Books Read 2018

Here was my breakdown

• Graphic Novels: 38
• Picture Books: 25
• JE (early readers): 8 (all Owl Diaries, super cute series)
• JF (Junior Fiction): 2
• Nonfiction: 5 adult, 4 junior
• Adult and YF novels (didn't designate between them): 26
• Story Collection: 1
• Poetry books (from children, to chapbook, to full collection): 17

A total of 126 books!

I read 20 books for work.
10 books with husband or son.
1 audio book.

I also did a summer reading bingo with my son.

New and Unexpected

The book that I was most surprised to enjoy was "A Gentleman in Moscow" by Amore Towles. The description had me thinking it would be a long slow read. Never would have even picked it up if not for my book club. Ended up quickly being immersed into the book and its characters, its philosophy.

A new favorite poet is Atticus. I quickly devoured both his books: "The Dark Between Stars" and "Love Her Wild." Resonating poetry, and gorgeous accompanying black and white photography.

Some other standout books:

Horrorstor by Grady Hendrix (horror)
Come Sundown by Nora Roberts (romantic suspense)
A Song for Quiet by Cassandra Khaw (horror, Lovecraftian)
Level Up Your Life by Steve Kamb (self-help)
The Beauty (graphic novel series)
Explorer (graphic novel series, anthologies)
Hidden City: Poems of Urban Wildlife (children's poetry)
Marcy and the Riddle of the Sphinx (picture book)

What did you read last year?

Chiaroscuro Book Give-a-Way!

This is your chance to win a copy of Chiaroscuro.

CHIAROSCURO is a poetry book about the contrast and balance between light and dark. It’s a journey through a crumbling world that leaves a gritty taste. It shines light on the edge of awareness where dark magic wars with childish innocence.

These poems range from internal conflict to worldwide war to creatures of myth, but all follow the themes of finding havens of light in dark days, persisting despite the odds. The light is only brighter for the darkness that surrounds it. 

Winner will receive a PDF copy of Chiaroscuro. This is my first Rafflecopter giveaway. If it goes well, I'll do another! Enter below. Ask if you have any questions.

If you happen to already have a copy (thank you!), you can still enter and gift it to a friend. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

News about Chiaroscuro

One of my goals for this year was to publish my poetry collection Chiaroscuro. Last year I researched publishers, and compared their sites and stats.
I made a list of what I most wanted in a publisher. It wasn't about the royalty. It was:

• clear information
• print options
• listed response time
• ease of submitting (email)

I know self-publishing is an option, especially for poetry, but I’d prefer to go through a publisher for the formatting, marketing, cover book, all those things that intimidate me. It’s a process I’d rather not go through alone.
One of my top choice was SynergEbooks. I am very impressed by their website, and how much information they give in the process and what to expect, and what they expect of their authors.
I didn’t have to wait long after querying SynergEbooks to get a response. They were impressed with my sample poems. They were very upfront to answer the few questions I had, and less than a week later I was signing an Author Contract.
I am very happy to be working with SynergEbooks to publish my poetry book. No release date yet. It will be published digitally and available through the publisher website, as well as on Amazon.com and B&N.com. If it does well enough, there is a possibility for a print version.
In preparation for publication, I have created a site dedicated to my Chiaroscuro poetry book. I will be creating individual sites for each of my major projects, where you can learn more, read excerpts, and get news on their status.

11 Questions and a Blog Award

*Dusts off blog so she can post shiny award*

Thank you, Heather Riffle, for the award. And the excuse to dust off my blog. Hopefully I still have some followers left after its neglect.

Now on to the fun stuff.

Rules:
-Answer the presenter’s 11 questions
-Choose 11 lucky recipients (who have fewer than 200 followers)
-Formulate 11 questions for them to answer
-Plaster the award on your blog

I’ll likely bend the second rule, but the rest I can do! Here are Heather’s questions for me:

1. Does music ever inspire your writing? Absolutely. I find Celtic music especially gets me in the mood to write fantasy. I’ve also become hooked on Radio Rivendell. Epic music for epic writing.

2. What is your favorite season? Autumn. Warm colors. Crunch of leaves. The weather is just starting to cool. The kid is back in school. The writer community comes together for The Muse Online Writers Conference, and NaNoWriMo. Fall may not be the usual time for new beginnings, but it represents MY beginning. I was born in November. So this time of year is also perfect for my blog’s revival.

3. What is your favorite holiday? Thanksgiving. I was born on Thanksgiving, and it’s a time for food and family and fun.

4. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live?  And why? Ooh, this is a toughie. No, actually it’s not. There’s this island I researched for one of my novels. Sylt island, the northernmost part of Germany. It never gets completely dark at night in the summer. Miles and miles of beach. The smell of the ocean. Charming villages. So very magical.

5. Cats or dogs? Why? Cats. An obvious reason, I am more allergic to dogs. They are more self-sufficient. On a more emotional level, cats are comforting, playful, always bring a smile. They tend to be cuddlers, just like me.

6. Favorite color?  What do you think it says about your personality? Purple. Purple is creativity, passion, fantasy, play, and possibility.

7. Favorite movie? Why? The Avengers. Joss Whedon + Chris Evans + great dialogue + an epic cast + action + superheroes = AWESOME

8. If you could have a superpower, what would it be? Why? What a wonderful follow up to #7. LOL I would choose flight. To fly through the air, up where it’s pure, traveling wherever I please.

9. If you could time-travel, would you? Where/When would you go? And for what reason? I would travel back to when Stonehenge was in its full glory. I want to see it whole, and learn how and why it was built.

10. Favorite food? German Chocolate Cake. If dessert doesn’t count, then homemade banana muffins.

11. Who/what is your favorite character (movie, book, TV) of all time? Hard to label just one. I must have a thing for bad boys, cause the names that pop into my head are Captain Mal Reynolds (from Firefly), Leesil (assassin from The Noble Dead Saga), Matrim (from Wheel of Time), and Raistlin (from Dragonlance). No wonder the male hero of my first book is a thief!

Not sure who to pass this on to. That may have to be a future post. I hope you enjoyed my answers.

Darkness and Light

When I first started looking for themes in my poetry, I found a lot of them were on the darker side: death, pain, abuse. Of course, a lot of those were from my teenage days. You know how teenage angst can get. But I still use poetry to deal with the darkness.

So a few years ago, I decided to put these poems in a collection. At the time, I didn’t have any publishing credits, so I hesitated sending it out. It’s been sitting on the virtual shelf. Now I’m ready to take a look again, and I believe my newest poem will be a strong addition.

I’m using Scrivener to organize the poems. My title is Chiaroscuro. Focusing on the contrast between dark and light. Exploring the darkness, bringing the monsters of death and abuse into the light.

And now I have a book publication, the Lifelines anthology with the Poetic Muselings. Time to step up and try getting my own collection published.

Lifelines out in the World

The Poetic Muselings is a group of poets who formed from the Muse Conference to share poetry, push boundaries, and support each other. We complied a book of our best poems, worked as a group to make them even better, and pulled them together in a cohesive theme. The result? LIFELINES poetry anthology. Our collection was picked up by InkSpotter Publishing and is now available! You can order it through Amazon or request it at your local bookstore.

Our poems and purpose kept us afloat through the years. We became each others' Lifelines.

LIFELINES plays off both meanings: those on the palm of your hand, as well as those linking us adrift.

Our poems flow with the tides of the sea as they follow the ebb and tide of life itself. Childhood and friendship. Romance and loss. From death to new life and inspiration.

ISBN-10: 0981333559
ISBN-13: 978-0981333557

Boards of Inspiration

We all have things that inspire us. Excite us. Images that take our breath away. Some people do collages or create vision boards. I use a nifty site called Pinterest to organize mine.

I have a board for my wish list, one for favorite places, books I love, anything Gamer Girl, and a newly added one for my Inspiration Room I hope to have someday.

Fly with me as I find inspiration.

Summer Reading

Now that B is old enough to really listen and pay attention without pictures, I’ve been reading a chapter book to him. We’re going through OF MICE AND MAGIC by David Farland. I first read the sample chapter online to see if it would be something he’d like. We’re half way through the book now and really enjoying the story. We’ll definitely be checking out the other books in the Ravenspell series when we’re done.

I have good memories of me and my siblings sprawled on the couches and floor, listening to my mom read WATERSHIP DOWN. I wanted to create that same experience for my son.

In addition to our family reading time, we have plenty of incentives to read this summer.

• Our library is having  a Summer Reading program where we can record reading sessions for B and books read for me to earn a book at the end of Summer.
• Barnes and Noble has a challenge for kids to read eight books for a free book
• Borders has their Double-Dog Dare Challenge again to read ten books and earn a free book.
• Scholastic online has a minutes tracker with weekly challenges to spin for prizes and an overall sweepstakes.
• Our state governor is doing Read with a Child. Read 20 hours together over the summer and get a Certificate of Achievement.
• I even have a challenge just for me. The library is also doing an event through Goodreads. Read five books, each set on a different continent, before the end of August. Any suggestions for those?

That’s a guaranteed three free books for B if he completes the challenges, and one for me, with chances to win more prizes.

What are your reading plans this summer?

Sometimes the Mail Brings Joy

Many years ago, I would get excited for the mail to come. Waiting for letters from friends, and responses from mailed poetry submissions. I would run out barefoot to the mailbox, eager to be the first one to open it and see what delights may be inside. Not often was something for me, but those moments I would find an envelope with my name would get me bouncy. Yes, even when the poetry responses were rejections. I was young and eager. And when I got a letter from my childhood friend who rarely wrote, my entire family knew about it. So great was my joy.

One of my novels on the backburner seeks to capture that joy again, with the added thrill of eavesdropping on someone else’s mail. In Fly With Me, Vincent gets intrigued by a handwritten letter to his roommate, which is discarded without being opened. With permission, he reads the letter and gets a glimpse into the life of a woman who still believes in magic.

In my own life, it seems mail brings burdens more than joy. You know what I mean: the bills that never end, advertisements which overflow my recycling box. Most of the good things are now self-activated rather than surprises. These last few days just happened to bring more of those than usual. Saturday:  check I had forgotten was coming; a package from Disney Movie Rewards that was redeemed months ago. And today my Barnes and Noble order arrived. I’ve been wanting the book for Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog ever since I saw it listed last October. After a few delays, it finally came out on  March 29, and today I hold it in my hands! Full script and sheet music, behind the scenes info, commentary by cast and crew. Love!

What do you love and hate about the mail?

Pegasus

I recently read Robin McKinley’s PEGASUS. It may be only book one of two, but I wouldn’t let that stop you from getting it. McKinley has long been one of my favorite authors. In fact, THE HERO AND THE CROWN and THE BLUE SWORD were the books that introduced me to fantasy and made me want to write fantasy. I want to create wonderful worlds and real characters that stick in your heart. Her words create an escape.

And PEGASUS is no exception. I love it! The relationships between the pegasi and the humans isn’t a perfect one. Besides the language barrier, their cultures are vastly different. They may coexist peacefully, but how can they ever understand each other? Then one friendship changes everything. Princess Sylvi is bound to her own pegasus, Ebon. This is tradition in noble houses. But it’s different for Sylvi and Ebon, as they can actually speak to each other without the aid of magicians. And it turns out not everyone *wants* to understand the pegasi. Is their ability a threat or a blessing?

I loved flying with the pegasi, and growing with Sylvi. The descriptions are beautiful, the characters memorable, and the story one that will weave its way deep into your heart. I am looking forward to book two.

I got lucky and won an advanced copy, but now PEGASUS is available for everyone to buy. So what are you waiting for?

Contest alert!

I only found out about this yesterday, but there’s still time to enter! It’s Lisa Schroeder week over on Shannon’s blog. Visit the contest post to learn how to win Lisa Schroeder’s three verse novels. These are going on my to-buy list if I don’t win. So head over there, enter the contest, and join in the fun. Deadline is 11:59 pm PST on Sunday January 17th.

 

 

What are you waiting for? Head on over and tell Shannon I sent you. ;-)

Reviewing 2009

This year I went a bit overboard with my goals, using 50 as my marker for, well, everything. Here’s what really happened.

Books read: 18

I could easily have read more if I stuck to YA and romance, but I had some fantasy to immerse myself in. Those aren’t quick reads, and I don’t want them to be. I learned that I do not read as much as I did back in school years. It’s not that I can’t read fast, it’s that too many activities interest me now. Scrapbooking, video games, parenting. I no longer have a desire to read every moment I have spare time. Which is fine. I can make more time to read though. My reading goal this year is 2 books a month.

 

Chapters written: 15

over various projects: Rt100D, TC, FwM, SS

could have done better. will do better.

 

Poems written: 20

14 color poems

at least they’re quality poems, if not quantity

 

Poems submitted: 51

1 published this year

7 submitted just today. cutting it close, I know.

Yay! One goal met!

 

Next year I’ll shoot for the moon rather than the stars. Next Tuesday Tally I’ll do a progress report on my projects and post my full list of new goals.

 

In January I started querying EotF. Did a couple revisions in between batches of queries. No bites yet, but not giving up. I think I finally have a strong query (not just a decent one), which I’ll start sending out next month.

 

Non-writing happenings in 2009: We bought a house. My son started kindergarten. Bought a kitten, who died six months later. Had many house problems and lots of adjusting as house owners. Lots of being sick, with kid in school full time and living in (now less so) cold house. I joined Twitter and Facebook. Got addicted to Zoo World. And got some wonderful new blog followers. Thank you to all of you that make this blog community so wonderful. See you next year!

Signs a Book was written by Me

The topic of the week on Fangs, Fur, & Fey is “5 Signs a Book was Written by You.” I put some thought into it, and here’s my list. I went over five, and may add more later if I think of them. These are based on the following stories:

 

Emergence of the Fey (complete)

Fly With Me (in progress)

Trinity Coven (in progress)

The Blazing Princess (complete novelette with plans to expand)

 

1. death in the family - sometimes background, sometimes on screen, not always parents. (exception with BP - but not really, because in a sense the Main Character dies)
2. magic
3. flight. either magical creatures that fly (dragon, pegasus, pixie) or characters that can fly
4. romance. not always the main characters, but someone will hook up during the course of the story.
5. identity issues. an individual's reality shaped by their beliefs.
6. no clear-cut good vs. evil.
7. fairy tale reference – a cameo, painting, story premise
8. dark haired men. Blonde males are reserved for secondary characters apparently.

 

What do your stories have in common?

Tuesday Tally and family update

EotF Status

# of queries out: 7

# of fulls out: 0

additional querying on hold

 

T.C. Status

word count: 9,034

 

FwM Status

word count: 5,751

 

Color Poems

complete: 14

min needed for chapbook: 20

 

Previous goals:

• submit poems to Strange Horizons – sent one, working on revisions for a second

 

Goals for this week:

• brainstorm and outline to take advantage of kid free writing time next week
• put up display shelf so I can unpack dragons (one of very few remaining boxes)

 

I wrote down the list of books we need to buy to fill out all our series: 104. That number may go down after we take another hard look at our collections. We have some where it’s only book 2, or we have a couple but the series is really long, and may decide to donate the books rather than buy the rest.

 

B will be in a full day kindergarten class. No more excuses not to write. It might be time to buy a watch again, since I’ll be walking B to and from school. At least my husband can pick up him some days, since work gets off before school. We met B’s teacher yesterday. She seems nice. B came away very excited about school. (Not that he hasn’t been excited prior to the visit…) Over the weekend we made a paper chain to represent how many days until school starts. Each morning after breakfast he cuts off a loop and we count how many are left. I’ve also been showing him on the calendar, so he can practice the days of the week.

 

B has been peeing his pants lately. Waiting until the very last second to run to the bathroom (and not always making it). Hopefully he’ll be back into good potty habits by Monday.

 

Nikki had twins on August 18. Both boys are doing well, but Nikki is not. She needs all the prayers and blessings you can send her way.

Tuesday Tally with a book count

EotF Status

# of queries out: 7

# of fulls out: 0

additional querying on hold

 

T.C. Status

word count: 9,034

 

FwM Status

word count: 5,751

 

Color Poems

complete: 14

min needed for chapbook: 20

 

Previous goals:

• write every day – once again, didn’t write during weekend
• work on description in first three chapters of EotF

 

Goals for this week:

• submit poems to Strange Horizons

 

Got all of our books organized and listed in Excel. Hand is tired from all the writing, copying down author/title/series/shelf to input in computer. The last time we did a count was in 2005. At the time, we had over 700 books. Since then, we have bought more books, but have also donated duplicates and a lot of books we realized would never be read. Here are some new statistics:

 

Total books: 325

Fantasy: 211

Other: 114 (includes non-fiction, poetry, as well as other fiction genres)

Most from one author: R.A. Salvatore (18+ books)

 

The plus is because three of those books are complete series in one volume.

 

Going through these books makes me want to read some of them again, as I remember how much I enjoyed them. And there are quite a few books that my husband brought to the collection that I’m interested in. I don’t think I need to visit the library anytime soon…

 

Later, I’ll have to figure out and post the numbers for how many books it will take to complete the gaps in our series.

Tuesday Tally (of a different sort)

Boxes of Books unpacked yesterday: 14

Bookshelves currently filled: 1

Bookshelves still needed: 1 (hopefully)

Books donated to Deseret Industries today: 450

Books remaining: not quite that many, but still alot.

 

It’s amazing how many books we had that were bought from library sales, and never read. Most had been in storage 2-7 years. Time made it easier to part with our collection. We seriously sat down and looked at each book.

 

If one of us had read it, we’d ask: “Is it worth re-reading, or recommending?” “Is it part of a series, and do we have the rest?”

 

If neither of us had read it, we’d ask: “Is the author/cover enough to make this a must read?” “Is it part of a series, and do we have the rest?” “Have we heard anything about this book?”

 

We really culled our books down. We still have a lot. One bookshelf entirely filled with all of our remaining hardbacks. One more bookshelf (going to be purchased at Ikea later this week) should be enough for our remaining paperbacks. We could have given some away online, or tried selling sell to some of the few places still buying used books. Donating them was the simpler option, and cleared a lot of room space.

 

Now we have room to expand our collection again. With more judgment about what books we buy.

Personality (quiz result, plus 5k Q)

You Are a Pond

You are modest, pleasant, and reliable. You are content and confident. You are harmonious and caring. You truly like other people for who they are. You are a very genuine, humble person. Because of this, you're very approachable. You are soft-spoken and a bit sensitive. Your mild personality is a refreshing change for people.

What Body of Water Are You?

 

I've always enjoyed personality quizzes, such as above. I'm going to start putting one at the beginning of each 5k Q post, as they are all about getting to know me.

 

5,000 Questions... My answers so far...

 

601. Do you have a lust for life? using as a definition: a strong determination to enjoy life as much as possible. No. I worry too much.

602. Do you want to get more out of life? absolutely

603. Would you want to learn to:
Convert to Buddhism? no

Cure a hangover? no
Lie persuasively? no. I'd be way too tempted to lie more often.

604. What character from a movie is most like you? Alright, I'll resort to another personality quiz. I am...

Dorothy Gale

You are always daydreaming of far-off places. A bit naive sometimes, you have a vivid imagination and your heart is pure. And you know that there is no place like home.

 

605. Are you comfortable with the idea of your own death? no. It would devastate my family, and I'm certainly not ready to die. But what scares me more than actually dying is the pain that would most likely precede it.

606. How do you feel about arranged marriages? They can work, but the key there is work. I think a person has a better chance finding a compatible match on their own, than being arranged by parents or some other party. Chemistry is something that cannot be predicted. The "perfect match" on paper does not always work out.

607. What do you hate that everyone else seems to like? shoes

608. What do you like that others seem to hate? dandelions

609. If you had to be named after a month, which month would you pick? June. Not as common as April, but not as strange as November.

610. Is time more like a highway or a meadow to you? Mostly a meadow. Living in the now, able to observe both ahead and behind. Occasionally, the highway will barge through and drag you along, giving you no choice but to keep eyes on the road ahead and keep moving so you don't become road kill. But the meadow moments are definitely preferred.

611. What is your favorite movie? Robin Hood Prince of Thieves

612. Which would you choose to be back in the day: a warrior, an alchemist, a minstrel, a bard, an oracle, a peasant, or a merchant? a bard

613. What is your favorite song lyric? "for the good of all of us/ except for those who are dead". from Still Alive, the Portal credits song. So awesome. And I can sing it on Rock Band. Even more awesome.

614. What will you never run out of? dreams

615. If you could force someone to fall madly in love with you, (anyone you choose) would you do it? No. For a couple reasons. One, if it's forced then they don't truly love me for me. Two, the 'madly' part could have unwanted consequences. They may end up completely possessive (see the movie Prom Night), or protect me in ways I don't need or want (as in Terry Goodkind's The Sword of Truth series (haven't read the books myself, but heard about them, and watched some of the tv series based on it, The Legend of the Seeker)).

616. Have you ever seen the Disney movie The Black Cauldron? yes

617. Have you ever read The Black Cauldron by Alexander Lloyd (or any of his other books in the Prydain Chronicles)? yes. Loved the books. Movie seemed strange; been too long since I read the books to say how accurate it was.

618. Have you ever written a paper the night before it was due? yes.
How about the day it was due? yes. as well as after the due date...

619. Is there a movie you have watched so many times that you can quote it line for line? No. I may be able to quote some lines, but my memory doesn't hold the bulk of a movie like that.

620. What is your favorite season? Spring. I love the blossoms, the rain, the warming days, with nights still cool enough to snuggle down under the blanket. The promises of new life, new beginnings. The world is so fresh.

600 down, another 88% to go...

5,000 Questions... My answers so far...

 

Started over a year ago (Jan 21, 08). If I keep up the same rate, I won't finish this survey for another 8 years. o.O

 

581. Is there more to you than anyone knows? Absolutely. I'm hoping there's more to me than even I know.

582. Can you make tonight the night that you do the things you always wanted to do? No. That would require funding I don't have.

583. Would you rather watch life on TV or LIVE it? Some aspects I would certainly rather live, but there are others I am happy simply watching on TV.

584. What keeps you chained down? Lack of money. I would love to travel. *sigh*

585. What is the nagging feeling in the back of your head? my insecurities

 

586. Do you celebrate yourself? yes, but not as often as I should

587. Does everyone get the same opportunities in life? sadly, no. some opportunities we have to wait and hope for, while others we have to create.

588. What would you consider to be better than sex? cuddling

589. What evil is necessary? phones

590. What's your favorite one hit wonder? Survivor, "Eye of the Tiger"

591. What would you do anything for? the safety of my family

592. Do you celebrate the full moon? no. But the characters in EotF do. Their calendar, magic, and culture all revolve around the moon.

593. Have you ever gone in the water at the beach at night? No.

594. Are you ordinary? yes. I'm no Superman (or woman).

595. What makes people want to hang out with you? I'm loyal, listen, don't judge.

596. Have you ever felt like you've been a little bit too good to someone? no. even if they were "undeserving", I wouldn't be who I am if I didn't follow my instinct.

597. What book did you like that you had to read for school? Two immediately come to mind. "Julie of the Wolves" by Jean Craighead George, and "The Giver" by Lois Lowry. Both were assigned books that I ended up finishing well ahead of our assigned daily chapters.

598. What book should everyone have to read in school? "The Giver". It's a reminder to be grateful for memories, diversity, and the beauty of color.

599. Do you like the store Old Navy? It's okay. I don't seek out brand name clothes. Though I did buy a hat and overalls there when I was on an emotional spending splurge (those are dangerous, by the way. learned to only carry cash when in one).

600. What movie sequels do you like? National Treasure 2, both Shrek sequels, all the Indiana Jones movies, The Dark Knight, Ice Age Meltdown... and I'm sure there are more I like, but we'll stop there.

Welcome 2009!

P.J. Hoover is challenging herself to read 50 books this year. I'm joining in on that challenge. I used to read a lot more than that, but now I write, I play video games, I'm a mom... Can't expect me to keep up with the reading I did in my school years. But 50 books is about one a week. That sounds very doable. My to-read pile already has ten books in it. And that's just those in this room, not ones on my to-borrow or to-buy lists. I've signed up for goodreads, where I can keep track of the books I read. I've even created a bookshelf for 50 books in 2009 so I can keep track, and anyone can follow along.

 

Also on the books topic, I've semi-updated my profile on LibraryThing. Someday I can update it fully with my entire library. Once we get a house and unpack all the books. In the meantime, I shall try and remember to update it as I get new ones.

 

So, keeping with the 50 theme, average of one a week, with leeway. Doesn't sound too bad. I doubt I'll actually meet all of these, but shooting for the stars, right? To do in 2009:

• 50 books read
• 50 poems written
• 50 poems submitted
• 50 chapters written (for TC or MiB)

 

The poems submitted equals individual poems (times sent, not necessarily 50 different ones, though I certainly have enough I could), not batches. I did 48 this year. 50 should be easy.

 

Do you have any new goals or resolutions for the new year?