The Sunday Post is hosted by the wonderful Kimberly, the Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news, recap the past week, take a look ahead, and showcase our new treasures—I mean books!
Last Week
In real life: I spent Monday totally wiped out after a night of insomnia. The rest of the week has been better. On Friday evening, my husband and I went for a 45-minute walk in our neighborhood. The weather was perfect: around 60 degrees and sunny, but shaded because of the woods and the low angle of the sun. We saw a bald eagle at the lake (which is slowly but surely refilling), and a bluebird in the woods on an unbuilt lot, and a few sparrows here and there. Mr. Bookwyrm saw a cardinal, too; I couldn’t see it, but I heard its distinctive chirp. It’s heartening to see some birds. A few years ago, a bird infection (bacterial? I’m not sure) in our region devastated the population of small birds, and now the avian flu is wreaking havoc on what’s left, so my spirits lift everytime I see or hear a bird.
Writing: I haven’t been writing much, but yesterday I did some more brainstorming for the novel, and wrote down my ideas. I’m struggling with the villain—not so much with their motivation, but how to make them villainous. Frankly, I find their motivation understandable, and the character in mythology is well-intentioned and even principled, so I need some explanation of why (in my story) they have chosen the path they have . But I have some vague ideas floating around on that score. In other writing, I’m still working on my longish fanfic story, too.
Yesterday, I tackled a project I’ve been planning for months. I finally cleared out enough space on the nonfiction shelves in my study/office to add the new indexing books I bought this winter, and I moved a bunch of nonfiction that I rarely refer to, in order to make more room for the books I’m using for research for the novel: books on British myths and legends, encyclopedias of faeries and magical creatures, medieval British and French literature (in translation), and books on 19th-century life and history. (Yes, I know that’s a weird mix.) The internet is invaluable as a research tool, but sometimes you stumble across things while reading that you wouldn’t have known to look up. Anyway, those are now sharing a bookcase with my indexing books, my books on writing, and my collection of foreign-language dictionaries (occasionally useful in both pursuits.)
Recent Posts
- Sunday Post – 3/12/2023
- Sunday Post – 3/19/2022 – this post
Looking Ahead
- Sunday Post – 3/26/2022
What I’ve Been Reading/Watching
Reading: I read Identity by Nora Roberts (ARC.) I reread Vision in White, the first in her Brides Quartet, and just like I did last time I tried reading that series, I bogged down in the second book and DNF’d it. Instead, I devoured Murder at Kensington Palace, which I buddy-read with Sophia Rose. After that, I read Two Tales of the Iron Druid Chronicles. Then I went back to Without a Summer (Mary Robinette Kowal), which I had started over the holidays, but had barely gotten into before I set it aside for ARCs in January; I’m now about 2/3 finished. And I am still reading and enjoying Unraveling by Peggy Orenstein.
Listening to: Hexed, the second Iron Druid book by Kevin Hearne; it’s read by Luke Daniels. I’m also listening to Season 4 of the Writing Excuses podcast, and I listenened to an episode of the Smart Podcast Trashy Books podcast.
Playing: Wordle, the NYT Spelling Bee, Sudoku, Carcassone (app), and Pokemon Go. I play them each occasionally, not every day.
Watching: A Discovery of Witches (Season 2), The Brokenwood Mysteries (Season 2), and Star Trek: Picard (Season 3.)
Added to the Hoard
Purchased (Kindle, print, or audio)
Kindle: The Lady Has a Past; Dangerous Flames;
Audiobooks: Sleeping Murder
(Click title for Goodreads page or my review.)
Wendy
You have been busy! Insomnia is such a difficult affliction, it can really mess me up when I suffer from it. I hope you have a great week ahead
Wendy recently posted…Sunday Post #80
Nicole @ BookWyrmKnits
Sounds like you’ve had a full week! For myself, I spent most of last week trying to recover from the time change. I don’t know why, but it seems like it’s been harder for me to adjust in the past couple of years.
Nicole @ BookWyrmKnits recently posted…The Knitting Book Tag
Anne – Books of My Heart
I love seeing the wildlife too. Our swans are back nesting and I hope nothing gets the eggs this year. You are reading some great stuff!
Anne – Books of My Heart This is my Sunday Post
Anne – Books of My Heart recently posted…The Sinister Booksellers of Bath by Garth Nix @garthnix @harperteen @SnyderBridge4
Katherine
I don’t like the 2nd book in the Bride series by Roberts. The woman is nice but the guy is such a jerk I couldn’t root for a HEA ending for him. Skip the that book and go for book 3. It’s essentially the same story (friend turned more) but way better. So sorry to hear about the insomnia. That can definitely throw you off but nothing like rearranging shelves for a mood boost! Have a great week!