Back to Work!

Nothing like a week of bicycling uphill (well there was A LOT of uphill anyhow) to make this writer eager to get back to work.

I've got a boost of energy because my editor, Sarah Harvey atOrca Books , likes what I've been doing with my project. Yippee! Also, she recommended that I read a YA novel called The Patron Saint of Butterflies by Cecilia Galante to inspire me as I work on my new manuscript. So you can guess what I read during our holiday!

The Patron Saint of Butterflies is set in a religious commune in Connecticut and I LOVED THIS BOOK. It's about many things, including religion and family and friendship. The characters are amazing. I especially loved Nana Pete and Winky. The point of view shifts between two narrators -- Agnes and Honey, both teenagers. When I read, I underline a lot -- never in library books, of course! Usually I underline stuff I like, or that gets me thinking. So today, I'm going to pull a couple of quotes I underlined from the book. Here goes:

"Bright gold petals dot the field like splayed fingers, and every few moments, the lonely caw of a crow splits the silence."  I underlined that because I thought it was beautiful and descriptive, and because I am trying to be a more descriptive writer. 

"That's just what mothers do." -- This line is something Nana Pete, Agnes's grandmother, says. I love it because it is simple and because it reaches to the heart of this book (I don't want to tell you too much here, but a lot of the story has to do with mothering.)

Okay, that's it for today's blog. I want to do a little more writing before I start thinking about what's for dinner at my house! Hey, if you are a Montreal college student, you've gone back to school. I wish you luck as you begin this new semester. I'm home on sabbatical till January, working away, but hey, let me know how things are going without me!