February 2009

Saturday, February 28, 2009

In which I applaud civility

I don't think we're as nice as we used to be. I blame technology for much of that--it's so easy to brusquely attend to business, to complain, to pass the buck, when you're anonymous or at least faceless. But long before e-mail and instant messaging made us just a string of characters on a screen, people paid attention to connections with other folks. They thought about their actions, and what sort of an impact they would have. They knew that words could be powerful and they used them accordingly. One of the great models of civility was George Washington. He wrote a series of Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior and I really don't think they can be topped. My favorite is #41.

If you're still having difficulty figuring out how to leave comments, Jeana e-mailed to relate her experience, and I'm passing it along. Hope it helps! It was SO easy through Google. All I did was pick the 'Google account' under profile and I entered my email address and made up a password and voila! If I want to leave a comment now, all I have to do is write the comment, sign into Google under 'profile' and it will automatically leave the comment after I sign in.

4 comments

Friday, February 27, 2009

In which I talk about power books

No, not the computer. A few years ago, when I was feeling rather desperately overwhelmed by various and sundry pressures, I created a power book for myself. I'm not sure how I came up with the idea; I think it was one of those organic little projects that just happened. I took a small blank book and a shipment from Artella and went to work. I selected the pictures that best represented women with power, who radiated confidence and strength. Then I went quote-hunting, finding the best quotes to prop up my flagging spirits. I mined the words of Eleanor Roosevelt and Winston Churchill and Marianne Williamson, but I also collected inspiration from less expected sources, like children's books.

Once I had assembled my quotes and images, I put everything together in my blank book and labeled it a power book. It exists for no other reason than to remind me of what is possible, what is do-able, what is within reach if I remember to ask for it. One of my favorite quotes was a line of dialogue from Christopher Robin in A.A. Milne's beloved Pooh books: You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. It has a wonderful rhythm when you say it aloud--it might make a very good mantra, come to think of it.

8 comments

Thursday, February 26, 2009

In which we muse randomly

Today I have a little laundry list of goodness for you, and a point of clarification. First, to clarify, I would LOVE to explain the intricacies of Blogger to you, but my dear friends, you know my Luddite tendencies and the truth is, I don't yet UNDERSTAND Blogger. I'm getting there--some of the features are precisely the same, they just don't live in the same spot where the dwell on Typepad. We have a learning curve here, people, and I'm behind it. The big question that keeps cropping up is how to leave comments. For now, the blog is set to receive comments only from folks to have Blogger IDs. That's something I'm working on getting changed, but it isn't nearly as big a priority as getting the Kindle contest information up! (And to be clear, I am not able to change any of this myself. The website and blog are administered by very excellent and capable people who are doing about a million and one things for me right now. We've had loads of tech issues and delays and they are working feverishly to sort me out, so your patience while we iron out the bugs is much appreciated.)

Now, onto general musings...

*I tried a few new perfumes this week, none of which have made the cut. I had a sample of Joy, which, on me, smelled like those funky little disks of toilet freshener that you see in public restrooms. I know, I know. It's the costliest perfume in the world and supposed to be just dazzling, but I could not get past the idea that I should be passing out warm towels and mints. I also struck out with Tocade by Rochas. If you like sugary perfumes this is definitely one for you because it has an intensely sweet drydown. I would think any fan of Pink Sugar would like this for a more sophisticated, "dressing up" fragrance. Right now I'm wearing Maharanih and all I can smell is sandalwood incense. I don't even know if there's sandalwood IN this fragrance, but I honestly cannot get far enough away from myself right now. Very masculine, very woodsy.

*When I put out a call for writing music a few months ago, so many of you were kind enough to make recommendations. I found loads of good stuff through y'all--most particularly E.S. Posthumus. This week I picked up the CD of "The Duchess" soundtrack. Somehow I overlooked the fact that it was a Rachel Portman effort, and I'm kicking myself because I adore Rachel Portman. Excellent writing music.

*And my subconscious failed me spectacularly after the excellent Clive Owen/iPhone dream. Last night I dreamed I was being stalked by a seriously creepy guy while I was camping alone. Camping. Alone. ME. Honestly, I can't think of anything more absurd. It's like my subconscious doesn't know me at all...

8 comments

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

In which I note a few things

Today is all about tidying up! So here are a few general notes:

*This week only, Silent in the Sanctuary is available as a FREE download for your Kindle--it actually hit the number one Kindle download yesterday!

*We are in the process of adding a subscribe form to the website on the Contact page for those of you who haven't yet subscribed to the Deanna Raybourn newsletter. If you have already subscribed, there is NO need to subscribe again--you're all set.

*If you find pale text on a black background hard to read on a blog, just highlight the text. Hey, presto--the background is white!

*To leave a comment, you need a Blogger ID.

*And on Sunday night, I had what had to be one of my top five dreams EVER. I had a brand-new iphone (on my wishlist!) and Clive Owen was texting me Shakespearean sonnets and Byronic love poems while I traveled in Italy. Seriously, my subconscious is NEVER going to beat that.

7 comments

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

In which we create an album cover

Okay, I don't have a band or an album, but thanks to Anna Claire I have an album COVER. This is a MOST excellent waste of time, and if nothing else, I learned about picnik.com, a VERY useful place. So, according to the rules Anna Claire so succinctly laid out, I secured the name of my band, the name of the album itself, and the cover art. Now, bearing in mind that all of these are TOTALLY random, I think I fared pretty well. Babe is a totally reasonable name for a girl band, in an ironic, tongue-in-cheek way. "You Can't Walk Away From It" sounds like a girl-power challenge to a guy who is trying to do us wrong. And the cover image--well, I'm sure there's something metaphorical about the bird.

4 comments

Monday, February 23, 2009

In which I welcome everybody to the new blog!

Welcome, readers! This is the brand spanking NEW blog that replaces the Blog A Go-Go and was designed just for me. (If you still want to browse the Blog A Go-Go archive, it will be hosted at Typepad for some months to come before it goes away for good. I promise to give you plenty of notice before that happens, but it will definitely come down at some point.) I hope you're enjoying this blog and the new website where it resides. The glorious photographs are the work of the very talented Polish photographer Malgorzata Maj. You can enjoy her gallery at deviantArt. Be warned, do NOT click on that link unless you have loads of time because you will get lost in her otherwordly fairytale images...

If you checked back at the Blog A Go-Go, you know the signing with Nora Roberts this past weekend was a resounding success. Nora was every bit as gracious as someone so successful should be--it gives the rest of us something to aspire to!--and I had a wonderful time. The woman is a rock star in the very best sense of the word, and it was a thrill to watch her in action. We signed for more than four hours and she was just as engaging with the last reader as the first in line. (And if you ever happen to be in Boonsboro, Maryland and need a place to stay, check out the Inn BoonsBoro. It's Nora's latest business venture and a seriously lovely place to relax. Each of the rooms and suites is named for a famous couple--ours was the Westley and Buttercup and came with a copy of The Princess Bride, book and film, and personalized toiletries. Did I mention the heated floor in the bathroom, fireplace in the bedroom, and homemade chocolate chip cookies? If I told you any more it would just feel like bragging, so I will simply say, if you have a chance to stay there, DO.