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Ellen Cooney

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Born

in Clinton, Massachusetts, The United States

Website

http://www.ellencooney.com

Genre

Literature & Fiction

Member Since

June 2008

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My new novel, published by Coffee House Press, is my tenth. When I came to rural, midcoast Maine twenty-one years ago, it was supposed to be all about finding quiet for brief periods--quiet as a change from a busy, crowded life in Cambridge MA. But I stayed, and I keep on staying. All I see from the windows of my writing room are trees and sky. The ocean's close by, and the Kennebec River, and a large freshwater pond. It's a watery world. Did I start to be a better writer because of the quiet and the pace of daily life defined by light and rural-life chores? I like to think so. I would also like to think that after a lifetime of reading and writing--I published my first novel in 1983--I actually have some expertise in doing things with wor ...more

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Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?

Ellen Cooney "The Mountaintop School for Dogs and Other Second Chances" first came to me literally like a cartoon of a lightbulb suddenly self-illuminating over my…more"The Mountaintop School for Dogs and Other Second Chances" first came to me literally like a cartoon of a lightbulb suddenly self-illuminating over my head, as I was sitting one day with my adopted rescued dog, Skip, in my lap, patting him and telling him I wasn't ever going to give up on loving him and believing in him, even though he was so screwed up due to his past, and so difficult to teach (and so difficult to "civilize," for he was pretty much feral when he came to me). I knew I wanted to write about teaching and learning and love and keeping one's eyes on the future. How I'd go about it took a while, but once I was in it, I really went with it.(less)

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How do you deal with writer’s block?

Ellen Cooney I'm not sure there's even such a thing as writer's block. If I'm in a stretch where something I'm working on isn't coming out right, or if it's not co…moreI'm not sure there's even such a thing as writer's block. If I'm in a stretch where something I'm working on isn't coming out right, or if it's not coming at all, it's because something is wrong with the "thing." Maybe I was trying to force a character or a plot toward some development that's all wrong, or maybe I was skimming a surface of something that needed more depth and feeling. Or maybe I was tired and needed to rest, and what could have been defined as a block was actually like, well, writing is like tides, and for me, low tide is presently here. (You just have to believe the tide will change,because that's what tides do.)(less)

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Ellen Cooney’s books

Average rating: 3.21 · 2,981 ratings · 614 reviews · 10 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Mountaintop School for Dogs and Other Second Chances 3.27 avg rating — 1,829 ratings — published 2014 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Private Hotel for Gentle Ladies 2.80 avg rating — 624 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	One Night Two Souls Went Walking 3.47 avg rating — 196 ratings — published 2020 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Thanksgiving 3.64 avg rating — 188 ratings — published 2013 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Lambrusco 3.22 avg rating — 94 ratings — published 2008 — 10 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The White Palazzo 2.82 avg rating — 22 ratings — published 2002	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Gun Ball Hill 4.33 avg rating — 9 ratings — published 2004	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Old Ballerina 3.36 avg rating — 11 ratings — published 1999	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	All the Way Home really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 4 ratings — published 1984	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Small-Town Girl 3.75 avg rating — 4 ratings — published 1983 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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The Long-Shining Waters

by Danielle Sosin

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Jul 28, 2020 09:24AM

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Ellen is currently reading The Long-Shining Waters by Danielle Sosin	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jul 28, 2020 09:24AM · like
Ellen answered Goodreads's question: How do you deal with writer’s block? I'm not sure there's even such a thing as writer's block. If I'm in a stretch where something I'm working on isn't coming out right, or if it's not coming at all, it's because something is wrong with the "thing." Maybe I was trying to force a charact See Full Answer
Jul 13, 2014 06:27AM · 1 like · like

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Quotes by Ellen Cooney

“She was healthy & thriving, like a weed: a weed with no interest in trying to become, say, a proper flower.”
― Ellen Cooney, A Private Hotel for Gentle Ladies

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“then the bottom fell out of everything that used to have a bottom, and now she's expected to kill her own plants. At”
― Ellen Cooney, Thanksgiving

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“it her fault that the graveyard has the best dirt? She loves her plants! Just”
― Ellen Cooney, Thanksgiving

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