Aimee Said's Blog, page 5

Star picks: Nanowrimo-free edition

So, Nanowrimo started last Tuesday and after my previous failure I have once again chickened out chosen not to participate. But a LOT of peeps in my blogosphere are Nano-ing like crazy, so my google reader has been reduced to a daily trickle in comparison to the deluge that usually awaits me. I wish I could say that this has resulted in a spike in my own productivity...

My fave non-Nano posts last week included:
the Guardian's Q&A with Margaret AtwoodJon Crispin's quest to catalogue what patients took with them to the Willard Asylum for the Insane (via The Hairpin)lesser-known editing and proofreading marks (via Mighty Red Pen)JC Coccoli's video tirade against mean girls (via Hello Giggles)the Wheeler Centre's video of Jon Ronson talking about his latest book, The Psychopath Test

Surprises in the mail

On Friday the postie left a big box on the porch. Big boxes on the porch are always cause for excitement, but even more so when they're full of these:

One Cheeky Monkey and Turtle's Tall Tale - illustrated by Lisa Kerr, stories by me.

Star picks: Halloween edition

As someone who doesn't enjoy ghost stories, horror movies, paranormal romance, zombie apocalypses or anything else that goes bump in the night* Halloween's never been my thing, but there has been some starred (low level) spookiness in my blog reader feed lately:
the Guardian did a round-up of the 21st annual Tompkins Square Halloween dog parade in New York (my fave is the corgi bus)Rookie published a guide to what we can learn from supernatural teen movies the Centred Librarian drew my attention to Alfred Hitchcock's Ghost Stories for Young People (warning: these stories are not proper scary-scary, but it's worth listening to Hitchcock's intro, and there is some delightful overacting in the narration)Forever Young Adult presented some bookish costume suggestions Cooking with Sugar showed me how to make wacky Halloween eats, like ham heads (via The Hairpin)...or you could take the easy way out and just gorge yourself on lollies, a la My Drunk Kitchen


* mainly because I am a) very easily scared and b) highly suggestible - a woeful combination

Big West Fest

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I'm doing a session at the 2011 Big West Festival, which is very exciting in itself but even more so because the session is with fellow westies and ubertalented authors, Cath Crowley and Amra Pajalic. If I manage to stop fangirling over the two of them for long enough, I might be able to join the conversation...

The session's at my beloved Sun Theatre at 10am on 17 November. Best bit? It's free for schools! (And only $10 for non-schoolies.) Full details on the BigWest site.

Star picks

Two themes emerged strongly from the starred items in my Google reader list this week:
knittingthings I wish someone had told me when I was 14.1. The knitting
Maybe it's because of all the sock knitting while I was dying sick, but I'm back in my knitting groove this week and suddenly it seems like everyone else is too:

the Hairpin drew my attention to a shout out for knitters to make koozies for penguins affected by the oil spill in NZ (I started my first one last night)the Guardian wrote about graffiti knitters in London and boys who love to knit*Teen Granny shared her top 10 knitting tips on Hello Giggles.
Seriously cute penguin stays snug in his koozie
2. The things I wish I'd known about the agonies of growing up

Rookie let me in on the secret that everybody farts. And that periods are not the most humiliating thing in life (no, that would be PE). And that when it comes to boobs everything is normal. Ditto gender identity. Even as an (almost middle-aged) adult, I found this article reassuring!Hank Green made a very lovely, very honest video about his own confusion about his sexual orientation as a teenager for Coming out Day.
* made even cooler by the fact that some of these boys attend Dog Kennel Hill primary - surely the coolest primary school name EVER

5 things to do on your sickbed

Just as I thought I'd beaten last week's cold I was struck down by another (worser) lurgy and have spent the past three days in bed. Thus I present my Top 5 things to do on (or should that be in?) your sickbed:

1. Watch Doris Day movies (thank you, Maribyrnong Library, for your extensive collection!).


2. Knit socks (these are for my mum)

 3. Read books you've had on your wishlist for aaaages

4. Drink hot toddys (if you're over 18, obv.)

5. Follow your cat's example: snuggle under the covers and sleep it off (esp. following 4)

Star picks from my sick bed

One of the bonuses of spending most of winter holed up in my living room writing was avoiding the germs and viruses that abound in the cold months. I was feeling rather proud of myself for having made it to Spring (to the start of daylight savings, even) without so much as a swollen gland, which is probably why - six weeks into my new job - I am sicksicksick.
The good thing about being so far behind on posts in my google reader is that I've had plenty to entertain me while I recuperate. The blog posts that have been making me feel better between salt-water gargles include:
coverage of Banned Books Week: Forever YA's list of books that should be banned, Paper Hangover's guide to how to write a banned book and a video from the queen of banned books, Judy BlumeAlien Onion's reminder life before the internet (they were bleak days, young friends)Mental Floss's revelation that the name Punky Brewster came from a real personMindy Kaling's article on stereotypes of women in romantic comedies in the New Yorkera calendar of rathergoodlookingandsomewhatscantilyclad librarians baring their souls (and other bits) to raise money for It Gets Better (aka a guilt-free perv) (via The Centred Librarian)Rookie's quest to find good news about teenagersand finally, artist Ben Dewey's tragedy series reminded me that there are worse things than a cold (via The Hairpin)

Last Saturday, a small but dedicated crowdof YA readers a...

Last Saturday, a small but dedicated crowdof YA readers and writers* convened at Northcote Town Hall (which, BTW,has the fanciest loos I've ever seen in a council building) for the second dayof A Thousand Words. My session with Tim Pegler and Bec Kavanagh was aboutmaking writing work – with work, with life, with family, with distracting pets – and various, somewhat related tangents about publishing vs self-publishing, the rise of the ebook and whether writers have to have a social media presence. I love doing sessions like this because it's so interesting to hear other people's approaches to their writing and to being An Author.
As with all bookish festivals, thehighlight for me was meeting other writers and readers before and after thesession. I caught up with lovely Megan-Literary Life, met my YA book-to-movie doppelganger(we both gave the screen versions of Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging the thumbs up and Nick and Norah thethumbs down), chatted with the next James Patterson (he's only 14 but he'salready planned his first trilogy, a couple of standalone novels and theeight-book series that will rocket him to fame – I am in absolute awe of him!),and talked about the long and thorny path to publication with a fellowweb-contenter.
Bec and the ATW crew are already brewing upbig plans for next year's festival. I know where I'll be on 4 and 5 August2012!
* mainly people who identify as both, if the ones Ichatted with were any indication

A Thousand Words

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 I'm very excited about A Thousand Words in Melbourne this Saturday, not least because I'm on a panel with the ridonkulously talented Tim Pegler and ATW director (and writer) Bec Kavanagh about how to make writing work as a career.

I don't know if I've figured out the answer to that conundrum yet, but as someone who has in the last 18 months worked full-time, freelance and - my latest incarnation - part-time while writing Book 3, I have plenty to share. (Including the fact that writing fiction full-time was probably the hardest job I've ever attempted.) It's a fact for most writers that their books don't pay the bills, so most of us have to take on some other kind of work, but something I only realised recently is that having other work - whether it's writing-related or not - actually makes you (well, me, anyway) more productive and more focused when you do sit down to write.

Saturday's program is aimed at writers and aspiring writers and includes sessions on creating great characters and getting over the dreaded rejectionitis. Check out the festival program for full details. You can buy tickets online (a bargain at $20 for a full day!).

Star picks: foxes and (police call) boxes

Fave finds in my blog feeds last week:
You give, we give is an inspiring initiative from three Aussie YA book bloggers - Jess, Brodie and Rachel are collecting un-used books (a great way to clear your Goodreads will-never-read and duplicate-copy shelves)and donations to be used to buy books to put under KMart Giving Trees in Tassie, NSW and Victoria this December (via In The Good Books)illustrator Owen Davey shared the secret to drawing you very own fox (hint: start with a banana)or, if foxes aren't your style, you could knit a cat (including this luvverly ginger)Rookie asked some quitewellknown people how they survived their first year of high schoolMy Girl Friday shared great tips for beating book blogger's block (just in time for this blogger, thanks Steph!)Craftzine shared a project to make a kitty Tardis (the inside's even more deluxe!)