Joshilyn Jackson's Blog, page 10

How to Go to France

Proof of France! Scott and I stand in the French and therefore awesome rain while the Eiffel Tower lights up and sparkles LIKE A BOSS.

Here is the first thing you should know about how to go to France: It is likely that you can go to France.

And you should. France is AWESOME. But maybe you don’t like exploring museums full of great art, eating illicit unpasteurized cheeses, drinking cheap perfect rich red local wines, meeting friendly local folks, or seeing breathtaking views, astonishing arc...

Winners (Vicki and The Sibbie) and Losers (My Nostrils, Lungs, and Joints)

First, Immediately, and with Heartfelt Apologies for my tardiness, let’s talk to that hopeless crack addict, The Random Number generator, and see if his drug-addled brain can come up with the right number to land you a piping fresh hot copy – signed – of Susan Rebecca White’s latest, wonderful novel A PLACE AT THE TABLE. Here we go?

It is Vicki, who posted on June 19, 2013 at 5:32 pm and who said,

Her mom sounds like my mom!!

Ya know what would be even more awesome than winning this book? The a...

3Q with Susan Rebecca White (AND A PRIZE DRAWING!)

Just leave a comment and you will be entered in the drawing to win a FREE SIGNED COPY of A PLACE AT THE TABLE.

Most of you know I love me some Susan Rebecca White. She debuted with BOUND SOUTH; I impulse bought it because of the cover before I knew her at all, and I ended up being very interested in her as a writer, very eager to see what she would do next. I felt her voice was really lovely and smart, conveying a depth of compassion and hopefulness I found very moving.

I sought her out an...

The Best Things in Life are Free (for example, Dumpster Pants)

Google tells me that Urban Prairie Girl on Etsy makes what looks like superlative fantasy pant. The Fabric is correct, the pockets are a PLUS. But they need to be bigger. Good fantasy pants will hold at least two of you. I bet she could make them bigger.... This image is a link to her site.

SO, here is the painful, awful, so true truth that I am telling you, because I have no shame, apparently. Or maybe just a very bad filter.

Welcome to my overshare.

Walking home from the market, down a narro...

The Saddest Dog in France (and other tales from Avignon)

We thought this was the saddest dog in France…

Until we saw this fellow, hanging out of a fourth floor window, stangling and damp.

In some lovely gardens above the Pope’s Palace, we saw a lizard. Then another lizard came over to her and hopped on top.

“Are they fighting?” Maisy asked.

“No honey, they are making more lizards…”

We turned away, but all day long, after that, we kept saying, “OH TO BE YOUNG, AND IN LOVE, AND A LIZARD IN AVIGNON!!!”

It was quite poignant.

Those lizards were SO in love t...

Winner Winner, Chicken Dinner: UPDATED TWICE

I MEANT TO DO THIS SUNDAY! Here is the winner of TRISHA SLAYS DEBUT, from comment number 3 per the fickle choosering of the choosery Random Number Generator. We HATE him. He never picks you. Unless you are Linda J, in which case he did:

Linda J, May 21, 2013 at 10:26 am I was never into the star wars thing, but good grief my neighbor was. Even better the neighbor had $$$. So this chubby neighbor boy had EVERY star wars action figure there was. We played and played and played with them in his...

Perks and Picks

Last day to enter to win Trisha Slay’s debut YA!

Author perks exist. They are a true thing. Most of the time they are just little niceties, such as, you go to a lit conference, and they have a hospitality suite, and it is stocked with FREE FOOD and FREE WINE (free is my favorite vintage) and they often have BROWNIES, sometimes the amazing fudgy two bite ones that you have to eat nine of because they are so good they deserve your undivided attention for a solid eighteen bites.

My fave author p...

3Q with Trisha Slay (And a Prize Drawing!)

HEY! Remember 3Q’s? Where a writer would drop by for a visit, answer 3 questions, and if the book sounded like something up your alley, you could leave a comment to be entered in a contest to win a FREE SIGNED COPY?

Well—looks like we are doing that again. Cool, eh?

I first met Trisha Slay 3 or 4 years ago. Maybe more. I am not all that grounded in time and space….but I DO know Where. We were at a writer’s conference in Dahlonega. I’ve been to that conference twice now, and I hung out with her...

Orange Friend!

Is the orange girl supposed to be the titular pal?

I’ve been using MyFitnessPal as I work myself back into some kind of reasonable shape, post all that boring stuff where I got really sick and went to bed for a year and emerged ALIVE (yay) but also substantially fatter (alas).

Remember that? When I ALMOST DIED? I certainly remember it. It looms OH SO VERY large in my personal history. I ALMOST DIED is the reason I now love Yoga, and is also the reason I sometimes engage in both INTROSPECTION a...

Mango! MANGO! MAAAANGO!

SO! I am turning in THE SECRET WRITING PROJECT this week. Last night I borrowed a whole writing group from Susan Rebecca White (Lookit her fancy new website!) to get fresh eyes on this thing before I turn it in.

I have FIVE FULL SETS of notes on TSWP, and this morning was all about reading and rereading them, and then sorting the marked up MSes into piles as I decided which threads I needed to follow up on and integrate.

Let me show you what is NOT HELPFUL when one is trying to sort and integ...