Ekta R. Garg's Blog, page 65
May 27, 2020
Book review now up!
Good morning, Write Edge readers! I’ve posted my latest book review for you. Today I share my thoughts on the historical novel The Prisoner’s Wife by British documentarian Maggie Brookes. Here’s the opening to my review:
A young couple take the biggest risk imaginable for love and end up in a series of Nazi POW camps. With a terrible secret that could subject them to the worst of Nazi oppression, the two find a group of friends to help them survive. Author Maggie Brookes puts her documentary expertise to work at the slow-to-start but ultimately gripping novel The Prisoner’s Wife.
Read the full post now on The Write Edge Bookshelf!
Have a wonderful day, readers!
E.R.G.
May 25, 2020
Summer’s coming…
Hello, Write Edge readers, and for those of you in the States, Happy Memorial Day! I’d like to take a moment to thank all of our service men and women, those still in uniform and our veterans, as well as their families. Our country possesses the freedoms it does because of your service and sacrifice. Even if I wrote for a lifetime, I wouldn’t be able to do justice to what you all have given us. Please know my gratitude comes from the deepest part of my heart.
Thank you.
*****
Another reason why people in the U.S. look forward to this day is because we consider it the unofficial start to summer. Granted, this year summer’s going to look different for many of us, but we can still enjoy the ample sunshine, the laid-back texture of our days, and the ability to take walks. Even with restrictions easing, I urge all of you to stay safe and stay healthy. It’s the only way to guarantee we can enjoy many more summers to come.
Longer days and a more relaxed schedule means a chance (it’s the hope, anyway) for more writing. To that end, here’s this week’s motivational quote for the word warriors of the world.
“A writer is not so much someone who has something to say as he is someone who has found a process that will bring about new things he would not have thought of he had not started to say them.”—William Stafford
It’s the last Monday of the month, which means our Writers’ Showcase. In this month’s showcase, you’ll find a poem assembled from the most unlikely collection of words and the start of a creepy (but in a good way) story among other things. Find these pieces and more now on The Write Edge Writing Workshop!
On Wednesday I’ll share a new book review for a novel coming out tomorrow. Debut author Maggie Brookes’ book The Prisoner’s Wife releases Tuesday. In the middle of the week I’ll let you know what I thought of it on The Write Edge Bookshelf!
Later this week, I’ll post the last segment of my new 2020 feature, Thursday R.E.A.D.s. This month I’ve been diving deep into Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. Come back on Thursday for the final installment to see how the book made an impression on me as a d.reamer!
And, finally, on Friday, two things to look forward to. First, we go back to Growth Chart (I promise :D) and my latest parenting adventures. Second, though, you get to hear my thoughts and (for writers) writing exercises in my first full-length podcast for The Writescast Network in the regular feature, Biblio Breakdown. Check it out and let me know what you think!
Have a fantastic week, readers!
E.R.G.
May 22, 2020
Latest posts on Instagram!
Hello, Write Edge readers! I’ve posted my latest pictures on Instagram. For those of you who are following me, you get two fun pieces of news on Insta today.
First, I’m so excited to be joining The Writescast Network! Author r.r. campbell created this podcast collective where writers and experts come together to discuss a host of tenets of the craft. Check out the team page here!
To that end, next Friday will be the premiere of my first episode as the new host of Biblio Breakdown. In each episode we’ll examine a novel and what it did well, then go through some writing exercises so writers can apply some of the same skills to their own work. On May 29, I’ll share my thoughts on Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. Subscribe to The Writescast Network so you’ll catch the episode next week!
The next bit of news is that I’ve enrolled in Author Accelerator’s course to become a certified book coach. This training will allow me to widen my skills as an editor and, in fact, allow me to help writers from the beginning of a story project if they decide they want that kind of assistance. Can’t wait to pursue this next step in my goal to help writers!
Of course, if you’re following me on Instagram just for the fun pictures of baked goods, there are those too. 
May 21, 2020
New R.E.A.D.s post up!
Good morning, Write Edge readers! Welcome to this quarter’s third installment of Thurdsay R.E.A.D.s. This time around I’m giving you my analysis of Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. So far I’ve looked at the book with the gaze of a r.eviewer and an e.ditor. Today I share my thoughts on the book as an a.uthor. Give it a read and let me know what you think!
Have a lovely day, readers!
E.R.G.
May 20, 2020
Book review now up!
Good morning, Write Edge readers! I’ve posted my latest book review for you, and this one will definitely hit home for anyone who likes books. Eve Smith writes about a near future in her dystopian novel The Waiting Rooms, in which the world is experiencing a worldwide pandemic.
Yeah, I know.
Here’s the opening to my review:
In the near future, a nurse who helps people die discovers the truth about her birth mother. When she embarks on a mission to find the woman, she learns why she was given up for adoption in the first place. Debut author Eve Smith’s novel feels exceptionally prescient in our current times while balancing compassionate opinions in The Waiting Rooms.
Read the full review now on The Write Edge Bookshelf!
Stay safe, stay healthy, and stay home, readers.
E.R.G.
May 18, 2020
Coming to the end of May
Hello, Write Edge readers! We’re more than halfway through May — it’s unreal. This pandemic has created the strangest of paradoxes. During the day, whole hours will stretch out until they feel a week long. Yet here we find ourselves one week away from Memorial Day.
I know I speak for everyone when I say that none of us anticipated this year progressing this way. Some promising results seem to be on the horizon, though. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for everyone’s sake that those results turn the tide in this fight against the virus.
In the meantime, those of us who are able to do so continue writing. Or creating. Using our art or our other talents and skills to express ourselves. Some days it feels like it’s impossible, but as this week’s motivational quote proves, that expression can be crucial during hardships.
“In a world where language and naming are power, silence is oppression, is violence.”—Adrienne Rich
If you feel you can’t create or express yourself, friends, don’t worry. Just know that you’re seen, and your heart’s hurts are heard. We truly are all in this together. I hope some of the diversions I provide here on the blog help.
To that end, I’ve also posted my latest short fiction. Since finishing my novel and sending it to literary agents for their consideration, I find myself with a lot more free time on my hands. Some of that time is spent considering new story ideas. When I found this week’s writing prompt, I knew I had to jump into one of those ideas. Here’s the excerpt:
This morning, like every morning, I finger the key in my pocket. My thumb traces the emblem on the head. I don’t say the name of what’s on it out loud, not even up here on the rise. People would either laugh at me, tell me I’m all kinds of crazy, or stare at me and make the crossed fingers gesture that wards off the evil eye.
I can think the name, though.
Dragon.
Read the whole story now on The Write Edge Writing Workshop!
In the middle of the week, I’ll share a new book review. This one has had my mind firing in all sorts of different directions. I’ll share some of those with you on Wednesday. Be sure to check out my thoughts on The Waiting Rooms by Eve Smith on The Write Edge Bookshelf!
On Thursday I’ll offer you my third Thursday R.E.A.D.s installment. This week I’m taking a closer look at Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens as an a.uthor. Want to know what I thought of the book? Check it out this Thursday!
Finally, Friday. I know, I know, I owe all of you a new parenting post. What can I say? Fridays somehow manage to get away from me. I’ll do my best to share a new Growth Chart at the end of the week while also updating my Instagram. Find all of that at the end of the week.
Stay strong, readers. It may feel like a herculean task, but the tide is turning. Scientists are making progress against the virus, and less of us are getting sick and losing loved ones. Not much consolation to those who have already suffered, I know, but one thing is for sure. None of us will forget this dramatic time in our lives.
Thinking of you and yours.
E.R.G.
May 14, 2020
The next installment of Thursday R.E.A.D.s!
Good morning, Write Edge readers! I’ve posted my next installment of Thursday R.E.A.D.s. This month I’m examining Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. If you didn’t get around to the first part, no worries. You can find my analysis of the book both as a r.eviewer and e.ditor by clicking here.
Have a fantastic day, readers!
E.R.G.
May 13, 2020
Book review up!
Hello, Write Edge readers! I’ve posted my latest book review for you. Today I share my thoughts on My Kind of People by Lisa Duffy. Here’s the opening to my review:
A child must deal with the loss of her parents and the uneasy guardianship of a family friend on her island home. Neighbors and friends become an integral part of her life as they band together—or not—in an effort to take care of her, all while finding new ways to navigate relationships. Author Lisa Duffy entertains readers and offers them a well-executed twist in her mostly likeable novel My Kind of People.
Read the full review now on The Write Edge Bookshelf!
Have a great day, readers!
E.R.G.
May 11, 2020
Another full week coming!
Good morning, Write Edge readers! We’re into the second full week of May and into our second month of shelter-in-place. Some places around the country are opening up. No matter where you live or what the guidelines are for your city and state, please take all the precautions you can. Now more than ever we need people to be mindful of others.
Writing and reading are two activities that are (mostly) quarantine-proof, though, and I’ve been doing a fair amount of both. To that end, this week’s motivational quote really inspires me to search for the stories. The fictional ones that delight me and the nonfiction ones that inspire me. Here’s the quote:
“There’s nothing in the world more powerful than a good story. Nothing can stop it. No enemy can defeat it.”—Tyrion Lannister
For this week’s short story, I decided to do a bit of micro fiction. You all know what that means: no excerpt. But you can definitely check out the story now on The Write Edge Writing Workshop!
In the middle of the week, I’ll bring you a new book review. Tomorrow is the release date for My Kind of People by Lisa Duffy. On Wednesday I’ll let you know what I thought of this book. You can find my review on The Write Edge Bookshelf.
Speaking of The Bookshelf, did you get to read the first installment of Thursday R.E.A.D.s? This month I’m examining Where the Crawdads Sing by debut novelist Delia Owens. Don’t worry if you didn’t get to it last Thursday. I’ll be posting the next section this week and will link back to the first installment so you can read both.
And on Friday we go back to parenting adventures and Growth Chart. They’ll include what we’ve been up to in these last two weeks of quarantine and what Mother’s Day looked like.
Have a fantastic day and week, readers! Stay strong, stay healthy, stay home, and stay safe.
E.R.G.
May 8, 2020
Instagram updated!
Happy Friday, Write Edge readers! I’ve posted my latest Instagram pics. Check out a quick preview here on the home page or go to Instagram and find my posts with my handle, @Ektargarg, or on my Facebook author page.
Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!
E.R.G.
