Search found 167 matches

by Ishta
March 15th, 2010, 8:58 pm
Forum: Books
Topic: What are you reading now?
Replies: 528
Views: 397185

Re: What are you reading now?

Done with the TWILIGHT series. Started off well, and nosedived in terms of character continuity, but got interesting at the very end when we started to get a glimpse of the lives of vampires. Too bad she's stopped writing them; she was just into the romance hook, I guess. Am now reading MILLICENT MI...
by Ishta
March 13th, 2010, 10:03 pm
Forum: Social Media and Book Promotion
Topic: Do you have a new blog post?
Replies: 2655
Views: 1067723

Re: Do you have a new blog post?

Oooh, goody! An opportunity for a shameless plug!

:-)

I blog about writing and acting at www.ishtamercurio.blogspot.com

My most recent post is about eBooks and the use of electronic media by actors and writers for self-promotion. I try to post 2 or 3 times a week or so. See you there!
by Ishta
March 13th, 2010, 9:33 pm
Forum: Town Hall
Topic: The Introduction Thread
Replies: 646
Views: 541291

Re: The Introduction Thread

Hi everybody, abc, I think you and I must be kindred spirits. I'm from Cincinnati and have traveled quite a bit - my husband is from London, England, and we got married just before he started University in Edinburgh, so we lived in Edinburgh for 4 years (where I worked with Autistic kids) and then i...
by Ishta
March 13th, 2010, 8:57 pm
Forum: Writing
Topic: Does your genre make it difficult to find an agent?
Replies: 20
Views: 13603

Re: Does your genre make it difficult to find an agent?

Or take my genre for example, romance. My genre boasts huge sales compared to some, and readers range in age from 18-102, so I wonder if it's easier? Don't get me wrong, I personally, haven't found it easier yet, but I wonder since the market for that genre is on the constant upswing, if theres a b...
by Ishta
March 13th, 2010, 12:45 pm
Forum: Books
Topic: TWILIGHT - thoughts?
Replies: 107
Views: 59498

Re: TWILIGHT - thoughts?

Lorelei Armstrong wrote:
Ishta wrote:And now feel free to lambast me for saying that regardless of our personal life choices, women the world over really do have a secret daddy complex. :-)
This line bothers the grown-ups.
Okay, it bothers you: but WHY does it bother you? Write about that.
by Ishta
March 13th, 2010, 12:16 pm
Forum: Writing
Topic: Does your genre make it difficult to find an agent?
Replies: 20
Views: 13603

Re: Does your genre make it difficult to find an agent?

Picture Books. Agents hate picture books. Or, rather, most agents who represent PB authors say that they're not really taking on PBs at this time, which I interpret as "write a good MG or YA, and if you have some PBs in the drawer, we'll take a look at those too." So, I'm really trying to ...
by Ishta
March 13th, 2010, 12:12 pm
Forum: Writing
Topic: The importance (and difficulty) of gestures
Replies: 55
Views: 66622

Re: The importance (and difficulty) of gestures

Ink and Polymath: Right On. I find myself falling into the same trap while writing - using "sighed" or "groaned" or "grumbled" over and over and over. I sometimes end up typing the same sentence 6 or 8 or 12 times before I settle on something I like, and can move on to ...
by Ishta
March 10th, 2010, 2:23 pm
Forum: Finding An Agent
Topic: Comparing your work in a query... to a TV show?
Replies: 5
Views: 2649

Re: Comparing your work in a query... to a TV show?

I went to a writers' event last year at which the suggestion was made that in a query, as well as in preparation for face-to-face events, writers try to come up with something to describe their WIP along the lines of "It's _(classic reference)_ meets _(modern pop-culture reference)_." In t...
by Ishta
March 10th, 2010, 2:16 pm
Forum: Books
Topic: Thank you, Sapphire
Replies: 2
Views: 1737

Re: Thank you, Sapphire

I don't know; he could have done a bad job, and the film wouldn't have been nominated. It was probably a great book to begin with, (I haven't read it, but it's on my ever-growing list), but it's the screenplay adaptation that gets nominated. Maybe I'm just still irritated by having to hear "Pre...
by Ishta
March 10th, 2010, 2:10 pm
Forum: Books
Topic: Good Books - Bad Endings
Replies: 39
Views: 16437

Re: Good Books - Bad Endings

I haven't allowed myself to be burned since the Animorphs series when I was in my tweens. I hated the last book so bad I dragged the whole series outside and barbequed them. The only more satisfying destruction I could have given that series is if I'd been able to hold that barbeque on the author's...
by Ishta
March 10th, 2010, 12:15 pm
Forum: Books
Topic: TWILIGHT - thoughts?
Replies: 107
Views: 59498

Re: TWILIGHT - thoughts?

I want to add a qualifier to my last post: I don't think that women, young or old, actually want a domineering romantic partner in life. Most of the women I know who have found themselves in these kinds of relationships aren't happy with them. Whomever posted that what women really want is the good,...
by Ishta
March 10th, 2010, 11:13 am
Forum: Books
Topic: TWILIGHT - thoughts?
Replies: 107
Views: 59498

Re: TWILIGHT - thoughts?

Well, now that I've mostly finished the books, (I say "mostly" because I have read as much of them as I think I ever will, barring anything that makes it necessary for me to pick them up again), I thought I'd jump into the discussion again. SPOILER ALERT!!! I liked TWILIGHT, but liked each...
by Ishta
March 4th, 2010, 11:22 pm
Forum: Writing
Topic: Head-Hopping - what's the deal people?
Replies: 22
Views: 24026

Re: Head-Hopping - what's the deal people?

Sometimes I like POV changes, and sometimes I don't. I tend to prefer to spend at least a whole chapter in the same person's head, so if the POV changes within a chapter, I tend to get irritated - it's just too much to try to keep up with. A rare exception to that can be made when a character reads ...
by Ishta
February 22nd, 2010, 2:52 pm
Forum: Books
Topic: What are you reading now?
Replies: 528
Views: 397185

Re: What are you reading now?

TWILIGHT, by Stephenie Meyer; A BREATH OF SNOW AND ASHES, by Diana Gabaldon; THE AUDACITY OF HOPE, by Barack Obama; THE ABSORBENT MIND, by Maria Montessori; and about a jillion picture books. :-) I want to read THE POISONWOOD BIBLE - my mother sent it to me a while ago, and it's in my "to read&...
by Ishta
February 22nd, 2010, 2:45 pm
Forum: Books
Topic: POLL: Where do you buy your books?
Replies: 21
Views: 12842

Re: POLL: Where do you buy your books?

Scholastic and brick and mortar, mostly. I go to the library pretty often, but read too slowly and end up having to renew too frequently to make it really worth it. I use Amazon occasionally, mostly for gifts for other people so that I can have it mailed directly to them since most of my friends and...