Notes from a Poly-Reader: JULY 2018

So it’s time for a mid-month check-in, reading-wise. While I *have* finished a couple things (Dawn Treader and Clockwork Angel (finally)), I haven’t been putting in the time I so desperately need to in order to get enough down the intellectual gullet. I’ve actually gotten my whole reading list down to six (WOW), but I’m planning on adding some fiction back in, shortly, as it’s been woefully underrepresented this year so far. I’m also going to be plowing through some research books for the upcoming drafting of FROSTHAVEN – Draft 2, starting hopefully in September.

(Ok, so I’m sitting here in my kitchen listening to the thunderstorms rolling by overhead, and I swear one just made the kind of alien-echo sound you hear in something like War of the Worlds, you know? That kind of fingernails-on-cosmic-chalkboard jitter? BUH. Creeeeeeps.)

Notes:

Damn Fine Story – Chipping away at this one. There’s a lot to think about here, though Wendig’s classic style does help alleviate some of what might otherwise be a teeny bit…dry? Not quite sure why it hasn’t totally captured me yet, but I am picking up useful things to consider as I work.

The Marriage of Cadmus & Harmony – Need to get back into the 2-page-a-day plan, like I mentioned before. I keep meeeeeaning to, and I love it when I do that, it’s just a matter of discipline. Need to step it back up. It could also probably be a great before-bed read, actually.

The Year’s Best DF & H 2014 – Another “just need to commit” book. The stories really are fantastic, I just find that with its large size, it’s not the book I automatically pick up for a bit of casual reading throughout the day (it’s too big to cumbersome around with me, too). But a little concentrated effort would go a long way, and I really have enjoyed the stories I’ve read so far. I’ll have to think of some kind of plan to get more of this finished. Could also be a before-bed read, though with the horror stories…eeeeeh…I’ll have to think about it.

Making Your Own Days – Haven’t read much of this one recently, but I do want to pick it up again, because it’s just so damned interesting. Kind of a head-wringer like TMoC&H, which means I don’t want to rush it, but I do want to dig into it more.

The Everyday Parenting Toolkit – Bah, I really need to get through this one. I probably need to make this my before-bed reading for a while, because, seriously, it shouldn’t take more than a week with a little concerted effort and it’s been on this list for ages.

Going Clear – This is one of the books I picked up from the ever-trusty Thriftbooks.com to give me some cult knowledge for moving forward with the book’s next reincarnation in Draft Two. And so far, I’m really enjoying it. It’s fascinating, and really has me thinking about the differences between a con-man and a cult leader (given that in the book, both are featured as antagonists to each other), and I’m starting to think that the main difference is that a con-man knows he’s a con-man and doesn’t overly buy into himself, whereas a cult leader seems perhaps at first to know, but later comes to truly believe what they’re selling… That could be wrong, but right now, that’s the only thing holding water. BUT, I’ve got another cult book coming in the mail (Seductive Poison about the Jamestown cult), and I’ve got two other books (The Confidence Game and Catch Me If You Can) to inform more of the trickster/con-artist side, so one of those will probably always be on this list.

I’m also looking at a number of graphic novels I’ve been meaning to pick up for ages, but we’ll see if that happens. There are also a couple novels on my bookshelf that have survived several culls of books that I really, seriously need to read if I’m going to justify letting them take up space on my shelves… CHOICES, CHOICES, but at least my list is down a bit!

(edit: I listed Seductive Poison as being about the “Jonestown Heaven’s Gate” cult, but those are two separate cults. The book focuses on Jonestown.)