More Recommended Reads

Reading is a huge part of my life. Here are some of my recent recommended reads. The first three are 'kids' books: The last one is hysterical.

The Doubt Factory by Paulo Bacigalupi
Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi
La Belle Sauvage by Phillip Pullman
Shroud of Eternity: by Terry Goodkind
Paradox Bound by Peter Clines
How to Live Safely in A Science Fictional Universe by Charles Yu
Time and Again by Jack Finney
The Alteration by Kingsley Amis
Skios by Michael Frayn

Happy reading!

Latest Recommended Reads

Here are the books I've read since my last Recommended Reading post. While all these books were good, the ones in bold were the most enjoyable reads.

Terms of Enlistment by Marko Kloos
The Epiphany Machine by David Burr Gerrard
Gwendy's Button Box by Stephen King and Richard Chizmar
Time Travel by James Gleick
The Minotaur Takes A Cigarette Break by Steven Sherrill
The Minotaur Takes His Own Sweet Time by Steven Sherrill
Wolf in White Van by John Darnielle
Universal Harvester by by John Darnielle
House. Tree. Person by Catriona McPherson
Down Among the Sticks and Bones Seanan McGuire
The Clockwork Dynasty by Daniel H. Wilson
Celine by Peter Heller

Also, I didn't list the books that I started, but didn't finish because I didn't enjoy them. Happy reading!

Recent Recommended Reads

I've mentioned before that I love to read. Recently, I've read some really excellent books. The stories range from sci-fi to mystery to weird to coming-of-age.

The Fold by Peter Clines
Bird Box by Josh Malerman
The River of Kings by Taylor Brown
The Stars Are Legion by Kameron Hurley
The Impossible Fortress by Jason Rekulak
Borne by Jeff VanderMeer

If you're looking for a good read, I recommend any of these. Happy reading!

What are My Favorite Books?

I write for a living, but I read for pleasure. For me, books are more than a way to pass the time. They let me make the most of my time. Books are more than an escape from the real world. They help me make sense of the real world.

I always have at least one book to read. If not, I feel lost, like I don't know what to do with myself.

Right now I'm reading several books: The Runner by Patrick Lee, Earth by David Brin and Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell (re-reading). I also just finished The False House, the second book in James Stoddard's trilogy and plan to start the third book, Evenmere, soon. Plus I read the Bible almost everyday.

As a lifelong reader, I have no idea how many books I've read in my entire life. While most of them are forgotten, there are some that stick with me. They revisit me from time to time. They haunt me, in good ways. They are the standards by which I judge all other books and stories. These are the ones I call favorites.

Some are books from my childhood. Over the years I've realized that not all of them are great. For example, I read A Wrinkle In Time when I was 9 or 10. After re-reading it a couple of years ago, I really didn't enjoy it as much. It was good, but not as good as I remember. However, as a child, it captivated me entirely, which is the whole point of a good story.

At any rate, below are some of my favorite books of all time (in no particular order). Know that I will add to this list as other books comes to mind, so whatever list you're reading is the latest.

• The Dark Tower (entire series) - Stephen King
• The Stand - Stephen King
• It - Stephen King
• Interview With a Vampire - Anne Rice
• The Vampire Lestat - Anne Rice
• Tale of the Boy Thief - Anne Rice
• Perdido Street Station - China Mieville
• The Scar - China Mieville
• The Sparrow - Marie Doria Russell
• Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro
• 2001 - Arthur C. Clarke
• Rendezvous with Rama - Arthur C. Clarke (quite possibly the most perfect sci-fi book ever written)
• Justice and Her Brothers (series) - Virginia Hamilton
• Lord of the Rings trilogy - J.R.R. Tolkien
• The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien
• A Wrinkle in Time - Madeline L'Engle
• The Rook - Daniel O'Malley
• Stiletto - Daniel O'Malley
• Night Watch (entire series) - Sergei Lukyanenko
• The Green Future of Tycho - William Sleator
• Interstellar Pig - William Sleator
• House of Stairs - William Sleator
• Foundation (series) - Isaac Asimov
• Dune - Frank Herbert
• The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - Robert Heinlein
• Blackout/ All Clear - Connie Willis
• Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
• The Firm - John Grisham
• Harry Potter (series) - J.K. Rowling
• The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenger
• The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
• Flood - Stephen Baxter
• Ark - Stephen Baxter
• Wizard's First Rule - Terry Goodkind

Those are some of my faves. What are some of yours?

Reading and Writing

Girl Reading (1889), by Fritz von Uhde; Wikimedia Commons

Successful writers are frequently voracious readers. Here are some words from great writers encouraging all writers to be readers.

“Writing comes from reading, and reading is the finest teacher of how to write.” ― Annie Proulx

“The greatest part of a writer’s time is spent in reading, in order to write; a man will turn over half a library to make one book.” — Samuel Johnson

“Write. Rewrite. When not writing or rewriting, read. I know of no shortcuts.” — Larry L. King

“Just write every day of your life. Read intensely. Then see what happens. Most of my friends who are put on that diet have very pleasant careers.” — Ray Bradbury

“Read, read, read. Read everything -- trash, classics, good and bad, and see how they do it. Just like a carpenter who works as an apprentice and studies the master. Read! You'll absorb it. Then write. If it's good, you'll find out. If it's not, throw it out of the window.” ― William Faulkner

Original Article - CoolKidsCan.com

In the summer of 2014, I did some ghostwriting for Valerie and CoolKidsCan.com, a site that gives tips for helping young kids learn to read.  I wrote some original articles, articles based on research, and some product reviews.

Veronica (Avec Deco Marketing) was super easy to work with and the writing was enjoyable, especially since I had experience helping my own kids learn to read.

Here's an original article that I wrote for her that is based on my own personal experiences.