Five Questions Meme

[lunabee34]

I got some questions from misbegotten.

1) What are your favorite books about the craft of writing?

I really enjoy Stephen King's On Writing. I haven't read it in a while, but I appreciate the way it is more memoir than writing manual. I don't find most writing manuals actually effective for me personally in a "learning how to do this better" kind of way, so I enjoy writing manuals that are more narrative and about the author's experience of writing more than something like The Artist's Way that is a series of exercises or lessons to follow that will supposedly help me write better.

2) Are you feeling fannish about anything? If so, what's your thing right now? If not, do you think Yuletide will kickstart something?

I am getting super excited about Yuletide. I've been trying to guess who I will match to; I offered one thing that I also requested, and I so far, I'm the lone request there. My other offers each have at least one request, so I'm actually going to try (try! try!) to write something for each fandom that I offered this year. We'll see if that happens, but I'm excited about it.

3) How did you meet J? How long have you been together?

Josh and I met the first semester of undergrad in 1997. We started dating in the fall of 1998, so we've been together twenty years now, and just had our 17th wedding anniversary this spring.

4) What are your feelings about fine china and dishware? Do you have a "if money were not an issue" set that you covet?

I have so many feelings. Kalr Five and I are dish soulmates.

Josh's mom really got me on my dish kick. She is such an elegant woman with all these beautiful dishes and glassware and silver pieces. She started giving me silver cutlery (neat pieces like an olive spoon or salt cellar spoons or gumbo spoons in the pattern Lorraine!) and other pieces, and my passion was born.

Right now, I have some truly lovely silver pieces and some beautiful glassware. I have four etched cranberry cordial glasses which are so lovely. My real weaknesses are cordial glasses, salt cellars, and salt cellar spoons. I had two pink salt cellars, and I broke one when we moved to GA. *cries* The rest I have are clear glass. I used to also really be into demitasse cups, but they are more than a little ridiculous for me to acquire since nobody drinks coffee, so I quit collecting those. LOL

5) What five books would you pick if you could only read those books forevermore?

I cannot answer this question. It's mean. Mean, I say. LOL I can pick five authors, though:

A.S. Byatt
Margaret Atwood
Ouida
Ursula K. Le Guin
Dan Simmons

Comments

[monanotlisa]

Oh, nice. Since I'm sitting here wibbling and waiting for my next application call (at 8am, Lorraine, who does that??) I might as well try a meme.

ad 4) You're adorable. I do love myself some fine china and dishware. I do not have a spouse where that's a feasible thing, though. Ah, well.

[lunabee34]

OH man. Hope they called on time! And good luck.

Here's some questions for you:

What outfit do you currently own that you think makes you look smashing and why?
If fine china and glassware were a viable option, what would be your first purchase?
Do you collect anything?
Tell me something that gives you hope and optimism.
How do you feel about jazz music?

[executrix]

Dude! The fact of no one drinking coffee makes demitasse cups far more desirable collectables, because it's less likely that people are going to drop them if they insist on DRINKING out of them.

[lunabee34]

I am one of those weirdos who actually uses the fancy dishes. They are not for hiding away! They need to be loved!

[executrix]

Collections are DISPLAYED! That's the opposite of hidden away! I'm with you on using beautiful things that you love instead of keeping them for your executor to toss in the dumpster tho.

Also, you can totally serve chocolate mousse in demitasse cups. Or consomme.

[lunabee34]

Oh yes. Displaying is key.

I think you can also serve cordials and liquers in demitasse cups which is an idea. Some of the ones I have are really wee.

[china_shop]

I cannot answer this question. It's mean.

Hee! *hearts you*

[lunabee34]

:)

<3

[duskpeterson]

"I don't find most writing manuals actually effective for me personally in a 'learning how to do this better' kind of way, so I enjoy writing manuals that are more narrative and about the author's experience of writing"

Oh, man, me too. When I was a teen in the seventies, there were lots of memoirs of SF writers being published. My two favorites are the anthology "Hell's Cartographers" and Frederik Pohl's "The Way the Future Was." In the last years of his life, Pohl did a similar blog - http://www.thewaythefutureblogs.com - which was *so cool*, seeing the 1970s time-travelled into the present day. Here's a sample entry:

http://www.thewaythefutureblogs.com/2011/01/chip-delany-part-2-the-miracle-of-dhalgren/

I'm also very fond of Jacqueline Jackson's "Turn Not Pale, Beloved Snail," which is a combination of instruction and family memoir.

[lunabee34]

I've never heard of any of these writers. Thanks for linking! I love getting new to me writers and books. :)

[chelseagirl]

I have inherited sterling, which I love and try to remember to use. My everyday flatware is silverplate that came to me through the family as well. But good dishes is something I will never have space for, as I expect my taste for living in expensive cities means I will always live in a small apartment.

[lunabee34]

Yeah, space is a real issue. In our other house, I really did have room to store my dishes properly in a way that made it easy to use them.

I don't have a set of sterling or silver plate. I have Oneida stainless. All my silver is serving pieces and etc. One day I will inherit my mom's silver (I think it might be silver plate), and I can't remember the pattern, but it's pretty baroque.

[tamsin]

I'm also excited for yuletide! I'm hoping for Agatha Christie fic but I am sure there will be plenty to discover regardless.

[lunabee34]

*crosses fingers for you*