All posts tagged: historical fiction

Musings & Meanderings: Is time linear? Does it fold over itself? What about time-travel? For real? In a book? Susen Edwards talks about that, plus her debut, WHAT A TRIP, plus the frenzy to the finish line of 2022, planning for the new year, more

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A curated newsletter on the literary life, featuring ‘4 questions,’ reading & listening recommendations, where to submit, more Leslie Lindsay|Always with a Book ~MUSINGS & MEANDERINGS~ Hello, Friends! I don’t know about you, but I feel I have upped my normal frenzy to my fancy holiday, year-end frenzy. It can be a little overwhelming between work, kids, end-of-semester, prepping for the holidays, and more. I like busy. I might thrive best when I have a few spinning plates. Sometimes, though, those plates get a little full. And they all seem to be made of my grandmother’s fine china, delicate and fragile, should I drop one. Is it always crunch time? How do you manage? Is there a way to balance or pre-plan? Hey…I’ve got some tips for that in my obsessions section–and a workshop you may want to attend with Esme Weijun Wang. I just signed up! There’s another one I have my eye on, too (DailyOM has some really great offerings). Be sure you scroll to those offerings below. In the spirit of thinking …

MUSINGS & MEANDERINGS: Lisa Williamson Rosenberg on writing a novel in a minivan during soccer practice, feeling like you’re not doing enough/too much, distractibility, making art when not inspired, more

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By Leslie Lindsay A curated newsletter on the literary life, featuring ‘4 questions,’ reading & listening recommendations, where to submit, more Leslie Lindsay|Always with a Book ~MUSINGS & MEANDERINGS~ Hello, Friends! I’m not working well today. I don’t know…the gears feel rusty. My brain feels cramped and distracted. I’m worried about my kids, who aren’t really kids, but young adults. They are amazing and talented and busy and so that makes it even more challenging. I worry, in the best parent-kind-of-way. Am I doing enough? Am I doing too much? Are they happy? It’s hard to be parent. It’s harder still to be a teenager. The emotions are big. The problems have ramifications. Everything feels new and important. Because it is. Kids this age often are experiencing things for the first time (first car, first date, college applications, sports, perceived failures), so the feelings are bigger. I’ve got an interview by psychologist-mom, Lisa Williamson Rosenberg today who says she wrote her novel, EMBERS IN THE WIND, in a minivan at soccer practice (I can totally …

Musings & Meanderings: If she wasn’t writing, Bobi Conn says she’d be playing pool; plus finding the time & bandwidth to immerse oneself into creativity, book recs, more in A WOMAN IN TIME

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By Leslie Lindsay A curated newsletter on the literary life, featuring ‘4 questions,’ reading & listening recommendations, where to submit, more Leslie Lindsay|Always with a Book ~MUSINGS & MEANDERINGS~ Hello, Friends! To be honest, I am struggling to find my post-travel, post-summer, new-school-year writing routine. There’s always that wobbly, indiscriminate time where everything feels in limbo. Can you relate? Has your old routine stopped working? Maybe and that’s okay. It’s supposed to! Wait! What? Yep. Because time is linear and keeping marching on, so do you. We’re always in the process of evolving and that means our routines should, too. Here are a few things I’ve learned about (writing) routines: One: Routines are helpful to our creativity. By establishing one is saying, “I respect my creativity and will carve out time to satisfy my desire to create.” Our creative self craves predictability, time, and space; it triggers a creative flow. Every Tuesday, for example, is my day to do hands-on art, flatlays, images of book covers. I may get a trickle of books through the …

Musings & Meanderings: A list of obsessions, houses and homes, art, Speaking of Apraxia out-of-print, what I’m reading, more.

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By Leslie Lindsay Leslie Lindsay|Always with a Book ~MUSINGS & MEANDERINGS~ Hello, Friends! A writing instructor once encouraged us to ‘make a list of all your obsessions.’ What she didn’t know was I had been doing just that my whole life. What is a writer if not someone obsessed with certain things? ‘Obsession,’ in a way, is a cousin to ‘observer.’ You observe, you obsess. Note how both words share the same several letters? As a teenager, I used to make lists of things scattered about my room. Ticket stubs (Forrest Gump), who was in the framed photos (Stacey, Tara, Scott), the titles of the books lying on the floor (anatomy textbooks and Canterbury Tales), the floor plan in progress (I drew floorplans all the time)…you get the idea. Here’s the thing: I still make lists. I still take photos. I still read. I’m intrigued with human anatomy and medicine. It’s all still there. So my list, from this class, looks a bit like: Architecture/Design/Houses/Homes Psychology Nature Travel Home Décor Books Art Mothers Place Dreams …

Musings & Meanderings: Beverly Armento’s memoir SEEING EYE GIRL about her blind, mentally ill mother, summer doldrums, reading recs, poetry to inspire writing, and last chance to nab a copy of SPEAKING OF APRAXIA

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By Leslie Lindsay A curated newsletter on the literary life, featuring ‘4 questions,’ reading & listening recommendations, where to submit, more Leslie Lindsay|Always with a Book ~MUSINGS & MEANDERINGS~ Hello, Friends! Is this a season of withdrawal, regrouping, reassessing…from your art? Even though it is summer and full of bounty, I am feeling…taxed. I have a dear friend who is much like a mother and a mentor and always so wise. She gives me what I need the most when I need it. Here’s her advice: So many things unfold when we give ourselves adequate space. And don’t doubt yourself so much. Doesn’t that sound lovely? Do you relate? I’m often jam-packing my days (and brain) with facts, tasks, trivia, ideas…so many ideas…that I forget to just BE. I met with other friends for coffee recently and so much of our conversation revolved around our vision–and this can be interpreted broadly: how we see ourselves, how we see others? What is your vision for the rest of the summer? The conversation was about recognition, being …

Musings & Meanderings: Caitlin Billings on the ‘construction of gender,’ her new mental health memoir, plus deconstructing flash, where to submit this June, being curious & varied

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By Leslie Lindsay A curated newsletter on the literary life, featuring ‘4 questions,’ reading & listening recommendations, where to submit, more Leslie Lindsay|Always with a Book ~MUSINGS & MEANDERINGS~ Hello, Friends! Curiosity. That’s what a writer needs. She also needs varied life experiences. A break in routine. I tell you this because…well, it’s true for me, but but because it ought to be true for every writer. Here’s why: stagnancy doesn’t produce dynamic anything. So…are you… Exploring? Observing? Questioning? Doodling? Day-dreaming? Remember when you were a kid, maybe 4 years old or so, and well-meaning adults asked, “So, what do you want to be when you grow up?” I mean, we start early with this. Guess what?! I still don’t know!!! Lately, we’ve been taking our daughter on college visits. They all want to know what ‘school,’ or ‘major’ she’s going to select. She loves (and is good at) lots of things. So, how to narrow it down? Does she need to know? No. That’s the beauty of being inquisitive and multi-interested. Our ideas and …

Musings & Meanderings: Kristin Keane chats about her unconventional memoir, AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BENDING TIME, plus the season of summer, calls for submissions, writing with kids, what I’m reading, Maud Newton in conversation with Ann Leary TONIGHT via the Center For Fiction, more

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By Leslie Lindsay A curated newsletter on the literary life, featuring ‘4 questions,’ reading & listening recommendations, where to submit, more Leslie Lindsay|Always with a Book ~MUSINGS & MEANDERINGS~ Hello, Friends! How’s summer going for you? I know we’re barely dipping our toes in, but let me just say–it’s been pretty good so far. Summer might be loaded with lots of ‘shoulds,’ you should be happy, you should be outside, you should be taking time off, playing; you should be flourishing. But sometimes you’re not. Summer is a time when everything is exemplified, made bolder. There’s a shimmer to the landscape, the colors are brighter, things are in bloom. What if maybe you’re questioning everything? Maybe you don’t like the stimulation? As a writer, who also ‘moms,’ I find it really tough to be ‘all in’ for either job. My mind often drifts to the kids when I’m writing (even though–especially though–they are teenagers), and when I’m in writerland, I worry I am not doing enough for them. This isn’t just a teenage thing, it’s …

Creative-health check-in, Erika Krouse on TELL ME EVERYTHING, apraxia news, diversions, recently-published work, what I’m reading and listening to, calls for submissions, more

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By Leslie Lindsay Remember last week’s Musings & Meanderings? You can’t be everything to everyone everyday. Are you remembering to: Rest. Read. Nap. Write. Spend Time in Nature. Surround Yourself with Nurturing Souls? Let me know how it’s going. Respond here in a comment, or find me on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook. xoxoxo ~Leslie : ) There’s more to this newsletter…keep scrolling! It’s a bittersweet end: my fabulous longtime publisher, Woodbine House, will be closing their doors in June. This is a pandemic-driven decision. Woodbine House has been churning out top special-needs resources for 37 years, including SPEAKING OF APRAXIA. The good news? All of their books are 50%, while supplies last. The bittersweet news? SPEAKING OF APRAXIA is sold-out, at least from the publisher’s website. But! You can still get it, while supplies last on Amazon, maybe Barnes & Noble. Bookshop.org is a possibility, too. We are looking at other options, too, for it to remain in-print, but that might be awhile to come to fruition. If you–or someone you know–could benefit from the book, the time …

Diane Chamberlain had me gasping aloud in THE LAST HOUSE ON THE STREET, plus her obsessions, civil rights, letting characters lead and the magic of writing

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By Leslie Lindsay Two seemingly unconnected stories merge into one very thought-provoking, highly emotional read. ~WRITERS INTERVIEWING WRITERS~ Always with a Book Leslie Lindsay in Conversation with Diane Chamberlain Diane Chamberlain is the New York Times, USA Today and Sunday Times bestselling author of 27 novels published in more than twenty languages. Influenced by her former career as a social worker and psychotherapist, she writes suspenseful stories that touch both heart and mind. One of Marie Claire’s Most Eagerly Anticipated of 2022 January Indie Next Pick I have long been a fan of Diane Chamberlain’s work, but this one really knocks it out of the park. THE LAST HOUSE ON THE STREET (Jan 11 2022, St. Martin’s Press), is completely ‘affecting and spellbinding,’ (Publisher’s Weekly, STARRED REVIEW), and is a PEOPLE magazine ‘pick of the week,’ and is sure to pack a powerful punch for readers and book clubs. I loved it. What Diane does best is mine historical plot points with an emotional heart, and generally it’s something that once touched her own life. In fact, THE LAST …

Year-End 2021 and What’s Ahead in the New Year

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By Leslie Lindsay An end of an era. But all endings are really beginnings, right? Since 2013, I have been remarkably grateful and blessed to have spent so much time connecting with readers on Always with a Book. Each week I have presented very fine authors and titles–from smashing debuts to immediate bestsellers. This has been both a privilege and joy. The website will remain, and you can always go back and re-read any author interview. How do you do this? Simple: Have an author or title in mind? Go to the search field (home page, top right magnifying glass) and type in a few keywords. It will ‘take’ you right to where you want to go! Head over to ‘Featured Authors’ and scroll through all of the…uh, featured authors…and peruse that way. Find an author or a book you really love? Great! I aim to please. You can add it to your Bookshop.org storefront, GoodReads, Instagram, or wherever else you catalogue your virtual reads. If you feel so compelled to read a book because …