Sunday Hangovers - Gwenda Bond

Visit the nonexistent city of Galvez. (Via Claire.)
Austin Kleon with some advice care of George Saunders: George Saunders says that as a young boy, he felt the language in Esther Forbes’ Johnny Tremain was a code he could break, “a code that turned out to be more accurate and expressive than the one we all use to slog through normal life.” And breaking this code suggested to him that he might be able to come up with his own code, “a premonition that my complicated feelings about life could be subjugated to that quest, which has turned out to be true.”
People talk about voice and style, and I have no clue what they’re talking about. “Find your voice!” they say.

Screw that. I’m working on my secret code.
Whale terrorists at BibliOdyssey.
Over at the new Killer Year – Class of 2007 blog (featuring a bunch of mystery novelists making their debut in… well, ’07), Toni Causey tells a hilarious story on herself involving errant breastmilk. (Also, Toni’s blog has moved.)
Matt Cheney does a wonderful rundown of one of my favorite dead people movies, Cemetery Man, which I suggest as a double-bill with The Loved One. And earlier in the week, he had a great interview with editor Tina Pohlman, who is thoroughly charming and has great taste. I interviewed Tina for my PW piece on fantasy and she said way more smart things than I had space for.
The most excellent Cryptomundo blog. Damn, and I’d just gotten my subscribed feeds down to 153, from like 300 or so. (Via the ever-witty Theresa Duncan.)
Dorothy at Of Books and Bicycles says something about bicycle racing that is also true of writing: Yes, those other women are competitors, but without competitors, a rider doesn’t improve. Other riders aren’t merely your competitors: they are the people you need to make yourself better.
His Majesty’s Dragon gets a rave in this week’s Book World, and there’s also a nice review of Daniel Handler’s Adverbs.
And now off to lots of writing/editing work.

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