Weekend reads and a fab author reading...
Last night I got to see Jessie Burton, author of The Miniaturist, at one of my all-time fav indies, Harvard Bookstore with a friend I hadn't seen since April (hi, Tracy!).
It was a wonderful reading and I'm even more charmed with Burton and her novel. An actress, Burton's reading was faaaaaaaaaahbulous; turns out she's the reader for the British audiobook of The Miniaturist, so if you're an audiobook fan, get that edition stat!
After reading her excerpt, she spoke a bit about how her novel came to be, which I found fascinating and remarkably helpful and inspiring, given that I'm mired in my own attempt at writing a novel. (But I'm not daydreaming about an 11 publisher bidding war over my manuscript!) (Well, maybe a little.)
Burton shared some wonderful anecdotes, including a story about the piles of edits she received from both her British editor and American editor (400 pages each!). Daunted by how she was going to reconcile these edits and still have a book that seemed like hers, she admitted to being very worried when, on the first page of her manuscript, her American editor underlined a sentence and said it was what hooked him on the novel -- and it was the same sentence her British editor wanted removed. (!)
Like all the readings at Harvard Bookstore, this one was intimate and warm (Burton didn't need to use a mic, and she instead chatted with us like we were hanging out together; it was so lovely!). I had gone ahead and bought the e-book, so didn't have anything for her to sign, but she kindly agreed to a few pictures (I'm apparently incapable of not looking like a crazywoman when I meet authors and there's a photograph to be had).
Next week I'm seeing Sarah Waters with my friend Tracy -- this time it's a ticketed event at a theater, so I'm unlikely to get a photo with her -- but I'm still very excited. If you've never been to an author reading/event before, consider doing so -- even if you've not read the book in question, they're such fun.
It was a wonderful reading and I'm even more charmed with Burton and her novel. An actress, Burton's reading was faaaaaaaaaahbulous; turns out she's the reader for the British audiobook of The Miniaturist, so if you're an audiobook fan, get that edition stat!
After reading her excerpt, she spoke a bit about how her novel came to be, which I found fascinating and remarkably helpful and inspiring, given that I'm mired in my own attempt at writing a novel. (But I'm not daydreaming about an 11 publisher bidding war over my manuscript!) (Well, maybe a little.)
Burton shared some wonderful anecdotes, including a story about the piles of edits she received from both her British editor and American editor (400 pages each!). Daunted by how she was going to reconcile these edits and still have a book that seemed like hers, she admitted to being very worried when, on the first page of her manuscript, her American editor underlined a sentence and said it was what hooked him on the novel -- and it was the same sentence her British editor wanted removed. (!)
Like all the readings at Harvard Bookstore, this one was intimate and warm (Burton didn't need to use a mic, and she instead chatted with us like we were hanging out together; it was so lovely!). I had gone ahead and bought the e-book, so didn't have anything for her to sign, but she kindly agreed to a few pictures (I'm apparently incapable of not looking like a crazywoman when I meet authors and there's a photograph to be had).
Next week I'm seeing Sarah Waters with my friend Tracy -- this time it's a ticketed event at a theater, so I'm unlikely to get a photo with her -- but I'm still very excited. If you've never been to an author reading/event before, consider doing so -- even if you've not read the book in question, they're such fun.
I'm having to rein in my excitement for The Miniaturist, however, as I've got a few review books in my queue to read first. This weekend, I'm reading Moon Over Tangier by Janice Law, which is the third book in the amazing series about 20th century painter Francis Bacon. (This is also my second #weekendreads post about it, as I ended up pushing back the review when it was clear I was behind.)
So (to the point of this post!), what are you reading this weekend?
So (to the point of this post!), what are you reading this weekend?
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