I've been writing a long time. I've also been published both in real life and in a virtual world known as Second Life. In real life, I have not earned much money for my work. In Second Life I've earned even less but since the game currency, the almighty Linden, can buy more virtual items than U.S. dollars can buy real merchandise, I am actually making out better. I can buy a designer gown for 1,000 Lindens or less (about $4 cash) and some really nice stuff is actually given away for free. But that's not why I write in a virtual world.
When I joined Second Life nearly a year ago in March 2007, I had no idea what to expect. I didn't expect to enjoy it. I just wanted to try it. I found it tough at the beginning and was only thankful that I received lots of help from the Alliance Group of librarians who have created a wonderful resource that started with one virtual island known as Info Island and now includes a group of virtual islands that are known as the Information Archipelago. I will write more about these virtual librarians in another entry.
As a librarian and writer, I had researched Second Life before I started playing by becoming a virtual resident there. I discovered that in addition to many real life businesses as well as virtual businesses, there are publications including newspapers that serve the audience of this worldwide community that now boasts 4 million or so occupants. I applied to a paper called the Metaverse Messenger and was hired as a staff writer. I began writing two columns, one geared toward new players, or newbies in SL lingo and one that profiled people who ran businesses in the game. From writing both these columns, I learned much about the people and culture of Second Life. I went on to write feature articles and cover events, particularly those hosted by the librarians on Info Island. I was offered my own virtual home to cover Info Island news, and I gladly accepted.
I am now beginning to join the several writer's groups that meet in Second Life and am learning from the real life authors who are guests or hosts of these groups. I am amazed at how real virtual writing can be and how unique a venue a virtual world can be for a writer. All fiction is, after all, virtual. It exists in our minds to be verbalized or written. Once we create it, it is real no matter where it is read.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Saturday, January 19, 2008
My Favorite Books
Authors (and librarians, too) are often asked what books they have read and enjoyed. Like movie reviews, their replies are very individual and not necessarily meant as recommendations. Below I have listed some of my favorite books and series along with why I liked them and what I would perhaps like to emulate about the writing style or plot.
1. Second Glance by Jodi Picoult
While I have read a few of Picoult's books, this one stands out for me. It has the touch of paranormal that I admire with the sense of past and strong characters that appeal to me.
2. The Eight by Katherine Neville
Not an easy book to read but one that is worth reading several times. Historical detail about the French Revolution is nicely researched. Characters are witty and colorful. The time switches between the past and the present merge well. Information about chess and its history and masters is a plus.
3. Perfect Nightmare by John Saul
I enjoy Saul's horror which can be more psychological than physical but still produces that tingling up the spine. I found this one particularly well written.
4. Chill Factor by Sandra Brown
This mystery novel is atmospheric and features well depicted winter weather effects. It kept me guessing until nearly the end.
5. Summerhouse by Jude Deveraux
As a time travel fan, this hit a chord with me. I loved the characters and plot.
6. Find Me by Carol O'Connell
All of the Mallory mysteries are good, but this one was especially well written. The Mallory series is tough to read but worth the effort. I like books that make you think and feel. This one does both, as do all the books in this series.
7. Lightning by Dean Koontz
Koontz is another of my favorite horror authors. This was an oldie but greatie featuring time travel with great characters and plot.
8. Time and Again by Jack Finney
This wonderful time travel classic tells a beautiful love story set in atmospheric turn-of-the-century New York. The black and white photos were an interesting plus. I loved this book.
9. The Tea Rose by Jennifer Donnelly
Historical fiction is not my favorite genre, but this book is an exception. It's a lengthy read but a good one. I waited a long time for its follow up "The Winter Rose."
10 & 11. Carolina Moon and Midnight Bayou by Nora Roberts
I thoroughly enjoy most of this prolific author's novels, but these two are my favorites, so far, for atmosphere, suspense, and romance.
12. In Death Series by J.D. Robb
All of these futuristic mysteries are fun to read. I love the characters, sensuality, humor, and mystery. These four ingredients are perfectly blended in each "In Death" book. I was hooked fron the first one and have read the whole series.
13, 14 & 15. The Mayfair Witches Trilogy by Anne Rice These three books are full of wonderful New Orleans atmosphere and supernatural elements. While lengthy, the descriptions are vivid and absorbing. These are stories to savor.
16. The Mirror by Marlys Millhiser
This classic features wonderful historic detail along with time travel and romance. It is a sweet, old-fashioned tale with a wonderful plot and characters.
1. Second Glance by Jodi Picoult
While I have read a few of Picoult's books, this one stands out for me. It has the touch of paranormal that I admire with the sense of past and strong characters that appeal to me.
2. The Eight by Katherine Neville
Not an easy book to read but one that is worth reading several times. Historical detail about the French Revolution is nicely researched. Characters are witty and colorful. The time switches between the past and the present merge well. Information about chess and its history and masters is a plus.
3. Perfect Nightmare by John Saul
I enjoy Saul's horror which can be more psychological than physical but still produces that tingling up the spine. I found this one particularly well written.
4. Chill Factor by Sandra Brown
This mystery novel is atmospheric and features well depicted winter weather effects. It kept me guessing until nearly the end.
5. Summerhouse by Jude Deveraux
As a time travel fan, this hit a chord with me. I loved the characters and plot.
6. Find Me by Carol O'Connell
All of the Mallory mysteries are good, but this one was especially well written. The Mallory series is tough to read but worth the effort. I like books that make you think and feel. This one does both, as do all the books in this series.
7. Lightning by Dean Koontz
Koontz is another of my favorite horror authors. This was an oldie but greatie featuring time travel with great characters and plot.
8. Time and Again by Jack Finney
This wonderful time travel classic tells a beautiful love story set in atmospheric turn-of-the-century New York. The black and white photos were an interesting plus. I loved this book.
9. The Tea Rose by Jennifer Donnelly
Historical fiction is not my favorite genre, but this book is an exception. It's a lengthy read but a good one. I waited a long time for its follow up "The Winter Rose."
10 & 11. Carolina Moon and Midnight Bayou by Nora Roberts
I thoroughly enjoy most of this prolific author's novels, but these two are my favorites, so far, for atmosphere, suspense, and romance.
12. In Death Series by J.D. Robb
All of these futuristic mysteries are fun to read. I love the characters, sensuality, humor, and mystery. These four ingredients are perfectly blended in each "In Death" book. I was hooked fron the first one and have read the whole series.
13, 14 & 15. The Mayfair Witches Trilogy by Anne Rice These three books are full of wonderful New Orleans atmosphere and supernatural elements. While lengthy, the descriptions are vivid and absorbing. These are stories to savor.
16. The Mirror by Marlys Millhiser
This classic features wonderful historic detail along with time travel and romance. It is a sweet, old-fashioned tale with a wonderful plot and characters.
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Works in Progress
What is a work-in-progress? When you think about it, isn't everything we do, everything we are, a work-in-progress? It is easy to see a work-in-progress when a writer looks at his unfinished manuscript or a parent looks at her growing child. I know that when I see the leaps and bounds my daughter is making at 3, that she is definitely creating the adult she will be through what she is learning, the other children and adults she is meeting, the books that are read to her, the movies, television shows, and other entertainment she is watching. But as I watch her grown, I am growing, too, as I continue my work in progress as a mother.
Adults are works-in-progress, too. As we age, we still continue to learn and interact with our environments. Many seniors take up new hobbies when they retire, but even younger adults can take adult ed classes, read books on topics and areas that are new to them, travel to places their imaginations have previously only visited.
As I write my first novel, although I've been writing articles and short stories for many years, I enjoy the process of watching my characters and the plot develop. Even after the manuscript is complete, and I've edited it and hopefully published it, the story will continue as it is shared by others. It will become each reader's work-in-progress. They will get out of it what their experiences, backgrounds, and beliefs may find interesting and special, what touches them through what has touched them.
In Virtual Realities, it is very easy to change one's appearance and persona. Somewhat like a character in a book, when you participate in a virtual world such as Second Life , Entropia Universe, World of Warcraft, or many of the other multi-player online games that have attracted participants from around the world, you can be whoever you want to be. Many people choose to do in these worlds similar activities to what they do in real life. For instance, I belong to a group of librarians and educators in Second Life and also write for one of their virtual newspapers. Others, however, may role play and act out as totally different characters. In this way, they continue to develop their own works in progress, creating another facet of themselves using the platform of virtual worlds to exhibit it.
Whether you raise a child, write a book, read a book, take up a new hobby, or take up residence in a virtual community, you are further developing your own work in progress, your final copy, the one that is continually being edited by you.
Adults are works-in-progress, too. As we age, we still continue to learn and interact with our environments. Many seniors take up new hobbies when they retire, but even younger adults can take adult ed classes, read books on topics and areas that are new to them, travel to places their imaginations have previously only visited.
As I write my first novel, although I've been writing articles and short stories for many years, I enjoy the process of watching my characters and the plot develop. Even after the manuscript is complete, and I've edited it and hopefully published it, the story will continue as it is shared by others. It will become each reader's work-in-progress. They will get out of it what their experiences, backgrounds, and beliefs may find interesting and special, what touches them through what has touched them.
In Virtual Realities, it is very easy to change one's appearance and persona. Somewhat like a character in a book, when you participate in a virtual world such as Second Life , Entropia Universe, World of Warcraft, or many of the other multi-player online games that have attracted participants from around the world, you can be whoever you want to be. Many people choose to do in these worlds similar activities to what they do in real life. For instance, I belong to a group of librarians and educators in Second Life and also write for one of their virtual newspapers. Others, however, may role play and act out as totally different characters. In this way, they continue to develop their own works in progress, creating another facet of themselves using the platform of virtual worlds to exhibit it.
Whether you raise a child, write a book, read a book, take up a new hobby, or take up residence in a virtual community, you are further developing your own work in progress, your final copy, the one that is continually being edited by you.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Loss for Words vs. Love of Words
What's worse than a writer at a loss for words, or a reader without a book? Words have been a good part of my life since childhood. I recall my eagerness to learn how to read, how it seemed magical for me to visit other places and times through the pages of a book. I am happy to see my own 3 year old daughter, Holly, sharing this interest, even as computer programs and websites appeal to her. The library is still her favorite place which is no wonder because I work at one and take her there often. Books are just as fun for her as toys, as they were to me as a child. My favorite birthday and Christmas gifts were always books, so I make sure to provide plenty of these for her along with Barbie dolls, Dora the Explorer playsets, DVD's, and other items that will hopefully not be recalled for safety issues. Barring paper cuts, most books are pretty safe, and now that she doesn't rip, chew, or color in them, they are lasting much longer.
So what am I doing writing a blog? I thought I'd give it a try. As I said, my life has been pretty full of words. In college, I majored in English and then went on to graduate school for Library Science. During college, I was also Features Editor of the student newspaper. In my twenties and thirties, while working at the job I still currently have as a reference librarian at a public library, I continued to write as a freelancer for cat magazines and journals and also had a short-story published for a mystery anthology. I gave this up for a short time after having my daughter in 2004 and am now returning to writing both in the virtual world, Second Life, and on my own writing a novel in memory of my beloved cat, Floppy.
You can never really "lose" words, but words are less meaningful if not shared. I hope that, through this blog, I can reach those who may have similar interests as mine or who would like to provide feedback on my experiences with writing, cats, virtual worlds, and/or librarianship. Thanks for reading.
So what am I doing writing a blog? I thought I'd give it a try. As I said, my life has been pretty full of words. In college, I majored in English and then went on to graduate school for Library Science. During college, I was also Features Editor of the student newspaper. In my twenties and thirties, while working at the job I still currently have as a reference librarian at a public library, I continued to write as a freelancer for cat magazines and journals and also had a short-story published for a mystery anthology. I gave this up for a short time after having my daughter in 2004 and am now returning to writing both in the virtual world, Second Life, and on my own writing a novel in memory of my beloved cat, Floppy.
You can never really "lose" words, but words are less meaningful if not shared. I hope that, through this blog, I can reach those who may have similar interests as mine or who would like to provide feedback on my experiences with writing, cats, virtual worlds, and/or librarianship. Thanks for reading.
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