The Confabulator Cafe

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  • The Do’s and Don’ts of Shopping for Writers

    Doctor Who journal
    Riversong’s Journal, from Doctor Who. The perfect gift for a writer who is also a fan of the television series.

    Despite what you may think, writers are some of the easiest people to shop for. Want to know why? Because we usually want books, whether they are in hard copy or electronic format.

    Last year, my wife purchased me a Kindle Touch from Amazon. I don’t need the latest Kindle Paperwhite. But you can always buy me a few books off my wishlist.

    First, let me say that owning an e-reader does not preclude wanting hardcover books. It just makes me more selective about what books I want in hardcover. Some books — coffee-table books, for example — are always going to be in hardcover. I am also very fond of my Easton Press collection of science fiction novels.

    But what do you get for a writer besides books, most of which are likely to be read and forgotten in a month’s time. How can you make an impact all year long with the proverbial “gift that keeps on giving”?

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  • Presents for Your Writer

    All a writer really needs is paper and some sort of writing instrument. If a story wants to come out, and all a writer has at hand is a stubby red crayon and a napkin, it’s gonna happen.

    So, let’s assume the writer in your life already has the basic tools of choice covered–paper and a pen, a typewriter, or a computer with whatever word processing software is most preferred.

    What can you offer as a gift to make the writing experience better, easier, or more comfortable?

    1. Liquid fuel

    You know your writer best. What do they like to drink? Coffee’s usually a good bet. Running out of caffeine in the middle of an intense scene is catastrophic. You could gift them with a pound of their favorite beans or even sign them up for a monthly coffee delivery. Some prefer tea, so you could gift them with a special blend, a whimsical steeper, or a beautiful new teapot. I know a few writers who prefer something more potent for after-hours writing. I’m sure a really nice bottle of their favorite would be much appreciated.

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  • If you can’t gift me happiness, give me tequila instead

    In the past, my Christmas wishlists were miles long and filled with one item after another that I wanted. This year, it was a fairly short list. Maybe I’m getting older. Maybe I’m realizing that material things just weigh me down. Maybe I realize that I’m moving in a year and a half and I don’t want to have to pack all of that stuff up and haul it to yet another apartment.

    Books are always a great present. But books are heavy. Allow me to reference you back to my aforementioned comment about moving again in a year and a half. I love books. Lately though, I’ve barely made time to read the mountains of books that I already own, much less discover new series. I’ve fallen in love with my library. I can check out books, read them, and return them when I’m done. And sometimes I’ll love a series enough to want to own it.

    That’s becoming more of a rarity, though. (more…)

  • You Can’t Go Wrong with Books

    Writers are not hard to buy for. I promise you, they are probably the easiest group of people (aside from kids – why do I have twenty things I want to buy the five-year-old but can’t think of a single thing to buy my Dad?) to shop for.

    Why?

    Easy. We love stories. Anything that comes in story form is perfect for us.

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  • Poor Gift Advice and Other Tangents

    I am a terrible gift giver. I like to believe that I’m good at thinking about other people, but as I wrestled with this post, I was faced with the possibility that I might, in fact, be a very selfish bastard.

    When it comes to buying something for other people, I often have no idea what to get.

    I love connecting with individuals and genuinely care about the lives of others, but I can’t think of a single adult, outside of those related by blood or marriage, for whom I am buying a gift this season. I can’t decide whether or not this says anything about me as a person, but I thought I’d put it out there before I get to the advice-dispensing portion of this post.

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  • Toolbox Stocking Stuffers

    The holidays are upon us and that writer in your life is almost impossible to to buy for. Forgive my ending that sentence with a preposition, because do I have some deals for you.

    A couple of years ago, I saw the Alphasmart NEO in a Writer’s Digest advertisement.

    This baby may not look like much, but it is pure creative functionality. It starts up instantaneously, runs on two AA batteries (which will last 700 hours), and best of all, it does not have internet. No Facebook-ing. No tweets. No “research” before you get started. Sit your ass down, because that is all this thing does. Want to write for 12 hours straight in a blackout? Done. Export your work to any program you want. The NEO  emulates the keyboard of your computer and re-types it. (Which looks awesome.) For editing, you will still want your computer, but for quick and dirty first drafts, this is ideal.

     

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  • Gifts for Writers

    “The most essential gift for a good writer is a built-in, shock-proof, shit detector. This is the writer’s radar and all great writers have had it.” ~ Ernest Hemingway, Paris Review interview

    Book of Answers by Hollow Book Co.
    Book of Answers, from Hollow Book Co.

    We’re counting down to the holidays, so we thought it would be a good idea to ask our writers for gift ideas. Black Friday and Cyber Monday are history, but we have some suggestions if you’re still struggling to find the perfect gift for the writer in your life.

    The writers in our Cafe were so busy writing last month that many of them didn’t have a chance to put together a wish list, so we’ve asked them to take some time this week to put together some of their favorite gift ideas.

    We hope you’ll find some great ideas. If you have any suggestions, please leave them in the comments below.

    Until Next Week,

    The Cafe Management

  • Ephemera – Will You Edit your NaNo Novel?

    This past week, the Wrimos said their final words on their Nanowrimo adventures for 2012. Words were written, lessons were learned, sleep was missed out on, and way too much caffeine and junk food was consumed – even if it wasn’t for Nano. For one last summary on the experience (and then we’re back to regularly scheduled programming so you won’t have to hear about it for another year), we asked our Wrimos what their plans were for their novel written in November. To edit, or not to edit?

    Christie Holland

    I’ve never edited a NaNo novel before. But this year, I’m considering it. Editing it actually means “completely rewriting it,” but that’s okay. I’m excited to keep working on it.

    Ted Boone

    I absolutely intend to finish this year’s novel (still have 25-30% story to tell, by my best guess) and then edit it. I’m probably more surprised by this answer than anyone, as I thought my story idea this year was sort of a throwaway, but as things progressed, I really grew to love the idea and the characters.

    Jason Arnett

    Definitely going to edit. I love this year’s book even though I’m not done writing it yet. I think I’m to the point as a writer that what I write is deserving of at least a couple of attempts at getting it out to the public.

    Kevin Wohler

    I’m going to keep working on my NaNoWriMo novel. I didn’t get to 50,000 words, but that’s okay. I like my main character and I’m convinced she has a good story to tell. Most importantly, I’m starting to see the true bones of the story. Much of my writing has been fat, which will need to be trimmed. Now that I’m done with NaNo, I’m going to ignore word count and focus on time spent with my novel — whether writing or editing. I want to finish it in 2013.

    Sara Lundberg

    Nah, not this year. It needs way too much work. I’ve been doing NaNo for enough years now to realize when I have something worth putting more work into, and while this novel definitely had its moments, and I might revisit the idea someday, overall it’s best that this one gets a proper burial in the Novel Graveyard.

    Larry Jenkins

    Hell, yes, I’m editing it. The zero draft is finally done, and I’m ready for someone else to read the damn thing. Beware, writer friends. Some of you may be dodging an email from me very soon.

    Ashley M. Poland

    I’m planning to edit this novel. It’s not going to be easy nor do I think I’ll do it right away — I’ve already got the rumblings of another novel in me — but I think there’s something redeemable buried in this draft. Not sure what it is, yet, but I’ll find it with another draft or so.

    Jack Campbell, Jr.

    I never leave anything unfinished. I usually edit a piece several times before I submit. Sometimes, that process takes years, but I don’t believe in trunking anything. There is always something to salvage, something that can work for me. My most recent story acceptance, “Waking” was originally written in 2002. I completed the final re-write last year.

  • Post-NaNo Blues

    NaNoWriMo went fine, and I’m still working on the novel — but now I’m trying to throw off the post-NaNo funk. (Ted wrote about this last week, and I pretty much just nodded along.)

    While writing is often a solitary experience, I am not a solitary person. I thrive on company, even if all we’re doing is drinking coffee and doing something inherently unsocial, like writing. Maybe it comes from small housing and lots of siblings; I’m just no good at being alone. I only sort of joke that I want to move my friends into one of those polygamist houses I once saw on Sister Wives — for the ease of company, not the sex, obviously.

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  • Energizer Bunny

    Funny thing about this year’s NaNo? I’m still going.

    Last week I wrote about the abrupt stop of the NaNo train. That happened, just as predicted. But I seem to have jumped off, unscathed, and still on my feet. Granted, the first of December wasn’t my best day: I went backwards more than two thousand words, fixing terrible, terrible writing I’d done earlier in November). But since then I’ve kept up a slow but steady forward pace of my own, averaging roughly 500-1000 words a day.

    Some of that is due to the fact that, surprisingly, I really like this year’s story. I wasn’t expecting that. I went into this year’s season without much enthusiasm; I didn’t really think my idea or my characters would pan out. But now my gut is telling me I might be wrong. And more importantly, it’s telling me that I owe it to myself and my story to see it through to the end.

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