Sunday Salon: March 6, 2016

We celebrate spring-like temperatures for the third week in a row! I suppose winter bypassed Kansas this year...

Reading:

My meme button...

I want to reconnect with my blogging roots.

My Cozy Book Nook began in 2009 as a book review blog. I was thrilled to find a community of like-minded people who loved to read as much I do. Since I've never participated a book club, this was an opportunity to connect with others and share our current, favorite, and not-so-favorite books. I was an active participant in this blogosphere until late 2010 when "life" began crashing in. Not only did I have little time to read, I lost my desire.


Since retirement, however, I have rekindled my literary passion. While my TBR list used to weigh heavy toward non-fiction, I have now started to balance my reading by adding fiction as well. And I want to share my reading experience with others.

Staci's original button...

The problem is... book reviews are difficult and time-consuming to write, which steals some of the joy.  For several weeks now I've brainstormed how I might simplify the process and return to the book blogging community. I think I might have stumbled upon a solution.

Staci of Life in the Thumb used to host the weekly meme, Six Sentence Saturday. A brief Google search indicates it is no longer active, but I still like the concept: review a book in six sentences and give it a rating. Sounds simple enough.

I'm not sure I can commit to posting every Saturday (at least not right away), but I do want to catch up on a few 2015 book reviews and then purpose to stay current. I'll let you know how it goes.

Writing:

Painting inspiration for new plot idea

As I shared last week, I'm learning that revising a work of fiction is a lot slower than revising a personal essay. There is SO much to consider and infinite possibilities.

Two weeks ago I focused on character personalities... this past week I focused on plot.

The original draft not only discussed the French Impressionists, but it also delved into the seedy backstage activities of the Paris ballet. The theme was dark and more suitable for a YA audience.

I have since decided to write a "sweeter" story for a Middle Grade crowd. To help me flesh out a new plot, I considered three separate possibilities:

• historical fiction novel: similar storyline to the original, just not as dark and "mature"
• historical fiction mystery: where the protagonist must search for something throughout Paris
• non-fiction biography: recreate a week in the life of Degas

At this point I'm leaning towards the mystery. 

The Bobsy Twins and Nancy Drew were my favorite series when I was in upper elementary school, and I still adore cozy mysteries today. There is built-in conflict with this genre, my weakest link in writing.

My current idea: Mary Cassatt's dog goes missing and my protagonist must try to find him. I will try to put some meat on the bones this week to see if it is a viable storyline.

Blogging:

Slowly but surely I am returning to my old routine. I hope I can keep it up.

I bravely (or foolishly) registered for two time-consuming activities in April: Camp NaNoWriMo and the Blogging A-Z Challenge. This is taking writing to an entirely new level for me - and I'm not sure I have the endurance to succeed. I know March will be busy with pre-writing activities in order to succeed in April. We shall see...

In the meantime, I did manage to write three blog posts this week:

• How to Journal: Spiritual Journaling Practices (part 2)
• French Friday: Les Bouquinistes
• Totoro Family Recipes: Cappuccino Chip Muffins

Next week begins Daylight's Savings time. I'm looking forward to later sunrises and sunsets, which means summer is practically here.