Apr21
In the Meme Time: R is for Reading
Tag Archives: Reading
Feb17
Creative Juice #29
Fourteen articles, guaranteed to spark lots of creative ideas.
- Writing in an Uber.
- The illustrations of Michael Emberley.
- Paper sculptures of birds.
- J.R.R. Tolkein’s process while writing The Lord of the Rings.
- Pretty mandalas.
- Want to read more?
- Who doesn’t love a quilt show?
- Why to continue working on your art even if no one notices.
- You’d swear these paintings were three-dimensional.
- How to recharge yourself.
- Lovely sketchbook
- A month’s worth of creative prompts.
- Influential nonfiction reading list.
- Generating ideas for daily blogging.
Dec30
Creative Juice #22
Twelve articles to make lightbulbs shine above your head.
- Take some of these suggestions to heart to achieve greater success.
- Street art and more from Santiago, Chile.
- The work of illustrator Debbi Ridpath Ohi. I’m struck by the meticulousness of her process, doing a picture over and over to try different effects.
- Writing poetry is an excellent way to work through grief.
- Quilts from South Africa.
- Yes, you can too paint a colorful mandala.
- 24 categories of books to read in 2017.
- Things to do (besides following ARHtistic License and reading Creative Juice every Friday) to increase your creativity.
- The prompt for the photo challenge was “path.” See what this photographer came up with.
- What if you bombed public monuments…with flowers?
- Lisa Ericson’s colorful paintings of tropical fish.
- Piecing ideas for jelly roll quilts.
Aug27
Inspiration Roundup
I confess—I spend a lot of time reading online. Because I blog, I like to see what other people are writing on their blogs. I also research topics that might be useful for an article or for background in a novel, which lead me down all sorts of interesting rabbit holes.
Whenever I come across a posting that particularly appeals to me, a save a link, with the intention of revisiting it. And periodically, I go through my links and reread article after article.
Some are just too good to keep to myself; so I’m going to share some today that I found especially inspiring:
- Why you shouldn’t be afraid.
- You don’t think you’re smart enough? Here’s what you can do about that.
- Do you feel as though all your creativity dried up? These suggestions will get the juices flowing again.
- Have you ever had a mountaintop experience, a time when you learned so deeply, and you knew it was a unique revelation, especially for you, and you couldn’t afford to ever forget it? What if you could write a letter to yourself, to receive at a later date and remind yourself what’s important?
- Have you ever wanted to start something artistic, but hesitated because of self-doubt?
- Ten artists’ secrets to success.
- What writers say about reading.
- Where should you go on vacation?
- I keep promising myself I’ll write down beautiful sentences I find in books.
- What various United States presidents have said about arts education.
That’s enough for this time. I’ll share more another day.
Thanks to all the writers who originally posted these articles—I’m deeply blessed by your efforts.
Jul26
Reading List Roundup
Years ago, when I subscribed to O, Oprah Winfrey’s magazine, my favorite feature was a monthly peek at a different celebrity’s bookshelf (or was it nightstand?). Winfrey is a powerful advocate of reading; when she likes a book, it becomes a best seller.
I love finding out what other people are reading, don’t you? When I find someone who likes the same types of books as me (and I’m eclectic), I hang on to his/her recommendations and refer back to them.
So, for your enjoyment, here are links to some of the reading lists I’ve saved during the last year or two:
- From Ernest Hemingway
- From James Radcliff
- From Ken Follett
- From Book Bub
- From President Obama, President George W. Bush, and President Bill Clinton
- For YA fans
- From Emma Watson
- From Suzanne Collins (mostly classics)
- From Strand Book Store
- For Christians
Have you ever picked a book off your shelf that you don’t remember reading, and after a few pages, realize is familiar? This happens to me over and over again. I don’t know if it is because some books are simply unmemorable (yet pleasant enough to read) or if I really am losing my mind as I grow older. To combat this, I try to keep a list of books I’ve read, with a brief summary. Some years I’ve been more successful than others. Occasionally I give up in frustration. When I worked for the Department of the Interior and used a Franklin Planner, I kept my list there. For a while, I kept a list on Facebook, but that meant I had to log on to Facebook to update it—too easy to get distracted. This year I started keeping track on ARHtisticLicense, on the Books Read page.
Have you ever thought of keeping a reading journal? If you are a writer, making notes on what you read can help you hone your skills.
What books have you read during the last year that you would recommend to others? Please share in the comments below.
Feb13
Poetry Walk
I’m going to tell you a secret: I hate to exercise. Yet I recognize that it’s crucial to maintaining quality of life, especially at my advanced age. So, I either dance, or I go to the gym, or I walk. But when I exercise, I need a distraction so that I can forget I’m doing something I hate. Luckily, I love to dance, and if I take a fitness class, the other participants provide an interesting diversion. But if I’m hitting the machines, or I’m walking, I at least need my iPod to make it bearable.
Back in the 90s, I didn’t have a gym membership, so I walked most mornings on a canal path that passed my children’s elementary school. Often, I caught a glimpse of one of my little darlings at recess. While I walked, I listened to cassette tapes of the books of the Bible on my Walkman.
Since I started my blog, I often bring my camera along, in case I see something that would make an attractive illustration. One day I left it home, thinking I’d already seen everything there is to see along the way. That was a mistake—I missed two or three great shots.
I’m working my way through poemcrazy by Susan Goldsmith Wooldrigdge in my effort to write a poem a day. One of her suggestions is to take a poetry walk, bringing a notebook and pen along to jot down any ideas that come. So on my next walk, I brought a steno notebook and, to my surprise, filled nearly a page with observations that I could develop into a poem.
Here’s one that resulted from that poetry walk:
January in Arizona
“You don’t need your jacket,” he says.
“I want my jacket,” I reply.
My jacket pleases me (I think to myself),
Hot pink and fleecy.
Besides, we just had a hard freeze—
Frost on the roof and the car rear window.
The neighbors’ bushes wear quilts.
I embark on my walk.
After a block, my jacket unzips.
After three blocks, the jacket comes off.
How will I carry it
So the keys don’t tumble out of my pocket?
I could turn around and drop it at home,
But then he’d say, “I told you so.”
So I hold it right-side-up,
Ever vigilant for the jangling of escaping keys.
The path is dotted with wildflowers,
Emboldened by the sudden warmth,
Speculating that spring has arrived.
The bougainvillea blaze red;
Were those blooms there yesterday?
Aug28
In the Meme Time: Read Something
Found on The Book Blogger:
Aug7
In the Meme Time: Seuss
Not exactly a meme, but I just had to share what media specialist Laura Thornburg at Weinberg Elementary School in the Chandler AZ school district did on the wall of her library:
