Tag Archives: novel

Barbara Bretton and Novel Knitting

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I love books.  I love to read them, I love to listen to them, I love to collect them, and I love to download them to my Kindle (it’s basically magic!).

I usually tend toward more “guy” types of books.  Lots of swashbuckling, dragons and evil robots.

But, sometimes I end up swinging the other direction.  The girly, romance-y, knitting-filled direction.

When I researched my post on Knit Lit, back in November, I found a book with a synopsis that I thought was pretty amazing:

Sugar Maple looks like any Vermont town, but it’s inhabited with warlocks, sprites, vampires, witches, and an ancient secret. And Chloe Hobbs, owner of Sticks & String, a popular knitting shop, has a big secret too. She’s a sorcerer’s daughter in search of Mr. Right, and she’s found him in Luke MacKenzie, a cop investigating Sugar Maple’s very first murder. Bad news is he’s 100% human, which could spell disaster for a normal future with a paranormal woman like her.

Too ridiculous not to read it, right?  (and it’s only six bucks on Amazon)

I bought Casting Spells by Barbara Bretton, and read it in about two days over Christmas break.

3109566[1]And, you know what?  It was delightful.  Maybe not high literature, but really fun.  It was a little chick-flick-y, a little bit of a cop story, and a little bit paranormal.  And, the whole book is full of goofy little knitting jokes.   The main character is introduced as she’s trying to block a particularly difficult lace shawl.  She threatens people with her US15s.  And, she has a magical bottomless basket of roving.

I even went on to read the second in the series, Laced with Magic, which was just as good.

6195236[1]If you’re looking for a new author, something a little goofy, and fun, you could do worse than the Sugar Maple Chronicles from Barbara Bretton.

Have you read anything good recently?

While you knit: Overdrive

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Let’s keep the celebration of novels going!  I love reading a good book, and I love knitting.  But, surely there must be a way to enjoy a good story without putting down my needles.  This is the 21st century, after all.

In fact, there is!  Audiobooks.  I always have an audiobook or two (or twelve) on my phone, ready for me to listen to at a moment’s notice.  They’re great for driving, doing yard-work, cooking, and of course, knitting.

But how do you get Audiobooks onto your phone without spending an arm and a leg at Amazon or on iTunes?  (Or, if you’re a cheapskate like me, the question is: how do you get audiobooks for free?)  The library!  And, you probably don’t even have to leave your house.

Most libraries these days have started online collections of digital media (audiobooks, e-books, and Kindle books) accessible through the library website.  You sign up in person at the library, and get a pin number, which you can then use to get digital media through the library’s Overdrive account.  (Think of Overdrive as an iTunes-like download service for libraries).

Overdrive%20Media[1]My library lets me check out 24 books at a time, and they automatically are returned when my loan is up (no late fees!).  There’s nothing better than discovering a new, great book.  Especially one that’s free!

So, if you haven’t already, take some time on your next trip to the library and ask about their audiobooks.  Then, spend some time curled up with your knitting and a good book.

Knitting in Novels: Harry Potter

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In honor of NaNoWriMo, I thought we could talk about books and novels.  Specifically, knitting in books and novels.  Sometimes it’s a sneaky, subtle part of a book, and sometimes it seems like it’s almost a main character.  I don’t know about you, but whenever I come across a mention of knitting in a book, I always get excited, as if I just saw an old friend make a cameo.

So, without much more ado, let’s jump right in to my favorite book series of all time. Harry Potter (obviously)!

Knitting isn’t a big part of these books, but it peeks its wooly head up more than a few times.

In the first book, when Harry is first being introduced to the wizarding world, Hagrid breaks out his tent-like yellow knitting on the journey.  (Just like all of us trying to pass the time on a long commute.)

Mrs. Weasley is a well-known (and prolific) knitter, who spends her days knitting sweaters for her seven children (plus Harry).   (Sure, they’re a little tacky, and the kids don’t really appreciate them the way they should, but it’s the thought that counts, right?)Ron-Harry-Potter-Christmas-Sweaters[1]Hermione even learns a knitting charm to help her knit the piles of hats that she tries to use to set the Hogwarts house elves free.  (Can you imagine how much more you could get done if you could use a knitting charm? My whole house would probably end up covered by a gigantic knitted house-cozy.)

Knitting_charm[1]And, even Professor Dumbledore, while not a knitter himself, is a big fan of the art.  More than once, he mentions his love of warm woolen socks, and once he reads a muggle knitting magazine while waiting for a couple other characters to finish a conversation.

Clearly, I have read (and re-read) the Harry Potter books a few too many times, but, you know what?  I don’t care!  They’re fun, interesting, well-written, clever, and have lots and lots of knitting in them.

What’s your favorite knitting-related book?

NaNoWriMo 2014

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It’s November, again!  And you know what that means: it’s NaNoWriMo time!

nanowrimo-crest[1]Last year, I did NaNoWriMo for the first time, and it was so much fun!  I never finished my story (because plotting is hard.  My main characters kept ending up in jail.  And it’s difficult to save Chicago from a jail cell).  But, I more than passed my 50,000 word goal for the month.  I learned a lot about my writing style, and how to maximize my productivity.  (I know it’s weird, but it turns out that I am most productive when I work in my car.  Something about not being able to access the internet, combined with a not too comfortable seat.  Who knew?)

This year, I’m  feeling pretty good about my prospects.  I am taking a creative writing class about writing a novel, and while some of the information is pretty obvious, I’ve learned some things that will really come in handy.

I’m working on a small-town murder mystery, this time around, and my goal is to actually finish the story, not just make it to the 50,000 words.  So keep your fingers crossed for me!

But what that means for you, dear readers, is that I’m going to be busy writing away on my novel, and might be a little slow to respond to comments, emails and other shout-outs.  I haven’t forgotten you, and the posts will still come, although they might be a little shorter than usual,

Wish me luck!  I’ll see you all in December!

Because I Haven’t Got Enough on My Plate

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nanowrimoHave you guys heard about this cool group of online nerds called NaNoWriMo?  It’s short for National Novel Writing Month, and it’s an organization of folks that get together (in real life and online) during the month of November and they write first drafts of their novels.  It’s 50,000 words in 30 days and it’s kind of insane.  But also, amazingly popular.  This year there are almost 300,000 participants (of course, not everyone finishes, but still).

I heard about it years ago, back in high school (which is now more than 10 years ago…eep!), when a friend of mine attempted it.  I thought it was sort of crazy, sort of cool, and promptly forgot about it.  But, this year, I thought hey, why not?  I’m only working part time, after all, and I do like to write.  And, I thought, it might be a good way to exercise some creative parts of my brain that I don’t use too often.

Anyway, if you notice the blog being a little neglected this month, comments going unanswered, a few less patterns going up, that’s what’s happening.  I’ve only just started, and I don’t know if I’ll reach my 50,000 words by November 30.  And even if I do, I have no doubts that story will be way to terrible to let other people see it.  But, I thought it was a cool concept, and a great way to get my creative juices flowing in a totally non-crafty way.

What do you do to stretch your creativity?