Friday, August 14, 2009

Friday Update, 8/14

My apologies. I've been such a lax blogger this summer. Mostly, I'm busy with work and the gym. The kids are really easy peasy all summer--in camp all day and no real carpooling requirements. Anyway, here's are highlights of my last two weeks ...

• Reached 16,000 words on the work-in-progress, but got two pretty big ideas that will improve it, so I have to do some rewriting. Then the impossible part--trying to come up with some kind of cogent outline that will turn it into a proposal.

Have I mentioned that writing a book is hard?

• Had a wonderful, beach-side dinner with some writer pals last week. Wall's Wharf in Bayville might be the prettiest summer dining spot on Long Island. So ... great company, fab views, so-so food.

• Just finished reading Julia Glass's I SEE YOU EVERYWHERE, a beautiful study of the intense and challenging relationship between two sisters. Now I'm reading the Pulitzer Prize winning OLIVE KITTERIDGE by Elizabeth Strout, which is knocking me out. The next two books in my reading pile are Ron Currie's EVERYTHING MATTERS! and Richard Russo's THAT OLD CAPE MAGIC. I love these two writers and I'm really looking forward to reading these books, but four literary novels in a row might be a bit much. A friend is due to send me a ripping thriller, which would make a great intermezzo. Hope it gets here soon.

• Shout-out to my pal Regina for coming to the gym and showing me what I was doing wrong and how I can make some better progress.

• Highlight of the past week was meeting up with my friend Maryanne Stahl and going to see Richard Russo (my favorite living author) and Pat Conroy at the Union Square Barnes & Noble. I have to admit I was a smidge disappointed that Russo didn't write anything personal in my copy of his new book, despite how hard I tried to impress him. (Yes, I'm that pathetic.) Kind of reminds of my very first published short story, "Mrs. Esserman's Eggs."

2 comments:

Maryanne Stahl said...

it was FAB seeing you! I am seriously considering moving back to LI, so this might become a regular thing!~

Ellen said...

Oh, that would be so awesome!!! Long Island misses you, Maryanne.
xoxo