365 days of being a writer: day 168

I did, in fact, start my book review, but I did not finish it. That will likely happen on Wednesday. My two packets were mailed today, so now there will be more waiting.

My twitter pals recommended some books for my next review, but they all look a bit tricksy as far as getting a reviewer copy goes. I think I will read one of mine next. It will probably be The Writing Life by Annie Dillard, but it might also be a Rachel Carson (no, not that one you're thinking of).

I'm brain tired.

My next task is to write an 8-10 page critical paper for KSU; a lit-crit paper, specifically. I have never written such a thing... I am thinking I want to write something about naturalists and what their responsibility is to be factual vs. lyrical and persuasive. If anyone has any tips or resource recommendations for figuring out how to go about this, I would appreciate it. I got a copy of "Writing Essays about Literature: A Guide and Style Sheet" so I'm off to read that as my bedtime story.

I almost forgot. Here are the two other stories that I submitted to NYC's second round (the word was "surprise"):

• "Jessica, bringing home a puppy is a surprise. Telling Joe you used to be Jeremy calls for subtlety." "How about this card then, from 'us'?"
• Running into Watson wasn't nearly the surprise that running into a tribe of cannibals was, Holmes would sadly recount. But when in Rome...

You can read the winner and vote, here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/23BCCNB