12.13.15 - Sunday Smatterings

Hello, lovelies! I hope you're having a good Sunday, and a nice day of respite in the midst of the holiday bustle. On this third Sunday of Advent, the weather has been (sadly) springlike in Nashville (hello, low 70s), so we're soaking in the last bit of warmth before Old Man Winter brings the chill. It sounds like quite a few of you have had the same warm weather in your area, so I hope you've been able to enjoy it too! Though in truth, I want to find myself inside a pine cabin with a vaulted ceiling, staring out a frosty window at a six foot snowdrift, with tons of hot chocolate and firewood, but hey, I'm weird. 

Here's what I found around the Internets this week. It was a big week, so grab your tea (coffee, orange juice, whiskey) and get reading!

Bret Easton Ellis expounded on the (bizarre) culture of likability in which we find ourselves, and he nailed it. I encourage you to give this a read and reflect.

If you're looking for inspiration to create all the things, read this article from Kris Rusch right now. No, really. I link to Kris a lot, but this one is important for all creatives.

 Here's a Thanksgiving challenge that's actually appropriate for the entire holiday season. Sometimes, we need to step back from what we think the holidays are *supposed* to look like and enjoy what they *are* for us.

If you have a stamp to spare and would like to spread some joy this holiday season, mail a Christmas card to this courageous little girl.

Y'all know I'm a huge Tennessee Titans fan, which is why I loved this Sound FX video of rookie quarterback Marcus Mariota. What a great kid! He's clearly a leader, and this organization has needed a true leader for a long time. Can't wait to see what he brings to the team in the next few years. 

Y'all also know I'm a fiend about doing your best work. These 12 Chrome extensions will motivate you to work harder and smarter. I've recently installed Momentum, and I love it! (via Buffer)

The ladies of She Reads remind us about the beauty of the Advent season in this lovely post: the opportunity to be silent.

Also in tune with the holiday season, here are 31 books that will restore your faith in humanity.

Um, Duran Duran and Chic will be coming to Nashville in 2016. That's all.

And back at home base:

You want to be a part of my newsletter this week, because I have a super special surprise for you on Tuesday!!! Join here -- trust me!

On Two Tales Press, we discovered the best bookish gifts for the word lovers in your life. Between personal library lending kits, Harry Potter-wrapped pencils, and name embossers, you need to check these out for a loved one...or yourself! (via BuzzFeed)

And The Wine Vixen brought us the first of Amy's wines she sampled in Vegas (bonus: there's also a great coffee bar suggestion you should check out), and I talk about a Shiraz that fruity, delicious, and easy on the wallet. Oh, and if you're looking for wines that will work with your budget, check out our new (ingeniously named) Budget tab, where we've divided our wines by dollar amount.

I loved interviewing my friend and brilliant author, Patti Callahan Henry—and not just because she let me almost throw up on her during my first A WORD ON WORDS interview. You can watch an extended version of our conversation here. I think you'll enjoy Patti's warmth, humor, and ideas about writing Southern literature! #keepreading

FYI: Amazon is running specials on their favorite Cops & Crooks books of the year. And guess whose hardcover is now only $14?

And on the Tao, I was excited to share that PW called my new book, NO ONE KNOWS, "riveting," and I divulged how I created a publishing house with Vellum. 

Alright, folks, that's all I've got this week. Enjoy the magic of the season, send a Christmas card or two, and I'll talk to you soon!

Xoxo,
JT

12.6.15 - Sunday Smatterings

Hello darlings. Another week has passed, one fraught with terror and tales of heroism. It breaks my heart, it truly does, especially in this season of Peace. As I mentioned on the socials, I’m so proud and humbled to write stories about heroic cops. The cops, sheriffs, FBI, ATF and first responders of San Bernardino are my kind of heroes.

Before the world went to hell in a hand basket *again* this week (sigh) there were a few cool things on the interwebs. Get your tea, settle in, and enjoy this week's smatterings: 

A former editor comes to the dark side in a hilarious, touching way with an essay that struck a chord in all of us: “DEAR AUTHORS, I’M SORRY.” Can't wait for her book!

Nerdiest showed all the cool ways we scienced the s*** out of the universe this year with their list of 10 big discoveries from 2015.

I know I’ve been a little mouthy lately, but it’s because I have a liberal arts education,  which challenged my thought process, and this piece made me stand up and cheer. I loved this quote:  "A liberal arts academy is about learning. It's not supposed to be a place to *suppress* controversial ideas."  Emphasis my own.

Banal but true: I’ve been using a great new grocery service called Shipt! and you probably don’t care. But if you do — I’m telling you, this service is your new bestie. Use my link and get $10 back when you sign up! 

I absolutely LOVE the idea of filling a notebook with things I don’t yet know, then trying to discover them. If it works for geniuses from MIT, maybe it will work for us. And to give it a writing slant — this is a superb way to begin a story. Hmm… maybe I better blog about this… 

And because laughter is always the best medicine: this. Man's Noisy Spider Battle Sparks Police Calls.

On this second Sunday of Advent, light your candles and read this brief reminder of the reason behind the season from Diana Gabaldon. I love her openness about her faith, and love how generously she shares it.

Now, from the Team Ellison home front — two, count them, two blogs for your pleasure this week, one on writer self-care and the other a slightly less-than-reverential look at my mind process.

The December newsletter released to fanfare and joy. And all the recipes now have lovely PDF versions for you to download!

On The Wine Vixen, we got Gnarly and discovered a delightful Pinot. Have y'all seen the new ad on knowing wine? Cracks me up every time. “Pinor Noir… which means… Peanut of the Night…”

Finally, I am going to have some interesting news for you on Two Tales Press next week, so you should check out our new news page, build specifically for this purpose by the assistant extraordinaire.

Blessed Advent, chickens. 

11.29.15 - Sunday Smatterings

I hope you’re well on this fine Sunday, chickens! It’s been a quiet week at Casa Ellison, with more time spent working on Thanksgiving prep and baking than writing. I don’t know what sick person decided November would be good for NaNoWriMo – cruel, man, cruel. I’m only at 18,000 words for the month, but since I lost a week on my mom’s surgery, I’ve decided to extend my NaNo to December 4, so I have a few more days to catch up to my original goal. Wish me luck!

On to the interwebs:

I was absolutely tickled by this piece by Jessica Hagy called “Caring for your Highly Organized Person” If you’ve ever wanted a glimpse inside my personal life, this is it. There is something to be said for organizational OCD! 

You know what? Taking Action Is Better Than Having The Perfect Plan. I feel this applies to writing as well. If you wait until everything is perfect, plan and plan and plan, you’ll never get it done. 

Want a fascinating and accurate look into writing personalities? I was startled by a few of these insights. I’m an INTJ, but you can click through to all the Myers-Briggs types.

Margaret Atwood (whom I was honored to meet a few weeks past – what an incredible lady!) mentored a young writer for a year. Look what happened. 

Kristine Kathryn Rusch shares some excellent insight in her blog this week about writing to the market. Here's the deal. You try to write to a trend, you'll get left behind. Be the trend. Write from your heart. As she says:  "Write well. Write often. Write what you love. Have fun. That’s the secret to a long career." Writer friends, read this, right now.

And from the homefront:

It was book release week for WHAT LIES BEHIND! If you haven’t gotten your copy yet, help a sister out and grab it from your favorite retailer.

In exciting news, WLB was nominated for an RT Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Thriller of 2015. What an honor, and what a list! THE END GAME was also nominated, in the Best Suspense category. I am in LOVE with RT right now!

I did a couple of blogs about the book. One was for Fresh Fiction on my love of mass market paperbacks and how to pick the best ones, and the other was at Writerspace, a look behind the scenes on the book’s creation.  

Both Chapter 16 and She Reads did lovely articles on A WORD ON WORDS this week. Couldn’t appreciate it more!

Over at The Wine Vixen, Amy explains why she's a marketer's dream target -- moo!

We ran a big Black Friday sale at Two Tales this week, and (shhhh....) some of the prices haven't been changed back yet, so sneak on over and grab yours while they're still discounted!

And in honor of the Thanksgiving holiday, I did my 2015 list of things I’m thankful for. Trust me when I say, YOU are #1!

And now we head into the heart of the holidays. Gird your loins, get those cards sent and the tree up and decorated, and have a wonderful week! 

11.22.15 - Sunday Smatterings

It’s been a rough week for everyone. Trying to find a new normal is always stressful. Here at Casa Ellison, we did the only thing we know to make it right. We went to see one of our favorite bands Wednesday night. Metric played a fantastic show to a packed house at the Marathon Music Works in downtown Nashville. I will admit to being on edge. I will admit to carrying pepper spray. I will admit to finding a nice steel girder to lean against. (The thriller author in me, looking for ways to feel safe.) I looked over my shoulder more than once. Men stood with their women in front of them. We might have been uneasy, but damn it, we were there, singing and dancing, and enjoying the show. I said a silent prayer for the innocent victims of the Bataclan, trying to enjoy a night out just like we were, and finally felt like I had some measure of control back in my life. I choose to live in the face of this threat. I hope you do as well. As Emily Haines sings, “Is this my life? Ahhhhhh!”

And as the statement of the Eagles of Death Metal so aptly states at the end of this very difficult to read article: "Vive la musique, vive la liberté, vive la France, and vive EODM." If you're interested in a unique way to help, I suggest checking out EODM co-founder Joshua Homme's charity, The Sweet Stuff Foundation. No pressure. Just love.

Now, on to the week in review. Here's what I've been intrigued by around the Internets this week:

In "The Annotated Reacher" my mentor Lee Child allowed a shadow to follow his writing journey. There's almost too much insight here. I was blown away— wow. (Note especially the importance of a single comma.)

Having been through the whole fertility disaster myself, I was touched by this piece and it's very solid life advice: What You Should NEVER Say to Someone Who's Had a Miscarriage (and what to say instead).

Confession: I'm in the middle of a six-week, online productivity course by Dean Wesley Smith. And, y'all. It. Is. Amazing. I am getting so much out of this. Learning about my process allows so many wicked insights. Writers, you should think about taking this course—it's worth it.

Have you guys read CHARLOTTE'S STORY by Laura Benedict? Have you?? It's a rich, immersive read. And all of these people think so too!

And here's the rundown from my neck of the woods:

It's book release time! Do you need something to read during Thanksgiving while Aunt Mabel drones on again about her pet snake, Fluffy? The mass market paperback of WHAT LIES BEHIND comes out on Tuesday, and that might be a good distraction for you. And it's only $7.99! 

On the Tao, I got to chat with my brilliant and lovely friend, debut novelist Dana Chamblee Carpenter, about her new historical thriller, BOHEMIAN GOSPEL. This book thoroughly surprised me—and I couldn't read it at night, you guys. 

Here's a sneak peek of my interview for A WORD ON WORDS with my longtime friend, novelist David Bell. We didn't have fun. At all. Come to the website to see today's show! #keepreading

You've got enough choices to make without having to stress over the wine offering. Look no further, folks: The Wine Vixen's got a Holiday Wine Guide for all your serving and gifting needs. 

Black Friday is coming, folks. If you'd like some cheap reads this holiday season, check out Two Tales Press that day for some hefty ebook sales!

Did you know that I round up the daily news from the publishing world on my website? It's a great one stop news source if you're in a hurry. Check it out here!

That's all from me this week. Have a fun and blessed Thanksgiving (are you chickens cannibals if you eat fellow poultry?), and I'll see you soon!

Xoxo,

JT

11.15.15 - Sunday Smatterings

Hello, chickens. 

I come to you with a heavy heart today. The terror attacks this week in Beirut, Paris, and Kenya have hit all of us hard. I think it strikes thriller authors especially, because our job is to assimilate information then create these same scenarios in a fictional construct. The advantage we have is the heroes always win. The villains are always taken down and defeated.

August 27, 2015 - a walk through Paris

Right now, the villains have the upper hand. But that will change. We’ve been kicked, hard, in the thigh, and it’s left a deep bruise that will never fully heal. But it is only a bruise. We are strong. We are one people, and we will not be cowed by terror.

If you are interested in a long and fascinating read with a deep analysis of ISIS, I highly recommend this piece from the Atlantic. And I thought I’d share a couple of my research resources with you, too. Stratfor and Levantine Group are both serious sources for up-to-the minute analysis, with historical background.

We will not be defeated. We are strong. We are one. And we must, we must, continue living our lives free of fear. Be careful. Be aware. But don't let them win. Liberté, égalité, fraternité should be our rallying cry as well.

And as such, let’s return to our regular smatterings.  

____

Here's the latest around the Internets:

East-of-the-Mississippi peeps (i.e. ME): have you wondered why our Southern Californians friends say "the 5," the 101," "the 405?" This article has finally cleared that up for the rest of us.

Potterheads, listen up: Bustle has listed 10 Things You'll Only Notice When You Re-Read Harry Potter, and they are ridiculously spot on.

How many of these literary addresses do you know?

Possible gift alert: If you have a YA reader in your life, check out the Parnassus Next program from my hometown bookstore, Parnassus Books. AUTOGRAPHED 1st edition hardcovers sent right to your door for only the price of the book plus $6 for shipping. That's a pretty great value - AND you don't have to stand in line!

I loved this: NaNoWriMo Is Here . . . and So Is Diana Gabaldon.

Guilty: The Preppy 10 Commandments.

Meanwhile, in my neck of the woods . . . 

In Two Tales Press land, I've still got a bundle of ghost stories on sale for $0.99 (perfect for those of you who want a side of edginess to go with your syrupy-sweet holidays). 

If you were waiting to read WHAT LIES BEHIND in paperback, you're in luck: that's coming out next Tuesday, November 24! (pre-order links are here) If you're looking to brush up on Sam and Xander and Fletch in the meantime, my publisher MIRA has the previous book, WHEN SHADOWS FALL, on sale for $1.99 in ebook. Don't know how long this is going to last, so get 'em while they're hot!

Guys: believe it or not, it's time to start stocking up for Thanksgiving. Need some wine suggestions? We've got a whole category of wines under $20 on The Wine Vixen.

And here on the Tao, I wrote a post about The Writer and ROI: Return on Investment. If you want a peek into my world or if you're thinking about taking the reins as a professional author, check out my thoughts.

That's all I've got this week. Don't forget to take five minutes for yourself, and love one another!

Xoxo,

JT