Category: Rachel Gardner

Books, E-books, E-readers, future of books, Future of Reading, Rachel Gardner

Storytelling and saving the Grandkids

Mona Alvarado Frazier
(Mute the Jukebox below)

A post by Rachelle Gardner came through my blog box this morning. It was so cute I couldn’t resist talking about it some more. Rachelle asked “Do we miss the days when a book was just a book?” The responses came fast and furious this morning. The comments could be divided among the ‘real’ book camp , the ‘convenience’ contingent, and the ‘I love both worlds,’ group.

This had me thinking ten years into the future-hopefully when I become a grandma, or ‘Nana’ as my kids call their grandmothers-will my grandkids read/hear mainly e-books? Will they want to sit with me on the couch or their bed while I read them a story from an old print book? Will they ooh and ahh over colorful but one dimensional illustrations? Will their chubby toddler fingers have the dexterity to turn a page instead of swipe?

My teens/young adult kids speculate e-books will reign. All of them spend 95% of their reading time on iPhones, computers, and Kindles. This is where they get their world news, local news, community and social news (Twitter & FB). All of their friends in the 16-25 age range have similar reading habits.The only paper magazines they read are skateboard and music mag’s and that’s because they aren’t in an e-version yet. My college kid can’t wait for e-textbooks and neither can I since this translates to a more affordable cost for a book he won’t keep.

Although my kids read a lot of paper books growing up, they don’t seem to have an issue with joining the e-book world. So I have to speculate that they will read to their children from e-readers. In the next ten years the e-book will probably evolve to 3-D holographic illustrations, making it exciting, but eventually dulling the imagination.

They will tell their kids, my grandkids, how they had to dust the bookshelves for Nana and how she used to collect book markers. They will have to explain those too. But for now, I just hope my grandkids will love the written word and enjoy storytelling.

I still have my Companion Library of Classics that my mom bought in 1967, 44 years ago. They are in fairly good shape and I suppose they can last another ten years. Now, I must sign off, I have to go box them and a few other favorites up and save them for my future grandkids.

Now which favorites make it into the box? Which books would you choose to save for your grandkids or great grandkids?

Encouragement, Jane Friedman, Kirsten Lamb, Rachel Gardner, Self Publishing, Writer Unboxed, Writing, Writing blogs, Writing classes, Writing Resources

How to Save Time for Writing

Mona Alvarado Frazier





There are few things I like to do other than write or find writing resources to help me become a better writer. Sure I miss watching my favorite television shows, coffee with friends, walking the dog, and watching my kids grow (I’m lying they are all 18-25, they’re grown). Sometimes I prefer to write than go on a date but perhaps that will change when the right one comes along. How I save time for writing besides the aforementioned is to look for shortcuts, i.e. good advice. Why reinvent the wheel? 

When I find great resources I believe in sharing them to help the next writer in his/her endeavor. Many publishers, agents, and authors have blogs that help writers become better. I usually stay away from any with bells and whistles on their blogs (flickering ads) or anyone admantly pushing their book. I don’t mind that their book cover is on their sidebar I just don’t want flashing arrows pointing to it or their ad popping up on my screen.
In the past few months I’ve found that I’ve kept returning to the same bloggers, who I believe are experts in the writing field. These are, in no particular order:
Jane Friedman‘s blog. She featured Writing Advice That Saves You 5 Years. It links to Steal This List. She has an archive of free advice for writers and is an editor at Writer’s Digest, a magazine I finally subscribed to after reading it at the library for four months.

And for plot and structure, I know no better teacher than The Plot Whisper. I learn better when I can read something and hear something. TPW has YouTube videos on each lesson, for FREE. 

Kirsten Lamb is the Queen of Blogging and Social Media. Her post The Right Way, Wrong Way, Smart Way caught my attention and is well worth the read. 
Rachell Gardner is a literary agent who has resources for writers who want to improve their craft and prepare themselves for publication. 
Writer Unboxed was started by two aspiring writers who began a community of contributing authors. They are “about the craft and business of fiction.” 


Deciding to go the e-book route and self publish, Joe Konrath’s blog tells it like it is-to him. He makes a lot of sense (he has sold books the traditional way) and now sells tons of his books, for e-readers. 


Also check out some more of my favorites listed on Top Ten Blogs for Writers. 


These resources save you time and money because many people pay for the kind of information these writers give and you can read them whenever you carve out 10 minutes. If you haven’t fulfilled your dream of writing a family history, memoir, magazine article or essay, here’s your chance to start again in the new year and save time to watch your children grow or go on that date.