Top Picks Thursday 10-10-2013

Welcome to this week’s link roundup!

Congratulations to Alice Munro on winning the Nobel Prize for Literature!

Remembering our dearly departed authors: Jeff O’Neal compiles a link roundup on stories about  Tom Clancy, and former poet laureate Robert Pinsky remembers how funny his friend the late Seamus Heaney could be.

Authors are always concerned with the issues of discovery and rights. Joel Friedlander tackles the ascent of the metadata, and how this can help people find us, and Kathryn Goldman explains the detailed process of how to get your copyrights back once the 35 years has expired.

Libraries come in all shapes and sizes. Read all about pop-up libraries blossoming in Philadelphia and beyond, and then travel to the other side and visit libraries of the rich and famous.

Bank Street Books gives us a comprehensive (K-12) book list for National Hispanic Heritage Month.

With Halloween coming up, check out these spooky book covers and interview with Paul Buckley of Penguin Horror.

Do you write mysteries? Poisoned Pen Press is open to submissions this month.

Are you ready for NaNoWriMo? Cate Russell-Cole compiles links, resources, articles, and a nonfiction alternative to the annual NaNoWriMo writing marathon.

CRAFT

With all the cross-genre writing going on these days, it can be hard to pinpoint where you belong. J.M. Ney-Grimm explores what genre do I write in?

While we all want to reach as wide an audience as possible, Sarah Pinneo reminds us of the emotional experience of reaching one reader at a time.

There are a lot of “big picture” mistakes that can derail your story. Roz Morris tells how to switch POV without confusing the reader; Jami Gold shows us when “telling” is okay; K.M. Weiland warns against characters lacking solid story goals; and Deborah Raney has suggestions for keeping your timeline straight in your novel.

Then there are the sentence level issues that can raise your story to the next level. Rachel Phifer has the keys to writing powerful sentences; Aimee L. Salter shows how to clean up your punctuation; Damyanti warns us to look out for “filter” words; Madeline Ashby discusses how to depict female arousal in your fiction; and Dorian Cirrone shares how to use poetic touches to power up your prose.

Novel writers can learn a lot from scriptwriting. Jurgen Wolff shares the Furby way to make your script stand out, while Shadow Script lists 10 screenwriting lessons you can learn from Toy Story 3.

In various genre and format news, Dex Raven discusses what horror does; Kathleen Pooler explains what memoir writers have in common with sculptors; and Heidi Pitlor explores what makes a good short story.

Want to be creative and get things done? C.S. Lakin advocates creative mind mapping for novelists; Beth Belle Cooper shares why we are more creative when we are tired and 9 other surprising things about how the brain works; Carmen DeSousa wants to know if we hear voices, too; and Mark McGuinness explains why “tinkering” and starting small gets things done.

We writers are often beset by negativity and self-doubt. Jody Hedlund explains why some negative reviews can be positive; Carlos Cooper tells how to beat doubt by using mantras; Leigh Shulman shows how to conquer self-doubt and write anyway; Rachel Thompson advises to stop worrying what others think and write your story; and Christi Craig explores how fear can help your writing.

Writing is all about stages, getting to that next level. Sarah Guillory, Dahlia Adler, and Jaye Robin Brown explore waiting on your debut book, while Julie Wu likens writing a 2nd novel to building a house.

In an interview, Edna O’Brien reminds us of the passion that drives us all: “I would die now if tomorrow morning I could not write.”

BUSINESS

Jane Friedman lists her Best Business Advice for Writers for September.

A USA Today/Bookish poll shows that ebook are changing reading habits.

Christi McGuire breaks down the many types of book publishers out there, including self-publishing; Elizabeth Craig compiles a list of ebook services professionals; and Bob Mayer shares 5 thoughts on publishing.

Seeking a literary agent, Check out Michelle Johnson of Inklings Literary Agency, who reps a wide variety of fiction and non-fiction.

If you’re looking for other avenues to reach readers, Courtney Gordner tells us how to use Pinterest to promote your book.

THE UNIQUE SHELF

Sci-fi fans, check out this mind-blowing size comparison chart of over 200 spaceships by Dirk Loechel.

Check out these awesome literary mustaches.

Here are 20 essential words we got from literature.

You may remember that Kelly Clarkson had bought Jane Austen’s ring at auction, but then had been denied an export visa because it was deemed a “national treasure.” Here’s how the saga of Jane Austen’s ring turned out.

That’s all for us this week! Enjoy the fall weather!