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12 Steps of Book Lust & Beyond


(first appeared on Goodreads.com)

1. We admitted we were powerless over literature-that our lives had become unmanageable.
2. Came to believe that a Power greater than our humdrum lives could restore us to sanity.
3. Made a decision to turn our book shelves and e-readers over to the care of Book Lust as we understood it.
4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of our bookshelves, our closets, and our e-readers.
5. Admitted to Goodreads, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our obsession.
6-12. And so on.

Speaking of obsessions, it's wonderful to be here among those with similar/identical obsessions - those searching for What to Read Next, What to Recommend, maybe even What to Write.

These days, I'm bouncing between projects, or is it "among" projects, since there are more than two?

 1. Working on a novel I started 3 or 4 times over the years, kept putting aside in frustration, and looked at a few months ago and saw something I thought I could work with. (Lesson here: never throw anything out!)

2.  Gearing up to promote my new anthology, What My Mother Gave Me: 31 Women on the Gifts That Mattered Most, pub date April 2. It's been a joy to work on this book with so many fabulous writers, so many fabulous essays, and a subject that touches all of us: an emblematic gift from our mothers that opens up into the entire relationship. I'll be doing readings, panels, and brunches in the period leading up to Mother's Day, at venues near and far. Check back in for details.

In the next few weeks, I'll post links here to several of the essays that have already been published early in magazines, so you get a flavor of what's to come.

3. On Sat. March 9, I'm chairing a panel at the AWP in Boston called "Art vs. Commerce: Writing for Love and Money," from 3:00 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. My fellow panelists are 3 men named Steve and Maud Newton: Steve Almond, Stephen Elliott, and Stephen McCauley. My first question to them will be: Do you write for love or money?

Hope to see you there, or here.
~~ Liz

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