FRIENDS OF BARNCAT
Check out recent books published by FOB, Friends of Barncat
These are a fewof my friends, colleagues, former classmates, etc., whose books are
currently available. — Jami Bernard
"I wrote the kind of book I wanted to read" |
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“There were times in the midst of writing when I thought, 'Who's going to be interested in this? Am I getting into too much minutiae?' Thanks to Donna Yanish, my primary editor, the manuscript shrunk by about a fourth. She convinced me I was spending two and half pages on what needed to be boiled down to two paragraphs. "When I met Sturges for the first time, I was very, very excited. He was retired and not in greatest of health, but I flashed back to the sense of the magic I felt when I was seven years old. It was a different time. It was such an incredible experience to go to movies at that age. I lived in Brooklyn and I could walk to first grade a few blocks away. That’s what I try recapture in the book.”
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"The
best advice I ever got about writing was to write about my obsessions and the people I love" |
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“My cousin Howard Fast, who wrote Spartacus, said about writer’s block: ‘Plumbers don’t get plumber’s block.’He also said, 'A page a day is a book a year.' I’ve now written seven books in seven years. “I’m not afraid to make mistakes. You get brave. I'm not afraid for my first drafts to suck. That's because ghost editors are the secret weapon that helped me sell those seven books. “I couldn't recommend Jami Bernard more highly. I feel lucky I get to use her as a book editor myself. Ghost editors are a huge part.”
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"Think salt isn't a problem for you? Wrong!" |
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“According to the Centers for Disease Control, we all get too much salt. Excess salt in the diet is so bad for our health that in other countries, governments have stepped in to ensure that its citizens get less of it. In the UK, most foods have on average 33 percent less salt than in the U.S. Even Special K and McDonald's fries have roughly 33 percent less salt in the UK than the same items here.”
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By Kathryn Kemp-Griffin
It had to be in that drawer somewhere. I rummaged through, digging deeper, finding only chaos and a tangled mess of bra straps, hooks and fabric.
Cotton mayhem. Silk anarchy.
Time is running out. I have a manuscript to polish and an elevator pitch to practice before my flight tomorrow afternoon to New York for the Backspace Writers Conference. Three days of meeting other writers and mingling with agents, editors and publishers, the perfect moment for my special occasion lingerie – if I can just find the matching bra.
In some ways, life was easier back when I wore underwear, not lingerie. The choice was between sports bras and Jockeys – black or white, faded or stretched. Even when I bought Brand New Jockeys, I couldn’t bring myself to discard the ones whose shredded elastic floated nearby like tentacles on a jellyfish. They simply waited in the back of the drawer for a Really Bad Day.
In the days when I merely wore underwear, there were folded panties on the right, bras on the left, rolled socks in back. Easy choices for a no-frills writer seeking literary success.
Until I moved to Paris, where you can’t find Jockeys.
I never understood why until one day at the fitness club, when I peeled off my T-shirt and slumped on a bench, exhausted from a grueling workout. I looked around and noticed something.
All the women in that locker room were wearing lingerie. Hot lingerie.
Bikini briefs, retro panties, demi cups and floral camis paraded before me. These women could be proud if they happened to be hit by a bus on their way home and required immediate surgery.
I pledged to renew my lingerie stock and my attitude at the luxury department store Le Bon Marché.
“Lingerie is the mirror of your intentions,” the saleslady rhapsodized. She placed her hands on my shoulders to accentuate par ici, and scooped up my breasts to draw attention par là.
“But I’m a writer,” I said. “I don’t need cleavage for sitting at a keyboard.”
The saleswoman looked scandalized. “But you want to write using rich, intense, vivid words, oui?” she said.
“Oui,” I agreed.
“Not pale, faded, dull words, non?”
“Non.”
Handing me a nightshade purple push-up bra and panty, the madame sensed my apprehension. “You are allowed to feel beautiful,” she whispered. “Even at your keyboard.”
Over time, I have learned to recognize the tingle. Now a frill is all it takes. Or a bow, or an off-centered bit of crystal to fan the imagination, inspire creativity and increase my word count.
I decided to tackle the drawer one last time. Ah, finally!
I really should organize my lingerie. Beautiful fabrics deserve better care. But it could be worse. I could have a drawer full of black and white Jockeys lined up like soldiers, and the dull manuscript that would come from writing while wearing them.
I can’t wait to get to the Backspace Writers Conference and wear my new chocolate silk bra trimmed in mulberry lace. Oh, and to learn more about publishing, of course.
ADVANCED MEMOIR: FIND YOUR OWN TRUE VOICE
Whether your half-finished manuscript needs CPR or TLC, this self-paced home course from author and media consultant Jami Bernard will teach you the techniques of adding dialogue, humor, transitions and structure ... while seeking and refining your own true writer's voice. Topics include: dialogue, cool narrative tricks, variations in tone, transitions, self-editing. It's like having a personal writing coach on your bookshelf!
Advanced Memoir: $149
OVERCOMING WRITER'S BLOCK
Don't want to. Don't know how to. Scared to. Those are the basicsof that hellish affliction known as Writer's Block. Author, editor and media consultant Jami Bernard breaks down the psychological, behavioral and neurological components of Writer's Block and helps you get past the symptoms using cutting-edge exercises and techniques.
"Jami helped me discover that I didn't have Writer's Block. What I had was an inconsistent schedule, seasonal issues, even hormonal issues. I can slay those dragons!"
– Kathleen Evers, chick lit writer
Overcoming Writer's Block, $69
Writer's
Notebook: This specially-designed
writer's journal has exercises for beginning a new project, inspirational
quotes from famous writers and plenty of space for note-taking.
Regularly $25; On Sale for $19.99
Jami Bernard photo by Steve Brickles
More FOB:
Batton Lash
Abby Ellin
Dylan Landis
Coming Soon:
Donald Bogle
David Denby
Mick LaSalle
Armond White
Janiss Garza
Danny Fingeroth
Gordon Goldstein