Just posted today is one of my contributions to The Lipstick Chronicles, a blog I write for along with fantastic writers Hank Phillippi Ryan, Nancy Pickard, Elaine Viets, and others.

This week my post is entitled “Writing the Bad Boy,” where I speak of writing male villainous characters. Hope you enjoy!

Today I posted a new piece for Writer Unboxed. I must say, if you have ever visited, heard of, talked about, sent love to, bought from, chuckled with, or generally appreciated Cornerstone Books in Salem, Massachusetts, or interacted with any of your local bookstores in this manner, please continue to support them. Local bookstores can be the lifeblood of many communities, the place where thinkers and speakers and listeners can come together to share, explore, and discover things they never knew before.

As I say in the post, How would you revamp a struggling local bookstore, what would make you and the rest of your community go there to shop?  What do we have to do to keep these local treasures alive and thriving?

Here’s a direct link to the post I wrote for Writer Unboxed, though you should really spend some time poking around the blog if you haven’t already. They do some great stuff. Remember to support your local independent bookstores!

With thanks,

Brunonia

This Saturday, November 13, I’ll be heading north to  Dover, New Hampshire to be one of the featured authors at the Dover Community Senior Center‘s “Festival of Authors.” The event will be from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

There will be a book signing, a signed book raffle, and an art exhibit by the Dover Senior Artists. Click this link for a little more information on the event. This is a great way to support the community of Dover! Hope you come out to see us.

Gish Jen, me, and Jon Katz will speak at the annual Breakfast with the Authors tomorrow (November 6) morning, part of the Concord Festival of the Authors in Concord, Massachusetts. Tickets are $20, and Suzanne Koven will be our moderator. At 8:00 a.m. you can catch this event at Concord’s Colonial Inn. Three cheers for coffee!

Then, tomorrow evening, I’ll be joining Elyssa East, Katherine Howe, and Kathleen Kent in Salem for a Witch Trial Reunion. It will take place from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the First Church of Salem. It will be a moderated panel, with each author speaking and followed by a general discussion and questions.

Also, don’t forget Daylight Saving Time on Sunday! That’s always a tricky one to forget.

The Map of True Places was reviewed in the September issue. Thanks San Francisco Book Review!

Zee Finch is the star of this story and we meet her in her adulthood working as a respected psychotherapist in Boston. We understand that she worked hard to obtain this professional position, and also to win the heart of Boston’s most eligible bachelor. But we know immediately that Zee’s response to her life, work, and engagement is tepid, that her “true nature” is somehow dimmed and muted. The story is of Zee’s traveling the course that reveals the reasons this is so.

Navigation is the central theme of the book. “It is not down on any map, true places never are” is the quote from Herman Melville on the face page and each chapter is introduced with a navigational truth that reinforces the theme. This contributes to what is so compelling about this book: its artistry. Barry moves deftly from present to past and back again so artfully that the reader is instantly captivated by the complexity of the characters, the veracity of the time and place (fantastic detail about the history of Boston and Salem) and soon hopes fervently that the heroine will find happiness. Add to artful construction, beautifully drawn characters, the conflicts and tensions of a really good story and you have a book you regret having to finish.

You can see it in context <here>. It’s on page 2, upper left corner.