12 December 2014

Gift ideas for you(r beloved reader/writer)

Like many people, I have a complex relationship to holiday gift-giving. Certainly I appreciate gifts when they're thoughtful and useful, but for me, gifts do not equal love. For whatever reason (genetics? social conditioning? abnormal brain chemistry?) it's just not something I care about. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, I'd much rather have someone's time and attention than something they bought for me in a store.

Giving gifts can be tremendously fun, but only under the right circumstances: I see something that reminds me of someone, I'm reasonably certain they will appreciate it and that they wouldn't/couldn't buy it for themselves, and I can afford to spare the money to buy it for them. This idea of having to run about frantically trying to buy something for everyone in my family/friend circle/neighborhood because of holiday tradition is both stressful and, it seems to me, unnecessary. And then there's that whole pressure to be a consumer, which I don't buy into (pun intended)...

Diatribe aside, I know that many people truly enjoy giving and receiving gifts at this time of year. That it is, in fact, important to many people. People who don't share my cynicism and lack of romanticism about the gesture. If you are one of those people, this post is for you, for here I have compiled lists of books and one writing tool that you might consider purchasing for a beloved reader or writer in your life.

And if you're not the gift-buying kind, you can always pick up one of these items for yourself. Perhaps at the library? ;*)

Books that Inspire Me
They make me want to write more, to write more honestly, to write more beautifully, and/or more creatively. These are the books I turn to for inspiration when I'm feeling stuck.

And I have just realized that I have met five of the above authors. That makes me feel special.

Books that I've Recently Recommended
Because they're great reads.

Books that Changed My Life
By which I mean they changed the way I think about other people, myself, and/or the world.

Books Recommended by My Twitter & Facebook Contacts
Solicited by announcing that the first five people to respond with recommendations would have their suggestions included in this post, and that people could suggest books they've authored. (Yes, I realize there are six, not five people's recommendations.)

The Writing Tool: Scrivener
You may have heard of it already. I raved about it back in 2012, when I first started using it. If you haven't heard of it, get your virtual self over to the website and check it out. You can download a free trial, which comes with a rather extensive tutorial. Best part about the free trial is that it's 30 days of use, not 30 calendar days, which means if you download it today, play around with it a bit and forget about it until you've recovered from the holidays in mid-January, you still have 29 days left to play. GO NOW AND LOOK AT THIS! It changed the way I write! Did I mention it's available for both PC and Mac and only costs $45.00?

3 comments:

  1. Great article and list. There are a few books I've never read there. I'm looking into them now. Thanks for mentioning me too.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for your contribution, Mari! =*) I got so many great responses to my request for recommendations that I think I might have to make myself a list and steadily work my way through it over the next several months. Good thing I have a library card.

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  2. The library card you have, but do you have the time? That's my biggest problem...too much to do so little time to do it.
    I'd love to see more of your lists.

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