More Puppy: My Jessie

I started this More Puppy meme with, of course, Ella.  She’s my “puppy.”  Then I moved on to the “puppies” (mostly fully grown) of my fellow authors and valued readers.  As I did, I made an observation.  A few people sent tributes to late dogs, ones who were no longer with them.

That made me think about Jessie.

I got Jessie on the 16^th of April, 1992.  I remember the date because it was the day before my birthday.  I was in my starving artist phase, and I didn’t have much money, to put it mildly.  My lovely dog

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More Puppy: Henry the Hero

Puppy HenryMy long-time faithful reader Sara Brandenburg writes, "Can you give Henry his much deserved attention...for More Puppy?

"My young man Henry is so much for a sweet 10-month-old Newfoundland.  I won't lie, he can be such a pill! He daily spills his water on the kitchen floor, once when upset over being left behind for the day he scratched a hole in the wall, and at 100 plus pounds I still have to lift him into my suv, but on May 3rd he saved my life.  

"My apartment building has been power washing/spray painting the last few days and using a generator for power.  For whatever reason

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The Bet, Results-wise

Updated on Saturday, May 7, 2011 at 5:15PM by Catherine

Yes, this confirms it.  We are authors, not horse-racing experts.

Dialed In came in 8th, Pants on Fire 9th, Archarcharch 15th (but, in his and my defense, injured) and poor Comma to the Top finished 19th out of 19.  What happened to Comma to the Top? First or second through what seemed like the whole race, then dead last.

Archarcharch had to be taken off the track in an animal ambulance, but the early reports are optimistic.  A non-displaced and non-life threatening lateral condylar fracture. 

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More Puppy: Puppy

Boru and DianneUnless someone responds to my "last call" below, this is the final dedicated guest puppy post for the time being.  My plan is to do a post on my own dear late puppy Jessie (I can't help noticing how many people sent, including today's puppy, tributes to pets who have moved on, and it's inspired me), followed by pets who like to sleep covered up (Ella's specialty, but wait till you see the others I've gathered) followed by More Kitty.  

Appropriately, this last puppy, though his name was really Boru, went by the nickname "puppy."  Many thanks to Dianne Greenlay for sending this story.

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Book Bloggers and the Future

I think I’ve made it amply clear that I respect book bloggers as an invaluable puzzle piece in the modern book business.  But of course that business is rapidly changing.  A whole new model is becoming the norm—maybe not erasing the old model, but probably displacing it in terms of sheer popularity and volume.  It will have its advantages, and a definite down side.  I’m optimistic, however, and I’ll tell you why in this post.  I think it will work.  But here’s the linchpin of the whole deal: with the help of book bloggers, I think it will fill the needs of readers/book consumers.  Without them, it could be a nightmare.

The self-published ebook, along with print-on-demand technology, has opened a

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The Bet, Part Two

Updated on Tuesday, May 3, 2011 at 8:16AM by Catherine

Updated on Thursday, May 5, 2011 at 7:28AM by Catherine

Updated on Thursday, May 5, 2011 at 11:31AM by Catherine

Updated on Saturday, May 7, 2011 at 8:03AM by Catherine

For those of you who didn't read my first blog post about the bet, the whole thing goes a little something like this.  I'm in a 4-way bet with three other authors, inspired by the bet in this Atlantic article about a Stephen King short story, “Herman Wouk is Still Alive.” Fellow author Brian Farrey found and tweeted it.

“Every year my son Owen and I have a bet on the NCAA March Madness Tournament,” King said, “and last year the stakes were that the loser would have to write a story [with a title] the winner gave to him. And I lost. Except I really won, because I got this story that I really like.”

Along with the link, Brian tweeted, “Anybody wanna make a bet with similar stakes w/me?”

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