Sunday Salon - Bright and Shiny or dark and mirky?

Courtesy - National Geographic

I just love this picture, it speaks to me for some reason.  Just look at it!   It speaks to me of how we experience books and reading.  Really!   How stories consume you -  burst over you with a dramatic splash or ebb and flow slowly with the tides.   Some books you devour quickly and others you savor slowly, thoughtfully.  Stories full of light, bright and shining; others full of shadows, hiding what's just beneath, making you stop and look, search for what is under the surface.   I have a wide variety of books on my nightstand, the majority -  mysteries, thrillers or science fiction with a few romantic and romantic suspense novels thrown in.    I seemed to have been in a romantic mood for the month of July.  I guess after all the reading for my Nobel Literature class (I got an A by the way!) I needed to relax and escape. 

1. A Summer in Sonoma - Robyn Carr
2. Ice - Linda Howard 
3. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - Robert Heinlein
4. Silver Borne - Patricia Briggs
5. Causing Havoc - Lori Foster 
6. 206 Bones - Kathy Reichs
7. Lumby on the Air - Gail Fraser (review book)
8. Shiver - Lisa Jackson
9. The House on Olive Street - Robyn Carr
10. The Lace Makers of Glenmara - Heather Barbieri (review book)
11. The Search - Nora Roberts
12. Dangerous Games - Keri Arthur
13. Comes a Horseman - Robert Liparulo 
14. Simon Says - Lori Foster
15. Embraced by Darkness - Keri Arthur 
16. The Rembrandt Affair - Daniel Silva (review book)
17. The Perfect Couple - Brenda Novak
18. The Bodyguard - Adair, Showalter and O'Claire 
19. Nauti Trilogy - Lora Leigh

For the month of August, I'm going to try and slow down a bit and savor a few books, rather than consume many.  August is going to be my writing month - no book commitments, no book blog tours.  I'm going to concentrate on finishing "Eyes in the Ashes."  I had the thought a couple days ago.  What would happen if I gave up reading and blogging for a week and spent that time writing.  Can I do it?  How much would I get done?  I have a to do list and honey do list longer than my right arm at the moment.  I imagine much would get accomplished, but I do tend to get grumpy when I don't read.  Reading is as necessary as breathing to me.  I was really tempted to join in on Literary Escapisms August New Author Mini Challenge, then I stopped myself. She had 40 authors sign a poster board while she was at RT Booklovers convention and all their books sound so good.  I even downloaded a few on my nook.  Alas!  

I am currently working on my application for the Notes from Underground Contest which is due August 15th.  The first step:

By August 15, we want to see a 5-page free-form application that convinces us that your writing should be included in the anthology. This will be the "contest" part of the contest. You can use words, images...whatever you want (that can be e-mailed). It doesn't have to be the story that you want to publish, even though that would be all right. It doesn't have to be a story at all. It could be a proposal, a resume, a story idea, poetry, flattery...anything. Got it? Anything.

Sounds intimidating to say the least, but going to give it a try.  Father even has gotten the writing bug.  He started reading my writer's digest magazine the other day and the short story writer's prompt in it sparked a few creative cells.  He's decided to write a short story and enter the competition.  He's been telling me all about his story and I can't wait to read it when he's done. 

I'm off to contemplate, read and write.