http://www.laurenmclaughlin.net/wordpress Fri, 12 Dec 2008 01:38:36 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Over at the wonderful website yaReads, the very inquisitive Nikki Blunt interviews me about Cycler and other assorted sundries. Among the hot leads: my Cycler play list. Check it! http://www.laurenmclaughlin.net/wordpress/2008/12/10/interview-with-me-at-ya-reads/ 1. I am not the only writer who goes into bookstores to remove her book from the plain old shelves, where it’s appallingly easy to miss, and relocates it to its proper place on the splashy display table. Apparently all writers do this. They told me. 2. All readers are different. ... http://www.laurenmclaughlin.net/wordpress/2008/12/02/what-ive-learned-so-far-about-being-a-novelist/ The November Atlantic has a fantastic article by Hanna Rosin about transgender kids, which I read hungrily in the hope that it would add to my understanding of the topic. Sadly, it confirmed many of my worst fears. There’s a heart-rending story about 8-year-old Brandon (pictured left) who, from the ... http://www.laurenmclaughlin.net/wordpress/2008/11/21/if-it-aint-broke-dont-fix-it/ Here’s a cool thing. My publisher, Random House, is handing out 44,000 DVD novel samplers to movie-goers exiting the Twilight movie on November 21 in Seattle, Boston, New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Cycler is one of five books featured on the DVD. So if you have a hankering ... http://www.laurenmclaughlin.net/wordpress/2008/11/19/free-novel-sampler-on-dvd/ A long time ago, in a galaxy far far away, I befriended a budding musician who was kind enough to donate his compositional skills to an experimental theater piece I was writing and choreographing. Sadly, the ancient VHS tape on which I had recorded this piece has disappeared. But ... http://www.laurenmclaughlin.net/wordpress/2008/11/10/buy-this-cd/ This picture is from the LA Times. In it Bob Knoke of Mission Viejo, Amanda Stanfield of Monrovia, Jim Domen of Yorba Linda, and J.D. Gaddis also of Yorba Linda celebrate the passage of Proposition 8 in California, a measure which outlaws gay marriage. Isn’t it fantastic?! Eighteen thousand California ... http://www.laurenmclaughlin.net/wordpress/2008/11/05/and-now-for-the-bad-news/ My hopes for the next four years: Genuine Unity The ups and downs of the campaign season have drawn our attention away from the economic catastrophe still unfolding in the country and the world. No administration can wave a magic wand and return us to the days of easy credit and pyramid ... http://www.laurenmclaughlin.net/wordpress/2008/11/05/cake-i-mean-change-we-can-believe-in/ When it comes to politics, I am rarely pleasantly surprised. While there has been plenty of fodder for cynicism in this election, there has also been cause for hope. Such as: 1. Conservative Feminists Sarah Palin is a feminist. Despite her belated reluctance to “label” herself with an unpopular term, she has ... http://www.laurenmclaughlin.net/wordpress/2008/11/03/3-things-that-have-surprised-me-about-this-election/ Thanks, Egipsey, for calling my attention to this latest outrage. When asked in an NBC interview who the dreaded “elite” are, Sarah Palin responds: “people who think that they’re better than any one else.” Fair enough. I think it satisfies at least one definition of the word. But then ... http://www.laurenmclaughlin.net/wordpress/2008/10/23/real-americans/ Over at YA for Obama, site founder Maureen Johnson is offering fantastic gifts to people who do stuff for the Obama campaign. One lucky volunteer has already won a Marc Jacobs Obama tote bag, from the Obama store, courtesy of Sarah Mlynowski, along with a signed ARC of her ... http://www.laurenmclaughlin.net/wordpress/2008/10/23/save-america-plus-win-prizes/