Motivational Posters

I have stumbled upon, quite possibly, the coolest posters ever. Ever. Cooler than these I had when I was fifteen:

Postertext.com offers posters that celebrate classic works of literature. Each graphic represents an idea or scene from the book. Look closer and you'll discover the graphic is comprised of the entire novel's text. Of course, I'll steer you to H.G. Well's The Time Machine, but there is truly something here for every classic lover. If I were Oprah, it would be on my favorite things list. Posters for everyone! LOOOOOVE it!

If that wasn't cool enough for you, how about this sneak-peek photo of John Cusack in The Raven, a psychological thriller in production. The film is fiction, but based largely on rumors that Poe spent his mysterious last days chasing a serial killer inspired by his tales.

What's the latest poster you owned?

Getting Digi With It

Are you ready to embrace technology today? I am, so follow me.

Next Tuesday, Anthony Zuiker, head poo-bah behind the CSI: investigation empire, will celebrate the release of his latest brainchild: the Digi-novel. In what he believes will be a "jolt to traditional book publishing," his book-movie-website experience invites participants to read the crime novel, Level 26, log on to the book's website every twenty pages or so during the reading experience and view a "cyber-bridge", a three-minute film clip tied to the story. Readers can join in on book discussions, even contribute to the story. He predicts every television show in the next five to ten years will engage their audience in such a way, so why not books? The digi-novel concept came to Zuiker during the writer's strike, but he's hardly the first to attempt a perfect fusion of literary and media entertainment.

On September 29th, fans of ABC's Castle can purchase Heat Wave, a crime novel written by the series' protagonist, Richard Castle. So it's a case of the tube driving the book, but once this technology fusion hits big, no one will be able to tell where one experience starts and the other stops.

A year or more ago, I had the perfect plot in mind for this sort of reader interaction. It was Romancing the Stone meets time travel. A wild chase around the globe and through time, complete with a mini-site experience and links on the e-book version to places and clues that would give the reader an edge figuring out the mystery along with the characters. In my mind, it was epic and fun and all the wonderful things I enjoy about becoming immersed into a novel. But I put the idea aside. Why?

My primary goal as a writer is to launch a reader into a story and keep her there. Inviting a reader to link to stimuli outside the parameters of my book invites distraction and the put-it-down-and-not-come-back disease all authors fear. Let's face it, today's consumer has the attention span of a gnat. She links up to a map of Death Valley to find out where the shifting stones of Racetrack Playa are and I've lost her to half a dozen other time-suck links. Still, the idea is intriguing.

What do you think? Are you a reading purist or do you like your novel sprinkled with lagniappe, that little something extra that quenches our thirst for an interactive experience?

The Golden Girls in the Basement

I have a shocker for you.

A Wrinkle in Time was one of my favorite children's books.

Staggering, isn't it? Yesterday, I came across a quote from its author, Madeline L'Engel, that made me instantly wish I'd known her in real life. When asked if she'd seen the Disney movie version of her classic tale, she replied, "I've glimpsed it." When pressed with the question, "Did it meet expectations?" she said, "Oh, yes. I expected it to be bad, and it is."

The quote comes from a 2004 Newsweek article in which she discusses faith and the themes certain religious groups deemed offensive in A Wrinkle in Time. She was a plucky woman with controversial ideas and the age and courage to speak her mind. Her take on both Harry Potter and The DaVinci Code is worth the click alone.

I used to imagine Mrs. Who, Mrs. Whatsit and Mrs. Which were the Golden Girls of the Tesseract and how great it would be to score passage through the fifth dimension and a plate of warm cookies all at once. Now, I have my own version of these ladies:

Mrs. Who, who finds original expression difficult and often spouted foreign languages and Shakespeare, is the bespectacled portion of my fractured muse who is captivated by the blinking cursor. From her, I also hear my grandmother's voice in my head saying, "Das ist scheisse!"

Not only is Mrs. Which a nebulous entity during most of the novel, but she trips over herself in double letters. Ffamiliar? Mmost ddefinately, Mrs. Auto-Correct-Dependent-Muse.

Mrs. Whatsit is the most relatable of the three. She wraps herself in many layers, sacrifices a portion of herself to defeat The Black Thing, and transforms into a winged, centurion-type figure. Aside from the two billion year old thing-and the wings-she's the greatest portion of my muse trinity.

Madeline L'Engle was on a cross-country trek at the time she conceived A Wrinkle in Time. Not surprisingly, she was also reading a book on quantum physics. The manuscript was rejected twenty-six times because, in her words, "it was different."

The Golden Girls and I couldn't have asked for better inspiration.

What were your favorite childhood novels?

A Novel's Migration

I was prepared to post today about The Time Traveler's Wife-the brilliant interview I found with its screenwriter Bruce Joel Rubin (despite the horrific editing) or the yummy review, not from a media fat cat or random blogger but from a quantum physicist's perspective-but I had to stop myself. I've gagged Vortex readers with enough time travel this week to make even H.G. Wells mount a caustic protest from his elsewhere dimension.

Two completely ordinary events shaped today's idea, one being that I acquired a dollar bill from the return desk at a discount mega-store and two being that I stayed up until 2 am to finish reading a novel. The dollar bill was one of the chosen Where's George? variety. Surely you've heard of this-a website that tracks George Washington's serial numbers and offers those who acquire said bill to see the route by which it has traveled through our economic byways. The book was quite simply the most fabulous I've read all year and the perfect match to the end-of-summer heat and craziness we are all feeling. Am I right?

So what would happen if we married these two completely ordinary events into one ultra-extraordinary literary experiment? Probably been done before, but I've never heard of it.

What if I sent the book out into the world the Where's George? way with merely a handwritten line on its inner hard-backed shell. A comment of adoration, perhaps, or a part that resonated so deeply I will be eternally grateful for the lessons its author taught me. Or maybe, merely a mention of where it had landed to remind readers who turn the pages after me of our connection to each other and the universality of our human experience no matter where we live. And what if I passed it along to the next reader and he wrote something, and the person he passed it to, something as well, until there was a chronicle of readers who'd all shared the same story. Books aren't meant to languish on some IKEA shelf. They are meant to be shared. So share we will.

Here's how it will work: Leave a comment, or many, in this post from now until midnight Sunday. At that time, I will select someone to pass along the novel to. Before it leaves my hands, I will mark the date, my location and something about the book. The recipient will read it and do the same. Select from your blog readers. Pass along to a relative. Leave it in a doctor's office with a note that it's free-take it and join in the story's migration. Always, readers will be able to return here and let us know where it has been. It may journey far; it may be handed over a backyard fence. The important thing is to keep it moving.

It's not a genre book. It's not non-fiction. And no time travel anywhere. I know, right? It's merely a great work of fiction that has something for everyone. Monday, I'll reveal the book and send it on its way. I hope Vortex followers are as excited about the possibilities as I am.

So comment away. Let us know what you're reading this weekend, how you'll spend these last, endless days of summer or the best book you've read all year. Share with us whatever you wish and we'll all meet back here on Monday.

Nay, Meme Away

I don't run across too many memes that center on books. When I do, I have to play even though no one tagged me, which could be breaking some kind of blogosphere rule. Since I am Ringmaster of this Vortex, I say, "Nay, meme away." Mercy dictates I edit out the one about Twilight lest my blog visitors break out into fits of narcissistic angst and a sickly pallor, though the rest have a decidedly teen vibe to them. Let's channel that from our past, shall we?

1. What are you dying to read this summer?

Mostly, I'm dying to read my name on Publisher's Lunch. Or that Hugh Jackman is requesting permission to follow me on Twitter. For now, I'll settle on The Seance by John Harwood, a gothic, Victorian thriller. All over that.

2. Where do you hang to read a book?

I hang in the car while the baby-on-board, Toyota-lovin' mama in front of me at the ATM itemizes her wallet before and after her transaction. I hang at breakfast, always better than a dose of Meredith Viera. I hang on my favorite over-sized chair when Sir Cat allows me.

3. What was your favorite book when you were little?

Hands down, The Giving Tree. I had two copies: One with apple juice and Cheetos stains and another with the inscription 'Laura, may you always be like the tree.' Most days, I am.

4. What's the last book that made you all emo?

Angel Girl by Laurie Friedman. I know Herman Rosenblat's story is not true, but somehow it doesn't matter. A thousand other stories like it come from tragedy because love transcends all.

5. What's the scariest book you've ever read?

Stephen King's Gerald's Game. Out of all his books, this one really creeps me out.

6. What's the funniest book you've ever read?

I had a cartoon book when I was in high school, something like 101 Funniest Ways to Die. I never sit beneath a ceiling fan that I don't think about that book.

7. If you lend a book to your bff, how soon do you expect to get it back?

If ever, great. Books should be shared.

8. Snacking while reading-guilty?

Aside from the breakfast thing, which somehow falls outside this personal rule, I don't ever snack while reading. Too distracting and messy.

9. Name a book that needs more zombies.

Wellsey's The Time Machine. And yes, I'm on a quest to use this graphic as much as possible.

10. What's the most random thing you've ever used as a bookmark?

A dry spaghetti noodle

If you're here, I tag you. Answer one or all in the comments so we can pretend we knew you when angst was your predominant vibe.