Do You Have A Favorite Bookstore?

I just joined a new meme that will happen every Thursday. I was very choosy and picked one that talks about books and reading to keep within my niche.

Today's topic is "Favorite Bookstores".

This topic makes me very sad. You see, I lost my favorite bookstore, our local Borders, last May. It was a victim of the recession. I used to go several days a week and spend several hours at a time. I hunkered down with my laptop, MP3 player and a big soda to write. Lots of times my daughters went with me. It was home away from home. We had a lot of good times there.

Now, alas, the building is being torn down.The site is pathetic. All that remains are a lot of concrete chunks and a sign announcing the coming of another Walgreens. There's already a Walgreens or a CVS on every other block in my city. How many drugstores do we need?

I've tried other bookstores but they're not the same. Not other Borders. Not Barnes and Nobles. Not only are they a lot further away, they don't have the same feel or the same community. Our local Barnes and Nobles covered up their electrical outlets and took out most of the seating so its impossible to work there.

Sometimes I go to the local library. But it closes at 8 pm. I don't get home from the day job until 6 pm or after. That's not much time to work so its not worth the bother of packing up my laptop and trekking over.

I was impressed with Nova University's library when I was there last week for the Nanowrimo kickoff party. It was beautiful and has great hours (i.e. until 11:30 pm on Sundays). Unfortunately, it looks as if public parking is for a fee plus it's more than an hour round trip from my house. I can't afford to go often.

Alas, I'm like a woman without a country - a writer without a bookstore home. Hopefully something new will open close with good hours and electrical outlets. Until then, I am adrift, working from home, getting overly distracted by the internet.

Do you have a favorite bookstore? What is it? Tell us about it.



Recent posts you might like to read:

Nanowrimo Thoughts 

To Nano Or Not To Nano - That Is The Question

Why You Should Consider Library Booksignings

Make Sure Pretentious Words Don't Turn Off Your Readers

Are You Writing Me Into Your Book?

Dont Give Up Too Early

Must Write Must Write Must Write!!!


You'll also want to see what Amarinda Jones, Anika Hamilton, Anny Cook, Barbara Huffert, Brynn Paulin, Bronwyn Green, Dakota Rebel, Kelly Kirch, Molly Daniels, Sandra Cox, Regina Carlysle, and Cindy Spencer Pape are up to, so make sure to visit them also. :)

My Space

Who here is good at working their My Space? That's if you have a My Space page. I do. But I hardly ever attend to it. I don't mean to be lazy - I don't think I am. There's only so many hours in the day and the day job and family and writing and this blog, take up a lot. I also try to squeeze in exercise - walking or the gym. It shouldn't be that hard, right? So why am I lacking when it comes to it? When I was at the conference this weekend, we were told to work our My Space page, that it's a powerful tool, that some authors, Holly Jacobs, whom I first knew as Holly Fuhrmann on a loop before she ever published as Holly Jacobs, used just recently. Supposedly, Holly thinks it's her use of My Space with this last book that made her most recent release sell out in 3 to 4 days and go to second print. Wow! I've got to get on board. It was also mentioned, by the lady at Author Island, I think, that there's a way to post just one blog and have it automatically distribute to our My Space, blogger, etc. blogs in one fell swoop so we reach 15 or more different audiences and not waste time. After all, we're not called "writers" because we play on line. Our job is to actually "write". (Not that I don't love to play online - it's addictive - and why I tend to take myself away from the Internet and go to Borders or Barnes & Nobles to write where I'd have to pay (a lot) extra to go online). Of course now, (sigh) I have to pay a mint for the gas to get to Borders. So, I'll check out Author Island and cos productions and Lucy Monroe's website, etc. where it was suggested we check for help with all this good promotion stuff, as soon as I can. I think Dad gets a bit irritated when I'm online or even the computer, too much, here at his house. Plus his connection is deadly slow and clunky. On top of that, I'm heading out to my aunt and uncle's house in a few minutes and I doubt Uncle Bill will let me on his computer at all. Yes, I'll be in computer and internet withdrawal for a day or two. The person who accused me of being "internet needy" is sadly right. Oh well, I accept it. I'm an author and I don't know any author who doesn't use the internet a lot. It's been our salvation as writing can be a lonely profession otherwise. Soooo, if any of my bloggy friends out there knows how to use My Space, all and any help will be greatly appreciated. Let me know. :)

Cincinnati pictures and Booksigning Today

View driving into downtown Cincinnati from the North going South,

The left side view from my Dad's front yard

This is a farm just down the road from my Dad's house in Greater Cincinnati.

This is my Dad's backyard.

This is me in Dad's house.


I'll post more Cincinnati pictures in a day or three. :)

Today again, I'll be at Lori Foster and Dianne Castell's Readers' 'N Writers' Get Together in Cincinnati. I'm blogging ahead of time as I fully expect to be too busy to get online today.

If you're in the Cincinnati area please pop in and meet me at the booksigning between 3 and 5 pm at the Cincinnati Marriott North which is located right off I-75 exzit 19 in the West Chester section of Greater Cincinnati. Or you can find it on Mulhauser Road.

Keep your fingers crossed for me during my agent and editor appointments. God, don't let me blow them. Let them like my stories and me.

Dad's asleep so let me sign off as he's sensitive to any noise in the house and he wants to get up and leave early tomorrow.

I don't know if I'll get to blog Sunday, Monday, or Tuesday as I'll be at my aunt and uncle's house. I'll try to blog ahead again, but if not, I'll try to be back on Tuesday.