I had mentioned previously how excited I was that NaNoWriMo was approaching, I was not aware, however, just how quickly it would arrive! November 1st and the beginning of the frenzy that will be Novel Writing November is literally just around the corner, with the Kick Off Party beginning tomorrow (10PM @ Rediscovered Bookshop), and then the month of November will crawl in on it's belly at midnight bringing with it, on it's back, the madness of 50,000 words. I must admit, I am a little panicked, as I am sure a lot of my NaNo compatriots are at this point. If you are unfamiliar with this process, it is entirely normal to get a little overwhelmed with the task that lies ahead. Just look at it as an adventure, an opportunity to prove to yourself that you are worthy and faithful, and the magic, and spirit, and gumption of such an adventure will carry you through.

Even the Boise Weekly is preparing everyone for the leap. Amy Atkins wrote an introductory article on NaNo, which conveniently also has the scheduled write-ins listed as well as contact info for our wonderful Municipal Liason, Megan Justice. As mentioned, there will be write ins both at A Novel Adventure and Rediscovered bookshop. I hope you can make it to as many as possible, and I especially hope to see you at the write-ins at A Novel Adventure (because that is where I will be!). This is part of this whole process for me. I am excited to come together with people that are of a like mind, people that go through the same trials, and people that understand that Writing can be a fickle, and tiresome, and cruel creature (but also lovely, and faithful, and gentle).

Just in case you haven't checked it out, here is a link to the National Novel Writing Month Website. Make sure you sign up, set up your profile and let all of us know who you are. This too is part of the process. I hope to see all of you in four days! Good luck as the race begins!

-Malorie

Halloween is my second favorite holiday, and only second to Thanksgiving (which is the best holiday on the planet earth). This year, outside of my normal preparations for the coming holiday, there is an added element of excitement. The bookstore is hosting a Mad Scientist party during story hour this Halloween, and it is going to be rather spectacular (even if I do say so myself). Just imagine being a kid. The prospect of entering into a secret laboratory (which we have!), conducting experiments, eating snacks, and then possibly going back for more experiment conducting is something that every kid dreams of every once in a while. I mean, they even made an entire show based around that basic principle (Dexter's Lab on Cartoon Network).

I think part of the reason it is so exciting for me is not only that it is going to be an awesome event at the store, but I really like being a part of something bigger. What is bigger and more awesome than making something that only exists on an imaginary plane a reality, especially for a kid? I am hoping that all of you, with kids or not, stop by and have some fun with us this Halloween. It is going to be a good time for those big and small, because, let's face it, all of us have a little mad scientist in us.

-Malorie

Every morning, as we enter the store to open, we are met with a littering of fresh fall leavings, bits of crunchy autumnal flora that have struggled, salmon-like, to follow the push and pull of nature and squeeze themselves under our door. As glad as we are to see this evidence that our earth orbit is still working to take us further from the sun, the detritus of its passage outward makes its unwelcome entrance just when we are least capable of handling it. With neither store vaccuum currently in working shape, the much reviled hokie is called upon to grind, mash and generally scatter the leaves in a wider pattern.

But the morning's gleanings, if a bit presumptive for entering without invitation, are a reminder, however subtle, of the mission of our bookstore. In addition to the cutesy/obvious connections (leaves refering to either tree aerials and book pages), their intrusive passage, the meager struggle to escape the outside buffeting gales is a picture of the book industry itself. Reading, once the pastime of the masses, isn't in popular fashion these days. Sad as it is to say, I've met folks who honestly can't remember reading a full book for pleasure. With the distractions of internet, movies and, most damning, sensationalist television, the luxury of allowing a fully story to develop at the pace of page-turn is seen as just that, a luxury. How often do I hear people complain that they wish they had more time to read?

This, friends, is an excuse, not a circumstance. Literature is a decision, a choice to put aside the harried and haggard activity of our daily life and allow an adventure to unfold. But a novel requires something of us, not just time, but an open and inquiring mind. We cannot be transported until we prepare ourselves to be. In this sense, reading is a form of meditation, a conscious readying of the soul and mind to move and grow. Our humble bookstore, a safe harbor for wind-tossed leaves, is a sanctuary designed for this practice. Here we find the tools of growth and enlightenment and a sanctum in which to learn, to gather wisdom from the thoughts of the past and to discover the adventures of our future.
Or is this metaphor too far stretched?

-Jem