Sunday, June 03, 2007

Bookcase Meme (Tag, You're It)

We have another fun new theme for our BuzzReaders this week--and I actually get to kick it off!!! (So if this all goes awry it's not my fault, I'm flying blind here.) This week you get a sneak peek inside the lives of writers... well, at our organizational habits when it comes to books, anyway. Without further ado (and babbling) I present: MY BOOK STORAGE.

1. The Main Bookshelf. (see photo below) This one is in my closet behind my desk and holds most of my writing life. On the top shelf I have a few reference books, some books on writing and on marketing, and a whole bunch of calendars and spiral notebooks. The second shelf holds more reference books (like Edith Hamilton's Mythology and the Eyewitness Guide to the Greek Islands) and my writing binders. One of the binders holds all my business papers (like contest certificates, contracts, and--my fave--rejection letters). The rest of the binders are my book binders, where I keep my notes, research, and character collages for each book. I'm also a bit of a graphics geek, so I make cover mock-ups, too. Finally, the bottom shelf holds my travel guides (also research) and the handout books from the past four RWA conferences.
2. The Keeper Baskets. (I know, technically not "shelves") On the top shelf in my closet I have three fabulous baskets from Ikea that are the perfect size for books--this is where I keep all my keepers. (At the front of the class right now are TOP TEN USES FOR AN UNWORN PROM DRESS by BuzzGirl Tina Ferraro, HOW TO RUIN A SUMMER VACATION by BuzzGirl Simone Elkeles, my fave Jenny Crusie GETTING RID OF BRADLEY, and new fave SPYING IN HIGH HEELS by Gemma Halliday)


3. The Nightstand. Right next to my bed, the dozen or so books I'm supposed to be reading right now. Like the copy of Stephenie Meyer's NEW MOON Steph sent me, the uber-cool-sounding JACK'S WIDOW by Eve Pollard, and THE WEDDING by Coleen Murtagh Paratore (that Marley recommended).

4. The To-Be-Read Crates. (not shown) I also have a stack of three milk cartons in the corner. Two of them are full of books I have yet to read. They're really, really full. The third is full of books I've read and have decided won't make it into my keeper baskets--they're ready to go to Goodwill.

That's pretty much my book organization strategy. I can't wait to see what the rest of the BuzzGirls (and BuzzReader) do with their books! We BuzzGirls got tagged with this meme via Diana Peterfreund (and BuzzGirl Marley) so check out her post on the matter. Now it's your turn.

Hugs,
TLC
GROWING UP GODLY [soon to be retitled], Summer 2008 Dutton Children's Books

what I'm reading ... Nothing (I'm busy trying to hunt down a freakin' edited version of The Stand for my deal with Tina)

9 comments:

TinaFerraro said...

Okay, LOL about reading nothing--and why it's MY FAULT!

And I think you did a bang-up job here of showing us your book shelves (with particular pleasure at your keeper baskets). :)

Fun, TLC, and thanks!

Marley Gibson said...

You're very neat. I'm impressed!

Why are you looking for an edited version of THE STAND? Read the full version. It's so much better. Try the Amazon Marketplace.

= )

Gemma Halliday said...

Wow, you are organized, girl! There is no way I'm showing you my bookshelf now... (navigating around precarious leaning tower of paperbacks)

And, yes, it makes my day to see SPYING on someone’s keeper shelf. :)

Dona Sarkar-Mishra said...

Yikes, my shelves are a permanant disaster!! I also never give away any books so I store books in boxes, shelves, stacks, baskets....my favorites, I keep in a stack next to my bed. YOu'll cringe when you see my post for this week!!!

stephhale said...

You are so super-organized. I have a feeling I'm going to be odd bee out this week! :) I love Boo! And I so wish we had an IKEA around here. Thanks for sharing!

xo,
Steph

Anonymous said...

I have a six-shelf bookcase that I wish was bigger and had more space.

The first two shelves are for Harlequin Blaze

3rd shelf - empty for now, but could be for more HB books. I just recently did a spring cleaning and made the ladies at a public library very happy.

4th shelf - for the thicker (300 pages or more) books dedicated to some of my fav authors like Carly Phillips, Deidre Martin Sandra Hill, etc)

5th shelf - Silhouette Desire series books

6th Shelf - I read a lot of anthologies (like the "Bad Boys" series), so this shelf is dedicated to those. But they also share space with Alison Kent books, some self-publishing books, "The Hottest State" by Ethan Hawke (yes, that actor dude), SARK books, and a hardback copy of Shel Silverstein's "Where the Sidewalk Ends", and a copy of each of my first two books.

Anonymous said...

all my books r in milk crates. most r used that i buy through ebay. u can get some cheap books through ebay.

Celeste said...

This Meme scares me to death. I can't imagine showing the state of my bookcases :P And my TBR pile? Not so organized. Not even a *pile* frankly! They are strewn from one end of the house to the other!

TJ Brown said...

How um... organized. This is one meme I won't be participating in!
Teri