Bookcycling

So instead of blogging about my writing and editing process (later, promise) I've been making belated Valentine's cards. I don't celebrate the day, generally, but I do like taking it as an opportunity to shower some appreciation and do some crafting.

So today I did something a little subversive: I ripped up a book to make cards out of the pictures in it. I know, I know: a writer ripping up a hardback? Unthinkable! Except there are so many old, neglected books out there looking for a last hurrah. If they could converse, they'd say "I'm still interesting and relevant. So get me out of this second-hand bookshop before I throw myself off of this high, high shelf!" ... or something. Most of them will languish on back shelves and in cardboard boxes, slowly rotting away. But some will be repurposed and enjoyed in a whole new way. I was given a book about cool ways to do this called Playing With Books, and I have to say I think it's awesome. Easy, too:

Find a $5 bargain filled with yellowing pages and silly illustrations. 

Whip out your dinosaur typewriter and one-finger punch out some witticisms.

Try not to asphyxiate on the spray mount.

And there you go! Instant classics.

Just My Type

I just had the good fortune of being given an old IBM typewriter.

It weighs eight million pounds, takes up most of my desk, and makes noises akin to a jet engine warming up. But there's just something magical about typing this way: the emphatic clunk of every key, the care with which every word needs to be punched. It wasn't long ago that we were all using these, but there's something inescapably "antique" about the way those letters look pressed into the paper.

This giant dinosaur reminds me of my Grandma's old typewriter. She used to sit me down in front of it when I came over for the weekend, knowing it would keep me quietly entertained for long stretches. I wrote my first (and only) scary story on it. I loved how important every page felt as I rolled it out into my hands. Like it was something special simply because it was typed.

I will be writing all important correspondence (and ransom notes) on it from now on.