Natasha Mostert (Author)

I am in the last few pages of,"Season of the ...

2011-09-09T21:51:18.793+01:00

I am in the last few pages of,"Season of the Witch". I highly recommend it to anyone who likes an intriguing spinetingling read. I would like to know the pronunciation of Minnaloushe please. Thanks!!

Interesting post - I have to admit I'm becomin...

2011-04-30T21:56:24.212+01:00

Interesting post - I have to admit I'm becoming a bit of a Luddite as I get older. I have a friend who takes out her iPhone and constantly Googles stuff/texts people while we're having a conversation and it's getting harder and harder not to grab it out of her hand and grind it under my heel. I feel that way about Kindles and ebooks. I stare at a bloody computer screen for 9 hours a day at work, I don't want to come home and stare at another one. I love books. I like the smell of them, the look of them, the way the towers of to-be-read paper/hard backs are threatened to collapse and crush me. I can happily spend hours in a bookshop browsing and I'll pay full price for the privilege as well. It's hard to find a bookshop in a UK city centre now that isn't a Waterstones, and even they're becoming an endangered species. Personally, I hope Kindles never catch on. I don't care that using one would mean I don't have to pay extra luggage fees when I take books on holiday - I hate them.

Great post, I was looking for an image of a T-shir...

2011-03-15T23:38:28.377Z

Great post, I was looking for an image of a T-shirt like that and Google brought me here....linking here now from my post!

I must admit that no personal 'secrets' w...

2011-01-18T11:27:19.799Z

I must admit that no personal 'secrets' were aired in the novels I appeared in, just my personality. Although it was comforting to know that when the 'horrid' one was written , people figured it was revenge. Not sure I'd forgive if personal and absolutely confidential details went in.

For me, personally, even though I don't conjur...

2011-01-18T09:13:34.560Z

For me, personally, even though I don't conjure up characters out of thin air and usually find inspiration among real people, there is a line I won't cross. But there is no doubt that some authors use their writing to take revenge or to work through trauma and are often not forgiven for it. Think of "Mommy Dearest", or even Philip Roth's "Portnoy's Complaint", which alienated an entire section of society. Paul Theroux aired dirty linen with his book "In Sir Vidia's Shadow", in which he launches a massive attack on his mentor V.S. Naipul after they had a row. Many writers respond to the criticism saying that you need to be brutal if you are at all interested in writing about the world honestly.

@ Nick: you are right - authors are constantly confronted by people who recognize themselves in a novel, even though they did not serve as inspiration. Joan Didion spoke of how her first novel, "Run River," was thought to be autobiographical but wasn't, except that it was set in Sacramento. This caused many people who lived there to believe she was criticising them and their families and she picked up a lot of flak!

I agree with Deirdre, telling tales on a friend (l...

2011-01-18T00:02:46.363Z

I agree with Deirdre, telling tales on a friend (literally) sucks. But there are also probably people who think they have inspired a character in a book but really didn't! Welcome back, Natasha!

I think I would find it very difficult to forgive ...

2011-01-17T21:41:46.832Z

I think I would find it very difficult to forgive a friend who is a writer if I told her something about me that is absolutely confidential and then she uses it simply to write a good story. And I must say if I had been Crazy Jane I don't think I would be as forgiving!!

How cool are you! I'd love to be cast as a rav...

2011-01-17T21:35:48.634Z

How cool are you! I'd love to be cast as a raven haired poisoner's wife. I think the worst thing would be to be portrayed as boring and placid. Pleased to hear you and your writer friend made up. She wasn't fighting fair, though!

well I have been in a couple of novel's , once...

2011-01-17T15:05:16.048Z

well I have been in a couple of novel's , once as a raven haired poisoners wife, once as a side kick and once as a horrible backstabbing woman, who was the baddy of the novel. Me and the author had fallen out 'big time'. and this was her revenge. it was a bit of a shock , it was my looks, my perfume, my clothes. a bit of a shock when people recognised me so well!! We have since 'made it up', I'm glad to say, but I take it as a compliment that I'm interesting enough to be included, although any more of the horrid stuff and I've threatened to sue!! lol. unless I get approval! it's the price you pay for having an author as a friend.!

My husband and I are both avid readers, and most o...

2010-12-12T03:10:43.547Z

My husband and I are both avid readers, and most of the names I've added to "The List" came from books.

I had both Morrighan and Minnaloushe on the list... until a friend of our friend stole Morrighan. I'm still hoping for Minnaloushe (maybe nickname her Meena when she's young). But we have a steadfast rule: You can't name a baby until you meet it.

I'm absolutely torn on these kinds of issues. ...

2010-12-12T02:44:36.867Z

I'm absolutely torn on these kinds of issues. I LOVE hardcover books. I am snobby about it and only buy hardcovers, but some books are only sold as paperbacks. (I've even looked at British releases for hardcover copies of my favorite books.) I've tried the Kindle, but it just doesn't feel right. I guess I'm a reading purist.

While I would LOVE for books to be cheaper, I'm not going to punish the writers over it. I tend to buy used books, especially if it is an author I have not read before. But once I'm a fan... I'm at the bookstore buying every new hardcover that comes out, and any past books I can find.

I have many friends who are artists, writers, and small shop owners. They've really made me understand how little they make sometimes. It's important to support all these things, and sometimes that means paying a little more. If authors I adore keep writing, I'll happily pay $26 for their newest book. :-)

If I was to have anymore children then I would lov...

2010-11-30T22:06:12.624Z

If I was to have anymore children then I would love to name them after a character from a book I've read & I love unique names & I love the name Isidore from season of the witch Dimitri Esme . As for Minnaloushe or Morrighan I'm not sure maybe I'm not pronouncing them right but they are very unique & Minnaloushe doesn't sound like a male name to me. Sound maybe Irish or Gaelic.

@Buffy: It's easy to get swept up in online p...

2010-11-10T08:50:48.347Z

@Buffy: It's easy to get swept up in online protests :-)
@Kelly: To tell the truth, before I went through the publishing process myself I wasn't aware of how much work it entails either...
@Cee! I would have recognised that enigmatic smile anywhere :-D Sorry about the blog gremlins!
@J : I own a Kindle as well and I have to admit that it is wonderful to have when I'm travelling. I'll be heading home to South Africa middle of December not returning to London until end of January. In the past I packed one entire suitcase with books. Now I take the Kindle. Of course, it does mean that if I stumble on a book I really love, I'm going to have to pay again because I will want it in printed format as well.
@Michael: your solution is the sane one. When the row started, publishers tried to pretty much take this idea for a spin but Amazon wasn't having it. Now that Amazon is backing down and accepting the "agency model", it is the publishers hanging tough. Here's hoping good sense prevails. Sigh.

We want it and we want it all now. For me, I just ...

2010-11-10T00:50:44.667Z

We want it and we want it all now. For me, I just want my hardback book. A trade paperback will do if hardback isn't available. I haven't been persuaded over to the digital side of reading, but I can understand those who demand digital at the same time as hardback. My solution to the problem is this: Give us hardback and digital at the same time, but only give a slight discount to the digital for a time. That way, the revenues are only slightly diminished, but may reach a larger number of readers in a shorter period of time.

I wasn't aware of the low ratings on Amazon. That is simply being dishonest.

I love your wishlist! Now, I have to admit that I&...

2010-11-10T00:32:35.023Z

I love your wishlist! Now, I have to admit that I'm a Kindle owner and I do love it. Having said that, just because I have a Kindle doesn't mean I don't by 'paper' books - my shelves are witness to increasingly inventive ways of stacking more items into them. And, really, when that new hardback from your favorite author comes out you really do want to go buy the real thing. Nothing beats the smell and feel of the paper. I could care less about Dan Brown but demand ongoing hardbacks from the likes of Iain Banks, Philip Kerr and Natasha Mostert...

I agree with you all the way. I haven't bought...

2010-11-10T00:05:55.914Z

I agree with you all the way. I haven't bought one of those Kindles, not that I'm against them, but I've been noticing the antsy need people are getting with media. The demand for everything to be free or nearly free is overwhelming, and I don't think people realize sometimes that authors aren't all super-rich Dan Browns or Stephanie Meyers.

Oh! Also I followed you from Myspace. :) Took me forever to link to your blog or even set up a blog. But *waves* Hi! :D (I'm CheshireGrin)

Hi Natasha, your blog was an eye opener for me. I...

2010-11-09T20:50:33.843Z

Hi Natasha, your blog was an eye opener for me. I guess readers don't always think about what's involved to get a book on the shelf! I actually thought the digital age, of which I'm a fan - I'm the first to raise my hand - will mean that publishers won't be needed any more!!!
Great blog. I really enjoyed it.

I have to admit I thought of joining the one star ...

2010-11-09T15:56:30.749Z

I have to admit I thought of joining the one star slash fest. My bad!

@J: I've never read Mason and Dixon but what a...

2010-09-23T11:28:21.710+01:00

@J: I've never read Mason and Dixon but what a smashing opening line. Love the "allegorikal Sculpture".

@Buffy: I remember that opening sentence! I never read all 9 (or is 10) volumes of Shandy but I seem to remember doing a paper on "parody" for my English Lit class many years ago and using Shandy as source material.

Generally I prefer short opening lines to long, but Brett Easton Ellis's" American Psycho" has a killer opening sentence, (pardon the pun) which is easily the length of a paragraph. Truth to tell, I am not a fan of "Psycho", but I do remember this sentence as doing a great job of giving a snap shot of the setting.

I've never read Mason and Dixon but I like the...

2010-09-23T07:27:33.049+01:00

I've never read Mason and Dixon but I like the longer opening sentences too. I can't remember how it goes but I remember loving the opening sentence of Tristram Shandy when I read it in school. He's complaining about the poor job his parents made in producing him and it is hilairous.

Thanks to Dickens, I actually look closely at the ...

2010-09-23T00:01:31.869+01:00

Thanks to Dickens, I actually look closely at the opening lines of chapters. One of my favorite is in Pynchon's 'Mason & Dixon': "Mason, Dixon, and Maskelyne are in a punch house on Cock Hill called 'The Moon,' sitting like an allegorikal Sculpture titl'd, Awkwardness. It is not easy to say which of them is contributing more to sustaining the Tableau." Okay, I realize that's two lines...

Smashing first line and it speaks to me :-) It mak...

2010-09-22T18:32:10.224+01:00

Smashing first line and it speaks to me :-) It makes me think of Ford Madox Ford's opening line of The Good Soldier: "This is the saddest story I have ever heard."

Best first line: Dr. Weiss, at forty, knew that h...

2010-09-22T16:25:20.947+01:00

Best first line: Dr. Weiss, at forty, knew that her life had been ruined by literature. The Debut written by Anita Brookner

You use fountain pens? How wonderful. Journals a...

2010-09-22T16:19:31.548+01:00

You use fountain pens? How wonderful. Journals and fountain pens conjure up visions of elegant writing in moleskin books and adventures in far off lands a la Bruce Chatwin. My admiration knows no bounds...

As a big fan of fountain pens and journal writing,...

2010-09-22T12:40:08.534+01:00

As a big fan of fountain pens and journal writing, I find that my handwriting goes south after even a week away from journal writing.