Malinda Lo: Under the Weather
I don't know what the weather is like where you are, but here in Northern California it is pouring -- again. To finish off the guest post series on how weather affects our moods and writing, Malinda Lo is visiting the blog today. Her debut novel is called Ash and it's a beautiful retelling of Cinderella. If you like books where the narrator's voice lends a magical mood to the story and is totally compelling, you should check this out. It drew me in from the first words. And look at the gorgeous cover:
It's even prettier in real life. Ash has been nominated for tons of awards this year. Oh, and did I mention her story has a twist? Cinderella, or in this case Ash (Aisling) doesn't fall for the handsome prince. She falls for the female leader of the hunters.
Here's Malinda:
It's even prettier in real life. Ash has been nominated for tons of awards this year. Oh, and did I mention her story has a twist? Cinderella, or in this case Ash (Aisling) doesn't fall for the handsome prince. She falls for the female leader of the hunters.
Here's Malinda:
As I write this, the rain is
pounding on the roof of my house and I have a cup of hot tea nearby. Today, the
rain isn't bothering me too much, although it does make me long to curl up on
the couch with a good book rather than work!
But often, the weather is more
than a sound on the roof; it can be an inspiration or a road block. When Cheryl
asked me to blog about how the weather affects me, I thought it would be an easy
blog post, because hey, rainy days suck and sunshine is great! But it turns out
it's not so simple.
I blame it on California.
I moved here in 2000, and before
then, I don't think I really noticed the weather that much. (I grew up in
Colorado and then lived on the East Coast for seven years.) Sure, blizzards or
thunderstorms or excessively sticky Boston summers made an impression, but day
to day, I rarely noticed it. But after I moved to California, a lot of things
changed.
First of all, the weather here is
usually fantastic. Let's be honest: There's a reason people move to the Golden
State! Every year in February, I can go outside on a sunny day and gaze up at
the blue sky and think, this is why I live here.
OK, so today it's raining and
it's February. But the weekend was absolutely gorgeous. I had my
oh-my-god-it's-so-beautiful-and-it's-February moment.
The problem is, all this great
weather has made me excessively sensitive to the days when it's not so great. In
January we had a string of cloudy gray skies and weeks of rain. This was
fabulous for nature (we've been in a drought forever), but for my emotional
state, it was torture.
And that's another thing that
changed once I moved to California: my own level of attentiveness to my
feelings. Oh, sure, I had feelings before I moved here, but after I moved here,
I really had them. Let's just say I went through a difficult time in my
life — a life-changing time — and in the course of those experiences, I came to
see things differently.
If you're depressed and it rains
for three weeks straight, it's going to have a detrimental effect on you. If
you're depressed and it's sunny, and you can go for a hike in the woods or hang
out on the beach at sunset, I guarantee you'll feel better.
These days, I'm so happy with my
life. I'm a full-time writer. I'm married to a wonderful woman. My dog is the
cutest dog on the planet. I'm eating leftover mac-and-cheese for dinner (yum!).
And because I'm feeling pretty good emotionally, the rain makes less of an
impression on me.
But back in January, when I was
slogging through a particularly difficult part of my next book, the rain was so
awful. It felt, sometimes, like it was dragging me down into the ground.
Luckily, it was raining in my book, too, so I'm pretty sure I got the feelings
right.
The point is, becoming sensitive
to the changing moods within me showed me how much I was affected by external
things like the weather. And now that I know that, I can adjust for it. I know
that if it's going to be gloomy for a long period of time, I have to do
something else to cheer myself up — like make a big pot of soup or buy that book
I've been wanting for a long time.
And in a way, I'm grateful for
those long, dark, rainy days. I certainly wouldn't appreciate the sunshine as
much without them.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Malinda!
You can find out more about Malinda at her website
Or go to Indiebound to take a closer look at Ash.
It's March! So spring must be coming soon, right? Right?! Wherever you are and whatever the weather, enjoy the day!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Malinda!
You can find out more about Malinda at her website
Or go to Indiebound to take a closer look at Ash.
It's March! So spring must be coming soon, right? Right?! Wherever you are and whatever the weather, enjoy the day!
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