Curate: Inspiration for an Individual Home

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Opening with an event from the middle or end of your day challenges you to think creatively about structure — an often overlooked element of storytelling that might just hold the key to your next great book idea.

Fool readers into thinking your silver-haired authority figure is a wise, benevolent mentor, only to reveal that they’re cowardly and selfish. A literary fiction story about personal growth (Three of Pentacles): the protagonist withdraws from daily life (The Hermit) and embarks on a new adventure (The Fool). There are a few ways you can organize your books at home. You may prefer to color code for an aesthetically pleasing look, or you may discover sorting by genre or alphabetically works best for you. A person dictates who they will date based on quantitative measures, such as horoscopes, how they perform on a test, etc.

Empowering Communities

Carol Jago has taught English in middle and high school for over 30 years. She has served as president of the National Council of Teachers of English and as chair of the College Board’s English Academic Advisory committee. So these two trailblazers created their own. Now you can share in the excitement of opening a box crammed with brand new literature and merchandise celebrating queer pairs (of all sorts!). Book boxes for literary littluns Add a fictional twist to your journaling and look at it as a form of narrative storytelling rather than a laundry list of events. This will make it much easier to find inspiration in the mundane. Many bestselling authors have found inspiration in works of art. Tracy Chevalier, for example, built her brand around historical novels that take a behind-the-scenes peek at iconic paintings. Of course, your book idea doesn’t need to feature a work of art or its artist: musing over a painting by asking, “who is that person, and what are they doing there?” can also be a fun way to generate book ideas. Get to know yourself better with questions like, “Do I have a secret hunch about how I’ll die?” or “What would constitute my perfect day?”. These might unearth a creative gem you didn’t know you had within you.

I am almost never at a loss as to what to read. I have a number of sources I turn to for book recommendations and, at the moment, my gimme list hovers at around 150. But there’s something about curated book subscriptions—and about subscription boxes in general—that fills me with delight. The anticipation. The self-indulgence. The items I may not have chosen for myself otherwise—but which turn into new obsessions.What’s in each box? A book chosen by the community, 3-5 products, access to discussion groups and live chats. Here are a few character-related questions that may be especially useful in terms of finding a strong book idea: Start your story with someone looking out at the snow, and end it with them stepping tentatively onto a frozen surface.

Our world is hardly a simple place to navigate, even (and often especially) for kids. It’s huge, diverse, and filled with people who all experience life in different ways, facing different obstacles. The Equal Opportunity Book Box is all about preparing children to live in this bright, colorful world by sharing with them fun, engaging picture books about diversity. Whether they feature characters of color, LGBTQIA+ characters, and/or characters with disabilities, the picture books in this box will hugely help you in your quest to raise kind, open-minded kids. 32. Bookroo Armed with all the books, music, and art in the world, you may still find that your staunchest ally when it comes to inspiration is yourself. The notion of writing in a journal usually conjures up visions of high schoolers twirling fluffing pencils and scribbling, “Dear Diary.” Still, studies have shown that journaling is a great way to nurture your creativity.Need a jumping-off point? We’ve got you covered with our lovingly curated list of over 200 short story ideas. Here are a few to whet your appetite: While I’ve often donated my books to thrift stores, Fishmann encourages gifting to friends, too. “There is such joy in giving a book to someone else that you loved. So anytime (in pre-COVID days at least), someone would come over, they’d always end up leaving my place with several books in hand.” For those days when you’d rather enjoy the company of fictional friends than real ones, there’s Introverts Retreat — a book subscription box that helps you make the most of your precious time alone. Each box contains everything you need for a blissful day to yourself: your choice of novel from a great selection; a candle, bath salts, and scented soap; coffee, tea, or cocoa; and a sweet treat lovingly made by an indy baker or chocolatier. With this box at your disposal, you’ll never want to leave the house again. 17. Chocolate and Book In 2015 Jago was awarded the International Literacy Association’s Adolescent Literacy Thought Leader Award, and in 2016, the NCTE’s Conference on English Leadership’s Exemplary Leadership Award. She has been named by the US Department of Education to serve on the National Assessment Governing Board. She is associate director of the California Reading and Literature Project at UCLA.