Julie Barrett is a freelance writer and photographer based in Plano, TX.

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Monday Mumblings Polishes the Brass
It was a busy, fun, productive weekend.

I spent Friday with some writer and artist friends who were down for AKon. We went up to Perth Street and to Sam Moon. Along the way I managed to lock my keys in the car and had to get rescued. Thanks, Chris! 

For those who don't live in the area, Perth Street is a little area off of Harry Hines (yep, named after a real person) chock full of wholesale and off-price fabric stores. Most of the places are wareh...
6/13/2011 6:48:10 AM
What I'm Reading
Catching up on a truckload of books from the last three weeks. I believe I've mentioned most of these before:

First up, "The Devil in the White City," by Erik Larson tells the story of serial killer H. H. Holmes and Daniel Burnham, architect and driving force behind the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. Sandwiched in among the tales of murder and bureaucratic bumbling that nearly did in the event was the story of a young engineer named George Ferris. Perhaps you've heard of...
4/7/2011 7:37:49 AM
What I'm Reading
This is a follow-up on last Thursday's post, plus a mention of new books.

Oh, yes. More books.

I finished "All Roads Lead to Calvary." Yeah, the ending was sorta predictable, but at least Jerome went through many machinations (including WWI) to get there. It was more of a novel of finding love than going out to change the world. To be fair, while the main character is female, the male lead ended up in the same place and neither of them ch
...
3/17/2011 2:12:59 PM
More Research/Reading Material
I have a fascination with the Gilded Age and the politics and technology intertwined with that period of history. In England it would be the late Victorian and early Edwardian era. Here, it's the late 1800s through the dawn of the World War I. It was a time when the rich were very rich indeed, technology was changing at a rapid pace, and the Progressive Movement was a force, not to mention Socialism.

Hey, that sounds familiar, doesn't it? I suppose that's one reason I'm so taken with tha
...
3/10/2011 5:20:27 PM
What I'm Reading
I've been re-reading some stuff from my library for research, but I've still had time to read some new (to me, at least) books.

First up is Mainspring and Escapement by Jay Lake. I love some good worldbuilding, and Lake has it in spades here. It's an alternate reality/Steampunk/clockwork universe. The entire world is set on clockwork. The equator is essentially a giant gear. There's civilization all along (and up) the gear wall, but a strict physical divide
...
7/11/2010 2:15:05 PM
What I'm Reading
Time to go through the stack of books and share what I've been reading lately:

I'll start with the boring research: A Fierce Discontent: The Rise And Fall of the Progressive Movement In America, by Michael McGeer. I have this idea for an alternative history fermenting in my brain (ewww!). I have a basic story going, but I need to define a divergence point and figure out exactly what changes. Thus I've been digging into stuff from the Regency until about 1930 - on both sides of the
...
4/12/2010 1:33:02 PM
Friday!
It's the end of the week. And there was MUCH rejoicing.

Actually, today was a busy day, and I'm still waiting for the inevitable crash. I may even write some more.

I lazed around ab bit this morning, but then took off to vote early for Tuesday's primary election, ran down to Buckingham for a bottle or two, back for groceries, home for laundry, housework, research, and some writing.

I still have some energy, but I probably ought not to push myself. I'd like to think I've tur
...
2/26/2010 8:17:35 PM
What I'm Reading
Well, that lat post was more than a drop of vintage whine. Thanks for indulging me.

One of my goals is to blog more about the things I'm reading. And to that end, this seemed like a good time.

I'm plotting out an alternate history story. It started as pure Steampunk, but as I got into all of the details I decided that label might not fit. (Oh, what's a label, anyway? Don't get me started down that path.) At this point "alternate history" allows me to be more open to po
...
1/8/2010 10:19:00 PM
What I'm Reading: "Beyond Heaving Bosoms"
Welcome to a new occasional feature, "What I'm Reading." More accurately, it should be what I've just finished, but hey, let's not quibble.

The book: Beyond Heaving Bosoms: The Smart Bitches Guide to Romance Novels, by Sarah Wendell and Candy Tan.

I am not a big reader of mainstream romance, though I do enjoy other genre books that have a romance element. My early exposure to romance was the grocery store novels with the horrid covers and purple prose. Mainstream romance has
...
5/12/2009 12:12:53 PM
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Tag Search Results
Monday Mumblings Polishes the Brass
6/13/2011 6:48:10 AM

What I'm Reading
4/7/2011 7:37:49 AM

What I'm Reading
3/17/2011 2:12:59 PM

More Research/Reading Material
3/10/2011 5:20:27 PM

What I'm Reading
7/11/2010 2:15:05 PM

What I'm Reading
4/12/2010 1:33:02 PM

Friday!
2/26/2010 8:17:35 PM

What I'm Reading
1/8/2010 10:19:00 PM

What I'm Reading: "Beyond Heaving Bosoms"
5/12/2009 12:12:53 PM

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