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Dear Reader,
I'm on vacation this week. My husband and I are wandering around the Blue Ridge Mountains. Instead of running previous columns, I've asked some friends of mine to fill in for me. Today's guest column is written by Carol Fitzgerald.
Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.
Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
www.DearReader.com
From Guest Columnist Carol Fitzgerald....
Each weekday morning I log into my email and read Suzanne's column. Like many of you, it's the way I start my day. Suzanne and I met a couple of years ago in Los Angeles when we were on a panel together at a book conference. I was intrigued by what she was doing with DearReader.com as I love projects and programs that connect readers with books and authors. You see, I founded a website called Bookreporter.com in 1996 while Suzanne started DearReader.com in 1999. As Internet entrepreneurs there is a certain kinship between us.
Many of the books she excerpts we have reviewed on Bookreporter.com or one of our other websites, or we have provided a reading group discussion for the book on ReadingGroupGuides.com. As a result, I enjoy seeing what she is sharing with her readers.
But there is more than just the books happening here, which is something I know you feel too. As I read Suzanne's columns I have come to know her better than I know some friends who I have known for years. Through her stories, pictures and ramblings--and I mean the latter in the fondest sense--I came to know her.
I also read between the lines.
Last year when her mom was ill I knew from reading columns how her mom was doing. I could tell by what she wrote--and didn't. When I heard of her mom's death offline, I waited to see how she would share it with her readers. What I read, when she told you this news, carried the same emotion I heard in her voice on the phone. When she writes with glee about a bubble machine she wants to give away, or a special book giveaway, I can see her smiling as she writes. That's something special.
We had dinner in Chicago back in June. I arrived at the restaurant and found her hunched over her notebook writing away just as she described in her column. I realized then that the reason her column works is because it comes from the heart instead of some made up place.
Right now I am picturing Suzanne on vacation in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I can see her with camera in hand documenting places to share with her readers. I can see her finding items in small shops to share with you. And I can see her reading and pondering what books she wants to share.
I know this because I live my life the same way. I read a book and think about how to bring it with our readers. I do something and think how to make it live on our pages, newsletter or in a blog.
I almost ended this column with a trivia game about Suzanne to see how well you know her. But then I realized that this is not a place to get tested or graded. It's a place to explore and relax. I love the way she tells readers to skip books when they are not interested. To me, that's why you love it here. You see, she like me sets the table and invites you in. What you take from the visit is all up to you.
Happy reading.
Carol Fitzgerald
Carol@bookreporter.com
www.bookreporter.com
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