Carrie Anne Noble, Author

Any avid reader knows there are books and then there are books. There are books you read and then forget, and there are certain books that stick with you for the rest of your life.   When I was about 14, I read Mervyn Peake's novel Titus Groan for the first time. Reading has always been my favorite sport, and I began making up stories at an early age...but this encounter with Peake changed me. His rich, somber fantasy was a world unto itself. His characters and settings were odd and fascinating and wonderful--and presented with such skill that although I've not read the Gormenghast trilogy for years, I can still remember Peake's people and places with clarity.     Reading Peake made me write in a new way. His novels and poetry unlocked a deep love of language in me, a love for the shapes and sounds of words. This love flowed out of my pen and filled my notebooks with brooding teenage poetry (stuff you will never ...

Yet more Mermaidy Trivia...   I collected the name "Scarff" from the side of an appliance company van while on a trip to Virginia. I guess there are real people named Scarff in the world. And they travel about fixing washing machines. I wonder if they ever find orphans under apple trees or tucked inside seashells. Pilsner was almost named "Pilcrow," but it seemed kind of wrong to name a raven something with the word "crow" in it. The Red Hedgehog Tavern was named after the tavern Johannes Brahms liked to frequent in Vienna (Zum Roten Igel). For more on the bits of Brahms in the book, see the other 10 Fun Facts list on this blog. http://www.carrienoble.com/2015/02/10-fun-facts-about-mermaids-sister.html Clara Schumann The figure in the upper left corner of the book cover is Dr. Phipps, not Scarff, as some have assumed. Originally, Auntie was supposed to have a stubby-winged pet bat in addition to Osbert the wyvern. I...

  Book Launch Party for The Mermaid's Sister Thanks to everyone who attended & helped with the party at the James V. Brown Library on March 6! It was a great success. I think we really shocked the sweet librarian who helped to plan the event by having 135 guests show up!      Advertising in the elevator. I found it exciting!   The happy author herself      Book signing table   What beautiful books! Refreshments table inspired by Scarff & O'Neill's caravan of exotic wares                     Osbert tote bag--a door prize  College room mates reunited!       Author &  the husband who puts up with her   ...

Stuff you'll probably never be asked about on Jeopardy... Hi! In a spirit of fun (and as a way of procrastinating working on my next novel), I offer you 10 random facts about The Mermaid's Sister --things that even Alex Trebek doesn't know!   Bushy-bearded Brahms, or Ezra Scarff  O'Neill was named after my friend's neighbor's dog. Brahms' German Requiem was a major part of my writing playlist. Which leads us to number 3... O'Neill's looks were modeled after young Johannes Brahms and... Scarff's appearance was inspired by older, bushy-bearded Brahms. In an early draft, Pilsner the raven helped Soraya Phipps capture Clara, O'Neill, & Maren. Maren's name means "of the sea." Clara's middle name is Amelia, which was my great grandmother's middle name. The tune O'Neill hums to Clara in Chapter 29 is Brahms' Waltz in A-Flat Major. (Again with the Brahms, I know. But it's such a beautiful piec...

"dreams all made solid" (to quote Peter Gabriel)   That's how I feel about this special package the UPS man brought yesterday.     I gave away my first copy today, to my sweet, bookaholic grandma. She was the first one to read an early version of The Mermaid's Sister --which she still keeps wrapped in tissue paper, as if it were a very precious treasure. I love how she loves the story. I hope you will read it and share her enthusiasm!   The Mermaid's Sister is a Kindle First pick for February:     http://www.amazon.com/Mermaids-Sister-Carrie-Anne-Noble-ebook/dp/B00LWDQO3Q/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1423086016&sr=8-11&keywords=kindle+first   and the paperback and audiobook can be ordered here:   http://www.amazon.com/Mermaids-Sister-Carrie-Anne-Noble/dp/1477820884/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1411157327&sr=1-1&keywords=the+mermaid%27s+sister

Grape Pudding for a Snowy Day   In my novel, The Mermaid's Sister , Clara reminisces about a snowy day she shared with her sister Maren and their best friend O'Neill when they were very young.   Clara says: When Auntie forced us inside, we unwrapped ourselves from our layers of woolens and hung them to dry near the fireplace. And you were the first to notice the heavenly scent of Auntie’s hot grape pudding. Steaming in our soup bowls, as purple as an Easter crocus, with dollops of whipped cream melting into froth. I can still taste it if I close my eyes. Can you? We ran our spoons around the edges of the pudding to scoop up the part that had cooled from scalding to merely hot. O’Neill giggled when he took his first bite. He said it tasted like purple heaven.   Here's a recipe for grape pudding. It's also called Kram, and my Swedish mother-in-law always made it for her children after the first snowfall of the year. This isn't her secret recipe,...

And the story grew wings and flew far...   A year ago--almost to the day--I entered my novel (now titled The Mermaid's Sister ) in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest. I had no intention of winning. I didn't really believe my entry would go far among ten thousand others, although I hoped it would get far enough to win the free manuscript review by Publishers Weekly offered as a prize for quarter finalists. And it did! Seashell, Stork and Apple Tree (the book's original title) received a glowing review from PW. I was thrilled! Mission accomplished. But wait! The ride wasn't over! I remember the July day when the phone rang and the caller i.d. said Amazon. I thought they were calling to ask how I liked a recent purchase. Instead, two very excited ladies gave me some of the best news of my life: I'd won the Young Adult category and was in the running for the grand prize. Not only that--they gushed over the book. They loved it. And I had thought that ...