We’re at the beginning of National Novel Writing Month, and if you can pronounce the abbreviation people use for the project, then chances are you’re going to try to write 50,000 words’ worth of manuscript before the end of this month.
And good luck to you, if you are.
But one word of advice: if you’re going to write a book in November, don’t forget the dedication!
Yes, in most books there are pretty straightforward dedications, to parents, spouses, children, friends, fellow writers, personal heroes and, quite often, a blanket dedication along the lines of “thanks to everyone who I like.”
But there are surprises in there.
The website Sad and Useless compiled a list of some good ones, like this one from author Babe Walker: “Dedicated to the strongest person I know: me.”
A book by David Wong has a dedication “For Carley, who was a better person than I am even though she was a dog.”
A few are dedicated to the usual people, but with some curveballs, like the one for a dad, followed by “Actually, Dad doesn’t read fiction, so if someone doesn’t tell him about this, he’ll never know.”
Or the one to a mom who clearly had other career hopes for their child than writing. “I would have made a terrible doctor, Mom,” it reads. “People would have died.”
Finally, there’s this dedication from Moose Allain, author of “I Wonder What I’m Thinking About”; it reads: “To my wife Karen, who is 90% inspiration and 90% patience. No, it doesn’t add up to 180%. She multitasks.”
A new scientific report sheds some light on the pelagornithid, which they believe was the largest flying bird ever.
It’s from 50 million years ago, had a 20 foot wingspan and teeth. Or as Smithsonian put it, “Imagine an albatross with a hacksaw for a mouth.”
I imagined it, and then I freaked out.
Brilliant Book Dedications (Sad and Useless)
Scientists Reveal What May Be the Largest Flying Bird Ever (Smithsonian)
