Free Range Books.

Hi there! 

I’m not Emma Watson, but I’m hiding books just like she does! Ms. Watson has been sneaking books onto public transportation for a while now and I wanted to join in.

I’m Linda Mercury, and this is one of my very favorite books. Please take good care of it. When you are done, leave it again for someone else to find.

If you have thoughts, come join me at See Jane Publish  (seejanepublish.wordpress.com) or my blog (www.lindamercury.com).  Let’s get all Portland out there and have free range books.

Spread the words,

Linda

Last month, with the above note, I snuck two copies of both The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir and Women’s History for Beginner’s by Bonnie J. Morris into various locations around the Portland Greater Metropolitan Area.

I’m a fervent feminist. Lately, though, I had fallen into despair over current events. I had lost hope. When Jessie from See Jane Publish first approached me with the idea to salute Emma Watson’s brilliant campaign to increase literacy, I leaped at the opportunity. But what books would I choose?

History is a subject near and dear to my heart. As a young woman studying history in college, I fought against professors that stated, “There are no good women historians,” and “A class on the history of Sub-Saharan Africa is like a class on the history of Lichtenstein.”

So, yeah. That was a thing. Obviously, Women’s History for Beginners was the perfect book for this project. What an incredible book to fight these still-present attitudes!

I chose Beauvoir’s breakthrough book since it began the Second Wave of feminism. Published in France in 1949, it forced the world to think of women’s equality in ways beyond getting the vote. Beauvoir’s assertion that one’s sex/gender is created and influenced by society broke open the essentialist thoughts that women are inherently chaotic, animalist, and lesser than men.



I hope the people who read these books write in the margins, laugh, cry, and discuss their thoughts with other people. This was my first time doing free-range books, but it won’t be my last.

Creating a Writing Life

Owner Maggie and her daughter, Jordan

The coffee shop/tea shop is a cliche for a reason. Writers go there not just for their caffeine fix, but for the warmth and the chance to be around other people working.

Like the also-popular library, a comfortable coffee shop is an essential place for your literary life. The synergy all those laptops and people reading is a shot in the arm for your own work.

So let's explore some wonderful places to write and refresh yourself. Especially The ClockWork Rose Tea Emporium. 

If this doesn't make you want to write a story of derring-do, nothing will.

C. Morgan Kennedy and I

My friend C. Morgan Kennedy, a steampunk fan, discovered this gorgeous place. The owners, Maggie and Harold, have lavished love, attention, and thoughtfulness all over their gorgeous space. All the little details in the tea shop inspire and encourage a writer (ok, *this* writer) to take care with all the small details that make a scene sing.

Look at those gears!

How can your writing not soar under pretty balloons?

Something about warm beverages and delicious, carefully made treats (seriously, try the scones) keeps people (ok, *this* person), alert and refreshed even during the most difficult writing tasks.

Seriously. Everything is delicious.

Harold, Maggie's Husband made nearly all their steampunk decor.

The awesome, tempting shop.

If you have to write, scout out a local coffee house or tea shop. Find a place with comfortable chairs, delicious baked goods, and excellent beverages. I promise, it will always lift you up and renew your enthusiasm for your projects.