Blog Posts for Patricia Volonakis Davis

Harlot's Sauce Podcasts are Now Live!

Patricia Volonakis Davis — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 23:50:25 -0700

Several months ago, I decided I wanted to do podcast readings of my book, Harlot's Sauce: A Memoir of Food, Family, Love, Loss, and Greece, to coincide with the re-release of the book with its new cover. (November 2009) The new cover, I'm so very pleased to report, features more book blurbs by several writers whom I admire very much, a number of rather lovely print reviews, and an award seal from ...

Dr. Davis* Clarifies The World’s Religions for You

Patricia Volonakis Davis — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 13:29:25 -0700

(by Patricia V. Davis - Ph.d in Patrichism, Certified FRE*)All religions based on the teachings of Abraham, Mohammed, Christ, or whomever else you’re partial to, started out as marvelous ideas, I’m sure. But through extensive study, here’s what I discovered happened: One fateful day, Satan said to his minions, “Wait a moment! ─ I’ve just had an idea that might make this religion ...

On Joyce Maynard's Writing Classes ( and More)

Patricia Volonakis Davis — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 17:28:57 -0700

Joyce Maynard has a big mouth. It’s either that, or she has too much integrity to lie about anything, despite the fact that telling the truth often gets her into trouble.When you hear our podcast interview, you decide which it is.I first met Joyce Maynard when I signed up for one of her writing critique classes which she conducts here in the Bay Area of California. I’d written my first ...

Part II - I am No Longer a Person; Now I am Officially a Writer: Getting the Literary Agent

Patricia Volonakis Davis — Thu, 21 May 2009 12:29:27 -0700

Now that you have your newly-edited manuscript down to 143,122 words, (not including the 36,310 words of the ‘Back Section’ which includes recipes, a guide to additional reading, a history lesson, a wine list, and other information you deemed pertinent to your readers as addendums to your manuscript), you start looking for a book publisher. The only problem there is that you have no idea ...

I am no Longer a Person- Now I am Officially a Writer

Patricia Volonakis Davis — Wed, 06 May 2009 06:34:48 -0700

I am no Longer a Person; Now I am Officially a Writer May 2009 marks two years since I wrote my first blog , which was on VOX.com. These two years have been an extraordinary writing journey for me. I started ‘blogging’ because my literary agent ...

Top Ten Reasons to Go to a Bookstore Instead of a Bar in Trying Financial Times

Patricia Volonakis Davis — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 19:06:27 -0800

During the Great Depression, the local bar was always the last business in town to go under. And while it’s very tempting to have a drink (or the whole damn bottle) while reflecting on our lowered home values, our loss of income, and our held-hostage tax refunds, here are ten reasons, in descending order, why you should go to a bookstore, instead:Reason # 10:You don’t look ‘desperate’ ...

From an Older Woman to a Younger One

Patricia Volonakis Davis — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 08:41:21 -0700

I've just learned that one of my favorite Vox bloggers shares a birthday month with me. She'll be turning 21, whilst I'll be turning fifty-two. So for her and for every other younger woman, I've learned some valuable things about life, love and being female over the past half-century. I thought if I passed some of the more important ones on to you, Maybe it will save you some precious time. 1) ...

Dr. Davis’ Dictionary of the Surreal

Patricia Volonakis Davis — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 09:41:10 -0700

When I was in sixth grade, none of these words/phrases existed. Now, every sixth-grader with access to a television or laptop knows their meanings.. In case you’re still confused - don’t worry - I’m here to help. Using the expertise afforded me by my self-proclaimed Ph.D Degree in Patrochism, I’ve painstakingly compiled these definitions to get you up to speed. Words (in alphabetical ...

Atticus Finch - Sex Bomb

Patricia Volonakis Davis — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 09:53:16 -0800

For now, I have to assume the world is full of imperfection, which is why we read certain books and/or write them. It's so we can imagine what perfection would be like. Growing up in a family where it was like a religious belief that the louder one yelled and the harder one bullied, the more power one displayed; that every slight had to be responded to with a bigger one, that manipulation and ...

Historical Romance - Fluff or Learning Tool?

Patricia Volonakis Davis — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 14:18:24 -0800

I was an eight-grader when I read my first historical romance novel. It was Gone With the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell. It had been recommended to me by my social studies teacher, Ms. Gebhart. We'd been studying the American Civil War. I can't remember the comment I made which prompted her to say, "You really should read Gone With the Wind."I read that novel all day and into the night, ...