Whew! Back in the office, where I returned to the sound of 421 queries simultaneously shouting “Hi! Hi! Where have you been?!” from my Inbox. Needless to say, query response time is going to be delayed for a while. Not least of which due to the monumental jet lag that led me to arrive at the office at 6:15 this morning since, hey, I was wide awake anyway!
Also, while away I entered the ranks of those who have read Jonathan Franzen’s Freedom. Loved it. Seriously. That guy really knows human beings. Frankly I’m surprised he can walk down the street with that much awareness of what makes every single person around him tick. It’s no wonder he loves bird watching.
But more on that when my brain knows what time it is.
Lastly, a major THANK YOU to the incredible lineup of guest posters for their amazing series of posts. I don’t know that this blog has had a better week in its history. Thank you thank you.
vnrieker says
Guest bloggers WERE great, but I'm also happy you're back! (^_^)
J. R. McLemore says
Welcome back, Nathan. Now, go get some rest!
I have to agree, the guest bloggers were very good to read.
Cathi says
Welcome back!
Michelle says
Welcome back, Mr. Bransford! (I'm trying to earn brownie points because my query is somewhere in your inbox).
I really enjoyed learning from, and being entertained by, your guest bloggers.
Marilyn Peake says
Hi, Nathan,
Welcome back! Wow, showing up at work at 6:15 in the morning just because you’re wide awake – that is some jet lag! I just got back from a long weekend across the country in Southern California and only had mini-jet-lag, which involved 12 hours of sleep followed by a nap a few hours later.
I felt the same way after reading FREEDOM. Jonathan Franzen is so brilliant with so much insight into human beings at all stages of life in vastly different settings … and, oh my God, he sees so much of where the world is really at and where we might be headed, I wondered how he even functions. I found it interesting that practically every discussion about FREEDOM on the Internet completely avoids the information inside the actual novel, FREEDOM. Maybe it’s too frightening for most people to discuss. Most of the discussions have been about his brouhaha with Oprah, his curmudgeonly personality (to which I always want to respond: Have you even read the book? Try living inside Franzen’s head for a while and see how happy-go-lucky you feel.), how President Obama purchased the book on his vacation, and the incident in which Franzen’s glasses were stolen right off his face. Sigh. It’s like there’s a rule: Discuss FREEDOM without ever discussing the actual pages of FREEDOM.
Chase Holland says
Guest bloggers were AWESOME, but we are glad to have you back!!! And yes, FREEDOM is amazing.
chaseholland.blogspot.com
Katzie says
Glad to have you back! It's so wonderful that you take the time to find subs for your blog instead of letting it run dry for a week. What would we do?! O_O
Layla Fiske says
Welcome back Nathan.
I have to say what others have said…the guest bloggers were awesome.
thanks for keeping us entertained and educated while you were gone.
L
D.G. Hudson says
Welcome back! Must have crossed a few time zones if you've got jet lag. It took me a couple of days when 9 time zones were involved.
The guest bloggers were great and diverse in their postings. It wasn't you, Nathan, but they kept us reading this blog while you were away.
Remilda Graystone says
Welcome back!
Deni Krueger says
Here's to hoping your body and brain can be one again.
Home sweet home…
Kristin Laughtin says
Welcome back!
Great job in selecting your line-up of guest bloggers.
Terri Tiffany says
Welcome back–take your time on those queries:)
Josin L. McQuein says
Welcome back!
In the office at 6:15? You are doing nothing to dispel the rumor that you're a robot. Humans simply cannot function at that hour; I'm pretty sure it's coded into our DNA..er… maybe it's the RNA…um… NBA… AT&T… something.
Emily White says
Welcome back! The guest bloggers were great!
abc says
I hope you enjoyed some delicious coffee or beer. Or both.
Freedom is now in my hands (thanks to the Dad having just finished it and lending me his copy). I'm excited. Except without an exclamation point.
The guest writers were wunderbar!
Alex J. Cavanaugh says
Welcome back! Sounds like your day's as busy as mine.
Anonymous says
Freedom is a long book. Hope there was some romance on this trip too 🙂
Sierra McConnell says
Yay, you're back!
Though the guest boogers were wonderful, we're glad to have you back! :3
M.A.Leslie says
Welcome back Nathan. I just got to 2004 in Freedom. I know that I am only a third through it but WOW. How can one person be that amazingly talented?
Leila says
Welcome back! I hope you feel refreshed and recharged. As a settling back in tip, I highly recommend chocolate to support you through the rough re-adjustment to local time zone phase you'll be experiencing about now.
Thanks for organizing such great guest bloggers, they were fantastic.
And again, welcome back!
StaceyW says
Thanks for not leaving us hanging. The guest bloggers were great.
And yeah, FREEDOM was one of the best books I've read in a year of very, very good books. I don't think there's a topic related to modern life it didn't touch in some way.
Moyrid says
We all missed you. The guest bloggers were wonderful but it is good to have you back.
Wild Child says
As my good friend Moyrid said up there, we missed you. I was going to say exactly what she said, we loved the guest bloggers (I learned a thing or two), but it's nice to have you back.
(and she really is my good friend)
Mira says
Yay, Nathan's back. I hope you had a wonderful time on your vacation, and you're all rested and refreshed (aside from jetlag).
From our side – I agree with others – you were missed! It was generous and kind of you to feature guest bloggers – they were terrific, and it was lots of fun reading them.
But it's very nice to have you back.
Maria Kenney says
Welcome back, Nathan!
Wow, those guest bloggers were amazing. Definitely something for everyone in those posts. I read them religiously. You should go away more often!
Just kidding. We're glad you're back!
sex scenes at starbucks, says
I can't believe you LEFT right when I came to SF for Bouchercon. I'm trying not to take it personally. I did have fun raising a ruckus with one of your clients, though. 🙂
Sheila Cull says
WELCOME HOME!
Elle says
Could you please find a tiny second to check out my blog on my second book:
fliestohoney.blogspot.com
i think you kinda want to…
Elle
Jan Markley says
I haven't read Freedom but I bought one of his earlier works last week at the Strand when I was in NY.
J. T. Shea says
Nathan who? The name does ring a bell…Oh, yes, the agent type person.
Jetlagged and into work with no sleep!? I had to take a nap after just READING that.
I get jetlagged from walking. Walklag. Maybe I should stop walking across time zones…
Angie Muresan says
I did miss your posts, Nathan. And I'm probably the only one who hasn't read anything the guest bloggers had to say. I took the opportunity to read Freedom instead.
Ted Cross says
Welcome back! Oddly, I always have worse jet-lag flying east than I do coming back west. I always seem to have these super-long flights that take 30 hours with layovers, so flying east and losing hours with each time zone really kills me. Anyhow, hope you feel better soon.
wendy says
Hey! I'm glad you're back, Nathan. Even though we don't know each other I feel like I know you. I know your words and some of your thoughts at least.
And, yes, thank YOU to all the brilliant guest bloggers. Wow. Had a fun time reading their posts and learnt such a lot.
Is Freedom really so incredible? Then I must read it. And thanks for the heads up on it. No one I know in this tiny retirement-like village reads anything like that so all I know about contemporary, amazing lit comes pretty much from this blog.
Mood: feeling happy and peaceful.
Jill says
So let me get this straight …
I sent you my query while you were away, and now it's sitting amongst 400-something other queries?
Crud.
And while you were away, you read the Super Most Awesome Book Ever, and now my little ol' query has to compete with that?
Double crud.
Ben says
Welcome back sir. Glad you're among us Franzenites. For your jet lag, may I suggest Nyquil? Just one shot before the set bed time and it should regulate your sleep
wry wryter says
Missed having you with my morning coffee and my late night snack. Missed you in the middle of the day after getting home from work. Missed you during writer's block and the frustration of a blank page.
Missed you when I needed answers and missed you because you are one of the few who actually reads what we write.
Gee Nathan…did you miss me…
HELL NO !!
Welcome home babe.
OMG I just called Mr Branford babe.
wry wryter says
Sorry Nathan, I missed you so much I left the S out of your name. WOW thats a no no.
B.E.T. says
Welcome back! The guests bloggers did have a lot of good insight. You picked them well! Your week away was a joy, but still…nothing like the original.
Terin Tashi Miller says
Welcome back. Guest bloggers were indeed great.
Glad I didn't decide to query you yet…:)
Other Lisa says
@sex scenes at starbucks – I don't know what you're talking about….
And I guess I do need to read FREEDOM. I read the free excerpt and really liked it.
Pamela Jane says
Nathan, I read everything you wrote about synopses and queries while you were away, but I started to wonder, is there a synopsis gene and am I maybe missing it? I finally decided it was time to put the genes aside and get to work!
Anonymous says
Nathan,
Please do a countdown of the 421 queries so we know how many you are still left with…(I'm half serious about this…)
Have a great rest of the week 🙂