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Val Brelinski

Goodreads Author

Born

The United States

Website

http://www.valbrelinski.com

Twitter

ValBrelinski

Genre

Fiction

Member Since

March 2012

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Val Brelinski was born and raised in Nampa, Idaho, the daughter of devout evangelical Christians. She is a recent Wallace Stegner Fellow at Stanford, where she was also a Jones Lecturer in fiction writing. She received an MFA from the University of Virginia, and her writing has been published in such magazines as VQR, and The Rumpus, Fiction, Confrontation, and Green Mountains Review. She received prizes for her fiction from the San Francisco Chronicle, The Charlottesville Weekly, and The Boise Weekly, and was also a finalist for the Rona Jaffe Foundation Writers' Award.

She lives in Northern California and currently teaches creative writing at Stanford's Continuing Studies Program. ...more

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What are you working on now?

Val Brelinski Hi! I'm sorry that it's taken me so long to respond! I've been in the hole that writers disappear to when they're on deadline! Right now I'm working o…moreHi! I'm sorry that it's taken me so long to respond! I've been in the hole that writers disappear to when they're on deadline! Right now I'm working on a memoir about my tumultuous first marriage. It has been something of a departure from writing fiction, so I have been poring over great memoirs like This Boy's Life by Tobias Wolff for inspiration. Thanks for your question!(less)

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When did you discover your voice aaas an author?

Val Brelinski Great question! I came to writing fairly late in life--I had been teaching English at a public high school for many years and was raising a teenage so…moreGreat question! I came to writing fairly late in life--I had been teaching English at a public high school for many years and was raising a teenage son of my own before I started tinkering around with short stories. Once I started writing for pleasure, I was hooked! But I still didn't know if I would ever be very good at it. I sent stories out to a few contests and received positive feedback, but it was my decision to attend the MFA in Creative Writing program at the University of Virginia that changed my life. The instruction and feedback I received there (and later at Stanford) from my peers and professors helped me develop my voice and creative ability. (less)

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Val Brelinski’s books

Average rating: 3.72 · 2,150 ratings · 420 reviews · 1 distinct work • Similar authors

The Girl Who Slept with God

3.72 avg rating — 2,150 ratings — published 2015 — 9 editions

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Quotes by Val Brelinski (?)

“Everything’s going to be fine. We’re all going to be all right.” “I know,” she said. It was clear that no one thought this at all. Which was why they all kept saying it. And why she kept agreeing with them. As if repetition alone could keep whatever it was they were all worried about at bay.”
― Val Brelinski, The Girl Who Slept with God: A Novel

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“How was it possible to care deeply about people and not hurt them? To touch them and not leave terrible marks?”
― Val Brelinski, The Girl Who Slept with God: A Novel

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“Did anyone ever really know anyone else? Really, truly know them, so much so that you never even had to doubt their thoughts or intentions?”
― Val Brelinski, The Girl Who Slept with God

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Polls

What will be our November 2017 Open Pick?

Remember, if you vote for a book and it wins, you are implicitly promising to read the book and participate in the discussion (or sacrifice your firstborn). The poll will be open through September 30th. (Note: You can change your vote at any time prior to the closing of the poll.) Discussion will begin November 1st.

Family Matters by Rohinton Mistry

7 votes, 43.8%

Sweetland by Michael Crummey

6 votes, 37.5%

The Girl Who Slept with God by Val Brelinski

2 votes, 12.5%

The Betrayers by David Bezmozgis

1 vote, 6.3%

16 total votes

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