Really need to get back in the groove here. Way too much time between posts.

My new nickname is Quick Draw McGraw. Because I'm toooooo stinkin' fast at punching the computer keys... the wrong computer key that is....

Happy New Year everyone!

I still haven't sold my first book. Yet as I reflect on this past year, I see a definite difference in my writing skills. My themes are more interesting. My characters are much fuller. My writing style has changed tremendously.
So I guess this year hasn't been a total bust afterall.

My theme for 2011 is -- repeat, repeat, repeat. Repeat writing. Repeat subbing. Repeat sales (I hope!).

Stay safe. Best wishes to you all.

Lois 

because I simply can't abide a world where things like this are becoming the norm.

I love everything about real books and
nothing about digital imitations.

Decided to give it a whirl this year. I have never written in such a time frame before. It'll do me good, I'm sure. I was surprised to see 27 other writers signed in for my region. This is not a big town, by any means. Glad that I don't have to worry about content necessarily. Worrying about it is a norm for me. I need to learn to write and keep on writing. Edit later.

Well great good luck to all participants! Happy sailing.... Read the rest of this post

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Bernice and Abigail Take a Trip

Spring has finally sprung. There are noisy bugs, chirping birds, and sweet-smelling flowers everywhere. The Waddlebutt sisters, Bernice and Abigail, are tickled pink to be outside, doing all of their favorite springtime things. So why does Bernice have a case of Spring Fever? And how will she ever get over it?

The Waddlebutt sisters are successful at collecting enough money for their train trip, but when they get to the travel agency, all the cheap seats are gone; Bernice and Abigail haven't a clue what to do, until they stop for a snack at Trixie's Trinket and Tea Room.
 

The first day of autumn
when a young writer's thoughts turn to
falling leaves, pumpkins, and poetry.


September
by Helen Hunt Jackson

The goldenrod is yellow;
The corn is turning brown;
The trees in apple orchards
With fruit are bending down.

Biography
Helen Hunt Jackson (1831-1885) was an American poet and novelist. She was born in Amherst, Massachusetts, where her father was a professor in Amherst College, but she spent much of her life in California. She married a banker in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where she lived for a few years. Her poems are very beautiful, and "September" and "October's Bright Blue Weather" are especially good pictures of these autumn months.

After much soul searching, I can finally answer the question in my previous post. I write because I have to. I don't know why I have to, I just do.

Something else I've  learned. I'm selfish. (I did know that already, but....)

You see, I am afraid to speak in public (I mean deathly afraid), so I have always thought that if I did sell books, I would do bookstore signings, but no school visits. Then in church today, as an illustration for his class, the preacher was talking about being 8 years old, elementary school art class, and play doh. It made me think about the author and the illustrator who visited my class when I was that young. They showed slides of their book (a beach book I recall), and how the illustrations were made, and how they came up with the text, and all that writerly stuff. I remember being so enthralled. They made such an impact on me that I decided I wanted to be an author/illustrator too. And that was 45 years ago.

Then it hit me. I discovered just how selfish I really am. If I should ever be so blessed as to have the opportunity to reach just one child... then who am I to run and hide.

My eldest daughter and her family moved recently. They now live 9 hours away from me. Neither of my children have ever lived so far away. I'm having a hard time getting used to it.

But I have a hard time getting used to change anyway. I think that's why I continue to write. It has become a crutch for me. It must be. I have never sold anything. Doesn't look like I will. But I'm too afraid to go out and live, so I just keep doing the same thing over and over. 

My daughter told me last night about how happy they are up there. How they haven't been this happy in a long time. I'm happy for them. Really, I am. My youngest daughter and her family are happy, too. They live here in town, but have enormously active lives. I need a life, too. Instead of writing about people with lives, I need to make one for myself.

I think further examination is needed here.

Don't get excited, it isn't good. I haven't found a home yet, publisher or agent, for my current PB. BUT, I am almost done with the first book in my easy reader series. I want to write a couple more in the series and then start on a MG novel. I know PBs are a hard sell for we unknown writers, but it was one of those books that just had to be written.

Back to work now.
 

"What lies behind us, and what lies
before us are small matters
compared to what lies within us."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

I just watched the movie. Interesting. Intriguing. Fast-paced.

Reminds me of a futuristic Indians vs Cowboys movie.

I have tried only a couple of times to write a longer book, but the expanse of the project seemed so daunting
I stopped.  And today I came across this quote by one of my favorite authors:

#1: Retrosexual

I have discovered that easy readers (easy to read, but not easy to write) are a joy to work on.

I took my 15 year old PB ms, and with a lot of praying, transformed it into a 40 page easy reader.

I can't believe how indepth the characterization can get in such a short space. Anyway, it was a hoot

to write and now I'm busy subbing it.

Yay, I finished draft #2 of my chapter book. I really am enjoying this format. This particular project is going quite well so far. I hope it keeps up this way.

While I'm waiting to hear from the publisher, I have been working on a revision of an old picturebook manuscript. I have changed it  quite a bit. Changed the format to a chapter book. Changed the voice. Changed the beginning. Left the ending the same, though. I just love the ending.

Yesterday was a good day. I finished my manuscript and sent it off to the publisher that showed interest in my work. The one that took the time to return my manuscript (it had sat in her office for 5 years) and request  more. I sent my project off with a kiss and a prayer. Here's hoping she likes it :)

I was stuck for a while on the plot of one of my picture books. And then the answer came to me via my 5 year-old grand daughter. She made one small comment, innocently,  that solved the whole plotting problem. Yay!

For me, it bears repeating. My theme for the upcoming year is

BE BRAVE

Wishing my LJ family a happy, safe, and merry Christmas!

I know it's a bit early for this, but as I already know what my theme is for the new year, I shall post it:

BE BRAVE

In all aspects of my life I need to be reminded of this.

I was very confused to find one of my manilla return envelopes in the mail box the other day. That's because I haven't submitted anything for quite a while now. So you can imagine my surprise when I opened it and found one of my mss and a complimentary rejection letter inside.

The editor said she found my manuscript at the bottom of one of her many piles of mss while she was trying to clean up her office. She said my story was "humorous and well-executed" (which absolutely thrilled me), and said if I had anymore picture book mss at home, she would like to see them. Hooray!

Oh, I guess I forgot to mention that the ms had been submitted FIVE years ago! How exciting that after all those years she took time out of her busy scedule to address it.

I am tickled pink.... Read the rest of this post

I have been working diligently on a contemporary celebrity biography for a couple of months now
(a celebrity that I happen to think is dreamy btw), until I just happened across this month's issue of a popular fashion magazine at the grocery. Low and behold there inside it were pics of his wife posing in a bra and undies. Now for most people that probably isn't a big deal, but I want my writing to reflect who I am -- and I'm not someone who agrees with immodesty. I figure he went along with this, and in fact, it probably isn't the only spread like that, because she has been popular for quite a while. It went against my principles anyway, so I ditched the project. Oh well. Live and learn.

"Start early and work hard. A writer's apprenticeship usually involves writing a million words (which are then discarded) before he's almost ready to begin. That takes a while."
David Eddings