Happy New Year

I'm posting Healthy New Year's recipes over on HealthyWriter.com today but I thought I'd drop off some fun music here.

Salmon

Blogging today at HealthyWriters.com about all the health benefits of eating wild salmon.
Come on over and share your recipes.

A Song of Peace

My class is singing this for the Christmas concert and I get goosebumps every time I hear them sing it.

This isn't them - just a YouTube version I found.

Happy December.

Thanksgiving Blessings

Happy Thanksgiving.

Saturday visits

Blogging in two places today:

It's Saturday so I'm over at HealthyWriter.com. Today's post shares a really delicious and healthy pumpkin soup recipe.

I'm also honored to be guest posting at the Yankee-Belle Cafe today. I'm sharing a family Thanksgiving tradition.

Please drop on by.

Veterans Day commercials

The New York Times had an article on Tuesday about the increase in commercials for Veterans Day.

Acknowledging the Veterans on Their Day in the Limelight.

Read it if you have a chance. This is the opening paragraph.

FOR Veterans Day 2011, Madison Avenue will seem redder, whiter and bluer than it has in a long time.
Advertisers had for many years marked the holiday in prosaic, almost formulaic ways, primarily by offering consumers Veterans Day sales on merchandise like cars, clothing and furniture. But more recently, with Americans at war in Afghanistan and Iraq, campaigns have become more creative and heartfelt — echoing the patriotic ads that showed support for the troops during World War II.

I've also seen a number of ads linked on Facebook and Twitter in the past few days.

This one from Boeing was filmed with real veterans from our armed forces.



This one for Walmart gets me every time.



Or Applebee's ad to the tune Stand Up by Sugarland.


Applebee's actually has an entire site devoted to this - Thankyoumovement.com

Budweiser has Coming Home with the slogan Proudly Serving those who Serve

note: Budweiser has a disclaimer that you need to be old enough to drink to watch this video
 


I've got to admit, I have mixed feelings reading the article and watching the videos.

Several days ago I read an interesting blog post by a veteran asking that people not just say thank you, but that they do something more meaningful to help veterans in need - something like helping a homeless vet or offering a job to a veteran.


According to the article, some of these companies are doing just that.

Many of the new campaigns for Veterans Day, which will be observed on Friday, have cause-marketing components, helping to raise money for organizations like the USO and the Wounded Warrior Project. In other instances, companies are pledging to add jobless veterans to their payrolls. 

So what do you think?

I'm curious for everyone's opinions, but I'm especially interested to hear from veterans. Does this feel more like appreciation or commercialization to you?

The more I research my current book, the more aware I am of the depth of the sacrifices veterans have made for our county.  So, if you are a veteran, please accept my heartfelt thanks today and everyday for the service you have given and the sacrifices you have made.

Cinnamon Bread

This one's for Ruthy (and anyone who loves to bake).

My Genesis Thank You!

Last night at the ACFW Conference in St. Louis, I won the Contemporary Romance category of the Genesis Contest. I wasn't able to be there, but I wanted to thank everyone involved - so here is my humble attempt at VBlogging.
I never ever expected to win because I had two extremely talented co-finalists - Jessica and Pepper. Thank you to you both for sharing this night with me.

ETA - I have no idea what those knocking noises are!
Have no idea why that horrid picture shows up 1st either.

Just another manic Monday

I'd been saving this one for later in the year when things get hectic, but given that today my day begins at 7 and I won't get home til 10ish, I think it suits.

How's your Monday?

Chia - the Seeds not the Pets

Today is my weekly vegetable post over at Healthy Writers.

I'm totally fascinated by the topic today - health benefits of chia seeds. I'd never even heard of them before last week.

Come check it out.

Chia - the Seeds not the Pets

Music Monday - "For Good"

I unexpectedly had a chance to see WICKED on Broadway this past week and it set me to thinking about a lot of writing-related things.

~ the delightful cleverness of lines that play to our memory of The Wizard of Oz.
~ the brilliance of the story line that completely changes our minds about The Wicked Witch of the West
~ the appeal of the underdog in stories
~ how everything comes together in the end (and the power of the surprise ending).

Something else made me think of writing too - When Glinda and Elpheba sang For Good, I couldn't help but thing how the lines apply to the friends we share in this writing community.

So sing along - and if you have the chance, thank a writer friend today.

Labor Day edition of Music Monday

School Starts Tomorrow

My summer officially ends tomorrow which usually means this blog goes into hibernation, but since I've done such a poor job of keeping up all summer, I'm trying something new.

Welcome to Music Monday!

I've got a very eclectic taste in music so I decided, for fun, to share music videos on Mondays. If you have any you like, please share them too!

Since it's Labor Day, how can I not start out with some working man (or woman) songs.

This is the first one that came to my mind and it seems to make all the top Labor Day lists so in honor of anyone who works - wherever and whatever hours -

Here's Dolly...



So what are your favorite working person songs?

Lazy Hazy Days of Summer

Like most of the country this week, NYC is baking!!!

Now if I were sitting on the deck of my imaginary beach house, 95 - 100 degrees might not seem so awful, but trapped in the city streets, it's oppressive.

It's also a really good excuse to indulge in my favorite summer activity - lazing away the day reading a good book.

This has been a really great reading summer for me. For some reason, last summer I was having a terribly hard time settling into any book (until The Hunger Games) but this summer is just one great read after another.

I just finished a marathon read of Terri Blackstock's Cape Refuge series which I really really enjoyed. I'm currently reading three books -

One for research - Miracles and Moments of Grace - Inspiring Stories from Military Chaplains - by Nancy B. Kennedy


Against All Odds by Irene Hannon - love her books!

and


Escaping into the Open - The Art of Writing True by Elizabeth Berg


I know I've been a really bad blogger; I think it's because I'd rather talk about reading than writing here.  I'm thinking of taking this blog in a new direction to talk books instead of writing so ...

I'd really like to know -

What are you reading?


Do you have any great books to recommend?

Off to RWA11

Not really "off to" in a physical sense since it's here in NYC this year, but going to Nationals definitely requires an "off to" mindset. It's always a little overwhelming - okay sometimes a lot overwhelming - sharing a conference experience with 2000 other writers, but the energy is amazing and it's so worth it if you can make it.


If there's anyone around out there, what are your conference experiences. What conferences are "Don't Miss" status for you?

HELP! A modern morality tale about the perils of not planning ahead

I'm a writer.

I'm also a teacher.

During the school year, that's not a great match. If I'm doing my job well, I have little left over energy for creativity, but if I only write on vacations, it's too easy to lose track of a story. My solution has been to promise myself to write at least 100 words every day on my story (the same story - no jumping around allowed).

I have been very good at keeping that vow, but it's left me with a very different problem.

See, the way I kept the vow was to write 100 words on whatever scene I thought of - or to write sort of a narrative outline to tell myself the story.

That's good because I wrote something every day.

It's bad because it left me with a huge mess!

A 529 page mess to be exact!

I've been reading a lot of blogs lately by people who are planners. Their dedication and planning style is starting to rub off on me. Since summer vacation is approaching, today I had the bright idea to plan out how I would finish this book.

Uh oh!!!!!

I very quickly felt overwhelmed by what lay ahead (see, planning is not my natural style!) so I decided to treat my notes and narrative outline like a rough draft. I'd print it out and read and take notes.

That's when things got scary.

See, in order to adapt to my busy life (and penchant for collecting electronic gadgets) I've been writing in Google Docs.  Google Docs is great because I can access my work from anywhere and not worry about having to transfer files from iMac to iPad to school computer that uses only Word to laptop, etc.
Alas, what Google Docs is not great at is pagination (or at least not that I've discovered).

So when I printed out those files today - turns out I have a whopping 529 pages written!

So now what do I do? (Besides cry???)


The best I can figure at this point is to take my trusty red pen, post-its, a notebook, an endless supply of coffee and tea, and start reading and taking notes about what stays, what goes, what needs to be rearranged, what works, what almost works, etc.

Or I could trash it all and play with another book. *hmmmmm There's a shiny new idea hovering above my laptop screen...



Seriously, though, I'm begging for advice.

How do you organize your "notes" or your planning. I DO want to be a better-organized person in the future.

Happy Memorial Day

Read Forever

Have you seen this Nook ad?

I rarely watch television, but I happened to turn it on today just as this commercial aired. I confess it made me misty.

Whether you love print books or you read with a Kindle, an iPad or a Nook, the sentiment is identifiable for any reader.

Which inspires you more?

I read a thought-provoking post over at Rachelle Gardner's blog this morning and it got me to wondering about how we read as writers.

The first part of my musings had to do with becoming a writer.

Over the years, I've read so many authors say it was one of those wall-tossed books that inspired them to write and prove they could "do better."

For me, it was an article I read aeons ago about how Rosemary Rogers and Shirlee Busbee got their starts writing that inspired me. I was in a hotel room on a business trip and leafing through a magazine. The article was something like You Too Can Be a Writer.

Honestly, that was the first time it occurred to me that I could. Me write a book like all those amazing authors? No WAY!

All these years later, I still haven't convinced myself I can, but I love trying.

So which inspires you more as a writer - an amazingly well-written book or one you want to toss at the wall?

Happy Easter!

I love this song by Matt Maher.

Good Friday

I read an inspiring reflection this morning.*

Yes, there is much suffering in the Passion of Jesus - repeated beatings, the crowning of thorns, the carrying of the cross, the pounding of the nails in his flesh,  the hanging on the cross. But most of all there is much love. Instead of merely feeling sorry for Jesus, let us accept the challenge to follow his way of loving - a way that inevitably includes the cross. Then we will have yet another reason to call today Good Friday.

Jesus, I thank you for your great love. Help me to imitate your selfless way of loving - even when it includes the cross.

I leave you with these two videos of songs by Matt Maher. His music does things to my heart.







*From Toward Glory - Lent in the light of Easter
Sister Melanie Svoboda, S.N.D

Of Genesis and Joy and Black Beans

A few weeks ago, on March 25th, I vicariously enjoyed the excitement of all the writers receiving calls about the Golden Heart and RITA contest. Even though I hadn't entered a manuscript, I felt the same tingling nerves and jittery anticipation as people awaited calls.  I shared the joy of those who got calls and felt the pain of those whose phone didn't ring. I've been on both sides and know the feelings well.

Fast forward to this week. Or maybe rewind to the end of February. It's been a long time since I entered anything in a contest, but back in February, I made the decision to submit an entry to ACFW's Genesis contest. It was a risk, a leap of faith to seek feedback for a new direction I'm taking in my writing. I didn't have high expectations, just hope.

I was brave enough to hit send, but a total coward about the results so I purposely didn't pay attention to the date when the semi-finalists would be announced. No pressure, no expectations, right?

Wrong!

Two days ago I was reading something on the ACFW website and noticed that semi-finalists were due to be announced this week.

I really didn't want to know that.

Good news - Thursday was so busy that I forgot all about it,

Bad news - I woke up this morning and remembered.

But then a funny thing happened. I was sitting reading a Lenten meditation this morning and the message was all about not needing approval from others. Timely reminder, I told myself. This is my clue not to be disappointed when I don't get a call today.

Um, sure.
I need to pray more for help with that!

Today was another busy day at school, but I have to admit, every once in a while I'd glance at my phone to see if maybe, by some impossibly remote chance, I'd gotten a call.

Nope. Nada. Zilch.
Then it was lunch time. Still no call. Now I resigned myself to not making it and deliberately put it out of my mind. Tried to remind myself about not needing the approval of others.

And there I was, standing at the Smartboard, teaching a lesson on fractions, when all of a sudden the phone in my back pocket started ringing. The display was a number I didn't know. Dare I hope???
The kids must have wondered what it was about fractions that suddenly had their teacher grinning like a fool.

Oh the suspense until I had a break and could actually listen to the message.

"Congratulations!" the voice said.

WOW!!!!!!
What a feeling.
Suddenly I was no longer worried about the state of publishing or the many solitary hours spent staring at a screen.

That thrill, that absolute euphoria that comes from knowing that someone has read your work and liked it enough to give a great score, that is an absolutely indescribable joy.

I'm still smiling.


Oh - the black beans part of the title - today is my day over at Healthy Writer.com and the topic is healthy recipes for black beans

Busy Busy Busy and Eating Healthy Food

My apologies for not being a better blogger. School is very busy at the moment and the children deserve my full attention.

However, it's Saturday so it's a Healthy Writer Blog day. Today - the superfood - Avocados.

Hope it's a great day for you!

Healthy Writer Day Again and Borders

1st Saturday in March and I'm blogging over at Healthy Writer about great recipes and reasons for eating cabbage!

In other news... I just visited the Borders at 100 Wall Street, probably for the last time since that store is closing. So sad. :(

Over break last week I was cleaning out a cabinet and came across an old writing journal. I had this entry -  "June 12, 2003 - Borders opened today."

The entry goes on to wonder about possibly seeing my books on the shelf there. That won't happen now, but that's a minor point. I love the diversity of books at this store; there's such a fabulous selection. I felt very sad shopping there today - such a different feeling from the last time I was there which was the day before the closing was announced.

Whatever you are, be a good one.

Yesterday I walked past a sign posted outside a shop. It said -

"Whatever you are, be a good one."
— Abraham Lincoln

As I walked, I couldn't help but think that finally I had a topic for this blog for today.

Hard on the heels of that thought came questions.

What am I?  And am I a good one?

I'm a wife. I try to be a good one. Sometimes I am, sometimes I could do better.

I'm a mother. My children think I'm a good one. They're adults now - lovely, hard working young women and they're still happy to be at home, so I guess in trying my best to be a good mother, I succeeded (though I'm only too aware of all the ways I could have been better).

I'm a teacher - again I strive to be the best for my students, to meet their needs and infuse into them a love of learning. Their parents consider me to be a good one, but again, I'm all too aware of what I could do better. I keep trying.

As a writer - let's just call me a work in progress.

As a blogger - not so good - more on that to come tomorrow (aaah - another blog topic! YAY!!!)

As a child of God - another work in progress and something I'm better at some days than others.

What about you?

What are you? Are you good at it?


I hope you have a wonderful day!

Another Healthy Writer Blog

This has been one of those busy weeks at school that leaves me crawling home in a state of exhaustion at night. Hence no new blogs here this week though I did meet my writing goal each today.

Since it's Saturday, there's another vegetable blog over on HealthyWriter.com. 
The vegetable du jour is Carrots!

I have to admit, I was stunned to find they had so many health benefits.

I'm also amused by some of the advertising to entice kids to eat carrots.

Healthy Writer Day

Blogging over at HealthyWriter.com today about fabulous kale recipes.
Love Kale, come share your recipes.
Never tried it? Come find out about this delicious superfood!

http://www.healthywriter.com/

Honoring Books

You could feel the excitement brewing in my classroom on Monday morning. The kids were watching the clock and kept asking, "Is it time yet?"

They weren't waiting for gym class or snack or lunch (the things that usually prompt that question).

No, they were waiting for me to say it was time to turn on the webcast for the 2011 Newbery Awards.


How cool is that?  My 4th graders were so excited to see what book had won the coveted award.


I was absorbed in something else when 10:30 hit so one of the children came over to tell me, "It's time to log on."

They promptly sat glued to the computer for the next hour and a half as one after another, the ALA Youth Media Awards were announced. They cheered when they heard a book or author's name they recognized. They commented when an unknown title caught their attention.

Some drifted away from time to time to read independently or work on some math problems as it became apparent that the BIG awards wouldn't come til the end, but a surprising number (mostly boys) hung out to the very end, even begging to eat lunch in the classroom so they wouldn't miss the Newbery Award.

We're doing a unit on award-winning books this month so the children plan on reading as many current and past award-winning books as they can. Their enthusiasm for the project was fueled by watching the webcast. That's the power of exposure.

Sadly, today I learned that not everyone shares the excitement. Forgive my rant.

This message was posted today on the YALSA blog:

Yesterday, many a fan of children’s and young adult literature tuned into Today, expecting to see a segment on ALA’s recently announced Youth Media Awards, featuring the authors of the Newbery and Caldecott, as well as a representative from ALA to discuss the awards. This year, along with the authors, YALSA’s own Sarah Debraski was pitched to lead viewers through a new year of outstanding books for children and teens, just as many ALA leaders have for the past eleven years.
Unfortunately, this year, Today turned ALA’s pitch down, citing a lack of interest and scheduling problems.
It’s a unfortunate that the YMAs weren’t able to make the cut this year, but we do appreciate the many years that Today chose to feature the awards.

I'm tempted to look at what was on Today, but that will likely only depress me more. Instead, I'll choose to celebrate that my 22 students were nourished and supported as readers by watching the webcast. If enough students learn to love literature and develop a respect and enthusiasm for books, then hopefully, in the future, shows like Today won't cite "lack of interest" as a reason for not featuring and celebrating authors.

A New Year and A Writer's Oath

I start off every year with my class reading to them from Gail Carson Levine's wonderful book Writing Magic: Creating Stories that Fly. On page 6 there is a writer's oath. My students take it every year but I thought it might be a wonderful reaffirmation to my writing self on this first day of a new year.

If you happen to be stopping by today, I invite you to take the oath with me.

I offer good wishes for your best ever year of writing. Here's hoping for many wonderful celebrations ahead.