Inspired by books: Her own personal Narnia

My 10 year old has been reading this book called "Mandy" by Julie Andrews Edwards. (Yes, that's the same as the Mary Poppins actress) It's about an orphan that finds an abandoned cottage and works to fix it up as her own little get-away haven.



We are lucky to have my parents nearby. They only live about 15 minutes away so the kids get to see them often. They have this fabulous yard, the kind that beggs for kids to be as they really are; adventurers, warriors, race car drivers, wizards and creators.

They have this plant in the yard (as seen in the picture) I don't know what it's called but they look like cat tails on steroids.







Since my daughter has been reading MANDY she has been taking care of this patch of vegetation and making it her own "Narnia" as she calls it.





She has woven mats out of blades from the plant.




she has even made some chairs (held together by tape) Don't they look like something straight out of Fairytopia?

The best part is that there is an open circle inside the plant. This is what she has REALLY been working on. It's her own fort. The place where she will put her chairs, mats and other decorations. She has spent hours on it already and she's still going strong.





But this is just the beginning! There are so many great books she has yet to discover. I can't wait to see what she'll come up with next.

It takes me back to my childhood. I loved making my own forts, hiding places and other worldly places.

What about you? Did you have your own world or . . . how were you inspired by books as a kid (or heck, even now?)

Win an ARC

Want to win an ARC of a book, MY VERY UNFAIRYTALE LIFE, that sounds like loads of fun and has an aWesomE cover as well? Of course you do!

go to Anna Staniszewski's blog to enter! Click here!

Beth Revis Gives Encouragement to Writers

Happy Birthday
Across the Universe!

That's right. Today is the long anticipated birth of Beth Revis' brain child, ACROSS THE UNIVERSE

Congratulations Beth! I know the world is going to go gaga over your book.

I also thought this would be a good opportunity to start a new segment on my blog called "Encouragement for Writers from Authors, Editors and Agents." Who better to be my first Encouragement Interview than Beth!

So, Thank you Beth for sharing some words of encouragement for writers on your very special day.

Beth, Do you have a favorite saying, quote or poem that inspires you during times of discouragement?
I love Winston Churchill's quote: "Never never never never never give up."

Do you have a brief story about discouragement in your own writing career that you would like to share with us?
The truth of the matter is that I was rejected for ten years before I got a single acceptance. That sucked. There's no other way to put it. I was ready to give up, and very nearly did, but decided to give it one last shot...and that ended up being ACROSS THE UNIVERSE, the book that changed everything.

What words of encouragement do you have for people who have yet to publish their fist manuscript?
Keep writing. By this, I mean: write each novel like it's The One--revise it, edit it, work on it, and submit it--but if it doesn't work out, write the next novel. Don't let yourself stagnate. Keep writing.

What words of encouragement do you have for those who are published yet are seeking further publication?
Keep writing. The same principle applies to the published author as to the unpublished one. Keep working, keep striving, and never never never never never give up.

Anything else to add?
If you haven't read it, check out Paolo Coelho's novel, THE ALCHEMIST. It's a wonderful book about seeking and striving towards your dreams, and I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to try to become something more.

Thanks for your encouraging words, Beth. You are an inspiration! Also, thanks for rec. the Alchemist. I'll have to check that out, but before I do, I HAVE to read Across the Universe first! I can't wait to get my hands on a copy.

I hate it when my antiques hurl me into the space/time continuum . . .

Depressed teen, Martin Conway didn't like it much either. Martin lives in the shadows of an alcoholic father, an overcritical mother and an over-achieving sister. What makes is worse is that everyone hopes that he will measure up to his namesake; a WWII hero of a Grandfather. But Martin can't measure up. He makes poor grades in school, has few friends and when he is picked on by a group of boys at school, he ends up suspended for something that he didn't do. It turns out that he has more in common with his alcoholic father and his mentally ill uncle more than his grandfather.

Everything changes when his mystical grandmother dies and leaves him her antique radio from the 1940's. As he falls asleep to the radio static, he is transported back in time to WWII Where a a boy named Jimmy is pleading for his help, although he's not exactly sure what he needs Martin to do. . . . yet.

This book was a pleasant surprise. I picked it up at the library on a whim. I luv, luv, luv it when that happens!

Book characterization: I like how the characters in this book are believable. They are all flawed yet have their own endearing traits. This book gently explores alcoholism, depression and mental illness in a positive way. I would recommend this book for children facing such issues.

Voice: I think the main characters voice was a little weak. He used several words that I wouldn't expect a teenage boy to use. However that didn't take away (much) of my enjoyment of the voice. I cared about the character and his circumstances. I loved the voice of the WWII boy, Jimmy. I felt like I got a good sense of who he was and his perspective.

The underlying drive of the book: I think this is what sets this book apart from other time-travel/historical fiction books. The underlying question asks, "What do you think makes one man a disgrace and another one a hero?" The story explores how some of those who have been deemed "great" may not be as wonderful as we would like to think. Likewise, those who we tend to look down our noses at may actually be the ones who come through for us in the end.

On a scale of 1 LUV to 5 LUVS, I rate it 4Luvs! <3 <3 <3 <3

Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go find an old radio and see where (and when) it will take me.

You never know who you'll meet. More SCBWI LA

Remember my crazy-canceled/delayed flight from DFW to LAX? ( previous post) Well . . . there's more.

You see, at first, when I got on the original (canceled flight) I was supposed to have a window seat. I ADORE window seats (despite the bathroom dilemma) I like the view and I like having a surface to lay my head and snooze. What can I say? A moving plane is like a rocking cradle to me.

Anyway . . .

I approached my coveted window seat. I saw a man, a woman then and baby. A cute, friggin' baby sucking on a pacifier (in my seat). uggggghhhhh!!!!

"Would you mind switching seats with me?" said the man.

Crap! Now I'll be sitting in the Hell-of-all-middle-seats! "Of course. It's no problem." If only I was the angel in my thoughts like I was the angel of my words.

I would've been a heartless soul to refuse. I couldn't. The angel of words won. The angel of thoughts repeatedly stabbed the back of my eyeballs.

So. I settled in between a nice woman and a young lad several rows back. (in the middle seat)

I blew up my inflatable travel pillow. Adjusted my i-pod. (in the middle seat) Did I mention middle seat?

The nice woman next to me snapped her head in my general direction and said, "Stop it!"

Stop it?

OK. So, I wondered if maybe Critter was up to some of his Critter-tricks. He's a bit ornery, you know.

But then she says (in the most adorable Texas twang) "I'm so sorry, hon. I'm not talkin' to you. My son is traveling with me and he's pokin' me from behind."

awwwwww! She was so adorable! I wanted to pinch her cheeks! But I didn't. I have some self control, don't cha'know.

"That's funny stuff." I replied. Truly relieved that I wasn't sitting next to a stuffity'uppity window-seater, and thankful for the comedy relief. I liked this woman from the very start.

But then, the flight was canceled.

We reboarded 3 (or more) hours later.

I sat next to the nice lady with the Texas Twang once more. But that was OK, because I already liked her.

We giggled at the loud-mouth braggard sitting in the row in front of us. What can I say? We were loopy from the plane delays and flight changes. We must've been easily amused.

I liked her, even though I didn't know her. We talked, but about nothing in particular. Simply pleasant company.

Fast forward to the hotel. . . .

I'm standing in line to check into my room for the SCBWI LA conference and who do I see? It's the nice lady with the twang from the plane.

"Oh!" She said, "If I had known you were coming here, you could've shared a cab with me and my son!"

Nice! Such a nice lady. Wow! We were at the same conference. How amazing. What a small world.


Fast forward once more to the next morning:
. . . I'm sitting in the opening session of the conference. The faculty of SCBWI is introducing themselves on stage.

Who do I see introduce herself as one of the faculty authors? You guessed it!!!! The nice lady with the twang, the one who sat next to me on the plane and whispered "stop it!" in my general direction (although not directed to me)

We spoke several times throughout the conference. Her name is Jill S. Alexander (BTW) She's sweet as pie. I swear, children's literature people are the nicest people on the whole entire earth!

Consequently, I bought her book, The Sweetheart of Prospect County, and I read it in 2 nights. That's a big deal, seeing that I read it during the conference. They keep you going at conferences like this, so it was no easy feat to stay up in order to read a book. However, I read Jill's book. I laughed. I cried. I stayed up way later than I should have. As a matter of fact, I bought a book for myself and I bought an extra to use as a book giveaway, here! On my blog! Might I dub Jill as the Sweetheart of Children's Literature? She deserves it!

Prepare for a book giveaway! Not today, but in the near future.

Not only has Jill agreed to do a future interview, but she will also be a Critter host as well. Stay tuned.

More to come.







Here's a picture of Jill, Critter and her debut novel, The Sweetheart of Prospect county.

I'll blog more about the book, but for now, I have to marvel at our unique meeting. How often does that happen?

I'll tell ya . . . it made the flight delay well-worth it. If you're ever going to get stranded in an airport, Jill is the lady to get stranded with! :0)

The way things work out sometimes . . . it's amazing!

It's time for a Book Giveaway!

Last month I entered a book give away over at the generous Christina Farley's blog. This wasn't just an ordinary book giveaway. It was a MEGA book giveaway. I didn't just win A book. I won a pack of books! ~it still makes me giddy. Squeal!~

So, when I received the package, I did what I always do when I have a stack of books and am not sure which to read first. I played the role of editor/agent and gave them all the "First Page" test. I read the first page of each book and the one that intrigued me the most, would be the winner. I was surprised at which one tickled me fancy the most. I was surprised because the cover threw me off. The cover made me think that this was just another snotty prep-school story. It's not! And yet, it's the perfect cover because the story takes place at the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women. To everyone else, it looks like a regular snotty prep school.
But the students know that there's nothing regular about a school where you can get extra credit for mixing lethal poison concoctions, vending machines pop open to reveal secret passageways and Covert Operations is a standard class. Cammie Morgan is a student at a secret spy school. But when she goes into town and falls head over heals for a normal guy who things she's just a regular girl. Cammie can't let him know the truth about her, however, she finds that it's much easier to be a spy than to pretend to be a normal girl.

This was such a fun book! Told in a first person, witty voice. The first page wasn't misleading, the rest of the book did not disappoint.

And now . . . It's time to share the wealth. Now that I've finished this book, I'm passing it onto one of my lucky readers. Simply leave a reply in the comments section. For additional chances to win, let me know if you tweet, blog or facebook about this contest. (you get an entry for each one). Also, if you become a follower of this blog or are already a follower of this blog, you will gain another entry in the contest.

Please leave a comment for a chance to win a copy of I'D TELL YOU I LOVE YOU, BUT THEN I'D HAVE TO KILL YOU.

I'll draw the name of a winner on Thursday. :0)

A great start to a new year of reading . . . . and a Critter update

sooo . . . .some things in this year have started off a little grumble-fuzzley, but my year of reading has started off GREAT!!!!!

See. That's what I love about books and reading. Other things can be going all wonky in your life, but you can pick up a good book and "voila!" You've got something good to hang onto and even be happy about. Aren't books wonderful?

Anyway, the year starts by lil' ol' me winning a pack of books from Christina Farley's mega-generous book giveaway. Yeah! And to celebrate her generosity, I plan on giving away the books that I receive once I have finished them, so stay tuned. You may still get to share in the book give-away luv too.

Then . . . The first book that I completed in 2010 was "The Lightening Thief" by Rick Riordan. Wow! What a fun book. I could tell he had fun creating it. What a fun way to play with Greek Mythology!!!! When I finished this book it made me think about how thoughts and well-placed words are like an elaborate Tinker-Toy set or Leggo's or something like that. Mr. Riordan had all these Mythological creatures to play with, and he brought them into the modern world and took all those parts to create something fun and new. "The Lightening Thief" isn't just a book. It is Rick Riordan's playground and he's letting us play along too. So much fun!

The second book that I read was a debut novel by Pam Bachorz, titled "Candor" It came out in late 2009 and I would say this is a book to put high on your To-Be-Read-Pile.

If I were to describe this YA novel in 4 words it would be: "Stepford Wives meets Pleasantville"

A grieved father created a picture-perfect town where all kids mysteriously begin to change their rebellious ways soon after their arrival. He has no idea that his only living son knows the truth; the people of Candor are being brainwashed by hidden messages. The founder's son has created a way to avoid the messages that seek to dominate his mind and he has made it his business to help the newcomers escape before it's too late. But when Nia, the most recent newcomer to Candor, arrives, he can't decide if he should help her escape because if she leaves, that would mean losing her forever. He's living a fine line between deceit and truth.

I finished this book in less than 24 hours. It's a flashlight-worthy page-turner. on a scale from 1-5 I would give it a 4. The only reason I wouldn't give it a 5 is because I wasn't fully satisfied withe the ending. I would have liked a little more resolution regarding Nia. I won't explain anymore, because I don't want to spoil any of the book for you. This book is best read without knowing the spoilers.

Way to go Pam Bachorz, for a fabulous debut novel. And thanks for a great read!

And . . . for even more exciting news, there has been a Critter siting. He is now in New England where he has hung on a Christmas tree, played in the snow and it has been discovered that he curiously looks like the Avatar charaters as well as Indian Na'vi art. hmmmmm . . . . is Critter a mystical creature as well?

You must visit Nandini's blog to see what Critter is up to. Be sure to leave Nandini a message and say "Hello!"



Isn't it sweet how Critter brings folks together. I'm feeling all warm and mushy inside.

What defines your year?

My life goes beyond writing and reading . . . but since this is a writing/reading/creativity blog, I'm going to define my reading life by authors. Sound weird? It might. I read a lot of books and I've noticed a trend. In 2007 I read Lois Lowery for the first time (as an adult) and I gobbled up all her books that year. In 2008 I devoured all of Eva Ibbotsons books. In 2009, I discovered Neal Shusterman for the very first time and read every book that I could get my hands on that he had written. There may be a couple more that I need to read, but I've read pert' near all ov'em!

It makes me wonder what author I'll discover or rediscover in 2010. Any suggestions? I'm up for it!

Consequently, I didn't reach the "50 books in a year" challenge, but I had fun trying. :0)

Also, I want to appologize for not being more involved w/ my blog friends at the end of this year. Along w/ my kids going all all different directions since school started and my current writing rut, I've had less time for blog interaction. I'm going to go visit blogs right now to make up for it.


Happy New Year, and Happy reading!

Critter Update and some great reading

Critter is having some great fun in Texas. He even got to cozy up next to a copy of Catching Fire before I did. Check out PJ Hoover's blog to see what Critter is up to. Also, it looks like Critter will start looking for a new place to visit this Wednesday, so be sure to visit PJ's blog for a chance to have Critter come visit you.

Please take note that on my side bar I'm going to follow Critter's blog locations as he travels.

I was so jealous of Critter and his elbow rubbings with Catching Fire, that I had to go out and get my own copy. And let me tell you, it's a fabulous sequal to The Hunger Games. If you haven't read it yet, you should.

I've been on a great reading kick. Some other good book's I've read are:
The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
~ it's a charming book and way better than the movie

Dreadlocks by Neal Shusterman
~ a dark fusion of Goldie Locks and the 3 bears and Greek Mythology. Sounds strange? yes. But Neal makes it work. A very clever and enjoyable read. Also a short, easy read.

When You Reach me by Rebecca Stead
This is a sci-fi book, but it doesn't feel like it until the end. I think this time-travel book, in the tradition of A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle, will touch lovers of all genre's, not just sci-fi fans. This is also a short and easy read.

Currently, I'm reading Sacred Scars by Kathleen Duey, the sequel to Skin Hunger. I just started it today. It's a thick book, and may take me longer to read, but I'm already hooked!

Hope you had a great Labor Day! Happy Reading!

beach books and getting conference ready

I'm back from the beach.

I read the main chunk of The Forrest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan while sitting on a beach chair by the ocean. Which is super cool, because a major thru-line is this book is the main characters desire to see the ocean. It's a driving motivational force for Mary and it makes it extra cool to read about Mary's burning desire to see the ocean. It makes you feel like you're really waiting for her on the other side, pulling her along in her quest. Because of this I nominate this book as the #1 best beach read of the year.

The other book I read was Red Riders Hood by Neal Shusterman. Yes. Another Shusterman book. I'm determined to read all his books. He's a brilliant story teller. Red Riders Hood is a dark Urban twist on the Little Red Riding Hood tale. As usual, Shusterman is clever, creative and pulls off a story that not every author could. It's a fun read!

I've been home for a few days, but I haven't blogged because, in addition to house and family stuff, I've been getting my critiques prepared to send out for the SCBWI Carolina's Fall Conference in Sept. I'm sending out two critiques this year. The deadline to get them in is the 31st, so I had to finish them up and send them out today so I could meet the deadline.

I miss the beach, but it's good to be back too. Now I have to go catch up on everyone elses blogs and see what ya'll have been up to.

Beach Reading

I'm leaving for the beach on Sunday, so I was hoping to find a book that I could read that would suck me in. I wasn't sure what to get.

I've been wanting to read The Forrest of Hands and Teeth, but my Library didn't have it yet. I had asked if they had it a couple of months ago and they didn't. So, when I saw this sitting out on the display shelf yesterday, I audibly ~gasped~ and did a head dive for the shelf, (the kind like tennis or volley ball players will do to make a good save) and snatched up the book before anyone else could. (not that there was anyone w/i 10 feet of me, but a girl can not be too careful you know.)

So, now I have a good beach read for my vacation. The only problem is that I'll be gone for a week and I'll probably finish this in one day (2 days tops.) Anyone have any page-turners to recommend for additional beach reading? My book list is on the side bar of this blog if you want to see what I've recently read.

Congratulations to Jacqui Robbins for the release of her new Picture Book. Available in stores and online today!

YaY Jacqui! *\o/*

Monster Luv!

I've been rereading Everlost by Neal Shusterman. There are so many great things about this book, but one thing that really struck me is how much I LUV the monster in this story, The McGill. He's not a good monster. The McGill is nasty and mean and he likes it that way. He works hard to be a terror. Don't worry. Those arent' the things I love.

What I love is that even though he's so repulsive, Shusterman still finds a way to make him likable in a way that you hate to love a villan. I've been trying to pinpoint the aspects of this great monster and what makes him so great. Here's what I've come up with so far.

1) He's written w/ humor, in a way that made me think of this monster as more of a young boy trying to be a bully.

2) The McGill develops a respect for the female protagonist even though he isn't prone to giveing repect to anyone.

3) This is probably my most favoritest part and PARTIAL SPOILERS BELOW:
In Everlost, there are 2 thru-lines that are weaved together nicely. They are shown early in the story and follow through til the end and are tied together by showing the reader how the McGill came into existence.
A. In Everlost, people will sink into the ground if they stand still for too long and will sink to the core of the earth. No one is able to get out of the core of the earth. The souls just sit and wait until the end of time.
B. In Everlost, if you forget what you look like, your appearance will change accordingly. ie: someone who prized their smile might start to develop too many teeth. A bully that used his fists might grow oversized hands etc.

Now, this is the good part:
Toward the end we find out that before the McGill became the McGill, he was just a regular little boy who sank to the middle of the earth. But . . . as he sat there with all the other sunken souls, he imagined himself strong and powerful. Little by little as his body changed accordingly, he grew strong enough to claw his way out. Something that no one else had done before. However, the very thing that gave him the ability to climb out of the depths is the same thing that turned him into something mean, horrible and heartless.

As the McGill grows in fondness for the female protagonist, his features start to change again; only this time he starts to become less horrific.

Isn't that brilliant!!!! So many threads come together and the monster isn't just a monster for monsters sake. He has a past. He has endearing qualities.

I can't think of any other literary monster that has struck a cord in my quite like this one.

How about you? Do you have any monsters/villans that you love to hate or hate to love?

Author, Rich Wallace on Voice: What are your favorite "voice" books?

Here's that mysterious word writers hear about all the time.

VOICE

It's a crucial element in a manuscript but it's a confusing term. It's hard to wrap our minds around of what "voice" really means. I've found it very helpful to listen to those in the "know" talk about their take on what "voice" is.

Last year about this time I got to hear editor, Martha Mihalik's explaination of "Voice"

This year I got to hear the perspective of a successful author, Rich Wallace. Rich had some awesome points and gave great examples as well.

If I were to boil down Rich's advice, I'd say that

VOICE = THE CHARACTERS UNIQUE PERSPECTIVE

How do your characters show their unique perspective of the world and their thoughts through the words that you choose?

Here was Rich's advice on developing "Voice":

1) Develop a unique eye that makes a scene different.
An example that I can think of from this is Judy Blundell's description of the moon from "What I Saw and How I Lied" A FAT CUSTARD MOON WAS SPLAT IN THE PURPLE SKY.
I think Judy nailed the "unique scenery description" with that one!

2) Research dialogue in specific regions in order to may your dialogue believable.
He uses author (I don't know if I copied her name correctly, so I will refrain from using it) as an example. This author drives around area's, gets out of her car and simply listens and looks for the local oddities that make the area unique. She'll go into bars and listen to how the locals talk to one another.

One of my personal recent examples would be Ingrid Law, author of SAVVY where just one sentence gives you a sense of the characters speech.
"I had liked it with a mighty kind of liking." Ch 1


3) Develop and eye for details that make a person unique.

Mr. Wallace used the example of Susan Orlean who developed a unique sense of personal details by traveling with a group of gospel singers.

An example that I can think of is from "The book Without Words" by Avi

Ch 2 "Everything about Mistress Weebly was small: small body; small face; small gimlet eyes; small nose. Her smallness was emphasized by her being dressed in an overlarge, soiled gown of green that reached her ankles - sleeves pinched at her wrists, apron over all, wimple on her head. It was as if she had been dropped into a dirty sack and was spying out from it. Indeed, the womans only largeness was her curiosity."

I just love that one!!!


What about you? Do you have any authors in mind that have mastered any of these elements of voice?

Do you have your book goggles on?

Today's blog is brought to you by Citizens against Steroid Use for Melons.

I just picked up Downsiders by Neal Shusterman from the library last night. I"ve been on a Shusterman kick. This is my 18th book in the "50 books in 2009" challenge. 4 of those are Shusterman books. Downsiders will make #5. Shusterman is creative, witty and takes his characters to places where I find myself thinking "Whoa! I can't believe what he just did to that character!"

But recently I've noticed another thing that Shusterman books do to me. Each one has an everyday element in the book that I can't help but think about when I see that object in real life.

Everytime I see a fortune cookie, I think of Everlost.

Everytime I hear the phrase "Unwind" I think of his book UNWIND. Which by the way, I can't say that I'm going to "unwind" anymore, because the word makes me think of the word in terms of the Shusterman book. It's just too creepy for me to say anymore.

I think of THE EYES OF KID MIDAS, when I see sunglasses.

I think of FULL TILT when I see amusement park rides.

And although I've only just started DOWNSIDERS, I'm certain that I'll never look at another manhole cover the same again.

Shusterman's writing is so vivid and powerful that those common objects connect me back to his books. I'd love to be able to write like that! It's like I'm looking at the world through book goggles.

What about you? Are you wearing book goggles? What things in everyday life remind you of a book? Was it the writing, or an experience or memory from the time that you read the book?

May is looking good!

May is looking better for me than April. April about did me in. This gives a whole new meaning to April showers bring May flowers. My April was more like a down pour, but I do have some pretty awesome May flowers coming up!

First, is that my 16 year Anniversary is on the 8th. 16 years! Wow!

Then, my critique group is hosting an SCBWI Schmooze at Quail Ridge Books on May 17th. You're welcome to come if you're in the area.

And then today . . . I finished making travel plans to attend a writing retreat for a Highlights Founders Workshop called Mining Your Memories led by author, Rich Wallace. I read one of his books, "Restless" a coupe of weeks ago. It was very clever and entertaining.


I learned so much from the Chapel Hill retreat that I attended last year. It was a great experience for me in so many ways.

ahhhhhh . . . having things to look forward to feels really, really good!

my critique buddies are on Fi-ahhh!

Yep. That's right. My critique group buddies are not just hot, happenin' and cool. They aren't on fire. They R on Fi-Ahhhhhh! I'm so proud of them.

Take for instance Ian Sands. Yes. I'm mentioning Ian again. That's because is art is taking off faster than a like a gazelle at a cheetah convention. (Does that phrase make me sound southern?)

In addition to his exhibits, sales and contest wins, he has just released a book called Ligers, Tigons and Pizzlies that gives insight into the inspiration of his latest exhibit, The Newimal Collection, which is based on real life hybrid animals. Give your mouse a clickety-click right here to purchase a copy.



Next is another critique buddy, Kathleen Reilly. This gal knows her stuff. If I were ever stranded out in the wilderness I would want to be stuck with her. Last year Kate launched her book Planet Earth. In honor of Earth Day this month, she is giving away a free copy of this awesome environment-friendly project book. Go on over to her blog and leave a comment for a chance to win. Hurry! Why are you still here? Go on over! But be sure to come back. There's more.

Are you back? Good.

The last thing I need to mention is that my critique group is putting together a schmooze coming up in May at Quail Ridge books in Raleigh, NC. Our guest speaker will be author, Kelly Starling-Lyons. It's gonna be great. More details to come!

It's Here! Join my blog Hullabaloo

Two months ago, maybe more, I reserved a copy of Neil Gaiman's THE GRAVEYARD BOOK.

I was 122nd in line. Yes. You read that correctly. One hundred and twenty second for this freshly picked Newbery award winner.

I waited.

and waited.

and waited some more.

Then . . . last night I got THE e-mail. "Please come to the library your book is waiting."

I might have actually went "SQUEEEEE"

After I dropped off my preschooler I headed to the library this morning, marched to the RESERVED BOOKS section and there it was with my name on it. I went to the self check out counter, scanned my card, then the book. And that was it. It didn't seem right? Save for the beep of the scanner, there was no fanfare.

Shouldn't there have been music, a disco ball? Confetti?

2 months and 122nd in line (not to mention the pressure I feel to read this as fast as I can for the other poor souls who have been waiting) deserves some sort of hullabaloo. So this is it. this is my "It's Here!" blog party.

*\0/* yea!

Custard moons, Fairy-work frost and other great descriptions

Sometimes I come across a description or a phrase that I adore and then I have to write it down. Actually, if you must know the truth, I get downright giddy when I come across a perfect description. I came across a gem of a description in WHAT I SAW AND HOW I LIED by Judy Blundell:

Chapter 15
"A fat custard moon was splat in the purple sky . . . "

There are so many reasons why I love this description:

1) is that this is the most creative way I may have ever seen the moon described.

2) it fits the voice of the character who is 15 years old. Perhaps if the protagonist was an old man, the moon would have looked more like an alkaseltzer tab that just fell into the cup or something like that.

3) it gives a great visual w/o using too many adjectives. From this small amount of words I'm imagining a full moon on a hazy night. The sides of the moon aren't crips and distinct, but more soft and rounded. And it's late sunset. all that from 10 words.

This reminds me of a phrase used by Mark Twain where he describes a frost as "Fairy-work frost" What a concise and creative way to describe a sparkling, intricate design on a window pane.

~giggle~ excuse me. I'm just getting all giddy talking about it. I LOVE this stuff!

4) It sets the scene for what's about to happen. The soft dreaminess of the scene reflects the converstation that's about to take place.

5) this type of description challenges me to look at the world in a different way. Last night as I tried to fall sleep, I didn't count sheep. Instead, I thought of creative ways to describe common objects in a similar fashion to Blundell's moon description. You should try it too. It's harder than you may think. Blundell and Twain make it seem easy.

Go ahead. Do it. Pick an everyday object. A tree. The street. A building. The sun. How can you describe it using the pattern used by Blundell and Twain.

Here's a couple that I came up with:

"The ragdoll willow flopped in the storm."
"Pixie-winged blossoms rode on the breeze."

What things do you get excited about when you read?

A great book! Everlost by Neal Shusterman and a book giveaway link

The following does not include spoilers:

This is the 2nd book I've read by Neal Shusterman. I think I may be a fan. Both this book and UNWIND were both so creative, smart and tightly written. I can't wait to pick up another Shusterman book. I can't believe I've never heard of him until recently.

Everlost is about Nick and Allie, two teens who are killed in a car accident, but get lost in limbo in an afterlife called Everlost. Shusterman creates a believable world full of danger, mystery, love and there's also a magnificant monster called the McGill and a tough-as-nails female protagonist.

For writers: Neal is a master of using multiple points of view in his story telling. It's so seamless, it's easy not to notice what point of view he's using, unless you're looking for it.

This book is also a great examle of how to use a point in the story that the entire book revolves around, and weaves it through out. ie: take note of how the people in Everlost sink into the ground if they don't keep moving. At first it seems to be a small part of the alternate world, but it ends up being something important to the past of Everlost as well as the future and curent danger.

This wasn't just a fun read, I also feel that this kind of book has inspired me to be a better writer too!

Also . . . Beth Revis is hosting a book Giveaway for Carrie Ryan's debut novel "The Forrest of Hands and Teeth" that was just released this weekend. click here to go directly to Beth's blog.

Now. . . I'm off to fold laundry and blog surf. Hows that for multitasking? Helps laundry folding seem not quite so dull. :0)