MAKING TIME

One thing about my community - In season life gets crazy. Season slowly begins in late October, slows down near Thanksgiving, comes to a halt at Christmas and then picks up Daytona 500 speed in January. What this means is 1,000s of people descend upon us for warmth, sunshine and parties!!! We have one uber friendly community and everyone is SOCIAL to the nth degree. Ergo, I have not written in my blog in ages. I am crazy busy!!!! But, I make a pledge to myself to do better.

So, how do I make time for writing. I usually get up at 5:00 a.m. and try to get a couple of hours in on my latest YA novel. It's almost done. YEAH! Except, I've hit a wall. I need a twist...a surprise...something to keep the reader reading, and I can't find it. I've looked under rocks, in the recesses of my mind, walked the  beach...tried everything...I write and write and write...but nothing, nada. I know that if I continue to work on it, something will magically appear (fingers crossed)...so that's where all my concentrated writing is for now... I did change the title from ON THE RUN to ONLY LOSERS CRY. As I research the market, all the titles are so edgy - except mine. You wouldn't think coming up with a title is difficult - but, my, oh, my - it's harder than actually writing the book.

One good thing did happen: My editorial that was printed in the Tallahassee Democrat was picked up and "tweeted" by a big time op ed and book author. How cool is that!!!

One crappy thing: Another rejection for my picture book manuscript: DUCKS IN A ROW. I guess I need a better title. However, I do know that pictures books are extremely difficult to sell in this market. So, I just keep sending it out. One of these days the tide will turn in my favor.

Stayed tuned. Hopefully I can get back into blogging everyday (OMG - everyday - we'll see).

Over and out.

A LITTLE WORD CAN MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE

I'm published again. This time in the Tallahassee Democrat. I was anxious to view my column, but when I clicked on Tallahassee.com, I found out I had to pay to read it. Pay to read my own stuff - go figure. So I forked over the money and was it ever worth it - if not for just one little word - AUTHOR.

I really don't consider myself an author yet. I think the actual publishing of a book would endow me with that honor. But, not so - there it was at the end of my article: About the author...There was that word that made my day.

Author - Oh it sounds good to the ear. I think I will hang on it a little bit longer today. Tomorrow I'm back to trying to publish a book.

CHECK IT OUT

I'm beginning to think I need to change my blog to something more dear to my heart - education...or the lack of it. Check out the link below. Warning - it has some adult language in it, so if you are offended easily, don't open it.

 

 http://freerangekids.wordpress.com/2010/10/16/jeff-lewis-comedy-dad-whats-this-game-called-tag/

Heart and Soul

I had a guest editorial published in my local newspaper yesterday - it was located on the top of the front section! How cool is that?

Writing never ceases to amaze me. I wrote this one from deep within my soul. It's a wrong that has been perpetuated on our youth for many years and needs to be corrected. The public is behind me, but the bureaucrats have dug their heels in and refused to budge. I think once a person is elected to a political office they lose all common sense. What the heck is in the water in Tallahassee and Washington D.C.?

But, I digress. This piece that was published was easy to write.  Why? Because I have lived it, researched it and written many times before on the same subject.

Today I am struggling with a piece.  It's not a part of me. I found a subject to write about - something a publisher is requesting. It's in my area of expertise, but not in my heart and soul.

Can I do it? I don't know. I'm attending a writing class at my local university this afternoon. I'll present the manuscript to my fellow writers and see what they say.

Stay tuned. I'm hoping for another winner.

EVERYDAY???

I know, I know - If one writes a blog they must post something everyday or people will not read them. EVERYDAY???

OMG when does one find the time? I've been editing and revising a YA novel and trying to write an article for a children's publication. That pretty much takes my entire morning.

I go brain dead in the afternoon. My inactive brain is a result of my profession as a kindergarten teacher. I would spend seven hours a day, five days a week with five and six year old children. I loved every minute of it, but when 4:00 rolled around, my brain would take a holiday. It's a miracle I could find my way home after work - I think someone should invent a remote control car for teachers. All we would have to do is buckle up, push a button and go into the zone.  The car would maneuver its way through the traffic (and in season we have TRAFFIC), deliver us home and have a cold martini waiting. How cool would that be!!!!

Okay, so I wrote something today. It's not the best, but - hey - it's a post until I can get my brain back to some intellectual pursuit and write something of substance.

SEEDS

Where do you find those captivating ideas for your stories? Do you walk the mall and people watch. Read books that ignite something great deep within? Follow trends, or follow your heart?

I decided to take a brain break. I finished my latest project and didn't have any ideas forthcoming, so decided to close the lid of my laptop and think of nothing - absolutely nothing.

But as a writer, my mind doesn't work that way - sparks fly even when I try to squelch them. And, this time I have my grandson, Justin, to blame.

You see he just finished his Eagle Scout project. I am so proud of his hard work and all that he has had to do for this accomplishment. Suddenly, like the trees he distributed, a seed began to grow in my mind. 

Darn. No day off for me. I lifted the lid of my shiny red laptop and my fingers started to move. The story isn't near completion, but the seed is growing. 

My family - my big beautiful family - a treasure trove of ideas - what a blessing.

BTW: Justin's dad has a book contract. How cool is that!!! Like father, like son - shining examples of good people doing good works.

WHAT’S THE HURRY?

Why are we in such a rush? In today’s kindergarten classrooms children are required master a number of sight words and read at a level once reserved for first grade. They must do this to the exclusion of recess, informal play, and in some cases, even the arts.

            Standardized tests have forced our schools into teaching too much, too soon. In his book entitled, The Power of Play, Dr. David Elkind, a professor Emeritus in the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Development at Tufts University, warns parents and educators of the dangers of developmentally inappropriate early childhood programs.

            Dr. Elkind states, “Comparisons with other countries suggest that there is no benefit to starting formal instruction before the age of six. The majority of other European countries admit children to school at six or seven following a three year period of pre-school education which focuses on social and physical development.”

            Are we guilty of robbing our children of their childhood? Take a look at the October 7, 2010 article by Julie Bosman published in the New York Times entitled; Picture Books No Longer a Staple for Children. We see yet another fundamental piece of early childhood being cast away, thought of as a relic of the past. Bookstores find these beautifully written and illustrated books declining in sales.

Why are we stealing this beloved part of childhood from our children? For what reason? According to the New York Times article, the push to have children reading “more text-heavy chapter books” is a by-product of our obsession with standardize tests.

            In addition, the state of our economy and the price of picture books are forcing parents to avoid them. This doesn’t make much sense when electronic games, at three times the cost, are flying off the shelves of retailers. 

            Our technology is developing at a rapid pace, but our children are not computers. They are not sponges. They are young children, each developing at their own rate with the same emotional, social, and spiritual needs that cannot be hurried. We are depriving them of a well rounded education when we cement them in the abstract world of words, sentences and chapters before they exit their concrete world of learning through their senses.

            It’s my hope that this trend is just that – a trend. That the swinging pendulum, parents and educators will remember that roots of learning need to be secure in order for a healthy child to grow.

It is akin to taking a pink rose bud and prying apart the petals to bring forth a beautiful rose. It doesn’t work. Children, like flowers, need to be given the freedom to grow at their own pace and blossom when they are ready.

Remember: A picture is worth a thousand words. A picture book in the hands of a child is worth much more.