Turn the Light Bulb On - Energize

If your in the business of educating, from elementary to college level, , you have heard of the STEM programs.  Science,Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) curriculum for students to advance their learning in one, two or all of the areas. The future looks bright in America for our students.

Link: http://stemfriday.wordpress.com/2012/06/22/stem-friday/  to find  children books by Nomad Press and learn more about  STEM Friday.  
Let me know if you use any of these books in your summer school and/or science camps this summer.  Create a STEM Friday.

Further readings to expand your science quota for the day:

Ocean Commotion: Life on the Reef by Janeen Mason   Pelican Publishing Gretna, LA    2010
  
Sea Turtle Summer by Nancy Stewart Bella and Britt Beach Series   Guardian Angel Publishing       St Louis MO    2011
http://www.GuardianAngelPublishing.com
http://www.nancystewartbooks.com

Rainy Day Readings

Books for Rainy Summer Days
   So many great summer reads highlighted in  magazines and Sunday newspapers. Which one do I pick to read first?   One book came to haunt me as I read the reviews on  WILD by Cheryl Strayed. 
     WILD is  a memoir about death of a parent and how it changed the writer/daughter/wife role of  Ms. Strayed, the author.  As I started the book, the thought of hiking the Pacific Trail from Mexico to Canada sounded crazy.  Not because a single women did this alone (we can achieve whatever we set our minds to) but the sheer commitment to months in the wilderness is too Wild for me. 

     BUT the first chapter had me crying.   The grief from the death of her mother and recent reality of the death of my father, who died of cancer in September 2012.  The two of them, different in age yet, thirty five days from discovery of cancer to death.
           A big question swelled out from my heart:  Will we ever find a cure for the many type of cancers?   Not many of us can say we don't know someone with cancer OR know someone who has died from cancer.   Is it the preservatives in food?  effects from war zone chemical exposures?  BGH (bovine growth hormone)?  How many things can you name that may be causing cancer?

     Pick up this book.... It is a great summer read!


Also, pick up or order online the book-   The Triggering Town  lectures and essays on poetry and writing by Richard Hugo   W.W. Norton & Company New York 1979

Poetry can help a writer become a better writer but does a writer become a better writer with or without being a reader?   Pick up the book and share the view points of the author or NOT! 

Another Great summer read for writers and authors!
                   

        

Take a Risk

Motivation to Write

Its not the answer that enlightens us, but the question.   Eugene Ionesco

When the time is ripe,  the vision will come.   Joyce Rupp

       The desire to write, "feel" the characters, and develop the story may not come easy.
        What works on a good day for some, isn't the answer for the rest of us. 

Try these:

• Stay excited about the possibilities- Let your imagination wander
• Change what you can- Let go of those things you can't change.
• Take a risk - Believe in yourself; be confident; take action   
• Enjoy the Ride - Search your inner creative spark
• Never reach your destination - Success comes to those that wait and find answers.

If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in uncommon hours.  Henry David Thoreau   




       

Not Your Big Box Store

Sitting on a park bench at the American Playground, a sign on a small bookstore across the street caught my eye.  How could I not visit?      

WORD Bookstore- WWW.WORDBROOKLYN.COM

WORD's well-curated collection of children's books is awesome! 

An independent, community bookstore for literary-minded people in Greenpoint, BK.  Eighteen independently-owned businesses (including WORD) are located on Franklin Street.   

Take the G train to Greenpoint Ave. and Manhattan Ave., come to the street level, walk one block towards the East River  OR take the East River Ferry to Greenpoint on a warm summer day.           

Flying Leap

And the time came when the risk to remain a closed bud became infinitely more painful
than the risk to blossom. - Anais Nin


     Running in a road race, I train for hours and days.  My strategy - Just finish the 5K (3.1 miles).
     Not a far distance considering marathoners run 26 miles in a race.
    
     This writer can't imagine going farther than 3.1 miles.  I dress the part, lace up the shoes and grab a bottle of water.   Out the door and within ten minutes, I want to walk.  Not yet, keep going.  I turn the Ipod  louder. The song, Wrecking Ball by Bruce Springsteen, pounding in my ears as my feet hit the pavement.   Keep going!  Just Do It! 
      Practice over, race day on!. 
      Guess what, I do finish!  


        Writing stories that people want to read reminds me of running a road race.  I get your coffee in the morning, sit at my desk, and open the story that needs revision.   Ten minutes of writing, sip more coffee and stare at the black print on the page.  Now my strategy kicks in - turn the Ipod louder and keep going. Keep going! Just do it!
      Written drafts with revision on lots of stories.  Guess what,  I haven't finished!
     Practice keeps going... my writing group buddies one day will say, "It's really good, why don 't you start submitting it."  -  Race day on!    
     
      Stay tuned - My next post - Going the distance with writing and maintaining an inner peace.
    

Do I Need This Conference?

I took to heart the blog written by author, C. Hope Clark www.chopeclark.com, asking this very question.
       For two days, when I sat at my desk, I ask myself, "How could  the SCBWI regional conference @ Disney EPCOT  make a difference on my writing?  Did I want to spend the money?"
       I had been to the 2011 SCBWI regional conference in Miami.  While there, I met new writers I now call  friends, found a new writing group, and felt each session had talked right to me.
       So without hesitation, I signed up for SCBWI: Disney. Forget the money, it's worth it.  It will support  and encourage my need to write for children.
     To attend an SCBWI conference with debut authors (first time published) is huge. You can feel the  happiness in the room. You can feel the relief of the new authors when their book is being held and accepted by other writers/authors. 
      As a writer, I know my day will come.  That first published book will be my pride and joy. Yes, I am paying my dues - writing magazine articles, taking courses, writing draft picture book ideas and attending conferences.  It's not just that!  It's my writing group buddies, my new found friends and the support of everyone in business. 
      Conferences are worth  their weight in gold.  Use them for your need and desire after previewing the daily schedules,intensives and keynote speakers.  Make them fun. Learn and network!  You never know who you will meet.  Go forth!  See you on June 16th. I'll be in the Picture Book workshops feeling the love from all present and future published authors. 

  SCBWI.org 
        

How Easy Is it For You?

        The joy of learning a new software program is never on my bucket list.  Hours of sitting in front of a computer. Trial and error trying to make the program do what I thought it should do. And that's if I understand what I'm suppose to be doing.  Do I get what I wanted on the screen?  NO!  
        Why can't software instruction be like reading a non-fiction children's book? 
         I pick up the book, open to page one and start to read. By page two or three, I am learning facts, understand the topic and am lost in the book.   I love the pictures (no matter how small) and can't put the book down. I read it several times. The bibliography, index, and further reading entices me to read more about the topic.  I am "in the know" about the topic.
       We need software folks to take education classes/teach training classes.  Learn how to provide instructions/directions that people understand.  Yes, Chat does help. Yes, feedback does help,too.  Just make it simpler to understand up front and this writer will GET IT!      

Yummy and Wild

Ice Cream Treat
It's  hot outside!  I'm in a bookstore browsing the children's book area, wishing I had an ice cream cone (instead of the coffee I'm holding). I pick up the book The Ice Cream King by Steven Metzger. Who can pass up a book with a happy boy holding an ice cream cone with many flavors from Thrill Chill ice cream shop?  The illustrations by Julie Downing are excellent. Great summer read aloud.

Some Like It Hot

                              It could be a hot day, a hot date, a hot dog or a hot topic.
               My favorite menu for a hot and steamy summer evening with your oh so special friend.
                  

                      Hot and spicy salsa with chips
                     Red sangria with orange and apple slices
                     Dark stout beer
                     Garden salad with lettuce (chopped), cucumbers (sliced),
                     green and yellow peppers (diced), tomato(sliced), apple (slices),
                       orange (pieces), nuts
                     Grilled Shrimp on a bed of rice
                      Fruit salad of watermelon and cantaloupe
                     Chocolate chip cookies

                                                                 Have fun and enjoy!  

Day at the Beach

I visit the local beach to relax and feel my inner peace, which I don't get to explore often enough. Soft gentle waves as they slap the shore. The horizon far over the blue-green water as the sun goes down in the evening.  Day dreaming  about a trip around the globe to far off places like China, Norway, England or in my own back yard, north to Bar Harbor Maine. 




A great little book I found in St. Petersburg Florida is  A Week at the Beach by Jim and Joanne Hubal.  Over 100 things that can inspire, motivate and/or fill your time at the seashore.  My favorite is  number 52 - Take pictures of your favorite beach smells.  Sand, food, heat, water! Seashells, fish on the pier, and suntan lotion come to mind.  Let me know what you smell and how you feel on your next visit the beach.   

   

Time to Write

Here I sit on a Friday morning starring at my office walls.  I tell myself-write, get to work, write. I see my calendar that says May 11.  Time to send out that magazine article I've been writing for 2 weeks.  My favorite quote by Audrey Hepburn, "Nothing is impossible, the word itself says, I'm possible", hangs on my wall glaring at me.  I close the window shutters; it's dark. Nothing on the outside world to distract me. Write, I say write.  Coffee in one hand; type with the other.  Ah! this works. It must be the jolt, the kaboom to get going.Yes, I admit I'm a coffee addict. I do my best writing under the influence of the dark, smokey, rich blends.      

wish you were here

Have you ever visited a place and wanted the world to know about it?  A visit to Gulfport FL on the shores of Boca Ciega Bay is my new home away from home.  The seafood at Blackfin Blue Cafe is excellent.  Enjoy the pork tacos at Peg's Cantina and Brew Pub. Don't forget to order one of the three home brews made on site to go with that taco.  Strolling up and down the street on a Friday artwalk, first Friday of each month,  you talk with the vendors who truly enjoy their sidewalk gigs.  My favorite was last week when I met author Allison Cesario Paton. She is visiting from Maine and had her five books, Mrs.Bundle Mystery Series available.  I had to buy one. Visit her at www.mrsbundle.com.  An evening in this small town can be topped off with a community play in the Catherine Hickman Theater.  Fun for all ages with Gulfport Beach right next to Williams Pier.  Take a vacation and visit my little town.   

Q is for Quiet!

 A recommended read is the book Quiet by Susan Cain.  After reading the first page, I couldn't put it down even as night crept into early morning.   Quiet - The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking sounds so stuffy and too scientific.  Not so, with the approach taken by Ms. Cain.  Seems everyone has traits of each type-extrovert and introvert. How others perceive us makes a difference from as young as our childhood.  It is a great read. Let me know what you think.

Ready, Set, Go

Blogging made easy! Just follow the steps and you can be ready to go in minutes. Famous last words for this inexperienced blogger.  Sitting with  author Nancy Stewart for hours learning the process (could it really be this hard), I set up the blog on my own.  Now to post, who and where will it end up is the guess.  Enjoy!  Thank you Nancy, you are an angel! Oh yea, your books published by Guardian Angel Press says it all!