Home

Advertisement

November/December

  • Nov. 30th, 2009 at 11:40 AM
I turned the calendar this morning - and almost fell off my chair.

Who wrote all those events/practices/obligations/travel plans/appointments in December??

I can't see the days of the week, for goodness sakes.

Maybe I'll just stay right here in November . . .

First Skype visit

  • Nov. 30th, 2009 at 7:02 AM
Yay!!!

It went really well - I'm hooked!

[info]kmessner had a student in her creative writing class who was asking her questions about writing a verse novel and Kate didn't know the answers. So she asked me if I'd be willing to do a Skype Q&A session with her class! I said, of course!!

The kids had great questions, and it's just so amazing to me that I can be sitting in my office in Oregon talking to kids in a classroom all the way on the East coast!! So cool!

Interested in a Skype visit with me?

Check out my Skype an Author page for information!!

Tags:

Off to New Jersey!

  • Nov. 30th, 2009 at 7:53 AM
counter create hit
Burlington3-1.jpg picture by cynthialord2005 I'm heading off to New Jersey tomorrow morning for my last school visit of 2009.

This year, I spoke at 31 schools, 6 libraries, and 4 conferences. I enjoyed every one of them. But after this visit, I am looking forward to two months of putting down the author part of me and just being a writer again. My speaking starts up again in February, but until then, it'll be nice to focus on what's on the page, instead of what's on the screen in the gym.

I've had lots of funny school gym and cafeteria moments. One aspect of gyms and cafeterias is that they have functions and they are the domain of other people. So I always try to thank the gym teacher or the cafeteria staff for working around me that day. And I am respectful and flexible that I'm in their space.

One of my favorite gym stories was at a school where they brought me down to set up in the gym and I was very surprised to find a huge volleyball net stretching the full width of the room and perpendicular to the fixed screen. I asked if we could take the net down and was told no, it was too hard to put it back up and they would need it the next day. So the plan was for the kids to sit on the floor, half on each side of the net.

I spent each presentation walking and peeking from one side of the net to the other. I just put it in my mind that for every other slide change, I needed to switch sides so all the kids would see me for at least half the time. We made it work!

The New Jersey school told me they have an auditorium. That should be easy. :-)


        
         photo from ichabodhides's photostream.

Alrighty then.

Can you hear that faint jingle of sleigh bells? Eep! Christmas is only 24 days away. Hope you had a good Thanksgiving. In my next life I'm coming back as pie. Actually, after this weekend, I've already become pie. Just call me pumpkin or chocolate pecan.
November 29th and 30th are very good days for literature. Born on the 29th: Louisa May Alcott, Madeleine L'Engle, C.S. Lewis, Katherine Paterson. Born on the 30th: Mark Twain, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Jonathan Swift, Margot Zemach. 
The incomparable Maira Kalman (Pursuit of Happiness) created an amazing Thanksgiving picture essay,"Back to the Land." She visited Alice Waters at Chez Panisse, a couple of edible schoolyards, walked to California in her head a couple of times, met Michael Pollan, and makes a great case for America becoming "less fastly fastly and more slowly slowly" when it comes to growing our food. Don't know how she does it, but each month Maira tops herself, and I have to say this one is my favorite so far. Don't miss it!
Corinne at the Paper Tigers Blog recently mentioned the OllyBolly Online Picture Book Project from Korea. Anyone with internet access can watch animated stories from various countries around the world. So far, Vietnam, the Philippines and Mongolia are represented. They will be building their list of culturally diverse offerings to include West Asia, South America and Africa in the coming months. Stories can be heard in English, Korean, or their original language.
Exciting announcement! Tarie of Into the Wardrobe has a new blog featuring children's and YA books set in Asia, or with Asian characters by both Asian and non-Asian authors and illustrators from around the world. Asia in the Heart, World on the Mind, is a much needed resource in the kidlit blogosphere. We congratulate Tarie on this new venture and look forward to lots of reviews and interviews, and learning about titles we would otherwise never encounter through traditional channels. Tarie will also continue posting about general children's and YA books at Into the Wardrobe.
If, like me, you plan to give a lot of children's books as holiday gifts, make sure to check Chicken Spaghetti's Best of the Best List as well as the nominated titles for the 2009 Cybils Awards for recommendations. Also, if you plan to order from Amazon, click through from the Cybils website widget. The small commission earned from the sale will help purchase prizes for the winning authors and pick up the tab for a few other minor expenses. 
If you happen to notice a little strangeness with my LJ cuts (text hidden behind a link), it's not because I'm seeing double or making mistakes to get your attention. Ever since LJ updated its Rich Text Editor to FCKeditor 2.6.5., whenever I try to use LJ cut, instead of (Read More), it does this: (Read More)(Read More). It's driving me crazy and I've put in a support request. Others are experiencing similar probs, so we'll just have to be patient and hope they fix this bug soon. Till then, I hope you'll continue to (Read More)(Read More)(Read More) . . .
Don't forget to watch Grace Lin on the NBC Today Show this Friday, December 4th at 9:45 a.m. (EST)! Her wonderful middle grade novel, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, was selected for Al Roker's Children's Book Club. Can't wait to see the famous red dress!
Happy Monday and happy shopping and wrapping and mailing and eggnogging and decorating and partying and caroling. More 2009 Fall for Restaurants fun coming up in December! 

Copyright © 2009 Jama Rattigan of jama rattigan's alphabet soup. All rights reserved.

Sending off your manuscript to your agent

  • Nov. 29th, 2009 at 7:04 PM
Finally, you decide you're ready. You've chatted about your novel with your agent, made sure she's on board with your premise, and revised until your fingertips are bloody. (Okay, so that's an exaggeration, but pretty damn long...)

And then you send it with a note, "Hope you like it. Looking forward to hearing from you soon."

From that moment until you get your feedback, it's like being nine months pregnant. You're uncomfortable, nervously excited, and hopeful. But the waiting kills you.

So here's to my agent: may our union result in a healthy, happy, speedy delivery.

In the meantime, maybe I need to revisit "What to Expect When You're Expecting" so I can learn how to breathe properly. :)
Weird and Funny Bookshelf!

Tags:

The Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum and the Roosevelt-Vanderbilt Historic Sites will host a series of free holiday events for families. The Roosevelt Library will be decorated for the holidays and open to visitors free of charge Dec 5 from 9 am to 6 pm. There will be refreshments and activities beginning at noon at the Henry A. Wallace Visitor and Education Center. The fourth annual Children's Book Festival in the Wallace Center runs from noon to 5 pm. Children's authors will read from and sign copies of their books:

*Iza Trapani, 12:15 "Jingle Bells," "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star."
*Susanna Hill, 1:00 "Punxsutawney Phyllis," "Not Yet, Rose."
*Della Ferreri, 1:45 "Star of the Show," "How Will I Ever Sleep in This Bed?"
*Doreen Rappaport, 2:30 "Eleanor, Quiet No More: The Life of Eleanor Roosevelt," "Lady Liberty: A Biography."
*Hudson Talbot, 3:15 "River of Dreams: The Story of the Hudson River," "United Tweets of America: 50 State Birds, Their Stories, Their Glories."

Family-friendly musicians, Dog on Fleas, will perform at 4 pm at the Wallace Center. There will be free photos with Santa from 1-3, and children can make holiday cards for sailors on the USS Franlin and Eleanor throughout the afternoon.

The Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site, Val-kill, will also be free and open to visitors from 4-7 pm on Dec 5. Visitors to Val-kill are required to take a shuttle from the Wallace Center. There will be no on-site parking at Val-Kill.In Addition, there will be a holiday open house with free admission at Vanderbilt Mansion from 9 - 5pm on Dec 5.
Call Cliff Laube at 845 - 486-7745 for more information.

If you'll be visiting Hyde Park,NY please stop by and say hi!!!
~Della

Big Bookmarks Giveaway Book Winner!

  • Nov. 29th, 2009 at 4:13 PM
A big THANK YOU to everyone who participated in my Big Bookmarks Giveaway. I'll be mailing out 750 bookmarks tomorrow morning! Yea! In addition, a copy of My Last Best Friend will go to our book drawing winner.

And who might that winner be? Here's the scoop:


Our contestants.



Our impartial name-drawer.



Our winner!

Tammi Sauer (aka [info]tamarak ) you are the big winner!!!

A special thank you to my daughter and my sock monkey, George, for helping with the drawing. :)

I still have bookmarks I would love to give to your favorite classroom, library, or book club. Just send me your address and the number of bookmarks you'd like to have and I'll mail them right out!

I got Jak

  • Nov. 29th, 2009 at 9:00 AM
Backstory -- I was thrilled when I heard there'd be a 4th Jak and Daxter game, Jak and Daxter: The Lost Frontier, for the Play Station 2. The second in the series was one of my all-time favorite PS2 games. Sadly, the new game pretty much fails in a number of ways. Basically, it seems they wrote the game for the Play Station Portable, and just dropped it, pretty much unchanged, onto the PS2. (The PS2 has much better potential controls for a game since it has two joysticks, one of which is often used to totally control the viewpoint. In PSP games, the camera control is often limited to rotation, using the shoulder buttons.) The camera controls in this game are broken. Often, you can't even see what you're fighting, or where you're supposed to jump. The frustration level kills any potential fun. I feel sorry for kids who spent their allowance on this one.

This hammers home something I've spoken about in a lot of schools. During Q&A, kids often ask, "What was the hardest book to write?" I tell them that True Talents was the hardest, because I didn't want to ruin the original with a crappy sequel. I actually tossed the first sequel, and wrote an entirely different one. I feel a bad sequel is far worse than a bad individual book. The reader of a sequel come to the book with expectations. There's a sort of social contract. In a way, perhaps the characters belong to the reader as much as they do to the author. This doesn't mean the sequel can't go in unexpected directions. I definitely did that with True Talents. But I stayed true to the characters, and I told an exciting story. I'm pretty sure I gave the readers what they wanted. If not, I suspect I would have heard complaints. Or seen blog postings like my first paragraph.

I have no idea what any of this has to do with the Thanksgiving season or Black Friday. Oh yeah -- now I remember. I'm supposed to be writing the 5th book in my Nathan Abercrombie, Accidental Zombie series. Which explains why I'm sitting here blogging. And dusting my shelves. And reading your blog.

Cybils Sunday

  • Nov. 29th, 2009 at 7:21 AM

counter create hitCybils_logo.gif picture by cynthialord2005 Today's featured panelist judge in the Easy Reader and Early Chapter Book category of the Cybil Awards is Jennifer, a Youth Services librarian at the Matheson Memorial Library in Elkhorn, Wisconsin. Her blog is called Jean Little Library (named for one of her favorite authors).

Jennifer reviews all types of books for children and teens, but her reviews for our Cybils category can be found here!

I'm excited to see which books are chosen for the short list. That list will be announced January 1st and then the final judges (including me!) will choose a winner by Valentine's Day.

Over 200 Movies about the literary life

  • Nov. 30th, 2009 at 12:01 AM
I've been building this list for a long time and thought I would share it with friends. It's a list of over 200 movies about authors, poets, editors, screenwriters - basically anything to do with the writing business. I don't claim it as a complete or perfect list so please feel free to add titles or corrections in the comments. The links will take you to IMDB.

WRITERS
84 Charring Cross Road (1987)
A Murder of Crows (1998)
Agatha (1979)
Alex & Emma (2003)
Almost Famous (2000)
American Dreamer (1984)
The Answer Man (2009)
As Good As It Gets (1997)
Ayn Rand -- A Sense of Life (1997)
Balzac: A Life of Passion (1999)
Basic Instinct (1992)
Becoming Colette (1991)
Becoming Jane (2007)
The Best Man (1999)
Best Seller (1987)
Big Bad Love (2001)
Boy Meets Girl (1998)
Breakfast of Champions (1999)
Carrington (1995)
Celebrity (1998)
Celeste (1981)
Chapter Two (1978)
Children of the Century (1995)
Cross Creek (1983)
Croupier (1998)
The Dark Half
(1993)
Deconstructing Harry (1997)
Devotion (1946)
Door in the Floor (2004)
Double Take (1998)
DreamChild (1985)
The End of the Affair (1999)
Eternity and a Day (1998)
Factotum (2005)
Father's Day (1997)
Fiction and Other Truths: A Film About Jane Rule (1995)
Finding Forrester (2000)
Finding Neverland (2004)
The Flower of My Secret (1995)
Freedom Writers (2007)
The Front (1976)
Get Bruce! (1999)
Gothic (1986)
Hamsun (1996)
Harriet the Spy (1996)
Haunted Summer (1988)
Hav Plenty (1997)
Heartburn (1986)
Henry & June (1990)
Her Alibi (1989)
The Hours (2002)
Impromptu (1991)
Infamous (2006)
In Love and War (1996)
In the Mouth of Madness (1994)
Iris (2001)
Isn't She Great (2000)
Jack London (1943)
Jane Austen in Manhattan (1980)
Jewel of the Nile (1985)
Joe Gould's Secret (2000)
Joshua Then and Now (1985)
Julia (1977)
Julie and Julia (2009)
Kissing a Fool (1998)
The Last Time I Committed Suicide
(1997)
Let It Come Down: The Life of Paul Bowles (1998)
The Libertine (2004)
The Life of Emile Zola (1937)
Long Day's Journey Into Night (1962)
The Lost Weekend (1945)
Love and Death on Long Island (1997)
Making of Daniel Boone (2003)
The Man From Elysian Fields (2001)
Margot at the Wedding (2007)
Mark Twain Tonight (1967)
Melinda and Melinda (2004)
Misery (1990)
Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
Miss Potter (2006)
Morvern Callar (2002)
Mother (1996)
My Brilliant Career (1979)
My Dear Secretary (1949)
My Left Foot (1989)
The Mystery of Rampo (1994)
Naked Jane (1995)
The Night and the Moment (1995)
Nora (2000)
Paperback Romance (1994)
Pola X (1999)
The Prize (1963)
The Proprietor (1996)
Purple Violets (2007)
Quills (2000)
The Raven (2006)
Reprise (2006)
Romancing the stone (1984)
Rowing With the Wind (1988)
Sade (2000)
Saint-Ex (1996)
Secret Window (2004)
Shadowlands (1993)
The Shadow Dancer (2005)
Shakespeare in Love (1998)
Shining (1980)
The Singing Detective (2003)
The Squid and the Whale (2005)
Stone Reader (2002)
Storytelling (2001)
Stranger Than Fiction (2006)
Surburban Girl
(2007)
Swann (1996)
Swimming Pool (2003)
The Technical Writer (2003)
The Snows of Kilimanjaro
(1952)
Theodora Goes Wild (1936)
The Third Man (1949)
Throw Momma from the Train (1987)
Time Regained (1999)
Todo sobre mi madre (1999)
The Trip (2002)
Where Sleeping Dogs Lie (1991)
The Whole Wild World (1996)
Wild in the Country (1961)
Winter Passing (2005)
Wonder Boys
(2000)
Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm (1962)
World According to Garp (1982)
World's Greatest Dad (2009)


POETS
A Fine Madness (1966)
An Angel at My Table (1990)
Barfly
(1987)
Beat (2000)
Beautiful Dreamers (1990)
Before Night Falls (2000)
The Belle of Amherst (1976)
Between the Lines (1977)
Blood In, Blood Out (1993)
Blue Car (2002)
The Business of Fancydancing
(2002)
Byron (2003) (poet)
Color of Pomegranates, The (1968)
The Dark Side of the Heart (1992)
Dead Man (1995)
Dead Poet's Society (1989)
The Edge of Love (2008)
Fighting Words (2007)
Gu cheng bielian (The Poet) (1998)
Heart Beat (1980)
Henry Fool (1997)
I, the Worst of All (1990)
Il Postino (1994)
In Custody (1994)
Keats and His Nightingale: A Blind Date (1985)
Love Jones (1997)
Mindwalk
(1990)
Mirage (2004)
Moulin Rouge (2001)
Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle (1994)
Nostalghia (1983)
Pandaemonium (2000)
Pinero (2001)
Poetic Justice (1993)
Regeneration (1997)
Runoilija ja muusa (1978)
Satan's Brew (1976)
Slam (1998)
So I Married An Axe Murderer (1993)
Sylvia (2003)
Tom & Viv (1994)
Total Eclipse (1995)
West of Brooklyn (2006)
Xiang ji mao yi yang fei (2002)


SCREENWRITERS
Adaptation (2002)
Bullets Over Broadway (1994)
Cabin by the Lake (2000)
French Exit (1995)
Hit and Runway (1999)
In a Lonely Place (1950)
The Lonely Lady (1983)
Midnight (2006)
The Muse (1999)
Out of Order (2003)
Paris When It Sizzles (1964)
The Player (1992)
Sunset Boulevard (1950)


PLAYWRIGHTS
Author! Author! (1982)
Barton Fink (1991)
Beaumarchais, the Scoundrel (1996)
Deathtrap (1982)
How to Kill Your Neighbor's Dog (2000)
The Producers (1968)
The Savages (2007)
Tema (1979)
Wilde (1997)


NEWSPAPERS & JOURNALISTS
Absence of Malice (1981)
Ace in the Hole (1951)
All the President´s Men (1976)
Call Northside 777 (1948)
Citizen Kane (1941)
City in Fear (1980)
Continental Divide (1981)
Deadline U.S.A. (1952)
Down With Love (2003)
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998)
The Front Page (1974)
Funny Farm (1988)
His Girl Friday (1940)
It Happened One Night (1934)
La Dolce Vita (1960)
Libeled Lady (1936)
Meet John Doe (1941)
The Paper (1994)
The Parallax View (1974)
The Pelican Brief (1993)
The Philadelphia Story (1940)
Platinum Blonde (1931)
Reds (1981)
Roman Holiday (1953)
Salvador (1986)
Shattered Glass (2003)
Saving Sarah Cain (2007)
Street Smart (1987)
Sweet Smell of Success (1957)
Teacher’s Pet (1958)
Welcome to Sarajevo (1997)
Year of Living Dangerously (1982)


I haven't seen all of these movies (not even half) so I can't vouch for quality, only subject matter. :) In many cases there are multiple versions of the film. I've only linked to one. Enjoy!

Tags:

I am thankful

  • Nov. 28th, 2009 at 10:05 AM
Things I am thankful for...

I didn't have to go with my wife and daughter to watch New Moon.

Hmmm. Let's see. Everything else sort of pales in comparison with that.

Online Holiday Book Signing

  • Nov. 28th, 2009 at 7:41 AM
counter create hit
tree_caterpillar_3625.jpg picture by cynthialord2005 I'm participating in an online book sale and signing at the University of Southern Maine on Dec. 10.

Here's how it works:

To buy a signed copy of RULES (or a signed book by Melissa Sweet, Toni Buzzeo, etc), go to the University bookstore website.

Click on the book cover you would like to buy.

A window pops up, with space to enter a message or a name to whom you would like the book inscribed. When you're finished, you simply check out through the USM Bookstore website.

The authors will personalize and sign all books on December 10th at a signing party, and the bookstore will mail all orders on December 11th.

A signed book might make a nice teacher gift. . . .?

Windy day in NY

  • Nov. 28th, 2009 at 7:36 AM
I'm getting ready to catch the 8:40 train to Grand Central, then off to the Holiday Market at Union Square, 14th and Broadway.
I'll be at the Shenanigan Books Booth today signing Star of the Show from 10:30 to 3:00. Can't wait to meet Mary Watson, Creative Director of Shenanigan Books. If you're up for some cool shopping, and don't mind braving the wind, stop by Union Square, and say hi!

Here's a sneak peek at Shenanigan Books stall:



~Della

Let the Bidding Begin!

  • Nov. 27th, 2009 at 7:26 PM
Looking for a gift for the person who has everything? What about some beautiful crystal jewelry?



Or signed copy of this book:

Or proofreading services by the author of the above, founder of the Society for the Promotion of Good Grammar?




Or a limited edition Curious George Barbie?

Or critique services, or couples therapy, or babysitting, or tickets to the Madison Symphony Orchestra, or wine or beer or books, books, and more books?

These items and more are up for bid at the Bridget Kicks Cancer: Auction! A Benefit for Bridget & Barrett.

Here's more:
Browse, bid, and win for a good cause at this online auction to raise money for Bridget Zinn and Barrett Dowell. Bridget is a 32-year-old writer and librarian who is currently being treated for stage 4 colon cancer – and her "healthy young person between jobs" health insurance does not cover many of her expenses. Read Bridget's blog at http://www.bridgetzinn.com/blog for more information.

We have received dozens of generous donations of items to be auctioned off. Many authors – Bridget’s friends and acquaintances – have donated signed copies of their books; there are also a number of manuscript critiques and proofreading services for authors. But that’s not all – there’s something for everyone! We also have works of art, food and drink, baby gifts, jewelry, and more. Many of the items would make lovely gifts, just in time for your holiday shopping. Take a look – you may find just the thing you’re looking for!
Auction items can be viewed at http://www.32auctions.com/view_auction?id=bridget&pwd=rules - or just go to www.32auctions.com and use the Auction ID: bridget and Password: rules (as in: Bridget rules!!) to view the auction. You will need to create an account on the site in order to bid on auction items. (Creating an account simply requires your name, email address, and a password, and it is required so that we can contact you if you win an item.)

Bidding will begin on Nov. 27 and continue through 9 p.m. Central time on Dec. 11.

HERE'S A BONUS FOR FELLOW RESIDENTS OF MADISON,WISCONSIN!!!
Bridget & Barrett lived in Madison for 10 years. Bridget was a Youth Services Librarian at the Madison Public Library (Lakeview branch) until she and Barrett moved to Portland last year. Many local businesses and organizations have generously donated items to the auction. You’ll see all of these Madison-specific items – such as gift certificates for local services and businesses, and tickets to local events – labeled “for Madison-area bidders” in the online auction.



Five Things on a Friday

  • Nov. 27th, 2009 at 8:53 AM
counter create hit

1. Thanksgiving was wonderful. There's nothing like looking around the table and seeing every seat full. I loved it.

2. The Scottish Terrier won the dog show!

3. I spent Wednesday morning researching chipmunks. It's amazing what little, surprising details come up at the end of a novel!

4. Hanukkah starts the 12th of December. Yikes. That's not far away.

5. I'm not going shopping today, but my daughter and I went yesterday in the late afternoon. LL Bean is only a few minutes away from me and they're open 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. If you've never been, it's a fun store.

LL_Bean_10.jpg picture by cynthialord2005 LL_Bean_6.jpg picture by cynthialord2005 LL_Bean_7.jpg picture by cynthialord2005LL_Bean_11.jpg picture by cynthialord2005 LL_Bean_5.jpg picture by cynthialord2005 LL_Bean_4.jpg picture by cynthialord2005 LL_Bean_1.jpg picture by cynthialord2005

Poetry Friday - An Original Poem

  • Nov. 27th, 2009 at 1:03 AM

I had hoped to have a new poem up today but I didn't quite finish it. So I went looking through my archive for something to share and came across some poems that were cut from my book Hugging the Rock. If you've read the book you may remember a pivotal time for Rachel, the main character, when she goes grocery shopping with her dad. In an early version of the book I had this poem of Rachel shopping with her mom to show the differences. But in the end it was too much of a flashback and didn't add anything new to the story.


GROCERY SHOPPING WITH MOM

At the grocery store
mom stops to talk to everyone.

She scoops up new babies
sings them lullabies
nuzzles their peach fuzz heads.

In the produce aisle she spouts advice
races off to give her coupons to the old man in the wheelchair
then slips a quarter into the rocket ship
for a skinny kid in a baseball cap.

She tosses boxes of cereal
into the cart
then dances away
chasing a guy blowing a harmonica.

I put four boxes back on the shelf
and trail after her.

In the pet food aisle
mom talks fast
her hands pointing everywhere
and nowhere
until the guy smiles
cups the harmonica
close to his mouth
and plays a sweet tune.

The guy tucks a bag of dog food
under one arm
and they both walk off
still talking.

My mom marches beside him
right through the checkout stand
and out the door
and never once looks back at me.

I wait over an hour
watching the ice cream melt
and drip onto the loaf of bread
and a jar of pickles
wondering what is
in me
that makes me
so invisible
to her.

--- Susan Taylor Brown
All Rights Reserved

The round-up is at Becky's Book Reviews today.

Giving Thanks

  • Nov. 26th, 2009 at 9:06 AM
I am thankful for a great many things today - family, friends, health, ability to be home writing - but I wanted to speak specifically to a single recent experience.

Earlier this week I went on a retreat with a few writer friends and a few writer/artists strangers who are now friends. We gathered at the beach mostly with solitary intentions and yet, it seemed, the magic of where we were and the creative energy of those gathered had other ideas.

We came with no agenda, no speakers, nothing that absolutely had to be done.

Groups of two and three started to form. Individual work turned into freeform group writing fun. Books and art were shared. Gifts were acknowledged, praised. We were validated as professional creatives. Meals stretched for several hours as we lingered over coffee and tea. We sat by the fire and talked long into the night. We laughed (and some of us cried) and took a great many pictures.

Our backgrounds, our journeys to be writers, were of course very different.
Our passion however, was very much the same.

I am so grateful for the time spent with these fabulous and talented women. You have to understand that it isn't because someone took me aside and said a particular thing to me. It isn't because of anything we saw or ate or did. I think it might be because of what they didn't do.

They didn't say "do this." They didn't say "don't do that." They just listened. And accepted.

It rocked my world from the inside out.

Happy Thanksgiving to each of you. Thank you for all the times you read my blog. May your bellies and hearts be full of everything you need.

Tags:


Following in the tradition of my friend, Amy, I want to offer a non-traditional thanks.

Today I'm grateful for:

  • my 70's era crockpot (because I seldom use it anyway so never mind that it isn't uber cool and doesn't conveniently separate for cleaning.)
  • my hardwood floors that need refinishing (because they're not damp dirt floors and there are no holes in them!)
  • the roof that needs to be replaced soon. (because it's not a tent in a refugee camp)
  • for occasional backpain (because it reminds me to exercise and because in the grand scheme of things, it's nothing, really!)
  • for midlist books (because although I don't have millions of readers, I have many who tell me how deeply touched they are by Ann Fay Honeycutt's story) (sequel too!)
  • for a smaller royalty check than last time (because four years ago I was still dreaming of publication!)
  • fewer speaking engagements (because although I miss the connections and the income, I have more time with my family!)
  • for 1/3 of my family gathering today (because the rest are celebrating with their families in other places and anyway 100 plus people is a lot to fix turkey for!)
  • that I'm only responsible for broccoli salad and other trivia (because when you're number 6 out of 8 siblings you don't have to be the leader if you don't want to! Thanks Kathleen, my first-born sibling for taking charge and cooking two turkeys!)

And of course, I am thankful for the usual yada, yada. But I don't want to sound trite - so trust me, I'm overwhelmed with God's goodness in my life even when I complain about things that really don't matter.
As many of you are touching bare-skinned birds, rinsing their innards, pulling fat from flabby turkey underarms, I wanted to share some cooking advice from kindergartners, who, of course, are the supreme authorities on meal preparation.

You may want to grab your recipe box and some extra note cards. Or, that's right, you could just click 'print.'

What's even better--most of the "recipes" (yes, I'm going to use quotes here and you'll see why in just a moment) offer cooking times of less than one hour.

The following are excerpts from a booklet titled, "How to Cook a Turkey," where my son's kindergarten teacher asked each child to describe the process. As you'll see, she transcribed word for word...

"My daddy goes hunting for the turkey. We put him in the oven at seven degrees. We put pepper on him. That's it. We cook him for thirty-five minutes. Then we check the oven and get it out. We eat it with more pepper on it. It tastes good!"
***
"Mommy buys the turkey at Target. We put it in the oven. We cook it for five minutes. It beeps when it's done. It turns brown. You take it out of the oven. You cut it, and we eat it. You put salt on it. It tastes good!"
***
"When my dad goes to work he found a turkey and it was already dead and he brought it home. Then I was surprised! Momma put it in the oven. She puts mustard, ketchup, salt, pepper, and cherries on it. She puts pears and apples and pineapples on it. She puts it in the microwave for fifty seconds. When it goes to one, it's done. Then we cut it and we eat it. It tastes good!"
***
And my son said this:
"Sometimes we hunt a turkey or sometimes we usually go to the store. Usually we just let it sit in the refrigerator for one day. Then we usually cook it. We put gravy on it. You could put vinegar on it. Then we cook it for forty-one minutes. Your oven has to beep. That means when it's ready! Usually we cut it up. Then we eat it! It tastes good!"
***

Happy Thanksgiving! As part of my annual tradition, let's all sing along to Adam Sandler's little diddy. Ready? OK! (Cover little ears!)

On hard work

  • Nov. 26th, 2009 at 8:19 AM
When I was in high school and a freshman in college, I dated a nice guy named Mark. We went to prom together and broke up soon after I got to William and Mary. (Ah, the short-lived devastation of breaking up with your hometown honey--I think everyone I knew broke up with theirs by Christmas).

Mark, like me, was into theater in high school. We both thought we'd teach high school someday--him, drama; me, English. I did end up teaching English. He didn't become a drama teacher. He came to William and Mary, too (not because of me), and continued doing theater (which I didn't). Somewhere along the line (and I don't know when because although we were friendly, we weren't really close friends anymore), he decided to pursue theater as a career.

We were out of touch for twenty years. I'd occasionally google him, the same way I'd google other old friends, and see that he was in a show here or a show there and worked with Actors' Equity. Then around two years ago we reconnected on Facebook and played the occasional game of Scrabulous before Scrabulous went belly-up.

This past spring, I learned from his Facebook Wall that he was in a Kennedy Center production of RAGTIME. I thought that was pretty cool.

Well, that production did so well that they decided to bring it to Broadway this fall. So at the fabulous age of, well, let's just say, not quite as middle-aged as I am, since he's a year younger, Mark is on Broadway, in RAGTIME.

And today, the cast of RAGTIME performed in the CBS Thanksgiving Day special, which includes part of the Macy's parade as well as some bonus performances like one from the cast of RAGTIME. They performed in Battery Park across from the Statue of Liberty, which was a fabulous location for it.

Mark's on Broadway now because he worked his butt off, learned his craft, and stuck with it for years and years. And I think it is AWESOME.

I don't know if there's a lesson there for you, but there's a lesson there for me.



Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!




free statistics

Latest Month

September 2008
S M T W T F S
 123456
78910111213
14151617181920
21222324252627
282930    
web hit counter
Powered by LiveJournal.com