Misconceptions and Back-of-the-Book Blurb #70

         

              I hate chihuahuas. I really do. They're small, they yap a lot, and they're ankle-biters. 

             However, I discovered I like chihuahua mixes. This is my half-sister's dog (Chloe) and she is a cutie. She's an odd-looking dog, which probably accounts for part of the reason why I'm so fond of her.

            Before I visited the Grand Canyon, I imagined there would be hundreds of people jostling at every viewing spot. In my mind, every time we stopped, there would be a crowd 10 or 12 people deep, all of them trying to see the canyon. The night before we went to the park, I even dreamed that someone pushed me (deliberately) so they could get a better look.

          We got to the park and to the canyon before the sun rose, and it was just us. No one to spoil the surreal quiet.  At various times during the day, there were one or two dozen people--at most--at each spot. At sunset, there were more people, but definitely less than I initially envisioned.

          And my final misconception for today: success can be measured only by how many books/articles/stories we've published. That's what some people want us to think, but it's so, so wrong.

         Not long ago, Angela Macintosh sent me a link to a story she'd gotten published. Not only is it raw and unflinching, she also used a clever way to organize it. (I am sooooo going to steal her organizational idea, along with teaching my students about it.) 

         No, it's not a book. Angela won't get rich off this publishing deal. It's a slice-of-life story. But this one story could help other people who are touched by someone's suicide. She's made a difference in the world. In my opinion, that means Angela's successful. (If you would like to read her story, go here. )

          And now onto book blurb stuff...
           
            Look at the photo below. That is the cover of your book. You choose the genre. Is it a nonfiction piece? Is it a guide for nudists? You decide.

         Write an enticing blurb--150 words or less. (The title doesn't count in the word count.) Blurbs are those enticing bits that prod you into buying the book. Sometimes they're on the back cover of the book. Sometimes they're on the inside front cover. What they always try to do is lure you into purchasing the book. 

          Lisa Ricard Claro was the original creator of this writing challenge. She moved to Florida, has three different cabana boys at her beck and call, and writes while looking at a lovely landscape. What a life! Now, however, she's too busy to host a weekly book blurb, so you're all stuck with me.

           Include your blurb in a blog post. Include a link to this post. Also, link your post to Mr. Linky. Mr. Linky is easy. If you've never done it, you'll be impressed with how simple he is. And then, check out the other blurb(s). It's interesting to see the different directions writers take, given the same photo.

Here's the book cover, along with my blurb:

The Four-Dollar Mystery

          Andy couldn’t figure it out. People would stop, they’d smile while they handed him money, but every donation was $4. Folks didn’t hand him a dollar. Or some change. Or a five-dollar bill. Each and every time, they gave him four bucks.

Oh, Andy was grateful for everything he got as he stood on the street corner and begged. He was desperate. Two weeks earlier, his wife and kids had gotten snatched by masked ninjas dressed in black. Every night he’d sob himself to sleep, worried he’d never see them again.

But this four-dollar mystery now eclipsed his worries. What kind of crazy was this? Every person gave the same amount:  $ 4. It was truly bizarre.

Will Andy get his family back? Will he raise enough to get karate lessons? Most importantly, will he ever figure out why he’s getting help in four-dollar increments? (a gross; 144 words)

Speaking of ninjas, if you have somehow missed watching this video of the "literal" version of the song Total Eclipse of the Heart, you can go here to see it.

And for anyone who wants to play next week, here is the photo:

I Love My Job (She Whispered)

     Last week, I was in a car with five other women/girls. Two other adult women--all 3 of us on the verge of turning 60--and two 11-year olds.

This was the back of our rented minivan when we left.
We needed lots of "stuff" for the six of us for the week-long trip.

     One of the women was talking about how much she hated her job. The other one was talking about how she was looking forward to retiring. I kept my mouth shut (feeling a bit guilty?) and simply reflected on my job... 'cause I retired and then went back to work.

Here is a shot of five of us--one of us was
"missing" when the picture was taken.

     I love my job that much.

     Now, if you're thinking that I'm in some saccharine-sweet dreamland, you'd be wrong. I've had teaching jobs where I loved my students and colleagues, but would poke pins into principal voodoo dolls every night. I've had serious struggles with occasional students. I've been driven to drink (chocolate milk) because of a few parents. But the everyday work?

     That I adore.

      And I'm wondering how many other people love their job... Am I in the minority? I imagine I am. I imagine most people hate the work they do, or at least they dislike it for the most part.

     So my questions are:  Do you love your job or do you hate it? If you're retired, what is the best part, and do you miss any part of your former job? If you aren't crazy about your job, what would be your dream job?





     

All About Ravens and Back-of-the-Book Blurb # 69

        
         While at the Grand Canyon last week, I learned some things about ravens that made me admire the birds even more than I previously did.

          These fascinating birds--about the size of red-tailed hawk--fly upside down and do somersaults in the sky, just for fun. They drop sticks and then swoop down to get them before they hit the ground, in their solo game of fetch. They live to be 25-30 years old, and can make 100 different vocalizations--everything from a wolf to a toilet flushing.

          However, the most surprising thing I learned was a study they did with ravens. People wore masks with different expressions. People with a certain mask were mean to the ravens. People with a certain mask were kind to the ravens. People with a certain mask were playful with the ravens.

          Generations of ravens later, the birds still responded correctly. The younger birds--birds that had never seen people in the masks--stayed away from the masked people who were deemed as dangerous. They flocked to the kind ones and the fun ones, even though they had never encountered the people in the original study.

         Wow. What brilliant birds.

         And now onto the business of book blurb.

Look at the photo below. That is the cover of your book. You choose the genre. Is it a nonfiction piece? Is it a guide for nudists? You decide.

Write an enticing blurb--150 words or less. (The title doesn't count in the word count.) Blurbs are those enticing bits that prod you into buying the book. Sometimes they're on the back cover of the book. Sometimes they're on the inside front cover. What they always try to do is lure you into purchasing the book. 

Lisa Ricard Claro was the original creator of this writing challenge. She moved to Florida and is now enjoying some much-deserved beach time--on a weekly basis, probably. (If you check out her blog and read this week's post, you can even see what she sees when she looks out the window of her writing room. Be prepared to drool. It's a lovely view.)

Include your blurb in a blog post. Include a link to this post. Also, link your post to Mr. Linky. Mr. Linky is easy. If you've never done it, you'll be impressed with how simple he is. And then, check out the other blurb(s). It's interesting to see the different directions writers take, given the same photo.

Here's the book cover, along with my blurb:

The Man With No Plan

Edwin went to the Grand Canyon for the first time. He was a pantser. In his everyday life he flew by the seat of his pants, so the trip was no different. He went into the park with only the clothes he wore, a half-filled tube of sunscreen and a gallon of water.

Unaware that the terrain was quite rough in spots, he snagged up this pants, shirt and boxers until they were shredded. Having no other choice, he took them off, and then admired the view below him.

Then Edwin realized that somewhere during his hike, he’d lost his car keys.

Will he have enough water to avoid dehydration? Will he have enough sunscreen to avoid his man-bits turning into crispy critters? Will he make it out alive, or will he have to find a herd of elk to live with? (147 words)

And for Val and Pat and anyone else who'd like to play along, here is the photo for next week:

How about you? What animal do you admire, and why?

Sunrise... Sunset

       Four days ago I was in Sedona. I'd been told the rocky hills were incredible to look at, and indeed they were. We stopped at place after place, on the shoulder of the road and at parks along the way into the city, and marveled at the naturally-made rock sculptures.  

      

      Three days ago I spent the whole day in the Grand Canyon. From sunrise to sunset, I was there with family to soak up the peace and the breathtaking beauty.

Here is one picture of the Grand Canyon I took. It was taken
as the sun was setting. Cameras cannot capture its true beauty.

     I apologize for not posting on Friday. I don't know what happened. We were staying at an Airbnb, and the connectivity was spotty. However, there was a night when the wifi was working fine, I created a post and scheduled it. Something screwy happened, because the post disappeared. (This Friday I'll use the same photo from the lost post.)

    During our three days in Williams, Arizona I:

• went to Bearizona--a really well-done animal park (most of their animals are rescues)
• took at 3-hour bike tour around part of the South Rim
• finished reading the book The Handmaid's Tale. Okay, that has nothing to do with the soaking up nature, but it was a great read
• discovered how the movie Thelma and Louise impacted the Grand Canyon park (there were several cars driven off the edge and into the canyon the year after the movie came out) 
• learned a bunch about ravens (I'll post more about that on Friday) 

Going to the Grand Canyon was on my "bucket list." What is on yours?

    

      

The Grand Canyon... and Back-of-the-Book Blurb # 68

Today I'm at the Grand Canyon. Actually, I've been in the area all week but today (at least this was the plan at the time of this posting, which was on Wednesday) we went to see the sunrise, we took a 3-hour bike tour in the afternoon, and we stayed to watch the sunset.

So, when I don't comment on your posts, this is why.

Going to the Grand Canyon is one of my bucket list items. We (my French sister, her great niece, a high school friend, my daughter, my granddaughter) got to Williams, Arizona late on Tuesday, yesterday we went to Bearizona (a cool place) and tomorrow we go to Sedona.

We're staying in an Airbnb. The place is lovely. The owner? Not so lovely. I'm going to have a blast writing a review once I get back. And when he tried to fix the only toilet (not) I got to see a crack in someone that will probably end up making my mouth gape open as much as the Grand Canyon did. 

I'd love to know what's on your bucket list. 

And now onto book blurb stuff...

Look at the photo below. That is the cover of your book. You choose the genre. Is it a nonfiction piece? Is it a guide for nudists? You decide.

Write an enticing blurb--150 words or less. (The title doesn't count in the word count.) Blurbs are those enticing bits that prod you into buying the book. Sometimes they're on the back cover of the book. Sometimes they're on the inside front cover. What they always try to do is lure you into purchasing the book. 

Lisa Ricard Claro was the original creator of this writing challenge. She moved to Florida and is now enjoying some much-deserved beach time--on a weekly basis, probably. 

Include your blurb in a blog post. Include a link to this post. Also, link your post to Mr. Linky. Mr. Linky is easy. If you've never done it, you'll be impressed with how simple he is. And then, check out the other blurb(s). It's interesting to see the different directions writers take, given the same photo.

Here's the book cover, along with my blurb:

Bridezilla in Buttercream

Denise was a bridezilla. She tore a path through her circle of friends, leaving them sobbing and cowering. No one escaped her wrath. Her soon-to-be-a-henpecked-husband. The minister. Her mother-in-law. Her mother. Denise screamed and cursed and tore weaves out when things didn’t quite measure up.

When the wedding day came, the body count was still only in the double digits… But then she saw the cake--the cake that was a buttercream and devil’s food replica of her. Someone had raked their finger across the red trim frosting that ran along the side of the baked bride’s gown… and there was no way in hell she was going to let that go.

“Stop the music. Everybody sit down. Now! Somebody ruined my cake, and I wanna know who it was,” she shrieked. What happens--when Denise holds the banquet hall captive to interrogate them--will surprise and disgust you. (146 words)

And for anyone who's brave enough to play along, here is the photo for next week:

Can You Do More?

        I just learned that the second dog I brought back from Turkey found a forever home. I brought back 4. One was a puppy and it went to an Illinois rescue group. I'm assuming she found a home.) Dickens' foster family fell in love with him, and Pippi has a home.

      That only leaves Gatsby, and out of the four dogs I brought along on my flight back home, he's the best one. (And no Michael, I don't think we should adopt him. Radar is enough for us.)

         Thinking about what the Turkish people do to help these dogs have a better life... Thinking about what some charitable Americans do as they do mission work in our country and abroad... Thinking about what some of my friends do--small things--to help homeless people...

       It makes me realize I can do more. I know I can get more involved (and get more accomplished) when it comes to causes I believe in.

      I also know I can write on a more consistent basis. Whining about how busy I am will not help. 

      How about you? What can you do more of?