The Sisterhood

             Currently I have a couple of projects going. One is a story about an almost-feral cat we took in...The other is a revising project.

              And then there is the lawyer in North Carolina...He knew one of my heroes---a player in the Negro leagues---and apparently I am going to have to stalk him to get any information.

              Many of my blogging friends juggle a dozen or more projects at any given time. So the degree to which I walk the walk is probably pathetic. But for me, it's progress.

              A couple of days ago, Donna wrote a post about a forgotten word, and her eyes immediately lit on one of the definitions:  sisters of the quill.  The bloggers who commented fell in love with the idea of a community of hardworking writers, a support system for schriveners...

               And thus the Sisters of the Quill award was born...



created by http://donnasbookpubl,blogspot.com/

                  After reading Linda O'Connell's post today (April 8), I was struck (again) with how often I think of the blogging writers I follow as "local." There are times I think, 'We could have lunch and I could get some feedback,' or I contemplate whether I will see a particular writer at an event. Unfortunately (for me) some of them live in Minnesota or Georgia or Arizona or...In fact, in some cases, I have no idea where they live. And that's okay.

                   Because, after all, if we're writers, we're kindred spirits. There is a connecting thread that binds us to each other. (kinda like handcuffs)

                    Donna passed on this award to several writers. She made her proclamation:  Spread the sisterhood!  Give the award to deserving writers, to women whose talent needs to be recognized.  And since I enjoy going to the fence and "chatting" with my blogging friends, I am going to pass the award to out-of-town writers who regularly wow me...

                         Katie at Katie Gates Writes           

                         Lisa Ricard Claro at Writing in the Buff

                         Janel at  her post

                         OJ Gonzalez and her blog

                         Shay and her poetry                          

                         C. Hope Clark  and  her blog



(I would also pass it onto to Pearl and her blog, but she don't do no stinkin' awards---she's too  busy ministering to bus riders and unemployed cats.)

                     So...the sisterhood is spreading.  Keep it growing...And keep on writing.


               
                         



            

My Pot is Brimmin' Over

           Lisa Ricard Claro gave me this award, and since it has an Irish theme (and I think my birth mother was Irish), it's green (my favorite color) and since it...well, it's an award! I appreciate it, and am going to enjoy passing it on.

         There are several "strings" attached:

1) Thank the person who gave you the award.  Thanks, Lisa Ricard Claro.  Lisa has recently launched a new meme---Book Blurb Friday---and you can see the photo prompt the Friday before it officially begins. 

Sadly, Lisa is a chronic liar, and later on this week, will be leaving on a "vacation." At least that's what she's calling it.  In reality, she's attending the "Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire" convention.  (She's still passing on the lies that she's been married for 30 years and she has grown kids. She's not even 30 years herself!  Look at her photo---no wrinkles, no spreading waistline, no mustache/beard beginning.) Hopefully this time the 12 steps to truth will stick...


2)  Write a post, include the image of the award, include a link to the person who gave it to you and a link to the person who originated it.

Christie Wright is the creator of this award, and she has a blog called Write Wild.  Christie, from what I see,  I am going to have to become a follower. Thanks to Michael at The Year of Writing Dangerously for awarding Lisa the Pot-o-Gold prize, who then passed it onto me...

3) Tell about a time when you had faith, something you hope for, something you love and a time when you experienced luck/felt lucky (see below).

4) Pass it onto 4 other bloggers and tell why they are a pot-o-gold.

It's very hard, because there are more than 4 bloggers I'd like to pass this onto, so I will stick with my teacher-friends.  (I have too many Saturday Writers/Missouri Writing Guild blogging friends; I don't want to insult some by only passing this onto 1 or 2.)

Pat Hensley and her blog always helps me out.  She regularly has great links to helpful teaching sites, she is retired yet still committed and inspired, and she writes interesting posts when she travels.

Cindi Rigsbee and her blog also keeps me uplifted. She is among the best of the best (nationally) was recently invited to attend an international teaching summit, and managed to be in the same room as Arne Duncan and not go for his jugular, so she has amazing self-control as well as a talent for teaching...

The Underground Teacher recently lost her classroom position. She has stayed involved by subbing, determined to keep connected and committed to what she loves---teaching.  She has a blog that I have followed ever since I began blogging.

Rebecca Bramstetter also writes inspired and informative posts about working with kids.  She is joining Lisa at the liar's retreat this week as well.  She says she is a "doctor" yet she is only 19 years old. (Look at the perky face that looks back at you when you check out her blog. If she's old enough to have the credentials she claims she has, I'm Halle Berry!)  Check out her blog to see some of the behind-the-scenes school stuff.

             Now here's my faith, hope, love and luck stories:

*  I had faith when I left my previous school district (because they were doing some very unethical things) and resigned without a contract (because they were notorious for NOT letting teachers out of their contracts). I had faith that I would be able to find another classroom for myself, and I did...

*  I have hope that my son will be able to find a job as a music therapist (he just completed his internship), and that there will be a world for my granddaugher to grow up in. 

* I love my husband. There have been times over the past 25 years of marriage where I have wanted to kill him with a soup spoon (it would inflict a lot more pain than a sharp knife) in the middle of the night, but we have worked on our differences over the years (Yikes! There have been years where he has voted Republican!) and work together to keep our family afloat...

* A time when I felt lucky I didn't even know I was lucky until 40 or so years later.  I was given up for adoption when I was born, and only discovered much later how fortunate I was. My biological mother had three girls.  The first two she gave up for adoption (I was # 2), the third one she hung onto for seven years; she then committed suicide by shooting herself.  The third girl had an unbelievable amount of garbage heaped on top of her, and is now in prison for the rest of her life.  That could have been me...

         So Lisa, thanks again for the award, and Christie, thanks for creating the award.  And a top of the mornin' (or a top of the muffin, for all the Seinfeld fans) to everyone!







  

Book Blurb Friday # 5

photo by Joey Claro

           Thanks to Lisa Ricard Claro, with her blog meme "Book Blurb Friday."

           Every Friday (actually, the early birds can get the photo the week before, and let their ideas gel) a picture is posted. Sometimes it's a photo snapped by one of her "children."  (Lisa has not ever given birth, and is really in her 30's, but she likes to portray an older, more experienced writer, so she rents children and passes them off as her own.  A "daughter" has posted a couple of these photos. Maybe the warranty on that one ran out, so now she's utilizing a different rental unit?)

          Go to her BBF button to get all the details---a blurb of 150 words or less, and then link it to Lisa's blog, along with commenting on everyone's burb. 

         Here is my offering (a bit lame):

Unrequited Forever

         They knew they did not belong together, that in the end, their hearts would be broken. Yet, they could not resist the almost-magnetic pull towards each other.

          In this earth-shattering true ground-breaking story, biologist I.M. Compost has uncovered the filthy details in his true grime story; he leafs nothing out!

        Once the seed of love Crimson felt for Pin Oak was planted, they clung to each other and were inseparable.  Pin Oak's handsome, sturdy trunk as well as his willingness to branch out was appealing... Crimson stayed unwaveringly true to her roots.

         "Her bloom never faded," said Pin Oak almost woodenly, attempting to hide his anguish... 

         Experience the same raking pain as Crimson, the pain Pin must endure as he remains rooted in place and unable to reach out.

(Note:  Some parts of this story are quite dirty.)  141 words 

If You Open Your Mouth, It Will Go

             Okay, so I failed to pull off a smooth connection to movie Field of Dreams. Sorry. I'm just recovering from a late night (see the later note from the Procrastination Princess) of writing and revising, followed by an evening school event where I had to--please take an anti-anxiety pill now--sing (along with my students).

            ( The stray dogs that were running, full-speed, through your neighborhood, a frantic expression on their faces, their ears looking like they had been torched just a bit...Yes, all the dogs in the St. Louis area have been suffering tonight because of my caterwauling!)

photo by brendan adamson

                A week or so ago, I had lunch with a writer friend. During the conversation, I mentioned I was mentally doing some prewriting on a couple of patriotic submissions for Silver Boomer Books. One was about my dad's experience in the Marines. The other was going to be more difficult. A distant but dear cousin of mine is Ukranian; he spent part of his childhood in a concentration camp. There is no one who loves America more than Serhij. Unfortunately, he never talks about that part of his life...  

               The deadline was yesterday.  Since I put everything off until the last possible minute, I was writing earlier this week, but the story was slow in coming. Serhij was unwilling to answer any questions, and although that meant I was only writing one story,  my dad's tale did not feel as "inspired."  I was tempted to just chuck it. 

               However, I had opened my mouth and said I was doing some prewriting in my head.  If I didn't even bother to follow through, if I simply let the submission opportunity fall by the wayside, would I feel very writerly?

                  I found that as I continued to push through, I discovered a connecting thread that could hold my story together. I crafted a beginning that I was satisfied with, along with a decent ending. 

                   So, when you're on the fence, open your mouth. Bring it into the realm of reality by saying it aloud. And sendyour story where it needs to go...

Be a Jerk! Or Do the Jerk---Whichever Hits the Spot

(Note: Not to be confused with the song "Cool Jerk" although feel free to break into dance, if the spirit moves you...)
                                                         

            Yesterday the group Saturday Writers met in St. Peters, Missouri as they always do. Our guest  speaker was Joe Holleman from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

            Some of the information he shared was a great reminder. Start with an engaging lead (which is spelled "lede" when speaking in newspaper-talk). Make the story "human" by putting a human voice in your story. Avoid the passive voice and weak quotes. Those were all things I know, but sometimes forget, so to be reminded of them was definitely worthwhile.

            His advice to "read your work out loud" when revising and editing made me nod my head knowingly. As a teacher, when I read my students' work (a constructed response answer, or a story, for example) I read it aloud. I even tell my kids, if they're standing next to me as I do it, "You may think I'm crazy, but I'm reading it out loud because if I read it silently, if words or parts are left out, my brain will fill them in and I won't even know it."

           I cannot tell you how many times I have worked with other teachers or writers, and have caught mistakes they overlooked, not because I'm some crackerjack editor, but because I read with my lips moving. Our brains are incredible things; they will sneak in and fill in the missing puzzle pieces and not even inform us.  We need to be cognizant of any voids or awkward spots...

        However, what really stuck in my mind from his talk is five simple words:

               Be a jerk to yourself.
        
               What he meant was it's crucial we do the required cutting and slashing and editing before anyone else sees it, especially an editor.  (Holleman started frothing at the mouth when he spoke of editors; he said that if he writes cleanly, and gets the reputation as a clean writer, the chances that an editor will have to "mess up" his writing decreases dramatically.)

                We cannot be so enamored with our own writing that we declare it perfect/brilliant/moving without working hard (and hard-heartedly) to make it tighter...clearer...more powerful.

photo by g d townshende

               This connected with a post I read earlier this week. C. Hope Clark can connect anything (and I do mean anything) with writing. I think she could be blowing her nose, have the tissue tear a bit, and it would prompt her to write a detailed and informative post about the writing process and how it's like that torn tissue...I might be overstating her powers, but I don't think so.  Read her post on Friday, March 25 where she connects the art of raising chickens and roosters to the art of writing. You be the  judge.

              And finally today, welcome to my newest follower, Tony Benson.  He writes what I wish I could:  science fiction and fantasy. He has three blogs. One of them is Fireside Park.  Check this one out, along with his other two. (How can he maintain two? I can barely write for one!) Thank you, Tony for following me.

It's Book Blurb Friday #4!

         Yes, it's just hours away from Friday.  That means it's time to write the blurb for our soon-to-be-written novel, so the publishers can get into a bidding war because the blurb is so darned intriguing.

         How does it work? Lisa Ricard Claro gives us a photo every week.  (But don't think she is a marvelous person for doing this. She rents her kids--and passes them off as her own--so it's the "rentals" who are doing the real grunt work on this meme...) We write a blurb (a hook that is 150 words or less in length) and post it on our own blog along with linking it on Lisa's blog. (And then you can read other blurbs and see what they did with the photo.)

         Here is the photo, and my blurb follows:

The Babcock's B & B and the Case of the Calloway Cougar

         Yes, the carpeting's worn. And yes, sometimes the beloved Mr. Puss can be found on the diningroom table, licking from the butter tray. But the Babcocks are lovely people, living out their twilight years in quaint Calloway as they eek out a living with their bed and breakfast business.

        And business is good. Until Mrs. Babcock is accused of making improper advances. Reportedly, Mrs. Babcock offered a bran muffin to a male guest as she unbuttoned her duster, rubbed Vick's on herself as she simultaneously licked her lips, and dislodged her dentures in a "lacivious" manner. 

        Will the Babcocks be able to weather the trial?  Will their business go under?  Or will Mrs. Babcock have to take pole-dancing lessons so she can put her libido to work in a lucrative way?

        (Proceeds from book sales goes to "Support Hose," the fund set up for Mrs. Babcock's legal fees.)

(149 words--whew!)