While I'm waiting . . .

for Mockingjay (The Final Book of The Hunger Games) to come out in August, I've been reading all sorts of things.
Least expected of all is a book I saw at the Children's Museum.
NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children.
Good book. Surpising Science. Not a how-to.
I talk more about it here, at MMW.
Let me know what you think if you read it - the book (or the blog post -whatever!)

Anyone else waiting for Mockingjay?
And what are you reading while you wait?

Fan Mail

(I wrote this and posted it on the ANWA blog and wanted to share it here, too.)

For every writer that wonders.

Dear Writer,

It's not like me to write a letter to someone I haven't met. I've read your book, your blog or your article and I feel like I know you, though. Words can do that. I go about my ordinary day which sometimes is crazy-busy and other times is dull and slow. Either way, reading what you've written picks me up, takes me to good places and by the time I'm done, I'm refreshed for the work I have to do. Thank you for that - that writing thing you do. Thank you for inspiring me, for stirring the life-loving part of me. You can do it with a chapter, sometimes with a sentence. You can make me laugh, cry or stare at the page in wonder. Writing, composing, and editing must not be easy. I imagine you must spend countless hours --or maybe you do count them if you're preparing for that Good Morning America Interview when Matt Lauer asks you "So how long did it take you to write this best-seller?" and even though you might not admit the truth of 10,542 hours - you want to know it so you can sheepishly say - "Oh, I don't know, Matt. Time flies when you are doing something you love." I hope you love doing it, because the world needs good writers like you.

I was thinking if writing were an Olympic Sport, you'd be a medal contender. Of course, the cameras would have to follow you for two years, rather than two weeks and they'd have to figure something out for the action -since typing can come across kind of slow on the screen. And you'd want to be sure not to to give your villains any foreign names because you wouldn't want to offend any of the international judges. Wait. Why am I talking about the Olympics? I was thinking of the sacrifices you must make as a writer that go completely unrecognized by most of the reading public. In our defense, it is not entirely our fault. The publishers never advertise the portion of your life you've dedicated to improving your craft and subsequently finding an agent and publisher that are willing to put your book on the shelf. The two paragraph bio on the glossy inside back cover gives the distinct impression that you've written books in between your first job at the hospital help desk and starting your vegetable garden. It's like their marketing strategy is to minimize, not celebrate, your hard work. Not to mention the time you spend wondering if you really could be doing something different with your life. Only, I hope you don't wonder about that. As your reader, I hope you know what you are doing with your amazing writing talent is priceless, irreplaceable and worth it. Worth all of it. I guess I can't really be the one to tell you what's right for you, your life, but I do know that no one can tell your story, at least not the way you can tell it. I thought it only proper to tell you I love to read what you write. And I hope you will keep writing, for your sake and mine.

Sincerely,
Your Appreciative Reader

Laughs

I know there is some saying about how good it is to laugh at yourself.
I prefer to laugh at comics.
I used to collect them, but worried that my children might suffer needless trauma if their mother had photo albums of her favorite comic strips instead of albums filled with perfectly scrapbooked pages of thier every waking moment. So. Now I read the funnines online and I feel pretty good if I can at least take pictures of my kids on major holidays (okay-I'm exaggerating. Just making a point.)

Oh and this particular comic - Zits. I'm sure I think it is funny because I and my son are NOTHING like the mother and son portrayed. Nothing. Well, maybe a little. Maybe.

Zits-Scrapbooking

Zits-Open Door

Zits-Talk

Awards

I'm a little slow. I admit it. I could offer lots of reasons. Like I'm a Mom. Or I'm trying to write a book. Or I fold my towels too slowly because I like the ease of their rectangle shape and their warm softness right out of the dryer. Yeah, I'm worried about that last example, too. Back to my point. A little bit ago & and I'm not saying how long - a friend gave me this blog award!  Her name is Natasha & we met at storymakers. I've been wanting to thank her and do what she did for me - pass it along to some blogs that brighten my day with sunshine. Of course, living in AZ, we kind of already have a lot of that - but I'm pretty sure this is the sunshine that will not increase your cooling bill. Really. So, here's a little thank you to some very cool blogs.
Valerie
Christine
Roni
ANWA
MMW
Thank you, ladies, for making the world a better, brighter place!

Freedom & Cake

Independence Day:
Family, Food & Fun and most importantly, Freedom. I don't like to take things for granted --assuming it will always be around or that it comes easy because it is there. So amid our long weekend of spending time together as a family, I spent some time thinking of and offering gratitude for all those that have fought, died and and are still fighting for our freedom. Say what you will about the perplexities and faults of our country - I think we really do live in a "sweet land of liberty".

***

Now, about the cake: Every Fourth needs a little red, white and blue. My daughter asked, "Can we decorate a cake for the holiday?" She wanted it to look like the flag and also like fireworks. She whipped out a design almost instantly. Then we scanned some pics online and borrowed a few things to polish the look. As you can see we played around with what we put on top.

 

What we did:

Baked a funfetti cake, 8 inch for the bottom, 6 inch for the top.

Made 6 cups of frosting (Wilton Class Buttercream recipe).

We used 3 cups thin to ice both cakes.

We used 1 cup each of red, white and blue for decorating

(We used some for practice and had some left over, too.)

Wilton tip 21 for the rows of stars.

Wilton tip 16 for the mini white stars.

Wilton tip 233 for the layers of strings, or firework spray!

Wilton tip 2D to fill in the top to take the place of the blue topper (that did not fit in the cake taker!)

There you have it. A few hours of festive, edible fun.

An Article of Interest . . .

For writers.
Okay, who has read any of his books?
Did you like them? What did you think?
My TR (to read) pile is ridiculous - even for summer,
but now I'm curious.

Will Percy Jackson Author Rick Riordan Ever Reach JK Rowling?

As always - I love to know what's on your mind.