Things to know about me, Tracy:
1) I am friend and stalker fan of Terri-Lynne DeFino, bogwitch64 . 
2) Ms. DeFino's debut book, Finder is hitting doorsteps and bookshelves and Kindles on November 12, 2010.
3) I like to celebrate my friends when they make big (or small) accomplishments. This is obviously BIG.
4) I love to give gifts.
5) I love cake.
6) I love books ( Read more... )

Writers and readers talk about opening lines. No, not pick up lines.  Although, my personal favorite is: “Did it hurt?  When you fell from heaven?”  I mean, how can you not stare in disgust…um, awe…at the person who uses that line?  But I digress.  My point was to make sure you’re thinking about first lines of a story.  We all have favorites: “ ( Read more... )

Grammar Girl has a great lesson on"Show" vs. "Tell" for all of you out there who get tangled up in the what, when, and how of that lovely writing rule. Click the little link: grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/show-dont-tell.aspx

Edit:  Make sure you click on the "Further Readings" at the bottom of Grammar Girl lesson...it is a brilliant article. Thanks ( Read more... )

Grammar Girl did a great post about who dictates if a word is "bad," meaning is it a swear word. And how to decide if you should use it in your writing.  If you have this concern, listen or read the article: grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/swearing.aspx

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First, I want to apologize for the sudden lack of presence this week.  I won't regale you with the negative whys, but I will regale you with the positives:

Two John's brought me to tears this week. Not sad tears.  Nope. Not even close. Total tears of laugher.  The first Jon, our very own ( Read more... )

I want to celebrate jongibbs  one more time. Whooohooo on the Fur-Face book release on June 1.


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1. Despite my writing laryngitis, I did manage to write two more chapters in The Collector. So that means I have a respectable 145 pages and 35,000 words (roughly). Not too shabby for a sick person. Since no one has really examined TC, I don’t know if a voice is present or not. When it is complete, I will let my betas take it through a full ( Read more... )

1. I saw seven, five and six-year-old children become mesmerized by the song, Favorite Things, from the Sound of Music.  We showed the children the thunderstorm scene during the social skills group I co-lead at work.  They asked to watch the scene a second time.

2. I got one and one-half snow days. Whooohooo! And when the State closes our office, ( Read more... )