Look Who's 84 . . .

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAD!!!

One of Dad's favorite Florida places -- The Morikami Museum and Gardens

Dad has always been a huge supporter of my books.  In fact, he's been the first reader of each of my three books the moment the ARC has become available.  He loved Olivia Bean, Trivia Queen.  But then again, he's a huge fan of Jeopardy!

Here's Dad with the ARC for How to Survive Middle School.

Dad's a glass half full kind of guy.  In fact, he's a glass completely full and brimming over kind of guy.  But the past few months have been rough.  (The previous sentence is an understatement of epic proportions.)

June 15th, his partner of 17 years slipped quietly away from cancer, with Dad and her son beside her. 

Dorothy, me and Dad during happy times on an Oregon vacation with my sister and her family.

We loved having Dad with us for the summer.  It wasn't easy for him, though, to be away from his life in NJ, his fun, feisty friends, my stepsister and her family and the place he called home for over 35 years.  

But Dad enjoyed lots of Phillies games on TV with the boys, coffee with my hubby, time with Dorothy's son, Michael, and Dorothy's brother, Blair, and, well, a memorable run-in with an attack goose.  (Didn't know Dad could run that fast!)

Dad with Andrew, goofing around in a goose-free park.

 

As if losing his wife and having to move from his home wasn't enough, Dad's "vacation" in Vegas with my sister and his best friend three weeks ago turned into an ambulance ride to the hospital where he needed to have triple bypass surgery.

Thanks so Southwest Airlines, I was able to get a flight to Vegas before Dad's surgery.  And I was able to stay for a week so my sister and I could be mother hens by Dad's bedside.

Know what?  Dad's doing great.  The day of surgery he was up and walking.  Less than two weeks later, he was on the exercise bike and walking steps in rehab.  A huge thanks to my sister, Sherry, bro-in-law, Ben and nifty nephew, Ethan, for taking such good care of him.  He's recovering in their happy home now.

If you'd like to drop a note or birthday greeting to my dad, send it to the address below, and I'll make sure he gets it:  Jack Piltz, P.O. Box 2154, Jupiter, FL  33468-2154.

 

HAPPY 84th BIRTHDAY, DADDY-O!  LOVE YOU!!!

Win a Copy of the 2012 Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market

What has 441 pages, an interview with Meg Cabot and a photo of a singing hamster?

The 2012 Children's Writer's and Illustrator's Market, of course. 

And I'm giving away a copy.

"But, Donna," you say.  "Didn't you just give away books in your last blog post?"

Yes, astute reader, I did.  And you still have a chance to win one by clicking here.

But for now, it's all about this book:

Here are 6-1/2 reasons you NEED a copy of this book right this very minute:


1.  Cool interview with James Dashner, author of The Maze Runner.

2.  Audrey Vernick's (Water Balloon, Teach Your Buffallo to Play Drums, She Loved Baseball:  The Effa Manley Story) awesome article about writing nonfiction.

3.  A buttload of listings of conferences, awards and grants.

4.  Did I mention the interview with Maggie Stiefvater, author of Shiver, Linger and Forever?

5.  More magazine and book markets than you could shake a stick at.  (Although I have no idea why you'd want to shake a stick at magazine and book markets.)

6.  Wise words from M.T. Anderson (Feed, Thirsty, etc.) about experimentation in fiction.

6-1/2.  An article by yours truly about not fainting, vomiting or dropping dead when you give a talk in public.  (Helpful sidebars by Cynthia Lord and Alexis O'Neill.)

Alice Pope was the editor of CWIM for many years.  But now she's working with SCBWI, producing this cool blog.  Chuck Sambuchino edits CWIM now.  You can read his blog -- Guide to Literary Agents.

So, how do you win this handy dandy, nifty book, bursting with inspiration and information for those who write and illustrate for children?

Easy!

1.  Follow this blog.  (Button to the right.)
2.  Leave a comment.
3.  Check back Wednesday, Sept. 28th to see if you've won (because I'll need your address to send you the book).

Thanks!
Donna

I'M BACK . . . AND GIVING SOMETHING AWAY!

Hello!  My name is Blog.  And it's so good to be back!

Lots of fun things in store, but first . . .

What might YOU have in common with Alex Trebek, Ken Jennings and, um, my dad?

This . . .

I have TWO advanced reader's copies to give away.  And I want to send them (autographed, of course) to YOU!

All you have to do is tell me IN TWELVE WORDS OR FEWER why you want a copy of OLIVIA BEAN, TRIVIA QUEEN.

Most creative comments will be selected on Thursday, September 22nd.  (Please check back to see if your comment was selected.)

The celebrity judges are as follows:

Jazzy Jaz

Tennis Ball Teddy

Benji, aka Butthead

Enter your brief creative comment and maybe you'll have something in common with Alex, Ken and Jack (my dad), who all have copies of OLIVIA BEAN, TRIVIA QUEEN!

This contest is not open to residents of the State of Confusion or any of its territories.  Decision of judges is final.  Bribes in the form of kibble will be happily accepted.  Void where fun and silliness are prohibited. 

Blogcation . . .

It's summer and blog needs a vacation.

There are books to be read, cool drinks to be sipped by the pool and palm trees to enjoy.

Blog will be back from blogcation before you know it.

In the meantime, have a lovely summer. Here's hoping you spend it enjoying the things you love best.

20 YEARS

Twenty years of marriage is nothing to sneeze at, unless of course, you're allergic to marriage. I'm not a big fan of emphasizing a single day. I'm a fan of living well in the moment, being kind and yadda, yadda, yadda.

But today, Dan and I are married 20 years.

We are kind to each other and do small kindnesses for each other. We are that voice that says, "How was your day?" and usually listens to the answer. While we both have passions and friends beyond each other, we prefer to spend time together.

After twenty years, we still find each other interesting. We still have things to talk about (although I do most of the talking -- blah, blah, blah). And we've been through rough things -- health things, kid things, death things -- and those things, we decided, are the glue that binds us.

So a big thank you to Addam Schwartz because 23-1/2 years ago he asked, "Donna, mind if a friend of mine joins us for the movie tonight?"

I didn't say yes right away. I asked, "Is he cute?" which made Addam all uncomfortable. How is a guy supposed to answer that?

But that friend turned out to be Dan. And Dan felt comfortable enough with me on that first meeting to throw popcorn at me during the movies. (We were young.) About a month later, Dan asked me out. (He worked three jobs and went to college full-time.)

I didn't say yes right away. I told my mom, "Hey, looks like I'm getting a free dinner from this guy."

Dan and I were so broke, even though we both worked. A lot. Dan took me out to bowl and had no money. He took me out to dinner and had no money. (Borrowed it from his dad.)

Alongside a dock on Philadelphia's waterfront, late at night (with only one homeless person nearby) after a lovely dinner (during which I decided to become a vegetarian and write seriously long run-on sentences), Dan asked me to marry him.

I didn't say yes right away. I thought about it. Then I said yes.

It's worked out okay . . .



Happy 20th anniversary! Love you, Baby!!!

RESOURCES FOR YOUNG WRITERS . . .

When I was a young writer (about 10-1/2 billion years ago), I spent lots of time in the 808 section of the Philadelphia Public Library. I read books like Writer's Market to figure out how to sell my writing and get rich.

When I was 14, I sent a batch of greeting card ideas to Hallmark.

Guess what Hallmark sent back.

A rejection letter, of course. But I didn't let it discourage me.

I continued writing and sending my work out for decades. While I kept getting rejected (Boo hoo!), I also sold greeting cards, stories, funny essays and, eventually, books for kids. Wahoo!

Never did get rich, but I sure had fun!

I know that when I was a kid, I would have LOVED a list of all the great books and Web sites available for young writers today.

Because I like you so much (I really do!), I'm going to share these wonderful resources with you.

Make sure to share this with other young writers.

Thanks!


EXCELLENT WEB SITES FOR YOUNG WRITERS . . .

1) http://noodletools.com/debbie/literacies/basic/yngwrite.html This Web site is a treasure trove of opportunities for young writers. It lists publications and Web sites that accept writing from children.

2) http://mag.amazing-kids.org/contests/amazing-kids-contests/ On this site, you’ll find fun contests for kids.

3) http://www.fundsforwriters.com/writingkid.htm This e-zine provides contests and publishing opportunities as well as articles for young writers.

4) http://www.stonesoup.com/stone-soup-contributor-guideline/ If you’re age 13 or younger, you can contribute writing and illustrations to Stone Soup Magazine.

5) http://cynthialeitichsmith.blogspot.com/2011/06/co-authors-interview-walter-dean-myers.html -- Read this inspiring interview with author, Walter Dean Myers, and a young writer, Ross Workman, who collaborated on the novel Kick.

6) http://www.verlakay.com/boards/index.php?topic=52563.0 With a parent’s permission, send an e-mail to sign up for this message board, then scroll down to the “Young Writers Rock!” section. Introduce yourself, explore and ask questions.
7) http://www.aprilhenrymysteries.com/tips-for-writers.html Mystery writer, April Henry, offers great tips and resources.

AWESOME BOOKS FOR YOUNG WRITERS . . .

1) Five Pages a Day: A Writer's Journey by Peg Kehret

2) Poem-Making: Ways to Begin Writing Poetry by Myra Cohn Livingston

3) What's Your Story?: A Young Person's Guide to Writing Fiction by Marion
Dane Bauer

4) Spilling Ink: A Young Writer’s Handbook by Anne Mazer & Ellen Potter

5) The Art of Fiction: Notes on Craft for Young Writers by John Gardner

6) Pizza, Pigs and Poetry: How to Write a Poem by Jack Prelutsky

7) Writing Magic: Creating Stories That Fly by Gail Carson Levine

8) Poetry Matters: Writing a Poem from the Inside Out by Ralph Fletcher

9) Seize the Story:  A Handbook for Teens Who Like to Write by Victoria Hanley

10) Just Write -- Here's How by Walter Dean Myers

Now, go have fun (reading and) writing!

Wild and Wonderful Things About WEDNESDAY . . .

I'm a huge fan of Gary D. Schmidt's books, especially this one . . .



And who can forget this sweet girl from The Addams Family TV show?

There's a hilarious parody of Rebecca Black's Friday video. It's called WEDNESDAY.

Every Wednesday, author extraordinaire, Cynthia Lord, showcases her husband's stunning photographs with WORDLESS WEDNESDAYS.

Here's to YOU enjoying a wild and wonderful Wednesday!

And the winner Is . . .

A big THANK YOU to Cindy Hudson for sharing her wonderful 6-1/2 list about Mother/Daughter book clubs with us.

She generously donated an autographed copy of her book . . .


I'm happy to announce the winner of the autographed book is . . .

JAMI

Congratulations Jami, and thank you to all who entered the contest!