A Piece of the World
February 22, 2023 by Veronica Jorge in category Write From the Heart by Veronica Jorge tagged as books, Keeper Shelf, making memories, Veronica Jorge
A figurine, Delft blue. I remember that trip to Holland and laugh. As soon as our bus pulled into Delft, we piled out and made a beeline for the gift shop, searching for the souvenirs that would eternalize this journey. I turn the figurine over in my hand: a lady holding a basket, gazing out. What does she see? What memories is she holding on to? I dust the gracious lady and seat her back in the curio. As I reach for the next pieces and reminisce, I wonder what it is that makes me want to own a piece of everyplace I’ve been? To keep forever alive a moment, an experience, an emotion?
It’s the same with movies I’ve seen and loved. Gotta buy the VHS, then upgrade to the DVD in case the VHS goes bad. And even though I have both, I still watch the television film version when it airs and don’t mind enduring the intrusive commercials.
Then there are my books. Some with places of honor on shelves, the power of sentiment attached to each one. And designated piles: ‘To Read.’ ‘To Read Again.’ A wish list of books, ‘To Buy.’
When the news announced the banning of Harper Lee’s, To Kill A Mockingbird, I rushed to confirm I had a copy, which led to a thorough examination of which books might be brittle, yellowed and frayed. A new list formed: ‘Books to Replace.’
All of which leads me to conclude that maybe all of these actions explain my desire, my need, to write. A significant event, an emotion, an intense experience, compels me to want to immortalize it. I grit my 36 teeth and magically weave the 26 letters of the alphabet into some meaningful representation of the emotions exploding in my heart. A yearning to create stories that will last forever, that will be cherished by others and replaced over and over again because they’ve connected with a piece of my world and they too want to own it forever.
Veronica Jorge
See you next time on March 22nd!
Featuring Kidd Wadsworth, Author of the Month
February 21, 2023 by marianne h donley in category Featured Author of the Month tagged as Featured Author of the Month, kidd wadsworth
Kidd Wadsworth writes to bring to life our magical, fire-breathing world. She believes we are super heroes. It’s time we put on our capes.
You can read Kidd’s monthly column, Infused with Meaning, here on the 25th of every month. More information about Kidd is found on her website, make sure you take the time to read her “about me” section.
A selection of books that include Kidd’s short stories.
How to Make Your Manuscript S-P-A-R-K-L-E: 7 Editing Tips to Make Your Second Draft Stand Out
February 20, 2023 by marianne h donley in category Ages 2 Perfection Online Class, Online Classes tagged as Aged to Perfection Online Class, editing, Tanya Agler
Presented by: Tanya Agler
Date: March 11, 2023
Saturday, 9AM PT, 10AM MT, 11AM CT, 12 Noon, ET
Registration Closes: March 12, 2023
Pricing: A2P Member fee: $5
Non-A2P Member fee: $10
About the Workshop:
How to Make Your Manuscript S-P-A-R-K-L-E:
A hook, your book, and the cook. This program explores ways to make your manuscript pop during the editing process. Were there places in your work-in-progress that you wanted to skip over? If so, it’s time to make your manuscript S-P-A-R-K-L-E. This workshop will cover seven areas to add layers and depth to your manuscript from starting strong (S) to ending stronger (E). Writers will leave with a question guide they can tailor and send to beta readers.
About the Presenter:
Tanya Agler remembers the first romance novel her grandmother gifted her, and she’s been in love with the genre ever since. A former past president of Georgia Romance Writers, Tanya Agler is a graduate of the University of Georgia (with a degree in journalism and a law degree) makes her home in metro Atlanta with her wonderful husband, their four children, and a lovable rescue beagle. An award-winning author, including the Maggie Award of Excellence and the Golden Rose, she has written six novels for Harlequin Heartwarming, and her seventh, Caught by the Cowgirl, is scheduled for a May 2023 release. Tanya is a member of Novelists, Inc., Georgia Romance Writers, Contemporary Romance Writers, ACFW, and RWA.
When she’s not writing, Tanya loves classic movies, chocolate, and a good cup of tea.
She is represented by Dawn Dowdle of the Blue Ridge Literary Agency. Visit her at www.tanyaagler.com or email her at tanyaagler@gmail.com
The Nice Girl’s Guide to Conflict
February 17, 2023 by marianne h donley in category Ages 2 Perfection Online Class, Online Classes tagged as Aged to Perfection Online Class, Sally kilpatrick, writing conflict
The Nice Girl’s Guide to Conflict
Presented by: Sally Kilpatrick
Date: March 6 – 17, 2023 (two weeks)
Registration Closes: March 14, 2023
Pricing: A2P Member fee: $15
Non-A2P Member fee: $25
About the Workshop:
Are you having trouble getting an agent or getting sold? Do you often get comments like “your story is too quiet” or “you might want to check out GMC”? These are the tricks and tools that I use to overcome comments like these and add more conflict to my stories. Conflict makes story, and story is what sells.
About the Presenter:
Sally Kilpatrick is the USA Today bestselling author of six novels. She has won multiple awards, including the 2018 and 2019 Georgia Author of the Year, the Maggie Award of Excellence, and the Nancy Knight Mentorship Award. Her latest release is a Christmas romcom novella, The Not So Nice List. She lives in Marietta, GA with her one husband, two kids, and two cats. You can find her at www.sallykilpatrick.com or on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook as @Superwritermom.
More Mac and Cheese, Please, Please, Please
February 16, 2023 by Renae Wrich in category Writing tagged as Children's stories, Childrens Lit, Mac and Cheese, teachers, writingMy eldest daughter was in kindergarten the year that I published my children’s book, Mac and Cheese, Please, Please Please. Her Kindergarten teacher and classmates instantly became my “M&C Triple P Fan Club”. I mean, it’s a rhyming book with easy to read words, repeated sentence structure and a memorable plot-twist ending… That has ‘Kindergartener’ written all over it! (Pun 100% intended)
As a lot of parents can relate, my daughter’s kindergarten year was impacted by the pandemic and her class moved to a distanced learning format to finish out the year.
Fast forward a few years and you can imagine our delight when my daughter learned that her kindergarten teacher, Mrs. K, would now be her third grade teacher! I was honestly feeling relief because after Mrs. K transferred to third grade, all I heard about was how my daughter hoped she had Mrs. K for third grade, and I was not prepared to deal with the disappointment had that not been the outcome.
When we went to open house at the beginning of the school year, my daughter quickly recognized that a lot of the kids from her kindergarten class were going to be in her third grade class too. When we pointed this out to Mrs. K she smiled and said that she had asked the principal if she could have as many kinds from her kindergarten class as possible so they could, “Finally finish the year together.”
Her words still make me cry. We are so lucky to have teachers like Mrs. K.
As it turns out, the kids in this class are still diehard Mac and Cheese, Please, Please, Please fans and they are straight-up demanding another book. So I started writing the sequel and I’m pretty excited about it. The only teaser that I’ll share is that my kids helped me pick the setting of the book, and as a result I’ve been watching A LOT of YouTube videos about space. Excited to share more updates soon!
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