It’s time to get festive because it’s time for Susanna Hill’s 10th Annual Holiday Writing Contest! The rules were simple (or so they claim!): In 250 words or less, write a children’s holiday story (children here defined as age 12 and under) about a Holiday Helper! So let’s travel back in time to meet the first holiday […]
It’s that time again for falling leaves, apple cider, and Susanna Hill’s Halloweenie Contest! Congrats Susanna Hill for hosting this contest for 10 years! The challenge is to write a 100-word Halloween story appropriate for children using the following words: Skeleton, Mask, and Creep. It may sound simple but writing a story (with an arc) […]
It’s that time again for #PBCritiqueFest and WOW… the lineup of participants giving away critiques is…. CRAZY, OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD, SPECTACULAR! I can only hope and pray that I am one of the lucky 36 to randomly get my name drawn. My ultimate dream would be to get a critique from the fabulous AME DYCKMAN! She is […]
Tired of making the same ol’ New Years Resolutions only to give them up a few months into the new year? Then join me on the Anti-Resolution Revolution Movement! Children’s book author, Julie Hedlund, challenged participants of her 12 Days of Christmas for Writers to post SUCCESSES (rather than resolutions) on our blogs this year. […]
The time has come for a holiday treat! But I’m not talking about holiday cookies. (Thought I highly recommend Almond Cremes! They are my absolute favorite!) I’m talking about Susanna Hill’s 9th Annual Holiday Contest! This year we were instructed to write a children’s holiday story about a Holiday Treat. And it must be 250 […]
I know that the weather is a normal topic of conversation and if you were to ask anyone in Iowa about the weather right now… most would probably roll their eyes and tell you how sick they are of the snow! And the stay at home mothers are probably praying for decent weather so the […]
Today is the day! Grab the flowers, chocolates, and pens! Pens? Yeah, that’s right! Time to write a story (214 words or less) for Susanna Hill’s Annual Valentiny Contest! This years theme is Guilt. Did you forget to give someone a valentine? Did you eat all of your mom’s chocolate? Love is not the only […]
What can I say? It’s been months since I posted about my writing life on here but hey… that’s life and everyone is SOOO busy these days! I’m not sure if anyone is reading this anyway… Between my daughter starting school and weekly dance classes – not to mention the wedding, (Yay! I’m married and […]
The journey to publishing is not for the faint of heart. Authors spend years studying and honing their writing techniques and countless hours keeping up with the latest publishing trends. Besides the hard work that many put in, I also believe there is a bit of luck involved. Getting rejection letter – after rejection letter […]
Can you recall your favorite childhood book that was so fun to read that you had it memorized? In the writing world, we are told to that in order to have a successful children’s book, there needs to be a strong narrative arc or a character that grows/changes through the story. I want to know […]
