afternoon naps

Early this afternoon when I was out on a run- before the crazy wind and rain started - I ran by a parked post office truck and saw the postman sitting inside taking a snooze. It just made me think, wouldn't it be nice if we could all take siestas during the work week here in America? Makes me want to go to Spain or South America - they get to take siestas there on a regular basis, right?

what would we be without each other

What would we be without ideas from each other? What would we be without advice from one another? What would we be without a slap on the back? What would we be without some space and some slack? Time to think about the words we share. Time to absorb between here and there. Yes. What would we be without ideas from each other?

nice guys finish last

You've heard the expression before, nice guys finish last...well if it's not always true in life, it's certainly true in writing. I'm finding, after various critiques with my witting buddy, that I'm well, sort of a wimp when it comes to hurting any of my characters. "You start the threat, but then don't follow through," that's the critique I recently received about my book Trevelyn's Shimmer, which I've stopped shopping around to work on further, after numerous rejections from editors.

My writing buddy is right, too. I am too much of a wimp when it comes to hurting my characters. Convenient Coincidence is what it's called when your character overcomes a hardship before getting to the real nitty-gritty. I tend to do this a lot. My characters are thirsty - whoosh, water appears! My characters need money - ka-ching, cash appears! You see what I mean. I need to make them work for what they want, and in doing this, the novel becomes more real.

Roald Dahl didn't spare any lives when it came to the mean giants eating little kids in The Big Friendly Giant. Nancy Farmer didn't have her character Tom, in The House of The Scorpion, worry about the frog's feelings when he nailed him to the ground. And Kate DiCamillo didn't show Miggory Sow any mercy when her uncle walloped her against the head making her deaf in one ear in The Tale of Desperaux. Okay, those examples are pretty harsh, but life can be harsh, right?

So in my revised version of Trevelyn's Shimmer, when Marie loses her bag of food and money, and when her balloon gets pooped, she'd better hold on tight. You just have to say to yourself, it's nothing personal, it's a novel and even through hardships know that the nice guys, even when bruised and battered, don't finish last.

common phrases

He stood as still as a statue.
My face turned white as a ghost.
She was so angry, steam escaped her ears.
I floated along as light as a cloud.
He crouched low like a tiger.
She laughed like a hyena.
She had a face like an angel.
She had the appetite of a bird.
It was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
My mouth was on fire.
Her skin was as smooth as a baby’s bottom.
His eyes were as big as saucers.
She was so upset her face turned red.
She was as fresh as a daisy.

Recognize these common phrases? They’re expressions many of us use all of the time to describe feelings or emotions like anger, happiness, sadness, shock, joy, anxiety, etc...and they are way, way over-used by newbie writers. I know this because I’ve used some of them myself and without even realizing it – especially the face turning white one. Oh, it’s so easy to unconsciously slip these phrases into your story – they slide down the throat just like Jell-O.

I was at a conference last year when I heard an agent talk about how frustrating it was for her to receive manuscript after manuscript after manuscript with phrases like “knuckles turning white.” Gulp, guilty – my face turned red. It’s so very hard to be completely original, but it’s so important to try. Sometimes you can’t avoid using a common expression, sometimes they get the point across better than anything else, but I find that if I really sit with the idea of what is easy to say, and think around it, really dig in and turn those mind wheels until I’m practically sweating, I can, surprisingly, sometimes, come up with an alternative phrase. When that happens I feel really, really good and exhausted at the same time. Like hiking to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro! – no? Like reading all the way through War and Peace and understanding the entire book! Better? Like lifting a car over my head with one hand! Like finally understanding a foreign language! Oh, you see what I’m saying. Writing is hard, really hard, it’s when you finally strike oil and discover that original, one-of-a-kind phrase that makes the whole process as sweet as sugar.

What are the common phrases you find yourself using more often than not?

love at the dog park

Talk about feeling the love yesterday. I could write a story about each visit to the dog park that Sadie and I make. In fact, I'm starting a label called Dog Park Stories to file these under.

So yesterday, Sunday, the dog park was particularly crowded. A hot afternoon, my friend and I sat at a picnic bench soaking in the wonderful sun, and watched the dogs play. Sadie sat at our feet and occasionally greeted a newcomer then poked around the perimeter of the picnic bench looking for food in vain - no food allowed in a dog park. But that's neither here nor there. What made everyone get up off their seats and run with concern, was a skinny, brown dog with short hair and a wiry tail. The dog looked like he was having an episode of some sort. He picked up his feet like thorns were stabbing his pads and then wobbled from side-to-side like he was on a ship. My friend raced towards him as did about ten other people around. "Oh my God! He's having a fit!" "We need to help him!" People called out as the poor little guy continued his wobbly-sideways walk. His owner, realizing the growing concern was directed at his dog, ran over and said that the dog had a neurological disorder which made him walk strange. Poor little guy couldn’t follow a straight line to save his life. “He must constantly be thinking that someone’s playing a mean joke on him,” one woman said.

Everyone relaxed back into place, when a moment later a pack of dogs playing chase stormed by and walloped the dizzy dog, throwing him to the side again.

Oh, it was a hard scene to watch. But once again I was impressed by man's love for our small furry friends.

My friend Aimee Sicuro-Meade is so talented. She created this beautiful Valentine's Day piece of art that I just had to share with everyone.

A big, full heart isn't just reserved for your special someone on Valentine's Day. It's also about showing the love to your friends, family, neighbors and pets. I think Valentine's Day should be renamed National Share a Smile or Hug Day.

happy birthday kid sister

Happy Birthday to my little sister Kat! She's the short one in blue, I have on that lovely pink bathing suit with teddy bears. I was obsessed with teddy bears at one point. Kat turns a landmark age today which makes me feel like time is really going by, especially because I'm two years older. She had a growth spurt around the age of 16 and ever since we've been about the same height...I was a giant by 14- always head of the fire line in school...the only time I was ever picked first for anything!


Kat and I used to sing that song from the commercial for a fake-sister-doll, not because we wanted a fake sister, but because we liked the words, it went "Kid sister, kid sister, wherever you go, I'm gonna go...." yes, we were total nerds - still are. But that's how we were in this photo, always making up stories, singing, dancing and doing the same thing.


Happy birthday kid sister, I'm so proud of you~