Blink & GLow, by Raven Howell, shares a lesson for children. That is to respect the freedom and light of the natural life in all living things. Thank you WOW! Women on Writing for sharing this lesson with our Choices readers. Raven has also written an essay for us about the most popular children's book themes. Here's Raven: Today’s most popular children’s book themes By Raven Howell Are we depleting natural resources? What about global climate change? There’s ongoing debate about general water and air pollution as well, and issues regarding loss of biodiversity. I began to wonder how the youngest among us related to nature in these present days. How will our children and grandchildren tend to the earth and our natural environment? Appreciating how it operates, being compassionate to its needs is a good first step. When I wrote about this appreciation in my new book, Blink and Glow, my intention was to create a story that gently informed, but also entertained and … [Read more...]
You must read a modern day fairytale
Welcome to Marissa Bañez's WOW! WOMEN ON WRITING tour of Hope and Fortune, a modern day fairytale. Marissa has also honored us with a guest post about whether self-publishing is worth it. Here's Marissa: first her colorful and playful book cover and her guest post. Is Self-Publishing Worth It? For some, getting their story in a published book form is a cathartic exercise. Self-publishing is worth it for them as a matter of self-fulfillment. For others, they just want to be able to say to family and friends that they’ve published a book. The return on their investment of time, energy and resources in self-publishing is irrelevant because their purpose is not to sell the book but rather to simply give it as a gift or to leave a family legacy of sorts. For still others, they have a compelling need to spread their ideas to a broader audience. Because they can’t find anyone to publish their work, they must consider self-publishing. Self-publishing is not free or … [Read more...]
Using educator skills to build fictional characters
Cheryl Carpinello, our Choices WOW! Women on Writing book tour guest today has used her years as an educator and observation skills to create characters her young readers can relate to. Author of Guinevere: At the Dawn of Legend, Cheryl shares how using the traits of her students helped her build believable characters for her award-winning fiction. Being an Educator Helps Me Build Believable Characters By Cheryl Carpinello Writing characters that readers can identify and bond with is difficult at the best of times. When writing for young readers, I transport myself back to my classroom where I watch my students working and discussing. I wander the school hallways and observe students’ interactions with each other and with other teachers. Doing these exercises helps me develop characters that my readers can relate to and see pieces of themselves. As an adult writing for ages 9-15, it is important that my characters come across true. Kids are really amazing and at … [Read more...]
What is literary alchemy?
I'm pleased to host Professor M.C. Gore, Maestro Philip Wilson, and Angie F. M. Trotter while they are on their WOW! Women on Writing virtual book tour. Their children's book, All is Assuredly Well, is about how hard a king had to work to be worthy of becoming a father. Here, Professor Gore, shares with us her thoughts on literary alchemy - a term I wasn't familiar with until now. Hopefully my Choices readers will learn as much as I have about it by reading her essay below. Who wouldn't want to learn how to how to purify our souls? Want to Join Our Secret Society of Literary Alchemists? by Professor M.C. Gore In the Middle Ages, alchemists believed they could purify their souls through the process of turning lead into gold. Getting rich wasn’t the goal; purifying their souls was. An alchemist saw no distinction between the actor (himself) and the object acted upon (the lead) as he worked his craft in the Sacred Mysteries. The alchemist and his lead were inseparable … [Read more...]
