Danger Equals Excitement

Happy Halloween. I am not interested in horror or occult, but I do enjoy a good dangerous situation.  Danger equals excitement in my writing.

I am working on my second middle grade novel and there will be lots of danger in it.  I think danger is essential to a good story.  Putting my characters in harm’s way and watching them figure out how to get out of trouble is so rewarding for me.  The characters are always stronger after the experience of finding their way out of trouble. 

Dangers from my first middle grade novel include: exposure to severe weather in the woods, hunger, wild animals, getting lost, teenage bullies, and fighting mythological creatures

Dangers from my second middle grade novel include: getting lost, wild animals, a flood, injuries and broken bones, becoming an orphan, and fighting mythological creatures

Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure.  The fearful are caught as often as the bold.
Helen Keller
 

Tales About Pets

My daughter's sweet kitty passed away this weekend.  She was a gentle, introverted and beautiful cat.  Although she was very shy, often hiding away when visitors came to the house, when someone did coax her to come out and be social she purred at the slightest bit of attention.  Pets give unconditional love and lots of affection. We will miss our little fur ball.


Pets have a place in literature, too.  Here are a few of my favorite books about pets for children and for adults.  Some of these books are about the process of saying good-bye to a beloved pet. If you have lost a pet I recommend that you start with the Tenth Good Thing About Barney. And please think about my daughter's little kitty, too, as you read it.

The Tenth Good Thing About Barney by Judith Viorst

The Owl and the Pussycat by Edward Lear

Because of Winn Dixie by Kate DiCamillo

Sounder by William Armstrong

Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin

Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein

Marley and Me by John Grogan

Travels with Charlie in Search of America by John Steinbeck

Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Elliott

The Cat Who Could Read Backwards by Lilian Jackson Braun

Novels I Read Again and Again

Kids really enjoy hearing a favorite story over and over again.  But I don't think I have outgrown that yet myself. Here are a few novels that I think are worth reading again and again.  Some are relativley new, some are classics.  I have a few gothic, a few historical, and a few fantasy on this list. Have you read any of these?

Rebecca

Stonyhold

Poisonwood Bible

Remarkable Creatures

The Thirteenth Tale

Harry Potter series

Pride and Prejudice

The Good Earth

Secret Life of Bees

Outlander

Of Mice and Men

Favorite Bed Time Stories

Children love to hear the same story many times. Here are some of my favorites from when I was little and from when my children were little.

• The Little Engine That Could
• The Three Little Pigs
• The Poky Little Puppy (cheesy one, I know....)
• Green Eggs and Ham
• Napping House
• Where the Wild Things Are
• Goodnight Moon
• The Giving Tree
• Peter Rabbit

What are some of your favorites?

Next up - some novels I read over and over.

Fairy Tale and Folktale

Fairy tales are a type of traditional story from both literary and oral tradition that include fantasy characters such as trolls, goblins, giants, and elves.  Often they include special powers or magic.  They do not have to include fairies to be classified as fairy tales.  Since the tales are very old for the most part, they have been shaped by years of tellings.  They have some common elements, including a happy ending which is sometimes called a fairy tale ending. The intended audience for fairy tales, for many centuries, was adults.  In more recent history they have become known as stories for children.  Collectors of fairy tales recorded these stories as they were told.  The brothers Grimm were well known as collectors of fairy tales. There have been many collectors of tales, converting the spoken word to written word.  They often compared similar stories found in geographically remote populations. Hans Christian Anderson was not a story collector.  He created original fairy tales.  The fairy tale genre still exists and authors still create original fairy tales today.  Some of these tales are written for adults or teens, and have mature themes. They include violence, disfunctional families, disasters, starvation, and many kinds of struggles but for the majority of these stories everything works out for the best in the end. Other modern created fairy tales are intended for kids. These have harmless magic and have less serious story problems to resolve.

Folktales are also short stories that have been handed down in the oral tradition for a long time.  They usually center around every day life.  They may include tricksters who represent the common man trying to get the better of the aristocracy.  Many of them have the theme of good triumphing over evil, and heroes showing bravery and sacrificing their own wealth or life for the good of their tribe. The traditional tales were a way to pass on cultural values, often showing the seriousness of mistakes and violating the expectations of society.  Sometimes these old stories have been made less harsh in modern written versions intended for young audiences.

Since the genre is so very large, tale types were created to group stories with similar elements.  They were given a tale type number and assigned a motif in the Aarne-Thompson Uther classification system.  It is helpful for storyteller, folklorists and those who are writing original folktales to study the tale types. The variety is astounding.  Many important literary works, including opera, theater, poetry and fiction, are based on these tale types.

Good Beginning

I think a good story has to have a good opening line or opening scene.  You know from the first few lines that something is going to happen, and you really want to find out what that is. That is what makes a good beginning.

Opening scene from my middle grade novel:

He heard the crashing of broken tree limbs and felt the tremor of the Earth beneath his feet.  His bees hummed angrily and clamored for the safety of the hive.  He grabbed his bentwood walking stick that was propped against the hive.  Hobbling, skipping he rushed toward the crashing, deep in the forest.  Thick underbrush tripped his unsteady gate.  He had to pull himself up to his feet again and again.

     He had to force the panic down, pushing it deep inside him.  But the memory of thirty years ago kept nagging him.  The terror of that night still haunted his dreams.  But it was mid-day now.  He was wide awake.  This was no dream.

Other first lines or scenes I like:

"Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again".  Rebecca by Daphne duMaurier

In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I’ve been turning over in my mind ever since.

“Whenever you feel like criticizing any one,” he told me, “just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had.” The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Somewhere in la Mancha, in a place whose name I do not care to remember, a gentleman lived not long ago, one of those who has a lance and ancient shield on a shelf and keeps a skinny nag and a greyhound for racing.  Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes.

There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it.  The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C. S. Lewis.

“At night I would lie bed and watch the show, how bees squeezed through the cracks of my bedroom wall and flew circles around the room, making that propeller sound, a high-pitched zzzzzz that hummed along my skin.”  The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

Something to Say

So the question comes up with my writing friends, is it important for an author to have a blog?

This article  on The Internet Writing Journal, The Author's Dilema: To Blog or Not to Blog discusses various kinds of blogs from daily journal type, to issue oriented blogs, and group blogs.  There are no promises that a blog will add to your credibility or grant you fairy-godmother type success.  But sometimes it happens.

So I ask myself, why blog?  Here is my list of reasons:

1. Blogging is a self-imposed deadline that makes me write regularly.
2. I can expound on ideas and themes from my books.
3. I get to talk about my characters, and these are real people to me that I really like.
4. Any writing is better than no writing. Keeps me from getting too lazy.
5. I can try out something that I am playing with for my current plot.
6. It's kind of theaputic, like the diary from my childhood.
7. Maybe it will help me build a following.
8. I sometimes discuss books that I have read that had a big impact on me. 
9. Blogging is trendy, so it's gives me a certain je ne sais quoi.
10. I have something to say.

Courage to Do What You Must

Courage is doing things you must do, that you do not want to do.  I have learned what courage looks like from some of the best books I have read.  The hardest tests are those that require the character to do what he feels is right when others around him believe differently.  To go against what everyone else says is right and follow your chosen course shows great courage.  The power of story is to strengthen the courage within us so it will serve us at our own moment of testing.

 

Tom Sawyer’s character Huck Finn chose to be a true friend to Jim and not turn him in as a runaway slave. His choice meant sacrifice and danger to himself, as well as going against the rules he had grown up with.  But he knew in his heart what was right, and he chose to do what was right.

 

In Tracy Chevalier’s Remarkable Creatures, two women make several fascinating discoveries, fossilized skeletons in the cliffs near their home in England.  Their discovery brings many trials.  Men try to take credit for their work.  Social class differences threaten their friendship.  They showed courage to pursue their passion against great odds.

 

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is a story of commitment and hope between childhood friends torn apart by race and war.  Henry is a Chinese American boy.  His only friend is Keiko, a Japanese American girl.  Henry’s father is nationalistic and strongly disapproves of the friendship.  Henry faces very difficult choices when Keiko’s family is sent to an internment camp during World War II.

 

I draw on these examples of courage when I am crafting my own characters for my middle grade novels.  Something changes in their life, setting them on a new course.  They find a quest, a wrong to be righted, a need to be filled.  They experience an irreversible change.  They meet someone or learn something.  It cannot be undone.  They make a decision to act, and that decision always costs them something.  They suffer hunger or pain.  They lose friends or family.  They go on anyway.  That is courage.  And that is what all of us do in some way every day.

 

“Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong.  There are always difficulties arising which tempt you to believe that your critics are right.  To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires courage.”  Ralph Waldo Emerson

In Need of Shelter

Book characters find themselves in trouble, lost or plunged into an unfamiliar situation. Part of the fun I am having as an author is creating problems for my characters and seeing how they solve them. The characters always find a way, and usually it has nothing to do with my way. It is really fascinating how their motives and strengths and experiences guide them in decision making. Here is an excerpt from Parted Clouds, my middle grade novel. Jack finds himself in need of shelter in the woods. He has no survival training or experience, so he just has to think it through and come up with something. I like his solution. Do you?

 

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Jack hiked for hours, climbing up and down several ridges. He kept hearing the funny sounding bird from time to time. It made him feel less lonely. But now it was getting dark and he was very tired.

     Jack did not like to think about sleeping another night alone in the woods. But he forced himself to think about where he might sleep. He cast his eyes about the place where he stood. There were a few large rocks, but nothing forming a cave of any size. There were plenty of branches for making a little home as he did the night before. But Jack did not like the feeling that little creatures, mice or squirrels, were scurrying about him all through the night. He did not like hearing the scratching of some kind of creature, probably much larger than a mouse or squirrel. He did not want to become dinner for a bear, a lion or a wolf. Certainly these woods had loads of them! He cast his eyes up above him. There were many sturdy branches, curved like the cup of a hand.

     “If I slept up in that tree,” he said to himself, “I’d not be as likely to end up as dinner for a bear.”

            So Jack set about climbing the tree. He used the hatchet to chop a few unruly limbs, and the rope to tie branches together forming roof over his head. This project took shape as a sort of tree house. He wove some branches together to form a mattress, laying it in the curved cup of a very large branch. He lay down to try it out. It was not bad. Not bad at all.

 

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What kind of shelter would you make for yourself if you were lost?

Journeys

You can visit far away places, real and imagined, through stories.  For a very long time people lived and died in their home town, never going more than a day's journey from their birthplace.  They looked forward to visiting storytellers to bring news from abroad.  Early storytellers told of encounters they had with animals or enemies.  They told stories about Kings and warriors.  They introduced words, ideas and inventions from other people far away.

Today we can travel very quickly around the world, and the media sends news instantly.  But we still love stories.  Reading a book helps us get inside a new place, experience foreign sounds, tastes and smells.  We experience the struggle of a hero and rejoice at his success.  For many readers, setting is the appeal that they use to select their next book.  In a few hours time the reader can be there and back again.  Each of these journeys we make changes us a little.

You probably recall the great story by Jules Verne, Around the World in 80 Days.  Phileas Fogg leaves London on a bet and travels by rail, steamer and even by elephant to Egypt, India, China, Japan, and the United States.  There are many missed connections, uncomfortable accommodations, and severe weather.  He and his traveling companion meet unusual people and see all kinds of terrain.  Phileas Fogg, like most travelers, feels that all the expense and trouble were worth it at the end of his journey.

Sometimes the journeys in literature are metaphorical, representing the spiritual journey and personal growth of the characters.  Their struggle helps them achieve enlightenment and inner peace.  They serve others and become open to other points of view.  Reading allows us to share and benefit from the spiritual journey.

So where will you go next?  Find the story that speaks to you and start your adventure.  When you return several hours later, you will not be quite the same.

Expanding Your World

The books you read as a child have a great impact. You learn about the world, real and imagined.  Through the pages of books you experience friendship, betrayal, love, fear, and pain.  All of these experiences gained through reading help to shape the choices you make.  Reading gives you the vocabulary to express your thoughts and feelings.  Reading aquaints you with ideas and cultures that are very different from those of your own family and neighborhood.

Children's book authors have an important role. They are part of the village that raises todays children. When parents, teachers and librarians guide children to the best books, they are nourishing them perhaps more than they do with bread and fruit.  If you influence a child, find a great children's book and share it with him.  You both will be greatly enriched.

“It is not enough to simply teach children to read; we have to give them something worth reading. Something that will stretch their imaginations--something that will help them make sense of their own lives and encourage them to reach out toward people whose lives are quite different from their own.”

- Katherine Patterson

“When we read a story, we inhabit it. The covers of the book are like a roof and four walls. What is to happen next will take place within the four walls of the story. And this is possible because the story's voice makes everything its own.”

- John Berger

Jack Tales in Oral Tradition

Have you heard of Jack and the Beanstalk?  Jack the Giant Killer?  These are Jack tales. These familiar stories are just a few of many stories about a character named Jack.  These folktales are popular in England and also in Appalachian folklore.  They are usually about a boy who is foolish at times.  He can also be clever, tricky, lazy kind, and heroic.  In England the stories often have nobility as the leaders, such as a King or Lord who gives Jack a job to do.  In the Appalachian versions the leader is usually a sheriff or rich man.  In England, Jack sometimes uses magic to help him out of trouble.  In Appalachian stories Jack is more likely to think things through, and use tricks or cleverness to save the day. Of course, sometimes he is just lucky!

Jack tales are a collection of stories that have been told for many years.  They are an oral tradition, meaning that they are not from a single author that wrote them down.  They are never told the same way twice, even by the same storyteller.  The main ideas in these stories stay the same, but the details change based on the time period, the culture of the storyteller and the audience.  Not necessarily for children, these stories have some mature themes. Jack tales include dysfunctional families, abusive employers, thieves and cheats.  They also are cautionary tales meant to keep children in line.  Oral storytelling was for the everyone, old and young.

Jack Tales are separate stories with some of the same characters, episodes all about the life of the boy called Jack.  In some of the stories he is a child, and in some he is a young man seeking his fortune. Some of the early written stories, from as far back as the 15th century, were written in rhyme.  Many short rhymes also center on Jack.  To name a few, Jack Sprat, Jack and Jill, Jack be Nimble, and Little Jack Horner.

I have drawn on this rich collection of Jack Tales for my novel for young readers, Parted Clouds.  There are some familiar elements from Jack Tales: giants, trickery, and seeking a fortune.  There is also a hero's journey, a quest, and mortal danger.  This is a story for today's readers that feels familiar but fresh.  Because Jack Tales are never told the same way twice.

Family LIfe Stories

              Tom knew how to use reason, cleverness and the leverage of his parents’ love for him. He used tactics that were not, strictly speaking, fair and square. He knew that. But he desperately needed a change so he resorted to dramatics. He was good at dramatics.

               “My life is over!” he had said. Then he flung himself onto the rug by the hearth. “I have about as much purpose as a well gone dry!” He had covered his face with his forearm, but he raised it a bit so he could see his mother’s face. He hoped there might be a tear in her eye, seeing her only child in such a state. Instead he saw her give him a sideways glance. The corner of her mouth was twisted and one eyebrow twitched upward.

                 Tom climbed up the polished wooden leg of the chair by wrapping his hands around it and pushing up with his feet over and over. As soon as he could, he swung himself over to his father’s trouser leg and continued upward. He used the buttons of his father’s linen shirt to make the final ascent and rested at last near the shirt collar. He tugged his father’s whiskers gently and affectionately. It was the way he always signaled to his father that what he wanted to say was important. Will dipped his chin to show he was listening.

         “I need to get out into the world, Pa. I love our home and everything in it. I love you and Mother so much I might burst from the loving. But even though I am small, I have big ideas. And even though I love you, I need to make some friends. If I stay here forever I will dry up, Pa. I will dry up like a black-eyed pea in a shell.”

              This scene is from the story I am working on.  It illustrates the complex love between parent and child. In this story, Tom is a tiny boy, no bigger than a thumb.  His parents were childless for a long time, and then magically they were given a son of their own.  But Tom is feeling restless, as many children do. He loves his parents and his home, but they are not enough.  He needs companions and experiences beyond his own home and family. The parents are worried about his safety.  They want to keep him close to try and protect him.


            There are a lot of old stories about parents who want to protect their children.  You may recall the story of The Little Red Hen .  The hen plants a seed, grows some wheat, grinds it into flour and then bakes bread.  Each time she asks the other farm animals for help, she gets the same answer - "Not I!"  But she does what she has to do to take care of her little ones.  The Little Red Hen is like most parents.  They struggle, but somehow they find strength and patience to keep going.

           Children often don't recognize protectiveness as a demonstration of love.  But parents often fail to understand their children's expressions of love.  In the old folktale Cap-o-Rushes a father asks his daughters how much they love him.  Their answers baffle him and cause a rift that nearly destroys the family.  

            I hope you enjoy reading these stories about parental love with all of the joys and sorrows.  And maybe reading stories about family drama will help you smooth over some of the rough patches in your family.

Warning! Do not try this!

One of the traditional types of folk tale is the cautionary tale.  In this kind of story there is a warning of something dangerous, a character who chooses to ignore that warning, and the consequences of that decision.  Many times the consequences in a cautionary tale are extreme.

Folktales offer many cautionary stories, and some you probably know very well. Goldilocks knew better than to go into a stranger's house uninvited.  But when she found herself in front of a pretty little home in the woods, it was just so tempting.  So she invaded the home of the three bears, messed the place up and ate their breakfast.  Grumpy, hungry bears are usually bad news.  In this story she wasn't hurt, just scared.  She got out of there without a scratch.  Red Riding Hood was taking a basket of food to her grandmother when a  charming, friendly wolf came along.  She was warned not to stray off the path and not to talk to anyone, but the wolf seemed kind and friendly.  In some versions of the story the consequences are horrible for both the girl and the grandmother.

Horror movies and urban legends have many common story lines. They warn us about such behaviors as staying out late, lying about where you will be, picking on the odd new kid, and flirting with someone who is off limits.  There is always some kind of monster in the story who harms or kills the violators. These stories are often said to be based on true events, which makes the deadly consequences feel real.  They are entertaining stories but also serve a purpose to illustrate what happens if one doesn't conform to social norms.

The power of story is to show the consequences of pride, going willfully into dangerous places, and engaging in morally unapproved activities.  Through stories the reader can experience a little thrill at doing something forbidden.  That thrill is what makes scary stories so appealing.  It is fun to be scared in a safe way. Through reading scary stories we test limits and come to our own convictions about what is right.  The character in the stories usually choose to do something really stupid and suffer for it.  Maybe that vicarious experience prepares the reader to make better decisions.

“Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe.” Albert Einstein.

Read A Story and Change Your Brain

Bed time stories are good for you! Of course you knew that, but maybe you didn't know why. Reading aloud to young children is a favorite activity in many families.  The nightly ritual forms a parental bond.  Sharing experiences through books helps to shape family values, create common language, and develop the family sense of humor.  Sharing stories is fun.

Reading aloud also helps children develop and maintain creativity.  Most young children say they are creative, and they are right.  Most high school graduates say they are not creative.  That means somewhere in those developing years their creativity was not praised and given a chance to grow. Parents hope their children will be creative.  Creative people are successful.  They become leaders, solve scientific problems, develop new businesses, and write books.  One simple habit can help kids become creative and successful.

Reading aloud to a child for 30 minutes a day improves creativity.  Brain mapping shows where the centers of creativity and imagination are in the brain.  Activating these centers of the brain build synapses, which are the connections between brain cells. Children form synapses as they experience the world around them.  Repeated use of the synapses strengthens them.  So this simple 30 minute activity changes the brain for the better.

Who should do the reading?  Both parent and child should read. Listening to someone reading aloud improves verbal skills.  It sharpens focus and power of concentration. Children benefit from reading aloud.  Hearing their own voice reading aloud improves fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and control of the voice. So read aloud often. Read aloud to little brother, the cat, the teddy bear.  It's all good.

No One's Perfect

No One’s Perfect: The Tragic hero

The tragic hero is a great, strong, or noble character in a dramatic tragedy who is destined to suffer defeat.  He may make a bad choice, he may have a flaw or weakness of character, or he may be a victim of circumstances beyond his control.  The tragic hero is an appealing character because most everyone can identify with him.  We see our own weaknesses or pride reflected in him.  We feel pity for him and fear for what he will suffer.

Often the tragic hero accomplishes something worthy for others, but gives up his own life.  Usually the tragic hero is a nobleman or leader who can influence the fate of many other people. The hero dies, but his death has meaning.  Sometimes the tragic hero is aware of his flaw from the start, and sometimes he learns too late.

Shakespeare used the tragic hero in some of his plays.  Hamlet's fatal flaw was failing to do his duty, to kill Claudius.  He does finally act, but by that time many other people have died and Hamlet also dies.  Although he starts off showing great bravery in battle, Macbeth's flaw was ambition.  He wanted to be the king.  He allowed his wife to influence him too much.  Macbeth's character degenerates to a power hungry and violent man.

Thorin Oakenshield is a tragic hero in Tolkein's  The Hobbit. He leads a company of dwarfs on a quest for a treasure but he is unwilling to share the glory, or the gold, with any of them.  He shows noble strength in battle, but his flaw is pride and it brings him to a tragic end.  Severus Snape from the Harry Potter books can be described as a tragic hero.  He is not good and noble. He was a cruel teacher who didn't like Harry. We question his loyalty through the series.  But Snape eventually proved he was loyal to Dumbledore. His love for Lily made him sacrifice his life for her boy, whom he hated.

The tragic hero makes us see the best and the worst in a person.  It shows that everyone has some bad and some good.  And it shows that what matters most is the choice one makes.

Bullies

I want to share a few paragraphs from my novel for young readers. The main character, Jack, was alone in the woods, separated from his party.  He didn't have much experience with the wilderness so he was a bit jumpy.  More than that.  He was scared.  So when he heard a noise coming toward him, he expected to confront a bear or mountain lion.  He didn't know there were even more dangerous things in the woods.

 Here is the excerpt:

**********

Jack had not seen any dangerous animals in all the time he had been in the forest, but he believed there could very well be some lion or bear nearby. He stood up and made himself look large. He picked up a sturdy branch. It had a narrow smooth grip and it was rather flat at the larger end. It was about the shape and size of a cricket bat. Jack thought it would do nicely as a weapon against the approaching foe.

He stood at the ready and forced himself to breath slowly. Show no fear! He was sure that was important. He heard the noise getting louder and closer. He raised the weapon to his shoulder.

Just as he was about to turn and run, thinking that it would be wiser than trying to bash the bear in the nose with a cricket bat, Jack saw two people emerge from the trees. They were men, well young men. Boys really, but older than Jack. They were dressed in plaid shirts, patched trousers and thick soled boots. One wore a black rather sloppy hat. The other had a bandanna tied around his forehead but was bare headed. Both had rather greasy long hair and just a bit of sparse beards on their chins.

“Will, we are in luck! We found a mess of vittles,” said the one with the hat.

.

“Not true, Tom. This banty gommer et ever blame thing his self! What say we roast him. Shouldn’t take too long to cook.”

**********

Jack was targeted by these two bullies because he was smaller, he was less experienced and he talked differently.  The older boys were aggressive and accustomed to stealing to get whatever the needed.  They were scrappy, looking for a fight because it was their only source of entertainment.  This situation could be very bad for Jack.  But he handled himself well.  He stayed calm but alert.  He didn't cower to the boys.  But I won't tell you how the scene plays out.  That would be a spoiler.

My point is, bullying is a real danger in our society.  October is national Bullying Prevention Awareness Month.  Bullying takes many forms.  It can be physical, such as shoving or putting harmful objects in the locker.  It can be verbal, such as name calling or spreading rumors.  It can be carried out on the internet through social media sites and e-mail. The victims are usually kids, but adults are targeted sometimes, too.

This video shows how one person eloquently quashed a bully who criticized her for being overweight.

Bullying is a learned behavior.  Adults, be aware of what you say and the example you set.  Do you laugh at someone's mistake, comment about their race, avoid mixing with people who are very different from you?  Someone younger is watching and learning that behavior.  If you are guilty of these habits, change begins with you. Grow up, stand up for what's right, and be a responsible citizen. Oh, and apologize to someone you have hurt.

You can take an active role against bullying. Bullies don't feel good about themselves. They enjoy pulling others down to their level. Many of them experience abuse from someone higher up the food chain and they just pass on the misery. A caring adult could find a way to intervene and set that kid on a new path.

Bullying can be resisted.  Build up a good social circle and look after each other.  Walk together.  Stay in safe areas. Avoid putting yourself in a vulnerable place. Do not answer a verbal jab.  Keep your posture natural and relaxed so you don't look like a target.  Be physically strong and confident and learn a few basic defense techniques to use in case the bully gets physical.  If you handle yourself well, you are less likely to be the target of a bully.

Don't think, write!

If you think you are a writer, you are a writer.  But chances are you are less productive than you want to be.  Sometime you need some motivation to get some words on the page.  Maybe you need inspiration and ideas.  There are friends out there, waiting to help!

Procrastinating Writers provides guidance for writers who struggle to get started.  Go ahead and try to find an excuse they have never heard before. Make a list! I dare you.  But while you are pondering the list, take a look at the articles and tips they offer. 

I tend to work best under preasure.  Since I don't have an editor begging me for a manuscript, I have to find other means of motivation.  Consider the possibility of writing a novel in just 30 days! Every year thousands of authors participate in Nanowrimo,  thirty days and nights of literary abandon. From November 1 to November 30 you, too, could create a great literary masterpiece.  Or at least a manuscript of 50,000 words.  You sign up. They provide inspiration, plot generating ideas, and moral support.  There are lots of local groups that sponsor "write-ins" so if you like to write socially, now you can.

I hope you dream an elaborate and fanciful plot tonight, and then take November to craft it into a novel.  Let me know if you do!

Stories of Sudden Abundance

There are many sad but true stories about lottery winners who end up in a worse state after their windfall. Just this week in the news is a story of a Michigan woman who won a million dollars in the lottery and continued to collect food stamps and medical assistance. After a news station interviewed her in March, the story spread widely. Her public assistance was taken away. A few months later, she was found dead in her home of a drug overdose.

Last year a woman who won the lottery realized that winning put her in danger. She disconnected her phone, gave no public statements, tried to hide from the media and moved away from her small town. Within days of her win a mug shot of her bruised face was the image everyone associated with her. She had been a victim of domestic violence a few years previously. She had to disappear to keep from getting hurt again.

Of course there are some who are successful at managing their riches, share with others, and live a great life after winning. They give away most of their fortune to family, friends, and church. They pay off debts and support worthy charities. They share their fortune and are a little better off, but their life does not change dramatically.

Even though riches are no guarantee of happiness, most of us would love to experience sudden abundance. There are many old tales about a man who became rich through a dream. One version of that tale type is a story called the Peddler of Swaffam. The man has a dream that he should go to London Bridge and there he would receive joyful news. He ignored it for a while but the dream persisted. Finally he went to London and stood on the bridge a long time. He felt like a fool. But near the end of the day he talked to a shop keeper who laughed at him for standing on the bridge all day. And then he told him of his own dream, which revealed the location of a treasure that was buried under a large oak tree. The man left immediately and went home. He found the treasure exactly where it was supposed to be. Of course it was in his own back yard. He became a generous man and lived well the rest of his life.

So which one is your story? Would riches be the death of you, or would they help you reach your full potential?

Eat Without Getting Fat

"Without a word, just a nod of his head, Graybeard invited Jack to follow him into the shack. He sat Jack down at the tiny table and put a mug of milk in front of him, which Jack gulped down without even taking a breath. When he set the cup down Jack saw that Graybeard had already put a plate of hot food there for him. Roasted meat with sliced apples, a thick slice of bread and butter, and ruby colored pickled beets almost flowed over the sides of the tin plate. Jack’s eyes grew round at the sight of it! The fragrance was as welcome and familiar as the spicy and homey smell of his mother’s holiday dinners. Jack looked up. Graybeard was handing him a spoon and fork with a slight smile tugging at his mustache."


This is a scened from Parted Clouds, my novel for young readers. At this point in the story Jack has been lost for some time and is really hungry. He meets a man who welcomes him into his home and serves him a marvelous feast.

There are so many traditional stories about abundant food. Food is prominent in our family gatherings and social events, so why not in stories? Here are a few traditional stories about food that you probably remember. Hansel and Gretel find a house made of sweet treats. The Gingerbread Boy is about a woman who bakes a cookie and then chases it as it runs away from her. Goldilocks and the Three Bears is about a child who enters a home uninvited and eats the food she finds on the table. A less well known story is the Magic Cooking Pot. A hungry girl meets an old woman who gives her a magic cooking pot. She takes it home to her mother and says the appropriate words. All is well until one day when the mother uses the pot to make some food and she does not know the right words to make it stop. You can imagine the mess!

Food plays an important role in current literature, too. There is a genre of mysteries known as culinary mysteries where food is a major ingredient. Often recipes are included. So go ahead and enjoy a good food story.

You can eat it all without getting fat.