Love, Laughter, and Life

Adventures With a Book Lover


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Moving

 by Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

The box that was filled with flyers listing our home as FOR SALE is empty. That doesn’t mean we are done with this whole moving process. Not at all.

For instance, as I tidied and prepped, boxed and bagged, I discovered that I had 3 of those old fashioned hair dryers.

You know the ones. The type that comes in a hat-type carrying case, with a long hose leading from the base to the plastic hat, and the lovely plastic hat that one puts on over curlers. Or, in my case, over my plastic bag wrapped deep conditioned hair. It really works.

But 3? Who needs 3 hair dryers of that sort? Last time I checked, I only had (and still have) 1 head.

What can I say? This scenario has been repeated several times with different items as I’ve cleared out closets, drawers, and cupboards. Hoarder? Yard sale hound? Bargain monster?

I prefer to call myself a collector.

The good news is, we can almost see the light at the end of the tunnel. Piles of this and that for various people have mostly been sent to their new homes. The debris is disappearing a little more every day.

The adventure continues! How to fit everything we need – or think we need – into an RV. It’s a never-ending puzzle.

Hair dryer anyone?


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Non-Fiction of Olympic Proportions (plus a prize!)

by Karlin Gray What do I know about writing nonfiction picture books? After my book NADIA: THE GIRL WHO COULDN’T SIT STILL was published, someone said to me, “Great timing with the 40th…

Source: Non-Fiction of Olympic Proportions (plus a prize!)

I can’t wait to read this book! I was one of those girls who loved Nadia and watched her on TV during the Olympics. Thanks for the great NF strategies for writing.


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54 Years Later – Nana Finally Gets Someone Who Resembles Her

Little Angie

by Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

Actually, it is 53 years – until my birthday in November. Why am I making myself older than I am???

A tiny baby girl was born 53 years ago. When that girl was married, she had 2 children, a boy and a girl. Neither resembled her. YES. She was there for the birth, so she knows they are hers.

Much later, the boy and girl both married their lifemates and produced wonderful grandchilden. None of which looked even the slightest bit like the Nana. Rather, they looked like mommy or daddy or this cousin or that one, or even aunties and uncles. No one resembled short little Nana.

Until now. Nana giggles and rubs her hands together with glee.

Little Autumn, the youngest princess, coming in at barely 3 months old, finally shows signs of having something in common with the Nana!

Autumn’s eyes look like Nana’s eyes. A family resemblance – how nice for me!

Little Autumn and her Nana eyes!

This Nana is happy with even the slightest hint of “she has my eyes.” I would be fine if she had Papa’s height and not my lack. Actually, I am very happy that she is healthy. A slight resemblance is just eye-cing on the cake. Wink, wink.

Yippee for grands.

Do your children resemble you? How about those grands?

Just chatting with my Nana.


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Does Your Story Need a Heart Transplant? by @BonnieAdamson and #GIVEAWAY

Three case histories Sometimes I have what I think is a great idea for a story. I plot it out, polish the text, start thumbnailing scenes and begin working on character design. And then I hit a wal…

Source: Does Your Story Need a Heart Transplant? by @BonnieAdamson and #GIVEAWAY

These case histories give very good examples and tips of how to fix  stories. Thanks, Bonnie!


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Early Pumpkin Harvest

Safe and gorgeous

By Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

I harvested 8 pumpkins this morning.

It’s August.

Harvesting pumpkins in August just does not sound right. Especially when it will be around 90 later this afternoon.

Not right at all.

Extenuating circumstances encouraged me to wade deep in the bristly pumpkin patch and knee high grass to grasp my favorite orange fall buddies. Er, I mean, signs of the season. Sure, I talk to my pumpkins. And those dratted slugs and squash bugs. I do admit to speaking kindly to my pumpkin pals. Not so much with the vermin.

Doesn’t everyone talk to their plants and garden inhabitants? No? Hmmm.

Slugs. They were eating HOLES in my pumpkins! I rolled one large pumpkin over and a huge spotted slug, probably 3-4 inches long when stretched out, was coiled comfortably in the blossom end hollow. UGH. Tiny little slime booger slugs were creeping all over as well.

Odd. Spring. Weather. We had the weirdest spring. That is all I can blame on the extremely early crops. It was very warm, very hot, and then very cold. Plants in my area don’t know what to do. Except grow.

Squash bugs. I’ve been so busy packing up the house, I missed recognizing the sign of yellowed leaves that indicated I had extra special garden pest visitors. Why, those hungry little insects have moved right in!

Orange. These pumpkin babies were colorful and ready to visit my porch.

Snip, snip, tug, and off we went away from hungry mouths to the safety of shade and protection.

Fall (in August) here we come!

How is your garden growing this year?


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Listening to Your Characters by @mimicross and #GIVEAWAY

“She’s gonna listen to her heart It’s gonna tell her what to do.” — Tom Petty And it’s going to tell you, the writer, what to do. Listening to your main character’s heart—is going to te…

Source: Listening to Your Characters by @mimicross and #GIVEAWAY

Listening to your characters will allow you to give them heart. That’s what I forget to do! LISTEN. Thanks, Mimi.


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Writing with Heart and Soul by Kelly Starling Lyons

Before I became a children’s book author, I wrote newspaper and magazine articles. I looked forward to feedback from editors that would help my stories shine. But one day, I received a note that ma…

Source: Writing with Heart and Soul by Kelly Starling Lyons

Thanks for sharing these tips, Kelly!


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From Paper to Pulse: Character with Heart by @TerraMcVoy 

Creating a character with real heart is hard. It isn’t like slapping a wristwatch into a Tin Man and telling him he suddenly has one. Writing a character who possesses true heart requires the same …

Source: From Paper to Pulse: Character with Heart by @TerraMcVoy 

How to create a character with heart – by Terra McVoy. Thanks, Terra!


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Cars Rushing! Honking! Zooming! ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

by Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

Cars Rushing! Honking! Zooming!

By Patricia Hubbell

Illustrated by Megan Halsey and Sean Addy

(Marshall Cavendish Children, 2006)

I love the vintage illustrations of Cars Rushing! Honking! Zooming!

This fun picture book is about all sorts of vehicles. And the drivers are not necessarily human!

Told in rhyme, Cars Rushing! Honking! Zooming! features things vehicles do as well as places they go and specific information about them (like the parts of a car).

I enjoyed the feel of this book. Any child who loves things that GO will have fun reading Cars Rushing! Honking! Zooming!

KID KANDY:

Masking Tape Highways

Materials: toy vehicles, blocks, masking tape

1. Stick masking tape on the floor or carpet (or furniture) to create winding roads on the floor.

2. Use blocks to build homes, businesses, and community features.

3. Drive those vehicles along the roads and use your imagination to pretend you are really in a car. Isn’t that fun?

4. Pull up the tape as soon as you are done playing so it doesn’t stick on the floor!

Zoom, zoom!


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Three Tips for Writing Humor: Write Blind, First Things First, and Get Some Help, Already by @writingmatthew and @drawingrobbi plus a #Giveaway

Perhaps my greatest pleasure is making people laugh. Which is why pretty much everything I write is anchored in humor. It keeps my readers engaged. It allows for higher highs and lower lows. But ho…

Source: Three Tips for Writing Humor: Write Blind, First Things First, and Get Some Help, Already by @writingmatthew and @drawingrobbi plus a #Giveaway

Yet another fantastic post about how to add humor to your writing.  Just by looking at the meme, one knows these 2 know their stuff.