Versatile Blogger

I'm sending a heartfelt "Thank You" to Tammy Flanders from Apples with Many Seeds for recognizing me as a Versatile Blogger!

This recognition comes with three important responsibilities:

• Thank the person who nominated you and provide a link back to their blog. 
• Share 7 things about you. 
• Give this award to up to fifteen bloggers.  Contact those bloggers and let them in on the exciting news.

Here are 7 things about me as a writer.

1. I began my career writing for regional and national periodicals.

2. My work as a Library Media Specialist surrounded me with children's literature and eventually caused me to switch a portion of my writing efforts to children's books.

3. My family pioneered their way West by covered wagon to Arizona and I grew up surrounded by Western culture which is why it is often reflected in my work.

4. I feel a personal and professional responsibility to share what I know about my craft with my fellow writers.  With that thought in mind, I've co-chaired Young Authors Conferences, provided in-service training/seminars for teachers, and taught writing workshops for children and adults.

5. I'm passionate about doing research.  I have shelves and shelves of books on a variety of topics related to the craft of writing, history, folklore, etc.  I favor primary sources for history whenever possible and some of my books are from the 1800s.

6. Mark Twain and Ernest Hemingway have influenced me through their body of work, but also through their perspectives on the craft of writing.

7. One of my favorite quotes from Mark Twain is: "To get the right word in the right place is a rare achievement.  To condense the diffused light of a page of thought into the luminous flash of a single sentence, is worthy to rank as a prize composition just by itself . . . Anybody can have ideas -- the difficulty is to express them without squandering a quire of paper on an idea that ought to be reduced to one glittering paragraph. -- Letter to Emeline Beach, 10 Feb. 1868

I would like to recognize the following Versatile Bloggers -- listed below in no particular order:

Tales of the Rushmore Kid

The Miss Rumphius Effect

Teaching Authors

The Happy Accident

Adventures in Children's Publishing

School Visit Experts

The Librarian Writer

Jen Robinson's Book Page

Nonfiction Monday

Nonfiction Monday is hosted today by True Tales and A Cherry On Top.

My selection is "Yellowstone Moran: painting the American West" by Lita Judge.

Frontier painters such as Frederick Remington, George Catlin and Charles M. Russell may be more familiar names, but Thomas Moran's trek into the Yellowstone wilderness as part of Dr. Ferdinand Hayden's expedition receives well-deserved attention in this visually stunning book. 

Judge does an excellent job of portraying the hardships endured and the determination with which Moran sketched and documented the amazing beauty and natural wonders of Yellowstone.

Judge's watercolors and the reproduction of Moran's painting, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, certainly explain how Moran's portrayals helped influence public opinion in favor of the creation of Yellowstone, America's first national park.

Poetry Friday

Poetry Friday is hosted today by Picture Book of the Day.

My selection is "A Full Moon is Rising" by Marilyn Singer with illustrations by Julia Cairns.

Accomplished children's poetry Marilyn Singer takes readers on an around-the-world journey to explore the moon from multiple perspectives.  Her travels include New York skyscapes, coral reefs at spawning time, Hong Kong, Israel, Australia, the International Space Station, and the Sahara as she explores urban and rural, man-made and natural locales in search of lunar experiences to share.

Cairn's watercolors enliven the text in each double-page spread.

Writer's Wednesday

It's a potpourri sort of day -- here are some interesting notes.

• Write4Kids has an interesting article posted 8/29 "Does the Ad Budget Make a Bestseller?"
• Kidlit.com reminds readers that the 2012 Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market is now available.
• At Teaching Authors a thoughtful post by Carmela Martino on her experience as a student in a workshop titled "The Climax or Breaking Point in Short Stories and Novels" presented by noted editor and writing teacher, Fred Shafer at Off Campus Writer's Workshop (OCWW).  Carmela notes that picture books are an important resource in the class and sites a quote on the subject from a recent online interview with Fred Shafer.

Nonfiction Monday

Nonfiction Monday is hosted today by Tales from the Rushmore Kid.

Thinking about curriculum with today's selection -- "If Maps Could Talk: using symbols and keys" by Erika Shores.

It isn't the maps that talk here.  A bird by the name of Ace McCaw leads the readers through the text, photographs and drawings.  Young readers are introduced to basic map skills and are acquainted with terms such as compass rose, scale, and map keys as McCaw narrates a look into a variety of maps.  Simple examples and engaging activities round out the volume.

Poetry Friday

Poetry Friday Roundup is hosted today by The Poem Farm.

My selection is "Amazing Faces" poems selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins with illustrations by Chris Soentpiet.

Amazing Faces is an anthology of poetry by some of our most well-known and best-loved poets: Rebecca Kai Dotlich, Nikki Grimes, Lanston Huges, Jude Mandell, Pat Mora, Janet S. Wong and Jane Yolen are among the contributors whose poems reflect the diversity of America's children.  African America, Asian, Caucasian, Hispanic and Native American will all be found in the pages, but the experiences and emotions expressed are universal to children of any background and provide a unifying theme. 

Soentpiet's glowing watercolors shine a light on the individual moments captured in each poem while at the same time adding another layer of expression, understanding, and continuity.

The Gingerbread Cowboy Anniversary Blog Blow Out

The Gingerbread Cowboy Anniversary Blog Tour concludes today with OutWest Marketing

To celebrate The Gingerbread Cowboy's Fifth Anniversary, I have a $50 dollar gift certificate to OutWest Marketing waiting for some lucky reader so giddy-up on over, leave a comment and your email contact information.

Nonfiction Monday

Nonfiction Monday is hosted today by Wrapped in Foil.

My selection is "You Are the First Kid on Mars" by Patrick O'Brien.

Written in the second person, O'Brien's book quickly immerses young readers in their personal trip to Mars.  The four-month long trip covers every aspect of the voyage from leaving Earth to taking up residence in a Mars research colony.  The young traveler explores the red planet's incredible landscape and observes scientists at work before it's time to board a rocket for the return trip home. 

Digital photgraph-like art gives the reader a visually stunning sense of the journey and the environment.  Readers will find it hard to believe that they can't make the trip just yet, but they will have no trouble imagining that such an event could easily be in their future. 

The Gingerbread Cowboy Anniversary Blog Blow Out

Due to technical difficulties The Gingerbread Cowboy Anniversary Blog Tour didn't post yesterday as planned, but it’s up now and will be for several days with Heidi M.Thomas.

I will select one name at random from people who comment on any blog tour post to receive a $50 dollar gift certificate to OutWest Marketing, an online store for shoppers who are wild about the west.  The Gift certificate will be good for 60 days and include a 10% discount and free shipping so be sure to leave your email contact information.

So Giddy-up on over there and leave a comment.

The Gingerbread Cowboy Anniversary Blog Blow Out

The Gingerbread Cowboy Anniversary Blog Tour continues today with Heidi M.Thomas.

I will select one name at random from people who comment on her blog tour post to receive a $50 dollar gift certificate to OutWest Marketing, an online store for shoppers who are wild about the west. The Gift certificate will be good for 60 days and include a 10% discount and free shipping so be sure to leave your email contact information.

So Giddy-up on over there and leave a comment.

Poetry Friday

Poetry Friday Roundup is hosted today by Secrets and Sharing Soda.

My selection is "Birds on a Wire: a Renga 'round town" written by J. Patrick Lewis and Paul B. Janeczko with illustrations by Gary Lippincott.

A Renga is a Japanese form of verse for two or more poets in which each writer creates a verse inspired by and linked to the previous poem thus producing an ongoing narrative.  Lewis and Janeczko demonstrate this form with skill as they move from the real to the abstract, shift viewpoints, and lead readers on a contemplative and sometimes surprising ramble through a small town to explore nature, its people and the community. 

Lippincott's soft, nostalgic illustrations take their cue from the poetry.  Each spread references the previous artwork and hints at what is to come, providing a visual affirmation of the text.

The Gingerbread Cowboy Anniversary Blog Blow Out

The Gingerbread Cowboy Anniversary Blog Tour continues today at On Being a Writer, Velda Brotherton's blog. 

I will select one name at random from people who comment on any blog tour post to receive a $50 dollar gift certificate to OutWest Marketing, an online store for shoppers who are wild about the west. The Gift certificate will be good for 60 days and include a 10% discount and free shipping so be sure to leave your email contact information.

So Giddy-up on over there and leave a comment. 

The Gingerbread Cowboy Anniversary Blog Blow Out

The Gingerbread Cowboy Anniversary Blog Blow Out begins today with The Gingerbread Cowboy Book Trailer created by the incomparable Tina Nichols Coury at Tales of the Rushmore Kid.

The tour continues on

9/8 at On Being a Writer, Velda Brotherton

 9/10 with Heidi M. Thomas

9/12 courtesy of  OutWest Marketing

To celebrate The Gingerbread Cowboy's Fifth Anniversary, I have something special for readers:

I will select one name at random from people who comment on this blog tour post to receive a $50 dollar gift certificate to OutWest Marketing, an online store for shoppers who are wild about the west. The Gift certificate will be good for 60 days and include a 10% discount and free shipping so be sure to leave your email contact information.

The Gingerbread Cowboy Anniversary Blog Blow Out

The Gingerbread Cowboy Anniversary Blog Blow Out begins Tuesday September 6th with the debut of the new Gingerbread Cowboy Book Trailer created by the incomparable Tina Nichols Coury and debuted at Tales of the Rushmore Kid http://www.tinanicholscouryblog.com/.

To celebrate The Gingerbread Cowboy's Fifth Anniversary, I have something special for readers:

I will select one name at random from people who comment on any blog tour post to receive a $50 dollar gift certificate to OutWest Marketing, an online store for shoppers who are wild about the west. The Gift certificate will be good for 60 days and include a 10% discount and free shipping so be sure to leave your email contact information.

The tour will continue through September 12th so stay tuned for the next stop on the tour.

Nonfiction Monday

Nonfiction Monday is hosted today by Playing By the Book.

My selection is "The 2001 World Trade Center attack" by Jacqueline Dembar Greene. 


Greene combines her narrative with photographs and quotes from people directly involved to create a factual look at the events surrounding the 9/11 tragedy.  Written at a third grade level with reluctant or struggling readers in mind, this book provides a straight forward approach that is accessible to young readers.  Twelve chapters consisting of double page spreads of photos and text cover topics from the first news of the attack to our nation's recovery with topic headings such as Racing to the Rescue, Trapped, The South Tower Falls, City of Heroes, Hijackers and America Recovers.


The book concludes with four brief profiles of individuals from that day, glossary, bibliography, additional reading and an online resource.

Poetry Friday

Poetry Friday is hosted today by The Miss Rumphius Effect.

My selection is "Animal Poems" by Valerie Worth with pictures by Steve Jenkins. 

This collection of twenty-three poems about a variety of animals was published following Worth's death in 1994 and is a fitting tribute to her remarkable talent for using ordinary words to create an extraordinary experience.  Worth's perceptive free verse observations invite her readers to see the familiar -- from snails to whales -- with new eyes.  At first glance, the book appears to target a young audience, and many of the poems suit a youthful demographic.  However, there are also works that require a more sophisticated vocabulary and world view that will appeal to teens and adults as well.

Each spread highlights an individual poem and features the inventive cut-paper artwork for which Steven Jenkins is famous.  Textured, multi-dimensional collages are a visual treat in harmony with Worth's word pictures.