This Poetry Friday is being hosted by Jennie Rothschild at her blog, Biblio File. There you will find links to lots of holiday poetry.

In the spirit of the holiday, I offer this classic from Harry Behn's book The Little Hill.

Hallowe'en

Tonight is the night

When dead leaves fly

Like witches on switches

Across the sky,

When elf and sprite

Flit through the night

On a moony sheen.

Tonight is the night

When leaves make a sound

Like a gnome in his home

Under the ground,

When spooks and trolls

Creep out of holes

Mossy and green.

Tonight is the night

When pumpkins stare

Through sheaves and leaves

Everywhere,

When ghoul and ghost

And goblin host

Dance round their queen.

It's Hallowe'en!

Here are Friday's Famous Firsts:

1. "In the great green room, there was a telephone and a red balloon."

2. "These two very old people are the father and mother of Mr. Bucket."

Can you identify the title and author for each work?

What writers have influenced you and why? That's a great question to visit now and again. Answering the "why?" is one way to stay in touch with your craft. The writers you connect with may not be writing in your genre, but you can still learn from them.

Ernest Hemingway speaks to me in his work and through his comments on the process. Two of his quotes that complement each other are:

• "All good books have one thing in common - they are truer than if they had really happened."

In workshops, I often encounter new writers whose stories recount real-life experiences. This can be a great place to start, but it can sometimes cause the writer to become trapped in the remembered details. It's the old, "but that's not exactly what they said" or "that's not exactly how it happened" struggle. The goal of a writer is to tell a great story and that may require letting go of some of the details if they don't serve the finished work.

• "When writing a novel a writer should create living people; people not characters. A character is a caricature."

The people who inhabit a work of fiction must be real to the writer in order to become real to the reader and complete with hopes and fears, trials and triumphs, and those behaviors that make each of us unique.

Both of these quotes speak to honesty in writing.

Wild West Fairy Tales are one of the many avenues writers have explored in the retelling of some of the well-known classics. Here are a few of my favorites...

• Bubba the Cowboy Prince by Helen Ketteman is a Texas take on Cinderella. Bubba is at the mercy of his wicked stepdaddy and his two bossy stepbrothers, Dwayne and Milton. All three boys have eyes for neighboring rancher, Miz Lurleen, but it's Bubba who wins her heart, with a little help from...his fairy godcow.
• Little Red Cowboy Hat by Susan Lowell is, as you might guess, a nod to the classic Little Red Riding Hood. But in this version the damsel in distress has no need for a brawny woodcutter to come to the rescue...Little Red and Grandma saddle up and run the wolf clean out of the country. As the story says, "This time he picked the wrong grandma."
• Of course, I'll have to include The Gingerbread Cowboy. In this Wild West adventure, a rancher's wife tires of baking biscuits and creates a Gingerbread Cowboy who escapes her kitchen for the wilds of the American Southwest. Pursued by the rancher and his wife, a roadrunner, javalinas, long-horn cattle and cowboys, he eludes them all...only to be caught by the traditional trickster, the coyote.

Here are the answers to Friday's Famous Firsts:

1. I'm Emily Elizabeth, and I have a dog. Clifford the Big Red Dog by Norman Bridwell

2. "Did Mama sing everyday?" asked Caleb. Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia Maclachlan

October contains an interesting mix of month-long observances and special days. Two attracted my attention for very different reasons.

It's family history month: Family stories from both modern generations and historical periods can be a wonderful inspiration for stories. You do need to keep in mind that it's not necessary to relate the story just as it occurred. Jot down the bones and use the incident as a starting point. If a story has been handed down over a period of time, ask yourself what has made it an enduring tale.

It's also Adopt-a-Shelter-Dog-month. Interestingly enough, I've noticed an increasing number of books about rescued pets making it to the bookstore shelves. I must admit my interest is far more personal. I've been involved in animal rescue for many years and strongly believe in the "Don't shop, Adopt," motto. For more on this topic visit the ASPCA website.

The Poetry Friday Roundup is at Big A, Little a this week. Check it out.

Here are Friday's Famous Firsts:

1. I'm Emily Elizabeth, and I have a dog.

2. "Did Mama sing everyday?" asked Caleb.

It's Writer's Wednesday.
I've had many questions from readers about finding publishers and/or agents so this week I'm going to refer you to three great posts at Writer Girl, the blog of Colleen Rowan Kosinski. Colleen has a three-part post over as many days that provides both biographical information and preferences as regards genre for the editors and agents.

Check it out. Then do your homework by following up with the editor's or agent's website for the most current submission information.

Make sure your manuscript gets a final polish then give your story wings!!! Best of luck.

I visited a preschool recently and many of the parents asked me about story suggestions to read aloud. There are so many wonderful books for young children that it isn't easy to select just a few so I thought I'd look at some of the categories of books that I'd recommend.

• Concept books that deal with the alphabet or numbers can help introduce topics and strengthen a child's skills in preparation for kindergarten. One of my favorite alphabet books is Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. Published originally in 1989, there is now a special anniversary edition available. Bill Martin is also the author of Chicka Chicka 1, 2, 3.

• Predictable stories allow a child to anticipate the action or identify a repeating phrase. Is your Mama a Llama? by Deborah Guarino is always a lot of fun because it combines the repeating refrain with a series of riddles posed by the baby animals that Lloyd the Llama encounters.

• Cumulative stories create a chain of events that are repeated with each new addition until the end. One of the most familiar is the Caldecott honor book, There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly by Simms Taback. I must admit I'm also a long-time fan of The Napping House by Audrey Wood.

Here are the answers to Friday's Famous Firsts:

1. "Brian Robeson stared out the window of the small plane at the endless green northern wilderness below." Hatchet by Gary Paulsen.

2."All children, except one grow up." Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie

The ideal time to help a child develop a love of reading is when they are very young, but it is never too late to introduce a child to the wonder of books. It just requires a bit more imagination with an older child.

• Provide books and/or magazines on a favorite hobby, sport or interest.
• Offer older children the opportunity to read to younger siblings. This can be particularly helpful for children who are struggling as readers because the simpler stories enable them to practice their reading using materials that will allow them to feel successful.
• Connect reading to activities that will stimulate a desire to "read more about it" such as trips to museums, observatories, zoos, car shows, sporting events, etc.
• Remember that not all reading has to take place between the covers of a book. Read and discuss signs, maps, movie guides, newspaper articles, even comic strips.

Here are Friday's Famous Firsts: Do you know the title and author of these first lines from well-known children's books?

1. "Brian Robeson stared out the window of the small plane at the endless green northern wilderness below."

2."All children, except one, grow up."