Lynn Kelley: Random Acts of Weirdness

Haley Whitehall - Historical Fiction Author

2012-03-05T03:42:00.000-08:00

I'm pleased and honored to have Haley Whitehall guest posting today. Haley has wonderful news to share with us, but first she's going to tell us a little about herself.

Okay, take it away, Haley:

Why Historical Fiction?

Many people have asked me why I write historical fiction. The simple answer is because I love history and historical fiction is a natural fit. But, there is more to it than that. I want to do more than entertain with my stories; I want to teach.

I think historical fiction is one of the most misunderstood genres. Historical fiction is not the same thing as the dry history textbook you read in high school. Historical fiction is more than just the facts. That is where the fiction comes in ;)

Many people fell asleep in history class. Ever watched the Jaywalking segment on the Tonight Show? It is amazing how little some people know about history. Okay it is more than amazing; it is downright scary.

I hope historical fiction can help fill in the holes! I want to put my B.A in history to work.

Writing historical fiction, I can bring history to life. I happen to be drawn to the nineteenth century U.S. The Civil War, Pony Express, Oregon Trail, cowboys on the Chrisom Trail… I love it all. I love imagining the landscape dry, dusty, and dreary or bright, beautiful and blossoming. I have the power to bring the terrible troubles of a war torn country to life or the triumphs of a nation celebrating peace and prosperity.

I throw my fictional characters into true historical conflicts. Each character has a set of traits: strengths, weaknesses, beliefs, habits. I watch my characters struggle and grow in this historical setting. Perhaps, I’m a little bit like a mad scientist.

I base my fictional characters on a combination of real people, although most are unknown in popular history. Some historical fiction writers choose to write fictional events in the life of famous authentic historical people, but I like to tell the story of the common man. I like to expose untold or little known historical stories or events. It is like one of those Dateline stories that uncover the truth. I dig deep for my stories.

My debut novel Living Half Free follows the life of a mulatto slave, who falls in love with a Cherokee woman, and passes as white. But, he must find his voice, and the courage to stand up for his beliefs or else lose everyone he loves forever.

Because I write historical fiction to teach history, I am careful at what I embellish. I pay close attention to manner of speech, dress, work, personal behaviors, settings, and interactions with other characters. I try to make them authentic for the time period as much as possible. Historical fiction is not easy. Every detail can be scrutinized by the reader which makes research time consuming and important.

I not only write historical fiction, I continue to read it too. (Every Monday I review a historical fiction book on my blog.) There are many periods of history I am not particularly interested in -- the Dust Bowl for instance. If I am going to learn about this sad time, the first place I will turn is a historical fiction novel. It is a lot more fun than Wikipedia!

Have you read historical fiction to learn about history? Have you learned history from a historical novel without even knowing it? If you write historical fiction, why did you choose that genre?

Bio:

HALEY WHITEHALL has been studying the Civil War era since the 5th grade. Her writing
style is Mark Twain with a little more faith. She likes to write out of the box stories that feature an underdog. LIVING HALF FREE is her debut novel. Released February 29, the ebook can be found at Amazon, B&N, and Smashwords. Find out more about Haley through her website or connect with her on Twitter @HaleyWhitehall or Facebook.

Congratulations on your debut novel, Haley! *Bells and whistles! Champagne corks popping!* Please join us in celebrating this exciting milestone in her career. LIVING HALF FREE is only $2.99. Buy it now! Seriously, her writing rocks. And she's always willing to help fellow writers, so check out her blog and connect with her on Twitter.

She started the Twitter hashtag #lightonhistory, so if you want to hang out with other historical writers (fiction and nonfiction), be sure to use #lightonhistory. Such a helpful bunch of tweeps!

Rats!

2012-02-20T08:40:00.000-08:00

I need to take time off from posting.

I'm not sure how long. I thought I could keep up, but I can't.

Moving is maddening. I'm not sleeping well.
Look at those dark circles under my eyes!

Gotta unpack all these boxes and there's still more to come.

Babysitting Punkin nine hours a day leaves little time for

getting the new apartment whipped into shape.

Punkin (aka Mr. Short Naps) is getting ready to crawl.
He makes me laugh all day long.
I love to cuddle and rock him.
He's the best medicine in the world!

I make up silly songs to amuse him, make goofy faces and weird noises.
He giggles no matter how dumb I act!

I'm tired at the end of the day,

but it's a good tired, a rewarding tired,
and my heart is full of joy.

Although I won't be posting, I'm going to do my darndest
to catch up with your blogs and connect on Facebook or Twitter.

Have a wonderful week, my friends. I'll be back!

First Kiss Scene for Valentine's Day Bloghop

2012-02-14T01:58:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day! Today I'm taking part in the Is it Getting HOT in Here? bloghop, hosted by Hope Roberson.

By participating in this fabulous bloghop, we're supposed to share a kissing scene. I chose this one from my edgy young adult work-in-progress. It's set in Huntington Beach, California. Leslie's 15 and just met the cutest guy she's ever seen. Here goes:

The song ended and Anchovie fed me one of his fries. I was afraid to chew it in front of him, so I let it soften in my mouth until it almost melted before I swallowed it.

He smirked. “Never saw someone eat without chewing.”
My cheeks burned. He must've noticed because he added, “Just teasing.” He cupped my chin in his palm and brought my face closer to his.

Oh man, oh man, I thought. This is IT. Here in public in front of his friends and the rest of the world. The first kiss is supposed to be private, isn’t it? It’s supposed to be special.

“There you are.” Tina strode in like she was the queen of riptides, with Lupe trailing behind.
Anchovie let his hand drop.

“We’ve been looking all over for you guys,” Tina said. “We gotta go NOW.”

“Cool your heels there, Tina-Mint,” Anchovie joked.

She narrowed her eyes and grabbed at my elbow. “My dad’s gonna kill me if I get home late.”

“All right,” I said. “Let me say goodbye first.”

“Hurry up.” Tina glared.

Lupe smiled. “It’s cool. Take your time.”

Anchovie leaned in so close, his breath tickled my nose. “Are you coming back tomorrow?”

“I—I can’t. Gotta babysit my brother.”

“Bummer. Then I’ll see you Wednesday?”

“O-okay.” Stupid bottom lip, it wouldn’t stop quivering.

Anchovie pulled my body close, wrapped his arms around me, and moved his mouth to mine. Omigosh, omigosh. This was it. When his lips touched mine, I trembled. Before I could figure out how I felt about it, did I like it or not, he shoved his tongue deep in my mouth. What? I could hardly breathe. He wiggled his tongue up and down, then all around. It was like an eel poking around in a cave. I swore I was going to choke and lose my fries.

He pressed his lips hard and his teeth bumped against mine. I was glad neither of us wore braces. My heart beat so fast, it pounded in my ears. Then he pulled back and my first kiss was over.

It was the most disgusting thing that ever happened to me.

Do you remember your first kiss? Was it sweet or disastrous? Care to share?

Read more steamy kissing scenes! Here are the others participating in the bloghop. There may be more who signed up after I copied and pasted the list, so check on Hope's blog.

1.	Leigh Covington	2.	A.E. Martin
3.	Emily R. King	4.	Angie Cothran
5.	Kelley Lynn	6.	Jenny S. Morris
7.	WRITING IN THE CROSSHAIRS	8.	Laura @ Daily Dodo
9.	Trisha @ WORD STUFF	10.	dreamwritepublish
11.	Cortney Pearson	12.	ali cross
13.	Motivation for Creation	14.	Jenna Cooper
15.	Jenny @ Castles in the Sky	16.	An Author's Ramblings
17.	PK HREZO	18.	Thardrandian Thoughts
19.	Carrie-Anne	20.	Marta Szemik
21.	Charity Bradford	22.	Bonnie Rae, Just Words
23.	Wendy S. Russo	24.	David Powers King
25.	Krista McLaughlin	26.	BragonDorns Asylum
27.	Vive le Nerd	28.	Tara Tyler
29.	J. A. Bennett	30.	Jennee Thompson
31.	Cutest Landing	32.	A.J. Mullarky
33.	Jolene Perry	34.	Julie Dorris
35.	A Writer's Journey	36.	Melissa Sugar
37.	Susan Oloier	38.	Unyielding
39.	epitome	40.	Brinda Berry Blogs
41.	Tracy Bermeo (A2ZMommy)	42.	Lisa L. Regan
43.	Write Here, Write Now	44.	Lori M Lee
45.	Stina Lindenblatt	46.	Clare Dugmore Writes
47.	Shell Flower	48.	Julie Tuovi
49.	Jack Flacco	50.	Stephanie Diaz
51.	Angela Quarles	52.	Through the Looking Glass
53.	Crystal Licata	54.	Morgan Shamy
55.	Angela M @ Jaded Love Junkie	56.	The Capillary
57.	Kelley Vitollo	58.	Nancy S. Thompson
59.	Ashley Nixon	60.	Lynn Kelley: Random Acts of Weirdness
61.	Tales from the Rh?n	62.	Signage
63.	Rachel Morgan	64.	Cara M @ CP Slayer
65.	Kiru Taye Writes	66.	Larissa's World
67.	Loralie Hall	68.	Elizabeth Prats :)
69.	Theresa Paolo	70.	Love in Flight by Glo
71.	The Submission Process

Lost & Found - Parenting Plights & Delights

2012-02-13T09:36:00.000-08:00

A lost child is enough to make a mother or father lose their mind. Even if it's a matter of a few minutes, they're some of the longest, hardest moments in a parent's life. Some of my readers have shared their stories with me.
Here's ‪DebraKristi's experience:

Gosh, I think the time that actually scared me the most was when I took my eldest to the Dorothy the Dinosaur consort (from The Wiggles). He was an only child then and probably around the age of three.
The isle was crammed pack full of miniature people and my little one decided to join them for some dancing and wiggling. Of course I moved in next to him.   All of the sudden he rushed the stage, slicing through all the tiny little people like a magician. I fumbled and pushed forward as fast as I could to keep up with him but he was gone. Just gone.
I got to the front of the stage and he was nowhere to be found. Looked to the left and to the right – nothing.   I ended up getting the staff involved. But those minutes with him missing were the most agonizing minutes of my life.
It turns out that he had gotten to the front of the stage and immediately gone to the left, circling around the entire theater. I was probably running around him in my frantic state trying to locate his little head amongst the hundreds of others. What a crazy night I never want to revisit.

‪Julie Hedlund said:

The most scared I've ever been was when my daughter was three. We were at a mall carousel, and I was buying tickets. When I turned around, she wasn't there. I walked around and around the carousel and couldn't find her. She had wandered into the bathroom and I finally found her. I can still feel my heart beating when I think about it!

Coleen Patrick remembers:

My heart stopping moment was losing my three year old for a few minutes at an amusement park!  Don't even want to describe it--too cringing to remember!! !

‪Tamara Narayan shared this story:

My first novel featured the kidnapping of a three-year-old girl. So when my husband woke me up early one morning, telling me our three-year-old wasn't in her bed, I panicked. Luckily she had just gone downstairs with her blanket and doll and lay down on the couch. We fussed over her so much, she never did it again.

I have a lost and found story, too:
One horrible afternoon when Sunflower was about 8 years old, I couldn't find her in the house or outside, so I called some of our neighbors to see if she was playing over there. No one had seen her. I was about to call the police when she walked into the kitchen, rubbing her eyes. "What's wrong?" she asked.
"I've been looking all over for you. Where were you?"
"Sleeping in my bed."
I had checked her bunk bed, but she must have been hugging the wall of the top bunk with the blankets unmade and draped so the bed looked empty. I felt super stupid, times ten, but so thankful my daughter was all right.
Sunflower felt so bad seeing how panicked I was when I couldn't find her that every time she said good night or took a nap, she always added, "I'll be laying in my bed." It finally got to the point we could laugh about it, and it became a running joke for years.

So, do you have a parenting or grandparenting memory

or another story you'd like to share?

If you're not a parent, memories from your own childhood count, too!

Warning: I might feature your story in a future post.

(Names can be changed to protect the guilty!)

I'd like to thank those who shared a parenting story with me last week.

I'm saving them and will publish some in future posts.

If you don't want to leave a comment but would rather contact me by email,

here's my address: lynkelwoohoo at yahoo dot com.

Fun Fibs - Parenting Plights & Delights

2012-02-08T07:36:00.000-08:00

Kids have wild imaginations. That's one of the many things I love about them. Do you remember any magical moments from your childhood?

Theresa Milstein shared a wonderful memory with me: When I was about 4-years-old, I remember listening to the radio and not understanding where the sound came from. I asked my aunt how it worked. She told me there was a man in the radio. I was skeptical.
"But how does he do all the voices?" I asked.
"He's very talented."

Little Theresa at age 6 - what a cutie!

I didn't know whether or not to believe her. For some time afterwards, I'd bring my ear close to the speaker to see if I could hear that it sounded like a man really lived in the radio. I could picture all his furniture inside, like the radio was a miniature house for the little man.
I was an idiot.
No way were you an idiot, Theresa. You were a darling little girl with a great imagination.

Here's a fun fib from Old Kitty:
I'm not a parent but an auntie and the sweetest memory I have of my nephews growing up is this: My nephews were 6 and 4 years old. They came to visit me and my disabled sister. She used a stairlift back then and the boys were fascinated by this chair that went up and down along the staircase. When they asked me how this happened, I said "Little people as small as your little fingers live under the chair and push it up and down". They spent the whole visit peering under the stairlift chair and I felt most mean!

Isn't that a hoot? It goes perfectly with Theresa's story.

So, do you have a parenting or grandparenting fun fib

or another story you'd like to share?

If you're not a parent, memories from your own childhood count, too!

Warning: I might feature your story in a future post.

(Names can be changed to protect the guilty!)

I'd like to thank those who shared a parenting story with me last week.

I'm saving them and will publish some in future posts.

If you don't want to leave a comment but would rather contact me by email,

here's my address: lynkelwoohoo at yahoo dot com.

Dad Could Have Been a Writer

2012-02-06T06:23:00.000-08:00

When I was a kid, my dad made up silly poems that I thought were funny as heck. Like this one:

You may find fuzz in a pocket.

You may find a runner in hose.

But the funniest things I find

are those little things in my nose.

I think I was Dad's biggest fan.

(I was a Monkees fan, too!)

Dad turns 79 this week. He's hard to buy for, so I thought it would be nice to share this nonfiction piece he wrote almost six decades ago, which I knew nothing about until recently. It was published in the school newspaper (or journal?) when he attended Duquesne University in Pittsburgh for a couple years. How cool to learn that Dad had been published!

I'd say he has a gift for writing. Were those genes passed on to me? I think he could have been a writer if he'd pursued it. Of course, I'm partial! Without further adieu, here it is, from the archives of Dad's life:

Book Call

by Gordon Powell

Frequently my father asks me to take him to various parts of the city. He owns a small book store in East Liberty, and he buys much of his stock from private homes. There is a wide variety in the types of homes we enter. The worst I have ever seen was on the North Side. The house was one in a row of five. The steps were sagging, as was the porch, and everything needed paint.

The front door was open so we walked in. Evidently the house was sub-divided into apartments, because in the hallway a door on the left bore the name Jones scribbled on a little card tacked to it. I glanced around the hallway while my father knocked on the door. The hall was quite long and high but very narrow. On the right wall hung several old tintype pictures, while on the left wall, in loose folds, hung the wallpaper. The one thing the walls, ceiling and floor had in common was a covering of dirt.

At that moment the door was opened, and the woman we came to see peered out. My father introduced us. The woman was in her late fifties, gray-haired and enormously fat. Her cheeks were pouchy, and saliva trickled from the side of her mouth even when it was closed. She wore ancient high-topped shoes, split at the sides, and a filthy, baggy print dress that was partially covered by a filthier apron.

Her front room was filled to capacity with junk. While my father was sorting out books, I looked around. The walls were covered with religious pictures, and there were wooden statues of Indians all around the room.

My father finished the books and asked the woman if she had any jewelry for sale. She told him she had some stickpins in the kitchen. We started to walk through her bedroom when my father noticed another bookcase. While he was looking through this, I surveyed the bedroom. Empty, the room would have been large. But there were trunks, mattresses, tables, old clothes, and litter everywhere.

Clotheslines were strung across the room, and hanging from them were old girdles, brassieres, stained sheets, and frazzled throw-rugs. I turned around and found myself looking at a giant cockroach, which was perched on an old trunk and whose feelers were waving furiously, as if daring me to come closer. I didn't take up his dare.

When my father had gone through the bookcase, we went to the kitchen. As soon as we crossed through the door, a sickening stench met us. I backed up and remained in the doorway. From my vantage point I could look into the kitchen and then, like a swimmer, turn my head and gulp fresh air from the hallway. Like the other rooms, the kitchen was filled with junk. There were four ranges--only one connected--which were piled high with old newspapers and glass jars. The wallpaper was peeling from the walls in great strips.

Finally, my father finished his business and told me to get a box for the books. I saw several boxes in the hallway. I picked one up, shook out two roaches, and piled the books into it. My father paid the woman and we left the house.

When we got to the car, I asked him how he could stand such places. With the typical antiquarian bookman's attitude, he replied, "I'm looking for books, Gordon, not bugs."

I think I'm still Dad's biggest fan! I wonder how different life would have been if my father had become a writer....

This was taken on Christmas Day.

Dad's holding great-granddaughter Twinkle Eyes. She was born on his birthday.

He's just now getting a few gray hairs. (How come those genes didn't get passed on to me?)

Happy 79th Birthday, Dad!
Happy 2nd Birthday, Little Twinkle Eyes!

Do you have any special interests or talents that you think genetics played a part in? Have you ever been surprised to learn something new and impressive about one of your parents?

Princess Kandake - Released Today!

2012-02-01T06:40:00.000-08:00

Today is the official launch date for Stephanie Jefferson's PRINCESS KANDAKE - Warrior By Choice....Appointed to Rule.

My post of January 4, 2012, explained the inspiration behind this story. If you missed it, you can read it here. The January 11 post covered all the work Stephanie put into the cover design, including how she made a leather breastplate. Here's the post if you missed it.

What's really cool about this book is that under the title "Nubian Princess," it made the semi-finals in Amazon's 2010 Breakthrough Novel Award contest. Although the manuscript didn't win, it received a great review from Publishers Weekly:

"This stellar historical novel brings ancient Nubia to life as one girl struggles to understand her destiny. Kandake, 14, is the youngest child of King Amani, ruler of Nubia. Her desire is to protect the land she loves as a warrior, but the decision is not in her hands. When Great Mother announces Kandake as the heir to the throne, she sadly accepts the inevitable, striving to understand Great Mother’s reasoning. Meanwhile bandits have been raiding Nubia’s trading caravans, and Egypt, Nubia’s ally and neighbor, is asking for assistance to protect its borders from the Assyrians. When Kandake’s brother Alara fails to return from a hunting expedition, King Amari makes a difficult decision: Nubia must use her resources to defend her border. Alara’s rescue must take second place. Unwilling to accept this decision, Kandake and her friends sneak away to find Alara. This skillfully crafted novel weaves cultural details into a remarkable, well-structured plot featuring a strong African heroine. The characters are fully developed, and their motivations, inspirations, and the growing maturity of these teens are believable. Readers will eagerly hope for a sequel to resolve the larger political issues facing Nubia and its future Queen."

Readers who are capitivated by Princess Kandake will be pleased to know Stephanie has finished the first draft of the sequel.

You can buy Stephanie's debut novel here:

Createspace.com (print)

Amazon.com (Kindle)

Smashwords (iBook, Sony, Kobo, Nook, Mobi, and more)

Stephanie's doing a book tour this month. She's scheduled for lectures and books signings at the following locations in Southern California, open to the public:

Cal State University San Bernardino - Pfau Library, Wednesday, Feb. 15 at Noon

Corona Library, Thursday, Feb. 16 at 3:30 p.m.

Congratulations, Stephanie! It's been amazing witnessing your journey with all its highs and lows, twists and turns, and your recent miraculous recovery from a massive heart attack! This is truly a time to celebrate! Cheers to your health, happiness, and a prosperous writing career!

Embarrassing Moments - Parenting Plights & Delights

2012-01-30T06:24:00.000-08:00

Ginger Calem left a comment on my Holiday Shopping With Kids post that still makes me chuckle every time I think of it. Here's a photo of her little darling when she was a little older than the incident Ginger shared with us.

Ginger has a few nicknames for her daughter:
Little Pip, Sassy-Pants, Bossy-boots, to name a few!

Here's Ginger's parenting comment:

Ah … kids! Being embarrassed by them in public is part of a parent's initiation to the big leagues! Here's the first grocery store one that popped into my head. I was shopping with my very young daughter who was in the early stages of talking. I took her temperature that morning and announced she was running a fever, low-grade, no big deal. Off to the store we go. In the feminine product aisle (no less!) we pass two senior citizen women who smiled at my daughter and exclaimed how cute she was. My darling daughter announced in an alarmingly articulate manner, "I have a beaver." No amount of shh'ing or repeating 'fever' would stop her from telling everyone about her beaver. Then she asked for a Dora balloon, the one with a dick. STICK, honey, a stick. Yes, I want it with the dick. *Sigh*

Pat O'Dea Rosen said: My parents told a story about toddler me panicking at the top of a down escalator and clinging to my dad's khaki-clad leg. Unfortunately, the leg didn't belong to my dad, but to a guy too kind to shake off a scared kid.

Stephanie D. said: I was shopping with Peanut at Target when she was about 2-ish (and super talkative). We passed the bra aisle and she yells out, "Look, mom, there are your boobies!"

Stephen Tremp said:

What comes to mind was our littlest girl going to the bathroom at Souplantation all by herself. She ran up to our table and exclaimed, "Mom, dad, you have to see my poop. It's enormous!" Then she ran back to the bathroom with such pride. The whole restaurant, including us, burst out laughing.

Jennette Marie Powell said:
First story that comes to my mind is one of the "kids say the darndest things" variety: When my daughter was five or six, my mom took her to the kids' discovery museum. When they got to the insect exhibit, my daughter saw the roaches and said, "Look, Grandma, just like at your house!" My mom (who honest, is a very good housekeeper!) was totally mortified! I was LOL!

Ah, kids, gotta love 'em!

So, do you have an embarrassing parenting or grandparenting incident

or another story you'd like to share?

If you're not a parent, memories from your own childhood count, too!

Warning: I might feature your story in a future post.

(Names can be changed to protect the guilty!)

I'd like to thank those who shared a parenting story with me last week.

I'm saving them and will publish some in future posts.

If you don't want to leave a comment but would rather contact me by email,

here's my address: lynkelwoohoo at yahoo dot com.

Heart Stopping Moments - Parenting Plights & Delights

2012-01-23T06:20:00.000-08:00

When I first started this series, I put out a call for parenting stories. Thank you to everyone who's responded. Following are the kind of memories that get your adrenaline pumping again every time they come to mind:

C. Lee McKenzie of The Write Game shared a cliffhanger (just like a writer!):
Well, there was that one time when I looked out my window to see my youngest clinging to the end of a rope, his legs windmilling over the edge of our property. Now, so you'll see why my heart stopped, our property slopes to the edge of a canyon with a creek below.

Lee's youngest is on the left. The other two are her nephews.

My son and his friends had rigged a rope swing from an old oak and while my son was doing his death-defying high flying act, the limb cracked, leaving him over the creek with no momentum for his return flight!
Have you ever seen a mother fly? The story was that I did that day. And I somehow had the presence of mind to grab the long handled ceiling brush that extended to twenty feet. With that I pulled him back to the bank. You can imagine the rest: lots of hugging, then scolding, then grounding for weeks and weeks, then more hugging. I have flashbacks to that day, and when I do I call that little bugger and tell him he's still grounded for that stunt. In fact, after reading your post, I'm going to call him about it again. I'll tell him it's your fault for reminding me!
Good thing you had the sense to grab that long-handled brush, Lee! How about if you ground him an extra week for me, okay? LOL!

Helen Ginger also answered my call:
My kids are grown now, but when my son was a teen he thought it would be fun to get on his skateboard, hang onto the back of a friend's car and skateboard down the hill to our house. His escapade did not have a happy ending.
Yikers, I'm afraid to find out what his injuries were!

Here's one of ‪Laura Pauling's heart-stopping moments:

When the back door flew open on the highway and I couldn't slow down and my 2 year old was back there. Thank God for car seats!
I have a feeling lots of you can relate to Laura's experience. Car seats have saved many young lives.

‪Bish Denham shared a scary memory from her own childhood:

OMG! My sister and I were in Puerto Rico visiting our cousins. One day there was something going on up at their school that we went to. That same day a man escaped from the prison that wasn't all that far away.  My cousin and I got tired of being up at the school so we decided to walk home (not far.) It was a very hot and very still day. As we walked by a big stand of bamboo it began to squeak and groan the way bamboo does. But there was no wind! How could it possibly be making all that noise! It terrified us. We just KNEW the escapee was in there. We ran home and locked ourselves in the house. We actually had to be convinced when the rest of the crew came home that it was them.   The really spooky part is this...they caught the escapee in the bamboo.

Here's Bish at age 11 or 12

That's a pretty scary memory, Bish, and I bet it was the escapee you heard, since that's where they found him! Crazy!
‪
Stephanie, PQW's memory was a freak accident. This one really blows my mind:
Talk about a scary moment. I was riding in my friend Chris' station wagon on the freeway in Los Angeles. My daughter Claire was seated in the very back with my friend's daughter, Micah. The car in front of us stopped short and Chris slammed on her brakes. For whatever reason, the tailgate of the car flew open and Micah fell out. The car behind us started honking like crazy. We had no idea what had happened until we looked back to see why the guy was laying on his horn.

I'm sure glad that other driver was paying attention. Just think what might have happened if they had cell phones back then and he was busy texting. *Cringe*

So, do you have a parenting or grandparenting incident?

If you're not a parent, memories from your own childhood count, too!

Warning: I might feature your story in a future post.

(Names can be changed to protect the guilty!)

I'd like to thank those who shared a parenting story with me last week.

I'm saving them and will publish some in future posts.

If you don't want to leave a comment but would rather contact me by email,

here's my address: lynkelwoohoo at yahoo dot com.

Weird Al's Parody of Lady Gaga

2012-01-20T07:13:00.000-08:00

Lady Gaga comes up with some "original and unusual" costumes, don't you think?

Gotta love Weird Al Yankovic. I think he's the only one who can outdo Lady Gaga.

Those of you who have been following my blog for long know I've worn some pretty strange costumes and makeup myself, so I especially got a big kick out of the wild gimmicks in this video. Not the costumes that barely qualify as underwear (gag), but the real costumes.

Need a chuckle to start your weekend? Here you go! Unfortunately, there's an advertisement at the beginning that there's no getting around (dang it), but I hope you'll hang in there because the parody is fun, fun, funny.

Warning: Not for kids. There's no colorful language, but there are some crazy, 'colorful' dance moves.

I hope you have a good weekend. Do you have any special plans? As for me, I'll be packing and moving more stuff. We're losing our house. That's one of the un-fun things I've been dealing with lately, but we'll get through it. So many people are hurting worse than we are. I'll blog about it someday when there's more distance.

We're living in difficult times. This video made me laugh. I hope it makes you laugh, too!

Learning to Fly Fish - Parenting Plights & Delights

2012-01-16T19:35:00.000-08:00

I would like to thank JJ Botta of The Disconnected Writer blog for sharing the following parenting story with me. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did:

Years ago, I used to fly fish for trout in the Catskill Mountains of New York. I had a business partner who introduced me to the sport, and I became a fanatic.

Now for those who have never tried it, or those who think fishing is just fishing, it would be a stretch to believe fly fishing is an art. But it is, and fly fishermen are serious about it. In fact, most of us eventually learn to tie our own flies. There is a special feeling of accomplishment for one to tie an artificial bug to the end of a line and fool a fish as cagey as a trout.

When my son was around six years old, I took him on one of my fishing excursions to the mountains. After camping out all night, we hit the rivers early morning, and I used every trick I had learned over time, but all to no avail. Around noon, disheartened, we went into town for lunch, where I treated my son to pizza, while I talked fishing to the others who got “skunked” that morning. Without paying much attention to the boy, I kept assuring him he could “have” any of the condiments lined up on the counter top at the pizzeria. He always took things literally.

Apparently, everyone’s luck was bad that morning, and the most experienced anglers were convinced it was the fly selection responsible for the lack of fishing action. Determining the exact fly to imitate what trout are eating on any particular day is essential to the art. We were all certain the “locals” knew something we did not, so a group of men, myself included, wandered over to the fly shop, where thousands of flies were offered to the public. The proprietor insisted there were no “special” flies that would yield more success, but we all knew fishermen lie.

As we continued to explore the selection, one gentleman I did not know noticed that the flies in one cabinet had a peculiar odor about them. Soon, everyone in the store smelled the flies, and there was no doubt about it. The locals had a secret.

Once we figured out the special make-believe insects were scented, we started buying up the place. Every fisherman in the establishment purchased handfuls of the tiny lifelike creatures in hopes of a festive afternoon catch. I bought three dozen!

The afternoon failed to pan out. Not a bite. I packed it in around 7:00 pm, and found myself back at the tackle shop in the company of the same fishermen I had met at lunch time. No one caught a fish. As we exchanged ideas and strategies for the following day, I noticed my son over at the fly display. I called to him and asked him not to touch anything. He did not respond.

Then, in a sentence etched into the memory banks of every would-be fisherman in the area that day, I said to my son, “What are you doing over there?” His reply was classic. “Nothing. I’m just putting more garlic powder on these fake bugs.”

So, do you have a parenting or grandparenting incident?

If you're not a parent, memories from your own childhood count, too!

Warning: I might feature your story in a future post.

(Names can be changed to protect the guilty!)

I'd like to thank those who shared a parenting story with me last week.

I'm saving them and will publish some in future posts.

If you don't want to leave a comment but would rather contact me by email,

here's my address: lynkelwoohoo at yahoo dot com.

The Making of a Leather Breastplate

2012-01-11T06:21:00.000-08:00

Last week I shared the inspiration behind Stephanie Jefferson's novel, PRINCESS KANDAKE - Warrior By Choice....Appointed to Rule. If you missed it, you can read it here.

Today, I'd like to cover the fascinating process Stephanie went through to make the leather breastplate for her model, Makeda, to wear during the photo shoot. Stephanie knocked herself out to get every detail of the costume as authentic as possible.

Here's a cool shot Stephanie

considered using for the book cover.
If the model's breastplate looks like it was made to fit,
that's because Stephanie designed it specifically for Makeda.
Watch the video clip below to hear how she did it!

Here's the cover shot Stephanie decided on.
I have to say I think it makes a beautiful cover.

After wrapping Makeda (wearing a t-shirt) with duct tape to make the mold, Stephanie formed the breastplate out of calf skin. She figured out this whole process on her own. Very impressive! She made the sarong, too, designed the pattern and dyed it so it was the color of dried grass. Beads give it a nice touch. You can read Stephanie's post about it here.

But that post doesn't explain the making of the mold, which she created with plaster strips.

Watch this video clip to hear Stephanie explain

how she designed the sarong and made the leather breastplate.

(This video was shot a month before she

suffered a massive heart attack in September.
Thankfully, she's making an astonishing recovery.)

Here's a comical excerpt from her blog post of July 12, 2011. She had a bad morning trying to accomplish other things, so she decided to work on the breastplate instead:

I’m in the craft room setting up the mold, taping everything in place so that the bloomin’ thing won’t shift when I pour the plaster in it. The duct tape is sticking to the plastic drop cloths. The braces shift because I’m removing the tape from the plastic.

Finally I get it all set up. So now I’m mixing the plaster. The dog runs by. I still don’t know how he got caught in the plastic sheeting, but the mold starts sliding off of the table. Now remember I’m mixing plaster and have a short window of time to get it poured.

I grab at the plastic to keep the mold from hitting the floor. The piece of board I’m using to stir falls on the floor. Now I have to mop up the spill before the dog gets into it. I get it all cleaned up and I’m ready to finish mixing the plaster, but it’s hardened in the bucket. SCREAM!!

Okay, so that day was a bust. Some things have gone delightfully well for Stephanie. She lucked out by finding a bow for $10 at a garage sale. When she showed the archery dude who was going to lend her a bow to use for the photo shoot, he told her what a bargain she got and he offered to buy it for $300.

Stephanie isn't selling the bow. It will make an awesome visual aid at book signings and speaking engagements, along with the breastplate and sarong. She also plans to use gemstones that would be found in Nubia and will grind some of them to demonstrate how to make eye shadow. Now, that sounds like something that would interest Tween girls!

In addition to designing the costume, Stephanie spent hours braiding Makeda's hair for the photo shoot. All that work on the cover paid off. Stephanie googled "Princess Kandake" to see what came up and was delighted to discover that her book won Royal Book Cover of the Month for January 2012 from the World of Royalty Blog. You can view the link here.

These are just a few glimpses into Stephanie's inspiring and amazing journey, which has taken years of hard work and dedication. You can follow her blog here to keep up with the latest in her adventures. If you love history, Stephanie is doing a series about the ancient land of Nubia. Read the first in the series here.

Stephanie visited family in California for the holidays,

so some of the members of our critique group met

with her to see her book in print and to celebrate this milestone

in her writing career, plus the fact that she survived the heart attack
and is making a remarkable recovery.
She passed out trading cards. How cool!

Julie was able to join us later.

Left to right: Stephanie Jefferson, Julie Fredericksen,

Tommy Kovac, Steve Attkisson, Melissa Salazar, Maria Toth.

On February 1st, print copies of PRINCESS KANDAKE - Warrior By Choice....Appointed to Rule will be available at Createspace and Amazon.

Note: If you buy from Createspace (a division of Amazon), the author gets a much better royalty!

Ebooks will be available through Smashwords, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble.

I can't tell you how happy I am that my friend survived such a close call with death and is living out her dream. I'll leave you with this question, friends: If you had a close call with death, do you think it would spur you on to accomplish your goals sooner rather than later?

Meet a Nubian Princess

2012-01-04T02:04:00.000-08:00

My good friend, Stephanie Jefferson, is beyond excited, as most writers are when their debut novel is about to come out, but this is an extra-special time in Stephanie's life. You see, she had a close call with death in September. Her doctors tell her she's lucky to be alive. It's one of a writer's fears, not living long enough to see the book they poured their heart and soul into become published.

That joyful day is fast approaching for Stephanie. In February, just in time for Black History Month, she's launching her novel, PRINCESS KANDAKE - Warrior By Choice....Appointed to Rule.

Today I'd like to share with you the inspiration behind this awesome historical novel for Tweens.

All the work Stephanie put into designing
and making the costume for the model
to wear paid off big time. Isn't this an amazing cover?

Stephanie Jefferson
Retired psychologist, full-time writer

The members of our writers critique group, Books Born Here,
are thankful our dear friend survived pneumonia,
followed by a major heart attack a few months ago.

Her husband, a retired fire fighter, performed CPR until the paramedics arrived.

She's still receiving cardio-therapy, but she's already made amazing progress,
just in time to do a week-long book tour in February to launch her baby!

It's been quite a journey, the making of this book. It all started with a little girl asking her grandma a simple question. A simple question without a simple answer.

Here's an excerpt from Stephanie's blog post of November 20, 2011 that explains the inspiration behind PRINCESS KANDAKE (pronounced Kon-da-kay):

I have the most beautiful granddaughter on the planet. . . She loves to play dress-up. One day she came to me and said, “Nana, I want to be a princess, but they don’t look like me.” She was pointing at a Disney ad. “Where are all the beautiful brown princesses?”

That got me started. I was on the hunt. My daughter (her mother) and I started pointing out every princess of color we could find. We looked everywhere, at every book, poster, and magazine available and even some that weren’t.

It occurred to me that Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, etc. were sitting on the bookshelves of every library and close at hand for anyone to pick up, anyone except my granddaughter. Being who I am, I couldn’t rest until I did something about it and I wanted a story that would not be time-sensitive and could even become a classic. (Why dream if you can’t dream large!) The research began.

I needed someone from history and the further back the better. I hit upon ancient Nubia. Learning of the power and far reaches of this ancient kingdom were perfect! I started with a picture book, but the tale outgrew that format. It is now a Tween novel filled with adventure, action, conflict, and a hint of romance.

This ancient kingdom is revived in Stephanie's novel, thanks to her extensive research. I wasn't familiar with Nubia until she read chapters of her work-in-progress to our critique group. Nubia is a very real place to me now. So are the characters, although Stephanie says they're fictional, but I'm not so sure about that!

I'm fascinated by the years of research and rewrites that have gone into this work and the great lengths Stephanie went to for the cover design, which is a story in itself.

This is one of the shots Stephanie considered using
for the cover before deciding on the pose above.

In next Wednesday's post we'll learn how Stephanie made an authentic-looking breastplate, a beautiful sarong, and some other cool facts about the making of the cover.

Have you ever heard of Nubia? Do you like historical novels?

(Friends, I'm dealing with some difficult issues right now, so if I don't comment back right away, please know that I will as soon as possible.)

Holiday Ding-a-lings - Parenting Plights & Delights

2012-01-02T01:26:00.000-08:00

Whew! I don't know about you, but I'm battling holiday fatigue. I do some pretty ditsy things when I'm overtired, like putting eye liner on my lips, pouring coffee into my cereal bowl, and paying the cashier for gas, then driving halfway down the street before remembering I didn't put the fuel in my car.

I know I'm not alone. While the hustle and bustle takes a toll on mothers, many fathers also feel wiped out after all the holiday cheer (especially after celebrating New Year's). I remember one Christmas years ago when my brother-in-law Jim worked long hours as a corporate executive. Each night he came home to a list of chores my sister Cindy needed his help with to get everything ready by the 25th.

One night Jim flipped through the JC Penney catalog and found the special pull-away sweat pants he'd searched the stores for as a gift for his son. He asked Cindy to phone the order in. Cindy told him to do it himself since she was putting the three kids to bed.

"I don't know what to say," Jim told her. "I've never placed a catalog order."

Cindy knew her executive spouse could handle the task. "I'm putting the kids to bed. Call it in."

So, Jim dialed the number, but it was busy. A few moments later, in another room on another phone, Jim hit 'redial.' He didn't realize he'd called the pizza joint they'd ordered dinner from.

A male voice answered and mumbled something Jim didn't understand. "Will this be pick up or delivery?" the man asked.

"Delivery," Jim answered. The man asked for an address, so Jim recited his address, including the state and zip code.

Next, the guy asked, "What would you like to order?"

"R424-0529D," Jim said.

"Excuse me?" the guy asked. Jim repeated the number.

"Sir, just exactly what kind of pizza do you want?"

Jim was so embarrassed, he hung up the phone. He told Cindy what happened and they had a good laugh. Cindy ended up placing the catalog order, then called me to tell me about it, knowing I'd get a big kick out of someone else acting as dingy as I do. A good belly laugh sure helps relieve holiday stress!

Jim, Cindy, and kids

Happy New Year, friends! I hope you enjoyed the holidays and are off to a happy and healthy start for 2012.

So, do you have a parenting or grandparenting incident?

If you're not a parent, memories from your own childhood count, too!

Warning: I might feature your story in a future post.

(Names can be changed to protect the guilty!)

I'd like to thank those who shared a parenting story with me last week.

I'm saving them and will publish some in future posts.

If you don't want to leave a comment but would rather contact me by email,

here's my address: lynkelwoohoo at yahoo dot com.

Happy New Year - Toga Party?

2011-12-30T00:14:00.000-08:00

How do you plan to celebrate New Year's Eve?

Maybe an old school Toga party?

Will you celebrate with Friends?

Monica and Ross do 'The Routine' at Dick Clark's
New Year's Eve taping

Have you made your New Year's resolutions?

A New Year's resolution is something that goes in one Year and out the other.

~Anonymous

New Year's Toast

Here's a toast to the future,
A toast to the past,
And a toast to our friends, far and near.
May the future be pleasant,
The past a bright dream,
May our friends remain faithful and dear.
~ Anonymous

Christmas Gift Wrap Prank

2011-12-28T01:13:00.000-08:00

Has anyone ever pulled a prank like this on you?

Do you think these guys are dedicated friends?

What would you do if you came home to all this?

Would you laugh or be mad?

One last question:

Would you save the gift wrap and recycle it next Christmas?

Mom, What's a Babe? Parenting Plights & Delights

2011-12-26T00:24:00.000-08:00

Ah, I love how children are always surprising us.

My nephews Soldier (at age 5) and his brother Joker (at age 2)

The Christmas Soldier was six, his mother read him the nativity story. When she got to the part about Mary bringing forth a babe, Soldier stopped her and asked, "Mom, what's a babe?"

Soldier's father Jim overheard the conversation. "I'll tell you what a babe is. A babe is your mom in a bikini." He winked at Cindy. She chuckled along with Soldier and Jim.

Then Cindy went on to explain to Soldier that in this case, a babe was a baby. Baby Jesus in this particular story.

Soldier then wanted to know what a bikini was, so Cindy explained that it's a small swimsuit that women wear.

Satisfied that he now knew what a babe and a bikini were, Soldier listened to the rest of the Christmas story.

A few hours later, the family went to visit Grandma and Granddad. Soldier told his grandma, "I know what a babe is."

Grandma played along. "What's a babe?"

"A babe is Mom in a zucchini," Soldier said with a smile.

Grandma laughed so hard, she cried. Soldier is grown up now, but she still recalls the incident as one of her favorite moments in grandparenting.

Jim & Cindy (in a tankini instead of a bikini)

So, do you have a parenting or grandparenting incident?

If you're not a parent, memories from your own childhood count, too!

Warning: I might feature your story in a future post.

(Names can be changed to protect the guilty!)

I'd like to thank those who shared a parenting story with me last week.

I'm saving them and will publish some in future posts.

If you don't want to leave a comment but would rather contact me by email,

here's my address: lynkelwoohoo at yahoo dot com.

Santa is Very Real!

2011-12-23T00:01:00.000-08:00

For those who no longer believe in Santa, my friend and co-author Maria Toth will tell you otherwise. She works at a craft store, and here's what happened this week, in Maria's own words:

At work a customer and her two young children stepped up to the cut counter with bolts of fabric. As I began to measure, I asked the brother and sister if they were excited about Santa Claus. They were quiet. Then their mom explained that she told her kids that there is NO Santa Claus.

Whoa, whoa, whoa. . . As I cut her fabric, I smiled at the kids and told them that Santa is very real. I happen to know this for a fact since I was an elf and worked at the North Pole in the Doll House.

I told them how every morning Santa came by and said good morning to all the elves.

And how Mrs. Claus makes the yummiest fudge and gingerbread with whipped cream.

And how the reindeer are real. I've seen them!

At this point, Mom is giving me this odd look. . . so, I stopped and said, "Ah, you still don't believe, do you?" Then I told her that I could take a lie detector's test and pass with 'flying reindeer.' (It's true.) A curious smile began to sprout on Mom's face, and soon her little girl began to tell me about the Easter Bunny. My co-worker tossed in a good word for the Tooth Fairy. I could see the magic in the children's eyes. Sooo much fun!

BTW. . . I REALLY was an elf and worked at the North Pole! Honest.

So what can I say? Years ago Maria really did work at Santa's Village!

Here are some memories from Christmases past:

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas isn't jolly in this picture.

In fact, Santa looks downright bored.

Why are his eyes droopy?

Look at his hands.

Is he thinking that kids have cooties?

Puck and Tulip when they were little.

How can Burt go anywhere without Ernie?

Here's a beautiful version of Sugar Plum Fairy

to listen to as you view the photos.

Tulip's got the whole package!
She was in the Christmas Parade with her Girl Scout Troop.

"I don't want to be a queen!"
Lily was picked by Mrs. Weber, kindergarten teacher, to be a queen,
wife of one of the three kings, for the school Christmas play.
She opted to be a donkey instead!

There's Lily, the little donkey, sitting on the left side of the stage.

One Christmas Eve I entertained the family by reading
CAJUN NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS by Trosclari.
Kids of all ages get the biggest kick out of this picture book.
So do adults. Such a fun read aloud!
One year I read it to every grade at my kids' school.
I went to each classroom, from kindergarten all the way to 8th grade!
The middle school kids enjoyed it as much as the little ones.

To wrap things up (sorry, couldn't resist saying that!) here are some quotes for you:

I once bought my kids a set of batteries for Christmas with a note on it saying,
'Toys not included.' ~Bernard Manning

Guilt - the gift that keeps on giving. ~ Erma Bombeck

May you have the gladness of Christmas, which is hope,
The spirit of Christmas, which is peace,
The heart of Christmas, which is love. (Author unknown)

Merry Christmas, my friends.
Do you have any special plans for the holidays?

Shadow Boxes Make Great Gifts

2011-12-21T00:47:00.000-08:00

Just in case you're looking for a special gift to make for Christmas, I thought I'd share my shadow boxes with you. Little mementos or souvenirs are perfect to use in a shadow box.

I once mentioned to my friend and co-author, Maria Toth, that I still have my grandfather's magic wand. (He died when I was in 8th grade, and I inherited many of his magician tricks.)

"You should frame it," Maria said.

It was a light bulb moment. I found a frame, a photo of Granddad, some of the silk scarfs he used, typed up his magic words, "Abracadabra Presto Picheelo," and added some playing cards.

I loved the way it turned out, so I made another one with the magic wand I used many years ago when I tried my hand as a clown magician.

I was a clown magician for my son's 4th birthday party.

I added playing cards and Granddad's silk handkerchiefs to this shadow box, too,

so it tied in with the other one, and I hung them on the wall together.

I bought the frames at Ross at a good price. They had some 3D funky looking plastic figures in them, which I removed.

I was on a roll, so I made some more shadow boxes that reflected the Monster Moon books my BBH McChiller co-authors and I were working on. When we'd get together, we'd surprise each other at times with little sourvenirs or dollar store treasures that pertained to things in the story. I had so many trinkets and no more room on my shelves, so I decided to make shadow boxes with them.

This one reflects the prankster character, Freddy 'Hangman' Gallows.

Maria bought these gags at a dollar store.
Needless to say, when I take this shadow box to school visits,
kids go crazy over it and want to know how much it costs to buy it!

To read my post about props and school visits, click here.

This shadow box reflects things that are in Secret of Haunted Bog,
which takes place in a fictitious Old Chinatown near a haunted swampland.

Too bad I never took any classes in photography.
My reflection in the glass kind of messed up the photo!

More Secret of Haunted Bog treasures!

This shadow box reflects the first Monster Moon book,
Curse at Zala Manor.

This one reflects Vlad's past. He's the talking pirate rat in Monster Moon.

This shadow box is twice the size of the others and
captures most of the action in Secret of Haunted Bog.

Now that I have grandkids, I'll make some shadow boxes for them one day. I'll personalize them to reflect some of their favorite things, whether it be a sports team, books, ballet, whatever they're passionate about. Only time will tell.

I haven't made a Christmas or holiday shadow box - yet. Anything might inspire me at any given time. They're really not hard to make at all, and you can buy the boxes at a craft store. Or keep an eye out for a frame that has enough depth to add 3D objects. So, if you're crafty and have some special treasures that you want to display or give as a gift, then have at it!

If you make a grouping, they sure can dress up a wall.

These hang above my desk.

The shadow boxes inspired me to stay motivated
on our Monster Moon books while we were working on them.

"Handmade presents are scary because they reveal that you have too much free time."

~ Doug Coupland

If someone wanted to make a shadow box for you, what would they put in it to reflect the things you're passionate about?

Writer friends, if you're working to build your platform,

you might want to check out Kristen Lamb's online class,

Blogging For Author Brand.

Read about it in her post here.

There are a lot of testimonials in the comments section.

It's a two-month class for $40 and well worth it. She knows her stuff!

Next class begins in January.

Impossible! - Parenting Plights & Delights

2011-12-19T00:07:00.000-08:00

When my niece, Ballerina, was two years old, she excitedly looked through the new Christmas toy catalog and stared lovingly at the pages of dolls and accessories, dainty dresses and shoes, pink buggies, strollers, and bassinets.

Ballerina at two-and-a-half years old

"Mommy, I want to go in there," Ballerina said. Cindy thought she meant the toy store. "No, Mommy, I want to go in there."

"You mean you want to go inside the catalog?" Cindy asked.

Ballerina nodded. Cindy explained that you can't go inside a catalog, but Ballerina couldn't understand why not, so she kept pestering her mom.

Finally, Cindy decided she'd have to let Ballerina discover for herself that she couldn't go inside a catalog. "Okay," Cindy said, "try and squish yourself in there." She held the catalog up to Ballerina's forehead while Ballerina pushed her head against it.

When nothing happened, Ballerina grew mad and cried. Cindy remembered her own childhood disappointment when she was unable to get inside a mirror to explore the world on the other side. She compassionately told her two-year-old, "You can't get in there. You're not Alice in Wonderland."

Although Ballerina gave up on her desire to get inside the toy catalog, she turned her attention to other things, wanting to get inside the pictures on cereal boxes and books! Years later she learned the real secret of how to get inside books: She learned to read and was swept away on exciting adventures.

Reality leaves a lot to the imagination. ~ John Lennon

What happens to the wide-eyed observer when the window between reality
and unreality breaks and the glass begins to fly? ~Author Unknown

Everything you can imagine is real. ~Pablo Picasso

So, do you have a parenting or grandparenting incident?

If you're not a parent, memories from your own childhood count, too.

Warning: I might feature your story in a future post!

(Names can be changed to protect the guilty.)

I'd like to thank everyone who shared a parenting story with me last week.

I'm saving them and will publish some in future posts.

If you don't want to leave a comment but would rather contact me by email,

here's my address: lynkelwoohoo at yahoo dot com.

DÉJÀ VU - Stepping Into Your Character's Shoes

2011-12-16T00:06:00.000-08:00

Today, I'm participating in

DL Hammon’s DÉJÀ VU BLOGEST! co-hosted by Katie Mills (Creepy Query Girl),

Nicole Ducleroir, and Lydia Kare

Everyone who signed up is posting an old blogpost.

Here's my post from July 4, 2011.

I picked this post because it's insane and funny!

If the shoe fits . . . well, it sure makes it easier to step into the role of your character. What if you're a male writing about a female? Stepping into her shoes might be difficult.

It can be tricky to balance, especially in spikes. At first it's awkward. You might fall. Dust yourself off and get back up on those heels. You'll soon find yourself strutting or prancing through your plot.

Does your character need to move with the poise and grace of a prima ballerina? Impossible? Not if you practice, practice, practice.

There you go. Much better!

Venturing into a new genre, exploring terrain your psyche never dared to conquer before? Those magic shoes could carry you off into mysterious, mystical realms. Try them on.

Don't forget to pay attention to little details. Does your teen female curl her toes when Dreamy Dude flirts with her?

What if you're a female stepping into a male character's shoes? What kind of stance does he have? Are you taking note of his features, like those hairy legs? With a little creativity (and some black eyeliner - yes, those hairs are drawn on), you'll be on the right track.

Whether you're a female writing about male characters or a male writing about female characters, in the beginning you might have to tighten the reigns to head them in the right direction. Once they come to life, you could find yourself wrangling with the keyboard to keep up as they gallop down the trail, daring to leap off the edge of the page. Whoa!

So, what are we waiting for? Let's get to work!

How do you find a good fit filling your character's shoes?

"Creativity often consists of merely turning up what is already there. Did you know that right and left shoes were thought up only a little more than a century ago?" Bernice Fitz-Gibbon

If you're participating in the blog hop, there isn't much time to leave a comment if we're going to visit all the sites. A simple "Hello Weirdo" is cool with me!

Since this is a DÉJÀ VU Blogfest, have you ever experienced a real DÉJÀ VU? Care to share?

1.	Lydia K	57.	Today's Working Woman	113.	Empty Nest Insider
2.	Nicole Ducleroir	58.	Mish	114.	Priyanka
3.	Creepy Query Girl	59.	Lisa Ann	115.	Laugh Quotes
4.	Francine Howarth	60.	Hywela Lyn	116.	Kibitz Spot
5.	Laura Pauling	61.	Gloria Richard	117.	Fiona Faith Maddock
6.	DL at Cruising Altitude 2.0	62.	Donna K. Weaver Weaving a Tale or Two	118.	Botanist
7.	Jessica Bell	63.	Jennifer Shirk	119.	Far Away Eyes
8.	Sarah Fine	64.	Jo	120.	Tim Snider
9.	David King	65.	Nancy S. Thompson	121.	Better is Possible
10.	Javid S.	66.	Melissa Sugar	122.	Jeremy [2Thumbs]
11.	Gina C.	67.	Sandra Ulbrich Almazan	123.	Elisabeth Grace Foley @ The Second Sentence
12.	cluelesseve	68.	Nicki Elson	124.	B. Taylor aka the Under Cover Waitress
13.	Julie Dao	69.	Brenda	125.	A Nudge in the Right Direction
14.	April Plummer	70.	Em Dashes and Ice Cream	126.	Julie Dorris
15.	Connie, A Merry Heart	71.	Sarah Ahiers	127.	Allison (Geek Banter)
16.	Haven	72.	Donna Hole	128.	shelli johannes wells
17.	Liza at Middle Passages	73.	Sylvia van Bruggen	129.	Robyn Engel
18.	L.G. Smith Bards and Prophets	74.	That girl from around the bay	130.	Kari White
19.	Ellen Brickley	75.	Colin Smith	131.	Alison Miller
20.	Em, 35JupiterDrive	76.	Angeline Trevena	132.	Commutinggirl
21.	Bossy Betty	77.	Sheri Larsen	133.	Civil War Horror (Sean McLachlan)
22.	Erin Jade Lange	78.	Jossie Marie Solheim	134.	Stu
23.	Shannon O'Donnell	79.	Donna's Real World on Writing	135.	Tizzy @ Creative Therapy
24.	mshatch	80.	Kristina Atkins	136.	Clarissa Draper
25.	Nia Raie	81.	Over Yonder	137.	Andrea Franco- Cook
26.	Brinda Berry	82.	Green Monkey	138.	Steven Symes
27.	Carrie- Anne	83.	Donelle Lacy	139.	Katy Upperman
28.	Chippy	84.	Jennie Bailey	140.	Medeia Sharif
29.	Alex J. Cavanaugh	85.	tara tyler	141.	Sophia Chang
30.	yvonne lewis	86.	Amy Lunderman	142.	mybabyjohn/delores (Feathered Nest)
31.	Tammy Polen Manocchio	87.	M. E	143.	Becky Povich
32.	L' Aussie Denise	88.	Charity Bradford	144.	mybabyjohn/delores (Youngish)
33.	Heather Day Gilbert	89.	Mary Pax	145.	mybabyjohn/delores (Tormented)
34.	Dianne Salerni, In High Spirits	90.	Carla Ecland	146.	Margo Kelly
35.	Jemi Fraser	91.	Man O' Clay	147.	Heather Arundel
36.	Jennifer Hillier	92.	Scarlett Stokes	148.	Ms. Persevere
37.	Theresa Milstein	93.	Julie Flanders	149.	Cold As Heaven
38.	julie fedderson	94.	J Larkin	150.	Jessica Salyer
39.	Tracy	95.	Tim Brannan	151.	Juliann Wetz
40.	Wendy S. Russo	96.	David Brawley	152.	Jules @ Trying to get Over The Rainbow
41.	Amy L. Sonnichsen	97.	Pearson Report	153.	Sue Travers @ traverselife
42.	Catherine Denton	98.	Helen Ginger	154.	Melodie @ Forever Rewrighting
43.	Elaine AM Smith	99.	Stephen Tremp	155.	Vicki Rocho
44.	Sarah Pearson	100.	Laura Marcella @ Wavy Lines	156.	Lynn Kelley
45.	Spunky L. Diane Wolfe	101.	Enid @ SteamyFantasy	157.	Nisa
46.	PK Hrezo	102.	Belle Unruh	158.	Laurel Garver
47.	Swagger Writers	103.	The Golden Eagle	159.	SJ Driscoll--Come sit by my fire
48.	Jennifer Wilck	104.	Len Lambert	160.	Coleen Patrick
49.	Jenn	105.	Rhonda Eudaly	161.	Amie McCracken
50.	Leigh Moore	106.	Holly Stacey	162.	Margo Berendsen
51.	Kelly Dexter	107.	Callin	163.	Chris Phillips
52.	Arlee Bird	108.	Blogging from A to Z	164.	Julie Hedlund
53.	Accidentalwriter	109.	Rafa	165.	Karen Peterson
54.	J.C. Martin, Fighter Writer	110.	Melissa Ann Goodwin	166.	Operation Terrible Idea: Parkour Master
55.	Fabulosity Reads	111.	Carol Kilgore	167.	Sarah Allen
56.	LD Masterson	112.	Alana Garrigues	168.

Interview With a Pirate Rat!

2011-12-14T06:09:00.000-08:00

I have a special guest for you today. Please welcome Vlad, the talking pirate rat.

Thank you for visiting, Vlad. I'm thrilled I get to pick your brain today.

Arrr, swabber! No one be messin' with me poor brain, lest ye end up in Davey Jones' locker!

Forgive me, Vlad. What was I thinking? I didn't mean it literally. (The scars on the top of his head make me wince.) It's just that you're such an amazing rat, being able to not only talk, but you can also sing.

Aye, swabber, thanks fer ye blog invite,

Yeo-heave-ho and a barrel of crumbs,

But don't be askin' this rat to write,

Yeo-heave-ho, got a bottle of rum?

I love your pirate ditties, Vlad. That was way cool.

Aye, got me voice from me sweet mum. Singing ditties is me specialty. Glad ye likes it, landlubber.

I'm sure people are wondering how in the world a rat can not only talk, but also sing. Can you explain it for them, Vlad?

(The hair along Vlad's spine bristles like a scrub brush. His eyes are misty. He wipes them with the back of his paws.)

If this is too painful to continue, I understand.

Nay, matey. Let me tell me tale. I once be a spry young parrot on a pirate ship. Woe, how me longs fer salty sea breezes ruffling me wings.

Ah, I love the crisp smell of ocean air, too.

To makes a long story short, after being kidnapped by two scurvy swine, me ended up in the clutches of a mad scientist, Bela Zantony.

Oh, yes, Uncle Bela Zantony is mentioned in the first Monster Moon book, Curse at Zala Manor. He was AJ Zantony's 13th great-uncle, a scientist.

A mad scientist, me heartie. Mad as a kraken in a witch's brew. A beautiful, plumed parrot t'was I when he took me into his lab. Blast! I awoke trapped in this wretched rodent's vessel.

I'm so sorry, Vlad. What a nightmare. How long ago did that happen?

Awk! Summer of 1698 me parrot self met me fate, but me brain lives on. Bela messed up when he transplanted me parrot brain into this blasted rat's head. He muddled up the aging process so I be cursed to live as a rat forever.

Here, Vlad, have a piece of muenster. I hope this isn't too uncomfortable, sharing your history with us.

(No response. Vlad's scarfing down the cheese. My bad. Note to self: Never offer animals a snack in the middle of an interview.)

Ahem! I'm sure AJ Zantony, Emily Peralta, Freddy 'Hangman' Gallows, and the other Zombuddies are thankful you survived through three centuries and are there to help them face the spooky predicaments they find themselves in.

(Vlad's slurping from my hot chocolate.)

Excuse my bad manners, Vlad, for not offering you a drink. You can have the rest of mine.

(Loud belch) Thank ye, swabber. Now, where's the rest of the grub ye promised fer this interview?

Coming right up, Vlad. Just one last question. Both Monster Moon books, Curse at Zala Manor and Secret of Haunted Bog, mention something about you knowing where pirate treasure is buried. Can you tell us how to find it?

Arrr, scallywag! I'll never tell. Awk! Never tell!

I had a feeling you'd say that. Thanks so much for visiting Random Acts of Weirdness, Vlad. Is there anything else you'd like to share with the folks?

Aye, mates, tis a merry time of year,

Me be wishin' ye much Christmas fun,

Remember, me loves rich tasty cheer,

Like, maybe a puddin' full of rum.

Thanks for coming, Vlad. Your feast awaits you in the kitchen. I hope you'll come back.

It'll cost ye scraps fer life, matey.

You got yerself a deal, Vlad! *wink*

Vlad's a regular character in the fun, spooky Monster Moon mystery series by BBH McChiller. If you'd like to learn more about Vlad and the Zombuddies, you can read about them in CURSE AT ZALA MANOR and SECRET OF HAUNTED BOG, for ages 8 - 12, available in hardback and eBooks:

Amazon - Hardback

Amazon - eBook ($2.99)

Barnes & Noble - Hardback

Barnes & Noble - eBook ($2.99)

Smashwords - eBook (Formats for all eReaders)

Parenting Plights & Delights - Holiday Shopping With Kids

2011-12-12T03:09:00.000-08:00

'Tis the season to shop, and the malls are packed with holiday shoppers. When we have to bring our children along, it can be difficult to keep an eye on them. Cindy Molina told me about the time her son Alex was eight years old. That was the same year Polly Klaus had been abducted, and the newscasters gave parents safety tips to teach their children what to do if a stranger tried to grab them.

So Cindy and her husband Frank explained to Alex and his nine-year-old brother Ryan that if you're out in public and a man grabs you and tries to take you with him, holler, "Help! This isn't my father!" Or if it's a woman, "This isn't my mother!"

Cindy explained, "Because if you just cry and kick and scream, people will think you're having a tantrum with your own parent."

The next time the family went shopping, they were in a department store, and Frank took Alex to look at some shirts while Cindy took Ryan to shop for pants. When Frank was done, he took Alex's hand and said, "Let's go find your mom."

Alex started yelling, "Help! Help! This isn't my father!" Everyone around them stopped and stared. The sales people gave Frank dirty looks. He was super embarrassed and explained that he really was the father.

By that time, Cindy arrived to see what all the commotion was about. "It was so humiliating." She explained to the people that she and Frank had just taught their sons some safety tips and apparently Alex wanted to try it out.

"We found out that it really does work," Cindy said. She recommends that all parents teach this safety tip to their kids, but they should warn them not to test it on their parents out in public!

Louise Behiel has four grandchildren, ages 7, 5, 4, and 18 months.
"I love spending time with them. The younger two live close to me and they love to shop with grandma, so they think it's 'my' Walmart and they know the store has the biggest playroom ever. What fun."

I'm sure they think you're the best grandma ever, Louise!

This funny YouTube video is titled, "Someone WAS Watching!"

And it wasn't Santa Claus.
Nope, it's a surveillance tape from a department store.

Sheila Seabrook shared one of her most memorable parenting stories: "It was in the middle of Sears while I was attempting to find a new dress. My two boys, then aged 3 and 5, were running around inside the racks of clothes. I finally grabbed them by the hoods of their jackets and with one hand, held on tight while with the other hand, I browsed through the rack. The two boys were straining at the bit to get out, practically choking themselves in the process. I got a lot of you're-a-mean-mom looks from people as they passed but at least the boys weren't running free. :)

One more video you don't want to miss.

Two brothers caught on another surveillance tape.

Are kids unpredictable or what? LOL!

Thank you to everyone who's shared parenting stories with me. I LOVE hearing from you.

So, do you have a scary or humorous parenting memory? If you're not a parent, memories from your own childhood count, too!

Warning: I might feature your story in a future post! (Names can be changed to protect the guilty.)

If you don't want to leave a comment but would rather contact me by email, here's my address: lynkelwoohoo at yahoo dot com.

A version of Frank and Cindy Molina's story first appeared in The Highland Community News in December of 1998.

Altered Art Photo Box - Homemade Gifts

2011-12-09T01:22:00.000-08:00

My last post featured an altered art book I made for my parents for Christmas 2009. If you missed it, you can check it out here.

Below is an easier altered art project:

For a quicker, simpler altered art craft, you might want to decorate a filing box, like the one I bought at a craft store. These can be used to store photos, DVDs, CDs, or miscellaneous things. They make great gifts and don't cost much to make.

I bought a calendar at the dollar store with some great photos of Tuscany. I tore the photo into three parts, with the middle part being wider to decorate the lid of the box and the other two sections for the sides.

If you like to make collages, you'll love this craft.

Let your creativity explode. You can decorate the box with various textures and objects such as pieces of jewelry, a small embroidery piece, ticket stubs, glitter glue, pics from greeting cards. Anything that fits the recipient of the gift or the theme of the box. If it's a box to store sewing supplies, do a sewing theme using buttons, zippers, patches of fabric, a tape measure, and anything else you can think of.

For a pet theme, you could use photos of your pets, an old dog license tag, pics from magazines or greeting cards, an old dog collar that your dog or cat outgrew, and paint some paw prints all over the box.

The sky's the limit. Make it special. Make it your own!

A decorative box for your teen would be fun. You can make it wild and zany.

Going to a baby or wedding shower?
Those themes would be fun to work with, and what a wonderful, unique gift.

Be sure to think outside the box!
Sorry, just couldn't help it! LOL!

Here's a link Melissa Marsh shared with me, a blog post from January 2009 when she and her daughter made some cool collages. At the end of the post are photos of the beautiful wooden box her mother made for her that Christmas. Melissa keeps sentimental letters from friends and family in it. A real treasure chest!

Do you have any ideas for some other themes that would make a cool decorative box? If someone gave you one of these for Christmas, what would you store in it? What theme would you want? Do you have any tips for others who might want to give this a shot?

Homemade Gifts - Altered Art Scrapbooking

2011-12-07T03:05:00.000-08:00

Do you love to give homemade gifts from the heart? Here's one of my favorite crafts, a form of scrapbooking, but you can mix & match different mediums, from braided ribbon, fabric, a pocket from an old pair of jeans, paint, embroidery, old jewelry, pressed flowers, scrapbooking embellishments and paper.

This is an altered art book I made for my mom and dad for Christmas 2009.

I used an old board book, sanded down the pages, then covered them with scrapbooking paper.

On the cover I used:

Braided ribbon for the border
A photo of my mom and dad when they were children (don't use originals)
Scrapbooking stickers
A flower made from fabric (From the dollar store. If you sew, you can make your own.)
A hanging tassel (another dollar store treasure!) dangles next to the spine of the book.
Beaded trim is glued to the spine.
I used Tacky Glue to glue everything on. Recently I discovered Zots, little round two-sided stickers, which are great for heavier items, like imitation gems or a charm from a bracelet.

Another dollar store bargain, two craft pens for a buck - one gold and one silver, were perfect to color the edges of the inside pages.

This is one of my first altered art books, so it only has a few different mediums. The longer I do it, the more I experiment with other techniques such as macrame, paint, tissue paper, buttons, various textures, anything that catches my eye.

I wanted the theme to be family and tried to add a photo of each family member as a child, although I couldn't locate any photos of my mom's mother when she was young. She passed away when Mom was 13. No one remembers ever seeing a childhood picture of her. Darn.

I learned to add pockets to some of the pages, which are good for putting little keepsakes or quotes inside. It's quick and easy to tear around some of the photos for an old fashioned look. For other photos, I cut around the outline of the subject and discarded the backround.

Changing things up and using different looks is fun. I don't plan out each spread, just kind of add one thing, then hold up another embellishment or photo here or there on the page to see where it looks the best. It's kind of design as you go.

A chart lists which family members and ancestors are featured on each spread of the book.

I researched the history of favorite toys such as skates and bicycles, typed it up, then downsized the 8x11 pages on my copier to a size that would fit in a pocket.

The photo on the top was shaped like a bookmark, so I glued it on to stick up higher on the page. I glued another photo on the back of it.

More photos can be tucked into a pocket, along with a favorite quote. Old ticket stubs are cool keepsakes to put in the pockets or a love letter, whatever you have that has special meaning to the person you're making the gift for.

A pocket at the top of the page on the right holds scaled-down photos from vintage magazines.

Since my theme was about family members and childhood, I asked each family member what their favorite toy was as a kid, then typed up a list, which was also printed out on a smaller scale, about 3x5 sized pages.

I put the pages inside a pretty drawstring bag, then tucked it in a pocket.

The back cover also has a fabric flower embellishment from the dollar store.

There are more great-children in the family now. Mom and Dad can add small photos of them in some of the pockets. We don't want any hurt feelings!

In my next post, I'll feature a filing box that I turned into an altered art piece. It's a homemade gift that doesn't take as much time as an altered art book does.

Do you like to make gifts for friends and loved ones? Do you like to receive homemade gifts?

Have you had any disastrous results when trying to make a gift? How about receiving a homemade gift that was so fugly you had no idea what to do with it? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Teaching Your Kid to Ride a Bike?

2011-12-05T01:14:00.000-08:00

Once Santa leaves that new bicycle under the tree (okay, maybe near the tree), someone has to teach the newbie how to ride it.

Have you ever taught your kid how to ride a bike?

My husband teaching our son to ride many years ago.

When Steve King's oldest child, Rhett, was not quite five years old, he got a spiffy red bike for Christmas. Steve was excited about teaching his son how to ride his bike. They lived in an apartment complex with a swimming pool in the middle of the complex. Steve realized the pool could pose a problem, but he decided he would steer Rhett away from it.

Steve ran behind Rhett, holding onto the bike. Rhett proved to be a fast learner, so Steve steered Rhett to the right and then let go. Rhett veered to the left and rode along the pool until the bike tipped over and he splashed into the cold water.

Rhett laughed at first, but when Tammy, his mother, ran outside, he cried when he saw how upset she was that he was swimming fully clothed in the dead of winter. Steve helped Rhett out of the pool and then fished the bike out.

Later that same day, Steve decided it would be best if Rhett got back up on the horse right away. He convinced his son that something like that wouldn't happen again. After steering Rhett to the right and away from the pool, Rhett turned left again and fell into the pool once more.

Steve couldn't believe it, and his wife wasn't the least bit amused. Knowing well that with three strikes he'd be out, Steve decided to play it safe and took Rhett up to the high school where his son could learn to perfect his bicycle riding skills.

Once he got the hang of it, "Rhett was thrilled and smiled from ear to ear," Steve said.

Good thing we had a school near us when it was

time for our son to learn to ride!

This little boy is mighty proud of himself for learning to ride his bike.
If you need a pep talk or a little motivational speech to tackle your goals,
you gotta watch this!

So, do you have a parenting or grandparenting story? If you're not a parent, memories from your own childhood count, too!

Warning: I might feature your story in a future post.

(Names can be changed to protect the guilty!)

Thanks to all who shared a parenting memory with me last week. I'm saving them and will publish some in future posts.

If you don't want to leave a comment but would rather contact me by email, here's my address: lynkelwoohoo (at) yahoo (dot) com.

A version of this story first appeared in The Highland Community News in June of 1998.