Author: beckylevine

Becky Levine is a children's book writer, working hard to strengthen her picture-books skills. She is the author of The Writing & Critique Group Survival Guide, a book to help you get started with a critique group, learn to revise from a critique, and strengthen your own critiquing powers. She has also published two nonfiction children's books with Capstone Press. She is currently seeking representation. Becky lives in California's Santa Cruz mountains, where she spends a lot of time sitting on the couch, knitting needles in hand, thinking through the next revision. At her day job, she writes grants for a nonprofit healthcare organization.
Posted in Blog Contest

SHIVER by Maggie Stiefvater: Plots & Subplots, Twisting & Weaving

Posted on by beckylevine

Hey, everybody, watch out! There is a contest at the end of this post! And it is a contest for a scary book. And I, Grover, am here to warn you and to tell you not to keep reading. Do not scroll down to the end of this post!

(Okay, I couldn’t resist, with much love and many thanks to Jon Stone, the author of one of my other, all-time favorite books!)

Moving on now.

I just read Maggie Stiefvater’s  Shiver.

Yes, I know it’s been out since last August and that it’s sequel, Linger, is coming out this July. I know it’s been talked up all over the web and by booksellers and librarians and kidlit readers. Hey, I can’t keep up with everything!

I do get there, eventually, however, and I am here to say that Shiver is worth every bit of that talk. It blew me away, for several reasons, not least of which is the wonderful love story based on two absolute non-wimps—active characters that take on the world and actually do something about it.

I’m not going to talk about character, though, today. I’m going to talk about plot. Complicated plot. With lots of important subplots. All woven together into one beautifully connected, intense story.

Watch my juggling act as–without dropping one spoiler–I tell you what Stiefvater does.

  • Writes a love story filled with clear and seriously problematic obstacles and what-will-happen-ifs
  • Complicates that love story with a soupçon of family and personal background, just enough to add believable (and still non-wimpy) vulnerability to the participants
  • Inserts a paranormal element that complicates that love story even more
  • Creates secondary characters with strong subplots that tie strongly and with individuality into that paranormal element
  • Brings each subplot and each secondary character back into story with exquisite timing, just when the reader needs to be reminded about them and at the exact moment/place to amp up the tension
  • Does all of this seamlessly, with the magic wand of writing that makes it look, to the reader’s eye, easy and effortless

And did I mention that NOBODY IS WIMPY?! Think Romeo and Juliet with not one swoon, not one set of hands clasped woefully to a bosom, not one despairing glance. Sam and Grace never stop fighting for themselves, for each other, for their friends. I love these guys.

I love them so much that, even seven months after publication, I must put a copy of this book into somebody’s hands. Somebody who (while inhabiting the same faraway planet as me) has not yet read it, or someone who picked it up at the library or borrowed it from a friend and now wants their own, always-available-for-a-reread copy.

The contest is open! Leave a comment to this post, between now and next Tuesday (March 30th). Son and I will draw the winner’s name, and I’ll announce it here on Wednesday the 31st. Make sure and come back to check if you’ve won! Then everybody will be happy. 

Posted in Critique Groups, Critiquing

What to Expect from a Critique

Posted on by beckylevine

After a lovely week of talking about other authors, I thought it was time to come back to talking a bit about…you! This post is modified from a downloadable PDF (of the same title) available at my Critiquing tab above, that I wrote for writers who are considering hiring me for a professional critique. I think a lot of it’s true, though, for anyone getting critique feedback, especially if it’s a new experience. So enjoy and, remember, it’s worth the risk! (And thanks to Jordan Rosenfeld for the suggestion!)

If you have never been critiqued, you may not be completely prepared for the kind of feedback another writer can give you, or for the feelings their suggestions may cause in you. If you have experience being critiqued, receiving feedback from other writers, you are probably familiar with some of the feelings a critique can engender. You feel great when your critique partners tell you what you’ve done well, and you feel not-so-great when they point out what’s not yet working. Hopefully, you haven’t received a critique that made you feel hurt, or that made you wonder whether you should be writing.

You should.

You should also, though, be revising. And one of the best ways to do that, if not always the easiest, is to receive strong feedback from a critiquer.

When you receive a critique, you are hopefully getting a thorough, detailed set of feedback. This may include a page or more of overall comments, suggestions about the big elements of writing—things like plot and characterization in fiction, organization and voice in nonfiction. The critiquer may also make notes throughout the manuscript, pointing out specific places where they think you can do more work, passages they think illustrate the suggestions they’ve made in their overall critique, and—of course—any writing that they love.

When you look at these pages, you’re going to see a lot of comments. (This may be where that fear of red ink comes from!)Even if, logically, you know all those comments are there to help you, you may still feel overwhelmed. Sometimes very overwhelmed.

Try to remember a few things.

You are not the only person to ever have their work marked up this way. It happens to most writers. It happens to me all the time! You are allowed to start slowly. Take it a chapter at a time, work with the small changes you can say “yes” or “no” to, and let the other, bigger comments simmer in your brain as you work.

You don’t have to make all the changes at once. When I’m revising from a critique, I find it most helpful to pick one or two big things to work through in one revision, following the thread of changes through each scene, and watching how my story grows and improves as I work.

You are the author of this manuscript. I happily give you permission, here and now, to decide against putting in any of the suggested changes that you’re not happy with. (I also ask you, if the critiquer make a big point about something multiple times through the pages, to take a second look at those comments before making that decision. ☺)

You can do this. We send our words out with high expectations, and higher hopes. We know, in general terms, that we have more work to do, but—often—we don’t know or recognize, how much work that will be. Take your time. Be patient with yourself, and allow yourself to grow your writing along with your project. Every revision you do of your manuscript will bring it that much closer to being the book you want it to be.

Finally, remember that your critique partner is not (usually!) going to disappear after they send you the critique. They’re available  for questions—don’t hesitate to email them if you don’t understand something they’ve written, or if you’re feeling confused about where to go with the critique. They’re in your group because they want to help—ask for that help when you need it.

Posted in Author Appreciation Week

Author-Appreciation Week: Friday Five Excerpts

Posted on by beckylevine

To end out the week, I’ve decided to go with the openings from five of my favorite books from childhood…a few of the ones still on my shelves. These stories got me started, and my appreciation for this is without bounds.

Thanks again to Heidi R. Kling for setting up the week & Sara from Novel Novice for designing the avatar. And thanks to everybody for all the great posts, as well.

     One cold rainy day when my father was a little boy, he met an old alley cat on the street. The cat was very drippy and uncomfortable so my father said, “Wouldn’t you like to come home with me?”
—–MY FATHER’S DRAGON, by Ruth Stiles Gannett, illustrated by Ruth Chrisman Gannett

The wind swept around the corners and chased clouds of dust out of the ruins of bombed houses. The cold, clinging darkness of the October evening dropped down upon the strange city from a leaden sky. The streets were deserted. Nobody was out who could possibly help it.
–THE ARK, by Margot Benary-Isbert

When Mary Lennox was sent to Misselthwaite Manor to live with her uncle everybody said she was the most disagreeable-looking child ever seen. It was true, too. She had a little thin face and a little thin body, thin light hair and a sour expression. Her hair was yellow, and her face was yellow because she had been born in India and had always been ill in one way or another.
–THE SECRET GARDEN, by Frances Hodgson Burnett, illustrated by Tasha Tudor

Mrs. Rachel Lynde lived just where the Avonlea main road dipped down into a little hollow, fringed with alders and ladies’ eardrops and traversed by a brook that had its source away back in the woods of the old Cuthbert place; it was reputed to be an intricate, headlong brook in its earlier course through these woods, with dark secrets of pool and cascade; but by the time it reached Lynde’s Hollow it was a quiet, well-conducted little stream, for not even a brook could run past Mrs. Rachel Lynde’s door without due regard for decency and decorum…
–ANNE OF GREEN GABLES, by L. M. Montgomery

     The porter, carrying Cathy’s suitcase, went ahead through the doors of Idlewild International Airport. “You want to weigh in now?” he asked of the portly woman who walked beside a small, dark-haired girl of about twelve.
     Mrs. Bertha Branson shook her head. “Not right away. Someone else has this young lady’s ticket. We’re to wait at the foot of the stairs to the observation deck.”
     The porter nodded and walked on so fast that Cathy had to skip now and then to keep up with his long legs. Because she was anxious and uncertain, she grasped her shiny new red overnight case more tightly and shifted the coat over her arms.
–MYSTERY ON THE ISLE OF SKYE, by Phyllis A. Whitney

Have a wonderful weekend of reading, writing, and–hopefully–sunshine!

Posted in Author Appreciation Week

Author Appreciation Week: Chris Crutcher

Posted on by beckylevine

Chris Crutcher has been writing for a while, probably longer than I’ve been actively reading YA (But I read FAST, so it’s like I’ve been reading it a lot longer!). I finally picked up a few of his books this past year, probably because my son is hitting his teens & I wanted to check them out.

And I love them.

There are many things to like about Crutcher’s novels.

  • He writes tight, fast-paced stories.
  • He brings, as far as I can tell, a new angle to the world of “jocks,” one I find intriguing.
  • He is extremely funny.
  • He is the master of the make-things-worse-then-make-them-worse-again technique.
  • He can write what I call a “gut-punch,” an out-of-nowhere event that is so painful, it literally takes your breath away.

And this list doesn’t even mention my favorite thing about Chris Crutcher’s books. Here it is: he writes moral courage in teenagers better than anybody I’ve ever read. And I love it.

I don’t honestly know if this is a me-the-reader reaction, or a me-the-mom reaction. All I know is that, when I read Crutcher’s stories, I am filled with pride at the way his characters stand up for their rights and for others’ rights. I root for them to keep pushing the limits, to tell the clueless adult or peer the truth–again and again until they hear it or go away. I think about all the ways these kids, these characters, could back down and want to hug them for all the ways they don’t.

And, yes, I’m happy when my son reads one of Crutcher’s books and I see him reacting the same way (okay, maybe not with the hugs; that probably is a mom-thing). Because I think it validates something he believes about life and about himself, that this is the way to be, this is a strength to be proud of.

I don’t know if this means that Crutcher is writing reality or if he’s projecting into his fiction the world as he wants it to be, as he knows or hopes it can be. My guess is that he’s seen kids act out this kind of courage and that he’s celebrating them on the page, as well as setting off a spark of light in the kids, his young readers, who have that courage inside them.

What I do know for sure is that Crutcher writes with power and strength and humor, and he tells a story that has a point, without once lecturing or preaching. And that’s talent.

A talent I appreciate.

A few more author-appreciation posts for your reading pleasure:

Thursday thanks to Sara at Novel Novice for the avatar!

Posted in Uncategorized

Author Appreciation Week: Arthur Ransome

Posted on by beckylevine

“Roger, aged seven, and no longer the youngest of the family, ran in wide zigzags, to and fro, across the steep field that sloped up from the lake to Holly Howe, the farm where they were staying for part of the summer holidays. He ran until he nearly reached the hedge by the footpath, then turned and ran until he nearly reached the hedge on the other side of the field. Then he turned and crossed the field again…The wind was against him, and he was tacking up against it to the farm, where at the gate his patient mother was awaiting him…

At last he headed straight into the wind, moved slower and slower, came to a stop at his mother’s side, began to move backwards, and presently brought up with a little jerk, anchored, and in harbour.

“Is it the answer,” he panted, out of breath after all that beating up against the wind. “Does he say Yes?”

Mother smiled, and read the telegram aloud:

BETTER DROWNED THAN DUFFERS IF NOT DUFFERS WON’T DROWN

So Roger, in Swallows and Amazons (the first book in Arthur Ransome’s wonderful series of the same name) finds out that his father has given the final permission for Roger and his brother & sisters to camp alone on a nearby island. And the adventures begin.

My mother grew up in England, during WWII. When I was young, she was still rereading many of her favorite books from childhood. She introduced us to Enid Blyton’s Famous Five, and I remember her excitement when, on a trip to Canada, she found out she could buy Arthur Ransome’s books in bookstores there. And then I repeated the excitement for myself, years later, on my first trip to England, as I dipped into store after store on Charing Cross Road and collected my own set.

On the surface, I was nothing like the children in Ransome’s books. These kids were always on the go—sailing, hiking, camping, mining for gold, you name it. They spent every spare second outside, on the water or in the hills. The winter that Nancy (called that instead of her true name, Ruth, because she is utterly and completely…ruthless) got the mumps and was quarantined inside was about as close to torture as the children could experience. Me, I didn’t need mumps to stay inside, I just needed a good book and a cozy chair. Some of the best moments in my family’s vacations were when my parents decided I was old enough to stay back at the cabin and skip the canoe trip or the climb up the mountain.

So why did these books resonate so much with me? Because the children in them lived completely in their imagination. They didn’t climb the hill outside their homes, they climbed “Kanchenjunga.” They didn’t stowaway on Nancy’s uncle’s houseboat, they lived in Nanson’s Fram. They didn’t skate to the old house at the end of the lake, they mounted an expedition to the North Pole. And the adults in the books either stayed out of the way or threw themselves full-force into whatever story the kids were in that week.

And the kids took me with them. I was with Susan when she worried about how whether the milk would be enough to go around, or if she should send Roger to the farm for another pail. I was with Titty when she used the forked branch and it actually jerked in her hands to point to water. I was with Dot wherever she carried her notebook and whenever she made up her own story, out of the story they were all living.

And, wonder of wonders, I was with all of them the very real day, in England, that I rented a too-big-for-the-roads car and drove myself to the Lake District and hiked–yes, instead of staying in the cabin–in their footsteps.

I appreciate Arthur Ransome, because he gave me–real or not–England.

A few more recent posts for you to browse:

Posted in Author Appreciation Week

Author Appreciation Week: Terry Pratchett

Posted on by beckylevine

If you go to the bookstore and ask for directions to the Terry Pratchett books, you’re likely to be sent to at least two, of not more, sections. Some will be in the science-fiction/fantasy world, some will be on the new-book shelves, and some will definitely be in the YA section. Which means that, when you’re shopping for the two or three of his books that your fourteen-year-old son hasn’t read yet, you know to hunt through the whole store.

And that’s why I appreciate Terry Pratchett. Because while I would guess he doesn’t think too much about who he’s writing for, I know that he’s writing for my son.

Okay, and for me. And my husband. All three of us laugh out loud—really loud—at the same passages. And, yes, we all try and do the thick brogue when we imitate Rob Anybody or another of the wee free men. Obviously, I love Pratchett’s comedy and would read his books time and time again if only for the brilliance of his humor.

What I love most about his books, though, is the characters. You could probably, if you tried, describe or summarize any one of them in a few sentences, and you’d hit them on target. What that summary wouldn’t convey, though (and what I’m not sure I’ll be able to), is the subtleties Pratchett weaves into each. Maybe it’s because he’s written so many books, maybe it’s because his characters remain so absolutely true to themselves in all those books. I’m not sure. All I know is that, time and time again, he’ll write a scene, a description, a piece of dialog that just makes me say, “That is so her.” Or him.

My favorite Pratchett books are the ones with the witches. My son likes those, too, but I think his first choices would be the ones with the Watch—Commander Vimes, Sergeant Colon, & Nobby. My all-time favorite character is Granny Weatherwax. I’m not sure why, but it has something to do with the fact that nobody—no matter how magical, or powerful, or strong—can beat her. Why? Simply because she knows they can’t. Granny is funny in her crankiness, in her determination to do & see things one way (her way), in her rivalries with the other witches. At her core, though, is a seriousness, a recognition that the world is hard, that people can and will do others and themselves harm without even trying, and that if nobody else is going to do battle, well, she will. And even if she loses, as long as she tries…she doesn’t lose.

And the amazing thing about Pratchett is that he gets that across at the same exact time as he is writing some of the best sheer entertainment of this and the last century, without missing a beat. Honestly, it’s not that often that I’m laughing till tears come and simultaneously sitting in awe of the sheet beauty of an author’s prose.

Pratchett makes me do that.

And I appreciate it.

A few more posts from other bloggers for you to check out:

And thank you, again, Sara, from Novel Novice for the Author Appreciation avatar!

Posted in Author Appreciation Week

Author Appreciation Week: Laurie Halse Anderson

Posted on by beckylevine

Have you read Wintergirls? Speak? Any of Laurie Halse Anderson’s other YA novels? If you have, then you’re going to understand immediately what I’ll be talking about in this post. If you haven’t yet, well go ahead and read the post, then head out and pick up one of Laurie’s books.

For me, Laurie Halse Anderson epitomizes the courage of young-adult novels and young-adult writers. And I’m not talking about the courage of defending her books, of facing arguments about whether or not kids should be reading them. I’m talking about the courage to write the stories in the first place.

Laurie’s books consistently blow me away. They’re not easy books for me, a reader who often builds her to-read pile out of humor and fantasy and escapism, to pick up. They’re not easy books for me to turn to Page 1 in. I don’t leave the real world when I read Laurie’s books, I’m thrust sharply and deeply into it. With a grace and strength of writing I haven’t found many other places.

I read Laurie’s books for two reasons.

First, I read Laurie’s books because I know that I will be caught up in a story that doesn’t let me go, one that–even as it makes me face unpleasant truths—takes me along for such a ride that I don’t want to get off. Laurie takes on hard topics in her stories, topics people often call issues, but she never fails to weave those topics into a tight, fast, plot with complex, painfully believable characters. The amount of research Laurie must do for her books, I can’t even begin to fathom, but the facts of her research never jump out as facts; they merge seamlessly into the main character’s life–her problems, choices, and actions.

That’s the first reason I read Laurie’s books.

The second reason is that Laurie reminds me, as a writer, what I want to strive for. I’ll be honest. I don’t know that I will ever choose a subject matter that has a pain at its heart as strong as Laurie chooses. I don’t know that I will want to or be able to. And that’s okay. Reading Laurie’s books, however, reminds me that I do want to tell whatever story I choose with as much honesty and truth as I possibly can. I want to do this for myself, as that writer, and for the teens who I hope will read my books. Laurie reminds me, with every word she writes, that truth is what those teens deserve.

I appreciate both reasons equally.

A few more Author Appreciation posts for you to browse:

Thanks to Sara at Novel Novice for the avatar!

Posted in Author Appreciation Week

Author Appreciation Week–I’m In

Posted on by beckylevine

 

Heidi R. Kling, author of the forthcoming YA novel Sea, has declared this week author appreciation week. Who am I to argue with something that sounds fun, is obviously a wonderful cause, and gets me out of thinking of other blog topics this week? You can read Heidi’s no-rules rules here, and decide whether you want to join in or just have fun reading the posts all week. If you’re on Twitter, watch for the hashtag #AAW, and I guess just watch for the posts to pop up on Facebook.

So there are no rules in general, but here’s a little bit about what you’ll find at my blog this week:

  • I won’t be posting about any authors I know! What does that mean, in these days of social networking and virtual friends? Well, I’m not sure. 🙂 But I have too many friends who are authors, whose books I love and with whom I have some kind of person connection–online or off–that I’m just avoiding making choices out of that group! Cowardly? Perhaps? Wimpy? Most likely. But, hey, it works for Jeff Kinney.
  • I’ll be focusing my appreciation on the things “my” authors do with their words–the choices they make about which stories to tell, or the things about the writing craft that those stories teach me. I think it’ll be interesting to see how else the word appreciation plays out across the blogosphere.
  • I may or may not make it every day. Three authors popped pretty instantly into my head, so I’m guessing five will be pretty easy, but if the post looks like it’s going to become the camel’s straw, well, you won’t find one here for that day. Or you might get two the next. Just think of me as your own random-post generator.
  • I’m using the lovely Author Appreciation avatar from Heidi’s blog, created by Sara at Novel Novice (www.novelnovice.com).  If you’ve read my blog for a while, you’ll know I can’t even draw stick figures, so there’s no way I’m going to try to create an avatar when someone has already done such a beautiful job!
  • I’m going to try and keep track of other bloggers celebrating this week, and I’ll probably (possibly?) throw a few links in a the end of each post. A few. Has anybody noticed the size of the Internet lately?!

There. I’ve done my best, as you can tell, to put structure into something that has no way of staying structured, but I can always try. Enjoy the week and make sure you tell all the authors in your day-to-day life how much you do appreciate them, too!

Posted in Critique Groups, Critiquing, Guest Blogger

Guest Interview: Wendy Martin on Critique Groups

Posted on by beckylevine

Wendy Martin is the author of several children’s books, An Ordinary Girl, A Magical Child (2005, 2008), Aidan’s First Full Moon Circle (2008), and Watchers (2008). She is the illustrator of those three books as well as Rabbit’s Song (2009) by S.J. Tucker and Trudy Herring, and Smoky and the Feast of Mabon (2010) by Catherynne M. Valente.


     
Wendy has a deep commitment to children. Walking her talk, she applied for and completed training to be a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) for children of the St. Louis Children’s Division Court foster care system. She was officially sworn into this volunteer position on Sept 11, 2008.

Wendy currently resides with her husband and daughter in eastern Missouri when she isn’t on the road giving workshops at festivals or visiting schools. She claims the dubious title of Perpetual Project Lady and does her best to keep the house clean and the cats fed.

Read on for an interview with Wendy, in which she discusses critiquing for writing and art.

BL: Can you give us a brief description of your critique group (online or in person, how many members, what they’re writing, how you found the group, how long you’ve been together)?

WM: I belong to two crit groups, one for writing and one for illustration. Both are on-line. The illustration group is very informal and is more of a support group than for aiming for publication, although we can ask for specific project feedback. It is a public Blogger site where members post solutions to weekly prompts. The group is morphing in terms of membership all the time since it is so informal but there are about a half dozen “regulars.” I think the goal is 25 active members. I received an invitation via email when the group was being formed about 3 years ago.

The other group is very structured. There are 5 members and we are about 6 months old. It is online and crits are submitted via email. Every sixth week we “meet” in a chat room to just talk about whatever catches our fancy and any changes we’d like to see in the crits. The group is genre specific to MG although our subject matter is all over the place. I believe I also received an email invite for this one, but I don’t remember.

BL: What do you think are the benefits of your groups?

WM: With the illustration group, the benefit is to meet a deadline on an ongoing basis and illustrating a topic or theme we hadn’t selected ourselves. All members are supposed to be working in water media, although some of the newer members are submitting computer-generated art. I’ve been meaning to question the mod about that.

In the writing group, for me, the biggest benefit is finding the flaws in my WIP and having suggestions on how to fix them to make a stronger story. The entire group is serious about finding a publisher for their manuscripts, so this is helpful since we all have a similar goal in mind.

BL: What’s the hardest part of being in a critique group, for you? What makes that part worthwhile?

WM: The hardest part for both groups is meeting the deadlines. I am better at it with the writing group since it is so structured and I know I will be getting as much feedback as I give. In the art group, it is sometimes discouraging not to receive any useful feedback because either no one comments or all the comments are along the lines of “That’s nice, I like it.”

BL: If a writer’s goal is publication, do you think participating in a critique group can help the writer toward that goal? How?

WM: To achieve publication one must perfect one’s craft. Whether that is writing or illustrating is irrelevant. There are certain things that separate the hobbyist from the professional and being in a crit group can push anyone past their comfort zones if they let it. Once a creator has left their comfort zone is when true creation comes. And that’s when publication becomes possible. The work you are submitting to publish has to be strong enough and unique enough to stand out from the crowd. Plus, the creator has to have a thick skin because rejection is a normal part of this business. There’s a lot of rejection, even for the people who achieve publication. Crit groups help to prepare people for the tougher aspects of the business by familiarizing writers and artists with criticism. Even a successful book will garner negative reviews. Everyone has an opinion and not all of them will be positive!

BL: What was the biggest surprise for you, about critique groups or the critique process, when you first started participating in a group?

WM: How often the groups didn’t work out or survive. Most groups I have joined or been invited to join petered out in less than six months. I often found that groups formed by newcomers rarely gave me any useful feedback. I have found that in order for a group to function fully, the members must be all at about the same place on their quest for publication.

Please answer the next questions quickly, without too much thinking time. 🙂

BL: Do you critique with: Red pen or NOT-red pen?

WM: Both.

BL: Favorite critiquing drink: Tea, coffee, or diet soda?

WM: Water.

BL: Do you prefer: Critiquing or being critiqued?

WM: Being critiqued. Love feedback.

BL: Who would you rather have run the house while you write/critique? Jeeves or Alice from The Brady Bunch?

WM: Alice

BL: Name one book that has blown you away in the last year.

WM: Wondrous Strange by Leslie Livingston.

Posted in Uncategorized

Thankful Thursday: The Basics Aren’t So Basic

Posted on by beckylevine

Life has had a few shifts lately, not for me or my immediate family, thank goodness, but for people in my circle and in their circles. Surprises that aren’t the good kind and losses that should not have happened. So, today, just briefly, my thankful Thursday is for those things I try very hard not to ever take for granted, but that still–sometimes–just need to be said out loud.

1. I am thankful for my husband and son, two gifts I barely knew to dream about all those years ago, who have added more to my life than I could have thought possible.

2. I am thankful for my wonderful parents, who never stop sharing or supporting, and my sisters–ditto–and their husbands and children.

3. I am thankful for the community I have built since I came to this area, writing and non-writing, in our hills and down in the town, the friends who I walk and talk with, who I call to check on and who call to check on me. I could not have a stronger support system.

4. I am thankful for the life that lets me write at home, on m piece of mountain with trees and animals around–the life that lets me panic about trying to fit so much into a week, and having all that everything to try and fit in.

5.  I am thankful for words–the ones on the books I read, the books I have yet to read, and on the pages I keep churning over. I am thankful for the eyes that let me keep seeing them, the fingers that let me keep turning and typing pages, the brain that somehow takes the mix of everything and sorts it into story.

Take a moment today and hug someone, spend 10 more minutes with a book, and just look around at your world. I”m guessing there’s something there that makes you smile. Hugs to all!