What do you do in the mayhem of preparing for a book signing?

July has drawn to a close and August will bring a new season for me. One filled with making sure I have enough stuff for my book signings, getting up early for said book signings, seeing to it that my 'equipment' doesn't get mixed up or lost in the confusion, making sure events don't overlap... oh my goodness! It seems like there's so much to do! I've started making a list of what I'll need for these events and I've starting gathering the items now instead of waiting for the last minute. It isn't always easy, especially when there are times I become disorganized. How do you keep it together in times like this? Do you keep a giant check list and check items off after they're completed? Or do you wait until a day or two before an event to start throwing everything together?

How to describe it?

The day after a big thunder storm I was driving down the road and saw something that caused my lower jaw to drop in amazement. You know how sometimes you can see the fog rolling in? Or can even see steam lifting off the ground/road after a good summer rain? What I saw seemed to be a mix of the two. Big swirls of cloud rose up off the ground and up toward the sky so fast, at first, I almost thought it was smoke from a factory. But when I passed the spot where the fog/mist was coming from, I saw it was not a factory, but rather a natural occurrence. Fog/mist was rising up from the ground so fast, and in such large quantities, that it gave the appearance of smoke. It was so cool and unlike anything I'd ever seen. Fog coming toward me like an overzealous puppy, yes, I've seen that. Mist rising sluggishly back to the sky, same thing. But fog/mist swirling back to sky in the shape of a funnel... nope, never seen that before. I wish I could've taken pictures to show you all what I saw, yet the best I can do for now is describe what I saw.

That raises an interesting question. When we see awesome things in our day to day lives and want to share what we saw with the world, how do we go about describing what we saw? Even when words don't do it justice? Do we give a sketch of what we saw and leave the rest up to the imagination of the person hearing our story? Or do we take out our imaginary brushes and paint pictures for people to see with more than their minds?

New book to add to the collection

Okay, the week is over and after taking Sherry's suggestion of mulling over which story to write, the Middle Grade novel seems to be the one wanting to be written. So, I'll most likely be telling Lily's story (she's the main character in the Middle Grade novel), while at the same time gathering facts and information for one of my historical novels.

Speaking of books, I've found this really cute picture book I wanted to share with everyone. It's called Sweetpea's Weekend Adventures At Grandma's House, by Yvonne Wilking. Long title, but it lives up to it, don't worry. In this adventure, Sweetpea gets to be a Paleontologist for a day. Kids will learn exactly what a Paleontologist is and what they do, as well as learn colors and help Sweetpea find the tools she needs for her digging. It's a definite add to a book collection for little children learning shapes and colors. Here's the link to check it out on Amazon.com. It's also available on the Author House website.

http://www.amazon.com/Sweetpeas-Weekend-Adventures-Grandmas-House/dp/1491820306/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1406201261&sr=1-1&keywords=Sweetpea%27s+Weekend+Adventures+at+Grandma%27s+House

What to do now?

All right, I've completed one manuscript, at long last. This particular one took a few years to complete and now that it's done, I find myself at a crossroads. Do I kick back and relax for a little bit? Or do I plunge into working on another novel? And that brings up another question altogether. There are two historical novels waiting to be written. But at the same time, I have a modern day, middle grade novel sitting patiently on the sidelines. And then there's the third book in my mystery series that's waiting its turn to exit my mind and jump down onto paper. Which genre do I choose? Historical fiction? Modern day? Or mystery?

Happy Independence Day!

Happy 4th of July! Thank you to those who have served, are serving, are in the reserves and to those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. Also, thank you to the family members of those in service. Thank you for your sacrifice.

What Is A Screever?

Do you remember watching 'Mary Poppins' and Bert mentioning that he was an 'Artist of highest degree'? Ah, but he stated he wasn't just any artist. He was a Screever. I've always wondered exactly what a 'Screever' was and thanks to Sherry Alexander's piece in Guardian Angel Kids, Are You A Screever?, I don't have to wonder anymore. Check out Sherry's article. It's very well written and informative.    

http://www.guardian-angel-kids.com/07-014-3Dflipbook/index.html#p=22