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Showing posts from June, 2011

July ’11 World of Ink Blog Hop

What is a blog hop? A blog hop is a linky list that is SHARED ON MULTIPLE BLOGS. When several blogs put the same linky list code on their blog, the exact same list appears on each blog. Blog visitors can submit their entries on any blog that contains the list. The entries will appear on each blog where the list resides. Blog readers see the same list on each blog, and can "HOP" from blog to blog seeing the same list of links to follow: BLOG HOP! July ’11 World of Ink Blog Hop: Make friends, share the love of reading and be entered to win a FREE book! All you have to do is post the Author and/or Book Spotlights the Families Matter Editors will send you. Promote them during the month of the July ’11 World of Ink Virtual Tour on any social network you have. Tweet it once a day, share on facebook and then follow others back that leave you a comment. Easy! Hop Rules: 1.       Follow the Top link of the hop! Host: Families Matter 2.    ...
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I'm a Guest Blogger on The Children's and Teens' Book Connection

Picking the Right Words for a Picture Book by VS Grenier First, let me say there are four types of picture books. Story Books: Most of us grew up on this traditional picture book. This type of picture book is by far the most popular and is usually fiction based. You will have a series of events with strong character development. Story books tend to have more text on each page vs. other types of picture books. Concept Books: This type of picture book helps to promote a child’s understanding. You see this type of picture book for toddlers or as a “My First” book series. These books can be fiction or nonfiction and have very few words. The illustrations tend to be the focus. Novelty Books: A great example of this type of book is The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. This picture book relies on some short of gimmick to tell the book’s story. Modern Picture Books: This type of picture book is a lot like the story picture book, but uses both the illustrations and ...
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Grow in Creativity with Creative Journaling

What daily practice can help you grow in creativity, both in the arts and in problem solving? Keep a creative journal, and you will amaze yourself with your own innovations. Remember that there is no one right way to keep a journal. Creative journaling is about trying things until you find your own favorite methods of expressing yourself. First, let yourself off the hook when it comes to having every page picture perfect. Either use a looseleaf and discard the mistakes, or invest in some erasable pens. Better yet, learn to see an occasional mess as an inevitable sign of your own humanness, and nothing to be ashamed of. Mistakes are simply stepping stones in your growth and understanding. Besides, your journal is for you and no one else, unless you decide to make it public. Who cares about an occasional flub? So don't let perfectionism stop you in your tracks. Now that that's been said, let's consider what it means to be creative in your journal. POETRY: A journal ...
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Turning the Tables: Interview Friday with VS Grenier

I wanted to turn the tables a bit this week and instead of doing an interview on one of the SFC Team members or a fellow writer, I thought I should be the one to be questioned. So to get things started, I’ll answer a few questions I normally ask my guest interviews and then I’ll open it up for you to post questions in the comments section to me. I’ll check in all week to answer them as best I can. So to start things off, how many children do I have and what are their ages? I have three wonderful children. My oldest is my son, age 15, will be driving sooner than I would like. LOL. My youngest, a baby girl, is almost 16 months and keeps me on my toes. My middle is also a girl, age 6, and is our little monkey/drama queen. Nice combination if you ask me. J   As a mom, what do I do to help balance my writing life with my family life? I tend to ask this question a lot not just, because I’m a writing mom, but also because this is the most asked question I get as an editor/author. You k...
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Building Your Author Platform

An author platform is as important to those established as it is to writers not yet published. Many authors know the importance of building a writing platform. However, many new writers are not sure about building a platform because they feel they have nothing to offer. This is not true. There are many reasons why as a writer (established or not yet published) you need to do this. ·          To build a fan base ·          Spread the word about your book(s) ·          Show you’re an expert in your field ·          Helps you find an agent and/or publisher ·          Builds your online presence ·          Proves your ability to promote and sell your book on a national or international level I would love to tell you all you have to do is write and le...
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Interview with Margot Finke: June Tour World of Ink Author

Stop the Press! Author Margot Finke come to The Writing Mama Blog a chat and to share about her 3 recent books for children along with offering readers a FREE eBook...Talk about a "WOW" factor.   Margot Finke is an Aussie transplant who writes midgrade adventure fiction and rhyming picture books. For many years she has lived in Oregon with her husband and family. Gardening, travel, and reading fill in the cracks between writing. Her husband is very supportive, and their three children are now grown and doing very well. Margot didn't begin serious writing until the day their youngest left for college. This late start drives her writing, and pushes her to work at it every day. Margot said, "I really envy those who began young, and managed to slip into writing mode between kid fights, diaper changes, household disasters, and outside jobs. You are my heroes!" Her first books, a 7x book rhyming series, "Wild and Wonderful," offers fun facts ab...
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