Is Summer Over Yet?

I don’t know about other writers with kids at home, but I’m ready for school to start. Trying to get anything done lately has been well…let’s just say, my personal writing and blogging is taking a very big backseat to everything else.

It’s funny because the reason I started this blog was to 1) get myself writing again after having my baby girl over a year ago and 2) share with all of you who write with kids at home that you’re not alone in trying to balance it all. So here, I am writing about how I am having trouble with the balancing act this summer. The irony of it all. Well it’s not as if I thought I was perfect. Heck, I laugh half the time and cry the other half when I get emails from fellow writers commenting, “Virginia, you amaze me. I just don’t know how you do it all.” In truth…neither do I.

I do have to say I am lucky to have the support of many fellow writers, known as the SFC Team, helping me out. I also have partnered with some great writers as well. They give me support, encouragement and that need kick in the @$$, which I do need from time to time. I don’t know what I would do without them. Oh, I know…find a very deep hole to crawl into and cry.

I would love to say my family is supportive and I couldn’t do it without them. However, when the kids are fighting (mostly the girls), my son is saying all the things teens say when they have to do something they hate (mostly because he has to get off World of Warcraft so I can do my job) and my husband makes comments under his breath about seeing the back of my head yet again…it’s hard to find or see the support. Of course, when a nice paying freelance job is on the table, they are all very supportive and make sure I have the time to do what I need to do. But why can’t it be like that with my personal writing? I guess the dollar signs and “mom” taking them out for a nice dinner is more of an incentive. Oh well. I love them anyway.

And even though I have been enjoying the triple digit weather that living in the southern desert of Utah brings each summer, I am looking forward to 4 hours of uninterrupted writing time. Oh how I hear the bliss of back-to-school calling as I walk the store isles looking for the items my two oldest will need when school starts back up once again. Now to figure out a way to get my littlest (now almost 18 months) just to watch Tangled three times in a row. Now that would be just total bliss. The amount of writing I could get done. The things I could do for my company SFC Publishing…and still do all the freelance stuff as well.

I guess the truth is you can’t have it all and you can’t do it all. We like to fool ourselves into believing we can, but we can’t. I wouldn’t be able to write at all if my kids didn’t understand how much it means to me. I would not be writing at all if my husband didn’t support the fact I need something to do or I’ll drive my family bonkers. No really! I also wouldn’t have built SFC Publishing into what it is today without the support of my past and present SFC Team, the contributors both past and present (non-paid and now paid), my fellow writing groups in-person and virtually, and of course all of you…my readership, supporters, fans, etc.

It’s been a long time coming, but I want to say…THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. I don’t know what I would be doing if it wasn’t for all of you. Wait, I think I covered that already…climbing into the deepest hole I could find and crying. So thank you for not letting that happen.

VBT-Guest Author Spotlight Donna McDine

Donna McDine is an award-winning children's author, Honorable Mention in the 77th and two Honorable Mentions in the 78 th Annual Writer’s Digest Writing Competitions. Her stories have been published in many print and online publications and her interest in American History resulted in writing and publishing The Golden Pathway. Donna has two more books under contract with Guardian Angel Publishing, The Hockey Agony and Powder Monkey . She writes, moms and is the Editor-in-Chief for Guardian Angel Kids and Publicist for the National Writing for Children Center from her home in the historical hamlet Tappan, NY. McDine is a member of the SCBWI and Musing Our Children. What excites you most about your book’s topic? Why did you choose it? The Underground Railroad was a pivotal time in American history, one that should never be repeated. It is my hope by keeping history alive for each generation that these huge mistakes will never reoccur. Q. How lon

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The world of children’s picture book publishing is extremely competitive. If you’re an aspiring children’s author, you need to make sure your manuscript is in excellent shape and has all the elements editors and agents look for before you begin the submission process. Here are five tips to make your picture book manuscript more marketable: Start right with the problem. Many times beginner writers begin a picture book with back-story. It’s okay to have this back-story in the first draft, but be sure to get rid of it when you edit. Back-story is unnecessary 90% of the time and it only serves to slow down the beginning of a story, making it weaker. You want to grab the reader right from the start. So don’t be afraid to begin your story at the heart of the problem. It’s okay to set the stage with a sentence or two—but no more! Have a protagonist readers can relate to. Generally, children like to listen to stories about other children or animals with children’s characteristics. They

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Cheryl Malandrinos is a freelance writer and editor from Western Massachusetts . A regular contributor to Writer2Writer, her articles focus on increasing productivity through time management and organization. A founding member of Musing Our Children , Ms. Malandrinos is also the Editor-in-Chief of the group's quarterly newsletter, Pages & Pens . Cheryl is a Tour Coordinator for Pump Up Your Book Promotion , a book reviewer, and blogger. Guardian Angel Publishing will release her first children’s book, The Little Shepherd Boy, in 2010. VS: Cheryl, I want to thank you for being my guest here on The Writing Mama today. I know being a parent and writer can be hard and I find myself asking if I am giving my three children enough attention throughout the day. I am sure you have been in my shoes from time to time. So to start here is the first question, how many children do you have and what are their ages? Cheryl: Thanks for having me at The Writing Mama, Virginia. I’m thril

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