Writing Blind - The Writing Mama Show with Host Virginia S Grenier

The Writing Mama show is on every Monday and is hosted by Mom's Choice and Award-winning Author Virginia S Grenier, who is joined weekly by guest authors to talk about the publishing and writing industry. Grenier, with her guests, hope to not only share their love of the written word, but also tips on writing, what makes a good book and much more.

This week Grenier has invited Romance Author and Writing Blind Blogger Traci McDonald to join her as co-host, along with some amazing authors who are not only talented but also blind. McDonald, a blind author herself has been an inspriation to many, including host Virginia S Grenier. Learn more about Traci McDonald and Writing Blind on her blog!

One of their guests today is Abbie Johnson Taylor, president of Behind Our Eyes and author of a romance novel, "We Shall Overcome" and a poetry collection, "How to Build a Better Mousetrap: Recollections and Reflections of a Family Caregiver." Her work has appeared in Serendipity Poets Journal, Emerging Voices, and Magnets and Ladders. Her Poetry chapbook, "That’s Life: New and Selected Poems" will be published by Finishing Line Press. Please visit her Website at http://www.abbiejohnsontaylor.com.

Other guest authors include Bruce Atchison, Deon Lyons and Donna Grahmann.

Bruce Atchison is a legally-blind Canadian freelance writer with articles published in a variety of magazines. He has also authored three paperbacks. "When a Man Loves a Rabbit: Learning and Living with Bunnies" is a memoir of the surprising facts he discovered about house rabbits. "Deliverance from Jericho: Six Years in a Blind School" is his recollection of being sent five hundred miles from home for months at a stretch. "How I was Razed: A Journey from Cultism to Christianity" shows how God led Atchison out of a legalistic house church. Follow him on Facebook or Twitter. He also posts regularly on www.bruceatchison.blogspot.com

Native Texans and long time Magnolia residents, Donna Grahmann and her husband, David, share their acreage with a small ark of assorted, four legged critters. Even after Donna’s eye sight began to fail, she continued to be competitive on her bay Quarter Horse, Rebel, as well as in sheepdog trials with her Border Collies, Scotti and Clyde.

Numerous competitions have lead them to winning the Texas State Championship in pole bending, to a Top Ten placement in stake race at the Quarter Horse World Finals, and then, onto their Top Ten finish in barrels at the Quarter Horse Congress, which boosted the entire Texas team to a sixth place finish. Donna, teamed with each of her dogs, also placed second in the Texas Sheepdog Finals. Never less than an arm’s reach away, her faithful guide dog, Huey, has guided Donna through the crowds of spectators, as she cheers on David and his dogs at sheepdog trials.

2010 introduced her to the national writing group, Behind Our Eyes Inc, in which Donna has served as Secretary since 2012. Her poems and short stories have appeared in their online magazine,

Magnets and Ladders, as well as in the publication of the 2013 anthology, Behind Our Eyes: A Second Look. Her short story, Dependable Pal, which was included in the 2013 anthology, was also selected as a Top Ten finalist in the Pen 2 Paper writing competition.

Deon Lyons is an aspiring writer who is new to the world of vision loss since the Summer of 2010. He has had his works published in local papers, Online magazines, as well as the Magnets and Ladders online compilations and printed second edition of the Behind Our Eyes writing group's second chapter of their anthology collection series. In the last year Deon has self published his novel entitled, "Sully Street", along with his personal poetry compilation entitled "Ready, Set, Poetry". He is the chief editor of ACB Maine's quarterly newsletter, and continues to add frequent posts to his personal website at "www.dplyons.wordpress.com"

Learn more about the host and our network at http://worldofinknetwork.com
Read articles, discover books and much more on our blog!
Keep up to date with The World of Ink Network at our Facebook fan page!

Listen to the show live or later as a podcast at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/worldofinknetwork/2014/04/07/writing-blind--the-writing-mama-show-with-host-virginia-s-grenier

Check out the YouTube Video on the anthology for Behind Our Eyes: A Second Look

Interview Friday with multi-talented author, Cheryl Malandrinos

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

Five Tips for a More Marketable Children’s Picture Book Manuscript by Mayra Calvani

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

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

VS Grenier ~ Award-Winning Author, Speaker & Podcaster

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