VS Grenier ~ Award-Winning Author, Speaker & Podcaster

This writing prompt is interesting. What I like about it is gets your muse really thinking about a bunch of different concepts/ideas. Electricity is a recent discovery. Think of at least 12 things to do when the power is out. Use at least two of those things in a story.

My hubby showed this to me today and I thought I would pass it along. This is part 1 of a 6 part show. However, I felt the beginning went well with our Get Up and Moving Mondays. I hope you enjoy.

I am happy to report instead of gaining a few pounds this Fourth of July weekend, I lost a pound. I was really good about eating fruit and having salads before every meal. Filling myself up with healthy foods before diving into the junk food really made a difference. I even past up dessert. I know, who can pass up dessert, but I found I was full and didn’t really need to eat more. I am sure; however, it must have tasted good because my daughter had two helpings. Health Tip: A good way to know you are getting good nutrition from your eating plan is to ask yourself how you honestly look and feel. A healthy eating plan will include lean proteins, grains, nuts, fresh fruits and vegetables, and healthy fats that provide enough calories to support your lifestyle. A balanced diet will not exclude any one-food group. Here is an article about the 10 signs of good nutrition: 10 Signs Do You Have It Weight on July 5, 2010 190 Weight on June 28, 2010

Donna McDine is an award-winning children's author, Honorable Mention in the 77th Annual Writer’s Digest Writing Competition and two Honorable Mentions in the 78 th Annual Writer’s Digest Writing Competition. Donna’s stories and features have been published in many print and online publications, and her first book, The Golden Pathway , will be published through Guardian Angel Publishing as well as her second book, The Hockey Agony . Ms. McDine is a member of the SCBWI, Musing Our Children, and The National Writing for Children Center. VS: Donna, thank you for being my guest here on The Writing Mama today, we have worked together in the past at Stories for Children Publishing, however, I hear you have a picture storybook coming out this year and possibly another book in a year or two. Since working with Stories for Children Publishing and its many divisions, you seem to be even busier than before. What is it like being a writing parent with kids still in the house? Don

Yesterday I finally watched, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief for the first time with my kids. I really liked the movie and found it very entertaining; however, I was disappointed many things were different from the book. Maybe it’s just me, but it seems more and more books are being made into movies. Which is a good thing, but why are so many of these movies changing, adding to, and cutting out important scenes from the book? I did not seem to be this way years ago. At least not from what I can remember after watching Interview with a Vampire, The Stand, and so many others. Yes, some things had to be cut out so the movie would not be too long, but the moviemaker never added scenes the author did not have or change the plot line. Honestly, the last movie made from a book that stuck pretty close to what was in the book are the first two Harry Potter movies, the others had some changes and add-ins, but nothing like some of the current movies such as: Spiderwic

Are you interested in exploring how to write articles by using the same content you've already posted to your blog? If you write articles, and also frequently post to your blog, to generate traffic you know how labor intensive that can be. Although these marketing strategies are extremely effective, they can also be quite a strain on your time management skills. What if you could cut your writing efforts in half, or to put it differently, get twice the results from the same efforts? Well you can and we're going to discuss here how to do just that. For anybody involved in article writing you know how challenging it can sometimes be to come up with new ideas for content. Posting to a blog on the other hand generally only requires an idea, but not much detail. Let's explore a simple 3 step process you can use to 'transform' your blog post into articles that will decrease your workload, while increasing your desired results. Develop and Organize Your

I am happy to be hosting Kathy Stemke as a guest blogger today. Instead of my ramblings, you will get to hear from a fabulous author like Kathy who has not only been published, but also has a passion for writing, the arts and all things creative. I have asked Kathy to share her story about becoming a children’s writer. You are sure to be inspired to keep on the road to publication. Besides writing, Kathy has been a dancer, choreographer, teacher, tutor, and an antiques dealer for many years. She is also a contributing editor for The National Writing for Children's Center. Hi, Virginia. Thanks for hosting me on your blog today. Here’s the story of how my blog lead to several children’s books, and a monthly newsletter. After I retired from teaching, I dabbled in article writing on Helium. I even sold several articles through their marketplace feature. Since I had taught for many years, I naturally wrote several education articles. I got lots of feedback and questions from other

We all know as writers to avoid clichés as much as possible, but today you get to throw that rule out! List down all the clichés you can think of, and then choose one you are most familiar with, or the one that strikes your fancy. Make that the first line of your poem. You can take the cliché literally or figuratively.

I am starting to notice a trend lately. Watching my weight weekly is starting to get discouraging. Maybe because I am maintaining now instead of losing. Maybe because I can see it barely changing and so I feel I am not reaching my goal. I am not really sure, but I have decided to post my weight every other week. Maybe this will help me stay encouraged. Maybe not, but either way I’m going to try it. I’ve also decided to share tips with you. Some I’ve learned others from shows I’ll catch on TV or the radio in my spare time. Like today while eating breakfast the Dr. Oz, show came on right after the news. Because my kitchen table is near the living room, I could hear the show. Dr. Oz talked about the best ways to lose weight. I loved what he shared and so here is the link for you http://ask.doctoroz.com/question/what-best-way-lose-weight . As you can see, I’m still at the same weight as I was two weeks ago. Weight on June 28, 2010 191 Weight on June