VS Grenier ~ Award-Winning Author, Speaker & Podcaster

I get to introduce you to one amazing woman. I say this because she is not only a professional musician, but has also self published two books and is a mother. Sherry is one woman who knows how to balance her life and see her dreams come true. Sherry Ellis is a freelance writer who writes articles for parenting magazines and children’s publications. Her first book, That Baby Woke Me Up, AGAIN , was published in 2005. Her second, That Mama is a Grouch , was published in May of 2010. It was honored as a finalist in the Parenting/Family category of the 2010 USA Book News Awards.  Sherry is also a professional musician who plays and teaches violin, viola, and piano. Ms. Ellis lives in Loveland, Ohio with her husband and two children.   VS: I want to thank you for being my guest here on The Writing Mama today, Sherry. To get things started, what do you do to help balance your writing life with your family life? Sherry: One of my biggest challenges is finding time to write. I have

It’s that time of month when The Old Silly features a fellow member of the Yahoo Group, VBT – Writers on the Move . Today it is my pleasure to present to you the talented, award-winning children’s author, editor, publisher, blogger, and social networking maven, VS Grenier . She put together this piece on social networking and I think you’ll find it an entertaining, informative, and useful read. Take it away, VS, with … You can read the post at http://theoldsilly.com/2011/03/07/special-guest-post-featuring-vs-grenier/

Listen to "RFK Stories for Children" with author Sherry Ellis on 3/7/2011 12:00 PMCST - Book Giveaway today! Listen in for details. RFK Stories for Children 3/7/2011 - Red River Radio | Internet Radio | Blog Talk Radio

Sarah P. has an online accounting degree but hopes to add a degree in social work to her resume. Distracted writing is often not good writing. As a consequence, a number of people have gone out of their way to develop software that makes it a fair amount more difficult to be sidetracked by the countless things that aren't word processing software available on any computer, regardless of platform. Here are a handful of them, where to find them and how they work:  FocusWriter   FocusWriter is a full-screen word processor intended to make the creative process as immersive as possible by making your typing appear at the very front of the screen, surrounded by nothing but a customizable theme or background. It offers a handful of tools and customization options only visible when your mouse is at one particular point on the screen, which then goes away when your mouse moves. The software provides real-time statistics about how much you've written and allows you to s

Sorry guys, no interview this Friday with an SFC Team member. We're all really busy working on getting the April relaunch of Stories for Children Magazine. So instead, here is great writing activity from my weekly motivator Shery Ma Belle Arrieta-Russ. Whether you write fiction or nonfiction, it's important to write with clarity, not with vagueness. By communicating yourself in concrete, specific images, you help your readers understand you (and your poem/story).   Today's activity has two parts. You may or may not do the second part, if you'd rather concentrate on the first part. Don't skip the first part, though, because the second activity relies on what you'll be able to concoct in the first.   So crack your knuckles, pull out your keyboard (or sharpen your pencils) and let's begin.   First, pick a number from 1 to 5:   1. cave 2. garden 3. backyard 4. kitchen 5. teacup   Next, you guessed it, pick another number from 1 to 5:   1. joy

Written by Gemma K., who is taking online classes about phlebotomy . If you’re a naturally creative person, freelance writing might seem like a perfect job. It brings flexible hours and a varied work environment. And once you get good at it, you can earn enough to shorten your workday and fit in more time for your creative endeavors. Even writing copy is writing, right? It all flexes a similar part of your brain. Try sitting down and working on a short story or plot outline for you nascent novel after typing up copy all day, and you might renounce everything I just said, however. Writing copy seems to put your brain into a certain mode, a mode of quickly synthesizing information and rearranging it that’s definitely different than thinking creatively. When working creatively, you need a relaxed brain that's willing to move spontaneously in new directions when they call. Getting your brain from one mode to the other isn’t easy, but it’s possible. There are some thin

  Cynthia's Attic - Inspiring Young Readers and Writers Writers love to write. It's a passion. But, I discovered another benefit writing for children that I didn’t anticipate. Who knew how much fun I’d have visiting schools and interacting with my target audience? I’ve created several slide presentations that are informative and fun, but the question/answer session is most entertaining. For instance, I'm amazed at the number of elementary and middle-school students who not only love to read, but want to know what it takes to become a published author.  Questions like, “How did you find your publisher?” or, “Who edits your books?” One of the most asked questions is, “Who did your cover?” I love sharing information about one of the best graphic artists in the business, Nathalie Moore. Although the artist and the publisher have the final say, my ideas are always considered.  Naturally, the inevitable questions come up; “How much money do you make?” (Don’t quit your day job,

SFC Newsletter Top Ten Blog Post for March. Roseanne Dowell: How does it feel to have a book published? : "My book, Stranger on the Shore was released from MuseItUp Publishing today. It’s hard to describe the excitement at seeing your work offer..."

For Immediate Release  Stories for Children Magazine Is Now A Paying Market! The exciting growth and changes continue to occur at   Stories for Children Magazine   and we are pleased to announce it is now a paying market for its contributors. This award-winning Ezine has been working hard to become a paying market and after three years of publication, the dream has become a reality. “Since the beginning, I have always wanted to make Stories for Children Magazine a paying market for writers/illustrators. I’m glad to see my dream has become a reality. We have worked hard along with the volunteer SFC Team to make this happen,” states VS Grenier. “We will be contacting contributors already selected for publication with this news and a contract for payment in the upcoming weeks. This is only the beginning and we are planning more exciting changes over the new few months and years.” Stories for Children Magazine’s re-launch issue is planned for April 2011. They are open to submissions and a

For Immediate Release Author Sherry Ellis joins the Stories for Children Publishing March ‘11 World of Ink Tour   Stories for Children Publishing will be touring author Sherry Ellis and her children’s books, “That Mama is a Grouch” and “That Baby Woke Me Up, AGAIN!” all month long in March 2011. You can find World of Ink Author/Book Tour schedule at http://storiesforchildrenpublishing.com/SherryEllis.aspx . There will be giveaways, reviews, interviews, and guest posts. Make sure to stop by and interact with Sherry and the hosts at the different stops by leaving comments and/or questions. Sherry will be checking in throughout the tour. In addition, come listen to Blog Talk Radio’s Robin Falls Kids show: Stories for Children on March 7, 2011. The hosts (VS Grenier, D.M. Cunningham and Kris Quinn Chirstopherson) will chat with Sherry Ellis about her books, writing, the publishing industry and experiences with virtual tours. Sherry will also be sharing writing tips and trials