The death of the rejection letter

When I decided to get serious about writing I took some writing classes, went to some conferences and eventually wrote some stories that I thought should be books or should grace the pages of a children's magazine.

So I sent out my stories complete with Self Addressed Stamped Envelopes. Then I would wait for the letters to come back to me. Rejection letters. Most of them were form letters. some were rejection post cards or rejection slips of paper. I did get one letter that was very positive and encouraging so I hung it on my wall. The letter made me feel like I was able to grab an editors attention at least enough to get a personal rejection letter sent back.

Fast forward a couple years and I'm sending out a new picture book manuscript. I'm sending it to editors who have been at conferences I've attended. Now I notice that most of the places I send it to do not want a SASE. No SASE= No rejection letters. Awesome.

I didn't really like those rejection letters anyway. I'm all for saving trees and I know that publisher have less time/money/resources. But I always read about writers who got 250 rejection letters before they sold the manuscript that changed their life. Or writers who used the rejection letters to wall paper their office or who save all the letters and then burn them all when they sell their first book. I never did either of those things, mine went straight to the recycling bin, but I did feel like each rejection letter was one step further in the publication journey.

What are your thoughts on rejection letters? Do you have a collection of them? Is it easier to keep writing without getting rejection letters in the mail?

Stylish Blogger award

Kari at Under the Fairy Dust gave me the Stylish Blogger award. Awesome. Thank you Kari. You rock.

Here are the rules:

1. Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to them.

2. Share 7 things about yourself

3. Pass the award on to bloggers whom you have recently discovered and who you think are great.

4. Contact the bloggers you've chosen and let them know about the award.

Here are 7 things about me.

1. I have a collection on My Little Ponies that I have dressed up. Pictured below is Flashdance Pony

2. I have a huge cat who may be the size of an ocelot. I try to prepare people for how big my cat is but they are always surprised when they see him for the first time.

3. I love writing.

4. I drink tea and am currently addicted to Pomegranate Green Tea from the Tea Source.

5. I could be a vegetarian but I love bacon too much

6. I am a sustaining member of Minnesota Public Radio.

7. I love to read.

I'm passing this award to:

A Coffee Driven and Adventure Bound Life

Dangerous With a Pen

Kelly's Korner

Glissades and Gabble

Darkest Mind Before Dawn

This is Not My Day Job

Photomom Photography

Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

I just finished reading Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly on my Kindle.

This book has been on my list of books to read since it came out but I think it was NaNoWriMo and then it was December. When I got my Kindle it was one of the first books I downloaded.

The book follows Andi, a girl who is suffering from depression after her brother dies. The only thing she cares about anymore is music. Her mother is also suffering from her own grief over losing a child and isn't able to help Andi. Her father steps in brings Andi along to Paris for winter break while he does genetic testing on the heart that is believed to be that of Louis-Charles. Andi wants to return home but has to finish her outline for her senior thesis before her father will agree to let her go home.

While she is in Paris, staying with family friends who have a collection of items from the French Revolution, Andi finds a diary hidden in an old guitar case. In the diary she finds the words of Alexandine Paradis, a girl who lived during the time of the Revolution. Alex loves to perform and hopes to someday be on the stage. She ends up being hired by the Queen to entertain Louis-Charles.

Through the diary Andi finds she has a lot in common with Alex and she sees the Revolution through Alex's words. One night Andi finds herself transported to Alex's Paris after a late night party in the catacombs.

I love Donnelly's books and how she makes the past come alive. Alex's diary of her life during the Revolution is amazing. Alex wants to be an actor and some of the things she says about her desire to be on stage are so true to what I hear the actors I work with say. Andi's depression is so real and well portrayed. She seems to be in a downward spiral or a dark tunnel unable to pull herself up.

I loved reading about the complexities of the Revolution and how what was going on in the diary seemed to have relevance to Andi's life in the present day.

I highly recommend this book and any of Donnelly's other books as well.

What are you reading? What books are on your list of books you want to read?

Kindle Kozy

My mom gave me a Kindle for my birthday. I realized that I needed a Kindle cover to go with my Kindle. Now I am all about protecting my Kindle but I didn't want one of the Kindle brand covers because what I really want to do is buy more books for my Kindle.

I went to Target hoping for a cover but the only ones I could find were $30 and were not exactly what I wanted. I wanted something that zips all the way around.

Enter my mad sewing skills, some fabric, and a zipper and I managed to whip up a Kindle Kozy. It has a zipper that goes all the way around and I made a pocket on the front so I could store the power cord.

Backup? What is backup?

My computer is fixed thanks to the Genius Bar at the Mac store. I now have a new hard drive and a new battery.

When the plugged my Mac in at the store the diagnostic computer didn't even detect my hard drive. There was no hard drive, only zuul. Same story on when they put the hard drive in the data recovery thing.

Today is my birthday and my mom gave me the most awesome present, a new Kindle. I'm super excited.

Of course there is the instant gratification of all these books at my fingertips. I'm pretty sure this is going to be bad for my checking account.

I have also been loading it with PDF knitting patterns. Yay.

All my writing was backed up thanks to this episode Sex and the City.

Hard Drive Fail

December has been hard on my technology gadgets. Earlier this month I lost my cell phone in a snowbank.
This morning I woke up and turned on my computer which would not really turn on all that well. I tried to restart it and it wouldn't turn back on. When I try to start it the grey screen comes up but not with the apple logo, with a blinking file folder with a question mark on it.
When I Googled this problem the reports I find say hard drive failure.
I'm trying not to freak out too much. I did save all my writing because I remember that episode of Sex and the City when Carrie Bradshaw's computer crashes and she is like the only person in the universe who doesn't have a back up. If i hadn't saved all my writing I would probably be crying right now.

Anyway readers and blogs I follow just know I am not being a bad blogger but it may be a week or so before I figure something out and get back on the internet.

Iowa, you make me smile

I have a week off so I am spending my holiday in Iowa with my mom.

Yesterday mom and I drove to the city I grew up in to visit some friends and relatives.

Did you know that Iowa has a writing rest stop?

Check out the giant pen. I currently live near the land of Paul Bunyan and when a person travels north in Minnesota there are statues of Paul Bunyan's wife, ox, and fishing bobber. I'm pretty sure this is Paul Bunyan's Pen. He probably dropped it on his way back from an Iowa Writers Workshop or something.

Inside the rest stop there are little tiles with the names of writers and the genre they write in.

Charlie Brown's Christmas tree

My mom is amazing. I hear this all the time from anyone who meets her. She is basically the kindest, most generous person ever. Her kind heart isn't limited to people and animals but also to plants. Specifically, Christmas trees.

Which is why every year we would trek out to the Christmas tree farm and end up bringing home a tree that looked like it was preparing for its role as Charlie Brown's Christmas tree.

I begged my mom for a tree that didn't have a bare spot or the one with the most healthy looking branches.

My mom would then break out the Catholic Guilt on me. She would tell me about how if we didn't take that tree then the tree would have to spend Christmas alone, in the cold, with no decorations or presents.

Now that we are all grown and out of the house my mom is committed to finding the best Christmas tree possible. I think she feels like if we have come home to spend Christmas with her then the tree needs to be the best tree. But I'm pretty sure part of her still feels a little bad for all the Charlie Brown trees out there.

This is why I have an artificial tree. I find Christmas trees to be more enjoyable when I don't have to worry about the tree's feelings or needles or pine sap. I miss the real tree smell but I make up for it with bubble lights.

Holiday Movies list

I love Christmas and one of the things I love is Christmas movies. I have to admit that it is getting hard to fit in all my favorites in the month between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

So here is a list of my Christmas movie viewing list.

Miracle on 34th Street

It's a Wonderful Life- I love this movie. I usually tear up at the beginning but the water works really get going at the end.

Elf- hilarious.

The Muppet Christmas Carol- I'm pretty sure Gonzo is the best Charles Dickens ever.

A Christmas Story- I love this movie.

Emmet Otter's Jugbad Christmas- this is a Jim Henson thing. Cute otters. Sweet story. I love it.

Prancer- This is my mom's favorite. Kid finds reindeer and helps reunite Prancer with Santa.

The Sound of Music- I don't really know what this movie has to do with Christmas. It is often shown on Christmas Eve. My Grandma loved this movie, her copy was labeled "Respite"

White Christmas- One of my favorites. I save this one for Christmas Day.

What are your favorite Christmas movies?

Good News

Lat week was super busy. In between all my holiday sewing, winter driving adventures, the annual Wardrobe department Jammie Breakfast and CPR training I didn't get a chance to blog.

CPR training finished up early. (Don't worry the instructor was great and I feel well trained) When I went home for my break I checked my email and found that I one of my stories was accepted for the May 2011 issue of Stories for Children Magazine.

This is my second story with this magazine. My previous story was published in Sept. 2009.

I have to say that working with this magazine has been an enjoyable experience. The editors are committed to getting the best stories possible and with both stories I've sent I've had the chance to revise based on suggestions or questions from the editors. I really like the revision I did for my most recent submission.

That's my good news. I'll be sure to post a link to the story in May when the story comes out.

And then the giant snowstorm ate my cell phone

I don't know if you've heard but it snowed here in Minnesota. A lot.

It snowed so much that someone created a facebook event for it and people posted their pics of cars buried in snow.

I was just thinking about the bright spot of the snow event which was that I had to go to work yesterday but I knew the Rio wouldn't make it home. I mean there are snow drifts that are taller than the Rio. Hell, there are snow drifts that are taller than a Hummer H3 out there. By the time the matinee got done they had suspended bus service. They had also pulled plows off the roads in Hennepin county. So I got a ride back to my neighborhood with a coworker and took the train in this morning. My car stayed in a parking garage downtown last night. I drove my car home tonight and made the mistake of driving down the alley. Oh what an awful terrible mistake it was. The snow in between the ruts was too tall for my car so my car ended up on top of a pile of snow with my tires just spinning in the snow.

After digging away the mountain of snow under my car I was able to back out of the alley.

Only after all of this happened did I realize I couldn't find my new cell phone. I got it a little over a week ago. A Samsung Restore. I wanted something with a qwerty keypad so I would stop swearing at people who texted me and then ignoring them. The last time I saw it was before I went to go see if there was a neighbor who could help me push my car. I've searched my car and the alley and my house. I'm pretty sure my phone is buried in a snow pile in the alley and I have reactivated the Samsung M300 for now.

The only bright spot of the fact that my phone is probably buried in the snow is that I was this close to just switching to AT&T and getting an iPhone. I'm pretty sure if I had lost an iPhone in the snow I'd be balling my eyes out digging through the snow even now at 1 am in the sub zero temps. Maybe I'll visit the sprint store tomorrow and tell them of my sad story and they will take pity on me. I will just tell them the Snowpocalypse ate my new phone.

Glee sewing nerd moment

Besides writing one of my other talents is sewing.

I use this talent during the holiday season to make flannel pj pants for my sisters.

This is what they want. One year I didn't make the pants because I was busy and I was upset about the migraine my sister gave me the year before when she sent me a whole box of Bath and Body Works products. I may have also been moving that year.

My sisters staged an intervention. They would not accept the lovely, useful, gift cards I had given them to places I knew they shopped. No. They wanted those pants.

One year my little sister agreed that she wanted an Ikea gift card so she could get a new coffee table. I got her the gift card as we agreed would be OK the following year all she wanted was the pj pants.

I usually pick out Christmas prints.

This is the print I picked out for my little sister. Super cute right. (Don't worry. I don't think my sister knows I have a blog so it is OK for me to talk about her present)

Apparently I'm not the only person who thought so. Last night when I was watching the Christmas episode of Glee Brittney was wearing a nightgown out of this same fabric.

I love Glee and when I see their costumes I imagine that it must be a fun place to work. My job is fun (I work in theater) but I'm sure working at Glee would be more fun. When I saw Brittney with the pink plaid and snowflake nightgown it made me super happy.

Holiday Favorites- Books

The other day I posted about my tradition of reading holiday books during the holidays. I thought I would share a list of some of my favorites.

'Twas the Night Before Christmas by Clement C. Moore- In first grade I memorized this poem and recited it to anyone who would listen. I still read this book every year.

How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss- I know there is a TV special and a movie but I love the book. I love that he makes his own Santa costume.

Little House on the Prairie, Chapter 19 by Laura Ingalls Wilder- This is the chapter when Laura and Mary get a tin cup, a penny, a stick of candy and a cake made with white sugar.

The House Without a Christmas Tree by Gail Rock- read this in elementary school and loved it. Addie Mills loves Christmas, her dad doesn't because it reminds him of Addie's dead mom.

On Christmas Eve by Ann M. Martin- I won this book at a local SCBWI event. A sweet middle grade book that is about the magic of Christmas.

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens- I've worked backstage at the theater's annual production of this show for many years. Even though I know the story by heart I like to visit the original.

Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris- Not a kids book. This is a collection of holiday writing by David Sedaris. Includes the Santaland Diaries about his time as an elf at Macy's. Also a hilarious take on the traditional holiday letter.

Holiday reading list- Dash and Lily's Book of Dares

One of my holiday traditions is to read a holiday book every year.

Since I work in theater I'm surrounded by the holidays from mid November to New Year's Eve. I'm usually stitching like the wind making pajama pants for my sisters, niece and select friends. My holiday book is my own little tradition.

I was super excited about this year's holiday book. Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan.

Rachel Cohn is one of my favorite authors and I love the collaborations she does with David Levithan.

The book takes place in New York City during the Christmas holidays. Dash finds a red moleskin notebook in a bookstore with clues and dares. Lily and Dash trade the notebook back and forth during the holidays.

I loved the character of Lily. If there is a person who is more geeked about the whole Christmas thing than I am it is Lily. She is known in her caroling group at "third verse Lily". This year Lily's family is away and she is upset. Her brother starts this adventure for her by giving her the idea for the notebook and helping with the first clues. Lily breaks out of her shell and follows the clues and dares left for her by Dash.

Dash is smart, wordy, and enjoys his alone time. He actually told each of his divorced parents that he was spending the holidays at the other parents house so he could be alone. He seems more cynical of the holidays but accepts Lily's dares and clues as well.

The book is a love story and reminded me a little of the play She Loves Me or the movie You've Got Mail. The idea of falling in love with a person through words and wondering if that person will meet up to expectations. I love the way the words are exchanged through a red moleskin notebook.

I enjoyed this book and think it is a great read for any time of the year. The notebook, the adventures the characters go on and the love story can be enjoyed all year round.

What about you. What are you currently reading? Do you have any books or movies that are part of your holiday traditions?

Powderhorn Love

The last week the neighborhood I live in has been in the news. Basically some teenagers attacked a woman in the park by my house. They were in the process of attacking two girls in a garage just down the alley from where I live. The kids were apprehended.

I have to say I am amazed by my neighborhood. I am blessed and lucky to live where I live.

First of all let me say that my neighborhood is a great place to live. The park by my house hosts all these great events throughout the year like The May Day Parade and the Art Fair . People enjoy the park on a daily basis. People fish in the lake, walk on paths, have outdoor theater performances. In the winter there is ice skating and people cross country ski and snow shoe in the park. In the winter I skate in the park at least once a week. I actually can't wait until skating opens up for the season.

There are fireworks in the park for the 4th of July. Not big sparkley Downtown fireworks but fireworks over the lake with neighbors and friends.

There is an Art Sled Rally in the winter where people slide down the hill home made sleds that look like Speeders from Star Wars.

A group of neighborhood photographers have been running a 365 neighborhood photo project for two years. Check it out here.

I am proud of my neighborhood. In response to these attacks neighbors have organized a peace vigil in the park tonight. It's BYOFire Pit (if you have one) or Hot Beverage to share.

The mother who was attacked wrote a letter encouraging compassion and love for the kids who did this.

Another neighbor wrote an essay for MPR

I bought a condo in the Powderhorn neighborhood six years ago. Some days I wish I'd waited when I see how cheap real estate is now. But then I walk a half a block to the park and I am reminded again why I love where I live.

I'm a Winner

I won. I won. I won.

I wrote 50,000 words in November.

I owe a huge thank you to my writing group. Without them I would have given up last week.

Now to keep the momentum up.

Also time to start my holiday crafting. It's not even December and I have two pairs of PJ pants cut out so I'm way ahead of the game.

Thanksgiving memories and important life lessons

One of the most memorable Thanksgivings was a trip to New York City for Thanksgiving. My parents and sibs were there and my aunt and uncle and their three kids were there. Despite my parents both being from upstate New York we lived in the midwest and this was the first time we'd ever been to New York City.

We did the whole Thanksgiving in New York thing. We saw Miss Saigon, ate Thanksgiving dinner at Tavern on the Green, went to the Empire State Building and marveled at the Black Friday line outside of FAO Schwarz.

It was this Thanksgiving where I learned an important life lesson.

When my mom knocked at the door of my hotel room it was still dark but she was ready to go and get a good spot for the parade.

When we got to our spot on the parade route it was drizzling so we bought $2 umbrellas, an hour later it was raining and the umbrellas were $4 so we actually saved money by being up that early.

My stepdad and sister showed up later, you know closer to when the parade actually starts.

My brother never showed up. Keep in mind this was before the days of cell phones and texting.

When we got to the hotel there was a message from my brother- he had been invited to watch the parade from the warm, dry, hotel room of my uncle and his family. We had been invited too but by the time the call came we missed it.

The important lesson in this is that sometimes the early bird doesn't get the worm. Sometimes the late riser gets continental breakfast at the Radisson or Marriot.

But we were in the front row for the parade. I'm pretty sure Kenny Rodgers and 98 degrees or NSYNC or whatever boy band it was that year wouldn't have looked as awesome from the warm hotel room.

My Thankful List

Due to work and an impending storm of the century of the week I'm celebrating Turkey day with friends in the Cities. I'm not sure that I'll have enough time to list all the things I'm thankful for at dinner so I'll do it here.

I'm Thankful for

My family- Mom, John, Dad, Kim, James, Tina, Chloe and all my cousins, aunts and uncles.

Friends- I have friends who have been in my life for a long time. Love reconnecting with old friends and the new friends who have come into my life

My job and the awesome friends I have there. My job is a fun job and at the end of the day I still have energy and inspiration t0 write.

My home- I may be underwater on my condo(who isn't) but I am not in over my head and for that I'm thankful.

My health-fitness, running, biking, my friends at the gym.

My writing- I continue to work on my middle grade novel and a picture book manuscript inspired by the Leader Dogs my mom trains. I had story published in Chicken Soup for the Runner's Soul this year.

The cats- My big cat for always greeting me at the door and wanting attention and my little cat for letting me pet her but only on her terms

NaNo update

I'm behind on my word count. Really behind.I've thought about giving up on this NaNo almost every day this week. Basically my neck hurt for a couple days and I wasn't sure if the NaNo was worth the neck pain.

But I've kept going and I'm hoping that the epic border battle between the Vikings and the Packers will inspire some words. I'm not sure they will all be good words.

My NaNo takes place at a drama camp and while it may seem that football and drama camp would be unrelated I think they are a lot closer than one may think. Being a Vikings fan is full of drama. First there is the whole Brett Favre element. Retired, not retired, injured but playing. Then Randy Moss comes back only to leave again because well he's still Randy Moss. Was there actually some sort of magical Sampson like power in Jared Allen's mullet? Last year lead the league in sacks, this year he is 25th. Then there is the question of Brad Childress. Will he continue to "coach" or will he be fired? Now I'm wondering if I should have written my NaNo novel about a football team and the disappointing end to the last season and their rocky season following the loss.

OK I love Harry Potter.

I first met Harry Potter when I moved to the Twin Cities eleven years ago. I was working in a place known as the Fur Salon. I basically brushed and styled Elmos's fur in between Sesame Street Live tours. Someone recommended the books to me and I read the first three. When the fourth book came out I bought it and read it on the plane on the way home from a trip to California.

I was just out of college but I never quit reading YA. I would just keep the cover of my YA novel hidden by something more serious. See I was an "advanced reader" so I hung out with the smart kids. The smart kids made fun of my reading choices. Like why was I reading The Lord of the Rings the summer before ninth grade, they all read it in sixth grade and were reading War and Peace or something.

I remember boarding the plane while reading Goblet of Fire and seeing other grown ups reading the book. Not just grown ups like me who could still pass for teenagers (seriously the flight attendant asked if we were old enough to sit in the emergency exit row) but fifty year old college professor types reading kids books. In public. It made me do a little happy dance. Yay I can read kids books in public now. My friend's mom even wanted to borrow my books because her book club was reading them. I leant them to her but that is another story.

It was around this time that I started dreaming about being a writer. OK really I wanted to be a writer before that but I had to major in something in college so I picked theater. Since I loved MG and YA fiction that is what I wanted to write. But I was scared of failing so I started with poetry.

Needless to say I'm a Harry Potter fan.

Last night November 19 came early and I got to go to a special screening of the Harry Potter 7 part 1. OK first off I was really excited. I started my happy excited dance at around 3. I left to get in line earlier than our planned meeting time because what else was I going to do with my day besides obsess about seeing Harry Potter. I got a good spot in line and one of the people in our group had a kid with them who did the bolt-past-everyone-and-save-us-seven-seats thing as soon as they let us in.

The movie is awesome. I know everyone will see it on Friday so I won't say anything else until then.