REFLECTING ON MLK Jr. DAY

I finished up “The Help” this morning. It was the perfect e-book to snuggle up with on this Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The author’s words and moving tale helped me remember how far the Civil Right movement has progressed since the 1950’s and 1960’s. But yet, I am also reminded at how much more we still need to do as a society to realize true equality for all. Take care and be respectful of each other, my friends!

GOLDILOCKS?

In need of hibernation, Daddy Bear was mildly perturbed to discover this unlikely duo curled up in his bed.

THE EARLY BIRD CATCHES THE WORM

12:45 PM, July 4th, 2011 - 

Dad saunters in to oldest son's room, turns on the overhead light and says, "Rise and shine, son. It's time to get up and at 'em." 

Son, with covers pulled tightly up over his head, angrily replies, "Why do I have to get up so early!" 

Can hardly wait 'til this one reaches his teen years ...

SUMMER READING

Finished Jack London's "Call of the Wild" for my first book of the Summer. Really enjoyed following the brutal descriptions of Buck the dog in the harsh wilderness of Alaska. Now continuing on with another classic, "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Thank you Kindle for providing these great works of literature to me for FREE!!! 

What are you currently devouring in paperback or electronic form?

IT'S OVER!!!

NANOWRIMO Results:

103 pages, 2 short novels, and 50,263 words completed in 29 days.

And now, I nap ... : )

 

NaNoWriMo Total Word Count for 28 Days:

46,903 Words

I finally became "unstuck" today. I figured out why the Bully in "Winston and the Lint Monster" is so ticked off. It now makes sense, and I couldn't be more excited. This tale just might have a chance to blossom into a full-blown book after all!

NaNoWriMo Total Word Count for 21 Days:

34,664 Words

I planned to hit the 40,000 word plateau by this point, but such is life. Only nine more days left and counting on this adventure to write a novel of 50,000 or more words in 30 days!

WINSTON AND THE LINT MONSTER (FIRST DRAFT INTRODUCTION)

National Novel Writing Month has been going on for a grand total of fourteen days. In that time, I've put in a lot of words and many hours in a quest to get rough drafts completed for a few easy reader chapter books. Here is a sample first draft opening of the second one called, "Winston and the Lint Monster."

Winston threw the television remote across the room. It hit the wall and shattered into three jagged pieces, leaving a quarter size rip in the orange and lime striped wallpaper. The fragments landed unceremoniously on the stained shag carpet in the living room. His first thought was, “What did I just do? Oh, well ... the clicker hasn’t worked right in a couple of weeks.” The TV had been stuck on the same channel for seventeen days, ten hours, and twenty-nine minutes. But who’s counting?

Winston wanted to change the channel to his favorite program, “Robot Wars.” But, the stupid electronic device had ceased to operate correctly for so long now that he wasn’t even sure if he’d remember what his favorite robot, Megatron, looked like. Instead, the British History Channel played old speeches from this guy named Churchill and showed clips of World War 2.

Frankly, he was tired of the programs. Sure watching military planes shoot, bomb, and get in dogfights in the sky over London was cool. But, he longed to watch something that was a little more modern. Ancient war clips and political speeches from some old guy named Churchill simply didn’t do it for him.

  

“Winston? What just happened?” questioned his Mom ...

What do you think? Would this opening catch your attention if you were an 8 to 12 years old reader? As always, feedback is appreciated ...

One Done, Two to Go for NaNoWriMo

The rough draft of "Macaroni and the Binky - The Novel" is done! It clocks in at a stout 17,309 words and sixteen chapters. I'm going to have to wield a heavy axe to cut it down to a more marketable 10,000 words or less in order to reach my target audience. *sigh* Time to start writing easy reader chapter book #2 for the month!

NATIONAL NOVEL WRITING MONTH REPORT (DAY 7)

NaNoWriMo Total Word Count for 7 Days: 

 

15,188 Words

  

I've completed the first thirteen chapters of "Macaroni and the Binky - the Novel." It's been both rewarding and tiring at the same time. And, yes, several hours of writer's block has intervened on this venture. But overall, I am satisfied with my progress so far.

 

Once the month of November turns over the driver's seat to December, I'm sure to have a boatload of editing and revising to do. But that is a good thing! Instead of multiple stories sitting in my head and collecting cobwebs, I'm being proactive and letting them see the light of day (in rough draft form for now, at least).

 

I only have another 34,812 words to go to meet my goal of 50, 000 words for this month! Wish me luck ...

I voted!

KICKOFF PREP.

Getting ready for the impending 12 midnight NaNoWriMo kickoff by hanging out and brainstorming for my first novel in a place where all the meals are happy!

POLITICS, ANYONE?

When will it end???

The intrusive, bitter, highly political messages invading U.S. homes and airwaves are not helpful. It appears that as more and more money pours into the campaign coffers, the number of crass and truth-averse messages grow exponentially. Is it any wonder that voters are having trouble deciphering the truth from the rhetoric?

As a contrast to all the lies, fear-mongering, and all out hateful messages, one citizen held up a sign at a recent rally in Seattle that read,

"I don't really have a message so I drew a bunny."

 

Well said, concerned American citizen. I salute you! 

HELLO?

Yes, it's been way too long! It seems like forever since I've posted on my blog. As it turns out, I've been away from writing creatively for a bit.

I happily returned to my classroom for the start of another tremendous school year. And much of my energy has been directed toward my students and the associated educational duties instead of to writing since then. But, I'm pleased to announce that all that is about to change!

Coming up in about 96 hours, I shall be starting "NaNoWriMo." For those of you that have absolutely no clue about what I'm talking about, that weird sounding acronym stands for "National Novel Writing Month." The goal of the event is to get a bunch of writers to drink extreme amounts of caffeine and produce the first draft of an entire book (or ten) consisting of 50,000 words or more in just thirty days. I'm psyched, but nervous.

I'd like to invite you to stop by and check back on this blogs or visit the "NaNoWriMo" website for updates. Here goes ...

LAZY ON A SUNDAY AFTERNOON

A lazy man with a time saving idea is a dangerous thing ... ; )

GREAT BOAT

I absolutely love Craigslist! Not only is it a good place to sell and/or buy hidden treasures, but is also a source of terrific inadvertent comedy. In perusing advertisements for watercraft, I stumbled upon this gem:

1972 16' Glasply with 1981 Chrysler. This has been a great boat for me until it sank last week. It has a small hole in the hull that should be easy to fix.

For future reference, using the words boat and sank in the same advertisement when you're attempting to sell the aforementioned water vehicle is probably a bad idea. In my humble opinion, MOST PEOPLE PREFER BOATS THAT FLOAT!

HURRAY FOR LIBRARIES

Libraries. I am a huge fan. Where else but in a library can a person discover FREE soul enriching, mind bending, or edge of your seat bound paper goodness? Heck, even the "Old Spice Guy" agrees with me. What do you think?

FLASHIN' IN SEATTLE

Seattle is a city known around the globe for its vast natural resources and beauty. We are also recognized for our trend-setting people, recreational amenities, educational opportunities, and cutting edge businesses. Computer innovations, aircraft technology, grunge music, coffee houses, and incredibly successful sports teams (I wish) are just a few of the things that have sprung from our little corner of the world.

We are changing the world in other ways, too. Specifically, FLASH MOBS. I know ... I may be stretching it a bit on the changing the world part. But, Flash Mobs are a fun and healthy diversion that are springing up more and more in this area since warmer weather has arrived.

If you aren't sure what this mob thing is, I've embedded a video of one held at the Seattle Central Library on July 1st of this year. Enjoy!

YOUR STORY HAS BEEN SUBMITTED

After submitting my story, "Macaroni and the Binky," to a couple of agents and patiently awaiting a response for over four months (and getting none - not even a rejection letter), I decided to try something different.  It's only so long that I can keep barking up the same tree, ya know? 

I told myself when I began the submission process that I would give a few agents first crack at my work. If they rejected it or didn't respond to my queries, I would go a different route. Since not hearing even a peep from those professionals, I chose an alternate path to possible publication.

I know what you're probably thinking. "Did Moen decide to self publish?"

And the short answer to that question is, "No, not at this time."

Instead, I've worked like a dog to rewrite "Macaroni ..." yet again. This time, I've edited and revised it down to a lean and mean 497 words. I had to cut my story down to this size to fit the guidelines necessary to submit it for the Cheerios® Spoonful of Stories® New Author Contest. I'm crossing my fingers, toes, and other appendages and hoping maybe that this third time will be the charm.

While I patiently (yet again) await a response that will not arrive until mid October at the earliest, I plan to happily get on with my life. I have several more stories to write, fences to rebuild, camping spots to visit, hiking trails to explore, a classroom to set-up, and a supporting family to love.

Until next time, take care ...

HURRAY FOR READING!!!

Gotta love this:

Disadvantaged students given a gift of only 12 books to take home at the end of the school year earn higher test scores.

If this really works, why don't we do more things like this as a society? It makes me wonder ...