Twelve Years with Matt

Today's my twelfth wedding anniversary. Here's a picture of me with my sweetie, standing outside the Salt Lake temple. My son took a look at this picture a minute ago and said, "Wow! You were so skinny!" Out of the mouths of babes . . .



This was taken at our reception, the following day. I really think we did it smart -- I got my endowments on Tuesday, got married on Thursday, and then had the reception on Friday. That way we were able to focus on each individual thing and not get blown away by trying to do it all at once.

These twelve years have had their share of good times and bad, but I can say without doubt that we're more in love now than we were then. We've sure learned a lot together, and look forward to a whole lotta years ahead. Happy anniversary, Snugglebunny -- and I promise, as soon as I can stop sniffling and sneezing, we're going to go out to celebrate.

Writing What You Know

I got a couple of good comments to my last blog, commenting on writing what we know. Can I tell you a secret, though -- that's not the point I was trying to make. My point was actually to listen to our critics, and by default the examples I used showed the authors writing what they knew.

I'm going to go totally against all conventional writing wisdom and make a statement: I don't necessarily believe in writing what you know. (Gasp! Yes, I'm a rebel.) I do believe in writing the emotions that we know. But if I only wrote according to my life's experiences, I could only write about florists, craft store employees, and mommies. That would be all.

What do I know about being a Japanese man during World War II? Absolutely nothing. How did I learn about it? Extensive research. And then I used that most powerful tool a writer has -- imagination.

I don't think there's anything wrong with writing outside of your area of knowledge. You just need to have the passion to do the research.

Don't Take This the Wrong Way . . .

I was thinking just now about the importance of honest criticism. Not the kind offered with an upturned nose and a jealous sniff (given by said upturned nose) but instead the kind that is given when someone genuinely wants to help you succeed. So often, we take offense when someone criticizes our work. It's understandable -- for a writer, to truly write is to open up a portion of our guts and expose them to the world, making us all that more vulnerable to criticism when we get it.

But it's so important to listen to feedback from others. I know I've said this before, and chances are I'll keep saying it because it's so very important. I have been saved from silly mistakes countless times by friends who had the courage to point them out to me. It doesn't matter how good you are -- there's no such thing as writing a book without flaw. You must ask others to help you hone and perfect it. After spending so many hours/days/months and even years staring at the same words, you get blind to them.

I was thinking tonight about the poor critic, how they are essentially taking their lives in their hands by virtue of the fact that they have chosen to share their honest opinion. Often they are the recipient of harsh words. They're told that "they just don't understand." And yet, how often is their advice exactly what the writer needs to hear?

Three examples from the movies come to mind immediately, and while they are all fictionalized, they are familiar enough to all of us that I feel they make my point easily.

1. Little Women (1994) -- Jo has gone to New York to put some space between herself and Laurie after turning down his proposal. She has been writing sensational stories to sell to the newspapers, and has brought in enough money to supplement her family's dwindling income. She's proud of her work, but when she shows it to Fredric Baher, the German professor who lives in her apartment building, he expresses his sorrow that she's not writing about herself and from the heart. She lambasts him, telling him that her family needs her income and that the newspapers want the kinds of things she writes. His words cut her deeply, because he touched on a truth she already knew -- she needed to write something serious. Not too long after that, she begins the manuscript for "Little Women."


2. Anne of Avonlea (1987) -- Anne Shirley has always wanted to be a famous novelist, and she has been working for a long time on a romantic novel. Her good friend Gilbert Blythe teases her, telling her that she should stop writing all this high-falutin' mumbo jumbo, stories where the men pitch and moon and never really say what they're trying to say. Anne is furious and refuses to speak to him, but by the end of the movie, she has written a book about Avonlea, realizing how right Gilbert was.


3. Becoming Jane (2007) -- Jane Austen writes long-winded poetry that, while beautifully crafted, puts Tom Lefroy to sleep. He tells her that she needs to experience more of life before she can truly write, and tries to corrupt her (in a very charming way). He gives her a copy of Tom Jones to read, and while it shocks her (as it should) she realizes that she can't pretend knowledge of things she knows nothing about. Later in life, as she becomes famous for her work, there's a moment of recognition that Tom had indeed helped her learn those lessons she was sadly missing, even if it was to add poignancy to her stories through loss.

Never discount the importance of someone's honest opinion. You may choose to reject it, and it's your right to do so. But weigh it. Decide why you're rejecting it. Is it out of pride, or do you truly not think it will work for your book? Good criticism, given with the intent to help and not hurt, is a writer's best tool to smooth out the rough patches and create a fabulous work of art.

Cub Scouts Rock!

I mentioned Scouts in my post a few minutes ago, but that was in passing, in the middle of a whiny, complaining blog. I've got some fun things to tell you and decided to give them a blog of their own, this one with a not-so-whiny tone to it.

At last night's pack meeting, my den received 46 awards. You read me right -- 46, and that's spread between only 5 boys. How cool is that!! We had two World Conservation badges (my son and one other) tons of arrow points (two for my son) two Wolf badges, scads of sports belt loops and pins, and some academic belt loops as well. I handed each of the boys a Ziplock bag and then dealt those awards out like Halloween candy to Trick-or-Treaters. I couldn't be more proud.

You know, it's one thing to give out a lot of awards and get public recognition, but even more important is the feeling of accomplishment the boys have. My son, in particular, is thrilled to get in there, do his requirements, stretch his horizons, learn and grow. The badges are awesome, but it's the personal growth that is the real reward.

Oh, the Injustice!

Yesterday I had three opportunities to make a piggy pie out of myself. I have a bag of peanut M&Ms stashed away, we had a nice big Costco cake last night at Scouts, and on the way home, my son got a Frosty with his kid's meal. He's allergic to ice cream and I nearly ate it for him, but I forebore. I'm trying to cut back on goodies -- not that I'm anywhere near up to Linda's bravery, but I'm making some strides along those lines. I felt really good about my choices (I mean, really -- I turned down a generous helping of Costco cake! That's a lot to be proud of!)

And yet this morning, when I woke up, I found that my entire sinus system had done the dance of the woojie wongie on me and I have a bad headache, a fever, and my nose is somewhat reminiscent of Niagara Falls.

Now, tell me -- isn't this so unfair? I can see waking up sick if I'd eaten the cake. I can see having the sniffles if I'd had the ice cream. Here I was a good girl, and I'm struck down in the bloom of my youth!

I'm told this is going around and that I'm not the only sufferer. You'll have to forgive me if that gives me cause to laugh a very evil laugh -- if I have to go through this, I won't go down alone! So I'm slurping down my orange juice and keeping my tissue handy. And may I just say, if the scale does not soon reward me for my goodness, I'm going to wonder what was the point -- maybe I should have just eaten the cake!

The Apple Doesn't Fall Far From the Tree, Or So They Say

When I was little, I'd spend hours writing silly stories, sewing clothes for my toys by hand, constructing all manner of things out of paper, pipe cleaners and tissue. I also had a pretty outrageous vocabulary for someone my age, and it embarrassed my sisters thoroughly.

My daughter is so much like me, it's almost scary. She's now writing stories, she loves to sew by hand, and she makes all sorts of crafts. As far as the vocabulary goes . . .

My mom was here the other day and had the kids out on the playground near our house. She came in and said, "Where did you get her?"

She explained that my daughter had a shoulder bag with some Q-Tips in it. She was watching her little brother learn to ride his bike, and felt that the Q-Tips could come in handy.

She said, and I quote as nearly as my mother could remember it, "These are wound swabs, because my taste for adventure does not go into the realm of danger."

Did I mention she's only eleven?

Awwwww!

I can't help it -- sometimes I just need a bunny.

Are We Still the Creation God Intended?

Anne made a thought-provoking comment to my thought-provoking blog. So now that my thoughts have been provoked, and have percolated, I'd like to address it.

Anne said: "Whoa! Thought provoking, Tristi. I do believe you're right. Unless we've done something awful to our body deliberately--or someone else has done it to us. Then I guess we're not the creation God intended. But that isn't often the case. And I'm sure we're still beautiful in His eyes, no matter what has happened to us."

Anne, I believe that God intended us to learn and to grow. In order to do that, we have to have challenges, and He knows that we aren't going to make the perfect choices all the time -- sometimes we'll falter. But He intended that from the beginning. That's why He gave us a Savior, built right in to the original plan. He didn't wait for us to come to earth and see how we'd do before He gave us a Savior --He put one in place from the beginning. I also believe that when we go through a trial and overcome it, we are stronger than if we somehow bypassed the trial altogether.

In addition, God doesn't just see who we are right now. He knows who we were before and He knows what our potential is. We are always beautiful to Him, no matter what.

And no one can do anything to you that would make you less beautiful in His eyes. Not one thing.

Self-Criticism

Let's play a game.

I'm going to post several pictures, and in each one of them, look carefully and find something wrong with it.

Are you ready?




Okay, now this one:



How about this?



Or this?



And last for this round:





Okay, how many things did you find wrong?

It was kind of hard, huh? All of these things are God's creations, and it's pretty difficult to find something to criticize about something God has created.

So why are you so hard on yourself?

Didn't God create you, just like He did these trees and mountains? Just like the baby seal? Aren't you even more precious to Him because you are not only His creation, but His child? If you can't find something to criticize in the beauty of these creations, why are you so quick to criticize His most wonderful creation, which is you?

Game #2: Find something wrong with each of the following pictures.






What about these?

We would never dream of criticizing the temple, would we? It's the house of the Lord and has been made from the finest materials to glorify God.

And yet we criticize our own bodies.

Know ye not that ye are the temple of the most High God?

I fall into this trap all the time -- I have a good self-image but my body image really isn't all that wonderful. Just this last week I realized that when I talk negatively about my body, I'm criticizing one of God's temples.

I challenge and encourage you to think about your own true nature. You are a child of God. He created you. Stop nitpicking God's most choice creation and take joy in the beautiful thing that you are.

Summer Reading Thing Update #10

I have reviews for you.

What She Left for Me

Hope Was Here


I only have two books left to go until I'm done with the Summer Reading Thing. Go Tristi! Go Tristi!

Now, For Your Regularly Scheduled Blog . . . On Desire

We've all heard the story of the woman whose child was stuck under a car and how she found the strength to raise the car off the child. What gave her that strength?

Her desire.

We've heard the stories of the pioneers who pushed their handcarts through the mud and muck, fixed broken axles, walked through the snow with bare feet. What kept them going?

Their desire.

Each of us have a strong desire in our lives. We may not be faced with having to save the lives of our children or having to walk across the country to seek religious freedom, but there is something you want, deep down, so badly that you'd be willing to do whatever it took to get it. You have a dream that's more than a dream -- you want it so badly you can taste it.

But what if you're not strong enough, brave enough, outgoing enough, popular enough to attain that dream?

Piffle.

If you want it, you have what it takes to get it. Backbones feed on desire. Think you're not courageous enough? Think of how badly you want that thing. That desire will make you strong. Desire, coupled with faith, is unstoppable.

If you let your fears keep you from going after the things you want most, you just don't want them badly enough.

Do you realize that most of the things we fear are things we've invented ourselves? We worry that people are looking at us. They're not. We worry that they're judging us. They're not. We worry that they have some sort of power over our lives, and that we have to please them or we'll never be successful. They don't, and we don't.

All those people are sitting over there, worried about what others are thinking about them. They aren't thinking about you at all, except for to worry that you're thinking about them.

Stop thinking about everyone else. Think about you. What do you want? What are your dreams? When you get to the end of your life and you're looking back on all you accomplished and didn't accomplish, what are the regrets you're going to have?

Now live so that you don't carry those regrets.

And stop obsessing over what other people think.

I Hope They Call Her on a Mission (but she's not going to grow a foot or two)

Thanks for your enthusiastic response to my announcement of my mom's mission call! You've asked for a little more information, so I'll dish.

She's going to serve in the Catania mission, which encompasses Sicily and the most southern part of the boot and heel of Italy.

Catania looks like a gorgeous place -- check this out:



She's serving an 18-month mission, and they're having her learn Italian at home. They're providing the materials and she'll be in contact with the Missionary Training Center to keep her on track with what she needs to be learning.

We're all so excited about this -- she's going to have the time of her life. It will be a little strange, though. She's been an integral part of my children's lives and it will be odd not to have her around for all the birthdays and other holidays, but we're thrilled that she has this chance.

Austenland

May I just say, "Oooo La La!" Read my review here.

The Answering of Questions Asked

I had lots of interesting questions come in this week. Let's get to them!

Kimberly asked: What advice would you give to an aspiring writer who doesn't know where to begin?

First, I would highly recommend this really great blog site I found. The lady who writes it is kinda kooky, but her advice is rock-solid. Yes, I'm talking about me. Go down my sidebar until you get to the labels and read all the blogs marked "Writing Tips." They're quite fabulous, if I do say so myself.

Secondly, the fact that you want to write means that you must already have some kernel of an idea for a story. Start getting it all down on paper, be it a sentence that intrigues you, a scene, a whole chapter -- whatever it is that you've got floating around, get it down. It doesn't have to be perfect. You can edit it later. But for now, make sure you don't lose it.

Once you've done those two things, let me know and we'll go from there. Baby steps . . . baby steps . . .

Paulette said: I've always thought I was a TERRIBLE reader, because MY list wouldn't be 10 (completely read) books long if i included my entire LIFE in the count! So, I started thinking about it... because I love reading... I just don't get through many books. And I realized that it was simply because some authors do certain things that throw-me out of it... and it takes me forever to get back around, no matter how much I seem to love the story.

Then, those thoughts inspired me to start a new topic on my blog: "Reading 2 Writing"... where I talk about the exact things that throw me in the "published" books I'm reading right at the moment... and why I (as the reader) end up setting it aside for a time. (although, I'm sure you've read EVERYTHING I'm reading a million times over, a long while ago!) But I just realized that I am totally the perfect reader/writer to do the job! And my blog is fairly new, so I needed some cool and helpful topics to blog about anyway. So... I guess I'm gonna try to turn one of my weaknesses into a strength and help out any author who wants it along the way. Sticking to concepts only, of course... NO bashing aloud :) what do ya think?

I think that sounds like a great idea. Authors need feedback from readers. We need to know what's working and what's not. Sometimes we think we're being brilliant when we're actually being really stupid. So, yes, I think it would be fabulous. I'd come read it regularly.

Paulette also asked: It simply makes me wonder if having to sort through so much information from other books to find a NEW storyline, might actually hinder the origonal flow of a potential book, like putting it in a mazed box of restrictions... does that make sense? Have you ever tossed a potentially good idea (for a story) aside because of having read so many others, despite where it "could" have gone being unknown?

I only ask, because I constantly hear my author friends saying: "Oh, I had this great thing in my book, but.... whatsername used the same thing (or whatever), so now I have to throw it out... but it would have been sooo perfect!" (even if they had thought of it long before the book they had read was published.)

You know what, I've never read other books to see if they're like mine. I just read, and I just write. If I were to find a book that similar to mine in some ways, the odds are really out there that it would be exactly like mine. We're all different enough individuals that we bring different experiences and perspectives to the table.

Writing for the LDS market, which I'm very familiar with, I do already somewhat know what has and has not been done in it. I know that my book "Nothing to Regret" is the only book on the LDS market about the Japanese internment camps. Nationally, of course, there are many more, but none have the Tristi flavor. I just don't worry about duplication that much -- I concentrate on making my books "me."

Now, as far as throwing out an idea because it's already been done. Don't do that! Never, ever do that! If you love the idea, use it anyway. Just twist it up. Say you've got an idea for the story of a girl who goes to college to major in dance and breaks her ankle. You discover that another author (or possibly a sub-standard LDS movie) has already been done on the subject. Not a problem! Write the story and add some twists. Maybe she breaks her ankle because her rival iced the steps of her apartment. Maybe she gets attacked in the alley. Maybe she's really a pianist who breaks her arm. (These are all lame examples, but you know what I mean.) You do not have to can your idea just because something similar has been done. Just throw a twist in there, and then write it to the very best of your ability.

Karen said: I should be cleaning stem to stern, fore and aft, starboard to ??(what is the opposite of starboard?)

The opposite of starboard is port. Starboard is right, and port is left.

Here's a little trivia tidbit that you probably didn't want to know -- the expression "posh," as in, "A posh restaurant" or "a posh hotel" comes from "Port Out, Starboard Home." Back in the day, rich persons would sail from England to India or Egypt or some other exotic location and they would request that their stateroom be on the port side on the way out and the starboard side on the way home, so the angle of the sun would be the most favorable for their journey.

I'll see if I can come up with some other useless trivia for next time. Meanwhile, enjoy!

Catching Up with Tristi

So, what has Tristi been up to the last few days, you ask? Did you miss me?

Monday I went out in the blazing, roaring, scorching heat in my un-airconditioned van and bought several sets of plastic drawers for my daughter's bedroom. I haven't gotten beyond that, although I have all sorts of plans to reorganize her room.

Tuesday I went out in the somewhat-less boiling, but still sizzling, heat in my air-conditioned car to go grocery shopping. Between the traffic of cars and construction on the street and the traffic of people and carts in the store, that was quite the adventure, let me just say.

Yesterday, I went up to the LDBA convention in Sandy. That's a convention held every year where publishers display their wares for the LDS bookstores. If you have a new book coming out, you're sometimes asked to sign books there, and it's a lot of fun. This year I helped talk to people about the Whitney Awards. That was a lot of fun -- but I felt like a dope when I couldn't remember one of the categories the award is offered in -- and Rob says to me, "What you write, Tristi." Oh, yeah -- there's an award for historical fiction, too. (blushing) Be sure to go to the Whitney site and nominate your favorite book by an LDS author that was published this year, okay? As badly as I know you all want to vote for me, I don't have a new book out this year, so you'll have to think of someone else.

So you're expecting me to tell you how clean my house is and how much I've gotten done so far, right? Well, I'm not gonna 'cause it hasn't happened yet. A lot of other things have cropped up. But today I'm cleaning house, you betcha.

Oh, and another fun thing -- my mom got her mission call today. She's going to Italy, just like she wanted!

Discouragement or Advantage?

I wasn't going to blog today, but Paulette asked another thought-provoking question and I couldn't wait until Thursday to answer it. I'm just highly impatient that way.

Reading so many books then must be a fine-line you walk, between using them as an advantage to write something new and unusual, based on your knowledge, and having them be a discouragement, knowing that everything you can think of has already been done. Do you feel either of these with yourself?
~paulette

You know, I haven't felt a lot of discouragement knowing that all the basic book plots are taken because I can add my own unique flavor to whatever story I'm telling. This is especially true when writing historical fiction -- every event in history has had countless books already written about it. The trick for me as an author is to come up with an angle that's unusual. Sure, someone else may have come up with that same angle, but they won't bring a Tristi flavor to it because, let's face it, they're not Tristi. Every author has their own voice, their own perception, their own imagination. While five thousand authors could sit down to write a book all on the same subject, they will end up essentially different because all five thousand of those people are individuals.

Another way to get around everything that's already been done is to ask yourself, "What if?" Say you've got the basic Boy-meets-Girl premise. We need to up the stakes. What if she's dying? What if she's not only dying, but is being slowly poisoned? Okay, now what if it's the boy's own mother, who's jealous of their relationship and doesn't want him to ever marry and leave home? Let's bump it up a notch and say, what if the mother has not just targeted this girl, but other girls he's dated? In fact, what if she's a serial killer? Take the basic scenario and then start throwing every strange twist and turn you can in there. You'll know when you've gotten a little too weird and need to rein in.

Josi Kilpack says that to build conflict, you've got to get your characters really miserable. She compares it to putting them up a tree, and then throwing things at them. Then, once they're begging to get down, you set the tree on fire. Then you can end the story, but not until those characters have really been through a lot. It's what you put them through and how they respond to it that makes your book different from everyone else's.

So, no, it doesn't discourage me. I have not yet read a book that's exactly like one I'm outlining. With the 100-300 books a year that I read, that's a pretty amazing thing, but when you take into consideration how individual we all are, and that we were each given our own, unique spark, it's not so strange.

Thanks for these cool questions -- I love really digging into them. Got any more??

The Same Story, Second Verse

Paulette asked a question in the comment trail of my list of books read. I went to answer it in the same trail, but it was so thought-provoking, I realized I'd better bring it over here to do it more justice.

I am curious though... with reading so MANY story lines, do you ever get bored with certain books... simply because you may have read so many others with similiar story-lines? Boy meets girl, for example... or a classic Good vs Evil? I mean, it seems that you wouldn't necessarily put it down, but do you ever grumble in your thoughts about how "repetitive" authors might be? (if we are??)
~paulette

I would have to say that every book basically starts out with the same premise. The character has a problem or encounters a problem. The character goes somewhere or someone new comes to town. The character wants something they don't have and so they go searching for it. Nearly every book you can think of will fall into one of these categories.

What makes each book different?

1. Who is the main character?

2. What is the problem they encounter or have?

3. Where do they go, or who comes to town?

4. What is it that they want, and don't have?

5. (Perhaps most importantly) To what lengths are they willing to go, and do they go, in order to bring a resolution to their problem?

Other contributing factors will be:

a. What is their attitude in facing their problem?

b. Do they face it or do they avoid it until they are forced to face it?

c. Do they learn from the experience, and if so, what do they learn?

d. Are they different at the end of the book than they were at the first, i.e. did their experience change them?


So to answer the question, Paulette, yes, there are a lot of storylines that are done to death. But a clever author will take the basic premise and shoot it out of the ordinary.

I rarely put down a book because of a tired premise, because it's getting to where there is no such thing as a truly unique storyline. They've all been done to death and now authors are just putting their own twists and turns on what's already been written. I put books down if they're badly written, if they have inappropriate content, or if I can't get into them.

Tristi's List of Read Books

Someone once challenged me to prove that I really read as many books as I claim I do. I started keeping a list, and . . . now I've forgotten who challenged me. In your face, whoever you are!

As I began the list on July 29th, 2005, I have a yearly list from July 2005 to July 2006, and another from July 2006 to July 2007. I'm hereby posting my most recent list and, in another week or two, will post the first list, just in case you're interested.

If there's a link, it's to the review I posted on Families.com. Happy browsing!

1. Captain Matrimony Smith
2. All is Swell: Trust in Thelma’s Way Smith
3. Just Ella Haddix
4. All That Matters Goldstein
5. Wake Me When It’s Over Wells
6. Wings of Refuge Austin
7. The Strength of His Hand Austin
8. Fire by Night Austin
9. A Table by the Window Blackwell
10. The Chosen
11. Message in a Bottle Sparks
12. Make Me a Memory Norton
13. The Wishing Jar Stokes
14. The Mummy Case Peters
15. The Shunning Lewis
16. Masquerade St. James
17. A Place Called Morning Tatlock
18. The Curse of the Pharaohs Peters
19. Rose Daughter McKinley
20. Standoff Downs
21. Of Mice and Men Steinbeck
22. The Iron Ring Alexander
23. Quality of Care Letts
24. The Brothers Stewart
25. Dark Tort Davidson
26. Threads of Honor Ryan
27. Ashes of Roses Auch
28. Taking Liberty Rinaldi
29. Unsung Lullaby Kilpack
30. Grime and Punishment Churchill
31. The Mensa Murders Martin
32. Julie Marshall
33. The Rescuer Henderson
34. Murder on the Atlantic Allen
35. The Breaking Point Ball
36. Owl’s Well that Ends Well Andrews
37. The Cat Who Sang for the Birds Braun
38. A White Bird Flying Aldrich
39. Gathered: A Novel of Ruth Setzer
40. Mummy’s the Word Blair
41. Dead On Arrival Savage
42. The Counterfeit Wells
43. Widow of Larkspur Inn Blackwell
44. Ribbon of Years Hatcher
45. Return to Mormonville Call
46. The Truth about Celia Brockmeier
47. Spindrift Whitney
48. The Last Camel Died at Noon Peters
49. The Journal of Patrick S. Flaherty White
50. True Courage Henderson
51. True Honor Henderson
52. The Last Suspect McCloud
53. A Light in the Storm Heimerdinger
54. Skipping Christmas Grisham
55. The Modern Magi Pearson
56. Faraway Child Wadsworth
57. Inside My Heart McGraw
58. The Serpents Trail Henry
59. A Mother’s Influence Nadauld
60. True Valor Henderson
61. True Devotion Henderson
62. The Hippopotamus Pool Peters
63. Into the Labyrinth Townsend
64. Home to Harmony Gulley
65. Like Dandelion Dust Kingsbury
66. Seeing a Large Cat Peters
67. Ghost of a Chance Blair
68. Cover of Darkness Bessey
69. The Kitchen God’s Wife Tan
70. A Hole in the Earth Bausch
71. The Falcon at the Portal Peters
72. Voice in the Night Andersen
73. Girl in a Cage Yolen
74. These High Green Hills Karon
75. The Day They Came to Arrest the Book Hentoff
76. The Acorn People Jones
77. Learning to Sing Aiken
78. He Shall Thunder in the Sky Peters
79. The Transfigured Hart Yolen
80. The Rifle Paulsen
81. A Light in the Window Karon
82. One Tuesday Morning Kingsbury
83. Powerful Tips for Powerful Teachers Bezas
84. The Ape Who Guards the Balance Peters
85. Beyond Tuesday Morning Kingsbury
86. Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire Cymbala
87. The First Year Liechty
88. Whispers from Yesterday Hatcher
89. A Little Sisterly Advice Griffeth
90. Diamonds and Danger Gardner
91. The Icing on the Cake Strain
92. Sorry, the Stork Takes No Returns Bowen
93. Turquoise and Terrorists Gardner
94. Jane Austen’s Guide to Dating Henderson
95. Soldier’s Heart Paulsen
96. The Shakeress Heuston
97. Child of the Owl Yep
98. The Lottery Rose Hunt
99. The Window Dorris
100. The Undomestic Goddess Kinsella
101. Mommy Paints the Sky Oertli
102. The Golden One Peters
103. Twilight Meyer
104. The Kestrel Alexander
105. The Operative Gardner
106. Charade Morris
107. Sheep’s_Clothing Kilpack
108. Mothers and Daughters Klein
109. Confessions of a Shopaholic Kinsella
110. Amethysts and Arson Gardner
111. Parenting the Ephraim’s Child Talmadge, Theler
112. Peace Like a River Enger
113. Sapphires and Smugglers Gardner
114. The Lord of the Silent Peters
115. Light on Snow Shreeve
116. The Obituary Writer Shreeve
117. Beneath a Southern Sky Raney
118. Hidden in a Whisper Peterson
119. Come Sing, Jimmy Jo Patterson
120. Guardian of the Horizon Peters
121. New Moon Meyer
122. A Summer to Die Lowry
123. Jade and Jeopardy Gardner
124. Multiple Choice Tashjian
125. When the Road Ends Thesman
126. The Widow’s Might Brown
127. Love Beyond Tomorrow Klingler
128. Head Start with the Book of Mormon Rasmussen
129. Children of the Storm Peters
130. A Sudden Silence Bunting
131. Seedfolks Fleischman
132. The Beggar Queen Alexander
133. Counting Stars Holmes
134. 1-2-3 Magic Phelan
135. Before I Wake Henderson
136. Westmark Alexander
137. The Serpent on the Crown Peters
138. Towards the Promised Land Moore
139. Land of Inheritance Moore (coming soon)
140. Bet Your Bottom Dollar Gillespie
141. Thale’s Folly Gilman
142. Daddy Long Legs Webster
143. Out to Canaan Karon
144. The Daughter of Time Tey
145. Gifts of Self Esteem Woodger
146. The Giver Lowry


Total: 146
July 29th, 2007

Serendipity

My husband's always been big on composting. Whenever he has a watermelon rind or potato peelings, he throws them out into the garden area. It doesn't look terribly pretty until it's been dug under, but we do get some nice green plants.

My husband is also big into food storage, and we had a one-hundred pound bag of sunflower seeds, out of the shell. With about five pounds left, we discovered they'd gone stale, so he pitched them out into the yard, not really thinking about it.

It was only a matter of days before those seeds started to sprout, and we now have a sunflower forest right in the center of our yard. Picture it -- the yard's not very wide, being a trailer house yard, and right in the center, a stand of sunflower plants that will soon reach the ledge of my kitchen window in height.

My husband wasn't expecting those seeds to sprout -- he thought they had to be in the shell to be any good. But now we've got over fifty plants out there, ready to give us thousands of seeds each. We'll be busy, come harvesting time, but grateful for the way our seeds are being returned to us, pressed down and running over.

In the meantime, our yard looks silly, we're getting comments from neighbors, and we're never tossing seeds out there willy-nilly again.

My Baby's Getting Glasses

Well, okay -- he's not technically my baby. He's my second-to-youngest, but that counts, right? We've noticed that he's been squinting, and I made a mental note to get him in to the eye doctor. There was once a time when I could depend on my mental notes, but not anymore -- I spaced it until this week when my husband told me he'd noticed our son bumping into things. I made the call right away.


The poor thing sees 20/200, which is all in the last two years, when I last had him checked. We picked him out some darling glasses and now he's going to look like Jonathan Lipnicki (see picture). My son's also blond with blue eyes, and the similarity is pretty good.

Right now he doesn't know he can't see. It's been coming on so gradually that being blind is normal for him. I can't wait until the glasses come and he puts them on, and realizes that there's a whole big world out there for him to discover.

In Search of Dinner

Whilst combing the universe for perfect meals to feed my highly picky children, I happened to throw together a few things that didn't come out half bad, if I do say so myself. You've all been so kind to share your recipes with me, and so I'll share with you.

Grilled Cheese with Roast Beef

Butter two slices of bread. Lay one slice butter down on a hot skillet, and pile on some shredded Mozzerella cheese. Then put a slice of deli roast beef on top of that, a smidge more cheese (so the bread will stick) and then put the other slice of bread on, butter up. Repeat for however many sandwiches you want to make. Flip it over when it's golden on bottom. These are great when served with a dollop of honey mustard for dipping.


Broccoli Cheese Tater Tot Casserole

Spray the bottom of a casserole dish with cooking spray. Pour a bunch of tater tots into the dish and spread out. Dice up 1/2 c. fresh broccoli and sprinkle that over the tots, and then in a bowl, mix together one can of Campbell's Broccoli Cheddar soup, 1 cup of milk, and 2 T. sour cream. Blend well, and pour over the top. Then garnish with however much cheddar cheese you would like. Bake uncovered until hot and bubbly.

Bon Appetit!

I Feel a Change Comin' On

I don't know what is wrong with me. You all know how much I've got going on in my life -- I'm busy every minute of every day with something. I don't have a lot of time to sit around. And yet, for some reason, I'm really bored.

Is it the routineness of every day? Do I need to quit something or start something or dye my hair purple or put decals on my fingernails? Why is it that no matter how much laundry I do, it's never done? Day after day after day of laundry. And it's pretty boring laundry, too -- our clothes just aren't that exciting.

As I look at my life and evaluate it, I feel like I'm doing everything I should. I don't think I'm leaving out anything horribly important and I don't feel like I should quit what I do have going on. But if I'm doing what I'm supposed to, why am I so bored?

Can you be bored and be doing the right thing at the same time?

Isn't rightness more . . . exciting?

August 6th, 1945

Some dates in history are meant to be celebrated with presents, feasts, festivals and decorations. Others, with moments of quiet contemplation. Today is one of those days.

August 6th, 1945, was the day that the world's first atomic bomb was dropped on the city of Hiroshima, Japan. Three days later, on the 9th, a slightly smaller bomb was dropped on Nagasaki.

This picture is of a memorial built in Hiroshima.

To all those who were affected, and to friends and loved ones of those killed, I'm thinking about you today.

Isn't it Romantic?

My husband and I cherish each quiet moment alone, as with four children and strange work schedules, those moments are few and far between.

This afternoon, he gazed lovingly into my eyes and cradled my cheek in his palm. He opened his mouth to speak. My heart beat faster in anticipation of the love I knew he was about to proclaim.

"You have a weakness of the parasympathetic nervous system," he said.

Did I mention he's an iridologist (the science of diagnosing ailments through markings in the iris of the eye)?

Romance isn't dead -- it's just easily distracted.

Guardian Angels

We often talk about guardian angels as though they are mythical beings. I believe in them, wholeheartedly, and I believe mine are my ancestors, now on the other side of the veil.

Closest to me are my Norton grandparents (my dad's side). They lived in Logan, Utah, during all of my growing up years, and I loved to go visit them. They had a huge garden in back of their place, and they had all sorts of produce growing out there. I would go outside and eat raspberries and green peas right off the plants. To this day, those tastes bring back hoardes of good memories.






My grandmother grew hollyhocks, and she taught me how to make hollyhock dolls. I'd come home with three or four per summertime visit, but they never lasted as long as I thought they should.



As I look back, my grandparents were really quite ordinary. They didn't take me to expensive stores, we didn't go to amusement parks together, they didn't buy me scads of toys -- but what they did was so much more important. They loved and supported me. They were always there. Sometimes I think grandparents (and parents) today worry too much if they're giving enough to the children in their lives. They shouldn't worry about that at all -- just give your love. That's what will be remembered.

My grandpa passed away over twenty years ago and for my grandma it's been eight. To this day, when I think about them, I can feel their love and influence in my life and I know they're watching over me. Our guardian angels aren't giant winged creatures in shiny white nightgowns -- they are our own loved ones who have gone on before, who still love and care about us. Of this I'm sure.

Food and Fighting

My thanks to all who have participated in my "Feed My Kids" contest. I will be posting all results as soon as I've cooked up all the recipes. It will probably be a couple of weeks (I haven't actually been cooking very much this last week) but you shall be updated and all winners will be notified, never you fear.

Secondly, I would like to hear tips from parents (or highly effective aunts and uncles) on how they get children to stop fighting. I have some very determined children and they are intent on what they want to the point where I can hardly get their attention sometimes. What techniques do you use to keep contention down?

Labels on Blogs

When I first started this blog, I didn't see the need to put labels on my posts. But the other day, I realized that there are a lot of aspiring authors out there who read this blog for writing tips, and they should get to access them easily. Now the wisdom behind labeling posts makes sense.

At first I thought I would have to go through and label each and every blog in my archive one at a time -- well, there are over two hundred in there and I wasn't too thrilled about that. But then I discovered this handy dandy trick, for those of you on Blogger.

Go into Edit Posts. Up will pop a list of your blogs. Decide what label you want to start with -- for me, it was writing tips. Go down the list of blogs and click the box on every one that fits within the category of that label. Then go back up the top and click on Label Action. Up will come your list of labels, you click on the one you want to use, and every blog you have checked will now bear that label. So much faster than doing it one at a time!

If you haven't created any labels and don't have any in your label box, you can create one by simply putting a keyword in the box at the bottom of the text box when you blog. It can be anything -- you make it up to be personal to you. As soon as you do that, it will show up the next time you click on Label Action.

And there is your blogging tip for today -- and I shall now label it "Blog Tip."

Now tell me, isn't it great to have all these posts labeled? You can find a complete list of my labels on the sidebar (scroll down . . . down . . . there you go.) Happy surfing!

Quotes from my 2007 LDStorymakers Writers Conference Class

Stephanie said: "I attended your class at the LDStorymakers conference in March. Do you have any of the quotes you used in your presentation. I would love to know where some of them came from."

You bet, Stephanie. Here you go.

President Spencer W. Kimball said: “All of you need to drink in deeply the gospel truths about the eternal nature of your individual identity and the uniqueness of your personality. You need, more and more, to feel the perfect love which our Father in Heaven has for you and to sense the value he places upon you as an individual. Ponder upon these great truths, especially in those moments when (in the stillness of such anxiety as you may experience as an individual) you might otherwise wonder and be perplexed.”

“Man was also in the beginning with God. Intelligence, or the light of truth, was not created or made, neither indeed can be.” [D&C 93:29]

Henry D. Taylor said: “Man is a divine being, traveling from everlasting to everlasting. He passes through many phases in his quest for exaltation, gaining important knowledge in each of these. He is coeternal and coexistent with God, and existed as an intelligence before becoming a spiritual offspring of a Heavenly Father."

Elder Christoffel Golden Jr. said: “During our premortal existence, we were tutored in conditions which provided us with the opportunity to develop our talents and abilities. In that blessed, premortal abode, we were “left to choose good or evil.” Alma states that we chose good by exercising “great faith” and performing “good works.” Thus, we kept our first estate, while our Father, in turn, foreordained us to receive certain privileges in this lifetime."

Elder Bruce R. McConkie said: “All the spirits of men, while yet in the Eternal Presence, developed aptitudes, talents, capacities, and abilities of every sort, kind, and degree. During the long expanse of life which then was, an infinite variety of talents and abilities came into being. As the ages rolled, no two spirits remained alike. Mozart became a musician; Einstein centered his interest in mathematics; Michelangelo turned his attention to painting. . . . And so it went through all the hosts of heaven, each individual developing such talents and abilities as his soul desired.”

Making it All Fit

Marta asked: "Other than divine intervention, how do you manage to do all the stuff you do?"

You hit the nail on the head mentioning divine intervention -- first and foremost, God's help is the only thing that keeps me moving throughout the day. To answer the rest of your question, let me give you an idea of how a typical day for me goes.

I get up and toss a bottle to the baby, and then I check my e-mail and read Six LDS Writers and a Frog and LDS Publisher. Then I can start my day.

Breakfast, kids dressed, usually throw in a load of laundry, and then I sit down and write a couple of blogs for Families.com. I get those posted, and right around that time, my husband walks in. He works the night shift for Ancestry, so his schedule is a little funky.

When he gets home I take my shower, and then if I have any errands to run, I either go do them, or put Hubby down for a rest. While he's resting, I'll write some more blogs, or edit, or something like that, popping on and off e-mail. Meanwhile the children are either reading, picking up their rooms, or watching an educational television show (all perfectly obedient about it, too, with no fighting whatsoever. Snort.)

Hubby goes to bed, if he hasn't already, lunch takes place, along with another load of laundry thrown in, and then the children read some more. Then baby has his nap, and we head into the sit-down school, as I call it, with pens in hand and school books. In between explaining things to the kids, I'll switch out the laundry or the dishes, but most of that time is spent right with the kids. My oldest is getting to where she can do more on her own, with guidance, but the two middle children still need a lot of direction.

Then dinner time rolls around and we put up the books, get the baby up, and make dinner. After dinner I throw in one of the movies that I'm going to review for Families.com, and then we get ready for bed.

After the kids are in bed (which they do promptly, and never once hop out to get one more drink of water or to tell me about the strange noises they heard) I do one or more of the following: I sit down to write, I sit down to blog, I mop the kitchen floor, I make Scentiments products for orders, I read a book to review, or I watch a movie to review. Usually I write until midnight and then throw in a movie. I wake my husband up at 12:45 so he can go to work, and then I'm up until around 2 or 3.

Anything else I need to do gets worked in as I can.

Yes, this is all pretty crazy -- I'll admit that right off the bat. I would love to go to bed at regular hours, but I've found that in order to do everything I want and need to do, I have to let some things go, and sleep, unfortunately, is one of those things. However, my kids are old enough that they can entertain themselves for a little while in the mornings, so they aren't yanking me out of bed at the crack of dawn. I usually get up when the baby starts squawking (politely) for his bottle, and that varies from day to day.

We do school year round, and take days off intermittently. The school district asks us to do 180 days a year, but they don't care which 180 days, so I'll do school, say, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday because we had the dentist on Tuesday. I really like being able to be flexible and pick and choose which days off to take, rather than having a mandatory three months. They'd get bored anyway, with three whole months off in a row.

So that's how I do it. I'm always looking for ways to improve on the system and to streamline my efforts, and I'll let you know if I ever get it worked out. I do give credit back to divine intervention for everything -- an appropriate way to end the blog, as it began. He is the beginning and the end.

Writing Questions?

Lately every time I get an idea for a blog about writing, I realize I already blogged that very topic. So I have a question for you -- what writing topics would you like to see me blog about? Send over your questions and if I don't have a good answer, I'll get one for you.

I Want to Live on Sesame Street

Have you ever noticed that on Sesame Street, everyone comes out of their houses and does things on their steps or in the courtyard? How everyone smiles and says hello, and they are always trying to help each other? How you can walk down the street without fear of getting hit by a car, mugged, shunned, kidnapped, oogled, or criticized? How the biggest problems are things like not being able to remember what comes after the letter T, or finding someone to play with, or convincing your Grandmama Bear that you're not a baby anymore?

I would much rather watch Sesame Street with my two-year-old than turn on the news. I need to know that there is someplace in the world where we don't have to live in fear, watch our children like hawks, or guard our wallets with our lives. I want to live in a place where I can send my children out to play without worrying that they'll get snatched if I blink or hear vulgar stories on the playground.

Yep, I want to live on Sesame Street. If anyone can tell me how to get there, I'll be on my way.

I think I'd make a really good monster. Pink fur has always suited me . . .