Saturday, October 22, 2011

Great quote from Steve Jobs

I came across this quote from the late Steve Jobs a few days ago and thought I'd pass it on:


"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma--which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice.  And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.  They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary."

--Steve Jobs
   1955-2011

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Sunday Musings . . . I'm back, yes, really!

Hi everyone!

Long time, no see . . . yes, I’m back. So sorry I was gone so long but I had to deal with a few personal issues, including unemployment (lost my job in 2010). And with my husband working only part-time, it has been quite stressful to say the least. But I’ve been quite busy, nevertheless, transporting the kids to school and their various activities, doing some freelance proofreading, and of course, working on my middle-grade novel.

But enough about me . . . what I really want to focus on with this comeback post is the DEBUT PUBLICATION of my long-time blogger friend, TESS HILMO’s middle-grade mystery, WITH A NAME LIKE LOVE (Farrar, Straus & Giroux/Macmillan, Margaret Ferguson Books, 2011). The excerpts I read on amazon had me wishin’ I had a Kindle to download the story right away. With a Name Like Love received 2 fantastic STARRED REVIEWS—from Kirkus and the esteemed School Library Journal—before it’s publication date (Sept. 27, 2011). That is a HUGE accomplishment! Congratulations, Tess!




You’ll find a wonderful interview with Tess on Robyn Campbell’s blog, Putting Pen to Paper (Hi Robyn!), as well as this interview with Tess over at CYNSATIONS, the blog of well-known author & resource of publishing info, Cynthia Leitich Smith. (And speaking of Cynthia, you have got to check out this inspiring guest post she wrote over at Adventures in Children’s Publishing, “Your Only Real Competition is Yourself.” Doesn’t she speak the truth?)


*** CONTEST ALERT ***

IN CASE YOU’RE INTERESTED, you can win a copy of TESS HILMO’s With A Name Like Love by leaving a comment at Mother Daughter Book Club.com under the post Book Review and Giveaway: With A Name Like Love by Tess Hilmo. THE CONTEST ENDS OCT. 12th midnight (PDT). Good Luck!

AND, don’t forget to read Tess’ guest post at this same site, where she offers great writerly wisdom on The Power of Words.



You know, there’s been so, so many great blog posts this past year. Did anyone see the wonderful Tribute to Rita Williams-Garcia (author of the 2011 Scott O’Dell and 2011 Coretta Scott King Award-winning novel, One Crazy Summer) by her editor Rosemary Brosnan? This greatly inspiring read is in the July/August 2011 issue of The Horn Book magazine. I think most writers would give their right arm (and leg!) to have such a wonderful author-editor relationship as theirs!

Another great motivational read I came across was a post back in June entitled What’s Holding You Back? by guest writer, Joanne Kraft, on the blog of literary agent Rachelle Gardner.

Finally, here’s another post I though I’d mention. I came across it a few days ago, and it is SO TRUE. It’s called Write What You Love, But Make Sure Only You Can Write It, written by Martina, one of the bloggers at Adventures in Children’s Publishing. I wholeheartedly agree with Martina when she says, “If your pages could have been written by anyone else, there probably isn’t enough of you on them yet.”



Well, that’s it for now folks. I’ve really enjoyed writing this post and intend to post more in the coming days, weeks, and months. I can’t promise a set schedule but I do hope to be more consistent!

And I must give a shout-out to a great blogger friend, Robyn Campbell, who, commenting on my last blog entry, encouraged me to come back to the blogosphere. Thank you, Robyn! :)



Enjoy your week, everyone!  :)