Tag Archives: middle grade writing

Writer’s Retreat: What Was It Like?

Posted on September 27, 2017 by

SCBWI Working Writer’s Retreat, September, 2017 The “working” aspect in Working Writer’s Retreat (for me)=the retreat provided printers, so there was no excuse (for me) for not sprinting to my sparse (sweetly existential) weekend bedroom after a workshop, whipping open … Continue reading →

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MAY DAY (BLOOMING LATE EDITION)

Posted on May 4, 2017 by

On May Day! May Day! May Day! (a few days late, but—-) 90+ degrees today, again. My Spring yard is shriveling. I thought this wouldn’t happen until next month. Silly me! When the Arctic is melting! Doh. The box turtle and the … Continue reading →

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Third Eye (April Edition w/Cat)

Posted on April 28, 2017 by

Woke up at 430am, pressed on with the last 40 pages of revision, my 3rd eye drowsy, but game. Now that I’m wide awake, overly caffeinated and the little boy is at school and the husband is off to heroic … Continue reading →

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Heat Wave Revision

Posted on April 21, 2017 by

Today’s spring temperature high is predicted as: 86F. Which, in my sweltering valley, probably means: at least 90F. If not more. The MG novel I’m almost finished revising (this time around) has everything to do with global warming, pollution, the (mis)use … Continue reading →

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Coffee Kick & Go (Tremble Edition)

Posted on April 12, 2017 by

It may be poetry month in the USA, but here at PB Writes the author was up late revising her MG novel, prepping it for the agent requesting a read. This sweet, cool and sunny spring morning–after creating pancakes-secreted-with-carrot-puree for the boy, feeding … Continue reading →

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April Is Poetry Month (As If You Didn’t Know)

Posted on April 7, 2017 by

  At the recent SCBWI Writers & Illustrators Day (see my SCBWI piece),  editor Pam Gruber had her workshop attendees write down a bit of world building. In honor of all those writing a poem a day this month (I am … Continue reading →

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SCBWI-LA Writers & Illustrators Day 2017 (Links Edition)

Posted on March 20, 2017 by

I was asked by SCBWI-LA to write about my experience at the recent WID. The piece is up on the Kite Tales blog. 1, 2, 3: LINK. Such a luxury for me to discard certain hats (taxi-mama, chef of sorts, … Continue reading →

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SCBWI

Posted on December 11, 2016 by

Have you registered for the (Los Angeles chapter) SCBWI Writers & Illustrators Day 2017? It’s happening February 25th at the Skirball Cultural Center, a venue I once frequented in order to exercise my former toddler in the  intriguingly lit Noah’s Ark … Continue reading →

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Seasonal Conundrums

Posted on August 14, 2016 by

Researching summer camps for my 8 year old, round about last March/April, I became frustrated: Sports camp in triple digit heat? No. Great white shark and hammerhead shark sightings along our southern coast. Surf camp? No. Science Camp? He loves … Continue reading →

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O Summer!

Posted on August 5, 2016 by

I’ve been quiet since May, after a brief, powerful writer’s retreat. I’ve been busy this summer with what the retreat inspired: Writing. Revising. Writing. Revising a new short story, one screaming for edits of late. It’s almost ready for submission. Compiling … Continue reading →

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Snooze House

Posted on March 31, 2015 by

Lately, instead of writing at night I’ve resorted to rising early in order to revisereviserevise certain projects and I’ve realized: The loudest sound in the house at 5am? Despite our small zoo? And the programmable coffee maker’s generous peeps? And the refrigerator … Continue reading →

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Screens

Posted on November 15, 2014 by

Staring at  my writing, I heard what I thought was our younger cat pulverizing the bedroom window’s screen, as he does when he’d like to be let inside, despite the little Hobbiton upside-down-U’s we had cut in pertinent doors, just for … Continue reading →

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All Schedules Thrown

Posted on June 12, 2014 by

And, suddenly, for a week, until summer camp started, the newly ex-Kindergartner and I were face to face over our morning pancakes, not an elementary school deadline in sight. “Let’s go to the beach!” he suggested. We did. “Museums!” We went there, … Continue reading →

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Spring Break Snoozing (Wide Awake Edition)

Posted on April 18, 2014 by

During this luscious week of no school for the Kindergartner, we snooze well. Except when we are awakened from chasm-sleep somewhere between 2a.m. and maybe 4:30a.m.—after the bars have closed, but before the rooster across the alley busts its lungs—after we’ve … Continue reading →

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A Weekend Of “Instead-Of’s” (Big Beach Edition)

Posted on April 13, 2014 by

Instead of the LA Times Book Fest, the beginning of my son’s Spring Break: Instead of the LA Times Bookfest Poetry Tent, this: Also a cave (!): This: Er–and this (at a different beach–a short while later–if whiles can be short–why … Continue reading →

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Discoveries (Balancing Edition)

Posted on March 26, 2014 by

The huge benefit of being thrown by a horse and not being able to exercise for over a week or lie down on the bed without screaming in pain or do anything in between carrying on as a mother except … Continue reading →

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Article At ‘Through The Tollbooth’!!!

Posted on March 20, 2014 by

My writing mentor, Kathryn Fitzmaurice, was interviewed by Catherine Linka (I’ve heard Catherine speak at SCBWI events–she is positively famous in our SCBWI Los Angeles circles) over at Through The Tollbooth. The interview is about Kathryn’s mentoring experience–er, of me! … Continue reading →

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The Women’s National Book Association

Posted on March 1, 2014 by

I was made aware of the WNBA/LA thanks to my middle grade writing mentor, Kathryn Fitzmaurice (ask me if I am lucky to have her as my mentor and you will hear amplified hell yeah’s). She gave one of this … Continue reading →

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Staying The Course

Posted on February 17, 2014 by

Saturday morning I rose when our son (impossible to wake on a school day) woke at 5:30a.m. to begin a weekend of attending birthday parties, completing school projects, and constant verbalized hankering for Minecraft (it was Survivalcraft, until we realized the … Continue reading →

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Double Rainbow (Rainy Day Edition)

Posted on February 7, 2014 by

Not long ago a man left a nasty little comment in my comments section calling my blog piece sophomoric and trite and something else I can’t remember and why this person was so unevolved as to blog-roam and drop his … Continue reading →

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Notes From The Retreat #2: Critiques

Posted on January 26, 2014 by

Yes, I am going to go here. Out of the 10 copies of the first 25 pages of my novel returned to me, scribbled on by the writers in my core group at the SCBWI retreat, I kept 4. Those 4 … Continue reading →

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Notes From The Retreat #1: Books

Posted on January 22, 2014 by

At last weekend’s SCBWI retreat, 4 editors imparted useful information–and shared book titles they love–Picture Books (PB), Middle Grade (MG), Non-Fiction (NF) and Young Adult (Y the effing heck A). I know what the abbreviations mean. YOU know what they mean. But, … Continue reading →

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2013 Middle Grade

Posted on January 10, 2014 by

Oh, productive, on-the-button-always (not the panic button), well-informed you—you’re already aware of this list. I’m just getting to it. I think I’m most excited about Holly Black’s book. Quite creepy! The Goodreads Best Middle Grade & Children’s  Any flagrant omissions from … Continue reading →

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December Whinny

Posted on December 18, 2013 by

Sitting on the patio at Peddler’s Fork, alone out here as it’s a SoCal pre-Christmas bit of chilly, i.e., 60 degrees, way too cold for the cycling clan packing the tables indoors, brrr, but perfect for me as I’m the … Continue reading →

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Bathroom Reading (Scouring Edition)

Posted on December 4, 2013 by

While holiday cleansing the bathroom, on my knees scrubbing corners usually in my blind spot, I glance up and notice books also, apparently, usually in my blind spot. I have no idea when Dylan Thomas arrived. Definitely wasn’t me who … Continue reading →

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