POND SCUM AND THE BOOK DIVAS

When I arrived in Houston on Sunday - Paula Morgan knew exactly how to make sure she picked up the right person at the airport. (I can only imagine what the other travelers at baggage claim were thinking!) Paula is the librarian at Sampson Elementary School and the woman who coordinated my 10 day/20 school Pond Scum blitz.

Starting Monday (bright and early) I immediately learned that the CyFair Independent School District is a unique fantastic system of schools with librarians filled with joy and excitement, which makes an author-type feel like a million bucks. I also learned that not only was I being hosted by amazing educators - but I was mingling with Librarian Royalty because these CyFairians are none other than the BOOK DIVAS of TLA and ALA synchronized book cart fame! (I know many of you have had the pleasure of seeing them in book cart action)

I am sure the video below does not do them justice - but I have seen the official Book Divas Calendar in one or two offices - and maybe I can get one as a parting gift of my author visit! Check them out - then imagine these fantastic folks are my hosts!!!



I visit 2 schools a day and do 2 presentations at each. After 4 full days I can tell you that these kids are fantastic (mostly 4th and 5th) and so full of energy and eagerness. I'm trying some new ideas and it's all been going very well (so far) and I'm having a great time integrating my cartooning and Pond Scum in a fun, interactive talk about writing and creativity.


I've got lots more to talk about - but I have to gear up for the Red Sox's last hurrah (oh, how I've been here before).

I'll post more over the weekend and report on the great food I've been eating, some more about the Horned Toad Tales list and my dinner with my Rhinestone Reader pen-pal (tomorrow night).

POND SCUM TEXAS TOUR

Monday begins my two week voyage through the Cypress Fairbanks Independent School District.

4 presentations/ 2 schools a day for 10 days! I am incredibly psyched and already fielding great emails from the kids I'm about to meet!

Tomorrow I get picked up at the Houston airport by the amazing Paula Morgan (from Sampson Elementary), who has informed me I'll be signing books late into the night in my hotel room to get ready for Day 1 of the "Pond Scum Texas Tour". (sadly it's an off-day for the Red Sox/Indians so I imagine I'll have to settle for the National League playoffs.)

A note on AUTHORS AND SELF-PROMOTION. The topic is always a hot button and the discussions go on and on. But I thought I'd share how this trip came about.

Last spring I discovered (in other words - Googled) that Pond Scum was one of 12 books to be selected for the Horned Toad Tales List. Google pointed me to the Cypress Fairbanks Independent School District outside of Houston and by digging around (ie. reading the press release) I found the name of one of the media specialists involved and called her to just say, "Thanks!"

In the course of the conversation that made both of our days - Paula asked if I do school visits. I said, yes. She asked if I thought I might do a "few" schools in her district. I said, yes. And the next day I was booked for my 20 school book tour.

All this is to say - I always thank the teachers, media specialists, librarians who suggest Pond Scum to students - and I have been booked numerous times simply for saying "thank you". It's not the reason I reach out - it's just a natural reaction.

So reach out and say "Thanks". It's a nice thing - and sometimes results in your eating real Texas Barbecue for lunch on Monday.

THANKS CyFair ISD!

CASTING and COMIX CLIPS

DADNAPPED has a star!

And I couldn't be happier about it. Emily Osment, who plays Lilly on Disney Channel's "Hannah Montana" is going to play Melissa, the main character in my movie. She is such the perfect choice for this role of a smart, head-strong teen, who wants to connect with her father.


In DADNAPPED, Melissa has to compete for her father's attention with Tripp Zoome, a fictional teen character who is the "star" of her dad's action/spy books. Once a bunch of teen fans take her father as a goof - it's up to Melissa to find a way to get him back.

I can totally see Emily playing the part and am so glad about her choice to "be" Melissa.


In other news: I've had lots of requests for links to these two animations - so here ya go!

DADNAPPED IN PRE-PRODUCTION

As I sit staring at my backyard where several leaves have the nerve to change colors already - I have good news.

My Disney Channel movie (no, not High School Musical: The Musical) is in pre-production, which for any non-film folks out there means the director and his minions of hard-working crew folk are on location in Utah gearing up for the actual shoot which will happen starting mid-October.

WOW! I'm very excited that this idea I had over 10 years ago is now (numerous rewrites later) actually getting made. Sadly, the title DADNAPPED has to change and I'm resigned to it, though have no good alternative title yet.

They might still need extras - so if you're in Utah, check it out!

On the writing front: I've just sent my amazing agent Jill Grinberg five chapters of something "new" and top secret! I value her input and hope to be able to tell everyone about it soon.

And - I'm gearing up for my big Texas trip, which is also scheduled for mid-October. I'll be visiting the CyFair school district for two solid weeks of author-silliness, and with the exception of missing my family, it promises to be a blast!

More on that later...

RHINESTONE READERS ROCK

When someone who reads your book reaches out to say "hi" it's always a wonderful feeling. When that person writes to tell you that she and her friends are part of a summer reading contest called "Name That Book" and that she wants POND SCUM to be the first book that her club is going to read - well, then you go crazy and want to know exactly how the meeting was, etc.

Kendall asked my permission to hand out a "biography" of me at the meeting and she worked hard to write a wonderful piece. Not only did I hear that the first meeting was great (and apparently included quality pool time) But Kendall's mom served dirt cake and gummy worms to go with the book - and they sent me this picture of the whole bunch reading the book. And as a writer - these little connections matter so much and I'll tell you - it doesn't get better than this!

The Rhinestone Readers (pictured above!) have made my summer! Thanks girls!

A bonus to the whole thing: when I found out in what part of the country the girls lived I realized I am already visiting the Rhinestone Reader's school district this fall - and you know what? Whether their school is on my tour or not - I told Kendall I want to meet her - and I've been in touch with her mom and guess who's coming to dinner? Me!

And thanks to this wonderful photo - I have absolute proof that Pond Scum isn't just a "boy's book" and that it's waterproof!

HOGWARTS SQUARE

It is now Monday morning and not being the voracious speed-reader that my son is (who finished the book late Saturday afternoon and handed it to me with a sly but sad grin) I am only 160 or so pages in. Savoring is my style and so as I trek Southern California on a business/crazy Comic-Con adventure - I am reading and smiling at my own pace.

But FRIDAY NIGHT...ah, what a magical evening my family and I had. Being in Boston we had many choices to make and I had a list of parties to attend, all cross-referenced by time, location and "what if it rains"?

Turns out the evening was beautiful and cool and the choice of where to go was then easy - to Cambridge and their Hogwarts Square party. Yes, the Harvard Yard itself was taken over by muggles, magicians, wizards and curious onlookers. The very spot where even I attended a graduation was decorated in a swirl of twinkled lights and a stage where DRACO AND THE MALFOYS then HARRY AND THE POTTERS played to an enthusiastic, singing dancing fan base.



My 13 yr old son, dressed in Death Eater robes had a blast - singing outloud and even "dancing" (slightly). We didn't know the songs - but it seemed everyone around us did - and all those "Save Ginny Weasly" t-shirts were so cool.

My own favorite song-lette that was repeated often: "Hagrid is fun to hug/ Hagrid is full of love/ Just don't get stuck in Hagrid's beard!"

I know they played all the songs everyone who knows them would want o hear - and the last song had people jumpng up and down and cell phones glowing in the air - the excitement was surreal and wonderful!

10pm then off to get ready for the book release. The Harvard COOP was offering the huge discount - and the line-up was massive. Harvard Square had many great options of booksellers (CURIOUS GEORGE, NEWBERY COMICS, et al) and I mean no slight to any of them by saying we chose the HARVARD BOOK SHOP (I wanted to go independant and our choice couldn't have been better.)



Costumes were everywhere: two of my faves, the Snitch Girl and the giuy who was "Hogwarts".



Inside, my son found a comfy spot to read -


Activitives inside included drawing your own petronus, tarot reading and lots of wonderful store employees with stacks of trivia cards, who seemed to spot groups of bored people and swoop in with questions.



It was orderly (Okay, there was almost one fist fight with some dude who was drunk - but that was it). They had people pre-pay and then as midnight got closer, we were seperated by groups to different locations. Our goodfortune (M-Z) was to have the line outside the store at their "Platform 13 and a half" which meant it was fun to just be able to watch everyone and enjoy the cool air. It was a wonderful, perfect, outdoor magical evening; exactly the memory I wanted to savor and one I hope my son will always remember.

It is a special time growing up with these books - and at the stroke of midnite (well, about half an hour later for us) he eagerly received his piece of History (that's his arm) - then opened the book and started to read.

It could not have been better!

NEVER GIVE UP - NEVER SURRENDER

Do you ever feel like you'll never be able to write a cohesive creative sentence again? Or that it was a fluke - a HUGE mistake that some editor or agent actually liked your work (and maybe even published it!)

Been having a few of those days this week - ready to toss in the towel and see about going into something safe and stable - as soon as my application at Dunkin' Donuts goes through.

So - I'm away from Montreal - in Boston, visiting my wife, who has a summer job here. My son is with me and we enrolled him in a cool cybercamp thing where he's learning FLASH animation and me, I drive him there then sit in Starbucks, or in the wonderful Wellesly town library and fret about being a hack!

This morning I was in Starbucks, actually making a little progress - headphones on, listening to the Garden State soundtrack (again). But two women are talking at a table next to me and the spiteful beast in me wishes they would go away! Go talk somewhere appropriate - not in a coffee shop!

But as soon as the soundtrack ends - I eavesdrop (duh!) - and they are talking children's books. And then I see it - a paperback copy of POND SCUM is on the table. Now, this is too weird, I think. I must say hello to these two perfect people.

Hello, I say. That book there. Pond Scum...I wrote that.

The woman to my right jumps up and says, "I'm Kit Blundo!" (Kit Blundo is the Manager of Individual Giving of REACH OUT AND READ - the organization I donated 300 books to last spring and a person I have never met, but corresponded with. )

A delightful conversation ensued - reminding me that some higher power out there (or up there or in there) wants me to write. I signed the copy of my book to the other woman's son and hugs were shared all around.

If ever I needed a boost - today was that day - and it came so simply and with such humor that I have been smiling all day long.

Note to Higher Power: Thanks for the lift - next time I see you, iced lattes are on me.

BACK TO WORK - A GOOD THING!

That's our dog, Zeus staring out at the view I got to have for seven incredible days... but that was then and now...

I'm home!

I'll admit - its' nice to be back and if I get to post twice this month I will far exceed my expectations! It's Summer and it's Book Two's turn for my as much of my attention as I can give it. In Maine I was able to sit staring at the ocean and feel the cool morning breezes while turning out pages every day! Every day! I love when that happens, when the book takes more than a few tinny baby steps and begins to show off a little leg!

I am dodging bullets in the way of freelance jobs that threaten to bring my crawling book to a halt. But what can we do? Bills need payin' and I do enjoy to eat a meal now and again.

Hey - how many of you zip over to JacketFlap just to see who was "recently on"? Come on? Fess up. I've now added that click to my frequent Amazon, and Google procrastinating clicks. Try it - it's fun. Easy. And then you can go back to work, I promise! And if you haven't signed up - rush right over now and become part of the publishing network.

Speaking of which - I was just over there on JacketFlap and the blog being highlighted at the moment (how come it's never my blog when I click over?) was David Lubar's "Gadfly in the Ointment". He's so funny and his observations...well, very David Lubar.

Last week he linked to a post that all kid writers MUST read - it's from Kate Messner's blog and it's a real pick-me-up from a 7th grade teacher and writer. Go look!

In related news: I got me a new laptop!!! Yay! The black macbook is my companion for my upcoming LA trip. It's so sleek and fun. Apple you have my heart once again.....

HOLD MY CALLS

Tomorrow I'm off for a week of Writing and Wresting (everyone join in:...."ahhhh!"). All "job" projects are on hold - and it's me, my son, our dog and my new Macbook - and a week at our favorite cabin on the coast of Maine.

I'm already picturing the porch that overlooks the water and my setup, where I'll write everyday! BOOK TWO calls loud and clear and I am forging forward with ideas that seem disjointed and odd - but I secretly know they'll all tie together. (or maybe there's that job at McDonalds....)

Above is a Brain-Doodle that wanted to jump out and become part of the BOOK TWO story....
I think he'll fit in perfectly!

A MESSAGE FROM ME TO YOU

Two words:
Markus.
Zusak.

Man, I wish I had a name like that. Mine has all those bouncing syllables and stuff. His...simple bookends. Now we all know Mr. Zusak's THE BOOK THIEF - which was a wonderful read and I enjoyed it for all the praise-worthy reasons.

BUT - having just finished I AM THE MESSENGER I have to stand up and cheer - and hand out recommendations to anyone looking for a mysteryious, thoughtful, deeply funny first person narrative. I don't pretend to be a "reviewer" so I'll keep my horn-tootin' to this:

Read it. All the way to the last words that gave me chills.

On a related note: I didn't READ it. I listened to it on a car ride my son and I took last weekend to New Hampshire and back. Both myself and my 13 year old were captivated by the story that features a 19 year old deadbeat of a main character and a coffee drinking dog and a mystery involving 12 playing cards.

I drove him to and from school all this past week so we could listen to the chapters - we drove in silence as the story continued to hold us and make us laugh and smile...and think. We finally finished the book in our driveway - and since the main character Ed is a cabdriver - there was something fitting about it.

Read it. Or listen to it, which for me was a delight because Mr. Zusac is Australian and the actor who read the book was an Aussie giving the flavor of the story with his accent. (I love an Australian accent - and this guy was great!)

And now...I mow my lawn.

CHILDHOOD DREAM FULFILLED? - CHECK!

"I still can't believe I am an author."

It hits me everyday. At every book sale or kid's letter to me, or new review (this one is my favorite of all times I think).

But what has really made me smile in that 1o year old, beaming-proudly way is this: I am part of the SCHOLASTIC BOOK FAIRS. I still remember getting those wonderful newsprint sheets that get sent home so we can check the little boxes next to the books we'll get. I remember it all - the joy of choosing my own books, the anticipation... and then getting the books handed out and then rushed home to be devoured.

I'm now on that sheet of newsprint. And the kid in me can't wait to get home and tell me all about it - hoping beyond hope to check as many boxes as I want!

BRAIN DOODLES

My second book is knocking on my brain and the only way to deal with it is to write as much as I can in between the ridiculous jobs I have and other tasks that are pulling me in a zillion directions. (Alas - I do believe this is called "life" and I accept the challenge with a smile )

That said - this BOOK TWO is taking many forms - and one of my brains (for I have many) is drawn to drawing. I find I am making headway in my journey through little doodles that keep popping into this brain and then appearing on paper.

It's quite fun actually - and I marvel at the connection of mind/subconscious to the writing process. It's fascinating what happens when the brain store closes and all the employees go home. Ideas...snippets...sounds....and PICTURES.

Though posting is hard these days - I hope to keep sharing doodles as I write on!

REACH OUT AND READ - ROCKS!

Here's the picture of yours truly that ran in Publishers Weekly as a "Pic Of The Day", which made my parents finally admit that I really had a book published.

I donated a bunch of Pond Scum for Reach Out And Read to give to pediatricians, who then give them out to patients all over the U.S.

Here's what I think about ROR:

1) Great cause.

2) Amazing people (Hi Jackie!)

3) They gave me a great baseball cap - red! (not to be confused with a Red Sox cap)

4) They are headquartered in Boston!

Anyway - cool red hat or no hat - it's always nice to give something back and get books into hands of kids.

LOOK WHAT HAPPENED...

I wrote the book ...but a bunch of kids did the rest!

All I can say is, "It's a honor to be an Honour. Thanks you guys!"

HATS OFF TO GREGORY K!

Like cheering on that marathon runner who has just a few final steps to go - I raise my glass in a toast to the one and only GregoryK!

For those who don't know - (and whoever you are - how could that be?) GregoryK of GOTTABOOK has spent the last 30 days writing hysterical, original poems as part of National Poetry Month.

If you haven't had the pleasure of his silliness check out his site and read his month-long stream of poems (...and his Oddaptations are pretty darn funny too!)

And in my best rhyme-schemed way - I say:

Here's to Greg K -
Or GottaBook, as he's known.
Spent the last month
makin' up poems.

His rhymes made me laugh
In all sorts of ways -
I guess it's back to the prose
Starting on Tuesday.

Way to go Greg! It was really fun to read 'em and I imagine funner to write 'em.

BRAINSTORMIN', WRITIN', SCHMOOZIN'

Hey - just read that Sarah Mlynowski's new book, "Gimme A Call" was snapped up by Delacorte for a release sometime in 2009. Sarah is the YA author of the trilogy "Bras and Broomsticks", "Frogs and French Kisses", and the soon to be released "Spells and Sleeping Bags".

Now I don't know Sarah, but next Monday she is one of five authors participating in the Young Authors Workshop sponsored by the Montreal Jewish Library. The other authors who will be giving workshops for the 5th -6th grade kids are Eva Wiseman, Kathy Kacer, M.C. Millman, and moi.

The best part about the two days is I get to meet and schmooze with other authors. Any chance I'm given to leave the dungeon and actually converse with live beings is a plus - but when I get to chat with writers....it's PLUS X PLUS SQUARED!

I've given workshops - but never within this environment. It's a two day thing (different kids each day) and we'll be doing two workshops a day for an hour and a half. I'm having a blast brainstorming ideas to try out with the kids and hopefully no one will spitball me!

If anyone has some great writing exercises they want to share - I'm all ears!

HORNED TOAD TALES

This Saturday if you're in the Houston area, specifically the Cypress-Fairbanks burb - then you just have to drop in at this Barnes and Nobles.

The Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School System is celebrating their second annual Horned Toad Tales list by having their school librarians and media specialists read excerpts from the selected books every hour.

And what books are on this list of recommended reads for kids in 3rd - 5th grade?
Take a look!

And yes....(blush-blush) Pond Scum is hopping around with the toads (much better than sleeping with the fishes)!

Thanks Horned Toad Tales committee - and have a blast this weekend!

HELLO? SPRING...YOU OKAY?

On this thoroughly yucky Montreal day - a few musings:

#1: The Disco Mermaids contest rocks! The prizes are the coolest - but it's the submissions of celebrity book titles that give my procrastination props! (love reading what people have come up with so far)

#2: If it doesn't stop snowing soon I'm going to go a tad nutso. It's APRIL! Flower buds and songbirds should be outside my window - not icicles and slush. IT'S JUST WRONG!

#3: Thank you to everyone who viewed my new BOOK TRAILER and linked it or shared it or did things with it that I'd rather not know about! PR is the hardest part of this job - and without the help of friends who are strangers, and the strangers who are becoming friends - book awareness can be about as futile as the spring that hasn't yet sprung!

#4: Lastly - on a real and tragic note - I am filled with sorrow and confusion over yesterday's Virginia Tech shootings. It was just last Sept. that a Montreal school was rocked by a smaller, though no less tragic shooting - my heart is full and my head filled with questions. (sigh)

POND SCUM BOOK TRAILER Part Deux

If you read my previous post you know I was a tad reticent to post this on YouTube cuz it looks a little less crisp than I like. But my inner circle has convinced me that this is the way to go so....

The Author's Self-publicity plea holds: Feel free to share this Book Trailer with anyone with eyeballs! (free cookies to the one who has the most friends)

If this one seems too scrunched up and iddy-biddy and you crave to watch it in its BIG SCREEN GLORY - take a gander here!

IF YOU LIKE IT - LINK IT!

It's no news that being an author means having to "BE" so many other things. "Researcher", "Actor", even "Guy-Who-Naps-Often" are all roles that can sometimes add bolts of electricity to the creative process (well - mine anyway).

There's one role however that just saps my juice - that's the dreaded "Publicist" role. I know, until any of us achieve the pinnacle of publishing success where books just fly off shelves while we toil at our keyboards - this is a job for us. It's Author 101 that to sell our books - we have to use the ol' DIY approach to get the word out there.

Don't get me wrong - though all-consuming, I don't mind doing this stuff (tho I write a lousy press release). I'm thrilled to bits-of-chocolate that in promoting Pond Scum I've made wonderful connections with terrific people, places and bookshelves. It's just a lot of work...time that might be devoted to actually finishing a follow-up book!

All that to say I just spent the last week having a BLAST making a BOOK TRAILER to celebrate the PAPERBACK release of my book. Yeah, BIG FUN making it....way too much wasted time trying to get a decent-looking copy onto one of the sharing sites...(YouTube, GoogleVideo, et al) they convert my tiny crisp file into mud...so at the risk of spending even more time solving this one...please view the above Quicktime movie or for an even bigger image, my WEBSITE.

And remember: IF YOU LIKE IT - LINK IT!

That's my publicist pitch anyway - and thanks in advance!

NOT JUST A FLOOR WAX...

So it was in a moment of pure brain-cell-meltdown that I took a break from Book #2 and wandered to the GOOGLE button to see what's what with that thing that we shall call Book #1.

Obviously, to me - POND SCUM is a book, a fabulous book, a book now out in paperback!

But imagine my surprise to see what else is going on with the gooey stuff:

Pond Scum a possible cure for Alzheimers!

Pond Scum the next big thing in biofuel? (note to self: order that hybrid car now...)

Pond Scum as art??? (I was surprised to see this creative force comes from Montreal!)

Pond Scum and a connection to John Water's new Court TV television series. Wow - if any director could bring my book to life...it probably wouldn't be Mr. "Hairspray" Waters - but lucky for us all the script for this episode of his new show is here to peruse!

There were plenty of other uses: many "lawyers are pond scum", "boyfriends are pond scum", and apparently to the St. Louis Cardinal fans - the NY Mets are pond scum too.

With so many useful (and abusive) applications of my title I ask YOU - if "POND SCUM" has new meaning in your life?

BECAUSE SPRING IS TAKING ITS SWEET TIME TO ARRIVE!

CLICK TO WATCH

When writing comes about as slowly as the spring that, in Montreal, arrives some time about June - I turn my WADD-(writer's-attention-defecit-disorder) to playing with Flash and making little toons that soothe my savage beast - and then drive it a bit nutso.

To shift a mood o'mine that could be a tad funky - all it takes is the opening strains of Red Clay Rambler's rendition of Spike Jones' "Pal-yat-chee" and I'm a-smilin'.

ZERO AND FINK

CLICK TO WATCH!

Two high school outcasts figuring out the world one popped-zit at a time!

HEADS UP

Medusa be damned! Writing is a multi-tasking nightmare when it comes to juggling the different heads needed to make it through each creative day. Disco Mermaid Eve wrote about her own split personality disorder re. her own writing projects - a daunting mind-altering task if ever there was one.

I too need to talk myself down from the ledge as I try and stay focussed enough to keep one of the many heads in line. Writing-The-New-Book-Head wants to delve into character work. Mr.Time-to-Look-For-Work-Head needs to write some emails to clients past, present and future. The Head-Of-A-Thousand-Naps begs to doze off for just a minute or two. And my Marketing Head of Doom knows there's no time like the present to try and get attention for POND SCUM's paperback release.

Therapy has helped. Sugar hasn't. My attempts to stay focussed work for ten or fifteen minutes until the next head begs for attention. I grew up in an anxiety-riddled world filled with early loss and later neglect - so it's no wonder I've created a work life that is just as insecure and anxiety-filled (that's what the therapist says anyway!)

Still, we creative types trudge on, head(s) held high with the hope and desire that with all these disparent voices ringing always inside us - a truth shall emerge that is both satisfying to an outside world as well as a unifier inside, giving all the heads something to hold up together....for a moment or two, until it's time for a nap, a new chapter, another job, or even a blog post that gives them all something to feel good about.

Onwards and Upwards.

THE ODDBALLS

Writing my book is a blast...when I'm actually writing it! In other words, procrastination time! Who remembers High School fondly? Okay - you three people are excused from class. For everyone else (self included) I created a little toon that marches to the beat of a different accordian.

Please say hello to - THE ODDBALLS .

MY MU(SE)

Sometimes it's the little things.

In my case it's what sits at the base of my computer: three monkeys and the found object they protect. Writing is a mysterious process; one which baffles me and thwarts me at every turn. Still inside lurks this "thing" that wants out and if I listen hard enough and stop worrying voices from overtaking me, I can become quiet and remember the story I started that wants me back.

The monkeys urge me. The MU key begs me to dive without fear, trusting the words will be there to cushion the fall. It's a small step. But discovering I want to write again fills me with hope.

On your mark....get set....bye.

SHELF LIFE

Florida and I go way back. I worked there. Lived there. Vacationed there. Helped my in-laws move after the hurricanes there.

Add to that the first sighting of a certain paperback book bearing my name!

Yup. I just got back from a 10 day escape from Montreal's winter. We figure once you get past February's wicked hump - spring is only a scant 4 months away up here where it starts getting warm in June!

It was a great trip that began as a solo romp with my son - where we spent 3 exhausting days playing at my old stomping grounds of DisneyWorld (yay, Tower of Terror!) I got to have dinner with old friends (thanks again Diane for the travel mix-tape!). Then off to south Florida where my wife joined up at her folks and we gorged on fried fish and chips. While at my in-laws we took an afternoon trip to a bookstore and there I had the pleasure of discovering my PAPERBACK on the shelves of Barnes and Nobles.

I am thrilled (of course!) And after finding the book properly shelved - we immediately turned the book to show the cover, which I urge everyone to do!

"THE NEW PHONEBOOKS ARE HERE!"

Okay. Anyone who knows the Steve Martin classic "The Jerk" will recognize that enthusiastic line. And anyone who doesn't, put on your stupid hat and go rent it!

A box arrived at my door the other day - and recognizing the return address and obvious girth - I knew it was a bof o' books: namely my books. The sight of POND SCUM paperbacks filled me with that great feeling which comes to all of us insecure types, which plainly is: "I really did sell a book." I suspect that this feeling stays with us no matter how often it happens (and hopefully I'll be able to tell you that's true when next I get published).

Anyway - I'm thrilled and scared because the paperback version represents the real litmus test. Now affordable, will POND SCUM find its audience? Will stores stock it? Do new reviews even exist?

I'm truly not sure how an author writes new things when the head gets so bogged down in trying to get a book "out there". But I'm thrilled to find out!

Pond Scum (the paperback) will be in stores March 1st - so mark your calendars!

DOG WALKIN'

We have a new dog. I am the one home all day.

Put the two together and you can guess whose day gets interrupted the most around here!

In that spirit: I recently came across this 'toon I made awhile ago - way before having a dog.

I'm not sure if I'm prouder of finishing this with audio or figuring out how to embed it in blogger. What a wonderful day filled with procrastinating tasks!

WRITER RETREAT (from the cold!)

The cold has settled in, which creatively I find inspirational. Since I spend most of my time locked away inside (my house and my brain), the record-low temps appeases my guilt about never leaving the house. Add to that the constant care of our new puppy (Zeus) and I have sealed the deal on becoming house-bound forever.

This leads to creative relaxation - no pressure to roam away from my wonderful workspace (except to take Zeus out, which we've got down to a near-science). In this head space I am stumbling upon new ideas and bursts of words on new and old projects. My movie with the Disney Channel has been well-received (so far) and the new projects I am working on flow nicely.

Still, as any readers of these ramblings know, writing is a world of uncertaintity and in that I take the same kind of solice as I do with the cold weather. Trapped by choice in a career of unknowns feels oddly safe. And as I stare at the ice outside I know I am doing exactly what I am meant to do with my life: Stay nested; Stay warm; Stay creative; Walk the dog.

Not a bad life if you ask me.

NEW YEAR - OLD HABITS

Wow - are we really into a whole week of a new year and I haven't posted any sort of HUZZAH or NEW YEARS GREETING?

Yup.

My procrastination has followed me from one year's failed resolution to another and I swear I should stop trying to be the guy I'm not (that would be the one who imagines that he will post every day about the writing process with great wit and insight). Truth is: it's just ME again; the guy who wants to finish his second novel and get his movie made and make funny BOOK-TOONS and post sporadically about why he hasn't posted.

I have post traumatic stress about posting - and I'm not afraid to admit it.

On that note - I feel I've blabbed enough to constitute an actual "post".

ps: Wednesday night I'm going to the first "mixer" of Writer and Illustrator types here in Montreal that's being put together by a library person who wants to create a "network". I'll let you know how it goes after I see what kind of snacks they serve!

TIS THE SEASON

CLICK FOR HOLIDAY GREETING!

Yup. It's that time of year. I hope all you last minute shoppers aren't stocking up on Starbuck gift cards or 3-for-a-buck candy at the supermarket checkout. If you're stuck for ideas, then there's always my favorite gift.

To all who stumble upon this blog on purpose - and any that simply wake up here slightly hung-over and wondering what the heck you did with your shoes, enjoy the season - take time to breathe - enjoy friends and family. Hey, you can even read a book or two. I know you all like that!

Lastly, here's my HOLIDAY BOOK TOON (from last year).

Thanks All for reading, sharing, laughing and correcting my spelling!

alan

NEW BOOK-TOON

With the season rushing toward us like (insert simile here), I took it upon myself to make a little BOOK-TOON that points confused gift-givers in the right direction... (hint: "Books Make Great Gifts!")

SEND THE LINK to anyone who thinks the only good holiday present comes with instructions written by aliens or requires more battery power than a NASA space shuttle.

DEADLINES & DADNAPPED

I had planned to share PART 2 of my writer's trip to Tecumseh, but real-life deadlines collided with turkey and mashed potatoes creating a mess too delicious to ignore.

Today (at long last) I send in my revision of the Disney Channel movie and hope it goes down as creamy as my wife's pumpkin pie. (Ooh. Maybe I should send a pie with the draft....?)

Anyway, later in the week I'll describe my Tecumseh writer's workshops which, considering I was working with 5th graders, was a fun and incredibly goofy experience.

THANKS TECUMSEH!

I just had an amazing week.

Last Tuesday and Wednesday I had the pleasure of being the “Writer In Residence” at the Cross Timbers Elementary School in Tecumseh, Oklahoma. The wonderful school librarian, Jami Gates had asked me over a year ago to participate as part of Children’s Book Week – and of course I said, “yeeha yes!”

Arriving at the school Tuesday morning (after calling from a tiny gas station telling them I was very lost – note to authors: never trust MAPQUEST to get you there!) I was greeted by an assembly of pajama-clad kids ready to hear me read and answer questions. These 4th graders were attentive and excited – a killer combo for a visiting writer.



I was prepared to read and do workshops – but I’ve got admit, I was blown away by the POND SCUM-ification of the school. The 3rd, 4th and 5th grade doors had been decorated by the kids, hallways had homemade crows dangling in-flight, and on Wednesday (Dress Like Your Favorite Book Character Day) I met kids dressed like characters in my book (and Judy Moody, Pippi Longstocking, Dorothy, a Star Wars Stormtrooper, etc…)

Remember folks – I live in my basement office. I don’t get out much. Those of you who teach or work in libraries get the daily rush of kid-citement. Me? I was surrounded by eager minds and kids bursting with questions and an overall sense of ownership: I was THEIR AUTHOR – for 2 days anyway, and I admit they were MY STUDENTS.


Today’s post is a heart-felt thank you to the kids, teachers and staff of Cross Timbers. I had an amazing two days in your hallways, classrooms and cafeteria (love those corndogs!)


Tomorrow: I’ll tell you about the WRITING WORKSHOPS!

HAPPY CHILDREN'S BOOK WEEK!!!

Don't know how you all plan to celebrate but I'm off to Oklahoma at the invitation of a fantastic school librarian by the name of Jami Gates. I've been invited to be a "writer in residence" at the Cross Timbers Elementary School in Tecumseh for a couple of days where I'll be doing some Pond Scum reading and creative writer workshopping and I even have a local library visit thrown in too!

I've never had the pleasure of participating in Children's Book Week (certainly not as an author) but I couldn't think of a better way to be involved. In case you're stuck trying to figure out how to celebrate - here are some ideas from the Children's Book Council!

Can't wait to tell you all about the visit. The school has theme days all week; while I'm there Tuesday is Pajama Day and Wednesday is Come to School As Your Favorite Book Character Day. Big fun!!!!

Happy Children's Book Week to everyone!
Reading Rocks!

MAYBE IF I RENTED....

WRITER.
I know that's what I am and who I am and what I do. But it has become evident on this BLOG (note lack of ANY new posts lately) and on my SECOND BOOK (gasping from the darkness begging me to come back) that I have succumbed to the worst affliction a creative type can face. LIFE.

You all know what I mean: bills, car pools, school meetings, dog poop - the things that exist to both distract you and make sure you stay grounded in reality. In my case (and here I do mean "our", as my wife is knee-deep in this with me) - we are selling our home. Not a process for the faint at heart - and certainly not half as good a waste of time as say, playing with that darn BUBBLEWRAP thing or watching hysterical book-themed CARTOONS.

So...as I drown in realtors and painters and people visiting my house while I am "writing" I must accept that LIFE wins. I'm still trying - and making forward movement on the Disney Channel movie (slow but steady-ish). I even took a deep breath and showed my first 7 chapters of BOOK TWO to a select few, who are all now egging me on to get back to it. Which I will. As soon as LIFE stops BUGGING ME!

This too shall pass...and in its place....WORDS.

WHY READ?

A favorite BOOK-TOON resurfaces. Enjoy!

COVER COUPLE

I love the cover of POND SCUM. Know what? I also love the cover of VIVE LA PARIS. Side by side don't they make a cute cover couple? Do you think the people at Hyperion know something that Esme and I don't? Could it be a subliminal introduction of cross-content books? Magic-realism meets fictional memoir....

Though our main characters are world's apart - it's fun to see they relate in a half-faced kind of way! Imagine how they'd look side-by-side on the bookshelf!

And though the world already knows it - a HUGE CONGRATS to Jay Asher (one third Disco Mermaid) on his first book deal. Read about it if you haven't. He's sharing his joy - and it's inspiring to read!

PITFALLS and POTHOLES

My car has really bad suspension. Tiny bumps are felt like shock waves from the trunk to the headlights and my whole family has learned new curse words to describe each and every one of them. Montreal is the pothole capital of the world - where road crews spend one half of the year not filling them in and snow plows spend the other half making the initial holes more pronounced. (Rumors of a secret civilization being discovered beneath one such hole have yet to be proved true.)

Yesterday I made a discovery. By actually inflating my four tires properly (35/psi) - my car handles these road humps with aplomb (or at least less pain). My back still aches every time I survive a pothole - but there is much less squealing from the quartet of rubber.

"Tires matter, people!" And you can quote me.

So it is with great excitement that this morning the literate and well-traveled BROOKLYN ARDEN (Cheryl Klein) has given readers a sneak peek at a talk she is preparing for next weekend's Michigan SCBWI conference, where she compares the editing process to balancing the tires on your car. Her metaphor of the four wheels (Plot wheel, Character wheel, Writing wheel and Point wheel) needing to be balanced strikes me in my shock absorbers - as I bump along the potholed path of writing.

It's a must read for all writers and those of you lucky enough to be at the SCBWI, make sure to go to her talk - and send me notes! (and a tow truck)

BUSTED

When I was 12 and dealing with my father's recent marriage and my own sludgey self-image born of the nickname "Plumpso", I had a 5 week ego-boost courtesy of baseball. Not Little League - I wasn't good enough for the teams that had the real uniforms. This was Minor League, a less organized, well-meaning assembly of either bad players or younger kids who, no doubt, would graduate to the BIG LEAGUE as soon as they turned 9. But I wasn't very athletic (see nickname) and so being the oldest player on a team of younger kids was actually a really good thing. I was a great hitter and decent fielder (3rd base) for my team sponsored by Phillips 66. Sure we only got T-shirts and not full buttoned baseball jerseys, but none of that mattered to me. I was a player.

I remember one game when our pitcher didn't show up. The coach looked at me and said, "You want to pitch?" Images of trotting in from the Fenway bullpen flooded my head as I walked to the pimple of a mound at the Duffy Field park. Pitching was the pinnacle and this was my moment.

I threw pretty good ones - struck the first kid out and was feeling about as good as a kid could. But I noticed there was some talk going on behind the backstop and then I watched as my coach approached the mound with a look on his face that made my stomach churn. "Sorry," he said. "You're 12. You're not elligible to pitch."

I handed him the ball and then saw a boy grinning from the sidelines. It was the younger brother of a kid in my grade at school. He was on the opposite team and he'd squealed on me. I wanted to run over and throttle him - but instead slumped back to third base and continued to be the older, plump kid who could hit inside the park triples.

Yesterday I was on the mound again. For about two days I was included in the wonderful Jen Robinson's Top Five list for 2006. If you don't already know about it - Mother Reader is asking kid-lit folks to post their picks.

POND SCUM was in the list of elementary school books and I gotta tell you, I was strutting. But in the kindest way (I love this kidlit blog world!) it was brought to Jen's attention that Pond Scum came out in 2005 making it inelligible for a 2006 "list". Ah, the walk back to 3rd base is always a slow, painful march!

Here's the question though: for a book that comes out in October of a year to get noticed enough for that year's "accolades" - there has to be a pretty immediate awareness of said book. I am learning that Pond Scum is more like a stalk of kudzu. It is spreading and taking hold and it's a slow growth which hopefully will continue to take its weedy hold of the 3-6th grade set!

So I guess all this is to say: I struck one kid out. I was in a Top Five list. I am Kudzu.

And it's all good stuff.

CATS (and Mice)

It's nice when your friends do things so you can gush and goo over their accomplishments. Once upon a time I worked for Disney in Orlando as Head Writer of the Mickey Mouse Club (MMC). The job was one of the best I've ever had - mostly because I worked inside a theme park (nothing beats riding Space Mountain on your birthday), or having an office that was part of the MGM studio tour where trams of tourists would pass by my window every five minutes and the writers and I loved staging elaborate gags as they went by.

But the second reason I loved the job was the people I met - Diane Fredel-Weis was a wildly funny producer-writer on the show and she and I remained in touch through our many jobs, moves, marriages, kids and now BOOKS.

Her first picture book THE CAT THAT WANTED OUT has just been published and she's having a celebration/launch at the Borders Books in Winter Park, FL a week from Saturday, Sept. 23rd, at 2:00pm. Anyone nearby should definitely drop by and say hi. I hear there will be cat cookies!

BUT ON THE OTHER HAND....

Leave it to Greg K. to pour his glass is half-full outlook into my half-empty one.

My first BOOK-TOON (below) - though it expressed my feelings about how writing is brain-numbingly hard even after selling my book - it didn't show the exhiliration of actually selling it!

Thanks for your post to the first toon Greg - the (above) new Book-Toon is dedicated to you!

Greg's question (How did it feel the day you SOLD Pond Scum?) reminds me of that very day, March 12th 2004 (I still have my fab agent's phone message - "Alan, I have some good news....") The day in question found me struggling with the feeling we all know too well. I had them...I AM WORTHLESS WHY DID I EVER THINK ANYONE WOULD BE INTERESTED IN A WORD I HAVE TO SAY BLAH BLAH BLUES.

To make matters worse - I had just spent the entire day in a meeting for a pretty lame "tween" sit-com that I had written a script for - and let me say, this was not Seinfeld for kids. Sitting for three hours listening to jokes about hamburgers falling on kids' faces drove my sense of self further into the "what am I gonna do with my life" limbo.

It being Montreal in March (and without a car) I walked frozen and depressed to take a bus to go pick up my son at a friends' house and then walk home and make a lonely supper because my wife was out of town. Calling in for phone messages at his friend's house - I picked up my agent's happy voice and wasn't able to hear anything beyond the "I have good news" part. I listened to it five times and then tried dialing her using my calling card but my trembling mind kept messing up the hundred or so digits I had to apply - so I just used this woman's phone - promising her a copy of MY BOOK for the long distance call!

Zach and I walked home - me beaming and bouyant and knowing I wasn't going to have to write another burger-script. The feeling, the one that Greg has asked about is always with me. It is on my bookshelf. It is in the library. And it is with the thousands of readers who have wandered inside POND SCUM. Though I forget about it sometimes - I shouldn't. It's a perfect feeling. And thanks Greg for giving me the moment to rediscover it today!

BOOK TOON TUESDAY

RULES SCHMULES

RULES FOR WRITING
1) Write.
2) Don't Decide to Sell Your House.

Since disobeying Rule #2, Rule #1 became moot.

Trying to find a calm place in my head to weave stories while spackling holes and wondering about paint colors has created a whirling dervish of anxiety that makes the task of creating fiction an impossible task.

Staring at stacks of odds and ends (mostly odds) makes my inner child collapse in the corner and render me motionless at accomplishing any tasks that don't have to do with consuming food.

Why share this? Because, even in my state of inertia I am reading other blogs and noticing that people are actually finding time to write and link, while I stare out the window waiting for some Mary Poppins-like magic to get rid of all my clutter (and update my Blog).

So there. I've written something and now feel like I've made a dent somehow in my pile of things needing to be done. Inner child is happy - he can now eat more sugar!

Oh. And getting first round of Disney Channel notes later today - so am hoping the house will be clean and un-cluttered by then.

IN THIS MOOD

Too hurried. Too worried. Too lost in my own head.

so instead of writing I do a doodle.

maybe tomorrow....

words

maybe

BLOGGER-ILLITERATE - MOI

Hey, did you know that if you checkmark a box somewhere on the blogger set-up screen you then have to go "moderate comments" so that they actually show up?

Well I KNOW you all know that....But I just found out why all of my childhood insecurities about popularity and getting picked last came to a head in the blogosphere here...I figured my recent posts (some of which actually included writer stuff) were dull rejects on the path of urls.

So...in response to all who responded and now are posted....Thanks for your comments. I even intend to go back and respond to your responses.

Learning curve: 6
Feeling Dumb: 9

MEMEME MY TURN

I've been tapped in the tag team event to jump into the ring and add my voice to this crawling kidlit quest. I hope I don't expose any holes in my character with my choices - but then again a flawed character is a real character!

One book that changed my life: "Slaughterhouse Five" by Kurt Vonnegut - after discovering this book in the Worcester Public Library when I was 13 I officially graduated into adult-themed books and devoured everything Vonnegut had. I remember feeling like I was "smart" and reading something no one else I knew had heard of (yet).

Book you have read more than once: "In God We Trust - All Others Pay Cash" by Gene Shephard. I loved the first person narrative of his memory-stories and laughed as he painted all the pictures that would later become the fave movie "A Christmas Story".

Book you want on a desert island: "Gilligan, Maynard and Me" by Bob Denver - perhaps there'd be some sage advice how to turn two coconut shells into an iPod...

Book that made you laugh: any of the "Adrian Mole" books by Sue Townsend (also in the category of read more than once!) - but must confess I chortle out loud at any Pinkwater book, especially "Borgle".

Book that made you cry: "This Boy's Life: A Memoir" by Tobias Wolff - an amazingly well-told story of the struggle to survive in a world of neglect and abuse. The book did me in. The film version - left me in the movie theater seat for ten minutes after the lights came up.

Book you wished had been written: "Emotional Health For Dummies"

Book you wished had never been written: "SPAMMING for Dummies"

Book you're currently reading: "The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak - so slowly paced with the care and skill of someone completely in control of the story. The details get spooned out sparcely and with wonderful language and cadence!

Book you've been meaning to read: "Harry Sue" by Sue Stauffacher - ever since I saw it on the shelf I was drawn to it but just haven't picked it up...yet.

As for tagging someone new...I went to check with the people I planned to tag - and they'd already all done it...How's this: add your TAG suggestions to my COMMENTS and I'll give you the SHOUT to jump into the ring....

TAG-US INTERRUPTUS

Hi all (and especially to you demented Mermaids of Disco fashion) -

It is with apologies that I post without fulfilling my duties with the now infamous "TAG". Twas a busy day being in the world of TV where I had to go "pitch" stuff to people (always a mix of fun and trepidation depending on the beverages served)

I just got home. Tired and full of airplane air. So just you wait til tomorrow and I shall fulfill thine quest!

Oh. And thanks for the TAG!

hasta manana

(VIRTUAL) FAIRY GODMOTHER

Today's adventure begins with the discovery that makes any author's heart go pitter-patter: a really GREAT review. POND SCUM is almost a year old so in my GOOGLE wanderings I don't expect to find many new reviews out there. But leave it to the only READIOLOGIST I know to discover my book and make me want to send cookies. Buckets of them!

I've been a fan of Esme Raji Codell since I had the pleasure of reading SING A SONG OF TUNA FISH as an ARC. The quirky hysterical voice and ability to retell such picture perfect - sometimes heartbreaking stories from her childhood made me think of Pinkwater, Annie Lamott and my own fifth grade year (a dreadful time of husky pants and really bad hair). Then when I wandered upon her PLANET ESME website with its vast resource lists for teachers and parents and its dedication to making books accessible to kids - I knew this was someone I wanted to know!

So how do you make believe you know someone who you really don't know? Read her blog!

The PlanetEsme Book-A-Day-Plan: The Best New Children's Books is a comprehensive guide to books of different reading levels and themes. The truth is - I'm sure her site is already bookmarked by everyone who stumbles upon me - but in case it isn't - allow her magical advice inspire you!

BACK TO THE PLOT

Finally. Done. Disney script handed in, which means I can float in the pool and tell myself what a puctual, creative and god-like writer I am.

Okay. 1) I have no pool unless you count the basin of mosquito-infested water sitting in the wooden barrel my wife "rolled" home last summer, 2) I don't really think I'm "god-like", I'm much more "false-idol" worthy, and 3) being done never means much more than a quick five-fingered pat on the ol' back before jumping back into the moving traffic of writing other stuff.

In this case I am ecstatic to get back to BOOK #2 and see what the characters have been doing while I left them in the lurch. Hopefully they are past their abandonement issues, have wonderful secets to tell me and none of them have been abducted by brain-altering aliens from the planet Schmootz (tho on second thought - could be interesting).

Of course, there's this part of me that is anxious aboutwhat I'll find when I peek back under the lid. What if my characters have packed their bags and split? What if the story no longer even reads well? What if I CAN'T WRITE A SINGLE WORD!!!! (Hey, I'm a writer - insecurities are part of the job.)

Rambling over. I feel better. Time to go before I find more ways to not start again!

TOO BUSY - A GOOD THING

Truth is - with Disney deadlines fast approaching (tomorrow) I simply must avoid taking time to post, which means this isn't really a post. Simply a post-ette.

Shout outs to BURIED IN THE SLUSH PILE for included yours truly in her "Writers I would Like to Work With" wish list. Wow! The honor would be all mine! (mini shout-out to Gregory K. for actually alerting me to the fact - even though it was last week, which in my own defense was the week leading up to my wife's b-day, so I was wicked busy arranging for a Salsa teacher to arrive at her party as a surprise.)

That's it. I hear Mickey Mouse's voice in my head yelling at me to finish "or at least teach Mini how to Salsa."

ps: the cartoon has nothing to do with writing - I just liked it.

PROS & CONS OF STRAIGHTJACKETS

Monday. Again.
Book #2 is on hold as I put my nose to the grind-stone of deadlines on my Disney Channel movie. I have to turn in the rewrite by Friday and the wonderful feeling is - I see that happening (more important than "seeing" it happen, I know I will cross the finish line in time.)

Comparing the process of film and book writing is always a "grass is greener" scenario. When I'm book writing - I often long for the structure the films straightjacket me into; 3 major acts. 104(ish) pages. No scene longer than 3 or 4 pages. The writing can sometimes feel more mechanical, no less creative of course - just more like a watchmaker tinkering on a timepiece.

Of course, when writing the structured Swiss timepiece of a movie it is the book writing I dream of. Writing books (for me anyway) is the opposite: straightjacket off I am free to wander and discover things that when writing scripts I would easily overlook. I turned to books because I was tired of the constraints both TV and film put upon me. The page counts. The act breaks. The commercials!

But I am human. Which means I crave sweets and have the capacity to learn. Having both disciplines to bounce between gives me the chance to appreciate each form for the process it guides me with. Both structure and freedom are needed to get me through the twisted jungle of my brain. I find that ideas spring forth when I am terribly lost without the map - and sometimes are there when I need them because that's exactly what my map says I need right then.

That's what I'm thinking anyway. Time to get back to the straightjacket...so snug and warm it actually feels wonderful!

ps: Thanks to Cynthia Leitich Smith for a nice mention over at Cynsations where there is a great roundup of kid-lit info!

TOO DARN HOT!

click the pic to see it full!

Yup. The wall of exhaust fumes masking as breathable air has hit Montreal too and I'm worthless in all things brain. Doodled this in response to my inability to do much else. Going back to the one air conditioned room now - my son's, where he will attempt again, to teach me how to play Star Wars Battlefront. (the things we parents do!)

GREAT IDEAS...just add water

It comes as no surprise that the wonders that be Hollywood feed on the edges of pop culture always in search of the next big thing, or even "the next thing that isn't really big, but might be popular enough so we can make everyone think it's big!"

In the spirit of "I can't wait for this one" - I have just learned that there is a plan afoot to make a movie of THE AMAZING LIVE SEA MONKEYS. For anyone unfamiliar, those are the little brine shrimp that come alive in water and then die peretty fast. As a kid it was always a disappointment to see that they didn't have crowns or even smiles like the drawing on the package. Ah, the life lesson of my first let-down.

Surprising fact number two, though I really haven't thought of this in years...in my days of living in L.A. and traveling the circles of kid's TV, I was once a writer on the TV show, THE AMAZING LIVE SEA MONKEYS, produced by none other than the shiny-headed Deal-No Dealer himself, Howie Mandel (not pictured - he played the kooky "Professor" on the live action show).


That's it for today's confessional. Time to get back to work!

EMBRACING THE CHILD (or else!)

My learning curve of the kid-lit universe continues to swoop upward thanks to GOOGLE. Yes, as already admitted, I am an obsessive author who takes the daily (hourly?) trip through various search engines in search of treasure. Am I looking for good places in Montreal to buy chocolate cake? Researching the secretive BOOK #2?

Alas, the truth is shamefully simple: I am seraching to see if there be new news of a certain Pond Scummy book. How else can I keep my finger on the ooze of my loins? I suppose I could make random phone calls to bookstores in the country and disguise my voice (as if my voice could be recognized) and ask "Do you have a book called...." I mean, not that I've actually done that! (much) But GOOGLING my book has offered me new doors and contacts and the sort of virtual relationships that actually is making this solitary job much less lonely (Greg.K, Fuse8, et al).

All that to say...by checking on my whereabouts I discovered POND SCUM was the BOOK OF THE MONTH for a kid-lit organization EVERYONE MUST KNOW ABOUT!!!

EMBRACING THE CHILD is a wonderland of resources ranging from recommended books by age-group and theme to author interviews and educational resources. Links guide you to lesson plans and activities. All great stuff to add to your files!

BUT here's the thing that should make you go there right now - Embracing The Child is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing reading resources to under-served populations.

Maybe everyone already knows about ETC. Again, my world-view is opening slowly. But if you don't already know the great work they are doing - check them out. Or better yet, DONATE!