This morning I discovered some fun art activities to use with Blackberry Banquet, on the Growing & Learning by Leaps & Bounds blog. This clever mom showed her children how to paint with blackberries AND they created blackberry Playdough. How fun would that be? I can just see the little berry-stained hands of small children and the berry-scented Playdough as it squishes through their fingers. Definitely worth checking out!
VCFA Workload
This morning a friend called to see how I was doing. “How’s the MFA going?” she asked.
I laughed and said, “Well, I’m so punchy from writing and researching that last night it took me three tries to put on my facial lotion–first I picked up the toothpaste, then the sunscreen, and finally on the third try, picked up the jar of nighttime face cream. Then this morning I emptied my cats’ water bowl and left it in the drying rack. The cat sitting by the food mat reminded me to refill it, as he was obviously thirsty. Oh, yesterday I was so punchy I walked into a wall. And this morning I realized I ordered the same book twice from Amazon.”
“Oh no, are you regretting that you signed up for the program?” my friend asked.
“Heck, no!” I said. “I’m loving every minute of it!”
And that’s how it is, really. I don’t know if I’ve ever been this busy in my entire life, or put out so much mental energy. Maybe I did in college, but that was a long time ago, when I had a few thousand or million more brain cells. As soon as one project is done, there’s another waiting. It’s kind of like the Russian front during WWII. You know how the Russian soldiers just kept going up against the Germans, and if the soldier in front of them dropped, they picked up his weapon and kept moving forward. This has that same never-ending feel to it. But without guns. And nobody fires anything at you. And there’s no death or destruction. Maybe that wasn’t the best analogy…
There are times when I can’t sleep at night because my mind won’t shut down. I feel guilty if I take a full day off (oh wait, I haven’t done that yet. Never mind). And there is an ever-growing pile of picture books, research materials and three laptops in my living room that seem to have taken up permanent residence.
Yet, I love it. I cannot think of a single thing I’d want to be done differently. I love that my advisor pushes me to try new things and see things in a different light. I love reading and critiquing the work of my four other classmates and receiving their feedback on my own work (they’re brilliant) . I love the support the students and faculty give each other. I love the critical aspect of the program (I never dreamed I’d actually enjoy writing critical essays–who knew?). I love trying new forms of writing, like the biography I’m working on right now.
Yes, life is good in the VCFA MFA program.
Even if I do fall asleep on my keyboard sometimes.
Book Review: Monsters Don’t Eat Broccoli
If you’re looking for a wholesome book for your child or students to chew on, try picking Monsters Don’t Eat Broccoli, by Barbara Jean Hicks (illustrated by Sue Hendra). It’s a rollicking rhyming story where, in the voice of “monsters,” we hear all the reasons why they will not eat the healthy green veggie.
We’d rather snack on tractors,
or a rocket ship or two,
or tender trailer tidbits,
or a wheely, steely stew.
The monsters describe what they love to eat, and what they absolutely won’t abide by, but by the end of the story, they realize that those wonderful yummy trees they’re munching on are in fact, broccoli!
The art is bold, colorful and lively yet offers enough detail to give many additional “hunting” opportunities for the reader (such as the monster movie posters in the background on the nighttime rocket scene). Hendra also does a nice job at the end, where she transitions the monsters to a home scene where we see that the monsters eating broccoli are actually children.
Hicks has done a terrific job of making broccoli fun and inviting. This is a healthy pick for any parent or educator who wants to get kids to “go green” with their eating habits, and promote healthy eating.
Monsters Don’t Eat Broccoli by Barbara Jean Hicks/ISBN 978-0-375-85686-0/2009 Alfred A. Knopf.
* Click here to view a cool video of Monsters Don’t Eat Broccoli.
GOOD NEWS: Blackberry Banquet
Blackberry Banquet has been named to the 2010 California Collections. The book list is compiled by the California Readers (click here for full list). Listed books must display “excellence in literature” and be written or illustrated by a California author or illustrator.
I’m proud to be a part of the California Collections once again (Tae Kwon Do! made the 2007 list).
Doing the Snoopy Dance now…
Have You Ever Been So Busy That…
You almost left the house without wearing any pants. Yep. Last week was just that crazy-busy 
for me.
I’d turned in my second packet, received the feedback, and was working hard to get a revision done that was due today (as Kathi Appelt says, I was “writing like my fingers were on fire”). My head was filled with research ideas, dancing animals, an Italian educator, cats and a T-ball game (yes, it was crowded in there).
Amidst all this, I wanted to see my chiropractor. So, when his office called and said they could see me right away, I ran upstairs to change clothes. I got distracted with something while changing (can’t recall what it was). Minutes later, I got to the top of the stairs and thought, “What am I forgetting?” I looked down and realized I wasn’t wearing any pants. OOPS!!! Yeah. Working on my MFA keeps is keeping me just that busy…
Packet #2: Done!
Wooohooo! I survived turning in my second packet! Yesterday I heard back from my advisor, and as always, received thoughtful, encouraging and challenging advice. I’d love to stop and take a breather, but there’s no time for that. Packet #3 is due in less than four weeks, and that one takes the essay up a notch to a longer length. Plus, there are all those revisions…
"Feel Good" Fun
Mary Cronin, a fellow student (and fabulous writer) at VC, shared this video link with a group of us. It’s just one of those “feel good” kinds of things that everyone should watch.
Enjoy!
Wow, another week has already rolled by? Where IS the time going?
I’m getting my second packet ready to submit on Monday, going over all the final checks. I only had one scare, when ALL of my files were missing from my flashdrive (yikes!!!). Why on earth they would not open on my laptop but would open on my desktop is a mystery to me. I’ve never had such a love/hate relationship as I do with computers.
On a lighter note, this website came across the Ventura/Santa Barbara listserve this week; kind of fun to look at and play around with, especially if you’re concerned with words going the way of the Dodo. It’s not for the fottopees of the world (or maybe it is…).
Happy Labor Day!
Check Out These URLs
This week, two URLs came to me from my SCBWI Listserve that are well-worth looking into.
The first one was shared by Barbara Beitz. It’s a great site called Beyond Little House that’s dedicated to the Little House books written by Laura Engalls Wilder. For fans of this classic series, this is a must-see. I adore these books, even though I never knew of them as a child. It wasn’t until I took a children’s literature class in college that I discovered them. So, check it out. You’ll get all goose-bumpy and sentimental and leave feeling good inside.
The other URL was shared by Alexis O’Neill. This is is a must-read article for yet-to-be published writers regarding The Seven Biggest Myths of Publishing. I nodded my head through the whole article–“Uh-huh. Yep, been there, done that. Oh, how true!” Thanks to Anastasia Suen and Alexis for spreading the word about this one.
One last one I’ve been meaning to share comes from the website of Cynthia Leitich Smith. Cynthia has a section called, Kit Lit, where her cats have reviewed cat-themed picture books (for reals!). This is so clever and fun to read, especially if you’re a cat lover.
Enjoy!
Just Catching Grasshoppers…
This story really is writing-related. I promise.
Years ago, on my first ever backpacking trip, my husband and I did a summer hike in Kings Canyon National Park, in the Sierras. We were green as the meadows (experience-wise). Not one lick of overnight backpacking experience. But off we went, ready for adventure. Well, our first night out, all of our food was stolen by a very dexterous raccoon (he managed to untie the straps on our backpacks). The real miracle was that a bear didn’t get to it first, as we didn’t even hang our food (I said we were green) and we were in the heart of black bear country.
So there we were, the big adventurers, with no food. My husband gave out a big sigh and said, “Well, we’ll just have to catch some grasshoppers.” I was taken back. “I am NOT going to eat grasshoppers!” I declared. I had my limits. After he stopped laughing, he explained that he needed grasshoppers as bait to catch trout. Oh. Heh, heh. Yeah, bait. Good idea. (can you see why I married this man?)
So there we were, in the middle of a meadow, lunging around attempting to catch the feisty little critters. And they’re quick! After what seemed like hours (probably more like minutes), we caught plenty enough for my husband to catch a nice dinner’s worth of trout. Okay, that was a stretch. I didn’t catch any. My husband had all the success. I just wasn’t quick enough. But I still got to eat that night (again, see why I married this guy?).
Okay, how does this relate to writing, you might wonder? Well, I’ve discovered during my brief experience with Vermont College, that researching is a lot like catching grasshoppers. VC has a fabulous library, the Gary Library, which gives students access to multiple research possibilities. But sorting through all that’s out there is a lot like catching grasshoppers. At least for me. I find myself spending hours of time and energy sifting through information, getting close, almost there, that grasshopper is j-u-s-t within my r-e-a-c-h, only to let it get away because the data isn’t quite what I needed. Sigh…onto the next big juicy victim. At the end of my time, I might only have one, two or even no bits of information to add to my project, but it’s what I have to do in order to survive. Kinda like catching grasshoppers that summer afternoon so many years ago.
So, for those who do research with academic papers, articles or non-fiction work (like this picture book project I committed to then realized I probably have six months of research to do before I can even begin to write), happy researching!
And remember, sometimes all it takes is one grasshopper to eat well.
Terry Pierce 
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