PiBoIdMo

Well, folks, it looks like I'm now an "Official Participant" in PiBoIdMo. And just what is "PiBoIdMo"? Glad you asked. It stands for Picture Book Idea Month. Clever, eh?

So now I guess you want to know more about it? Yes? Great. Here's the scoop:

* This is a special opportunity set up with children's writers in mind. As creator Tara Lazar says: 'The challenge is to create 30 picture book ideas in 30 days. You don’t have to write a manuscript (but you can if the mood strikes). You don’t need potential best-seller ideas.You might think of a clever title. Or a name for a character. Or just a silly thing like “purple polka-dot pony.” The object is to heighten your picture-book-idea-generating senses. Ideas may build upon other ideas and your list of potential stories will grow stronger as the days pass.'

* Participants will have access to daily blog posts by authors, illustrators, editors and other professionals who specialize in children's literature, that will hopefully serve as inspiration for the creations of a new file of story ideas.

* This is the fifth year for PiBoIdMo. When it was started in 2008 Tara Lazar was the only participant. Then in 2009, she hosted it on her blog. 2012, over 750 writers participated. She is hoping for even more this year.

* The event will take place during the month of November 2013, but registration is open now and will continue through the first week of November. When the event concludes in early December, participants will be asked to "take the PiBoIdMo Pledge," which states you have completed the challenge. Don't worry, no one will check up on you; you will be on the honor system.

* If you register for the challenge, you will be eligible for some neat prizes:

• Feedback from literary agents
• Original sketches by picture book illustrators
• Picture book critiques from published authors
• Signed picture books
• Jewelry
• Other Cool Stuff

You can't win if you don't register. 

* Guest bloggers for the month include an impressive list of kid lit professionals including (but not limited to):
Peter Brown; James Burks; Dianne de Las Casas; Kelly DiPucchio; Julie Hedlund; Carter Higgins; Emma Ledbetter, Assistant Editor, Atheneum; Wendy Martin; Debbie Ridpath Ohi; and Corey Rosen Schwartz

(Click on the names to read their guest posts)

Join me, and lots of other writers, for this sure-to-be fun event. This is my first year of doing it, so if you're a "newbie" too, don't worry about it. We can have fun together!

DON'T DELAY; REGISTER TODAY!

Picture Book University

I have been reading and following along on the first lesson in Pam Calvert's online Picture Book University. For Week Number 1, we were given an assignment to go to our library and pick out at least 20-25 picture books, read them and analyze them in terms of genre. In doing so, I found two very delightful books.

The first is called LOOKING AT LINCOLN by Maria Kalman. A little girl visits the Lincoln Memorial and tells the reader a story about him as she goes along. It's a biography of Lincoln from a child's perspective. It was a fun book to read and it gave me an idea of what to do with a picture book biography I'm working on about Frank Lloyd Wright.

The second book is called JAZZMATAZZ. It was written by Stephanie Calmenson and illustrated by Bruce Degen. The text is written in rhyme, which is done very well (which, as many of you know is hard to do) and is truly a delight. The rhythm and the word play are fun to read and the illustrations just make it so much better.

There’s a note in the back of the book where the author explains the idea for the story. She was emailing the illustrator, discussing the cold weather. Bruce mentioned that the field mice were coming into the house to get warm. The previous night one had walked across his foot while he was washing the dishes and then it ran under the piano. Stephanie said, “Train the mouse to run on the piano – and play jazz!” That’s where the idea for the book came from. The story starts with a mouse coming into the house, walking across the peoples’ feet and then jumping onto the piano where it starts playing jazz.

Isn’t that a great way to be inspired to write a picture book?!?

BTW, if you want to learn how to write children’s picture books, Pam Calvert’s online Picture Book University is FREE! Yes, I said FREE! The course is eight weeks long and covers several aspects of writing such as the different genres for picture books, storyboarding, and character driven picture books. Check out her website! You’ll be glad you did!

I'M IN LOVE WITH A CHURCH GIRL Movie Review

Hi Guys,

I have been writing book reviews for years now, but I'm doing something a bit different here. This time I'm posting a movie review. The name of the movie is "I'm in Love with a Church Girl." 

Here's my review:

Miles Montego has it all: good looks, women and enough money to buy anything he wants. But, he has a past that he can’t seem to put past him. The former drug trafficker is constantly under watch by the DEA  who believe he’s still involved in criminal activity.

He meets Vanessa Leon, a “church girl” who is beautiful and unlike any other girl he has ever met. He is drawn to her good looks and captivated by her faith in God, but he can’t tear himself away from his lavish and dangerous lifestyle.

Vanessa, who falls in love with Miles, is exposed to his mobster-type friends and their sense of fun which isn’t much fun for her at all. As she falls deeper in love with Miles, she has to reconcile her faith in God with her love for Miles. Her faith is tested many times.

Meanwhile, Miles also struggles with his love for Vanessa as he continues to hang out with his friends. Before he changes, he has to deal with the death of his mother, federal charges brought against him, the indictments of his friends, and the experience of almost losing Vanessa in a car accident. When he can take it no longer, he has a spiritual breakdown and a one-on-one confrontation on his knees with God.

This movie is based on the true story of Pastor Galley Molina, who found God while serving time in prison on federal drug trafficking charges, and he wrote a book by the same title while behind bars. When he got out of prison he eventually became involved in the ministry and today serves as the worship pastor for the Evergreen Valley Church in San Jose, CA.

The movie features international rap and hip hop star Jeff ‘Ja Rule’ Atkins (“The Fast and the Furious”), Adrienne Bailon (The Cheetah Girls), Michael Madsen (“Reservoir Dogs”), Toby Mac (dcTalk), Martin Kove (“Rambo” and “The Karate Kid’), Stephen Baldwin (“The Usual Suspects”), hip hop artist T-Bone, and Vincent Pastore (“Good Fellas” and “The Sopranos”). 

I haven’t seen the movie but I have watched the trailer. If the movie is any bit as good as the trailer and the back story that goes with it, then I would say it would be worthwhile to watch it. Written by Pastor Galley Molina and produced by Reverence Gospel Media, the movie will be released October 18, 2013 and is rated PG for thematic elements, a scene of violence, some suggestive content and brief language.

 

Follow Fest

This is something new for me. I'm participating in Melissa Maygrove's Follow Fest. It's a way for readers on my blog to connect with other writers (whether you're a writer or not). The idea is for you to read my blog with my personal info, and then follow the above link (either click on the "follow fest" board or where it says "Melissa Maygrove's Follow Fest" in the text) and it will take you to Melissa's page. You can read her info there, and then scroll down to where it says "To return to the Linky, click here." You will find the other lists of participants at the bottom of that page. (You can also sign up for the Follow Fest, if you want to.)

Here's my info:

Name: Christine M. Irvin

Fiction or nonfiction? I write both fiction and nonfiction.

What genres do you write?  Picture books, chapter books

Are you published? Yes. I started writing professionally nearly 20 years ago. At that time, I had my heart set on being a picture book writer. I found out it was very tough to get published as such, so I turned to other forms of writing in order to create a portfolio of published work. I wrote a couple of poems that were published in a local newspaper. I became the Publicity Chair for my daughter's Girl Scout Troupe as well as for her elementary PTA and then her high school marching band (and later at my son's elementary school and high school). As such, I wrote lots and lots of press releases about the various groups' activities. These were published in local newspapers as well. I wasn't making much money, but I was compiling a long list of publishing credits. During this time, I sold a children's story to Highlights for Children and another one to Our Little Friend.

And, I somehow managed to convince the editor a Franklin Watts to take a look at a proposal I had for a series of children's craft books. He liked the idea and wanted to see more. To make a very, very long story very, very short, I am now the author of eight craft books, known as the "Mania Craft" series because each title in the series has the word mania in it, i.e., MILK CARTON MANIA, CRAFT STICK MANIA, CARDBOARD TUBE MANIA, etc. After Children's Press (which bought out Franklin Watts) published them in 2002, Gramercy Press (a division of Random House) bought the rights to publish a "bind-up" of three of the volumes and called it CRAFT MANIA. I am also the author of a fictional picture book, ISAAC THE FROG, published by Sprite Press, a very small press owned by a friend of mine, as well as a book that I self-published along with two of my friends called THE LITTLE LIGHTHOUSE. 

I thought I had it made when it came to writing stuff for kids. I mean, I had a whole series of books under my belt. Every editor would want to publish my material. Right? Wrong! I hit a dry spell where I didn't sell anything and I didn't have much published. I was getting very discouraged. So I looked around for more ways to get exposure as a writer.

That's when I came across an opportunity to start writing book reviews of an online website, called Christian Children's Book Review. I started writing book reviews for them several years ago, and still write for them today. I now write reviews for other sites, as well: Book Reporter, Teens Reads and Kids Reads. And, I branched out into writing articles, recipes and blurbs for websites on a freelance basis.

In the past few months, although I continue to write book reviews and articles for websites, I have turned my attention back to writing for children, specifically in the form of picture books. I joined Julie Hedlund's 12 x 12 group, and was so inspired by all the wonderful posts from fellow members, I am now a member of Kristen McGill Fulton's WOW nonfiction FB page, as well as the 12x12 Member's Forum, the 12x12 FB page, and the Children's Book Creative FB page. I also belong to two picture book critique groups, one for fiction and one for nonfiction.

Do you do anything in addition to writing? I do editing and proofreading on a freelance basis. I also do something this is unrelated to writing, and that is crafts.

Where can people connect with you?

You can connect with me in a number of ways:

1) Through this blog. Just post a comment and I will get it. Or email me at: alamarr@sbcglobal.net.
2) Follow me on Twitter. The "Twitter" button is on the right-hand side of this blog.
3) Make me your friend on Facebook.
4) Link with me on LinkedIn.
5) Pin with me on Pinterest.
6) Read my book reviews on the Christian Children's Book Review website.
7) Read my book reviews on the Book Reporter website.
8) Read my book reviews on the Teen Reads website.
9) Read my book reviews on the Kids Reads website.
10) Read my book reviews on Amazon.com.
11) Visit my author page on Amazon.com.
12) Like my Stitches 'n Pearls Facebook page. This page is set up for my crafts as well as for my daughter's jewelry-making.

Is there anything else you’d like us to know?

I think I've covered everything. If you have any questions or comments, I'd love to hear from you! 

How Not to Be a Writer: 15 Signs You're Doing It Wrong

K. M. Weiland

Attention all writers out there: 

A friend of mine shared this on her FB page. I read it and thought it was worth sharing on my blog. If you call yourself a writer, you really should read this article. It's called HOW NOT TO BE A WRITER: 15 SIGNS YOU'RE DOING IT WRONG. 

Author K. M. Weiland makes some excellent points. Her article is definitely worth reading and pondering.

You're welcome!!

Amish Service Guide 2013

Malachi Marketing Logo

I wanted to brag a little bit (if I might). A company I write for, Malachi Marketing, has just completed its newest Amish Service Guide, a booklet with advertisements from local businesses (many of which are Amish-owned and/or operated). Included in the booklet are maps of area counties, a list of upcoming events, and four articles; I wrote two of them!!! I also did some proofreading of the final copy before it went to print. Here is a link where you can view the finished publication. Please contact me for info about how you can get a copy of this publication for yourself. 

Coming January 2014: START THE YEAR OFF WRITE

Image courtesy of ShannonAbercrombie.com

Those of you who have been keeping up with my blog know that I participated in a summer-long writing event called 100 DAYS OF SUMMER WRITING CHALLENGE. It was set up by Shannon Abercrombie. The idea was to keep writing through the busy days of summer with daily writing prompts that were sent via email. The prompts were varied and ran the gamut from silly to serious. All were original prompts created by Shannon based on her writing and life experiences throughout the summer.

Because there was such an overwhelmingly positive response to the challenge, Shannon is going to try it again next summer, but she is also working on something different called START THE YEAR OFF WRITE. This particular writing event will start in January 2014. She has not provided much information about the upcoming event yet; just enough to raise the curiosity levels of writers like myself. Because it sounds so intriguing, I wanted to pass the info on to you. Here's what she is sharing at the present time:

A new prompt writing challenge is in the works. It will be shorter, the prizes will be bigger and some extraordinarily generous and talented authors will be helping us all kick our writing into high gear.
I’ll provide more details in the coming weeks. For now, my writing friends, please mark your calendars and be ready to spread the word for the next challenge: START THE YEAR OFF WRITE, coming January 2014.
 
Visit her website so you can get on her mailing list, and mark your calendars for this exciting opportunity to get in on the writing fun in 2014!!!