Tropical Teaser

I’ve met so many wonderful people in virtual groups. It’s fun to connect and be part of these online communities. You begin with one shared interest, and soon discover you have many more. That was the case with my blog post yesterday on Miss Marple’s Musings. I knew Joanna and I shared a love of books and writing for children, but we found we’re both world travels who have visited five continents and plan to visit two more. She and I also bonded over our African experiences, so I thought I’d a share a childhood picture from Africa.

I posted this a long time ago when I was working on the illustrations for a picture book set in Africa. The title of the picture is “My sister and me.” I’m going to offer a prize to anyone who comments on Joanna’s blog and then leaves a guess here as to which one in the picture is supposed to be me.

Because the first book in the WANTED series, Grace and the Guiltless, just released, I’ll draw a name and send an autographed  copy to one commenter. And be sure to tell me what you liked best on Joanna’s blog (it doesn’t have to be in the post about me; she has so many wonderful posts). You can even leave your guess on Miss Marple’s Musings. I’ll be checking there too.

Share the Love…

For those of you interested in collecting badges, here’s # 6 of the Leap Book collection. They’re spreading around the Internet at a rapid rate. Teen bloggers from around the world are collecting them. And now that Leap Books authors have been posted on the 2010 Debut Author Challenge and gone public with the Class of 2k10, they’re being asked for more ARCs (advance reader’s copy). Leap Books had so many requests for ARCs that they’re holding a contest to award ARCs. That’s what this badge is all about. So if you’re interested in trying for an ARC, snag the badges, post them on your blog or social media sites, then let Leap Books know by emailing them at  . Find out more about the contest here. And see the rest of the badges.

And two of the authors–Bonnie J. Doerr and Kitty Keswick–have started on their blog tours… so watch for them on the teen blogs. Author Judith Graves will soon follow. as will Jacqueline Horsfall. Get ready to Leap!

http://leapbks.blogspot.com/2009/11/leap-badge-no6.html

Gruesome Halloween Treats

Need a last minute Halloween recipe? How ’bout Dead Witches Fingers? They’re suitably ghoulish. See the Wolfy Chicks blog. Author Judith Graves shows you how to make these delightfully gruesome treats.

Pair them with Blood-flavored Ice Cream–a recipe by author Kitty Keswick.

Two treats sure to make your guests howl.

Tony DiTerlizzi

Check out this fabulous interview by one of my fav illustrators:

http://blaine.org/sevenimpossiblethings/?p=1821

The art is to die for…

Masked Man…or Not?

Well, sort of… Not sure what you call it when a plastic figure dresses up for Halloween, but I thought this post from Bonnie Blogs Green was humorous. Bonnie, a Leap Books author whose eco-mystery Island Sting is coming out in January, surrounds herself with Green Teens. And two of them combined their artistic talents to make an environmentally friendly costume for a plastic figure Bonnie rescued after a storm.

Mr. Pumpkin Head

You’ll have to look closely to see who’s hidden under that Pumpkin Head, but I guarantee it’ll be a familiar face.Want to know if you guessed correctly?? Stop by Bonnie Blogs Green, where she unmasks this mysterious stranger.

And while you’re there, check out her other eco-friendly posts.

Kid Lit Contest

Kidlit Contest

Check out Mary Kole’s blog for more details. She’s an Associate Agent with the Andrea Brown Literary Agency, and she’s running a query contest until October 31.

The winner gets a 30-page critique of a manuscript. Sounds great! Guess as long as I’m blogging about it, I should send in an entry. Good luck with yours!

Surprise!

When I checked my mail recently, I found a lovely surprise. Blogger Keli Gwyn, who had hosted me at  Romance Writers on the Journey sent me a thank-you gift. How thoughtful is that??!! A darling little tablet in its own case and refrigerator magnet. But best of all, they were personalized with my initial, so I know she picked it out just for me. I’ve never had anyone give me a gift for being a guest blogger, so I was doubly thrilled.

Even better was the experience I had when Keli interviewed me. She’s very professional and super organized. The questions arrived a month before the blogging date. She asked that I choose 8 of her very extensive and thought-provoking questions and return them a week before the interview. Then she added her comments, edited the blog, and sent it to me for approval before it was posted. What a great way to insure that the blog is error free! And it’s a testament to her organizational skills and efficiency. She was a dream to work with. Bloggers who are interviewing authors could take a page from Keli’s book. Who knows, you might even find the author will end up blogging about YOU.

Am I Crazy?

I have a billion things to do. Articles to write, a trip to Korea to plan, major business decisions to make. And what did I do? Signed up for another blog. Like I didn’t have enough with the 3 I already have.

So why did I do this? I was lured in by National Blog Writing Month. NaBloPoMo. Check it out! It’s a great way to get your feet wet with blogging. Post every day for a month.