I went missing last week. On my new blog Meals on Three Burners and A Word or More, there were no posts. That happens some Sundays. Sometimes I do not make the deadline I set for myself. It happens. The deadline is for stories, a book and poetry collection. Standards are high. I completed several rounds of editing… Continue reading Pardon the Interruption
Author: Corrie's Mom
They say teacher turn over is high right now, and many teachers will leave the profession in five years or less. I will enter my seventh year as a full-time teacher, and my 12th year in education after I'd started as a sub and teacher assistant. I was the student in the 1990s you did not want in your classroom because I was diagnosed with ADHD and did not know how to socialize with other kids. I was due to be tested for autism, but this was considered an ostracizing experience for a child then, especially a girl. I am a third generation teacher and author of seventeen creative works.
Pens In, Guns Out
In fifth grade, my teacher selected my short story about a town in the middle of nowhere, Bamberg, South Carolina. I won an award for writing: the Lieutenant Governor's Writing Award. I chose the image of Mizpah Church in Bamberg County, and that story inspired my manuscript Sons of the Edisto. Two stories inspired by the book… Continue reading Pens In, Guns Out
Take on the Worlds: Dreamscape
You never went before. Or, maybe you did. Somewhere between the worlds of memories, dreams and what writers understand of reality is your story’s landscapes. You may write Sci-fi, paranormal or realistic fiction, but no tale begins without the sense of place. An important topic in writing is: Do you know the world where your… Continue reading Take on the Worlds: Dreamscape
Telling A Boy’s Story
How quick they grow. Feet push up. Hands grip the couch. Soon the cliché pitter-patter turns to bam-bam. You realize how out of shape you are, or even if you're a marathon parent, you cannot keep up with the little creature. When potty training, he unravels the toilet paper. Around the table, you're family debates where… Continue reading Telling A Boy’s Story
Pave Your Road Using Less Words
I read advice about editing. The Daily Post on WordPress presented a writing challenge to bloggers: Papa Says Get Economical. Ingredients you need: Paragraph from a previous blog Keyboard Backspace key Remember cut and let go. The Daily Post encourages bloggers to edit a post and use less words. No matter how long you've been… Continue reading Pave Your Road Using Less Words
Poetry Collection Work Out
Poetry challenges my mind, heart and fingers. It gives all the writing muscles a work out. Growing up, I wrote poetry all the time, and I was accepted to the S.C. Governor's School of the Arts primarily for my poetic writing. At age fifteen I was not able to formulate stories like I do now. My… Continue reading Poetry Collection Work Out
Risk your Life to Write
Courtesy of http://www.capitalnewyork.com. Imagine every piece you wrote was interpreted as sinful. Picture yourself walking down a road to another house or place to make a phone call. In that phone call, you said your poem, story or essay line by line. You say each word in a hushed voice, because you're always scared someone will catch… Continue reading Risk your Life to Write
Get Queried!
Two months ago I emailed a letter to a group called YA Stands. On the first week of the month, YA Stands accepts letters for writers seeking help to improve query letters for their Young Adult manuscripts. It selects one writer and his or her query letter. After writing several different drafts of the query letter for… Continue reading Get Queried!
I So Had to Tell You First
Got your attention. Good. That's what I wanted. Not to take up too much of your time. Since I am an ADD author and you're beginning to wonder: What's the point to today's post, I'll make it short … as possible. Here's the deal: I am working mom, who set many goals at the beginning of… Continue reading I So Had to Tell You First
The Mommy Scribbles: The Thing about Time
Almost two years ago I yelled at my Mom for taking my son, Charles, to get his haircut. No one told me. I was working, and everyone thought he needed a haircut. Tonight, I told Mom something different. "Take Charles to get a haircut," I said. "Please don't chop it all off." When my husband… Continue reading The Mommy Scribbles: The Thing about Time
Corrie's Season 