So Much To Do, So Little Time...

I have a lot to say in a short time, so i'll just dig in...

Let's see... my writing... I've started working on the 3rd in the Rilla's Rambles Series; just working on the plot for now.  I'm loving this story... then again i love them all lol  Ever since i started it, my mind thought it'd be a 5 book series. I'll probably stick to that, and if i had to add to it, that'd be no problem.

Rilla had her 5th birthday on Saturday (the party that is)  She wanted a Barbie Cake... my youngest son, Seth we'll call him, was at a friends for the night; my oldest daughter, Theodosia, was at work til 9, and my oldest son, Tobias was working also and cutting grass.  I was left to do this cake alone... it was flopping and flipping everywhere... i tried hard to keep it level, but the minute i turned my back to wash the icing off my hands it flopped again... finally i thought of the sticks for covering chocolates and i stuck 4 of them through the 4 layers of the cake.  I stopped around 11:30 ... couldn't do anymore after cleaning all day long... in the morning i went to the little town up here to get a barbie... none in the store... except a guy which Rilla wanted on her cake lol  took him home, put him in the cake and he was way too tall... so we hunted for a broken doll and found snowwhite.  I fixed her up and finished the cake in time to do more tidying with Seth, Theodosia and Tobias and Rilla all pitching in.  Here's how the cake turned out... pic courtesy of Theodosia's friend Lynne :)

 Not great, but close enough.  I added the wings from another barbie of Rilla's... the wand was a sucker from a friend too, i just dipped it in the icing... Theodosia's idea :D   the butterflies around the cake are from the guy barbie we bought.

  Here's the table all set up...

3 princess' playing in the barbie house...

Here's Rilla My Rilla turned 5...

She had a wonderful time at her party, family and friends came up for her day.  It was so nice of them all.

I have a little garden idea to share with you all..but I'll have to save it for another post as this only allows me a few pictures.  I don't want to mess this one up lol

Have a new idea for a new book too which i think you'll all love! I know I do :D

Revising is so fun...

NOT! lol...  I'm still working on book 2... it's hard to make sure you have the right tense throughout the story, but i love trying :)  Allie i think you'll be impressed :D

I'm getting there, almost finished then i can send it to my dear proofreader ;)   who i cherish very much :)

I also have a little story in my mind from Rilla's dream... as she was telling it to me, I had the feeling it was meant to be a book.  I'll be working on that tonight :)

It's cold and windy and rainy on PEI today/tonight.  Not a great day, but a reason to be inside getting stuff finished.  My friend, Strawberry, made My Island poem and picture into a beautiful wallpaper.  I love it!  Thank you so much, Strawberry!  It's beautiful.

soon i can work on book 3 of the Rilla's Rambling series... can't wait for that one :D

just a short note tonight, not much happened today.

Town Day

Well, it was one of those days... a trip to town means... pack Rilla's bag for in case of car sickness... pack facecloths with soap on them in baggies for our hands.  Pack treats for eating.  Make sure cards are ready, Ipod is charged, and phone is charged.  Get Rilla all ready, and me too :D  and make sure Mark has gas in the car.  And then we were off.  I was tired just getting into the car lol

Picked up Emily from school and then we were off.  Oh i love ipods and driving long distances and thankfully i get to put the music up loud.  Dancing in the car isn't easy lol but fun :)

Didn't get any stitch of writing done today at all.  That's ok though, one day won't hurt.   On the drive to town , though, i spied my dancing tree again.  I adore this tree... it looks like it's holding up it's skirts, i want to write a story about it, just not sure how, but it'll come to me.

Tomorrow is getting things cleaned up for Rilla's birthday on Saturday.  Lots to clean here.

I did get another poem written the other day.  A friend sent a pretty picture to me.  A lady walking on the beach.  I thought she reminded me of myself, and as i looked at the photo, I wanted to write about it.  I'll see if i can find the photo and if i can share it.  I found it... it's called A Familiar Walk by Susan Rios 
With the poem i wrote to go with it...  You can buy the print with her site too!  cool!

My Island

My Island is my homeland

Leaving would be so hard

Without it I am broken

It lives within me now.

Happiness lives here;

Love, hope, family and dreams.

Peace is easily found

Taking your breath far away.

Beaches to ponder

Gardens, trees and quilting fields

A waving hand, a friendly smile,

An islander forever

Don't take me from my homeland

I cannot stray away

For life without my island

Would I be forever lost.
©Denise MacLennan Bruce

Oh! i watched The Fall 2006 movie last night... LOVED IT!
Plot... In a hospital on the outskirts of 1920s Los Angeles, an injured stuntman begins to tell a fellow patient, a little girl with a broken arm, a fantastical story about 5 mythical heroes. Thanks to his fractured state of mind and her vivid imagination, the line between fiction and reality starts to blur as the tale advances.

I would definitely watch this one again.

Let me know if you watch it and what you thought too.

Signing in the Waldenbooks by Parnell Hall

Love this video! So scary! lol

Victoria Day aka PicNic Day.... and Lost Gone Forever :(

Today is Victoria Day ... also known as Picnic day... so the kids and I and my sons friend packed up and headed off for our day's jaunt to our very own babbling brook.   Had to wear a little coat, as there was a little chill in the air up here.  We start off after making some fresh fiddle diddles for the day of course.  We get through the warehouses parking area, then the tiny field behind... cross the tiny little ditch which didn't need our homemade bridge as it was dried up.  There's always water in it, but not today.  Dandelions everywhere!  So we go fast so as to avoid the bees busily gathering pollen.  I tell Rilla to walk swiftly and not dwaddle because a snake could pop out anytime in the long grass... we would have like to have seen one though :D  ... so away we go, through the clover field lined in more dandelions.  We approach the Croaking Frog Pond which is eerily quiet... on closer inspection we spy the pond dried up :(  both sides!  Now the right side was HUGE, and here it's dried up too.  I knew \PEI was dry, but didn't realize it was this dry... how sad for our dear frogs.

After our disappointment over our frog pond we trudged along.  Next field was The Tripping Field... weeds that long to trip us... if they win, they puff out a smoke that puts us to sleep, we must move swiftly!  and we did, without any tripping... to the next field.. the Dead Forest... as we come nearer, it's grown!  It's not dead anymore but teaming with life.  This made it harder to walk though lol and i had to carry Rilla a long way to cross the dead forest.

We finally reach the opening to the brooks little woods... but first must carefully crawl over the fallen logs... not an easy job as Avery can tell you... he stepped on the first one and down he went as the log was rotting away.  He got some scratches, but trudged along... Emily would cross the next log, and i'd lift Rilla over the logs to Emily's awaiting arms... slow going but safe :D    finally we reach our brook!  Marsh marigolds out in bloom... and... yes you guess it... BLACK FLIES!!  We had to turn around :(  Why they started then i'll never know...so we headed back home and had our picnic on the living room floor... and imagined the clouds and sky and bumblebees with us.  It was nice, though.

 
Now the important news... Lost... SPOILER ALERT...  it's over, gone, caput... i'm going to miss it soooooooooooooooooooo much!!!  So many questions still to be answered too.

 I loved how the couples remembered each other, esp Sun and Jin.  I knew they were thankful.  I wasn't happy that it ended up that they were all dead though... that was too much.  Oh my heart while watching this show last night!  Up one minute, down the next... happiness, madness, sadness... utter sadness... it totally wore me out lol... I cried and cried.. i was so sad for Jack... he was so heart broken to find out he was dead, then he accepted it.  I loved that, but hated it too.  It was very touching to show his eye closing as he took his last beautiful breath :(

  I found out that we'll find out what happened to Walt in the DVD later on, i think it comes out in August... i'll look and link it up... I definitely want to get the lost dvd set.  so many other questions still sit in my mind, but eventually we'll find them out.

I have a field of dandelions i want to get a picture of, i'll try to remember tomorrow, it's very pretty for dandelions :)

 

Smokey’s real name, what was with the wreckage during the credits, and why was the weather so wonky?

Smokey’s real name, what was with the wreckage during the credits, and why was the weather so wonky?

Lost Questions answered here.

Previously on Lost : What?

Saw this on another bloggers blog... it's a hoot. Not sure if i post the blogger when i don't know them?

Your going to say... What?... *SNORT*!!

Having a Missing Lost Night

A blogger posted a funny video about Lost... then that got me searching you tube for other videos... now most of them are sad, and that got me sad lol  I'm am really going to be Lost without Lost :(   I've been watching it every week for 6 years now... that's a long time.  Sunday is going to be sad.  Just one of those obstacles in our lives.  Gee, it's just a show.. i'm such a wimp lol

Happy stuff?... I revised the little story i wrote yesterday one more time.. I was reading it to someone and realized a couple more mistakes, and fixed them.

..............Rilla had a dream, about a monster stealing her hot chocolate... so i'm going to write about it.  I think it'd make a cute book :D 

............. I rearranged my living room to suit my desk... it's in front of the picture window.  I get to write and look out onto my front yard and my ocean view.  A little hummingbird sat there all afternoon with me as i wrote.  He was so darling.  My little inspiration <3

............  My family is happy and healthy.  That's the best happiness ... There, i'm happy again : D  ... now i'll have to do this again Sunday night :( lol 

 I wrote another poem... i was trying not to rhyme with this one, but still get the meaning out.  Here's what i came up with...

Unseeing, yet sought after

soft warmth filling you

makes your heart skip a beat

takes your breath away.

Trying to be the best you can be

a wanting to be there

longing to do all you can

shout it from the mountain tops.

Willing to share without shame

a guided meandering path

being what you were scared to be

the only way.

That's Faith. 
©Denise MacLennan Bruce

What did you think?  

Here's one more on Faith.

Having faith is powerful

Believing without seeing

That's faith

Acceptance, strong and true.

Having faith is love

Loving without seeing

That's faith

Caring, thoughtful and free.

Having faith is letting go

Changing without care 

That's faith

Obedient, wanting and New.
©Denise MacLennan Bruce

This one isn't as great.  But i kinda like it. 

Busy day tomorrow, double anniversary for my in laws and aunt and uncle... then my nephew's graduation  :)  going to be fun. and it's going to be nice out! yay! 

Lost Coldplay- Clocks

I'm going to be so Lost without my dear Lost :(

Brain Storm!

Today as my hubby and I were watching a hummingbird, he happened to notice my spirea bush with a birch tree growing out of it.  He mentions that he'll have to separate them to help them grow better.  I say a hearty NO!  They can't be separated!  They love each other... Then it hit me!  I gasped... and said Yes!  I'll turn it into a story .. dh walks away shaking his head lol... and i get busy tidying up the kitchen, get some books out for youngest daughter to work on and then i get to write... i finally finished it and sent it off to my dear allie to proofread.  It's just a short story. not sure what to do with it now, but i'll find a home someplace.

Isn't it something how our Dear Lord works?  This idea comes to me on a rainy, wet day.  I wouldn't have been able to work on it if it wasn't wet outside because i'd have to garden.  But it was wet out there, and i had the idea for a story and i wrote.  Even had to take time to pick up my teeny bopper.  I'm very blessed.  and very thankful.

dh also took up one of our old school desks for Youngest Daughter to work on for her homeschooling.  She washed it off and dried it while i did the dishes.  We filled it with her precious books and she happily sits to start working ...  She didn't want to stop lol

it was a great day all together.  I'm so happy to have that story.  I've always loved my spirea and birch.

no pics today... but i'll get a pic of the spirea and birch soon.

Have a blessed day!

Safety on the Internet

Editing here to tell you all my youngest daughter's favorite bed time story... along with voices for each character, of course... with a great big SNORT sound too :D ...

Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman

It was another great day to get outside to garden.  I used the morning to clean, then made dinner for the men, and outside for Rilla and I ... until the black flies were so horrible that we hadn't any choice but come back inside.   I didn't really mind.  A new book arrived in the mail and i was dying to open it up :)

I've been writing some old memories down in my notebook... anything that i could remember for IF i need the ideas.

A dear friend mentioned to me that it might be best if i change the real names of my family on here.  I'm going to do that tonight, plus take out a little more information about myself.  Just to make it safer for my family on here.  I'm very thankful she mentioned it to me :)

Tonight is for writing... i'm going to try to write 15 minutes per day.  Didn't want it to happen at night, but I've no choice on that right now lol

I've also got to read my second book aloud, didn't get to finish that yet.

My mother sent me the newspaper clippings of Lucy Maud's Island Hymn being made Prince Edward Island's National Anthem!!  I'm so happy for her!

Here's Lucy Maud Montgomery's Island Hymn  You can hear the music here also ...

                               The Island Hymn

Music by Lawrence W. Watson Lyrics by Lucy Maud Montgomery Fair Island of the sea We raise our song to thee The bright and blest; Loyally now we stand As brothers, hand and hand And sing God save the land We love the best. Upon our princely Isle May kindest fortune smile In coming years; Peace and prosperity In all her boarders be From every evil free And weakling fears. Prince Edward Isle, to thee Our hearts shall faithful be Where'er we dwell; Forever may we stand As brothers, hand and hand And sing God save the land We love so well. Good Night All!

First Day In The Sun

Here we go! Come On Baby!

We don't stray far from the mama :D

Our Picnic today :) My Teeny Bopper taking pictures, and waiting on Miss Sweet Sixteen to come join us :) that's syrup in my hand for the chocolate chip pancakes :p we also had Fiddle Diddles, freezies, and water for drinks :)

this is supposed to be a video, not sure if it'll post right

had to show this log i've had in my garden for years... moss has finally grown on it and plants too! It's the perfect fairy home :)

This is my Violet Vale

It was so pretty out today, but the bugs came in the evening to bug us, as usual. i'll get the hang of this soon! At least with Picasa the pics are where they are supposed to be... but i have to remember which ones i want on here lol

My Anniversary Bed with , my new teeny bopper :) and My Youngest is being Cinderella helping him pick up the sods :)

Another view of The Anniversary Bed...
this end was filled with ferns that i dug out... they loved to take over this bed. so they are gone and there are some bushes in their place. My earth is very dry... we're in need of rain.

Another view with helper and her Teddy :)

Beautiful Prince Edward Island Day :)

Well, we finally had a beautiful day. It's still beautiful out, but i'm too sore to do any more gardening lol... My Youngest had her dolly out with her in her pram, and also helped me with my gardens.
Here's a before pic of the first garden we worked on... My poor pictures are so bright, I've tried clicking everything on the camera, but it just doesn't want to work. I'll have to read the manual i guess. But I'll just post what i have... Here's the after... I edged this one. Plus my shadow lol... this one looks better than the other one, probably because it's coming on evening.

Going to try posting from my picasa... i hate the way i have to do pictures here by moving them down then they get stuck... let's see how the other way goes...

Lost is almost finished :(

Well, tomorrow night... another show... what i thought was the end isn't really the end... there's another show on Sunday where all cast members get together and talk it out...

This is from my facebook page.

Here's the recap from last week's show. It has some cursing in it... reader beware. Can't wait to see what happens!!! but i'll be so sad :( boohoo... whatever will i watch with it gone???

Tomorrow PEI is supposed to be warm. I do hope... i plan on getting out to garden, most likely planning a picnic with My Youngest , unless i can hold her until 2 of my other kids come home from school :) :D

Short message after doing the links... it's time to read for me. Had a goody bag of books arrive today, can't wait to dig in!

Publisher and Agent Links...

Tonight I'll put on some links that I'll be using for publishers or agent lists...

I'll just put the links in a list form... and I'll make sure they are linked to the Submission's Guidelines page.

3 Seas Literary Agency

About Words Agency

Publisher's Marketplace

Agent Query

Tundra Books

Artists and Artisans



These are links to websites that have helped me.

Query Shark

Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators - a must have group that all writers should join.

Nathan Bransford

Beginning Writer's Start Here

Writer's World

A guide to writers and publisher's help

Self-Publish or Not: Advice from a Traditional Publisher

Glossary of special terms used in the publishing business.

Books I've bought... now a bunch of these books arrived today, i haven't had a chance to read but one yet.

Children's Writer's and Illustrator's Market MUST BUY BOOK!

Children's Writer's Word Book

Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript by Chuck Sambuchino

Roget's Thesaurus of Phrases

The Writer's Digest Writing Clinic

Creating Characters Kids Will Love

Writing for Children and getting published

How to Write and Sell Children's Picture Books

The Writer's Digest Character Naming Sourcebook

The Business of Writing for Children

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Publishing Children's Books


These are just a start of links... i'll keep adding to this post and comment to it when i add. I'm only learning myself... I'm just going by what I'm reading on the web. There are many many more publishers and agents out there... just google them... all agents and publishers take different genres of books... what might be ok in my list won't be for you if you are writing something totally different.

Some tips I've found out since I've started down this new path...

You must read each publisher's submissions' guidelines first. Check back often as they change regularly.

Check to see if they take email query letters or snail mail ones, or both.

Never send your manuscript unless it's specified to do so.

Do not self publish unless it's just for family.

Revise, revise, revise, and then ask around to see if someone will proofread your manuscript for you.

Do not state your age in your query letter.

Follow the guidelines of your query letter to a "T". Any mistakes could mean rejection.



I'll keep adding to the tips as i think of them.
Happy writing!

Sore Day...

I've been gardening today... my muscles are still sore lol and it's 1:20 in the morning here. I also was able to garden yesterday at my home, but the ground was way too hard for My Oldest Daughter and I to do anything, so we tidied up the garden and finished. Well, it was also freezing cold *snort* and today is yet, another freezing day on Prince Edward Island... but no black flies... it's always a good thing :D

Watched Left Behind tonight with the kids. I loved it and i really did like the message. Not sure if that's who it'll happen, but it still makes one think. Kirk Cameron played in it. I loved him in it. Love him anyway! lol He also played in Fireproof ... awesome movie too! Great message in it.

Must hit the hay, early start tomorrow :)

Oh! I saw something on TV which made me have a new idea for a little book :) I think i'll write while it's fresh... you never know!

The Trews - Highway of Heroes

Timothy is the fiddle player here :)

Tim Chaisson & Morning Fold - Broken Hearted Beat

You'll love Timothy! He's from Prince Edward Island. This is his first Official Video!

Ocoee Middle School - Gotta Keep Reading

Book 2 is on the computer!

I'm so thrilled to have that part finished :D Tomorrow I'll read it out loud to My Youngest and see how it sounds... do more revising, then I'll leave it for a while for a break to make it "new" to me :)
I know i get bored reading the same story over and over. This should make it fun lol... and it'll make it easier to find mistakes in the story if i read it with fresh eyes after a while.

Next move?... I make my list for sending out my query letter. Agents and publishers. Pray for me! It'll be so nerve wrecking lol
I've subscribed to this magazine... Writer's Digest my first issue hasn't arrived, but i can't wait to see it!

My friend send me a poster he made for my book... i think he did another awesome job! Thanks so much for it! I love how he thought of using one of Anne of Green Gable's quotes on it :D He knows me so well lol

Quicky Update... sent my 2nd query letter out... this company wanted the manuscript... so it's gone to it's very first query! oh this is nervewrecking! I gave them a 2 week exclusive... we'll see what happens.

Books are now for sale on Prince Edward Island :)

Well, my books arrived yesterday and i took them to Indigo book store and to Pharmasave in Souris, and Elliotts up here nea r where i live. It's so weird that they are actually here for sale :D The Manager at Indigo remembered me from over a month ago and remembered the story as i told it to her ! I couldn't believe it . If i sell the 10 copies before the month is out then they'll keep selling the books, if not then they won't. So of course, I'm hoping they sell lol

I haven't had a chance to get my list of publishers or agents out, but hopefully tomorrow.

I want to post a link to a book that any writer of any age must buy... 2010 Writer's Market Deluxe Edition Amazon's Description...

The 2010 Writer's Market Deluxe Edition includes all the valuable information you expect in the standard Writer's Market PLUS a 1-year subscription to WritersMarket.com. In addition to the 3,500+ listings in the Writer's Market, you'll have instant online access to another 2,500+ listings that just couldn't fit in the book?with daily updates.

Take charge of your writing career with online tool

s that allow you to organize your favorite market listings and keep track of where you submit your work. All of this and more is available on an easy-to-use WritersMarket.com Web site that is accessible from anywhere with online access.

A dear friend made a couple wallpapers for me from my blog... he's so kind and nice... and

the wallpapers are unbelievable! He totally knows me and understands my likes. He's awesome and gave me permission to share them on my blog.

He also made some posters for my blog... They are so pretty!

Here's another one, there are more, but i'll take one of each different text for now... but i can't get it past the other one no matter what i do, so i put it at the beginning of tonight's post :D

Pittsburgh lost, my hubby isn't happy :( poor fellow. But hopefully Boston will beat them next :D

About to watch Old Dogs with my honey John Travolta! I'd put a pic in of him, but it won't let me argh!

Sweet Dreams, Everyone

My First Agent Responded!!!

I'm so excited! Of course she said no :D but i don't care... she replied :D and i've read that i'll get 20 - 50 rejections before i hit the right one :D Now i can send my query out to more than one agent ...

I wish she'd have said yes, but i get it :) it's all good.

Now to make another list :)

Oh and i got some gardening done today! It's a great day so far :D

2nd book finished

I finished book 2 !! Yay! Still a long way to go with it yet, lots of revising and changing ideas and characters :D But it's all fun. Today i'll be moving the story from my yellow pad to the computer. I love to write with pencil first. I do hate working on the computer, but i guess i have to get used to it.

No word on my first query that i sent out yet... but it hasn't been a week yet and they said to give them the exclusive for 2 weeks.

The sun is trying hard to win the fight against the clouds... clouds winning so far, but hopefully not for long.

I'll go grab a picture so you all can see PEI in early May :D ... ok, it went on, but sure doesn't look right from this box... This is my magnolia and my forsythia together... my camera is taking the pictures so bright... i'll have to read the directions on how to stop that from happening.


Here's a little closer pic of the bird bath garden with my witch hazel!



Bear with me.. lol... hopefully this will turn out right, when i post a picture it goes to the top of this page then i have to move it down.





Must go start typing while My Youngest is watching Bolt... but first, i have to post a wonderful site that helps me a lot with writing tips... if you want to write, this is the site to go to... i'll post more too.. .

Holly Lisle... You'll love her site!


One thing we learned.... never put too much popcorn in your pot! lolol... I removed the pictures of My Youngest here... but the pic was the popcorn pot overflowing with popcorn :)

Wrote some poems...

Well, my sis in law asked me to write a children's poem and they are going to turn it into a song. I kept putting it off, not knowing where to start... then decided to give it a try.
Here they are...

This is the children's poem... i looked at My Youngest Daughter and thought, "what kind of song would you like?" then it hit me *ouch* a song about her day!

I Thank God

When I wake up at the break of dawn
I jump out of bed with a great big YAWN
I help make my bed to start off my day,
and I thank God for hearing me pray.

After my dinner in the bright noons' light
I help my mama tidy then shout, "All Right!"
We go outside to work and play
and I thank God for love everyday.

It's suppertime; the sun's going away
I help my dad cook and holler, "O Kay!"
We gather around sitting in place
and I thank God when i say Grace.

Sleep time comes, tuck me in tight,
I snuggle down cozy, whispering, "Good Night"
I say my prayers and give mama a kiss
and I thank God for all of THIS .
©Denise MacLennan Bruce


2nd Poem... I was sitting here by my window, looking out at my gardens, and thought they already are a poem... so i wrote what i felt...

My Strength

My garden is my haven
It's my place to talk with God
He is always there to guide me
and strengthen my weary heart
when life gets too heavy.

Those dear flowers!
So thoughtful, caring and true
Putting on their modest show
for me, their kindred soul.

Butterflies flutter; love everywhere
like sparkling bubbles floating in the air
I watch them flying blithily
forgetting the heartaches of that hurtful day

So plant yourself a garden
The decision is up to you
God will be there waiting
He's there for me and you.
© Denise MacLennan Bruce

Last Poem.... i really wanted to write one about my brother, who we lost in 1996... very suddenly of hypertrophiccardiomyopothy ...

Losing You

When you left us, our hearts broke in two
It was so sudden, what could we do?
You were our life, our love, our heart.
Living without you was hard from the start.

It was a bright moonlit night
when you left us with fright
I stood by my window praying with merciless labour
For God to bring you back to fix this broken chamber.

You didn't come back, I was so wrong
Why take you away from where you belong?
Your at peace now, i must think of you,
You live in my heart. I know what do do.
©Denise MacLennan Bruce

I'm about to leave to go do mom and dad's gardens and pruning. It'll be fun... plus i'll hopefully get some stories from them. I'm going to try to write a book on their lives when they were little. I really think it'll be a good thing. I'm very excited about it.

I've also been trying to low carb all week... been only able to do it in the mornings, as i have to make dinner for the men, but it's a start. I really should change the name of this blog to a smorgasbord of everything lol I've found some of my paperdoll friends blog too! It's so cool :D

Back to the low carbing... today's dinner was chicken thighs, broccoli and turnip fries with alfredo sauce on the side. wow! it was yummy! I'm going to get my pizza dough made for during the week, it's not real dough, but low carb and very yummy! I should have taken a picture of the dinner before i ate it... bear with me, i'll get used to posting the pics lol

It's a sunny day on Prince Edward Island!! yahoo!!

I almost forgot... on my paper doll group a lady shared a wonderful post, i must share it too...

Anita's Paper Dolls Hope ya like it :D

My Magnolia...

I have my camera, but it was dead... Avery got enough life out of it to get a pic of my magnolia...

Once it charges, I'll take another pic... and i'll keep my camera with me always :)

I also found my Green Gables walk pictures from my birthday on it... but the camera had some setting on it that brightened all the pics :( but i took 2 videos and they turned out, so I'll put them on my face book.

I had a thought last night for a new idea for a book... no fairies... real people... I started writing it and like it so far :D

My First Query is Sent!

Well, i did it. My first query letter is sent... i did a little more tweaking to it and clicked send before i could chicken out. I know this one won't be accepted as it's the first, but the first has got to start somewhere :) I wish it would be accepted though lol ... now the wait...

For this agent, yes, i decided to give it a try ... the main reason is because they accept self publishers... i had to take the chance while i had it. ... but i have to give her the exclusive for 2 weeks... and i did... so in 2 weeks i can send out another query.

I could put a picture here of the cover of my book I Believe I Can Fly - Rilla's Ramblings My daughter did the illustrations for the people and fairies and i did the backgrounds and coloring. This isn't the exact cover, the publishing company put a border around it.

That's all i did this afternoon after homeschooling with my youngest... we were working on the alphabet :) we found a cute song on You Tube to help her with singing the alphabet while i was typing. My youngest loved it! When she was bored of singing, i got her to go around the room finding items that matched a letters sound... she did all right, but we need to do more work on sounds. I've learned to take my time with my last baby.

My hubby isn't happy with where i put my new tea set... on a round table in front of our picture window... i'm luvin' it, but he says something will happen to it... i just want to enjoy it for a while :) If i had my camera i could take a picture to show you, but the kids love to take it and not put it back.

My magnolia tree is blooming beside my forsythia bush.. they are so pretty together. I might be able to get my son to get a pic with his phone as it's still bright outside... i can get him to take a pic of my tea table at the same time yay!

What's next after Query letter?...

well, today's job is making a list of publishers and/or agents who i'd like to send my query too. Thankfully i've been doing this for the past month, but will have to make sure i meet their guidelines. Some publishers change. I've found 3 or 4 bloggers who are agents, and they let me know when they are ready for querys, which i really like.

I'm still trying to figure out if i need an agent... i'll have to keep thinking about that.
My Dear Allie is helping me with my manuscript... i'll be working on that too, on the computer i should say... i usually work with pencil and paper, but this means computer work lol... it's so hard to get used to typing stories on the computer, but i'll do it lol

11:07 here on PEI... must get dinner soon. Then tidy and get my almost 5 year old's workbook out too for her to work at while mommy works too ;)

but first, i should mention about my problem yesterday with s - - - - - - the eight legged insects... my friend in Scotland usses this spray (cool! another link!!) .. she says it works awesome... so i'm going to try it out. I'm desperate lol.

later on for a break i'll put on some of my favorite links.

Query Letter Written!

Well, i did it! It's now written... not sure how i did... i have a friend checking it over. There are sure to be mistakes as it's my first one. I was doing ok, til the wait lol and i only just sent it lol ... ok, was held up... and it's fixed.. tomorrow i'll be listing publishers and agents and see who gets my letter first. oh dear!!!

Got the living room, kitchen and half of the dining room/ rilla's play area spider proofed today.. .i'm getting there! lol

will write more later, Emily wants to check her facebook before heading to bed

Tuesday Lost Day...

Well, yesterday i had a tea party with my sis and her daughter and my 2 daughters... it was such fun! But i had to clean and clean to get ready.. which didn't give me time to work on my query letter... then my son had a ton of homework and studying with homework and tests... then cleaning up in the evening which still isn't done, so no time for query's oh! and my all time favorite show was on... Lost! yay :D enough said on Lost... i was mad at it lol

This morning is for cleaning, it's spring time and that means the s - - - - - s are out, and i'm petrified of those horrid things! I've got to give the house a vacuum everywhere, and then i'll spray lemon pledge around the baseboards... i heard that'll help keep them away. ick ick!!!

Then it's dinner time... i'll make something quick for the men and clean up, find something for My youngest to do, THEN i'll work on my query! I've a homeschool lady who knows query's and she's going to look it over for me , and my dear own Allie was a proofreader, so she's going to check my self published book's new manuscript for flaws... i'm having a problem staying in the same tense... it's so hard, but i'm ready to learn :) (just tried my first linking with Allie's blog... she's teaching me how to blog... now did i do it right lol)

I'm still trying to figure out what to do after i get the query letter ready... send to an agent or straight to the publisher... i'm leaning toward the publisher for now since i'm new... but also do i lean toward the agent because i'm new???

I've written out my query 3 times so far, and reading online as i go ... so i'll go start vacuuming and pledging, dinner, tidy up, then query time... i'm actually excited to get back to it now... the nervewrecking feeling is gone :) isn't that something!

Writing Query Letter..

well, it wasn't my books to pick up, but my birthday present :) I'm a Lucy Maud Fan and a friend, Lisa, put on facebook a picture of her teaset. This teaset reminded me very much of Lucy Maud's Aunt's tea set that's in Green Gables. (I'm pretty sure this is the original owner) so my husband bought it for my birthday... Here's the link to what it looks like...

http://www.teawithgrace.com/product.php?productid=45&cat=0&page=1

still not sure where to put links... and i have the picture i took while at green gables of the original set...
yay! that's the picture :) ... they aren't exact, but close enough :) I'll see if i can save a pic from the site of my new set... no , didn't work, but if you click the link you'll see it:)

Back on track lol... Lesson 2: i'm writing my query letter now... i'm stuck ... i don't know to tell them that my book was self published or not... but am trying to find the answer. Lots of Googling :) I was so nervous writing it, but not that i'm doing it... actually doing it, i feel so much better.

Was talking to someone on the phone today who told me there's a lady she knows who might proofread for me. That'll be great, as the self published book wasn't proofread.

Notes on Query Letter:
Don't go over 1 page or 2 paragraphs...( i am finding this so hard)
Get the book idea into the first 2 sentences. (did that)
Tell how you plan to handle and develop the manuscript (not sure what to say here)
Error Free and single spaced
Strong opening to grab attention
Let them know if there are illustrations available
Request to write the article on the go ahead to send the book proposal...(book proposal... now that's going to be hard!)
Double space between paragraphs
Tell them if there will be multiple submissions.

these notes i've found on the web... still using google to find more ideas on query's. found one link ... http://paullima.com/blog/?p=50

This is a start, still lots to learn!

First Blog Ever!

Boy this is nervewrecking! lol A thought came to me the other day... start a blog... I've read some great blogs, and subbed to them too... but could never remember the links after that ... until my dear friend Allie told me about Google Reader... i found it and boy it's addicting! lol I love Google Reader, it makes reading so easy, no more remembering links. Until the thought came to me to start my own on my journey to getting published... i didn't think anyone would want to read it, but then realized... i want it for me... and there might, just might be someone out there like me who wants to know how to do this. So i'm writing it down... if i learn something, i'll write it. Haven't figured out how to link to Amazon on the books i'm reading, or how to link to sites that i'm reading, but i'll figure it out.

First lesson... Do NOT self publish unless you just want a few books for family and friends. It's going to make it harder... now some authors make it through self publishing... but it's best to go about it straight to a publisher or agent. Now i might read something that says it's ok, but so far nothing lol

I've recently self published my book... I Believe I Can Fly - Rilla's Ramblings. I'm now revising it. I didn't know that Xlibris did not proofread, my fault, i should have done my homework. Because of this, there are mistakes, as i wrote it fast to get it sent in before the deadline. I lost track of time, a year actually lol and was rushed. Never rush yourself lol ... so because of not being proofread, we had to pay for the mistakes... twice. I gave the ok to publish then found a couple more mistakes, but it was too late, and we were out of money for corrections anyway. 2 weeks without buying groceries doesn't go well in a family of 6. so my book is out there. I love it if you ignore the mistakes :) My daughter did the illustrations, with me doing the backgrounds and coloring. She did an awesome job i think!

I ordered 250 books from Xlibris and am on my way to pick them up. It's exciting i must say. Then i give them to stores that will sell them for me.

That's it for a first posting ... another lessong later on L( and i'll get used to this eventually lol