Started 12/27                                                Finished 1/2  ​
I’m deep into Book 3, more than halfway through the series. There’s very little world building left, only one new kingdom to introduce. The chapters go back and forth between Kali’s point of view and Devon’s, like they did in Book 2.

Now in Book 3 Kalli and Devon have gathered their team to defeat the Demon. He’s been set free to grant a heart wish, kind of like genies do. After it’s granted, the Demon can do whatever he wants – like destroy the world for humans and open it up for demons. Buckle up! This story’s going to get bumpy . . . Kali’s going rogue!

​Amazon’s Description:
In the explosive third volume of The Hundredth Queen Series, the queen of fire faces off against a demon of ice.

Despite the odds, Kalinda has survived it all: Marriage to a tyrant. Tournaments to the death. The forbidden power to rule fire. The icy touch of a demon.

That same demon now disguises itself as Rajah Tarek, Kalinda’s late husband and a man who has never stopped haunting her. Upon taking control of the palace and the army, the demon brands Kalinda and her companions as traitors to the empire. They flee across the sea, seeking haven in the Southern Isles.

In Lestari, Kalinda’s powers are not condemned, as they are in her land. Now free to use them to protect those she loves, Kalinda soon realizes that the demon has tainted her with a cold poison, rendering her fire uncontrollable. But the lack of control may be just what she needs to send the demon back to the darkest depths of the Void.

To take back the empire, Kalinda will ally with those she distrusts—and risk losing those most loyal to her—to defeat the demon and bring peace to a divided nation.

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Started 12/24
I’m still reading the Hundredth Queen series to look at world building, but my mentor suggested I look at Harry Potter for my bat book. Why? She thinks the tone and complexity are what my story needs. I’ve worked with her since 2018, and I trust her advice.
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Harry Potter – that sounded so intimidating until I wrapped my head around it. I don’t have to write 800 pages or sound like J.K. I’ll write my story, and I’ll follow Harry’s footprints. Not exactly, but in a way that fits my bats and 2 humans.

Reading Harry as a mentor text is different than reading it for fun. It’s like taking a road trip. You read as fast as you can and enjoy the scenery. But now that Harry’s my teacher, I read a chapter at a time, then take notes. I’m looking at how Jo put the story together, and the elements I want to remember. I just finished chapter 3. Here’s a peek at my notes.

Chapter 1 is all about setting the stage – introducing the setting and characters. Jo doesn’t show the inciting incident between Harry and Voldemort. We’re told about it through the fallout. Chapters 2 and 3 focus on one incident per chapter. Chapter 2 takes place 10 years later, and Jo uses a birthday to show how Harry’s treated in the family. Chapter 3 focuses on a letter, and all of Mr. Dursley’s attempts to keep Harry from reading it. 
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Amazon’s Description:
Harry Potter has no idea how famous he is. That's because he's being raised by his miserable aunt and uncle who are terrified Harry will learn that he's really a wizard, just as his parents were. But everything changes when Harry is summoned to attend an infamous school for wizards, and he begins to discover some clues about his illustrious birthright. From the surprising way he is greeted by a lovable giant, to the unique curriculum and colorful faculty at his unusual school, Harry finds himself drawn deep inside a mystical world he never knew existed and closer to his own noble destiny.

Started 12/24                                           Finished 12/26
​I started Book 1 because I wanted to look into world building. I got it in spades! The main character is forced to leave the convent to become the 100th queen. Kalinda survives, but the evil surrounding the rajah’s kingdom leaves her as a widow on the run.

In Book 2, those elements meld into a new challenge and a new world for Kalinda. She flees to Janardan for help, but their rajah plans to use his daughter and another tournament to take over Tarachand. It won’t be as simple as the rajah hopes . . . all the competitors have bhuta/superhuman powers. Hang onto your hats! You’re in for a bumpy ride and another great story!
Amazon’s Description:
In the second book in The Hundredth Queen Series, Emily R. King once again follows a young warrior queen’s rise to meet her destiny in a richly imagined world of sorcery and forbidden powers.

Though the tyrant rajah she was forced to marry is dead, Kalinda’s troubles are far from over. A warlord has invaded the imperial city, and now she’s in exile. But she isn’t alone. Kalinda has the allegiance of Captain Deven Naik, her guard and beloved, imprisoned for treason and stripped of command. With the empire at war, their best hope is to find Prince Ashwin, the rajah’s son, who has promised Deven’s freedom on one condition: that Kalinda will fight and defeat three formidable opponents.

But as Kalinda’s tournament strengths are once again challenged, so too is her relationship with Deven. While Deven fears her powers, Ashwin reveres them—as well as the courageous woman who wields them. Kalinda comes to regard Ashwin as the only man who can repair a warring world and finds herself torn between her allegiance to Deven and a newly found respect for the young prince.
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With both the responsibility to protect her people and the fate of those she loves weighing heavily upon her, Kalinda is forced again to compete. She must test the limits of her fire powers and her hard-won wisdom. But will that be enough to unite the empire without sacrificing all she holds dear?

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Started 12/11                                                 Finished 12/23
I’ve only read this book once, but I quickly fell under Kalinda’s spell. She’s the main character, and the heroine. It was written so well I wanted to find out who she was and where she was heading, so I read the whole series, all 4 books.

Now as I’m rereading it, I’m interested in how the author creates the Tarachand Empire based on ancient Sumeria. Think pre-Babylonia! That’s exactly what I need to do for my bat fantasy. To create a new world for them. The only problem . . . I can’t picture it yet, but reading this book gives me a sense of the kind of major world building that I need to do for those bats! Somewhere in my subconscious, I hope, I’m weaving this world together, bit by bit, character by character.

​Amazon’s Description:
In Emily R. King’s thrilling fantasy debut, an orphan girl blossoms into a warrior, summoning courage and confidence in her fearless quest to upend tradition, overthrow an empire, and reclaim her life as her own.

As an orphan ward of the Sisterhood in the ancient Tarachand Empire, eighteen-year-old Kalinda is destined for nothing more than a life of seclusion and prayer. Plagued by fevers, she’s an unlikely candidate for even a servant’s position, let alone a courtesan or wife. Her sole dream is to continue living in peace in the Sisterhood’s mountain temple.

But a visit from the tyrant Rajah Tarek disrupts Kalinda’s life. Within hours, she is ripped from the comfort of her home, set on a desert trek, and ordered to fight for her place among the rajah’s ninety-nine wives and numerous courtesans. Her only solace comes in the company of her guard, the stoic but kind Captain Deven Naik.

Faced with the danger of a tournament to the death—and her growing affection for Deven—Kalinda has only one hope for escape, and it lies in an arcane, forbidden power buried within her.
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Started 12/7                                               Finished 12/7 
I loved William the first time I read it, and I’m loving it again. This is another quest story like the Enchanted Forest series, but the main character is much younger. The plot . . . Mom has been missing for a while, and now Dad is too. That’s when a witch shows up. She wants something, but William must solve 3 riddles before he can figure out what she wants. Here’s to another successful quest!

PS – I picked this story because I need to reimagine my bat story. It’s keeping me in the middle grade range, but I haven’t found the perfect path to stretch it out. I think the witch character is the right way to go, but I think I need to look into some bat lore to help me push my story farther. Here’s to my new quest!
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Amazon’s Description:
A charming reimagining of Sleeping Beauty that “will appeal to younger middle grade readers who like fantasy, fractured fairy tales, and adventure” (School Library Journal)!
 
William and his little brother, Pinch, have been left alone at their home atop the mountain. When a witch named Morga shows up, William is forced to embark on a terrifying journey, the worst part of which is Morga herself. She has three riddles for William to solve, with only the help of an odd fellow who wakes up a different size every day and a tiny yellow dragon who can dream storms into reality.
 
Three riddles.
Three chances to lift an ancient curse.
Three chances to save his family.
 
Part fantasy and part fairy tale, and sprinkled with charming black-and-white illustrations, William and the Witch’s Riddle is a loose retelling of Sleeping Beauty and an adventure that’s just right for middle graders.
 
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Started 12/3                                                Finished 12/7
Wow! I knew there was a huge gap in time between Books 3 and 4, but I had no idea! Book 3 ended with Mendanbar locked inside his castle, and Cimorene on the outside, pregnant. She has the baby in the Epilogue. Then, they disappear.

That baby, Daystar, turns 16 in Book 4. That’s when Cimorene gives him his father’s sword and sends him off into the Enchanted Forest, with little more. His companions – a fire witch, a kitten, and a small dragon. Together they set off to discover the sword’s secret. It alone, will save the Enchanted Forest.

The best part about this series . . . the author’s note at the beginning of each book. Patricia wrote the back story for each one, for how they came into being. It’s helping me to reimagine mine!
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PS – My critique partners said the 1st two chapters are heading the right way. Their biggest piece of advice – GROW THAT PLOT! I’m working on it, but I’ll finish the last three chapters of the almost original story first.

Then . . .  I’m moving the story across the ocean to my lake in Tennessee. That’s the setting where I’ll work to imagine the fantasy, I believe it can be.
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Amazon’s Description:
One day, Daystar's mom, Cimorene, hands him a magic sword and kicks him out of the house. Daystar doesn't know what he is supposed to do with the magic sword, but knowing Cimorene, he's sure it must involve a dragon or two!​

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Started 11/29                                               Finished 12/3
Yes, that’s a blue donkey on the cover, but Patricia didn’t play with the Shrek theme. Killer (love the name) turned blue because he’s always so hungry that he eats before checking for magic.

There’s also a new main character. She’s one of my favorites from the 1st two books, Morwen! She’s leading the quest to find Mendanbar’s sword. The wizards have stolen it, and Morwen must find it before the Wizards steal every drop of magic from the Enchanted Forest.

Mendanbar can’t leave the forest – he also holds power that the Wizards want to steal. Cimorene goes since Mendanbar can’t. Kazul the Dragon King refuses to be left behind on this all-important quest.
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PS – I just finished the first two chapters of my bat book. The witch’s part is the most fun to write. It all started with a throwaway line in the 2011 version. A bat thought that the grandmother was a witch. Originally I said she was a nice old lady, but this time I decided to play with it. I’m having so much fun that I can’t wait to see where that witch takes me!

Amazon’s Description:
Those wicked wizards are back--and they've become very smart. (Sort of.) They intend to take over the Enchanted Forest once and for all . . . unless Cimorene finds a way to stop them. And some people think being queen is easy.​

​If you’re happy, and you know it . . . Christmas is supposed to be the happiest time of the year, but not for everyone. I have three quotes from three famous people. I hope they help you find a little bit of happiness.

Quote #1 – There is in the worst of fortune the best chances for a happy change.

Who said it? Euripides! It came from one of his tragedies. Here’s a recording with a minute’s worth of information about him.    Link: Daily Inspiration | Inspiring Quotes

If you’ve never heard of Euripides, I’m not surprised. He wrote tragedies about 2500 years ago. Would you believe only three writers from ancient Greece had their complete plays survive? I hadn’t heard of the other two either – Aeschylus or Sophocles. I think it’s amazing that a quote about happiness came from a writer who specialized in tragedies.    Source: Euripides - Wikipedia
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​This is how I’d illustrate Euripides’ quote, the worst of fortune leading to a happy change. It might be raining on their parade, but these two are still having fun, together.

​Who said it? William Carlos Williams. He was 20 when he wrote it in a letter to his mom. Back then he was a student at the University of Pennsylvania. Here’s a link to a minute-long recording about him.  Link: Daily Inspiration | Inspiring Quotes
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I’d never heard of William Carlos Williams. He was quite talented! He was a medical doctor, poet, novelist, essayist, and playwright. He may have been overshadowed by other writers, but he inspired the Beat generation of the 1950s and 60s. Who knew he lived a pretty normal life as a doctor for more than 40 years? Maybe that’s why his words still ring true to me!
Sources: William Carlos Williams | Poetry Foundation                       William Carlos Williams - Wikipedia
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When I think about what William said, this is what I picture . . . SHARING. One of my firm beliefs is that when you give, you get. When you get, you give. They work together.

Quote #3  – Whoever is happy will make others happy too.
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Who said it? Anne Frank. She’s unforgettable. She was forced to hide in an attic for 2 years during WWII. That’s when she wrote this sentence about happiness. Here’s a link to her recording. It’s about a minute long.        Link: Daily Inspiration | Inspiring Quotes
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This is Anne, back in July 1942. It was taken two months before her family went into hiding. Her father knew about some concealed rooms in his office building. They were hidden by a bookcase. The photo below is a cutaway of that building. If you go to Wikipedia, you can enlarge it and identify each room.
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​This model reminds me of a doll house, but this was no children’s game of hide and seek for the Franks. If they were caught, they’d be sent to a concentration camp.

Anne and her sister, Margot, were separated from their parents in November of 1944. They were sent to Bergen-Belsen, another infamous camp. They died a few months later, sometime in late February or early March. No one knows for sure.
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Anne’s father was the only one in the family who survived the war. Otto lost his wife, his daughters. When he returned to Amsterdam, he found his secretary Miep Gies. She’d helped them hide, and she saved Anne’s diary. Otto published it in 1947 because Anne wanted to be a writer. She succeeded! Her diary has been published in over 70 languages.
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​What Anne wrote about happiness is incredible. She was so young and so wise. She found happiness in writing, and I get to share it with you.

Information Source:  Anne Frank - Wikipedia

Photo Sources:  1. Her house: By Alexisrael - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=31562690
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2. Anne and Margot’s grave: By Arne List - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=184880

​The 4 R’s, they’re for the Environment too? I knew schools had 3 – Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic, but I’d forgotten the ones for the environment . . . Reduce, Recycle, Reuse, and Renew.

Dear Earth is a story told in letters, with back matter that’s all about those 4 R’s. They inspired this post. I decided to review the book, and then write about those R’s in my blog.

My Review: http://www.rindabeach.com/my-reads/review-of-dear-earth-from-your-friends-in-room-5

Part 1 – REDUCE – That’s when you use less of something whenever you can, whether it’s plastic or energy. If you’re a kid, what could you do to make a difference?

Energy is tricky. You’re not driving a car, yet. But, you could turn off the lights whenever you leave a room. You could turn off the TV when you’re done watching. Both things reduce the amount of electricity your family’s using, and best of all, YOU’RE helping the planet! You go, kiddo!

Where do you use plastic? It’s in almost everything from toys to packaging. You could buy fewer toys by picking only the ones you really, really want. I love clothes. Here’s how I buy less. First I ask myself if I really want it (I don’t need any clothes. Ask my husband). Then I make myself wait a week or two after I see it. If I remember it, and I still really want it, I might go back and buy it. If I don’t, I just saved money to buy something else, and that’s a great thing!
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Whenever you buy something, look for a way to buy it with less packaging. Did you know you’re paying for each box, plastic container, or cords that it’s in? Here are a couple of things you might see at your house. Which one has the least packaging?

1. The Juice Box has at least 3 pieces of packaging – the box, the straw, and its wrapper. If the box came in a six-pack, that’s 18 pieces, plus the box. That’s 19 pieces of packaging total.
2. The Egg Carton has only one – the box. That’s it!
3. The Valentine Candy has at least 4 – the top and bottom of the box, the divider to separate the candy, and the seal around the box. There could be more, but 4’s my final answer!
4. The Juice Cans have at least one – for each can. They probably came in a six-pack, in a box or with plastic rings to hold them together. That’s 6 cans, plus the box/plastic piece. That’s 7 total.
5. And finally the Milk Carton probably has 3 – the carton, the cap, and the seal to keep the milk safe.

                                                              Surprise! The egg carton has the least packaging!
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​Part 2 – Recycle – That’s when you save things like paper, plastic, glass, and metal. They’re picked up, taken away, and made into something new.

Recycling looks different in different places. It depends on where you live. Some towns pick everything up once a week. Mine does. Every Thursday I put out a tub for paper, and a tub for everything else. Other places have a recycling calendar. You put out different tubs on different days.

1. It depends! I’ve never recycled a Juice Box because the cardboard’s coated with plastic. Check with your parents. Some communities will take the box and the straws. Some won’t!
2. Recycle the Egg Carton! If it’s all cardboard, it’s perfect.
3. Take off the bow. Then you can recycle the Valentine Box. It’s cardboard. You might be able to recycle the plastic divider, if it’s a 1 or 2. Ask your parents about the other numbers. A lot of places won’t recycle them.
4. Juice Cans – yes please! They’re metal and perfect to recycle!
5. It depends, again! The Milk Carton is just like a juice box, coated with plastic, so you’ll have to check. BTW plastic milk jugs use #2 plastic – recycle them.

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​Part 3 – Reuse – That’s when you use something again and again until it finally wears out. You could return, reuse, or recycle this coffee cup, but if you’re a kid, what could you reuse?
 
Think juice box. You can’t reuse them, but you could pick out a cup that you could use over and over again. Think paper – if you used the front, you could draw or write something on the back. I do that with every video script I write.

1. Juice Boxes can be reused like milk cartons at school. Rinse them out, and you can plant seeds in them. Once you have little plants, pull them out and replant them. Another idea – use those clean boxes to make blocks, or to build a miniature city.
2. Reuse Egg Cartons to store small things like earrings, or matchbox cars. You could also cut the cartons apart, then use the little cups for craft projects, like painting. Art teachers love them! One of my favorite teachers sent home a list of supplies she needed, like egg cartons.
3. The Valentine Box could be reused for storage. Use the whole box for something dear to your heart, like valentine cards or pictures of your family and friends. If you keep the dividers, think what might fit inside those spots, and you’ve got more storage for your stuff. That’s a really good thing!
4. Did you know if you save Juice Cans, turn them in the right place, that you can make money? MONEY! Who doesn’t love that?! Plus, do you see the pull tabs on top? Save those too, then turn them into your local McDonalds. Those tiny tabs fund the Ronald McDonald House. That’s where families of sick kids can stay, FREE!
5. I’d use the Milk Cartons as blocks or to build a miniature town with buildings of different sizes. They look too big to grow plants.

​Kids are creative! I bet you can think of more ideas to reuse trash. My suggestion, before you throw something away, think of how you can use it again!
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​ Part 4 – Renew – That’s when you can make something new again, or you use resources that will never run out. They’re always available, like the wind and the sun. They’re both considered clean energy, but they have problems too. Did you know bats are endanger because of windmills? The blades hit them when they’re out hunting for bugs to eat.
 
You can’t build windmills or solar panels, but can kids help to renew our planet? Think about cleaning up someplace where people litter. It could be a playground, a beach, or a street in your neighborhood. Think planting a tree. They breathe in the carbon dioxide we give off, and they give us oxygen. We’d die without it. 

​Think composting! That’s what you can do with leftover food, leaves, yard clippings, even newspaper. You put them in a box, or in a corner of your yard. Then you let nature take over. Decomposers like worms and bacteria will break down that waste and turn it into fertilized soil that you can use in your garden.  Maybe, that compost heap is already there!
 
One of these packages can’t be renewed, but the other 4 can. Can you find the nonrenewable package?

​The Juice Cans are the only nonrenewable, but you can recycle them. The other 4 – Juice Box, Egg Cartons, Valentine Box, and Milk Carton are made of cardboard. You can plant more trees to replace the ones cut down.
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​My conclusions . . . I was born in 1959, before the 4R’s. Back then people were beginning to think about pollution and the environment. No one recycled when I was a kid.
 
Fast forward 60 years, and people are using the 4R’s. Imagine where we’ll be in another 60? Green energy is new, but so was the automobile in the early 1900’s. Look how far they’ve come! I think the same will be true for green energy. It takes time and innovation to build new technology.
 
For now, I’ll keep doing those small things I’m doing, but I’m not alone. Lots of people all over the world are doing them too, and that gives me hope that things will improve. Here’s to tomorrow!

Part 1 – Saying Goodbye – I’m not in this picture, but this is what it looks like when Elida teachers say goodbye to their kids when the year’s over. It was taken 3 years ago, in 2018. I thought it was a good way to begin a post that’s about saying goodbye. 

This used to be the front of the old Elida Elementary. I moved in after I left Gomer in 1999. I said goodbye when I retired in 2015.
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I’ve been back twice to visit, but it’s not the same. I’m part of the past. I don’t belong now. It was a strange feeling the 1st time, but life moves on, for me too.

Elida Elementary was a huge building. I could only find the three biggest pieces to show you. This picture is of the two-story section. One wing stood in front. The other behind it.

I had three different rooms at Elida. I started in the front wing, on the second floor. It was a room without a view, and my least favorite. The second floor is always hotter!
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I finished in the back wing, on the first floor. I had a great view of the playground. I liked that room a lot. It was way cooler!

​This is the one-story section. My 2nd room was in this wing. I was finally in the front, two classrooms from the door. I never wanted to leave! It was my favorite room . . .  cool, with a great view.

Part 2 – The Road to Demolition, To a New Building
Sunday, September 8, 2019 was groundbreaking literally, for the new Elida Elementary. Can you see the playground in that first picture? It takes time to build a new school, and to tear down the old one. 

​It took 2 years to build the new Elementary. But the old Elida kept going. It taught kids reading, writing and arithmetic, just like it’d been doing since it opened in 1962.

​The demolition crew began tearing down the old elementary on Wednesday, June 2, 2021. This is the back wing. It’s where I spent my last years at Elida.

It’s sad to see my building disappear into a pile of rubble. It stood tall for 59 years, and now it’s gone, like the other buildings from my past. Only two survived demolition. One’s an apartment building for seniors. The other is now a middle school, instead of a high school.

Started 11/26                                                           Finished 11/29
I don’t know what I expected, but this book wasn’t it. It was more! I’m glad it started with another author’s note. It grounded me. It helped me follow the twists and turns of the plot. I expected Cimorene to lead the story, but Patricia picked a new leading character. She wanted to broaden and deepen the story. She was right!  

Book 2 begins with Mendanbar, the King of the Enchanted Forest. He sets off on a quest to save it from the Wizards. His 1st stop – the caves of King Kazul and Cimorene. Be prepared – You’re on a magical journey that won’t stop until the Enchanted Forest is safe once more.

PS – I decided to rewrite/revise my bat story with the original five chapters. I need to explore it first before I look for ways to grow it. I believe in story magic, and I’m willing to let it take me wherever my story is meant to go.

​Amazon’s Description:
This time the wicked wizards are draining power from the Enchanted Forest. “This riotous sequel to Dealing with Dragons evinces the same wacky wit and skewed fairy-tale elements with the addition of a touch of romance. Once again, Wrede offers a story that will delight fantasy fans, particularly those who have relished Cimorene’s adventures in the first book of the Enchanted Forest Chronicles.”--Booklist

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Started 11/20                                                   Finished 11/26
A couple pages in, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to reread this book, but Cimorene, the main character drew me in, again! Now I’m hooked! I have to read her adventures, all the way to the end!

PS – I loved the author’s new introduction – it’s the story behind the story. Patricia Wrede and Cimorene had a real adventure just finding their way into this book! I hope they’ll help me find the adventure in my story.

PPS – I’m three days in, and dragon magic is working! I moved the setting from Lienen to Tecklenburg. It has history and atmosphere, from the ruins of an old German castle to the Teutoberg Forest where Herman the German battled ancient Rome.

My story’s grandmother changed too. The bats called her a witch in the old version. Now I think making her into a real one, opens a world of possibilities. I also changed her granddaughter’s name from Hannah to Anna, because a real Countess Anna lived in Tecklenburg Castle. She didn’t want witches burned, and my grandma and her Anna won’t either.  Imagine what I can do with that angle!

Finally, I did some research and picked out one kind of bat. I also discovered that all bats need help. Did you know they’re in danger worldwide because of wind farms? In Germany too! I read that if they turned the fans off when bats are out, it would save their lives! AND we’d only lose 1% of the power wind farms produce. WOW! Who knew this book could get my juices going and fill my head with ideas? WAHOO! 

​Amazon’s Description:
Meet the princess who rescues herself and the female dragon who would be king in this first fantasy adventure in the Enchanted Forest Chronicles.
 
The traditional duties of a princess fail to please Cimorene, the daughter of a very proper king. She is quite sure that there’s more to the world than curtseying and courting. And what she finds in her chosen career as a dragon’s princess is sometimes more than she can handle. But fear not! Our intrepid heroine has just what it takes to keep her dragon, Kazul, safe and happy, while learning to fireproof herself, organize the treasure trove, and stay free from the clutches of pesky princes. 
                                         This updated edition features a new introduction by the author.​
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Me as a Reader, and a Writer – This is me, at a book event. I’m not just a reader anymore . . . I’m a writer. It changed the way I read, the way I write. Reading and writing are like opposite sides of the same coin. They work together.

I just finished a series about dragons, but I’m now starting another dragon series. Go figure! I thought I’d take a break, but today I started the first book in a series, again, even though I read it last year. I also bought the other three books in that series. Why? Because I thought it could help me as a writer.

I wrote my 2nd bat story ten years ago, and I haven’t touched it since. I pulled up the first chapter last week and revised it. It was easy . . . I’ve grown as a writer in the last ten years. My  critique partners said I needed to push the characters, but I knew that. Ten years ago they were flat, and they still are. I was surprised that a couple people thought I should grow the story, a lot. I didn’t see the potential, last week.

This week I outlined my five chapters (I designed it as an easy chapter book) and sent it in . . . The response was universal! I need to grow this story . . . it’s way bigger than my original plot. I knew I needed to up the stakes and add complexity, but now I know . . . if I want this story to find its own depth, I need to let it grow. To become more than I can imagine now. WOW!

After I finished my critique group, I didn’t know where to turn, where to find ideas. Then I remembered that books have always been my mentors so I found it. My next read is imaginative, creative, and a fantasy. It’s a great place to start rebuilding my story. I also thought I should look at fractured fairy tales, fantasies with princesses and witches. Maybe even bats and bugs. Here’s to my new voyage, and however long it takes!
         
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Started 11/16                                                      Finished 11/19
If you like intrigue and mystery, you’ll love Book 8. Elizabeth is home, but the people responsible for her kidnapping, and the dragon smuggling are still on the loose. Intelligence points to the Keepers’ Cotillion – the next date in a smuggler’s notebook.

Add in challenges for baby Pemberley – a trio of dragons are fighting to take away her estate. I’m on chapter 33, but the plot is still thickening. I can’t wait to see how it will all be resolved.

​​Amazon’s Description:
Territory challenges. Dragon battles. Baby dragon debutantes. When will the chaos end?

Dragon Sage Elizabeth Darcy longs for life to return to normal, at least as normal as it could be for a Blue Order officer who lives with more household dragons than most small villages. Having two sisters and an infant dragon to present as debutantes to the Order, make ‘normal’ difficult. The fine ladies—she-dragons one and all—of the Cotillion Board make it impossible.

Sir Fitzwilliam Darcy, Knight of the Pendragon Order never envisioned his oath to ‘protect and serve the interests of the Blue Order and dragonkind’ would demand immediate action. But only a Keeper can defend Pemberley’s territory against threats far too big for a baby dragon to manage. Threats against the Pendragon Accords themselves. And only the one closest to the Dragon Sage can protect her from the sinister forces menacing the Order, possibly from within its own ranks.

Can Darcy and Elizabeth ensure the Cotillion strengthens the Order rather than laying the groundwork for its demise? Meryton meets Pern in a fantastical regency romp bound to delight readers of Jane Austen and Anne McCaffrey alike. Book 8 of Jane Austen's Dragons

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Started 11/9                                                    Finished 11/15
Book 6 starts with the she-dragons of human society. Who knew the Patronesses of Almac’s from other romance novels, would appear in this book and cause problems? Or, that real dragons would be easier to deal with?

But there’s more afoot . . . there’s a conspiracy going on in the Blue Order. People are selling live dragons, and/or their body parts. EWW! Somehow Elizabeth, her nephew, and his fairy dragon are kidnapped and taken aboard a ship heading to Bermuda. Escape seemed impossible until Darcy, the Wentworth’s, and a few minor dragons came to the rescue.

The best part, as always, was the interaction between the characters. It felt right! Occasionally, when the author told about the dragon trade instead of showing its awfulness, it felt preachy. It didn’t happen often, and the author always returned to the important part – the story! 

Amazon’s Description:
Smugglers. A kidnapping. A fire-breathing fairy dragon? The Blue Order is falling apart at the seams.
After months in Bath mentoring Dragon Keepers and Friends, Dragon Sage Elizabeth Darcy actually anticipates traveling to London for the Keeper’s Cotillion. Which says a great deal considering the she-dragons who make up the Cotillion board would very much like to show the Sage her proper place.

The she-dragons, though, are no match for what Sir Fitzwilliam Darcy finds waiting for him in London. Threats to the Order on every side, and Lord Matlock demands he keep them secret from Elizabeth. No one keeps secrets from Elizabeth.

In the meantime, Anne and Frederick Wentworth arrive in London with hopes of finally being accepted in good Blue Order society, unaware of the burgeoning maelstrom about to engulf them. Darcy manages to keep matters under control until a fairy-dragon’s prank unleashes sinister forces who perpetrate an unthinkable crime that could spell the end of the Pendragon Accords and usher in a new age of dragon war.

Can Elizabeth and Darcy, with the Wentworths’ help, restore balance to the Blue Order before the dragons decide to take matters into their own talons and right the wrongs themselves?
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​Started 11/2                                                    Finished 11/9     
I took a break from Maria and her dragons to read Persuasion. I wanted to look at the original to see how Maria worked her magic. My writer’s conclusion – She took the bare bones of the plot and the characters from the original. Then she wrapped them in dragon clothing to fit her story. My writer’s application – I should do the same thing with a story I’ve been trying to find my way into. Fingers crossed!

Now back to Maria and those dragons! Book 5 was about how Anne Elliot and Captain Wentworth met their dragon friends and became part of the order. In Book 6 the dragons are weaving their ‘warm-blooded friends’ back together again. I’m a third of the way through, and I love what I’m reading! It’s fun!
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​Amazon’s Description:
Keeping a hibernating dragon should have been a simple thing. Should have been, but it was not. Apparently, nothing involving dragons was ever simple, at least not for Anne Elliot, junior Keeper to dragon Kellynch.

With the estate in debt, Anne’s father in denial, and the dragon’s treasure missing, Kellynch’s awakening is shaping up to be nothing short of catastrophe. Not to mention, there was the pesky matter of her own broken heart and resentment against the old friend who had caused it.

Captain Frederick Wentworth had spent his life making something of himself in the Navy. With the war that kept him employed at an end and a small fortune in prize money, he found himself beached and at loose ends. What was he to do with himself now—take a wife like Laconia, his dragon Friend, insisted? Not when none compared to the woman who had broken his heart.

Working as an agent of the Blue Order, managing dragon matters across England, seemed a much better alternative. At least until investigating one such matter sent him directly in the path of Anne Elliot, the woman who had ruined him for all others.

Now a royal dragon rages, a sleeping dragon lurks, and too many treasures have gone missing. Can Anne and Wentworth lay aside resentment, pride, and heartbreak to prevent Kellynch’s awakening from ending in bloodshed—or worse? Jane Austen meets Pern in a fantastical regency romp bound to delight readers of Jane Austen and Anne McCaffrey alike. Book 6 in the Jane Austen's Dragons series.

​Part 1 – Talking Money – The Must-Have Conversation:  This is a tough conversation . . . I had trouble writing my post last night for you. Talking money anytime is difficult, and doing it with your parents is even worse. If you’d like some advice, try this link. They have some ideas that might be helpful for you. Link: 6 Ways To Help Your Aging Parents With Their Investments | Bankrate
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I was lucky . . . I didn’t have to initiate the talk. My parents did – after my dad’s heart attack. It changed their lives. They survived quadruple bypass together. Then they patched the potholes they found during that experience. They organized their important papers and told us where to find the things they’d need, like insurance and bank accounts.

Then they made out their wills. They set up medical and financial powers of attorney to take care of each other. They added clauses to allow my sister and I to help them, if they couldn’t help themselves.
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I didn’t want to look at that information when they first put it together, but now looking back, I’m glad my parents made me do it. At some point in the last few years, I realized . . . that it’s my turn. My husband and I need to have that talk with our kids. We need to put our information together. We need to set up wills, and power of attorneys, but for now, my husband and I are putting it off, like we’ve done for years. It’s easier to put things off, than to push through to do them.

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My father was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s back in 2011. He lived with it until he died in 2015. Mom managed the house, the finances, and watched over Dad during those years. She was sharp as a tack then, and she still is!

​Mom’s mind is sound, but slowly, over the years, her body has weakened. Now she can’t live alone, so she moved into a senior citizen home in 2019. Mom still makes her own decisions, financially and otherwise, but I do her shopping and pay her bills.

These tools helped me help her.

• A Living Will
• A Durable Power of Attorney (POA) for Finances
• A Durable Medical POA

 
The Financial POA helps Mom the most. Through it she grants me the power to do the things she needs done. If she ever changed her mind, she could take my name off and put someone else’s on. Over the years we’ve learned to work together; to listen to each other. I try to give her room to make choices, and I try not to make them for her. She tries to listen to what I can do for her, and what I can’t. It takes teamwork from both of us. It will take the same for you and your parents.

If it’s hard for your parents to make good choices, you can set up a Revocable Trust. It limits how much your parents can spend, but it may change your relationship. No parent likes to be told what to do by the child they raised.
 
If your parents are no longer of sound mind, you can set up a conservatorship by going to court. You’ll have to prove your case to a judge. If they agree, they’ll set up a guardian to make decisions. The guardian would control their checkbook and credit cards. It’s a last resort; one I didn’t have to use. My parents helped me into this world, and now it’s my turn to help them leave it behind. ​

Part 1 - A Little Family History: Do you recognize these characters? The Addams Family? I thought this post would be about two commercials, but whenever I start researching something, I find cool facts and images.  ​

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​This story started with Charles Addams. He created the original cartoon back in 1938 for the New Yorker Magazine. Charles drew another 58 cartoons in this series, and almost all of them were published in the 1940’s and 50’s, long before I was born.

​ The Addams family has come back in a few different incarnations since 1938. These photos are from two different TV shows from 1964. I was 5 back then.

 The 1st one is The Addams Family. I didn’t watch them, but this is their cast photo. Clockwise from the back left – Gomez (John Astin), Lurch (Ted Cassidy) Pugsley (Ken Weatherwax), Morticia (Carolyn Jones), and Wednesday (Lisa Loring).

​ ​ Photo Source:
- Cartoon By Charles Addams, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15992920
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- Cast: By ABC Television - eBay itemphoto frontphoto back, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19464844

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​The real theme came from the 1964 TV series. It was written and arranged by Vic Mizzy, a famous TV and movie composer. I knew Vic used finger snaps for the percussion section, but I didn’t realize he used harpsichord for the rest. Amazing!

​​If you’d like to hear it again, search out Addams Family Theme song, and you should see these two images. Click one, and listen. Don’t forget to check out the harpsichord!
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BTW - This is a harpsichord! I think it looks a lot like a piano. What do you think?

Information Sources:
​The Addams Family - Wikipedia 
​The Munsters - Wikipedia
​The Addams Family Theme - Wikipedia


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​​If you watch TV, you probably saw both commercials. I did, repeatedly! They got a lot of air time during October, when the movie, The Addams Family 2, came out.  

​I found the Progressive Addams Family commercial first. It used the original music, but changed the lyrics to add in the Progressive characters. They’re as funny and quirky as the Addams Family, and the contrast between them is clever!

My favorite moment – when Morticia asks Flo how long they’re staying. Morticia looks positively horrified when Flo says forever. If you love clever, search out this commercial and watch it one more time! Enjoy!

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​Information Source:   Go RVing Uses Real RVers To Create RV Orchestra Commercial To Promote Addams Family 2 Movie | RVIA

Part 1 – The Song that Still Inspires Me – Back in 2013 I wrote a slide show on Photo Peach about my writing adventure. It told my story starting in  2007 when I started . . . until I retired in 2015. Unfortunately I can’t use it any more . . . because Photo Peach went out of business.
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My slide show featured one of my favorite songs, Fantastic Voyage. It was released in January of 1981 by Lakeside, and it hit #1 on the R&B chart. I still remember it from my colllege days when I was into disgo and funk. This song still speaks to me, 40 years later, and it still makes me want to dance!

Information Source: 
​Fantastic Voyage (Lakeside song) - Wikipedia

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Album Cover:
By SOLAR Records - Discogs. Fair Use
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=60306392

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​​I started my adventure last October, and I finished it this October. It was supposed to take 5 months . . . I should have been  done by February, but I couldn’t do it.
​
I could have pushed to finish it. Or sent something in, but if you’re going to do something, you might as well do it right. I persevered! I finally finished the 4th and final manuscript on October 20th. Two days later, I sent off my query.  I got an answer – that I could nudge the agent in a couple of weeks. I won’t. I’d rather wait until after Thanksgiving. No one wants to be nudged when they’re celebrating Thanksgiving.

It’s been a year! My safety story was done first. That was the one that got the ball rolling, but it took until March to get it right. ​

The fourth and final book was my dog story. I’ve worked on it since 2011. I’ve been revising those ants and that dog for a decade, and now finally,  they’re both ready to send out on submission. I’m so excited!

When I accomplish something special, I go shopping – usually clothes and jewelry to celebrate. This is what I bought when I thought I’d reached the room of requirement. It was 2011, and Bruce Hale said fine-tune and publish. That was my ant story so I bought a tunic and this necklace. I don’t have the tunic, but I still have the necklace. Whenever I look at it, I remember that moment. When I video tape this post, I’ll wear my agent audition challenge outfit. This time I picked something I’ll still want to wear in another 10 years.
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​​Bruce was one of the critiquers available at the 2011 SCBWI conference in Cleveland. He read the 1st ten pages and gave me suggestions. One of them was making sure the things I’d written about ants were true. My first page said Poppy’s heart was pounding. Bruce asked if ants had hearts. I said I didn’t know, and he said that, if I wanted to get it published, I’d have to find out. I did! 
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​I bought this necklace when I got home from the conference to celebrate. I thought within a year or two, Poppy would be published, and so would I. Oh, how wrong I was! I had so much more to learn! About ants and bees. I found photos and charts like the ones in this post to help me get my story straight!

I pushed the plot and the characters. I took a workshop in 2016 and discovered I had a saggy middle. That I needed more of the 5 senses in my story. That I needed to show, and tell how my characters felt.  It took me until the summer of 2020 to get things almost right. That’s when I added another character to the plot. Why? Because a writing friend suggested it. I didn’t want to add Chase right away. I never want to change. Ever! I have to think about it first, process it, but after a day or two I thought why not? Chase and Hunter, the bees in the story, add fun and humor, but together they play a jokester and his straight man. My critique partners think they’re one of the best things about the story.

The summer of 2020 I got all the way to chapter 18. The saggy middle was gone! But I got stuck . . . Then I started the Agent Audition challenge. I started back with chapter 1 in March of 2021. The hardest part of this voyage was bridging what I hadn’t changed since 2016; then matching them to the new chapters I’d revised in 2020. I kept pushing. I even found a chance to work with my mentor across 6 weeks. Instead of revising a chapter a week, I learned to do 5. It was hard! But so worth it.
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I didn’t let off the gas until I finished chapter 30 on the 26th, but, I won’t reward myself until Callie gives me the thumbs up on my last three chapters. When she does, I’ll message my friend Stacy. She does medical massage, and I think it’s the perfect reward for a year of very hard work!

Started 10/26                                                  Finished 11/2  
I’d never read Persuasion by Jane Austen before, but I’ve met her main characters, Anne Elliot and Captain Wentworth in a few other variations. I just read one, and I was curious about the original, so I picked it up.

It amazes me how Jane’s writing holds up, over 300 years after it was published. It’s sharp and witty, but so different from today’s novel structure. Jane spent the 1st three or four chapters setting the stage. We’re introduced to Anne’s family – to her father and sisters, to their home Kellynch before Anne and the Captain finally appear together. But it holds up. I’m still reading because I like the way Jane tells a story. 

​Amazon’s Description:
Persuasion is linked to Northanger Abbey not only by the fact that the two books were originally bound up in one volume and published together, but also because both stories are set partly in Bath, a fashionable city with which Austen was well acquainted, having lived there from 1801 to 1805.
Besides the theme of persuasion, the novel evokes other topics, such as the Royal Navy, in which two of Jane Austen's brothers ultimately rose to the rank of admiral. As in Northanger Abbey, the superficial social life of Bath—well known to Austen, who spent several relatively unhappy and unproductive years there—is portrayed extensively and serves as a setting for the second half of the book. In many respects Persuasion marks a break with Austen's previous works, both in the more biting, even irritable satire directed at some of the novel's characters and in the regretful, resigned outlook of its otherwise admirable heroine, Anne Elliot, in the first part of the story. Against this is set the energy and appeal of the Royal Navy, which symbolizes for Anne and the reader the possibility of a more outgoing, engaged, and fulfilling life, and it is this worldview which triumphs for the most part at the end of the novel.
 

Me as a Reader – This is me, at the lake, reading my kindle. One of my favorite books is Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I met it in the 70’s in high school, and I’m still reading it, but now I’m reading the P&P variations that have grown popular over the last 20 or 30 years.

Why do I love this book so much? First it’s the characters Jane Austen created – Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy, Jane Bennett and Bingley, Bingley’s sisters Caroline and Louisa, Mr. and Mrs. Bennett, and their other daughters Mary, Kitty, and Lydia. Each one is great in their own unique way!

I also love the plot. For the 1800’s Jane Austen was ahead of her time. Elizabeth isn’t meek and mild. She speaks her mind, and she speaks it to someone as rich and privileged as Fitzwilliam Darcy. But most of all it’s a great romance novel, and it has a happy ending. Two of my favorite things in books!

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Started 10/23
No Pride or Prejudice in this one. It’s all about Persuasion with Anne Elliot and Captain Frederick Wentworth. I’m fascinated by how the author takes the classic story and weaves her fantasy with dragons around them.  And, she still maintains the important things about their characters and their story. It’s amazing!
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Amazon’s Description:
In order to secure her future, a young lady must marry well. One would think Anne Elliot, a baronet’s daughter, would find the marriage mart far easier to navigate than a more ordinary woman. One would be wrong.

After refusing a poor, but otherwise perfect sailor, on the advice of her friend Lady Russell, Anne finds an unhappy choice before her: marry deathly dull Charles Musgrove or hope against hope that another suitable proposal might come her way before she becomes a spinster on the shelf.

Anne’s disgracefully independent choice to refuse Charles’ offer turns her world entirely arsey-varsey and not in the expected turned upside down sort of way. She begins to see things … hear things … things like dragons. And once one sees dragons, one talks to them. And when one talks to them, nothing is ever the same again. Must a young lady marry well if she hears dragons? A must-read gas lamp dragon fantasy! Jane Austen meets Anne McCaffrey with a touch of Harry Potter!

Started 10/19                                                         Finished 10/22
This isn’t really an introduction to dragons! It’s an introduction to Elizabeth’s back story with them. Maria will take you back in time to meet Elizabeth as a tween, when she was discovering dragons. She wove details together from her 1st three books to show how Elizabeth became the Dragon Sage of Book 3. Read, and you’ll find out details like how Elizabeth got her fairy dragon April, or how she discovered how to help teething dragons.
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Amazon’s Description:
Nobody had any compassion for dragon lore expert Thomas Bennet’s nerves.  He was reconciled to the fact he was father to some of the silliest girls in the country. However, he had suspected for some time that little Elizabeth was different. When she befriended the old tatzelwurm in the woods, he was convinced.

As much as her father might rant and storm about the need for secrecy and expect that to be the end of it, Elizabeth cannot contain her curiosity about all things dragonic. Nor, would it seem, could she stem the development of her unique and prodigious talent for bonding with the creatures.
 
When Elizabeth discovers an abandoned clutch of fairy dragon eggs, Mr. Bennet finds an unhappy alternative before him. Somehow, he must save the dragon eggs, contend with the jealous estate dragon, and keep it all hidden from his family…or risk exposure of England’s greatest secret and the breaking of the Pendragon Treaty that keeps the tenuous peace between man and dragon.
 
And through it all, can he help his precocious, passionate daughter find her place in a dangerous world that little tolerance for little girls. Jane Austen meets Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders of Pern. A must read for Pern fans.

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Started 10/14                                                      Finished 10/18 
Another day, a new book, and a new dragon – Netherfield! He’s stirring the pot, with a little help from Lydia and Wickham. They’re just as self-centered and wicked as they were when Jane Austen created the original P&P. The difference - this time Darcy and Elizabeth must rescue them, plus a dragon or two.

​Amazon’s Description:
Elizabeth Bennet, Dragon Keeper, accidental guardian of Pemberley the young firedrake, and even more accidentally betrothed of one Fitzwilliam Darcy, would beg to disagree. Banished from her home, her marriage indefinitely delayed, and desperate to secure Pemberley’s future, Elizabeth must tame a rogue dragon who is determined that she is the last Dragon Keeper in the world whom he would ever accept.

Darcy cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look or the words, which upended every expectation he had for his future. That is not to say this particular future with Elizabeth is unwelcome. But he never expected for that future to be stayed whilst he was called so very far away from her, caught in the middle of keeping the fragile peace between dragons and humans. Darcy discovers a treacherous plot against Elizabeth. More shocking, the heart of the conspiracy beats in someone very near and dear to her.

With war on the horizon, time is running out for Elizabeth and Darcy to save the dragons and any hope of a future together. Meryton meets Pern in a fantastical regency romp bound to delight readers of Jane Austen and Anne McCaffrey alike.         
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Started 10/12                                                      Finished 10/14
It took me a week to finish Pemberley, but I’m already 84% of the way through Longbourn. I love travel days & reading!

What amazes me is how the author changed a few minor details to make the plot work with dragons. Would you believe Mary is closer to Elizabeth than Jane? Or that Mr. Bennett values the family dragon more than Elizabeth? But don’t worry! Lady Catherine is up to her usual tricks, and Elizabeth and Darcy don’t disappoint as they find their way toward the altar.

Amazon’s Description:
​A dragon’s imagination is very rapid. It jumps from separation to anxiety, and anxiety to wreaking havoc.

Fitzwilliam Darcy finds caring for a baby dragon more of a fraught guardianship than anticipated. Little Pemberley may have survived a perilous hatching and still successfully imprinted on humans, but she’s pining for one particular human to the point she is fast becoming a danger to herself and others.

Elizabeth Bennet may yearn for baby Pemberley, but she has her own share of misfortunes to manage. Her cousin Mr. Collins, heir to the Longbourn entail, has decided that marrying her will add very greatly to his future happiness. While the estate dragon agrees--and insists she accept him--Elizabeth and the rest of Longbourn's dragons insist he is the last man in the world whom she could ever be prevailed on to marry--a better dragon's dinner than a husband.

​It’s disappointment and spleen all around as Lady Catherine de Bourgh involves herself in the affair after hearing reports of a most alarming nature. There are few people in England besides herself who could make things worse. In that, Lady Catherine is a true proficient. Baby Pemberley’s fate is caught in a deadly tangle of families and fortunes, forcing Darcy and Elizabeth to take the biggest gamble of their lives to win or lose it all. Jane Austen meets Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders of Pern. A must read for Pern fans. Book 2 in the Jane Austen's Dragons series.

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Started 10/6                                                         Finished 10/12
I read about 60% of this book by the 7th. Today’s the 9th, and I’ve only edged forward a few pages. I’m looking forward to finishing it on the 11th . . . when I’m back on the road again.

I’ve read Pemberley before, and I bought the next two books in this series. I almost didn’t try it. I’ve read a lot of Pride & Prejudice variations, but I refused to open P&P with Zombies. No way, but I was curious how someone would combine Mr. Darcy, dragons, and Elizabeth.

I was pleasantly surprised! Elizabeth and Darcy were true to Jane Austen’s original story, and I liked how the dragons fit into that plot. Pemberley was well done. No wonder it’s the first book in a series of eight.

Amazon’s Description:
England is overrun by dragons of all shapes and sizes. Most people are blissfully unaware of them and the Pendragon Treaty that keeps the peace between human and dragon kind. Only those born with preternatural hearing, like Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet are able to hear and converse with dragonkind. When the first firedrake egg laid in a century is stolen from Pemberley, the fragile dragon peace teeters on collapse. Darcy has no choice but to chase down the thief, a journey that leads him to quaint market town of Meryton and fellow Dragon Keeper, Elizabeth Bennet. Elizabeth shares a unique bond with dragons, stronger than anything Darcy has ever experienced. More than that, her vast experience and knowledge of dragon lore may be the key to uncovering the lost egg. But Elizabeth can’t stand Darcy’s arrogance and doesn’t trust him to care properly for a precious baby firedrake. After all, he already lost the egg once. What’s to prevent it from happening again? Can he win her trust and recover the stolen egg before it hatches and sends England spiraling back into the Dark Ages of Dragon War?

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​Me as a Reader – This is how I read for fun – with my kindle. I’m usually somewhere in my house, curled up on a comfy couch or chair.

​ I’d rather have a kindle than a real book. I have 297 books on mine. They don’t take up space, and I don’t need to dust them. I don’t need a book mark because I never lose my place. If food drips on it, I wipe it right off. No stain! It’s perfect!

I usually get to read in bits of time here and there., but this week I’m traveling. My husband loves to drive so I get HUGE chunks of time to read. Yesterday I read a book in ONE day. I haven’t done that in like, forever! It was lovely! I dove into the story and followed it all the way to the end. There wasn’t anything to interrupt me. It’s a luxury I don’t often have – so I’m enjoying every minute – while it lasts!

PS – I got to read 58% of my new book today, but we arrived at our destination. Tomorrow I’ll be back to bits and pieces again, but everything is good in moderation. Even books!

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Started 10/5                                                       Finished 10/6
This book is almost a month old. It came out September 8th. I’ve never read it before, but I’ve read the first 4 books in the series. I preordered this one and started it yesterday. It’s a fast read! I just finished it today!

I knew this book would be Jamie’s story. From the beginning there’s been a mystery – what happened to him. By the 2nd or 3rd book I discovered Jamie was a her, that she was married to Kieran MacTavish, that there was a horrible accident with the ship, and that everyone believed Jamie was dead. Now I know the back story Nicole wove through these 5 books. It’s been like following a trail of bread crumbs . . . To a final satisfying ending!
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Amazon’s Description:
Miss Eilidh Fyffe always assumed her life would follow a predictable pattern—meet a charming man, fall in love, marry, and live happily ever after. But when an accident damages her memory, she is left with only questions. Has she already fallen in love and married? If only she could remember . . .

Master Kieran MacTavish has spent six years searching for his lost wife. But, turns out, finding Eilidh alive is only the beginning of the battle. She has no memory of him—no recollection of their courtship, love, or handfasting. Refusing to be discouraged, Kieran relishes the chance to make Eilidh fall for him all over again. Surely he can rekindle the flame of their love.

But the intervening years have changed them both. Eilidh is crippled by grief—the deaths of her father, her younger brother, Jamie, and others overwhelm her. And the more Kieran comes to know this new Eilidh, the more he is haunted by the woman she once was. Throughout it all, one question looms large—Is your love still your love if the person they once were no longer exists?

​Part 1 – Time and Money – I started writing in 2007. It didn’t cost me anything, but time. The time it took to write that first story. It’s still sitting in my computer. It was never published. I took it to a Highlights Conference and discovered there were a few good things about it. But there were lots of things wrong – things that needed work, if I wanted to see it published.

Highlights was my first writing business expense back in 2009, but it was the first of many. Have you ever heard, that to make money, you have to spend it? It’s true in writing, and in every single business I know.
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Starting in 2009 I invested in education. I joined SCBWI – the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. They were my go-to resource to find teachers, and classes, and conferences. Class by class, year by year, I grew as a writer.
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It was slow-going because I couldn’t put the time into it. Writing wasn’t my career. Teaching was. My kids ranged from high school to college. Writing was what I did, when I could find the time, on weekends. 
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I retired in May of 2015. From that day on I could invest both time and money into my writing. It worked!

In May of 2018 I found a story about Neil Armstrong that I wanted to tell. In June I got my first R & R from an agent. That stands for revise and resend, and it means you’re getting closer to getting published the traditional way. I pushed harder with both time and money.
 
​​Part 2 – The Cost of Self-Publishing – The photo came from the Armstrong Air and Space Museum. It gave me the idea for my 1st book, Neil Armstrong’s Wind Tunnel Dream.

The idea didn’t cost time or money, but turning it into a book took both. Self-publishing was the only way I could make it happen in time for the 50th anniversary of the moon landing. That meant I took on all the jobs a regular publisher would do, without any experience. It was the most difficult, and most satisfying journey I’ve ever taken!

I went from the  idea to a book in one short year. That’s super-fast in publishing! In that time, I wrote the book, found an illustrator, and worked from first sketch to final copy with him.

I set up things I never imagined. As a publisher I got my own EIN number (Employer Identification Number). That took care of the IRS, but I had to do the same thing in Ohio

I also found a template. It’s the computer program I used to enter my words and illustrations. It selects the font and font size for everything from regular pages to chapter headings to copyright. Each part of a book has its own setting. My job – to apply them all correctly.
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The final step was to download the template to the printer. If you didn’t enter it correctly, they send it back to you with a code. My job was to figure out what it meant, and how to correct it. I was lucky . . .  I had friends who could help me figure out each and every error message.

​​As a publisher, I had a list of things I paid for. My biggest expense was my illustrator. It was HUGE!

I also paid for the template, but I can use it over and over again. I bought my ISBN numbers. Retailers  like Amazon use them to order books. Neil had three different numbers – one for the paperback edition, one for the hardback, and an eBook number. I have seven left to use, whenever I decide to self-publish again.
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In Ohio I bought a license to sell my book. It connects me to the business gateway and helps me pay my taxes. I also joined the Wapakoneta Chamber of Commerce. They help me advertise book appearances to the local market.

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I published Zoe’s Scavenger Hunt Fun with BiblioKid Publishing. It’s a hybrid, and we did it in 7 months. Some things were like self-publishing, but some things were different. 
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​Working with BiblioKid Publishing was way easier than doing it all by myself! I took my manuscript from Lake Fun for You and Me, and with the help of my editor, I converted it from a picture book into short chapters. It took about 7 weeks from start to finish.​

​I didn’t have control over the illustrations, but I got to comment on them. We made two passes through the template. I looked at the text and illustrations on each page. My editor took some of my suggestions, but some were left as is . . .  because it wasn’t cost effective to make the changes.
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BiblioKid gave me a marketing plan. It was a timeline to help our team advertise Zoe before, during, and after our publishing date. We used it to guide our posts on social media. Before Zoe’s book birthday, we focused on preorders. Since then, I’ve worked to put out posts to remind you why it’s a great book to add to your collection!

Hybrid-publishing was a lot easier, but it was more expensive. I bought 200 copies of Zoe’s Scavenger Hunt Fun. That paid for the books, plus all the services BiblioKid provided, and they did a lot for me! BiblioKid supplied the template and sent it into the printer. They figured out and corrected all those tricky error messages. Not me!

BiblioKid gave me an ISBN number. Did you know that whoever owns that number, owns the rights to the book? So Zoe belongs to BiblioKid, not me. I gave up ownership, but in return I got an editor to help me convert my manuscript into a chapter book. Then we worked to polish every page, every chapter. I also had an art director work to make the images our very best. Finally, BiblioKids gave me that marketing plan, and this launch was my best EVER! ​

Traditional Publishing – I’ve never signed a traditional contract, but it’s the Holy Grail of writing. I’ve read about it, heard about it since 2007. Someday! I hope I earn one of those contracts!

The 1st two images are from stories I’ve worked on for years. They both need a traditional publisher. It’s where they have the best chance of reaching an audience. If you can’t do that, there’s no point in publishing. Except for what you learn from doing it, and the pride you feel when you hold your book. It’s amazing!.

With traditional publishing, I GET PAID up front for writing the manuscript. I won’t earn another dime until the publisher earns their money back from book sales. But, I have ONE JOB – writing the manuscript. The publishing house will do everything else, and they’ll pay for it too.

I WON’T get any input on the illustrations. I’ll have to trust the publisher to pick the right illustrator for my words. They’ll also invest their time and money into marketing me and my book, but, I’ll also work hard to sell it too. That’s the way to reach more readers, and, to earn more money!

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​​​                         Part 4 – My Conclusions ​

​I’ve learned a lot about publishing since Neil came out in 2019, but the biggest thing I’ve learned is that publishing is a business. To survive, the business must make money, whether it’s a grocery store or a dance studio. If it doesn’t, it closes.
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My best chance of making money is with traditional or self-publishing, but they both offer challenges to me and to my writing business.
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If I work towards a traditional publisher, I have to write stories that have a wide appeal, to kids across the country. The publisher must believe they can sell that story, and make money. If they don’t, they’re out of business. That’s why it’s so hard to get into traditional publishing. I’ve been working at it since 2007.

If I go with self-publishing, I have total control over the book, but I pay for everything. If I can’t make my money back, I have nothing to invest in the next one.

I found success with Neil in 2019 because I found the perfect market. Lake Fun and Zoe didn’t do as well. I didn’t find that perfect place to sell them, yet. But I’m glad I tried. I learned a lot, and that will help me with the next project.
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As for the future . . . I’m agent ready! That means I’m sending my  manuscripts off soon. The answer will tell me what’s next. Yes means they’ll shop my manuscript around for a publisher. No means I’ll continue on with my search. Either way I’ll also start on a few new stories. Something that’s traditional, and something for self-publishing. I’d like to keep my options open! ​