Mid TD Book Tour Update

The Lakewood Lakers!

I am having the time of my life. No exaggeration. I've now been to five schools and delivered six presentations. I've shared Spy-Like Writing Skills and How to Grow a Story from a Seed of an Idea to a Published Book. I've answered hundreds of questions (only a slight exaggeration) from students in Kindergarten to Eighth Grade!

Holy Cross Students and Me!

I can't imagine how this tour could get any better, but today I visit two branches of the Burlington Library and will help a group of young writers prepare for a writing contest. After that I get to join a group of Brownies and Boy Scouts for an Author and Pizza night! (I hope they have pepperoni!)

Preparing for this trip, I felt waves of excitement intermingled with anxiety that would often make me think, "What have I got myself into?" 

Mid-tour my anxiety is low, my excitement is off the charts and I keep thinking, "How lucky am I to have got into this program?" 

Spy-Like Writing Skills at St. Theresa's School

Filled with gratitude and humbled by the response I've received from the students and staff at every school I've visited in Southern Ontario, I continue across the province, feeling blessed and so proud to be Canadian.

New Pal, Principal Van Laecke at Lakewood!

Thank you, TD Bank for supporting this program, Canadian authors, Canadian literature and Canadian children. Thank you to the Canadian Children's Book Centre, for selecting me to take part. Thank you to my mentor, actor, 1st Vice Chair of The Writers' Union of Canada, Award-Winning Author and friend, Anita Daher. Without you, I would not be sitting in the Holiday Inn in Burlington, surround by my books, preparing to finish my first book tour.

More New Pals!

So excited to begin with the grade 3/4's
at Sacred Heart that I forgot to take pics.
So, here are the scraps of paper
I autographed and the school!

Never Give up, General Byng Barons!

Ready to go!

Prepping for a school visit is no small feat. I like to customize my presentations as much as possible and if time allows, I include a student activity. I often head to the public library to check out books to share with the kids. I am willing to do anything and everything to support and foster a love of reading, writing and following creative passions--heck any passions! 

One of the messages that runs through every one of my presentations is perseverance. Keep working to improve. Don't give up when times get tough. YOU CAN DO IT!

A Family of Spies thank-you for the students.

Today's visit to General Byng School, nestled in the "planet streets" in Fort Garry was no different.

This time I brought in books from Dr. Seuss, Judy Blume, J.K. Rowling and Kate DiCamillo.

Today's lesson from these well-known authors: rejection is hard, but it doesn't have to define you nor does it have to defeat you. 

Dr. Seuss was rejected twenty-seven times before he had And to Think I Saw it on Mulberry Street published. He went on to write a further sixty books.

Judy Blume had two solid years of rejection, then Blubber, Frecklejuice, Are you There God, It's Me Margaret enriched our lives. J.K. Rowling had  twelve rejections and now the Harry Potter Series is one of the highest selling book series in history and the movies are the TOP selling series.

But all awards for perseverance go to Kate DiCamillo. Rejected a whopping 473 times, yet she persisted. Now her books are classics. Because of Winn Dixie. The Tale of Despereaux. Flora and Ulysses. Thank goodness she didn't give up.

Sharing Spaghetti

I shared my own experiences of rejections, rewrites and edits, followed by tales of triumph and success. The students listened intently, asked so many thoughtful and intelligent questions that they left me wanting to return another day!

My most favourite question was one I often hear from the younger grades and when it gets asked, I know the students feel comfortable with me. I know it means I've done my job. It never fails to make me smile.

"How old are you?"

I smiled. "49."

According to the students and the gasps that filled the library, I am ancient. Beyond ancient.
I am as old as their parents.

****And a huge thank you to teacher-librarian, Mrs. Scibak for inviting me to the school. It was the highlight of my week****
Go, Barons!

I love Primrose!

And Two Makes it Real

"The only thing harder than getting your first book published, is getting your second book published."

I heard that ages ago, long before my first book was complete, years before it was even published. Once I began submitting manuscripts to editors and agents, I thought of that saying and grumbled, "I'd love to have that worry."

The reality of it hit me like a concrete wall of self-doubt as I started the submission process all over again with my second novel. The "no's"  arrived by post and email and those same feelings I had in my early days of writing descended, coupled with a new worry...

What if I was a one hit wonder?

What if Spaghetti was a fluke? A bit of good luck? Was it possible all I had in my was one good story?

My normally positive attitude was almost flattened. Almost.

The reason I was able to continue submitting, revising, and rewriting was because I made a few very smart decisions a few years ago. (I make many ridiculous decisions on an ongoing basis, so when my choices work out, they're quite a whoopdeedoo to me.)

The first brilliant thing I did was take a writing workshop led by Anita Daher. Not only did I learn more about writing in those eight weeks than I had in the previous eight years, Anita became my first writing mentor and a great friend. And to boot,  I met the most amazing circle of writers.

That's when I made my second most stupendous decision. I stuck with those talented women and we formed a writing group - a sisterhood of sorts. Seven years later, "The Anita Factor" is still together, meeting every second Thursday at McNally's, supporting each other through the dark hours of self doubt and celebrating each other's glory days of publications and award nominations.

Sheldon Oberman

The second wise move I made was to apply for The Sheldon Oberman Mentorship Program run through The Manitoba Writers' Guild. When I was accepted, I had no idea that I would be fortunate enough to be paired with Carolyn Gray, then Executive Director of The Guild and incredible playwright. Under her guidance, I ditched fourteen of my darling chapters, replacing them with better written, faster paced scenes that actually contained plot! Yes, plot peeps. Every story needs one.

The final thing I did was listen to my inner voice. The voice that sometimes is hard to hear over the busyness of daily life. The voice that gets pushed to the bottom of my to-do list of laundry, work, and kids' soccer practices.The voice that knows me best.

I think it may be my ego. Or id. Or conscience? 

(Yes, that is a Finding Nemo reference. Of course.)

I'm not a student of Karma, or meditation, or Disney movies, so I'm not sure what it is called. But, whatever it is, that little voice that knows both my wildest dreams and worst fears, said to me long ago, "You can't stop writing, so don't ever try, sister." 

Even though that wee voice has whispered, chanted, and even shouted those words, for over a decade now, I have tried to stop writing. On occasion. But only when it all seemed too hard, the rejection hurt too much. However, abstaining from writing, not losing myself in the story-worlds of my imagination, hurt even more.

So, I've stopped the stopping and I just kept on writing. because only if you're writing and polishing your words can the good stuff happen, like having my second book, Forever Julia, picked up by Great Plains Publications in 2015. And man, two published books is the perfect way to squash self-doubt.

In fact, it makes me wonder what three books would feel like...

             Forever Writing

Humble Bundle n' Spaghetti! Mmm, Mmm, Good Cause!

Spaghetti is NOT a Finger Food, Partners with Humble Bundle to Promote
Children's Literacy and Celebrate Children's Book Week!

I am super excited, and really quite proud, that 

Spaghetti is NOT a Finger Food has been included in 

Humble Bundle's first ever kids focused book bundle.

What is Humble Bundle?

Humble Bundle bundles together titles of like genre books, comics, and games for sale and ALL proceeds go to charity.

With the Humble Kids Comics Bundle, readers pay what they like for the entire collection. The total value for ebooks in this bundle is over $200!

What charities can I choose?

With Spaghetti's package, purchasers choose a charity of choice between Every Child a Reader (ecarfoundation.org), or The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (cbldf.org).

Be sure to get your bundle by May 13 and please help spread the word. 

Check out Humble Bundle Here: Take me to Humble Bundle!

I almost forgot! 

Humble Bundle, The Children's Book Council, Little Pickle Press, and Spaghetti, and their efforts to support children's literacy caught the eye of Publisher's Weekly.

Check out the Publisher's Weekly article here: Publisher's Weekly

Together we can help get books into the hands of ALL children!

Mom's Choice Matters

Mom's Choice Matters!

As many of you are aware, I have been guest posting about Autism Spectrum Disorder on the Mom's Choice Matters Blog for a few months now.

It has been a privilege and honour to work with Terry Doherty the Director of Social Media for the Mom's Choice Awards. She is a true professional and a strong supporter of children facing all sorts of challenges. In addition to her work with Mom's Choice, she is also the Executive Director of The Reading Tub, an online book review site that is a must view for parents looking for great books for their children.

Terry Doherty

Sadly, I have now written my last guest post for Terry as my work with Rebelight Publishing and my upcoming book release of Forever Julia has erased all free time. However, great plans are in the works to continue the "All About Aspergers Syndrome Series" with a new contributor who will make you laugh, cry, and grab a pen and paper to take notes.

Once the official announcement has been made, I will write a quick post to introduce this most marvellous writer.
I know you will enjoy her writing as much as I do!

You can check out Mom's Choice Matters here!

And The Reading Tub here!

These are the links to my "All About Aspergers Syndrome Series":

Aspergers Syndrome and ADHD - Understanding the Difference

Helping Kids with Aspergers Syndrome in the Classroom

Making Friends 101 - Everyone Needs a Friend

Autism and Play Dates - Visiting a Friend's House 

Quote to remember:

"Autism is not a disease. I think of Autism as a different kind of operating system."

– Audrey Lintner, Special Projects Coordinator, Little Pickle Press