The passage of time

What are some creative ways to show the passage of time? I'll start by listing one and include an example. Can't wait to see your suggestions/sentences.

1. Change of seasons: By the time Becca realized what was wrong, the ground was frozen. OR By the time Becca knew what was wrong, the trees were dressed in flaming red, orange and yellow leaves.

Now, you're turn.

Remembering Challenger

Today is the 25th anniversary of the Challenger explosion. Where were you when you learned about the event?

 

I had just signed off on the front page of the Pottsville Republican, where I was assistant news editor. The presses started to roll. I came back to my desk to see an Associated Press bulletin flash across my computer screen. I couldn't believe it. While that version of the front page went to press, I quickly remade the front page with the news as quickly as I could. It was the first catastrophe in my newspaper career that I had to deal with remaking the front page with breaking news. But I just sort of went into automatic pilot and did what I had to do. Later, the enormity of the event hit me.

 

How about you?

A minute list

Use one word to describe the following. Mine is in ()'s. Copy and paste list into comments and add yours. Should only take a minute. Can't wait to read your lists.
Snow (heavy)
Coat (torn)
Gloves (fingerless)
Boots (warm)
Hot chocolate (cold)
Snowman (Calvin-ish)
Fireplace (glowing)
Shovel (broken)
Newspaper (bagged)
School (delayed)

Quote of the day

"To get the right word in the right place is a rare achievement. To condense the diffused light of a page of thought into the luminous flash of a single sentence, is worthy to rank as a prize composition just by itself...Anybody can have ideas--the difficulty is to express them without squandering a quire of paper on an idea that ought to be reduced to one glittering paragraph." --Mark Twain

Ugh. He said what I was thinkin'. (Smiles)

Some Pig and Rat

Are you ever disappointed when you read a book and then watch the movie? Perhaps the character isn’t portrayed exactly how you had imagined. Or the voice is all wrong.

Well, I love the comic strip Pearls Before Swine by Stephan Pastis. I purchased this strip several years ago after the syndicate rep pitched it to me. (For those not-in-the-know, I purchase and negotiate contracts for all of the newspaper’s features, which includes everything from syndicated columns to comic strips to puzzles.) So, you can imagine how psyched I was when I got an e-mail telling me that Pig and Rat and their pals are now animated.

Seconds later, I was on comics.com checking out the cartoon.  I wondered what the Crocs' accents would sound like. If Pig's voice would be what I heard in my head. I wasn't disappointed.

The animated strip, which is produced by Ringtales, runs between 20 and 50 seconds, and includes a brief caption on what that day's strip is about.

My son is a huge Pearls fan, too, and reads the strip every day. I think we have every Pearls book ever published. It's hard not to love the slow-witted Pig and the arrogant Rat.


So, have you ever been disappointed by how a character was portrayed on TV or on the silver screen? If so, which character/movie?

Quote of the day

"Think of your main characters as dinner guests. Would your friends want to spend ten hours with the characters you’ve created? Your characters can be lovable, or they can be evil, but they’d better be compelling." --PO BRONSON

Speaking of dinner and characters, what character would you most like to dine with? spit food at?  

If I could I'd...

Your assignment today (smiles) is to answer the question, If I could I'd, with writing related answers. You have to give me at least one answer. Of course, you can always give more. Can't wait to read what you have to say.

Example: If I could I'd travel back in time (or in the future) as part of my writing research.

Is your writing real?

I was at the Y the other night and asked someone who works there how her training was coming along. She shook her head and explained that it wasn’t. She hadn’t had time to work out because she’s busy with her two children, especially the youngest one who has gotten into all kinds of trouble. “If only kids came with manuals,” she said, explaining that the youngest is opposite the oldest who is always on the honor roll and never causes her any problems. I smiled. I have two children, and I know how challenging parenthood can be.

Our conversation made me think about my characters. Some of them give me tons of trouble. They have attitude and do stupid things. They make me angry. Others are easier to love. They do what’s expected without whining. They make me laugh and sometimes cry.

If you write MG and YA, how real is your writing? Is it so real that your characters influence how you feel? Why is it that when we kill off a character we feel horrible about it? It’s because we care. Because we’ve created characters that have made us care.

Like real kids, we love them despite their flaws. They aren’t perfect. They shouldn’t be perfect. We’re not perfect. The challenge is to make our readers care as much as we do. If we can do this, then I think we’ve achieved a level of writing worthy of a smile or two. If we’re lucky, maybe more.

Do me a favor and post next to where you write a little note that says: Make me care. I hope that it guides you in your writing. If you can't make me care, I'm going to skip class the first chance I get. Don't let that happen. Make me care so much that I'm early to class and get the best front-row seat because I can't wait to hear what the teacher has to say.

The bell's ringin'. Gotta go!

Snow forts and imagination

The wintry mix outside reminds me of my childhood and how we’d build snow forts and have snowball battles. I took great pride in building the perfect fort, rolling each boulder until it was just the right size, placing them next to and on top of one another until the fort was tall enough and wide enough to hide and protect me. I’d carve out little cubbies in the walls where I’d store my snowballs. We’d spend hours outside playing and, when we were done and went inside to get warm, Mom always had hot chocolate and dry clothes waiting.

Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t think kids build snow forts and play outside like they used to. In fact, I don’t see as much creative play period, and that bothers me. Do kids pretend and create? Do their imaginations run wild? Does a stack of pillows become a mountain and an empty coffee container a drum?

We’re living in a world of noise where kids expect bells and whistles and flashing lights. Where has the quiet hour of the day gone, the hour of pretend when dragons breathe fire and pirates rule the sea and dolls and bears share cookies and tea?

As a writer, the ability to think creatively is an obvious must. It’s how we create fantasy worlds and unforgettable characters. I hope that as parents and teachers and family members and friends that we encourage imagination and creative play in our children. What a sad, sad world this would be if there were no creative people inventing things that bring beauty and fun to our lives.
What do you think?

Albert Einstein

The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination.

________________________________________

Advice from Stephen King

Great advice to start your writing week. Enjoy!

Need your help

Hey gang, I'm doing a charity fundraiser for the local food bank. I am looking for auction items. If you'd like to donate an autographed copy of your book, that would be awesome. Or, if you knit and would like to donate a hat or gloves or blanket, that would be way cool. Some of you have already opened your hearts to my request. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
The auction is Feb. 12. I can send you a thank-you letter on church letterhead for your records. If you are moved by my request, you can e-mail me at Buffy@ydr.com.
Again, thank you to those who have already answered my call. I have been doing this auction for more than 10 years and it's always rewarding to help others and know I am making a difference. Peace to you, Buffy 

Quote of the day

Another great revision quote. Hope you have a fabulous Friday.

"If a teacher told me to revise, I thought that meant my writing was a broken-down car that needed to go to the repair shop. I felt insulted. I didn't realize the teacher was saying, "Make it shine. It's worth it." Now I see revision as a beautiful word of hope. It's a new vision of something. It means you don't have to be perfect the first time. What a relief!" --Naomi Shihab Nye