Kimberly Willis Holt's Blog, page 2

HELLO DFW!

The last few months have been filled with changes. In October we moved to the Dallas/Fort Worth Area.  Somehow between all my scheduled events (many of them international) my husband and I unpacked. We even managed to host the family Thanksgiving at our home.

Although I will miss the Texas Panhandle and the people there, I'm excited about this new change. We live on a half acre in a big city so I'm able to still nurture the country girl side of me. Now that the boxes are empty and the front door is painted, I'm back at work. This time with Georgy-Girl at my feet. (More about her later.)

PIPER REED, FOREVER FRIEND

Good News! 
PIPER REED, FOREVER FRIEND will be released Tuesday, August 7, 2012 .  This is the 6th and possibly final book in the well-loved PIPER REED series.

To celebrate, we've put together a Blog Tour of reviews, interviews and giveaways starting August 5th and continuing through August 31st. Bookmark this page and each day check out what these bloggers have to say and participate in their giveaways!
Enjoy and "Get off the bus!"



Sunday, August 05, 2012
    Troop Petrie
Monday, August 06, 2012
    This Fabulous Army Life
Tuesday, August 07, 2012
    SpouseBuzz
Thursday, August 09, 2012
    An Intentional Life
Friday, August 10, 2012
    The Rice of Life
Saturday, August 11, 2012
    Cynsations
Sunday, August 12, 2012
    I am a Reader, Not a Writer
Monday, August 13, 2012
    MrsMamaHen.com
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
    Musings from a LDS Writing Mom
Wednesday, August 15, 2012 - The Review
    Gerbera Daisy Diaries
Thursday, August 16, 2012
    The Crow Family Blog
 Friday, August 17, 2012
    Raising Monkey, Loving Sarge
Saturday, August 18, 2012 - The Interview
    Gerbera Daisy Diaries
Sunday, August 19, 2012
    Cammo Style Love
Monday, August 20, 2012
    Homefront United Network
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
    The New "Normal"
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
    Rachelle's Writing Spot
Thursday, August 23, 2012
  Confessions of an Organized Homeschool Mom
Friday, August 24, 2012
    One Guy in a House of Girls
Friday, August 24, 2012
    The Robertson Clann
Monday, August 27, 2012
    Army Tanker's Wife
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
    Our Crazy Life
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
    Life Lessons of a Military Wife
Thursday, August 30, 2012
    Trista's Creations
Friday, August 31, 2012
    Homeschool Escapade

THE WATER SEEKER EXCERPT

The paperback edition of THE WATER SEEKER debuts this week. Read an excerpt below. And if you want to stay up on my book news please join me at Kimberly Willis Holt Books Facebook page.



CHAPTER 1BITTERSWEET CREEK 1833JAKE WAS KNOWN as the dowser. With a forked branch, he’d made his way from the Arkansas Territory to Missouri, stopping at farms to find water for new wells. His plan was to raise enough money so he could do what he wanted and never pick up the branch again. But the dowsing was a gift. And a gift might be abandoned, but it will always be there, waiting to be claimed.One farmer didn’t have money, so he paid Jake by giving him a parcel of land with a cabin. Since winter was settling in, Jake decided to stay there until spring, when he’d take up trapping. His cabin sat a hundred steps from Bittersweet Creek and about a mile, as the eagle flew, from the Hurd place. When their oldest daughter, Delilah, showed up at his door, begging for a place to stay, he’d not been with a woman in a long time. Without thinking, he said, “Well, I reckon I could marry you.”A few months later, Jake went west to trap. He left each fall and returned in the summer after the trappers’ rendezvous. The life suited them. Delilah had a safe haven from her pa’s temper, and Jake had someone to come home to. And most satisfying to them both were the months of solitude that they craved.DELILAH STROLLED through the woods, thinking about how that day felt especially hot. Jake would be making his way from Green Valley, and when he arrived he’d expect a clean house and a hot meal. She hurried home to prepare for him.Anticipating Jake’s arrival always brought on dread and excitement. Every year, Jake traded for supplies with an artist who painted the mountain man’s way of life. Delilah looked forward to getting new paints, brushes, and paper. But she also loved her time alone in the woods. And the birds. She loved the birds.Delilah treasured walking among the pines and cypress trees. She’d grown to appreciate the smell of her own sweat and the way it mixed with the musky smells of the earth. Now she’d have to wash all that away. Jake’s return meant she’d have to bathe more often, keep house, and cook meals.From him, she’d learned how appearances deceived. Her pa, Eb, was a small man who looked as gentle as a cat, while Jake was stocky, barrel-chested, and furry like a bear. He could talk until the sun fell out of the sky, but Jake didn’t have a temper. To Delilah, listening to Jake drone on and on about his trappings was a good trade-off.A FEW DAYS later, Jake arrived. He grabbed hold of Delilah and pressed his lips against hers. When it seemed he’d never let go, she wiggled free and grabbed the leather satchel in search of the new paints and brushes. She moved so quickly that the bag dropped with a thump to the floor, causing a glass to crack. Staring down at it, she could clearly see her own reflection. “What’s that there?”Jake sighed and collapsed upon a chair. “A mirr-o. Was one.”She took off his boots and fed him a bowl of vegetable and bacon soup. Jake gulped down the broth in less time than it took to sneeze. Then he fell asleep.Delilah carefully set the hand mirror on the table next to her tablet and stared into it. The crack ran the entire length of the mirror, but what she saw fascinated her. She touched her red hair that frizzed like the threads on a ball of wool. When Delilah was a young girl, her ma braided it in a long pigtail and smoothed the wild hairs with lard. Delilah’s finger stroked the lines of her nose and her wide chin. She smiled, not just because she was amused, but because she wanted to see what would happen to her face. She had a space next to her black tooth. She’d lost the tooth when Eb punched her for not milking the cow a few years back. Delilah was amazed that a piece of glass could reveal the history of her life. A fire burned inside her, and she began to draw.IN THE MIDDLE of the night, Delilah heard Jake ease out of bed and pull on his boots. She knew what was next. He did it every summer when he returned. And she knew for sure he thought she didn’t know. Last fall, she’d lifted the rock under the oak tree, hunting crickets for fish bait. She discovered the muslin sack buried in the ground under the rock. When she saw the money inside, she fell back on the ground and laughed. Jake didn’t know her at all. Money didn’t mean a thing in the world to Delilah.For three months, Delilah cooked and cleaned for Jake, all the while gazing outside the window, praying for cool weather to come. Several weeks before the leaves turned crimson and orange, Jake packed up his mule and headed toward the mountains.A month later, a sour taste formed in Delilah’s mouth and she vomited her breakfast of bread and blackberry jam. Immediately she felt better, but the next morning, the sickness returned. Two months later, her belly began to round out like a melon. She cursed Jake’s name to the trees, even threatening to kill him.Then one November night, as if the heavens had heard her cries, light poured through the cabin window, awakening Delilah from her sleep. She hurried to the porch and discovered streaks of light streaming across the sky. All the stars are falling, thought Delilah. But instead of being afraid, she settled on the top step and watched. There were thousands, too many to count, and so she didn’t even try. She just waited and watched. The light was so bright she could clearly see a doe and her young buck in the thick of the woods. The heavens had given her a gift. And hours later, when the shower of light ended, she felt sad.The next day, Delilah awoke craving bread. Before sunset, she’d baked twelve loaves and eaten three. She tore the other loaves in tiny pieces and scattered them on the porch. In the morning, the birds had discovered her offering. She pushed the table next to the window and began to paint.By the time winter arrived, Delilah’s resentment had disappeared and a softness for the life inside her was growing. Though at times she believed they were in conflict with each other. When Delilah curled up in bed to sleep, the baby kicked, hard, until she got up and walked the floor. At which time the baby became still. Whenever Delilah settled at the table to draw, the baby caused a burning inside her gut that made her drop the pencil and give up for the day.She began to dream the same vision each night. In her dreams, she heard a baby cry. Then she saw herself standing by a long winding river. A baby floated by, his little arms stretching toward her. But try as she did, she could not reach him. Downriver, a woman picked up the baby and handed him to another woman. That woman handed him to yet another. And so it went, the baby being passed down through a chain of women along the river. This dream occurred so often, Delilah started to think of it as a premonition. No matter what, she believed her child was destined for trials and tribulations. He would struggle. Delilah was certain of it.Spring arrived, and Delilah spotted new nests every day. She discovered them in tree branches and corners under the porch cover. She even found one in the hole of the barn wall. The birds crafted their nests from bits of twigs, dead grass, corn husks, and Delilah’s hair. She loved seeing her red strands woven in with all the other textures. She always believed she was a part of nature. This was proof of it.In May, the baby birds began their flight lessons, and a feeling came over Delilah that she, too, was about to spread her wings and take off. She couldn’t explain it, but the feeling became stronger each day.One afternoon, as she walked through the woods, an old black bird called out to her. A-mos, it said. A-mos, a-mos. The wind began to howl, but she could still hear the bird’s chant. A-mos, a-mos, a-mos.When it was time for her baby, she had no choice but to fetch her ma. She set out for their cabin, walking the mile through the dense woods. Even though it was May, the mornings remained cold. And since there was no worn path, Delilah followed the smell of smoke rising from her parents’ chimney. The pains in her womb kept her from noticing the cloud of birds flying above the treetops that towered over her head.As she’d predicted, her brother Silas was hoeing the garden with Eb.“I heard you coming the whole way,” Eb said. “I could hear those dad-gum birds. They’s always following you.”Eb feared birds ever since one swept down and pecked him in the nose. The incident happened three years ago after he’d taken a strike at Delilah. That was when she took off for Jake’s cabin.A huge flock of crows landed in the garden. Silas removed his hat and waved it overhead as he ran about trying to scare them away. His long thin limbs caused him to resemble a scarecrow that suddenly came to life. The birds flew away from Silas’s reach, circled the garden, then returned.“Shoo! Shoo!” Silas hollered as he flapped his hat, turning to his right, then his left. He started to spin.If she’d not been in pain, Delilah would have laughed.Eb narrowed his eyes at Delilah’s stomach. “Looks like you got yourself in a heap of mess, gal.”“I had me a man to help.”Wiping his forehead with his sleeve, he said, “I can see that.”“Jake’s my husband.”“I reckon you want your ma. Lolly’s in the house.” He turned away from her and joined Silas in his crusade, stomping his feet at a circle of crows.Delilah felt the air close up around her. Just returning there had brought back all the bad thoughts. Then Daisy, her seven-year-old sister, ran over and hugged her legs. The tiny girl stared up at Delilah’s big stomach and said, “You’re as fat as an old grizzly bear.”Delilah stroked her sister’s golden red hair. “And you’re as tiny as a little squirrel.”Her other siblings acted as if she were a stranger, cowering behind the ladder that led up to the loft. That bothered her most, more than seeing her pa. They’ve been poisoned against me, she thought. Or maybe they resented her for leaving because Eb had gone to hitting one of them. Her eyes searched each of their faces and arms for bruises, lingering longest on Daisy’s. Relieved to discover none, Delilah figured she was probably the lone thorn in her pa’s side.Delilah wanted to return to her cabin for the baby to be born, but Lolly insisted on finishing Eb’s dinner first. The pains came quicker, and Delilah paced on the front porch until Lolly finally joined her. They were making their way through the woods, heading back to the cabin, when Delilah’s water broke. Before the sun was down, she was crying out for Jake.The birds’ chatter grew so loud that Lolly hollered, “Them birds are driving me crazy!”The labor was long and hard, which puzzled Lolly since she’d merely grunted and pushed one time to bring each of her babies into the world. And when Lolly saw more blood coming from Delilah than she’d ever seen with all her own births put together, she suspected the outcome wouldn’t be good.Delilah’s screams turned to groans, and her groans became whimpers.Lolly went outside and found a stick, then gave it to Delilah. “Here, bite down on this.”Delilah yanked it from her mouth and slung it across the room. “It tastes like mud.”When the baby finally came, he was red as a ripe raspberry. Wails escaped from his wide mouth as he shook his tiny fists in the air.Chuckling, Lolly held him up. “This boy is mad.” She placed him next to Delilah’s breast to suckle. “He’s a strong one. What you reckon you’ll call him?”Delilah’s lips brushed the light fuzz on his head, and she closed her eyes. Her words came out soft. “Amos is a good name.”“Amos?” Lolly mused. “Where in tarnation did you get that from?”Delilah didn’t answer. She just said, “Tell Jake I done my best. Don’t let my baby forget me.”With that, she took her last breath. The cabin and the world outside the window grew silent. And every bird at Bittersweet Creek flew away.Excerpted from The Water Seeker by Kimberly Willis Holt.Copyright 2010 by Kimberly Willis Holt.Published in First edition—2009 by Henry Holt and Company.All rights reserved. This work is protected under copyright laws and reproduction is strictly prohibited. Permission to reproduce the material in any manner or medium must be secured from the Publisher.

WINNERS OF THE MITCHELL-WILLIS SCHOLARSHIP

In honor of the fifth anniversary of the MITCHELL-WILLIS SCHOLARSHIP, I've selected five winners. Congratulations to the following schools:

Bushland Elementary School

Woodlands Elementary School

Vega Elementary School

Lorenzo de Zavala Middle School School

Vega Middle School

These schools will receive an author visit from Kimberly Willis Holt in the 2012/2013 school year.

Congratulations, scholarship winners!


For more information on the Mitchell-Willis Scholarship please visit

http://www.kimberlywillisholt.com/sch...

HOLIDAY GIVEAWAY

HOLIDAY GIVEAWAY:

GRAND PRIZE: Five signed copies of various titles of my books.

Five HONORABLE MENTIONS will be randomly selected to win a copy of THE WATER SEEKER.




Want to enter the drawing?

Here's what you need to do:

Click LIKE on the Kimberly Willis Holt Books Facebook Page. Then post a favorite line from one of my books on the page. Please don't forget to mention the title of the book.

Deadline December 9, 2011. Winners announced December 11, 2011. Contest begins now!

Good luck!

GIVEAWAY FOR EDUCATORS

Educators, would you like to win a classroom set of PIPER REED NAVY BRAT books? Here's what you need to do to have your name in the drawing:

1. Show that you LIKE the PIPER REED Facebook page by clicking the LIKE button.

2. Then send your name and school snail mail address to my email, kwhevents@suddenlink.net.

3. Only one entry per person, but all teachers from one school can apply.

4. Drawing will be held November 21, 2011 and posted on the PIPER REED FACEBOOK PAGE.

FIRST CHAPTER OF PIPER REED RODEO STAR

Piper Reed, Rodeo Star
1
A PINEY WOODS CHRISTMAS
Mom and Chief were going on a honeymoon to Paris, France. Chief called it a second honeymoon, but Mom said she didn't call driving from Piney Woods, Louisiana, to Waukegan, Illinois, in an old Buick Impala a honeymoon. Mom and Chief lived in Waukegan when Chief received his first assignment at the Great Lakes Naval Station.

"Where will we stay while you're in France?" I asked.

"Piney Woods," said Chief. "You girls can have a nice visit with your grandparents."

Both sets of our grandparents lived in the country. And they both had a few animals--not enough to be a real farm, but it was the closest to a farm that we'd ever seen.

We were sitting on the back porch while Chief barbecued chicken on the grill. Bruna ran around the yard, barking.

Anytime we gathered out in the backyard Bruna got excited, as if the yard belonged to her and we were her guests.

"What about Bruna?" I asked.

Chief snapped the tongs three times before using them to turn the chicken. "She can go, too," he said.

"Although you'll have to keep her on a leash when she's outside. Remember what happened when we took her camping, Piper?"

I didn't need to be reminded. It had been my fault when Bruna wandered off Halloween night and caused us to form a search party.

"How about Peaches the Second?" Sam asked. "Can she go to Piney Woods?"

"Brady's family will watch your goldfish," Mom said. "Piney Woods is too far of a drive for Peaches."

"Peaches the Second," said Sam. "But who will feed her?"

"We've already asked Yolanda. She said Brady would love to take care of your fish."

Sam folded her arms in front of her chest. "Brady is too little."

"What's the big deal?" I asked. "It's just sprinkling fish flakes in the fishbowl."

Tori sighed. "I've always wanted to go to France." My big sister thought she should get to do anything she wanted since she was thirteen years old.

I told her, "Tori, you just think France has a huge all-you-can-eat buffet with french fries." She loved french fries and just about any other thing called food.

"That's not why!" Tori snapped. "I want to see the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre. I want to walk the streets of Montmartre where van Gogh lived."

Sam jumped to her feet. "I know who Vincent van Gogh is." My little sister was thebiggest six-year-old show-off on the planet.

"We all know van Gogh," I said.

Mom was our art teacher at school, but even before that, she made sure we knew every great master. Anytime a museum had a special exhibit, Mom acted as if it was a new roller-coaster ride at Six Flags and took us. I actually liked going to the museum exhibits. But not as much as I wanted to ride a roller coaster.

"Just think of the fun you'll have with all your relatives," Mom said. "And your grandparents are looking forward to spending time with you."

"When are you leaving?" I asked.

"During the holidays," Mom said. "We'll be back in time to ring in the new year."

Sam's eyes bulged. "You won't be with us for Christmas?"

Mom looked at Chief, who cleared his throat and said, "I'm sorry, girls. There was no other way. You get out a few days before Christmas, and I couldn't get off sooner than that."

Mom held the platter for Chief while he removed the chicken from the grill. I loved Chief's barbecued chicken because of the secret ingredient (Louisiana hot sauce!).

"Tori," Chief said, "please set the picnic table."

"It's Piper's turn," Tori snapped.

"Piper?" Chief said.

I saluted him. "Aye, aye, Chief."

I dashed into the house and opened the silverware drawer. I was going to miss Mom and Chief. Last year Chief was on a ship during Christmas, but we'd never spent Christmas without Mom.
When I came back out, I studied all the sadfaces around the table. The USS Reed Family ship was sinking fast.

Somebody had to cheer up the crew. I decided to start with the squirt. "Don't worry, Sam. Santa can figure out where you are."

Little puddles filled Sam's eyes. "Who will read us The Night Before Christmas?"

Every Christmas Eve, Chief read Cajun Night Before Christmas, which is kind of like the regular Night Before Christmas, only it has alligators instead of reindeer and gumbo instead of sugarplums.

No one said anything. Sam stared my way. "Don't look at me!" I snapped.

Except for dog books like Shiloh and Sable, I'd rather go to the mall all day with Tori than read. Even if I didn't have dyslexia, I'd find something else to do.

"I'll read it," Tori said. That figured. She would probably require a costume and make us pay admission to listen to her read.

"Chicken's ready," Chief said. We settled around the picnic table. Smoke from the grill was dying down, and the smell of our chicken mixed with other barbecue smells from our neighbors' backyards in the enlisted housing. That's what was nice about living in Florida. You could barbecue all year long.

Chief passed the bowl of potato salad. "Girls, this was a hard decision for us to make. We hate missing Christmas, but your mom and I haven't had any time by ourselves since before Tori was born. Sometimes parents need a little alone time."

"Why?" I asked. "Aren't we any fun?"

Mom looked at Chief. "Karl, this is starting to feel like a terrible idea. Maybe we could wait until another year."

"When?" Chief asked. "When all the girls are grown?"

"Hey," I said, "great idea!"

Chief frowned at me.

"Bad idea," I mumbled.

Chief shook his head. "Edie, we'll lose the deposit money."

All of a sudden, I felt torn down the middle. I wanted them to stay. I wanted them to go.

Then I heard myself say, "Mom, you and Chief go to Paris. Sometimes kids need a little alone time without parents."

Text copyright © 2011 by Kimberly Willis Holt

Click here to find out more about PIPER REED RODEO STAR and the other PIPER REED Stories.

PIPER REED TOUR, DAYS 5-8, IF IT'S MONDAY IT MUST BE TAMPA

After a lovely last day in Orlando(Thanks, Zenaida Rollins of Carillon Elementary and Barbara Willow of Wicklow Elementary), I drove over to Tampa. My GPS, Beatrice (Yes, she's Beatrice, not Bertha,) helped me avoid some traffic jams. Her warning: "Heavy traffic ahead, recalculating. Exit at ...."

Now when I first heard Beatrice do this in New Orleans, I ignored her. After all, I was familiar with the Big Easy. I thought there was a hiccup in the system. I can't tell you how many times she wanted me to exit. When I finally decided to amuse myself and follow her suggestion, I was amazed at how smart the little device was. She guided me onto the service road and back to I-10. I must have saved twenty minutes alone. So now I listen. And that's when I named her Beatrice.

My husband joined me in Tampa for a couple of days. After my Barnes and Noble event (Thank you, CRM Beth Gaffney,) Jerry and I drove around Tampa. Tampa is the kind of city that makes you think of summer vacation even in October. Yesterday we went to Ybor City, a community created from the cigar factory business. At the Visitor's Center we learned that the factory workers hired a reader to read to them as they worked. (The picture above shows a reader, sitting above the workers as he reads.) The employees were some of the most educated factory workers because all day they heard newspapers, magazines, and novels. Now that is what I call a job perk!

Today I visited Carrollwood Elementary (Thanks, Kimberly Davis) and St. John Greek Orthodox Day School (Thanks, Cynthia Strickland.) The students were bright and enthusiastic. This morning two boys came up to me after my presentation and asked me a similar question--"How do you get unstuck when you don't know what else to write?" Now I love questions like this! Because of time, I had to give them a short answer, suggesting that they dig into that wonderful imagination and ask themselves "What if?"

How do you get unstuck?

PIPER REED TOUR, DAY FOUR: A FEW THINGS I'VE LEARNED

A FEW THINGS I'VE LEARNED ABOUT TOURING

1. Don't wear black tights in Orlando, even in October

2. I love Bertha, my GPS

3. Drive the speed limit

4. Even though I've visited schools for fourteen years, I'm meeting readers who have never heard me speak. And that fact makes the presentation new for me, too.



Thanks to Emily Willadsen of Partin Elementary School and Amy Dovydaitis of Highlands Elementary School.

PIPER REED TOUR: Day Three, A Day of Mishaps

Today was a travel day--Pensacola to Orlando. It was also a day of mishaps. Here's a little list that tells the story:

1. Forgot going-through-airport-security skills: Didn't remove scarf or take out laptop. Stopped by nice, but serious TSA worker. Took off scarf. Took out laptop.

2. Got pulled over for speeding a mile out away from the airport. (Kind police officer let me off with a warning.)

3. So relieved to not get a ticket, celebrated by pulling into a Starbucks drive-thru. Left cappuccino at the drive-thru window.

4. Turned back around and retrieved cappuccino.

5. Decided to start day over!