Dee Garretson's Blog, page 14

Reasoning with a cat

Okay, the title is a joke. I've tried, but it doesn't work, and the latest result of faulty cat reasoning had me running around the neighborhood early Sunday morning, shoeless, in my pajamas (black, not revealing and kind of ninja-like) chasing a cat who was intent on vanquishing an enemy. We have a one-sided war going on at our house, between our two mostly indoor cats and the neighbor cat. It's one-sided because the neighbor cat doesn't realize he's the enemy. He strolls over about every...

Shiny Book Jacket Copy

I've learned many things in the past few months about publishing. One of the things I didn't know was that writers usually don't write the back cover copy or the inside jacket flap copy for their books. I've discovered a good reason for this-having another person write it leads to some great ideas. I'm so pleased with how this turned out:

Jacket Flap Copy:
The presidential retreat, Camp David, is one of the safest places in the United States. So why can't the President's son, Luke, and his...

BIG Books – High concept?

Literary agent Kristin Nelson has sparked a debate among writers this week over her blog lament on the desire by publishers for 'big' books. With the economy still on an uphill climb, it's understandable publishers are being more cautious, but what does that mean for us as writers? What is a 'big' book? Is this the same thing as high concept? I like definitions, but it's hard to find ones that agree on these terms. As far as I can tell, 'high concept' started in the film industry to mean a...

White House Photos

Sadly, I missed the tour of the Library of Congress on my recent trip to D.C., but did get to do the White House Garden tour. I've done so much research on the White House, presidents, and presidential children in the last year that this was a dream come true. In fact, even though I'm not normally an outgoing person, I asked three different strangers to take my photo in different spots on the tour so I could have a record I had been there. None of them are posted here, because I look...

Show, Don't Tell

"Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass." ~Anton Chekhov

Chekhov's elegant phrasing is a good way to begin to understand the writer's adage of 'Show, Don't Tell'. Several writer friends agreed to spend some time pondering this with me, and to all post on this topic on the same day. At the end of my post are links to their musings. We're all writing and reading in different genres, so I'm excited to read the examples they've used.

First of all, what...

Guest Blogging – Pirates vs. Ninjas vs. Batman

Holy Blogging!

Here's the link where you can read the questions and answers, plus more about Chelsea's...

The Peryton Wins!

My kids chose the peryton as the winner of the contest, though there was much debate about it versus the dragon and the abatwa. Congratulations, Arissa!

Unintentional Halloween Costumes

If you are overwhelmed by coming up with the perfect Halloween costume, take inspiration from these LOLCATZ pictures.

Shakespeare Cat

Burrito Cat

Contest! Prizes! Author Interview!

To celebrate my leap into blogging, I'm thrilled to post my interview with author R.L LaFevers about her new middle grade adventure, NATHANIEL FLOOD, BEASTOLOGIST: THE FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX. At the end of the interview are instructions on how to enter the contest to win either a copy of The Flight of the Phoenix or a $15.00 Barnes and Noble gift card.

The...

Quicksand for Fun

Help! Help!

My kids and I have made cornstarch and water quicksand before, but I had forgotten about it until some friends told us about their recent adventures in Mexico. The family was on a hike in the Yucatan, with the daughter, Molly, age 10, leading the way. Knowing Molly, she was probably on the lookout for animals, because this girl knows incredible facts about hundreds and hundreds of creatures. She didn't know there was a danger of quicksand, and she walked right into a patch of it...