Jeanie Franz Ransom's Blog, page 5
March 22, 2013
Travels of an Author
Last week, I was in Paris making snow angels at the Eiffel Tower. Next week, I’ll be in Kansas City, talking with students in the Lee’s Summit school district. But no matter whether I’m traveling near or far, chances are I won’t ever journey as many miles as my books do in the publication process. I’m looking forward to sharing that story with students and teachers at Meadow Lane Elementary and Richardson Elementary this coming Tuesday. And who knows? With the weird spring weather, I may be making snow angels in Kansas City!
February 4, 2013
The Mystery of the Missing Website
I’m not in the habit of visiting my own website unless I’m posting a new blog post or doing some revising. So, imagine my surprise when several people contacted me last week to tell me that my website was gone. Gone? I couldn’t believe it! I’d never had an issue before – my website’s been around for more than a decade now.
I investigated right away, typing in the URL, www.jeanieransom.com, several different times. But each time, the only thing that came up was a blank page, much like the one that writers face when they start a story. I had no clue why this was happening, but I knew someone who could crack this case…
…My husband, Bob Ransom, webmaster, graphic artist, and all-around great guy. Thanks to his technical knowledge and expertise, the mystery of the missing website has been solved! And that means I can get back to the business of revising my new picture book, The Crown Affair, and preparing for some upcoming school visits.
If you’ve been trying to find my website these last few weeks, I’m sorry for any inconvenience. I’m glad you’re here now, and I’m happy to report I WILL be in the habit of visiting my own website more often!
October 17, 2012
It’s School Visit Season!
I’m excited to be visiting schools again after the long summer break. Tomorrow, I’ll be at Claymont Elementary in Ballwin, Missouri. Claymont is in the Parkway school district, the same district as my old elementary school, Mason Ridge. Mason Ridge also happens to be where I first knew I wanted to be a writer, thanks to my third-grade teacher!
At Claymont, I’ll be doing several different presentations, including a new addition to the mix: “Think Like a Dog, Write Like a Pro.” Inspired by my two canine “office assistants,” Luke and Nemo, it should be a fun session – even though I won’t actually have the dogs with me!
If you’d like to know more about “Think Like a Dog, Write Like a Pro,” or any of my other presentations, click on Author Visits. And if you’d like to know more about scheduling a school visit, please email me via the Contact button.
October 8, 2012
It’s Finally Sweater Weather — Even if Your Sweater’s on Your Head!
Fall has always been my favorite time of year. The start of a new school year feels like a fresh start for everyone, and the cooler weather is a welcome change from the hot summer– especially this year, with the 100+ degree temperatures here in St. Louis.
Although the heat seemed reluctant to relax its grip this fall, it’s finally what I call “sweater weather,” perfect for sitting on the front porch with my two “office assistants,” Luke and Nemo.
They’re now able to wear their own “sweaters,” courtesy of a trip I took to Iceland this past summer. I don’t know how long they’ll keep them on, but I know from experience that they’ll keep sitting on the front porch with me until it’s too cold for me to write outside. I draw the line on typing with mittens on!
October 6, 2012
Thinking Beyond Orange
Every year about this time, my family goes in search of some pumpkins for our front porch. There are five people in our family, so we have to have at least five pumpkins. Somehow we always end up with more!
We usually go to the same farm to pick pumpkins right out of the field. But last October, I decided we’d try a different place – a small, family-owned farm that just so happened to be right around the corner from the big, commercial place we traditionally go. And there we discovered a surprising fact: pumpkins aren’t always orange!
I don’t know about you, but whenever I think of pumpkins, I think orange. So when the farmer took us into his field to look for pumpkins, I was expecting to see lots of orange. I did see orange, but I also saw white, yellow, and blue. Blue pumpkins? Who knew?
The farmer walked us through the field, pointing out the different varieties: Cinderella pumpkins, warty pumpkins, cheese pumpkins, ghost pumpkins, and many more. As you can see from the picture, we found it hard to resist bringing home a few extra pumpkins!
Going the extra mile, literally, to find a new spot to pumpkin pick is much like working a little harder to find a fresh slant on a topic you’re writing about. It takes time to go beyond the obvious when you’re assigned to do a story on a popular subject like, say, Abraham Lincoln. But if you’re willing to search a bit more, chances are you’ll find some quirky, little-known fact that will make the difference between an ordinary story and an extraordinary one.
Ordinary stories, much like orange pumpkins, are easy to find. Are you ready to mix it up a bit? Go find a pumpkin that’s different. Put it where you can see it when you write. Once you go beyond orange, a whole new world of possibilities awaits you.
