Sherry Alexander's Blog, page 14

BOOK RELEASE ANNOUNCEMENT

The Great Camel Experiment of the Old WestToday, I received word that Collca began the release process for my ebook The Great Camel Experiment of the Old West. You might say I am a little EXCITED!Here is part of the official press release:  The Great Camel Experiment of the Old West  introduces readers to a little known event in the mid-1800s that could have changed the American history of the old West. Taken from the diaries and official documents written by the men involved, the book chronicles the true story of the “purchase of camels and importation of dromedaries for military purposes”.  It follow the camels’ journey from their arrival in Texas to their use throughout the Southwest. Twenty-two sidebars, three appendices, and twenty-one color photographs mainly taken during live reenactments by Texas Camel Corps make this ebook exciting as well as informative.
Amazon already has the book on-line, and offers a view inside as well as the first few pages of the book. As of Wednesday, it will be for all ereaders, laptops, computers, smartphones, tablets, etc. from "popular ebook retailers all around the world".
Collca is an electronic publisher specializing in non-fiction bitesize ebooks. Their BiteSize Historyis a series of short-form ebooks about periods and events from history. Each book is written to give the reader a clear overview of the subject without having to wade through thick dry textbooks or to read reams of text littered with distracting hyperlinks. Most titles are illustrated. 
I know this is a self-serving post--but Hey--good news is good news. Visit my author page at  amazon.com/author/rightsherry, http://www.collca.com/Sherry, and Goodreads. Oh, and spread the word! It's here!**Special Thank you to Mike Hyman, Collca and Doug Baum, Texas Camel Corps.

Water, Water, Everywhere--Not really!

Every child in the world deserves not only deserves to be fed, but they have a right to clean, easily accessible water. Yet, 780 million of the world's population do not have access to clean drinking water.Today is my family's second day without running water. Our pump met its demise. For us that means filling containers with water at my daughter's 8 miles away, and bringing them home to water the stock, flush toilets, wash dishes, cook meals, and do all the wonderful cleaning things that have become almost impossible for most of us in developed countries without running water. While it does take some effort on our part, it is nothing compared to what almost a billion people world-wide go through on a daily basis--but they don't have cars for transportation.

As a child, there were times when we did not have running water or flushing toilets. We carried and hauled, and spent more time than I care to remember using outhouses. But that was 50 years ago. Half of America was in the same boat. This is 2014, and things should be different!
Today, instead of drawing a glass of water from the kitchen sink, kids in undeveloped countries are walking miles each day to fill the family's jugs with water that is anything but clean. The time involved prevents them from attending school, and while that water is life saving, is also life taking. Every 21 seconds, a child under the age of five dies from the diarrhea caused by dirty water. That's 4,100 little people each day who will never get a chance to go to school, dream dreams, share their life, have a family of their own, or even read or write a book. No hugs. No kisses. Just 1.5 million children disappearing from the face of the earth each year because they didn't have access to clean water. It's heartbreaking.
So, let's change it. Get involved. Spread the word. Donate if you can. Include the message on your blog or your Facebook account. I've joined http://water.org/ who will add an email update to my Facebook twice a month.

Writers! Taking Care of Your Own is Not Enough.

I was a firm believer in the need to care for your own before you care for someone else. Then, I started on my campaign to write about hunger, and learned more than I set out to learn.One in every eight people on earth go to bed hungry! To me that number is almost inconceivable. I don't know why it is so shocking. World hunger organizations have been trying to stem the tide for decades. For years, I have seen images like this:                                    
But it wasn't until I read Beatrice's Goat by Page McBrier that I decided to expand my horizons from America to the world. This is a book about how one goat changed the life of a hungry family--and especially the life of one little girl--in Uganda and ended their hunger. A portion of the proceeds goes to the Heifer Project International (a group, I wholeheartedly support), but my question for all the authors, writers, and would-be writers out there is simple: Why are you not helping to spread the word on hunger? Why not include a note in your blogs, or use the element in your stories and books, or even contribute a percentage of proceeds? Maybe if we start caring about hunger in the world, we can help find a solution and make sure no kid goes to bed hungry. Taking care of our own is not enough. The world's kids deserve better. Ask, yourself: "What can I do to help?" 

Five Ways You Can Help End Hunger in America

No one wants to see a child go hungry. Yet 1 out of 5 kids in America has no idea where their next meal will come from or even when it will come. We can all help end child hunger by getting involved. Here are five ways you can help.Support your local food bank. Next time you go to the grocery store, buy an extra can of vegetables, or soup, or a box of oatmeal, dry milk, or even a box of macaroni. The cost to you is less than $1.00, but when you combine your donation with those given by others, kids get dinner, or breakfast, or lunch. And, do this regularly. Don't be a one-time wonder. Be a every time giver.Make sure your school district offers free or reduced breakfasts and/or lunches. This will enable kids who have no option a chance to eat before school. Sometimes this is the only meal they can count on. Think Meals on Wheels as an example. It's a great organization feeding the elderly, sick, and disabled. Why not do the same for kids?Volunteer to help serve meals at your local church or a homeless organization. The few hours you spend will help not only help the community, but it will reward you tenfold.Organize your own food drive. Some people have created weekend backpacks for the hungry kids in their towns. The backpacks are filled with fruit, high protein snacks, and easy to make meals so the cchild has enough food to carry him/her through the weekend. Most of the time, there is enough fresh food for the whole family. What a great school, PTA, Boy Scout, Girl Scout, etc. project. Talk to your local school district and find out what is needed, then go the extra mile and DO IT!Pass the word. Let people know about kids who are hungry through social media, and get involved in organizations like NOKIDHUNGRY who are trying to stem the tide of hunger. Writers and authors who read this blog--do what you do best WRITE! Each of us has a responsibility to end hunger. Ask yourself, what can I do, then do it!

Helping Hungry Kids: The Sunshine Division

Old Mother HubbardRemember the nursery rhyme about a woman who couldn't find a bone for her dog? Here is a revised version:Old Mother HubbardWent to her cupboard,To find food for her children to dine;She was worried how they would fareBecause her cupboard was bare,Then a police officer brought a box from Sunshine.
     As I have stated in a previous blog, I have first hand knowledge of what it is like to be hungry and discover that the family cupboards were bare. What you don't know is that it started when I was six. My mother, a single parent in the 1950s, with four hungry mouths to feed, sanded cars for a living, and that meant our cupboard was bare--often.      However, through the hunger years, there were a few wonderful organizations that recognized that hunger was a problem in America and set out to do something about it. Since I lived in Portland, Oregon when I was six, he organization that came to our rescue on more than one occasion was The Sunshine Division of the Portland Police Bureau. I still remember the kind faces of the two police officers who knocked on our door to give us enough food to get us through an entire week. And, I will never forget the one who pulled not one candy bar from his pocket--but four of them, so each of us kids could have one of our very own. It was the first time I ever tasted a Hershey Bar.     Today, the Sunshine Division is still helping families. They provide emergency food boxes like the one we received over 50 years ago; Holiday food baskets; offer an on-site food store so hungry people can do their own shopping; buy kids new clothes for school; and, distributes "more than three million pounds of food" to more than a dozen hunger relief agencies each year. WOW!      So don't forget them. I know I never will. Thank you Portland Police Sunshine Division for helping this woman survive childhood hunger. 

Six Kid's Books on Hunger

Finding books that discuss hunger for kids was challenging this week, but I needed them for researching my "Oliver's Hunger Dragon" Picture Book. I found several, but the six below were ones I enjoyed. Hope you do too.Kids Against Hunger by Jon Mikkelsen: This was one of the few books I found for the 6-10 group, and it was written specifically for the Kids Against Hunger Campaign. Two boys want to know why a team mate is not at every practice. They set out to find out why, and end up helping in the fight against hunger themselves.
One Hen by Katie Smith Milway: I loved this book. It demonstrates how one small thing, like a hen, can lift a person, a family, and a community out of poverty.
Seven Hungry Babies by Candace Fleming: Again not on hunger explicitly, but it shows how a mother bird struggles to feed her seven hungry chicks. It would be easy to use this book to start a family discussion on how hard it is to provide for a family, and why some kids do not have enough to eat.
Uncle Willie and the Soup Kitchen by Dyanne Disalvo-Ryan: Great book about what a soup kitchen does and why when a little boy accompanies his uncle to the soup kitchen he works in.
One Potato, Two Potato by Cynthia Defelice: Rewrite of a legend, but done very well as an old couple living a meager existence discovers a magic pot. 
Beatrice's Goat by Page McBrier: Again this book shows a family in poverty with too little to eat and no chance of attending school until Beatrice receives a goat. This highlights the Heifer Organization, which I believe is one of the best this ways to help families around the world.
PLEASE SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL FOOD BANK

Can We Stop Kid Hunger In America?

Is it possible to put an end to hunger--especially for kids--in America? I believe it is--if we all do our share. Each of us has a responsibility to the youth of today. As I said in my last blog, children have the right to food, clothing, a warm place to live, and love. There are numerous organizations who are trying to stop hunger in its tracks, and make things better for kids. 
One of these is Nokidhungry.org. They believe that hunger is a solvable problem if we "Share Our Strength . . . to ensure that every child has access to nutritious food where she lives, learns and plays."

Kids who are hungry have it tough. Hunger causes a lack of energy, and it keeps kids' minds on their stomachs instead of their school work, so they do poorly in school. They have less of chance of finishing school or going to college, and without an education, their chances of providing a better life for themselves and their families when they become adults lessens.

What can you do? Give to the food bank, make sure your school is providing breakfasts and lunches, check out the agencies on line who are dedicating resources to keep food on the tables of children, and speak out against hunger. Stop it in its tracks!

As I promised last week, I am working on a picture book for kids on hunger.Why? Because there are very few available. It seems to me that editors and writers are trying to protect kids from the reality of hunger, but with 1 in 4 kids suffering the effects of hunger, I can't understand why. Kids are smart. I have developed three ideas and written outlines. For now, I am only going to give you the title of each possibility, and ask for your comments. (1) It's Just a Sandwich (2) Oliver's Hunger Dragon (3) The Mouse, The Rat, and The Cupboard That Was Bare.   --There you go--now tell me what you think.

WHO MAKES UP THE POOREST AGE GROUP IN AMERICA?

Children make up the poorest age group in America. In 2012, one out of every five kids (birth to 18 years old) lived in poverty.Poverty is defined "officially" as not having enough money to meet basic needs--food, clothing, housing. I say basic because every child deserves a roof over their head, food in their bellies, and clothes on their back. To me it is a basic right of humanity. However, for more than 16.1 million kids, one or more of these basic necessities is not available. 
There are many reasons for poverty--lack of jobs, low pay, and not enough education are just three of them. Families that find themselves below the poverty level often discover it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to change their situation and make things better for their kids.
As a kid growing up in a single parent household in the 50's and 60's, I knew poverty. My siblings and I lived it everyday. We knew hunger--not the rumbling tummy between breakfast and lunch hunger--but the twisting in the stomach and no energy hunger that comes from not knowing if your next meal will come tomorrow or the next day hunger. I remember what it was like to stand in the USDA food line for several hours as a seven year old just to get a can of peanut butter, powdered eggs, or canned meat. So why am I blogging about this now?
I have two reasons. First and foremost, unless people actually step up to the plate and help one another, the problem is going to continue to grow. Now I'm not big on parents sitting at home collecting money from the government because they feel the jobs out there are beneath them, or they can''t make it any better on their own. For them, I say "Get off your butt, and change your life. Your kids deserve it." My mother sanded cars in a body shop in the 50's to take care of us. Secondly, as a writer, I want to know why there aren't many books portraying kids in poverty. it seems to me that while kids need books to take them away from reality, they also need characters who are real. So as a writer, I am writing a picture book for kids 4-8 called "Mom. I am Hungry". If I find a publisher, I'll donate the proceeds. Next week I'll share the premise of the book, and ask for your opinions. Until then, why not donate 3 cans of food to the food bank this week?

CHILDREN IN POVERTY SERIES: Just the Facts

This is the first in a series of blogs about children in poverty. Just the facts . . .
It is estimated that there are over 72 million children in the United States under the age of eighteen. As a writer who is attempting to break into the Children's Literature market, that number sounds wonderful. The more kids, the more books. But . . . yes there is a but, a large portion of that 72 million kids live in poverty or low income families who probably cannot afford to buy a book. That is disconcerting. Not because they can't afford to purchase the books so many kid lit authors work so hard on, but because children are suffering. 
Writers portray kids from all walks of life, but do they really understand what it is to go to bed hungry, or move in the middle of the night because their parents can't pay the rent, or live with relatives who see them only as another burden, or cope with a society that looks down on them? In the coming weeks, I hope to shed some light on what these kids are going through, and discuss ways we--as writers and readers--can help. According to the National Center for Children in Poverty, these are the facts:32.4 million kids live in low income families16.1 million kids live in povertyIn 2012, the Federal poverty level was considered to be: $23,050 for a family of 4; $19,090 for a family of three; and, $15,130 for a family of two"Although black, American Indian, and Hispanic children are disproportionately low income, whites comprise the largest group of all low-income children and Hispanics make up the largest group of poor children under 18 years old." 

Through the eyes of a child

Have you ever really looked into the eyes of a child? Have you seen the wonder and enchantment that lies behind the beginning of a smile? A frown? Excited laughter? Deep sadness?
If you have, you would understand why there are so many writers who dream of writing a book or a story that will capture a child's attention. The mind of a child is truly marvelous as it develops, calculates, creates, and evolves. To contribute even a small thought into the process is what most children's authors strive for. 
For me, it is not only the thought I hope to capture, but the imagination. As a child, reading was my window into other worlds. I could fly with Peter Pan to Never Never Land, sail with the Vikings as they conquered new lands, ride with the Cheyenne Indians across the plains, or take down a Mastodon in the icy wastelands of the Arctic. My imagination made me a better person, a better sister, and a better friend, and all because I loved to read.
Yes, there are other reasons that reading is important. It develops language skills--both written and verbal. It allows the mind to develop by introducing new concepts, ideas, and arguments. It allows children to discover new worlds, new things, new creatures, and new cultures. But for me, it is the possibility of writing something that captures that wonder and enchantment that only a child's eyes can hold.