Real Life is Better Than Fiction

My guest author today is Cynthia Enuton. She is the author of the Fur Angel series.  Cynthia grew up in Maryland and received a BA degree in Psychology from the University of Maryland (UMBC). She worked at a State facility for severe emotionally challenged adolescents for over 13 years. Cynthia currently resides in Jacksonville, Florida, as a children/YA author and travels with one of her Fur Angels, Augie Dog, to book signings of the Fur Angel Series. The Fur Angel Series: Angel in a Fur Coat (first book in the series) begins in a faraway place where angels are trading their wings and halos for fur coats to be born on earth as dogs. First, they must learn what it means to be a dog, so they go to school. They learn about dog breeds and various dog jobs, and after graduation they get their fur coat and are born to find the person they were made for. Now, as Fur Angels on earth, Legend of the Pink Toe explores the wonderful world of dogs through the eyes of one s...

A.C. PAPA Editor-In-Chief Chris Bodor spreading the message of poetry and spoken word Today's guest author is A.C. PAPA Editor-In-Chief, Chris Bodor. Here is a review of his magazine written by  Barbara Pyles Barker:   Reading this inaugural issue of A.C. PAPA was a special treat for me, because the many wonderful poems and stories evoke a world from my own memories. Like Robin McClary who wrote the foreword, I grew up in the Sunshine State and know many of the same things: palmettoes; TVs you actually had to cross the room to change; three local (and only) channels; locks not used, because they were not needed. On Vilano Beach, where I was raised, the sand dunes were tall, the ocean gave up the most perfect shells after tropical storms, and August meteor showers were brilliant because there was no competition for the light. My sister and I walked together between our street and Boating Club Road to visit our grandparents practically daily—no worries a...

Lists. I’m definitely a fan of them. In fact, at any given time I have two or three, or even more lists going with what I need to do, what I need to buy, writing assignments coming up, etc. I even have a book where I make a point of listing the blessings God gives me. It opens my eyes even farther to see where His hand is at work in my life, even if I didn’t know it at the time. Today I want to encourage you to make a list. Make a list of ways that God has blessed you. The Song of the Week is “10,000 Reasons.” Can you come up with that many? How many can you come up with? Listen to the song this week and I dare you to not have it in your head and heart all day/week long. Start your list now.

Today's guest is a little different. You will not learn so much about the author, but about one of her characters. This is Fiona. “The Dream” I feel like I’m losing it. Every time I go to sleep, it’s the same thing: I wake up in a cold sweat with all kinds of horrible images fresh in my mind. I’ve been walking around like a zombie and trying not to let anyone know just how exhausted I am, and all because of these dreams. There’s a girl about to burn at the stake. She looks terrified and I know it’s not just the fact she’s about to die. She’s terrified of what she sees before the men come and light the kindling beneath her. No… actually, I think she looks more sad than anything. It makes me think of him, and I don’t know why. He’s new is town and he’s been coming on to me. He’s cute, so I really shouldn’t mind but there’s something about him that makes me uncomfortable. I think part of it is the fact I like him too much and I shouldn’t. I’m technically seeing someone,...

My guest author today is Leslie  C. Halpern. About Leslie: A ward-winning poet Leslie C. Halpern has a Master’s Degree in Liberal Arts and Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism. In addition to children’s books, she writes nonfiction books about the entertainment industry for adults, and reviews books and movies for several online publications. Find out more about her at  www.LeslieHalpern.com  and  www.facebook.com/LeslieCHalpern For all of you out there who want to write for children, here are some great tips from Leslie. Six Things I Learned From Writing Children’s Books Humor is less subjective with children than with adults. Body functions, body parts, vegetables, animals behaving like humans, kids knowing more than adults, and anything that stinks usually get laughs from children. While adults have a lifetime of teachers, parents, and partners censoring their humor, young children know what amuses them and have no qualms about laughing o...

The Importance of Dialogue "Conversation # 1 " by Angus Cameron https://www.flickr.com/photos/73716058@N04/9291813137 Reading should be an immersive activity in which you experience everything the point of view (POV) character experiences. A good narrative should give the reader a fly-on-the-wall-with-extra-sensory-perception feeling in which everything the POV character sees, hears, feels, and occasionally tastes and smells is related. The ESP comes when we hear the POV character's thoughts. This helps to establish pathos, a sense of empathy, compassion and the ability to put myself into the protagonist's shoes. What about dialogue? Every seasoned writer has heard the old adage "Show, don't tell". It's the first thing I teach my Writer's Craft students, repeating it as a mantra to them throughout the semester. Dialogue is the best way to show your audience what motivates your main character. To demonstrate, consider this:...

I recently had an experience that I could only call a taste of the world. I didn’t like it. It took me a few days to get rid of the negativity that weighed me down. I realized that the world is negative. Bad things happen to all of us. After speaking with my husband we knew we would handle situations differently than the people of the world. We also knew that we wouldn’t want to have to handle situations without God in our lives. The Song of this Week is “I Get on My Knees.” So many times there are issues within my family, among my friends that the only thing I can do is pray. Actually, my husband’s Gram used to say, “The BEST thing you can do is pray.” She was a very wise woman who lived a lot of years and saw a lot of things. If you, or anyone you know, is going through a tough time this week, get on your knees. Take the circumstances to God. Don’t look inside yourself. Don’t look to others who are only human. It is He who can help us overcome any problems we may have. ...