Lauri Meyers .

My little girl turned 5 last week.   5!   That means she'll be starting kindergarten in the fall, and we all know kindergarten is the gateway drug to college which means she'll be all grown up and moved away and wearing a suit to work before I know it.   I checked my to do list and didn't see "have panic attack about daughter turning 5" anywhere on it.  So I added it and checked it off.   Then I looked at the rest of the things on the list: run dishwasher, kids laundry, grocery store, schedule 5 year check up, pack lunch, caulk the windows, vacuum...blah, blah, blah.  Hundreds of items of blah, blah, blah.  Well, I am rewriting my to do list right now: BIG plans today! 1.     Hug each girl 153 times per day.   2.   Be the first one down on the rug asking them to play Candy Land. 3.     Come running when one of them yells, "Mommy I need you right now!" even though it's just to put ...

Kathy Temean at Writing and Illustrating hosts a picture prompt each month to write a 23 line first page.  January's featured this delightful robot/alien/dog picture by Patrick Girouard .   I tackled this prompt to practice "boy voice," but, boy, did it put up quite a fight giving me inspiration!  Here's where it took me: Illustration by Patrick Girouard My Robot Ran Away By Lauri C. Meyers          "Mom!  Have you seen my robot?" I yelled as I ran down the steps.      "Isn't your robot in the Lego box?"  Mom yelled back.      "Not the Lego robot, Mom!" I said, searching behind the door.      "You mean the Robodog you got for Christmas?  I think I saw him in the basement."      "Not that robot, either," I said looking under the kitchen table.      "Robot waiter?  Robot action figure?  Robot toothbrush?  You have 100 ...

I am so excited to share today's post!   Erik Weibel at  This Kid Reviews Books is an expert at reviewing books.    But This Kid also happens to be an expert at being an 11 year old boy, just like my MC in my MG project.  So, I asked Erik if he might help me with research:  Erik, I'm still getting to know my character in my current manuscript.  He's not the coolest kid at school, but he's in the highest grade at the school, so at least he's cooler than the little booger-nosed kids.  He's not nerdy, but he really likes books.   I was wondering if you might develop a playlist for this kid which might help me to get to know him better?    And here's Erik: Mrs. Meyers asked me a question no one ever asked me before. She wanted to know what my top ten playlist was because she is researching a character for a book she is writing. After telling her I’d be happy to help, but my playlist probably isn’t a typical one for ...

I'm not ashamed to admit I'm (exceptionally) slightly chicken .  I've been talking about starting a middle grade project since the summer , but I only recently got plucky enough to begin.  That sounds braver than the reality - actually my local critique group set a  dare  goal to bring a novel project this month, so I had no choice.  So here  I am, four weeks into this bad boy,  and I'm ready to talk about the "picture books are harder to write than novels" soundbite.  A picture book is 500 words.  But you change about 492 of those words eight times each before you have a final manuscript.  So let's call that writing about 4,000 words to get 500 good ones. When I write a few hundred words of a novel, probably 90% of that writing is good.  But I have to do that, oh, 100 times.   That's like writing 100 (really crappy in desperate need of editing) picture books! I think it goes without saying I'm scared to Poopytown wi...

The S curve makes its way into many concepts beyond its origins in math to biological systems to innovation to change.  Time we apply it to writing. Riding the S Curve!  (car pic by jeroenbeel via sxc.hu) The writer's S starts where all good things do - with an idea!  Hooray!  A lovely ball of an idea!  But then you have to do the work.  This is the lower curve of the S, writing, editing, plotting (that's how the pantsers do it at least.)   Heading up the side of the S obstacles are encountered and overcome, probably including a scathing critique that almost makes you throw it away and a glowing critique that makes you fall in love all over again.  At the top of the curve you are full of the adrenaline associated with knowing it's ready .   Print.  Stuff.  Lick.  Stamp.   Mailbox. After the manuscript is safely in the hands of your trusty mail carrier ( Is he really that trustworthy?...

Sometimes I need a break from all the pink-fairy-cupcake-unicorn books my two princesses command me to read at home.   So my inner tomboy was delighted when I won a collection of "boy books" from Peachtree Publishers .   The reads also showed me I love middle grade boy books (which probably doesn't surprise anyone, knowing my penchant for potty humor , pirate speak , and torturing bugs .   I admit to reading Night of the Spadefoot Toads (by Bill Harley, 2008) first, because the cover made me think it was about an attack of zombie toads (which would be awesome!)  It turned out to be a great environmental story where the scary things were moving to a new town and the threat of losing a vernal pool where endangered toads were breeding. I have started work on a middle grade story (and by "started work" I mean I have a character, a situation, and a lot of sheets of blank white paper).   Spadefoot Toads  with a simple story line and a s...

Kids add more excitement to each and every day, but I was still surprised when the kids ran up at 6AM like it was Christmas morning and asked whether the groundhog had seen his shadow.   I fumbled the remote as best as I could with only one eye open and tuned in the live coverage on the weather channel.   I just hope Phil was right about the early Spring, because my 4 year old looked very concerned when I said the groundhog wasn't always right.  You would have thought I said, "Sometimes Santa brings the wrong presents." Susanna Leonard Hill, author of Punxsutawney Phyllis is hosting a Groundhog Day party complete with groundhog action figures.  The idea was to color Phyllis and take her on an adventure.  We didn't go anywhere exciting, but I think Phyllis enjoyed the relaxation and the fine company.    Sorry Phyllis! She told me the conversation was delightful.  Susanna's "Short and Sweet...