THANK YOU

Thank you to all who voted!  4RV Publishing met the required votes and will be considered for a small business grant from Mission Main Street Grants. WOO HOO!

Final Push...Please Vote

I rarely post requests, but I have a quick favor...Would you consider helping with the following:

4RV Publishing, the small, award-winning Oklahoma-based publisher of my children's picture book, Bedtime Kisses, is working at a chance to receive a $100,000 small business grant, which would give it a huge boost. (Mission Main Street Grants is the donor organization.)

To move on to the next phase, 4RV needs 250 votes by June 5, this Friday. They are in the final push and still need roughly 100 votes on my last update.

Would you be willing to log in and vote for 4RV? Here’s the url:
https://www.missionmainstreetgrants.com/vote/businesses

Just enter “4RV” in the search box. To vote for it, you need to log in to Facebook--they have the FB log-in right there on the same page. You don’t have to navigate to a different url.

It should take you no more than one minute, really!

Thanks much,

Karin

Chase Mission Main Street Grants
Chase's $2M Mission Main Street Grants program for Small Business is in full swing! Apply or vote today! Learn more here: www.missionmainstreetgrants.com

missionmainstreetgrants.com
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Chase Mission Main Street Grants

Chase's $2M Mission Main Street Grants program for Small Business is in full swing! Apply or vote today! Learn more here: www.missionmainstreetgrants.com

missionmainstreetgrants.com

Challenge

Well, the school year has come to a close and summer is quickly approaching.  Now comes the challenge of finding the new normal of my writing life with kids underfoot, friends about, baseball games and summer craziness all around. 

Despite the chaos, ideas seem to be everywhere.  My mission is to listen to the voices, cultivate the ideas and turn them into a productive WIP.  I'm sticking with my intention of trying to write first thing before anything else each day...time will tell how productive I can be and what I can create, but I aim to make this my most productive writing summer yet!

Join me and write...

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY

As we remember those who have served and those who continue to do so, say a prayer for peace, strength and safety for all.  Thank you for your service!

Prayers also for all of you mourning the loss of loved ones on this Memorial Day holiday.  God Bless!

Adoption Journey/Book Auction

I received this email recently and wanted to share with all of you in case you are interested in donating a book.  I've gotten Amanda's approval to share their letter, and it is their hope that any donated books will also help promote the authors who are willing to donate as well.  She searched Facebook for Children's authors and found my name and website and perhaps some of you have heard from Amanda as well.  If not, this is the email I received.

 

Hello,

We are writing with possibly an unusual request. We are in the process of adopting internationally from Eastern Europe, our third special needs adoption in three years. This adoption is for an older sibling group who has waited a long time for a family.

Adoptions are very expensive so we have had to do many fundraisers to raise the funds needed to bring our children home. We are doing an all-book auction in August and were looking to include some signed copies by the author/artist of popular children’s books for more interest. Any unsold books will be donated to the orphanage when we pick up our children.

Our question is: would you be willing to donate a signed copy of one of your children's books? We are trying to raise the funds needed for our agency expenses and we believe this will help us get much closer to our goal. We would be so grateful and you would be making a huge difference in the lives of two children!

Thank you so much for considering this. You can read more about our adoption journey here and see the son we brought home in 2013 and the daughter we brought home in January 2015:

www.blessingseternal.blogspot.com

 Blessings,

Traver & Amanda Sutton Family

 

I have been in contact with Amanda Sutton and have spent some time on their website.  I will be donating a signed copy of Bedtime Kisses for their auction in hopes of helping in some small way.

 

 

Waiting...

Well, submit I did and now I wait!  While it is hard to know the next part of the process is out of one's hands, there is also a comfort in knowing I've worked hard, created what I hope is a publishable manuscript and am now in the position to move on to the next WIP (until such time as edits are needed, that is).  Which brings me to my question...

To pull out, dust off and tackle something I've already started or start from scratch on something new?  I've had many flashes of scenes, characters and ideas recently that are beginning to form a possible (probable) new manuscript but am not sure the idea is yet fully formed and ready to tackle.  How do you handle those flashes of inspiration and nuggets of idea?  Do you wait until you have a fully formed idea from which to work or do you flesh out ideas as they come and see where it may lead?  I would love to hear what works for you in terms of that exciting new seedling which (hopefully) grows into a new life and story of its own.

At this point, my ideas are like these flashes of color every once in a while, puzzle pieces straggling in that I hope will come together in the mosaic I foresee but am not yet sure if I am "seeing" one manuscript or many.  I've, thus far, only completed picture books and not chapter books so think I need to start with an outline as these ideas and visions come to see where I am with what I have thus far.  Perhaps that will clarify the direction in which I am moving.  I am excited for the challenge ahead and welcome any advice from those of you who are veteran authors in the chapter book and young adult genres.

Progress

The sun is shining, Spring has sprung and Prom is done...whew!  I've been busy on the home front as well as working on final edits of my current WIP which is, hopefully, going to be submitted this week.  This is just a quick check in to say I am continuing my plan to write first.  Having said that, I did just tidy my kitchen and run my dishwasher but haven't yet worked out or showered and I REALLY do function better in a tidy atmosphere!

I hope writing and life are going well for all of you.  I thank you for checking in on me and hope to be able to announce an acceptance for MORNING HUGS in the near future.

Until next week...