Odds & Ends Day

This morning I have chained myself to my desk in order to respond to ALL the fanmail that has piled up. I made a dent in it last week, and hope to finish today. If you have been waiting to hear from me, I am sorry. Check your mailbox later this week.

By the way, I still have teacher’s guides for TWISTED that I am happy to send out. Put your address in the Comments section, or email me at laurie AT writerlady DOT com and I will send you one ASAP.

There are many more pictures of the Whispering Pines SCBWI retreat on the blog of Liz Goulet Dubois. Liz was the featured artist at the retreat. She is a stellar example of a working artist; someone who day in and and day out uses her artistic talents on a million different projects and somehow manages to pay the bills. I salute thee, Liz, with this mug of Earl Grey! (Be sure to noodle around her site, too.)

A hale and hearty happy 200th birthday to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Maybe we should call him Oldfellow. I had to memorize lines from “The Village Blacksmith” in third grade. Despite that, I still like him.

Except when it comes to how he mucked up history.

Longfellow did not let the messy facts of Revere’s ride get in the way of a good story (or poem). The always wonderful J.L. Bell points out the differences between Paul’s ride and Longfellow’s poem. Historian Brian Leigh Dunnigan does the same thing for the Poetry Foundation.

How do I get this gig? Seriously, folks. I really mean it. I think I would do a remarkably good job. And it wouldn’t even have to be in London. New York has some lovely hotels. I hear Boston has a couple, too, as does San Francisco. Please put in a good word for me.

A Central New York Shout-out to 1979 Liverpool grad Julia Spencer-Fleming who just had her mystery novel All Mortal Flesh, nominated for a posh Agatha Award. I graduated in 1979, too. Must have been something in the water. (Thanks, Shelf Life for the tip.)

The book tour starts in exactly three weeks.

It is snowing again.

9 Replies to “Odds & Ends Day”

  1. Paul Revere’s Ride came out about the same time in history as the damn Betsy Ross legend. (Why feminists haven’t spoken more against this dimwitted Victorian legend being the basis for our idea of the “heroine of the Revolution” is beyond me.) But both of these history butcherings exemplify why good popular histories and good historical novels are so important. If it isn’t done well, it’ll be done badly.

  2. Pines, Part Deux

    Thanks for the nice words and link, Laurie…and huzzah for all gals who manage to live and work in the arts- ABU!

    Liz GD

  3. A struggling student teacher

    I’m sure you get this a lot, but I loved your novel.
    I am a student teacher in Canada, and I am doing a novel study of SPEAK with my grade 10 class. I don;t know where to begin, I’ve never done this before. Do you have any resources or suggestions? MY class is behaviour adapted and most of the kids suffer from a traumatized childhood and depression. It is my honor to teach them, but I must do right by them as well. This novel can have a profound effect over my students, but I have to go about it the right way.
    Please, any help would be appreciated.

    -Jordan
    (Byrne Creek Secondary)
    Please e mail me back at:

    aja15@sfu.ca

  4. Oh, God . . .

    Your post reminded me of, like, 17 fan letters that haven’t even moved out of my kitchen since I got them. They’re all from Ohio, they’re all about Fade to Black, and I bet they’re all from the same school, which means I have to craft perfectly unique responses to each, because they’ll bring them to show their teacher and compare them.
    I’m much better at e-mail. I can do it at 3:00 a.m., and it doesn’t involve finding an envelope or a stamp or walking out to the mailbox. Yes, I’m that disorganized.

  5. twisted teacher guide

    Tina Reed/ Reading Dept. Chair
    Fletcher High School
    700 Seagate Avenue
    Neptune Beach, FL
    32266

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