January 2010

Writing Hooks

If you can’t boil your book down to two sentences then it isn’t ready. This is true.  It also follows that if you can’t boil your book down to two sentences then you can’t write the hook at the top of your query/cover letter.   But, what goes into this all important mini-paragraph? Two words:  Dramatic [...]

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How to Mower-Mulch Leaves

Beginner Gardens

The leaves on the lawn in my yard don’t satisfy my leaf craving, so I go trolling the curb for bags and bags of my neighbors’ leaves, too.  I’m sure I raise some eyebrows, like when I raid their cardboard on recycle day, but I can’t help it. I could (and do) put them as [...]

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Cloth Diapering Confidential

Green Up

I’ve been doing cloth diapers for two years and have made a few observations along the way.  Anyone wanting to hear my reflections on the subject of infantile excrement management is so in luck. 1.  I am humbled by the incredible transformative miracle of the modern washing machine.  It actually cleans the dipe I’ve been [...]

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Noisy Hens

Barnyard

Since the hens began laying they have gone from quiet pullets to gabby girls.  The racket begins in late morning and continues intermittently until around noon, while the laying is going on. BawkbawkbawkbawkbawkbawkBAWKAW!! By midday the hubbub has subsided and they go back to their quiet selves, but I can’t help but cringe wondering if [...]

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What Happens If They Like It?

Your carefully manicured manuscript makes its debut on a desk, somewhere inside a publishing company.  If the reader likes your manuscript–it goes to the editor. If the editor likes it, he/she may call you then, but more than likely, he/she has taken it to a few meetings already where people have talked about market potential [...]

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