THE 3RD ANNUAL VALENTINY WRITING CONTEST!!!

I’m going to try something completely different today…  Author Susanna Leonard Hill is organizing a “Valentiny Writing Contest.” The challenge? Write a Valentine’s story appropriate for children, maximum 214 words, in which someone is hopeful.

So… here’s a little piece of my writing out for all to see. (GULP!)

The Happy Little Paper

(207 words)

Light shines into the drawer where I live with the other unused paper. A chubby little hand slides inside.

“Pick me! Pick me!” We all cheer.

The hand grabs me and I fly up, up, up out of the drawer. I flutter a corner of my page to wave goodbye to my friends.

I wonder what I will become?

Will I be a grocery list, reminding Dad to bring milk home from the store?

Will I be a paper airplane, feeling the wind on my wings as I fly through the air?

Will I be a beautiful picture, hanging on the fridge for everyone to admire?

Gosh! I hope I won’t be one of those crumpled up papers sitting on the table by the markers!

The hand sets me on a table with markers and crayons laying all around.

This is it! I can’t wait!

The hand picks up a crayon and starts to draw.

Hey! That tickles!

I hear the child singing softly as the hand draws a big shape in my middle and little doodles around my edges. The big shape has bumps on top and a point at the bottom.

Oh! I’m the best surprise of all:

“Happy Valentine’s Day Mom, Dad, and Alex”

 

Nothing gives me more peace than photographing nature.

I’m so excited to have a guest joining our blog today! The following is a post from author & nature photographer Lieve Snellings, the creator of a series about Margot the groundhog. Thanks to our groundhogs here in America, we know we’re in for another six weeks of winter. But perhaps this post about the beauty and inspiration of nature will help make that time pass quickly!

About 10 years ago I was introduced to this heavenly pleasure of nature photography. I was so charmed seeing all these pretty animals and birds in our Quebec garden. I had seen cats washing themselves, but here I also saw birds, squirrels, groundhogs… doing the same. Observing them was so much fun.

I don’t know if these lovely creatures have emotions like humans have, though I could hear them talk. And Margot the woodchuck started to tell me I had to publish their story, to show small and big kids that all creatures in nature are living beings and that they love to live too.  Of course Margot wanted to play the first violin in the orchestra, but that was OK. She loved to share the attention with her family and friends.

It was Margot, who told me about Eufrazie the hairdresser and how she create a special hairstyle for every critter, also birds, when some festivity is coming up. It was exciting to see all those birds with this special haircut. I had to photograph them and share this with you all.

Maybe you are interested in how to photograph birds too. I’m glad to offer you these 14 easy tips:

1. If you want to start photographing birds, you do not have to go far. It is best to start in your garden or street or a park or field in your area.
2. It is important to get to know the behavior of the birds you want to photograph. Around what time of the day do they show up? On which branch do they usually sit? Do they show up alone or in the company of others?
3. Use a tripod.
4. Hide yourself, make use of a shelter, something you’ll not too visible. An old paravan, with opening to pierce the lens of your camera through can also be a handy thing to hide.
5. Don’t make sudden movements.
6. Birds adhere to the same habits, they regularly return to the same place. Choose a spot, prepare your camera and wait until the bird returns to that spot.
7. Set your camera to a fast shutter speed (S in high number) and the aperture or diaphragm as large as possible (F in small number) – this is to allow as much light as possible to come in and to make the shutter speed as short as possible.
8. Take your photos in the larger format (highest megapixels) because otherwise you lose a lot of quality when you make a cut-out afterwards.
9. Make sure you are dressed warm enough because you may have to sit still for a while.
10. Pay attention to the foreground and background.
11. Birds like to fly against the wind direction to keep more control. So when you choose to photograph birds in flight, draw with your camera in the flight direction.
12. Experiment with different points of view.
13. Photographing birds is in fact, like top sport. Patience, exercise and perseverance are important.
14. It is pleasant to have a bird encyclopedia or a bird app on your smartphone or tablet, so you can look up which birds you just saw and to learn more about them.

I wish you can enjoy as much as I did and do.

…if you want to learn more about my work.

Thanks for sharing these fantastic tips, Lieve!

The Legend of Jack Riddle

What if? What if fairy tales were true stories? What if they were about children cursed by an evil witch who liked to cast a spell over one kid every generation to teach others a lesson? What if you found out you were her next target?

With these questions begin The Legend of Jack Riddle. Over his objection, Jack is sent to visit Aunt Gretel, a relative no one in his family remembered they had until she called and invited Jack to visit. He follows Aunt Gretel into the woods at night, talks his way past a goblin into a magical part of the forest, and sees her with a group of witches. After that, he can’t get home fast enough. Back to the land of cell service and wifi. Back to the land where everything makes sense.

But the things he brings home with him from Aunt Gretel’s house scare him. He soon finds himself talking with the bumbling old history teacher at his school, Professor Footnote. Professor Footnote explains the truth about fairy tales and that Jack is Gretel’s next target.

Jack is thrown into an adventure that he didn’t ask for and doesn’t want any part of. His smartphone is no use, his friends can’t help, and his parents are acting strange. He has to rely on the help of the muddled Professor and an unusually friendly cat as he embarks on a quest to save himself and generations of children to follow.

Some books are fun to read but you can easily put them aside. Other books call to you even when you are busy doing something else. The Legend of Jack Riddle falls into the latter category. Any time we had a spare moment, Alex was beside me, asking: “Riddle?” He didn’t care if we only had time for a page or two, he just wanted to see what would happen next. (And I have to admit, I was tempted a few times to read ahead after his bedtime…)

This is author H. Easson’s first novel. And what a way to start! She’d better have many more where this one came from, because she’s got two big fans in our house!

I’m grateful to Ms. Easson and Capstone for giving me the opportunity to read this book. I received an advance reader copy of The Legend of Jack Riddle in exchange for my unbiased review.

Have you read any great books lately?