Happy Easter and More Shop Talk

Shop Talk: I'm sitting here with my next manuscript bundled up and ready to mail out. This one is Nick's story. It's entitled "The Small Voice" and is basically about Nick's struggle to do the right thing after making a bad choice. It'll be going to Pockets magazine. This is the story that I revised for my course assignment. My teacher had suggested it needed to be 'awfulized'. Her comments on the revision were very positive, however, she felt that perhaps the slingshot that Nick uses to shoot his neighbor's cat was a bit too awful. Go figure. So, I toned that down a bit and made a few changes based on other comments and got it ready to go. Pockets magazine, by the way, is absolutely wonderful. Check them out online. I would be so pleased to have my story appear in their magazine! It's true what I've read about sending out a manuscript; I feel like I'm sending off a piece of myself, something that's important to me, something I've spent a lot of time creating. It's a bit nerve racking! Feel free to send up any prayers for an acceptance for me! That'll be two manuscripts out there in slush pile land! Let's hope one (OR BOTH) of them make it 'Out of the Slush Pile.' I have to submit something to my Critique Group next weekend. I've got a story that I wrote for younger readers that I need to polish up a bit. After reviewing the groups comments and making any changes I may be able to send that out somewhere. I'll need to do some market research and figure out if I need to tailor the story to a specific magazine. I'll keep you posted.

Becky and I went to see the play, Addy: An American Girl Adventure this afternoon. It was awesome! Addy is a slave girl whose family is ripped apart in the struggle for freedom. It chronicles her trials and her joys as she makes the change from being a slave to being free. She is strong, brave, and determined. The play captured the essence of the book series perfectly and perhaps better in some ways since it was happening in front of us with the emotion right there to see. Becky already read the entire series and she loved it. It was nice for Becky and I to have an afternoon together where we didn't have to share each other with anyone else! The middle child certainly doesn't get much of that! Neither does the mom! It was a lot of fun.

Happy Easter everyone. I hope you'll take time to celebrate our Risen Savior. He conquered death so that we can live eternally if we only acknowledge our sinfulness, ask His forgiveness, and admit that He alone is able to save us. No works we do will get us to Heaven, just faith. "He arose. He arose. Alleluia, Christ arose."