The 2009 Pennwriters conference is over, but my schedule is still full. Now it's time to exchange notes and ideas with other conference attendees. After that, I'll have to follow up on promised submissions and queries.
But first, I'll have to undergo some medical tests that require fasting. That means that I'll attend a lunch meeting sans food. I can't wait for that test to be over.
Doctor's and veterinary appointments are not the only things that keep me busy. We have also been planting our yard. The recent rain helped things grow a lot. Yesterday, I checked out our butterfly weed and was thrilled to count almost two dozen monarch larvae on its leaves. We have no idea where they spent the winter, and today I'm seeing only a few larvae. Where do they go?
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
A Successful Conference
The 2009 Pennwriters conference is over, and it was a huge success. Theoretically, it began on Thursday evening - at least for volunteers. I went to the hotel to greet my editor Matt Holliday from Pennsylvania Magazine. We had a nice chat and then I helped stuffing folders. On Friday morning I helped the gift basket coordinator with the monumental task of preparing dozens of baskets for the Chinese auction. That gave me a chance to figure out which baskets I would like to win.
I was the official photographer for the event and hopped from room to room to photograph the speakers. The most important lesson I learned doing this was: Don't try to take pictures when you're laughing--too much camera shake. And laugh we did. The publishing world is not for the faint of heart, and if we didn't laugh sometimes we would pull our hair out. New this year was that several speakers rewarded audience participation with chocolate. Chocolate seems to be mandatory for writers, which was evident in the many gift baskets that were loaded with it.
Speaking of gift baskets: I finally won a basket stuffed with 14 books. Granted, many of the books have been around the bookshelf for a while. But no matter. I already gleaned some helpful advice from one book. And the basket was so heavy that I had to ask a fellow writer to carry it to my car.
I was the official photographer for the event and hopped from room to room to photograph the speakers. The most important lesson I learned doing this was: Don't try to take pictures when you're laughing--too much camera shake. And laugh we did. The publishing world is not for the faint of heart, and if we didn't laugh sometimes we would pull our hair out. New this year was that several speakers rewarded audience participation with chocolate. Chocolate seems to be mandatory for writers, which was evident in the many gift baskets that were loaded with it.
Speaking of gift baskets: I finally won a basket stuffed with 14 books. Granted, many of the books have been around the bookshelf for a while. But no matter. I already gleaned some helpful advice from one book. And the basket was so heavy that I had to ask a fellow writer to carry it to my car.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Busy Times
To say that I'm busy this week is an understatement. I had four meetings in two days, of which three were on Tuesday. On Monday, I gave my fourth speech at Toastmasters and it was a great success. One woman said, "I can hardly wait till you're in the storyteller's manual!" Of course, speaking is a lot like writing: You need to grab your audience with your opening, support it with the bulk of your speech and round it out with a conclusive ending.
Now I'm getting ready to attend the Pennwriters Conference that starts tomorrow. On Tuesday evening, we practiced our pitches on each other and it was a real learning experience. I learn a lot from listening to other people. And it's great to have a support network of friends to help me through the setbacks and celebrate the triumphs.
In between all my meetings, I'm trying to photograph birds. I have not been too successful this spring, and the weather is partly to blame. On weekends, it is often windy and cold and the trails are too muddy to hike on. I'm hoping that will change soon and can't wait to report any new species in my bird list.
Now I'm getting ready to attend the Pennwriters Conference that starts tomorrow. On Tuesday evening, we practiced our pitches on each other and it was a real learning experience. I learn a lot from listening to other people. And it's great to have a support network of friends to help me through the setbacks and celebrate the triumphs.
In between all my meetings, I'm trying to photograph birds. I have not been too successful this spring, and the weather is partly to blame. On weekends, it is often windy and cold and the trails are too muddy to hike on. I'm hoping that will change soon and can't wait to report any new species in my bird list.
Monday, May 04, 2009
Confessions of a dog magnet
Let me begin by stating that I have never owned a dog. My parents had chickens and rabbits. Nowadays, we have two cats.
But for reasons I cannot explain, I am a dog magnet. Such was the case on Saturday morning again when we went to Sewickley Heights park to see some birds. This is a park where dogs run lose and I can't even get out of the car before the first dog comes over to greet me. Later on the trail two beautiful dogs approached from the other side. One of them ran right past my husband to me. It was a beautiful retriever and I was astonished to learn that it was a five-months old puppy. It was big enough to be adult. Since I can't even lift our chubby cat out of the car I consider everything over 10 pounds heavy.
Speaking of cats: Our "Chubby" has recovered from teeth surgery like a trooper. She has lost a bit of weight but not as much as we would like. The downside of her diet is, of course, that she wakes us up early on weekends because she wants to be fed. So, perhaps I should feed her a late night snack if we want to sleep in...
But for reasons I cannot explain, I am a dog magnet. Such was the case on Saturday morning again when we went to Sewickley Heights park to see some birds. This is a park where dogs run lose and I can't even get out of the car before the first dog comes over to greet me. Later on the trail two beautiful dogs approached from the other side. One of them ran right past my husband to me. It was a beautiful retriever and I was astonished to learn that it was a five-months old puppy. It was big enough to be adult. Since I can't even lift our chubby cat out of the car I consider everything over 10 pounds heavy.
Speaking of cats: Our "Chubby" has recovered from teeth surgery like a trooper. She has lost a bit of weight but not as much as we would like. The downside of her diet is, of course, that she wakes us up early on weekends because she wants to be fed. So, perhaps I should feed her a late night snack if we want to sleep in...
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