Two teenagers with a lot in common....
Everyone knows the first one. Good old Harry. I will be in line for Deathly Hallows, and I will start it tomorrow. I should re-read or re-listen to book 6, because I've entered those memory-sucking 40s. But I won't, because I'm too excited. Isn't it a great day and age when the entire world is united over the release of a book? As a former reading teacher, the very idea makes me want to stand up and holler! :-)
The second teenager is a new burgeoning author in Columbia, MO. Sawyer Wade is a fantasy writer who is 14 years old and has already written 2 novels and well underway into his 3rd. You heard me right...he wrote his first fantasy book as a 12 year old! He's innovative and a wizard at what he does.
Sawyer and I are doing some marketing training, and he is a quick study. If only every writer had such passion and started as young. I was thrilled to publish before 40!
So teenagers are my focal point today, and tomorrow it will be all about Harry...
And I'm sure I won't be the only one!
Friday, July 20, 2007
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Frenetic Pace...
A week out of the country rejuvenated me for the bump and grind of life back in the states.
I learn more about Americans every time I leave the states, the most important of which is that we're WAY TOO BUSY!!
Why do we go at such a frenetic pace when we know it's taxing our brains, our bodies, our families? I don't think there's an answer...no se, as they say in Puerto Vallarta. Life is sure simpler on the beach, away from phones, e-mail, and the daily pressures we put on ourselves.
I'm a hypocrite though, because as soon as I got home, I let the 572 e-mails overwhelm me, along with the packed two weeks I was facing: Literacy Academy all day Monday through Wednesday and also in Rolla on Friday, meetings all day Thursday, and then out of town in Rolla the following week before driving straight through to the Florida panhandle. *Whew* All the while, I need to be prepping for classes I teach at MU in the fall. Have I missed a deadline for the textbook? Did I answer that e-mail about the updates for the online class? Wasn't I supposed to write a short synopsis for my upcoming book (Playing the Line) for Vox Magazine?
AHHHHHHHH!
My next task...lobby for a bill for a 25th hour in a day or put a rush on that whole cloning thing...
I learn more about Americans every time I leave the states, the most important of which is that we're WAY TOO BUSY!!
Why do we go at such a frenetic pace when we know it's taxing our brains, our bodies, our families? I don't think there's an answer...no se, as they say in Puerto Vallarta. Life is sure simpler on the beach, away from phones, e-mail, and the daily pressures we put on ourselves.
I'm a hypocrite though, because as soon as I got home, I let the 572 e-mails overwhelm me, along with the packed two weeks I was facing: Literacy Academy all day Monday through Wednesday and also in Rolla on Friday, meetings all day Thursday, and then out of town in Rolla the following week before driving straight through to the Florida panhandle. *Whew* All the while, I need to be prepping for classes I teach at MU in the fall. Have I missed a deadline for the textbook? Did I answer that e-mail about the updates for the online class? Wasn't I supposed to write a short synopsis for my upcoming book (Playing the Line) for Vox Magazine?
AHHHHHHHH!
My next task...lobby for a bill for a 25th hour in a day or put a rush on that whole cloning thing...
Thursday, July 5, 2007
What am I thinking?
I've had a crazy busy week, and I constantly wonder why I'm so busy...during the summer! Sunday I met with a new young writer named Henry Stratmann III. He writes flash fiction, which is a new wave in short short stories. We decided that this could be a wonderful segue for teachers -- a resource book for units like inferring, predicting, connecting, etc. to use with his flash fiction.
It begs the question...what am I thinking? Something new? Do I have a clone I don't know about?
But the teacher in me knew what I was thinking -- Henry's teenaged enthusiasm, the educational opportunity it presented, and broadening my marketability...it's a win-win situation for both of us. And since deciding to do it, education guru Cris Tovani has agreed to write the foreword!! Wow!
So we're planninng a teacher resource book using flash fiction from Henry's Eye Has Not Seen and the upcoming Flash Fiction Fever.
And since I don't know what I'm thinking, if any of you have tips on cloning, I'm all ears...
It begs the question...what am I thinking? Something new? Do I have a clone I don't know about?
But the teacher in me knew what I was thinking -- Henry's teenaged enthusiasm, the educational opportunity it presented, and broadening my marketability...it's a win-win situation for both of us. And since deciding to do it, education guru Cris Tovani has agreed to write the foreword!! Wow!
So we're planninng a teacher resource book using flash fiction from Henry's Eye Has Not Seen and the upcoming Flash Fiction Fever.
And since I don't know what I'm thinking, if any of you have tips on cloning, I'm all ears...
Thursday, June 14, 2007
chaos is normal, right?
Yes, chaos must be normal, because it's central to my life. That's how everyone lives, right? One need only visit my website to see my schedule, the basic grind of my author life... http://www.barrilbumgarner.com/
And being an author is just one small part of me. I'm a PhD student, a participant in numerous groups, on the board of several organizations, and all-in-all, I'm continually swamped. So this is par for the course, Americans are just like everyone else, right?
Wrong...I'm doing some analysis of media violence and our culture, and it's absolutely astounding how differently we live than most other advanced nations. France, for instance, has negligible school crime compared to ours, plus they take daily siestas during the middle of the day...WHAT? For real?
Yes, they take time out right in the middle of the day to relax, spend time with family and friends, drink a glass of wine, and wouldn't you know it? They live longer than we do.
There is an act of school violence during school hours every 3 seconds in this country...and kids learn their aggression from us. If we want to stop it, we have to start now. The sad part is, who has time? Where do we start? How in the world can we change what kids watch and listen to?
The easy answer is: How will we know unless we try?
And being an author is just one small part of me. I'm a PhD student, a participant in numerous groups, on the board of several organizations, and all-in-all, I'm continually swamped. So this is par for the course, Americans are just like everyone else, right?
Wrong...I'm doing some analysis of media violence and our culture, and it's absolutely astounding how differently we live than most other advanced nations. France, for instance, has negligible school crime compared to ours, plus they take daily siestas during the middle of the day...WHAT? For real?
Yes, they take time out right in the middle of the day to relax, spend time with family and friends, drink a glass of wine, and wouldn't you know it? They live longer than we do.
There is an act of school violence during school hours every 3 seconds in this country...and kids learn their aggression from us. If we want to stop it, we have to start now. The sad part is, who has time? Where do we start? How in the world can we change what kids watch and listen to?
The easy answer is: How will we know unless we try?
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Optimistic and Charitable...
Imagine the horror of losing a loved one, a child even. There’s nothing worse for a parent…for Linda Valencia, she lives with it every day. And her son Jesse didn’t just die, he met a murderous fate that’s inconceivable for many of us. The three years since have been tough, compounded by financial hardships only true trauma can induce.
When we whine about our problems, about how much work we have to do and all the petty things that we get mired in each day, remember to calibrate: whether your glass is half full or half empty, you have a glass.
Linda Valencia’s glass is shattered, the remnants scattered about from Columbia, Missouri to Kentucky.
Be grateful for your glass…cherish it, keep it precious, treat it well. You can always buy a new one, but the original gift is irrepacable.
When we whine about our problems, about how much work we have to do and all the petty things that we get mired in each day, remember to calibrate: whether your glass is half full or half empty, you have a glass.
Linda Valencia’s glass is shattered, the remnants scattered about from Columbia, Missouri to Kentucky.
Be grateful for your glass…cherish it, keep it precious, treat it well. You can always buy a new one, but the original gift is irrepacable.
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
The Rios Rollercoaster
The past couple of weeks have seen the overturn of Steven Rios's verdict, the media chum the waters by speculating when the re-trial would be, and then prosecutors appeal the decision. On Monday, Attorney General Jay Nixon said he wanted a Missouri court to either re-hear Rios's case or send it to the Missouri Supreme Court.
In other words, let's get on with it... And no matter what happens, this will be the final chapter in a story that no author could create and be believed if she didn't have the press to prove it. If it were fiction, a publisher would toss it in the trash and say it was over-the-top.
The bizarre thing is that it isn't fiction, and the story has yet to hit its climax. By the time all is said and done, Columbia will be more torn apart than ever. And the living victims will be shoved back to Go to start the healing process over again, no matter the outcome.
In other words, let's get on with it... And no matter what happens, this will be the final chapter in a story that no author could create and be believed if she didn't have the press to prove it. If it were fiction, a publisher would toss it in the trash and say it was over-the-top.
The bizarre thing is that it isn't fiction, and the story has yet to hit its climax. By the time all is said and done, Columbia will be more torn apart than ever. And the living victims will be shoved back to Go to start the healing process over again, no matter the outcome.
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Check it Out...
Life is at a frantic pace right now, but I'm excited to be releasing a new book, having a book release party, and eager to spread the word about stopping school violence!
I've done literally a decade of research on school violence, so my fictionalized account reflects on that research and will hopefully be inspiring for those who read it!
If you're in Missouri during one of my Book Release Parties, I'd love to have you!
Columbia @ Otto's Corner on Friday, May 11th from 5:00-late. I'll read an excerpt ~6:00. Free appetizers, cash bar, great fun!
Lebanon, MO @ Longhorn Grill out at the Country Club on Friday, June 8th 6:00-11:00ish. I'll read a snip ~7:00...drinks and food all courtesy of Missouri Eagle, God love 'em.
If you want to read an excerpt of Dregs, visit my website at www.barrilbumgarner.com
I've done literally a decade of research on school violence, so my fictionalized account reflects on that research and will hopefully be inspiring for those who read it!
If you're in Missouri during one of my Book Release Parties, I'd love to have you!
Columbia @ Otto's Corner on Friday, May 11th from 5:00-late. I'll read an excerpt ~6:00. Free appetizers, cash bar, great fun!
Lebanon, MO @ Longhorn Grill out at the Country Club on Friday, June 8th 6:00-11:00ish. I'll read a snip ~7:00...drinks and food all courtesy of Missouri Eagle, God love 'em.
If you want to read an excerpt of Dregs, visit my website at www.barrilbumgarner.com
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