Christian Writers' Market Guide 2009

Mia is so excited today she is nearly leaping right out of her skin. Tomorrow is her sixth birthday, and she gets to celebrate it at school today. Last night we baked cupcakes for her class today, and I let her dress up in a fancy dress for the occasion. Add to that that Friday is her show and tell day, and she gets to wear a crown all day today, and she's a very happy little girl. She was singing "Today is my birthday, and I am the birthday girl" all the way to school this morning. It was a long eight miles, but I can't help but smile at her exuberance. We're not having her party tomorrow because of Molly's cheerleading competition, but she will get to pick out a Build-a-Bear on the way home. This time she's going to make a ballerina bear in honor of her dance classes. Sunday is the real big day with the party at Chuck E. Cheese.

I went to see Howard at the hospital yesterday. He's deteriorated rapidly this week. On Monday he was sitting in a chair and sipping broth. On Wednesday when Mom and Aunt Audrey went to see him, they thought they had walked into the wrong room because they didn't recognize him. He's lost much of his hair and turned a ghastly shade of yellow. He's also back on the ventilator. I'm really glad I had to chance to spend some time with him alone yesterday. I talked about the kids, and he reacted as much as he could by moving his eyes and forehead. I read some passages from the Bible to him too. I had to leave to pick up Mia from the bus, and when I said good-bye, he mouthed bye-bye to me and puckered his lips as much as he could to blow a kiss. I know that I will treasure those kinds of moments in the days to come.

Christian Writers' Market Guide 2009 by Sally E. Stuart is another outstanding update to an essential annual work. Stuart has been releasing these guides for several years, and they just seem to get better and better. There are literally thousands of contacts broken down into subcategories for easy searching to help just about any writer find a market. The CD-ROM has additional contacts for even quicker results. Stuart is constantly finding new contacts for writers while weeding out old ones, and this edition offers readers the opportunity to get regular updates from Stuart's website. This is one book that Christian writers can't do without. I love reading my copy each year, because I always find new ideas and inspiration.

I'm starting a new book contest on Monday, and February will be filled with contests here, so you'd better come back soon! Have a terrific weekend!

Castaways

Today is Molly's 14th birthday. She has changed so much in the last year. She went from a young girl who hated makeup, nail polish, pink and all things girly. She was known for her explosive temper. This year she has blossomed into a beautiful young woman who wears makeup and pink (she's still not thrilled with nail polish) and dresses like a girl. She's become someone I enjoy spending time with, her temper is seen only rarely, and even when it is, she has it under control. We got her a cellphone for her birthday; it's prepaid, but she can still text. Half of the original minutes we gave her were gone in two days from text messages. Her pocket is constantly chirping. This may not have been one of my best decisions. The day after she got it she was texting a friend on it, talking to Ian on the house phone, and instant messaging her friends on the computer. That's the picture above. Other pictures are just me being a proud mom. Today we ran into town to drop off packages at the post office. I asked Molly to run across the street to the library to drop off some movies and a book. Texting as she went, she walked into the building directly across the street, looked up and said, "Where do I put these?" to which the tellers shrugged in confusion. She was so busy texting, she had walked into the bank. When she told Ian about this, he called her stupid. She said, "I'm not stupid, I'm Molly. There's a difference." Happy birthday Molly Mae!

Castaways by Rob Vollmar is a graphic novel portraying the story of young Tucker Freeman who runs away from home in the midst of the Depression to stop being a burden to his mother. Pablo Callejo does a masterful job with the artwork in depicting the era and its people. The scenes are all tinged with blue, as if even the air hung heavy with the sorrow of the times. The people are drawn cleanly and emotions are laid bare. A black hobo Elijah Hopkins takes Tucker under his wing and introduces him to the world of riding the rails. Tucker faces racism and violence in his time away before returning home a changed boy. The story and dialogue are well-done, and the action moves quickly. It would be perfect reading for schools for education about the Great Depression and racism. My one and only complaint is that is was too short. I wanted to read more of the adventures of Tucker and Elijah and their life on the road.

We've had company dropping in all day and more are coming tonight, so I've got to get supper started and finish the laundry. If you have time, stop by Midwest Book Reviews. They are carrying some of my reviews this month. Don't forget to enter the book contest to win a copy of Wanda Brunstetter's A Sister's Secret. Just drop me an email or post a comment with a story of a sweet or silly story about your sister. Tomorrow I'll post an interview with Wanda and as well as the winner.