by hatfield13

Thankful Thursday

It has been one of those finish-school-get-the-van-inspected-rush-home-dinner-going-back-out-soon kind of days.  But sometimes, those are the best days to just take a moment…  I’m grateful today because:

~ I found out that I’ll be speaking at this November’s ALAN Conference as part of a panel on helping teens and tweens find their voices through writing, along with Jo Knowles, David Gill, and Chris Crowe. I’ve never been to ALAN and can’t wait.

~ I have two new projects out on submission — a picture book and my middle grade mystery.  I love them both so much, for different reasons, and I hope they do okay out there in the big world…

~ I am working on a new boy-friendly chapter book that is goofy and fun and makes me laugh.

~ Our local skating club is performing "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" next weekend, so I’ve had lots of writing time in the bleachers at my daughter’s rehearsals. And I’m thankful for the talented young skaters I get to watch when I take a break from revising.  Want to learn a thing or two about perseverance and determination?  About falling down and getting up and trying again? Go watch some figure skaters for a while… They are an inspiration.

~ It was bike-riding weather this week, and even after a relatively quiet winter like we had, that’s always reason to celebrate. Wherever you are, I  hope you get a chance to get outside this weekend and enjoy the sunshine, too!

17 Replies on “Thankful Thursday”

  1. How exciting that you’ll be speaking at ALAN! Congrats!

    Weather here is beautiful today! I’ve been sitting on the front porch soaking up the sun!

  2. I’ll keep my fingers crossed on your submissions!

    My husband and two of his buddies went to the bike path in Pittsfield MA today which he said was great, except or one shaded slope that still had too much snow to pass. Still, they got in 16 miles and he brought me back a few pussy willows.

  3. Enjoy your bike riding. It was snowing here this morning. We won’t see spring until April. I hope.

    And a big yes to your manuscripts making a go of it in the big wide world.

  4. Good luck on your submissions! I’m curious how long it takes you to finish a MG novel and how much writing time you have? I always feel hurried and it seems like it takes forever!

  6. Thanks for the good wishes, Jeannine! A 16-mile bike ride sounds absolutely heavenly right now, though I’m afraid the shady part of our bike paths are probably still just a little icy, too.

  7. I do love the snow, and truth be told, I felt a little cheated when winter seemed to pass without much of it. But…given the sunshine, it’s still hard to complain. Enjoy your snow!

  8. Thanks, Karen! This middle grade novel took me just about a year, and that’s with a month or so off to revise another book that was already under contract. I guess that’s pretty typical for me. I usually write a couple hours a night on weeknights. I take most weekends off but occasionally hide out in a coffee shop for a few hours on Saturday if there’s nothing going on with the family, and I also go on two writing retreats each year that are 2-3 days of writing and eating and not whole lot else. For me, those two hours a night are what really adds up.

  9. Congrats on ALAN and getting two submissions out there! That’s a fabulous accomplishment and fingers crossed for you, Kate! Looking forward to some super news soon!

  13. Wish I could go to ALAN… with you and those other great authors on that panel… some of my favorites!

    The weather has been beautiful in Ohio too!

  14. OK, now i feel tons better. I get about 2 hours in the afternoon (I am toast at night) 4 times a week. Those writing retreats sound nice. I’ll just keep plugging away at it.