This is hard. I’m struggling to find the words I want to say.
In July, after reading about Samuel and Takeimi, I couldn’t stop thinking about them.
Stop the Insanity – Part II
This is a continuation of Stop the Insanity – Part I so if you haven’t read it yet, you might want to click the link #justsayin. Back to the insanity of banning Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut and Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler.
Stop the Insanity – Part I
The world is an insane place. That is the only explanation I can come up with. Back in September 2010, a man by the name of Wesley Scroggins stirred up the people of Republic, MO by asking that Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson, Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut, and Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler be banned from the schools.
Cecil FTW
One of my goals is to share real world experiences along with thoughts and articles about the issues which crop up in my writing. And to do that, my plan was to contact people and ask them to share some of their experiences…
Happy 2nd Birthday #Amwriting – It’s a Party
The #Amwriting hashtag on Twitter turns three today. It’s been an amazing time. I came to be a member of #amwriting through an offshoot group, #amwritingparty. New to twitter, looking for friends…
A Year Detention – Seriously?
The Children’s Court president judge said the only option for the offences committed was a year of detention. I’m a little underwhelmed by the decision, if in fact detention is the same thing in Australia as it is here. Here’s the thing… a 16-year-old boy decided to “impersonate” a bully…
Interview with Rose Gardner
I’m very excited… for two reasons. First, my friend and fellow author, Denise Grover Swank, has released her debut novel, Twenty-Eight and a Half Wishes — (whispers go ahead, click the link and buy copy… I know you want to. I’ll wait right here for you to get back…)
Takeimi’s Legacy
A couple of weeks ago Takeimi Rao was looking forward to starting high school, or at least that’s what I’d expect from a straight A student. But last week, during a slumber party all her dreams of what she was going to do with her life came to an end.
Elsa Stealing My Thunder
Ahem!! I have always been the clothes wearer in the family. And I have to say that I enjoy mine with pink and a little bling. Oh, who am I kidding, I like bling and lots of it.
A Disgusting Show Of Politics
When I saw someone called BookBurninParty start following writers on Twitter, my head nearly exploded. I mean, seriously, who outside of librarians and teachers, love books more than writers? Why would some idiot talk about burning books to writers????
Alcohol and Death: Something to think about
This is a picture of Samuel Hayes. He died last week, probably because he had too much to drink. He was sixteen-years-old, only a couple years older than me. I didn’t know Samuel. We don’t live in the same town, but his story hit me hard. He looks like a nice guy, and sixteen is too young to die.
The Intolerance Factor
My post When 0.27 Percent Isn’t That Small made it into the internet newspaper Beyond Bullies for July 11, 2011 and one of the other articles caught my eye: Teaching Children Tolerance on Reality Check by Dr. Michele Borba.