Friday the 13th was a lucky day for the Watertown banks of the Charles River. The hardworking staff of Charlesbridge picked up their sticks with pointy things on the end and put on their gardening gloves to pick up trash that mysteriously collects around the river.
Inspired by April Pulley Sayre's Trout Are Made of Trees, the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, and in celebration of American Rivers' National River Clean Up, Charlesbridge staff made a day of it down the road at the riverside putting right what once went wrong and enjoying a beautiful day outside.
The Charles River, which begins at Echo Lake in Hopkinton, MA, snakes about 80 miles through eastern Mass before emptying into the Boston Harbor. It has a great history of industry and travel, and today is a major source of recreation--most notably the Head of the Charles Regatta held every October.
The river is home, or provider, for many native plants and animals... although not trout according to Richard, our DCR guide. Ah well, bass are made of trees, also. At Charlesbridge, we enjoy having the river, and the walking trail around it, right across the street. We don't just like to publish books about nature, we actually like nature!
Here, Erin wins the Deep Woods Off Award for going deepest into the foliage.
Even our fearless leader talks trash.
Editorial Director Yolanda LeRoy sifts through the muck and the mire.
After ridding our beautiful river of unwanted debris, we had a pizza picnic in the park by the river. And we picked up all our trash. Carry in, carry out!
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Blog: Unabridged - Charlesbridge Publishing Company (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
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Blog: 2k8: Class Notes (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: jenny meyerhoff, Web sites, jenny meyerhoff, lisa schroeder, laurel snyder, Web sites, lisa schroeder, laurel snyder, Add a tag
Web sites…
Most authors have them, need them, or want them. But are they truly necessary? For the rest of this week, members of The Class of 2k8 will give you their innermost thoughts on being part of the World Wide Web. Stay tuned for some great insight, and be sure and check out each member's site.
(Drum roll, please.) Let’s get to that list: 28+ Reasons Why You Need A Web site.
A Web site is where people go to find out information.
The first thing I do when I finish a book that I love is visit the author’s Web site. Here, I learn more about the author, what other books he published, where she was born. A good Web site makes me feel closer to the writers I enjoy, and much more likely to buy their next book. I hope readers who come to my site feel like they’ve gotten to know me a bit, and have found some way in which we connect.
~Jenny Meyerhoff, Author of Third Grade Baby
http://www.jennymeyerhoff.com
A presence on the Web means being a part of a community.
For me a Web presence isn't just a matter of advertising, it's a matter of community and process. So many essays have begun as blog posts, and soooo many of my friendships and professional relationships have started the same way. I've also had old friends find me through my online life, and I've been approached by publications like Salon.com, as well. So, really... I have to say that I think I'd still be waiting tables if it weren't for the Web!
~Laurel Snyder, Author of Up and Down the Scratchy Mountains, http://www.laurelsnyder.com/
A Web site brings people to your site.
It's really fun to see what kind of search brings people to your site. Let's see, some of the phrases that have brought viewers to my site include:
"didactic stories read"
So, you want to read a didactic story, and if so, may I ask why?
"sleeping babies"
Ah yes, with a picture book titled, Baby Can’t Sleep, I get lots of parents wanting the secret to getting your baby to sleep. Guess what? There is no secret. Babies simply don't sleep as much as people have led us to believe. So, buy my book and have a laugh over it at the very least.
"slush pile garbage"
Yeah, I think editors would agree, there's a lot of garbage in the slush pile. Are you trying to figure out what defines garbage? I think it's pretty much anything that's not so fabulous an editor wants to snatch it up the second he/she reads it.
See? What a fun game! Get a Web site, and find out what fun phrases bring people to your site.
Lisa Schroeder, Author of I Heart You, You Haunt Me, http://www.lisaschroederbooks.com/
Our Totally Important Post for today is about Lisa, as well.
T.I.P.
Kids are loving I Heart You, You Haunt Me! Check out what this blogger’s daughter has to say.
Blog: 2k8: Class Notes (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: prostitution, stuart little, eb white, laurel snyder, up and down the scratchy mountains, stealing and loving every minute of it, Add a tag
Next 2k8 member to join the "Plagiarists anonymous" blog-week? Laurel Snyder, author of the new middle-grade fairy tale, Up and Down the Scratchy Mountains OR The Search for a Suitable Princess.
Laurel, what've you got for us? Just how bad is it?
Oh, man-- it's pretty bad.
See, the number one rule of stealing is that you're not supposed to steal from an obvious/famous source, right? You're supposed to steal something nobody will recognize. Or you're supposed to creatively tinker with what you've stolen, for a kind of meta effect.
Well I broke that rule without even realizing it. We were already in the copyediting stage when I started to have this weird feeling, this panicked sensation that one of the lines in my bookn was NOT MY OWN! It jsut felt like I'd seen it somewhere before...
Can you imagine?
The passage in my book was:
“Which way do you think you’re going anyway? North? North is nice, but then, South has its advantages too. And West rhymes with best, so it can’t be too bad. What’s your general direction?”
And although I didn't actually take this passage, word for word, I did totally steal it. From STUART LITTLE no less. Remember this?
"North is nice," said the repairman. I've always enjoyed going north. Of course, south-west is a fine direction too... and there's east. I once had an interesting experience on an easterly course..."
Imagine my horror when I figured it out, after a long night of poking around online, searching for a vague case of plagiarism. Because although I knew I hadn't really written it, I had no clue where I'd gotten it from. It was awful!
So that's it, my big experience as a thief.
Of course, I didn't actually make up the name of the villain from my next book, but I did pay for it, sort of. So that's not stealing, right? Just prostitution...
Yeah, okay, you're right, Laurel. We all agree. You're a total sleazeball, and you *should* be embarassed.
Just kidding. Sort of.
Bravo! Bravo!
Loree Burns
www.loreeburns.com
Another reason I love publishing with Charlesbridge!
You folks are awesome!
April Sayre
Great job, guys, but next time invite your local authors to participate! I would have loved this!
Ah, man! we were gonna... we'll make it an annual event.