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By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 4/1/2014
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Cupcake Speaks
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Today, Mom and I are counting down about advice.
Advice I Get
3. Be Quiet – Mom says this word when the mailman comes. Ditto the FedEx and UPS guys. She clearly does not know these people are here to kill me. I must sound the alarm.
2. Don’t pull – Mom tells me this word when I am smelling delicious things outside, and checking my pee-mail. She clearly does not know that if I don’t quickly eat the goose candies in the grass, one of my dog friends might get them and I will miss out.
1. Fetch it – It took me a long time to understand this advice. I finally learned what it means. For any of my friends struggling with fetching, the secret to it is the bring-back. Do not get the ball, bring it on the couch, and try to hatch it like an egg.
Nailed it. Wait. What??
That is apparently not fetching. Bring it back to Mom and GET A TREAT. That’s fetching.
Advice Mom Gets
3. Add Conflict – People don’t like conflict. Especially Mom. But in a story, conflict is good. So are suspense, action, problems, unexpected obstacles, surprises, and other kinds of trouble. I like trouble.
I don’t think the monkey will pop out of the barrel and laugh at me anymore…. RIP laughing monkey.
2. Find Your Voice – Each time she starts a new story (at least once a month), Mom has to find her picture book voice. Voice helps the book sound unique and different from other books. Voice shows Mom’s characters looking at the world in their own special way.
1. Focus on Character – Mom usually writes stories that are plot, plot, plot. Lately, she is trying to take the advice she’s received about developing character, character, character. Susanna Hill’s Picture Book Magic class helped her a lot with that. Now Mom can get to know her characters before they start living in her story.
Speaking of living, two of my bloggy friends gave me the Sunshine Award, recently. I think it’s the perfect time of year for this award, since the snow is finally gone, and any minute now, the sun will shine and I will take a street nap.
A big, sunny thank you to Collies of the Meadow and The Squeak Life for sharing this prize with me. If you feel like you need a smile, visit them. They’re a guaranteed giggle. And if you want to celebrate the sunshine, take this award and post it to your own blog.
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 1/17/2014
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Today, Mom and I are counting down about rest.
What I Know About Rest
3. I nap in my bed.
2. I nap on the couch.
…a lot.
16. I nap in the street. (But only in the summer.)
1. I nap on Mom’s bed. I am allowed on her bed when she says the word, “OK” and then we sleep there all night long.
Who turned out the lights?
I am not allowed on there when she makes the bed, or when she is sorting out her folders and paperwork for her college job.
Who? Me?
What Mom Knows About Rest
3. Waking up super-early in the morning, lazing in bed, drinking tea is a perfect, restful start to the day.
2. After a story is finished it needs to rest. No working on it, no looking at it, no THINKING about it.
Sometimes, a story needs to rest for a week. Sometimes longer.
1. While a story is asleep, it’s difficult to wait for it to finish resting. It’s good to start mind-writing a new story right away. (And all new stories should be about me!)
26. When stories wake up from resting, they sometimes stink.
Today we are counting down about winning. Not the Charlie Sheen kind which was kind of weird, but the writer kind. And the blogging-dog-of-a-writer-kind.
Mom is a Winner
3. Mom’s book won a prize once. It’s called The Moonbeam Award. It shows as a badge on the cover of her book. I think it would look better shaped like a dog bone.
2. In 2013, Mom’s story Show and Tell Surprise was in Humpty Dumpty Magazine. That was a winner. Plus, magazines taste delicious.
1. Mom also had an acceptance from MeeGenius for her first ever ebook, named What If I Don’t. We can’t even wait to see that one in the MeeGenius Bookstore. BIG winner. Plus, inside my head, I often think, “What-if-I-don’t?”. I hope someday to say it out loud.
78. Mom is a winner in the 12×12 Challenge. She wrote 12 storybooks in 12 months. Just barely by the skin of her teeth, but she did it.
I am a Winner, too!
3. Hutch a Good Life awarded me the Sunshine Award. Yay! I love sunshine. Plus I am afraid of the dark.
2. Along with Nikitaland, Hutch also gave me the Blog of the Year Award. I have seen friends that have this award, and I am in good company with it. Plus stars are my favorite shape – except for dog bones.
1. Bacon and AngelsWhisper both awarded me the Friends and Followers Award. I love friends and followers. So, thanks, friends! And thanks, followers!
67. I will give myself the Biggest Rule Breaker Award.
Something smells good in here…..
I always ignore rules, so if you are reading my blog, you deserve an award. Feel free to share my bling, and also take a minute to click my friends’ links and check them out. Then maybe you can be a Rule Breaker, too.
Mom left a cup of coffee for me. Yay!
By: Genevieve Petrillo,
on 11/20/2013
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Today, we’re counting down my latest awards.
My friends at Dog Daz Zoo sent me the Dragon’s Loyalty Award. I won it once before right here. Thanks, girls!
Nikitaland sent me the Versa-tail Blogger Award or something like that. Yay! Thanks. I have never had that one before. I think it means my tail is pretty, and not a freaky monkey-tail, like Mom says.
Whether you have a tail or not, feel free to add some bling to your blog and share either one of my awards.
Both awards want me to tell seven things about myself. I’m not much with the math, but I’ll try, and maybe I’ll even let Mom tell one or two things about herself, too.
Seven Things
1. I love sleeping under the covers on Mom’s bed.
2. My birthday was in September. I’m seven.
3. Sometimes, I try to hatch my toys like eggs.
4. When my feet touch sand, I run in circles like I am a deranged lunatic.
5. One day, while Mom was driving to the VA, there was a devil in her rearview mirror.
6. I like lollipops.
7. Mom read a book that had a dog named Cupcake in it. It wasn’t me.
92. Mom is falling behind in her reading challenge. She planned to read 200 picture books this year. She is not on target, but plans to catch up. We’ll see.
46. Speaking of falling behind, she also missed the month of June in the 12×12 challenge, so she’s hoping to do her June manuscript in December. We’ll see.
21. Mom promised to take me to the park today. I’m really tired from working at Read to a Pet Night at the library last night.
Being a good girl, listening to a story…
Plus it’s really cold outside. I’m not sure I want to go to the park. ….We’ll see….
Do you find deadlines inspiring or stressful?
I have recently set some deadlines for myself for finishing a couple projects. For me, deadlines aren’t inspiring or stressful; they are useful.
One deadline was this weekend, September 15. The last couple days of last week, I realized the deadline was near and, WOW!, did I get working hard on the project. Yes, it was a self-imposed deadline, but that didn’t matter, it was a deadline. I was actually two days late meeting the deadline–September 17–but without the deadline, the project would still be languishing.
One reason it is useful is that it forced me to prioritize this project. At any one time, I might have 5-6 projects ongoing that I could work on. That includes things like writing for this blog, nonfiction projects, freelance projects and a couple fiction projects. What bubbles to the top of my To-Do list is anyone’s guess. Unless, I set a deadline. The self-imposed deadlines help me determine what to do each day or week.
Deadlines are also useful in fiction. This is the idea of a time bomb that will explode unless the characters accomplish something. There may be a real time bomb if you’re writing a thriller. Or, it may be a deadline such as an event; the character must accomplish such and so before the Halloween party, or the end of school, or before someone finds out something.
Time bombs and deadlines are useful in fiction because they up the tension. Time is short. How can the characters possibly accomplish everything in such a short time period? They can’t. Except, of course, they do. But not till the timer is at 0:01 seconds left. It’s important to give the reader frequent updates on the time frame, so the tension stays high.
Deadlines–for your writing or in your story–
Today, Mom and I are counting down about a author visits. She’s going to visit a school on Friday, so she can talk about being a writer, and read her book to the kids there.
Why I don’t like author visits.
3. Staying by myself. Mom will go away in the car for a long time. That means, no walking at the park, no jumping through my hula hoop, no treats in my IQ puzzles, and no bowling practice. Boring.
2. Bags. Mom will pack up tons of things to show the kids, and she will also put her laptop and LCD projector into bags. Bags are usually a LOT of fun. My head fits in there perfectly, and sometimes bags have treats in them. Or bacon. Or cake.
But school visit bags are off limits. Mom says the word, “Get your bony little head out of there.” No fun.
1. Kids. Mom will talk to tons and tons of kids at her school visit. I love kids. And they love me. Whenever kids see me, they pet me and hug me and say how cute I am. Plus, kids taste delicious, like candy. And sweat. And dirt. Yum.
What Mom likes about author visits.
3. Driving. Taking a road trip is always fun. Of course it would be more fun if I went along, but….
2. Reading. Mom loves reading stories. Story time was her favorite time of the day when she was a little girl at school, and it was her favorite time of the day when she was a teacher. Of course, I also love story time, but….
1. Kids. Mom has talked to hundreds and hundreds of kids in her careers as a teacher and an author. Thousands, maybe. She predicts that the kids at this school will ask her some of the same things kids at other schools have asked, “Are you rich?” and “Did you draw the pictures?” and “One time my dad got his finger stuck in the car door…” which is not a question, but….
Mom and I are counting down to the end of the month.
My January Countdown
3. Snow! We need more snow before January is finished! I love snow… As long as it isn’t deep enough to touch my belly. That scares me. Mom digs it with the shovel so I won’t be afraid.
2. Learning. Mom teaches me and teaches me every day. I am getting better with fetching, as long as there are Cheerios. I am still confused about bowling, though.
1. Work. Mom is working hard to finish her January story for 12×12. Tick. Tick. Tick. She’s really cutting it close.
Mom’s January Countdown
3. No snow! Mom doesn’t want snow because it is too much mess and trouble. But if it snows, she will have to stay home and work on her stories (and play with me). C’mon snow!
2. Learning. Mom will study at an online writing class in February. Tick. Tick. Tick. Soon, I will not be the only one learning.
1. Work. Mom will work with her writing group named DavidLaurieandOtherDavid next week. They will talk about stories and eat cookies and drink coffee. How does that count as work??
It’s October. Today we’re counting down about Halloween.
Things I Love About Halloween.
3. Costumes. This year I’m dressing as a nurse. We waited a long time for my costume to come in the mail. We’re also waiting a long time for an acceptance letter in the mail, but that’s a whole different story.
2. Candy. I’m not allowed to eat candy, but if I get lucky, I’ll get to eat a wrapper or two (or 6). And maybe Mom will let me lick a lollipop for a while. Those things are yummy. Even the stick is delicious!
1. Trick or Treaters. I love when kids come to trick or treat at my house. I know they kind of want candy, but I also think they’re mostly coming to see ME!
Things Mom Hates About Halloween.
3. Costumes. When Mom was a teacher, she learned that kids in costumes were WAAAY more difficult to handle than kids in regular clothes. She learned a lot from the kids, and got a lot of ideas from them, but along the way, they taught her how to HATE Halloween. A lot.
2. Candy. Mom buys tons of candy, but we don’t have tons of trick or treaters. That means she has to eat a lot of the candyherself. I can’t remember why this is a bad thing, but apparently, it is…
1. Stories. Mom doesn’t hate Halloween stories. She actually wrote a couple of them. But they’re sitting in her computer going nowhere. And she hates that! Now that Halloween is on its way, Mom is in the mood to dust off those stories and get back to work on them. They need to be cut, edited, critiqued, cut, and edited. …And critiqued. Then they’ll be ready to hit the road and knock on a few doors, like a couple of little trick or treaters.
42. There is one October HAPPY thing that Mom LOVES. Her story Fly Fishing is published in the last ever issue of Stories for Children e-Magazine. Click the link to get your very own e-copy!
September 12, 1962. John F. Kennedy's speech at Rice University: "I regard the decision last year to shift our efforts in space from low
to high gear as among the most important decisions that will be made
during my incumbency in the office of the Presidency. "
You can hear these famous words (immortalized in Countdown's first scrapbook, too!): "We choose to go to the moon!" You can hear the
Today, I’m counting down things that are important.
Important things for dogs are:
3. Toys – Stuffed animals are my favorite, but squeaky toys, rope toys, and balls are fun, too. Avoid anything mechanical – those things are terrifying.
2. Treats – All treats are delicious. Since it’s summer, frozen treats are the yummiest. Mom makes them for me with yogurt, banana baby food, honey, and peanut butter.
1. Cuddling – I love cuddling and snuggling – anytime, anywhere, with anybody.
Important things for writers are:
3. Writing every day – Mom writes for a whole hour every day. That means no playing, no being sneaky, and no being naughty. The hour flies by for her, but it’s the longest hour of the day for me.
2. Ideas – Ideas are everywhere. Mom and I get ideas at the park, in the car, when we stop for ice cream, near the garbage dumpster, in the supermarket, and while we’re walking around the neighborhood.
1. Patience – Writers have to wait a lot. They wait for a good idea to come. They wait to start writing while they mind-write for a while. They wait to see what the characters want to do. They wait to show the story to their writing group (which is sometimes named DavidLaurieandOtherDavid). They wait till they find someplace to send the story, and then they wait to see if it gets accepted. If it does, they have to wait some more to see it in print. They don’t get bored while they’re waiting because they keep getting ideas and they write every day (see #2 and #3).
Writers may not get bored with waiting, but I do. A whole hour? Really??
Today, we are counting down about fear. Mom is writing a story about courage. I have no experience with courage, but fear is my specialty.
Things That Scare Me
3. Squeaky Wheels – There’s an old saying that the squeaky wheel gets the oil. I would like to say to the lawn guys, “GET SOME OIL!” Last week, they rolled around a wheel barrow with a squeaky wheel that scared me half to death. The wheel sounded like a screaming panther, a crying poodle, and a baby who wants a lollipop. I ran and hid and ran again and hid again. Mom said, “What are you afraid of?” and “It’s a wheelbarrow!” and “I’m trying to write a story about a brave chef, and you’re NOT helping!”
2. Cats – A cat down the street watches me all the time. Whenever I walk down that way, I see him staring out his window wondering how he can kill me. I slick my ears back as far as they go, and walk as fast as Mom will let me. Cats – ugh.
1. The golf cart – Sometimes people in my neighborhood ride in a golf cart. I have seen it many, many, MANY times. It scares me anyway. Yesterday, Mom brought me right over to it so I could smell it and stop being afraid. I was reluctant at first. Then I took a sniff. OMG! It smells more terrifying than it looks and sounds. It has clearly run over a squirrel or two, driven through some mulch and fertilizer, and was filled with *gulp*power tools – yes, tools scare me too! The driver was a fire breathing DRAGON. After he talked to Mom for a while, he pulled a burning stick out of his throat and crushed it into an ashtray. Then he drove away puffing smoke out of his mouth. *shiver*
Things That Scare Mom
3. Being a one-book-wonder. Mom loves her book named Keep Your Ear On the Ball.
It helps kids understand how to be a friend, and it gets good reviews from people who read it. Mom calls it her “first book” and hopes nobody asks, “What’s the name of your second book.” Lots of times, she visits schools to talk to kids about being an author, and she play games with them (while I wait at home hoping the golf cart doesn’t come back).
2. See #3
1. See #2
10 Comments on Countdown Wednesday, last added: 5/23/2012
Valentine’s Day is about love. Mom and I will count down what we love about blogging.
Things I love about blogging:
3. It’s as close to a book about me as we’ve gotten, so far.
2. Friends who follow my blog and make comments. I love to lick and cuddle with friends.
1. Awards! It seems to be award season in the blogosphere, and I like winning so more people will like looking at my blog.
Things Mom loves about blogging:
3. Friends who follow our blog and make comments. Our followers and friends are funny and sweet and really seem to “get” me.
2. Clearing her head. Mom helps me blog about being a writer, and sometimes, when ideas jumble up in her head, I help her head clear up. Having a clear head is my specialty.
1. Mom also loves other blogs besides ours. She likes getting to know other pets, other writers, other humans, other ideas, and other points of view.
Happy Valentine’s Day! xo
Drum roll please! Today sees the announcement of OUP UK’s Word of the Year, as chosen by Countdown’s Susie Dent. And, perhaps unsurprisingly given what is going on in the world’s economy at the moment, that word is credit crunch.
‘The world’s financial markets have been one of the biggest generators of vocabulary in the past year,’ says Susie, who is also the author of a new book for OUP, Words of the Year. ‘Specialized vocabulary is now firmly on the British public’s radar. As fears of a recession escalate, it may be productivity of the linguistic kind that is the safest bet. Credit crunch is an example of an established term – it was already in currency back in the 1960s – being resurrected as circumstances change’.
In addition to the now familiar financial terms such as Ninja loans, stagflation, funts or jingle mail, Words of the Year also looks at expressions from other areas of our lives – including online social networking, ethical living, and the world of styling - that have been ‘bubbling under’ in 2008.
It was a year when the traditional Olympic torch-bearers had to become flame attendents, when run-off - first recorded in the Oxford English Dictionary from 1873 - became synonymous with events in Zimbabwe, when Google increased its linguistic dominance thanks to our quest for Googleability, and the newer moofer (and acronym for a movile out-of-office worker) and scuppie (an acronym for a ’socially conscious upwardly-mobile person/urban professional’) came to reflect our modern working lives.
But ultimately, 2008 is shaping up the be the year of the credit crunch, and so here’s your handy guide to just some of the entries in the 2008 bank of credit crunch Words of the Year:
NINJA LOAN – a loan or mortgage made to someone who has ‘No Income, No Job, No Assets’
JINGLE MAIL – the practice of sending back one’s house keys to the mortgage company because of negative equity, or the inability to keep up with payments
IPOD – acronym for ‘insecure, pressured, overtaxed, and debt-ridden’
HOMEDEBTOR – homeowner with a very large mortgage, particularly one that they are unlikely to ever pay off
SPEED MENTORING – a style of career- or life-coaching modelled on speed dating, in which each participant has a few minutes to seek advice on career-related questions
FUNT – someone who is Financially UNTouchable
EXPLODING ARM – variable rate mortgage with rates that soon rise beyond a borrower’s ability to pay
GOING UNDERWATER – falling into negative equity
STAGFLATION – stagnant growth and rising inflation
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#26-funny but surely frustrating for your Mom. Your nose is adorable.
Pawkisses for a Healthy, Happy New Year. Make it a good one 
On line writing school, that sounds fun 
)))
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Ben Keene is the editor of 
Goooood grief! Why do hoomans not understand that the world is filled with deadly parcel and letter carrying assassins who want to kill us!? Is it really such a difficult concept to grasp??
Congrats on the award!
Wally & Sammy
Genevieve, Terrific pointers! And congrats on the Sunshine Award.
Thanks fur the shout out Cupcake :3 and those are some furry good pieces of advice! :
The Pigs xx
Cupcake – you are such a character. You must inspire Mom’s writing – or maybe distract her. Somwetimes I can’t tell : ) But you definitely make me smile!
Cupcake you always have things figured out don’t you! Learning commands is tricky – we KNOW what they want, but do we want THEM to know we know…..right?? Keep ‘em guessing……look cute and get treats – that’s the name of our game. Guess it won’t be long before street naps will be back for you – now that all that icky and ugly snow is gone!
Hugs, Sammy
Cupcake, I think you saved everyone from the mailman!
I also hear, “be quiet” and “don’t pull” but they’ve pretty much given up on “fetch it” – ha ha!
That is a lot of good advice form both of you! (And many thanks for the shout out :)) I am going to email your mom because I have something to say about voice. Congrats on your award and enjoy the sunshine :)
Great advice Cupcake, I will try the fetching thing. But I can’t help but think if they want the ball so badly, why did they throw it away??
Yes, it makes no sense to throw away the ball and then to wait for the dog to bring it back. Your moms could learn a lot from this doggie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i91G_e4NNUg!
Cupcake mum surely does not get it …Doc also barks..and yes it is always because there is a murdulator coming….I sometimes tell him to stop….I have generally given up bwahahaah :) seeing your rendtition I think Doc takes it up a level so you can rest assured he and I are having a conflict over this! hugs Fozziemum xx
So fetch doesn’t mean hatch? Glad you cleared that up for me. :) as for the advice your mom gets I can add one more thing, picture movie scenes with your characters. It helps me see the action and picture the interaction.
Loved the video Cupcake, you haz a loud bark like me :) Great tips there too and big Congrats on the lovely award xxoxxx
Mollie and Alfie