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What a laid back crew, she's to be commended on her training. (The bully and the cat's licking made me nervous, though, like it could all be one second away from mayhem.)

That's the blog title of the week!

Where's the duck's shark costume?

It's not fair that the cat and the dog got wear a shark costume. Equal rights for ducks.

Have to tell you my cat came running when he heard the vacuum noise! He watched the whole thing with me! Thanks for the laugh.

How in the world did you get the cat to stay on? My cat runs as soon as I take the vac from the closet. Too cute.

I saw the title and thought you would be reviewing really bad queries.

Saw this on GMA and I knew, I mean I really knew, it would end up in your pond.
Hahaha, it is about the most dumb-ass awesome thing I have ever seen and it...made...my...day.
Thank you oh great finder of sharkish things.

Cats around the world have just voted that cat off the island. I mean, you can expect that kind of behaviour from a dog, but a cat?

Thanks for sharing this terrific post, Janet. Interesting story from an interesting guy.

I remain grateful to you for getting me up and Tweeting.

Brenda B.

...because medieval scholars, DAY-am, what a drag THEY are, amIright?


(I'm a medieval scholar. Ask me about the fourteenth century! Better idea: no don't.)

Love it! I shared the image of the cat tracks in the book on Facebook and garnered a quick raft of likes and shares.

I love social media. It lets me live in a small town and still have a world full of fascinating friends.

Terri

Hmm. I see no link. I guess I'm not in the club. :(

I don't either.

erp!
Sorry about that.
fixed...I hope!

That works. Thanks for fixing, and for posting. Great stuff!

Awesome.

And here he is BEING the Pedant:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSyIhapMdI8


I love Stephen Fry.

Ditto, NotaWarriorPrincess.

Even if he had nothing interesting to say, I could listen to him all day. But he's always interesting.

black adder; march forth.

Epic Stephen, Rowan, and gang

I played the piano for a living. Flirted with jazz and she flirted back, but classical was prepared to jump my bones. Hence the love affair. Now I'm learning how to write, I'm finding writing the same as classical music - it's about the rhythm, the beat, the flow, the voice, the hearing of one unintended note and then building an entire theme around it to tell a great story. Nice to know the rules, though. It gives you the unspoken authority to break them with graceful glee. Tipping a Glenmorangie to all. Thanks Janet.

Ah...Sound-Sex. :)

Thanks, Janet!

I could argue that one has to be arrogant to call another arrogant. The same goes for pedantry.

What a visual treat! What encouragement! Thanks!

Ha, what a funny comic. Start your writing career by writing with your heart of course. That's funny though.

:)

It's funny, but true. I created this cartoon a while back that echoes the sentiment.

http://pjcasselman.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/writerwish.jpg

I didn't like it, I LOVED IT!!! One of the very best videos I've ever watched. Thank you Janet for posting it. So good I almost cried...

So true of all the arts - and really of life - and not just YouTube. Maybe Amazon should put this video at the top of every page of reviews.

Is it bad that I spent the first few minutes distracted by how well she can write upside down?

nice,
like a cold glass of apple cider for the soul.

Great one. Thanks for the link, Janet.

One of the best YouTube videos I've seen since, well, Charlieissocoollike's "I'm Scared" video. This was amazing.

Thanks for sharing. It occurs to me as well that a random act of kindness is a good way to improve a shitty day.

Thanks for this post, Janet. #26Acts has been on my mind a lot as well. Yesterday, I wished my ex-husband's fiance-the woman partly responsible for breaking up my marriage-a Happy Birthday. This was not easy for me, but I wanted to do something outside my comfort zone. A couple of Christmases ago I'd paid for some layaway items for workers at Walmart. One of them, a tall black man, who was the father of two small children found out about it before I'd left the store. He came up to me and was crying and couldn't stop hugging me. It was a most extraordinary moment.

I plan to do more in the names of those lost at Sandy Hook. Maybe, in the long run, the loss of so many precious lives will prove to be an impetus that opened our communal eyes and helped make the world a better place. If we each do a little, it can add up to a lot.

After a deep personal crisis, I started crocheting scarves to donate to the Dulaan Mongolia project (since discontinued.) A friend posted the pattern and it was very simple chain-stitch scarves, something even I could make, and you could even make it with leftover yarn. I'd never knitted or crocheted before.

The act of making and donating the scarves was soothing when I felt raw, and someone else could feel warm afterward. I've since branched into making hats and scarves to donate to the homeless, and I'm poised to start a knitting ministry in my parish in the new year.

If you wouldn't mind a suggestion, something that's pure craft (that hook going in and out, the needle pulling loops through loops) is a great way to reach out to others. The pattern I used for the self-fringing scarf is here: http://kehinde.com/blog/?p=205 (And by "pattern" I mean "the instructions are two lines long.)

Once people realize that, as social animals, we actually benefit psychologically from acts of giving, then the world will take one step toward being a better place. The act can be something as small as giving away a coffee, to something as significant as caring for a dying family member. It's what separates us. It's what makes us human.

We went today to deliver gifts at a care center. I slowed things up a lot because I kept stopping to visit with many of the residents. I was amazed at how many needed a hand to hold or to press to their cheeks - how many longed for human touch. It was a great day, and I need to go back often.

Oh.

Yes.

I love the idea of the #26Acts. When I first read about it just before Christmas, it motivated me to finally do something I'd been thinking about but hadn't gotten around to yet: I paid the outstanding library fines for a neighbor's book-loving daughter so she could start borrowing books again. (Fines were high and the mom couldn't pay--long story.) Then I took the receipt that said "Balance: $0," put it in a Christmas card, and mailed it anonymously.

The other stuff I've done hasn't been as big as that, but it has been a good reminder to try and spread positivity when I can, even if it's something as small as telling a stranger that her scarf is pretty rather than just thinking that to myself.

Something 'amazing'?

Darn. I knew there was a catch.

What a great Monday morning reminder that there are agents willing to take on newbies with the right project. It helps get my fingers out of bed and to the keyboard.

Already did, already got rejected.

I still think it's AMAZING though.
And nothing against Suzie. We all have our off days. :D :D :D

Just sent her a query on your good advice.. I wonder if it will help or hinder that I called her The Suzenator?

Nice! Thanks for sharing this.

Write/create for yourself. It is it's own reward and makes external approval superfluous. Satisfaction with what you do has with nothing to do with success in the marketplace. If your satisfaction comes from public approval, the tribulations of writing are the least of your problems.

This has always been one of my favorite TED talks ever. :D

Of all the things I will see/experience today, this will singularly be the reason why I got up this morning.

I needed to hear this. I needed to know what was going on inside me was not something unique only to me. I was desperate to hear these words . . . and I didn't even know it.

Thank you for posting this Janet. It was a perspective clarifier for not just this moment, but for my career.

A perfect speech to propel me along in my work. Thank you for sharing.

When that presence, (I have named her Allie), rules my fingertip-dance on the keyboard, it is a magical moment and why I do what I do.

Oh lord I love this ted talk.

For someone who has reached the pit of despair trying to find an agent and is considering giving up on any notion of ever getting published, this was very well received.

Ole’!!!!

I love this talk! "Charisma" is another word for that divine spark, and another word that has become sadly "secularized" among people who no longer live a "magic" worldview. Yay for being zapped by the gods!

"Could I revive within me, her symphony and song/To such a deep delight 'twould win me,/That with music, loud and long/I should build that dome in air--/That flashing dome! Those caves of ice!/And all who looked should see it there/And all would cry, "Beware! Beware!/His flashing eyes! His floating hair!/Weave a circle round him thrice,/And close your eyes in Holy Dread/For he, on Honey-dew hath fed/And drunk the Milk of Paradise."

Wow! Just so Wow!

Thanks! I needed that.
I haven't yet had the success she's enjoyed, but I will keep showing up. I will catch that muse by the tail and I will not let her intimidate me.That is the promise I make to myself today.

What a gift this morning. Thank you. Ole to you all. (where is that darn accent mark anyway?)

"I showed up for my part" will soon be a plaque on my wall.

What a wonderful way of describing the process. I've been a professional speaker and musician for 29 years. When these moments of synchronicity occur in those arenas it palpable, I've always describe it by saying, "God showed up.” I didn't realize the description had such a history.

For me, the struggle comes during the process of making this connection with others. I hope/believe/desire I'll find an agent who enjoys the work I've done. Until that happens, I'll counter those times of difficulty by reminding myself of the joyous ole moments I enjoyed while writing the story.

Brilliant. That thundercloud she describes, that on-rush of a story from some indescribable source, hits the nail on the head. The idea that we don't own the inspiration and talent but merely borrow it in incredibly freeing. Thanks for posting this.

Thanks for sharing! Elizabeth's words lighten my spirit.

This surely must be the best TED talk ever (and I venture to guess the most-viewed). I've seen it innumerable times over the past few years and I still absolutely love it every time I watch it. She's a truly gifted speaker (and writer).

Here's to the stubborness and passion (and at times the divinity) of writing.

I've seen this video before, but it's always good to see again.

Her talk reminds me of Julia Cameron's book The Artist's Way, in which she describes all creativity as coming from God, the ultimate Creator of all things who simply wants us to share in the act of creation with Him.

Wonderful! Thanks for posting. I'm sending the link to my writer's group.

Wow! This video was so interesting, entertaining, and encouraging. Thanks so much for posting it.

Awesome video! Thanks for sharing!

Brilliant. She may be a great writer, but I think she missed her calling - she is a fantastic speaker.

I think I need to go and have a serious chat with my genius in the corner because he's definitely not holding up his end of the bargain at the moment.

This was an amazing video! It's so nice to finally be able to name the weird centipede monster that's been sitting in the corner for the last few years telling me what to write. I've been calling him Bob.

LOL

It probably appeals to the person who just saw his words ripped to pieces there....

HA. Well, you know agents. They can be so scary and sharky. They NEVER want to meet you for coffee or tell you you're the greatest writer since Hemingway or give you foot massages. Who needs 'em, I say?

That's a good one!

Now, "bypass the DREADED literary agent" would've been too much!

I am intrigued by these agents who are so desperate for clients that they just start foisting forms on people willy-nilly, begging to be allowed to sell the books sight unseen.

LOL

The ad is based on your browsing history. After I bought a program from Corel, I started seeing ads for Corel in those little boxes.

Hee hee. The algorithm's probably made by the same people who dream up the ads on Facebook.