Hey John! I'm a recently retired Teacher from a South Bronx, Dual Language school. I'm putting together a Bronx Literature Festival, you may want to be an exhibitor,(registration fee is a mere $50. The event date is Nov 6. If you're interested you can email me at [email protected] or facebook... more

Hey John! I'm a recently retired Teacher from a South Bronx, Dual Language school. I'm putting together a Bronx Literature Festival, you may want to be an exhibitor,(registration fee is a mere $50. The event date is Nov 6. If you're interested you can email me at [email protected] or facebook at lavernetharris@aol. By the way I also own the only bookstore in the South Bronx!! Hope to chat with you soon, LaVerne

Hey John, Thanks very much for taking the time to look at what we're doing. Any time you would like to test some of our content on your students, we would never turn that down. Let us know.
Cheers,
Ralph Scott
TOO NUTS PRODUCTIONS, LP
www.toonutsproductions.com
... more

Hey John, Thanks very much for taking the time to look at what we're doing. Any time you would like to test some of our content on your students, we would never turn that down. Let us know.

Cheers,

Ralph Scott
TOO NUTS PRODUCTIONS, LP
www.toonutsproductions.com
www.toadpizza.com
E: [email protected]

Hi John, my "Your Dreams" column is in the NY Daily News every Sunday.... on top of the Horoscopes in the Sunday Now section of the paper. I don't know why you were unable to find it. It is also on line, but without the cute pictures...
www.nydailynews.com click on Lifestyles and look at the in... more

Hi John, my "Your Dreams" column is in the NY Daily News every Sunday.... on top of the Horoscopes in the Sunday Now section of the paper. I don't know why you were unable to find it. It is also on line, but without the cute pictures...
www.nydailynews.com click on Lifestyles and look at the index... or just search for Lauren Lawrence.
BTW I have always been married.
Cheers, L

I'm finally done. My dad passed away a month ago, and it took several weeks to get everything arranged for 30 or so family members to come into town for the funeral. Lots of food, tears, funny stories, drink, photos, birthday celebrations for the little ones who came along, recollections about my da... more

I'm finally done. My dad passed away a month ago, and it took several weeks to get everything arranged for 30 or so family members to come into town for the funeral. Lots of food, tears, funny stories, drink, photos, birthday celebrations for the little ones who came along, recollections about my dad and mom. Last ones leave tomorrow. I will miss them, but also appreciate that I will be able to sleep for twelve hours straight and get back to my writing.
Have spent a fair amount of time this summer
sending out stories to agents and publishers.
Sent four of my best to kane miller, publishers, and Adam's Literary, agents.
Have at least 12 books I've started that I need to piddle with, and I've been wanting to hie to the library, find those picture books I think are classics, and then copy them - first in pencil, then on the computer, then on a dummy book, just to see how I would have arranged them, how they looked on a manuscript page, how they looked on paper.
I don't know how others work, but I tend to use all three of these to flesh out ideas. I most often write in pencil, recopy/rewrite arrange in a dummy book (I use 9 pages, folded in half, to get a 32 page standard size book, and it's front/back cover), then type/rewrite into a manuscript. Each lets me see/imagine story in a slightly different way. The dummy book always makes me wish I was an illustrator.
I also spend a lot of time reading the classics and trying to deconstruct them.
Have written some small moments stories this year - stories from my own life, that is - and will probably write more.
I feel like I'm knocking on the brick wall around agents and publishers, and can't wait to get in, get published, and move on to the harder and more interesting part - writing regularly, and try to top myself over and over again.

John
Thank-you for the welcome.
Sounds like you have had interesting experiences as a massage therapist, and through life in general. I don't think I would stop, unless my arms fell off, I don't think people would enjoy massage by mechanical arm. Your current job sounds exciting in itself,... more

John
Thank-you for the welcome.
Sounds like you have had interesting experiences as a massage therapist, and through life in general. I don't think I would stop, unless my arms fell off, I don't think people would enjoy massage by mechanical arm. Your current job sounds exciting in itself, shaping and guiding young minds, seems more like a calling. Glad to meet someone who knows a little something about the floor side of the table. Good luck with your creative pursuits, I look forward to reading about your success soon.
Jenni

Dear John,
Thanks for the compliment! I think you have some great ideas for children's books. Be persistent - it's tough to get a publisher to say yes. Please keep me in mind if you are looking for an illustrator.
I taught fourth graders too for many years and loved it. My grandson was j... more

Dear John,
Thanks for the compliment! I think you have some great ideas for children's books. Be persistent - it's tough to get a publisher to say yes. Please keep me in mind if you are looking for an illustrator.
I taught fourth graders too for many years and loved it. My grandson was just accepted into the French immersion pre-K program at Audubon school in New Orleans and daughter is bilingual (Spanish-English) and teaches special ed primary. We are all excited about the new language experience for him.
Sue Otten

Welcome to Jacketflap, John! My advice is to do your homework on publishers (through this site, Children's Market books, publishing web sites) before you send out your manuscripts. I've also submitted to magazines to get publishing credits as well with a little luck. Verla Kay has a very informat... more

Welcome to Jacketflap, John! My advice is to do your homework on publishers (through this site, Children's Market books, publishing web sites) before you send out your manuscripts. I've also submitted to magazines to get publishing credits as well with a little luck. Verla Kay has a very informative message board as well for children's writers(google for the exact web address). Good luck!