NEW REVIEW "Mystical and Engaging..."Get Book 3 a NEW contract: vote at http://forums.onlinebookclub.org/shelves/pub-contest.php?u=77904 The Toki-Girl and the Sparrow-Boy http://www.tokigirlandsparrowboy.com Hard and e-formats available at: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B010F01B52 https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/554066 and all the usual outlets.Get Book 3 a NEW contract: vote at http://forums.onlinebookclub.org/shelves/pub-contest.php?u=77904 The Toki-Girl and the Sparrow-Boy http://www.tokigirlandsparrowboy.com Hard and e-formats available at: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B010F01B52 https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/554066 and all the usual outlets.Get Book 3 a NEW contract: vote at http://forums.onlinebookclub.org/shelves/pub-contest.php?u=77904 The Toki-Girl and the Sparrow-Boy http://www.tokigirlandsparrowboy.com Hard and e-formats available at: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B010F01B52 https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/554066 and all the usual outlets.

A new review for Book Two!  

"I thoroughly enjoyed this. It was mystical and engaging and definitely a page turner. Sometimes a book comes along that takes you out of your everyday world and transports you to a place you never want to leave. THIS IS THAT BOOK! HIGHLY RECOMMEND! Claire Youmans is a unique and talented writer."
BigFatFortune, on Amazon.

Nothing more to say except READ THESE BOOKS!

Book 3 is close to being on the way to its editor, and it's good!

Get Book 3 a NEW contract:  vote at

http://forums.onlinebookclub.org/shelves/pub-contest.php?u=77904

The Toki-Girl and the Sparrow-Boy

http://www.tokigirlandsparrowboy.com

Hard and e-formats available at: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B010F01B52

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/554066

and all the usual outlets.

The Way

I am writing a book.  No surprises there.  I think it an important book, a book that needs care and attention to thrive, as do they all.

My work is vitally important to me.  I cannot let distractions get in the way of producing the best possible book.  

During this period of finishing the draft, of going over and over and over it to make sure the themes are clear, the characters' journeys forwarded, the adventure adventurous, the humor humorous, the culture authentic, the story flowing into a coherent, enjoyable whole, I need to concentrate on that.

I also have a life, a real-life life.  I need to attend to it to keep me whole.

So I am cutting my computer interactions for a while.  When this gets done, I'll be back and I may pop in now and again.

Book Three is coming and it is going to be so darned good!  Welcome, year of the Monkey.

Get Book 3 a NEW contract:  vote at

http://forums.onlinebookclub.org/shelves/pub-contest.php?u=77904

The Toki-Girl and the Sparrow-Boy

http://www.tokigirlandsparrowboy.com

Hard and e-formats available at: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B010F01B52

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/554066

and all the usual outlets.

The Right Place (a poem)

The Right Place

I want to live with seasons, all four,

Without too much rain, but plenty of snow,

With a summer hot enough to smell the evergreens while

Berrying in the woods, tending the occasional sport fruit tree, and gathering its gifts.

I want it hot enough for a swim and a lemonade, but not hot enough

To call for air conditioning.

Not dripping damp, yet not too dry,

By the ocean, with a harbor to sail, a beach to walk and storms to watch.

I want wood piled high and starlight reflecting off the snow,

While the stove envelops the house in a comforting blanket of warmth,

Cold nipping my nose and ponds freezing over,

A basket of slippers by the boot tray at the door.

I want a sweater in the morning, with golden light and changing leaves,

Nuts to gather from the ground,

And maple trees.

(OK, that may be too much.)

I want to plant a garden in a cheerful blooming spring,

When seedlings sprout under a cold frame dusted with the last of the snow.

A village on the harbor, with everything one needs,

Close enough to walk or bike or ski, without too many hills.

I want enough tourists to keep things interesting, and a

City just a bit inland, not too far, to house the things

That won’t fit picturesquely in a village.

I would fit in there just fine.

Compassion

What if you aren't perfect?  What if you don't do everything the exact same way some self-appointed expert tells you to?  What if they castigate and vilify you because of this?

What if the experts contradict themselves?

What if the experts are trying to convince you to follow their individual perfect paths by beating you up?

Why do any of them think that's effective?  Why do any of them think that perfection incorporates meanness?

It doesn't.  Nobody's perfect.  We're improving.  We each must improve at our own paces and in our own ways.

Maybe YOUR improvement, this week, is trying out soy milk, walking around the block, doing Meatless Mondays, taking a stab at doing more of your own chores, reading your draft backwards to catch spelling and typographical errors.

Why is that cause for derision, not congratulations?

I don't know.   This attitude strikes me as very counter-productive.

My suggestion is compassion.  My suggestion to all these so-called experts is to praise any step in a better direction, and forget the torture and punishment because someone didn't grow their own certified organic black beans.

This applies to your own criticism of your own writing, too.  Are you much harder on yourself than you would be on someone else?  Have you let your work rest to read it with a fresh eye?

Don't freak if you find a typo.  Don't panic if you catch inconsistencies.  Don't focus on the bad.

Lend yourself a little compassion.  What you've written is probably better than you think.  Unless you think your unedited masterpiece is utterly the best thing every written in the history of the planet.  Then you'd better have a word with a professional editor.

Get Book 3 a NEW contract:  vote at

http://forums.onlinebookclub.org/shelves/pub-contest.php?u=77904

The Toki-Girl and the Sparrow-Boy

http://www.tokigirlandsparrowboy.com

Hard and e-formats available at: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B010F01B52

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/554066

and all the usual outlets.