Hammonasset Beach State Park

I love this tangerine sky and the way sunlight lit up the crest of the waves.

I'm writing this post in the spirit of Linda Lou Who, which is what my Aunt Esther used to call me.  Bless her soul.  Now that the sun is setting on 2013, it's time to reflect on the year.  Despite the Christmas morning (1:12 a.m.) rejection, I'm going to focus on all the good things that the year has brought:

1. I got a far better handle on the art of the picture book by developing a method to create a typed dummy to see page turns.  It also helped to read it aloud to a teddy bear that Walt bought for the dog (on the right hand side of this website, click on "asylum"). 

2. I found a good way to get moving when I'm stuck trying to work out a first paragraph.

3. I am much better at multi-tasking because I got a lot of practice this year.

4. It was quite a productive year.

5. I expanded my editorial contacts and my network of writer friends by attending the 21st Century Nonfiction Conference and other SCBWI events.

6. It was a stellar year for some of my writing friends who won contests, went to acquisitions and landed contracts!

7. I used social networking all year long to get the word out about climate change.  Every single time I read some crap being passed off as fact, I plastered it all over Facebook and Twitter.

8. I took Climate Literacy Navigating Climate Change, a class offered by the University of British Columbia, and did well enough to land a spot as a teacher's assistant for the course.

9. I wrote a clever little manuscript with a number of activities.  I had no intention of writing any activities at all, but they evolved with so little effort and added to the fun that I simply had to include them.

10. I went to the American Association of School Libraries conference in Hartford and had a great time.

While standing in the bitter cold and harsh wind, we watched the sun set at Hammonasset Beach State Park.  I was wearing thin gloves, so it took a long time for my fingertips to thaw out.  It was worth it though.  HAPPY NEW YEAR!