"WHO DREW ON THE BABY'S....

....HEAD WITH A DARK BLUE PERMANENT MARKER!!!???"

It's been one of those frazzled mommy days. The veins in my eyes are bulging, and my face hasn't stopped twitching since noon. Probably from doing the "mommy look" too many times today. Don't know if it's because the end of the school year is approaching or what, but SOMETHING has caused my children to strive to hurl me over the edge of sanity....

Short trip.

Too bad they're so adorably cute, otherwise I'd have to put them up for sale.
=======================
BLUSH AND CRINGE
At a department store yesterday, I was looking through the clearance pajamas. When I turned around, my baby had a silky leapard print bra over her head, each cup covering her ears like winter ear muffs. Of course I didn't notice it until a myriad of nearby snickers from the group of department store trainees alerted me that her tiny lightning-fast fist had snatched it from a rack...somewhere.
======================
CONTEST NEWS

SQUIRREL'S STORY STARTERS
One more day for the deadline for Squirrel's Story Starters--my monthly prompt contest. Scroll down to see May's Prompt contest. Get those entries in!!! I have a great selection of books for you to choose from this month.

TRAFFIC JAM...
in motion. There are four in the running as we speak and here are the tallies so far, count ending at post 109:

Pammer: 34
Heather: 39
Jeanie: 18
Michelle: 11

This contest goes 1. Until Oct. 1st, or 2. Until one of you send 100 people to sign the guestbook on my website. The first five people who send 100 people to sign my guestbook at www.CherylWyatt.com by Oct 1, 2005 will win one of my prizes (each valued at $200.00). For more information, email me at Cheryl@CherylWyatt.com and ask for information about the Traffic Jam, or sign up for my newsletter (The Acorn Connection) where the details will be emailed to you.
======================
VERSE:
Encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. Hebrews 3:13
======================
Lord Jesus,
Help us guard our simple devotion to you.
======================
Blessings,

Squirrel

CODE YELLOW WINS SECOND PLACE

In Colorado Romance Writer's Heart of the Rockies Contest. Thanks judges!!! Yay me!!! Now I wait until I get the judges' comments back and edit any needed changes.

BLUSH AND CRINGE
One day in nursing school, we had a mock disaster drill where we were assigned injuries and had to pretend to be whatever our injuries were. My friend was "unconscious" so all she had to do was lay on the gurney and feign sleep (only she REALLY fell asleep). The slip of paper I got said "compound fracture of the right radius and ulna bones, multiple contusions and bleeding lacerations of the forehead and right cheek." So I sat there in the chair while my instructor and fellow students put red makeup all over my face and drew bruises and cuts across my face with various colors of eyeliner. We'd had kentucky fried chicken for lunch. I was one of the most injured. The VA nurses and doctors had to figure out what was wrong with us without the use of the "injury slips" we got. So my makeup artists cut my shirt sleeve, taped four broken chicken bones to my arm, making it look like both bones in my right forearm were broken and poking through the skin (yes there was fake blood and all) and poured ketchup all over my shirt sleeve. After the disaster drill was over, my instructor wanted to take pictures back at school so she asked us not to fix our injuries just yet. So yes, I had to drive home like that. Fake bruises and blood covering my face, and those ridiculous stinky bones on my arms. I had parked in front of the national guard armory. When I got back to my car, there were about two dozen soldiers standing on the sidewalk. I had to walk through them to get to my car. As if that wasn't embarrassing enough, two of them were sitting on my car hood when I got to my car. I politely ignored the snickers and stares and tried to get my key in my lock. After several attempts, my face is red without the ketchup. One soldier slips off my hood, walks up and asks if he could help me. "No. I've almost got it," I say. To my horror, he keeps standing there.

Laughing. "Are you sure you don't need help getting into this car?" he asks as the soldiers behind him laugh in chorus.

"No. I'm fine." I really wish he'd leave me alone. I mean, what does this guy think, that just because I'm blonde and female that I'm not capable of unlocking a simple car door? But then again, I wonder, why won't this stupid key work? And of course EVERYONE is STILL staring at me.....and snickering.

That's when I notice there is a ball cap on the dash that doesn't belong to me. Just as I begin to wonder whose cap is in my car, I wonder where the stack of papers, books, and various other clutter that should be in my car. I realize this car does not look like Sandford and Son's.

I realize this isn't my car at all. Now I'm about to cry because I'm so shy and these men are all laughing at me and I feel like a complete dork, not only because of the car but because I have Kentucky fried chicken bones growing from my arms like leeches, dried ketchup on my Dokken shirt and all over my face, smeared makeup because it sprinkled on the way back to my car, and a very bad hair day. (GImme a break, it was in the 80's. Every day was a bad hair day.)

Once more, the soldier asks, "Are you sure you don't need help getting that door open?"

With face, flaming red, I turn to face him, mortified. He steps over and opens the door.

"It's your car?" I ask. He nods. I turn on my heel and franticly search for my car, finding it three cars down, identical to his, exept for the license plate and the fact that mine could use a good washing.

=================

VERSE
For surely, O Lord, You bless the righteous; You surround them with Your favor as with a shield. Ps 5:12 NIV

==================

BORROWED PRAYERS
Dear Lord,
Infuse us with a hunger for time with you. Strenghten the bonds of our communication and communion. Help us to love you like you love us.

Blessings!

Squirrel

GOD's WILL/EDEN's GARDEN

Thanks for the comforting posts, guys. I've always used poetry to release stuff inside me and I was really, really mad at Death and the devil that day. Couldn't you tell? LOL!

Regarding baby's name. If the baby had been a boy, his name is Will. So he's God's Will. If the baby was a girl, her name is Eden since I had a dream the night I found out she'd died in my womb, that she was dancing in a garden with Jesus. It was so vivid and the greatest source of comfort for me. I tend to think the baby was a girl, but my children insist it was a boy. I guess we'll find out when we get to Heaven, huh? :-) Thanks for your suggestions, guys.
=======================

BLUSH AND CRINGE
When I was in the middle of miscarrying, I began bleeding so heavily my sanitary pads wouldn't hold everything, so in desperation, I grabbed one of my baby's diapers and used it in place of a pad. Then my doctor, concerned about the amount of bleeding, instructed me to come to his office immediately. I forgot to remove the diaper and when I shimmied my trousers down. . .there it was! I shrugged, ignored the urge to snicker and said to the nurse and my doctor, "Dont' worry. I changed my diaper right before I came here so you wouldn't have to." Even though the situation was sad, the moment was hilarious. I wish you could have seen their faces. They were trying so hard not to giggle. Then when I started laughing, they couldn't help it.

BORROWED PRAYER
Dear God, THANK YOU for the gift of a good sense of humor. Thank you for the blessing of laughter and supernatural joy. You are amazing.

VERSE:
Prov 17:22 A cheerful heart is good medicine.
Ecc 3:4: ...there is a time to weep and a time to laugh...

THANKS for stopping by! Come back often!!!

Squirrel

SOMEDAY--HEAVEN

Someday Heaven

By Cheryl Wyatt 5/9/05



Death-merciless thief
stole life
left grief
Haven
of a mother's womb
became a baby's grave
Left in its wake
empty arms
they ache
To hold
what will never be
Until Someday--Heaven
Eyes strain to see
through tears meant to be
Joyous as you emerge
But it was not meant to be
forever
This life is a blink
compared to Eternity
There--
Do you hear it?
Hope breathes
For when Jesus hung from that cross of pain
Death dangled
lifeless from a skipknot rope
Its vicious neck broken
Its gloating power not strong enough
to hold King Jesus in its clutches
He rose
Hope breathed
Life surged
Death screamed in agony
of defeat
beat
by the power of His resurrection
We believe
what will be
has already happened
though we cannot see
Someday
it will manifest
Life won
If you believe
you will see--
Someday--
Heaven.

I SAW IT!!! Now see what I'm gonna do about it. . .

I know, I know. More typos. Cheeks are mighty red here. As I've told you before, I do not proofread well by computer monitor.

So I know my "it's" should have been "its" and "invested" should have been "invented."

And since it seems that me getting through a post without a single typo is something of a rarity, I'm going to have fun with it and polish your proofing/editing skills at the same time.

At the end of every month, anyone who wants to can try to find ALL the typos, misspellings, grammatical goofs, or just plain horrid sentence structure for the blog posts for that month. At the end of the first week of the new month, the person who finds the most errors will win a free book. For ties, I'll draw names to pick a winner.

Squirrel

HOUSTON! WE HAVE A . . .

TOOTH!!!

My precious grumpy bug finally cut that stubborn thing. She's been so miserable. Thank God for the person who invested Orajel. Or is that Oragel?

Forgive if this post seems a bit muggy. (Now let's see. . .is that the right word?) My pain became so severe today I took a half a pain medication and my brain is running in slow motion.

No. Make that REVERSE.

In fact, that leads me to my next question.

BLUSH AND CRINGE
OK, not really a question but the other word that was meant to go there escaped the memory of my recess. Or is that recess of my memory?

I miss recess.

Any way. . .here is the blush and cringe. At least, well, it's funny to me....but then again, I'm sort of on drugs at the moment, so pretty much everything's funny at this point. Let's try this one more time:

BLUSH AND CRINGE. . . TAKE TWO, CLICK!

Tonight, as the half a Vicodin began to seep it's way into my "not at all used to narcotics bloodstream," I could NOT think of common words. So we get home from the grocery store, and I had one of the two baskets of strawberries we'd purchased on the counter by the sink. I'm trying to wash them, and bat away dd2's hand as she's swiping the ones I'd just pitted and washed.

Wait. Hold everything...do you pit strawberries? Well, you know, when you pull that green leafy part out and scoop that remnant of a stem thingy out of the middle. So I did whatever you call that, then went to finish putting groceries away. I *thought* I asked my older daughter to please dump the freshly cleaned and *de-leafed* strawberries into the food processor so I could blend them up with some Splenda and make some strawberry milkshakes. She looked at me with a doubtful expression and politely refused to do it. So with a firm, "mommy look" I said, "please do it." Daughter number two begins to cry as daughter number one gives me a strange look and procedes to dump the strawberries DOWN THE GARBAGE DISPOSAL. She turns the switch on before I could stop her. Now my kitchen is filled with one gurgling sink, one very confused mother, and two very unhappy campers grieving over lost strawberries that both girls claimed I said to put down the garbage disposal (instead of "food processor.")

Peacemaker, enter stage left: So my loving husband waltzes in, pushes me away from the blender thingy as I'm dumping the second basket of strawberries in and bans me from the kitchen, saying "you're not supposed to be operating dangerous machinery while medicated, it says so clearly on the bottle." (even though in my mind, "dangerous machinery" is a forklift or front end loader). So I whip my head around, sure they're all mistaken about my verbal blunder which apparently caused the violent demise of a perfectly innocent basket of strawberries, and say, "I'm perfectly capable of using this garbage disposal!!!" and flip the switch on the food processor.
==============

VERSE OF THE DAY
Let us have confidence, then, and approach God's throne, where there is grace. There we will receive mercy and find grace to help us just when we need it. Hebrews 4:16 TEV

==============
BORROWED PRAYERS
Father, this Mother's Day week, be with and comfort all those who've lost their mothers. Help those of us who still have ours, to be thankful and never take them for granted. Thanks for making such a thing as family. Help us be the mothers and fathers that our children need to be nurtured into the destinies you created for them. . .to love you with all their hearts, souls, minds, and strength. Help us model it, live it.
===============

Have a great day.

Blessings,

Squirrel

GOD IS VERY NEAR. . .

To the broken-hearted.

Found out this week I've miscarried my baby. Very sad, but all in all, I see God's hand of comfort. He prepared me through Sondor's sermon last week. He talked about how everyone needs to have a "Good Life Crisis." One thing I just reread in my notes that's having a profound effect on me is "People in pain are in a perfect position to experience God." The first night I found out, I have several very comforting and vivid dreams of the baby in Heaven with Jesus. I also had an extremely strong sense of God's tangeable presence. I pray this for everyone going through loss or grief or disappointment. When I called a good friend to tell her the sad news, seh asked me, "Do you feel guilty." (This pregnancy wasn't exactly in our plans.)

And I could confidently say, "No." I know that even though the news of the pregnancy was unexpected, children are a blessing from the Lord. When I told a friend before I'd taken the test I suspected I was pregnant, they'd said, "Oh no. I don't think God would do that to you."

The fact of the matter is, God didn't DO anything to me. He LET it be. I know that I know that I know that I wanted and loved this baby with all of my heart and soul. During the ultrasound, when I couldn't see anything moving, nor the heartbeat, I felt God whisper the tempo of a beat in my heart...these words over and over: "This one's mine."

So today, I praise Him for renewed patience with the children He's blessed me with. Though they are His, too, He's letting me borrow them for their time on earth. Sacred, precious gifts are they and you can bet I've hugged them a lot more often and a little tighter every day since we got the sad news. So this baby had a purpose and I know part of that purpose was to help me not to take my others for granted. To be thankful for every single day. A reminder that I'm triple blessed.

And. . .I am safe in suffering because I have a God who knows exactly what it feels like to have to watch a child die. So this baby reminded me not only of the sacrifice of Jesus, who willingly gave Himself for all of us, but of the sacrifice of God, who sent His only son to die for us instead of sending the globe spinning off its axis and forgetting about all of us.

I watched the surreal life today. I'm heartbroken at China Doll. Now, granted, I know "Reality TV" is often staged, but this woman cried and was heartbroken because all she wanted was for her ex boyfriend to tell her he loves her. So one of the other dudes on the show goes in to the closet where she's hiding and treis to comfort her and she automatically begins to latch onto him with her hope and love.

She's no different than the rest of us. We are made to need love. But the only perfect love is God's and I pray someone tells her there is a man who will never stop loving her. I pray He reveals Himself to her in a profound and life-changing way. Jesus is the only person who will never disappoint us and he will never, ever stop loving us.


I also found out the same day I didn't final in another contest. This business of writing is sort of like the process of grief. I mean, when a story you've poured your soul into to create, gets rejected, it feels like a profound personal loss. There's teh normal stages of grief. Anger, despondency, denial, depression then eventually acceptance. I admit I did have a fleeting thought, "Why am I doing this to myself?" Pursuing publication is a painful process and honestly, I have a full life, so why bother? Why slash my veins and bleed my heart over the pages just for someone to say they hate my story. Yes, I entertained the thoughts to give up for about half a day.

Then the characters in my heart started to speak. God whispered, "you can't quit because you're doing this for me. It's worship unto me."

I'll tell you, I got right on my computer and pounded out another chapter.

Why?

Because God has given this to me and somehow, it blesses Him when I give it back to Him. So if I never get published, I'll whine and moan and probably yell and cry.

But I'll never give up because I know now that I'm doing it for all the right reasons. To know that somehow through all the heartache of rejections, and contest losses, that God has managed to purify my heart and my motives...makes it worth every slice of pain.


=========================

"It's part of a new meme that is travelling through the blogosphere. The idea is if you're tagged, you need to choose 3 (or more if you like) occupations from the list below and then finish the sentence for each that you've chosen.
"You then tag three more people who must do the same. You can add more occupations to the list when you pass it on but you must choose your 3 from the list provided by the person who tagged you. You're also asked to trackback to the blogger who tagged you if you know how."
Here's the list:
If I could be a scientist…
If I could be a farmer…
If I could be a musician…
If I could be a doctor…
If I could be a painter…
If I could be a gardener…
If I could be a missionary…
If I could be a chef…
If I could be an architect…
If I could be a linguist…
If I could be a psychologist…
If I could be a librarian…
If I could be an athlete…
If I could be a lawyer…
If I could be an innkeeper…
If I could be a professor…
If I could be a writer…
If I could be a llama-rider…
If I could be a bonnie pirate…
If I could be a service member…
If I could be a photographer…
If I could be a philanthropist…
If I could be a rap artist…
If I could be a child actor…
If I could be a secret agent…
If I could be a comedian/comedienne…
If I could be a priest...
If I could be a radio announcer...
If I could be a phlebotomist...
If I could be Paris Hilton's stylist...
If I could be a movie producer...
If I could be the CEO of Microsoft...
If I could be an accountant…
If I could be a scientist,

I'm choosing the one that cheered me up when I read it:

"If I could be a gardener. . .all the flowers wouldn't tremble when I place them in my cart at the garden center as if they'd just been sentenced to death row, and my mother in law wouldn't have to show me for the hundredth time which green thingies are the weeds and which ones are the flowers.

I'll add to the mix:

If I could be a Mime. . .
If I could be a Spec Ops solder. . .
If I could be an Ambassador. . .

I'm tagging Margaret Daley, Brenda Coulter, and Mae Nunn.


Squirrel

BLUSH AND CRINGE

Okay. Everyone knows that children mimick what they see. So tell me. WHY would I think my children would be immune to this? *Cough* Confession time here. I, sort of, well, sometimessmackmyhusbandonthebuttwhenhepassesbymeinaroom. There. I said it. AAAAAND... sometimes I happen to do that when my children are present in said room. Ahem. Yes. I know. BAAAAAD Mommy. So anyway, tonight we're coming out or church and my four year old runs after our pastor, catches up with him and...

Yeah.

Smacks him right on the caboose.

If there was ever a time when I wished the asphalt would open up and swallow me, that would be it. (Sondor', if you ever read this--you have no idea how embarrassed I was.)

So. Moral of the story? When you pat your honey's patootie...make sure the children are not gawking.

===========
KINGDOM CONCEPT
The Bible says "and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make (or set) you free.
The cool thing about this is...truth is a person.
Jesus is The Truth. He called Himself The Truth, The Way, The Life.
Pretty cool double meaning, huh?
==========
VERSES for your viewing pleasure:
Jn 8:32
Jn 14:6
I Ti 2:4
Jn 16:13
=========
Borrowed Prayers
Dear God, help us to cling to your Truth. . . in every sense of the word.

Love,
Squirrel

ANNOUNCING APRIL CONTEST WINNER

Congratulations to M.R. for winning "Squirrel's Story Starters" for April!!!! She penned a delightful story.

Congratulations also goes out to K.M. for honorable mention.

Both of these stories ran neck and neck and I had to have outside help to decide a winner. Congratulations, girls!!!!!!!!!!!


BLUSH AND CRINGE
When I was at ACRW conference last year, Kathy Ide's parents drove us to a four story bookstore in Denver. The story I was working on at the time features a S.W.A.T. officer for the hero. I found a S.W.A.T. magazine there and bought it, not realizing it had a picture of a very intense individual aiming a machine gun on the front cover. That issue was all about weaponry. Also during the conference, they gave these floating hand things away. So I switch flights at St. Louis and of all the people in line, guess who they pull out to go through their suitcase in front of all the other people?

Yep. Me.

So the nice, tall, latex-gloved security officer places my suitcase on the table and proceeds to unzip it. What's the first thing he sees? That S.W.A.T. magazine and that floating body part. He just stops what he's doing, lifts the magazine with two fingers, and his left eyebrow as he's staring at me. I giggle when I get nervous. So I begin to giggle. And I can't stop. And he's holding this magazine up, his questioning gaze turning from me to it and back. Then he picks up the severed hand with his other gloved hand. I'm giggling uncontrollably now and have hives all over my neck, back and arms because everyone around us is staring, wondering what the hold up is. I finally figure out he's waiting for an explanation. I look at him, shrug, smile sweetly and blushingly, and say, "You don't want to know."
Brow lifts higher and brow number two joins it, he says, "Oh yes. I do. And you're going to tell me."
I realize he's serious. But I feel another wave of giggles erupting as I envision my husband having to come rescue me after I've been apprehended by security, and interrogated in some dark airport boardroom by the FBI and CIA. (You have to remember, I have a writer's imagination.)
I tell him, "Well, I bought it at the Tattered Cover."
He blinks exactly three times and I can tell this answer is not going to get me through security. This is St. Louis, MO. And the Tattered Cover was the bookstore in Denver.
"I'm a writer. I just came back from a writer's conference and I bought that for research."
"Hmm-Hmm," he says. Now there are three, count them, three security guards going through my stuff and a LOOOOONG line of irritated, yet curious onlookers behind me who are about to miss their flights because of the delay caused by this fake severed hand and this magazine.
He dug through my dirty clothes (How embarrassing) and lifts up my Bible. Shew. I see the grin erupt over his face and the sparkle glimmer in his eye.
"Am I going to find any other severed body parts in here?" he asks, a smile tugging one side of his mouth higher than the other.
Relieved, because I now realize he's kidding with me, in my nervous state, I blurt the first thing that comes to mind, "No, sir, you certainly won't. I hid the rest better."

He chuckled, closed the suitcase and waved me through while the stream of passengers behind me zoomed past in all their glaring glory. At some point on the flight home, I stopped trembling and began to chuckle about it.

VERSE
You, God, created everything, and it is for your pleasure that they exist and were created. Revelation 4:11 NLT

BORROWED PRAYERS
Dear God, as you have delighted yourself in us, even when we had no thoughts of you, please help us to delight ourselves in you. Let nothing take your rightful place in our hearts. Be first. Help us love you laps ahead of everything and everyone else.

SQUIRREL'S STORY STARTER for MAY:

Set up:
Hero's background: His mother was controlling. He thinks a wife will control him, therefore he avoids commitments at all cost. Has always been tought that the squeaky wheel gets the grease. If you want something, go after it. Has to feel like he's in control at all times.

Heroine's background: Shy, sweet, tought never to make waves. Don't pursue things, let them come to you. Avoids situations of control at all costs.

She catches his eye and he determines to "Chase her" even though he's never had to chase a woman in his life. A mishap causes them to meet.

Write a 500 word or less scene. I'd like you to use at least the hero, or heroine above, preferrably both in your story.

This sentence, or variant of it, MUST be in the story somewhere, preferable the Hook.

"As the slow heat from the blush of mortification crawled up her chest and neck, Murial cringed at the mess she'd made, and prayed for the sidewalk to open up and gobble her this instant."

Blessings!

Squirrel

One more thing...

This month's prompt contest has officially ended. Winner will be notified by 4/25 via Email, and their initials posted in my blog. There were an extraordinary number of entries this month and all of you sent in such great entries, this one is going to be HARD to judge. Thanks to all who entered. Nothing would bless me more in regards to this contest than to see some of you take the scene you crafted from the seed of a story, and turn it into a full-length salable manuscript.

Blessings!

Squirrel

SLACKIN'

Wow, it's been too long since I posted! BUT, I've actually been writing. I'm about twenty pages away from finishing my next wip-the first in my new Spec Op series. Wooooo Hoooo.

BLUSH AND CRINGE

We had a couple over for dinner who'd visited our church. The gentleman picked up the salt shaker and shook. Nothing happened. My husband tried to shake it. Nothing happened so he tapped the bottom and a few grains of salt broke free. Then he taps it again and here comes the salt. So he hands it to the man, who proceeds to salt his food. As a few of the clumps of salt (that had been blocking the last few holes) tumbled out onto his grilled chicken, I commented, "I guess steam from the water I boiled earlier must have clogged it." One of my preschoolers says, "No, mom, Eno licked it when we were setting the table and that's what clogged it." Our dinner guests chuckled. I was mortified. And you know, now that I think of it, that man didn't eat a bite of that chicken breast after that.......

BORROWED PRAYERS
God, when we are drowning in pain, whether it be emotional or physical, and there is no medication or balm to help or soothe us we are at Your mercy, which is the best place to be. We trust in You. You love us and hear our prayers. Thank You that the same compassion that compelled you, Jesus, to reach out to that hurting one in the crowd still flows with abundance from Your heart of love and mercy. You still heal today, and we are trusting you to do great things in our midst. Be magnified in our suffering, Lord. Be magnified.

VERSE:
He will not leave us orphaned. He will come to us.
Psalms.

MORE OF A CRINGE

Instead of a blush and cringe: My daughters decided to unfurl an entire roll of toilet paper and stuff it in the toilet. Not so bad. I could have dealt with that. They've put worse in the toilet. (Remind me to tell you the day my favorite candle went missing) So I am doing my typical "why did you guys do this, it makes no sense" rant and I hear the toilet flush and daughter number two going, "Uh oh! Mom! It's overflowing!" So now I'm launching into my "why did you flush it? I told you not to flush it!" rant, and trying desperately to get the childproof lock thingy off the cabinet door so I can get the plunger. "I flushed it because I had to poop and you always tell us to flush after we poop," she says. So now I'm watching the one foot in diameter, water-logged mountain of toilet paper slowly rising to the top of the toilet rim, looking like a billowing mass of whipped cream, only those little brown pebbles are NOT cherries on top. I ask the four year old to help me get the childproof lock open. She's succesful within seconds. I grab Mr. Plunger, skid across bathroom floor and realize the water stopped about a hair's length from the top of the toilet. Good news, right? Wrong. If I put Mr. Plunger in the water, it's going to overflow. Then I hear a gurgle, and another gurgle and realize that somehow, the water is s-l-o-w-l-y moving down. I wait an eternal five minutes, then lift the plunger, ready to insert, only to realize it's inside out. That's what I get for buying it at the dollar store. I don't know about you, but I'm not touching that thing with my bare hands to turn it back the way it's supposed to go. So I dash to the other bathroom, grab another plunger and race back down the long hall to bathroom number one where I am now hearing the unmistakeable sound of splashing. And laughter. "Dear God, please let that be the sink they're playing in," I pray and round the bend to find my older daughters (ages 3 and 4) cheering the one year old on as she has both hands in the toilet, squeezing a pebble with one tiny hand and swirling the mass of toilet paper around like a whirlpool with her other hand.

It could have been worse I guess. Usually everything she gets her hands on goes directly in her mouth. I know, gross, and yes, I scrubbed her hands with antibacterial soap for a half an hour.


VERSE
Search me, O God and know my heart...lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23-24

BORROWED PRAYERS
Help me to have an insatiable passion for your words. Let me devour them as if I knew I'd never get to read the Bible again. Help those in other countries to be able to have your Words without being caught and persecuted.

NEW WITH MY WRITING
I'm working on a new series, the special ops military ones. I'm two thirds of the way to finishing my first draft. I wrote a scene today that made me bawl my eyes out. My husband walks in, looks at me like I'm a loon, and walks past, shaking his head while I continue sniffing, blubbering, and tapping away at the keyboard. He's slightly worried about the fact that fictional people, whom I've created with my own mind, have the ability to send me into crybaby mode. So I either wrote an incredibly emotional scene today, or my pregnancy hormones are a bit out of control! LOL.

MY NEIGHBOR'S CHICKEN ATE MY DOG

Not really, but since I have your attention, let's get started with all our bloggyness.

BLUSH AND CRINGE
This entire month's blush and cringe will be didicated to my husband. Tee-hee, or at lest written at his expense. (Shhhh! Don't tell him!)
My husband runs sound for a lot of bands. When MXPX first started out, my husband had never ran sound for a punk or ska band. He was used to running sound for Pantera-like bands. Anyway, after the first song, (MXPX tuned low) my husband stops the show, walks up to the guitarist and asks him if he needs to borrow a new string. The guy stares at him as if he's from another galaxy, looks at his guitar and says, "uh, no." So my ever helpful husband says, "well, you need to re tune your guitar or get a new string then because that sounds horrible." Dh (Dear hubby) then goes about looking to see which sound cable was causing the "terrible screeching." That's when the guitarist informs him that's how their music is SUPPOSED to sound.

VERSE
He covers the Heavens with clouds, sends down the showers, and makes the green grass grow... Psalm 147:8 TLB

BORROWED PRAYERS
God, thank you for providing for us. You are faithful. Help me know and believe it no matter how the circumstances look.

PEOPLE WHO HAVE INFLUENCED MY LIFE PROFOUNDLY:
Fellow friends and previous coworkers Patty Hall and Tammy Stubblefield. I got an email from Tammy and saw Patty at church and it reminded me of something both of them said to me right after I got married. Before I got married, I wasn't all keen on the idea of having children. BOTH of them spoke into my life, telling me what a joy motherhood is and what a wonderful mother I would be. Years later, as I look into the cherubic faces of my beautiful children, I remember those words and can hardly contain the tears, thinking how they've enriched my life. So thanks Patty and Tammy, for booting my caboose, and for being wonderful, Godly examples of how a mother should love their children. I aspire to be like you. Thanks for influincing that aspect of my life. I bet you didn't even realize the power your words of encouragement would have. You may not even remember speaking those words, but I remember for it was a pivotal moment in the span of my life with each of you. God used you to turn my heart towards the desire to be a wife and mom-something I wouldn't trade for anything.

CONTESTS
Dont forget about my Traffic Jam and my prompt contest. If you'd like a free book but aren't a writerly type, send me an email telling me exactly why you think you deserve a book. The story can be true or made up. The story that makes me laugh or cry the most, will win a free book. My email is Cheryl@CherylWyatt.com

Back to my website www.cherylwyatt.com

Thanks for stopping by.

Squirrel

TRAFFIC JAM IN MOTION!!!!

If you've received my newsletter, The Acorn Connection, you know the Traffic Jam has officially begun!!! So far, Pamela James is laps ahead of the rest of you, so what are you waiting for? Send people to sign my guestbook! Don't forget to tell them to mention who sent them so you get credit! These are some great prizes guys and you don't want to miss this opportunity.

Don't have any idea what I'm talking about? I'm running a six month long contest, from April to October, in order to increase traffic on my website. Grand prize is your choice of 1 of 5 things valued at $200.00. There is no catch other than in order to win, you have to send more people to sign my website guestbook than anyone else. For more details, go to www.CherylWyatt.com click the newsletter link and sign up for it, or simply send me an email at Cheryl@CherylWyatt.com telling me you wish to enter Squirrel's Traffic Jam.

Don't forget about my monthly prompt contest, called "Squirrel's Story Starters." Prize is a free book.

BLUSH AND CRINGE
Once while working night shift at the hospital, I needed to page housekeeping to come clean a birthing room so we could move my other actively laboring patient in there. The stupid phone system was messed up and somehow, no matter what numbers you pushed, it dialed speed call numbers randomly. It's 2:00 in the morning and *housekeeping* picks up. "Hello?" a groggy voice answered. I'm squishing my eyebrows at the phone, thinking the housekeeping dude fell asleep on his shift. Anyway, so I go, "Yes, I need for you to come mop birthing room three as soon as possible." There was a pause, then groggy voice says, "Excuse me?" I repeat myself, "I need for you to come mop a birthing room. We're swamped and we need that room pronto." Next thing I know, groggy voice says, "Cheryl? Is that you?" I realize with a start the voice belonging to groggy person is NOT the nightshift housekeeper. It's the physician of my patient who was NOT on call and whom I had just wakened IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT. No longer groggy, very awake and slightly annoyed voice says, "Cheryl, you're calling me at two am to tell me to come back to the hospital to help you clean a birthing room?" "B-b-but, I didn't call you. The phone did!" I say. Likely story. He had a hard time believing the phone system was the one with microchips shorting out.


VERSE:

BLUSH AND CRINGE

This will give you a good laugh: Dh went for a, um, well, let's just say he "got snipped" today and will now be shooting blanks. We found out three days ago we are two weeks too late with the *snippage.* If everything goes well, Squirrel # 4 will be making its entrance mid-December.
Squirl -yes, yes, the snipping doctor got a good chuckle out of it, too. All through the proceedure in fact. Okay, now, if I was a man lying on the gurney thingy with another man standing above me for an hour, pointing a scalpel and a cautery tool at my privates, GIGGLING THE ENTIRE TIME, I'd be a bit worried. I mean, when you giggle, it's not like your hands are real steady.

NEWSLETTER:
Scheduled to go out tomorrow! To sign up, go to www.CherylWyatt.com click the newsletter link. If you have trouble, do let me know. Don't forget to confirm that you signed up, it's that double opt in thingy.

VERSE:
From the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same the Lord's name is to be praised. Psalm 113:3

BORROWED PRAYERS:
Lord, thank you for everything you allow to come into our lives. Help us to run hard after you. As Margaret Becker says in one of her songs, "no matter what comes, don't let me run."

That's all for now.

Blessings,

Squirrel-over and out.

POP! PSZZZT!! PZZSST!

Okay, so that was lame. I was trying to make the sound that followed that squirrel (yes, a real one) when it chewed through our phone lines. We didn't have connection for a day or two. Anyway, my website newsletter is coming out by April 10th. If you want to sign up go to www.CherylWyatt.com and click the newsletter link on the home page.

BLUSH AND CRINGE:
I was teaching a youth group lesson to a group of about fifty teens a while back. I had been running behind and had yanked a pair of sweats out of the dryer practically on my way out the door. I'm in the middle of the group, about ten minutes into the lesson and notice EVERYONE is snickering, or at least, trying not to. I notice eyes darting to my right ankle. I look down to find the edge of my dh's undies sticking proudly out the bottom of myf gym pants. Par for the course of my life.

VERSE:
I seek You with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. Psalm 119:10 NIV

BORROWED PRAYERS:
Just retell the above verse to God in your own words or repeat it word for word. There's one thing about praying scripture---you KNOW you're praying God's will, so you KNOW He's going to answer. Unless of course you're talking about someone who made you mad at work and you ask God to "Tear their teeth out, Oh God." Like David did. That would run along the same lines as "calling down fire from Heaven." Not that I've ever done that. (insert innocent-looking emoticon here.)

I've entered a slew of wips in contests. I figure the one that fares the best will be the one I enter in the Golden Heart at the end of the year. Sounds like a plan.

Have a blessed day.

Squirrel

PROMPT CONTEST WINNER!!!!

Congratulations to KM for winning Squirrel's Story Starter for March!!!!!!!!!!!!

Don't have any idea what I'm chattering about? Listen up: I give you a prompt and you write a scene of any length up to 500 words. Submit it to Cheryl@CherylWyatt.com by the deadline (April 20th) and the winner will be announced between the 25th and 28th of April. Winner gets their choice of a new book, either a new fiction release, or a good book on the craft of writing.

Here's the prompt for the April contest:

Write a romantic comedy using each of these words. You'll notice some of them can be used as nouns or verbs. Plural versions of the words can be used. Happy Writing!!!

Thread
Bow
Run
Case
Hammer
Pantyhose
Subway
Trip
Bruise
Attraction
Court
Late

ALSO: To make it really challenging, the two main characters must be a female Attorney and a
Male construction worker.

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BORROWED PRAYERS:
Please help us to devour Your word as if we were starving, and to crave Your presence more than a drowning man craves breath. Help us to remember the sacrifice You made on that cross of pain, Lord Jesus. We do love you. Help us to love you more.
============================
VERSE:
Jesus said unto her,I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. John 11:25
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BLUSH AND CRINGE:
Well, as I've read back over some of my posts in a momentary lapse of reason, cheeks are mighty pink when I see all the typos. EEEK. Sorry 'bout that guys.
===========================
GOD MOMENT
Remember a few posts back I was telling you about those flowers that bloomed outside? Well a couple days later I got a writer's publication in the mail and on the back was an advertizement with a picture of a yellow flower. I tromped out across the yard in my husband's size 101/2 shoes with a flashlight and pulled it. When I brought it back in and compared it to the picture (because I'd thought it looked strikingly similar, but I don't know anything about flowers and in fact kill every plant I've ever owned. Even the plastic one from Hobby Lobby dried up and turned yellow. Upon my honor it did.) Anyway, sorry for tangeanting on you like that. I compared the flowers and they were EXACTLY THE SAME! Guess who put out the ad?
The line and publisher I'm targeting. The one I felt like God has put on my heart.
Yeah, yeah, I may be reading into it, but if it does come to pass, I can look back and see that God snuck me a glimpse of the promise.
============================
Thanks for stopping by, I hope you've been encouraged and humored.

Squirrel

A TRAFFIC JAM YOU'LL LOVE!!!!!

Run, don't walk over to www.CherylWyatt.com and sign up for my newsletter if you want to know what this Traffic Jam's all about! I'll post it in my newsletter. Hint: It involves a really, really great prize for simply passing the word around about my Website. That's why it's called a Traffic Jam. I'm trying to increase my Website Traffice since my site is new, and while you're there, I hope you'll have a Jammin' good time as you peruse my Website and blog.

BLUSH AND CRINGE
One morning after my charges were staying the night at gramma's, I came back from a physical therapy appointment to discover my husband was sleeping in. I realized my running shoes were in the bedroom where he was and I needed them. (Not because I'd planned to run, mind you. They were the only one of ten pair of tennis shoes I own that matched the new hot pink and black workout suit I wanted to wear to town. Joy over getting to go shopping without an army of children alternately fighting over and clinging to an innocent shopping cart made me giddy. Not wanting to wake him, but desperately needing those shoes, I tippy-toed in and crawled around the floor in the dark for ten minutes, nearly holding my breath the entire time. I crawled around the entire span of my bedroom carpet. I crawled around inside the closet, and finally crawled back out the bedroom door to get my book light. I went back in, on the shoe-finding mission. The lump in the bed had not moved so I thought I was good to go with the all important search. Carefully, I commando-crawled under his side of the bed and saw two lumps, suspicially resembling my shoes. I clicked the penlight off, grabbed the shoes and backwards crawled out the bedroom door, closed it quietly and carefully. Then I sat in the darkened hallway and put those shoes on in the dark. I get in my car, drive to town, and it wasn't until I was in the grocery store line that I realize people are staring at me. Correction: Not me. At my shoes. I look down and gasped. One was blue, silver and white. The other was black and red. I go back home and I'm pulling in when my husband pulled in behind me. He got out and I said, "Did you have a good sleeping in this morning?" He looks at me wierd, looks at my shoes but doesn't bat an eye (which tells me nothing I do surprises him anymore) and he says, "What sleeping in? I was awake at five AM and left the house before you ever woke up."

Yep. I'd crawled around in the dark for nothing. I ran in, hiked down the hall in my mismatched shoes, flipped on the light and.....there was a handsome body pillow, right there, still sleeping soundly on my husband's side of the bed.

VERSE
How great is the love the father has lavished on us... 1 John 3:1

BORROWED PRAYER
Dear God, give me grace to endure my blessings, even when the flu plague hits my house and everyone in it is grumpy. It doesn't feel good to be called a Grumpy Bug. Infuse me with kindness no matter how I feel or what kind of day I'm having.

PRAISE GOD!!!!!!

I just heard word that they're putting her tube back in. Thank God for Preident Bush. Bless that man, Lord and every person fighting for her right to live and those praying for her.

TYPO: UM, did u happen to notice there wasn't supposed to be an apostrophy in writers in my last post? I tell you time and time again how much I miss proofing by computer. Sorry 'bout that all you grammar gurus.

Squirrel

GOOD NEWS!!!!

I found out today one of my wips (CY) finaled in Colorado Romance Writer's Heart of the Rockies contest. Pretty cool, huh? Winner's will be announced mid-May.

==================================
BLUSH AND CRINGE
I sent an email and forgot to put a period after an abbreviation. Bad part about it was I proofread the stupid thing like EIGHT times because it was going to an editor. Doesn't matter that he's my instructor for a writing course...he's still an editor. Anyway, my advice? If you're going to mention anything, ANYTHING at all about an assignment, spell the word out. My subject line said, "Extremely hard a**"
and the stupid email thing cut the rest of the word off!!!!!!!!!!!

==================================
BORROWED PRAYERS
There is sadness in the news Lord, with Terry's feeding tube and the little Florida girl. Oh Lord, please help us as humans to love one another instead of hate and kill and act with selfish ambition and evil intent. Dear God, be with those families as they go through their struggle. LEt justice rule, Lord. You preside over congress. Over the doctors. Over the hearts of men. Please Lord, have your way.
===================================
VERSE:
Let us not love in word, neither in tongue, but in deed and in truth. 1 John 3:18
====================================
That's all for now.

Blessings,

Squirrel

TWO DAYS!

Two days left to enter my contest to win a new, free book valued between 10-25 dollars. Just post your entries in the body of an email to cheryl@cherylwyatt.com

Scroll down to find the latest prompt. Most of all, have fun!


BLUSH AND CRINGE
When I worked as a labor and delivery nurse at a hospital, my first week there, the charge nurse informed me one of the doctors was sending a patient over by ambulance because the baby had a heartrate dip in the office. They forgot to tell me during orientation that lamaze patients sometimes came in unnannounced for room tours. Well, a pregnant woman (whom I thought was the one from the doctor's office) walked up, I bristled in my mind over the fact that the ER didn't send her up in a wheelchair since the doctor had ordered her on bedrest and fetal monitoring. So I show her to a room, help her get undressed, put her in bed, hook her up to the fetal monitor, tell her the baby looks and sounds good, pull an ultrasound machine in the room for when the doctor made his entrance. I also had her fill out paperwork, took her vital signs and asked the million and one questions for admission. I take my information out to give report to the charge nurse and she's looking at me like I have three heads. After I go through my entire report, she asks, "Who are you talking about?" I say, "The woman from Dr. (so and so's) office. She blinks exactly four times, points to the phone and says, "But they just called from ER and said she's on her way up."

Yeah. I begged her to go back in to the room and tell the woman (who only wanted a tour of the birthing rooms) that I'd made a big boo-boo. Thankfully her husband and her got a big kick out of it. I thought I'd die of embarrassment but I survived. :-) Although, now that I think about it, I don't remember seeing them return to have the baby. Hmmm.

============================================
VERSE:
Have an emergency in your spiritual life? Call on 911.
That's Psalms 91:1
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

=============================================
No news on my submissions yet and I'm totally cool with that. I figure the longer it takes, the better my chances are of catching the eye of an editor or agent.

I should be getting word in the next week whether my story finaled in the first contest I entered this year. Even if I don't final or win, the judge feedback is worth the entrance fee. If you are an inspirational writer, I recommend entering Touched By Love contest for pre-published writers sponsored by RWA's inpspirational chapter Faith, Hope, and Love.
=============================================
Newsletter:
I'm going to be sending one out about three times a year. It will be short and sweet since I know how bombarded everyone is with emails. I'm also going to have a really, really nice prize offered with each one. If you're interested, go to www.cherylwyatt.com and sign up under email or newsletter link.
==============================================
That's all for today. Be blessed.

Sheeeeeesh!!!!!!!!

I thought I'd never get back here! Sorry for the delay in my bloggyness but we've been dealing with the plague at my house. Yeah. The flu. Ick.

CONTEST
Only 10 more days to get those entries in! It can be any length up to 500 words. The prize is nice so go for it!

MY WRITING
I'm starting on some Special Ops romances. I'm sooo excited about them. I really think they're going to be fun to write. I should be hearing any time (EEEK!) from the agent I queried. I don't get in a hurry with these things. I mean, the worst thing I think you can do is BUG an agent or edtior into NOT wanting to buy your stuff or representing you. So my advice for the week is: Ignore the turnaround times and BE PATIENT! Moving on----

BLUSH AND CRINGE
My husband does parking lot maintenance. Well he had some (not some-ALOT!) of business cards printed out, only problem? The word "Striper" was spelled wrong and only after he'd handed some out did I notice. My husband is a Professional Line Stripper! (whatever that is.) He gives special discounts if churches let him do this in their parking lots. Well, all I have to say is, "that's one way to heat up the asphalt!" 8)

BORROWED PRAYERS
Dear God, Please send a special touch to those stricken with sickness this week. Especially be with the little children who do not have medicine available to ease their suffering, Lord. Have mercy on them, be moved with the same compassion that moved You in the Bible and heal them, Lord and help them to know You.

VERSE
. . .the Lord blesses His people with peace. Psalms 29:11 NIV


Something really neet happened to me this week: Last week I had been complaining about how hard it is to be published, how painful the greuling process. Well, I was having a Baditude that day (My term for a Bad Attitude) and I spouted something off about, "I feel like those flowers out there, they're NEVER going to bloom." (I had planted some sort of flower my mother in law had given me with explicit instructions not to plant them too shallow. So guess what I did? Planted them too deep and for the second or third year in a row, the green stalk just comes up, but no flower.) So I said to my husband, "You might as well just mow over them, they're NEVER going to bloom." In my head, I was thinking the same thing about my stories-getting happy with the DELETE key, shredding them all, releiving myself of the trauma. (LOL). In that instant, I felt like God whispers, "When those flowers bloom, you'll be published."

So what did I do? I laughed out loud, thinking, those dumb flowers are never going to bloom. They have not bloomed for three years. Not that God couldn't make them bloom, I just thought my radar was jammed and the whisper was my thoughts.

Guess what I saw the very next morning when I looked out the kitchen window?

A beautiful yellow flower sitting atop one of those barren green stems!!!!!!!!!!

Yeah, I sat in the floor and cried.

God has a sense of humor. And a very tender heart for those of you who have been waiting for what seems like forever for your dreams to come true. Have faith. Don't give up. Trust God to fulfill His promises. If He said it, He will bring it to pass.

So of course I spent the majority of the day going, "Okay, He said when the flowers bloomed, I'd be published. So does that mean ALL of the flowers? Does that mean it's going to take two or three years for me to get published from the time I started writing since it took that long for the flowers to bloom? Etc, etc. You get the picture! LOL. So anyway, no matter how long it takes, He is in control, and you know what? I wouldn't want it any other way. And neither would you.

Until next time,

Squirrel

17 DAYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Only 17 more days left for my Prompt Contest Deadline. Get those entries in to me at Cheryl@cherylwyatt.com by Mar. 20th.

=========================
VERSE:
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your father which is in Heaven. Matther 5:16
=========================
BORROWED PRAYERS: (Squirrel's prayers that she'd love for you to "borrow" as your own.)
Dear God, I don't think I know You very well, but I really want to. Help me to know that I don't have to fix myself up, clean myself up, or improve myself in any way before I come to You. You love me, and want me to come just as I am. Thank you for changing what we can't change in ourselves, and for seeing us as we shall be even though we aren't there yet.
===========================
BLUSH AND CRINGE:
At a grocery store, a checker called over the public in-store intercom for a "price check on a box of 36 count Tampax(tm)." A male grocery clerk misunderstood her, thinking she'd said "Thumbtacks," and replied over the intercom, "Is that the ones you push in with your thumb, or hit in with a hammer?" The entire store heard this exchange.
==========================
BOOK REVIEWS:
I now have a new format. Until further notice, I will no longer be doing a point system because doing them in that format was making me feel yucky.
=============
Title: Eyes of Elisha
Author: Brandilyn Collins
ISBN: 0-310-23968-0
Pub: Zondervan
Blurb: Chelsea Adams has visions of a murder victim's last moments, but no one believes her-except the killer. Will Chelsea be next?
Review: Be prepared for your pulse to soar. If you read this when it's dark and you're alone--it will have you glancing over your shoulder. Brilliant plot twists and intriguing characters grab you from the start and don't let go. Excellent, engaging, nibble-your- fingernails read. One for the keeper shelves, Collins will render you breathless with this one.
=============
Title: The Winter Pearl
Author: Molly Noble Bull
ISBN: 0-373-78529-1
Pub: Steeple Hill
Blurb: Honor McCall is on the run. The danger that stalks her carries a family face. Will a young minister, intent on rescuing Honor, find her before her cruel uncle does?
Review: An historical set in Colorado, late 1800's, Winter Pearl is a charming story that paints a beautiful portrait of redemption and forgiveness. I highly recommend this book to anyone with a family member struggling with alcoholism. Hope will wash over you with every page you turn. Sweet read.
==============

Bye for now!

Squirrel

No Attachments

Please send your entries for my prompt contest in the body of an email. Thanks and enjoy the prompt.

Squirrel

ONE MORE DETAIL:

How to submit:

Send entry (Up to but not exceeding 500 words) to cheryl@cherylwyatt.com for judging.

Squirrel

THIS MONTH'S PROMPT CONTEST

In case you can't find it scrolling, I'll post it again:

NEW CONTEST:
The winner will recieve their choice between one of the new releases from the Steeple Hill Women's Fiction books. Brand new.

Deadline for entry is Mar. 20th, 2005. Winner announced by March 28th, 2005.

Here's the prompt:
Write a 500 word or less scene involving these things:
A lost puppy.
A mysterious business owner who lives in a mansion at the end of a secluded road just off the interstate.
A frantic single mother whose six year old son is heartbroken.

That's it....Happy writing!!!!!!!!!

TWO SCENES!!!

WHAT"S NEW WITH MY WRITING:
I'm two scenes away from finishing the story I'm currently working on. Woohoo! Then I'm going to dive in to another series that's been floating around my head for awhile.
=========
BOOK REVIEWS:
I've changed my format for book reviews. Instead of typing the roses out, I'm just going to say how many roses it gets. Thw way I was doing it before strikes me as cheezy. No comments from the peanut gallery. Or, I guess that would be "Acorn Gallery" here.
=========
BLUSH AND CRINGE:
The other day one of my kids came in with a toy iron and started running it over my face as if it were a car. I'm like, "What ARE you doing?" Looking intent, with tongue hanging out in concentration and vaguely annoyed at being interrupted with her task, she replies, "Don't interrrupt me. You have lines around your eyes and mouth and I'm trying to help you out here." I ran to the mirror and sure enough, WRINKLES. Bleck.
=========
VERSE: God shall suppy all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Phil 4:19

Even someone to help you iron out all your wrinkles :-)
=========

BORROWED PRAYER:
Help us trust You at all times. When things get tough, and when they are fine. Help us exude the kind of childlike faith that points others to You. You are always faithful. Always. You never fail. In every circumstance, help us to believe that.
=========

TIPS FOR NEW WRITERS:
Capitalize the first letter of the first, last, and each important word in the title of a book, play, article, etc.
"The Mystery of the Green Ghost"
A Night at the Opera
(Source: Webster's New World Pocket Style Guide by MacMillan.)

When submitting a manuscript, most authors capitalize each letter of the title of their book on the cover page and sometimes the header.

JADED HEART by Cheryl Wyatt.

==========

DONT FORGET ABOUT MY MONTHLY WRITING PROMPT CONTEST!!! I HOLD ONE PER MONTH. SCROLL DOWN FOR DETAILS, or email me at cheryl@cherylwyatt.com
Prize is usually your choice of a new book valued between $5.00-$25.00 and entry is fun and free!!!

===========

I'm going to be putting out a newsletter a few times a year. I don't believe in spamming, so if you want to recieve it, send me an email letting me know that.

Visit my website:
www.cherylwyatt.com
Bookmark it if you enjoy my blog: there's a link to my Treehouse there.

Thanks for stopping by!


Your friendly neighborhood Squirrel

BOOK REVIEWS

(1 rose) @->-- =Downright Disturbing. (Was the author conscious when they wrote the story?)
(2 roses) @->-- @->--= Dangerously Dissapointing. (Author is not writing up to their potential. )
(3 roses) @->-- @->-- @->-- = Delightfully engaging. (Great read.)
(4 roses) @->-- @->-- @->-- @->-- = Darn near perfect. (One for the keeper shelf, a can't-put-it-down-kind of book. )

BOOK: "Woven Hearts" Novella
Publisher: Barbour
ISBN:1-58660-510-0
Authors: Susan Downs, Cathy Marie Hake, Kelly Eileen Hake, Kathleen Paul
Genre: Inspirational Romantic Historical-Novella collection of four interwoven stories.

Set in Massachesetts, mid-1800's, four stories about a group of men with the last name of Steadman, and the women who weave their ways into these men's hearts.
====================================
Ribbon of Gold by Cathy Marie Hake: (Four Roses) @->-- @->-- @->-- @->--

Carter inherits a weaving mill and discovers the women are working under cruel conditions. He looks to Isabel Shaw, one of the weavers, for information and gets more than he bargained for as he falls in love with her.

This story is a "keep you up all night" kind. I fell in love with Cathy's characters from page one. The depth of emotion kept me rooting for these two to get together. Well-crafted scenes, delightful dialogue and careful attention to historical detail made me feel as if I lived in the weaving room with those women. Excellent read. Sweet story.
=====
Run of the Mill by Susan Downs (Three Roses) @->-- @->-- @->--

Maxwell Steadman has a tiny problem with tradition: He doesn't think women should be placed in positions of authority over men. So why is he so strongly considering Kathleen McKenna to fill the overseer's post for his shipping company? Maybe it has something to do with the fact that she's smart, hardworking, honest, and kind. Kathleen soon realizes he thinks she's also qualified to fill the vacancy of "wife" in his life.

This story has strong conflict, especially Maxwell and his traditional views. Susan does a wonderful job showing his struggles without making him out to be a chouvinistic creep. He is a likeable character. Kathleen weaved her way into my heart as one of the most memorable heroines I've ever had the privelage of meeting in a story. This story will tug at your heartstrings and pull tight.
============
A Second Glance by Kathleen Paul (Three Roses) @->-- @->-- @->--

Ginger Finnegan, nearly blind and raised in an orphanage, doesn't think there's a man out there who would want her for a wife, but her heart won't seem to listen to reason when Lucas Steadman, a new, young doctor comes to town and gives her not only the gift of sight through special glasses, but his stubborn heart as well.

I had a hard time warming up to Lucas at first, but the rest of the story was so good, I kept reading. I'm glad I did because the rest was worth grinding my teeth over not being able to sympathize with the rude and aloof doctor. Kathleen masterfully redeems him and makes her heroine's dreams come true. This story is packed with emotional "umph" and there were some pretty tense moments when I didn't think everything would be alright. Good read.
======================

The Caretaker by Kelly Eileen Hake (4 roses) @->-- @->-- @->-- @->--

Widow Amy Ross runs an orhpanage and has a heart as big as Massachesetts. As if she doesn't have enough trouble with her late husband's mother threatening to close the orphanage, rendering homeless the children she's grown to love, her new neighbor seem to be working against her as well. When he sees her true heart, Tyler Samuels fights for the orphanage. . .and Amy's heart and hand in marriage. There should be more *real* people in the world like this hero and heroine.

I kept reading the bio of this author, saying to myself, "no way is she this young, no way." Watch this one. Though she's young in years, she knows her craft and how to weave a wonderful, story with engaging characters and a hole-proof plot that will leave you inspired and longing to read more.

I highly recommend this book. Well worth your money.

Squirrel

FINALLY!!!!!!!!!

No, I didn't get published yet. I finally got a post to go through. For some reason, this blogger thingamajig kept bouncing my posts. Or maybe it was my computer acting up. Anyway, this month's contest has ended and the winner of the Kaylee's Bagel prompt is.........

(Drum roll please......)

Tracie P.!!!!!!!!!!

NEW CONTEST:

The winner will recieve their choice between one of the new releases from the Steeple Hill Women's Fiction books. Brand new. Deadline for entry is Mar. 20th, 2005. Winner announced by March 28th, 2005. Here's the prompt:

Write a 500 word or less scene involving these things:

A lost puppy.

A mysterious business owner who lives in a mansion at the end of a secluded road just off the interstate.

A frantic single mother whose six year old son is heartbroken.


That's it....Happy writing!!!!!!!!!


VERSE: Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Hebrews 13:8 NIV

Did you know the Bible isn't really a book?
It's actually a library...full of the most wonderful books known to man. A library of promise and of covenant, given to us by the kindest being in the universe...God Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.

BLUSH AND CRINGE:
I can't believe I'm admitting this to the world...but when one of my kids turned a year old, they got into my nightstand and sort of, kind of...opened a brand new bottle of KY jelly someone had given us as a wedding gift gag...and ate the whole entire thing. I had to call poison control and they told me to notify the child's doctor who was also one of the doctors I'd worked with for years. I was mortified and begged the poison control operator to call him for me but to no avail. Besides, why would my kid's pediatrician care if I own KY?

By the way: They said it wouldn't kill the kid...just make it have diahrrea for about three days.


BORROWED PRAYERS:
Dear God, please continue to help the victims of the tsunami and especially be with the little children who watched their parents be washed out and swallowed by the sea. Please comfort them and let them know You, know that You love them and are close to them. You've promised not to leave us as orphans. Be a father to those children and make sure they're taken care of here on earth: spiritually, physically, emotionally and mentally. Heal the devastation in their shattered land and hearts, Dear Lord.

GRAMMAR CENTRAL/TIPS FOR NEW WRITERS
(Uh...by the way...I'm still a newbie myself. The more I learn, the more I learn there is to learn.)

Who's or whose?
Use who's anytime you actually mean "who is."

Whose means "of whom"

Whose blog is this?
Who's laughing at my blush and cringe?

Get it? Good. Because I STILL have to consult my grammar book everytime I revise. I'm not good at remembering all those rules, which brings me to my next point:

TIPS FOR NEW WRITERS:
Spend the dough on a GOOD PUGS book. (Punctuation, Usage, Grammar, Spelling)
Kathy Ide's is excellent. Here's her website: www.kathyide.com
and her book is called, "Polishing the PUGS."

Later alligators,

Squirrel

ACK! TYPOS!!!!!!!!

Speaking of "it's".......... in my "tag" post, I used the wrong one! Whoa! Did u see that apostrophy jump in there when I wasn't looking?

OKAY, I'll admit, I have a hard time proofreading (yes, I DO proofread these things before I hit "send.") by computer monitor. I'm better at catching mistakes on paper.

BUT...since I have this problem, I'm going to use it to your advantage and it will sharpen your editorial skills. For every person who finds a typo or an error, whether it be spelling, grammatical or punctuation, I'll enter your name in a drawing for a book each week.


Squirrel

Its a Beat...or is it?

Did you catch it?

To its or not to it's.

When do you apostrophize it? (made up a new word..hehehehe)

When you're saying "it is" use the apostrophy.
Correct:
It's fun in Squirrel's Treehouse.
Incorrect:
Its a pleasure to have you here.

When "it" is possessive, do not add an apostrophy.
Correct:
Its tail is bushy.
Incorrect:
It's acorns are hidden.


BLUSH AND CRINGE
That same friend of my husband's went to a bowling alley one day and thought he saw a friend from his church, so he sneaks up behind the guy and starts rubbing the back of his bald head...and saying, "rub the budha, rub the budha" until the guy turns around annoyed and it's not his friend but a stranger. Snicker.

BEATS
A beat is a sentence of action placed before or after dialogue in the place of a tag.

Example of a sentence with a tag:
"Bessie? Bessie! I can't believe you ran my pick up truck into our best milk cow, " Farmer haystack yelled loudly to his wife.

Same sentence with a beat instead:
Farmer Haystack flung his old straw hat off and tromped around the dusty yard with his weathered hands chopping the air as he glared at his wife. "Bessie? Bessie! I can't believe you ran my pick up truck into our best milk cow."


VERSE OF THE DAY:
"Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you." Psalms 63:3 NIV

Time is running out to enter my contest. Scroll back and see Kaylee's Bagel and come up with a scene. The best one wins their choice of a $5.00 gift certificate to Lifeway Christian stores or a new release from the Steeple Hill Women's fiction line.

Later Taters

Squirrel

TAG...You're it!!!!!

VERSE:
Let your gentleness be evident to all. Phil. 4:5a NIV

BLUSH AND CRINGE:
This isn't something I did, but I have to tell the story. My husband's friend was a chaperone on a youth ski trip. At the hotel one evening, he came through the lobby and caught site of two couples (what he thought was a group of high shoolers) getting a tad too cozy in the hot tub. Being the faithful chaperone that he is, he gets a running start across the floor, leaps in the air, lands in the middle of the hot tub screaming, "Jacuzzi invasion!" Jacuzzi invasion!" and splashes around wildly until he opens his eyes to discover four complete strangers (all adults) staring at him as if he's just grown three heads.

BORROWED PRAYERS
Help me to see people as You see them, God. Even myself.


TIPS FOR NEW WRITERS
Let's chat about writing trends. Just like clothing styles, what was "in" ten years ago may not be "in" today. What prompted me to talk about this is an article I read encouraging writers to use dialogue tags. What is that? A Dialogue tag is the word at the end of a stream of dialogue such as "said."

For example:
"You silly cat, stop chasing the bird," she purred.
"Look at the owl!" Thomas hooted.
"He wanted those eggs over-easy," the waitress waffled.
"How 'bout ya take five dollars for that instead of eight?" he haggled.

Okay, okay. I know those were extreme examples but really, it seems to me that most editors today are veering AGAINST the use of dilogue tags other than plain ol' "said."

So, only in rare cases and very sparingly should you use anything other than that and if you do, have a very good reason, to set tone of story, etc.

Example:
Helena cowered in the closet with the cordless phone, willing someone to answer.

"911, what is your emergency?"

"Someone is in my house," she whispered.

See? "whispered" helps to set the suspensful tone because she doesn't want the intruder to know where she is. So I don't leave you with the icky feeling of looking over your shoulder, feeling like someone is behind you, I'll finish the story. By the way: I ALWAYS write happy endings. Always.

"Where are you?" the dispatcher asked.

"Bedroom closet," she whispered. "Oh, no! My bedroom door creaked open. Can't talk."

"We have a unit on it's way. Stay on the phone."

"RUFUS! What are you doing?"

"Ma'am?" the dispatcher said.

"Ugh. I'm like, so sorry. My dumb dog crawled through the opening in the screen. How positively embarrassing."

"So, there's no one in your house?"

"No. No one besides one in-trouble dog and its very blonde owner," Helena said.
==========================

Clear as mud?

Next time I'll talk about beats. The actions characters do, sometimes to replace tags.

Until next time,

Bye!

Squirrel

My Website is almost up

Howdy doody!

Misty is almost done with my website. It's got an ameteur sleuth feel to it. Pretty cool. I'll link to the blog after it's up.

VERSE:
Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for a friends. John 15:13

This freaks me out because it struck me today that Jesus considered us His friends before we were even born. His was the greatest love. If you ever doubt someone out there loves you....talk a good, hard, long look at the cross before He came off of it. Now that is love.



Prompt:

Write a scene about a middle class female parasailer in her mid thirties caught in the tree of a forty something grumpy but gorgeous millionaire.


Time is short so I'm off. Talk to you later, Taters.

Squirrel

Major Plot Failure

Well, there are two kinds of fiction writers. Pansters and Plotters. Pansters just fly by the seat of their pants and usually have no organized method of arranging the story prior to writing it. They just sit down and it flows. Plotters on the other hand, meticulously plot, usually from beginning to end. Apparently I'm a panster because I tried to follow my plot but neither I or my characters stuck with it. Oh well. I give up trying to do that. So the moral of the story is: Don't try to write like someone else no matter how succesful they are. Just do it like you do it and be who you are.

BORROWED PRAYER
Dear God, I want to fulfull the destiny that you have prepared for me. Keep me close to You.

SCRIPTURE
...His compassions never fail. They are new every morning..." Lamentations 3:22-23 NIV


PROMPT
Write a short story using all of these words. Notice they can be used as nouns or verbs. Have fun!!!

Pitch
Trash
Bark
Stitch
Train


BLUSH AND CRINGE
This isn't a blush, just a cringe. I was putting on deodorant today and one of my charges comes in the bathroom and says, "Oh. I forgot to tell you, That dropped in the toilet the other day." Suddenly, I didn't feel so *fresh*.

Got to go do the dishes since there is some rather interesting green, fuzzy stuff growing on whatever it is that got left in the sink. Ugh. The attrocities of housework. What I really need is a biohazard suit. Oh! Oh! My mother in law got one of those robot vacuum cleaners. It really works! It even senses when it needs to be charged and goes back to it's base and attaches itself to its charger! How cool is that!!!! Now, if someone will just invent one that loads the dishwasher and folds laundry....

As Porky would say,

"T-t-t-tt-t-that's all folks!!!

Squirrel

I lasted a week

Okay, so I tried to take a two week hiatus (did I spell that right?) from writing to get caught up on my TBR pile and I lasted 6 days. I wrote a synopsis for my newest wip today so I could enter it in a contest. I did get a couple books read this week though. Woven Hearts by Barbour and Paper Moon by Linda Windsor, I highly recommend both. Woven Hearts is a sweet, feel good set of four historical novellas about four Steadman boys who are related. Linda Windsor writes romantic comedy and I bet I laughed out loud at least every third page. She writes just like she talks. Linda is one of the most amazing people I've ever had the privelage of meeting. I'm hooked on her stuff.

Novella: A shorter story than a Novel. Barbour does alot of them.
Anthology: a group of stories, usually novellas.

Blush and Cringe:
Okay, this isn't something I did, but a bit of advice for you married folks: Don't leave the baby monitor on when you're having a *moment* with your husband. No telling who in the neighborhood (or the house) is listening.

Site of interest:
Check out www.Steeplehill.com
I practically live there when I'm online.

VERSE:
These were the clans of Reuben;those numbered were 43, 730. Numbers 26: 7

(Just Kidding. Here's the *real* verse. Not that that one wasn't real, but I was trying to make a funny. )

REAL VERSE: WHich is also the BORROWED PRAYER. Just ask God to do this in you.
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. Ezekiel 36: 26


My contest is still open but not for long. Scroll back through messages to find Kaylee's Bagel. I've even given you a prompt to get you started.

New Prompt:

Write a historical scene set in New Mexico in 1866 using a soldier who survived a confederate prison camp who has lost his faith in God and the faith-filled daughter of the man who took him on as a ranch hand.


That's all for now.

Squirrel

GRRRRR!

ADVICE FOR BEGINNING WRITERS

Ummm....Don't do what I just did. Send a requested manuscript to a publisher without putting "Requested Material" on the outside of the envelope. My poor baby may be headed for the slush piles. Then again, maybe not. Dana Corbit, a wonderful author and encourager who I met on the Steeple Hill Message Boards, told me the editors usually log the packets in when they arrive, so hopefully, they'll read my cover letter and see that it is a requested ms.



WRITERLY DEFINITIONS AND TERMS

ms-Initials for "Manuscript."
mss- Initials for "Manuscripts."
Slush Pile-Stack of unsolicited ms in a publishing house. Unsolicited means the person sent the ms without asking for permission to do so. While some houses do accept unsolicited ms, definitely know the guidelines of the house you're targeting. You wouldn't want to make a bad impression right off the bat with an editor by sending in a full or parital ms when their guidelines clearly say, "No unsolicited ms." Most of them prefer a one page query letter and partial Synopsis. To follow guidelines shows professionalism.


BLUSH AND CRINGE

My husband is a talker. That's fine as long as I'm not in a hurry. We were getting ready to leave a restaurant a couple days ago. The room lights were low and I forgot to wear my glasses and I don't see well without them. As we were leaving, I sensed my husband stop behind me (we can't go anywhere that he doesn't see someone he knows) so, without turning around, I swing my arm in an arch behind me to "tap" his shoulder with the back of my hand and say, "C'mon, we need to get goin'." Okay, so it was more than a little tap. As I "tapped" him, I also clutched his shirt with my fingers...you know, to tug him along toward the door. He follows me, so it's all good, right?

Wrong.

About ten steps later, I see my husband ALREADY AT THE DOOR waiting for me and he has a very strange look on his face. So it took all of 1.5 seconds for me to let go of whoever it was I had ahold of. I cut a glance up and sure enough....I had the wrong husband. Once in the car, my husband teased me relentlessly about how I have the tendency to bring home strays and how he'd overlook the animals, but he'd have to draw the line there.

Went to a wedding last evening. CONGRATS REBECCA and Joshua! It was lovely. Greg, the minister, was talking about the marriage relationship being likened to the relationship between sheep and their shepperd. How the shepperd(husband) needs to protect the marriage and watch over it with diligence. The analogy really impacted me. He also read a letter from the mother of the groom, which was written to the couple and she talked about how there is an enemy who would like to tear their marriage apart. Though that may seem like she used strong words, it's the truth and we have to be on guard to preseve and protect our marriages. Greg went on to say to the couple, "The reason the enemy doesn't want you to be together is because God wants you to be." That's such a simple truth, but it affected me profoundly.

If you are reading this, you know someone who has been affected by the devastation of divorce. It may even be you. If you've suffered through that, I'm sorry. Did you know the Bible says that God is very near to the broken hearted? (Psalms 34:18) I pray you take comfort in that.

I watched the couples, many of them from our church, dancing with one another at the wedding and it made me grateful to have a church family. I know a good one is hard to find for some of you. But I encourage you not to give up, though. We all need each other. There is a wonderful couple, Larry and Carol, pillars of our church really, who are like spiritual parents to many of the college students who are away from their parents. They are such a blessing. I know it's hard on them when their "kids" and "grandkids" end up moving away, but I know God will bless them a thousand fold for all the love they've lavished on us.

That's all for today.

PS: Even if you don't have a relationship with God, or if you read secular fiction, I want you to know you are welcome here. Just come exactly as you are. I'm really glad you stopped by. Comments are welcome.

Squirrel

Here's another prompt!!!

WRITING PROMPT
Write a scene involving an airline pilot, a female Air Marshall Officer, and a *situation* on the plane that requires an emergency landing.


WRITING TIP FOR BEGINNER
Did you notice the Air Marshall is female? Today's tip is this:
Find an unusual twist to make your story *different* than all the others. You could even try writing a story about a male Air Marshall and make the pilot female! Female pilots are unusual. So go for it. It's hard to come up with something fresh and as they say, "There's nothing new under the sun." But at least you can put your special touches on it and make it your own. Good luck! I'd like to see what everyone wrote so don't be shy. My emal is anavim4him@gmail.com

Don't forget, the contest is happening. Don't miss your chance to write a scene about Kaylee and her endangered bagel. Scroll down for details.

Have a great day!


BORROWED PRAYERS
Father, I commit this day to You. May I be in tune with what You're doing in the lives of the people I meet today. Help me be a blessing to someone who desperately needs a touch from You. Make Yourself real to someone through me today. Thank You.

WRITING TIP/BLUSH & CRINGE
Uh.....well, that would have to be all my typos in the last few posts. *Blush* *Blush* *Blush* I really DO know it should have been heal and not heel. Tee hee. So the tip for the day: Proofread by paper. Some of us have a hard time seeing our mistakes on computer for some reason.

Bye for now.

Squirl

I mailed it!

EEEEEEK! I mailed my ms to a publisher today. I also have a proposal with an agent. That's what's new with me. How are all of you?

BORROWED PRAYERS
Dear Lord, I commit my works to you. Let your perfect will be done in every aspect of my life. My times are in Your hands and I trust You with everything that is in me. Bless You Father no matter what happens. Rejection or acceptance. You never change and You never forget your promises. Help me know my part. I love you. Help me love you more. I believe. Help me believe You more. I trust. Help me trust you more. In Jesus' name.

INSPIRATION
In Mark chapter nine, verse 24 A father has just asked Jesus to heal his son from an evil spirit. The man says, "Jesus, If you can, please heel him." Jesus says, "If I CAN?" I bet Jesus was smiling gently at the man. Jesus then said, "Everything is possible for him who believes." Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do beleive, help me overcome my unbelief!"

What an honest, heartfelt prayer. I love to "borrow" prayers, such as that one, from the Bible.

PS: The boy was set free after Jesus prayed for him. Don't you just love happy endings? Me too.


CONTEST
A few posts back, I have a writing prompt and I'm offering a prize to the winner. Don't miss your chance to win a gift certificate to Lifeway Christan Stores. If you are chosen as the winner and do not have one of those near where you live, I will give you the option of choosing a book.

CONGRATULATIONS
To my friends Dave and Debbie Roberts. David just got a book contract! WOOO HOOO!

PRAYER REQUESTS
Post them here or send them to me privately at anavim4him@gmail.com and I'll intercede for you or the situation.

WRITING TERM/DEFINITION
Proposal: A partial submission vs a full one. Usually entails something like a synopsis(Summary of your story or article) and sample chapters.

WRITING TIPS FOR BEGINNERS
If you can afford it, buy the Writer's Market Guide. They have tips as well as contact info for agents, editors and publishers you've probably never even heard of before.

EDITING TIP
Did you know if you decide to change something major in your ms (like a character's name) that you can go in (for word) and click on find replace, type in the old name under find, type in the new name under replace, hit replace all, and it will change it throughout your document in about three seconds. I also found out you can use this function if you need to delete the extra space at the end of sentences if the publisher you're targeting prefers one space after sentences instead of two. You just type a period and hit space bar twice into the find box then under replace, you type in a period and hit space bar once then click Replace All and it does the entire document. You'll have to repeat this process again for question marks and exclamation marks with the quotations marks for dialogue.

BLUSH AND CRINGE
I put my sweater on in the dark this morning and ran to answer the doorbell. The UPS guy kept looking at me strangely. After I took the package, shut the door and looked down....and not only was my sweater on backwards....tag hanging under my chin and all...it was inside out....with all the strings hanging everywhere. How embarrassing.

Thanks for stopping by. That's all for now.

Squirrel

Happy Monday!

Hey friends!

Hope you're all doing fine on a Monday.

BLUSH AND CRINGE
I had a critique with a multi-published author at a writer's conference in September and one of her comments were that I had introduced too many characters at once. Halfway through the critique she said, "I like what you've done to display Diane's personality here,"
I gently interrupted her by placing my hand on her arm and said, "Um, actually, my heroined name is not Diane. It's Selena."
She blinked exactly four times, put her hand on my arm and said, "Precisely."
I said, "Huh?"
She said, "Hon, you have so many characters in here--you can't even keep up with them, AND YOU"RE THE AUTHOR! How do you expect readers to keep up with them all?"
(She was referring to a secondary character that I had forgotten I had even put in there!) LOL!
She knew my story better than I did! And yes, I got rid of some characters.

WRITING/EDITING TIP:
When trying to learn how to write blurbs, or sentence/paragraph pitches, study movie guides in the paper and in TV Guide. They can condense a two hour movie into one or two sentences.

DAILY DEFINITIONS:
Blurb: A short (and I mean very short) summary of your story line.

OOOOPS! I forgot!!!

How come you didn't remind me?

I forgot today's writing prompt! AND....it's a contest!!!!

Write a romantic comedy scene, using this sentence as the first line. You have a one month deadline. I'd like it to be between 100-500 words but if it's 50 or 600 I'm not giong to disqualify you this time.

Here's the prompt.

"Take your hands off that bagel, Sir. It's spoken for," Kaylee said.

I'd like to see what everyone wrote. My email addy is anavim4him@gmail.com if you want to email me your scene. I'll pick the funniest one and send the winner a $5.00 certificate to Lifeway Christian stores. So go for funny with this one, guys.

Writing term definitions:
manuscript-a written or typed book or article, usually referred to as such before publication

prompt -a challenge, something to get your creative juices flowing. Can be a scene, word, situation, dialogue, question, etc. that you can use as a springboard to write a scene.

That's all for now......promise!

To Send or not to send...that is the question...

Hello folks.

What's new with you?

Here's what's new with me:

I am about 130 pages into my new WIP. YEEEEEEEEEEEE! I started it in December but have been hammering on it this month. Now, of course we're talking rough draft here. I write fast but the editing takes a little longer. I try to proofread for grammar, spelling and punctuation errors as I go, but for craft mistakes, I comb the tangles out (my term for self-editing) in layers.

Speaking of editing, I just found out the girl (Hi Jessica!!!, Squirrel waves frantically) who does childcare for the prayer group that meets in my home is not only an awesome babysitter, she's also a copy editor for the biggest newspaper in our area. YEEEEE!

So many people have been willing to help. Another woman from church (Hi Trish!!!!! I'm sending CY, promise!!!) helped proofread and critique my pitch and synopsis plus first page. She write a humor column (reminds me of the late Erma Bombeck, only better) for another small town paper around here and she called my stuff "gritty." (Can you see my cheezy grin right now?) Thanks Trish!!!!

Plus, it helps that my M.I.L. did proofreading for a living in college and has been an elementary school teacher for.....gobs and gobs of years.

Moving on.....

I'm adding some new features to my blog and on behalf of Camy, my sight has a new look.
I've gone from black to.....well...bright pink....LOL.

New features:

I'm going to add a "Writing Tip of the Day" for all you writerly types.
I'm going to add a "Blush and Cringe" section. You'll not want to miss that. I'm going to actually admit something really, really embarrassing about myself each entry. Feel free to send me entries and I'll add yours to the mix for the world to read, too. HA-HA! No?

Chicken. Fine...let's move on...Since God is the love of my life, and the most important thing and the reason I exist, I will be adding a "Borrowed Prayers" paragraph. I'll post a prayer that you can "borrow" and use as your own in case you're going through a dry spot in your relationship with God, or are still seeking.

Verse of the day: Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for good and not for evil, plans to give you a future and a hope." NLB The New Open Bible

BLUSH AND CRINGE
Did you know when I started writing seriously a year ago (novels) that I didn't even know what the term "manuscript" was? AAAAAND, since this is a new section, I'll post a second embarrassing thing: Another thing I did a year ago was place my periods and commas OUTSIDE of the quotation marks instead of inside. I also ALWAYS used periods instead of commas. Like this: "Hi." Squirrel said. Instead of "Hi," Squirrel said. LOL!!! Thanks to Mae Hanna (another proofreader who had the daunting task of reading through the entire story, first one I ever wrote. Poor Mae, I don't know how she survived it, honestly.)

Writing Tip for beginners:
Do a search and destroy...er...find of words that end in "ly" (Nevermind that I've used about twenty of them in my blog today. Grin.)
Those kind of adverbs are generally a No-No in polular fiction today.
This forces you to find stronger verbs.
Example: She leaned lazily in her chair. (Bad)
She slouched. (good)
Get it?

BORROWED PRAYERS
Dear God,
Make Yourself real to me. Show me who You really are. And show me who I am to You.

Squirrel must skitter away now. Until next time....

Bye.

I'm baaaaack!

Did ya miss me?

I've been busy writing....actually that's not the truth. I forgot where I put my blog! LOL. Thanks to a friend, who gave me my link...I found my way back to my blog.

I'm 116 words in to my newest WIP. That means Work In Progress in case you're a non-writerly type and have no idea what I'm talking about.

If you are a writerly type, I'm going to be giving prompts each time I post since most of us need a *swift kick* to get us going sometimes.

Today's Prompt: Write a scene involving a bridge, a storm, a lady named Petra and a handsome man from the coast guard crew. Happy writing!!!!!

Today's Inspiration: But seek first God and His kingdom and all these things will be added unto you. Matthew 6:33

Blessings!!

Squirrel

Encore

Here we go again....

Ignore me for a moment while I change my settings......


Squirrel

Encore

Testing...one...two...three....

January 9th

Welcome to Squirrel's Treehouse. I started this blog to keep folks updated on my progress as a writer. My goal is to be published in contemporary inspirational romance. I am pre-published right now. I've learned the road to publication is long, hard and paved with rejection. In fact, at times, it feels like I'm crawling on broken glass but I am confident that if God wants me to be published, it will happen one day. My job is to learn the craft and apply it to the best of my ability. To remain teachable with critiques on my work and above all, to seek God for direction in my writing. Usually, they say to send your stuff to different houses, but for some reason, I cannot do that. I don't know if it's stubborness on my part, or if it's really God leading me to the direction of one house in particular. Every time I even think of researching another house, I lose my peace. I'm praying and waiting for God to nudge me the next step, whether that be to enter one or more of my wips (Work In Progress) in contests, or what. I've queried an agent and I am simply praying for God's will to be done there. She is a Christian agent with a close relationship with Jesus, and I know she'll listen to His prompting one way or another. I trust my God whether her answer is yes, I want to represent you and your writing, or no, I'm sorry, I have to pass. It's all in God's will and timing. I'm really kicking myself for not entering the GH. It's one of those things that I procrastinated and prayed about entering and now I regret it that I didn't do it. I know God can still make a way for me, even if I messed up by not entering. For those of you that don't know it, the GH (Golden Heart) is probably the premier contest for unpublished writers.

Okay, gotta go WRITE!

I hope you all are praying for the families of the Tsunami victims. This global tragedy is heartbreaking. I told God I don't understand the enormity of it, but I know He loves those people and the Bible says He is very near to the broken hearted.

Thanks for stopping by.

Until next time,

don't let the penguins trample your garden.....


Squirrel