Lauri Meyers .

Imagine you're walking down the street when a smell tickles your nose. Are you being followed by a young man fresh out of gym class who is not yet wearing deodorant even though it really is prime time to start? Though you try to resist, you take another sniff of the air. You catch a touch of banana peel left in the car for a week with a hint of day old peanut butter and jelly crust. You start to look around for an overflowing trash can causing the attack on your nasal passages, but instead you find some sort of creature. You quickly snap your eyes forward. Was that Medusa?  No, a pinch on your wrist confirms you have not turned to stone. You shouldn't turn around; mother always said it wasn't polite to stare. But out of a valid concern Godzilla is following you, you take a quick peek. It appears to have human eyes, though the sunken eyes have dark circles under them. Realizing this is just a vagrant, you sit on a bench and allow yourself a long look. Sometimes...

Summer is winding down. I'm okay to see it go. It's very dangerous. Though I managed to avoid serious summer dangers like sunburns and bee stings and flaming marshmallow attacks, I fell victim to some bad events. As school let out on the last day, I got too confident on my toddler-sized skateboard and fell on my tush. Since we live across from the school, all the cool kids saw it. OMG. So embarrassing . I had to set a good example about failure for my kids, so I bravely attempted another ride, aching backside and all. Ouchipotatoes! Note the big frowny face and summer flyaway hair do... A few days later I unwrapped the first popsicle of summer and raised it to my lips. I must have been out of training, because I got the popsicle stuck to one of lips. If I had been cool-headed (like if I had already had a popsicle,) I would've poured warm water on the popsicle. But it's hard to think rationally when in such grave peril, so I yanked it. One wor...

It's my First Blogiversary!   On March 3, 2012 I wrote my very first blog post, even though I didn't really know what a blog was and had no idea what to write.  Here I am a year later with almost 100 posts under my belt and having a great time! I'm so glad I took the leap and met so many writerly friends who teach me everyday about writing, inspiration, and parenting. Look at those fists clenched in anticipation! (Lauri Turning One, photo by J.C.Christopher) I gave myself some new tabs (look by the header) as a blogiversary gift!  Ooh!  Aah!  I know I really go all out on celebrations! (sidenote- my husband and I gave eachother bowling balls for our wedding, which are still awesome!)  Hey, I'm only one year old, y'know, so it's still baby steps around here.  Did you bake me a cake?   No?   Well, thank goodness I baked my own Happy Blogiversary cake .  It took me all morning to make this wild, burn-your-eyes-out-if-you-stare-...

My little girl turned 5 last week.   5!   That means she'll be starting kindergarten in the fall, and we all know kindergarten is the gateway drug to college which means she'll be all grown up and moved away and wearing a suit to work before I know it.   I checked my to do list and didn't see "have panic attack about daughter turning 5" anywhere on it.  So I added it and checked it off.   Then I looked at the rest of the things on the list: run dishwasher, kids laundry, grocery store, schedule 5 year check up, pack lunch, caulk the windows, vacuum...blah, blah, blah.  Hundreds of items of blah, blah, blah.  Well, I am rewriting my to do list right now: BIG plans today! 1.     Hug each girl 153 times per day.   2.   Be the first one down on the rug asking them to play Candy Land. 3.     Come running when one of them yells, "Mommy I need you right now!" even though it's just to put ...

Kids add more excitement to each and every day, but I was still surprised when the kids ran up at 6AM like it was Christmas morning and asked whether the groundhog had seen his shadow.   I fumbled the remote as best as I could with only one eye open and tuned in the live coverage on the weather channel.   I just hope Phil was right about the early Spring, because my 4 year old looked very concerned when I said the groundhog wasn't always right.  You would have thought I said, "Sometimes Santa brings the wrong presents." Susanna Leonard Hill, author of Punxsutawney Phyllis is hosting a Groundhog Day party complete with groundhog action figures.  The idea was to color Phyllis and take her on an adventure.  We didn't go anywhere exciting, but I think Phyllis enjoyed the relaxation and the fine company.    Sorry Phyllis! She told me the conversation was delightful.  Susanna's "Short and Sweet...

    I woke up on the wrong side of the bed today.  Quite literally.  Just like in a fairy tale, the moment my foot stepped out on the right (not left) side of the bed, the Wrong-Side-of-the-Bed-Gnomes conspired to penalize me for insubordination.       The first fellow quietly padded in his red felted slippers over to the bathroom and put the toothpaste in the wrong drawer, causing me five minutes of delay and leaving a wake of products strewn across the bathroom.      The second green -hatted lad kept hiding my coffee in different rooms.  It was cold when I finally found it, and the morning seemed worse without proper caffeination.  "Has anyone seen any hot babe Munchkins around here?" by Tracy Scott-Murray via sxc.hu     Finally, a particularly spiteful troll wearing lederhosen had the audacity to make me put my shirt on backwards.  I only discovered as I ran out the door, but I didn...

Day 10 of PiBoIdMo (Picture Book Idea Month) brought a great idea from Diana Murray to try a mash up of ideas to create fresh new picture books.  To add structure to this inspiration, I decided to create the Birthday Mash Up Match Up Game!   How to Play:  MASH 'EM! By Miguel Saavedra There are two lists below.  Find your birth month in the first listing and grab the corresponding classic golden book.   Find your birth day from the second listing and grab the corresponding movie.  Then select any elements of the stories - characters, plot, key word in title, etc. -  and mash 'em together.  The idea could be for a picture book or for whatever genre you prefer.   For example, my birthday is December 5.  So I mashed up The Saggy Baggy Elephant and Titanic.  (Oh crapplesauce, how in the world am I going to do that?)   Okay, okay...here goes. S.B. Elephant is the biggest elephant in the plain...

The Book Doctor is "In." No I'm not talking about fixing your writing, just fixing books.  Literally.   T he wounded had been waiting patiently with missing pages, absent flaps, non-working pulls, and decapitated heads.   It was time for my  semi-annual book clinic.  Tape, glue, and photo splits (those little 2 way sticky squares) were flying while the repairs took place.  The girls flipped through the books and yanked on the pulls, testing my work.  Then they said, "Thank you for fixing our books!"   Awesome!   It always feels great to be thanked, especially when it comes from the tiny tyrants who caused the casualties.  I want to say "thank you" to two great bloggers Jenny Young   and Ink in the Book who recently gave me a Liebster Award.  Which also means it is time to share about myself again.  Jenny Young asked some very specific questions, so here goes: 1) What state would you...

Mike Allegra My friend Mike Allegra's first picture book Sarah Gives Thanks (Albert Whitman & Company; illustrated by David Gardner) was released September 1 st .   Not only is it his first book, but it is really good.  Just read these reviews if you don't believe me: Kirkus and School Library Journal . I had the opportunity to interview Mike. Lauri: You dedicated your first book to your wife, Ellen, who I know from your blog is disorganized, peppy, sociable, friendly, and a donkey whisperer. Plus, like I do with my husband, she plots your death when you pepper her with ideas late at night. Was the dedication a big decision? Mike: It might be a big decision, but it wasn’t a difficult one. Dedicating the book to Ellen keeps her from smothering me with a pillow when I finally fall asleep. Oh, and she is also my soulmate. So there’s that. If a publisher trusts me enough to give me a second book contract, that book will be dedicated to my s...

If you write for children, you probably have the childlike tendency to play games.  Playing Candy Land with my Mom was the best part of any sick day.  She even let me cheat most of the time.  I still love to play games (minus the cheating, of course.) Many sites offer online events and contests which are great opportunities to get feedback on your writing, develop your skills, and practice writing. Here are a few of my favorite sites for contests, writing prompts and events. Tara Lazar hosts PiBoIdMo (Picture Book Idea Month) in November,  with registration starting October 24.   The idea is to come up with  30 PB ideas in 30 days!  Artwork by Sandy Tanaka Paula Yoo hosts NaPiBoWriWee,  a contest to write 7 picture books in 7 days (first week in May).  Each day also includes a great guest post for inspiration.  Exhausting but amazing! Cynthea Liu hosts Red Light Green Light contests throu...

I heard from my friend Kasie  who heard from her friend Darren who heard from his friend Stanford who heard from his sister Kyla that all the cool kids are doing the 7 Link Challenge.   Since I am on a little va-cay this week, this sounded like a splendid idea.  Plus I always wanted to be one of the cool kids.   1.       Your first post  - Committing to Be a Writer reflects on the decision to join SCBWI and the realization children's books weren't written by people jotting down rhyme in a few minutes here and there.  2.       A post you enjoyed writing the most  - Stand Up Comedy for Writers was written on the way to celebrate my 10 year anniversary in Puerto Rico.  Drink service really gets most of the credit for the post.  3.       A post which had a great discussion   In the Middle of the Lake with no Breeze   Rejection letters are like bo...

Good news abounds!  I have had a fun couple weeks.  Sure there was one rejection letter in there, but you know it didn't completely knock me down this time.  I must be toughening up!   If you have an aversion to exclamation points, please sit down before continuing ( bad habits die hard. )  I bought myself!  At the low price of $10, I am a steal.  My name at least- as in "www.laurimeyers.com."  Woot, woot!   "But what about the dirty girls?" you cry.   No worries.  The girls are still dirty, and their mom's parenting is still lacking.  More things I am too embarrassed to share but do anyway are bound to occur! My first page picture prompt got selected for agent critique over at Writing and Illustrating !  Ever since dragons took over London, poor Copernica has not been able to keep up with fashion at all.   If you are a YA writer looking for prompts, please check out Kathy Temean's site. ...

It has been a rough week.  I was diagnosed with "Mommy Multiple Personality Disorder."  The psychiatrist found seven personalities.   Let me introduce them to you: "I want the cream cheese ON TOP of the jelly.  DO IT AGAIN MOM!" Best Mommy in the World - This mommy has a lollipop in her purse, plays tag at the park, and always says yes to playing Play-doh.  Best Mommy also gets the kids on their best behavior, because no child can resist a mom who is 100% engaged. Giant Exploding Blueberry Monster - This mommy cannot. Listen. To. Whining. Anymore. If you ask for the cheese balls one more time, Mommy monster's face will turn blue, her muscles will bulge out of yoga pants, and her mouth will explode in a fit of indecipherable yelling. Super Wife - Husband is greeted at the door by the aroma of lobster tail with risotto, a perfectly poured beverage, and a sweet peck on the lips.  The house is miraculously clean, so husband can relax and pl...

The flying monkeys attacked this week! They made my air conditioner leak resulting in the purchase of a furnace & AC unit.  The worst part was probably missing my nap while spending the entire afternoon with the repairman (I needs my nap!).  Instead of getting staying upset I decided those monkeys gave me an "opportunity" to focus on selling a book!  So each time I suck up the still leaking water, I reward myself with 15 minutes of writing.   Ahh, the positive side of the energy map is a good place to be. I did learn something from the Steven Vannoy interview!  If you haven't entered the book giveaway yet, pop over to this post and leave a comment by Monday morning.

     Staying positive is a big challenge for writers.   Edit 20 times, feel nauseous licking the envelope, and then wait 4 months for a submission response.  A yes means a two year journey of editing, marketing, illustrating, and printing before your book is in your hands.  And then there are all the no's.          How do you stay positive in the face of so much negativity?  Enter the Energy Map*.  Picture a circle.  The circle is 100% of your time, energy, and potential.   Some amount of your time and energy is spent on the front of the circle (the positive side), and some amount is spent on the back (the negative side).      The front side of the circle is a beach.  The sun shines brightly on your hammock swinging between two palm trees.  Entertainment is provided by a lizard tasting the sea air with a flick of his tongue. The ocean is calm enough to wade up to your be...