STRETCHING

WE HAVE A WINNER!!! Congratulations, Katy! The names were too good for the Brownies to decide. So we had a drawing of all entrants. Thank you all for entering, watch the blog for our nest contest! Katy, email me at mlbrown90 @ att . net (squish that all together) and tell me which gift card you'd like!


Watch this video. It is so cool, you may have to watch it a few times. Then please come back from Slinkyland and read the rest of this post. There's a contest!

Is that cool or what? So what does that have to do with Writing News and Book Reviews? Lots! Almost everything I've had published was a stretch for me. I have a great husband (I call him my "Idea Man") who's always tossing me zany ideas and challenging me to step outside my creative comfort zone. You don't think I came up with a book titled REVENGE OF THE PINK GRANNY PANTIES all by myself, do you?


So let's do some mental stretching. Name these two slinky thingies. The Brownies will decide the winner. I'll announce the winner Monday, May 2. What do you win? How does a $25 gift card to TOYS R' US sound? (Sorry, couldn't reverse the "R" ;) Then you can buy your own Slinkies, or Sea Monkeys, or whatever. If you'd rather have a reading-related prize, you can have the same amount to spend at Amazon or Barnes and Noble!


Adults can play, too. We all need ssstttrrreeettccchhheeeddd now and then! (Just keep it kid-friendly!)

HAPPY 95th BIRTHDAY, BEVERLY CLEARY! (And Happy 40th to ME!)

That's right! I share my birthday with my favorite childhood author, Beverly Cleary! I love all her books, but have a special place in my heart for Ramona, because I was always getting into messes myself as a kid.


For example: On my first day of class in a new kindergarten, I passed gas LOUDLY during story time. I was mortified, especially when a boy pointed right at me and said, "It was HER!" I flatly denied it, and the teacher kept reading, but my cheeks still heat up at the memory.


What about you? Have any "Ramonaesque" memories? What's your favorite Beverly Cleary book? What did you think of the movie, Ramona and Beezus?

FRITZED!

Check out my funny space story, FRITZED! in the April issue of STORIES FOR CHILDREN. All Peter wants to do is sleep in on Saturday morning. But his BOTler, Fritz, thinks it's Friday, and that Peter's his little sister, Paige! I LOVE the illustration. It's hilarious! (That pic isn't it, that's the Jetson family, and their maid, Rosie. Is it any wonder the girl who spent her afternoons watching the Jetsons and playing Princess Leia--hair buns over the ears and all--grew up to write space stories?)


Peter and Paige live on Mars. What planet would you live on if you could? (Remember, Pluto's not a planet anymore. It got demoted ;)