Bridget Zinn and Poison!

I first heard of and "met" Bridget online after hearing about a fundraiser to support her during her illness almost three years ago. I started following her online and reading her blog. We had quite a few things in common: love of chocolate cake, anything made with pumpkin, red hair (from all that pumpkin? or is that what keeps it red?) and children's books. She was always so happy and sweet online, a kind and gentle spirit. I  remember how she would post pics of herself in different funky colored wigs to see which we all liked best. And, she could rock some cute boots! She seemed to approach her illness with a braveness and candor that few can. It was so exciting to hear of her book deal with Disney/Hyperion, of which all of us hoped was the first of many.

It will be two years this May since she left us. It still makes me very sad to know we lost someone that shone so bright, someone who seemed so special.  I am honored to help promote her wonderful book, that I am still reading (so far so great!), and I am sure she would have done the same for any of us. For Bridget, where ever she may be, I hope she knows we miss her and we will do all we can to continue to support her, her legacy, her work and her family!

Below is an excerpt regarding Poison and Bridget herself from the Poison Blog Tour gang!

Sixteen-year-old Kyra, a highly-skilled potions master, is the only one who knows her kingdom is on the verge of destruction—which means she's the only one who can save it. Faced with no other choice, Kyra decides to do what she does best: poison the kingdom's future ruler, who also happens to be her former best friend.

But, for the first time ever, her poisoned dart…misses.

Now a fugitive instead of a hero, Kyra is caught in a game of hide-and-seek with the king's army and her potioner ex-boyfriend, Hal. At least she's not alone. She's armed with her vital potions, a too-cute pig, and Fred, the charming adventurer she can't stop thinking about. Kyra is determined to get herself a second chance (at murder), but will she be able to find and defeat the princess before Hal and the army find her?

Kyra is not your typical murderer, and she's certainly no damsel-in-distress—she's the lovable and quick-witted hero of this romantic novel that has all the right ingredients to make teen girls swoon.

Purchase your copy at any of the following places...

 

Amazon  

Barnes & Noble   

IndieBound

iTunes Bookstore 

Powell's Books

Add Poison to your Goodreads pile! 

Bridget grew up in Wisconsin. She went to the county fair where she met the love of her life, Barrett Dowell. They got married right before she went in for exploratory surgery which revealed she had colon cancer. They christened that summer the "summer of love" and the two celebrated with several more weddings. Bridget continued to read and write until the day she died. Her last tweet was "Sunshine and a brand new book. Perfect."

Bridget wanted to make people laugh and hoped readers would enjoy spending time with the characters she created. As a librarian/writer she loved books with strong young women with aspirations. She also felt teens needed more humorous reads. She really wanted to write a book with pockets of warmth and happiness and hoped that her readers' copies would show the watermarks of many bath time reads.


Please visit her website for more information about this wonderful gal! www.bridgetzinn.com

New Year Musings

There are two times a year that I get a little antsy for change. One is the start of autumn, which I begin to anticipate at the start of every school year. September brings a feeling of a new life, with new clothes, new friends, and even a new bag or box in which to carry my lunch. The smell of all those wonderful school supplies! The crisp cool weather, the crackling of dried leaves and the scent of woodsmoke in the air gets me going every year. I become energized and ready to tackle new things.

If I fail to get what I wish to change accomplished, the next part of the year that gets me going is the new year. I anticipate a fresh start with the new date. It differs a little than in the fall, which is more of a kick start out of the lazy days of summer. The new year offers new hope for new things, it is a little more cerebral and complex. Sure everyone wants a lot of the same out of the new year: a fantastic job; a thinner waist: a dust-free, clutter-free house; world peace; and to be a better person. I am not above any of those desires no matter how mundane they seem. Since doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is a true definition of insanity, I have decided to approach the new year in a different manner.

What I have decided in this new year is to shed. Shed all the things that hold me back, bring me down, keep me from good health, a kind heart and being a good friend. I will no longer care for the things or surround myself with the people who or which can not bring me peace. Clutter, loudness, mendacity, meanness, cynicism and basic prophets of doom are all on their way out! Bad energy just creates more bad energy, like a bad mold growing through your soul. I have no more room, have dealt with more than my fair share and will no longer put up with any of their shenanigans.

I know... blah, blah, blah....sure everyone says the same thing and some of these ill beings hold on tighter than a tick on a dog. But I will do my best to shed them all without harm. Sometimes when things or people are shed, feelings take over and we end up feeling guilt for getting rid of something that seems so useful or we don't realize that in getting rid of things, others can get their feelings hurt. I'm sorry for that, but not as sorry as I would be if I stayed in a dishonest situation. A false relationship does nothing but waste people's time.

 As I sit here and look and read about all those that have passed in the past year, I remember that life is short, too many leave us way too young. I have known this for most of my life, but I need to remember that there isn't always enough time to move on to better ways, so I should get a move on before time runs out. And I will do my best to move with honesty, health and kindness in mind.

Happy New Year to you, may you find your own path to peace.

Illustration Friday : Tree

Watercolor and linoleum print on hot-press watercolor paper.

Idea and image created originally for 2012 NESCBWI Spring conference poster contest.

Ramping Up and Rambling On!

First off, I would like to thank each and every one of you that donated to my bike ride in September for The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp. I did not reach my stated goal, but I did reach my personal goal of donating and raising more than last year, a bit over $1,400. It was a great ride, aside from the horrid pending weather, and more than $277,000 was raised overall for kids to go to camp! An excellent showing for one of the best causes ever. Thank you!!!

Now it's time to ramp up for the upcoming goals for writing and illustrating. It was a lazy, slow summer and I took time off after graduation. Now that Fall is here, I get all antsy for change. Cool weather gets me going and I have a lot to get done.

I registered for the upcoming SCBWI's 14th Annual Winter Conference in New York in February and am looking forward to a great conference. I can't wait to see old friends and make new friends! It is a wonderful opportunity to reach out and immerse yourself with interesting people. Every conference I go to, I imagine being at a business conference for economics or dentistry and I smile and think how horridly BORING they would be and how lucky I am to attend one of the best conferences around!

With the NY conference comes the opportunity to enter the Tomie dePaola contest! The illustrations this year will all be B&W, a new twist, and come from a verse of your own choice from either Little Women, Tom Sawyer or The Yearling. I have only read Little Women so I am cruising through the other two, well slowly, The Yearling is longer than I expected, as to give myself the best opportunity to choose a scene that speaks to me! I can't wait to see everyone's submissions, which will be hosted and posted again this year by the wonderful Diandra Mae at the Unofficial Gallery of the Tomie dePaola Award. Here's a look at the wonderful variety of last year's submissions, hosted by Diandra, at the Chicken Licken Gallery.

Also coming up in November is PiBoIdMo hosted by the great Tara Lazar on her blog Writing for Children (While Raising Them) at http://taralazar.com/. Registration starts October 24th and runs through November 4th. It's an excellent way for Picture Book writers to gather, spark a multitude of story ideas and meet lots of amazing people! Plus you can win some awesome prizes and learn so many new things about writing and the children's book industry. Check it out!

And so I need to get some new work going, update my portfolio and website, finish reading and get the Tomie done, work on some new promotional material and work on some writing.....ramping up indeed!! And with that I leave you with some HDOTD and my other favorite, Led Zeppelin. Ramble on my friends!!

Ennui to Motivation

I'm coming off a summer break and as I sat in my studio yesterday for the first time in a LONG while, other than the 20 minutes to pay bills every other week, I realized I am getting restless to get back to printing, painting and writing. The summer was hot, too hot for hanging out in a third floor attic studio without A/C. I had started a new job in the spring, went on a two-week vacation at the Cape, acquired a new dog and have had to schedule and go to a million doctor appointments for my kids and me all before the school year begins in a few weeks. I have taken the summer off and am ready to go "back to school" so to speak.

People often feel the New Year is a time for change and resolutions. I, however, get that urge every August-September. Back to school and the Fall season is often when my renewal desire kicks in. Must be the smell of all those school suplies, glue, paper and newly sharpened pencils. And coming off months of hot, humid weather, the cool weather invigorates me and gets me moving. And maybe the inclination to get things done before the snowy days keep you inside, warm, snuggled and slow, motivates me all the more.

Well here's to the start of the season of change and movement and crisp, cool days. I hope we all find the motivation to start anew and go back to school, even if only in our minds.