Dyslexia ROCKS!

So, if you haven't realized I haven't been on here a whole lot lately, I've been here instead.  Working on my Free writing secrets class geared especially for teens.  I'm quite proud of it too.  I have over 800 kids taking the class at the moment and every week it grows more and more.  :)

However, this has also increased my fan mail, especially as Pride & Popularity went to press today and will be in stores next month.  YAY!  Finally. :)  (At the last minute a publisher came in and convinced me to sign with them.)

Anyway, this particular girl nearly broke my heart when I read her discouraged plea asking for writing advice, even though she lives with the dyslexic ability and struggles with writing.
This was my response to her:

Wow! You're dyslexic? That is soo cool! Did you know dyslexic people are some of the greatest problem solvers in the world? Ooh! And google the Mathematical Bridge in Cambridge, England. It was completely designed by someone with dyslexia centuries ago--and the amazing thing? It was done COMPLETELY without nails! It lasted in that exact state for hundreds and hundreds of years, one of the strongest bridges, until very recently when the british government decided to update it and preserve it. They took it totally apart, piece by piece and when they went to put it back together, they couldn't figure it out! No joke. They finally had to use nails and screws. The silly people! Had they just hired someone with your gift, it could've been done right.

Yes, spelling and grammar will be a problem. So what? Keep writing. Don't ever let that hinder you. Your talent is of such use, who knows... maybe one day you'll create a formula for curing some awful disease! And become a millionaire saving millions of lives. :) What I'd give to have your brain! You may find you're also good at all sort of problems and riddles, things that stump people will come very easily for you. I'd definitely continue to enhance your gift. Don't you EVER let someone tell you it's not a gift, either. My oldest son is dyslexic and drives his math teacher crazy when he comes up with the same solutions completely different and much easier than the way she would teach the class. It's the ability to solve things backwards and see the world in a much simpler way.

As to spelling and grammar, it'll get better the more you practice. So don't worry about that. that'll just have to come from habit, instead of sense. You won't understand why the I has to go before the E in some words, you'll just have them memorized and do it correctly. :)

The best advice I can give you is write, write, write. Don't worry about how to start, just START! Also, I'm assuming you know about my free writing classes for teens? If not go to www.jennijameswritingclass.blogspot.com

Jenni

AJ & I Welcome Michele Ashman Bell!

Tada! AJ & I would love to introduce you to the AMAZING Michele Ashman Bell author of over 20+ published titles!

Including her latest release--

The Perfect Fit 
The Butterfly Girls can’t wait to begin their fourteenth annual weekend reunion, a time to renew their bonds of friendship and honor the memory of their high school friend Ava. But a dark cloud of fear soon forms in their shared hotel room when they learn that one of their former classmates has been brutally murdered. And when new evidence suggests Ava was murdered as well, the friends realize one of them might be next.

Andi is glad to be taking the Butterfly Box with her to Hawaii, where she plans to spend a few weeks participating in a reality dating show. To her surprise, the eligible bachelor, Michael Makura, soon singles her out for attention, provoking jealous acts of sabotage from the other contestants. Soon a series of unusual events disrupts the pair’s fledgling romance, and Andi starts over in New York where she begins dating a great guy and accepts a job offer from a generous, eccentric man. But when Michael unexpectedly shows up, all is not well in the Big Apple. And soon Andi comes faceto- face with the man who killed her friend—and he aims to kill her as well.


Thank you so much for agreeing to let us interview you, Michele!  Since ladies go first we're going to have Jenni start us off:

JJ: Eeep. I'm so star struck you have no idea! :)  Okay, okay, first question.  I'm dying to know, what are three things most people would never guess about you?


Michele:  That I eat Cheetos and Diet Coke for breakfast, I am seriously claustrophobic and I have a huge addiction to cinnamon.

AJ: Cinnamon?  Nice--(will not insert spicy comment here ;) ) So, I was wondering-- What's your earliest memory?

Michele:  Ooh.  My earliest memory was when I was between two and three years old.  It was on a Sunday because I was in my church dress and my family was living in San Luis Obispo while my dad taught at the University there.  My sister and I walked over to the neighbor's house, the kids were in the back yard playing a baseball with a croquet set.  Yes, a croquet set.  They were trying to hit croquet balls with the sticks you pound into the ground.  When it was my turn, the kid pitching the croquet ball totally hit me in the head.  My forehead split open and blood gushed like crazy.  I remember looking down at my dress that was soaked red with blood and being so sad that I ruined my new church dress.  I remember getting stitches too.  

JJ: I would've cried for weeks, had I ruined one of my new dresses. :(  I loved my dresses when I was little.  So, speaking of your child years, What did you want to be when you grew up?

Michele: I either wanted to be a nurse or a stewardess.  I loved the little white nurses uniform (the 1960's) and cute little hat they wore.  I thought all they did was take temperatures and give shots.  I am totally not cut out to be a nurse!  I also loved the little outfit the stewardesses wore back in those days.  The whole idea of dressing up and flying around the world seemed so exotic and exciting.  I also wanted to be a model.  I cut my hair short into a pixie cut like Twiggy's when I was young and thought I looked just like her.

AJ: Biting my tongue.  Lol!  So, what's your worst habit?

Michele:  I'm the queen of housework procrastination.  I will put off grocery shopping until there is no food left or put off laundry until people are out of socks and underwear.  I would much rather do . . . well, anything!  I also floss my teeth in the car (with those little flossers) and gross people out at stoplights.  This was my dental hygenist's tip and I rarely miss a day anymore.  But I have gotten some pretty disgusted looks from other drivers but hey, my dental checkups are amazing!

JJ: I Love it!  So what’s your most embarrassing moment?

Michele:  When I was in Las Vegas going to the Earth, Wind and Fire concert and thought I was walking through the doors to the concert venue but ran straight into a glass window and bounced back and fell down.  People all around me were laughing so hard I thought we were going to have to call a paramedic for them, forget about how badly it hurt my head!  (And my pride!)

AJ: Enough embarrassing you, we'll get to the writing questions now.  :) Who's your biggest literary idol?

Michele: As a young girl I was a huge fan of Laura Ingalls Wilder and felt I was shaped and inspired to become an author by her magical stories of growing up on the prairie.  I am also a fan of Louisa May Alcott.  I connected with her on many levels.  She comes from a family of four girls and is second oldest and she had a propensity for an over-active imagination.  She said this about confronting a society that offered little opportunity to women seeking employment, "... I will make a battering-ram of my head and make my way through this rough and tumble world."  I love the (determination) of these two authors and found it reflected in their stories and their characters.

JJ: Ooh, Louisa May Alcott wrote one of my favorite books: The Inheritance.  Erm, sorry, got sidetracked a moment... If you could go back and change one thing about your career what would it be?  (Some sort of advice for all of us newbies out there.)   

Michele: I would write a book about vampires and a girl who falls in love with one.  Just kidding.  I wish I had understood how important self-marketing was once you were published.  I was always willing to go do book signings and appearances but I had a hard time telling people "hey, this is a great book and you should buy it."  I haven't ever been one to toot my own horn so I had a hard time with that, plus I didn't really understand how to come up with marketing strategies of my own and really create excitement about my books.  Authors need to get over that fast because you've gotta believe you're book is awesome or no one else will.  

AJ: Great advice!  And I agree.  You have to believe in yourself and your work.  So final question--When you look back over all of the books that you've written, what themes do you find yourself returning to and why?

Michele:  Two themes are almost guaranteed in my books.  First, that no matter where the main character starts, she will always grow into a strong, confident woman who faces her fears and challenges.  Second, that my stories will always have a happy ending.  Not a perfect ending, but a happy one. 

JJ: I LOVE Happy endings!  Thank you so much for coming today, Michele!  

AJ: It was a pleasure to have you here.  If anyone would like to learn more about Michele Ashman Bell you can visit her uber cool website or her facebook fanpage.

Michele Ashman Bell grew up in St. George, Utah. In fourth grade her teacher wrote on her report card that she had a tendency to daydream and would probably do well with creative writing. Her love for books and learning about people and places has helped her make her teacher's prediction come true. Michele is the author of many books and Christmas stories. She is married and is the mother of four children, and a grandma of two. Aside from supporting her children in all of their many activities, she loves to travel, do research for her books and eat chocolate.

I can't stop GIGGLING!!! HELP!!!

Ok so remember yesterday when i posted about how great my class was and how wonderful everything was? Cuz, you know I get to go to the Burghley house for creative writing. (Eeeh! I smile just writing that!) Well, what i didn't tell you, because I couldn't write it while I was still laughing so hard about it, was that I was the WORST student EVER, yesterday. The worst.

Not kidding. Had I been in 3rd grade my name would've been on the blackboard--with like 5 checks behind it too. It was only through the great mercy of the teacher that i wasn't actually kicked out of the class altogether. Well, that and the fact i'm paying for school now! LOL!

So what could I have done that was so bad you ask? Muhaha! I couldn't stop laughing. I mean it. It was awful! I disrupted the whole class! You have no idea! I even apologized profusely and still I laughed on. LOL! (Who am i kidding? I'm laughing now as I write this! LOLOLOL!)

Anyway, our assignment was to bring in newspaper headlines "that struck our fancy." We didn't know at the time, but the headline we brought in we had to give to our neighbors. So the lady next to me hands me this headline and I was supposed to guess what the story was about. And then i was supposed to write my guts instincts and emotions down on this paper. Which would've been great and all except the headline was:

"He Had Toilet Paper Stuck All Over His Head."

No lie. I'm not kidding. I'm not even exaggerating. That is EXACTLY what the headline read. Well, as i'm sure you've guessed by now, I burst into laughter. Hard, loud, crazed laughter.... for like ten minutes. Which the teacher tried to drown out with things like,

"Now class, I want you to see that headline and write down what you think the story is talking about. What is your gut instinct when you see that headline? Is it fear? Is it curiosity? Is it anger? Really delve in there and think what it is that could've happened to make such a headline."

I tried to be good, honest. I tried to hold it in, but I just kept thinking of these stupid scenarios and why some man would have toilet paper stuck to his head. And when i wasn't thinking of those, my brain was numb from laughing at my extremely witty self and the ideas that were emerging, so honestly, I couldn't stop even if I wanted to. See what I mean?

Well, I have my paper in front of me now and these are the ideas that I could calm myself down long enough to write, before I snorted and began to laugh all over again.

1. Did the man fall in the Loo head first?
2. Was he ambushed by small children?
3. Does he have a mummy fetish?

So what do you think really happened? And come on, admit it! You would've laughed too!

BOOK NUMBER two DONE!!!!!

Hallelujah!!!! I'm alive still breathing and book number two is done! Finished last night at 12:30am (57,500 words! and 7 1/2 weeks from 1st chapter to last!) SO AWESOME! Ooh! And I LOVE the ending! Seriously! SOOOO cool! hehehehe! Now all i have to do is start editing... Whew! I can't wait!

That said, still drumming my fingers waiting to hear back from agent Amy Tipton on Pride & Popularity.... totally nervous at that too! And i'll be away from the computer most of today.. so hopefully I won't refresh the email page a gazillion times! hahah! <--Man, gotta stop doing that! Yes, I am slowly going crazy...!

Good writing days--and not so good writing days!

Yesterday could’ve been better. I mean, don’t get me wrong it was good, just not GOOD! See what I mean, it’s all great calling yourself a writer and an author, but a whole other kettle of fish to actually be able to think long enough to write out your thoughts.

So Persuaded has come to an end now… Book Two in the Austen series rewrites I’m doing. I expect to finish the last chapter completely today/tonight… GO ME! Yeah, big accomplishment, that--writing two complete novels since mid March! WAHOO! Never thought it possible. ANYWAY.. like I was saying yesterday… eh, good just not GOOD!

Here’s how it started. I’m at the end of a teen romance novel. So it’s of course the kissing scene. Let me show you what a good rehearsed—sans children interruption—kissing scene looks like:

Excerpt PERSUADED Chapter 16 Jenni James copyright©2008

“Oomph,” my back connected with the wall.
“Andy,” his hand was on my shoulder; his other hand reached down and gently held mine. “Don’t—don’t shut me out. Please let me say this.”
I looked up, right into dark intense eyes that were too close for comfort. My throat was so dry I couldn’t have spoken even if I wanted to.
“I want you to be happy, okay?” His fingers slowly laced through mine. “Please, be happy. It’s all I have ever wanted for you.” Gregory leaned forward then, slowly and surely he leaned so close there wasn’t a hairsbreadth between us.
Instinctively, my eyes closed--they couldn’t focus on his nearness. I could feel the warmth of his lips as they hovered just above mine. I gasped, but did not move a millimeter. I was too scared to move.
He did. I could feel Gregory’s lips as they lightly skimmed up to the tip of my nose and followed the slant gently on to my forehead, before they settled there. A long soft kiss lingered, while the tip of my nose tickled against the sensation of Gregory’s slightly stubbled jaw. He smells so good! And then my eyes fluttered open as he moved away. He stepped back, two, three steps before he felt the tug of my hand still laced through his. Gregory stopped then, and we both looked down. Carefully, I removed my fingers one by one until my hand fell motionless to my side.
“Goodbye,” he mumbled, slightly shaken.
“Bye,” another croak. I blinked. When I opened my eyes, he was gone. I few moments later I heard the front door slam shut. With a great sigh, I closed my eyes and slid down the wall and collapsed into a puddle on the floor.

YEAH! Steamiest forehead kiss ever, right? That is how a kiss scene should turn out! That, was of course, written at night, without children. When I prefer to write a good kissing scene-at night. BUT, no... Gregory HAD to kiss Amanda/Andy yesterday—during the day—(no idea what I’m talking about? refer to blog: I’m going insane!)

So this is how my day went:

PERSUADED excerpts Chapter 23 Jenni James coppyright©2008

“I can’t believe you’re here. I half expected you to be gone.”
“Hmm … Are you kidding, after that email?” My hands stilled again, this time Gregory didn’t notice.
“You liked that, did—

Son: Mom? Mom… Mom!
Me: What?
Son: Can I ask you something? It’s real important.
Me: Fine. What?
Son: Can I get a drink?
Me: Of course you can get a drink… you get drinks everyday. Now, go get your cup and use the fridge dispenser, okay?
Son: Okay!

“You liked that, did you?”
His warm breath on my cheek splayed out and caused a million tiny sparkles to dance and shiver their way down my spine. I was having a hard time concentrating. “I-I—yes. I-I liked it, very much.”
He pressed his face into my hair and—

Daughter: Mom? Mom… Mom!
Me: (Deep breath) What?
Daughter: Did you say Carson could have a drink?
Me: (Another deep breath) Yes. Anything else?
Daughter: No, that’s all. I was just wondering.
Me: Good. Now, go watch you movie.


He pressed his face into my hair and inhaled slowly. I felt his nose nuzzle its way down to my ear and then just below it, before he placed a delicate kiss there and whispered, “Andy, I’m not going to let you go. I can’t. I’ve already—

Daughter 2: Mom? Mom… Mom!
Me: What???
Daughter 2: Did you say Carson could have a drink?
Me: (Huge breath) Yes.
Daughter 2: Oh, that’s not fair. Can I have one?
Me: For crying out loud! You kids. It’s water, get a grip. WATER! YES! You can have as much water as you want. Got it? Now go watch the movie, while mommy works on this, okay?
Daughter 2: Okay!

I’ve already lost you twice. Once, because of your stubborn pride.” He kissed below my ear again sending sizzles everywhere. “And—

Son 2: Mom?
Me: WHAT?!
Son 2: Can I--?
Me: YES! You can have water! Now go!
Son 2: Uh, okay… but…
Me: (Huge breath) Yes?
Son 2: Okay, but I was wondering—if I could have lunch—I mean, I mean, after my water?
Me: What? Lunch? It’s not lunchtime! (Looks at clock 1pm—Dang!) Fine! Give me as sec, I’ll make lunch for you guys! Ten minutes! Okay? TEN! Now, watch your movie.
Son 2: Okay! Thanks, Mom.

“And once because of mine; I don’t think my heart could handle losing you a third time.”
“Your heart?” I gasped as he kissed below my ear a third time. “H-have y-you any idea what mine has been through? Knowing—

Son 3: Mom?
Me: UGH! WHAT?!
Son 3: Uh—
Me: What? Is someone bleeding? Is the house on fire? Are wild bulls running down the street? What?
Son 3: I was just wondering if we could have lunch--?