Challenge: Write For Fifteen Minutes A Day

Laurie Halse Anderson, notable author of young adult novels like Speak, Wintergirls, and Twisted, will host her annual 'Write For Fifteen Minutes A Day' (WFMAD) challenge this August.  For each day of the month, she will post on her blog tips, prompts, and general words of encouragement  for those of us who want to establish a daily writing practice yet find a bajillion reasons to avoid it.  Fifteen minutes a day is doable.  God, I must play Words With Friends and check Facebook for at least 30 minutes a day, so there is no excuse for me not to take part in this awesome writing challenge.  Day 1 of the challenge is also my birthday (August 1! Yippee!), so I'm looking at it as a sort of resolution to embrace writing the way I've always wanted to.  Who's with me?

Welcome!

Leaving a teaching job is a difficult thing to do, especially when you have such wonderful kids! So, here's a way for me to keep in touch and keep you posted about great new books that I think are worth sharing.

Book number one: Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

This is a wonderfully told story about a teenager battling anorexia. It is told from the first person point-of-view and at times can be very difficult to read. After all, the main character is struggling with a horribly warped self-image as she grieves the death of her best friend (also a victim of an eating disorder). If you're thinking of reading this one, be sure to discuss these important issues with your parents or a teacher so that they can help you understand the disease from which the character is suffering.