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Dear TwinkleGrammers,
What a ride, this crazy whirligig called life! I can
barely keep up with myself. I've been on the road
and back again, on airplanes and back again (Howdy
HO, you wild PA ladies!)--and
again (a shout out to Omaha LitFest folks), and
that's the way it'll go here for the next
couple months since Dearest Dorothy, Merry
Everything! is just around the corner and I'll
be book touring. So hop on my TwinkleGram ride.
Yes, it's a LONG one this time, but with the new book
about to roll, the launch of a national contest (KEEP
READING FOR DETAILS) to celebrate, my new travel
blog and an upcoming cruise, there's lots of info to
dispense. Pick and choose what you want to read,
but just DON'T MISS TODAY'S TWINKLEGRAM STORY -
- which is the Real Point of this e-mail!
| National "Tell Us YOUR 'Dorothy' Story" CONTEST |
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THIS IS SO EXCITING and YOU, Dear
TwinkleGrammers, are getting a head start! To
celebrate the launch of Dearest Dorothy, Merry
Everything!, Penguin is sponsoring a national (as
in NATIONAL) contest. READ THE RULES
Enter for the fabulous prize of course (DINNER WITH
ME plus airfare plus ...), but write about
your "Dorothy" because to do so will give you
a chance to savor your own prayer of thanksgiving
for that wonderful person in your life. I know: the
entire Dearest Dorothy series is based on the zest,
spunk and faith of MY Real Dearest Dorothy!
Entries must be postmarked (no e-mails) by
December 22 and received by December 29. Nothing
will come to me; it all goes to NYC! Read all about it
HERE. And start writing!
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| Do You Have A Book in YOU? Do you like to CRUISE? |
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On February 4 I will leave New Orleans on a
ship called the Norwegian Sun. I will relax, eat and
visit exotic places I've never seen before. I will also
eat and teach/speak on the topic: Do You Have a
Book In You? My friend Jan Long Harris, senior
acquisitions editor and author extraordinare, will co-
teach/speak with me. We intend to (with lots of
GOOD FUN!) instruct and encourage you in your
writing aspirations. Whether you want to write for
your family or aim for the best sellers' list, we've got
first-hand, viable, insider info. So cruise, learn,
write, eat, sight see and BE HAPPY!
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| The BOOK TOUR IS FINALIZED! |
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The book tour stops are in place. Now all I need is
- I get there
- You show up
- We say hi
- I tell you stories behind the stories
- You ask questions
- You take pictures with me, if you want
- I sign books
- You read books
- You tell others how wonderful Dearest Dorothy
is
- We all have happy dreams about the events!
SEE WHERE I'LL BE (poet and know it)
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| Traveling Laughs, my new blog for travelers |
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Whether you're traveling from the couch to the
refrigerator, or from your office to the limo to the
airport to the rental car to the meeting (yet again),
stop by HER
E and pick up a Traveling Laugh ?to go.? As
a
seasoned whirligig of a traveler I?ve learned the most
important thing I can pack (that cannot be
confiscated by a three-year-old or the TSA) is a
sense of humor.
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| TO WIN DEAREST DOROTHY, MERRY EVERYTHING! |
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As of midnight October 20, all TwinkleGram
subscribers will be eligible for a drawing to win one of
TEN of the fifth book in the Dearest Dorothy series,
Dearest Dorothy, Merry Everything.
Winners will be notified in the next TwinkleGram. If
you know anyone who might enjoy a subscription,
NOW is the time to forward this e-mail. (link below)
The official
Welcome to Partonville website for the Dearest
Dorothy
series opens the
front page of the Partonville Press. By golly,
it's worth a read since as of yesterday, new articles
and editorials are in print. You'll learn a few things
about the CHAOS (more than usual) in Partonville and
tidbits about a couple town characters which will
hopefully whet your whistles.
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| Dont forget to . . . |
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If you haven't already done so (with the LAST
TwinkleGram) PLEASE, oh PLEASE scroll to the VERY
TOP of this page and push CONFIRM to make sure
you stay on the TwinkleGram list. THANK YOU!
If for whatever reason (like you're on dialup and this
took WAY too long to load) you'd rather not receive
this colorful html version, scroll to the bottom of this
page, click on "update profile/e-mail address" then
put a check in the box that says you'd like to receive
the text only version. (lower left) VOILA!
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Today's TwinkleGram Story |
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When I?m not in a hurry, I have all the time in the
world. When I?m in a hurry, all things (traffic lights,
hairdos, ringing phones, grocery store lines, technical
support, dry cleaning, hair appointments, Novocain,
fast food, airlines, typing fingers, sunsets, sunrises,
elevators . . . ) are either desperately slow, come
too fast--so fast that I miss them--or don?t work at
all.
Case in point. Recently I was in a hurry and I was
hurrying. Sometimes I?m in a hurry, but by grace (or
injury) I am not hurrying. But this time I was. I
hopped in the shower, lathered up, grabbed my
razor -- my brand new never tried before razor ? and
went to town shaving my pits and legs.
WOW! Talk about a fabulous GLIDE factor! I barely
felt the disposable implement skating over my skin.
Now THIS, I thought to myself, is how it?s supposed
to be! I think I?ll buy another pack of these while
they?re still on sale and before I throw the bag away
and forget what brand they are.
And then I ran my hand over the top of my right leg.
(Remember, I was hurrying so therefore wasn?t
checking results along the way.) Stubble. ?Huh.
Must have missed this swipe.? I grab the razor, swipe
a few times more. Stubble check: stubble. I set
the razor down to check both legs and both pits.
Stubble. Doesn?t feel like a single rowdy hair was
removed.
Hurrying (Hear the clock ticking? I should be
DRESSED already!), I step out of the shower and drip
my way across the bathroom floor to scrounge in the
cabinet for my old razor. Hurrying, I nearly fall on my
keister since I?m slipping through my own drippings.
Safely back in the tub, I zip-zap shave. A few
scratches later (and now I am LATER than late) I
leave the tub, towel dry my body and my blood, wing
around getting dressed while applying a few dabs of
makeup and head out. Damp hair, scalped skin,
dialing my cell phone to explain why I?m not there yet.
Upon my return home, I grab that useless razor out
of the shower area. Before tossing it, I don my
glasses and check the brand to make sure I NEVER
buy another dud like that.
Amazing what you can discover when you?re wearing
your glasses, like that while I was hurrying I didn?t
realize the razor blades were capped by a plastic
(very glide-y) safety shield. And before that, while I
was hurrying to rip open the bag and toss one in the
shower, I didn?t notice the safety cap. And before
that, while I was hurrying I did about a hundred
other stupid things.
You know that old motto, Better safe than sorry?
Well how about this one? Better slow than dumb and
hairy.
When I slow down, I ultimately go
faster since no do-overs are necessary. When I slow
down the ignition on my temper, I don?t need to
SCREAM at other things (like inanimate objects that
work perfectly fine without SAFETY SHIELDS),
people or situations. When I'm cruising instead of
wrecklessly hammering down, I'm also going slow
enough to remember my own
doofusness, which helps me offer grace to
others.
When I slow down, I don?t get ahead of me,
sanity or God.
Amen.
Where I'm gearing up to hurry (although I'll try to be on time)
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