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Archive for the ‘Articles of Interest’ Category

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Share THE GIFT OF READING…


Valentines-Day-Book-BucksMelissa’s got a brilliant way to share the gift of reading this Valentine’s Day!

This year, Melissa Taylor is giving her kids Valentines’ Day Book Bucks instead of stuffed animals or candy.

Melissa has made free printable book bucks you can easily download and print for your kids, too! http://imaginationsoup.net/2014/02/valentines-day-book-bucks/

Gift of Book Bucks

Post by Melissa Taylor

Like most kids, my kids love to choose their own books to read. They enjoy browsing the bookstore almost as much as me. (Which is one of my favorite things EVER.)

I think book bucks are win-win: kids get to pick out their own books, and we all get a fun outing to the bookstore.

Valentines-Day-Book-Bucks-Certificate-sm save as

– See more at: http://imaginationsoup.net/2014/02/valentines-day-book-bucks/#sthash.0AvxKsKk.dpuf

HAPPY READING & GIVING! ~ Bette A. Stevens at http://www.4writersandreaders.com

Written

on 02/10/2014

WNW Welcomes Rave Reviews Book Club 2nd “SPOTLIGHT” AUTHOR, KATIE HAYOZ!!!


If YOU haven’t joined Rave Reviews Book Club, right now is a great time to get started. ~ Bette A. Stevens

nonniejules's avatarWatch Nonnie Write!

That Novel Will Never Be Perfect

From Katie Hayoz

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I’m not a perfectionist.  Little mistakes don’t bother me.  But when it comes to my writing, I take pride in what I do and I want what I put out there to be not just decent, but good.  I rewrote Untethered at least eighteen times.  Literally.  And I’m talking full-on, rip-it-up and make do with the shreds kind of rewriting, not moving sentences around. What started as a five page story ended up (20 years later) to be a 340 page novel.  That novel went through so many critiquing sessions and beta readers that I was sure it would be perfection by the time it was published.

Ha.  Not quite.

Writing is art, and like all art there is a point where the person creating the work just has to stop. She just has to tell herself that particular piece…

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Articles of Interest, author interview, Book Picks

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255. Joy is the holy fire that keeps our purpose warm and our intelligence aglow. ~Helen Keller, American author and educator


Are you following Sacred Touches blog? Natalie’s posts are always filled with wisdom from The Master and from many masters of literature as well. ENJOY! Bette A. Stevens

nataliescarberry's avatarSacred Touches

Who is the happiest of men? He who values the merits of others,
and in their pleasure takes joy, even as though t’were his own.
~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German writer and Politician

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One of my fellow bloggers commented today about the beauty in one of my posts and said she needed the joy.  It was such a blessing to know that I had spread some joy in the life of another.  So tonight I thought I would share some thoughts about joy.  And since this week is A.A. Milne’s birthday I decided to use some illustrations from his book to help do that.  Milne was the English author who brought so much joy not only to children but also to those of us fortunate enough to have read the Winnie the Pooh stories to our children.

Joy is not in things; it is in us.  ~Richard Wagner, German composer

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Articles of Interest, Literature, Reading with Children

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The 5 Most Important Revision Tips I Learned from Margie Lawson’s Classes by Author Kourtney Heintz


Great tips for authors… I’m revising the draft of my first novel now. Thank you! ~ Bette A. Stevens

Chris The Story Reading Ape's avatarChris The Story Reading Ape's Blog

Kourtney Heintz

1) The opening sentence of a book/chapter/scene should be hooking and make the reader curious enough to read onward.

Like any man, I loved my wife, but these 3 a.m. suicidal thoughts were killing me.

2) The closing sentence of a chapter/scene should never let the reader slip in a bookmark. You need to make the reader want to keep going. Cliffhangers, uncertainty, new questions, they need to be built into that final sentence.

I worked best under pressure–they’d never know how much.

3) There is a power to 3 in using the same word, phrase or sentence structure. Don’t stop at twice, make sure it’s 3 times.

I didn’t want the end of me. Over a girl like her. Or a friend like him. Or a father like mine.

4) Write fresh. Find a new way to describe something. Your readers will thank you.

My jackrabbit pulse began to…

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Articles of Interest, Writing Tips

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Thanksgiving in the USA today


Can we save American? Watch and read to find our what’s really happening in America! ~ Bette A. Stevens http://www.4writersandreaders.com
CLICK the reblog link to watch and share. You’ll be shocked!

petrel41's avatarDear Kitty. Some blog

This video from the USA says about itself:

21 Nov 2012

Thanksgiving is a long cherished American tradition, but have we idealized it to the point that we’ve forgotten the true story, the historical events which really surrounded Thanksgiving? And what of the post-Thanksgiving shopping tradition of ‘Black Friday’ shopping— has it commercialized the holiday so much that we’ve forgotten the point? And lastly, for those who spend Thanksgiving dinner with family, how does one mitigate the various table-conversation pitfalls, such as politics and religion?

John Fugelsang (Host, Current TV’s “So That Happened”) leads this week’s panel to discuss these issues and more on this special episode of The Point with Kelly Carlin (Host, Sirius XM‘s “The Kelly Carlin Show”), James Spady (Assistant Professor of American History, Soka University), and Altagracia Perez (Rector- Holy Faith Episcopal Church). Special thanks to John Cumbler (University of Louisville Professor), Annie Leonard…

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Articles of Interest

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Monarch Butterflies


Learn about our Amazing Monarchs! ~ Bette A. Stevens http://www.4writersandreaders.com

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John Baez's avatarAzimuth



Have you ever seen one of these? It’s a Monarch Butterfly. Every spring, millions fly from Mexico and southern California to other parts of the US and southern Canada. And every autumn, they fly back. On the first of November, called the Day of the Dead, people celebrate the return of the monarchs to the mountainous fir forests of Central Mexico.

But their numbers are dropping. In 1997, there were 150 million. Last year there were only 60 million. One problem is the gradual sterilization of American farmlands thanks to powerful herbicides like Roundup. Monarch butterfly larvae eat a plant called milkweed. But the amount of this plant in Iowa, for example, has dropped between 60% and 90% over the last decade.

And this year was much worse for the monarchs. They came late to Mexico… and I think only 3 million have been seen so far! That’s a…

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Written

on 11/26/2013

The feeling that you are not good enough – Stop Bullying Campaign


Please share… YOU CAN HELP STOP BULLYING! ~ Bette A. Stevens

authors promotion's avatarAUTHORS PROMOTION

 

,,Shame is the most powerful master emotion.It’s the fear that we are not good enough.”

             ~PhD  Brene Brown

 

Today the author of Pure Trash, Bette A.Stevens wants her voice to be heard 

 

 

        Bette A. Stevens is a retired teacher living in Central Maine.

        Stevens is the author of two children’s books and  has written articles for ECHOES, The Northern  Maine Journal of Rural Culture based in Caribou,  Maine. Her release latest is entitled PURE TRASH,             The Story for the Middle-grade/YA/Adult audience which is a prequel to her upcoming debut novel is available in paperback and kindle versions. PURE TRASH, The Novel will be a coming-of-age story featuring Shawn Daniels, the short story’s protagonist. Find out more about the author and her book at

  www.Amazon.com/author/betteastevens

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Articles of Interest, Books, Fiction

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POVERTY & PREJUDICE: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow


Author BAS White Text

POVERTY & PREJUDICE: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

You’re invited to read my blog post on Is History The Agreed Upon Lie?

As a baby boomer that grew up in an average middle-class family in America during the 1950s and 1960s, poverty was not something I had to dwell on or even think about as a child or as a teen. For me, poverty was an unknown concept.

Poverty in America during the 1950s and 1960s was simply ignored in our wealth-burgeoning society. I was not alone in my ignorance. “[In fact, it’s been more than 50 years] since Americans, or at least the non-poor among them, ‘discovered’ poverty, thanks to Michael Harringtton’s engaging book The Other America.” (Twisting the Phrase “Culture of Poverty” Barbara Ehrenreich March 16, 2012).  Read it all at… POVERTY & PREJUDICE: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

I look forward to hearing from you.

Bette A. Stevens http://www.4writersandreaders.com

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Written

on 10/19/2013

Let’s Paint the World with Peace!


September 21, 2013 marks the United Nations’ 33rd International Day of Peace

http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/view-image.php?image=706&picture=paintings&large=1

“WORLD PEACE? We really do have the power to make it happen, one brush stroke at a time. “ ~ Bette A. Stevens

World Peace?

Knowledge of the past holds one of the keys to world peace. Knowledge of the people in the world around us today holds another essential key.  However, knowledge in and of itself is useless, a collection of unused paint brushes resting on the world’s shelf. It is our job to pick up those brushes and start painting. The perfect portrait of peace begins within each one of us. It’s painted one brush stroke at a time. Here are some simple steps that we can all take to contribute to that portrait:

Take the time to learn about those who are different from us in some way. We may want start with someone in our own family. Even there, we often find differences in opinions, race, religion, beliefs, customs, cultures, political affiliations. The list of personal differences and the diversity of relationships goes on….

Working in the classroom as a teacher of students from diverse backgrounds, I learned first-hand that those who hold different beliefs from my own are all unique individuals with whom I have many things in common. We all share the same needs and desires, the same frustrations and fears, the same hopes and dreams.  Whether students, parents, staff, volunteers, administrators or colleagues, I have gained respect for and have been deeply enriched by each encounter. Life-long relationships are nurtured and continue to blossom and grow.

Sure, that all sounds great; but what can we actually do as individuals to promote peace?

  • Listen to others
  • Get to know them (That means spending time with them) Let them get to know us (talk)
  • Respect differences
  • Look for commonalities
  • Nurture relationships
  • Offer and extend a helping hand
  • Encourage others
  • Enlist the help of others
  • Give input and feedback
  • Keep the conversation going 
International Peace Day Logo. jpg

International Peace Day Logo. jpg

The brush strokes to peace lie within each of one us. How do we paint the canvas? One brush stroke at a time. BUILD RELATIONSHIPS—listen, share ourselves and our ideas, respect those of others, look for commonalities. Our individual and collective lives will continue to be enriched as we work together to paint a portrait of world peace. We really do have the power to make it happen, one brush stroke at a time.

On September 21st, I’ll be interviewing M.C.V. Egan, author of The Bridge of Deaths. She’ll be sharing how she uses her novel to promote world peace. You’re invited to stop back and visit us here at http://www.4writersandreaders.com for MEET THE AUTHOR: M.C.V. Egan and join her PEACE IN TIME Book Blitz and Blog Hop.

Peace be with you.

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Articles of Interest, History, Maine Author, My Articles

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Who cares?


Who cares?.

Click the link to find out how we can change the world for the better, one person at a time! ~ Bette A. Stevens

Written

on 09/15/2013

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