No Phone Zone Winner

The winner of the No Phone Zone McDonalds Gift Card Giveaway is Stephanie Jenkins! Congratulations, Stephanie. I am proud of everyone who promised to make their drivers' seats no phone zones. The roads will be a little safer because of you.

Blog Contest: Take Oprah's No Phone Zone Pledge

Yesterday, Oprah’s show was on driving while distracted. According to University of Utah researcher David Strayer, our brains can’t multitask the way we would like to believe they can. Drivers who are on their cell phones talking or texting experience a sort of tunnel vision that is equal to or worse than driving while intoxicated. One of the points raised was, even if you are able to stay between the lines while distracted, you are not as alert to the people around you who are weaving, and your reaction time is worse. I don’t text, but admit to checking in with my husband while driving. The idea that my flippant phone call could cause anyone’s (especially a child’s) death is horrible.

This morning I signed Oprah’s No Phone Zone Pledge, and I want to challenge all of you to do the same. I’m providing the link to Oprah’s challenge. Sign it, commit to it, and leave me a comment on my blog telling me you took the pledge. On Monday, January 25, one commenter who took the challenge will win a $10 McDonalds gift card. After all, you deserve a Happy Meal for committing to something that will make the world a safer place for kids.

Remember, I must be able to contact you to send you a prize, so make sure you leave me your twitter name or email address if I can’t find it through your blog account. I will only mail the prize to a U.S. address. Good luck, and thanks for taking the challenge.

http://www.oprah.com/questionaire/ipledge.html?id=4

Less Whine. More Win. (A Writer's Pep Talk)

It’s easy to whine about how tough it is to break into the publishing industry. It’s easy to whine about form rejection letters and “if you haven’t heard from us in 6 months, we are not interested” policies. It’s easy to whine about how hard it is to get any writing done with “Mom, Mom, Mom,” in the background.


You know what’s not easy?


Writing. Perseverance. Taking negative feedback on your work and transforming it into positive changes. Finding the courage to send the manuscript you’ve nurtured to someone who may or may not even acknowledge it arrived. Having faith that the right publisher is out there and will love your work as much as you do.


So why do it? Do it because this is your story. Because the writing, the revising, the rejection, and the perseverance are all part of your grand adventure. If you want a shot at a happy ending, you’ve got to keep turning the page. Don’t let yourself get stuck on the negatives. Keep going. Work harder. Less whine. More win. Happy New Year.