100 Stories For Haiti (by sarah)

I found about four hours before the deadline that there was a 100 stories for Haiti book project asking for submissions to help raise money for the earthquake victims.

So I hurriedly altered one of my stories and sent it too them last night - I was first stuck with a feeling that I wouldn't have anything to give them as they didn't want anything with Death, violence etc... it was the death one that stumped me - all the stories I have with the nice happy endings are ghost stories which were obviously out.

Anyway I found something and sent it off!

I had actually already mentioned something like this project as a possible money raiser after an argument about writing stories about the crisis itself.

Now I would encourage writing about suck heavy subjects as I feel they all to often get swept aside but I also feel you have to be careful and think before you fictionalise such a thing. Why? Becuase it would be easy to trivualise it.

How can you fictionalise a crisis why it is still going on? Unless you have actually been being there helping and are fictionalising your own experience - you need to research it or you will just get it all wrong. And I feel uneasy about writing about it whilst it is still a crisis - Apparently people felt helpless and wanted to show they cared - my reaction to this was simply - make an ebook of other stories and sell it to raise money then.

I'm not sure why I had such a strong reaction to this but Alaric thinks the same way too - he thinks you can't really fictionalise something like this until a yr or so afterwards.

Anyway they have now extended the deadline so if you have a story under 1000 words you might want to donate it 🙂

WoPoWriMo – World Poetry Writing Month (by sarah)

I am organising and taking part in WoPoWriMo which means that I have been setting up the web-site and facebook group and newsletter sign up and what have you.

Why am I doing this? Because I was asked too! And it sounds like a fun project:)

What will I be doing and expecting others to do?

Write a poem a day for the whole of February!

There is a Pledge to sign too 🙂

So you going to join in? I've even go Alaric pledged and excited - yes you heard me Alaric writing poetry!

Poetry Cafe – Adam Horovitz (by sarah)

Last night at Poetry Cafe one of the main poetry thingys I have been attending we had a blinding headline poet called Adam Horovitz. During his reading I got the chill and the tingle and so actually parted with cash for a pamphlet containing a poem that made me want to cry.

The Great Unlearning.

Know if you know me - you also know that I basically don't buy poetry - unless there is a contributors copy where I don't have to pay postage and packaging I don't even have copies of my own poems - I don't buy the journals or anything. I am basically a culture thicky, the scientist ingressing and yes I don't read much poetry - this is because I will only bother reading something where I have heard some of the poems and have had the tingle.

Anyway I am digressing as I always do!

Basically I really liked this guys poems and I got to read too 🙂 In the open mic! I read Alphabet Soup and Summer Sale - though I felt very fatigued yesturday and had trouble not shaking which sucked big time and I felt it reflected in how well I read 🙁

I also got to announce WoPoWriMo (World Poetry Writing Month) which I need to do a whole post about but basically - February is the month of poetry and the month of poetry is February.

It's a writing challenge - if your intrested do click through to have a butchers 🙂

Also next month I am going to be doing a mini showcase at Poetry Cafe of my work. I am of course excited about this and hope that some peeps might actually want to come and see me 🙂

Burnt Face Man (by sarah)

I am actually married to Burnt Face Man it would appear!

Though the initially burns after the cooling water treatments didn't look too bad - half way through yesturday Alaric started to look really rough with some sort of ichor type stuff oozing from various places on his face.

So we made a sojourn out to get a cooling cream - mainly it is his hand that's hurting him though and hampering typing.

I am now wondering if I should have called him an ambulance when it happened as perhapse they would have given him more treatment and he'd be looking less rough :/ The other thing is I am alittle concerned about infection getting in but am hoping the cream will help with that.

Home Schooling (by sarah)

With the school still shut due to the snow I thought I'd best take matters into my own hands and so have spent the last few days home schooling Jean.

I do an hour on each of the subjects I have chosen but tend to split that hour up into three with the focus on subjects. The time table stands at:

Writing and Word Structure

Number, shape and measurements

Art, craft, cooking and technology - or - Music and Drama

Reading and story time - or - World Studies

We also have P.E. each day which is when ever the time is right and has mainly consisted off going out in the snow and sledging or building snow castles and lasts as long as Jean wants to be outside!

Of course there is also break time and lunch involved in there somewhere.

Jean's told Alaric I make a good teacher except that a real teacher wouldn't shout :/

We have also been putting her in school uniform for this as she is more likely to site still as we are 'playing' school! Al is the headmaster she decided too 🙂

I sort of hope I'm covering everything to be honest - my main concern now is that she hasn't seen any other children to play with since my friend Buko visited just before this lot of on going snow!