Cressida Cowell

I was going to title this post How to Train Your Dragon, but in reality, this post is going to be much more about the author of the story, Cressida Cowell.

First of all, let me say, WOW! Dreamworks did a fantastic, no... more like phenomenal job portraying this movie. I say that, but I have never read the book, so I hope I feel the same after I read it. What the movie portrayed to me was the author's imagination.

I didn't know Cressida Cowell wrote this story until I came home and googled her. But I sat the whole time in the theater, transfixed and in awe, thinking what a wonderful imagination the author who wrote this story must have. She had to know her characters inside and out, to give such life and personality to Toothless and Hiccup. I fell in love with these characters and I cannot wait to go to my library tomorrow and pick up Cressida's other stories about them.

And after reading her bio on her website, I think Cressida is pretty cool, too. Spending every summer and time from every spring on a deserted island with no electricity... that is amazing. Listening to the stories her father told of the Vikings and Dragons, and then spinning those into this fabulous book series...that is writing at its best!

Very, very cool, Cressida Cowell.

Managing Time

I have found that managing my time as a writer is no small task. Not only is there the whole writing and editing part of the gig, but I need time to research, hit the library, keep up the blog, plan speaking event programs, apply for grants and scholarships, meet with my critique group, and submit to editors. Oh, and of course, fit in my day job and all the other parts of life.

This isn't a blog of complaints though, rather it's quite the opposite. If I didn't have to do all these things, it would mean I wasn't getting anywhere or succeeding in writing, and that's simply not true. One small step at a time, I am getting somewhere. But as a children's writer, or any writer for that matter, one must be committed entirely or the whole program falls apart!

My time commitments for today include putting the finishing touches on my presentation for this Saturday, March 6, at the Starke County Young Artists Conference. I've been invited back for the third year in a row, and this year I have the opportunity to speak with first and second graders about writing. This isn't only fun for the children, but also for me. I taught elementary school for quite some time and I always love working with kids. I'll bring the camera along and post pictures soon!


Thanks for stopping by,
Katie