Scribes Valley Notes

I would like to dedicate this entry to my sister-in-law, Becky, who passed away very suddenly last week on June 8, 2010. We will miss you, Becky. Thanks for making our lives so much brighter. I think birds have badges that they strive for, much like those the Boy Scouts strive for. Okay, wait a minute; I’m not completely off the deep end yet. I really do think they have badges, and here’s why. Just about every time I’m out driving, a bird will suddenly fly across the front of my car. It comes out of nowhere, just a tiny body flashing in front of my speeding car, and then it’s gone. And, of course, with my out-of-control imagination, it’s because that bird was trying to earn its Car-Diving Badge. I always sincerely shout, “Way to get that badge!” as I picture the bird sitting on a tree branch, scared to death after having just dived in front of my car, and receiving the applause and congratulations of its fellow birds. Then a small ceremony in which it receives the Car-Diving Badge (a r...

Two days ago I was diagnosed with high blood pressure. I wasn’t really surprised because I could tell something weird was going on with my body the last year or so. I’ve been frequently tired, my heart seems to skip a few beats now and then, I get dizzy every so often, and I’ve reached, as my doctor so eloquently put it, “the magical age of fifty.” And so now I see the immediately need for more exercise. I should get this old body back in shape. Drop the flab and get back the toned and tight body of my earlier years. Become once again that lean, mean fat burning machine I was when I got married some 24 years ago. Re-create the Greek god Adonis physique that…. Aw, shucks, I need to drop about twenty pounds and hope my gut decides to recede just a bit so I can see my toes again. That’s all I ask. I saw a young man today on the drive in to work who seems to share my need and quest for health. He was dressed in what I’m sure is expensive bike riding clothes, riding what I’m sure is an expe...

I had a question recently that set my old brain to churning. A simple enough question: “Is the rule of underlining words to denote italics no longer fashionable?” Hmm, very interesting. In my opinion—and I daresay the opinions of most editors—the underlining of italicized words was only necessary back in the typewriter days when there was no way to italicize words. Now that we all use word processors, we can use actual italics and it looks great. As long as (ah, here comes the exception), the font being used allows a clear difference between the regular and italicized words. For example, if you’re using something like Courier font, there’s not a lot of difference between them. But, fonts like Times New Roman have a good, clear difference. So, yes, I would say use actual italics and forget the underlining rule. By the way, the underlining rule for book, movie, etc titles is still in effect, but many editors (and again I'm guessing) prefer the italicized versions. To me, anything und...

Scribes Valley Publishing is proud to present the 15 finalists of our 2009 Short Story Writing Contest : Brian James -- THE MIGHTY BLUE Frederic H. Decker -- A WRETCHED AND NOBLE DAY Terry Dickinson -- THE DAY TRADER Ronna L. Edelstein -- SNOW WOMAN Denise C. Hengeli -- DUCK YOU Kathryn Jordan -- BREAKING POINT Andrew Lu -- THE OTHER SIDE Tonya Mitchell -- PEEKABOO DREAMS Jean Tschohl Quinn -- GOING HOME ON LINEA-B Kathleen Ratcliffe -- THE TRAIN John Robbins -- HANDS OF TIME Dan Sullivan -- MY ‘IRISH’ FATHER George Thomas -- THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER Diana Thurbon -- A LITTLE DOG SHALL LEAD THEM Michelle Wotowiec -- MOON ROCKS These finalists will appear in our new anthology: Welcome to Elsewhere (tentative title) in January, 2010.

I was asked recently by a young man whose wife is expecting their first child, what he needs to know as a parent. I immediately replied, “The beeper number of a good shrink.” We laughed and went our separate ways but on the way home I starting thinking about what it takes to be a good parent. I decided to make a list and send it to my friend. After an hour, I decided that wasn’t such a good idea. Too many trees would have to give up their lives for me to compile such a list. So I decided to narrow it down to just a few, all-encompassing items that would help him in his quest for knowledge. Okay, let’s see, to be a good parent you must. . . . . .be able to exist on very little sleep and still go to work and present a halfway decent image to your coworkers. . . .be willing to unwrap a diaper containing something so nasty it would gag a buzzard, and still use your baby talk voice to tell your little one how proud you are of the pretty poo-poo. . . .take a full load of puke in the che...

Our newest contest anthology, THE ROAD TO ELSEWHERE , has now been released. Eighteen stories are ready to take you away to that elusive place called ELSEWHERE. All you have to do is open the cover to be transported to where there are no schedules, no timetables, no agendas, no calendars, no clocks, and time does not matter. Click here to check out this great book! The winning authors who will be traveling with you are: Tricia Spencer LeeAnn Dickson Pauline A. Salvucci Terry Dickinson Dan Sullivan Hannah Greer Atossa Shafaie Bernard Hofler Devin Murphy Melissa Tantaquidgeon Zobel Mimi Sharpe Vickie Clasby Jean Tschohl Quinn Chandra Prater Kandice Powell Bill Westhead Kaye Sebastian Ronna L. Edelstein

Scribes Valley Publishing is pleased to announce the top 3 stories in our recent short story contest : FIRST PLACE Tricia Spencer – Empty Shoes SECOND PLACE Kandice Powell – Two, One THIRD PLACE Ronna L. Edelstein – Ma Bates Please join us in congratulating these authors on their success. You can read about them and the other fine finalists in the contest HERE .