Category Archives: Blog Challenge

Doing the NAIWE Summer Challenge 2011

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NAIWE Summer Challenge 2011It’s halfway through summer, and I’ve just decided what I want to do for the challenge. Remember, it’s a way to “get more done than you thought possible,” so I felt free to post a formidable list of books, rather than just the required three.

The three parts of the challenge are:

  1. Read three books that will stretch your mind and inspire your creative spirit.
  2. Finish one project that’s been nagging at you for longer than you care to admit.
  3. Brainstorm a new project that will bring you an additional stream of income, then take the first step to make it happen.

Read more about the challenge at the NewsWire blog.

I posted my reading list and projects at Do What Matters, Make it Pay, my blog for writers and creative entrepreneurs. It’s a fairly new blog created in response to increasing requests for practical, down-to-earth information on how to create multiple streams of income while keeping the life you love, so you may want to subscribe to it.

So . . . click here to read my response to the NAIWE Summer Challenge. The first book I’m reading is The Creative Entrepreneur: A DIY Visual Guidebook for Making Business Ideas Real by Lisa Sonora Beam.

I chose it because I’ve spent several years reading serious, heavy business books, and was looking for something a bit different. So far, Sonora Beam’s advice is spot on, and I’m enjoying the colorful, creative format. I think it will be a book I can recommend to other creative entrepreneurs. It certainly makes me want to pull out my art supplies and creatively refocus!

Where do you plan to start?

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Words Matter Week 2011 Blog Challenge Responses

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For the first year ever (I think), I’ve managed to post responses to each of the prompts. You can read them at my writing blog, Words Into Books. Words Matter Week 2011

There’s an amazing variety in the posts that answer the prompts, and I’ve enjoyed reading bloggers that are new to me. It’s not too late to jump into the challenge, and it’s a delight to think specifically of words and all that they mean. Enjoy!

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What I’m Doing For the NAIWE Challenge

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I had a few rough ideas of what I’d like to accomplish for the NAIWE 2010 Get it Done Summer Challenge. If you haven’t checked it out, the three parts of the Challenge are:

  1. Read three books that will stretch your mind and inspire your creative spirit.
  2. Finish one project that’s been nagging at you for longer than you care to admit.
  3. Brainstorm a new project that will bring you an additional stream of income, then take the first step to make it happen.

NAIWE 2010 Get it Done Summer Challenge

I read Sheri McConnell’s Smart Women Know Their Why (see review) for the first of my three books, and have a teetering stack from which I can choose the remaining two official Challenge books. This is the easiest part, because I know that before summer is over, I’ll have read quite a few more than three books. I schedule morning and evening reading times so that I can bracket each day in knowledge, inspiration, and sometimes, just plain fun.

The second element of the Challenge was to finish a nagging project. Read more…

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Killing Two Birds With One Stone: NAIWE Challenge Serendipity

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NAIWE 2010 Get it Done Summer Challenge

I had a few rough ideas of what I’d like to accomplish for the NAIWE 2010 Get it Done Summer Challenge. If you haven’t checked it out, the three parts of the Challenge are:

  1. Read three books that will stretch your mind and inspire your creative spirit.
  2. Finish one project that’s been nagging at you for longer than you care to admit.
  3. Brainstorm a new project that will bring you an additional stream of income, then take the first step to make it happen.

I read Sheri McConnell’s Smart Women Know Their Why (reviewed here) for the first of my three books, and have a teetering stack from which I can choose the remaining two official Challenge books. This is the easiest part, because I know that before summer is over, I’ll have read quite a few more than three books. I schedule morning and evening reading times so that I can bracket each day in knowledge, inspiration, and sometimes, just plain fun. Read more…

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National Picture Book Writing Week: May 1-7

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National Picture Book Writing Week 2010It’s officially NaPiBoWriWee (type that a dozen times!), and I’m enjoying the freedom to just write. Of course there are a million things I really ought to be doing–all the stuff that feeds the body, not the soul. But for this week, I’m trying to complete 7 picture book drafts in 7 days. I hope you’ll try it too!

You can read more about NaPiBoWriWee at Words Into Books, my writing blog. The next post here will be back to business, but for now, let’s just write!

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Google Wave- I Finally Got It (and Some Invitations to Share)

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But I’m not sure what I want to use it for (other than to tantalize friends who don’t have it yet–I’m not above a bit of crowing!). I’ve watched the introductory video, and have a few ideas. However, I need to poke around a bit more, as I have a few questions that need to be answered before I decide on the best use of Google Wave.

If I start a Wave, is it visible to all my contacts, or only the ones I select? The inability to direct conversations to a particular group or subset of contacts is one of the weaknesses of Facebook’s news feed, in my opinion, so if Wave addresses this– as it appears to, it would be helpful.

Can people invited to a Wave invite anyone else, or does the person who initiates the Wave have some control over who can participate? I’m specifically thinking of the possibility of using Wave to host regular follow-up Q&A sessions for my Book Workshops. I like the live/interactive feature, but these sessions would need to be limited to people who have already gone through one of the live or online Workshops and are in the process of writing their book.

I’d like to hear from other people who have been using Google Wave: What is the best, most interesting use you’ve found for it so far?

Finally, if you haven’t gotten an invitation and really, really need or want it, write a post on your blog telling why you must have Google Wave. Leave a comment here with a link to your post,  and I’ll pick up to five people and share my invitations (have to keep a couple for family and friends!).

Don’t miss NAIWE’s Annual Thanksgiving Membership Drive!
Use Coupon Code 9A4DEC0 to get $20 off dues when you join before November 30, 2009.

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Great Books Week- Tuesday- My Favorite Childhood Book

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First, I have to say that this is way too hard. One book? Books were my companions, friends, and greatest delight. Choosing one would be like choosing which of my children is my favorite. Not possible.

However, in the interest of being a cooperative community member, I’ll share the first favorite that I can remember. It’s a book I checked out of the library endlessly, and heard and read it so much that I pretty much had it memorized. It is Maurice Sendak’s “Where the Wild Things Are.”

I loved the monsters because they looked so funny and friendly and unmonsterlike. Somehow, I understood, even at that very young age that things that seemed like monsters weren’t always scary or unfriendly. It was comforting to me, and I just enjoyed each picture.

So… that’s my first favorite. I went on to love transformation stories of every type, from Cinderella to Under the Tuscan Sun.

Now, let the wild rumpus start!

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Great Books Week Blog Challenge- If I Could Have Only 7 Books…

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Monday: If I were stranded alone on a deserted island with only seven books to read over the next few years, I would like to have…I’ve spent a remarkable amount of time trying to think how I’d get the maximum number of words in just seven books, but really, it comes down to content. Who and what would I want to spend my time with?Here is my list:

  1. The NIV Study Bible
  2. The Complete Works of Shakespeare (Norton or other annotated edition)
  3. The Complete Works of C.S. Lewis
  4. A History of the English-Speaking People by Winston Churchill
  5. An Enormous Anthology of English-Language Poetry
  6. A Comprehensive Annotated Atlas of the World (including star charts)
  7. An Encyclopedia of Art (Gardner’s or similar– the most comprehensive available, including music)

In addition, I’d like an enormous trunk full of blank paper and pens and other art supplies. If Robinson Crusoe could snag all the useful stuff he was able to salvage, I’m sure I’d be equally blessed!I’ve enjoyed the exercise, and look forward to reading your choices.

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