Written a Poem Lately?

My co-writer, Nancy Naigle, and I had the pleasure last week of giving a presentation at the ODU Tri-Cities Center at the VEMA Conference. Lots of librarians were in attendance and we had fun coaxing poetry out of them in our From Timeline by Byline session. Turning nonfiction into poetry was the name of the game and a half dozen district librarians wowed us with their poetic prowess. The others wrote poetry but didn't share them orally.

I enjoyed attending some other sessions, listening to Bill Wellington, a storyteller and folk music singer, hearing a librarian talk about working with students who knit to contribute to society and listening to Sue Kimmel talk about the LUCY multicultural literature list, maintained by an organization at ODU.

The barbecue we ate at lunch was phenomenal and the keynote speaker was Sue Corbett, an author. A lot of raffle gifts were given away and I was lucky enough to win a cookbook, published by the VEMA organization. I can't wait to try some of the recipes. I'm looking forward to the next conference in the fall.

inkBLOT review at Books with Bite

As I started this book I was intrigued with the concept of Inkblot. I always tried to read them and I always see something different than most. Or most of the time I don't see what others see. IDK. I like the way the author entwined the Inkblot with crimes. I took quite a few psychology classes and learned loads about criminals and their characters traits. This book is great in creating high tension and a great mystery to solve.

What I liked most about this book is the great mystery that the reader get to follow along. We have a the main character Ronnie who has dedicated his life in Inkblot. He has a great online survey to find out your personality traits,character, etc. I liked that the main character Ronnie is very mature. Her has been through a lot and knows where he is going. He has very few friends which sets up for him being naive. I liked that as well. The author did a great job in setting the plot up simple and not too confusing for the reader.

The main thing I like is the whole mystery of the murders being committed. As I read the book, I like that Ronnie fell in the rabbit hole. It gave the reader a nice chase in seeing the main character struggle. What I also liked is seeing Ronnie's best friend come to his rescue.

The love interest in this book played out the way I expected it and enjoyed it. I liked seeing Ronnie realize that his true love was right before his eyes. And I'm glad that even with all of this trouble, Ronnie finally made some good choices.

Overall this is a great book with lots of mystery, adventure and a psycho on the loose.

I give it 4 BITES! (a review posted by the reviewer at Books with Bite)

Highlights from the Killer Nashville, Suspense Writers' Conference

Whether you were a writer or a reader, the Killer Nashville suspense writing conference was the place to be. From forensics experts to advice from debut authors, there was much to be learned and a lot of networking going on. Founded by film producer, Clay Stafford, the event is growing in popularity and attendance.

Arriving at the awesome Hutton Hotel in Nashville, there was a wine tasting and a great way to start networking. inkBLOT co-writer Nancy Naigle and I quickly got to make some new friends and set the tone for the rest of the weekend. Friday was much awaited, as we had in our hands a long schedule of events and classes.

Friday morning, Dr. Bill Bass, forensics pathologist and founder of The Body Farm, gave a far from toxic talk on skulls and bones. At one point, holding a skull laced with a knitting needle, he described the source of bullet holes in the self made skull-kabob. “Was this a homicide or a suicide?” was a question he posed the attendees.

Stretching the mind further was a crime scene and a clue finding contest, explained by Mike Breedlove, from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. Crime solvers and sleuths jotted down notes and did their best to solve the crime.

Among the most notable authors present were Don and Renee Bain, collaborators on the Murder She Wrote books. Don later wowed the crowd playing drums with the Killer Nashville Coffin Bangers band on Saturday night. You rock Don!
Marco Conelli was a pleasure to meet and talk beside on the Writing for Young Adults panel. His Matthew Livingston book won the Silver Falchion award. Way to go Marco! I missed his session on being an undercover officer and look forward to hearing the recording.

Workshop panels covered such topics as POV, public speaking, marketing, promo, writing sex scenes (woo hoo) and cozy mysteries. It was hard to choose workshops because there were so many good ones. The How to Plan an Author Event with Media Appeal was informative and fun. Other workshops included creating mood and atmosphere, pitching, writing young adult and info about contracts. I had the pleasure of learning more about making podcasts from the Library Police. The Mood and Atmosphere panel was enlightening and debut author Tracy March and other panelists gave good ideas on making a setting set the tone in a scene. One idea I took away was “The writer writes fifty percent and the reader writes the other fifty percent.”

I attended the panel on how crime literature can be a force for good. After all, justice does prevail, right? And speaking of crime, there was a lot of instruction on how law enforcement handles criminals. Interrogation techniques was one of the areas covered. A “No Body” Cases class showed how much of a challenge it can be when there is a missing person case. These cases can be opened years later when they are considered a cold case. Sgt. Pat Postiglione, Metro Nashville Homicide Detective shed light on this subject.

If you wanted to learn how to promote your book without spending a ton of money, the Publicity and Promotion for Writers with Little or no Budget class was the go to place. According to one of the organizers, Beth Terrell, most authors wanted to be on this panel.

All this learning and networking was coupled with festivity. There was a Mystery Writers of America party as well as a Sisters in Crime party. My favorite gathering was the Saturday night party featuring those Killer Nashville Coffin Bangers and one of the original members of the Grassroots. Awesome! The Electric Slide brought folks to the dance floor and I was soon dancing, along with Clay Stafford, Robert Dugoni and others. What a fun time!

Agent Jeff Kleinman and more panel notables lent their insight on the future of publishing. This was followed by a two hour class on writing, given by Robert Dugoni, one of the most memorable learning sessions of the event. He packed more great instruction on novel writing in those two hours than you can imagine.
This was a fantastic conference and I hope to attend again next year.

inkBLOT Bookmark Gets First Place at Lori Foster Author Get Together

Yay! Nancy Naigle and I were excited when our cute bookmarks for inkBLOT (our YA... well, actually crossover suspense novel) got a lot of attention and won first place at the Lori Foster Author Get Together last weekend. Can't wait for inkBLOT to get published now. It's right around the corner. We'll keep you posted.

BEA Excitement and Sweet Tea and Secrets

My wonderful friend and co-writer, Nancy Naigle, recently went to the BEA Conference in New York where she was treated to a lot of great workshops. She also was at the Book Expo where her new novel, Sweet Tea and Secrets was showcased. Woo hoo, way to go Nancy! I have a new widget posted from Amazon where her book is shown. I love the front cover. Every time I look at it, I want to grab a glass of iced tea! Just finished reading Sweet Tea and Secrets and I totally loved this book! You've got to read it! It's packed with emotion, suspense and all around Southern charm. If you're not from the South, you'll want to be... :.) Lose yourself in the pages of this wonderful page turning tome of love, secrets and treasures.

Paul D Camp Community College's Third Annual Literary Festival - Big Success

Besides music and visual stimuli, nothing inspires my Muse like hearing other authors read their work. I was blessed to once again be part of Paul D. Camp Community College's Third Annual Literary Festival. Emceed by poet and orator Nathan Richardson, it was well planned and organized by Professor and Literary Club Sponsor Ronette Jacobs and everyone on the staff of the literary club. Harriette Arrington, Dean of Academic Programs, engaged the children in another room with her storytelling. Paul D. Camp Community College President Paul Conco did some wonderful storytelling.

Author Annette Montgomery shared her book of history on African Americans in Suffolk. Lots of recognizable landmarks in the photos. Reginald Johns, a poet and motivational speaker, wowed the crowd with his words. I bought a hardback book of his, Love is Life's Lesson. It combines art and poetry. Love it!

As always, Nathan Richardson and Synnika Lofton delivered mighty words with just the right touch. I shared poetry from my newest book, Poetic Dreamer. One of the poems I shared is titled, Go Paint Yourself. In this poem, I imagine coming up behind Norman Rockwell as he paints his Triple Self Portrait. In my hand, I hold an ice cream cone as I await his reaction as he paints. My last comment in the poem as though he were speaking himself- "Just call me Norman Rocky Road."

The Artwork of Lowell Boileau and My Poetry in Poetic Dreamer

I admired the artwork of Lowell Boileau and felt moved to write a poem about his artwork, Riverbend. Here is the resulting poem beside his art. He's a great artist from Michigan. This is the first poem in my new poetry book, Poetic Dreamer. http://bit.ly/i8JtYH See more of his artwork at www.lowellboileau.com www.phyllisjohnson.net

Twelve Year Old Loves Being Frank with Anne

http://www.beingfrankwithanne.com Today I wanted to share one of the highlights of my day. I got a phone call from someone in Texas. Many times when I see a call coming in when I'm not expecting one from another state, I make the assumption that it's a solicitor. Today however, I answered the phone and to my delight, it was a twelve year old girl from Texas calling me about my book, Being Frank with Anne. A Holocaust Museum had purchased the book and this girl had read it and loved it. In the sixth grade, she had already read, The Diary of a Young Girl, and also enjoyed reading my poetic interpretation of the diary. It was a really gratifying phone call and I asked if she'd told her teacher about my book. She said that she was going to tell her about it soon. Thanks Miss Fisher for making my day!

Today's Blog at Poetica Magazine - J World Cafe

http://www.poeticamagazine.com/apps/blog/

Check out my blog at Poetica magazine today! Also see the talents of writers and artists from all over the world!

Have a great day!

My Spirit and Soul Website

Check out this website:

http//www.myspiritandsoul.com/

Here's a website that showcases musicians, singers and writers. I'm tickled to be included on the site with LeAnn Rimes and Alicia Keys. You can find information about all kinds of music from hip hop to country. Watch the slide show on the left on the home page starting with Kadrae, then Jordin Sparks, then read about some of my writing.

Young Adult Suspense Novel Underway

INKBLOT:: Consider this scenario. An award winning junior crime writer meets the teen-entrepeneur who owns INKBLOT, a popular quiz website. What transpires is a tangled web of crime and deception. Who's to blame? Chelsea Pressman, the attention hungry reporter or Ronnie Wright, the website owner whose business seems to have links to the victims.Follow the trail of intrigue, romance and suspense and find out who the real culprit is in Inkblot, first in the series of Headline Hunters, written by Johnson Naigle ~ (the collaborative writing of contest winning novelist Nancy Naigle and myself, Phyllis Johnson)