More Fun!
Thanks for coming back, friends. I’m happy to have shipped off prize packages to the first two Great Good Winners, and happy to have collected a couple of weeks-worth of Paul- and Ivy-related links and stories. Stuff That’s Great Good has been fun so far, at least for me.

Life or Art?
The whole idea of this blog series was to find and share things from Real Life that dovetail with Ivy and Paul’s quirks and interests, as revealed in my book The Great Good Summer. That means I’ve done posts on road trips, and space, and middle names, and even why only children should own dogs!

The Dreaded Dentist
But today, instead of going out to the interwebs to find you stories and links, I’ve got a personal tale to tell — and it’s one that would make Ivy both cringe and laugh.

One thing we find out in The Great Good Summer is that Ivy’s got terrible, cavity-prone teeth — and she’s not a fan of the dentist.Well, last week my younger daughter spent some time in the dentist chair herself — having her wisdom teeth pulled. It’s been a rough few days of pain, soft foods and chipmunk cheeks.

But I thought, to keep things fun for my pal Ivy, that I’d share a few of the best lines captured as my girl emerged from anesthesia:

“I just want to be free! That’s why I came to this country — to be free!”

“Did you know they took my feet? They took my feet. That’s why I don’t have feet anymore.”

“Why are you holding an orangutan? Why did you get an orangutan without me? I wanted to help pick him out! I wanted him to be named after me!” (This one got particularly funny after my husband said, “We did name him after you — we named him Willa!” and she said, “Well THAT’S not very creative.”)

It should also be noted that during most of this nonsequiturial discussion, she thought my husband was Obama. So. There you go, Ivy. Teeth.

Share and Win!
Don’t forget that everytime you like, comment, share or retweet one of these posts you’ll be entered into my weekly prize drawing! So go to it, and thanks… #greatgoodsummer

Ta-Da!
Last week I was slightly skimpy on the posts but you all were still enthusiastic with your likes and shares and re-tweets and what not. And for that, I thank you! So I put all of your names back in the bowl and…

Ta-da! This week’s winner is Doug Marshall! Congratulations, Doug. There’s a great good care package coming your way just as soon as get your snail mail address!

There’s More
Never fear — I’ve still got a few more links to share and prizes to pick. My Stuff That’s Great Good series will continue this week and next. Think of it as my way of dragging out summer as long as humanly possible!

Characters are People Too
Writing a novel takes a long time. Or at least it takes me a long time! So by the end of it all, you can grow kind of attached to the characters. In my case, I kind of feel like the main characters in THE GREAT GOOD SUMMER are my own kids or something. And, well, I just miss them. I’m constantly seeing stuff that they’d like or that would interest them. I want to tell them about this or that, and then I remember — darn — they’re just characters. Or are they?

This blog series, Stuff That’s Great Good, is my way of keeping Ivy and Paul alive and well, in my heart and on the interwebs!

Invading Astronauts
Ya’ll know by now that Paul is really into space. As in, obsessed. He wanted to be one of the astronauts to fly the Space Shuttle someday — until he heard that the Space Shuttle program was shutting down.

So imagine his thrill if he heard about all this super fun astronaut enthusiasm happening in Seattle! I’ve gotta say, I think it would inspire him — and his sidekick Ivy — to take another road trip.

Share and Win!
I’ll be doing another prize drawing sometime between now and Monday. To be entered, simply comment, share, retweet, whatever — here, on facebook or via Twitter. #greatgoodsummer And thanks!

Back At It!
This week has included a wisdom teeth extraction for one daughter, a nearly-botched airline trip for another daughter, some lost keys, some spoiled milk. You know the drill. Lucky for me, it’s also included the launch of a new picture book (IN THE CANYON, illustrated by the most-amazing Ashley Wolff) and my wedding anniversary (today!). But all that aside, I don’t want you to think I’ve forgotten about Ivy and Paul and the Stuff That’s Great Good series!

Dog Days
In fact, I was thinking of Ivy when I was writing the previous paragraph. I was thinking, Life. What a thing. And then I was thinking, Good thing I’ve got my dog. Because, y’know, he’s kind of what keeps me from crazy during weeks like these. And keeps me from lonely. And keeps me from lazy. It’s a lot of responsibility but he steps up every time.

But Ivy Green, my heroine in THE GREAT GOOD SUMMER doesn’t have a dog. She wants one. She really wants one. She actually says, “Personally, I think if you’re an only child, you should automatically be issued a dog when you’re born, as a consolation prize…”

So Ivy, these stories are for you.
(And I wish I could really get you a dog!)

Dogs and Only Children in India
12 Reasons to Get a Dog
Dogs: The Only Sibling a Child Needs
Pinterest Pets

Share and Win!
Remember, I do a prize drawing each week. So like, comment or share to be entered to win a copy of THE GREAT GOOD SUMMER and some other treats. And thanks! #greatgoodsummer

Welcome Back!
I was so glad to announce our Week One Winner yesterday — congratulations, Barbara Moon! And now today we’ll get back at it. This new blog series is all about looking at things that would intrigue Ivy Green and Paul Dobbs — the main characters of my new middlegrade novel, THE GREAT GOOD SUMMER.

Storytime — Where???
So far I’ve talked about things that Paul would get psyched about (all space-related) and things that Ivy would be into (discussions of road trips, journaling and middle names — she’s a little more of a rennaissance gal than Paul ). But today I’m sharing something that both Paul and Ivy would be over the moon about that. (Didja see how I did that? A space pun?)

But seriously. This cool, cool thing combines space (which Paul loves) and literature (which Ivy loves) and IDEAS, which it turns out they’re both pretty good at. The Global Space Education Foundation is currently developing and piloting a Story Time From Space! As in, astronauts reading stories from way up in the International Space Station that us earthlings can listen to way down here. Whoa, right? Check it out here!

Share and Win!
And don’t forget that there will be a prize drawing each week, that will include a copy of the book and a few other surprises. Simply like, comment, share, retweet or, well, etc. to be entered! And thanks! #greatgoodsummer

And We Have a Winner!
Thank you all for your enthusiasm last week as I kicked off this new blog series. It was so much fun to share so many Paul- and Ivy-ish details and delights with you. And since so many of you liked, shared, commented and re-tweeted, we had a list of 57 folks to pick from in a very scientific slips-of-paper-in-a-mixing-bowl kind of drawing.

And the winner of this week’s prize is…

Barbara Moon!
(Barbara — when you see this, will you reach out to me via IM or email with your address?)
Barbara wins a signed copy of THE GREAT GOOD SUMMER and a little extra treat or two! Congrats, Barbara.

But That’s Not All!
Last week was just the beginning. I’m going to continue with this blog series for a few more weeks, starting later today, and there will be three more chances to win. So don’t give up, folks. Same rules as before — like, comment, share or retweet and you’re entered. Many thanks, and think big!

Wrapping Up Week One
Ooooo, this has been a fun week! I’ve loved sharing all the bits and bobs I’ve collected about space travel, and bus travel, and middle names — all things that would really matter to the characters from my middle grade novel, THE GREAT GOOD SUMMER.

Reboot the Suit!
Today I’m sharing something a little bit different — a link to a Kickstarter campaign! This a special Kickstarter — it’s about conserving and digitizing and exhibiting Neil Armstrong and Alan Shepard’s spacesuits!

What my character Paul Dobbs wouldn’t do to get a load of these suits! Or even one of the rewards, like “a boot print from the Apollo 11 mission on a mega-attractive Cling-On Decal.” Maybe we can go ahead and donate since Paul really can’t. 🙂

Share and Win!
Please like, comment or share — here, on facebook, or on Twitter (#greatgoodsummer) — to be entered in a weekly drawing for a copy of the book and a lucky strike extra or two. The first drawing is this Sunday, August 16 so toss your name in now! And thanks!

Day Four
Thanks for stopping by, friends! If you visited earlier this week, you know that I’ve started a new blog series called Stuff That’s Great Good. The whole point is to share news and links to things that would mean something to Ivy Green and Paul Dobbs, the main characters of my book The Great Good Summer.

What’s In a Name?
So far I’ve shared stories of journeys — be they by bus or by spaceship — but today I found something that would’ve meant a lot to Ivy long before her mama disappeared, long before she set off on her own great good adventure.

One of Ivy’s old sorrows (we’ve all got them, I think) is that she wasn’t given a middle name when she was born. Her parents have their reasons, but that does nothing to assuage Ivy’s feelings of inadequacy and deficiency. She’s ached for a middle name her whole life, and spends part of The Great Good Summer looking for one.

And now, here comes someone called The Name Lady who agrees with her! Nothing like a good dose of validation to make a girl’s day.

It turns out that lots of folks have thoughts on middle names:
Here’s the BBC…
And the folks at Mental Floss…
And The Daily Mail…

Ivy would be so relieved to find out she’s not alone!

Share and Win!
Share or comment on any of my Stuff That’s Great Good posts, here or on twitter or facebook using the hashtag #greatgoodsummer, and you’ll be automatically entered into a weekly drawing for a free copy of the book and who knows what else? Some fun little Paul-and-Ivy related things! Good luck! And thanks….

Active Denial
One of the things that is most fun about writing a novel is really getting to know the characters as people. And one of the hardest things about finishing is giving them up, releasing them to the pages of the book and moving on.

So this blog series is sort of my form of Active Denial. I can carry on thinking of Ivy Green and Paul Dobbs as living, breathing 12-year-olds and this world we live in is their oyster.

Kinda Cool, Kinda Creepy
Yesterday I shared some links to Greyhound and road trip-related articles because I just know that Ivy caught the travel bug during her GREAT GOOD SUMMER. But today we’re heading back up into space. Because would Paul think that news from Mars was cool, or what?

This particular news is actually kind of cool, but kind of creepy too. I think you’ll agree.

Share and Win!
To learn more about Ivy and Paul than just the stuff I’m sharing on my blog this month, enter to win THE GREAT GOOD SUMMER (plus an extra treat or two)! Simply share this post on twitter using the hashtag #greatgoodsummer, leave a comment here on the blog, or leave a comment on my facebook page. And thanks!

Welcome Back!
Hey friends — Thanks for your great response to yesterday’s kick-off of my new blog series: Stuff That’s Great Good. I’m excited to spend the next few weeks sharing some of the cool, creepy, weird and wacky stuff in the real world that I know my fictional characters would dig — and I hope you will too!

Stuff That’s Great Good
We started off with Paul — the pal and co-conspirator of my book’s narrator, Ivy Green. Paul is a science kid and hopes to be an astronaut someday. Ivy, on the other hand, considers herself more a girl of ideas than a girl of action. Still, with Paul’s nudging, the two of them take off on a brave but risky adventure. What she learns along the way is that she’s made of tougher stuff than she’d imagined.

Ivy’s only twelve in THE GREAT GOOD SUMMER, and by the end of the book she’s headed back to the small (fictional) town she grew up in, but somehow I imagine that the road is going to call her name from now on.

I’ll bet she’d love to take a trip like this with her mama and daddy on a Greyhound bus. And once she gets her driver’s license in a few years, maybe she’d be up for the Old Spanish Trail, the ultimate in blue highway (or backwoods or bike trail) adventures!

I hope if she goes for it, she’ll write about it….

Share and Win!
(To join Ivy and Paul on their original adventure, enter to win THE GREAT GOOD SUMMER (plus an extra treat or two)! Simply share this post on twitter using the hashtag #greatgoodsummer, leave a comment here on the blog, or leave a comment on my facebook page!)