Birthdays: Sholem Aleichem (1859), John Jay Chapman (1862), Theodore Geisel (Dr. Seuss) (1904), David Goods (1917), Tom Wolfe (1931), Leo Dillon (1933), John Irving (1942), Peter Straub (1943)
Sholem Aleichem is the pen name of Solomon Rabinovich whose “Tevye the Milkman” stories were the basis for “Fiddler on the Roof”
Theodore Geisel is better known as Dr. Seuss.
Leo Dillon was a Caldecott winner in 1976 and 1977. His best known work is “Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears”
Quote: “I’ve always preferred writing in longhand. I’ve always written first drafts in longhand…I write very quickly; I rewrite very slowly. It takes me nearly as long to rewrite a book as it does to get the first draft.” – John Irving
Tip: Start a spreadsheet, one page for each manuscript you have, and track who it is sent to, when, the response, etc.
Jumpstart: A “Tom Swiftie” is a pun-like adverbial tag and should not be used except when you want to have a bit of fun, but remember that they will probably be edited out at the end. Example: “We need a new light,” he said darkly. Or: I can’t find the bananas,” Tom said fruitlessly. Write a short scene where you use as many Swiftie’s as possible.
Sparkling Book Reviews 