Birthdays: Edward Gibbon (1737), Mary Wollstonecraft (1759), Jessie Redmon Fauset (1882), Ludwig Bemelmans (1898), Cecil Day Lewis (1904), Irving Adler (1913), Tim LeHaye (1926), Jean Valentine (1934), John Burningham (1936), Ruth Glick (1942), August Wilson (1945), Nancy Shaw (1946), Rachel Caine (1962)

Jean Valentine was a 2004 National Book Award winner for her poetry.

Ruth Glick wrote novels under the name Rebecca York.

Quote: “Some people work better to go ‘seat of the pants’ … and some won’t start a road trip without a map. I’m a bit of both … I like a road map, but I’m not averse to taking interesting side roads too. I usually have a loose outline.” – Rachel Caine

Tip: Go over your book and find the words “it”, “thing”, and rewrite with stronger verbiage where possible. Instead of “I can’t do it today.” Try: “I can’t go on a picnic today.” “It” is too vague. You want to be more specific in your writing.

Extra note: I have been reading a lot of books lately for review that could definitely use a look by a good editor or proofreader. So many head-hopping POVs, mixed tenses, misused words and more. Please…if you are a writer, get a good editor or proofreader to go over your work. You think people won’t notice? We do.