The Scribblers Writing Group

Sunday, April 3, 2016

April 2016 Issue of

The Scribblers Newsletter

Welcome to the April 2016 issue of The Scribblers Writing Group Newsletter.

I apologize for not having sent a newsletter recently. I was having some health problems which prevented my writing them. But things are going well and I should be sending the newsletter every month or two.

In this issue we have writing prompts, a link to the web site of a local author, Sherry V. Ostroff and a synopsis of her new book, The Lucky One. Also a look at legendary author, James A. Michener.

Writing Prompts

1. Jim's wallet was missing. He had it when he paid for dinner in the hotel's dining room last night. The only person he had any contact with after dinner was Ken, his best friend. He couldn't believe Ken would lift his wallet, but he was going to find out who had taken it if he had to extend this trip another week.

2. Nancy was Mary's favorite niece and they had always been very close. However, since Nancy's graduation party, Nancy not only wouldn't speak to Mary, but she was circulating untrue rumors about her.

3. Jenna's dog, Buddy, raced out the door and down the street. Jenna knew Buddy would get into some sort of trouble if she didn't catch her. She took off running down the street. She was a runner and was catching up to the dog when suddenly her right foot stopped working.

Sherry V. Ostroff, Local Author

The Lucky One

My mother, Ita, has been deceased for almost 20 years, but recently we have been working side-by-side writing her memoirs.

Ita was born in the wrong place at the wrong time. The place was the former Pale of Settlement which was a large swath of land in western Russia where Jews were forced to live for centuries. The year was 1918 and Russia was in the midst of two revolutions. The first occurred with the abdication of the last tsar of Russia culminating in his execution. The second was the bloody civil war that ensued for control of the country. Ita was caught in the middle during this time of great political and social upheaval. Wave after wave of murderous anti-Jewish riots, or pogroms, descended upon Jewish shtetls, and the only chance for her survival was to escape. Escape was not easy. In fact, it was deadly. In her own words, paired with the historical and cultural background information, Ita described her privileged life in Russia, the bloody pogroms, and her harrowing escape. Each roadblock Ita experienced, including a new country that did not want her, she faced with resolve and proved why she was, indeed, the lucky one.

Sherry V. Ostroff earned a Bachelor’s in education from Temple University and a Master’s in history from Millersville University. She is now retired from teaching from the School District of Lancaster. She happily devotes her time to her writing, her family, including two grandsons, and traveling around the world. She lives with her high school sweetheart in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Ostroff has just completed her first book, The Lucky One. It is currently offered on Kindle and is now available as a book from Amazon. She is currently working on two other writing projects.

Sherry is available for talks and presentations. Her contact information is below:

Sherry V. Ostroff
717-572-7703

Website - sherryvostroff.com

Facebook – Sherry V. Ostroff

Email – svostroff528@gmail.com

A Look at James A. Michener

James Albert Michener was an American author of more than 40 books, the majority of which were fictional, lengthy family sagas covering the lives of many generations in particular geographic locales and incorporating solid history.

Born: February 3, 1907, Doylestown, PA
Died: October 16, 1997, Austin, TX
Movies and TV shows: Sayonara, The Bridges at Toko-Ri, Hawaii, More
Spouse: Mari Yoriko Sabusawa (m. 1955–1994), Vange Nord (m. 1948–1955), Patti Koon (m. 1935–1948)

Michener wrote that he did not know who his parents were or exactly when and where he was born. He was raised a Quaker by an adoptive mother, Mabel Michener, in Doylestown, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and some have argued that Mabel was in fact his biological mother.

He graduated summa cum laude from Swarthmore College in 1929. His writing career began during World War II, during which, as a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy, he was assigned to the South Pacific Ocean as a naval historian. His notes and impressions were later turned into Tales Of the South Pacific, his first book, which in turn was the basis for the musical South Pacific.

On January 10, 1977, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Gerald R. Ford.

The majority of his books were fictional, lengthy family sagas covering the lives of many generations in particular geographic locales and incorporating solid history. Michener was known for the popularity of his works; he had numerous bestsellers and works selected for Book of the Month Club. He was also known for his meticulous research behind the books.

Michener's novels include Tales of the South Pacific for which he won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1948, Hawaii, The Drifters, Centennial, The Source, The Fires of Spring, Chesapeake, Caribbean, Caravans, Alaska, Texas and Poland. His non-fiction works include Iberia, about his travels in Spain and Portugal; his memoir titled The World Is My Home, and Sports in America. Return to Paradise combines fictional short stories with Michener's factual descriptions of the Pacific areas where they take place.

In Micheners' final years, he and his wife lived in Austin, Texas, and they endowed the Michener Center for Writers at the University of Texas at Austin. The Center provides Michener Fellowship scholarships to students accepted to the university's MFA in Writing program.

Suffering from terminal kidney disease, in October 1997, Michener ended the daily dialysis treatment that had kept him alive for four years. He said he had accomplished what he wanted and did not want further physical complications. On October 16, 1997, he died of kidney failure, at age 90 Michener was cremated, and his ashes were placed next to those of his wife at Austin Memorial Park Cemetery in Austin, Texas.

Michener left most of his estate and book copyrights to Swarthmore College, where he earned his bachelor's degree. He had donated his papers to the University of Northern Colorado, where he earned his master's degree.

Michener quotes:

If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay home.

Character consists of what you do on the third and fourth tries.

I love writing. I love the swirl and swing of words as they tangle with human emotions.

And Finally...

We are always looking for articles and short stories to publish, as well as suggestions for the newsletter. Please send any ideas, stories, etc. to Colleen.

We'd love to see any writing contributions you'd like to make to The Scribblers.

If you no longer wish to receive this newsletter, please email Colleen with the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject line and we will remove you from our mailing list.

Friday, July 3, 2015

July 2015 Issue of

The Scribblers Newsletter

Welcome to the July issue of The Scribblers Writing Group Newsletter.

I apologize for not having sent a newsletter recently. I was having some health problems which prevented my writing them.

In this issue we have a link to a web site that offers free and low cost e-books, a few writing prompts, a look at Clive Custler, and tips on writing YA fiction.

July Writing Prompts

Each month we try to provide prompts for you to use to generate stories. Pick one or more and write 500 to 1,000 words using the prompt/s as the basis of your story. Above all, have fun with it.

1. With a 2 week vacation in St. Kits just days away, Matt's boss called him into his office.

2. Unable to sleep, Barb looked out of her bedroom window just in time to see...

Free and Low Cost Kindle E-Books

Thanks to a friend, I have a web site to share that offers low cost and free Kindle e-books. It's called bookbub.com If you sign up, you will receive an email 7 days a week offering a number of books. Several (usually 3 or 4) of them will be free. The rest are ususally priced between $0.99 and $2.99.

Below each listing, there is a 'get deal' button which, when you click it, will take you to Amazon.com where you can then purchase the book. The free books will show a price of 0.00.

At the time you join Bookbub you will be shown a listing of all the genres of available books and you will be able to choose which categories you are interested in.

I have to say that I've thoroughly enjoyed Bookbub. Before I joined, I had 198 books in my Kindle. I hate to admit this, but now I have 470.

I have found several authors whose books I really love and very, very few that I dislike, so I thought I'd pass it on. There are no hidden fees and, of course, you can cancel at any time.

A Look at Clive Custler

per information gotten from Amazon.com

Clive Cussler began writing novels in 1965 and published his first work featuring his continuous series hero, Dirk Pitt, in 1973.

His first non-fiction, The Sea Hunters, was released in 1996. The Board of Governors of the Maritime College, State University of New York, considered The Sea Hunters in lieu of a Ph.D. thesis and awarded Cussler a Doctor of Letters degree in May, 1997. It was the first time since the College was founded in 1874 that such a degree was bestowed.

Cussler is an internationally recognized authority on shipwrecks and the founder of the National Underwater and Marine Agency, a non-profit organization that dedicates itself to preserving American maritime and naval history.

He and his crew of marine experts and NUMA volunteers have discovered more than 60 historically significant underwater wreck sites including the first submarine to sink a ship in battle, the Confederacy's Hunley, and its victim, the Union's Housatonic, the U-boat that sank the Lusitania; the Cumberland, which was sunk by the famous ironclad, Merrimack; the renowned Confederate raider Florida; the Navy airship, Akron, the Republic of Texas Navy warship, Zavala, found under a parking lot in Galveston, and the Carpathia, which sank almost six years to-the-day after plucking Titanic's survivors from the sea.

In September, 1998, NUMA - which turns over all artifacts to state and Federal authorities, or donates them to museums and universities - launched its own web site for those wishing more information about maritime history or wishing to make donations to the organization.

In addition to being the Chairman of NUMA, Cussler is also a fellow in both the Explorers Club of New York and the Royal Geographic Society in London. He has been honored with the Lowell Thomas Award for outstanding underwater exploration.

Cussler's books have been published in more than 40 languages in more than 100 countries. His past international bestsellers include Pacific Vortex, Mediterranean Caper, Iceberg, Raise the Titanic, Vixen 03, Night Probe, Deep Six, Cyclops, Treasure, Dragon, Sahara, Inca Gold, Shock Wave, Flood Tide, Atlantis Found, Valhalla Rising, Trojan Odyssey, Black Wind, Treasure of Kahn and Arctic Drift (the last three with his son, Dirk Cussler) as well as The Chase; the nonfiction books The Sea Hunters, The Sea Hunters II and Clive Cussler and Dirk Pitt Revealed; the NUMA Files novels Serpent, Blue Gold, Fire Ice, White Death, Lost City, Polar Shift, The Navigator and Medusa (written with Paul Kemprecos); and the Oregon Files novels Sacred Stone and Golden Buddha (written with Craig Dirgo) and Dark Watch, Skeleton Coast, Plague Ship and Corsair (written with Jack Du Brul).

Clive Cussler lives in Arizona.

A Link to 10 Tips for Writing YA Fiction

Depending on which survey you use, between 55% and 77% of the YA books that are sold are purchased by adults. I'm not surprised by this as I am a fan of YA fiction.

I subscribe to the 'Now Novel' blog which gives writing tips and information all writers can use.

In May they published 'How to Write YA Fiction: 10 YA tips' which you can read here: There is a lot of good information in this article which will be helpful for any author of fiction as well as for YA fiction authors.

And Finally...

We are always looking for articles and short stories to publish, as well as suggestions for the newsletter. Please send any ideas, stories, etc. to Colleen.

We'd love to see any contributions you'd like to make to The Scribblers.

If you no longer wish to receive this newsletter, please email Colleen with the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject line and we will remove you from our mailing list.

Sunday, February 1, 2015

February 2015 Issue of

The Scribblers Newsletter

Happy Super Bowl Sunday to all of our football fans! The game starts in just a couple of hours, so cheer your favorite team on and break out the wings and chips and all of your favorite junk food and enjoy the game.

In this issue of The Scribblers newsletter, we have an original story by John Matthews and a few new writing prompts.

February Writing Prompts

Each month we try to provide prompts for you to use to generate stories. Pick one or more and write 500 to 1,000 words using the prompt/s as the basis of your story. Above all, have fun with it.

1. The guy at Better Buy talked me into getting a new phone to go along with my new plan.

2. My 18 year-old granddaughter, who I haven't seen since she was four, rang my doorbell.

3. Mac and Julie staggered through the door of the corner bar and into the old clunker parked at the curb.

Marley at the Furniture Gallery

by John Matthews

Marley banged against the screen door and Owen Wilson laughed at the cute puppy’s ineptitude. Then Marley backed up, took another run, and smashed through the screen, across the yard and into the neighbor’s pool to the surprise and horror of Jennifer Aniston.

“Marley and Me” was playing on a continuous loop on the 50 inch flat screen in the showroom of Olbum’s furniture store. More correctly, Olbum’s Home Furnishings Gallery.

Hank sat in a custom swivel rocker/recliner, watching, but not enjoying the movie. He’d been in the store over two hours and this was the second time he’d viewed the scene. The store people knew what they were doing, he thought. The movie was the perfect sales tool. A plot simple enough to be enjoyed even if details were missed. An attractive young couple, supposedly with limited funds, yet living in upscale comfort. A lovable dog that appealed to the women customers, who were the primary furniture decision makers, the equally cuddly Owen Wilson, who was also enough of a doofus not to seem a threat to the husbands, whose attention was diverted by the perfectly darling Jennifer Aniston. The ending was sad and melancholy but also hopeful and set just the right sympathetic feeling that made a buying decision easy.

Hank was feeling smug for noticing all these things, even as he tried to maintain his composure over the realization that he had been reeled in and landed without ever having taken the bait.

Hank and Corliss had walked into the store two hours ago. They were greeted by a smiling salesman who offered coffee, tea, or juice as though they were boarding an airplane, but did not ask if he could show them anything. He promptly disappeared from view. When a person walks into a furniture store, they can see where the chairs, sofas, and beds, are. If not, better to have them nose around on their own. Customers following a salesman’s back are less likely to notice carefully placed impulse items.

Hank knew they were here for a chair and within a few minutes, the unseen salesman would also know, without the need for any nosy questions. Hank trailed Corliss though a selection of easy chairs, each one bearing a clear “Manufacturer’s price” in black, and a “Sale price” of about half that amount, in red. Every piece in the store seemed to be on sale. The path through the chairs led them past models for which even the sale price was considerably above the limit Hank and Corliss had agreed on. The prices dropped reassuringly as they approached the rear of the store.

Each chair was placed so as to allow a customer to drop into it for a test sit, but the more expensive ones seemed placed to make sitting easier. The features which accounted for the price differences were undetectable. A good reason to ask a question of the salesman, who could then launch into his pitch without seeming pushy.

But Corliss and Hank kept their mouths shut until they reached a comfy grouping of two leather swivel-rocker-recliners before a coffee table facing the TV screen that now showed puppies and people frolicking on a beach. The invitation to sit was irresistible. The chairs seemed to almost rock themselves. Corliss knew the chairs would be well out of their price range, even though they were the only chairs on which the price tags were not glaringly evident. This caused her to turn her head just enough to bring the salesman out of hiding, ready to field her obvious question.

She tried to indicate that the chairs were not really what they wanted.

“These are very nice but I’m sure they are expensive and are probably only available in leather. Could you show us something available in other fabrics?”

“Oh, these are available in many coverings, and most of them are considerably less expensive than the leather,” said the salesman. He reached over his shoulder and plopped a bundle of several hundred fabric samples on the glass top of the table.

With this, an exchange about prices was unavoidable. Even though the chairs were not on sale, Olbum’s of course offered them at a price considerably below the manufacturer’s list. Corliss picked a couple samples after flipping slowly through the bundle. The salesman disappeared to do a price check. On the screen, Owen soothed and comforted an ailing Marley. The salesman returned with a figure only about one and one half times Hank and Corliss’s absolute maximum.

A funny thing about choices. Once a person started talking about fabric, color, finish, it was as though the decision to buy had already been made. These were just details. The salesman’s language confirmed this assumption. “You will be getting this with our unconditional 30 day guarantee.”

Corliss looked around at the scene in which she found herself. They had come with the idea of replacing one of the two aging chairs in their own TV room. But when she looked at the two chairs in which they were now sitting and tried to imagine their own room with one of the chairs and one of the old ones, she couldn’t help asking, “You couldn’t offer a greater discount if we bought two?”

This brought Hank abruptly out of the reverie caused by the view of the snow gently falling on Owen and Jennifer’s pleasant home. Marley had passed away. As Owen comforted Jennifer, Hank felt a need to do the same to Corliss. They had discussed the importance of always setting limits when shopping for expensive items. But beyond their discussions, he knew what limits really meant. Experience had taught that limits were always exceeded. He’d learned that disclosing a limit to a salesman resulted in being shown items that were “only slightly over” that limit. He had learned to keep in the back of his mind another figure, that of the total net worth they were likely to attain in their lifetimes. That limit which, if exceeded, would send them into bankruptcy, poverty, and homelessness. Anything less than this amount was something he was not allowed to reject out of hand.

While figures swarmed in his head, Corliss and the salesman were becoming old friends. Even though a quantity discount was not available, Corliss wanted Scotchguard protection for the fabric. The salesman said they did not offer Scotchguard but instead another treatment with a new environmentally safe product. They were so anxious to promote it he would throw in the treatment for no charge. This seemed reasonable for what was probably a spray from an aerosol can , if that.

It was a quick glance from Corliss, but her expression told Hank argument was now hopeless. He nodded his head and the deal was made.

But the salesman wasn’t done. “Now this floor model has the rubbed oak base. The standard model comes with a black metal base. If you’d like I can check on the prices of the wood bases. They come in several finishes.”

“Hold on!” said Hank. “We’ve been looking at this chair.” He pointed at the floor model in which Corliss was sitting. “Now you’re telling us that this model costs more than we’ve been talking about. Of course the wood base is much nicer than the metal one. But I think you should sell us the model we looked at, at the price we agreed on.”

This was the first note of harshness in the discussion. It flustered the salesman momentarily, but the look of horror on Corliss’ face indicated she feared they were about to be kicked out of the store.

The salesman recovered and explained that the wooden bases naturally added considerably to the value of the chair.

“I’m sure they do,” said Hank. “But that’s the chair we looked at and talked about. I don’t believe you intentionally misrepresented the product.” He tried to make it clear from his tone that that was exactly what he thought the salesman had done.

“I’ll have to talk with my manager.”

Hank and Corliss had also discussed the proper procedure during a salesman’s famous “talk with my manager.” Remain absolutely silent. They were being watched and probably listened to. They knew the wait would be long enough to allow them to brood over how disappointed they would be not to get the chairs that Corliss had already started to think of as hers.

“You scared me, Honey,“ was all she said. Was this an accusation or a compliment?

Hank realized one error he’d made. He’d allowed the salesman to depart without any idea of the actual price of the wood bases.

Sure enough. He returned conciliatory, apologetic, and upbeat. “My manager says since it was my error not to mention the cost of the bases sooner, he is willing to split the difference on the cost of the bases for the two chairs. They are normally $120 each, but they will be included at half that.”

Hank tried to convey with a stern look that he understood the price may have been doubled before the discount was applied. He was tempted to ask if they bought only one chair, would the entire cost be deducted. Good sense prevailed. He had won a small point, even if only in his own mind and at no cost to the store. It was his turn to make peace, if only for the sake of Corliss’ peace of mind, the value of which was priceless.

“Sorry if I sounded upset there, It’s just that we’ve had some recent experiences where costs seemed to change after we’d made a deal.” This was absolutely true.

“My fault, entirely,” said the salesman. “I’ll draw up the sales slip. I’ll note the free manufacturer recommended stain protection. If you want local delivery, the charge is $59. Our men will place the chairs and even do some moving around of other furniture if necessary.”

“That’s $59 total, not for each chair, right?” said Hank. He was getting tired holding this stern gaze.

The salesman paused just long enough to give the impression that he was giving in to Hank’s hardnosed bargaining. “Of course. Some stores charge per piece. The Gallery does not.”

Hank and Corliss left the store with mixed feelings. Owen and Jennifer were mourning the miscarriage of their first child (for the second time that morning.) Hank and Corliss had spent only three times their absolute limit, but they had twice as many chairs as they came for.

It was only much later that Hank started to mourn the loss of his threadbare JCPenney corduroy recliner. Its legs had formed flat places on the carpet. They would be almost completely covered by the circular oiled oak base of a new chair.

The End

And Finally...

We are always looking for articles and short stories to publish, as well as suggestions for the newsletter. Please send any ideas, stories, etc. to Colleen. We'd love to see any contributions you'd like to make to The Scribblers.

If you no longer wish to receive this newsletter, please email Colleen with the word 'unsubscribe' in the subject line and we will remove you from our mailing list.

Thursday, January 1, 2015

January 2015 Issue of

The Scribblers Newsletter

Happy New Year and welcome to the January 2015 issue of The Scribblers. I apologize that, due to circumstances beyond my control, I was not able to publish the December issue. However, we can start fresh in this brand new year.

In this issue we have new writing prompts, the Washington Posts 10 best books of 2014, and the New York Times 20 fiction bestsellers of 2014.

Since we've never done an issue about writing for kids, we have a list of free resources to help you tailor your stories for children and a short, short story that was my contest entry to a children's writer's e-zine a few years ago.

Please feel free to submit your writing for publication in the newsletter. All you have to do is email it to Colleen. It can be fiction, non-fiction, short story, poetry, essay, memoir, etc. We'd be happy to include it in the next issue. And if there is something you'd like to see in the newsletter, email me at the same address and we'll do our best to accommodate you.

January Writing Prompts

Each month we try to provide prompts for you to use to generate stories. Pick one or more and write 500 to 1,000 words using the prompt/s as the basis of your story. Above all, have fun with it.

1. Ignoring the advice of friends, a famous weather reporter gets married on a whim.

2. On vacation for the first time in years, an out-of-work writer is reunited with a long-lost twin.

3. While suffering a crisis of faith, a night watchman uncovers a hidden family secret.

The New York Times 20 fiction bestsellers of 2014.

1. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

2. Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline

3. The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

4. The Martian by Andy Weir

5. Dark Places by Gillian Flynn

6. Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn

7. Fifty Shades of Grey (Fifty Shades Trilogy #1) by E L James

8. The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

9. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

10. The Strange Library by Haruki Murakami

11. Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

12. Sycamore Row by John Grisham

13. Captivated by You (Crossfire Series #4) by Sylvia Day

14. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

15. The Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman

16. The First Phone Call from Heaven by Mitch Albom

17. The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks

18. What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty

19. The Best American Short Stories 2014 by Jennifer Egan

20. The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

The Secret Hallway

by Colleen Weikel

Some old lady came into my room tonight. She wasn’t even quiet. She made enough noise to wake the dead. Didn’t she see we were sleeping?

My friend Keyboard was spending the night, my first night in the new house. The house was old, but new to my family. We just moved in this morning.

When the old lady woke us up, we saw her go into my closet. She still hasn’t come out! So here we are, Keyboard and me, huddled under a blanket on my closet floor with just a tent shaped fold sticking up to look through and breathe through.

My name is Jackson Stone, but all my friends call me Stoney. Keyboard and me are only 10 years old, but pretty adventurous. So if someone is going to come into my bedroom and disappear in my closet, we’re going to find out who and why. And we’re staying here until she leaves, or my mom calls us for breakfast. Nothin makes me miss breakfast…or lunch… or, yeah, dinner.

Right now I wish my other buddy, Catfish, was here. Not that me and Keyboard are scared or anything. She’s a really, really old lady with a hunched back and a walking stick. Looks kind of like the witch in Snow White, but I’m not going to think about that right now.

I checked my watch. We’d been here about 15 minutes and we were bored. I threw off the blanket and grabbed my flashlight off the shelf and flipped it on. In the back of the closet was an opening. I can see it. Beyond the opening there was a long, narrow, dusty looking hallway. Keyboard and my dog, Baxter, followed me down the hallway.

Keyboard tugged at my shirt and whispered, “What do you think she’s doing?” He crept silently along the corridor.

“You got me! But we’re going to find out,” I said.

“Look over there,” I pointed to a shadow that was getting larger on the far wall, “what is that?”

“I d-don’t know, but we better HIDE!” He took a couple of steps forward and disappeared.

“Keyboard? Where’d you go?” I whispered, panicking. I knew the old lady had got him. She probably turned him into a potted plant or a garden gnome.

Just then a hand shot out from around a corner and grabbed my wrist. I knew the witch had me now.

She’d probably boil me in oil or bake me into a cookie or something. When I felt the hand on my arm shaking, I realized it was Keyboard how had grabbed me. He pulled me into a dark little room and we hid until we were sure the old lady wasn’t after us.

“Did you see that? I thought we were goners for sure,” Keyboard whispered.

“Me, too,” I played the flashlight beam around the room. We spotted a rickety little desk in the corner near the window. Above the desk hung a framed picture of Howdy Doody and Buffalo Bob with the Peanut Gallery in the background. Carved on the desktop were the initials VW. In the drawer a dead rubber band held a stack of report cards together. The student’s name was Vincent Weatherby. The dates were sequential from 1956 through 1968.

“Stoney, these are 1956 all the way to 1968!”

“Who the heck is Vincent Weatherby?” I mumbled.

“Tell you in a sec,” Keyboard pulled out his smart phone, pounding on the keyboard. “Aha!” he said, sounding like he’d just discovered fire or air or something.

“Hah?” I said. “What do you mean by aha?”

Sometimes Keyboard was overly dramatic and it worked on my nerves. This was one of those times.

“Ok. Vincent Weatherby, born and raised here in this house. Honor student through high school. Mother’s name Violet, father William. William died shortly after Vincent graduated. Violet still lives here? I don’t’ get it. This is your house.”

“Yeah, since this morning. Maybe the internet hasn’t caught up with me yet,”

I said, laughing. “Call Bill Gates and let him know I moved.”

Keyboard glanced out the window and called me over. The old lady was standing on what my mother calls a widow’s walk, holding a kerosene lantern and slowly turning in a circle.

“What’s she doing?” I asked

“Let me read the rest of this to you,” Keyboard said, turning back to his phone. “Vincent Weatherby disappeared in 1975 when the fishing boat he was working on capsized 5 miles from shore.”

“Wow! So it’s his mom shining that light hoping he’ll see it and come home?”

A shadow fell across the window. “Here she domes! Dive! Dive!” I whispered to Keyboard and slid under the desk.

Just as Keyboard dove in beside me the window opened and the old lady stepped through. She set the kerosene lamp on the desk and walked out of the room. We gave her a head start and followed her back to my bedroom and out of the closet.

She never looked back. She marched through the bedroom and down the stairs. I heard the kitchen door close softly and watched Mrs. Weatherby walk away.

“Are you gonna tell your folks?” Keyboard asked.

“Nah. She’s just an old lady who misses her son. Like our moms when we got lost in the woods last year.”

The End

Free Resources for Children's Writers

1. Rachelle Burk's RESOURCES for CHILDREN'S WRITERS:

http://resourcesforchildrenswriters.blogspot.com/

2. Aaron Shepard’s Kidwriting Page: http://www.aaronshep.com/kidwriter/

3. Write for Kids: http://writeforkids.org/

4. Deborah Freedman's Resources for Writers and Illustrators of Children's Books: http://www.deborahfreedman.net/information/resources-for-writers.html

5. Children's Writing Resources:

http://www.writerswrite.com/childrens/links.htm

6. Marisa Montes Sites for Teachers & Children's Writers Has a very good list of sites for Children's Writers: