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I didn't really know what to post about today, so I thought I would just post a few writing prompts.
What is a writing prompt? (Believe it or not, I have actually heard that question a few times.) A writing prompt is an idea to get you started writing. My favorite prompts are for books and stories, but you can find writing prompts for nearly anything. If you use them for writing stories, you can find them in just about every genre - fantasy, science fiction, romance, etc. Today, I am going to share a few writing prompts that I made. You can find more of them on my website under WRITING PROMPTS. As you will notice, my obsession with dragons carries on into my writing prompts (and everything else I do, to be honest).
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What do you know about Service Dogs? How educated are you about them?
If you are like most people, when someone says "Service Dog", the image of a blind person with a dog probably pops into your head. However, Service Dogs are not just for the blind or those in wheelchairs. There are a wide variety of Service Dogs and they serve a wide variety of people in a number of different ways. Service dogs vs. Emotional Support dogs vs. Therapy dogs: Service Animals help with performing a function for a person that is limited by a disability. They are protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which means that they can, by Federal Law, go anywhere and do anything in America with their handler, and no one can stop them. Literally. But it also means they have to be well trained and exceptionally well behaved. Emotional Support Animals (ESA) help individuals with emotional problems by providing comfort and support. They are protected by the Fair Housing Amendments Act and the Air Carrier Access Act, which means they can go onto air planes for free and are allowed in all housing, regardless of pet policies. They don't need any sort of special training, but they do have to be prescribed by a doctor or therapist of some sort. Therapy Animals provide affection and comfort to individuals in hospitals, nursing homes, and other facilities. These guys are protected by no law. They are usually well trained though and are very friendly and they are only allowed to go to hospitals, nursing homes, and some schools. The different types of Service Dogs: Not all disabilities are visible. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a little broad on the topic, but here are a few disabilities that qualify for the use of a service dog:
Where do you get a service dog?: Anywhere dogs are sold. Seriously! Depending on your disability and needs, you can take the 10 year old dog that's already in your back yard and turn it into a fantastic Service Dog. If you need a dog with some advanced training, such as a seeing eye dog, then there are organizations that specifically breed, raise, or rescue dogs and train them for that purpose. The same goes for every other kind of Service Dog. There are so many places you can get Service Dogs, I can't even list them all. You can find one - or several - in just about every state (except in Oklahoma, apparently *glares at Oklahoma*) But, you can train your own Service Dog. I am currently training Pilot, my dog, to be a Hearing Alert dog! (Don't ask how that is going - don't even ask.) You can find great books and DVDs all across the internet on how to train your own Service Dog. Here is a list of the Top 10 Best Service Dog Training Resources (my favorites, personally, are the Teamwork and Teamwork II books/DVDs). What makes a service dog legitimate?: Basically, if your dog can do the basic heel, sit, down, and stay, be controlled in public, and it can assist you in at least one major way, then it is a Service Dog. Plain and simple. You don't have to register it anywhere, it doesn't have to wear a vest, and it doesn't even need to be professionally trained. If you say it's a Service Dog, and can demonstrate a decent measure of control in public, then by law you have a legit Service Dog. You can make it even more legit by getting a Service Dog vest, a collar and leash that say SERVICE DOG, and a fancy holographic Service Dog Tag. You can even pay a little money and have your Service Dog registered. All of that stuff makes traveling with a Service Dog easier, but it isn't required. So, that is the very basic in-a-nutshell version of "All About Service Dogs". If you have any questions, or would like some more information, don't be afraid to ask in the comments below. I'll be happy to help you out!
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I want to hear the songs of the Wovlen.
Who are the Wovlen? They are a group of people I created. Keegan, the hero in my series (Tales of the Wovlen) is a Wovlen. If you would like to learn more about them, you can check out their page on my website: The Wovlen (it even has a pronunciation guide to help you, because I know you are trying to figure out how to say it right now...). The Wovlen have a complicated history and culture. And, yes, they even have their own folk songs and lore. You can read some of their songs on my website: Legends and Lore from Tales of the Wovlen. I would love nothing more than to hear the songs of the Wovlen playing on my computer. I want to actually hear someone put them to music and sing them. The songs I have written are really only poems. Out of all of my poems, only four of them have a tune that I came up with to sing them to. And of those tunes.... well... dang-it Jim, I'm an author, not a musician! So they aren't very good. One of my favorite YouTube artists is Karliene. She has a whole playlist to herself on my YouTube, which you can listen to HERE (and I do suggest you listen to at least a few of them). I love her voice. It's haunting, but still human. The way she composes her music and sings her songs - her style - is exactly what I hear when the Wovlen people sing me a song in the dead of night. Their haunting melodies never stay with me (I forget them by morning), but they force me to wake up and write them down before I forget the words. If I could choose anyone in the world to sing the songs of the Wovlen, I would choose Karliene... no offence to any of my musician friends. I love you and your music. Don't ever forget that. If you want to put my poems to music, go ahead! But, since none of you have done so yet...... I told my family about my fascination with Karliene's voice and that I feel her voice is perfect for the Wovlen songs. They suggested I contact her about it. They think it would be awesome if she made an entire album of Wovlen songs. They believe it would be a win/win for both Karliene and I - she would make money on the songs and album, and I would profit from the extra publicity. I, on the other hand, have this thing about contacting people (celebrities...cough, cough). I don't feel like I should message or call them out of the blue and ask them for stuff. It makes me feel like a pest, or one of those creepy people that we have all been warned about... Okay, no. That's not the real reason. I am afraid of being rejected. Plain and simple. I would rather approach the gal with money and offer her a paying job. I feel that, if I had money to offer, she'd at least take me seriously... and I'd take myself more seriously too. Alas, money and I are not on good terms. We remain distant acquaintances. My family also feel that I do not need to offer money to have my "songs" sang, especially when both parties would profit from it in this situation. I'm inclined to agree with them, but I'm still way to nervous to just contact the gal and ask her if she'd put my songs to music and sing them. After expressing my fears, my family took it a step further. We are all big fans of Celtic Woman, and one of our favorite voices from Celtic Woman has been Orla Fallon. Her voice is haunting and beautiful. Here are two of my favorite songs she has sang: Siúil a Run (Walk My Love) and Newgrange. Well, Orla has said that one of her dreams is to sing songs for a movie. My family really thinks my book is worthy of a movie. Therefore, they think I should contact Orla and ask if she would like to sing my Wovlen songs, and also see if she knew anyone who was in the movie making business. *Runs away... Hides under bed* Okay, so contacting Orla is probably WAAAAAAAAAAAAY out of the question. But is contacting Karliene, the YouTuber who has 50,000+ subscribers, out of the question? Would it be absolutely flagrant of me to send her a message and ask if she would be interested in working with me? Is it worth the risk? I don't expect much of a response, but what do you, my readers, think of this situation? Do you think I should let it lie? Or should I give it a try? To end this, I would like to leave you with one of my favorite songs by Karliene. She's a Game of Thrones fan. I'm not, but I love this song: You Win or You Die.
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Okay, I have no shame. Does your dog like bully sticks? There is a huge sale going on at Value Pet Supplies right now! 65% off plus FREE shipping! I think that's a pretty awesome deal, so I'm just going to share my *cough* affiliate link *cough* right here for you to check out if you are interested: Bully Sticks 65% off + free shipping. (I told you: I have no shame. Can you blame me?) Also, don't forget to check out the blogpaws Wordless Wednesday blog hop. They have a lot of great links from other pet parents and pet bloggers that are totally worth checking out. ![]()
I am not romantic. PERIOD. Whether it's in real life, movies, or books, I fail at being romantic. As a general rule, I dislike mush, gush, and everything in-between. I like action, comedy, and tragedy. If you can blow it up and make it funny, and then kill the hero, I will definitely like it. Okay, you don't HAVE to kill the hero... But that "love comes softly" and "you take my breath away" garbage is SO boring and, usually, it's totally unrealistic. Also, romance is a dime a dozen. You can find endless amounts of romance novels and movies anywhere anytime. So... yeah. It doesn't flip my wig. Give me Rambo, Die Hard, Transformers, MIB, Pirates of the Caribbean, or Marvel. Got dragons? GIVE IT TO ME!
However, there are a few "mushy" movies that I do actually like to sit down and watch every once and a while. I don't really know why I like these movies, except that almost all of them are really funny and have some form of irony twisted up in them. I like irony. Irony is funny. So, without further ado, here are my top 10 favorite mushy-gushy movies! You can click the links below to look at them on Amazon.com and you can watch my video below to hear my comments on each of them!
50 First Dates (PG-13)
Emma (PG) I.Q. (PG) Leap Year (PG) My Big Fat Greek Wedding (PG) Northanger Abbey (Not Rated) Sabrina (PG) Truth Be Told (Family Friendly!) While You Were Sleeping (PG) You've Got Mail (PG) |
Kathryn FoglemanAuthor of the fantasy series, Tales of the Wovlen, Kathryn spends a great deal of time in the world of her imagination, having tea with fire breathing dragons, writing books on flying space ships, and practicing her mad scientist laugh with gusto. However, on occasion,she returns to this world just to play with her dog and blog about her fun. My BookGrab a Button!![]() Archives
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