How to Write a Nostalgic Tribute, Experience Memoir

Nostalgic tributes or memorials are my terms for writings that describe feelings in retrospect. Nostalgic tributes are similar to memoirs except that they focus on how the individual was impacted by a larger experience in history. Here's an example I wrote from a the Vietnam War as it impacted me as a child.

On June 8, 1972, I was your average 7-year-old, happy to be out of school and looking forward to summer vacation. Soldiers were fighting in a place called "Vietnam" but that was far away and didn't really affect me in my happy little beach town of Muskegon, Mich.
Over meatloaf and mashed potatoes, we watched news reels on television. As callous as only a child can be, I got used to seeing the graphic images. In fact, it used to annoy me when war updates interrupted "Tom and Jerry."  Read more at Photo of Girl in Vietnam Napalm Bombing Brings Back Memories

Free Poetry Writing Guide: How to Write Free Verse Poetry

 Poetry gives voice to the soul. Writing poetry is like singing;it should flow from the spirit, as a lament, a rhapsody or an aria. Unlike tangible things poetry is not so easy to dissect, critique or explain. There are some devices that poets employ to create poems. Having created some poetry myself and taught courses in poetry in creative writing, I'll try to distill the essence of poetry in this guideline. Poetry Writing Guide: How to Write Free Verse Poetry 

No Flowers for Mama

A poem of a child's dilemma and his perennial wisdom.

i wanna by sum flowers for my mama
cuz flowers are pretty and so is she
i asked her what kind she liked and she smiled
'save your pennies, honey and pick some wild flowers for me'
i spied the neighbors two-lips
growing tall, all pink and red
i spied the neighbor watchin' me
so i kicked a stone instead  (read more here) No Flowers for Mama (P.S.--if this intrepid little boy wanted to pick from my garden, I'd let him!)

How to Write a Musical Review

I write musical reviews for Associated Content and Yahoo! Here is an example of how to write a 400 word musical review for online or print publications.

"Croatian virtuoso pianist Maksim Mrvica plays classical cross-over and is himself a world class act. Since performing his first concerto at age 11, nothing, not even war, has prevented Maksim from creating beautiful music. Mrvica gives heart-stopping performances, made all the more memorable and poignant by the fact that this young man learned his art while his nation waged an epic war." Read more...

Writer Vulnerability

I feel very vulnerable posting my poems online. I'm like an actor feeling stage fright. What if my little verse does a belly flop? What if it's not enjoyed? What if it's not even read? So it was with great joy (and humbled appreciation) that I noted that two of my most recent pieces have been viewed 50 times...each! Thank you, readers, whoever you are. I know that if I'm going to survive this world of publishing, particularly in the tenuous area of poetry, I'm going to have to grow some thicker skin. But until then, (if I ever even do) the knowledge that people are reading was a real pick-me-up for this thin-skinned gal. Be well. Do good work. Love, mar

Free Printable Poetry Lesson--'Green' Nature Poems with Science Connections

April is National Poetry Month. April 22 is Earth Day, too. In spring, our lesson plans usually turn to life science, new life, plant life, seasons and other such activities. In many classrooms, from preschool to kindergarten and up through 8th grade, lessons are focused on the sun, clouds, rain, precipitation, the water cycle, budding trees, plants and flowers, insects and baby animals. Here's a green project. You can easily combine a unit on poetry reading and writing with your spring life science lessons.  Free Printable Poetry Lesson: Green Nature Poems

Free Printable Holy Week Activities

Holy Week, the week preceding Easter, begins on Palm Sunday of the liturgical church year. Holy Week is the culmination of Lent. The Easter Triduum, consisting of Maundy or Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday bring christians to the highest point in the church year, Easter. Holy Week is also referred to as the Passion or Paschal celebration.  Here are writing activities and devotional ideas. Read more at Free Printable Holy Week Activities