My youngest child has graduated college. I can barely believe it. I’m immensely proud of him even though I don’t share too much of my kids’ lives here, as they deserve some privacy. However, a parent is also allowed to brag a bit. 🙂
Armando was a full-ride scholar with an honors degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Wisconsin’s flagship campus at Madison — my alma mater! He’s brilliant, funny, cheerful, chill, and just a joy to be around. Congrats, m’boy!
Back home and added another member to our family. Glyph is eight months old, cute, cuddly, purrs a lot, and is a sweet and happy boy.
Those green nail covers, by the way, were put on by the shelter to prevent scratching. They’ll fall off naturally, and I won’t replace them. Cats gotta cat, after all. 😉
What an adventure!
New York City has so much energy, excitement, and cultural relevance. Every bit of it seems famous, the food and social scene are incredible, and there’s goodness all around. I love New York, and I’ve loved my time here, but the adventure is coming to a close.After seven months at Scholastic, I realized the job wasn’t working out, which isn’t the end of the world. I’m proud of myself for recognizing it. Plus, I have forces pulling me back home, in a good way.
Experiencing the publishing world in its global heart was amazing. I learned so much, made great friends, and might continue in another capacity, just not in NYC and not in this moment. Here are a few final pics before I head back to a Great Place Near a Great Lake (aka, Milwaukee —- who remembers that jingle?)
Jeff and me outside NYC’s main library
The library’s famed Rose Reading Room
And from the other side
My daughter Antonia and me at Central Park
And on the ferry
At John Wick’s famed Continental Hotel. Sanctuary!
My yoga group as we wish each other well 🙂
The endlessly gorgeous Manhattan skyline, this time at night. Goodbye for now, my dear NYC.
Finally, some snow! Jersey City and New York City seems generally about ten to 15 degrees warmer to me than Milwaukee, and their weather events are a day behind. So when I saw that a snowstorm was expected to hit Wisconsin and travel on as a nor’easter, I was like, whoo hoo!!! Snow at last! It wasn’t deep, not a huge snowfall, but area officials and regular folks took precautions. It was a generally well handled storm, and yes, it was beautiful.
My cats sensing snowy weather
The sky above Manhattan portends a storm
The snowy city from my top floor apartment window
Street view
Snow and a beautiful sunset would make anyone smile
I’ve been at Scholastic four and a half months now, and there’s a lot I can’t talk about because the projects aren’t yet announced or the work is propriety and/or confidential, but here’s the good news: children and teens are reading, and Scholastic provides great stuff for them to lay their eyes on.
I’ve taken (no surprise) hundreds of photos, having seen great friends, enjoyed fabulous sites, and just gotten to know this amazing city. I mean, Rockefeller Center, Fifth Ave, Times Square, the Brooklyn Bridge, Little Italy, SoHo, the Statue of Liberty, Central Park, the Theater District, on and on. Family coming to visit. Snowstorms and nor’easters. Seeing cousins. Making new friends. The fantastic, oh-so-welcome diversity. And, and, and. This has been a cool thing.
I’ll post just a few pictures here because, honestly, a single post can’t encompass it all. But trust me. Visit New York City sometime in your life. Stay awhile if you can make it.
The year 2021 is proving to be so transforming.
My previous post in July was about how this year has thrown unexpected things my way. Good things, for sure, like my job at Inkluded (which was temporary and remote), a furry addition to the family (Sketch, the kitten), and a new ride (my awesome orange Scooter).
A week later I was referred for a job at Scholastic, the world’s largest publisher and distributor of children’s books.
You may be able to guess where this is going.
Another week later I was asked to interview for that fantastic job based in New York City. And as I’m typing this, I’m looking at the Statue of Liberty out my new apartment window. Also, the Manhattan skyline is gorgeous from my rooftop.
Say what?! you might be asking. I think I’m still asking that myself to myself, to be honest. Haha. But life is fun when it’s changing things up, isn’t it? This excellent opportunity is one that I certainly didn’t want to pass up and my family encouraged me to pursue. I’m so grateful for that as I’m loving it so far. It was remote for the five weeks it took us to move to the New York area. Now I’m going in once a week on an easy commute to the spectacular offices that are Scholastic Inc.
One more thing happened during all this. The week before we moved here, we adopted a kitten from the Humane Society! Yep, we did it both to give Sketch a playmate and to add some complication to the move because of course we would — haha! Meet Pixel, the once-fearful but becoming-more-confident-by-the-day addition to our family. I love this sweet little guy. Enjoy the cuteness.
So, I’ll leave you with some random pictures of a little bit of this and a little bit of that from the past few weeks. Here’s to new adventures!
Pixel the kitten
Pixel posing
World Trade Center transportation hub – Milwaukeeans will recognize the architecture!
Inspiring
Scholastic!
The Harry Potter themed stained glass above the Scholastic front desk
The Manhattan skyline from across the Hudson River
Manhattan skyline from beautiful Liberty State Park adjacent to the Statute of Liberty
Panoramic photo from Liberty State Park showing the Manhattan skyline at left, Ellis Island at center, and the Statue of Liberty at right. It’s simply gorgeous.
Okay, you know me. I love books and respect the heck out of transformative works. So imagine my delight when I was asked to give an endorsement for a book about revolutionaries who changed the world through writing! Um, yes, please! And even better that the book was written by fellow SCBWI-Wisconsin member Rochelle Melander, who’s a friend and incredible cheerleader for fellow writers.
I just got my advanced copy of Mightier than the Sword: Rebels, Reformers & Revolutionaries Who Changed the World Through Writing. It releases July 27th and is sure to be a favorite of teachers and parents alike. I’m so happy for Rochelle and proud of this grand achievement. Mightier is compelling and a testament to the power of writing. I’m honored that it’s the first book for which I’ve given a blurb (an accolade quotation). This book is right up my alley.
Enjoy this glance at some inside pages, and remember, writing is revolutionary.
(Mightier Than the Sword: Rebels, Reformers & Revolutionaries Who Changed the World Through Writing is available for pre-order at your local independent bookstore.)
Back in January, I read an article by Literary Agent Kate McKean on her Agents & Books blog about how your journey (publishing journey, in this case) probably isn’t going to go the way you plan, as there are just so many variables in life, and how that’s okay and might lead to interesting things. That article, and similar articles by author Nathan Bransford, have clearly stuck with me, as I’ve been marinating all year in the theme of “letting the universe tell me how things are going to be because I can only control what I can control.”
So how did Planning Silvia expect 2021 to go? Well, Planning Silvia hoped to wrestle a bit more control of life because, since I can only control that which I can control, I should try to control more! Am I right?
“HAHAHAHA!” the Universe says. “Let’s fix those silly notions!” And it did.
In early May, a close family friend essentially gifted a scooter to me! He’d gotten his enjoyment out of it and wasn’t planning on using it anymore. Whoo hoo! What an awesome surprise! Please don’t think I’m complaining because I’m totally not! I’d wanted a motorcycle or scooter since I was a teenager. This little beauty needed some minor repairs, and I had to set up insurance, and then, surprise! I discovered it’s got enough speed and power to classify as a motorcycle here in the great state of Wisconsin. So suddenly I’m practicing to pass a driving test to earn a motorcycle license. Cool, but, wow, that wasn’t expected for 2021.
Safety first.
You know what else I didn’t foresee for 2021? Getting a kitten!!! And that’s mostly because I’m allergic to cats! But I also didn’t expect to go outside on Memorial Day to water some flowers and hear something crying. What the heck is that? A kitten? A crying kitten?! OMG!!! Where is that precious little thing?!
Baby Cat was hungry and scared. Mom Cat never came back, soooo, Silvia to the rescue!
It was actually my pet-loving husband Jeff who decided we were adopting this little cutie. He was buying him a bed and toys before I’d even gotten my bearings on what was going on. Now we all adore Sketch, and so far my allergies haven’t kicked in. Supposedly that might happen when he’s about 12 weeks old. Crossing my fingers that it never happens.
Here’s Sketch, at about four weeks old. And it’s 2021 for the win again, obliterating Planning Silvia’s plans in the best possible way.
Tiny Sketch
Sketch on the prowl
What next in the universe’s plans? An unexpected, remote job with Inkluded, a New York based nonprofit championing diversity in the publishing industry — and offering a tuition-free course toward that end. How cool is that? Again, unexpected and awesome.
GetInkluded.com
Sooooo, yeah, things don’t always go as planned, but, like Kate McKean said, we might end up surprised. Life is full and fun. I’m not doing much writing lately, but I’m enjoying summer, and, once the weather changes, I’ll get back to some creative writing, as creation is good for the soul — planned or not. 😉
One of the many ways I’ve dealt with the past year’s uncertainty is to focus on what I can control. A lot of people practice this all the time. It’s not revelatory because, let’s face it, there’s a lot outside our control, and to rage against that reality is a great way to drive yourself into the ground. But I think it’s safe to say that some people are better at settling themselves this way than others.
Don’t get me wrong. The “focusing on what I can control” mantra can be twisted into a kind of privilege that allows you to ignore anything that requires effort. Or it can allow you to wash your hands of responsibility. That’s not what I’m talking about here. I’m talking about things like, oh, say, not festering over how the pandemic has upended our lives and canceled events and such.
First, we must acknowledge that inconveniences are nothing compared to what many have had to bear. The losses have been heartbreaking. And with that understanding, inconveniences are nothing. Nothing.
And yet, change stings. Life has been so different. Since March 2020, I’ve had to cancel five conferences or retreats that I’d planned for more than a year. But you know what? It was doable. We’ve all pivoted.
Earlier this month, I co-hosted a day-long, virtual SCBWI-Wisconsin conference that was originally planned to be in person at a favorite retreat center on 90 acres of beautiful woods and water. Couldn’t happen. But you know what I could control? Deciding early to pivot. Becoming proficient at Zoom. Guiding people on how to join us. Connecting with others, which is what so many people say they missed most over the past year.
I’m grateful to see friends in squares on my screen, as that was once science fiction. And I’m grateful for the vaccines, which have allowed us to see friends and family in person. Long past this pandemic, though, I’ll stick with the notion of focusing on what I can control. It’s a better use of my energies and helps me see what’s important.
I hope you enjoy these photos of the event. Be well.
The start of SCBWI-Wisconsin’s Spring Studio virtual conference. Shown are webinar coordinator Joyce Uglow, co-regional advisors Silvia Acevedo and Deb Buschman, literary agent Christa Heschke, and author Stef Wade.
Literary agent Zabé Ellor, host Silvia Acevedo, and editor Tiffany Shelton.
Cohorts.
Look at that great swag! A solar system poster that kids love.
My computer really needs maaaany more stickers. 😉
Today I’m starting an adventure that looked so different earlier this year.
I’m at an isolated retreat at Write On, Door County, a non-profit that offers retreats not just for writers but for leaders of literary arts programs, in my case the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators-Wisconsin. It turns out I’m the first one to retreat here in the admin category! How cool is that?
I have a whole quiet house to myself on 40 acres. It’s interesting that people come here for isolation, and I’m coming here during a time of nonstop isolation. I’ve been seriously social distancing since March, so being here doesn’t feel quite like the getaway it might have been. However, I’m grateful for the change of scenery, the true quiet outside the city (no sirens!), and the immense darkness found in northern Wisconsin (no light pollution from neighbors’ garage lights or broadly arching street lamps!). Honestly, stepping outside at night I cannot see my hand in front of my face. It’s beautiful… and a bit unnerving. Yeah, I’m a city girl.
I’ll be really digging in to SCBWI-Wisconsin planning this week. We have one virtual event planned for early 2021, and we’re hoping the fall events can be in person. Optimism, folks. Meantime, enjoy some pix. 🙂
A giant gnome on the way to Door County because … just because.
Side view of The Coop from the trail behind the house
The Coop, the famed former writing studio of the late, great author Norbert Blei
Interior of The Coop with a well used writing desk
Interior of The Coop with a painting of Norb Blei
