My News

Dr. Custureri and I will be speaking tomorrow at the Florida Heritage Book Festival in St. Augustine. Looking for a publisher? Consider attending.

SPREAD THE WORD

GOOD MORNING, FOLLOWERS,

Mark your calendars and spread the word. The Florida Heritage Book Festival is this weekend. Events will be held at World Golf Village on Friday. Saturday events will be housed at Ringhaver Student Center at Flagler College. The banquet on Friday will celebrate this year’s Literary Legend, Tim Dorsey.

I’m proud to say, I’ll be there with my publisher, Dr. Mary Custureri, of Taylor and Seale Publishing. Please click on the link to learn about all the events held on Friday. Beginning at 4:00 p.m., Dr. Mary Custureri will discuss “Ten Important Things Writers Need To Know About Writing, Being Noticed And Marketing.”

http://fhbookfest.com/writers-conference

My books will be available to purchase at the Taylor & Seale table.

Saturday is free. Hope to see you this weekend in St. Augustine, the first city settled in the United States.

The Florida Writers Foundation

About thirty-two million adults in our country are
illiterate. Eighty-five percent of the juveniles forced to interact with the
court system are functionally illiterate. Seventy percent of America’s inmates
cannot read above fourth-grade level. In the words of former president Bill
Clinton, “Literacy is not a luxury, it is a right and a responsibility. If our
world is to meet the challenges of the twenty-first century we must harness the
energy and creativity of all our citizens.” What can we do to support literacy? Join or support the Florida Writers Foundation.

The motto of the Florida Writers Association (FWA) is
Writers Helping Writers. The Florida Writers Foundation (FWF) is about writers
promoting literacy. How? Volunteers reach out to schools—making a difference in
their communities, providing books and speakers, and funding grants to publish
collections of student and teacher stories. We sponsor writing contests.

One of the most fascinating programs the FWF sponsors is
called “Sit. Stay. Write.” In this program, award-winning children’s author
Diane Ochiltree, and her dog Sally, a trained therapy dog, visit schools and
encourage children to write.

I’m proud to be the new president of the Florida Writers Foundation, but I need your help. Please help us by attending our Celebrity Workshop on October 18 or contribute to our Silent Auction at the Florida Writers Association Annual Conference. 

If you are a high school teacher in Volusia, Brevard, Lake, Citrus, Sumpter, St. John’s or Seminole County, contact me through my page. I would love to do an author visit. I’m happy to read from any of my books. You might also like to look at the advice for writing and performing poetry that appears in my book, Backpack Blues: Inspire the Fire Within. Hope to see you in October.

What Liz Vollstadt Said About Backpack Blues: Inspire the Fire Within

The powerful poetry of Melody Dimick’s Backpack Blues gives a realistic, unflinching look into the lives of today’s teens.  A must read for teens and adults, sure to provoke thought and dialogue.

Red Barn 

Good Morning,

Followers, when I speak about the red barn in Sinister Silence this is the barn I had in my mind. As you may know, I traveled to the North for book signings and my mother’s 90th birthday earlier this month. I took this picture to give you an idea of what inspired me. 

On Friday, October 19, 2018, from 3:00-4:00 in the afternoon, I shall be doing a presentation titled “People and Places Poetry Workshop.” We shall examine how a building, town, or setting can inspire a poem. This barn inspired a scene in my novel. Please register for my workshop to learn more about triggering places. Go to www.FloridaWriters.Net to register.

Thank you for visiting my site.

Join Darlyn and me in Jax

https://darlynfinchkuhn.com/2018/08/playing-with-poetry-at-river-of-grass/

I shall be joining fellow FWA RPLA-winning author Darlyn Finch Kuhn on Saturday, September 8th for a poetry workshop at her River of Grass venue in Jacksonville, Florida. If you’re always looking for a poetry workshop, please join us. Click the link to learn more. Thank you for visiting my blog.

Why no pictures of teens?

Ever wonder why there are no pictures of teens on my website? After all, my usual audience is young adults. The answer is simple. Predators surf the internet. I choose not to identify young adults or where they are located in order to protect them from predators.

Thank you for understanding. 

Getting Ready for My Book Tour

You may find me in New York and Vermont during my book tour. Hope you’ll stop in one or more of the following locations:

August 10, The Galaxy, a quaint bookshop in Hardwick, Vermont. I’ll be signing books from 4-6 that evening. Friday night fun.

August 12, The Corner-Stone, a new and used book store on the corner of Margaret Street and Court Street in Plattsburgh, NY. I’ll be there Sunday, August 12 from 2-4 in the afternoon. Last year, I spoke to over 50 friends and family members and sold over 40 books. I’d love to beat that record this year. Please stop in for a chat.

August 13, Altona Town Hall, Altona, New York. I’ll be reading some of the poems from my latest book and signing copies on a Monday morning from 10 until noon. This will be a treat for me. There’s a new town hall. I lived in Altona for nine years. Looking forward to seeing relatives, former neighbors, former students, and meeting new friends and readers.

Please join me. I’ll tell you a little about me and would love to hear about you. Click Contact Melody on my home page.

What are your interests outside of reading? Mine are:

·     
Pickleball

·     
Playing Pinochle
with my son and his lovely wife.

·     
Traveling with my
husband. I used to love to take my students on field trips. My ultimate bucket-list goal is a trip to the Canadian Maritimes.

·     
Going out to dinner
with my college roommate and her husband once a week and watching a play at the
Shoestring Theatre or a movie at my friends’ house after dinner. They subscribe to Netflix.

·     
Since my family owns
a Sugar Bush (maple trees), I value trees. You may call me a tree-hugger. I
feel like crying when someone cuts a live oak tree. My whole family was depressed when the ‘98 ice storms damaged our maples, but they rebounded. Left alone, nature usually rebounds. I’m praying for those suffering from the California forest fires.

My neighbor’s son created the above gif. What do you think?

Choice to Be Made

Do you like any of this logos? Do you have recommendations of how to improve?