Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner

DRAWING A BLANK

Posted on November 28, 2018 by Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner

This Page

This Blank Page

This Spotless, Blank, White Page

Why is it so terrifying? So intimidating? So daunting? Continue reading →

Posted in ADVENTURES, HUMOR, POEMS, WRITING CHALLENGES | Tagged adventure, D.G.Lambo, Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner, inspiration, Jack London, muse, poetry, synapse, Writer's block, writing advice, writing advice Jack London | 10 Comments

NOW THAT HALLOWEEN HAS PASSED…

Posted on November 1, 2018 by Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner

halloween bremer musikanten

“…gather your witches, vampires and bats,
spiders, ghosties and arch-backed black cats.
Stand them together with goblins and ghouls,
then stack them up high on the backs of pack mules,
Or store them in boxes way up in your attic,”
the skeleton in my closet was downright emphatic.

Continue reading →

Posted in ADVENTURES, HOLIDAYS, HUMOR, POEMS | Tagged adventure, D. G. Lambo, Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner, Halloween, poem | 14 Comments

NIGHTMARE ON UNTER DEN LINDEN – A Banned Books Week Tribute

Posted on September 28, 2018 by Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner

It’s somehow fitting.

The sweeping square is shrouded in silence, but for the dime-size drops of rain slapping the neatly laid cobbled stones under my feet. The typically bustling quad is empty too, except for the line of bicycles strung along the façade of the Alte Bibliothek (Old Library) and three tourists hunched under wide-domed umbrellas staring at the ground.

I’m watching the young men from the west side of the Berlin Opera House, waiting for them to move on so that I might have a second of solitude on my own to pay my respects to a moment in history that must never be forgotten so that it might never happen again. Continue reading →

Posted in ADVENTURES, Essay, EVENTS, IN MEMORIUM, TRAVEL/PHOTO Themes, VIEW FROM MY SOAP BOX | Tagged adventure, banned book week, Bebelplatz, Berlin, Book Burning 1933, D.G.Lambo, Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner | 4 Comments

HEY, RAPUNZEL ~ SURF’S UP!

Posted on August 29, 2018 by Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner

The only thing missing from the stone tower resting up against a craggy cliff side along the southern California coast is a sixty-foot silken braid trailing from the top window slit to the rocky beach below.

Well, maybe the thick, lustrous plait isn’t the only thing absent from the colossal structure. A bare-chested dude decked in board shorts, cupping his hands around chapped lips, shouting, “Rapunzel, Rapunzel you smokin’ fox, let down your mane that I may climb your locks” would certainly complete the picture. Continue reading →

Posted in ADVENTURES, HUMOR, ROAD TRIP, TRAVEL/PHOTO Themes | Tagged adventure, California coast, D. G. Lambo, Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner, La Tour at Laguna Beach, plastic pollution, Rapunzel, The Pirate Tower, travel vignette, Victoria Beach | 4 Comments

KALAALLIT NUNAAT – Man In The Icicle

Posted on August 9, 2018 by Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner

Winter

Dissolving

crystalline crust decomposing

evaporating Continue reading →

Posted in ADVENTURES, ARCTIC WONDER, POEMS, TRAVEL/PHOTO Themes | Tagged adventure, adventures in Greenland, arctic travels, D.G.Lambo, Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner, Ittoqqortoormiit, KALAALLIT NUNAAT, poetry | 10 Comments

THANK YOU, RICHARD PECK (April 5, 1934 – May 23, 2018)

Posted on July 23, 2018 by Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner

We met in Miami when Destiny dropped me in the seat next to you at a Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators pre-conference dinner for volunteers and faculty.

Our paths had crossed once before, at my first SCBWI conference where you’d signed one of your fabulous books for me and kicked off the event with a spell-binding key-note beginning with how you remembered a time when blackberries were just a fruit that grew on bushes. Did you ever add apples to that speech?

Thank you, Richard Peck, for Continue reading →

Posted in ADVENTURES, AWESOME PEOPLE, IN MEMORIUM | Tagged D. G. Lambo, Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner, IN MEMORIUM, Richard Peck - children's book author, scbwi, Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, Tribute to Richard Peck | 4 Comments

IN SEARCH OF A NEW ‘F’ WORD

Posted on July 7, 2018 by Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner

Certain words in the English language make me cringe. The short, staccato sound of them wrinkles my nose, puckers my lips, and stabs my ears. One of the two most wince-worthy in my book of offending words has recently sent me on a quest to finding an acceptable replacement even though the short burst that thrusts forth from pressed lips when expressing it ‘speaks’ for its meaning.

Once I’d set my intention, it didn’t take long. I already knew a German substitute was out. Too sharp. Too similar. The French word didn’t strike the right chord, either. Then I hit the mother lode. Italian. It’s not only a tolerable word in this melodic and passionate language, it makes me want to scent it with lavender oil and bathe in its languid luxury. See if you agree… Continue reading →

Posted in ADVENTURES, HUMOR | Tagged adventure, D.G.Lambo, Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner, flatulence, italian translation, scoreggia, the f word | 19 Comments

HOOD RIDING RED LITTLE – A Tale In Reverse

Posted on June 21, 2018 by Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner

The phone rang once. A clipped voice answered, “9-1-1-what is your emergency?”
“grr-rr—umph bwaa—maaa….”
“I can’t understand you. Can you speak more clearly?”
“grr-rr—umph *cough* bwaa—maa *cough—cough*”
“Are you choking?”
THUMP THUMP THUMP
“An emergency vehicle is on its way—please try to stay calm, and breathe—breathe as best you can.” Continue reading →

Posted in ADVENTURES, CHILDHOOD, HUMOR, SHORT STORIES | Tagged adventure, D. G. Lambo, Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner, fractured fairy tale, Ikea toys, Little Red Writing Hood | 8 Comments

AN A-MUSE-ING REALIZATION

Posted on June 14, 2018 by Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner

Going. Going. Gone. My Muse is acting like a yo-yo that has been shot into outer space and has lost the energy to return to my outstretched palm. The string, taut at first, went limp eight weeks ago and now dangles from my poised middle finger which, by default, is conveniently flipping her the bird for her delayed return. Continue reading →

Posted in ADVENTURES, HUMOR, VIGNETTE | Tagged adventure, D.G.Lambo, Donna Lambo-Weidner, muse, paper back writer, thoughts on writing, universe, Writer's block | 22 Comments

Check This Out: The Book Passage Children’s Writer’s Conference

Posted on April 18, 2018 by Donna Gwinnell Lambo-Weidner

If you’re a KidLit Writer or Illustrator, it’s time to visit the San Francisco Bay Area for this inspiring, fun, and informative children’s book conference. See you in June!

El Space--The Blog of L. Marie

I don’t think I have ever talked about conferences for writers on the blog, let alone had someone on who coordinates one. But with me on the blog is the fabulous Pamela Livingston, who roomed with me during grad school. She’s here to talk about the Book Passage Children’s Writer’s Conference in Corte Madera, California.

El Space: Four quick facts about yourself?
Pamela: 1. I was the Macy’s Easter Bunny.
2. I am the proud owner of both a VCFA MFA in Writing for Children & Young Adults degree plus a Picture Book Certificate which I may have illustrated before finally finding space on a wall.
3. My newest aka is “Mama Goose” of Goosebottom Books since purchasing this award-winning publishing house from its founder, Shirin Bridges.
4. I’ve been a circus star stage mom.

El Space: Tell us about Book Passage. What is it? What is your…

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