UP!–Wow! It’s Int’l #DotDay 2019! :D

Posted on September 9, 2019 by writersideup

Every year there’s a touch of “creative magic” in the air 🦄✨ as International Dot Day approaches, this year on Sunday, September 15th. Since my first dot 🟠 to celebrate the day back in 2014, when I had the pleasure of interviewing Terry Shay, the co-founder of Dot Day, I’ve gotten excited anticipating all the amazing, shared creativity worldwide and getting to see SO many DOTS! I’m also, as you would expect, a HUGE fan of Celebri-dots, a site where published authors, illustrators and celebrities post their dots 🥰 😎. Continue reading →

UP!–Q&A with Paul A. Reynolds

Posted on September 2, 2018 by writersideup

A “Lighter Side Up”

Q & A with

Paul Reynolds

For those of you who’ve been following my blog since its launch, you may recall that at that time it had been planned to do Q&As with the Reynolds brothers, but due to life’s demands the posts had to be postponed. These are two busy guys. After all, what else would you expect from superheroes?! Well, I can tell you—they were worth the wait. When you read their sensitive, wise, affecting responses to my questions, their superpowers are crystal clear: words and actions that stem from passionate, sincere hearts. I’m SO honored to be hosting them as part of International Dot Day 2018 (just 2 weeks away, having been inspired by Peter’s book, The Dot!). This year, rather than creating my own little Dot, I think this is a MUCH better way to celebrate 🙂 ❤ Continue reading →

UP!–Int’l DOT DAY 2017 is Here! (plus a Giveaway)

Posted on September 15, 2017 by writersideup

Wow, it’s yet another year we can all “make our mark” on the absolutely FABulous day we celebrate CREATIVITY — International Dot Day! 😀

Since I’ve been able to post my own dots here on my blog, this is now my fourth year as a proud participant 🙂 I was able to create special dots for years 2014, 2015 and 2016, and of course wanted to do so this year, but life has been quite full as of late (I have a beautiful granddaughter now <3). But that doesn’t mean I’m not going to participate! Continue reading →

UP!–It’s Int’l #DotDay 2016, everyone! :D

Posted on September 15, 2016 by writersideup

Well, gang, it’s one of my favorite times of year again 😀 Yep, as you can plainly see — unless, of course, the post title and this little image of Peter and Paul Reynolds somehow escaped you 😉 — it’s International Dot Day!

Once I launched my blog, I was able to participate in this worthwhile event, so I made dots—most gleefully—in 2014 and 2015. Since I first learned about it, having interviewed Terry Shay, the creator of the celebration, I was compelled to make my mark, so here I am, my third year in, with another dot 😎 Continue reading →

UP!: My VERY 1st DOT celebrating Int’l Dot Day!

Posted on September 15, 2014 by writersideup

Int'l Dot Day If you are an avid admirer, as am I, of the books Peter H. Reynolds has written and illustrated, you are familiar with their unmatched appeal and know the commonality between all of them. They never fail to be impressionable and moving. They move the reader to think, to feel, to wonder, to imagine, to be brave—to express oneself with creative abandon.

Upon every read, I never fail to be in awe of Peter’s inborn ability to capture the most poignant themes in the simplest ways. Ask any picture book author/illustrator and they’ll tell you this is not an easy thing to accomplish. His spot-on choices of content, picking the most essential “moment,” conveyed through his fluid, loose lines and word choice, touch the heart and mind in deep and unforgettable ways. One page that always comes to mind Continue reading →