Tag Archives: Linda Boyden

Member Monday: Then Will I Stand by Linda Boyden

Welcome back to Member Monday. Today we feature a poem by Writers Forum member, Linda Boyden. Welcome, Linda.

Then Will I Stand

By Linda Boyden ©2015

Night window, dark,

his profile etched

by the streetlight

he sits, hunched

in the wheelchair

hands clasped on top

of the warrior blanket

of stripes and buffaloes

I bought to ease his chills.

We wait for it to snow

though it is too cold.

We wait together

holding hands

we wait for the inevitable

for his long march to the stars.

Then will I stand,

his blanket around

my shoulders.

Then will I stand

under the myriad of stars

and hunt for his, for him.

Then will the wind bite

my cheeks and fingers.

Then will I bury my tears

in his blanket,

smell his memory,

hear his laughter.

Then will I stand

under the falling snow.

A Note from the Webmaster: If you’re a Writers Forum member in good standing and would like to be featured on Member Monday, please send your submission to writersforumwebmaster@gmail.com. Submissions should be 75-750 words, appropriate for all ages and error free. Please include a short bio, a headshot and any related links. The author retains all rights and gives permission to Writers Forum to publish their submission on the website and/or in the newsletter. Thank you!

Roxy Reindeer by Linda Boyden

Welcome back to Member Monday. Today we feature a unique submission by Writers Forum member, Linda Boyden. Writing pitches and press releases can sometimes be just as difficult as writing the story itself, so today Linda shares her pitch and the press releasefor her latest picture book, Roxy Reindeer, which was recently named among the Best in Family-Friendly Products by the Mom’s Choice Awards. Congratulations, Linda, and thanks for sharing your expertise.

Roxy Reindeer
By Linda Boyden©2015

“Santa’s workshop is a busy place, especially on Christmas Eve. Everyone wants to help including Roxy, Santa’s youngest reindeer. Unfortunately, every time she tries to help, she seems to get in the way. Santa has no choice but to lead her to her stall so the elves can finish packing the sleigh. He tells her the problem is she’s too young and promises she can help next year. Will Roxy’s Christmas Eve be ruined? Not with Mrs. Claus around!  Discover her plan that will turn Roxy’s frown upside down and make readers smile, too.

Roxie book cover sm

For Immediate Release: October 1, 2015
For More Information Contact: lboyden@charter.net

The Mom’s Choice Awards Names ROXY REINDEER Among the Best in Family-Friendly Products

Summary: I am honored to announce that my fifth picture book, ROXY REINDEER, has earned the prestigious Mom’s Choice Award®. Having been rigorously evaluated by a panel of MCA evaluators, ROXY REINDEER is deemed to be among the best products / services for families.

Full Release:

Redding, CA. The Mom’s Choice Awards® has named ROXY REINDEER as among the best in family-friendly media, products and services. The MCA evaluation process uses a propriety methodology in which entries are scored on a number of elements including production quality, design, educational value, entertainment value, originality, appeal, and cost.

“I am thrilled to earn the Mom’s Choice Awards Honoring Excellence Seal of Approval,” says local author/illustrator, Linda Boyden. “I know all the great things the MCA does to connect consumers, educators, and caregivers with the best products and services available for families.

To be considered for an award, each entrant submits five (5) identical samples for testing. Entries are matched to evaluators in the MCA database. Evaluators are bound by a strict code of ethics not only to ensure objectivity, but also to ensure that the evaluation is free from manufacturer influence. The five evaluations are submitted to the MCA Executive Committee for final review and approval.

“Our aim to introduce families and educators to best-in-class products and services,” explains Dawn Matheson, Executive Director of the Mom’s Choice Awards. “We have a passion to help families grow emotionally, physically and spiritually. Parents and educators know that products and services bearing our seal of approval are high-quality and also a great value. The MCA evaluation program is designed to incorporate the expertise of scientists, physicians and other specialists; but we also engage parents, children, educators, and caregivers because they are experts in knowing what is best for their families.”

With the evaluation now complete, the testing samples of ROXY REINDEER will be donated to schools, libraries, hospitals and nonprofit organizations.

Information about Linda Boyden and her books, including ROXY REINDEER and where to purchase them can be found at http://www.lindaboyden.com

About the Mom’s Choice Awards®

The Mom’s Choice Awards® (MCA) evaluates products and services created for children, families and educators. The program is globally recognized for establishing the benchmark of excellence in family-friendly media, products and services. The organization is based in the United States and has reviewed thousands of entries from more than 55 countries.

Around the world, parents, educators, retailers and members of the media look for the MCA mother-and-child Honoring Excellence seal of approval when selecting quality products and services for children and families.

Learn more about the Mom’s Choice Awards by visiting their website: http://www.MomsChoiceAwards.com.

A Note from the Webmaster: If you’re a Writers Forum member in good standing and would like to be featured on Member Monday, please send your submission to writersforumwebmaster@gmail.com. Submissions should be 75-750 words, appropriate for all ages and error free. Please include a short bio, a headshot and any related links. The author retains all rights and gives permission to Writers Forum to publish their submission on the website and/or in the newsletter. Thank you!

Member Monday: An Excerpt from Twitch by Linda Boyden

Welcome back to Member Monday. Today we feature a piece by Writers Forum member, Linda Boyden. You can catch Linda and a host of other local authors at the Authors Fair at the mall on Saturday, November 14th. Welcome, Linda.

 An Excerpt from Twitch

by Linda Boyden

A brief synopsis: Fourteen-year-old Twitch Taylor hasn’t paid much attention to the old Cherokee stories. Sure his family is Cherokee, but the stories are just the elders talking, right? After a freak car accident kills his aunt, Twitch’s father gives him away to his brother according to an old Cherokee tradition then disappears himself. Overnight Twitch has gone from being a city kid to a country bumpkin. He argues how in the 21st century no one follows this old custom. Uncle stays stubborn and Twitch ends up stuck in a forest learning how to hunt with a bow and arrow and identifying types of plants. He quickly discovers this ancient forest is far from normal. Many of the Cherokee myths are coming alive, including one tied to his aunt’s death and his father’s disappearance. To combat these, Twitch must learn to be a Stone Keeper like his father and grandfather before him. The trick is can he learn fast enough to save himself, his family, and pretty much the rest of the world? Is he man enough?

“The tsi’sdu, rabbit, boings away like its legs are made of rubber. I run, feet on fire, and stay with it till it zooms up a ridge.

“Son-of-a-gun!” I holler. I kick a hollow log and two chipmunks roll out, cussing me in chipmunk-speak. I cuss them back and crane my neck, but see nothing.

Trust a tsi’sdu? Yeah, right, that girl or woman or whoever she was, surely doesn’t know a thing. Crazy drumming or not, I’m going stick to my plan to hitchhike back home to Marquis, but then don’t I spot it? Yonder up the ridge, its pale body waits in front of something dark. From down here, seems like a black smudge on the mountainside.

“Might only be a shadow, or maybe…maybe it’s a cave?” I shrug off my pack and tug my cap lower. “Only one way to find out.”

I scrape fingers as I monkey up and over the ridge onto an old deer path that zigzags directly to a hole in the mountainside. I bend low. A breeze blows on my face. It smells dark, of old and forgotten things.”

A Note from the Webmaster: If you’re a Writers Forum member in good standing and would like to be featured on Member Monday, please send your submission to writersforumwebmaster@gmail.com. Submissions should be 75-750 words, appropriate for all ages and error free. Please include a short bio, a headshot and any related links. The author retains all rights and gives permission to Writers Forum to publish their submission on the website and/or in the newsletter. Thank you!

Member Monday: Honeysuckle Moon by Linda Boyden

Welcome back to Member Monday! We hope you got to see the spectacular lunar eclipse last night. It’s a pleasure to serve up a second helping of lunar wonder by poet, storyteller and children’s author, Linda Boyden.  You can purchase a hardback copy of Linda’s newest picture book Boy and Poi Poi Puppy at All About Books.  Welcome, Linda!

Honeysuckle Moon
By Linda Boyden ©2014

I lie in night’s velvet deep.
Outside the window
clouds hide the honeysuckle moon,
crickets serenade the languid air,
the night softened by their song.

The clouds disperse.
The full moon bleeds the landscape white.
I rise and walk among the ghostly trees,
the only sound, my metered breath.

An owl soars across the face of the moon,
its body, a crucifix of shadow.
Thunder trembles in the distance.
I fall on my knees, heart pierced by beauty.

A Note from the Webmaster: If you’re a Writers Forum member in good standing and would like to be featured on Member Monday, please send your submission to writersforumwebmaster@gmail.com. Submissions should be 75-750 words, appropriate for all ages and error free. Please include a short bio, a headshot and any related links. The author retains all rights and gives permission to Writers Forum to publish their submission on the website and/or in the newsletter. Thank you!

Member Monday: All the Forever We Had by Linda Boyden

Welcome back to Member Monday.  It’s a pleasure to feature a poem by poet, storyteller and children’s author, Linda Boyden.  You can purchase a hardback copy of Linda’s newest picture book Boy and Poi Poi Puppy at All About Books.  Welcome, Linda!

All the Forever We Had

By Linda Boyden ©2014

All the forever we had,

four days,

three nights,

a speck of time

but with enough joy

to last an eternity

apart.

 

Joined at the heart,

time and space

could not separate us.

We wait for Time to

loop us together,

cradle us again.

 

Until then

we stay apart,

forever lovers,

heart-in-heart

against the dark.

A Note from the Webmaster: If you’re a Writers Forum member in good standing and would like to be featured on Member Monday, please send your submission to writersforumwebmaster@gmail.com. Submissions should be 75-750 words, appropriate for all ages and error free. Please include a short bio, a headshot and any related links. The author retains all rights and gives permission to Writers Forum to publish their submission on the website and/or in the newsletter. Thank you!