March 2 is NEA’s Read Across America Day

The National Education Association built Read Across America Day to focus on motivating children and teens to attend read-through events, partnerships and reading resources. Read Across America Day takes place on March 2 to celebrate the birthday of Dr. Seuss. All across the country thousands of schools, libraries and community centers are bringing kids, teens and books together through this signature program.

Why not send your latest video to SchoolTube? What is SchoolTube? It created a channel for Read Across America that you can share your own music reading video, book trailer or coverage of a recent event. If you would like to share your videos, click here to check out SchoolTube.

“You’re never too old, too wacky, too wild, to pick up a book and read with a child.”

March Poetry Events for the Week Ending March 3, 2012

Check out the poetry events happening this week in your area!

Douglas Anderson Writers’ Festival
March 1-3, 2012
Douglas Anderson School of the Arts
Jacksonville, FL
904-322-3811
douglasandersonwritersfest@gmail.com
http://douglasandersonwritersfest.com

Nell Regan
March 1, 2012
Glucksman Ireland House
New York University
New York, NY
(212) 998-3950
ireland.house@nyu.edu
http://cwp.fas.nyu.edu/page/readingseries#mar

POETRY Presents: Shoot the Canon
March 1, 2012
Poetry Foundation
Chicago, IL
312-799-8065
kgecan@poetryfoundation.org
http://shootthecanon.eventbrite.com/

Poetry Reading
March 1, 2012
Hygienic Gallery
New London, CT
(860) 443-8001
gallery@hygienic.org
http://hygienic.org

Dusie/Pussipo Reading
March 2, 2012
Outer Space Studio
Chicago, IL
redroverseries@yahoogroups.com

McSweeney’s AWP Party and Poetry Series
March 2, 2012
826 Chicago
Chicago, IL
773-772-8108
info@826chi.org

Poetry off the Shelf
March 2, 2012
North & South Chicago Hilton Hotel
Chicago, IL
312-799-8065
kgecan@poetryfoundation.org
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/programs/event/1017

Poetry off the Shelf — Fifth Wednesday Journal: Illinois Poets Past and Present
March 2, 2012
Poetry Foundation
Chicago, IL
312-799-8065
kgecan@poetryfoundation.org
http://illinoispoets.eventbrite.com/

Table X/Y Cacophony
March 2, 2012
Outer Space Studio
Chicago, IL
redroverseries@yahoogroups.com

AWP Conference: Nikky Finney and Lyn Hejinian
March 3, 2012
Hilton Chicago Grand Ballroom
Chicago, IL
(212) 2740343
slasner@poets.org
http://www.awpwriter.org/conference

Crossings Writers Conference II
March 3, 2012
Crossings at Carnegie
Zumbrota, MN
507-732-7616
publicity@crossingsatcarnegie.com
http://www.crossingsatcarnegie.com

Poetry Reading and Book Signing: Lemon Andersen
March 3, 2012
Books and Books
Coral Gables, FL
(305) 442-4408
http://www.booksandbooks.com

Stop the Sentence: A Night of (Inter) Active Readings
March 3, 2012
Outer Space Studio
Chicago, IL
http://redroverseries@yahoogroups.com

A Tower of Lincoln Books for President’s Day!

Today is President’s Day, which also commonly referred to as Washington’s Birthday. This federal holiday is observed on the third Monday in February to honor the first President and all of the other Commanders-in-Chief of the United States of America.

I came across this amazing piece of artwork called A Tower of Lincoln Books. The Ford Theater in Washington, DC (which is where President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated) now poses as a National Historic Site that features a 34-foot tower of books written only about Honest Abe.

While there are about 15, 000 books said to have been written about Abraham Lincoln, there are only 7,000 books in the tower.  Why destroy 7,000 books? Well, they were not destroyed. The book tower is constructed of aluminum, which is imprinted with copies of book covers about the President.

Video Marketing: Leveraging Your Message Through Engagement

How do you integrate videos into your marketing mix? Video Marketing is nothing new to the social media circuit and overall marketing strategy. Clearly, we can see the gain in popularity with videos on social media sites like YouTube and Facebook. Since the marriage of the invention of video cameras to recorded sounds with moving images, people have been fascinated by… Read more of article

Digital Popup Books and Poetry Books That Do Not Contain Words?

Image Credit: Between Page And Screen

What do you think about books that contain augmented reality content? A digital pop-up book called “Between Page And Screen” does not contain words, but is printed with a special QR code that the reader can hold up to their webcam, which allows sections of the poem to appear on their screen. This book of poetry only contains black and white codes. Receiving skepticism for this type of digital book technology from various authors, Between Page And Screen experiments with a different form of word art that could add a different dimension to the way poetry, books and other published material, as well as interacting with storytelling can convey.

What about digital pop-up books designed for computer tablets like the iPad? Can you really experience and embrace the virtual creation of a pop-up children’s book over a physical pop-up book that you can actually hold and allow your eyes to interact with the art form? Can technology really replace the intimacy of the written word? The jury is still out, but various publishing components of cryptic digital pop-up books are adding an interesting twist to the way things are read in the future.

World Book Night Volunteer!

U.S. World Book Night

WOW, I am sooooo excited! I was just informed today that I was chosen as one of the volunteers to help give away free copies of one of the books I selected on World Book Night, occurring on April 23, 2012! The purpose of World Book Night is to give away books to new readers, by sharing your passion for a great book and to help encourage reading.

The committee from World Book Night extended the deadline for volunteer applications, no later than Monday February 6, 2012. If you feel that you would like to become a volunteer and give a gift to someone who you could encourage to get into the habit of reading, then please feel free to apply to be a volunteer - www.us.worldbooknight.org.  Be sure, as with any application, that you make your answers concise, thorough, relevant and free of grammatical and spelling errors.

Good luck to all of you who want to sign up to volunteer for World Book Night. I am absolutely delighted and can’t wait to pass out my books to encourage reading and to help promote literacy!

February Book, Poetry and Literary Festivals

Book, Literary & Poetry Events

February 10-12
45th California International Antiquarian Book Fair
Pasadena Convention Center
Los Angeles, California
http://www.labookfair.com/

February 23-26
23^rd Annual Natchez Literary and Cinema Celebration
Natchez Convention Center
Natchez, Mississippi
http://www.colin.edu/nlcc/

February 2, 2012, 7 p.m.
Poetry Reading
Lillian Vernon Creative Writers House
New York, NY
212-998-8816
creative.writing@nyu.edu
http://cwp.fas.nyu.edu/page/readingseries#feb

February 4
THE RATTLING WALL: Reading & Release
The Standard Hotel
West Hollywood, CA
323-424-4939 ext 203
michelle@penusa.org
http://www.therattlingwall.com

February 7
Mischief & Mayhem Reading Series
The Gallery at LPR
New York, NY
(212) 505-3474
info@lprnyc.com
http://lepoissonrouge.com/events/view/2969

February 9
Poetry Reading
Lexington High School
Lexington, MA
781-862-8043
info@lexingtoncommunityed.org
http://www.lexingtoncommunityed.org

February 10, 2012
Emerging Writers Reading Series
KGB Bar
New York, NY
212-998-8816
creative.writing@nyu.edu
http://cwp.fas.nyu.edu/page/readingseries#feb

February 10, 2012
Featherless #13
Stories Books & Café
Los Angeles, CA
858-531-1204
featherless.la@gmail.com
http://featherless-la.blogspot.com/

February 10, 2012
Literary Legacy: A Talk on Craft
Lillian Vernon Creative Writers House
New York, NY
212-998-8816
creative.writing@nyu.edu
http://cwp.fas.nyu.edu/page/readingseries#feb

February 11
Panoply Books Reading Series 2012
Lambertville, NJ
(609) 397-1145
info@panoplybooks.com
http://www.panoplybooks.com

February 17
Poetry and Visual Arts Roundtable
Lillian Vernon Creative Writers House
New York, NY
212-998-8816
creative.writing@nyu.edu
http://cwp.fas.nyu.edu/page/readingseries#feb

February 17
Poetry Reading
Lillian Vernon Creative Writers House
New York, NY
212-998-8816
creative.writing@nyu.edu
http://cwp.fas.nyu.edu/page/readingseries#feb

February 17
Reading at Mrs. Dalloway’s
Mrs. Dalloway’s Literary & Garden Arts
Berkeley, California
510-704-8222
mary@mrsdalloways.com
http://www.mrsdalloways.com

February 23-26
Poetry on Stage: FJORDS
Poetry Foundation
Chicago, Illinois
312-799-8065
kgecan@poetryfoundation.org
http://fjords.eventbrite.com/

February 24
Reading and Conversation: Translating the Poetry of Leah Goldberg
Lillian Vernon Creative Writers House
New York, NY
212-998-8816
creative.writing@nyu.edu
http://cwp.fas.nyu.edu/page/readingseries#feb

Today is National Handwriting Day!

Celebrating National Handwriting Day!

Since more people are communicating electronically instead of writing and communicating by hand, penmanship has fallen in the trenches. The pride taken in one’s penmanship is not as detail-oriented as it was before the popularity of computers and electronic keyboard devices.

It is amazing that there is a continuing controversy about the role of handwriting lessons in schools. A great number of teachers support teaching children using keyboards, while other teachers feel that handwriting (particularly cursive handwriting) will have a better impact on a child’s ability to read and write. How can we expect kids to understand how to read cursive writing, if they are not taught how to write and understand the aesthetics of it?

Personally, I am an advocate for good, legible handwriting although I use my keyboards a lot as an adult. Throughout elementary school, writing was a very instrumental piece of our learning process and communications. I feel that it should be taught in schools like it once was, because in reality it seems to be a dying art. We always seem to be in a rush when writing and it clearly shows that when others try to read it.

I witness everyday evidence of handwriting that many of my schoolteachers would cringe at. My mother used to call it “chicken-scratch” and while growing up, she was adamant about all of her children learning to write legibly and to develop good writing habits. Good handwriting promotes an organized approach to communication and creativity. Practice good handwriting habits and you just may find that it opens a core of creative opportunity that you never imagined.

 

Customer Relationship Management: Is It Necessary?

Do you have a CRM initiative in place for your business? If you plan to stay in business for years to come, having a successful Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system in place is vital. If your strategy is to outperform your competitors in order to gain valuable market share in your industry, then it is imperative to build a long-term relationship with your consumers instead of a one-time occurrence.

Now-a-days, customer loyalty is not as it once was 15 or 30 years ago. Price and service competition is fierce and you must be cognizant of how extremely important customer service is to your reputation and profitability. Building long-term consumer relationships helps to increase repeat purchasing quotients that leads to long-term sales and financial growth. You may have a laundry list of customers who Read More…

Today is Thesaurus Day!

Roget's Thesaurus

Today we celebrate the birthday of Peter Roget, author of the Thesaurus. Peter Roget was born on January 18, 1779.

A Thesaurus and a dictionary were two absolute must-haves in schools, universities and used frequently among those in the field of writing. The Thesaurus lists synonyms for words, unlike a dictionary that goes through detailed definitions and descriptions. Nowadays, we see where such a tool as the Thesaurus is greatly needed. We find so many misspelled and misused words that can be extremely costly for a job interview, a term paper or legal paperwork.

A Thesaurus keeps you from the mundane usage of words in whatever you are writing or referencing. This reference book is an invaluable addition to your library, whether its digital or a hard copy.