A Calendar for 2011

Since late summer I've been working on an art calendar for 2011. Probably the most time-consuming part (and least creative as well) was setting the layout for the monthly pages and putting in the dates and holidays. Some decisions had to be made regarding which holidays to include. Many cultures were left out. It would have been just too much to include them, much as I want to be inclusive. In the end I chose the most traditional holidays of American culture, and what I hoped were the most important days of the three primary monotheistic religions. And I included the holidays most frequently celebrated in Waldorf schools and communities although some of these would be considered obscure by people unfamiliar with American and European Waldorf school traditions. I hope people will be pleased with my selections, and forgive my omissions.

There will now be some details to be added by hand to the monthly pages including (but not limited to) phases of the moon. With the completion of the monthly pages, the calendar will be half done. Meanwhile I have begun the truly creative work - the paintings.

I decided on paintings because I have the materials, and I feel more at ease with painting than with drawing. I have completed the first six paintings and begun the next six. I've been working on them in sets of six because the technique I'm using, a sort of modified veil painting technique, requires layers of color to dry before other layers are added.

In the first sitting I gave each painting a color mood. This was determined by the month each painting was to accompany, as well as the theme under consideration for that month. I was thinking of Waldorf grades as well - twelve  months, twelve grades - allowing my feelings for the grades to influence the initial color mood as well. For example, in this picture of the first stage of development of the paintings, you see the color mood for the months of July through December. You also see my first thoughts for monthly theme, as well as glimmers into my understanding of the nature of children in grades seven through twelve.

On the second pass, I let the foreground make its appearance. In this picture and the next you can see the first six months, January through June. Seasons and holidays become more evident in the figures. There is also a thought for the grades, the fairy tale quality of grade one, the folk and fable element of grade two, the nine-year change with its opposing pull towards earth and heaven, the fourth grader's interest in reaching out to the world, the place of balance and harmony found briefly in fifth grade, only to kindle the inner fires of the sixth grader approaching puberty.

During the third approach to the paintings, I brought out the forms and details even further. The central figures were brought to life. When they were finally dry and released from the board, I added just a few more details to some of the pictures, though not to all.

These first pictures now are finished. The second set is still in process. You may have some idea what July (seventh grade) will become, but until they receive their second and third coats, the remaining five paintings have their secret still well hidden. All twelve paintings will have a second life as greeting cards in addition to calendar illustrations. I hope you enjoy what you have seen so far.

First attempt at finding a publisher

It's been quite a few months since I finished the manuscript of For Veggie's Sake. I put it aside for a time while I was investigating leads for an illustrator. As I hit dead ends on that front, I decided that perhaps the most expedient thing to do would be to get the story published by a bona fide publisher. My first choice was AWSNA Publications.

In June I contacted David Mitchell to make inquiry. He encouraged me to send him some of my work, so I sent this story. There ensued a long silence. I knew David was attending the AWSNA conference in Atlanta, GA, so I waited patiently. In July I sent a follow-up letter. Still not response. In August I resubmitted my story. At last, as August was drawing to a close, I got a note from David: following the conference he had gone to visit family. He had also become quite ill, necessitating a visit to the hospital. This accounted for the long silence. He also said he'd both seen and enjoyed my two self-published books, Mother Earth's Bad day and The Wonderful World In Numbers. With that pleasant introduction, David went on to tell me that the line-up for this year was already determined. Still, he encouraged me to try again in the spring, and further recommended I also speak with Gerald Karnow at Mercury Press.

So my next step will be to follow David's advice and contact Gerald. Who knows - maybe I can get this story out to the public yet.

Song Book In the Pentatonic Mode and Mood of the Fifth

Since my last posting, I've continued to make progress on my song book. To my disappointment, I found out that the Christopher Robin poems are not yet in the public domain.It was harder to figure out from whom to get permission to use them than to just wait the 10 years or so until they are no longer under copyright. So, while these 2 songs have been enthusiastically received by the children, I've decided, for now, not to include them in the book.

That decision left me temporarily with an insufficient number of songs. So I've been working to make up the deficit. What I came up with were a couple of playground songs and a singing game. As I get all these songs notated, there may be others that arise from my work deserving of inclusion in the book. And so the project grows, as so many of my projects do. Already I am thinking that I'll need to also make MP3's of the songs for people who can't read music. I won't let that hold up the book, but I am aware that there are many people who might enjoy and use the songs if they could learn them by ear instead of deciphering the notated music. Another way for people to learn my songs would be through a workshop. Please contact me at msilians.opportunities@gmail.com if you are interested in that option.

Introducing my newest book project

I haven't abandoned Finlay's travels, nor the quest for getting the groundhog story illustrated. But while these projects have slowed, a new book has suggested itself to me: a children's song book. So far I have 12 songs for it. All are my own melodies. Texts are by me, by my father, by AA Milne, and some of them are lyrics to traditional songs that I have reset to new tunes. One is evena quote from a fairy tale.

What inspired all of these songs was a need for music in the mood of the fifth. There is a dearth of good quality songs to sing with young children if you are committed to trying to bring them songs in this mood. These songs are an effort to address this need. Mood of the fifth is in pentatonic mode; but instead of simply using the tones of the pentatonic scale, the tone A (above middle C) becomes the center, and the melody swings up and down a fifth from there The neighboring tones, E and G below the A, and  B and D above the A are used to develop and enhance the flow of the melody.

I've been singing some of these songs with children for five years already. Others are as new as one week old, but have already been tried and warmly welcomed by the children I sing with. Most are not yet written out, and this is the point at which I take up this project now. It may be that there will still be more songs before this book is ready to go to the printer. I hope it will become a resource for teachers, but even more, I hope it will make its way into the hands of children. Therefore it will need illustrations. I am also thinking on how to get quality recordings made so that parents who can't read music can learn to sing the songs with the children. It's amazing how quickly a small, simple project can grow.

What's happening with the groundhog story?

     For those of you wondering, this is the status:

     A couple weeks ago I got the edits from my friend, a librarian and former colleague. Her input was extremely helpful, not just with mechanics and structure, but also with understanding some of the confusion reported to me by my young critics. I also talked to my mother, a veteran gardener with experience regarding groundhog diet. This conversation led to other adjustments and improvements to the story. The script is now in pretty good shape and my focus has shifted to finding an illustrator. I know there are several people waiting for this story to be published, so I hope the process of getting it illustrated will not take too long. Meanwhile Finlay's journey across country continues, and a new story idea is in development - the adventures of Dolphin Boy. And the writing continues...

Crossing the Rockies - Finlay Continues His Travels

Approaching the Rocky mountains from the flat, flat prairie, and suddenly seeing the peaks, faint and blue, soaring up from the horizon is a breathtaking experience. Then, the climb into the forested wilds, passing stunning rock formations, and on upwards, to 14,000 feet leaves you feeling like you are approaching the stars.

High up in the mountains are broad alpine meadows where farms are situated. One can almost think, mistakenly, that one is in Switzerland. In fact, many of the settlers in this part of Colorado are of Swiss origin. The farmers raise herds of cattle, but also herds of American bison. All is peaceful and calm in these valleys.

In the mountain forests, however there is a wealth of wildlife, large and small. Traveling through by car, it is unlikely that you will see the largest, most exotic of these creatures. The bears and mountain lions stay concealed. Unless you leave the road, chances are your wildlife viewing will consist primarily of rodents, and members of the deer family - though among the latter, herds of elk can sometimes be spotted. And in the air above, hawks and vultures soar.

Best of all, the high altitude mountain water is fresh and clear, and delicious. We filled up every water container we had before leaving the mountains - and were very happy we'd done so once we had arrived on the Western side in the Utah desert.

Finlay visits Kansas

     While I await feedback from my young story editors and my not-so-young copy editors on the completed groundhog manuscript, I've once again taken up the story of Finlay's cross country trip.

When I last worked on this story, Finlay had arrived in Kansas - now he has crossed it. The midwestern portion of the trip is historically rich, nostalgically reminiscent of the previous century, the time of the cowboys and robber barons. Kansas, like a grassy ocean, gives the impression of endless miles to the horizon. Near and far become almost meaningless when there are few landmarks against which to judge distance

Contrasted to the wide open spaces, was this little jail containing two little cubicles and a narrow entryway. Finlay found it fascinating, as he did so many things on this trip. Here he is looking out of the jail window - but you can be sure he was happy not to be locked up in there!

Taking a new marketing plunge

On Saturday I finally took the plunge and set up a shop on Etsy. In connection with this move, I also finally set up a Paypal account. It was wonderful to encounter a strong supportive community on Etsy, and most encouraging when I sold a book through that site before it was 24 hours old!  You can get to my shop via a link on this blog, as well as a link on my web site. My next challenge will be to create shopping carts and "pay now" buttons on my site book page so people can buy my books directly from my site using Paypal. There is just so much still to learn about marketing my books so I can move my (small) inventory.

First draft nearly complete

     I am now almost finished with the groundhog story and am looking for a few child volunteers between the ages of ca. 8 - 11 who would like to help me by reading the manuscript and giving me feedback re: readability, interest, believability, and areas needing improvement. I am NOT looking for parent or parent-guided feedback. It is a children's story, after all, so what is important to me at this stage is whether It captures the fancy of my target audience.


     Once the first draft is finished, and while a few selected children are reading and reporting back, I will be following up on some ideas regarding illustrations and publishing options. Then, while this project cures, I can return to Finlay's cross country travels and sift through my various other projects that are waiting their turn.


     Onward, the exciting life of the writer!

An Unauthorized Visit to the Garden - Excerpt from the groundhog story

The day grew hotter, and the draw of the gooseberry bushes was strong. These bushes were covered with large, sharp thorns. He would be safe beneath them, especially if he lay very still. Looking around once more, Charles noticed that Mama Wood had moved into the tallest grasses and settled herself for sleep. Her eyes were closed, and her breathing regular. Silently, Charles slipped into the tunnel leading to the den.

Quickly he made his way to the main passage, then on down the garden path. He emerged, at length, outside the vegetable garden. His whiskers prickled with nervousness. Charles swiveled his small ears in all directions, listening for danger. He sat up and looked around. All seemed quiet. He could see the inviting vegetables in the garden, and his mouth began to water, his stomach to growl. He looked to his left – yes, there was the spot, flat and rectangular, where the grasses had been recently crushed. It seemed, in fact, as though something had stood in that spot for quite a bit of time, but whatever it was, it was no longer there, just as it had not been the last time he had looked at the area. Whatever could that have been? A large animal?  But it was too regular in form for that. He considered whether it might be another cinder block, such as had been used to block up the garden tunnel, but the area was longer and a little wider than that. Looking at the flattened grasses, Charles felt a knot of unease in his gut. Still, he told himself, the mysterious rectangular spot lay on his left, and the gooseberry bushes grew to the right. He was going to the bushes after all, so why worry?

But first there was the vegetable garden right in front of him. What harm would it do to just visit it briefly before going for his nap? Mama Wood need never know. Glancing all around one last time, Charles lowered himself to his belly and slipped under the fence.

Ah, the glories of the forbidden garden! Whole rows of juicy carrot greens, and if he dug just a little, he could get the sweet carrots as well. Late young tomato plants, not yet in bloom. Beds of lettuce, green or red, and tender to the tongue. All around him Charles saw and smelled vegetables. He ran from one to the next tasting them, savoring their varied aromas and flavors. He chewed and nibbled until his stomach felt full and heavy. Satisfied at last, Charles wriggled back under the fence to leave the garden. He had eaten so much, he was obliged to dig a shallow trough in order to squeeze through. Even so, his back hurt from the scrapes given him by the bottom of the fence.

Charles left the garden satisfied and exhausted. Now would be the perfect time for his siesta. Heading away from the flattened patch, Charles arrived at the row of five large gooseberry bushes. Without hesitating, he disappeared under the center bush and lay down. It was shady here, well protected from the heat of the midday sun. Charles stretched out luxuriously and was soon fast asleep. He dreamed of vegetables, and of his missing sisters. They were talking in a strange language he did not understand. Their voices seemed loud and unusually resonant. They had picked a huge cabbage and were carrying it away, grunting a little with the effort. As their voices faded, he thought he heard his mother saying, “This must be what happened to Charlene and Charlotte. How will I ever get out and warn Charles? I can’t even turn around in here!”

The Reality Behind Groundhog's Day

     Most sources will tell you that the story of groundhog's day, when the groundhog wakes up and leaves his den in the process predicting the arrival (or non-arrival) of spring according to whether or not he sees his shadow, is purely myth. There is, however, perhaps some basis in reality for this tradition:

     Groundhogs are true hibernators. After spending the summer and fall eating as much as possible, they disappear into their dens sometime in October for their long winter nap. Their hibernation chamber is a fair-sized, dry cavern, often located under a bush or tree. There they curl up, tucking their heads between their back legs and go to sleep. As a rule, groundhogs will not wake for the next half year, and it will be March or April before they emerge. During this half year they live off their body fat. They require very little else - their temperature drops to just above freezing, their heart rate slows to fewer than 10 beats per minute, and their breathing and need for oxygen decreases significantly. During this hibernation period the groundhogs sometimes have house guests: rabbits often share the tunnels without disturbing their slumbering hosts.

     What then is the connection between Groundhog's Day, February 2, and the actual habits of groundhogs? According to eNature.com, male groundhogs have been known to wake up in February and venture out to find a mate. Actual mating does not happen at this time - the male simply visits, then returns home for another six weeks of sleep. When he reawakens in March, the groundhog returns to the den of the female for mating, after which he departs and takes no further part in the raising of the family.

And then there were two... a second disappearance

     Things are not going well for the groundhog family. Their tunnels into the vegetable garden keep getting blocked up. What's more, they are disappearing, one at a time. The remaining groundhogs have not been able to figure out what is happening. Mrs. Gardener can be blamed for the bricks, but where are the missing youngsters? There is no evidence of attack by predator, wild or domestic. The only clue is a patch of flattened grass - which might have been the former resting spot of one of the cinder blocks blocking the garden passage. Now Mama Wood is in a state! No one is allowed in the vegetable garden. A dinner of grasses will have to suffice. That is a poor substitute for juicy vegetables and young garden shoots, and even the otherwise unmotivated Charles is beginning to show signs of impending action. But now, in addition to the mystery surrounding the garden, Charles also has to be on the alert for his mother's ire. But the stomach growls and the garden calls. There must be a way to circumvent the dangers, known and unknown, and enjoy the feast.

Excerpt From the Groundhog Story:

This was not a pleasant, comfortable position for Charles. He felt a tingling all over his skin. His mouth had gone dry. The rumbling in his middle had turned into a tightness. He did not want to go to the garden to look for his sister, but one look at his mother, her yellow teeth bared in his direction, took all the arguments out of his head and off his tongue. He gave Charlotte what he hoped was a withering look as he started down the garden passage. As he made his way through the dark tunnel, he tried to think of the possibilities that lay ahead. Maybe, he thought hopefully, Charlene had fallen asleep under a bush, and didn’t realize how late it was. That was unlikely. No groundhog ever fell asleep in a vegetable garden, especially not one as enthusiastic and industrious as Charlene. That left the more unpleasant scenarios. There hadn’t been a dog living on the farm in over a year, but you never could tell about the presence of dogs. A neighborhood dog might have come by that day and found Charlene without a fence between them. Or, worse yet, perhaps the Gardeners had adopted a new dog? Mama had heard of such things happening. It was an old tale passed from one generation to the next, and Charles recalled the stories of this possibility told to his sisters and him when they first emerged from their den as youngsters. Watch out for dogs, Charles told himself as he continued down the passage towards the garden. There was also Mr. Gardener and his gun. It had been a long time since Mr. Gardener had been near the garden. No one had ever seen Mrs. Gardener with a gun, though she came to the garden with regularity to plant, then weed, and finally harvest. She had always seemed fairly harmless though, at worst chasing Charles or his sisters away with her hoe or rake or spade. But humans were notoriously unpredictable. Charles had better be wary and on the watch for a human with a gun.

About a family of groundhogs - the first disappearance

I don't always work on the same project from one day to the next, and the holidays, which took me away from my computer, enforced a two-week stay in story development. However, upon returning to my groundhogs, and finding the hero sleeping in the sun while his sister was in the vegetable garden, I undertook to wake him up and give him a taste of what was in store for him and his family. He's such a lazy guy, and not particularly brave either. He has constantly to weigh safety and comfort against necessity - which sometimes takes the form of finding a way to avoid his mother's wrath. This is especially true when his elder sister comes up missing and the passage to the garden is blocked. Behind him, in the den, waits an angry, hungry mother with little patience for her ne'er-do-well son. Ahead lies the labor of digging a new garden door beyond which lie several unpleasant, even dangerous possibilities, but also the temptation of a richly growing vegetable garden, the solution to the gnawing emptiness in his belly. And what has happened to his sister? Will his mother accept him back without evidence of her whereabouts or information on her fate?

Across the Continent by Automobile

Between the years 2006 and 2008 I drove with my husband Joe and my dog Finlay across the Unites States five times. The occasion for these trips was a gradual move (still incomplete) from Ithaca, NY to Cardiff-by-the-Sea, CA. Each time we took a somewhat different route, drove through some states we hadn't yet been through, or through a different part of those states we had previously crossed, and saw different places, plants, and geological, historical and cultural sites. Sometimes we visited friends along the way. Once we camped. Already during our first trip across country, I knew I would want to use these travel experiences in a children's book on American geography, so, with this idea in mind, took many pictures along the way.

In November the story began to take shape. Using photographs from the first cross-country trip as a basis for the illustrations, and these illustrations as a guide for the text, the literary Finlay set off on his coast to coast adventure. Told from the viewpoint of my golden retriever, the story follows a travel route loosely equivalent to Route 70. As each state is traversed, Finlay tells tales of interesting things learned about that state. When I am not writing about groundhogs, I am telling Finlay's travel tales.

So far this story has taken Finlay from Central New York through Erie, Pennsylvania and across the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri. Through a series of letters home to his feline sister Pousette, Finlay tells about the formation of the Finger Lakes and the Great Lakes. He discusses Amish communities, hoosiers, and log cabins, as well as the botanical gardens in St. Louis, and the music of Chuck Berry. Clearly, Finlay is a well-educated dog with a wide variety of interests. He still has a long way to go, however - in fact, he still has two thirds of the country to cross before arriving in Southern California.