Otterocity!

Today I am a guest blogger on Pat Stoltey's blog on Blogspot. She shares her thoughts about writing, Colorado authors, social networking and getting published.

I shared a piece about becoming a writer and how our experiences shape our writing. Please check it out and place a comment

Pat Stoltey Blogspot

Thanks, and have Otterocity in your life!

Name / Organization: Kerrie Flanagan / Northern Colorado Writers

What do you do?  “I am the Founder and Director for Northern Colorado Writers. I started NCW almost exactly four years ago this August. I support and encourage writers of all genres and all levels through classes, networking, critique groups, retreats, and conferences.”

 Northern Colorado Writers Website

Blog: The Writing Bug

How did you come about doing this?  “It all started with the first conference over four years ago. There was nothing in the area for writers so I organized the first NCW conference. After the conference I realized writers wanted something more than a once a year. We began to meet at Readers Cove bookstore and various other locations. After doing that a year, it became a headache setting up classes at locations, signing leases, and moving around. I opened the NCW Studio at 108 E. Monroe Unit D, Fort Collins, CO 80525 next to Chicos. It became the “home base” for our writers.”

How do you bring joy to others? “I hope to bring joy by supporting and encouraging other writers and providing resources and classes. The coffee time is our most popular event. It gives writers a chance to come together to network and share ideas.”

And you?  “It brings me joy to have a chance to do that?”

What is the happiest day of your life? "Wow, there are too many to name one."

Give me all then.

"Ok"

• Getting married.
• Having children.
• Being with friends and family.
• 1st Conference.
• Opening the Studio
• Getting the Colorado Women of Vision Award – 2011
• Any time I see my writing I print.
• Really good pizza is a happy day!

First impression . . . Otterocity. What does that word mean to you? "Just an Otter."

Thank you Kerrie, for the wonderful Otterview!

--T.A. Northburg

Colorado Women of Influence announced the recipients of the 2011 Women of Vision Awards. Honorees were determined to have made a contribution to the well-being and empowerment of women and the betterment of their communities through outstanding innovation, leadership, and social Impact.

Litopia Writer's Colony is the best site for writers--Hand's Down!

Litopia is the oldest and most distinctive writing community. Started by agent Peter Cox and The Redhammer Management Limited. Litopia is a site designated for the serious writer. It is a community full of published authors as well as authors who are very serious about getting published.

www.litopia.com

This is a site designed for writers, around the world, to study and perfect their craft. It is also a place to share ideas, swap experiences, ask questions and perfect the craft of writing. In a sense it is for the writer and by the writer.

Who can join? Anyone can join. (It is free.) However, there are strict guidelines for behavior and those who are just there to advertise or spam are not tolerated.

HOW DO YOU GET STARTED?

Go to the link above and create a new account. When you sign up you begin out as a "Member" with limited access. After a month of contributing to the colony, and 50 posts you are able to submit sample material to the Assessment Forum, where the site moderators analyze your writing on many levels then approve you to become a "Full Member" or not.

WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU DON'T GET ACCEPTED?

You can still have limited access to the colony. It is good to keep participating, listen to the weekly podcasts, and polish your work. After three months you can submit to the Assessment Forum again.

When you are a "Full Member," you get to visit more sections within the forums. When you reach over 150 or so posts you get access to the writing Houses. The Houses are broken up into different genres where you critique others writing and once you have a few critiques under your belt, you get to post your own material.

WHAT ELSE IS THERE?

As you post, comment, critique and submit material, you eventually get to become "Full Member Pitch Room" status where you get the opportunity to pitch your material to agent Peter Cox.

Wow, what a fun community!

If you are "serious" about your writing, want to hang out with other serious writers, then Litopia is the colony for you.

Litopia Writing Colony . . . words on fire!

OTTERVIEW is the first in the series of interviews with people or organizations that I believe show Otterocity. Please enjoy and look for more to come.

What do you do? "I am a mystery and suspense writer. I have two books out, The Prairie Grass Murders and The Desert Hedge Murders. I am currently submitting my latest Women's Fiction to agents."

"I blog regularly on my blog www.patriciastoltey.blogspot.com. (I am looking for guest bloggers on Thursdays.) Also, I am a regular contributor to the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writer's blog www.chiseledinrock.blogspot.com."

How did you come about doing this?  "Ever since High School I have enjoyed writing. Since then I started attending workshops and conferences but found it hard to write, with a full time job and children. When I retired, I got into the full swing of it and I am enjoying it."

How do you bring joy to others?  "I keep smiling and encourage other writers to do the best they can do and be the best they can be.

What is the happiest day of your life?  "Days - when my children were born."

How many children do you have?  "I have two sons and two step children."

When you first heard the word Otterocity, what did the word mean to you?

"I thought city of otters. They are cute little creatures!"

For More Information on Pat Stoltey and her books visit:
www.patriciastoltey.com

Thanks Pat for the OtterView I appreciate the time you spent with me!

-- T.A. Northburg

Maggie Going takes on a tough topic; How do we monitor our children online and protect them from predators?  Maggie shows her Otterocty by tackling this topic and sharing her knowledge with others.

The seriousness of online predators is very prevalent in our society. Every day children are targeted online by predators. As a parent of three children I am quickly grasping the dangers of the internet and my children surfing on it.

Maggie Goins, a friend and local Fort Collins author, has dedicated her life to spreading the word of the dangers of the internet and the predators that target children.

Visit her website to find the latest information about Internet Safety and children.

www.internetsafetycentral.com

Every Parent and tween should buy and read Maggie's book IN REAL LIFE

SYNOPSIS: IN REAL LIFE

Libby is dealing with extreme pressures that life sometime places on us. She is still reeling from the death of her mother and is facing the challenges of dealing with her father's marriage to a new wife, and the addition of a step brother and sister in her life. Before going away on a business trip, Libby's father gives her an old computer and sets it up in her room. While her father is away on a business Libby sets up her own e-mail and explores chat rooms unsupervised. She turns to a new chat room friend, Jeff, who seems to "Understand what she is going through." Looking for someone to understand her feelings, comfort her, and give her the connection she is missing in her life, Libby falls prey to an online predator. After several e-mails she agrees to meet Jeff at a local mall. At the mall she is slipped some drugs in her drink, as Jeff plans on kidnapping her. Luckily her school friends uncover her hidden secret and rush to the mall and alert security guards, who step in and arrest the man, saving Libby.

IN REAL LIFE is a fictitious story about the dangers of the internet. Maggie Goins does a real good job of blending fiction with what could really happen to children who befriend someone online. It is easy to see through Libby's story how easy it is for children to fall prey to online strangers, and the outcome that could potentially happen. For Libby, it ends well. There are many children out there, in real life, that it ends not so well.

Maggie said it best on her website, "Many families know the Internet is not only a wonderful source of fun and information, but also a dangerous world for a child to explore unsupervised. Unfortunately, other families are not so aware."

I read this book and am sharing it with my children. If you are a parent, you need to read this, have your children read this and then discuss it together.

Buy the book here:

www.internetsafetycentral.com/About__Biography_.html