Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Demons invading Fresno?

Yes, you heard it. Demons are coming to Fresno, and they are looking for someone in particular. I am soooooooooooooooooooooooo excited to announce the release of my debut novel, The Glass Serpent, book one of the Demon-Gods War series. Book cover soon to follow.

What would happen if Heaven combind with Hell?

As if killing demons for a living wasn't enough, the dreams kept coming, haunting a past that Raylene Greyson had tried to forget. The Greysons have done all they could to help her forget. The Greysons, with no thought of reward, gave her a new life and fresh start. But then, Raylene started to remember what her life was before Saain. Along comes Luccas who says he knows who she is. Forced to work with each other, the two develop a love that could not only put them in danger of hellfire, but the Greysons as well. Then one of the Greyson children is kidnapped. Raylene must save her before it's too late, and the child is lost forever.

Along the way, Raylene discovers who she is, and how her family is connected. She will not only have to overcome her past but accept her future.

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Portable Food-In-A-Pill Helps Soldiers and Civilians in Emergencies, Will Metabolize Your Own Fat

 I did a bit of research for a manuscript when I came across this and thought it was cool. If only we could have it sooner. Then again, perhaps it is already in place, and I do not know it yet. Portable Food-In-A-Pill Helps Soldiers and Civilians in Emergencies, Will Metabolize Your Own Fat

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Wonderful World of Grammar

I found this article interesting that perhaps future teachers or writers would like cause we all have a voice.

Sams, Lynn, How to Teach Grammar, Analytical Thinking, and Writing: A Method That Works, The English Journal, Vol. 92, No. 3, Revitalizing Grammar (Jan., 2003), pp. 57-65, National Council of Teachers of English, http://www.jstor.org/stable/822261




Summary

Lynn Sams begins How to Teach Grammar, Analytical Thinking, and Writing . . . by coming to a conclusion herself. She stated that grammar goes in hand and hand with writing. While the desire to study one topic is there, both have to be studied together. While teaching in classroom, she explores what struggles her students had with regards to what prevented them from placing thoughts on paper. She finds they had problems with organization, coherence, and revision. Sams decided to take a step further to get into developing what she calls, “The root causes” of why her students struggled. What she sees is as she develops strategies to combat current problems is that she was teaching Grammar. It was more towards what the structure and meaning were than the usage. She talks about what happens as she continues to explore. As she and her students go further in the year, Sams comes to the same answer what twentieth researchers have already concluded. Researchers claimed that “Direct instruction in grammar had no impact on writing.” That idea, alone, of studying grammar has nothing to deal with how writing works. Grammar, in Sams’ words, “taught prescription (usage and rules)” and also “description (nouns, verbs, prepositional phrases).” She goes on to add that grammar included “the naming of parts.” But that is not all stated in the article. Another point Sams brings to the reader’s attention is the theology of what is called the “In-Context” method. This system is a more socially accepted perspective and is sponsored as a way of approaching grammar. The method means using a little bit more than an application which some teachers will pull from the hat. Unfortunately, this is also a fail. The reason this approach to grammar fails is it treats the subject as something separated from writing. That grammar is a separate force outside the written aspect. Sams claims the two are not apart, but they are as one. And with grammar and writing connected, it “becomes abundantly clear the more closely we align our methods of teaching writing with the nature of the composing process.” In simpler terms it means, writing is an art that we need to understand. As we come to this understanding of how writing works, then we can incorporate what we want to get across to the students. Our methods will fall naturally like they are supposed to.