Valerie Ormond's Thoughts On …

Writing Tips from Valerie Ormond

Tag: Believing In Horses

  • Actively Learn with “Believing In Horses, Too”

    Educators from Actively Learn discovered Believing In Horses after the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) test featured an excerpt of the book in its 2015 annual test. Following discussions, Actively Learn decided to feature two excerpts from Believing In Horses, Too in their creative curriculum. Actively Lean uses a new approach to learning by providing free English Language Arts (ELA) and other content embedded with standards-aligned assignments to help students learn.

    Tessa Polizzi, Actively Learn’s Senior Manager of Product & Content, identified the following assignment from Believing In Horses, Too, which thrilled me because it was one of my favorite chapters. She said:

    “I started reading Believing in Horses, Too thinking that I’d look for an excerpt connected to Sadie and her dad, but then I came across the chapter “New Kid on the Block.” I love this one. It stands alone as a story pretty well on its own, connects to an experience that kids are familiar with (making a new friend), and touches on some of the hard situations that kids face in their lives.”

    See the “New Kid on the Block” assignment to engage your learners!

    Tessa also asked if she could develop a curriculum based on an excerpt for the “Bullies Don’t Rule” chapter, another one of my favorites. I think they did a great job on this lesson, too!

    I hope these might be additional help to those homeschooling or to introduce young readers to a new and fun way of learning. And thank you to Actively Learning and Tessa for bringing these stories to more readers.

  • Help for Homeschoolers!

    Help for Homeschoolers!

    I want to offer help for parents and others struggling to homeschool children, a job most people are not trained to do. My solution also helps fill a void for horse crazy kids missing their horse activities due to the current (now “recent”) COVID19 shutdowns.

    Teacher’s Tack for Believing In Horses is available for free below as a PDF file. This teacher’s guide accompanies my book, Believing In Horses, an inspirational story about a strong-willed girl in a military family who commits to saving unwanted horses. My brother, Eddy Ormond, developed learning plans and fun activities, complete with a full homeschooling module to help children learn in an interactive way. Here is your copy!

    Teacher’s Tack for Believing In Horses      (free downloadable PDF)

    Eddy brought more than 15 years of elementary school teaching experience to this project. Teacher’s Tack debuted at the State of Maryland International Reading Association Conference, received praise from educators throughout the U.S., and has been used globally even as far away as South Africa! Eddy worked with me while I wrote the book and helped create situations that would appeal to a young audience. His involvement in the book inspired him to create Teacher’s Tack, an educator’s perspective on how to “teach” Believing In Horses and make learning fun.

    And don’t just take my word for it that Believing In Horses is good for children. Recognition has included:

    • Parent Tested Parent Approved Official Winners Seal of Approval

    • National Education Association’s Read Across America program selection

    • PARCC (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers) excerpt in its annual assessment, and

    • Inclusion in CommonLit’s digital library of reading passages and curriculum materials. CommonLit is an education nonprofit dedicated to improving children’s literacy nationwide.

    Believing In Horses is available for free in eBook or paperback at libraries. Copies are also available at Amazon or via my website.

    Next month, I will share free educational resources related to Believing In Horses, Too. Stay safe, everyone, and let me know if I can help with an interview or answer questions for your readers.

    Free Download PDF of “Teacher’s Tack for Believing In Horses”

  • Library Events

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    The Calvert Library in Prince Frederick, Maryland is one active library! Saturday, October 29, 2016, the library is hosting its annual Local Authors Festival from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. with more than 30 authors in attendance. I’m lucky enough to be one of them. I’ll be there with my books, “Believing In Horses,” and “Believing In Horses, Too.” And I look forward to meeting local readers and authors.

    I hold a special place in my heart for this library, as this was the first library to carry my first book, “Believing In Horses.”

    For a full schedule, the author lineup, and additional details, please click here: http://calvert.lib.md.us/author.html. And please stop by and say hi if you make it!

    And check out the other many special events this library offers, including discussions, learning opportunities, and writing workshops.

     

  • The Synopsis and its Friends

    This post sponsored by Grammarly. Use Grammarly’s plagiarism checker because you want to write right (Has anyone said that before? – No!)

    When I am asked what my books are about, I try to respond with one sentence. That answer is not a synopsis, but what I would consider one of the synopsis’ “friends.” Books descriptions serve specific purposes. And just to make it easier, not everyone agrees on the rules. I’ve pulled together some thoughts and resources on what I consider the three most common forms of synopses.

    Three Forms of Synopses

    The Synopsis

    What it is:  Tells the entire story, particularly the conflict

    Length:  One-page single spaced or two pages double spaced maximum

    Purpose:  To interest an agent or publisher to request manuscript

    Tip:  Convey emotion

    Example:  Spoiler alert! This synopsis includes the ending of “The Way Way Back.”

    The Book Blurb

    What it is: The 30-second elevator pitch normally seen in advertisement copy or on a book’s back cover or inside jacket flap

    Length:  100 – 200 words

    Purpose:  To tell potential readers enough to get them interested or used by sales representatives to pitch titles, post on retailers’ websites, and post in catalogues

    Tip:  Make a connection with readers and book buyers

    Example: Distributors’ book blurb (advertisement copy) for “Believing In Horses, Too”

    The Super Short Synopsis

    What it is:  My term for the short answer to describe the book in conversation or to append to a biographical line in a written post

    Length:  One sentence

    Tip:  Not much written on this one, but it’s the one I use most

    Example:  A girl in a military family overcomes fears through her work with therapeutic riding programs (“Believing In Horses, Too”)

    Additional Resources

    Following are some additional useful resources I’ve found, with a brief description of each.

    Back to Basics: Writing a Novel Synopsis (Jane Friedman) – Outstanding advice, and many useful links.

    Five Tips on How to Write a Novel Synopsis (Chuck Sambuchino) – This article and links to other articles on the synopsis; the author also provides freelance services for synopsis writing.

    Query Shark  –  Blog providing advice on how to write query letters that work – much based on synopses. Writers may submit their queries for critique.

    How to Write the Back Blurb for Your Book (Joanna Penn) – Advice on back cover blurbs, and a little more.

    Conclusion

    Now you try – at the very least, ensure you have a super short synopsis ready to describe your writing, your business, or whatever it is that you do. Feel free to share here!