C. Lee McKenzie

Young Adult and Middle Grade Author

AtoZ Blogging Challenge. P Has Arrived!

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The brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out

Perspicacious/Perspicacity

Keen, Sharp and Intelligent.
How can perspicacious or perspicacity not make it to the top of your favorite words to use? With those plosive sounds and that staccato beat, these words pop out of your mouth. They even perk up a written sentence when you’re reading and all those words on the page are filled with the humming, nasal sounds of M’s and N’s and breathy vowels. Then suddenly here come the pop, pop, poppity P’s  of perspicacious/perspicacity to wake you up.
This little “wake up” post brought to you by: 
The Madlab Post (Nicole Ayers)
Tossing It Out (Arlee Bird)
Amlokiblogs (Damyanti Biswas)
Alex J. Cavanaugh (Alex J. Cavanaugh)
Life is Good (Tina Downey)
Cruising Altitude 2.0 (DL Hammons)
Retro-Zombie (Jeremy Hawkins)
The Warrior Muse (Shannon Lawrence)
The QQQE (Matthew MacNish)
Leave it to Livia (Livia Peterson)
No Thought 2 Small (Konstanz Silverbow)
Breakthrough Blogs (Stephen Tremp)
Spunk on a Stick (L. Diane Wolfe)
We also have a Facebook page, email address [email protected], and the Twitter hashtag is #AtoZChallenge.  Join in. 

AtoZ Blogging Challenge. O Has Arrived!

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The brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out

Ossification

Relative. A Bony Headed Lizard
There have been times during these writing spurts I suffer, that I’m sure my brain has hardened into a bony mass. Brain Ossification is the worst when I’m in the middle of a story and suddenly I don’t have a clue where to take it next. What happens: sleepless nights, twitchy days and lots of pacing between the computer and the kitchen, where I seek solace from the refrigerator. It seems to be the only thing in the house that understands me.
Still ossification is a fabulous word with its hissy sibilant sounds. Do you suffer from ossification of the brain when you’re writing? If so, where do you go for help? Please don’t tell me you go to the refrigerator, too. But if that’s the case, whisper to me and tell me what your favorite comfort food is that you keep stashed there.
Brought to you by: Be sure to stop in at some of these blogs.
The Madlab Post (Nicole Ayers)
Tossing It Out (Arlee Bird)
Amlokiblogs (Damyanti Biswas)
Alex J. Cavanaugh (Alex J. Cavanaugh)
Life is Good (Tina Downey)
Cruising Altitude 2.0 (DL Hammons)
Retro-Zombie (Jeremy Hawkins)
The Warrior Muse (Shannon Lawrence)
The QQQE (Matthew MacNish)
Leave it to Livia (Livia Peterson)
No Thought 2 Small (Konstanz Silverbow)
Breakthrough Blogs (Stephen Tremp)
Spunk on a Stick (L. Diane Wolfe)
We also have a Facebook page, email address [email protected], and the Twitter hashtag is #AtoZChallenge.  Join in. 

AtoZ Blogging Challenge. Nuance Much Lately?

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The brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out

Nuance

I love writers who leave something for me to figure out in their stories. One effective way they do this is to go for the subtle shadings in action or in description rather than using the blatant approach. Here’s an example of what I mean. 
“. . .but it’s wrong what they say about the past, I’ve learned, about how you can bury it . Because the past claws its way out. Looking back now, I realize I have been peeking into that deserted alley for the last twenty-six years.”
In The Kite Runner, we know from this early sentence in the book, that something life-altering happened a long time ago. I’ve italicized the words that give us that information. Hosseini carefully chose them for the effect he wanted to create (dark, tinged with guilt, long-lasting). Whatever happened deeply affected the main character. But instead of telling us what it was and how it affected him, the writer nuances the event and leaves us wondering. Now we must turn the page to find out what this story is about. We’re hooked by this subtle glimpse of this character’s past.
Are you intrigued by what’s not explicit, by the nuancing of information in books?


This very subtle and nuanced post brought to you by:
The Madlab Post (Nicole Ayers)
Tossing It Out (Arlee Bird)
Amlokiblogs (Damyanti Biswas)
Alex J. Cavanaugh (Alex J. Cavanaugh)
Life is Good (Tina Downey)
Cruising Altitude 2.0 (DL Hammons)
Retro-Zombie (Jeremy Hawkins)
The Warrior Muse (Shannon Lawrence)
The QQQE (Matthew MacNish)
Leave it to Livia (Livia Peterson)
No Thought 2 Small (Konstanz Silverbow)
Breakthrough Blogs (Stephen Tremp)
Spunk on a Stick (L. Diane Wolfe)
We also have a Facebook page, email address [email protected], and the Twitter hashtag is #AtoZChallenge.  Join in. 

AtoZ Blogging Challenge.

By 36 Comments

The brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out

Mellifluous. One yummy sounding word.

The sound of warm honey, sliding from the spoon. . .
water sheeting over sleepy midstream boulders. . .
leaves whispering secrets to the jays and chickadees. . . 
a kitten purring contentment into your lap.

Ah, what a word that is!  Do you have a word that really appeals to your ear?

These mellifluous sounds brought to you by:
The Madlab Post (Nicole Ayers)
Tossing It Out (Arlee Bird)
Amlokiblogs (Damyanti Biswas)
Alex J. Cavanaugh (Alex J. Cavanaugh)
Life is Good (Tina Downey)
Cruising Altitude 2.0 (DL Hammons)
Retro-Zombie (Jeremy Hawkins)
The Warrior Muse (Shannon Lawrence)
The QQQE (Matthew MacNish)
Leave it to Livia (Livia Peterson)
No Thought 2 Small (Konstanz Silverbow)
Breakthrough Blogs (Stephen Tremp)
Spunk on a Stick (L. Diane Wolfe)
We also have a Facebook page, email address [email protected], and the Twitter hashtag is #AtoZChallenge.  Join in. 

AtoZ Blogging Challenge. Welcome to Luscious Saturday

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The brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out

Luscious

I can’t say this word without drool being involved. I think of food immediately. Like
this 284 calorie (158 g.) Hot Fudge Sundae with 25% saturated fat content. 
Or (have to have at least one green veggie, right) green beans (1C. 125g), .078g saturated fat-without butter, of course.
Enchilada (1/ 192g) 323 calories, 45% saturated fat!
Hotcakes (2/ 232.g)  520 calories, 29% saturated fat. Oye. Who can eat only 2?

Mud Pie (1/8.5 oz) 680 calories, 49% total fat. Did you know you have to walk 189 minutes to burn 680 calories?

Sorry I have to go eat now! 
Did I make you drool? Hope so. 
Did ruin anyone’s favorite food snack by posting the calories and fat information?
Do you care a flying fig about any of this?

The LIST

Brought to you by:
The Madlab Post (Nicole Ayers)
Tossing It Out (Arlee Bird)
Amlokiblogs (Damyanti Biswas)
Alex J. Cavanaugh (Alex J. Cavanaugh)
Life is Good (Tina Downey)
Cruising Altitude 2.0 (DL Hammons)
Retro-Zombie (Jeremy Hawkins)
The Warrior Muse (Shannon Lawrence)
The QQQE (Matthew MacNish)
Leave it to Livia (Livia Peterson)
No Thought 2 Small (Konstanz Silverbow)
Breakthrough Blogs (Stephen Tremp)
Spunk on a Stick (L. Diane Wolfe)
We also have a Facebook page, email address [email protected], and the Twitter hashtag is #AtoZChallenge.  Join in. 

AtoZ Blogging Challenge. Almost Kaput, But Not Quite.

By 45 Comments

The brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out

Before you go to my K word today, here’s something I found. I’m a researcher by nature, so when one of the blogger posted Hebbie-Jeebies as an H word, I had to find out where that came from. It was coined by a cartoonist named W.B. “Billy” DeBeck of Barney Google and Snuffy Smith fame. He came up with or popularized other long-lived words and phrases as well, including bodacious, my B word on this AtoZ luxury cruise. If you come across hotsy-totsy, hot mama or horsefeathers give credit to that cartoonist DeBeck.  Now onto K.

Kaput

I love this word, not the way I love words like kaleidoscope
or kalanchoe
or even kestrel.

Well, you get the idea. These words stay a while in your mouth while their syllables roll around on your tongue. Kaput is a word that sounds like two strokes of an axe. It comes right to the point. 

The agent points her finger my direction and says to the publisher, “That writer’s kaput!”
See?
Two axe strokes. Very harsh.

What’s your K word?



Da LIST


Brought to you by:
The Madlab Post (Nicole Ayers)
Tossing It Out (Arlee Bird)
Amlokiblogs (Damyanti Biswas)
Alex J. Cavanaugh (Alex J. Cavanaugh)
Life is Good (Tina Downey)
Cruising Altitude 2.0 (DL Hammons)
Retro-Zombie (Jeremy Hawkins)
The Warrior Muse (Shannon Lawrence)
The QQQE (Matthew MacNish)
Leave it to Livia (Livia Peterson)
No Thought 2 Small (Konstanz Silverbow)
Breakthrough Blogs (Stephen Tremp)
Spunk on a Stick (L. Diane Wolfe)
We also have a Facebook page, email address [email protected], and the Twitter hashtag is #AtoZChallenge.  Join in. 

AtoZ Blogging Challenge I’m on Day 10 and Still Jocular-Mostly.

By 31 Comments

The brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out

Jocular

This word needs a good laugh-laughter heals and brings peace to your soul even during the AtoZ Challenge, and-I’ve been told-lowers your blood pressure.

Have a jocular day!


This LIST is long!


These laughs brought to you by:
The Madlab Post (Nicole Ayers)
Tossing It Out (Arlee Bird)
Amlokiblogs (Damyanti Biswas)
Alex J. Cavanaugh (Alex J. Cavanaugh)
Life is Good (Tina Downey)
Cruising Altitude 2.0 (DL Hammons)
Retro-Zombie (Jeremy Hawkins)
The Warrior Muse (Shannon Lawrence)
The QQQE (Matthew MacNish)
Leave it to Livia (Livia Peterson)
No Thought 2 Small (Konstanz Silverbow)
Breakthrough Blogs (Stephen Tremp)
Spunk on a Stick (L. Diane Wolfe)
We also have a Facebook page, email address [email protected], and the Twitter hashtag is #AtoZChallenge.  Join in. 

AtoZ Blogging Challenge. It Be Day 9!

By 45 Comments

The brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out

Idolize

Ever idolize (idolise, if you’re a Brit) anyone? Ever admire someone so much that you crave to be like them? 
How about now? Anyone you look up to as a hero? 
I kind of thought she was cool, but I grew out of that phase. My husband didn’t!
Of course, being idolized might be a pain.

Idolizing might be not a good idea.  (I think I just wrote a rotten sentence)


Some people have Billy as an idol.




Have you seen this LIST? Staggering.


Brought to you by:

The Madlab Post (Nicole Ayers)
Tossing It Out (Arlee Bird)
Amlokiblogs (Damyanti Biswas)
Alex J. Cavanaugh (Alex J. Cavanaugh)
Life is Good (Tina Downey)
Cruising Altitude 2.0 (DL Hammons)
Retro-Zombie (Jeremy Hawkins)
The Warrior Muse (Shannon Lawrence)
The QQQE (Matthew MacNish)
Leave it to Livia (Livia Peterson)
No Thought 2 Small (Konstanz Silverbow)
Breakthrough Blogs (Stephen Tremp)
Spunk on a Stick (L. Diane Wolfe)
We also have a Facebook page, email address [email protected], and the Twitter hashtag is #AtoZChallenge.  Join in. 

AtoZ Blogging Challenge. H is King Today.

By 48 Comments

The brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out

Just to remind readers what I’m doing here, I’m reposting my earlier explanation. Here ’tis!

As a writer, my real tools are the words in my language. Fortunately, English has a ton-with more being added everyday. You can see where this is going, right? My favorite words from AtoZ. Okay, stop the sniggering. I’m not as creative as some, so give me a break, take a look and add your favorite word in your comment. I can always use more words.

Harrowing

How would you use this word in one of your stories, or would you? What’s harrowing for you anyway? Do you feel more harrowed by reading the reports of real events in the real world, or by Stephen King’s latest weird adventure in the land of fiction? Here’s a film that gives me the true feeling of what a harrowing experience is. Ever seen The Deep? I only thought I’d see the opening of this video about the making of that film, but I had to watch it all. Incredibly harrowing.
This harrowing experience brought to you by:
The Madlab Post (Nicole Ayers)
Tossing It Out (Arlee Bird)
Amlokiblogs (Damyanti Biswas)
Alex J. Cavanaugh (Alex J. Cavanaugh)
Life is Good (Tina Downey)
Cruising Altitude 2.0 (DL Hammons)
Retro-Zombie (Jeremy Hawkins)
The Warrior Muse (Shannon Lawrence)
The QQQE (Matthew MacNish)
Leave it to Livia (Livia Peterson)
No Thought 2 Small (Konstanz Silverbow)
Breakthrough Blogs (Stephen Tremp)
Spunk on a Stick (L. Diane Wolfe)
We also have a Facebook page, email address [email protected], and the Twitter hashtag is #AtoZChallenge.  HERE’s THE LIST. 

AtoZ Blogging Challenge. G’s Big Day

By 48 Comments

The brainchild of Arlee Bird, at Tossing it Out

This post is short and to the point. It’s Monday. It’s sunny outside. I’m outta here!

G is for Gregarious. 

This is an old word from the 1600s. Latin gregarius “pertaining to a flock; of the herd, of the common sort.
And if you’re a gregarious type, you love to be with a group, just like these guys.

And then there are the A-Z Bloggers
www.coolmob.org
Brought to you by all these peeps and here are the other thousand!
The Madlab Post (Nicole Ayers)
Tossing It Out (Arlee Bird)
Amlokiblogs (Damyanti Biswas)
Alex J. Cavanaugh (Alex J. Cavanaugh)
Life is Good (Tina Downey)
Cruising Altitude 2.0 (DL Hammons)
Retro-Zombie (Jeremy Hawkins)
The Warrior Muse (Shannon Lawrence)
The QQQE (Matthew MacNish)
Leave it to Livia (Livia Peterson)
No Thought 2 Small (Konstanz Silverbow)
Breakthrough Blogs (Stephen Tremp)
Spunk on a Stick (L. Diane Wolfe)
We also have a Facebook page, email address [email protected], and the Twitter hashtag is #AtoZChallenge.  Join in.