{"id":2289,"date":"2015-03-11T12:00:38","date_gmt":"2015-03-11T19:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lindacollison.com\/?p=2289"},"modified":"2015-03-19T00:13:25","modified_gmt":"2015-03-19T07:13:25","slug":"versatile-blogger","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/madhatdesign.com\/newsite\/versatile-blogger\/","title":{"rendered":"The Versatile Blogger"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"theversatileblogger\"<\/p>\n

Versatile Blogger Award<\/a><\/p>\n

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My writing-friend, Antoine Vanner<\/a>, author of The Dawlish Chronicles<\/a>, thrilling naval-based fiction set in the “heyday of British Empire,” nominated me as a “versatile blogger.” Antoine’s own blogs are chock full of historical content; he highlights ships, battles, and notables of the Victorian era, illuminating the more obscure events of this time period.\u00a0 As a blogger<\/a>, Antoine has built a solid platform; his readers know they will learn something of the past and catch a glimpse of the tip of the iceberg of research that is behind the thrilling adventures of the fictional British Naval Commander Nicholas Dawlish.\u00a0 In a previous post I interviewed Antoine Vanner <\/a>about his writing process. <\/a><\/p>\n

Antoine, I am honored to be nominated as a Versatile Blogger.\u00a0 We connect through our blogs, we keep in touch and informed.<\/p>\n

I’m not an expert.\u00a0 In anything. I’m what my mother always said I would be: a jack-of-all-trades.\u00a0 I am<\/em> versatile, if nothing else.\u00a0 I write about adventure and discovery, in historical and contemporary settings.\u00a0 I write about teenagers and coming of age in various time periods.\u00a0 I write about the sea, but not exclusively.\u00a0 I blog about the writing process — and about people and books that interest me.\u00a0 I write about my versatile life.<\/p>\n

\"Jack<\/p>\n

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What is a versatile blogger?\u00a0 The Versatile Blogger tag is a way for practitioners to introduce their readers to new blogs. There are some wonderful ones out there, and about the most amazing subjects.<\/p>\n

So, as a nominee, here’s what I was asked to do:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Display the logo (see above)<\/li>\n
  2. Write a post and link back to the blogger who nominated me<\/li>\n
  3. Post seven interesting things about myself<\/li>\n
  4. Nominate up to fifteen other bloggers (and why I\u2019ve nominated them)<\/li>\n
  5. Inform them of their nomination<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Seven interesting things<\/strong> about me??<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    1.\u00a0 A DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution) historical essay contest<\/strong> I won in sixth grade elementary school convinced me I wanted to be a writer, and led to a life-long interest in history.\u00a0 A few years ago (a dame d’un certain age) <\/em>I went back to college to study History, with a minor in French.\u00a0 I am of English, Scots-Irish, and French ancestry.<\/p>\n

    2.\u00a0 I can’t stand the sight of blood<\/strong> — yet I worked in Critical Care and Emergency Departments for over a decade, as a registered nurse.\u00a0 I draw from that experience in my writing.<\/p>\n

    \"Friday<\/a><\/p>\n

    3<\/strong>.\u00a0 As a kid growing up on a small farm on Deer Park Road, near Westminster, Maryland, I liked to ride my pony.\u00a0 I also liked to jump off of high places.<\/strong>\u00a0 My girlfriend and I would climb to the second story of the barn and gather our courage to jump out the hay-loading door.\u00a0 It would take long minutes to gather our courage before leaping. I still remember the exhilarating rush of air followed too soon by the stinging on the soles of my feet when I landed in the barnyard below.<\/p>\n

    \"scan0134\"<\/p>\n

    4.\u00a0 I took up skydiving<\/strong> when I was 27 years old.\u00a0 Some years later I met Bob\u00a0 (now my husband of 22 years) at the Loveland-Ft. Collins drop zone.\u00a0 Together we became USPA certified jumpmasters and instructors. I had the pleasure of teaching a group of cadets from the U.S. Air Force Academy, the first jump course.\u00a0 Bob and I taught the Circus Flora to skydive.\u00a0 We competed in Nationals in 4-way competition one year, but didn’t win.\u00a0 We were part of a Guinness World Record attempt<\/strong> for the most people to jump at one time from a hot air balloon. (Who thinks up these things?)<\/p>\n

    \"scan0133\"<\/p>\n

    5.\u00a0<\/strong> In 1999 Bob and I sailed aboard HM Bark <\/strong>Endeavour<\/strong> <\/em>as voyage crewmembers, on her 3-week passage from Vancouver to Hawaii.\u00a0 This amazing experienced fueled my interest in maritime history and inspired my novel Star-Crossed<\/em><\/strong> (Knopf;2006), a New York Public Library choice for Books for the Teen Age – 2007.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

    \"scan0001\"<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    6.\u00a0 Bob and I have sailed thousands of nautical miles together<\/strong> — the inspiration for many articles and stories.\u00a0 Yet I have a love\/hate relationship with boats and the sea.\u00a0 Ocean crossings are metaphors for me.\u00a0 I am drawn to biography and literary fiction that has to do with water.\u00a0 Conversely, I love the American West.\u00a0 I am happily married and happily versatile.<\/p>\n

    \"scan0033\"<\/p>\n

    7.<\/strong> I paint (badly), sing alto (range of five notes), and love to travel<\/strong> by boat, foot, or car.<\/p>\n

    Now to pass on the torch.\u00a0 There are so many interesting bloggers I’m connected with and many of them have already been nominated. \u00a0 I nominate Margaret Muir<\/a>, Sue Leonard<\/a> and DJan Stewart\u00a0 <\/a>for their versatility.\u00a0 I know all of these bloggers personally, as friends as well as writers.\u00a0 Margaret and I have been cruising together, Sue Leonard is also from Baltimore but we met up at the Steamboat Springs Writers’ Group.<\/a> \u00a0 I taught DJan to skydive, and she now has more jumps than I do.\u00a0 In fact, she still skydives.<\/p>\n

    Enjoy!<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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