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Terri Farley
Wabi Sabi

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

YOU TOTALLY ROCK!

Horse slaughter plant idea withdrawn
Jan 29 2008 12:16PM
Associated Press
PIERRE, S.D. (AP) Flooded with messages from across the nation by people who oppose the consumption of horses, a South Dakota legislative committee killed a bill today that would have provided a $1 million loan to construct a plant to process horses.


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Sunday, January 27, 2008

Do You Want this in SOUTH DAKOTA?

SOUTH DAKOTA INTRODUCES BILL TO FINANCE HORSE SLAUGHTER PLANT

If you live in South Dakota, please call your Congressmen & Senators tomorrow.
A bill has been introduced to GIVE ONE MILLION DOLLARS to any company which wants to open a horse slaughter house in your state.
The vote takes place on Tuesday morning.


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Wednesday, January 23, 2008

FUN PHUN

Dear Readers,
Soon I'll be having a contest (still working out the details) and the grand prize will be a shopping spree in the Phantom-Phanclub.com Shopping Corral. This isn't my website, but I love "going" there because it helps raise funds for the Wild Horse Sanctuary, the home of the real Phantom.
If you haven't already visited the Phanclub, here are a few things you might want to check out: the photos on the Wild Horse Sanctuary calendar (THREE are of thereal Phantom...can you spot him?), the Phantom Valentine contest and the photos of the real Phantom. The one of him grazing with his son Pride is my favorite!
Happy trails,
Terri


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Tuesday, January 22, 2008

HERE I AM

Dear Readers,

Today is the National Call-In Day for Horses! Together, we have
closed all U.S. horse slaughter plants.
Now we need to pass the American Horse Slaughter Prevention Act (H.R. 503/S. 311) to end
the transport to slaughter of American horses to Mexico and Canada.
Here's a plea (used with her permission) from Rebecca Gilbert, one of my wonderful readers and a talented and perceptive writer:


HERE I AM

Here I am.
I was your partner, I thought I was your friend even.
I guess I was wrong.
I helped you, loved you, trusted you, did my best for you.
Look at me now. Can you look me in the eye?

Here I am.
I'm afraid, in pain, alone.
Was it because of me or you?
I gave my all for you.
I'm sorry I got old. I didn't mean to stumble.
I don't want to blame you; I want to love you.

Here I am.
I need you.
I'm terrified. Many are with me, but really we're all alone.
We want to trust, love, live again.
I don't want to be alone.
I don't want to die.

Here I am.
Sold for meat. Sentenced to death.
Thousands of us.
Was it worth it?
Didn't you ever love me?
Am I nothing more than a cast-off toy to you?

Here I am.
Won't you save me?
Save me. Is that so hard to do?
I want to live.
Thousands like me want to be loved.
Save us.
Please.

Hear we are.
Scared.
Unloved.
Alone.
Starved.
Dying.
Hear my dying breath.
I still love you.
Here I am.

-BorrowedWingsOfPegasus

A note from Rebecca: So this is my poem. I don't know if you'll like it or not, but I think it's a way that some may see what a loving family horse sent to the slaughter may feel.
Hearing the Phantoms hoof beats,
Rebecca G., penname BorrowedWingsOfPegasus


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Monday, January 21, 2008

Can you say 12 words to save horses?

Dear Readers,
Today -- Tuesday -- is the day.
If you live in the U.S., you can save horses from fear, pain and death with a phone call.
Here's how:
Call your Senator(s) and say:

Please co-sponsor and support Senate Bill 311 to protect horses from slaughter.
Thank you.



Call your Congressman and say:

Please co-sponsor and support House Bill 503 to protect horses from slaughter.
Thank you.


If you don't know your Congressmen and Senators names, you can look them up in the telephone book under U.S. Government, go to www.congress.org and enter your zip code and www.senate.org and enter your zip code. OR SIMPLY PHONE THE CAPITOL OPERATER at (202) 224-3121 and tell him/her you'd like to be transferred to your congressman & senators.

Are you scared to call? Do you think horses are scared when they enter the slaughter house and hear and smell what lies ahead?
Dear readers, you are brave enough to make a phone call and say twelve words.
TWELVE WORDS. Fourteen if you say thank-you.
If horses could speak up, they'd do it for you.
Hugs in advance,
Terri


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Saturday, January 19, 2008

Reward for loyalty: A knife in the spine

Dear Readers,

I've left the blog item below this one ALONE because I wanted to be sure as many readers as possible marked their calendars to make a phone call on Tuesday.
Now, I'd like you to see what's at stake.
If there's any question in your mind that you need to make a single phone call on Tuesday, read this article about what happens to American horses no one wants.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/11/us/11horse.html?em&ex=1200200400&en=dc0b33d2b271497f&ei=5087%0A

When I make my phone call, I'll also insist there be limits on what can happen to horses that leave the U.S. for the slaughter pens of Canada and Mexico.
Please help me and the horses.


Best to you and your animals,
Terri


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Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Help Save Our Horses!





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Sunday, January 13, 2008

A Reader's Questions

HI,
These questions are from a reader whose email address bounced the answers right back to me. As I was trying to reach her, it occured to me that you might be interested in these questions and answers, too.


* Any "how to get started" books you'd suggest?

My favorite books for writers are:
BIRD BY BIRD (Anne LaMott)
WRITING THE NATURAL WAY (Gabrielle Rico) and WRITING DOWN THE BONES.

* Is there a good market for children's books?

Yes -- if the books are original and well written and if you do your homework and send the right sort of book to the right publisher. The easiest ways to do this are to check the WRITER'S MARKET and to cruise the shelves in a bookstore to see which publishers like the sort of book YOU want to write.

* How will I know if my material is any good?
My best advice is to join a group like SCBWI and sit in on some critique groups. I think it's always best to discuss your work with people who read and like the same genre you're writing. For instance, I wouldn't show a romance manuscript to someone who reads only non-fiction, because s/he wouldn't be able to compare the work to what else is in the field.


* Could I hope to pay my bills?
It's possible. However, most writers have other professions for quite a while before writing takes over as their main source of income. That's the case with every published writer I know.

* How do you pay the illustrator?
The good news is: the publisher pays the illustrator! However, in most cases the publisher selects the illustrator, too. That makes some writers unhappy, but I've been fortunate to have wonderful cover artists

Best,
Terri


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Thursday, January 10, 2008

SEA SHADOW

HI!
Amazon.com beat me to posting the cover of my April book : Phantom Stallion: Wild Horse Island #6: Sea Shadow. I hope you think it's a gorgeous as I do!
Aloha!
Terri


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Wednesday, January 09, 2008

Cutest Thing I've Heard All Week

Dear Readers,
I just got an email from Palomino, a hard-working volunteer at the Wild Horse Sanctuary (wildhorsesanctuary.com) which is the home of the REAL Phantom and she had this to say about the mustangs:

Everyone looks soooooooooooooo cute with all their long coats - they look like they are wearing p.j.'s. Phantom is being the Phantom and just popping in every now and then, so I think he is settling well.

the image of wild horses in pajamas makes me giggle,
Terri


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Monday, January 07, 2008

Snow or Slow Day?

Dear Readers,
On this first day back at school after the holiday break, students in my neighborhood are enjoying a delayed start -- meaning school will begin two hours late because of snow and ice.
If YOU are looking for something fun to do today, you might check out funquiz.com. I just discovered it through a reader and you can take quizzes & play games which relate to your favorite books. When I last checked, there were seven PHANTOM STALLION & WILD HORSE ISLAND quizzes.
I'd love to hear how you score!
Have fun!
Terri


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Saturday, January 05, 2008

FA(S)Qs

Frequently Asked Saturday Questions

Q: Are you okay? I've heard the weather in your part of Nevada is terrible!

A: We're fine. We've had lots of snow and driving is pretty much impossible, but the levee that broke is some distance from our house. My son the journalist is out covering the story & of course I have mama-concerns for him, but the rest of us are safe and warm -- even Zito the dog. She's recovering from a morning snow run by napping with her icy pads in front of the heater. She's not a good sharing girl, either!

Q: I know there are Phantom Stallion movies! Where can I find them?

A: So far, there is no go-to-the-theatre-or-video-store movie of the PHANTOM STALLION or WILD HORSE ISLAND stories.
You might be thinking of the YouTube newscasts of the REAL Phantom Stallion or the movies made by fans. You can find them all here: http://youtube.com/results?search_query=Phantom+stallion&search=Search


Q: This summer there was a cool interview with you and I wanted to read it again, but the link I saved doesn't work any more.
A: The newspaper's archives can be tricky to navigate, so I'll post the story here:
'Stallion' author weaves a wondrous life
By Erin Breen


She has spent most of her life in classrooms, more than 25 years of it teaching high school students. Her heart is in helping them learn and her imagination pulls her to adventure.

"When I was very young, I used to daydream about horses," Terri Farley told me as she took a break from writing her next young adult novel, expected to be just as big a hit as the 24 that have come before.

"I grew up in L.A., but when I moved to Nevada and got involved with the wild horses, that's when I really felt like I was home."

It began with a cattle drive years ago and a notion that she'd seen a mysterious Phantom Stallion in the mist.

"The story had me in its grips," she recalled. "I let the characters just talk to me and I kept stacks and stacks of notes. And when the opportunity came, I couldn't wait to write the story."

That story became a series of books called "The Phantom Stallion," published by Harper-Collins. The books have sold more than a million copies worldwide.

"In all the stories about horses and ranches I read when I was a kid, the main character was always a boy," Farley said. "So I made my main character a girl. And she's one tough cowgirl. I get a lot of fan mail from all over the world, girls who love horses and love my stories and some even want to come to Nevada someday just to see the wild horses."

She added that kids seem to like the idea of the grounded life you lead on a ranch: a hard-working one, filled with real-life adventures and real-life consequences.

"It's flattering to me that kids write to me, that they talk to each other about the horses and that they get involved with important issues."

After posting concerns about the slaughter of wild horses in Nevada on her own Web site, Farley -- who is married to Gazette-Journal columnist Cory Farley -- received more than a thousand letters from her young fans. She sent them on to Senator Harry Reid as a vote for protecting wild horses.

"I'm not that different here, I guess," she said. "But in New York, I'm unique. I can write, I have ridden with the horses and know the lifestyle, and I really do understand kids."

With her first series under her belt, she's working on the second. The first book, about "Wild Horse Island," is set in Hawaii and is just hitting bookshelves.

Farley may not be in the classroom any longer, but she's still very much teaching kids the importance of reading. She's setting the kind of example every teacher hopes to set. And she's doing the work writers dream of doing every day.

Now that's truly weaving yourself a wondrous life.


Terri


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Wednesday, January 02, 2008

Knocking on Dr. Seuss' Door

Dear Readers,
Want to visit the websites of your favorite writers and book illustrators but don't know how to find them? You can start your treasure hunt on McBookWords,by wandering though long lists of authors and illustrators. Then, just click to find Meg Cabot, Gary Paulsen, Dr. Seuss, J.K. Rowling and MANY others. Here's the link:

http://www.mcelmeel.com/curriculum/authorlinks

Happy trails,
Terri


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Tuesday, January 01, 2008

POSTCARDS FROM HAWAII for you

HI!!!
I just looked at my PHOTO ALBUM on Phantomstallion.com and even though I've seen them many times before, they look even better now! If you'd like to take a look at a Hawaiian cowgirl, cowboy, palomino & settings which inspired scenes in WILD HORSE ISLAND, please go visit!
ALOHA,
Terri


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