Sandra Rose Hughes

A few years ago, I began writing my first children's book. I have revised it a few times since, and have gotten a lot of good feedback from my family and friends. I am happy with it as my first endeavor. Here is the first half of the first chapter. Chapter 1 “The humans are not coming back, Macie,” squeaked Donner as he pushed his plastic house up against the wall of their cage, “We might have to--” “Don’t say it! Don’t say it!” Squealed Macie, “No, no, no, no, no!” Her big black eyes started to tear up and she curled up sadly on the floor of their cage. Donner and Macie were two glossy, sweet-smelling guinea pigs, or as they thought of themselves, “Cavies.” 1 They lived together in a large cage with a spacious purple plastic house and lots of wood shavings. They had been a bonded pair for almost two years. 2 Donner and Macie loved each other very much. The guinea pigs were used to getting everything they needed from their humans, and they were very happy. In fact, they were a...

The sunflowers I planted after you left us are now taller than I am. Three months have passed. Yesterday, I thought of the too-long walk I put you through- I didn't really understand how close you were to slipping away- And for the first time, I didn't feel quite so much of that deep, embarassed guilty pain. It was more like a throb than a stab. The sunflowers will bloom soon. Their roots are deep, their stalks are thick. They hardly even need the stakes anymore. You have been gone longer than I realized.

List 6/24/10 What makes my heart smile? Sunflowers, kittens, blue skies. Ladybugs, sunshine, cool breezes, Hummingbirds, ice cream, big black dogs, And you, you…especially you. Blogger's Note: I am still on hiatus; I managed to borrow my mother's computer for a while, and just wanted to write about a few of my favorite things.

Dear Readers, Since I began this blog in January, I have done my best to update this blog two or three times a week. I will have to take a brief hiatus over the next few weeks. My husband and I are going to depart for Fairbanks, Alaska on a mission trip this Saturday. We will be gone for about a week. Unfortunately, our computer is in the process of dying and I may not be able to update until we get a new one. I will update when I can. Thanks for you patience, and thanks for reading! -Sandy

I recieved a new letter this week to add to my pile of rejections. It was from a company called "Peachtree Publishers" I sent this manuscript off so long ago that I can't even remember what piece I sent them. This must have been before I discovered the joy that is duotrope.com. If you don't know what Duotrope is, you should really check it out. It's basically a database of publishing companies and it helps writers find what companies are looking for their work, and it has a handy submissions tracker which helps you keep track of which manuscripts you sent where. Anyway, after much thought, I realize they must have rejected one of my children's stories. In my Children's Writers and Illustrators Market book, I had scrawled next to their name, "sent 9/6/2009." Unfortunately, I did not bother to write what I had sent. It was probably a short story called, "Shelly the Brave and the Creature in her Closet." I have posted very few of my chil...

As a barely-blooming girl of twelve, With freckles and brown straight chin-length hair, I sat by the pond in my grandparents’ Camelot And wished that I could talk to animals. “You can come to me,” I would have said, “I won’t hurt you. I only want to love you.” And, I believed, if the animals could only understand, The small yellow-black birds would sit on my shoulders, The lean-eyed bobcats would lie at my feet, And the fat bull-frog tadpoles would swim to the surface Just to hear me sing. Now, fourteen years later, I walk through the tall grass with a kitten on my shoulder. A lean-bellied black dog follows at my feet, And a long white cat surfaces briefly from the brush When I call her name. I talk to these animals- and they understand me. And I realize that I got my wish. Of all the selves I have been, I think she would have been happiest with who I have become. Somehow my hair has slipped back into her style. I don’t think the cosmopolitan me would be pleased with my choices. The...

Did you know that June is National Adopt a Cat/Kitten Month? This is my kitty; she has added so much to our lives. Will you open your heart to love a new cat this month? Today I recieved my copy of "The Blinking Cursor" in the mail. You can see my poem here. It's halfway through the book.