WHITNEY AWARDS GALA

At the Whitney Awards Gala this past Saturday several outstanding authors were given special recognition in their genre. Today however, I wanted to mention the OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT Award that went to RICK WALTON.

I met him years ago at a week-long writing workshop. He is nice, friendly, and unassuming for someone who has published over 80 books. I have only six or seven of his picture books in my bookshelf, but I love each one. They’re classic and fun-filled tales such as: Bertie Was A Watchdog, about a midget dog who saved the day; Bullfrog Pops! Is a crazy western about a hungry bullfrog. The book has a surprise each time you turn the page; Mrs. McMurphy’s Pumpkin is about a haunted pumpkin; and Suddenly Alligator, is an adverbial tale that’s full of fun. The man is a creative genius.
I hadn’t known who was getting this award when I bought tickets for the gala, but I was sure glad I was there to cheer him on.

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT Award went to SUSAN EVANS MCCLOUD, who I don’t know and have never met, but who gave us the wonderful hymn, “Lord, I would Follow Thee” and, “As Zion’s Youth in Latter Days.”

Susan's biography and numerous achievements are listed in Wikipedia.
Susan magnified her calling as a writer and poet while raising her family—something that’s not easy to do. Finding that fine line is hard; the line between total absorption in the creative process and spending enough time with your husband and children to make them feel important and appreciated.
For the first sixteen years of my married life, I was totally absorbed in motherhood, and it wasn’t until years after that when my desire to write was re-born. It’s been a gradual process for me, the emergence from total motherhood to wife-mother-writer-hopeful author. I look up to people like Susan and Rick, people who knew their talent and calling in life from the very beginning and not only made it work, but made it look easy.