Adventures in Mama-Land

  Last year, I wrote a book , just before I found out our older daughter was pregnant. It's a book all about the way families grow - through birth, through adoption, through fostering, and how all the ways are magical and lovely. AND HERE IT IS!!! But the process wasn’t as straightforward as with other books I’ve created, in part because I felt so, so strongly about this one. This is a book I have wanted to create for a while, after knowing people who had either adopted or fostered children and seeing that there weren't really many Jewish books to support these also-miraculous ways of growing families. As I have seen from other aspiring writers, however, the more strongly you feel about a project, the more likely it is to come out very, very badly. Because you are so passionate, you write garbage – overly sentimental tripe - and send the book out into the world LONG before it’s ready. I didn’t want that to happen. Yet I had big dreams for this book. I pictured a

Here’s a rhyming riddle: Rosh Hashanah’s almost here: which of my books will you buy this year???!? I know; pretty tacky, right? I’ll be honest; that’s how I feel about marketing my books in general. (disgusted baby © iwishmynamewasmarsha via Flickr ) What’s the secret to self-publishing success??? Don’t bother asking me… I’m told one secret to success in business is not being afraid to ask. So there it is, the ASK. If you’re reading this, we’re connected in some obscure way. And therefore, you or someone you know might really enjoy one of my books, if only you let yourself try. Scroll down for a list you might like! Whenever people find out that I’m a self-publishing writer, they sometimes ask about – gasp – the marketing side of things. Because one of the things that commercial book publishers do pretty well is market and distribute your book. They go through well-trod channels to make sure that sellers, libraries, schools, and other interested folks have a p

You know how we're supposed to be modest and not go shouting our accomplishments from the rooftops? Well, sometimes, I'm a little too modest.  And then I need a talking-to from my miniature Social Media Coordinator, aka Naomi Rivka, age 13. Sitting around the Shabbos table, I mentioned that I'd finally finished my book of parsha poems, The Rhyming Torah .  And she asked the obvious question:  “So are you going to let people know?” As a busy little social media bug, she knows all about the ins and outs making your way to fame and fortune on the busy, busy internet of today.  And as my kid, obviously she wants me to succeed.  But I had to be honest. “I don’t know…” I said.  “I hadn’t really thought about it.” “Well, you at least have to tell your blog,” she announced. So that’s where this post comes in. I don’t usually do launches for my books, self-published or otherwise, but I probably should.  I’ve had a few just in the past year, and I believe each and every one of them

I found out 2 days ago that an author out there is making a name for herself by writing and self-publishing a book called “P is for Palestine.”  Cute book, right? So sweet and happy and intifada-friendly. Oh, I’m not making that up.  This book is all over the intifada: “ I is for Intifada.  Intifada is Arabic for rising up for what is right, if you are a kid or a grownup!” If you’re guessing that that book includes absolutely ZERO about the other people who share this land – “Hello, yeah, us, the Jews who have been here ALL ALONG???” - you’re right.  The book is an unsurprisingly one-sided narrative According to the author, who crowdfunded over $15,000 for this project (preselling the book for $16 per copy with free shipping in the U.S.), “There are currently countless alphabet books about most countries, cities, and themes in the world…But none about or for Palestine in the English language.  Until now…” She’s right.  There were none.  And there still ARE none. Now that this writer ha

I confess, it’s been a rocky time, writing-wise.  Not that I’m not writing!  Actually, I’m writing more than ever, probably more than most writers do in a lifetime.  The problem is that most of it is your basic blah writing for clients, translating (from Hebrew to English), or essays for school. (Did I mention I’m a full-time grad student???  More about that later…) But somehow, despite having ZERO time to write the things I truly wish I was writing, I seem to have managed to finish not one but TWO book projects, and without further ado – I present… two gorgeous new books: Oma is 100 :  "It's been almost a hundred years since Oma was born, but she doesn't want a party..."  When a young girl’s grandmother decides she's too old for  a birthday party, the simple act of crocheting a blanket teaches them both an important lesson about love, family, and belonging.  This isn’t specifically a Jewish book, in that there are no Hebrew words or references to Judaism – the me

I’ve been fiddling around for years with the idea of a “princess story” around the story of Megillas Rus.  I actually wrote one and made it available here about six years ago , but I wasn’t happy with it. This version, The Humble Princess Ruth , is a little closer to what I want to tell.  It’s shorter and I think a little more interesting.  It’s a tough story to retell.  I’ve taken some authorial license here: added some details, left out some others.  And I still don’t love the title!  If you have a better one, LET me know!!!  Why, oh, why, am I so bad at titles??? Download the story here:  LINK DELETED – SORRY, PLEASE FIND THE STORY, REVISED AND IMPROVED, OVER HERE ON AMAZON INSTEAD! Humble Princess: A story of Ruth – now available in print and Kindle! The 4shared site is a little spammy – don’t click on the BIG word “download,” but rather, on the small download button: I’d love your feedback on this story, either in the comments or directly to me at Tzivia@tzivia.com . An

Yom Ha-what???  Yeah, I admit, we never really did anything special for Yom Ha’Atzmaut, Israel Independence Day, before moving to Israel.  And neither did most of the Jews around me.  Sure, some years we had a flag, maybe even a car flag, but really, that was the extent of it. It’s so incredible celebrating every single yom tov and chag here in Israel… but especially Yom Ha’Atzmaut.  It just makes sense, but I never gave it much thought before we made aliyah.  Indeed, huge swathes of the Jewish world as I knew it outside of Israel didn’t really celebrate Yom Ha’Atzmaut at all… and that, I’m convinced, is a shame. And when it comes to Israel, there’s no better way to study its history than by studying its STORIES, the stories of the people who built this incredible place. The history of modern Israel is inseparable from the story of the life of Naomi Shemer. Born in 1930, she grew up as the country became more mature and established, and became an adult exactly as the country was b

Yes, Chanukah is sneaking up on us SOOoooon! It’s early this year, so I wanted to jump right in and share this list of resources that I’ve created and shared.  Some are geared towards homeschoolers, but most are great for any family to share. Most are free, but my books (print & Kindle) and lapbooks are not.  I hope you’ll check them all out!   If you find something useful, leave a comment or share the link to this page to help others out. FREE Resources & Ideas for Chanukah learning & fun for the whole family: Chanukah Family Song Book (with links to tunes!) Chanukah copywork and Activity Pack Chanukah Family Science Project:  Oil, Water, Fire & Ice “Parsha” Poem for Chanukah (to read aloud together) Menorah in a Box (original craft idea) Chodesh Kislev (craft idea) Melted Wax & Oil “stained glass” Painting (craft idea) Nine Cool Lessons in Chanukah Fun Colouring Book (by me, and it’s free to download!) (see more pictures & details on this