New in Publishing

I haven't posted anything about what is going on in the publishing aspect in a while. I realize that this single post will not cover everything that I have lapsed on, but I have found some interesting tidbits that made me go, "Hmmmmm." this morning.


If you don't know who John Grisham is I'm not sure if I can explain how BIG of a writer he is here in the States and across the world. Almost every single book he has written has been on the Best Seller List. One of his most famous books "THE FIRM", published almost 20 years ago, has been pitched as a TV SERIES to FOX,NBC, FX, A&E, TNT, and other channels. NO word on if any of them have snapped up the pitched series, but it has been put out there. This is not a new avenue of publishing for his works, he has had SEVERAL movies and TV series based on some of his other works. "THE FIRM" was actually pitched as a TV SERIES several years ago but was dropped before a pilot was made. Also in news of John Grisham he has 2 new books being released soon. 'Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer' will be released on MAY 25, 10 and it is written for younger readers.In October 'The Confession,' will be released.


Touchstone Fireside bought the U.S., Canadian and open market rights to the former GUNS & ROSES bassist Duff McKagan memoir. McKagan is the Co-Founder of the band and he spent 13 years with the band. The memoirs covers the time he spent with the band Guns & Roses, his battle with being sober, and of course life after G&R. No news yet as to what they will do with the memoir, but it will be interesting all the same.

I hope these tid-bits made you go "Hmmm," like I did. Till next week!

Help is needed now

Water has begun to recede in some areas, in others water is still 6-7 feet in depth. Water conservation has been key the past few days, even in counties that were not as flooded as Nashville. Some residents have begun clean up, which is a massive undertaking. On the news last night I saw people literary ripping the walls out of their homes, carpet removed, every stick of furniture heaped up their yards in an effort to dry it out.
In Clarksville the damage on Riverside Dr. and surrounding neighborhoods is extensive. For me that is strangest part to watch because I used to work over there at Convergy's, which is located next door to the Kicker's night club. It's strange to see the Wendy's, the tire shop, the River Walk, and all the other businesses under water. When I worked in that area there had been sever storms that had flooded the River Walk and made driving on the road beside it a bit dodgy, but there has never been anything this bad as far as I can remember. Now I did hope that I would get a call saying that I couldn't go in for my shift because the river has taken it's vengeance out on my place of work, I mean really who hasn't hoped that after a bad day?
What is needed now to help recover what was lost is donations. Yep, money and time. I myself am donating baby clothes and a few baby items that I have left over from when my boys were little. I have an extra set of booster seats also that I am going to donate. They need tools for clean up, like rubber gloves, hand sanitizer, bottled water, food, clothing, diapers, baby formula, bedding, rakes, shovels, water pumps, wet vacuums, buckets and money. If your reading this and want to help Middle Tennessee recover and help people who have NOTHING left please go to http://www.cfmt.org/index.php, which is the Community foundation for Middle Tennessee. Also all Kroger's across Middle Tennessee are taking donations of NON-PERISHABLE GOODS. Help is needed now, next week and the weeks after that to ensure that people can regroup their lives and hopefully put this tragic event behind us. Please help!
Here are some photos of the flood.
This is a shot of Downtown Nashville


This is the Gaylord Opryland Resort Hotel, a few wings of it.

Flood

Water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink. The flood waters in Tennessee are spreading, meaning the rivers and creeks are beyond full and the ground is super saturated so the water is creeping wherever it can. We have counties that have received RECORD breaking amounts of rainfall measuring between 18-22 inches. I know for myself we have pumped about a foot (12 inches) of water out of our basement and we live on a hill. Today things are drying up for us, the sun is shining and the yard is drying out, bit MANY, MANY people are not so lucky.
Gaylord Opryland Hotel resort is currently under about 6 feet of water, Briley parkway is closed, those who live in the Opryland area are under water from the Cumberland River. It's terrifying. LP Field is flooded, the water is currently creeping up 2nd Ave. to 3rd Ave. People have been helping with water rescues by donating boats, canoes, life jackets, water, clothes, shoes, food and of course time and trying to comfort those who have lost EVERYTHING. This is Southern Hospitality at it's best.
I am feeling a mix of emotions currently. I have heard some good news from my best friend. She got in touch with her family in Coble, their homes are safe even though their yards is flooded. They have no power in Hickman, no clean water, and slowly their phones are being turned on. This afternoon around 1 PM Hickman County issued a Boil Water Order. The news media is of course focused on Nashville and Franklin because that is where the money is. Opryland and Franklin are big money earners for the state. They keep showing photos of the Bass Pro Shop, the Imax, and other shops underwater, yet we have almost no coverage of the other counties. I have seen 1 photo of Hickman County, and a few from Maury County. I that there was more information about these other counties.
Clarksville has finally been in the news. Riverfont is flooded. If you are familiar with Clarksville it is flooded over the road where Mary's Music is located at. The river is creeping up the hill towards Auistin Peay, and hopefully it will not reach the college. Everyone is waiting for for the rivers to crest and for the water to recede.
My question is where is the media?? This has been an on going tragic event for the past 3 days and yet hardly any media coverage other than local news can be found. I am sure the other states that were hit hard by this storm are feeling the same way. The media is more focused on other things like gossip. What has our country been reduced to?

I am still waiting on some photos of local areas. Hopefully soon I will have some to post.

Flooding in Tennessee

It's wet, really wet here in Dickson Tennessee. It has been raining for 2 days, and boy has it rained. In Tennessee we had received RECORD breaking amounts of rain. Almost all of Nashville, Franklin, Maury County, Hickman County, Davidson County and most of Middle Tennessee are covered by FEET of water. We haven't received such large amounts of rain in 31 YEARS!
It's scary to be honest. I have called and texted friends and family to ensure that everyone is accounted for and is okay. Everyone seems to be making it with minor flooding issues. One of my aunts who lives in Southeastern Nashville has reported that the first floor of her house is under water, and that includes her driveway, yard and her street. She is staying at her in-laws until the water begins to receded.
My brother who lives and works on a farm in Maury County near the Natchez Trace Parkway has suffered major issues. Fields are flooded, they had to relocate an entire nursery barn so the calves would not drown, a $140,000 tractor is submerged up to it's cab in flood water in what was a freshly plowed field, cows have been moved to higher ground due to flooding. So far they still are counting 506 head of cattle, which is what they started out with before the rains began.
The most terrifying part is that my best friends family lives in Coble TN, which is in the middle of no where to put it nicely. It's a small community that has SEVERAL creeks running through it and is not too far from the Duck River. It is a low laying area, and the homes are older, most of them were built in the 1930's with newer double wide trailer homes. The only way to access the homes on HWY 50 is by boat, there is no electricity, no phones, no radio contact. They are essentially unreachable in a record breaking flood.
I an worried about their safety. I know that my best friend's brother has several small children under the age of 7 years old, and the community of Coble is made up of elderly, and young people with children. The news teams that are covering this of course are stuck just as the rest of us are, and so that leaves us wondering about our loved ones who do not live in Nashville, or Franklin. All we can do is hope and pray that they are surviving the flood.
In Dickson the main roads seem to be serviceable, there are of course flooded areas and down power lines, but my husband has ventured to the local movie rental shop and back in one piece. He did go by Buckner Park and of course the lake there is over-full. The parking areas and tennis courts are underwater, which is odd to see.
My parents live in Lyles and a local church near there home is underwater and the road to the church is gone. Not simply underwater, but gone. These are terrible times. We are in a state of emergency due to flooding. Stranded travelers, homes and shops underwater, power outages, downed trees, and not to mention road closures are what we are dealing with at the moment. It's all so surreal.
I'm hoping that tomorrow I'll have some photos of the flooding to post, and that we will have some kind of info about the people in Coble. Now that we have had all of this rain we are seriously considering purchasing a snorkel for our Jeeps. Be safe everyone!

FLOODING TIPS
DO NOT CROSS A FLOODED AREA IN A CAR, SUV OR TRUCK. Water can rise quicker than expected and can sweep you and your car into much deeper water.

IF YOU ARE GOING OUT KEEP A LIFE JACKET IN YOUR CAR. Think of your car as a boat with wheels on it. Better to be safe than sorry.

IF YOUR YARD IS FLOODING AND IT IS GETTING CLOSER TO YOUR HOUSE MAKE SURE EVERYONE HAS A LIFE JACKET AND MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND. Higher ground could be a roof top, a hill, a tree, a neighbor's home. Just get away from the water.

USE COMMON SENSE. IF YOU THINK THE SITUATION IS DANGEROUS THEN IT IS. FIND ANOTHER ROUTE IF TRAVELING, be helpful to other travelers, meaning if the way you just came from is flooded tell them before they get to the dangerous section of road.

IF YOUR CAR GETS MIRED IN FLOOD WATERS ROLL YOUR WINDOW DOWN AND CRAWL THROUGH IT BEFORE THE WATER REACHES WINDOW HEIGHT! It is easier to roll down a window than to open a car door against water pressure and water currents. If you need to climb of top of your car's roof to signal for help and make sure to put your life jacket on!

STAY AT A SAFE PLACE. DO NOT GO OUT UNLESS IT IS AN EMERGENCY. The less you are out on flooded roads the less of a chance you have of getting stuck or worse.

WARNING! WARNING!

I am on a roll. 2 posts within the same week! I knew I could do it!
I have to say that my favorite part of having this blog is my flag counter on the bottom of my page. I check it and my guest book often. I do NOT care for people who sneak in advertising in my guest book. I LOVE reading what folks write in it because it can give me insight into my readers. If I wanted commercials I would watch NBC or some other TV channel. So be warned, if you leave a advertisment in my guest book your comment will be DELETED!
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