The Fussy Duck in Salem, Or is a locally owned, small business that brings together several other small businesses and gives them a place to display and sell their creations and products. Whether you’re looking for handmade items, like penguin plushies, cool wooden signs, snazzy holiday fragrances, or you want a vintage toy that reminds you of when you were child, the Fussy Duck has a treasure waiting for you to find it.
Penguinate.com is one of the small businesses you can find at the Fussy Duck. Our penguins are waiting for you to adopt them for the Christmas Season, read more about them, our books and what the Fussy Duck has done for us!
In his book “Time Drive,” Gleb Arhangelsky recommends that you read at leas one serious book a week and that you buy five (5) times the number of books you plan to read. For those who plan to read a book a week and are buying for the month, that means buying 20 books. As an author, reader, and book hoard… er, collector, I am totally on board with this. However, beyond my monetary and intuitive biases, there are some good reasons to follow this tip from Arhangelsky.
Someone once said that being creative isn’t just about having ideas. There are billions of ideas out there. The creative person has to choose one of the ideas and bring it into the world. As a writer, I have tens of ideas for books and series, and hundreds of ideas for articles. (This year alone, I’ve written over 275 articles on my website and more at my day job.) So, how did I come to choose to publish “My Life in the Projects” as my first book? Here’s a peek at the creative process of writing that book.
As my wife and I work our way back to our bookstore plans and try to rework something more sustainable, we are looking for your indie author recommendations. If you are, or know, an indie author, contact us to see how we can help each other. You can read on or go to our application page.
As we move forward and adapt to our new world, we’re creating a new experience at penguinate.com. We plan on opening a shop of sorts, but we’re going to change the focus from an in-house experience to a virtual one. We’ll still have penguins and indie author books and people will be able to come in and see them. However, our space is going to move toward being more of a workplace.
If you’re like me, you have a stack of books you haven’t read yet. Congratulations! You now have time enough at last (Thanks, Rod Serling! affiliate link) to tackle all of those reads that have been waiting for you for all these years! If you don’t have a stack of books, that’s okay. You can go to Kindle Unlimited (affiliate link) and discover so many new books for free! It’s like having a digital library. (I don’t even think you need a kindle device, just the kindle reader downloaded to your device!)
Upon release of his fourth installation in the Michael Vey series, Author Richard Paul Evans wrote a letter in response to some fans asking why he would write young adult fiction when they want to read something else. In spite of these protests, the number of comic con attendees that call themselves Veyniacs attests to the popularity of Vey and his adventures.
Evans says that Vey bucks the trend of dystopia and pride
that much of young adult fiction subscribes to. Vey himself experiences
Tourette’s syndrome, but doesn’t allow his disability to define him. He offers
a character that others who experience disabilities can relate to.
This positivity combined with the moral aesthetic of Vey
conveys hope that the world needs right now. Rather than focusing on the
possible outcomes that lead to dystopia, Evans has created a place where people
value loyalty and friendship while trying to make the world better.
While the Vey series doesn’t lack for strong female
characters, Evans says that he has come under fire for making a male hero at a
time when Hollywood has focused on female heroes of The Hunger Games, Divergent
and Twilight. Yet, male role models,
even fictional ones, are important to help keep boys reading and involved in
life.
Evans makes an appeal in his letter to all of his fans:
“So even if you don’t think Michael Vey is for you, the
cause may be. I invite you to join the cause, because this is one where we can
make a difference shaping culture. Introduce Michael Vey to your children, your
grandchildren, to a neighbor. Purchase a copy or two and donate it to your
school or church. Many schools have library waiting lists for Michael Vey
numbering in the hundreds. (Trust me, if you’re 300 on the waiting list, you’re
not going to get to read it.)”
By buying the books that deliver a message that is uplifting
and important to others, readers can make a difference not only in the lives of
others but in culture itself. The success of a certain book will prompt the
creation of other stories that are along the same lines. For anyone who wants
not only more from a certain author but also more of the same type of story,
voting with dollars and social media support is a good way to ensure that
publishers and movie makers listen to the demand.
This article was originally published at examiner.com. The
links have been updated September 2019.
We’re so excited because “Polly Penguin Wants to Fly” is available on Amazon, right now! You can get it in paperback or on Kindle! This is my 10th book.
When Polly hatches, she sees her father first and then she
looks up into the sky and sees the terns. She’s immediately fascinated. Polly
Penguin wants to fly, but she’s a penguin. Penguins can’t fly, can they?
I wrote this for parents to read to their older children ages
four and above. It’s also for children who are beginning to read. If your child
loves penguins, Polly Penguin is a good introduction to reading without
pictures. The pictures are formed in your mind.
On Saturday, June 22, 2019 from 10 am to 2 pm, Shad Engkilterra will be signing copies of his books in front of Second Chance Books on Main Street in Independence from 10 am to 2 pm. Shad has written nine books for all ages; come by and check out the books that are right for you.
For children of all ages, “There Are No Penguins in Alaska” offers the opportunity to color while learning about the animals that people find in Alaska. The humor at the end will keep you smiling.
For those from 8 to 11 and for fans of Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, the Adventures on the Amur series is two great adventure stories that take place in Far East Russia. Explore a little history and enjoy Steve and Irina’s adventures as they search for the Lost Treasure of Nikolai Nikolaevich or learn firsthand about the Curse of the Golden Kopeck.
For those in high school or older, “The Pirate Union” finds out what would happen if bureaucracy regulated pirate activities. This comedy with a 1990’s sensibility promises magic, puns, and fun as the crew of the Jolly Rogue tries to find out what the nefarious P.U. is up to.
Want to know what it was like growing up poor in the 1980s? “My Life in the Projects” is the mostly true story of how I survived living in government housing as a child.
For nonfiction fans, “Disneyland Is Creativity” and “the Haunted Mansion Is Creativity” offer looks at Disneyland and the Haunted Mansion with an eye toward creativity principles. Take a tour of the Happiest place on Earth and let Walt’s dream bring you greater joy and inspiration through greater creativity, or go through the Haunted Mansion as your Ghost Host leads you on a tour of the beloved attraction while materializing habits to become more creative.
If you need a bathroom reader or are looking for activities to improve your creativity and life, “Penguinate! Essays and Short Stories” and “Penguinate! The Disney Company” are the books for you. These collections of short stories and essays provide suggestions for activities to do after each section. Penguinating is the power of positive creativity.
For the last day of Amazing Las Vegas Comic Con 2019, the
Penguinate table will have nine (9) Tiny Avengers to giveaway to the first nine
people that come to the table and say “Penguinating is the power of positive
creativity.” Be one of the first to make sure you get one of the Avengers in
their original Kinder Egg packaging (minus the chocolate egg).
Three of our penguins were adopted on Saturday, so if you know
which penguin you want, you should head over to our table and adopt it.
Remember every penguin adopted at our table will allow us to donate an
additional dollar to the Global Penguin Society.
Our books are still available. Our most popular titles during Amazing Las Vegas Comic Con have been “Disneyland Is Creativity” and “The Haunted Mansion Is Creativity.” “The Pirate Union” and its pirates, bureaucracy and comedy from the 1990s was also talked a lot about.
If you want a chapbook of death and ghost-related stories,
Brian C. Baer has given us some copies to give away. Just let us know you want
one.
Come see us at Amazing Las Vegas Comic Con and find out
about Russian Lobby Cards for your favorite movies in the last two years. We’re
looking forward to an amazing last day!
Penguinate! Positive Creativity 