My Spelling Bee project

Wrote a book (The Z Files - available on Kindle and Nook under the pseudonym Carline Miniscule) a month or so ago, but haven't had a chance to work on the Y Files... or any files, for that matter. Too busy.

I'm currently watching the last day of the Ryder Cup, hoping my guy Phil Mickelson can get back to even and then win his singles match, and that Tiger - who has started out 2 down, continues to lose...

Then I'll get back to posting in here properly.

Best Scrabble Book Trailer EVER! The Book's Pretty Great Too

From Between the Covers blog: Best Scrabble Book Trailer EVER! The Book's Pretty Great Too.

 

Scrabble aficionados may know that both “Brr” and “Brrr” are legitimate plays, but what about everyday names like Peter, Carl, and Marge? They’re not listed as proper nouns, but they are certainly playable. For lovers of Scrabble, Bananagrams, and Words with Friends, this lively guide helps readers make the most out of word games, packed with new ways to remember the best words alongside tips for improving game play and much more. Part strategy guide and part celebration of all things wordy, this collection of facts, tips, and surprising lists of playable words will instruct and delight the letterati.

Posts resume Sep 24 2012

My mom, who is 75, wants to go up to teeny tiny town near Rapid City, to see her sister, who is 80. They live in a house in the boonies and have no internet.

I'll be back online on Monday the 24th and promise not to miss another day.

Please bear with me, your patience is appreciated!

Time goes by so fast!

I keep losing track of time. I didn't realize I had missed so many posts!

Will get caught up later tonight.

Jury on Duplicate Scrabble is still out

We played Duplicate Scrabble last night. There were 4 of us.

It takes a lot longer than regular Scrabble.

2 of the 4 who played had fun. I as the 3rd person found it interesting. The 4th person, an absolute beginner who couldn't think of any words to save his life, did not have fun and will be playing regular Scrabble next seek. I was kind of surprised to find out he was a retired Sheriff, I would have thought folks who were Sheriffs would be able to spell!

We were on a cramped table - duplicate Scrabble definitely takes more room than regular Scrabble.

. Next week we'll be in a larger room, and will try it again, and we'll see how it goes.

The Z Files: The Guide to Comfortable Spellng Bee and Scrabble Preparation

 Now available for both the Kindle and the Nook.

Here's the link to the Kindle page.

http://www.amazon.com/Comfortable-Spelling-Scrabble-Preparation-ebook/dp/B0095VA7FI/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1346968270&sr=1-1&keywords=the+Z+Files+Miniscule

If you're trying to memorize words so you can do well at Scrabble tourneys or Spelling Bees (whether for adults or kids) you know how tedious studying can be. Trying to learn long lists of words - bor-ring!

With The Z Files, the first of 26 books in the series, you will find every word that begins with Z in the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary 11th edition and the Official Scrabble Dictionary, 4th edition.  (Definitions are given - and they are original.)

The Z Files is a story within a story. A successful author, whose goal is to win both a Scrabble tournament and a Spelling Bee tournament (specifically the AARP National Spelling Bee in Cheyenne!) finds that she learns words best by reading them over in over in a fictional setting.

So she starts writing a book  and incorporates all Z words. It's a mystery, featuring Michelle Bravo, the owner of Bravo Chemical Solutions, who must face deal with industrial spies and murders. The author of the book, Tracy McAlpine, must deal with her husband looking over her shoulder offering helpful advice.

Duplicate Scrabble

I'll be playing Duplicate Scrabble with a few people for the first time tonight.

Will see how it goes and report back.

Duplicate Scrabble

Duplicate Scrabble is popular in France but has never taken off in the US.

Way back in the 70s Hasbro or whoever put out a Duplicate Scrabble game, but it was a chintzy thing. You had a deck of cards with letters on them, you'd shuffle it and put it in a tray that you could slide back and forth and the cards would drop out, and those were the letters everyone chose.

I'm doing a different version, where one person chooses letters out of a bag, and all other players choose their letters from a large tray in which all 100 tiles are face up so folks can see what letters to draw.

Duplicate Scrabble takes luck completely out of the equation - each player, from one to as many as want to play - have to play with the same 7 letters each time - plus whatever is on the board.

I'll be playing it with my Scrabble club for the first time on Thursday, and will report back with how it goes.