Boggle Blog
Earth Day '10 (04-22-10)
Hey, everybody! I hope you're all out there enjoying the beautiful springy weather. Twigs are budding, flowers are blooming, and fer-elfs are making pies from freshly picked bubbleberries - ahhhh, the perfect way to enjoy a spring evening J As a lot of you know, April is Earth Month, and April 22nd is Earth Day. I think it's fantastic that people all over the world are focusing on what they can do to help the environment.
I wanted to get involved and do something hands-on, so I volunteered for a group called Heal the Bay. They're a nonprofit organization in Southern California whose mission is to protect the water quality of the streams that flow into the Pacific Ocean so we can keep the water clean for all our aquatic friends. I participated in their Stream Team program - cool name! The Stream Team helps maintain habitats in Malibu Creek State Park. It's a huge park, so there's a lot of work to do. My assignment was to remove invasive non-native plants that had overtaken a slope near the creek.
Before the land was preserved as a state park, it was used for raising cattle. The hay that fed the cattle brought a lot of seeds that were not native to the area. When the seeds sprouted into fields of grass, it became a big problem. Not only does it choke out the plants that are supposed to be there - like mugwort, stinging nettle, and blackberries - it makes it very difficult for the native oak trees to repopulate. That's because their acorns need to fall on bare ground in order to take root. All the native vegetation grows in clumps, leaving plenty of space for the acorns to fall on dirt and sprout into baby oaks. But if the acorns land in a thick carpet of invasive grass, they can't take root, and the population of oak trees starts to dwindle. And when native plants die out, animals no longer have the food and homes they need to survive. I was amazed that even one plant can endanger an entire ecosystem. It just proves that our environment is a delicate, interconnected system that needs every plant and animal to thrive. Maintaining habitats is a never-ending job, requiring constant work and vigilance.
It took several hours, but with a few dozen volunteers, we got the job done.
This Earth Day, everyone can make a difference. You might find an opportunity to volunteer, but there are plenty of important things you can do on your own:
Once you start practicing these good habits, you'll be preserving the environment and inspiring your friends and family to follow your example. Wild places and wild animals need our help every day of the year, and when we all work together and do our part, that's real magic!
Happy Earth Day!
Rachel
Rachel's Boggle Blog (04-01-10)
What's up Team Magic!
The final volume of The Warlock Diaries is here, yay!
Creating the Avalon manga adventure was all about teamwork. I was lucky to collaborate with a talented team who brought Avalon to life in a way no one had ever seen it before. My favorite part of the process was looking at the pages right after Shiei drew them. Even though I knew what was going to happen, it was always a surprise to see how Shiei divided the script into panels and designed all the pages. Take a look at how this short section of script I wrote was turned into an amazing spread by Shiei!
The mages and mistwolves sing the wolfsong to summon the Spirit Pack.
ADRIANE
Great Spirit Pack,
please guide us to our friends.
The sky opens up and an arcing pathway of stars appears: the Spirit Trail. To the sides of the path are billowing clouds of mist. The Spirit Pack arrives and greets the mages.
SPIRIT PACK
Welcome, wolf sister.
ADRIANE
Thank you Spirit Pack Leader.
SPIRIT PACK
Run with us.
As you can see, Shiei did an amazing job translating the script into illustrations. A lot of times she'd pick up on aspects of the story I hadn't even thought of. And it just got better and better as the letterer placed the dialogue and the shading artists refined the illustrations. (Check out the manga section of the Avalon site for more info on how the manga is created! avalonmagic.com/manga05.php) It's awesome to have so many people adding their creativity and enhancing the story every step of the way.
But Team Magic didn't stop there. When it came time to add something musical to the magical mix, music mage Debra Davis wrote an awesome new Be*Tween song called "Golden." The song perfectly captures the team spirit of Avalon, rocking out with friends to make magic happen.
Now it's your turn to join the team! Feeling "Golden" inspired me to write, Shiei to draw, and Debra to create music. Good things happen when you're doing something you love and are full of inspiration. What will you do when you're golden?
Your friend,
Rachel
Coming Full Circle (01-28-10)
Hello, mages!
I hope 2010 is off to a wig-jigging start for everyone! My year has been exciting already-I just finished writing Full Circle! I am so pleased with the way the final Web of Magic story has turned out. Many of you have been waiting anxiously for Book 12, and have a lot of questions about how the story is going to end. My writer-mage promise: enough surprises and secrets revealed to keep all mages and bondeds happy :) Avalon readers have been so excited and supportive throughout the series, so I wanted to share something special. Since this is the Full Circle blog, I thought I would turn the circle back to the beginning and post a wonderful gallery of images: the covers for the original editions. They were created by Jim Carroll, and it's a different take on the world of Avalon that a lot of you have never seen before.
Now let's turn the circle forward! Work has begun on the new trilogy called Avalon: Shadow Warrior. This series will focus on Adriane and the mistwolves and will delve deep into mistwolf lore and legends. We're going to introduce new mages, discover new bondeds, journey to new places, and become immersed in many new mysteries. And since Adriane takes the lead in this one, Zach and Drake will be prominently featured.
Thank you for all the good magic you send my way-I wouldn't want to begin a new adventure without my Circle of Friends.
Your friend,
Rachel