opinions please
“Ask? Urania? Thalia? Will you ask?” four lilting question marks punctuated Cal’s morning start.
“Honestly Calliope — Isn’t it time you get over your fear of asking?” huffed Urania. “By the time Meandering Muses is finished, Tal and I intend to teach you that asking others is not life threatening — in fact — asking and engaging is quite the opposite — life giving.”
“You have until June 20th,” Thalia giggled.
“For goodness sake, you are the Muse of Many Questions!” Urania gave her shoulders a roll. “And Thalia and I are tired of answering them all!”
“Somebody get that Muse a gummy rabbit!” A playful twinkle in Thalia’s pupils reminded Calliope of early morning starshine. Pulling shoulders up to her ears, Thalia asked, “Sugar is good medicine for a grouch?”
“Ask… ,” Urania’s gaze locked onto Calliope’s lips. “You can do it.”
“Ummm… okay… I… or, we… ,”
“Stammering is not necessary,” urged Urania with a tone soft as kitten fur.
“We would like to know what you think of dictionary word photos for Meandering Muses — instead of pictures,” Calliope sat up a tad straighter. “We are on the fence — pardon my cliche.”
“Apologizing is not necessary,” said Urania. “Express confidence… you are allowed to be yourself… and if you like cliches… use them.”
“We like the look of the photo above, and with all of our recent immersion in lexicography — understanding we all bring our own shade of meaning to the same word, we wonder if when we discuss emotions — like awe… Will it be helpful to share a definition?” Calliope’s speech slowed, as did her inhales and exhales. “Or — Would you prefer a black & white sketch photo that relates to our story like we did in Wandering Words?”
“There might be a yes, and here,” said Thalia. “What if we can find a way to use both?”
“We welcome your thoughts in comments,” Calliope stuck her landing with a smile.
“One more thing… ,” Calliope cleared her throat. “If you have read WW and found it valuable… we’d love a review on Amazon to help the book reach more readers.”
The dictionary pages are good, with the technique you use to draw attention to the word you're highlighting (only without highlighting). Maybe a "full size" for the initial one, then later illustrations with most of the "derezzed" words trimmed out.
But I like the b&w sketches, too, so cover and selected points in MM?
I'm totally awed that's for sure!