What's in a Name?

"The thing with an artistic license is, you have to be artistic if you want to use the license."

Anonymous

Check out these literal, artistic licenses!

See more of Greg Constantine's amazing art here.

I decided to take some artistic license on my COLOR project this week, to make it more interesting for y'all.

Originally, I wanted to write poetry using for inspiration, the actual 64 Crayola colors that would have been in the box I received at 9 years old (around 1968). I checked out the lists from the whole history of Crayola crayons (yes, there are Crayola fanatics and even a site with lists of colors). But yesterday, when I was shuffling color names around and planning, I noticed something funny.

Check out these 1968 color names paired with each other:

• Yellow Orange / Orange Yellow

• Blue Green / Green Blue

• Yellow Green / Green Yellow

• Orange Red / Red Orange

Not only did this poet find these names uninspiring, but I also discovered that, over the years, Crayola seemed to get more creative with its names.

I mean... who wouldn't be more inspired by names like these:

• Cerulean

• Blizzard Blue

• Granny Smith Apple

• Macaroni And Cheese

• Purple Mountain Majesty

• Razzmatazz

• Wild Strawberry

• Timber Wolf

• Unmellow Yellow

• Robin’s Egg Blue

So, without further ado....

Drum roll, please....

The Crayola color I chose for this week is...

Isn't this an awesome word? Say it again and again. Razmatazz... RAZZMATAZZ! Doesn't it make you happy?

The original creators of the word, Razzmatazz, may have been inspired by the jazz music of the day. Check out this old-time song, Ragtime Razzmatazz. It is sure to get your feet stomping and a smile on your face!

Interestingly, Razzmatazz was introduced in 1993, as one of the colors chosen in the 90th Crayola Crayon anniversary "Name the New Colors Contest." Winner, Laura Bartolomei-Hill of College Park, Maryland, chose a great name for this vibrant pinkish-red color.

So without further ado...

Here is my poetic take on Razzamatazz!

Thank you to Amy Ludwig VanDerwater at The Poem Farm for hosting this week. Be sure to stop by to read her lovely triolet poem about being good here. I really need to try this poetic form soon!

Hope you can turn up some music this week, and enjoy your own Razzmatazz! Happy dancing!

FYI- I welcome any comments. Click on the title when you arrive here at the blog. Then scroll to the end of this post, past the links to my older posts, and the comments will appear. Look forward to hearing from you.

The Need for Calming Seas

Color and B&W images allow me to see things in very different ways. Color's power, in this unedited Nantucket sunset (taken at Madaket Beach 10 years ago), is its ability to add emotion— peacefulness, gratitude, and awe.

Look at that... How can it be real? Truly a moment given by God. The longer we stayed, the more beautiful the colors became.

But there is something about a B&W image I love. Check out this other image taken in Nantucket. It strips away all the distractions, and somehow you can see the details more clearly.

"COLOR" as my 2026 One Little Word was the perfect choice for me. I have not been able to stop noticing the beautiful, and sometimes somber colors—both in my box of "64" and in my own world. Because I have 64 colors and 52 weeks, I will feature multiple colors in a few posts.

Lucky Us... More Poetry!!!

Here are the crayon colors #2-4. Can't wait to get started on the next batch!

#2 GRAY

This week has been tumultuous worldwide. My heart has been reflecting the somber, cold, gray New England scene out my window and the heavy news of the day. When I think of the color "Gray," my thoughts go to those old Film Noir movies—dark, shadowy, and foreboding. Here is a sample short film noir movie, if you would like a taste. "The Stranger" with Orson Welles.

#3 AQUAMARINE

For the next colors, I wanted to choose calming colors. According to the GIA gemstone website (read more here), "The word Aquamarine means 'Sea Water' in Latin. And like the sea, it represents  both euphoria and relaxing calm; it encourages letting go of feelings, purifying the mind of negative thoughts."

I was fascinated to learn that in the Viking days, if sailors were overwhelmed by a storm at sea, they would throw aquamarine gems into the ocean to appease the wrath of the Gods.

This color is truly one of my favorites!

Have you felt the feelings I share at the water's edge in this poem?

#4 SEA GREEN

A lovely compliment to Aquamarine is the calming color Sea Green (sometimes recognized as Sea Foam Green, although it is not the color of sea foam at all ;) (Read more here on Canva)

"This color has strong associations with nature and is the color of good luck, freshness, and renewal. It contains blue, the color of the ocean and sky, conveying a sense of tranquility.

In color psychology, green is thought to help balance emotions and promote a sense of calm and clarity."

My "Sea Green" poem is inspired by a pair of sea-glass earrings my husband Scott gave to me on our 35th wedding anniversary during a trip to Nantucket.

Boy, do I need me some Aquamarine & Sea Green!

Here is a brief video from our visit to Horseneck Beach, RI, a while ago.

ON A PERSONAL NOTE

Since the NESCBWI Agent Editor Day in November, I have been a submission machine, sending out over a dozen of my picture book manuscripts to agents and editors, and submitting my poetry to anthology calls and other opportunities. Every time I send one of my "babies' out there, it brings back those feelings of waving goodbye at the bus stop as my child goes off to school for the first time.

Hopefully, I will have some very good news to share soon. If you keep casting, you are bound to catch a fish... Right?

Thank you to Tabatha for hosting this week's Poetry Friday at The Opposite of Indifference.

Tabatha's selections show the intense power of words to take us back in history and also see how history is being written as we speak.

Be sure to stop by and use the links after her blog post to read all the lovely poetry. Each one will give you a different color and flavor. Poetry is a great way to start your weekend!

Now to that box of crayons... which color will be next?

FYI- I welcome any comments. Click on the title when you arrive here at the blog. Then scroll to the end of this post, past the links to my older posts, and the comments will appear. Look forward to hearing from you.

Persnickity Plum

The first box of 8 Crayola Crayons was sold in 1903. Ever since, they have become an iconic part of so many young children's lives.

Each September, I headed off to school with a new green and yellow pack and tucked it into my school desk. There was nothing like a new, fresh pack of 8 crayons to spur the imagination. I loved coloring because it was very meditative and a way to escape into my own little world for a while. I dabbed and layered the 8 colors to make new ones, pressing hard to get richer, darker colors and lightly to get softer ones.

And then the most life-changing happened....

I received a box of 64 crayons for my birthday. Not only did this 9-year-old now own every color imaginable, but the box came with a flip-open top and a built-in sharpener. Wow!

The possibilities for creation seemed endless.

Since our last Poetry Friday (read more about what Poetry Friday is HERE), I have been pondering the OLW (One Little Word) that each poet has been choosing for their focus this year. It brought to mind a tradition at Highlights where we each choose a word that rings true to us. My word this November was GRATEFUL.

Then this week, I spent some time writing brief poems about colors and enjoyed it quite a bit. I think COLOR feels like a good word for me this year for many reasons:

• The drab of winter has me longing for colorful blossoms in the spring and the cheerfulness they bring.

• Color makes me happy. When I am around colorful things, my imagination soars, and so does my gratitude for the beauty I see in the colors of the sky, in my grandchildren's drawings, even in the vegetables in my soup.

• Color is everywhere. Since it is all around me, I cannot help but notice and think about it.

• Thinking about "COLOR" this year will help me to find the color in my own world, which at times can feel a bit gray.

Inspired by Irene Latham's weekly poems, I am going to go through the box of 64 colors from my childhood this year and see what poem each one inspires.

Here is my first one:

Thank you to Jan at Bookseed Studio for hosting this week. Her post reminded me of a long-forgotten song from my childhood. Hope you will stop by.