Hello All,
This is me: 

I am happy, overwhelmed (and relieved!) Wicked Sweet is doing great since its release less than a month ago and I'm planning a book launch for tomorrow, a third one in Fort McMurray on June 20, and a few more surprises during the summer!

Also, check out the reach... Wicked Sweet has been highlighted in the San Jose examiner!

San Jose Examiner. YA Summer Reads.


I hope today is happy, smiley one for you, too!

 

Everybody Needs a Rock.

We all need something to hang on to. Something to remind us that we're connected. To each other. Joyous when life is up. Bound even when it hurts.

Snye in Fort McMurray. Rocks for the classroom.

With my friend Shelley, an amazing artisan.

What rocks can remind us of...

I use rocks in the classroom, during artist-educator training and in the window of my office.

They help remind me that I am part of the circle of all things.






They are my souvenirs from far away places. A bit of leftover land that holds memories of a walking meditation.

Or a day at the Snye with a friend. 








When you ask someone to write one word on a rock, they choose words that matter because, well, it seems so permanent.

Words on a rock. Forever.


In classrooms, I've used this great book to teach metaphor. We read it all, we think about it and then I ask. What if we put in a different word for rock? A word like friend?

In Rule Number 10, the text says

Could a rock be a metaphor for Love? or Friend?

Don't ask anybody to help you choose.

I've seen a snail pass up twenty rocks
and spend all day
getting to
the one
it wanted.

You have to make up your own mind.
You'll
know. 

Two Weeks to Publication!

Wicked Sweet, a great summer read for kids ages 13 +, will be available May 15 on-line and in great bookstores all across North America...


Here is what Publishers Weekly said in its review yesterday: 

Wicked Sweet

Mar’ce Merrell. Feiwel and Friends, $16.99 (336p) ISBN 978-0-312-60749-4

A lot of wheels are turning at once in Merrell’s aptly titled debut, a story of summer romance, betrayals, and revenge that’s best served sweet, which shifts among the narration of four soon to be high school seniors. Driven and future- focused best friends Chantal and Jillian typically embark on ambitious “summer projects” each year, aiming to someday become “neurosurgeons committed to world health.” But this year, Jillian decides that their summer should include boys, too. Friends Parker and Will have a summer project of their own, a “man challenge” that entails getting the two girls to fall for them. When Chantal overhears their plan, fueled by an old grudge against Will and fear of abandonment by Jillian, she seeks revenge on Will with a complicated and secret baked goods– inspired plan. Despite the lighthearted plot, Chantal’s growth through baking and other well-constructed characters should hold readers’ interest. Merrell delves into persuasive family dynamics, finding parallels between the teens’ stressful home lives and the constantly changing emotions, alliances, and motives of each character. Ages 13–up. Agent: Rosemary Stimola, Stimola Literary Studio. (June)

Post Christmas Blues.

Here is a tale of the bleak and dark side of owning an ipad.

I got an ipad for Christmas
by: marcemerrell


I was inspired by great lego-guy videos of the Fort McMurray dating scene (I've been entertaining friends with these for years) and a recent reminder from Thomas Trofimuk of the power and fun of creating these things. : )

Dear 16 year old me.

It could be a thousand pieces of advice about dozens of different subjects. I'm not going to ruin the adventure of finding out, because the video is so well done that you won't feel cheated. At least I didn't.

I'm not sure what I'd tell my sixteen year old self. I know that what she'd most want to hear is that everything is going to work out, that she will be loved, and that one day she'll be far away from the bad guy. I don't know if she'd believe me.

Thanks Morgan for sharing this one on facebook.