Happy Chinese New Year!

Goodbye, Year of the Dog, and welcome to the Year of the Pig. Those born in Pig years will enjoy the best year of their lives. The rest of us, however . . . . At least that’s according to feng shui-ologists when they talk about the Year of the Pig. Good for Pigs, a year of trials for almost everyone else.

According to Chiff.com “if you were born in 1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983 or 1995 – you were born under the sign of the pig. Like the pig, you are highly regarded for your chivalry and pureness of heart, and you often make friends for life (!? Who knew that about pigs?). For pigs in 2007, any recent setbacks or obstacles can be overcome so look forward to a year in which you really shine, either personally or professionally.”  If you want to know about your Chinese horoscope sign, here’s a nifty rundown. I wondered why 2006 was meh for me personally, now it can be explained by the fact that it was the Year of the Dog, which did not invite those of the Dragon sign to eat at their banquet.

Astrology for Writers is also predicting a fairly crappy winter for most of the signs. So now’s a good time not to believe any of it.

Censoring flap: On the heels of Vicky’s recent post about children’s literature running toward the bloodthirsty, recent Newberry Award-winning book THE HIGHER POWER OF LUCKY by Susan Patron, is being pulled out of some library shelves because the book features the word ‘scrotum’.

Maybe I’m too liberal. I don’t like to see the words ‘censor’ and ‘book’ in the same sentence. But I just finished reading a recent YA release that featured a spear being plunged through a chest (not a Warriors title!), so I’m a little less concerned that anatomically-correct names for body parts are being used in a book for kids, as long as the overall storyline has a positive message. Besides, scrotum is a good word. Has a certain musicality.

And if you haven’t noticed yet, please direct your eyes to the sidebar on the right at the new icon Therese loaded over the weekend. It is official. WU is one of the top 10 best blogs for writer’s resources according to Preditor & Editor. It’s a little humbling and gratifying to be ranked just below Evil Editor (and waaaaay below Miss Snark). We’re very thankful for our readers who voted us to lucky number seven in the rankings.

Gung Hay Fat Choy!

Kathleen Bolton

Kathleen Bolton is co-founder of Writer Unboxed. She writes under a variety of pseudonyms, including Ani Bolton.

She has written two novels as Cassidy Calloway: Confessions of a First Daughter, and Secrets of a First Daughter–both books in a YA series about the misadventures of the U.S. President’s teen-aged daughter, published by HarperCollins, and Tamara Blake, for the novel Slumber.

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