#jeff savage

[goodlifevancouver]

Scotch at L'Abattoir for Vancouver Cocktail Week

L’Abattoir Vancouver Cocktail Week 2024 We joined Scotch Lovers this week at L’Abattoir Vancouver Cocktail Week as Diageo showcased the relationship between Scotch whisky and cuisine. We explored the intricate nuances of Scotch whiskies from diverse Scottish regions, and the versatility of Single Malt and Blended whisky both neat and as craft cocktails. World Class Bartender, Jeff Savage and…

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[goodlifevancouver]

Botanist Bar 50 Best Bars Awards

Botanist Bar Wins 50 Best Bar Award – Michter’s Art of Hospitality Award  Botanist Bar in Vancouver, Canada, has been announced as the winner of the Michter’s Art of Hospitality Award, part of the second annual North America’s 50 Best Bars Awards 2023. Created to recognize the importance of hospitality in the bar experience, this award is voted for by 260 members of North America’s 50 Best Bars…

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[goodlifevancouver]

MICHELIN Guide Honours Botanist Restaurant and Bar

MICHELIN Guide Honours Botanist Restaurant and Bar

Botanist Bar Awarded Michelin Exceptional Cocktail Award The first edition of the MICHELIN Guide Vancouver has been revealed, honouring Botanist Bar with the ‘Exceptional Cocktail Award’, along with recognizing Fairmont Pacific Rim, Botanist and The Lobby Lounge & RawBar at the Star Reveal Gala held in Vancouver on Thursday, October 27. Botanist Bar is home to the country’s most unusual Cocktail…

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[goodlifevancouver]

Katana Kitten at Fairmont Pacific Rim

Katana Kitten at Fairmont Pacific Rim

Mixologist Masahiro Urushido from New York City Bar, Katana Kitten, Bring Japanese Flair to Vancouver’s Fairmont Pacific Rim  The Three-Night Pop Up from Katana Kitten will Include a Custom Cocktail Tasting Menu at Botanist and Japanese Bites and Drinks at The Lobby Lounge & RawBar   For three nights only, New York City’s beloved World’s 50 Best cocktail bar Katana Kitten is heading to…

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[jamesduckett]

Writing in Flow

Guest post by Vicki Hunt Budge.

Vicki Hunt Budge grew up in southern Idaho with a mother who read to her and a father who taught her how to golf and swim. She attended Idaho State University and the University of Utah. Vicki began writing for the Friend magazine when her children were young and she’s published many stories and articles for LDS church magazines since that time. She is the author…

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[harpercollinschildrens]

Storytelling Tips for Parents

You’re sitting around the campfire, enjoying the fresh air, the crystal clear stars, the crackling flames—basically you’re enjoying the fact that you have zero pressure or responsibilities—when you hear those dreaded words: “Tell us a scary story.” There goes your peaceful relaxation, like that marshmallow that burst into flames on your kid’s stick.

All the stories you’ve ever heard race through your head. Goldilocks and the Three Bears is too young. Stephen King is too gory. Dora the Explorer is too Dora-ey. You could tell that story about the guy who kills couples in the car with his hook—but is that really what you want your kids going to bed thinking about? What if it causes nightmares? What if it’s too boring?

Panic not, oh story-telling parent. I have four tips that will help you whip up an exciting story in less than five minutes.

The first thing you need is a main character—or “protagonist” if you want to teach your kids a cool new word with your story. The key to a good main character is in silly, weird details. A pirate is good. But a pirate with a twitchy left eye, a harpoon scar in his nose that makes him talk like he has a bad cold, and a habit of calling everyone he meets a scab-ridden scallywoggler is awesome!

The second thing you need is a goal. What is Blinky, the hard-to-understand pirate, up to? Here your kids may be a big help. If you’re stuck for a goal, ask the kids what they think a weird talking pirate might be up to. Searching for treasure? Perfect. But again, spice it up a little. What if he’s searching for the treasure of the lost camper that was buried in these very woods by a woman with an eerily similar appearance to a werewolf? Now it’s getting interesting.

Once you have a hero and a goal, the third thing you need is an obstacle. A good obstacle can be a hundred-foot-tall cheese-vomiting baloney sandwich, a mountain of mayonnaise the pirate has to eat his way through, or even Blinky’s mom, who grounded him because he didn’t finish eating his argh-tichoke salad. You set up the obstacles, and let the kids help you figure out how the hero gets past them.

Three down, one to go. The last things you need are consequences. What happens if Blink finds the treasure, and what happens if he fails? The more dire the consequences, the better. “If Blinky doesn’t find the treasure by midnight tonight, everyone in this campground will lose their words and start talking in howls.”

Remember, the crazier the better. Kids love a story that is so bizarre, just the idea of it makes them laugh. They also want it to be scary. But make sure not to overdo it. The last thing you want is a six-year-old squirming into your sleeping bag because they had a nightmare.

The best way to be scary without being too scary is to take the scary element and add a silly twist. A ghost with a taste for human flesh might be too much. But a ghost who sticks her tongue in kids’ ears to lick out their ear wax is the perfect blend of scary, funny, and the best element of all, disgusting.

Good luck, intrepid tale teller. Just remember – one day your kids may write the stories you told them and make a bazillion dollars on the best-seller list. And you’ll get . . . a brief mention in the back of the book.

Written by J. Scott Savage, author of the gruesomely funny CASE FILE 13 series for middle-grade readers. He recently took his family on a much-needed camping trip to an undisclosed forest. The trip must have been restful because he is now getting twice as much done. Evil Twins, the third book in the series, will be available on 6/24/14.