Write

Should Halloween be observed on the last Saturday of October? Some think so. When Oct. 31 falls on a weekday, children and parents must squeeze trick-or-treating and festivities in after school and work, often after dark, raising a safety issue. Celebrating on Saturday would allow earlier trick-or-treating and give families time to schedule other events, such as parties. What do you think?Let us hear from you, in 30 seconds or less, on our comments phone line, 410-715-2830. Or write 50 words or fewer and e-mail howard.

Should Halloween be observed on the last Saturday of October? Some people think so. When Oct. 31 falls on a weekday, children and parents must squeeze trick-or-treating and festivities in after school and work, often after dark, raising a safety issue. Celebrating on Saturday would allow earlier trick-or-treating and give families time to schedule other Halloween events, such as parties. What do you think?Let us hear from you, in 30 seconds or less, on our comments phone line, 410-715-2830.

Should Halloween be observed on the last Saturday of October? Some people think so. When Oct. 31 falls on a weekday, children and parents must squeeze trick-or-treating and festivities in after school and work, often after dark, raising a safety issue. Celebrating on Saturday would allow earlier trick-or-treating and give families time to schedule other Halloween events, such as parties. What do you think?Let us hear from you, in 30 seconds or less, on our comments phone line, 410-715-2830.

We've all said it before. After we've loosened our belts to help forget the dessert haunting our waistline, we've told ourselves something must be wrong with our scale. It's the only logic that keeps us from the stale world of low-fat potato chips and "Buns of Steel."Baltimore native and author Van Whitfield was no exception -- even though he gained his love handles intentionally. To write his second novel, "Something's Wrong with Your Scale!", the Lanham resident decided extra pounds would provide him insight into the plus-sized world of his protagonist.

I am writing a column I don't want to write about stories I `` could not bring myself to read about a battered little girl whose picture I could not bear to look at.I am writing about Rita Fisher, the 9-year-old Pikesville child who was beaten and starved to death last June by her mother, her sister and her sister's boyfriend. All three were found guilty of second-degree murder and child abuse and will be sentenced in July.Beyond saying that these cruel people should have to pray for the release of death the way Rita must have, I can not get my mind to linger on this child and her brief and wretched life long enough to form any ideas worth repeating.

Olympians-in-training have a lot on their minds, from the pressures of competition to the glare of international attention. Second-graders at Scotts Branch Elementary near Randallstown want to make sure the athletes don't forget the little things that keep them strong."

HAMMOND HIGH drama teacher Melissa Davis has announced the cast for the school's production of "Anything Goes."Susie Gist and Jason Ortega play Reno and Billy.Jon Nelson is Moonface, Lauren Mullen is Hope and Riana Hershenfeld is Bonnie.David Heine is Sir Evelyn, and Georgia Paulding is Mrs. Harcourt.Daniel Bresnick and Ernest de Lagarde portray Whitney and Bishop, respectively.The ship's captain is Brad Washer, and Trevor Green is his purser, with Robby Heacock as steward.Erik Johnson is the cameraman and Michael Wiles is his pal the reporter.

In recognition of October's designation as National Dyslexia Month, reading specialist Susan Rapp describes this learning disability and its far-reaching impact.Learning disabilities encompass a variety of handicapping conditions and affect about 15 percent of Americans. Thelearning disability known as dyslexia refers to difficulties not only in learning how to read, but also in processing written and spoken language. At school, problems may emerge in the areas of reading, writing, spelling, mathematics, speaking or listening.

Louisa Mae Alcott (1832-1888)Her early childhood experiences inspired her to write several chlidren's books.At an early age, Alcott believed her Transcendentalist father did not provide well enough her his wife and four daughters. After he founded a utopian community called Fruitlands that failed, Alcott earned money for her family by teaching, working as a domestic, and eventually writing.She wrote the autobiographical "Little Women" in 1868 out of a serious need for money. Alcott is remembered as an American icon.

A READER in Boynton Beach, Fla., writes that he switched long-term-care policies, from one insurer to another, because the new one seemed to offer better benefits.Then he learned that his old policy had tax benefits that his new one lacked. "That was never mentioned in my discussion with the insurance rep," he grouses. So, here's what an agent should disclose:Long-term-care policies with tax benefits are called "qualified." Those without are "nonqualified." Some insurance representatives argue that the nonqualified LTC coverage is a better deal.

When it comes to music, singer/songwriter Mat Kearney was a late bloomer. In high school, Kearney wrote intensely personal essays, poems and spoken word pieces. Literature was Kearney's obsession - until he started borrowing his roommate's guitar and slipping out to the front porch to write music. "Songwriting all of the sudden was this glove that totally fit," he said. "I had a limited musical ability, but my ability to dive in and pour my heart out - no one could stop me from that." Most budding musicians learn to play cover songs first, and then attempt to write their own stuff.

I was a sportswriter when my bosses asked me if I wanted to be a family-life columnist. That was years ago. I had a pretty good idea of what a family-life columnist was, and I'd certainly never aspired to be one. They wanted me to write about my life as a wife and the working mother of school-age children. That was not anything any journalist who came of age in the Watergate era wanted to write about. "But I don't have a life," I objected. "My career is in the Dumpster. My home life is chaos.

James H. Lilley wasn't the typical police instructor. When Howard County recruits were struggling in his defensive tactics class, Lilley sat down and wrote them an inspirational letter. The letter impressed a co-worker, who encouraged Lilley to write a book. "I'd never thought of writing a book," Lilley said. "The curiosity bug bit me." That was 1981. And though it took 19 years - and "hundreds of rejection letters" - to get his first book published, Lilley kept writing. His persistence paid off. Lilley has written six published books, with the latest earning him selection as 2008 Author of the Year by Police-Writers.

How is everything on the outside?" Willie Turner asks in a letter from Western Maryland. "I will be an ex-offender when I hit the streets in the year of 2012. So now I need your help please. I was told to write to you for an ex-offender job package that will help me get a job once I am out. I do not want to go back to prison. This is my first time and it is hell. "Well, I did do it myself," he added, not saying what "it" was. "But now I know that crime does not pay off no kind-of-way. And the prisons are gotten [sic]

Some journeys are a long road to nowhere, or so the saying goes. But for Louis S. Diggs, the roadways throughout Baltimore County lead to an often-untold history of African-American communities that he has dedicated more than a decade of his life to documenting through books. "Some of these communities have been here since the 1700s, and here I am writing about these communities that during a couple hundred years, someone should have captured that history along the way," says Diggs, 75, whose books have profiled the county's 40 historic African-American settlements.

This issue's Flashback: No one identified the person shown in last month's issue. So here he is again, and here's another hint: He came up with Black History Week, which has been extended to a month. Write to unisun@baltsun.com or UniSun Flashback, Features Department, 501 N. Calvert St., Baltimore MD 21278.

With just over an hour to go before the summer's big poetry slam, all is not going according to plan. Rain pours, which is good because the temperature is falling, but it's still sweltering inside the century-old church in Southwest Baltimore's Pigtown, where the poetry camp operates without air conditioning. Some kids went home early because of the heat, or didn't come at all. Others are across the street at a library party. Those remaining are playing Legos or Disney Monopoly, or they're sprawled out on chairs and tables sleeping.

It's well known that networking is one of the best ways to land a job. And in an age when almost everything seems to be moving into cyberspace, you can connect online with colleagues and potential employers. Several Web sites allow you to network professionally online, and the potential can be huge: LinkedIn, founded in 2003, counts more than 9 million members, and roughly 100,000 people join each week. When you sign up, you invite friends, colleagues and classmates to join your network, and then search to see if they can connect you to other professionals.

To become an internationally published author, photographer or videographer, click here. It's almost that easy to start a blog. According to the Pew Research Center, 12 million American adults blog, publishing on the Internet everything from the meals they eat to the lives of pet cats, to reports on terrorist plots, media sins and celebrity DUIs. Authorities estimate that at least 50 million blogs have been created worldwide and say that number could double by spring. Blogging is the product of relatively new technology and a primitive urge to communicate.

Looking for free financial planning help? Your Money wants to help you get your finances on track. Write or e-mail us with your story, including a brief description of your financial goals and challenges. We will select candidates to receive financial planning services worth several hundred dollars from personal finance experts. Your financial information and the experts' recommendations will be printed in the newspaper, along with your picture, if you are chosen. Write to Your Money, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Room 400, Chicago IL 60611, or e-mail yourmoney@tribune.