Recieved this email today:

This follow-on book to Chicken Soup for the Soul: Tough Times, Tough People continues Chicken Soup for the Soul’s focus on inspiration and hope in these difficult times. These inspirational stories remind us that each day holds something to be thankful for — whether it is having the sun shine or having food on the table. Power outages and storms, health scares and illnesses, job woes and financial insecurities, housing challenges and family worries test us all. But there is always a silver lining. The simple pleasures of family, home, health, and inexpensive good times are described.

We are looking for true stories and poems written in the first person of no more than 1,200 words. Stories can be serious or humorous, or both. They should not have been previously published by Chicken Soup for the Soul or other major publications.

Here are a few suggested topics:

How you count your blessings or express your gratitude
What made you realize that your life is good and that you are grateful
Silver linings that you have discovered in the midst of challenging events
What is really valuable in your life
Major life changes or events for which you are grateful
How you spread the message of gratitude to your family and friends
The joy of simple pleasures
The unexpected benefits of health challenges or other life changes

This book is in the process of being completed and will go to the printer in September for publication in October! It is a featured Chicken Soup for the Soul title for Christmas 2009. The deadline for submissions is soon, so if you can submit quickly you have a better chance than normal of being chosen.
If your story is chosen, you will be a published author and your bio will be printed in the book if you so choose. You will also receive a check for $200 and 10 free copies of your book, worth more than $100. You will retain the copyright for your story.

SUBMISSIONS GO TO http://chickensoupforthesoul.com/form.asp?cid=submit_story.

DEADLINE IS MONDAY AUGUST 3rd. THANK YOU!

Hey all,

I just wanted to let you know that I’ve just been hired as the “Portland Fatherhood Examiner” at Examiner.com. I’ll be posting several times a week, and linking here, so you should get those posts as part of the regular updates.

I’m pretty excited to get to be the “Voice of Dad” for our area. Here’s the link my first post:

http://www.examiner.com/x-16615-Portland-Fatherhood-Examiner

Please feel free to pass this link around (please, please) as I get paid “per click” on my page!

Blessings,

-Perry

“The Newbie” by Perry P. Perkins

Published in Inside Line, June 2009

Read it here.

Originally titled, “4 Myth-Busters for New Dads” by Perry P. Perkins

Published in Connecticut Parent Magazine, June 2009

Full Article Below:

What it Takes to be a Great Dad

Most new fathers carrying around some nagging assumptions about what it means to be a Dad. Many times these myths and misconceptions are based on our own experiences with our fathers, other peoples experiences with their fathers, or how we believe the world views fatherhood.

The problem in, you aren’t your dad, you aren’t their dad, and you aren’t some dad that’s been written to produce the most laughs from a live television audience.

 You’re you.

 The biggest misconception out there is that there is a single ideal for being a “good father.” Never believe it! Fatherhood is as varied and unique as the individuals that make up a family, and you can be the best possible dad for your family by shaping your goals to match that uniqueness, and not anyone else’s stereotypes.

 Here are four common myths that new dads are often told…

4. Dad, you’ll never golf again! (or fish, or play drums, or whatever you “do”)

The Myth: You know all those fun things you used to do? The football games, the fishing trips? The poker nights? Well forget it, you’re a dad now!

Busted: Like anything else in life, having a baby will probably throw you off balance for awhile, but rest assured, balance will be restored. At first, you’ll probably just want to spend time with the kid anyway (be warned – some of your friends might struggle with this) but soon enough you’ll adjust.

Your “guy time” might be a little less frequent, but with some judicious planning you can still do all the things you loved to do. The key, and this is what a lot of guy’s don’t get, is to make sure that mom gets time to enjoy herself as well. To re-word a familiar phrase, “When mama’s happy…everyone’s happy!”

Do what you have to, to keep mama happy, and she won’t begrudge you a night out with the boys. Also…don’t forget those date nights with your sweetie…that’s what babysitters (or Grandma & Grandpa) are for!

3. Dad, you’re a man…you don’t need support!

The Myth: Real men don’t ask for help. Asking for help means you’re a failure, so you better figure this whole “fatherhood” thing out for yourself!

Busted: This one might have flown when our dads were waitin’ around for us, but not anymore. Go to Google and type in “Tips for Dads” or “First time fathers” and you’ll find the answer to just about any question you can think of, and more tips than you’ll ever have time to read.

There’s also a growing number of “Dad Authors” out there. Armin Brott happens to be my favorite, and he has a series of books that will guide you, month by month, from conception to sending your kiddo off to school. He also has a great website, Mr. Dad, with FAQ’s for every age-group. Check it out!

You can join one or a dozen Yahoo Groups for dads, as well.

Best of all, find a couple of your buddies who have been there, are still there, or are in the same boat you are.

2. Dad…guys aren’t “nurturers!”

The Myth: Men go out and kill the brontosaurus, women stay home and take care of the babies. If YOU took care of the baby, it’d probably grow up to be a brontosaurus.

Busted: Men and women may express their feelings in different ways, but that doesn’t mean that men don’t have feelings, don’t value feelings, and can’t pass those feelings along to their children.

It’s all a matter of what the child perceives. If momma is the one who always wipes away tears, give hugs, and rocks her to sleep, she’s naturally going to gravitate to mom when she needs comforting. If both parents are nurturers…well, you’ve got a lucky kid!

1. Dad, let’s face it…Dads are Dumb!

The Myth: Dads can perform surgeries, build skyscrapers, and fly jumbo jets all day long, but as soon as they walk through the door, their brains turn to jelly and they become bumbling buffoons that you wouldn’t trust with a sharp stick.

Busted: Despite the bad press we’ve gotten from the likes of Homer Simpson and Al Bundy…men are smart, and capable, and forget what you’ve heard, men can even multitask.

Men tend to focus a lot of energy on things that interest him (work, cars, sports, etc) and very little on things that don’t. It’s not that you’re a dumb dad, it’s that you’ve never learned to be a dad (just like moms aren’t born knowing how to be moms, and they’re not, we aren’t born knowing how to be dads!) You didn’t rebuild your first transmission without a manual, you didn’t play football with our someone teaching you the rules…why would you think that something a huge and diverse as fatherhood would just come naturally?

So, go to the library and check out some books, go online and join some message boards, best of all look around you and find the guys who seem like great dads…take ‘em out to coffee and ask ‘em some questions.

Side note: In all fairness, guys, some of this one comes back on us. “Playing dumb” is a great way to get out of an unpleasant responsibility, but…in the long run…it’s not worth it. Do you really want to spend the rest of your life being treated like an idiot?

So, bust these four common myths! In fact, bust any myth that tell you there’s an inherent reason why you can’t be a good dad. Read up on fatherhood, ask questions, get advice, believe in yourself and be the best dad you can be.

Be unique.

Be you.

XXX

Published in Parent:Wise Austin Magazine June, 2009.

Click on the link and scroll to page 13/14.

Letter To A Friend

Published by “The Bark” May, 2009.

http://ourunsentletters.com/blog/?p=316

Published by Unsent Letters, May 17, 2009

From the GoNOMAD website:

GoNOMAD is always looking for talented, dedicated travel writers, photographers and researchers to join our team.

We welcome queries and articles from professional travel writers and travelers with a strong writing style and something unique to share with our audience. We pay for articles that are high quality, informative and provide useful guidance for a future traveler. 

Stories should be anywhere from 800 to 2,000 words long. but most of the stories we use are best at about 1400 words.

GoNOMAD pays $25 for features that are sent to us with good photos, captions and the word file.

GoNOMAD also offers some travel writing tips as well as specific department needs, guidelines for queries, submissions, and photography. They suggest that you sign up for their free newsletter.