Moving and Grooving!
- Feb 17
- 3 min read
February 16, 2026
It all began when I participated virtually in an Author- A-Thon (January 30th, 2026) on the Dr. Smiley Author-A-Thon talking about my journey as an author and talking about my book, It Happens. Dr. Michelle Mras interviewed me. What an amazing host! You can find out more about her in her book, Unapologetic- https://a.co/d/0gWFu3BP . Here is my interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6jyULWgdVo
My next stop on the journey as an author was to be a guest of William Bernhardt, author of 60 books (https://williambernhardt.com/) on the 1st of February. This was a fun conversation with him and his wife, Lara Bernhardt (https://www.larabernhardt.com/) in which both are acclaimed authors.
The podcast begins with me reading a quotation for success:
“Never stop dreaming,
Never stop believing,
Never give up,
Never stop trying, and
Never stop learning.”
~ By Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart
In the middle of the podcast is my interview. I did not edit the podcast. Here is the podcast link: https://api.spreaker.com/v2/episodes/70018730/download.mp3 .
Then, I facilitated a virtual author event on World Read Aloud Day (https://www.litworld.org/world-read-aloud-day) on February 4, 2026. I was reading It Happens to Cambridge Elementary in San Antonio, Texas. This was a wonderful experience since many of the students asked some great questions about being an author. One female student even remarked that the story was like her experiences. She stated that she really liked the book. (Photo Credit: https://www.litworld.org/world-read-aloud-day)
Furthermore, I kept going on the train tracks to being a guest on Dr. Smiley (Ken Rochon’s) Podcast on February 6, 2026. This interview has not been released yet. You can find out more about Ken Rochon’s book called, My First 60 years: Amplify Goodness (https://a.co/d/0iKlsysT).
If that was not enough, I collaborated with my illustrator on Book 13 in which we began the 2nd phase of the illustration process on final revisions and then starting of color pallets. I learned this month, “I am not busy.” “I am purposeful.”
In this past week, I challenged myself to read 50 books in which I accomplished this week. For me this was an arduous process because I am a very visual person so novels and stories with lots of text can be challenging but I overcame this in these past weeks.
It was fun to learn more about other people and other stories. All the stories were uplifting and had a great message. Some of the books were children’s books that I read and will read to my grandchildren. Other books were more adult books like self-help and life stories.
If this did not do it, I was and am still “purposeful” in raising funds for 24 delegates to go to Boys State for the American Legion in Oklahoma in May 2026. To find out more about Boys State, go to: (www.okboysstate.com).
This has been an update of my “purposeful” end of January and part of February. I am Mark McCraw and I am signing off for now.
Oh, by the way, you might just see me on Adventures with Stories ( https://www.facebook.com/groups/1239170087061176 ) on Facebook Live for a Read Across America event on March 2, 2026.
Then, I will be participating in Read Across Oklahoma City Public Schools on March 6, 2026. Here is a resource site: (https://sites.google.com/okcps.org/righttoread/read-across-okcps-activities). Hashtag: #WeRead
Finally, I will also be at Tinker Base Exchange (March 13th/14th) and Full Circle Bookstore in Oklahoma City, OK for an author event (March 21st). Also, check out the Children’s Book Authors Unite Event on www.childrensauthorsunite.com , on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/1040974811354742) and You Tube (on March 21st /March 22nd ) on Children’s Book Authors Unite. Also, check out my You Tube video I did for the past December event:
You will see lots of authors at this event and book sales on those days. Check out my bio and books there too as well as this site.
Until next time! I will update you in the next blog.
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