The internet went crazy today when a rumor seemed to break through about the always-destined Harry Potter television show — specifically that while no series is actually in the works, WB is now officially shopping for writers and pitches for an HBO Max event. We did a quick-and-dirty reaction pod with our three hosts and our good friend Proma Khosla, a longtime LeakyCon staffer and Mashable entertainment reporter, to break down the news, what it means for the franchise, and what the fandom does now. 

Basically, we decided the fandom just needs to get a trillion dollars together and buy the franchise from JKR. 

You can follow Proma on Twitter at @promawhatup  and read her Mashable articles here!

~*~

Don't forget to follow us on @pottercast on Twitter and @pottercastpod on Instagram!

Join our patreon! patreon.com/pottercast - Now, you can also join our Discord community there!

You can also buy PotterCast-related merch at mischiefmerch.com!

Steph Caskenette made these awesome illustrations.

Everyone likes the smell of their own brand. 

You've probably heard that one before, when you were ripping a real stinker in the car and rolling the windows up because you're a sadist. 

via GIPHY

But why do you like torturing innocent bystanders of your disgusting gas? Honestly, being subjected to your farts should be considered torture. Liking your farts is akin to waterboarding. You're a war criminal. You and your farts should sit before an international tribunal. 

Yes, you. 

Anyway, this video explains why you're such a sicko. ASAP Science continues to do great work in under five minutes. 

via The Real Sporcle

Unless it’s absolutely necessary, do not accept a provisional ballot. Watch this clip from our recent Save Your Vote broadcast to find out why — and what to do if someone tries to shunt you to a provisional "placebo" ballot.... READ MORE

You can use these discounts if you are a nw QVC customer.

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Stress is a common experience that can either drive us toward success or hinder our progress if not managed effectively. What if you could understand stress better and turn it into something you can handle and even benefit from? This article will guide you through practical strategies for managing stress by blending effective techniques with ... Read more

The post Mastering Stress Management: A Guide to Thriving, Not Just Surviving appeared first on LifeHack.

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These are the 12 best! READ MORE...

In 2013-15, the Scottish Government funded 16 projects proposed by criminal justice partners across Scotland to develop community services for women who offend. Developments were based on existing service provision and to ensure changes could be sustained locally at the end of the funding. Funding varied in amount and timeframes. Most of the projects were undertaken by local authority criminal justice social work1 (CJSW) departments with partner providers, including public and third sector agencies. The national evaluation examined how the 16 women’s community justice services (WCJSs) were implemented and to what extent they contributed towards positive outcomes for women. A further aim was to build local capacity for self-evaluation in WCJSs. Findings were drawn from two phases of interviews with practitioners and women, secondary documents, and quantitative data for 1,778 women who were in the WCJSs between April and December 2014. This included outcomes data for 406 women.

The core purpose of the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research (SCCJR) is to carry out high quality, internationally recognised research in relation to crime and criminal justice.

Looking for a hugely entertaining alphabet book that also has an uplifting message of empowerment for young readers? I highly recommend T. REXES CAN'T TIE THEIR SHOES by Anna Lazowski and Steph Laberis, launching June 29th, 2021 from Doubleday Books For Young Readers. The back matter also has an alphabetized factoid list of "all the amazing things animals CAN do!"

This is an alphabet book that can be appreciated by grown-ups as well as young readers, with lots of potential discussion points. The illustrations of animals in ridiculous situations are so SOOOOO FUN --- omigosh, even as I'm writing this post, I went back to look through the digital ARC and can't decide which is my favourite, though I'm leaning toward the "Cheetahs can't chew bubble gum" page.

I asked debut picture book author Anna Lazowski if she had any advice for young writers, and here's what she said:

"Write what you want to write, because as you move through the publishing process, it will become incredibly important for you to truly believe in your work. The rejections in this industry are endless, and they come at every stage. Critique partners might reject elements of your manuscript, agents will reject your work, and once you're on submission to editors, they will reject your work. Then once you're finally published, some reviewers will reject your work. If you don't fully believe in your stories, this will be extremely hard to take. It's hard as it is, so make sure you're all in on the work you're doing. It will make the rest a little bit easier to navigate."

Wise advice. Thank you, Anna! And congrats to you and Steph on your upcoming launch!

----

Also see other Advice For Young Writers and Illustrators From Children's Book Creators and my other Interviews With Children's Book Creators.

Image at the top of this post was created for my new #BookADay book journal. For more info about Donalyn Miller's #BookADay challenge, see Donalyn's post in the Nerdy Book Club blog.

Hazel Mitchell has helped create more than twenty children's books, including her award-winning picture book Toby (Candlewick Press). Her illustrations appear in books by Cynthia Lord, JaNay Brown-Wood (Imani's Moon was mentioned on the Stephen Colbert show!), Lynn Parrish Sutton, Liza Gardner Walsh and others. You can find out more about Hazel and her work at HazelMitchell.com, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Synopsis of SWEET PEA SUMMER (Candlewick):

During her mother’s absence, a young girl discovers the joys of gardening—and the rewards of persistence and a sharp eye—in a sweet intergenerational story. With warm, child-friendly illustrations and a simple narration, Hazel Mitchell tells a timeless story about holding on to hope in hard times and finding the strength and determination to see it through. A brief author’s note at the end offers a bit of history and a few details about sweet peas for aspiring gardeners.

Q. What inspired you to write Sweet Pea Summer?

My inspiration for the book were memories I have from staying with my grandparents when I was little (4-6 years old). They lived in a row of mill cottages in a Yorkshire town called Huddersfield. The town was born out of the wool trade and had many factories and tall towers, but was surrounded by beautiful countryside. I started to sketch my memories of staying with them - the cottage, the garden, the countryside with the moors and mill chimneys, the cats that were always scampering around, the long road that stretched away up a sloping hill to the town itself.

My granddad was an excellent gardener. I suspect this came from the war years in Britain when everyone grew their own food as much as possible. In my memory the garden was so, so long with a little greenhouse and was stuffed with veggies and flowers. Of course, my memory exaggerated everything. I was seeing through a small child's eyes. I even googled the road on Google Streetview and the cottage and the garden are still there, just much smaller than I recalled.

I decided there was a story in these sketches and my rememberings. I find that I'm often inspired by childhood memories, places and real life things, like my own dog who is the main character in the book 'Toby', also from Candlewick Press. I've even been known to use my house in books, or feature the landscape of Maine, where I live, and sometimes I draw objects from my home. it gives authenticity I think.

Q. What was the writing and illustration process like?

After some note making, more doodles and musing I decided on the main character of a girl. She's not exactly me. My sister also went to stay with my grandparents when my mother was ill and that was really the nugget that set me rolling. The girl is sad and missing her mother, so Grandpa invites her to help in the garden and, in particular, to look after the sweet peas. (My own grandfather grew chrysanthemums, but I decided children would relate more to sweet peas. Plus it is easier to say!).

The grandparents do not look like my grandparents and even though the child is not really me, I guess she shares some of my personality characteristics and DO I love gardening! (Although I always fail with sweet peas, which is ironic). I found I had all the inspiration I needed to get started on roughing out a story.

Writing and illustrating Sweet Pea Summer was a long process, as most books tend to me. There are a lot of images in the book, which is kind of graphic novelish in a way, with multiple images on some pages that follow a grid layout. Although I did preliminary character and setting sketches, I then spent time writing scene progressions and story boarding before I was ready to do the first full dummy.

I've found this saves me time in the long run, when I finally start to sketch I can be pretty certain I have the rudimentary story arc and length of book down. We had 2-3 edits and rehashes before my editors, art director and myself were all happy to go to finals. Finals are always the very long and arduous stage of the book for me. The first spark of story and hashing it out is the inspirational bit.

I did all the art for Sweet Pea in pencil and watercolor (usually I colour an under painting digitally), but I felt this book needed a traditional watercolour feel. It was a longer process for sure! Along the way I did a good amount of picture research especially on the landscapes and the flowers - plus the process of growing them, which features in the story. The parallel between the illness of the m/c's mom and the flowers failing to open was important to me. didn't want it to be too obvious to the reader.

My editor, Liz Bicknell at Candlewick Press, was very helpful, as always, keeping the story on track. Pam Consolazio was my art director, and her nickname was Sweet Pea as a child! it is lovely when you find unexpected connections. I scan my own artwork, which gives me the luxury of making any tweaks to the final art. I think the whole book took about 2 years, including edits etc.

It's wonderful when your book finally arrives in your mailbox! (Just like any birth, the pain recedes!) It was especially concerning in this time of the pandemic, but everything went well and the books arrived in time for publication.

Q. What advice do you have for young writers and illustrators?

My advice to young writers and illustrators is always work on stories that you love and feel an emotional response to whether, happy, sad, funny or just that you just love and know the subject. It will always show in your work!

----

For more insights from book creators, see my Inkygirl interview archives.

Just read (and loved) a fun reimagining of the classic fairytale Goldilocks and the Three Bears: GOLDIBOOKS AND THE WEE BEAR, written by Troy Wilson and illustrated by Edwardian Taylor, published earlier this year by Running Press Kids.

Here is Troy Wilson's advice for young writers:

"My advice? Write badly. Badly, badly, badly. Include words and ideas that shouldn't be there. Leave out words and ideas that should be there. Put things in the wrong order. Have your protagonist act wildly out of character. Why? Because that is what your favorite author does.

"You don't see your favorite author's horrible first drafts. Or horrible second drafts. Or horrible third drafts. For that matter, you don't see their attempted books that never, ever turned out at all. (Some things are just dead ends, even for your favorite author.) No, you only see their final, super-duper-polished work, after they got lots and lots of great feedback.

"Everyone starts with bad writing. Every single writer, every single time - no matter how long they've been doing it. You can't avoid your own bad writing. You can't go around it or over it or under it. You have to go through it. Just get it onto the page or screen. You can always fix it later. Except if you let the bad writing - or the fear of bad writing - stop you from writing. Because you can't fix what isn't there."

Thanks, Troy! 

Related links:

Publisher page about Goldibooks and the Wee Bear

More about Troy Wilson at TroyStory.ca, Twitter and Facebook.

More about Edwardian Taylor at EdwardianTaylor.com, Twitter and Instagram.

-----

Find more advice for young writers and illustrators from children's book creators.

I couldn’t believe my eyes as I wandered through IKEA’s soft toy section. There, perched among the bins was Hedwig from Harry Potter. It was then I realized I was staring at IKEA’s new SKOGSDUVA snowy owl hand puppet. The resemblance to Harry’s faithful feathered companion was uncanny. While it might not deliver Hogwarts acceptance letters, it certainly brought a touch of magic to my shopping trip. With its fluffy white feathers and expressive eyes, this soft, cuddly version of […]

The post This Must-Have IKEA Item Completes Your Kid’s Harry Potter Costume appeared first on IKEA Hackers.

Many people are concerned that they are specifically targeted by hackers, advertisers, and others. Nope.

Why I Keep Saying You’re Just Not That Interesting from Ask Leo!.
Get the Confident Computing weekly newsletter: https://newsletter.askleo.com

Commercial software can be expensive. Can you just pirate software if you can't afford it? You can guess my answer, but even better: theft isn't necessary.

Why Can’t the Poor Just Pirate Software? from Ask Leo!.
Get the Confident Computing weekly newsletter: https://newsletter.askleo.com

The pergola is one aspect of ancient architecture that remains relevant today. Pergolas date back to ancient Egypt, but the concept itself might have come much earlier. The evolution of pergolas has witnessed many changes along the way. Today, it is technically impossible to draw a line between a pergola and a gazebo. However, for clarity, we will stick to the traditional idea of a pergola, one that is relatively merged with the house design.[...]

Camping is one of the greatest joys of summer. With warmer weather, you do not have to be the most experienced camper or have the best gear to survive cold nights. Even amateur camping trips have bug repellent, shelter and s’mores. Stepping up your camping game includes being more sustainable, and many of the ways to do that are easier than you think.[...]

3D-printed foods are a growing component of the additive manufacturing industry. Within this realm, 3D-printed meat is gaining speed. Like other 3D-printed objects, edible material is extruded in layers to produce a variety of meat products, including ground meat, burger patties, sausages and kebabs. Nowadays, with advances in additive manufacturing, the ability to 3D print foods is becoming more widely accessible, cost-effective and eco-friendly. [...]

Gardening is one of the most ecologically conscious projects that most people can practice. With concepts such as net-zero gardening taking shape, gardeners go to unimaginable lengths to avoid harming the environment. The one aspect most gardeners never consider is that a garden fence can have negative environmental effects and must be installed with consciousness. Creating a sustainable garden only to install an unsustainable fence negates the entire purpose of your project. Interestingly, installing a sustainable fence is easy and often more affordable than traditional options. [...]

The Casitas at The Halles by Hive 3D and Eco Material Technologies are a new project to create sustainable, 3D-printed homes for vacation rentals near Austin, Texas. These unique low-profile homes use a technology that creates 92% less emissions than traditional concrete. Round Top, Texas, 80 miles east of Austin, will now be home to the world's first near zero-carbon, 3D-printed neighborhood.[...]

Sustainable construction and design have become a trendy topic in real estate, with homebuyers now proudly showing off their graywater systems and solar panels. But the new Mount Vernon Library Commons by HKP Architects in Mount Vernon, Washington proves that sustainable design can be used by any company, any government and anyone who wants to make an impression.[...]

Germany's most sustainable building is in Berlin, and it's a beauty. The EDGE Suedkreuz Berlin is a seven-story office complex consisting of two buildings comprising 32,000 square meters of floor space. It has been built by TCHOBAN VOSS Architekten using sustainable, climate and resource-saving techniques. Plus, it has a modular hybrid-timber construction that makes this hybrid-timber building one of the largest in Europe. [...]

When 3D printing first took off, it was difficult to imagine how diverse the field would grow. Nowadays, the realm of additive manufacturing is growing daily. In particular, five sectors are advancing rapidly as a result of developments in additive manufacturing. These are healthcare, food, fashion, motorsports and aerospace. Based on estimates, it is believed that soon these industries will incorporate 3D printing as a key component of their operations.[...]

Cut flowers sounded easy when I started gardening. Just plant some flowers and then cut them, right? Well, there is a lot more to it than that. Cut flowers are often grown from specific varieties that tend to have long, sturdy stems and big, beautiful blooms, and each variety has its own tips to keep them healthy. It also can be hard to find the right varieties in sustainable versions. [...]

According to the U.N. Environmental Program, the construction industry is not making enough efforts to achieve net-zero emissions. While all sectors are making efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions, the construction sector is still to get an organized strategy. Today, up to 50% of the world's climate change is caused by the construction sector. The same industry is responsible for up to 40% of the pollution in water bodies. These figures just go to show, how significant the construction industry is in regards to environmental impact.[...]

Los Angeles, often hailed as the entertainment capital of the world, is not only a hub for the film and music industries but also a fascinating canvas of urban design. The city's architectural landscape reflects a rich tapestry woven with threads of history, culture, and innovation. As one navigates the vast expanse of Los Angeles, it becomes apparent that the city's design is a dynamic fusion of tradition and modernity.[...]

Don't be such a shlemiel, Jacob! Stripes is just FINE already, and the Rabbi says you can wear that coat to the synagogue!

In this episode of the Arsenal Women Arsecast, Tim and Jamie Spangher to discuss the signing of Rosa Kafaji and the departure of Cloe Lacasse. Then Tim and Jamie answer listener questions on how the midfield will look next season and whether changes are afoot there, the future of Kathrine Kuhl, a big season ahead for Kyra Cooney-Cross, where Arsenal most need reinforcements and whether the women’s team should have its own away kit every year.

You can follow Tim @Stillmanator and Jamie @jamiespangher

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Show notes for Episode #3: Subscribe to the Internet Musician Podcast with iTunes: Also in this episode, I discuss the five things you must believe cultivate your DIY music attitude, including: 1. The business has been lying to you. Major label artists are not getting rich off of record sales. Radio is fake. Don’t belive […]

As the holiday season approaches, retail businesses are gearing up for their annual surge in online (and in-store) traffic. Unfortunately, this increase in activity also attracts cybercriminals looking to exploit vulnerabilities for their gain.  Imperva, a Thales company, recently published its annual holiday shopping cybersecurity guide. Data from the Imperva Threat Research team’s

Canadian law enforcement authorities have arrested an individual who is suspected to have conducted a series of hacks stemming from the breach of cloud data warehousing platform Snowflake earlier this year. The individual in question, Alexander "Connor" Moucka (aka Judische and Waifu), was apprehended on October 30, 2024, on the basis of a provisional arrest warrant, following a request by the

Zero Trust security changes how organizations handle security by doing away with implicit trust while continuously analyzing and validating access requests. Contrary to perimeter-based security, users within an environment are not automatically trusted upon gaining access. Zero Trust security encourages continuous monitoring of every device and user, which ensures sustained protection after

Cisco has released security updates to address a maximum severity security flaw impacting Ultra-Reliable Wireless Backhaul (URWB) Access Points that could permit unauthenticated, remote attackers to run commands with elevated privileges. Tracked as CVE-2024-20418 (CVS score: 10.0), the vulnerability has been described as stemming from a lack of input validation to the web-based management

In an unusually specific campaign, users searching about the legality of Bengal Cats in Australia are being targeted with the GootLoader malware. "In this case, we found the GootLoader actors using search results for information about a particular cat and a particular geography being used to deliver the payload: 'Are Bengal Cats legal in Australia?,'" Sophos researchers Trang Tang, Hikaru Koike,

The post Just an Ordinary Girl Filled With Creativity appeared first on English Russia.

Decision informed by report of the CPUC Committee on Naming.