My tall tale short story "Chicken Coup" is out today, published in The Palouse Review. Click here to read "Chicken Coup" online! "Chicken Coup" follows a brother and sister and their crazy adventure volunteering at a farm for their middle school science club. I hope you have as much fun reading the story as I did writing... Continue Reading →
Tell Me When I'm Younger is out today! I'm excited to share this collection of clever kid's poems with you. The book features illustrations by Cameron Royce. Click here get it on Amazon. Black Friday Deal: Get a FREE copy of Tell Me When I'm Younger by sending an email with "Black Friday" in the subject line... Continue Reading →
One of my favorite fantasy/sci-fi writers is Brandon Sanderson (if you couldn't already tell from my book reviews page.) Among other things, he is the award-winning author of the Mistborn series, a founding host of the podcast Writing Excuses (which I listen to regularly while I make dinner), and an adjunct professor at Brigham Young University. I... Continue Reading →
Calling all artists and illustrators! Looking for a new project for your digital doodling hobby and hoping to get paid? Are you new to illustrating and looking for a way to build your portfolio? Have you ever wanted to work produce artwork for a children's book? Wherever you fall on this spectrum, I have a proposal... Continue Reading →
Places to Go
Of all the places I love most
I like the ones along the coast.
I like mountains in between.
I like to see the plains turn green.
I like to see the cityscapes,
the inlets, islands, glaciers, capes,
the forests, fog, and ocean foam.
I love to go and come back home.My wife, Courtney, is officially launching her blog on traveling and art today! Go on over and check it out!
—M.M.
Please enjoy this short Q&A about why Paintings & Places is so important to me and those who understand (or are trying to understand) the importance of travel and art!
Hello, bonjour, hola! My name is Courtney Mortenson and please allow me to introduce you to Paintings & Places. As a student of Brigham Young University studying languages, specifically French and Spanish, my classes focus intensely on grammar and literature. This makes sense for those trying to learn words and how to put them together, but in an effort to gain cultural literacy, more than linguistic mastery is required. With this in mind, I’ve set out to visit as many places that I can that speak these languages (and any other places I happen to be able to visit along the way) in order to learn more about people and what they value from…
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Hello Friends, I have decided to try out monthly updates to let you know what kind of projects I'm working on and to do a better job connecting with visitors. Here's a quick update: Upcoming Publication As a winner in the 2018 David O. McKay Essay Contest, my essay "Three Minutes" will be appearing in... Continue Reading →
This isn't a blog. It isn't a bird. It's not a plane, and it's definitely not anything that flies. Rather, this is a thinkspace. A thinkspace is what it sounds like- a place to jot down thoughts. Imagine this blog as a hallway in a museum. On one wall might hang a hand-drawn mural, on... Continue Reading →
