Phoebe Clappsaddle and the Tumbleweed Gang by Melanie Chrismer, illustrated by Virginia Marsh Roeder (Pelican, 2004). From the catalog copy: "Young Phoebe is raised as a Southwestern belle, which made her a genteel gal who was also a great rider and roper. One day she enters the territory rodeo to compete against the ill-mannered Tumbleweed Gang and their reign as champions is over. Clifford, Elmo, and Eustace Tumbleweed decide to get rid of sissified Phoebe Clappsaddle once and for all. But Phoebe fouls their devilish plot and teaches the boys some manners, too. Then, for a time, the desert blooms in the territory again.
"Melanie Chrismer is a fifth-generation native Houstonian who lived her elementary years in New England. She is a former newspaper stringer, who worked in libraries, schools, and bookstores while developing her writing career. Melanie, her husband, daughter, son, and schnauzer live in northwest Houston."
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
When I started writing for children, I was doing it in my (for lack of better words) "spare time." But I was still holding down a part-time job and trying to be super mom for my elementary and middle school aged children. So I would go on field trips and volunteer for the school librarians and teachers. Little did I know that I was immersing myself in "just what the doctor ordered." I was getting the "what kids really want baptismal."
Along this school bus and cafeteria lunch journey I began to remember what I was doing at that same age and what I liked to read--tall tales! My inspirations were the Paul Bunyons, the Pecos Bills, and Slew-foot Sues of literature. Okay, so what kind of crazy person could I create to entertain, amaze and giggle-fy?... Well just what my grandmothers wanted me to be--a sweet southern belle and a proud, brave Texan. A-ha!--a southwestern belle.
One of my grandmothers was a dainty 4-foot, 10-inch sweetie who wore a Sunday ladies' suit, pill box hat, and white gloves to the Weingartens grocery store, and drank tea with her pinkies up.
The other was a strong armed, strong willed, former nurse and missionary, and most important to her, the granddaughter of one of Houston's first mayors, H.D. Taylor. If you combine these two unique women you have the epitome of a southwestern belle.
The story began to stir in my head set in the most desolate yet wonderful part of Texas I could imagine; beautiful and powerful Big Bend. The more steps I took to writing this story the more I knew the main character would be the kind of gal who is unique and didn't really mind that she is different. She thought of herself as fortunate to have southern manners AND western skills. She might make people laugh but they just don't see that she is special; the product of two cultures and someone who loved the new combination. So, she needed a name that said it all.
And then there it was. I had the name all along. When I was small my dainty grandmother used to tell us we should never complain about our names. That at least we were not named like one of our ancestors--Phoebe Clappsaddle. The whole family would laugh and agree that no matter what our name was, it wasn't as bad as that.
Eureka! A perfect name and it honors a muchly maligned ancestor, bringing her to celebrity status. With the publishing of Phoebe Clappsaddle and the Tumbleweed Gang, Phoebe Clappsaddle for Sheriff, and Phoebe Clappsaddle Has a Tumbleweed Christmas, I found that there are plenty of Clappsaddle cousins out there. In fact the continued research and communications with these newly met relatives reveals that there were at least two people in the branches of our family tree, with the name Phoebe Clappsaddle. One was born around 1854 and the other closer to 1825. So again, family and fun continue to be my inspiration, and of course, "what's in a name"--sometimes treasure!
What was the timeline from spark to publication, and what were the major events along the way?
I started the idea of Phoebe Clappsaddle and the Tumbleweed Gang on November 20, 1991 (I keep a journal, and start almost every story in long hand.) It sat in my journal with little editing for several years. Then in 1995 I decided it needed to be polished and seen by editors.
I had it critiqued at conferences and sent it to about four different houses but aside from a few nice compliments--no takers.
Then I met my agent. She took it on, took me on, and the manuscript sold within a year. It took eight years to sell but I truly think it was another case of right time, right place, right editor, right manuscript. Phoebe Clappsaddle and the Tumbleweed Gang (Pelican, 2002).
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
Bringing Phoebe to life and then making it a series were really the challenges of anyone educated in a science field who suddenly decides that they should have been a children's writer. This book was my first published book so it was a longer start while I "scientifically" analyzed my writing and submitting (with an occasional snarfing of a full bag of Cheetos after a particularly non-informative rejection letter).
I had to re-educate myself to the protocols and professional methods of the children's literature field. I stubbed my toe along this path, many times, but learned something from each bruise and scrape. And the people I met on this way are some of the dearest friends I have ever known.
Not every children's author or illustrator is willing to give of themselves and share their knowledge, but many are. Mary Dodson Wade gets full credit for opening my eyes to this. For when I was still trying to be "super mom" and the elementary school PTO's Author Day coordinator, I met Mary, and discussed my aspirations with her. She didn't hesitate a blink. She whipped out a flyer for the SCBWI and told me about the next local conference and instructed me--in no uncertain terms--that I should get myself to that conference. Boy, was she right, and I love her for it. Within a few years I was not only published but working on more books, getting more contracts, and meeting the playmates I never met when I was young.
Now at twelve books (and two in the pipeline), the challenges are still there but are now the familiar ones--stay focused, follow professional methods, and write, write, write.
Cynsational Links
Martha Stewart? No, Paul Meisel! from Don Tate's blog. Brief interview with the illustrator who worked with the "winning" team on a recent episode of "The Apprentice."
Michelle Meadows: official site from the author of The Way The Storm Stops, illustrated by Rosanne Litzinger (Henry Holt, 2003) and Pilot Pups (Simon & Schuster, TBA).
Religion is the new (YA) black by Donna Freitas, Religion BookLine, from Publisher's Weekly.
Friday, September 30, 2005
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Author Interview: L.D. Harkrader on Airball: My Life In Briefs
Airball: My Life In Briefs by L.D. Harkrader (Roaring Brook, 2005). From the catalog copy: "Kirby Nickel loves basketball. He loves watching basketball. He loves talking about basketball. The only problem is he can't play basketball. But coach has a plan for Kirby and the supremely untalented seventh-grade team. It involves the guys playing nearly naked -- only in their briefs. Maybe the so-called Stealth Sportswear (think: The Emperor's New Clothes) will really inspire the team. Maybe. And maybe, just maybe, Kirby will find out who his real father is." Ages 8-12.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
I had written a short story called "Rudy and the Prince" for Meadowbrook's anthology, Newfangled Fairy Tales, and was playing with ideas for other fractured fairy tales. I love fractured fairy tales, probably because most real fairy tales never made much sense to me. (I always thought people long ago in fairy tale times must not have been very bright. I mean really, who's stupid enough to mistake a wolf in a nightie for her own grandmother?) But I always liked "The Emperor's New Clothes," and I kept thinking, what if this story were updated to a modern middle school? What would be important enough to keep people there from speaking the truth? And who would be the brave soul who finally told the emperor he was naked?
That's how Kirby and his basketball team--the seventh-grade Stuckey Prairie Dogs--were born. The first drafts were much more like "The Emperor's New Clothes" than the final book turned out to be, right down to the two con men who come to town selling invisible sportswear. Fortunately my brilliant editor, Deborah Brodie, pointed out that Airball had evolved beyond the initial ispiration and that much of the scaffolding holding up that original story wasn't needed any more. So I let go of the fairy tale during my revision and I think the book is stronger because of it.
What was the timeline from spark to publication, and what were the major events along the way?
Oh, gosh, it took a long time to write Airball. I started the story in 1998 and finished the first complete draft at the end of 2003. I revised it on spec and sold it to Roaring Brook in 2004, and it was published in September 2005. Seven years total. In my defense, I was also writing other things during that time--three ghostwritten series novels, seven nonfiction reference books, and many short stories and articles--so, while I admit to a certain amount of sloth, I'm not quite as lazy as I sound!
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
I knew I was walking a fine line between a contemporary realistic story and complete fantasy, and I worried that my story wasn't enough of either to keep it believable. A couple times I almost talked myself into just burning it and starting a new, easier story (as if there's such a thing as an easy story). But I loved Kirby and my other characters so much that I couldn't give up on them. I was lucky that my editor saw enough in them to love, too, and was willing to help me hammer the story into a more believable shape.
Why do you think books set in the midwest are so rare? Off the top of my head, I can think of fewer than ten with contemporary, Kansas settings. What can we do to encourage more heartland literature?
I'm so glad you asked this because it's something I thought about a lot as I was writing Airball. I prefer stories that have a concrete setting, rather than ones that take place in Generic Anywhere, USA, so I specifically put Kirby in Kansas. I did wonder whether that was such a great idea. I mean, there are libraries full of books set in the south, or in the northeast, or just in Manhattan (Manhattan, New York, not Manhattan, Kansas, because yes, there is such a place!), but nobody sets books in Kansas unless they're historical. And I wondered if all those other writers knew something I didn't. But since I'd lived almost my entire life in Kansas and didn't know any place else even half as well, I had no choice.
I think one of the reasons people don't set books in Kansas, or in other Great Plains states, is the perception that it's boring here. That nothing about it stands out. And I admit that I'm guilty of thinking that, too. But people in the heartland really do have a character all their own that's different from that of people in the south or the northeast or New York or Boston or California or Texas. So that's what I focused on--the way the setting shapes the characters. I think Kirby's grandmother is the character in Airball who best personifies the character of the people in this part of the country. She has her quirks and obsessions, but beneath those lie a bedrock of common sense, practicality, and hard work.
So maybe that's the key to encouraging more literature set in the middle of the country: Help writers look beyond the physical elements of setting, such as mountains, oceans, islands, or cosmopolitan city-scapes (all of which are in short supply here in the heartland), and see it as the way the physical place shapes character. Viewed in that way, I think the setting here is as rich as it is anywhere.
Cynsational News & Links
Laura Bowers: Writing Without The Reins: a LiveJournal from the author of an upcoming YA novel, Beauty Shop for Rent (Harcourt, 2007).
"100 Best of the Best for the 21st century" from YALSA. Number I've read: 47. Of those, number I would've picked, too: 40.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
I had written a short story called "Rudy and the Prince" for Meadowbrook's anthology, Newfangled Fairy Tales, and was playing with ideas for other fractured fairy tales. I love fractured fairy tales, probably because most real fairy tales never made much sense to me. (I always thought people long ago in fairy tale times must not have been very bright. I mean really, who's stupid enough to mistake a wolf in a nightie for her own grandmother?) But I always liked "The Emperor's New Clothes," and I kept thinking, what if this story were updated to a modern middle school? What would be important enough to keep people there from speaking the truth? And who would be the brave soul who finally told the emperor he was naked?
That's how Kirby and his basketball team--the seventh-grade Stuckey Prairie Dogs--were born. The first drafts were much more like "The Emperor's New Clothes" than the final book turned out to be, right down to the two con men who come to town selling invisible sportswear. Fortunately my brilliant editor, Deborah Brodie, pointed out that Airball had evolved beyond the initial ispiration and that much of the scaffolding holding up that original story wasn't needed any more. So I let go of the fairy tale during my revision and I think the book is stronger because of it.
What was the timeline from spark to publication, and what were the major events along the way?
Oh, gosh, it took a long time to write Airball. I started the story in 1998 and finished the first complete draft at the end of 2003. I revised it on spec and sold it to Roaring Brook in 2004, and it was published in September 2005. Seven years total. In my defense, I was also writing other things during that time--three ghostwritten series novels, seven nonfiction reference books, and many short stories and articles--so, while I admit to a certain amount of sloth, I'm not quite as lazy as I sound!
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
I knew I was walking a fine line between a contemporary realistic story and complete fantasy, and I worried that my story wasn't enough of either to keep it believable. A couple times I almost talked myself into just burning it and starting a new, easier story (as if there's such a thing as an easy story). But I loved Kirby and my other characters so much that I couldn't give up on them. I was lucky that my editor saw enough in them to love, too, and was willing to help me hammer the story into a more believable shape.
Why do you think books set in the midwest are so rare? Off the top of my head, I can think of fewer than ten with contemporary, Kansas settings. What can we do to encourage more heartland literature?
I'm so glad you asked this because it's something I thought about a lot as I was writing Airball. I prefer stories that have a concrete setting, rather than ones that take place in Generic Anywhere, USA, so I specifically put Kirby in Kansas. I did wonder whether that was such a great idea. I mean, there are libraries full of books set in the south, or in the northeast, or just in Manhattan (Manhattan, New York, not Manhattan, Kansas, because yes, there is such a place!), but nobody sets books in Kansas unless they're historical. And I wondered if all those other writers knew something I didn't. But since I'd lived almost my entire life in Kansas and didn't know any place else even half as well, I had no choice.
I think one of the reasons people don't set books in Kansas, or in other Great Plains states, is the perception that it's boring here. That nothing about it stands out. And I admit that I'm guilty of thinking that, too. But people in the heartland really do have a character all their own that's different from that of people in the south or the northeast or New York or Boston or California or Texas. So that's what I focused on--the way the setting shapes the characters. I think Kirby's grandmother is the character in Airball who best personifies the character of the people in this part of the country. She has her quirks and obsessions, but beneath those lie a bedrock of common sense, practicality, and hard work.
So maybe that's the key to encouraging more literature set in the middle of the country: Help writers look beyond the physical elements of setting, such as mountains, oceans, islands, or cosmopolitan city-scapes (all of which are in short supply here in the heartland), and see it as the way the physical place shapes character. Viewed in that way, I think the setting here is as rich as it is anywhere.
Cynsational News & Links
Laura Bowers: Writing Without The Reins: a LiveJournal from the author of an upcoming YA novel, Beauty Shop for Rent (Harcourt, 2007).
"100 Best of the Best for the 21st century" from YALSA. Number I've read: 47. Of those, number I would've picked, too: 40.
Wednesday, September 28, 2005
Author Interview: Heather Vogel Frederick on Spy Mice
Spy Mice: The Black Paw by Heather Vogel Frederick, illustrated by Sally Wern Comport (Simon & Schuster, 2005). From the catalog copy: " At the Spy Museum, creatures of all sizes are stirring twenty-four hours a day. Join skateboarding Private Eye Glory Mouse and double-o-detective a.k.a. Oz Levinson in an undercover tail. It's mice vs. rats. Kids vs. bullies. Good vs. evil. And all the power lies in one paw." Ages 9-up. Read an excerpt. See also Spy Mice: For Your Paws Only (Simon & Schuster, 2005).
What was your inspiration for creating this series?
Would you believe leather pants?
I’m serious! I grew up in the ‘60s and ‘70s, which was the heydey of “Spy-Fi” TV. I spent most of my childhood either with my nose in a book or glued to such shows as “Mission: Impossible,” “Get Smart,” and “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” And then of course there were all the James Bond movies.
The gadgets, the intrigue, the glamour – I was completely hooked. I wanted desperately to be a spy when I grew up (instead I became the next best thing: a writer). I wanted to be Agent 99, Maxwell Smart’s sidekick. I wanted to be the girl from U.N.C.L.E. More than anything, though, I wanted to be Emma Peel of “The Avengers.” She was beautiful, she was brainy, and best of all, she wore extremely cool black leather pants in which she kicked some serious spy butt. All of which geeky preteen suburban me was not and didn’t!
Technically, my sisters and I weren’t allowed to watch the show because my mother deemed those leather pants far too racy for her impressionable daughters. I managed to sneak and watch it anyway, though, which was fortunate because those pants obviously made an indelible impression. Here I am, many decades later, writing espionage fiction for children.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
The initial spark for the series was a news item I read a few years ago that mentioned a new museum being built in Washington, D. C. – The International Spy Museum. Bingo! Lightbulb moment. I instantly knew I had to set a book there, a la From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler.
I ran the idea by my agent, Barry Goldblatt, who was instantly as enthusiastic as I was, despite the fact that I had no plot, no characters at this point, just a setting. The idea incubated for several months, and then the words “Spy Mice” floated into thought one day, and that was that. I was off and running.
I am most fortunate in having a brilliant and amazingly supportive editor, Alyssa Eisner at Simon & Schuster. She was as crazy about the idea as I was, and thanks to her efforts, the first book (“The Black Paw”) sold pretty much on the strength of the title alone.
They requested a quick turnaround for it, though – six months – which was a bit daunting. The books I had written prior to this were research-intensive historical fiction. The Voyage of Patience Goodspeed and its sequel, The Education of Patience Goodspeed both take place on a whaling ship during Victorian times, with settings ranging from Nantucket to Maui, and each took over a year to write.
Spy Mice was a completely different ballgame. I didn’t have that kind of luxury in terms of time. But I soon discovered that aside from “location scouting” – visiting the story’s setting to get the details just right – and brushing up on some espionage terminology, the research was minimal. Mostly it was just me and my imagination. So that helped streamline the process.
Location scouting took me to Washington in the fall of 2003, where I spent a week exploring the Spy Museum and the city. It was a memorable trip – I got stranded there during Hurricane Isabelle! For the second book (“For Your Paws Only”), I brought my husband and our teenage sons along to New York City. We spent last Thanksgiving in Times Square, researching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. As they say, a tough job, but someone has to do it… This whole thing has just been a blast, and quite surreal for someone whose travels up until now have mostly consisted of camping. Christmas found us in London, which will be the setting for the third book (“Goldwhiskers”). I just finished writing it, and it’s slated for a Summer 2006 release.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
Cyn, this whole project has been such fun from the very first moment that I hardly dare call anything a “challenge.” Mostly I just sit at my desk, or in my armchair where I write, and laugh!
Aside from having to pick up my writing pace, there were two hurdles worth noting, however. First, as I mentioned before, was finding a plot. I had the setting, I had the title, but what the heck was going to happen? To be honest, I never plot my stories ahead of time. I just sit down to work each day and tell myself a story. Keeps me interested! I do make notes of things I think might be fun to have happen, but I think it’s fair to say that my books are largely character-driven. For me, the writing process is a very organic one. I noodle around, and as the characters come into focus, so does the plot. And that’s what happened here. There’s an old story about a boy from the Carolinas who was an extraordinary woodcarver. He was especially adept at carving dogs. When asked once what his secret was, he shrugged and said, “I just whittle away all the bits that don’t look like dog.” I think that’s what I do as a writer – I have an overall impression of what the story should be, and I just keep whittling away at it until it emerges.
The other hurdle was switching gears from the voice I had adopted for the Patience Goodspeed books – that of a young Victorian lady – to the sharper, snappier present-day personas of fifth-grade loser Oz Levinson and secret agent mouse Morning Glory Goldenleaf. Oh, and the Spy Mice Agency’s arch-enemy, of course, megalomani-rat Roquefort Dupont. The books alternate story lines and POV’s between that of humans, mice, and rats.
Additionally, there was a brief, initial struggle in giving myself permission to just cut loose. You know – how wild and improbable can I get here? How many inside jokes can I shoehorn in for my own amusement, and that of parents and other adult readers? How much fun can one writer have? (Answer: A lot!) I’ve spent some time reviewing the Bond movies and ‘60s TV shows that I loved as a kid, and was struck by how delightfully far-fetched many of their plots and gags were. (Maxwell Smart’s shoe phone comes to mind here.) By the way, I recently discovered that the “Get Smart” series was co-produced by Mel Brooks. No wonder it was such an inspired spoof, for pete’s sake! I see the Spy Mice books as a bit of an homage to all of this – 007, the Spy-Fi shows I watched growing up, my own clandestine childhood ambition to be a secret agent, an ambition that Oz, my main human character, shares.
In the end, none of this was necessarily easy – writing is never easy – but the process was and continues to be truly a delight. I think most writers would agree that there are some stories we struggle with, and some that are gifts. Spy Mice has been a gift.
What kind of reception has the series received?
It’s early days, of course, what with the second book debuting just this week (October 1st). But the response has been most gratifying. Loads of enthusiasm from readers and booksellers, and a number of lovely reviews.
The first two titles were auctioned to Puffin in Britain (Amazon.com UK has the British book jacket for “The Black Paw” up already, if you want to take a peek). Germany and Italy are also on board, and there’s interest from other countries as well, along with some nibbles from the film industry. It’s all very exciting. And to think it started with a pair of leather pants!
Cynsational Notes
Getting to Know Heather Vogel Frederick by Barb Odanaka from SCBWI.
Cynsational News & Links
Slippery Slopes and Proliferating Prizes by author/editor Marc Aronson from The Horn Book, May/June 2000. "A critique of identity-based awards, such as the Coretta Scott King and Pura Belpre Awards."
Awards that Stand on Solid Ground by author/editor Andrea Davis Pinkney from The Horn Book, May/June 2001. A response to Marc's article immediately above.
What was your inspiration for creating this series?
Would you believe leather pants?
I’m serious! I grew up in the ‘60s and ‘70s, which was the heydey of “Spy-Fi” TV. I spent most of my childhood either with my nose in a book or glued to such shows as “Mission: Impossible,” “Get Smart,” and “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” And then of course there were all the James Bond movies.
The gadgets, the intrigue, the glamour – I was completely hooked. I wanted desperately to be a spy when I grew up (instead I became the next best thing: a writer). I wanted to be Agent 99, Maxwell Smart’s sidekick. I wanted to be the girl from U.N.C.L.E. More than anything, though, I wanted to be Emma Peel of “The Avengers.” She was beautiful, she was brainy, and best of all, she wore extremely cool black leather pants in which she kicked some serious spy butt. All of which geeky preteen suburban me was not and didn’t!
Technically, my sisters and I weren’t allowed to watch the show because my mother deemed those leather pants far too racy for her impressionable daughters. I managed to sneak and watch it anyway, though, which was fortunate because those pants obviously made an indelible impression. Here I am, many decades later, writing espionage fiction for children.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
The initial spark for the series was a news item I read a few years ago that mentioned a new museum being built in Washington, D. C. – The International Spy Museum. Bingo! Lightbulb moment. I instantly knew I had to set a book there, a la From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler.
I ran the idea by my agent, Barry Goldblatt, who was instantly as enthusiastic as I was, despite the fact that I had no plot, no characters at this point, just a setting. The idea incubated for several months, and then the words “Spy Mice” floated into thought one day, and that was that. I was off and running.
I am most fortunate in having a brilliant and amazingly supportive editor, Alyssa Eisner at Simon & Schuster. She was as crazy about the idea as I was, and thanks to her efforts, the first book (“The Black Paw”) sold pretty much on the strength of the title alone.
They requested a quick turnaround for it, though – six months – which was a bit daunting. The books I had written prior to this were research-intensive historical fiction. The Voyage of Patience Goodspeed and its sequel, The Education of Patience Goodspeed both take place on a whaling ship during Victorian times, with settings ranging from Nantucket to Maui, and each took over a year to write.
Spy Mice was a completely different ballgame. I didn’t have that kind of luxury in terms of time. But I soon discovered that aside from “location scouting” – visiting the story’s setting to get the details just right – and brushing up on some espionage terminology, the research was minimal. Mostly it was just me and my imagination. So that helped streamline the process.
Location scouting took me to Washington in the fall of 2003, where I spent a week exploring the Spy Museum and the city. It was a memorable trip – I got stranded there during Hurricane Isabelle! For the second book (“For Your Paws Only”), I brought my husband and our teenage sons along to New York City. We spent last Thanksgiving in Times Square, researching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. As they say, a tough job, but someone has to do it… This whole thing has just been a blast, and quite surreal for someone whose travels up until now have mostly consisted of camping. Christmas found us in London, which will be the setting for the third book (“Goldwhiskers”). I just finished writing it, and it’s slated for a Summer 2006 release.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
Cyn, this whole project has been such fun from the very first moment that I hardly dare call anything a “challenge.” Mostly I just sit at my desk, or in my armchair where I write, and laugh!
Aside from having to pick up my writing pace, there were two hurdles worth noting, however. First, as I mentioned before, was finding a plot. I had the setting, I had the title, but what the heck was going to happen? To be honest, I never plot my stories ahead of time. I just sit down to work each day and tell myself a story. Keeps me interested! I do make notes of things I think might be fun to have happen, but I think it’s fair to say that my books are largely character-driven. For me, the writing process is a very organic one. I noodle around, and as the characters come into focus, so does the plot. And that’s what happened here. There’s an old story about a boy from the Carolinas who was an extraordinary woodcarver. He was especially adept at carving dogs. When asked once what his secret was, he shrugged and said, “I just whittle away all the bits that don’t look like dog.” I think that’s what I do as a writer – I have an overall impression of what the story should be, and I just keep whittling away at it until it emerges.
The other hurdle was switching gears from the voice I had adopted for the Patience Goodspeed books – that of a young Victorian lady – to the sharper, snappier present-day personas of fifth-grade loser Oz Levinson and secret agent mouse Morning Glory Goldenleaf. Oh, and the Spy Mice Agency’s arch-enemy, of course, megalomani-rat Roquefort Dupont. The books alternate story lines and POV’s between that of humans, mice, and rats.
Additionally, there was a brief, initial struggle in giving myself permission to just cut loose. You know – how wild and improbable can I get here? How many inside jokes can I shoehorn in for my own amusement, and that of parents and other adult readers? How much fun can one writer have? (Answer: A lot!) I’ve spent some time reviewing the Bond movies and ‘60s TV shows that I loved as a kid, and was struck by how delightfully far-fetched many of their plots and gags were. (Maxwell Smart’s shoe phone comes to mind here.) By the way, I recently discovered that the “Get Smart” series was co-produced by Mel Brooks. No wonder it was such an inspired spoof, for pete’s sake! I see the Spy Mice books as a bit of an homage to all of this – 007, the Spy-Fi shows I watched growing up, my own clandestine childhood ambition to be a secret agent, an ambition that Oz, my main human character, shares.
In the end, none of this was necessarily easy – writing is never easy – but the process was and continues to be truly a delight. I think most writers would agree that there are some stories we struggle with, and some that are gifts. Spy Mice has been a gift.
What kind of reception has the series received?
It’s early days, of course, what with the second book debuting just this week (October 1st). But the response has been most gratifying. Loads of enthusiasm from readers and booksellers, and a number of lovely reviews.
The first two titles were auctioned to Puffin in Britain (Amazon.com UK has the British book jacket for “The Black Paw” up already, if you want to take a peek). Germany and Italy are also on board, and there’s interest from other countries as well, along with some nibbles from the film industry. It’s all very exciting. And to think it started with a pair of leather pants!
Cynsational Notes
Getting to Know Heather Vogel Frederick by Barb Odanaka from SCBWI.
Cynsational News & Links
Slippery Slopes and Proliferating Prizes by author/editor Marc Aronson from The Horn Book, May/June 2000. "A critique of identity-based awards, such as the Coretta Scott King and Pura Belpre Awards."
Awards that Stand on Solid Ground by author/editor Andrea Davis Pinkney from The Horn Book, May/June 2001. A response to Marc's article immediately above.
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Author Interview: Varsha Bajaj on How Many Kisses Do You Want Tonight?
How Many Kisses Do You Want Tonight? by Varsha Bajaj, illustrated by Ivan Bates (Little Brown, 2004). From the catalog copy: "As the day comes to an end, each precious little animal nestles into its cozy place and waits to be tucked in by its parent. Bears, horses, bunnies, ducks and even snakes request the required number of goodnight kisses to get them to drift off to sleep. From one to ten (and then some!) these tender kisses are part of a reassuring bedtime ritual for animals and people alike." Ages 4-up.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
My inspiration was a bedtime ritual I began with my son, when he started counting way back in 1996. Being a children’s writer was not even a gleam in my eye then. I would ask him how many kisses he wanted, and it would lead to much kissing, counting, and laughter. My daughter was born in 1997. We had another player in our bedtime game!
In 1999, I was trying to finish a doctoral thesis on “The Ethical decision making process” as it applied to counselors (A 10 on the exact, dry and boring scale). I found myself doodling and scribbling about hugs and kisses and bedtime instead. I decided to give in and learn about writing for children.
I also remember nights when I was bone tired and just wanted to get through bedtime. The words of Goodnight Moon or Sam McBratney’s Guess How Much I Love You would lift my fatigue and make bedtime special.
I wanted to create a bedtime book that was warm and sweet and reeked of unconditional love! Not easy, given that I have a dark side prone to depressive thoughts!
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
I wrote the first draft in 2000. I made the decision that I wanted the book to have a universal appeal. Animals are ultimately “multicultural.”
I wanted a succession of animal parents to ask the question, “How Many Kisses Do You Want Tonight?” of their children. Most of the animals chose themselves; they sat in my daughter’s stuffed animal hammock! My son, by this time was six. I threw in the spider and the snake to satisfy his boyish fascination with all things icky! He was also developing a sense of humor and would ask for an impossible number of kisses on the occasional night! It gave me the idea for the twist in the end, with the girl and boy asking for hundred and million kisses each. The story ends with the question being posed to the reader. I wanted to ensure that the reader joined in the fun! The first draft had only Mom animals posing the question. Rajeev (my husband) was offended. The second draft had Moms and Dads!
After many revisions, and invaluable help, and encouragement from a very patient critique group, I had a completed manuscript in 2001. There I was an unpublished, unagented writer with a manuscript! Most publishing houses were closed to me! Houston SCBWI hosted Editor’s Day in February 2001. Editors from closed houses, including Little Brown, agreed to accept one manuscript each from attending writers. It was my golden ticket! That day two out of five editors talked about how difficult it was to sell a bedtime story and five out of five editors cautioned against writing in rhyme. I was depressed! I came home and binged on shrimp curry and rice (my ultimate comfort food).
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
Mary Gruetzke from Little Brown & Co. called in Sept 2001 and offered to buy my manuscript! I was an Editor’s Day success story! The publication date was April 2004.
I understand now why editors and seasoned writers caution against writing in rhyme. It is incredibly difficult. Mary, my editor was patient yet demanding in her quest for getting the rhythm and rhyme as perfect as possible. My nightmares rhymed! I often wonder if I would have chosen rhyme had I been more aware, but then Ignorance is bliss. The opening lines wrote themselves, and I just followed their lead.
My biggest psychological challenge was separating from the characters I created. Ivan’s (Ivan Bates) fabulous illustrations made me fall in love with them all over again. I wondered what each animal would do after they woke up the next morning, what would they “feel” like doing that day? Unfortunately, the manuscript didn’t sell! The rejection forced me to move on!
Cynsational Notes
Awards for "How Many Kisses Do You Want Tonight?" include: Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Award (2004); NAPPA (National Association of Parenting Publications) Gold Award, 2004-2005; Texas Library Association's 2x2 list 2004-2005; Finalist, Texas Institute of Letters, Austin Public Library Award. Congratulations, Varsha!
Editor Mary E. Gruetzke, formerly of Little Brown, left Scholastic for Walker this month. Her title is "senior editor." Source: The Purple Crayon.
Cynsational News & Links
Apologies for any recent code glitches. In particular, the interviews are loaded in with coding from other programs, and sometimes, my clean-up efforts go better than others.
"My Washington D.C. Adventure" from author Linda Sue Park on the National Book Festival.
Six Simple Ways to Make the Most Out of Any Writing Workshop or Writing Class by Suzanne Lieurance from Ezine Articles.
Writing Backward: Modern Models in Historical Fiction by Anne Scott MacLeod, "professor at the University of Maryland and the author of American Childhood: Essays on Children’s Literature of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries (University of Georgia Press)," from The Horn Book, January/February 1998.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
My inspiration was a bedtime ritual I began with my son, when he started counting way back in 1996. Being a children’s writer was not even a gleam in my eye then. I would ask him how many kisses he wanted, and it would lead to much kissing, counting, and laughter. My daughter was born in 1997. We had another player in our bedtime game!
In 1999, I was trying to finish a doctoral thesis on “The Ethical decision making process” as it applied to counselors (A 10 on the exact, dry and boring scale). I found myself doodling and scribbling about hugs and kisses and bedtime instead. I decided to give in and learn about writing for children.
I also remember nights when I was bone tired and just wanted to get through bedtime. The words of Goodnight Moon or Sam McBratney’s Guess How Much I Love You would lift my fatigue and make bedtime special.
I wanted to create a bedtime book that was warm and sweet and reeked of unconditional love! Not easy, given that I have a dark side prone to depressive thoughts!
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
I wrote the first draft in 2000. I made the decision that I wanted the book to have a universal appeal. Animals are ultimately “multicultural.”
I wanted a succession of animal parents to ask the question, “How Many Kisses Do You Want Tonight?” of their children. Most of the animals chose themselves; they sat in my daughter’s stuffed animal hammock! My son, by this time was six. I threw in the spider and the snake to satisfy his boyish fascination with all things icky! He was also developing a sense of humor and would ask for an impossible number of kisses on the occasional night! It gave me the idea for the twist in the end, with the girl and boy asking for hundred and million kisses each. The story ends with the question being posed to the reader. I wanted to ensure that the reader joined in the fun! The first draft had only Mom animals posing the question. Rajeev (my husband) was offended. The second draft had Moms and Dads!
After many revisions, and invaluable help, and encouragement from a very patient critique group, I had a completed manuscript in 2001. There I was an unpublished, unagented writer with a manuscript! Most publishing houses were closed to me! Houston SCBWI hosted Editor’s Day in February 2001. Editors from closed houses, including Little Brown, agreed to accept one manuscript each from attending writers. It was my golden ticket! That day two out of five editors talked about how difficult it was to sell a bedtime story and five out of five editors cautioned against writing in rhyme. I was depressed! I came home and binged on shrimp curry and rice (my ultimate comfort food).
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
Mary Gruetzke from Little Brown & Co. called in Sept 2001 and offered to buy my manuscript! I was an Editor’s Day success story! The publication date was April 2004.
I understand now why editors and seasoned writers caution against writing in rhyme. It is incredibly difficult. Mary, my editor was patient yet demanding in her quest for getting the rhythm and rhyme as perfect as possible. My nightmares rhymed! I often wonder if I would have chosen rhyme had I been more aware, but then Ignorance is bliss. The opening lines wrote themselves, and I just followed their lead.
My biggest psychological challenge was separating from the characters I created. Ivan’s (Ivan Bates) fabulous illustrations made me fall in love with them all over again. I wondered what each animal would do after they woke up the next morning, what would they “feel” like doing that day? Unfortunately, the manuscript didn’t sell! The rejection forced me to move on!
Cynsational Notes
Awards for "How Many Kisses Do You Want Tonight?" include: Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Award (2004); NAPPA (National Association of Parenting Publications) Gold Award, 2004-2005; Texas Library Association's 2x2 list 2004-2005; Finalist, Texas Institute of Letters, Austin Public Library Award. Congratulations, Varsha!
Editor Mary E. Gruetzke, formerly of Little Brown, left Scholastic for Walker this month. Her title is "senior editor." Source: The Purple Crayon.
Cynsational News & Links
Apologies for any recent code glitches. In particular, the interviews are loaded in with coding from other programs, and sometimes, my clean-up efforts go better than others.
"My Washington D.C. Adventure" from author Linda Sue Park on the National Book Festival.
Six Simple Ways to Make the Most Out of Any Writing Workshop or Writing Class by Suzanne Lieurance from Ezine Articles.
Writing Backward: Modern Models in Historical Fiction by Anne Scott MacLeod, "professor at the University of Maryland and the author of American Childhood: Essays on Children’s Literature of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries (University of Georgia Press)," from The Horn Book, January/February 1998.
Monday, September 26, 2005
Author Interview: Kelly Milner Halls on Wild Dogs: Past & Present
Wild Dogs: Past & Present by Kelly Milner Halls (Darby Creek, 2005). An extraordinary look from the ancient miacids (ancestors of cats and dogs) to the family poodle with an focus on the Canidae family. Readers are drawn into the world of the wolf, fox, dingo, and jackal. A feast for the eyes and mind. Ages 7-up. A Junior Library Guild selection.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Oddly enough, my editor Tanya Dean had to slam on her breaks driving to work in Ohio one day because a wild dogy -- a coyote she thought -- ran across her path. She called me and said, "I think we should do a book about wild dogs."
She's a dog lover. I'm an animal lover, dogs and cats (and yes, Wild Cats is in the works). So we decided I'd slip on the writer shoes. That was the inspiration.
What was the timeline between spark and publication and what were the major events along the way?
This one was very interesting because in a sense, the topic is VERY broad. It's not like dogs that don't bark or dogs too small to survive in the wild. It's just wild dogs, and that's a global proposition. Couple that with the fact that it was Tanya's vision first, and there is degree of challenge to master. How do you carve such a broad topic down to children's book size? And how do two people sync their visions? The two made this book take a little longer than the other two I've done with Tanya (Dinosaur Mummies and Albino Animals). But it wasn't so long, even with that factored in. I think it was a seven month gestation, spark to final revision.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
Ooops, I guess I kind of answered this above. Deciding what NOT to include was the biggest challenge. And that comes from another challenge of nonfiction -- how much research is too much? How much is not quite enough? That balance is difficult in children's books, especially for me, because I think they deserve as good as adults get. Another challenge, anytime you write nonfiction is the impossible task of pleasing everyone.
Pick one zoologist's theory to spotlight or endorse, and his arch enemy will call your work inaccurate. And from his point of view, he's right. When it comes to science, that's a tough pill to swallow. No matter how hard you try to be factual, some expert may take issue, if he or she disagrees. But you do the best you can do. In that case, I admit I'm a journalist reporting on a topic, not an expert. And they can always write a book of their own if they feel strongly enough about their cause.
But when I hear from experts with opposing viewpoints, I do try to find some forum to research and write about their ideas too, whenever possible. It seems only fair.
Though the ALA's Sibert Medal is an important step forward, I worry that children's non-fiction doesn't always get the attention it deserves. Am I right to be concerned? If so, what are the challenges, and what can we do to help?
You are absolutely right. And here's the irony. It's not the KIDS who ignore it. It's the adults. Kids LOVE nonfiction, if it's written with kids in mind -- sparky rather than textbook driven. But I think many adults think the only valuable stories to consider are fiction. They miss a world of possibility when they speed walk past nonfiction. From Grossology to Wild Dogs, there is a lot of magic between those nonfiction pages. I hope someday the collective mindset shifts.
A lot of authors are promoting banned book week, but you have a big logo on the front page of your site and several pages dedicated to fighting censorship. Could you tell us more about your passion for free speech and youth literature?
When I was in high school, I was on the staff of the school newspaper. The editor was my best friend. He wrote a story about a Vietnam veteran and used a direct quote that included a tough, culturally unpleasant slang term. But it was the guys quote. And it was crucial to the feature. Our principal censored the story...cut the quote. And it didn't even make sense without it.
We were enraged. We were being schooled in journalism, the importance of a free American press. And they censor us. So we called the ACLU and they agreed to take the case. We were set to go as far as we had to for the cause. But when the principal threatened to disband the journalism program, rather than face a lawsuit, we had a tough choice to make.
Do we win on principle and lose the paper? Or do we protect the paper for classes yet to come, and pie the principal on graduation day? We opted for the pie -- $25 bought a senior from a rival school who sort of force fed our principal banana cream on the quad. It was AWESOME.
I learned a valuable lesson about the reality of censorship that year, and it stayed with me. That same sense of urgency and principle re-immerged when I discovered young adult literature and the propensity for its being challenged and banned. Except this time, I could fight a little harder. And this time, the pie option didn't apply -- at least not so far.
In addition to writing your own books, you're also a journalist who frequently covers children's/YA literature. What inspires you to spread the word about other authors' work? What do you learn from them?
Man, the brilliance of story inspires me to write about other authors. The fact that we as an industry are so underappreciated doesn't hurt. I grew up feeling not quite good enough, so there is an ache in watching OUR books slip into that same secondary ranking. I like the idea of trying to help boost it up. I like the idea of demanding our place -- of insisting we really DO belong.
What have I learned? Countless things...the most important being relativity. Reviews suggest that some books are good and some are bad. But every book is good to the one kid who falls in love with it, for reasons that will always be expressly his or her own. I love that very private relationship, one kid with one author, every page of the book. I have learned that THEY have the only opinions that really matter, and I have learned that by interviewing authors. They are as different as fall and spring, these authors, and that's just how it should be. That way every kid has a chance to fall in love with a book no one else would understand. Diversity makes the world a better, richer place -- in every element of life.
Cynsational Notes
While an all-around dog fan, I have a particular affection for wolves. My office actually features a photograph of a gray wolf and a painting of a howling wolf by Donald Vann. I enjoyed pouring through Wild Dogs and intend to keep it handy as a research reference.
Cynsational News & Links
"Endings that Excite: How to Make Your Readers Keep Reading" by Loretta Acosta Russell, in the Story Plot section of Writing Tips from the Institute of Children's Literature. See also "The Power of Books Upon Kids:" a guest chat with Uri Shulevitz from ICL.
Short Talk with a Prospective Children's Writer by author Astrid Lindgren of Pippi Longstocking fame from The Horn Book, June 1973.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Oddly enough, my editor Tanya Dean had to slam on her breaks driving to work in Ohio one day because a wild dogy -- a coyote she thought -- ran across her path. She called me and said, "I think we should do a book about wild dogs."
She's a dog lover. I'm an animal lover, dogs and cats (and yes, Wild Cats is in the works). So we decided I'd slip on the writer shoes. That was the inspiration.
What was the timeline between spark and publication and what were the major events along the way?
This one was very interesting because in a sense, the topic is VERY broad. It's not like dogs that don't bark or dogs too small to survive in the wild. It's just wild dogs, and that's a global proposition. Couple that with the fact that it was Tanya's vision first, and there is degree of challenge to master. How do you carve such a broad topic down to children's book size? And how do two people sync their visions? The two made this book take a little longer than the other two I've done with Tanya (Dinosaur Mummies and Albino Animals). But it wasn't so long, even with that factored in. I think it was a seven month gestation, spark to final revision.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
Ooops, I guess I kind of answered this above. Deciding what NOT to include was the biggest challenge. And that comes from another challenge of nonfiction -- how much research is too much? How much is not quite enough? That balance is difficult in children's books, especially for me, because I think they deserve as good as adults get. Another challenge, anytime you write nonfiction is the impossible task of pleasing everyone.
Pick one zoologist's theory to spotlight or endorse, and his arch enemy will call your work inaccurate. And from his point of view, he's right. When it comes to science, that's a tough pill to swallow. No matter how hard you try to be factual, some expert may take issue, if he or she disagrees. But you do the best you can do. In that case, I admit I'm a journalist reporting on a topic, not an expert. And they can always write a book of their own if they feel strongly enough about their cause.
But when I hear from experts with opposing viewpoints, I do try to find some forum to research and write about their ideas too, whenever possible. It seems only fair.
Though the ALA's Sibert Medal is an important step forward, I worry that children's non-fiction doesn't always get the attention it deserves. Am I right to be concerned? If so, what are the challenges, and what can we do to help?
You are absolutely right. And here's the irony. It's not the KIDS who ignore it. It's the adults. Kids LOVE nonfiction, if it's written with kids in mind -- sparky rather than textbook driven. But I think many adults think the only valuable stories to consider are fiction. They miss a world of possibility when they speed walk past nonfiction. From Grossology to Wild Dogs, there is a lot of magic between those nonfiction pages. I hope someday the collective mindset shifts.
A lot of authors are promoting banned book week, but you have a big logo on the front page of your site and several pages dedicated to fighting censorship. Could you tell us more about your passion for free speech and youth literature?
When I was in high school, I was on the staff of the school newspaper. The editor was my best friend. He wrote a story about a Vietnam veteran and used a direct quote that included a tough, culturally unpleasant slang term. But it was the guys quote. And it was crucial to the feature. Our principal censored the story...cut the quote. And it didn't even make sense without it.
We were enraged. We were being schooled in journalism, the importance of a free American press. And they censor us. So we called the ACLU and they agreed to take the case. We were set to go as far as we had to for the cause. But when the principal threatened to disband the journalism program, rather than face a lawsuit, we had a tough choice to make.
Do we win on principle and lose the paper? Or do we protect the paper for classes yet to come, and pie the principal on graduation day? We opted for the pie -- $25 bought a senior from a rival school who sort of force fed our principal banana cream on the quad. It was AWESOME.
I learned a valuable lesson about the reality of censorship that year, and it stayed with me. That same sense of urgency and principle re-immerged when I discovered young adult literature and the propensity for its being challenged and banned. Except this time, I could fight a little harder. And this time, the pie option didn't apply -- at least not so far.
In addition to writing your own books, you're also a journalist who frequently covers children's/YA literature. What inspires you to spread the word about other authors' work? What do you learn from them?
Man, the brilliance of story inspires me to write about other authors. The fact that we as an industry are so underappreciated doesn't hurt. I grew up feeling not quite good enough, so there is an ache in watching OUR books slip into that same secondary ranking. I like the idea of trying to help boost it up. I like the idea of demanding our place -- of insisting we really DO belong.
What have I learned? Countless things...the most important being relativity. Reviews suggest that some books are good and some are bad. But every book is good to the one kid who falls in love with it, for reasons that will always be expressly his or her own. I love that very private relationship, one kid with one author, every page of the book. I have learned that THEY have the only opinions that really matter, and I have learned that by interviewing authors. They are as different as fall and spring, these authors, and that's just how it should be. That way every kid has a chance to fall in love with a book no one else would understand. Diversity makes the world a better, richer place -- in every element of life.
Cynsational Notes
While an all-around dog fan, I have a particular affection for wolves. My office actually features a photograph of a gray wolf and a painting of a howling wolf by Donald Vann. I enjoyed pouring through Wild Dogs and intend to keep it handy as a research reference.
Cynsational News & Links
"Endings that Excite: How to Make Your Readers Keep Reading" by Loretta Acosta Russell, in the Story Plot section of Writing Tips from the Institute of Children's Literature. See also "The Power of Books Upon Kids:" a guest chat with Uri Shulevitz from ICL.
Short Talk with a Prospective Children's Writer by author Astrid Lindgren of Pippi Longstocking fame from The Horn Book, June 1973.
Sunday, September 25, 2005
Author Interview: Kelly Bennett on Not Norman
Not Norman (A Goldfish Story) by Kelly Bennett, illustrated by Noah Z. Jones (Candlewick, 2005). From the catalog copy: "'Don't think that just because you made me laugh, I'm going to keep you,' I tell him. 'Tomorrow, you're outta here.' Norman the goldfish isn't what this little boy had in mind. He wanted a different kind of pet--one that could run and catch, or chase string and climb trees, a soft furry pet to sleep on his bed at night. Definitely not Norman. But when he tries to trade Norman for a 'good pet,' things don't go as he planned. Could it be that Norman is a better pet than he thought?" Ages 4-up.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Did you ever receive a gift that you didn't want? Well I have, although I'll never tell who gave it to me...(Hi, Mom!)
It's really tough because you appreciate the gift and the thought behind it, so you try to like it. Well, I thought to myself, what if the gift was something you couldn't just hide in the back of your closet and forget? Like those not-even-close-to-the-right-brand jeans I was given for my fifteenth birthday.
What if that gift was alive? So I set about writing a story about a boy who received a pet he didn't want. For the story to work, my character had to be unable to interact with this pet in any physical way. I eliminated every pet my character could pet, sleep with, exercise, tease or play with. That meant no dogs, cats, lizards, snakes, rodents or bugs.
What was left? Fish! Which was perfect because I love fish. Fish are funny, loveable and fun in spite of the fact that you can't really play with them. Just watching fish make me laugh, however, the moment I try to touch my fish they scatter. And if you want to feel unwanted, try swimming with your pet goldfish--they'll hide for hours after. The perfect pet for Not Norman.
Do I have a goldfish named Norman? Of course. He was named after my cat. In fact, I bought my first goldfish just to tease my cat. That Norman the goldfish lived in a glass percolator on top of my stove. He'd swim around and around and around the glass percolator stem and I'd watch and laugh. One day I came home and my cat was laying on top of the stove with his arm draped around my goldfish's coffee pot--that's when I decided needed a new home. So my son Max and I created a fish pond in our back yard. Max dug the pond. I built the waterfall and filter system. And about two weeks later Norman the Goldfish had a new home. Ever since then, I have had a goldfish pond. I have one now in my home in Jakarta.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
The idea for Not Norman first met paper on February 16, 1999. Back then it was a very different story with a completely different title. It was much more of a list-book, and the pet was the main character. Then, thanks to an editor who took the time to write a person note on my rejection letter--one that pushed my buttons and made me mad enough to try something else, Not Norman: A Goldfish Story was born.
The manuscript went through went through three stages of revisions with my agent, Erin Murphy, before we felt it was ready to send out. As luck would have it, at an SCBWI Conference my editor Sarah Ketchersid of Candlewick Press mentioned that she loved goldfish. My agent, Erin, happened to be at that conference and the rest is history.
I need to mention that Sarah isn't just my editor, she's Not Norman's birthing coach. Along with my critique buds who urged me on every step of the way, Sarah coaxed, coerced, encouraged this final manuscript into being. I have five complete revisions of the story in my file as well as a good handful of e-mail notes about tiny changes. Thank heavens Sarah loves goldfish, too. Hers is named Lucky--we know who the lucky one really is!
Sarah called with an offer to buy Not Norman on April Fool's Day 2003. I was driving in my car when Erin reached me. I jerked the car off the side of the road and made Erin swear it wasn't some kind of sick joke.
Even after it Not Norman was purchased the manuscript went through some revisions--minor tweaks. Then it was time to choose an illustrator. I had one request. I wanted the main character to be brown-skinned. I didn't specify an ethnic group, but I did want him to have dark eyes, dark hair and dark skin--like most of the world!
This is Noah Z. Jones' first book. Sarah had seen his art and thought Noah's style was perfect for the book. One of his first sample illustrations was a version of the cover illustration--a boy looking through the fishbowl, and the goldfish is where his nose and mouth should be. I loved it! I still do. And boy does Noah work fast! Thanks to his speedy, perfect, fun illustrations the art was ready in record time and the picture book was released in less than two years--a record for a picture book!
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
I'd love to pretend there was some research or deep soul searching that went in to Not Norman, but honestly, my inner self isn't much older than eight, so it's not difficult for me to think and act like a child--my family says I do it all the time! But it was hard figuring out how the main character was going to learn to love Norman. After all, when someone really wants a cat or dog, it's tough to settle for a fish.
At one point I had the main character treating Norman like a stuffed animal and taking him everywhere. In one scene, I had him climbing a tree with the fishbowl slung over his shoulder and Norman sloshing around all googly-eyed. I thought it was funny. But it didn't fit, so I had to cut it.
That's the toughest part of writing picture books, unlike longer fiction, you can't have any extra scenes. You can't include something for a laugh or other effect. Every word has to move the story forward. As anyone who knows me will tell you I am wordy, so it is hard for me to keep it short. I spent loads of time cutting words, words, words. It's hard for me to take out phrases I think are "wonderful." Those cuts really hurt--and the first cut was the deepest...
Writing in first person present tense isn't usual for a picture book, either. It feels right for me, very much the voice I use when chatting with friends, and that's what I wanted this book to read like, a kid telling a story to a friend. Still, it took some extra work to keep the story reading smoothly.
One last little challenge, not for me, but for everyone else: In the book, the main character doesn't have a name. Since he's the one telling the story, it wasn't hard to write the book that way, but it poses difficulties for folks writing the jacket and catalogue copy and for reviewers--they don't know what to call the boy in the book. I do, but I'm not telling!
Cynsational Note
Not Norman, A Goldfish Story is a 2006 Oppenheimer Toy Award Gold Medal Award Book.
Cynsational Links
Kidding Around: Follow these tips for weaving the various types of humor into your children's stories by Kathryn Lay, author of Crown Me! (Holiday House, 2004), from Writersdigest.com.
Kimberly's Wanderings: Thoughts, Musings, Inner Angst, Favorite Things and the Crazy Life of Author Kimberley Griffiths Little: new blog from the author of The Last Snake Runner (Knopf, 2002); Enchanted Runner (Camelot, 1999); and Breakaway (HarperTrophy, 1998).
Where Ideas Really Come From by author Tim Wynne-Jones from The Horn Book, September/October 2002.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Did you ever receive a gift that you didn't want? Well I have, although I'll never tell who gave it to me...(Hi, Mom!)
It's really tough because you appreciate the gift and the thought behind it, so you try to like it. Well, I thought to myself, what if the gift was something you couldn't just hide in the back of your closet and forget? Like those not-even-close-to-the-right-brand jeans I was given for my fifteenth birthday.
What if that gift was alive? So I set about writing a story about a boy who received a pet he didn't want. For the story to work, my character had to be unable to interact with this pet in any physical way. I eliminated every pet my character could pet, sleep with, exercise, tease or play with. That meant no dogs, cats, lizards, snakes, rodents or bugs.
What was left? Fish! Which was perfect because I love fish. Fish are funny, loveable and fun in spite of the fact that you can't really play with them. Just watching fish make me laugh, however, the moment I try to touch my fish they scatter. And if you want to feel unwanted, try swimming with your pet goldfish--they'll hide for hours after. The perfect pet for Not Norman.
Do I have a goldfish named Norman? Of course. He was named after my cat. In fact, I bought my first goldfish just to tease my cat. That Norman the goldfish lived in a glass percolator on top of my stove. He'd swim around and around and around the glass percolator stem and I'd watch and laugh. One day I came home and my cat was laying on top of the stove with his arm draped around my goldfish's coffee pot--that's when I decided needed a new home. So my son Max and I created a fish pond in our back yard. Max dug the pond. I built the waterfall and filter system. And about two weeks later Norman the Goldfish had a new home. Ever since then, I have had a goldfish pond. I have one now in my home in Jakarta.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
The idea for Not Norman first met paper on February 16, 1999. Back then it was a very different story with a completely different title. It was much more of a list-book, and the pet was the main character. Then, thanks to an editor who took the time to write a person note on my rejection letter--one that pushed my buttons and made me mad enough to try something else, Not Norman: A Goldfish Story was born.
The manuscript went through went through three stages of revisions with my agent, Erin Murphy, before we felt it was ready to send out. As luck would have it, at an SCBWI Conference my editor Sarah Ketchersid of Candlewick Press mentioned that she loved goldfish. My agent, Erin, happened to be at that conference and the rest is history.
I need to mention that Sarah isn't just my editor, she's Not Norman's birthing coach. Along with my critique buds who urged me on every step of the way, Sarah coaxed, coerced, encouraged this final manuscript into being. I have five complete revisions of the story in my file as well as a good handful of e-mail notes about tiny changes. Thank heavens Sarah loves goldfish, too. Hers is named Lucky--we know who the lucky one really is!
Sarah called with an offer to buy Not Norman on April Fool's Day 2003. I was driving in my car when Erin reached me. I jerked the car off the side of the road and made Erin swear it wasn't some kind of sick joke.
Even after it Not Norman was purchased the manuscript went through some revisions--minor tweaks. Then it was time to choose an illustrator. I had one request. I wanted the main character to be brown-skinned. I didn't specify an ethnic group, but I did want him to have dark eyes, dark hair and dark skin--like most of the world!
This is Noah Z. Jones' first book. Sarah had seen his art and thought Noah's style was perfect for the book. One of his first sample illustrations was a version of the cover illustration--a boy looking through the fishbowl, and the goldfish is where his nose and mouth should be. I loved it! I still do. And boy does Noah work fast! Thanks to his speedy, perfect, fun illustrations the art was ready in record time and the picture book was released in less than two years--a record for a picture book!
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
I'd love to pretend there was some research or deep soul searching that went in to Not Norman, but honestly, my inner self isn't much older than eight, so it's not difficult for me to think and act like a child--my family says I do it all the time! But it was hard figuring out how the main character was going to learn to love Norman. After all, when someone really wants a cat or dog, it's tough to settle for a fish.
At one point I had the main character treating Norman like a stuffed animal and taking him everywhere. In one scene, I had him climbing a tree with the fishbowl slung over his shoulder and Norman sloshing around all googly-eyed. I thought it was funny. But it didn't fit, so I had to cut it.
That's the toughest part of writing picture books, unlike longer fiction, you can't have any extra scenes. You can't include something for a laugh or other effect. Every word has to move the story forward. As anyone who knows me will tell you I am wordy, so it is hard for me to keep it short. I spent loads of time cutting words, words, words. It's hard for me to take out phrases I think are "wonderful." Those cuts really hurt--and the first cut was the deepest...
Writing in first person present tense isn't usual for a picture book, either. It feels right for me, very much the voice I use when chatting with friends, and that's what I wanted this book to read like, a kid telling a story to a friend. Still, it took some extra work to keep the story reading smoothly.
One last little challenge, not for me, but for everyone else: In the book, the main character doesn't have a name. Since he's the one telling the story, it wasn't hard to write the book that way, but it poses difficulties for folks writing the jacket and catalogue copy and for reviewers--they don't know what to call the boy in the book. I do, but I'm not telling!
Cynsational Note
Not Norman, A Goldfish Story is a 2006 Oppenheimer Toy Award Gold Medal Award Book.
Cynsational Links
Kidding Around: Follow these tips for weaving the various types of humor into your children's stories by Kathryn Lay, author of Crown Me! (Holiday House, 2004), from Writersdigest.com.
Kimberly's Wanderings: Thoughts, Musings, Inner Angst, Favorite Things and the Crazy Life of Author Kimberley Griffiths Little: new blog from the author of The Last Snake Runner (Knopf, 2002); Enchanted Runner (Camelot, 1999); and Breakaway (HarperTrophy, 1998).
Where Ideas Really Come From by author Tim Wynne-Jones from The Horn Book, September/October 2002.
Saturday, September 24, 2005
Jerusalem Sky: Stars, Crosses, and Crescents by Mark Podwal
Jerusalem Sky: Stars, Crosses, and Crescents by Mark Podwal (Doubleday, 2005). Celebrating faith and the city itself, poetic prose and vivid paintings evoke peace and hope. Respectful and inclusive, the author/illustrator acknowledges that "no place has been fought over more" and suggests, "[p]erhaps possessing Jerusalem is like trying to own the sky." Yet the upraised prayers to one God suggest a belief in a brighter future. A miraculous book that more than meets its great challenge of expressing both the sacred and humanity's potential. Ages 4-up.
More on Jerusalem Sky
It's not every book that's blurbed by Elie Wiesel and Maurice Sendak.
An excellent choice for Christian, Jewish, and Muslim families as well as religous studies classes and multicultural collections, not mention anyone (and isn't that everyone?) who's in some way affected by the history of Jerusalem.
Cynsational News & Links
Against Borders by noted Booklist reviewer Hazel Rochman (The Horn Book, March/April 1995).
Age is an Asset by Pamela Mingle from the Rocky Mountain chapter of SCBWI.
Banned Books Week is September 24 to October 1. 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990 to 2000 from the ALA. See also Top Ten List of Most Frequently Challenged Books, also from the ALA.
More on Jerusalem Sky
It's not every book that's blurbed by Elie Wiesel and Maurice Sendak.
An excellent choice for Christian, Jewish, and Muslim families as well as religous studies classes and multicultural collections, not mention anyone (and isn't that everyone?) who's in some way affected by the history of Jerusalem.
Cynsational News & Links
Against Borders by noted Booklist reviewer Hazel Rochman (The Horn Book, March/April 1995).
Age is an Asset by Pamela Mingle from the Rocky Mountain chapter of SCBWI.
Banned Books Week is September 24 to October 1. 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990 to 2000 from the ALA. See also Top Ten List of Most Frequently Challenged Books, also from the ALA.
Friday, September 23, 2005
Author Interview: Kathy Whitehead on Looking For Uncle Louie On The Fourth Of July
Looking For Uncle Louie On The Fourth Of July by Kathy Whitehead, illustrated by Pablo Torrecilla (Boyds Mills Press, 2005). Joe and his parents are among those at the parade celebrating the Fourth of July. It's a wonderful, patriotic celebration, but where is Uncle Louie? And what would it be like to be part of the parade instead of just watching from the sidelines? Whitehead's tribute to Independence Day has a strong Texas twist, brought to life in Torrecilla's vivid illustrations. Ages 4-up. Read more of my thoughts on Looking For Uncle Louie On The Fourth Of July.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Looking for Uncle Louie on the Fourth of July was a 4th of July parade in Corpus Christi, TX in 1986. It was my son’s first 4th of July. I thought the lowriders were fascinating and would be great in a children’s book.
Personalizing a mass-produced vehicle through the elements of color and movement seems like such an American expression of individual freedom to me – perfect for the 4th of July!
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
Although I got the idea for the book in 1986, I didn’t write my story until 2001. I finished it in the fall of that year and sent it off to an editor I had seen at a conference, but was rejected with a form letter. I believed in my story though, so I promptly sent it out again, this time to Kent Brown at Boyds Mills Press. I had met him at an SCBWI conference that fall. My manuscript was accepted in February, 2002. They did a wonderful job of finding the right illustrator, Pablo Torrecilla, and the book’s publication date was April, 2005.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
I started writing for children in the fall of 1989 when I took a community ed course on writing. The years that I’d spent teaching fourth grade led me to focusing my writing on middle grade novels. My daughter was born in 1988 so my writing time was limited.
Ideas for picture books surfaced through those years, but I resisted starting them. I was afraid of having a lot started but nothing completed. I filed the ideas away and finally came to a point when I felt I could turn my attention to the picture book format.
Parades I had attended in College Station always included lowriders so the idea had remained fresh in my mind. I researched lowrider magazines during the actual writing of my story to add concrete details to it. Adding Joe, my main character, and “Uncle Louie” to the 4th of July parade of lowriders seemed natural to me since I associate the 4th of July with family celebrations. Family and freedom seem to be two of our most basic needs – both are cause for celebration!
I think studying novel writing through the years, as I worked on middle grade manuscripts, helped prepare me for writing a picture book. The same elements are necessary in order to create a story children will enjoy over and over. The turning points are just more subtle sometimes.
Cynsational News & Links
An Exchange With An Agent: featuring Linda Pratt, a literary agent at Sheldon Fogelman Agency from Don Tate.
Meet the Author: Steven L. Layne from CBC Magazine. Condensed from the bio: Steven L. Layne serves as a professor of literature and education at Judson College in Elgin, IL. His books include This Side of Paradise (Pelican, 2002) and The Teachers' Night Before Christmas (Pelican, 2001). Steve lives in St. Charles, Illinois.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Looking for Uncle Louie on the Fourth of July was a 4th of July parade in Corpus Christi, TX in 1986. It was my son’s first 4th of July. I thought the lowriders were fascinating and would be great in a children’s book.
Personalizing a mass-produced vehicle through the elements of color and movement seems like such an American expression of individual freedom to me – perfect for the 4th of July!
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
Although I got the idea for the book in 1986, I didn’t write my story until 2001. I finished it in the fall of that year and sent it off to an editor I had seen at a conference, but was rejected with a form letter. I believed in my story though, so I promptly sent it out again, this time to Kent Brown at Boyds Mills Press. I had met him at an SCBWI conference that fall. My manuscript was accepted in February, 2002. They did a wonderful job of finding the right illustrator, Pablo Torrecilla, and the book’s publication date was April, 2005.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
I started writing for children in the fall of 1989 when I took a community ed course on writing. The years that I’d spent teaching fourth grade led me to focusing my writing on middle grade novels. My daughter was born in 1988 so my writing time was limited.
Ideas for picture books surfaced through those years, but I resisted starting them. I was afraid of having a lot started but nothing completed. I filed the ideas away and finally came to a point when I felt I could turn my attention to the picture book format.
Parades I had attended in College Station always included lowriders so the idea had remained fresh in my mind. I researched lowrider magazines during the actual writing of my story to add concrete details to it. Adding Joe, my main character, and “Uncle Louie” to the 4th of July parade of lowriders seemed natural to me since I associate the 4th of July with family celebrations. Family and freedom seem to be two of our most basic needs – both are cause for celebration!
I think studying novel writing through the years, as I worked on middle grade manuscripts, helped prepare me for writing a picture book. The same elements are necessary in order to create a story children will enjoy over and over. The turning points are just more subtle sometimes.
Cynsational News & Links
An Exchange With An Agent: featuring Linda Pratt, a literary agent at Sheldon Fogelman Agency from Don Tate.
Meet the Author: Steven L. Layne from CBC Magazine. Condensed from the bio: Steven L. Layne serves as a professor of literature and education at Judson College in Elgin, IL. His books include This Side of Paradise (Pelican, 2002) and The Teachers' Night Before Christmas (Pelican, 2001). Steve lives in St. Charles, Illinois.
Thursday, September 22, 2005
Author Interview: Dorian Cirrone on Dancing In Red Shoes Will Kill You
Dancing In Red Shoes Will Kill You by Dorian Cirrone (HarperCollins, 2005). Kayla is one of the strongest dancers at her performing arts school, but there's just one problem. Or, well, two. Kayla's busty--in a double D/needs-to-wear-three-bras kind of way--and the world of ballet has a very specific body type preference. Will she get surgery? Push back against societal expectations? Find relief in the company of the cute new guy or find out that he's really somehow sinister? Ages 12-up. See more of my thoughts on Dancing In Red Shoes Will Kill You.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
The original inspiration came all the way back in the seventies when I studied and taught dance with a friend who had trained at American Ballet Theater. Following puberty, she was told by her teachers that she would never be a ballerina because of her large breasts. She went to Las Vegas and danced for a while, but eventually had breast reduction surgery and became a ballerina. I always thought it was an interesting anecdote, but I couldn’t figure out how to make it into something more.
Years later (actually decades), I read an article in our local newspaper about a teen who was told she couldn’t display her art project at school because it showed a man’s penis – even though female nudes were approved for display. I had been studying a lot of feminist theory in graduate school, and it occurred to me that these two stories could be woven together to say something about the cultural construction of gender and how we literally and figuratively view male and female bodies. I wanted to raise questions, rather than answer them, which is why there’s sort of a tug of war of opinion between the two sisters in the book. I left the ending somewhat open regarding Kayla’s decision so readers could debate the issue.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
In between my original inspiration and then finally figuring out a way to tell the story, I worked as a journalist, went to graduate school, taught college writing, had two children, and wrote copious amounts of practice work.
In the early nineties, I met my mentor, Joyce Sweeney. That was a major event for me in that I not only began to take fiction writing more seriously, but I was also able to hone my craft in her weekly writing workshop.
I wrote the first chapter of the novel about seven years before it was actually published. I put it aside for several years, not quite knowing where I was going with it. When I came across the line, “Dancing in red shoes will kill you” while researching an ill-fated doctoral dissertation, everything fell together. I wrote the first five chapters over a period of about nine months, and then I learned about an agent looking for new clients. I sent him some other manuscripts and the first five chapters of the novel. He liked some of the other stuff, but he loved the novel and took me on as a client. I wrote the rest in about four months and he sold it in six weeks. It was published by HarperCollins a little over two years later.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing it to life?
My first challenge was to thematically weave together the three plot lines (Kayla’s decision, Paterson’s censorship issue, and the mystery of who was leaving the red shoes around school).
The fairy tale motif provided me a solution to that problem. My second and biggest challenge involved making sure that the novel could be read on many levels. I knew I wanted to write it in a humorous way, but I also wanted a depth that readers who were familiar with various critical and feminist theories could also appreciate.
The fairy tales had to work within the plot as well as the subtext, which demonstrates the many ways dominant discourses influence us without our knowing. For example, the fairy tale The Red Shoes is meant to be a cautionary tale against pride and ego. But as Atwood notes in the poem mentioned in the novel, it is really a subversive story designed to curtail the freedom of girls and women.
In addition, Kayla’s plotline had to work on both the literal and metaphorical level. I wanted to say something about the way we seem to be unaware as a society at the way we’re constantly manipulated to change the way we look, be it fashion, make-up, or plastic surgery, how women, in particular, relinquish power so easily to the whims of Madison Avenue, the media, etc. It’s not an indictment, but rather a call to awareness. Kayla possibly might have the surgery one day, but it should be her own decision.
In addition, I wanted to touch on Peter Berger’s notion that women through the ages have been depicted differently in art because the "ideal" spectator was always assumed to be male and the image of the woman was designed to flatter him. Creating a balance between telling a funny story, and also layering it with serious undertones was my greatest challenge.
Cynsational Notes
Dancing In Red Shoes Will Kill You is a BBYA nominee, a Quick Picks nominee, and a Teens Top Ten nominee. Dorian's next book will be Lindy Blues and the Missing Silver Dollar (Marshall Cavendish, spring 2006).
Other recent YA interview highlights: Holly Black; Joseph Bruchac; Lori M. Carlson; Cecil Castellucci; Alex Flinn; Nancy Garden; D.L. Garfinkle; K.L. Going; Rosemary Graham; Louise Hawes; Jennifer Richard Jacobson; Ron Koertge; David Lubar; R. A. Nelson; Julie Anne Peters; Mary E. Pearson; Lara M. Zeises.
Cynsational Link
Narrative and Violence by Jennifer Armstrong (author)(The Horn Book, March/April 2003). "The value of literature in dangerous times."
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
The original inspiration came all the way back in the seventies when I studied and taught dance with a friend who had trained at American Ballet Theater. Following puberty, she was told by her teachers that she would never be a ballerina because of her large breasts. She went to Las Vegas and danced for a while, but eventually had breast reduction surgery and became a ballerina. I always thought it was an interesting anecdote, but I couldn’t figure out how to make it into something more.
Years later (actually decades), I read an article in our local newspaper about a teen who was told she couldn’t display her art project at school because it showed a man’s penis – even though female nudes were approved for display. I had been studying a lot of feminist theory in graduate school, and it occurred to me that these two stories could be woven together to say something about the cultural construction of gender and how we literally and figuratively view male and female bodies. I wanted to raise questions, rather than answer them, which is why there’s sort of a tug of war of opinion between the two sisters in the book. I left the ending somewhat open regarding Kayla’s decision so readers could debate the issue.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
In between my original inspiration and then finally figuring out a way to tell the story, I worked as a journalist, went to graduate school, taught college writing, had two children, and wrote copious amounts of practice work.
In the early nineties, I met my mentor, Joyce Sweeney. That was a major event for me in that I not only began to take fiction writing more seriously, but I was also able to hone my craft in her weekly writing workshop.
I wrote the first chapter of the novel about seven years before it was actually published. I put it aside for several years, not quite knowing where I was going with it. When I came across the line, “Dancing in red shoes will kill you” while researching an ill-fated doctoral dissertation, everything fell together. I wrote the first five chapters over a period of about nine months, and then I learned about an agent looking for new clients. I sent him some other manuscripts and the first five chapters of the novel. He liked some of the other stuff, but he loved the novel and took me on as a client. I wrote the rest in about four months and he sold it in six weeks. It was published by HarperCollins a little over two years later.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing it to life?
My first challenge was to thematically weave together the three plot lines (Kayla’s decision, Paterson’s censorship issue, and the mystery of who was leaving the red shoes around school).
The fairy tale motif provided me a solution to that problem. My second and biggest challenge involved making sure that the novel could be read on many levels. I knew I wanted to write it in a humorous way, but I also wanted a depth that readers who were familiar with various critical and feminist theories could also appreciate.
The fairy tales had to work within the plot as well as the subtext, which demonstrates the many ways dominant discourses influence us without our knowing. For example, the fairy tale The Red Shoes is meant to be a cautionary tale against pride and ego. But as Atwood notes in the poem mentioned in the novel, it is really a subversive story designed to curtail the freedom of girls and women.
In addition, Kayla’s plotline had to work on both the literal and metaphorical level. I wanted to say something about the way we seem to be unaware as a society at the way we’re constantly manipulated to change the way we look, be it fashion, make-up, or plastic surgery, how women, in particular, relinquish power so easily to the whims of Madison Avenue, the media, etc. It’s not an indictment, but rather a call to awareness. Kayla possibly might have the surgery one day, but it should be her own decision.
In addition, I wanted to touch on Peter Berger’s notion that women through the ages have been depicted differently in art because the "ideal" spectator was always assumed to be male and the image of the woman was designed to flatter him. Creating a balance between telling a funny story, and also layering it with serious undertones was my greatest challenge.
Cynsational Notes
Dancing In Red Shoes Will Kill You is a BBYA nominee, a Quick Picks nominee, and a Teens Top Ten nominee. Dorian's next book will be Lindy Blues and the Missing Silver Dollar (Marshall Cavendish, spring 2006).
Other recent YA interview highlights: Holly Black; Joseph Bruchac; Lori M. Carlson; Cecil Castellucci; Alex Flinn; Nancy Garden; D.L. Garfinkle; K.L. Going; Rosemary Graham; Louise Hawes; Jennifer Richard Jacobson; Ron Koertge; David Lubar; R. A. Nelson; Julie Anne Peters; Mary E. Pearson; Lara M. Zeises.
Cynsational Link
Narrative and Violence by Jennifer Armstrong (author)(The Horn Book, March/April 2003). "The value of literature in dangerous times."
Golden Spur Award Nominees Announced
The Texas State Reading Association has announced nominees for the Golden Spur award in the children's literature (K-3) and intermediate divisions. The nominees are:
Children's Literature: Ima and the Great Texas Ostrich Race by Margaret McManis of Angleton (Eakin Press, 2002); Bats Around the Clock by Kathi Appelt of College Station (HarperCollins, 2000); The Cotton Candy Catastrophe at the Texas State Fair by Dotti Enderle of Houston (Pelican, 2005), Finding Daddy – A Story of the Great Depression by Jo & Josephine Harper (scroll) of Houston (Turtle Books, 2005); Isabel and the Hungry Coyote by Keith Polette (scroll) of El Paso (Raven Tree Press, 2004); Way Up High in a Tall Green Tree by Jan Peck of Fort Worth (Simon & Schuster, 2005); Phoebe Clappsaddle and the Tumbleweed Gang by Melanie Chrismer of Houston (Pelican, 2004).
Intermediate Nominees: Angel of the Alamo – A True Story of Texas by Lisa Waller Rogers of Austin (Eakin Press, 2000); Lorenzo’s Secret Mission by Lila and Rick Guzman of Round Rock (Arte Publico Press, 2001); Katherine Stinson – The Flying Schoolgirl by Debra Winegarten of Houston (Eakin Press, 2000); Tofu and T. Rex by Greg Leitich Smith of Austin (Little Brown, 2005), Crown Me! by Kathryn Lay of Arlington (Holiday House, 2004).
Cynsational News & Links
Texas Authors' Newest Endeavors are Child's Play by Glen Drumgoole from The Bryan-College Station Eagle. Features The Alley Cat's Meow by Kathi Appelt (Harcourt, 2002), a nominee for Bats Around The Clock, as well as two nominated books, Phoebe Clappsaddle and the Tumbleweed Gang by Melanie Chrismer and Ima & the Great Texas Ostrich Race by Margaret McManis.
A Series of Fortunate Events: an Interview With Lois Gresh, author of Eyeballs, Leeches, Hypnotism and Orphans: The Truth Behind A Series Of Unfortunate Events (St. Martin's Press, 2005) by Susan VanHecke from Authorlink.com.
Children's Literature: Ima and the Great Texas Ostrich Race by Margaret McManis of Angleton (Eakin Press, 2002); Bats Around the Clock by Kathi Appelt of College Station (HarperCollins, 2000); The Cotton Candy Catastrophe at the Texas State Fair by Dotti Enderle of Houston (Pelican, 2005), Finding Daddy – A Story of the Great Depression by Jo & Josephine Harper (scroll) of Houston (Turtle Books, 2005); Isabel and the Hungry Coyote by Keith Polette (scroll) of El Paso (Raven Tree Press, 2004); Way Up High in a Tall Green Tree by Jan Peck of Fort Worth (Simon & Schuster, 2005); Phoebe Clappsaddle and the Tumbleweed Gang by Melanie Chrismer of Houston (Pelican, 2004).
Intermediate Nominees: Angel of the Alamo – A True Story of Texas by Lisa Waller Rogers of Austin (Eakin Press, 2000); Lorenzo’s Secret Mission by Lila and Rick Guzman of Round Rock (Arte Publico Press, 2001); Katherine Stinson – The Flying Schoolgirl by Debra Winegarten of Houston (Eakin Press, 2000); Tofu and T. Rex by Greg Leitich Smith of Austin (Little Brown, 2005), Crown Me! by Kathryn Lay of Arlington (Holiday House, 2004).
Cynsational News & Links
Texas Authors' Newest Endeavors are Child's Play by Glen Drumgoole from The Bryan-College Station Eagle. Features The Alley Cat's Meow by Kathi Appelt (Harcourt, 2002), a nominee for Bats Around The Clock, as well as two nominated books, Phoebe Clappsaddle and the Tumbleweed Gang by Melanie Chrismer and Ima & the Great Texas Ostrich Race by Margaret McManis.
A Series of Fortunate Events: an Interview With Lois Gresh, author of Eyeballs, Leeches, Hypnotism and Orphans: The Truth Behind A Series Of Unfortunate Events (St. Martin's Press, 2005) by Susan VanHecke from Authorlink.com.
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
Author Interview: Lupe Ruiz-Flores on Lupita's Papalote
Lupita's Papalote/El papalote de Lupita by Lupe Ruiz-Flores, illustrated by Pauline Rodriguez Howard, Spanish translation by Gabriela Baeza Ventura (Arte Publico, 2002)(a bilingual picture book). Condensed from the catalog copy: Lupita sits on the wooden steps of her house and stares into the sky. Lupita cannot tear her eyes away from the colorful papalotes, or kites. Lupita yearns for one of her own. But the family needs to save all of its money for school supplies and other must-haves. The kite remains in Lupita's mind until, with the help of her father, Lupita hatches a plan to make her very own.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
My father. When I was a little girl of about five, we really couldn't afford to buy a fancy kite like some kids (not many) in the barrio where I grew up. I remember my father comforting me and telling me that we would make our own kite just like he used to when he was a little boy. Together we made it out of comics, old colorful rags, and bamboo sticks from the vacant yard next door. Then he taught me how to fly it. I remember the thrill of the kite pulling and tugging and the fear I felt at the force of the kite as it kept going higher and higher.
But what I remember most was a gesture that stayed with me to this day. When I was the most afraid of being swept up into the sky by the kite, my father who was standing behind me, must have sensed my anxiety because he placed his hand on my shoulder. As soon as I felt the warmth of his touch, the fear oozed out of me through my feet and I knew I was safe. The love that the human touch brings is powerful. I wanted that to be in my story. Excerpts in both English and Spanish can be viewed on my Web site: www.luperuiz-flores.com.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
The spark came in 1996 when I wrote a very rough first draft with the idea and filed it away for about three years. I was busy with career and family and didn't know if I could even write something that someone would like. Once I retired from my career as an engineering technician, I really thought about pursuing writing. Since my background was all technical (Masters in Computer Information Management), I entered writing contests just to test the waters. I got my rejections but I also started winning some, i.e., subscriptions to magazines, a ton of deck supplies when I entered a Thompson Deck contest, and finally when I won a writing contest for Guideposts magazine, that gave me the self confidence I needed to continue.
In the summer of 1999, I revised the draft. I had no idea where or how to send it out. I read about a writing seminar being offered at one of our local universities. It was a one-day workshop and that was my initiation into the world of writers and publishing. One of the speakers, who turned out to be one of my closest friends, suggested to the audience that a certain publisher was looking for bilingual stories. I perked up. That was me. That was October 1999. I immediately mailed my manuscript out and by January 2000, I had a contract. Unbelievable! The book came out in October 2002.
I thought it was going to be easy from then on but it hasn't been. I've had my share of rejections since then. Although now, I'm happy to announce, I just signed my second contract for another bilingual picture book tentatively titled, "The Woodcutter's Gift." Since then, I've attended as many writers' workshops and conferences as I can. I'm immersing myself in the writing process. I have years to catch up on. This summer I attended the Highlights Foundation Workshop in Chautauqua, New York, and the SCBWI conference in Los Angeles. I cannot tell you what an experience both were.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
With Lupita's Papalote, there really wasn't any research because I wrote it from the heart. I embellished it, of course, because the story becomes a fantasy for the little girl. I think bringing the book to life gave me a real sense of accomplishment when my entire family of 10 brothers and sisters, plus nephews, nieces, aunts, uncles, my son, daughters, grandchildren(total close to 100 friends and relatives who showed up for my book signing) were there. The characters in my story were named after my real brothers and sisters. My sisters cried when they heard the inspiration for the story because they remembered. (My father died in 1980). Logistically, it wasn't hard to bring the book to life because the illustrator lives in the same city I do and the publisher is only three hours away. I lucked out!
How has the book been received?
Very well. As of July, it has gone into its second printing and is on the Accelerated Reader list. I am presently working on a middle grade novel which does entail tons of research.
Cynsational News & Links
Chris Barton's blog talks about some of the contemporary picture books he's sharing with his son. I was honored to see that he'd pulled from the suggestions on my Web site.
Chris has one of the best blogs on the 'net; most recently, he drew my attention to this interview with Cheryl Klein, an associate editor with Arthur A. Levine Books on the Rocky Mountain SCBWI site. The site also features an interview with Yolanda LeRoy, editorial director at Charlesbridge, and an interview with Michele Burke, assistant editor at Knopf.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
My father. When I was a little girl of about five, we really couldn't afford to buy a fancy kite like some kids (not many) in the barrio where I grew up. I remember my father comforting me and telling me that we would make our own kite just like he used to when he was a little boy. Together we made it out of comics, old colorful rags, and bamboo sticks from the vacant yard next door. Then he taught me how to fly it. I remember the thrill of the kite pulling and tugging and the fear I felt at the force of the kite as it kept going higher and higher.
But what I remember most was a gesture that stayed with me to this day. When I was the most afraid of being swept up into the sky by the kite, my father who was standing behind me, must have sensed my anxiety because he placed his hand on my shoulder. As soon as I felt the warmth of his touch, the fear oozed out of me through my feet and I knew I was safe. The love that the human touch brings is powerful. I wanted that to be in my story. Excerpts in both English and Spanish can be viewed on my Web site: www.luperuiz-flores.com.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
The spark came in 1996 when I wrote a very rough first draft with the idea and filed it away for about three years. I was busy with career and family and didn't know if I could even write something that someone would like. Once I retired from my career as an engineering technician, I really thought about pursuing writing. Since my background was all technical (Masters in Computer Information Management), I entered writing contests just to test the waters. I got my rejections but I also started winning some, i.e., subscriptions to magazines, a ton of deck supplies when I entered a Thompson Deck contest, and finally when I won a writing contest for Guideposts magazine, that gave me the self confidence I needed to continue.
In the summer of 1999, I revised the draft. I had no idea where or how to send it out. I read about a writing seminar being offered at one of our local universities. It was a one-day workshop and that was my initiation into the world of writers and publishing. One of the speakers, who turned out to be one of my closest friends, suggested to the audience that a certain publisher was looking for bilingual stories. I perked up. That was me. That was October 1999. I immediately mailed my manuscript out and by January 2000, I had a contract. Unbelievable! The book came out in October 2002.
I thought it was going to be easy from then on but it hasn't been. I've had my share of rejections since then. Although now, I'm happy to announce, I just signed my second contract for another bilingual picture book tentatively titled, "The Woodcutter's Gift." Since then, I've attended as many writers' workshops and conferences as I can. I'm immersing myself in the writing process. I have years to catch up on. This summer I attended the Highlights Foundation Workshop in Chautauqua, New York, and the SCBWI conference in Los Angeles. I cannot tell you what an experience both were.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
With Lupita's Papalote, there really wasn't any research because I wrote it from the heart. I embellished it, of course, because the story becomes a fantasy for the little girl. I think bringing the book to life gave me a real sense of accomplishment when my entire family of 10 brothers and sisters, plus nephews, nieces, aunts, uncles, my son, daughters, grandchildren(total close to 100 friends and relatives who showed up for my book signing) were there. The characters in my story were named after my real brothers and sisters. My sisters cried when they heard the inspiration for the story because they remembered. (My father died in 1980). Logistically, it wasn't hard to bring the book to life because the illustrator lives in the same city I do and the publisher is only three hours away. I lucked out!
How has the book been received?
Very well. As of July, it has gone into its second printing and is on the Accelerated Reader list. I am presently working on a middle grade novel which does entail tons of research.
Cynsational News & Links
Chris Barton's blog talks about some of the contemporary picture books he's sharing with his son. I was honored to see that he'd pulled from the suggestions on my Web site.
Chris has one of the best blogs on the 'net; most recently, he drew my attention to this interview with Cheryl Klein, an associate editor with Arthur A. Levine Books on the Rocky Mountain SCBWI site. The site also features an interview with Yolanda LeRoy, editorial director at Charlesbridge, and an interview with Michele Burke, assistant editor at Knopf.
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
Author Interview: Kathryn Lay on Crown Me
Crown Me! by Kathryn Lay (Holiday House, 2004). From the flap copy: "Justin has always wanted to be a leader. He envisions himself as President of the United States--but he'll have to start with the fifth grade class of Payton Middle School. He's helped along by a new project in Mr. Bailey's history class, where one boy and one girl are appointed king and queen for two weeks. The other students are their subjects who must obey or be punished. There are jesters and knights to be chosen. A dungeon to be built. Chaos erupts as Justin and his followers interrupts the PTA meeting. And a bicycle joust decides whether Justin will keep his crown, or lose it to the bully of fifth grade, Badger Crabtree. Look out world, here comes King Justin!" Ages 8-up.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Every year my family and I go to Scarborough Faire, a rennaisance festival. Several years ago I watched a kid, about 10, standing in front of the King, hands on hips and saying, "If I was King of my school, I'd make everyone obey me, we'd have pizza in class every day, and no homework on weekends!"
So, I got to wondering...what would a kid do if he was king of fifth grade for a couple of weeks and it went from there.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
About 6 1/2 years from when I got the idea until it was published.
After writing it, I entered the first chapters in a contest and it won. The judge, a published author, said she definitely felt it was publishable. I sent it out over a two year period, getting lots of good rejections, but no sale. Then an editor asked to see the whole manuscript after looking at a few chapters.
During a long year of waiting for response on it, an online friend kindly referred me to her agent. After she accepted me as a client, she worked on trying to get a decision from the publisher who had King of Fifth Grade. After a few more months of declared interest and promises to make a decision, my agent pulled the book.
With her wonderful insights, she suggested I change the book from third to first person. When we'd completed rewrites, she sent the book to Holiday House to an editor I'd met at a SCBWI conference and two months later we got an acceptance!
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
Making it funny with modern issues using medieval issues (jousting, feasts, a dungeon, and so on). Creating a character who is so into politics when it's definitely not my area. The variety of rewrites on my own, with my agent, and after acceptance.
Overall, this was a fun book to write and plan, the final sale was smooth and rewrite suggestions from my editors (the original editor left before final rewrites were done) were helpful. It was a great first book experience.
Cynsational Notes
Kathryn is also the author of The Organized Writer is a Selling Writer (AWOC.com Publishing, 2004) and regional advisor for NE/NC Texas SCBWI.
Cynsational News & Links
BookTalk with Lynn Rubright, author of Mama's Window (Lee & Low).
The Brothers Grimm: a CBC teacher movie review by Katrina Kearney.
Greg Leitich Smith recommends Wizards at War by Diane Duane (Harcourt, 2005).
Honoring Alaska's Indigenous Literature: "The book reviews are a result of students enrolling in special topics course Ed 493 Examining Alaska Children's Literature taught by Esther A. Ilutsik in the Spring of 2004." From the Alaska Native Knowledge Nework.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Every year my family and I go to Scarborough Faire, a rennaisance festival. Several years ago I watched a kid, about 10, standing in front of the King, hands on hips and saying, "If I was King of my school, I'd make everyone obey me, we'd have pizza in class every day, and no homework on weekends!"
So, I got to wondering...what would a kid do if he was king of fifth grade for a couple of weeks and it went from there.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
About 6 1/2 years from when I got the idea until it was published.
After writing it, I entered the first chapters in a contest and it won. The judge, a published author, said she definitely felt it was publishable. I sent it out over a two year period, getting lots of good rejections, but no sale. Then an editor asked to see the whole manuscript after looking at a few chapters.
During a long year of waiting for response on it, an online friend kindly referred me to her agent. After she accepted me as a client, she worked on trying to get a decision from the publisher who had King of Fifth Grade. After a few more months of declared interest and promises to make a decision, my agent pulled the book.
With her wonderful insights, she suggested I change the book from third to first person. When we'd completed rewrites, she sent the book to Holiday House to an editor I'd met at a SCBWI conference and two months later we got an acceptance!
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, and logistical) in bringing it to life?
Making it funny with modern issues using medieval issues (jousting, feasts, a dungeon, and so on). Creating a character who is so into politics when it's definitely not my area. The variety of rewrites on my own, with my agent, and after acceptance.
Overall, this was a fun book to write and plan, the final sale was smooth and rewrite suggestions from my editors (the original editor left before final rewrites were done) were helpful. It was a great first book experience.
Cynsational Notes
Kathryn is also the author of The Organized Writer is a Selling Writer (AWOC.com Publishing, 2004) and regional advisor for NE/NC Texas SCBWI.
Cynsational News & Links
BookTalk with Lynn Rubright, author of Mama's Window (Lee & Low).
The Brothers Grimm: a CBC teacher movie review by Katrina Kearney.
Greg Leitich Smith recommends Wizards at War by Diane Duane (Harcourt, 2005).
Honoring Alaska's Indigenous Literature: "The book reviews are a result of students enrolling in special topics course Ed 493 Examining Alaska Children's Literature taught by Esther A. Ilutsik in the Spring of 2004." From the Alaska Native Knowledge Nework.
Monday, September 19, 2005
Author Update: Dian Curtis Regan
Though I'd known her through an author list serv, I first met Dian Curtis Regan in person at the 25th Anniversary Conference of SCBWI in Los Angeles. We've stayed in touch since, and I've had the pleasure of visiting her at her home in Wichita.
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
Newly painted office. New art on walls. New display shelves. This is also known as “circling” AKA “getting ready to get back to writing.”
When Ernest Hemingway was asked how he prepared to begin a new novel, he responded, “First, I defrost the refrigerator.” I can relate.
In the works: New mystery anthology coming out soon from Scholastic. Picture book in production at Holiday House and board book in production at S&S. A promise to write “Twenty Years After” for the editor of Byline Magazine since I was the children’s market columnist there when my first novel sold twenty (!!!!) years ago.
Could you tell us about your new book, The World According to Kaley (Darby Creek, 2005)? What was your inspiration for creating this book?
The concept for Kaley came to me while I was living in Venezuela. My husband and I were walking into the MareMares Resort to meet other expats, and I had one of those ‘slip of the tongue’ moments that made me immediately think of it as a book idea. I don’t remember the exact comment, but it was historically anachronistic. Or maybe it was hysterical fiction.
The idea stuck with me, and I knew I’d have to do a lot of research. However there were no libraries in Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela, and Google was just a baby.
I’d become friends with the director of a local private school, Escuela de las Americas, so I asked if I could borrow a few history textbooks. This turned out to be the perfect solution for finding historical facts, then twisting them a bit to make them funny.
I was back in Venezuela earlier this year when I found out the book was going to be published. Nice closure.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
I wrote the first draft in 2000. The original title was Twisted History, and Kaley was not even in it. An editor told me, “No child is going to pick up a book with the word ‘history’ in the title.” Uh, good point.
After several more drafts, the book landed in its almost-final form, but then was shelved during the long move back to the USA. I’m awfully glad I finally took it out of storage and sent it off into the world.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing it to life?
Besides figuring out how to do the research, I needed to design the chart, graph, and spot art. I am not an illustrator, but I am a closet cartoonist and have had cartoons published. I spent a lot of time working on the graphics. The publisher brought in a few 4th grade girls to recreate some of the doodles and handwriting.
The main character had three different names along the way. I think “Kaley” is a perfect fit. Also, a subplot was changed at the eleventh hour.
Lastly, it’s easy to poke fun at ancient history, but as the essays drew closer to the 20th century, I noticed that history wasn’t so funny anymore. I had to come up with a way to segue into modern times and find topics I could address in a humorous way.
How about children’s or YA books that you’ve read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
I recently revisited Stolen by the Sea by Anna Myers (Walker, 2001). It’s a haunting book, set during the 1900 Hurricane in Galveston. I kept thinking about the story all during the Katrina tragedy.
Other favorite new books:
Each Little Bird that Sings by Deborah Wiles (Harcourt, 2005).
Double Helix by Nancy Werlin (Dial, 2004).
101 Ways to Bug your Teacher by Lee Wardlaw (Dial, 2004).
Stained by Jennifer Richard Jacobson (Atheneum, 2005).
Currently reading: What I Believe by Norma Fox Mazer (Harcourt, 2005) and Totally Joe by James Howe (Simon & Schuster, 2005).
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
The publisher is nudging me to write a sequel to The World According to Kaley. Kaley has already started talking to me, so I can say that the story is underway.
I’m also eager to begin an SF novel I’ve been researching for a long time. See note above about circling. Guess I’d better go see if the refrigerator needs defrosting...
Cynsational News & Links
Attention Austinites: Free Writing Workshops at Barnes & Noble Westlake—As part of its “Year of Writing” program, B&N Westlake is featuring author Susie Flatau at 7 p.m. Thurs. Sept. 22. Susie will discuss “Metaphor-Based Writing.” On Wed. Oct. 12, 2 p.m., author Pat Flathouse will present “Writing the Stories of Your Family History.” On Sat. Nov. 12, 10 a.m., author and storyteller Tim Tingle will share “From Oral Tradition to Written Stories.” And on Sat. Dec. 3, 10:30 a.m., Cynthia and Greg Leitich Smith will give tips on “Writing the Young Adult (aka Teen) Novel.” Source: Austin SCBWI.
Author Q&A with Ursula LeGuin by M.E. Wood from BellaOnline: The Voice of Women.
Not So Wild About Harry: Independent booksellers say latest 'Harry Potter’ book boosts store visibility, not bottom line by Laura B. Weiss from School Library Journal.
YALSA offers recommended reading for teens in light of recent disaster from the ALA. [Please continue to support Katrina survivors. Though many have responded in these early days, the need will persist. Thank you.]
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
Newly painted office. New art on walls. New display shelves. This is also known as “circling” AKA “getting ready to get back to writing.”
When Ernest Hemingway was asked how he prepared to begin a new novel, he responded, “First, I defrost the refrigerator.” I can relate.
In the works: New mystery anthology coming out soon from Scholastic. Picture book in production at Holiday House and board book in production at S&S. A promise to write “Twenty Years After” for the editor of Byline Magazine since I was the children’s market columnist there when my first novel sold twenty (!!!!) years ago.
Could you tell us about your new book, The World According to Kaley (Darby Creek, 2005)? What was your inspiration for creating this book?
The concept for Kaley came to me while I was living in Venezuela. My husband and I were walking into the MareMares Resort to meet other expats, and I had one of those ‘slip of the tongue’ moments that made me immediately think of it as a book idea. I don’t remember the exact comment, but it was historically anachronistic. Or maybe it was hysterical fiction.
The idea stuck with me, and I knew I’d have to do a lot of research. However there were no libraries in Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela, and Google was just a baby.
I’d become friends with the director of a local private school, Escuela de las Americas, so I asked if I could borrow a few history textbooks. This turned out to be the perfect solution for finding historical facts, then twisting them a bit to make them funny.
I was back in Venezuela earlier this year when I found out the book was going to be published. Nice closure.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
I wrote the first draft in 2000. The original title was Twisted History, and Kaley was not even in it. An editor told me, “No child is going to pick up a book with the word ‘history’ in the title.” Uh, good point.
After several more drafts, the book landed in its almost-final form, but then was shelved during the long move back to the USA. I’m awfully glad I finally took it out of storage and sent it off into the world.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing it to life?
Besides figuring out how to do the research, I needed to design the chart, graph, and spot art. I am not an illustrator, but I am a closet cartoonist and have had cartoons published. I spent a lot of time working on the graphics. The publisher brought in a few 4th grade girls to recreate some of the doodles and handwriting.
The main character had three different names along the way. I think “Kaley” is a perfect fit. Also, a subplot was changed at the eleventh hour.
Lastly, it’s easy to poke fun at ancient history, but as the essays drew closer to the 20th century, I noticed that history wasn’t so funny anymore. I had to come up with a way to segue into modern times and find topics I could address in a humorous way.
How about children’s or YA books that you’ve read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
I recently revisited Stolen by the Sea by Anna Myers (Walker, 2001). It’s a haunting book, set during the 1900 Hurricane in Galveston. I kept thinking about the story all during the Katrina tragedy.
Other favorite new books:
Each Little Bird that Sings by Deborah Wiles (Harcourt, 2005).
Double Helix by Nancy Werlin (Dial, 2004).
101 Ways to Bug your Teacher by Lee Wardlaw (Dial, 2004).
Stained by Jennifer Richard Jacobson (Atheneum, 2005).
Currently reading: What I Believe by Norma Fox Mazer (Harcourt, 2005) and Totally Joe by James Howe (Simon & Schuster, 2005).
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
The publisher is nudging me to write a sequel to The World According to Kaley. Kaley has already started talking to me, so I can say that the story is underway.
I’m also eager to begin an SF novel I’ve been researching for a long time. See note above about circling. Guess I’d better go see if the refrigerator needs defrosting...
Cynsational News & Links
Attention Austinites: Free Writing Workshops at Barnes & Noble Westlake—As part of its “Year of Writing” program, B&N Westlake is featuring author Susie Flatau at 7 p.m. Thurs. Sept. 22. Susie will discuss “Metaphor-Based Writing.” On Wed. Oct. 12, 2 p.m., author Pat Flathouse will present “Writing the Stories of Your Family History.” On Sat. Nov. 12, 10 a.m., author and storyteller Tim Tingle will share “From Oral Tradition to Written Stories.” And on Sat. Dec. 3, 10:30 a.m., Cynthia and Greg Leitich Smith will give tips on “Writing the Young Adult (aka Teen) Novel.” Source: Austin SCBWI.
Author Q&A with Ursula LeGuin by M.E. Wood from BellaOnline: The Voice of Women.
Not So Wild About Harry: Independent booksellers say latest 'Harry Potter’ book boosts store visibility, not bottom line by Laura B. Weiss from School Library Journal.
YALSA offers recommended reading for teens in light of recent disaster from the ALA. [Please continue to support Katrina survivors. Though many have responded in these early days, the need will persist. Thank you.]
Sunday, September 18, 2005
Author Update: Uma Krishnaswami
When we last visited with Uma Krishnaswami, she was anticipating the release of Yoga Class (Lee & Low, 2000) and Beyond The Field Trip (Linnet Books, 2001). In the years that followed, Uma became a break-out name in children's literature. Her picture books include Chachaji's Cup (Children's Book Press, 2003) and Monsoon (FSG, 2003). Her first novel was Naming Maya (FSG, 2004). Uma also was one of my co-contributors to Period Pieces: Stories for Girls edited by Erzsi Deak and Kristin Embry Litchman (HarperCollins, 2003).
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
I'm so grateful to have a writing life, to be able to keep learning and finding joy in the process. I'm teaching new classes through writers.com (manuscript workshops and a class on picture book text are particularly exciting). And I'm working with teachers at a local site of the National Writing Project. All of it comes together, so each writing or teaching project ends up forging more links even when I'm not trying to make that happen.
Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
I have a new picture book out this fall, The Happiest Tree: A Yoga Story, published by Lee & Low, illustrated by Ruth Jeyaveeran. Another new picture book will be published in spring 2006, The Closet Ghosts from Children's Book Press, with illustrations by Shiraaz Bhabha. And I'm thrilled to say that Jamel Akib, who illustrated Monsoon, will be doing the artwork for another picture book from Lee & Low.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
For quite a long time, The Happiest Tree was a theme looking for a story. I scribbled notes about yoga and theater and possible story points for months, then suddenly realized the perfect flaw for my character. She was sort of tripping around the outskirts of the story until then. You'll know how mixed up I was when I tell you that the earliest title was "Feet Up in the Air." At the time too I was struggling with a frozen shoulder, in every way a real pain. Suddenly one day I realized that the flaw Meena, in my story, needed was my own childhood clumsiness. From there on the story straightened up and began to grow its own roots.
The Closet Ghosts came out of a deliberate impulse I had to push my own writing. I wanted to try a contemporary story with a mythological character showing up in it. I'd read Jamila Gavin's short stories that do precisely that, Three Indian Goddesses, but they were written for the middle grades, and I wanted to try this in a picture book format. In the book, Anu hates her new house, her new school, her new neighborhood. Then she finds out that she has ghosts in her closet. So she calls on the Hindu monkey god Hanuman to help her get rid of them. It's been loads of fun to see it through with Children's Book Press, where the editor really understood what I was trying to do and was very patient with my tortured revision process.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
YA
Not the End of the World by Geraldine McCaughrean (HarperTempest, 2005).
I admire her writing greatly, have done ever since I read A Pack of Lies years ago. This one's a retelling of the Noah story from a fictional daughter's viewpoint--not an easy book to read, but a gripping book and in many ways courageous.
In the Coils of the Snake by Clare Dunkle (Henry Holt, 2005). Book III of the Hollow Kingdom Trilogy.
She paints a fantasy world in which humans exist as just another, sometimes inconsequential race. Lots of very prescient material here about war and the making of war for trifling reasons!
Finally a collection that I know you know well, Moccasin Thunder: American Indian Stories for Today, edited by Lori Marie Carlson (HarperCollins, 2005).
Middle grade
The Girl From Chimel, Rigoberta Menchu's stories as told to Dante Liano, with glorious pictures by Mexican artist Domi (Groundwood Books, 2005).
The voice is so clear and true you can almost hear the teller's chuckles and sighs as the stories turn. Lovely.
Thora by Gillian Johnson (Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins, 2005). Thora's a half-mermaid and that's just the beginning. Told with lots of loving energy and whimsical humor.
Picture books
The Road to Mumbai by Ruth Jeyaveeran (Houghton Mifflin, 2004).
Funny, sweet, child-centered, luminously beautiful art.
The Travels of Benjamin Tudela: Through Three Continents in the Twelfth Century by Uri Shulevitz (Henry Holt, 2005)[BookLoons Review; NPR excerpt].
Nonfiction with really compelling voice.
Albert by Donna Jo Napoli, illustrated by Jim LaMarche (Harcourt, 2001).
Not your standard picture book. The premise is so startling and strong that it just carries the entire story and you suspend disbelief without a thought.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
I have more story ideas pressing their faces against the window than I know what to do with. It's always the case. I have a novel that needs conjoined twin surgery--it's really two novels in one, only I didn't know it at the time. That needs dedicated time, however, so unless I land some dream residency that will give me a month in the woods....
Oh and I'm working on a humorous picture book manuscript based on a story my father told me recently. My parents live in India and we call them once a week. When my father turned 80 he began telling me stories on the phone from time to time, urging me to write them down. Some I've heard from him before. Others are new to me. They're all wonderful, and I'm so grateful for them. I'm hoping at least one will end up working itself into a picture book.
Mind you, I'm not sure those are goals. I take tai chi classes, and I think those stories are the horizon I'm supposed to keep my eye on.
Cynsational News & Links
Monsoon by Uma Krishnaswami is one of my all-time favorite picture books.
Author Lori Aurelia Williams has a new YA novel out, Broken China (Simon & Schuster, 2005)(read an excerpt). Lori was born in Houston, graduated from the Mitchner MFA program at UT, and lives in Austin.
Thanks to kelcrocker and bravebethany (I probably was thinking of Trash!) for their comments on What I Believe by Norma Fox Mazer (Harcourt, 2005).
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
I'm so grateful to have a writing life, to be able to keep learning and finding joy in the process. I'm teaching new classes through writers.com (manuscript workshops and a class on picture book text are particularly exciting). And I'm working with teachers at a local site of the National Writing Project. All of it comes together, so each writing or teaching project ends up forging more links even when I'm not trying to make that happen.
Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
I have a new picture book out this fall, The Happiest Tree: A Yoga Story, published by Lee & Low, illustrated by Ruth Jeyaveeran. Another new picture book will be published in spring 2006, The Closet Ghosts from Children's Book Press, with illustrations by Shiraaz Bhabha. And I'm thrilled to say that Jamel Akib, who illustrated Monsoon, will be doing the artwork for another picture book from Lee & Low.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
For quite a long time, The Happiest Tree was a theme looking for a story. I scribbled notes about yoga and theater and possible story points for months, then suddenly realized the perfect flaw for my character. She was sort of tripping around the outskirts of the story until then. You'll know how mixed up I was when I tell you that the earliest title was "Feet Up in the Air." At the time too I was struggling with a frozen shoulder, in every way a real pain. Suddenly one day I realized that the flaw Meena, in my story, needed was my own childhood clumsiness. From there on the story straightened up and began to grow its own roots.
The Closet Ghosts came out of a deliberate impulse I had to push my own writing. I wanted to try a contemporary story with a mythological character showing up in it. I'd read Jamila Gavin's short stories that do precisely that, Three Indian Goddesses, but they were written for the middle grades, and I wanted to try this in a picture book format. In the book, Anu hates her new house, her new school, her new neighborhood. Then she finds out that she has ghosts in her closet. So she calls on the Hindu monkey god Hanuman to help her get rid of them. It's been loads of fun to see it through with Children's Book Press, where the editor really understood what I was trying to do and was very patient with my tortured revision process.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
YA
Not the End of the World by Geraldine McCaughrean (HarperTempest, 2005).
I admire her writing greatly, have done ever since I read A Pack of Lies years ago. This one's a retelling of the Noah story from a fictional daughter's viewpoint--not an easy book to read, but a gripping book and in many ways courageous.
In the Coils of the Snake by Clare Dunkle (Henry Holt, 2005). Book III of the Hollow Kingdom Trilogy.
She paints a fantasy world in which humans exist as just another, sometimes inconsequential race. Lots of very prescient material here about war and the making of war for trifling reasons!
Finally a collection that I know you know well, Moccasin Thunder: American Indian Stories for Today, edited by Lori Marie Carlson (HarperCollins, 2005).
Middle grade
The Girl From Chimel, Rigoberta Menchu's stories as told to Dante Liano, with glorious pictures by Mexican artist Domi (Groundwood Books, 2005).
The voice is so clear and true you can almost hear the teller's chuckles and sighs as the stories turn. Lovely.
Thora by Gillian Johnson (Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins, 2005). Thora's a half-mermaid and that's just the beginning. Told with lots of loving energy and whimsical humor.
Picture books
The Road to Mumbai by Ruth Jeyaveeran (Houghton Mifflin, 2004).
Funny, sweet, child-centered, luminously beautiful art.
The Travels of Benjamin Tudela: Through Three Continents in the Twelfth Century by Uri Shulevitz (Henry Holt, 2005)[BookLoons Review; NPR excerpt].
Nonfiction with really compelling voice.
Albert by Donna Jo Napoli, illustrated by Jim LaMarche (Harcourt, 2001).
Not your standard picture book. The premise is so startling and strong that it just carries the entire story and you suspend disbelief without a thought.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
I have more story ideas pressing their faces against the window than I know what to do with. It's always the case. I have a novel that needs conjoined twin surgery--it's really two novels in one, only I didn't know it at the time. That needs dedicated time, however, so unless I land some dream residency that will give me a month in the woods....
Oh and I'm working on a humorous picture book manuscript based on a story my father told me recently. My parents live in India and we call them once a week. When my father turned 80 he began telling me stories on the phone from time to time, urging me to write them down. Some I've heard from him before. Others are new to me. They're all wonderful, and I'm so grateful for them. I'm hoping at least one will end up working itself into a picture book.
Mind you, I'm not sure those are goals. I take tai chi classes, and I think those stories are the horizon I'm supposed to keep my eye on.
Cynsational News & Links
Monsoon by Uma Krishnaswami is one of my all-time favorite picture books.
Author Lori Aurelia Williams has a new YA novel out, Broken China (Simon & Schuster, 2005)(read an excerpt). Lori was born in Houston, graduated from the Mitchner MFA program at UT, and lives in Austin.
Thanks to kelcrocker and bravebethany (I probably was thinking of Trash!) for their comments on What I Believe by Norma Fox Mazer (Harcourt, 2005).
Saturday, September 17, 2005
Author Update: Kimberly Willis Holt
When we last talked to Kimberly Willis Holt, her novel Dancing In Cadillac Light (Putnam, 2001), had just been published. See An Interview with Children's Book Author Kimberly Willis Holt. (Note: my site is being redesigned in fall 2005, so if these links don't work, simply check the site guide and/or search engine).
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted? Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
I always said that when I grew up, I would write picture books. I haven't grown up yet, but I am now writing them. Which I guess means that I sometimes think like a five year old, as well as a twelve year old. My first picture book, Waiting For Gregory, illustrated by Gabi Swiatkowska (Henry Holt, 2006), comes out in April. I've sold a few others and they will be out sometime in the future.
2006 is a year of firsts for me. My first short story collection comes out in the fall. Part of Me: Stories of a Louisiana Family (Henry Holt, 2006) is set in various places around my home state of Louisiana.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
Waiting For Gregory was inspired by the birth of my nephew Gregory. In 1996 my daughter and I drove to a Tulsa hospital to wait for my nephew to be born. So many interesting things happened while we waited in the waiting room. I thought it was a shame that my sister was missing all those tiny moments. So I wrote about them in brief sentences and arranged the snippets in a photo album. I titled it Waiting for Gregory: Snapshots.
On the way home I decided I'd turn that waiting process into a picture book. The main problem with the original draft was that it took place in a waiting room and there were few picture opportunities. I'm ashamed of that early draft because it shows that I had not done my homework about writing picture books. Of course, it was rejected.
A couple of years later my editor asked to see it again and told me it had potential. When I asked if the text or the concept had potential, she said, "The concept." I put away the original draft and didn't think about writing it until a couple of years later when an idea for a new draft came to me. I rewrote it many times before I sent it to my editor. And then I rewrote it many times after that.
Part of Me: Stories of a Louisiana Family was inspired by a picture that I saw in my good friend Kathi Appelt's book, Down Cut Shin Creek: The Pack Horse Librarians of Kentucky (HarperCollins, 2001). The photo showed WPA book mobile librarians that worked in the Louisiana bayou communities.
While researching for the book in Houma, Louisiana, I met a former book mobile driver. She got the job in the 1940's at the age of seventeen. She had such wonderful vivid memories of that time and she became the inspiration for Rose, the character in my first set of stories. Rose is a fourteen year girl in those early stories and the eighty year old great-grandmother in the last ones.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
I am currently reading So B. It by Sarah Weeks (HarperCollins, 2004)(read excerpt). It's a wonderful story that I put off reading for awhile, probably because it included a mentally retarded mother. Since I had visited that myself in My Louisiana Sky (Henry Holt, 1998), I was concerned that I might discover that Weeks had tackled that better than me. Isn't that terrible to admit that? I'm not finished with the the book yet, but so far it is lovely and our stories are very different.
Two picture books I've most enjoyed recently are The Milkman by Carol Foskett Cordsen (Dutton, 2005). Cordsen manages to show us the day in the life of a milkman and tell a delightful story at the same time. It's beautifully constructed. I should also give a salute to the illustrator, Douglas B. Jones. His charming pictures capture the time period well.
I love love love Grandpa Gazillion's Lumber Yard (PDF interview) by Laurie Keller (Henry Holt, 2005). Of course, I love everything Laurie does. I wish I could borrow her clever brain for just one day.
I recently read Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata (Atheneum, 2004) and enjoyed it immensely. I thought the sisters' relationship was beautiful and the thought of the family's struggle to buy a home still puts a lump in my throat. I'm happy I got to know those characters.
Kathi Appelt's My Father's Summers (Henry Holt, 2004) is powerful. I admit Kathi is my friend, but I am a critical person when it comes to reading. (ask Kathi) When I finished the book, I told Kathi the only thing I didn't like about it was that I didn't write it.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
I am currently working on a chapter book about a Navy Brat. It is lighter than any novel that I've ever attempted and I'm having fun writing it.
I'm also working on a detailed outline for a historical novel. I've never used a formal outline like this before, but this story certainly calls for it. This in one of two books about a father and a son. I've struggled with the son's story since 1997. Finally I realized I didn't know enough about the father. When I started to explore the father's background, I became very interested in his story. At first, I thought I would combine the stories. But after a year of struggling with that, I realized I had two books. That struggle taught me that sometimes we're not ready to write certain stories yet. I'm ready to write those stories now.
Cynsational News & Links
Congratulations to my husband, author Greg Leitich Smith, whose debut novel, Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo (Little Brown, 2003, 2005) was recommended on Wisconsin Public Radio's "Higher Ground" program on Sept. 10.
Kimberly Willis Holt Teacher Resource File from the Internet School Library Media Center.
Dick's Picks by Richard Jackson: a children's book editor looks back on some career highlights.
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted? Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
I always said that when I grew up, I would write picture books. I haven't grown up yet, but I am now writing them. Which I guess means that I sometimes think like a five year old, as well as a twelve year old. My first picture book, Waiting For Gregory, illustrated by Gabi Swiatkowska (Henry Holt, 2006), comes out in April. I've sold a few others and they will be out sometime in the future.
2006 is a year of firsts for me. My first short story collection comes out in the fall. Part of Me: Stories of a Louisiana Family (Henry Holt, 2006) is set in various places around my home state of Louisiana.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
Waiting For Gregory was inspired by the birth of my nephew Gregory. In 1996 my daughter and I drove to a Tulsa hospital to wait for my nephew to be born. So many interesting things happened while we waited in the waiting room. I thought it was a shame that my sister was missing all those tiny moments. So I wrote about them in brief sentences and arranged the snippets in a photo album. I titled it Waiting for Gregory: Snapshots.
On the way home I decided I'd turn that waiting process into a picture book. The main problem with the original draft was that it took place in a waiting room and there were few picture opportunities. I'm ashamed of that early draft because it shows that I had not done my homework about writing picture books. Of course, it was rejected.
A couple of years later my editor asked to see it again and told me it had potential. When I asked if the text or the concept had potential, she said, "The concept." I put away the original draft and didn't think about writing it until a couple of years later when an idea for a new draft came to me. I rewrote it many times before I sent it to my editor. And then I rewrote it many times after that.
Part of Me: Stories of a Louisiana Family was inspired by a picture that I saw in my good friend Kathi Appelt's book, Down Cut Shin Creek: The Pack Horse Librarians of Kentucky (HarperCollins, 2001). The photo showed WPA book mobile librarians that worked in the Louisiana bayou communities.
While researching for the book in Houma, Louisiana, I met a former book mobile driver. She got the job in the 1940's at the age of seventeen. She had such wonderful vivid memories of that time and she became the inspiration for Rose, the character in my first set of stories. Rose is a fourteen year girl in those early stories and the eighty year old great-grandmother in the last ones.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
I am currently reading So B. It by Sarah Weeks (HarperCollins, 2004)(read excerpt). It's a wonderful story that I put off reading for awhile, probably because it included a mentally retarded mother. Since I had visited that myself in My Louisiana Sky (Henry Holt, 1998), I was concerned that I might discover that Weeks had tackled that better than me. Isn't that terrible to admit that? I'm not finished with the the book yet, but so far it is lovely and our stories are very different.
Two picture books I've most enjoyed recently are The Milkman by Carol Foskett Cordsen (Dutton, 2005). Cordsen manages to show us the day in the life of a milkman and tell a delightful story at the same time. It's beautifully constructed. I should also give a salute to the illustrator, Douglas B. Jones. His charming pictures capture the time period well.
I love love love Grandpa Gazillion's Lumber Yard (PDF interview) by Laurie Keller (Henry Holt, 2005). Of course, I love everything Laurie does. I wish I could borrow her clever brain for just one day.
I recently read Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata (Atheneum, 2004) and enjoyed it immensely. I thought the sisters' relationship was beautiful and the thought of the family's struggle to buy a home still puts a lump in my throat. I'm happy I got to know those characters.
Kathi Appelt's My Father's Summers (Henry Holt, 2004) is powerful. I admit Kathi is my friend, but I am a critical person when it comes to reading. (ask Kathi) When I finished the book, I told Kathi the only thing I didn't like about it was that I didn't write it.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
I am currently working on a chapter book about a Navy Brat. It is lighter than any novel that I've ever attempted and I'm having fun writing it.
I'm also working on a detailed outline for a historical novel. I've never used a formal outline like this before, but this story certainly calls for it. This in one of two books about a father and a son. I've struggled with the son's story since 1997. Finally I realized I didn't know enough about the father. When I started to explore the father's background, I became very interested in his story. At first, I thought I would combine the stories. But after a year of struggling with that, I realized I had two books. That struggle taught me that sometimes we're not ready to write certain stories yet. I'm ready to write those stories now.
Cynsational News & Links
Congratulations to my husband, author Greg Leitich Smith, whose debut novel, Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo (Little Brown, 2003, 2005) was recommended on Wisconsin Public Radio's "Higher Ground" program on Sept. 10.
Kimberly Willis Holt Teacher Resource File from the Internet School Library Media Center.
Dick's Picks by Richard Jackson: a children's book editor looks back on some career highlights.
Texas Escapes Reboots Book Reviews; Launches Mailing List
Texas Escapes (www.texasescapes.com) is reactivating its Book Reviews section. Jamie Engle is the Reviews Editor and will be reviewing books about Texas or by Texas authors. She will also write articles about Texas Literature and conduct author interviews.
"The site focuses on Texas travel and history, so not every book written by Texas authors is a fit," she says. "Nonfiction will be the primary focus, but we are expanding to include fiction set in Texas (especially historical fiction)."
To have your book considered for review, email your book information to Jamie at jamie_engle@comcast.net.
Jamie has also started a yahoogroups for authors, publicists or publishers based in Texas or writing/publishing books about Texas. She will post requests for suggestions of books and authors to include in future articles. The articles are for print and online venues. For example, if an upcoming article is about mysteries set in Austin or Texas ghost towns, a post will be made requesting suggestions for mysteries set in Austin or books about Texas ghost towns to include in the articles.
To subscribe, send a blank email to: txlit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. Source: The Book Promotion Newsletter.
When asked about youth titles, Jamie replied: "Children & teen books would be great! In fact, I have a historical Texas fiction series for children on the slate for review already. Older releases are fine, so long as the titles are readily available (online, or a bookstore can order them with no problem)."
Cynsational News & Links
"It's a Balancing Act" by Katie Clark, in the Work Habits section of
Writer's Support (Passing up excuses not to write) from the Institute of Children's Literaure. See also "4 Rs for Ideas" by Bonita Pate Davis, in the Getting Started section of Writer's Support (How to get ideas when ideas don't show up) from ICL.
Kids Learning Disabilities and Dyslexia: Math and Reading Help for Kids is a directory of hundreds of original articles, tips, and resources centered on the topic of children's learning. Although the articles in this site are primarily written to help parents make informed decisions about their child's education, there is also a comprehensive Just for Kids section containing dozens of articles written for a younger audience.
"The site focuses on Texas travel and history, so not every book written by Texas authors is a fit," she says. "Nonfiction will be the primary focus, but we are expanding to include fiction set in Texas (especially historical fiction)."
To have your book considered for review, email your book information to Jamie at jamie_engle@comcast.net.
Jamie has also started a yahoogroups for authors, publicists or publishers based in Texas or writing/publishing books about Texas. She will post requests for suggestions of books and authors to include in future articles. The articles are for print and online venues. For example, if an upcoming article is about mysteries set in Austin or Texas ghost towns, a post will be made requesting suggestions for mysteries set in Austin or books about Texas ghost towns to include in the articles.
To subscribe, send a blank email to: txlit-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. Source: The Book Promotion Newsletter.
When asked about youth titles, Jamie replied: "Children & teen books would be great! In fact, I have a historical Texas fiction series for children on the slate for review already. Older releases are fine, so long as the titles are readily available (online, or a bookstore can order them with no problem)."
Cynsational News & Links
"It's a Balancing Act" by Katie Clark, in the Work Habits section of
Writer's Support (Passing up excuses not to write) from the Institute of Children's Literaure. See also "4 Rs for Ideas" by Bonita Pate Davis, in the Getting Started section of Writer's Support (How to get ideas when ideas don't show up) from ICL.
Kids Learning Disabilities and Dyslexia: Math and Reading Help for Kids is a directory of hundreds of original articles, tips, and resources centered on the topic of children's learning. Although the articles in this site are primarily written to help parents make informed decisions about their child's education, there is also a comprehensive Just for Kids section containing dozens of articles written for a younger audience.
Friday, September 16, 2005
Author Update: Nancy Garden
When we last visited author Nancy Garden, she had just published Molly's Family, illustrated by Sharon Wooding (FSG, 2004), a picture book about a girl with two moms whose classmate says her family can't be a real one. See the story behind the story. (Note: my site is being redesigned in fall 2005, so if these links don't work, simply check the site guide and/or search engine).
Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
I have a new book called Endgame coming out in the spring from Harcourt, about a school shooting -- from the point of view of the shooter. He's trying to do well in a new school, but the odds are against him; he's bullied badly at school and his father is abusive and wants him to be different from who he is.
And FSG is publishing a story collection of mine in 2007. Each story has a gay or lesbian protagonists, and the stories are arranged in sections. Each section represents a decade from the 50s to the present and is introduced by an essay about the gay rights movement in that decade. Needless to say, I'll need to update of the final essay in galleys! (Yes, I'm the author of the stories and the essays.)
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
Endgame grew out of Columbine and my strong feeling then and for years afterward that not enough attention had been paid to bullying as a causal factor.
The story collection grew gradually; I wrote some GL stories years ago, but then concentrated on novels. After Marion Dane Bauer invited me to contribute to Am I Blue? Coming Out From The Silence (HarperTrophy, 1995), I began writing stories again, and when I thought about publishing them in a collection, I realized they needed some sort of glue to hold them together. That led to the idea of the essays.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
I love Meg Rosoff's How I Live Now (Wendy Lamb Books, 2004), David Levithan's Boy Meets Boy (Knopf, 2003)[read an excerpt], Julie Ann Peters' Far From Xanadu (Little Brown, 2005) -- and of course the latest Harry Potter. They're all innovative works of art, each in its own way, and especially Levithan's and Peters' are groundbreaking.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
Oh, my! To finish a YA novel about a runaway that I started almost two years ago. To revise a young YA novel that I think needs revising. To write a middle-grade novel that's been developing gradually in my head. But first I have to prepare some gigs I have scheduled -- and figure out how to promote the iUniverse/Backinprint edition of Good Moon Rising, which has been out of print for a few years.
Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
I have a new book called Endgame coming out in the spring from Harcourt, about a school shooting -- from the point of view of the shooter. He's trying to do well in a new school, but the odds are against him; he's bullied badly at school and his father is abusive and wants him to be different from who he is.
And FSG is publishing a story collection of mine in 2007. Each story has a gay or lesbian protagonists, and the stories are arranged in sections. Each section represents a decade from the 50s to the present and is introduced by an essay about the gay rights movement in that decade. Needless to say, I'll need to update of the final essay in galleys! (Yes, I'm the author of the stories and the essays.)
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
Endgame grew out of Columbine and my strong feeling then and for years afterward that not enough attention had been paid to bullying as a causal factor.
The story collection grew gradually; I wrote some GL stories years ago, but then concentrated on novels. After Marion Dane Bauer invited me to contribute to Am I Blue? Coming Out From The Silence (HarperTrophy, 1995), I began writing stories again, and when I thought about publishing them in a collection, I realized they needed some sort of glue to hold them together. That led to the idea of the essays.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
I love Meg Rosoff's How I Live Now (Wendy Lamb Books, 2004), David Levithan's Boy Meets Boy (Knopf, 2003)[read an excerpt], Julie Ann Peters' Far From Xanadu (Little Brown, 2005) -- and of course the latest Harry Potter. They're all innovative works of art, each in its own way, and especially Levithan's and Peters' are groundbreaking.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
Oh, my! To finish a YA novel about a runaway that I started almost two years ago. To revise a young YA novel that I think needs revising. To write a middle-grade novel that's been developing gradually in my head. But first I have to prepare some gigs I have scheduled -- and figure out how to promote the iUniverse/Backinprint edition of Good Moon Rising, which has been out of print for a few years.
Thursday, September 15, 2005
What I Believe by Norma Fox Mazer (Harcourt, 2005)
What I Believe By Norma Fox Mazer (Harcourt, 2005). When Victory Marnet's dad loses his high-paying executive job, the family tries to remain hopeful. But after a while it becomes clear that no equivalent opportunity will arise. So, her mom decides they'll sell the house and "extras" to begin again in a small, city apartment. But the adjustment is ongoing and involves continued financial tension, taking on a boarder, dad's depression, and temptation that Vicki can't quite pass up. A deeply felt look at downshifting economic class. Ages 10-up.
From the back flap: "Norma Fox Mazer is an award-winning novelist and a faculty member for the Vermont College MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults Program. Her books have received a Newbery Honor, a Christopher Award, an Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Juvenile Mystery, a National Book Award nomination, and other prestigious honors. She lives in Montpelier, Vermont."
My Thoughts
Because it was by Norma Fox Mazer (I'm a fan), I opened this novel with high expectations. Generally, I don't feel this way about novels in poems (though the writing forms here extend beyond poems to include lists, memos, journal entries, dialogue, and several more, I'm sure, that I'm not savvy enough to identify). They're perhaps overpublished at the moment, and more often than not, either the poetry or the story succeeds--not both. Characters tend to be underdeveloped, plotlines hole-ridden, and compelling voice--especially "regional" voice--sacrificed in favor of showy language.
So when a novel in poems (or mixed forms, like this one) succeeds, I'm wowed. My favorites include Split Image: A Story in Poems by Mel Glenn (HarperCollins, 2000) and A Bad Boy Can Be Good For A Girl by Tanya Lee Stone (Wendy Lamb Books, 2006), and now, What I Believe by Norma Fox Mazer (Harcourt, 2005). For those of you interested in writing this way, I highly encourage you to study these books.
But zeroing in on the novel at hand, what struck me most was its vulnerability and intelligence, the intensity of Vicki's believability. She's flawed yet inspirational, and readers can't help but feel closer to her with each turning page. What's more, the author shows as much care in crafting her minor characters as her stars. No one is merely a device or place holder.
The book is particularly recommended to writers working on showing emotion. Take a look at "The Real Estate Agent" on pg. 18, contrasting what Nina Byrd says and how Vicki acts in reply. Don't you feel the moment? Yet no emotional "label" is used or needed. Then turn to pg. 19, "We're Still Here On 5555 Sweet Road," and see how much it achieves using dialogue alone. Think about the home-shoppers' comments that Vicki elects to repeat and what they say about her state of mind.
As for the story itself, I have to be careful not to give away too much. (Don't you hate when reviewers do that?). But I will say that I recognized the feeling of being helpless in the face of your parents' financial responsibilities and the guilty frustration at wishing they were somehow stronger in the world. I also was struck by Mom's comment that "Your parents aren't newbies at sorrow, but I so wanted to spare you" (pg. 89). So many parents are like this, and who can blame them? Yet, in the end, all it does is raise their children's anxiety level. Kids already have less power in the world. If a problem affects them and they're denied a context for it, they're also deprived of a starting place to cope.
For those of you looking hard for them, this novel does include a biracial (black/white) secondary character. I'm still recalling Sara's comment that, "My dad says anyone whose family has been in this country for more than a century has a good chance of being a brother or a sister, whether they know it or not" (pg. 75), and it reminds me of something Marc Aronson said this summer, something about how people make the biggest deal out of the smallest differences (brainy thing that he is, Marc said this far more eloquently).
This is a recommended novel to use as a springboard for taking about class, race, depression, and parent-child relationships. But it's also a wonderful story to simply savor.
Beyond that, I suggest reading it aloud, if at all possible. The short entries are perfect for young audiences, and this 'tweener would be an excellent selection for a classroom group. Like Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie by David Lubar (Dutton, 2005), What I Believe by Norma Fox Mazer (Harcourt, 2005) should not only be a winner with young readers but also a gift to English teachers looking to integrate quality trade books into the curriculum.
Cynsational News & Links
I'm pleased to report that in light of the sale and completion my upcoming YA gothic fantasy novel, to be published in fall 2007 by Candlewick, I'm now a full member of the Horror Writers Association.
If Rock and Roll Were A Movie: an Untraditional Screen Treatment of the Novel by Terry Davis from VOYA.
2005 Texas Institute of Letters Awards: Entry deadline is January 6, 2006. Authors born in Texas or those who have resided in the state for at least two consecutive years are eligible as are books "whose subject matter substantially concerns Texas." Children's/YA titles that qualify will be considered for the Friends of the Austin Library Award. See site for further requirements and other information.
From the back flap: "Norma Fox Mazer is an award-winning novelist and a faculty member for the Vermont College MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults Program. Her books have received a Newbery Honor, a Christopher Award, an Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Juvenile Mystery, a National Book Award nomination, and other prestigious honors. She lives in Montpelier, Vermont."
My Thoughts
Because it was by Norma Fox Mazer (I'm a fan), I opened this novel with high expectations. Generally, I don't feel this way about novels in poems (though the writing forms here extend beyond poems to include lists, memos, journal entries, dialogue, and several more, I'm sure, that I'm not savvy enough to identify). They're perhaps overpublished at the moment, and more often than not, either the poetry or the story succeeds--not both. Characters tend to be underdeveloped, plotlines hole-ridden, and compelling voice--especially "regional" voice--sacrificed in favor of showy language.
So when a novel in poems (or mixed forms, like this one) succeeds, I'm wowed. My favorites include Split Image: A Story in Poems by Mel Glenn (HarperCollins, 2000) and A Bad Boy Can Be Good For A Girl by Tanya Lee Stone (Wendy Lamb Books, 2006), and now, What I Believe by Norma Fox Mazer (Harcourt, 2005). For those of you interested in writing this way, I highly encourage you to study these books.
But zeroing in on the novel at hand, what struck me most was its vulnerability and intelligence, the intensity of Vicki's believability. She's flawed yet inspirational, and readers can't help but feel closer to her with each turning page. What's more, the author shows as much care in crafting her minor characters as her stars. No one is merely a device or place holder.
The book is particularly recommended to writers working on showing emotion. Take a look at "The Real Estate Agent" on pg. 18, contrasting what Nina Byrd says and how Vicki acts in reply. Don't you feel the moment? Yet no emotional "label" is used or needed. Then turn to pg. 19, "We're Still Here On 5555 Sweet Road," and see how much it achieves using dialogue alone. Think about the home-shoppers' comments that Vicki elects to repeat and what they say about her state of mind.
As for the story itself, I have to be careful not to give away too much. (Don't you hate when reviewers do that?). But I will say that I recognized the feeling of being helpless in the face of your parents' financial responsibilities and the guilty frustration at wishing they were somehow stronger in the world. I also was struck by Mom's comment that "Your parents aren't newbies at sorrow, but I so wanted to spare you" (pg. 89). So many parents are like this, and who can blame them? Yet, in the end, all it does is raise their children's anxiety level. Kids already have less power in the world. If a problem affects them and they're denied a context for it, they're also deprived of a starting place to cope.
For those of you looking hard for them, this novel does include a biracial (black/white) secondary character. I'm still recalling Sara's comment that, "My dad says anyone whose family has been in this country for more than a century has a good chance of being a brother or a sister, whether they know it or not" (pg. 75), and it reminds me of something Marc Aronson said this summer, something about how people make the biggest deal out of the smallest differences (brainy thing that he is, Marc said this far more eloquently).
This is a recommended novel to use as a springboard for taking about class, race, depression, and parent-child relationships. But it's also a wonderful story to simply savor.
Beyond that, I suggest reading it aloud, if at all possible. The short entries are perfect for young audiences, and this 'tweener would be an excellent selection for a classroom group. Like Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie by David Lubar (Dutton, 2005), What I Believe by Norma Fox Mazer (Harcourt, 2005) should not only be a winner with young readers but also a gift to English teachers looking to integrate quality trade books into the curriculum.
Cynsational News & Links
I'm pleased to report that in light of the sale and completion my upcoming YA gothic fantasy novel, to be published in fall 2007 by Candlewick, I'm now a full member of the Horror Writers Association.
If Rock and Roll Were A Movie: an Untraditional Screen Treatment of the Novel by Terry Davis from VOYA.
2005 Texas Institute of Letters Awards: Entry deadline is January 6, 2006. Authors born in Texas or those who have resided in the state for at least two consecutive years are eligible as are books "whose subject matter substantially concerns Texas." Children's/YA titles that qualify will be considered for the Friends of the Austin Library Award. See site for further requirements and other information.
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
Author Interview: Julie Lake on Galveston's Summer of the Storm
Galveston's Summer of the Storm by Julie Lake (TCU Press, 2003). From the catalog copy: "When fourteen-year-old Abby Kate boards the train in Austin to spend three weeks with her grandmother in Galveston, she’s full of excitement—about the train ride and the prospect of days on the beach, exploring Galveston with her cousin Jane, family picnics, and her grandmother’s good food. But things go wrong even before she gets to her grandmother’s house. Abby Kate gets off the train briefly in Houston—and the train leaves without her. Stranded in the railroad station, she is befriended by a man traveling with his two sons and eventually reaches Galveston safely. Then word comes that Abby Kate’s young brother, Will, has diphtheria, and she will have to stay in Galveston indefinitely. Abby Kate is still in Galveston on September 8 when a massive hurricane strikes the city." Read an excerpt (PDF file).
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
I was doing some research about ten years ago on a fairly boring insurance project (I wrote on staff for an insurance magazine at the time) and I was going through a box of old documents--ledgers, old insurance brochures, etc. I came to this black and white photograph of storm wreckage from the 1900 Galveston hurricane. I'd heard about that storm and knew there might be some images of it in that file, but nothing prepared me for the reality of that image. The devastation stretched on and on and on.
My eyes were drawn to a point in the middle of the picture, to the single sign of life in that unbearable landscape—a child, a little boy in bare feet, who stared towards the camera. I felt as if I'd been sucked back in time and the hurricane became real.
What was the timeline between spark and publication and what were the major events along the way?
For the next year or two I found myself thinking about what it would be like to survive a hurricane of that magnitude. I sort of became obsessed with hurricanes in general and this storm in particular.
I'd be interviewing an insurance agent for an article about how to prepare a business for natural catastrophes--things like the importance of backing up computer data offsite, how to keep taking care of clients despite power outages, flooding etc.--and I'd start asking things like, "What is it really like to be in a hurricane? How did you feel? What was it like afterwards?"
A lot of these people had grown up on the coast, and they shared all kinds of stories, like cleaning up the house afterwards and finding snakes in the kitchen. The story began to come alive in my mind.
I began to read books on writing fiction and took a class. I also did some market research to see if there were already a lot of children's books on the 1900 hurricane. I found there were many adult books, both fiction and nonfiction, but very few geared toward teens or upper elementary students.
I brainstormed my idea with Robin Krig, a librarian in Katy, specifically my concern that the story would be too sad. Robin listened and then said, "So it's a little like Number the Stars" [by Lois Lowry (Houghton, 1989)]. That was a very pivotal moment for me. To have my spongy draft of a story compared in any kind of way with such a powerful piece of children's literature.
Another important milestone was when I sent an early draft to my sister's fourth grade class. As a new fiction writer, it was great to hear that they laughed at the funny parts. The kids, however, all shared one major criticism of my story--that I didn't kill enough people. And in their helpful way, they made specific suggestions on who needed to die, when and even how.
I was like, "How could they kill off Ian? He's one of my favorite characters." But I realized they were right. I was trying to write an historical novel about a storm that had killed 6,000-8,000 people, and not have Abby Kate, my main character, suffer any significant personal loss. I was trying to protect her.
I have a saying now taped to my computer: "Spare no one. Not the characters. Not your readers. Not even yourself." I really believe that. Sometimes, as writers, we flinch when we get to the hard part of the story. We want to rescue our characters too soon, and in a sense, rescue ourselves from dealing with important, often painful issues.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical)in bringing it to life?
I think the hardest thing was tapping those emotions of frustration and sadness and hopelessness that were appropriate for my characters to feel at certain points of the story.
After the hurricane scene, I really wanted to get Abby Kate out of the rubble, away from the dead bodies, and back home to her family in Austin. I wanted so much for her to be okay. It was tough writing those scenes showing the aftermath of the storm and letting the healing process play out in a natural way.
Many readers have told me that they like how the story didn't just end after the hurricane. That they liked how I showed the characters struggling at points to find their footing and dealing with all the different kinds of emotions we have when we face these sudden, life-changing events.
Do you feel that authors have a responsibility to young readers to offer an element of hope in their stories?
I really do. Children and teens need to know that even when life is very difficult that there is always room for something good to happen, and that things can get better, though maybe in a different way than you might expect or hope.
I really wanted to have a positive scene at the end of my book, something that would show Abby Kate taking some kind of power. After a lot of crumpled pieces of paper, I finally had this "aha" moment. Suddenly I knew what she needed to do. Something that was within her ability to do and something that would make a real difference for one of the other characters in the story.
When we talk about disasters, we often focus on physical rebuilding of homes, businesses, etc. There's another type of rebuilding that has to happen, too. The emotion restoration of the people themselves.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
I was doing some research about ten years ago on a fairly boring insurance project (I wrote on staff for an insurance magazine at the time) and I was going through a box of old documents--ledgers, old insurance brochures, etc. I came to this black and white photograph of storm wreckage from the 1900 Galveston hurricane. I'd heard about that storm and knew there might be some images of it in that file, but nothing prepared me for the reality of that image. The devastation stretched on and on and on.
My eyes were drawn to a point in the middle of the picture, to the single sign of life in that unbearable landscape—a child, a little boy in bare feet, who stared towards the camera. I felt as if I'd been sucked back in time and the hurricane became real.
What was the timeline between spark and publication and what were the major events along the way?
For the next year or two I found myself thinking about what it would be like to survive a hurricane of that magnitude. I sort of became obsessed with hurricanes in general and this storm in particular.
I'd be interviewing an insurance agent for an article about how to prepare a business for natural catastrophes--things like the importance of backing up computer data offsite, how to keep taking care of clients despite power outages, flooding etc.--and I'd start asking things like, "What is it really like to be in a hurricane? How did you feel? What was it like afterwards?"
A lot of these people had grown up on the coast, and they shared all kinds of stories, like cleaning up the house afterwards and finding snakes in the kitchen. The story began to come alive in my mind.
I began to read books on writing fiction and took a class. I also did some market research to see if there were already a lot of children's books on the 1900 hurricane. I found there were many adult books, both fiction and nonfiction, but very few geared toward teens or upper elementary students.
I brainstormed my idea with Robin Krig, a librarian in Katy, specifically my concern that the story would be too sad. Robin listened and then said, "So it's a little like Number the Stars" [by Lois Lowry (Houghton, 1989)]. That was a very pivotal moment for me. To have my spongy draft of a story compared in any kind of way with such a powerful piece of children's literature.
Another important milestone was when I sent an early draft to my sister's fourth grade class. As a new fiction writer, it was great to hear that they laughed at the funny parts. The kids, however, all shared one major criticism of my story--that I didn't kill enough people. And in their helpful way, they made specific suggestions on who needed to die, when and even how.
I was like, "How could they kill off Ian? He's one of my favorite characters." But I realized they were right. I was trying to write an historical novel about a storm that had killed 6,000-8,000 people, and not have Abby Kate, my main character, suffer any significant personal loss. I was trying to protect her.
I have a saying now taped to my computer: "Spare no one. Not the characters. Not your readers. Not even yourself." I really believe that. Sometimes, as writers, we flinch when we get to the hard part of the story. We want to rescue our characters too soon, and in a sense, rescue ourselves from dealing with important, often painful issues.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical)in bringing it to life?
I think the hardest thing was tapping those emotions of frustration and sadness and hopelessness that were appropriate for my characters to feel at certain points of the story.
After the hurricane scene, I really wanted to get Abby Kate out of the rubble, away from the dead bodies, and back home to her family in Austin. I wanted so much for her to be okay. It was tough writing those scenes showing the aftermath of the storm and letting the healing process play out in a natural way.
Many readers have told me that they like how the story didn't just end after the hurricane. That they liked how I showed the characters struggling at points to find their footing and dealing with all the different kinds of emotions we have when we face these sudden, life-changing events.
Do you feel that authors have a responsibility to young readers to offer an element of hope in their stories?
I really do. Children and teens need to know that even when life is very difficult that there is always room for something good to happen, and that things can get better, though maybe in a different way than you might expect or hope.
I really wanted to have a positive scene at the end of my book, something that would show Abby Kate taking some kind of power. After a lot of crumpled pieces of paper, I finally had this "aha" moment. Suddenly I knew what she needed to do. Something that was within her ability to do and something that would make a real difference for one of the other characters in the story.
When we talk about disasters, we often focus on physical rebuilding of homes, businesses, etc. There's another type of rebuilding that has to happen, too. The emotion restoration of the people themselves.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Author Update: Bruce Hale
When we last visited Bruce Hale, he had just published his second Chet Gecko book (Harcourt, 2000-), and he shared with us the story behind the stories AKA how the series came to be. (Note: my site is being redesigned in fall 2005, so if these links don't work, simply check the site guide and/or search engine).
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
The Chet Gecko series (Harcourt, 2005) is 11 books strong, and I've begun working on humorous fantasy series that's a blend of manga (graphic novel) and conventional fiction. It's called Underwhere (HarperCollins, 2006), and it'll be out in Fall 2006.
Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
Chet Gecko's Detective Handbook (and Cookbook) (Harcourt) comes out this month. It's my first nonfiction book (as much as detective tips from a lizard can be nonfiction). The handbook will tell readers how to be a private eye and how to cook some of Chet's favorite bug-related recipes.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
This book was born during an over-caffeinated brainstorming session between me and my editor at a Starbucks in San Francisco. Unfortunately, we couldn't include the secret messages in invisible ink that we wanted to, but most of our other ideas made it into my finished book.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
I recently read M.T. Anderson's Whales on Stilts (Harcourt, 2005), and loved it for its off-the-wall humor. Also, the first two books of Philip Reeves' Hungry City Chronicles (Eos) were imaginative YA fantasy/sci-fi, set far in Earth's future.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
To keep balancing Chet Gecko and Underwhere, and to get a little sleep in between my writing sessions.
Cynsational News & Links
Tonight at the YA Authors Cafe: guest host, Lara M. Zeises, interviews three rising stars in young adult literature. Guests will be R. A. Nelson, author of the controversial new novel, Teach Me (Razorbill, 2005); Bennett Madison, author of the hilarious and hip Nancy Drew-made-modern mystery Lulu Dark Can See Through Walls (Penguin, 2005); and Melanie Gideon, author of the Girl's Life Top Ten Pick The Map That Breathed and the forthcoming Pucker (May 2006). To join the cafe chats, go to www.yaauthorscafe.com and click the cafe chatroom icon to enter the chats. All chats are held at 8:30 p.m. EST, 7:30 p.m. CST, 5:30 p.m. Pacific.
"News You Can Use!" by Juliana LeRoy, in the Getting Ideas section of Writing Tips from the Institute of Children's Literature. See also "It's a Bird, It's a Plane, No, It's Superbook?" by Marilyn E. Freeman from ICL.
Promotional Brainstorming and Independent Bookstores from Once Upon A Time There Was A Girl And She Wanted To Write (That Would Be Me) AKA Susan Taylor Brown's LiveJournal.
Meet Author Varian Johnson from Don Tate's blog. Varian is the debut author of Red Polka Dot In A World Full of Plaid (Genesis Press/Black Coral, 2005), a YA being marketed by an adult publisher. Both Don and Varian are members of Austin SCBWI.
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
The Chet Gecko series (Harcourt, 2005) is 11 books strong, and I've begun working on humorous fantasy series that's a blend of manga (graphic novel) and conventional fiction. It's called Underwhere (HarperCollins, 2006), and it'll be out in Fall 2006.
Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
Chet Gecko's Detective Handbook (and Cookbook) (Harcourt) comes out this month. It's my first nonfiction book (as much as detective tips from a lizard can be nonfiction). The handbook will tell readers how to be a private eye and how to cook some of Chet's favorite bug-related recipes.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
This book was born during an over-caffeinated brainstorming session between me and my editor at a Starbucks in San Francisco. Unfortunately, we couldn't include the secret messages in invisible ink that we wanted to, but most of our other ideas made it into my finished book.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
I recently read M.T. Anderson's Whales on Stilts (Harcourt, 2005), and loved it for its off-the-wall humor. Also, the first two books of Philip Reeves' Hungry City Chronicles (Eos) were imaginative YA fantasy/sci-fi, set far in Earth's future.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
To keep balancing Chet Gecko and Underwhere, and to get a little sleep in between my writing sessions.
Cynsational News & Links
Tonight at the YA Authors Cafe: guest host, Lara M. Zeises, interviews three rising stars in young adult literature. Guests will be R. A. Nelson, author of the controversial new novel, Teach Me (Razorbill, 2005); Bennett Madison, author of the hilarious and hip Nancy Drew-made-modern mystery Lulu Dark Can See Through Walls (Penguin, 2005); and Melanie Gideon, author of the Girl's Life Top Ten Pick The Map That Breathed and the forthcoming Pucker (May 2006). To join the cafe chats, go to www.yaauthorscafe.com and click the cafe chatroom icon to enter the chats. All chats are held at 8:30 p.m. EST, 7:30 p.m. CST, 5:30 p.m. Pacific.
"News You Can Use!" by Juliana LeRoy, in the Getting Ideas section of Writing Tips from the Institute of Children's Literature. See also "It's a Bird, It's a Plane, No, It's Superbook?" by Marilyn E. Freeman from ICL.
Promotional Brainstorming and Independent Bookstores from Once Upon A Time There Was A Girl And She Wanted To Write (That Would Be Me) AKA Susan Taylor Brown's LiveJournal.
Meet Author Varian Johnson from Don Tate's blog. Varian is the debut author of Red Polka Dot In A World Full of Plaid (Genesis Press/Black Coral, 2005), a YA being marketed by an adult publisher. Both Don and Varian are members of Austin SCBWI.
Monday, September 12, 2005
Author Interview: M.T. Anderson on Whales On Stilts
Whales on Stilts by M.T. Anderson (Harcourt, 2005). From the catalog copy: "Lucky for Lily Gefelty, her two best friends are the stars of their own middle-grade series of novels: Jasper Dash (better known as the Boy Technonaut) and Katie Mulligan (beloved by millions as the heroine of the Horror Hollow series). It's going to take all their smarts to stop this insane, inane plot from succeeding. This first installment of a riotous and wonderfully weird new series marks the Harcourt debut of award-winning author M. T. Anderson. With Whales on Stilts, he's entering new territory, creating a smart, sassy, and self-aware comedy that fans of Lemony Snicket will snicker and snort over." Read an excerpt.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Michael Stearns, then working at Harcourt, came up to Vermont College to lecture. It was the summer. The air was golden with pollen. The trees were green. I had hay-fever. We sat around and talked about how there was a particular kind of book we had read as boys in the summer: books with a sense of freedom and release. Books where there were hijinx, adventures, playfulness, and a very thin line between reality and fantasy.
Shortly after the residency finished at Vermont, I went up to a cabin in Canada to recooperate. I found myself wanting to write a book of the kind we had discussed -- something that expressed pure joy in the act of creation and friendship. I wrote the book very quickly, in a burst of enthusiasm between kayaking sessions and washing the dishes in the lake (because there was, for some reason, no running water in the cabin). It provided a very welcome break in my work on a historical novel that has gone grindingly slowly and which still is not finished.
In a neat little postscript, Whales on Stilts was mentioned on NPR in a list of summer reads -- in the company of many of the books which Michael and I had specifically discussed years before!
So there it is. Whales on Stilts ain't great literature -- in fact, it's basically puerile -- but I hope its puerility is its charm.
I hope.
What was the timeline between spark and publication and what were the major events along the way?
As I mentioned, I wrote the book very quickly (for me) in the summer of 2002. It has just been released in the spring of 2005, three years later. Therein lies a tale not worth telling.
Actually, come to think of it, there is one portion of the process worth mentioning. I wrote the book right after hearing Marion Dane Bauer and Norma Fox Mazer talk about the traditional plot structure--which they said in its most formulaic incarnation meant, for example, a problem, a protagonist, and three attempts to solve that problem--with the problem getting more acute in each instance--and the last attempt to solve the problem being the most spectacularly successful or unsuccessful.
This is, of course, only a formula...but I liked the idea of using a die-cut, pre-fab design. After all, I had envisioned three main heroes, one of whom (Lily) was kind of the center of the novel... So it made sense, then, to give each of the heroes a chance to solve the problem of the novel, culminating in Lily's plan to bring all of them together to finaly defeat the cetacean menace.
I always enjoy writing line-by-line--creating character and detail. What stumps me are plots. So having a pre-arranged structure to work around made writing the book much easier.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing it to life?
I spent a great deal of time in a bathyscape, of course, doing research, and taped hours of interviews with dolorous, even bitter, whale/human hybrids.
That's right, Cynthia, no lame-ass I, for I have probably miles of reel-to-reel tape sagging half-unspooled around my little office next to my careful diagrams of mechanized stilts and a full set of flensing tools. I hope that my extensive research doesn't show, though, but just fits in seamlessly with the story.
My neighbors complained a lot about the blubber-rendering, which, in the warmer months -- it must be admitted -- was accompanied by heavy smoke, sticky ichor, and something of a pinguid pong.
Better, though, than those who render fats in the Antarctic seas, who often are accompanied by a pinguid penguin pong.
Frankly, I can't stand rendering fats in the cold of the Antarctic. That intense chill just makes me want to return to my sleigh and flee to someplace warm, like the jungles of Thailand -- a pung-ward pang, or even, I suppose, a pung-ward, Ping-ward pang.
As you can see, if there are any psychological challenges to writing, I am clearly not up to them.
Cynsational Notes
Michael Stearns is now working at HarperCollins; M.T. Anderson is the former department chair of the M.F.A. in Writing for Children and Young Adults program at Vermont College.
Cynsational News & Links
Author Profile: Norma Fox Mazer from teenreads.com. August 2000.
Excerpt: Whales on Stilts by M.T. Anderson from NPR. "Hear author M.T. Anderson read from Whales on Stilts."
Life-and-death competition in an enchanted world: interview by Heidi Henneman from BookPage with M.T. Anderson about his book, The Game of Sunken Places (Scholastic).
Marion Dane Bauer: Teacher Resource File from the Internet School Library Media Center.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Michael Stearns, then working at Harcourt, came up to Vermont College to lecture. It was the summer. The air was golden with pollen. The trees were green. I had hay-fever. We sat around and talked about how there was a particular kind of book we had read as boys in the summer: books with a sense of freedom and release. Books where there were hijinx, adventures, playfulness, and a very thin line between reality and fantasy.
Shortly after the residency finished at Vermont, I went up to a cabin in Canada to recooperate. I found myself wanting to write a book of the kind we had discussed -- something that expressed pure joy in the act of creation and friendship. I wrote the book very quickly, in a burst of enthusiasm between kayaking sessions and washing the dishes in the lake (because there was, for some reason, no running water in the cabin). It provided a very welcome break in my work on a historical novel that has gone grindingly slowly and which still is not finished.
In a neat little postscript, Whales on Stilts was mentioned on NPR in a list of summer reads -- in the company of many of the books which Michael and I had specifically discussed years before!
So there it is. Whales on Stilts ain't great literature -- in fact, it's basically puerile -- but I hope its puerility is its charm.
I hope.
What was the timeline between spark and publication and what were the major events along the way?
As I mentioned, I wrote the book very quickly (for me) in the summer of 2002. It has just been released in the spring of 2005, three years later. Therein lies a tale not worth telling.
Actually, come to think of it, there is one portion of the process worth mentioning. I wrote the book right after hearing Marion Dane Bauer and Norma Fox Mazer talk about the traditional plot structure--which they said in its most formulaic incarnation meant, for example, a problem, a protagonist, and three attempts to solve that problem--with the problem getting more acute in each instance--and the last attempt to solve the problem being the most spectacularly successful or unsuccessful.
This is, of course, only a formula...but I liked the idea of using a die-cut, pre-fab design. After all, I had envisioned three main heroes, one of whom (Lily) was kind of the center of the novel... So it made sense, then, to give each of the heroes a chance to solve the problem of the novel, culminating in Lily's plan to bring all of them together to finaly defeat the cetacean menace.
I always enjoy writing line-by-line--creating character and detail. What stumps me are plots. So having a pre-arranged structure to work around made writing the book much easier.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing it to life?
I spent a great deal of time in a bathyscape, of course, doing research, and taped hours of interviews with dolorous, even bitter, whale/human hybrids.
That's right, Cynthia, no lame-ass I, for I have probably miles of reel-to-reel tape sagging half-unspooled around my little office next to my careful diagrams of mechanized stilts and a full set of flensing tools. I hope that my extensive research doesn't show, though, but just fits in seamlessly with the story.
My neighbors complained a lot about the blubber-rendering, which, in the warmer months -- it must be admitted -- was accompanied by heavy smoke, sticky ichor, and something of a pinguid pong.
Better, though, than those who render fats in the Antarctic seas, who often are accompanied by a pinguid penguin pong.
Frankly, I can't stand rendering fats in the cold of the Antarctic. That intense chill just makes me want to return to my sleigh and flee to someplace warm, like the jungles of Thailand -- a pung-ward pang, or even, I suppose, a pung-ward, Ping-ward pang.
As you can see, if there are any psychological challenges to writing, I am clearly not up to them.
Cynsational Notes
Michael Stearns is now working at HarperCollins; M.T. Anderson is the former department chair of the M.F.A. in Writing for Children and Young Adults program at Vermont College.
Cynsational News & Links
Author Profile: Norma Fox Mazer from teenreads.com. August 2000.
Excerpt: Whales on Stilts by M.T. Anderson from NPR. "Hear author M.T. Anderson read from Whales on Stilts."
Life-and-death competition in an enchanted world: interview by Heidi Henneman from BookPage with M.T. Anderson about his book, The Game of Sunken Places (Scholastic).
Marion Dane Bauer: Teacher Resource File from the Internet School Library Media Center.
Sunday, September 11, 2005
Author/Illustrator Interview: Jean Gralley on The Moon Came Down On Milk Street
The Moon Came Down On Milk Street by Jean Gralley (Henry Holt, 2004). The moon has come down softly, and who will put it up again? Who will make things right? The fire chief, the rescue workers, the people. This brilliantly simple book speaks to our universal need for comfort, for heroes, for hope. It's perhaps the best "crisis" book ever published, as resonate and necessary for young readers as their grandparents. A must-buy for every school, household, and library. Ages 3-up. Highest recommendation.
What was your inspiration for The Moon Came Down on Milk Street?
Without a doubt it came September 11th, 2001. A few days later I drove through Washington D.C. to attend a regular meeting of the Children's Book Guild. The town was still in emergency mode. The military was everywhere; everyone was shaky. One member quoted Fred Rogers, and the story idea clicked into place. It was that quick and definite.
Unlike other 9-11 books I knew this one wasn't going to be “commemorative.” I didn't want it to look back but look ahead, giving kids as realistic an answer as possible to the question: what if something bad happens again?
Subsequently, grown-ups have told me they've found it helpful for times when the news has made kids worry. Unfortunately, there's been a lot of that since September 11th. Terror alerts, natural disasters, and local emergencies closer to home have increasingly set everyone on edge. When we find it hard to talk to children about difficult situations or answer their questions, I've heard that Moon shows a way in.
I'm glad for that. It's important to approach kids about things that worry them and listen to their thoughts, questions, and feelings about them.
I write and illustrate my books. This was the first one that wasn't funny. Generally, I can't abide “message” or “moral” books for young children and don't think this is one. It's just a good, simple story that can stand on its own or be a springboard for important talks with kids.
In any case, this book absolutely popped out of the head whole and begged to be brought to my editor right away.
What was the timeline between the spark and publication and what were major events along the way?
The timeline was unusually short. My wonderful editor Laura Godwin (Sr. Editor and a VP at Henry Holt Books for Young Readers) loved Moon and okayed setting aside other books on the drawing table so it could be completed ASAP. I finished it in record time.
I guess a “major event” came at the end when the illustrations were done and ready to be shipped. I invited about 40 friends over for a big party to celebrate.
But while hanging the artwork in my studio the night before, I absent-mindedly stepped right off the ladder and spent the night in the emergency room. Greeting my guests the next day on crutches was a nicely dramatic touch, I thought. Art is a dangerous business! So is stepping back to admire one's work while on a ladder.
My covers are always done at the very end of the process so I had to paint Moon's while parked in a wheelchair. Seriously, being disabled for months was an eye-opening experience. There's a picture book there.
What were the challenges in bringing it to life?
Other than risking life and limb, The Moon Came Down on Milk Street presented few challenges until it was finished. Then I realized it was unlike any other book I'd done, unfunny and looking like one of my early schoolbooks. I could have had an identity crisis about that. Luckily, Moon had such urgency about it, I didn't have time to worry about it until the book was done.
I'm glad. It's freed me up. The book I'm completing now, Yonderfel's Castle, (also for Henry Holt) is a medieval fable and calls for yet another style. I love responding to a story however it wants.
I also like playing with the physical form of the book, itself. Why not create a story that requires turning the book in the hands? Why not create a book that can be read backwards as well as forwards? I create stories and dummies for fun, trying out these quirky ideas; it's one of the perks of being a writer / illustrator. I'm also interested creating stories for kids in digital, which I find extremely interesting for story-telling. This means leaving the codex form altogether. I hope you'll read (and see) more about this from me early next year.
Challenges are always there, for artists as well as writers. There are business challenges (especially in picture books these days, as we all know) and creative challenges.
For me, the Moon experience was about being so inside the story that there was no angsting about letting it tell me what it wanted to be, even if that meant stepping outside anything I'd done before. That was untypical for me. But I welcome more of those experiences and look forward to where they'll lead.
Cynsational News & Links
Continue reading for an author update with Printz Honor winner K.L. Going.
How to Reel in a Children's Book Editor with Your Writing by Margot Finke from The Purple Crayon. See also Where To Go When You Are Desperate for Information or Help by Margot Finke. I'm honored that my site is listed among the recommended resources.
What was your inspiration for The Moon Came Down on Milk Street?
Without a doubt it came September 11th, 2001. A few days later I drove through Washington D.C. to attend a regular meeting of the Children's Book Guild. The town was still in emergency mode. The military was everywhere; everyone was shaky. One member quoted Fred Rogers, and the story idea clicked into place. It was that quick and definite.
Unlike other 9-11 books I knew this one wasn't going to be “commemorative.” I didn't want it to look back but look ahead, giving kids as realistic an answer as possible to the question: what if something bad happens again?
Subsequently, grown-ups have told me they've found it helpful for times when the news has made kids worry. Unfortunately, there's been a lot of that since September 11th. Terror alerts, natural disasters, and local emergencies closer to home have increasingly set everyone on edge. When we find it hard to talk to children about difficult situations or answer their questions, I've heard that Moon shows a way in.
I'm glad for that. It's important to approach kids about things that worry them and listen to their thoughts, questions, and feelings about them.
I write and illustrate my books. This was the first one that wasn't funny. Generally, I can't abide “message” or “moral” books for young children and don't think this is one. It's just a good, simple story that can stand on its own or be a springboard for important talks with kids.
In any case, this book absolutely popped out of the head whole and begged to be brought to my editor right away.
What was the timeline between the spark and publication and what were major events along the way?
The timeline was unusually short. My wonderful editor Laura Godwin (Sr. Editor and a VP at Henry Holt Books for Young Readers) loved Moon and okayed setting aside other books on the drawing table so it could be completed ASAP. I finished it in record time.
I guess a “major event” came at the end when the illustrations were done and ready to be shipped. I invited about 40 friends over for a big party to celebrate.
But while hanging the artwork in my studio the night before, I absent-mindedly stepped right off the ladder and spent the night in the emergency room. Greeting my guests the next day on crutches was a nicely dramatic touch, I thought. Art is a dangerous business! So is stepping back to admire one's work while on a ladder.
My covers are always done at the very end of the process so I had to paint Moon's while parked in a wheelchair. Seriously, being disabled for months was an eye-opening experience. There's a picture book there.
What were the challenges in bringing it to life?
Other than risking life and limb, The Moon Came Down on Milk Street presented few challenges until it was finished. Then I realized it was unlike any other book I'd done, unfunny and looking like one of my early schoolbooks. I could have had an identity crisis about that. Luckily, Moon had such urgency about it, I didn't have time to worry about it until the book was done.
I'm glad. It's freed me up. The book I'm completing now, Yonderfel's Castle, (also for Henry Holt) is a medieval fable and calls for yet another style. I love responding to a story however it wants.
I also like playing with the physical form of the book, itself. Why not create a story that requires turning the book in the hands? Why not create a book that can be read backwards as well as forwards? I create stories and dummies for fun, trying out these quirky ideas; it's one of the perks of being a writer / illustrator. I'm also interested creating stories for kids in digital, which I find extremely interesting for story-telling. This means leaving the codex form altogether. I hope you'll read (and see) more about this from me early next year.
Challenges are always there, for artists as well as writers. There are business challenges (especially in picture books these days, as we all know) and creative challenges.
For me, the Moon experience was about being so inside the story that there was no angsting about letting it tell me what it wanted to be, even if that meant stepping outside anything I'd done before. That was untypical for me. But I welcome more of those experiences and look forward to where they'll lead.
Cynsational News & Links
Continue reading for an author update with Printz Honor winner K.L. Going.
How to Reel in a Children's Book Editor with Your Writing by Margot Finke from The Purple Crayon. See also Where To Go When You Are Desperate for Information or Help by Margot Finke. I'm honored that my site is listed among the recommended resources.
Latinos, Spanish Speakers, and Books: The Barahona Center for the Study of Books in Spanish for Children and Adolescents by Isabel Schon, Director, Barahona Center for the Study of Books in Spanish for Children and Adolescents, California State University San Marcos from CBC Magazine.
Author Update: K. L. Going
When we last visited K.L. Going in 2003, she shared with us the story behind the story of her debut novel, Fat Kid Rules The World (Putnam, 2003), which went on to be named an ALA Printz Honor Book; School Library Journal Best Book; to the list of Booklist Top Ten First Novels; to the list of Top Ten First Novels For Young Listeners; and a Blue Ribbon Book of the Bulletin of Children's Books. (Note: my site is being redesigned in fall 2005, so if these links don't work, simply check the site guide and/or search engine).
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
I am working on my third novel which is a return to the older age group. It's tentatively titled Saint Iggy. It's a voice-driven novel with a quirky main character who gets kicked out of school on page one. This book will come out with Harcourt, hopefully in the fall of 2006. My editor moved houses this past summer and I moved with her, which is why I'm no longer with Penguin Putnam.
Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
Other than Saint Iggy, my latest novel is The Liberation of Gabriel King (Putnam) which hit stores in June 2005. Liberation is for the 8-12 age group and it's about two kids who decide to overcome all their fears in the course of one summer. It takes place in 1976 down in Georgia when Jimmy Carter is running for President. The two main characters, Gabe and Frita, have very different types of fears. Gabe's are often humorous and childlike, while Frita's are a bit more sophisticated and deal with issues of race and growing up.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
The Liberation of Gabriel King had its beginnings after 9/11 when I was working in a literary agency in Manhattan. We were overwhelmed with submissions from people who wanted to write about 9/11 for kids. I kept wishing that someone would write about the more general issue of fear because it is something all of us deal with all the time, whether during times of crisis when it is magnified, or simply in the course of our every day lives. I tried to imagine how kids might decide to tackle their fears and what the results would be of their efforts.
When I look back at The Liberation of Gabriel King as a finished product, I feel like it is a very personal novel because I drew on so many of my own fears as a child, and even those fears I have now as an adult.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
I just read How I Live Now [by Meg Rosoff (Wendy Lamb Books, 2004)(2005 Printz Award winner)] and thought it was very well written. The voice was great, and the author takes you from a world that feels familiar into one that feels totally foreign without faltering.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
I want to keep things fresh and keep expanding my skills, and learning new things. You learn something different from every genre, so I am working on a picture book to see how that will turn out. We shall see.
Cynsational News & Links
Glen and Karen Bledsoe: authors of children's fiction, children's non-fiction, books for the school and library market, fantasy, and articles. They offer articles on writing, resources for teachers, and information for young authors.
Yesterday, I had the pleasure of hearing illustrator Erik Kuntz of 2 Bad Mice Design speak at the monthly meeting of Austin SCBWI on "How To Build A Better Web Site." Erik is Greg Leitich Smith's Web designer, and we highly recommend him. In related news, author/illustrator Janie Bynum is moving from Wimberly, Texas; back to Kalamazoo, Michigan.
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
I am working on my third novel which is a return to the older age group. It's tentatively titled Saint Iggy. It's a voice-driven novel with a quirky main character who gets kicked out of school on page one. This book will come out with Harcourt, hopefully in the fall of 2006. My editor moved houses this past summer and I moved with her, which is why I'm no longer with Penguin Putnam.
Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
Other than Saint Iggy, my latest novel is The Liberation of Gabriel King (Putnam) which hit stores in June 2005. Liberation is for the 8-12 age group and it's about two kids who decide to overcome all their fears in the course of one summer. It takes place in 1976 down in Georgia when Jimmy Carter is running for President. The two main characters, Gabe and Frita, have very different types of fears. Gabe's are often humorous and childlike, while Frita's are a bit more sophisticated and deal with issues of race and growing up.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
The Liberation of Gabriel King had its beginnings after 9/11 when I was working in a literary agency in Manhattan. We were overwhelmed with submissions from people who wanted to write about 9/11 for kids. I kept wishing that someone would write about the more general issue of fear because it is something all of us deal with all the time, whether during times of crisis when it is magnified, or simply in the course of our every day lives. I tried to imagine how kids might decide to tackle their fears and what the results would be of their efforts.
When I look back at The Liberation of Gabriel King as a finished product, I feel like it is a very personal novel because I drew on so many of my own fears as a child, and even those fears I have now as an adult.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
I just read How I Live Now [by Meg Rosoff (Wendy Lamb Books, 2004)(2005 Printz Award winner)] and thought it was very well written. The voice was great, and the author takes you from a world that feels familiar into one that feels totally foreign without faltering.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
I want to keep things fresh and keep expanding my skills, and learning new things. You learn something different from every genre, so I am working on a picture book to see how that will turn out. We shall see.
Cynsational News & Links
Glen and Karen Bledsoe: authors of children's fiction, children's non-fiction, books for the school and library market, fantasy, and articles. They offer articles on writing, resources for teachers, and information for young authors.
Yesterday, I had the pleasure of hearing illustrator Erik Kuntz of 2 Bad Mice Design speak at the monthly meeting of Austin SCBWI on "How To Build A Better Web Site." Erik is Greg Leitich Smith's Web designer, and we highly recommend him. In related news, author/illustrator Janie Bynum is moving from Wimberly, Texas; back to Kalamazoo, Michigan.
Saturday, September 10, 2005
Author Carolyn Crimi and Illustrator John Manders on Henry & the Buccaneer Bunnies
Henry & the Buccaneer Bunnies by Carolyn Crimi, illustrated by John Manders (Candlewick, 2005). It's a pirate's life aboard the Salty Carrot with its crew of buccaneer bunnies, but Henry--son of the Barnacle Black Ear--would rather read than count his booty, swab the deck, or shout "Shiver Me Timbers!" And then . . . suffering sea dogs! Here comes a huge storm! What can booksmart Henry do to help the crew? A lively, hilarious adventure that'll speak to readers both avid and reluctant, brought to life in storytelling illustrations bursting with humorous detail. Ages 4-up. Highest recommendation.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Carolyn's answer
I have always wanted to write a story about bunnies. I've written about mice, dogs, rats, and beavers already, so I felt it was time to tackle Bunnydom. And really, what kind of picture book writer would I be if I never wrote a bunny book? It's practically a law.
I also happen to adore bunnies. I take long walks every day, and I usually spot one or two hopping around, twitching their cute little noses. Ooo, I thought, wouldn't it be wonderful to write a sweet, cozy book about them? A gentle, bedtime book for parents and toddlers to snuggle up to? Perhaps I'd even toss in a chick or a fluffy lambie. Helen Oxenbury would illustrate it, and it would shoot up to the bestsellers list in no time.
It would be the next Goodnight Moon!
But then, well... Something happened when I sat down to write. Suddenly my sweet, innocent bunnies were wearing eye patches and saying things like "Great blimey bilges!" You see, I had also always wanted to write a pirate book. When I thought about combining the two, it just sort of clicked. It was so very Moi.
I suppose I never will write a sweet book. I admire writers who can do it well without being saccharine. Martin Waddell comes to mind. He writes poignant, lyrical, succinct books and is one of the most underrated picture book writers I know of.
But I am not Martin Waddell. Sweetness does not come naturally to me. I must do what comes naturally, even if that means I write about bloodthirsty bunnies.
John's answer
My inspiration came from two sources: Carolyn’s manuscript, and a life-long devotion to sea-going, swashbuckling adventure novels and movies.
Carolyn is one of those writers whose words can make you laugh out loud. As soon as I read her manuscript, I was itching to draw. I knew exactly how I wanted Henry to look---I wanted every member of the Salty Carrot crew to have a personality, a character. And there were so many opportunities for sight gags! I tried to add visual jokes that kept in tune with the story’s sense of humor---the rats abandon ship with pool noodles and snorkels, the ship is riddled with cannonball holes, the jolly roger has long ears and buck teeth.
My other favorite writers are Rafael Sabatini, Robert Louis Stevenson, Daniel Defoe, C.S. Forester, Patrick O’Brian and the great George MacDonald Fraser. My illustrations for Henry are heavily influenced by those great old pirate movies whose casts often include Errol Flynn, Basil Rathbone or Maureen O’Hara hamming it up to a soundtrack by Eric Wolfgang Korngold.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
Carolyn's answer
Ummm, here's the thing. I really have no idea when I started this. I always write first drafts of my picture books in longhand, and I don't date those drafts. I believe I wrote it "sometime in 2001." The first *typed* draft in my computer is dated February 2002. I know I wrote an awful draft before that in which Henry was an extremely curious bunny who asked a lot of questions and wound up defeating a bad bunny pirate by driving him slowly insane.
Like I said, it was an awful first draft.
After I had completed roughly two billion revisions, I sent the manuscript to some of my editors. One editor asked for changes and then turned it down. The next editor asked for changes and then turned it down. Blah, blah, blah, same ole same ole. I knew it was good, though, and I knew it would get published. I certainly don't feel that way about all my manuscripts, but I really felt this one was a slam dunk (a home run? a hole in one? a field goal?) or some sort of very good thing.
It was because I believed in this book that I decided to send it to one of my favorite houses, Candlewick. Oh, how I love their picture books! It had always been a dream of mine to have a Candlewick book. Unfortunately, it had never been a dream of Candlewick to have a Carolyn Crimi book. But I kept trying. The brilliant author Tobin Anderson said he had spoken to one of their editors about me and encouraged me to send a manuscript their way. What an incredibly generous gesture on his part. (Thanks Tobin!) So I put his name in the very first line of my cover letter, said a few prayers, ate a few carrots, and tossed it in the mail.
It was accepted in…May? Yeah, sure, let’s say May of 2003. I still have the voice mail message from my editor. In fact, I’ve saved all the happy voice mail messages from my editors. I like listening to them over and over again. It's an annoying habit of mine that keeps me sane.
The not-so-happy ones are deleted immediately.
John's answer
I signed the contract for Henry back in July 2003 and began working on the thumbnail storyboard in the summer of 2004. The thumbnails, along with character sketches and setting design usually take 3-4 days. I draw with 2B pencils on layout bond paper. The editorial and art departments at Candlewick then take a look and make revisions to the storyboard. Caroline Lawrence at Candlewick put my thumbnail sketches into layout form which made it very easy to draw the final sketches---the layouts show exactly where the text will fall. The sketches take a week or three. I submitted them to Candlewick, where they were put into layouts in their turn. At this point there were a few small revisions (this project went very smoothly---most of the changes were made to the thumbnails).
While I waited for final approval, I did color studies of all the characters and most of the spreads. This helps me to organize my palette and solve any color problems before I begin actual painting. Once the layouts with the final sketches were approved, I began painting in August, transferring the drawings onto Arches 300 lb hot press watercolor paper. I work with Winsor & Newton Designers gouache and Prismacolor pencils for highlights and accents. I paint in an assembly line fashion, first blocking in all the light and shadow with burnt sienna (this is a classical way of painting and gives the illustrations an added richness). Then I add color. First I paint all the background: the sea, then the ship, then the island scenery---before I paint the characters themselves, which I do one at a time: all Henry, all Black Ear, & c., & c. A book has to look as if I painted it all at once, instead of over a period of 3 months. This method makes it possible to maintain consistency throughout.
After the interior is painted, Caroline & I discuss the cover design. Once again I submit thumbnails, then sketches (including title type design), and paint once everything’s approved. The last piece of art was sent to Candlewick in early December 2004.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing it to life?
Carolyn's answer
Once it was accepted, the challenges were pretty much behind me. I had revised it extensively before I sent it to Candlewick, so I only had one more revision to do after it was accepted. Then the quest for the right illustrator began. I knew John Manders was The One as soon as I saw his work. He's just so...piratey. I mean come on, the man owns a parrot. His illustrations brought the whole story to life and made the book an exciting, swashbuckling adventure. And they literally made me laugh out loud. Check out the one of Calico Jack Rabbit admiring his tattoo of a cabbage. The cabbage is inscribed with the name “Beatrix.” John was born to illustrate this book.
John and my editor, Deb Wayshak, made the book’s journey a fun one. I had a blast working on it with them. The e-mails that flew back and forth were often sprinkled with Piratese. What terrific shipmates they were. Writing a sequel is definitely on my To Do List.
Along with a sweet little book about bloodthirsty lambies, of course...
John's answer
I often head to the library when I begin a new book, to gather visual research. Since I’m something of a pirate buff, I already had most of the reference books right here in my studio, so I was ready to draw without so much of the preliminary stage of ‘internalizing,’ when I sketch directly from the reference in order to get a feel for my subject.
Being an illustrator is like being a movie director on steroids: I get to cast all the characters, design the costumes and sets, and stage all the action. I even choose the camera angles. For Henry, I designed many of the characters with actors from seagoing movies in mind—for Black Ear, I cast Robert Newton, who starred in a movie about Blackbeard and unforgettably played Long John Silver in the Disney version of Treasure Island. From the same movie, child actor Bobby Driscoll supplied the look & costume for Henry (with spectacles added!). Jean LeHare is the bunny incarnation of Basil Rathbone in Captain Blood, Calico Jack Rabbit recalls Kirk Douglas in 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea.
I also peopled the crew with individual characters based on real or literary seafarers. There is a suspiciously feminine crew member (the one with abundant blonde curls) named Ann Bunney—based on Ann Bonney, a girl who dressed as a man to serve aboard a pirate ship. Squee-Squeek is a tall, silent Maori bunny who always carries a harpoon in case he sees a white whale. These characters don’t have any lines, but their personalities make the crowd scenes interesting to look at.
The Salty Carrot herself is practically a character in the story. She is a three-masted square-rigger, a caricature of Captain Kidd’s ship, the Adventure Galley—which I embellished with peeling paint, cannonball holes, debris-littered decks and some tastefully-carved bunny mermaids. To help me draw and paint her believably, I bought a model ship at a hobby shop downtown, and spent a day or two gluing the thing together so I could see how a ship looks from different angles and how the shadows fall on her.
"The three-masted square rigger…not so swift and maneuverable as other vessels commandeered by pirates. But she was valued for her intimidating size—350 tons and 110 feet along her main deck…and for her seaworthiness on long voyages." (from The Pirates, Time-Life Books)
The smaller sloop was more effective for raiding and smuggling, but I felt the big square-rigger would be visually funnier—especially when crewed by bunnies.
Cynsational Note
Deborah Wayshak also is the editor of my upcoming YA gothic fantasy novel, Tantalize (Candlewick, 2007).
Cynsational News & Links
Smart Writers Journal: September 2005 offers a listing of writers' retreats and conferences, a back-to-school book round-up, and a special report on censorship by Roxyanne Young. Recommended books include: The Order of the Poison Oak by Brent Hartinger (HarperCollins, 2005); Last Dance on Holladay Street by Elisa Carbone (Knopf, 2005); The Truth About Sparrows by Marian Hale (Henry Holt, 2004); Houdini: World's Greatest Mystery Man and Escape King by Kathleen Krull, illustrated by Eric Velasquez (Walker, 2005); and Kindergarten Rocks! by WF alumnae Katie Davis (Harcourt, 2005).
Congratulations to my husband, author Greg Leitich Smith! His latest novel, Tofu and T. rex (Little Brown, 2005), has been nominated for the 2005-2006 Golden Spur Award for Texas Authors - Intermediate Children's Literature division via the Texas State Reading Association. Surf over to Greg's blog to cheer the good news!
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Carolyn's answer
I have always wanted to write a story about bunnies. I've written about mice, dogs, rats, and beavers already, so I felt it was time to tackle Bunnydom. And really, what kind of picture book writer would I be if I never wrote a bunny book? It's practically a law.
I also happen to adore bunnies. I take long walks every day, and I usually spot one or two hopping around, twitching their cute little noses. Ooo, I thought, wouldn't it be wonderful to write a sweet, cozy book about them? A gentle, bedtime book for parents and toddlers to snuggle up to? Perhaps I'd even toss in a chick or a fluffy lambie. Helen Oxenbury would illustrate it, and it would shoot up to the bestsellers list in no time.
It would be the next Goodnight Moon!
But then, well... Something happened when I sat down to write. Suddenly my sweet, innocent bunnies were wearing eye patches and saying things like "Great blimey bilges!" You see, I had also always wanted to write a pirate book. When I thought about combining the two, it just sort of clicked. It was so very Moi.
I suppose I never will write a sweet book. I admire writers who can do it well without being saccharine. Martin Waddell comes to mind. He writes poignant, lyrical, succinct books and is one of the most underrated picture book writers I know of.
But I am not Martin Waddell. Sweetness does not come naturally to me. I must do what comes naturally, even if that means I write about bloodthirsty bunnies.
John's answer
My inspiration came from two sources: Carolyn’s manuscript, and a life-long devotion to sea-going, swashbuckling adventure novels and movies.
Carolyn is one of those writers whose words can make you laugh out loud. As soon as I read her manuscript, I was itching to draw. I knew exactly how I wanted Henry to look---I wanted every member of the Salty Carrot crew to have a personality, a character. And there were so many opportunities for sight gags! I tried to add visual jokes that kept in tune with the story’s sense of humor---the rats abandon ship with pool noodles and snorkels, the ship is riddled with cannonball holes, the jolly roger has long ears and buck teeth.
My other favorite writers are Rafael Sabatini, Robert Louis Stevenson, Daniel Defoe, C.S. Forester, Patrick O’Brian and the great George MacDonald Fraser. My illustrations for Henry are heavily influenced by those great old pirate movies whose casts often include Errol Flynn, Basil Rathbone or Maureen O’Hara hamming it up to a soundtrack by Eric Wolfgang Korngold.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
Carolyn's answer
Ummm, here's the thing. I really have no idea when I started this. I always write first drafts of my picture books in longhand, and I don't date those drafts. I believe I wrote it "sometime in 2001." The first *typed* draft in my computer is dated February 2002. I know I wrote an awful draft before that in which Henry was an extremely curious bunny who asked a lot of questions and wound up defeating a bad bunny pirate by driving him slowly insane.
Like I said, it was an awful first draft.
After I had completed roughly two billion revisions, I sent the manuscript to some of my editors. One editor asked for changes and then turned it down. The next editor asked for changes and then turned it down. Blah, blah, blah, same ole same ole. I knew it was good, though, and I knew it would get published. I certainly don't feel that way about all my manuscripts, but I really felt this one was a slam dunk (a home run? a hole in one? a field goal?) or some sort of very good thing.
It was because I believed in this book that I decided to send it to one of my favorite houses, Candlewick. Oh, how I love their picture books! It had always been a dream of mine to have a Candlewick book. Unfortunately, it had never been a dream of Candlewick to have a Carolyn Crimi book. But I kept trying. The brilliant author Tobin Anderson said he had spoken to one of their editors about me and encouraged me to send a manuscript their way. What an incredibly generous gesture on his part. (Thanks Tobin!) So I put his name in the very first line of my cover letter, said a few prayers, ate a few carrots, and tossed it in the mail.
It was accepted in…May? Yeah, sure, let’s say May of 2003. I still have the voice mail message from my editor. In fact, I’ve saved all the happy voice mail messages from my editors. I like listening to them over and over again. It's an annoying habit of mine that keeps me sane.
The not-so-happy ones are deleted immediately.
John's answer
I signed the contract for Henry back in July 2003 and began working on the thumbnail storyboard in the summer of 2004. The thumbnails, along with character sketches and setting design usually take 3-4 days. I draw with 2B pencils on layout bond paper. The editorial and art departments at Candlewick then take a look and make revisions to the storyboard. Caroline Lawrence at Candlewick put my thumbnail sketches into layout form which made it very easy to draw the final sketches---the layouts show exactly where the text will fall. The sketches take a week or three. I submitted them to Candlewick, where they were put into layouts in their turn. At this point there were a few small revisions (this project went very smoothly---most of the changes were made to the thumbnails).
While I waited for final approval, I did color studies of all the characters and most of the spreads. This helps me to organize my palette and solve any color problems before I begin actual painting. Once the layouts with the final sketches were approved, I began painting in August, transferring the drawings onto Arches 300 lb hot press watercolor paper. I work with Winsor & Newton Designers gouache and Prismacolor pencils for highlights and accents. I paint in an assembly line fashion, first blocking in all the light and shadow with burnt sienna (this is a classical way of painting and gives the illustrations an added richness). Then I add color. First I paint all the background: the sea, then the ship, then the island scenery---before I paint the characters themselves, which I do one at a time: all Henry, all Black Ear, & c., & c. A book has to look as if I painted it all at once, instead of over a period of 3 months. This method makes it possible to maintain consistency throughout.
After the interior is painted, Caroline & I discuss the cover design. Once again I submit thumbnails, then sketches (including title type design), and paint once everything’s approved. The last piece of art was sent to Candlewick in early December 2004.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing it to life?
Carolyn's answer
Once it was accepted, the challenges were pretty much behind me. I had revised it extensively before I sent it to Candlewick, so I only had one more revision to do after it was accepted. Then the quest for the right illustrator began. I knew John Manders was The One as soon as I saw his work. He's just so...piratey. I mean come on, the man owns a parrot. His illustrations brought the whole story to life and made the book an exciting, swashbuckling adventure. And they literally made me laugh out loud. Check out the one of Calico Jack Rabbit admiring his tattoo of a cabbage. The cabbage is inscribed with the name “Beatrix.” John was born to illustrate this book.
John and my editor, Deb Wayshak, made the book’s journey a fun one. I had a blast working on it with them. The e-mails that flew back and forth were often sprinkled with Piratese. What terrific shipmates they were. Writing a sequel is definitely on my To Do List.
Along with a sweet little book about bloodthirsty lambies, of course...
John's answer
I often head to the library when I begin a new book, to gather visual research. Since I’m something of a pirate buff, I already had most of the reference books right here in my studio, so I was ready to draw without so much of the preliminary stage of ‘internalizing,’ when I sketch directly from the reference in order to get a feel for my subject.
Being an illustrator is like being a movie director on steroids: I get to cast all the characters, design the costumes and sets, and stage all the action. I even choose the camera angles. For Henry, I designed many of the characters with actors from seagoing movies in mind—for Black Ear, I cast Robert Newton, who starred in a movie about Blackbeard and unforgettably played Long John Silver in the Disney version of Treasure Island. From the same movie, child actor Bobby Driscoll supplied the look & costume for Henry (with spectacles added!). Jean LeHare is the bunny incarnation of Basil Rathbone in Captain Blood, Calico Jack Rabbit recalls Kirk Douglas in 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea.
I also peopled the crew with individual characters based on real or literary seafarers. There is a suspiciously feminine crew member (the one with abundant blonde curls) named Ann Bunney—based on Ann Bonney, a girl who dressed as a man to serve aboard a pirate ship. Squee-Squeek is a tall, silent Maori bunny who always carries a harpoon in case he sees a white whale. These characters don’t have any lines, but their personalities make the crowd scenes interesting to look at.
The Salty Carrot herself is practically a character in the story. She is a three-masted square-rigger, a caricature of Captain Kidd’s ship, the Adventure Galley—which I embellished with peeling paint, cannonball holes, debris-littered decks and some tastefully-carved bunny mermaids. To help me draw and paint her believably, I bought a model ship at a hobby shop downtown, and spent a day or two gluing the thing together so I could see how a ship looks from different angles and how the shadows fall on her.
"The three-masted square rigger…not so swift and maneuverable as other vessels commandeered by pirates. But she was valued for her intimidating size—350 tons and 110 feet along her main deck…and for her seaworthiness on long voyages." (from The Pirates, Time-Life Books)
The smaller sloop was more effective for raiding and smuggling, but I felt the big square-rigger would be visually funnier—especially when crewed by bunnies.
Cynsational Note
Deborah Wayshak also is the editor of my upcoming YA gothic fantasy novel, Tantalize (Candlewick, 2007).
Cynsational News & Links
Smart Writers Journal: September 2005 offers a listing of writers' retreats and conferences, a back-to-school book round-up, and a special report on censorship by Roxyanne Young. Recommended books include: The Order of the Poison Oak by Brent Hartinger (HarperCollins, 2005); Last Dance on Holladay Street by Elisa Carbone (Knopf, 2005); The Truth About Sparrows by Marian Hale (Henry Holt, 2004); Houdini: World's Greatest Mystery Man and Escape King by Kathleen Krull, illustrated by Eric Velasquez (Walker, 2005); and Kindergarten Rocks! by WF alumnae Katie Davis (Harcourt, 2005).
Congratulations to my husband, author Greg Leitich Smith! His latest novel, Tofu and T. rex (Little Brown, 2005), has been nominated for the 2005-2006 Golden Spur Award for Texas Authors - Intermediate Children's Literature division via the Texas State Reading Association. Surf over to Greg's blog to cheer the good news!
Friday, September 09, 2005
Author Interview: Anastasia Suen on Red Light, Green Light
Red Light, Green Light by Anastasia Suen, illustrated by Ken Wilson-Max (Harcourt, 2005). An upbeat and colorful rhyming introduction to traffic for pre-K. Told from the point of view of a young boy playing with an extensive and augmented toy set. Ages 3-up. Read more of my thoughs on Red Light, Green Light.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
I wrote this book in 1999 when my son was taking driver's ed. As I sat in the passenger seat I was very aware of the signs and vehicles around us. I wrote most of this book as I walked in the early mornings. The words came as the cars drove by and the traffic helicopter flew overhead.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
The first editor I sent this book to rejected it but two months later I sent it out again to a second editor. She called me eight days later with an illustrator in mind for the book, and two weeks after that, she bought it! It all happened very quickly!
Then the editor left the company, and the book sat. Several editors later the book was taken off the shelf and work on the illustrations began. By this time both of my kids were driving, so when it was time for the dedication I wrote: "For my two new drivers; it feels like just minutes ago that you were driving toy cars."
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing it to life?
At this stage of my life I was writing a lot of poetry. At first I wrote this book as a poetry collection about the different types of vehicles on the road, but the market for that didn't open up for me. Once I saw the book as a journey, then it all came together.
The path taken in the book is my husband's commute into the city. I moved a few things around to fit the rhyme, but all in all, it's the same journey. We just wish that our tollway fare was only 20 cents like it is in the book!
Cynsational News & Links
Anastasia Suen: Prolific Non-Fiction Writer for Children by Sue Reichard from suite101.com.
Writing Easy Readers with Anastasia Suen: Workshop Transcript from Verla Kay.
Interview with Tracie Vaughn Zimmer on Sketches From Spy Tree, illustrated by Andrew Glass (Clarion, 2005) from Embracing the Child. See more of my thoughts on Sketches From Spy Tree.
Blogs I've been loving lately include Big A little a: children's books, writing, and life from Kelly Herold. Her recent posts include thoughts on Project Mulberry by Linda Sue Park (Clarion, 2005).
See also You Know You Want To Help The Kids: a report from The Divine Miss Pixie Woods AKA author Cecil Castellucci on Colleen Mondo's effort with the Parkview Baptist Church of Baton Rouge to put requested titles in the hands of kids affected by Katrina. Includes mailing information and links to wishlists of books and games available for purchase from Amazon.com. My picks: Jazzy Miz Mozetta by Brenda C. Roberts, illustrated by Frank Morrison (FSG, 2004); Going North by Janice N. Harrington, illustrated by James Lagarrigue (FSG, 2004); Code Talker: A Novel About The Navajo Marines of World War II by Joseph Bruchac (Dial, 2005); Whales on Stilts by M.T. Anderson (Harcourt, 2005)(2 copies).
Resources To Help Understand and Explain Natural Disasters from the Austin Public Library. Includes links to Web sites and both fiction and non-fiction youth bibliographies. Yesterday I corresponded with the APL head children's librarian who noted that locally there is a need for books of Africian American authors, illustrators, and themes as well as children's books and reference materials.
Cynsational News & Links
Anastasia Suen: Prolific Non-Fiction Writer for Children by Sue Reichard from suite101.com.
Writing Easy Readers with Anastasia Suen: Workshop Transcript from Verla Kay.
Interview with Tracie Vaughn Zimmer on Sketches From Spy Tree, illustrated by Andrew Glass (Clarion, 2005) from Embracing the Child. See more of my thoughts on Sketches From Spy Tree.
Blogs I've been loving lately include Big A little a: children's books, writing, and life from Kelly Herold. Her recent posts include thoughts on Project Mulberry by Linda Sue Park (Clarion, 2005).
See also You Know You Want To Help The Kids: a report from The Divine Miss Pixie Woods AKA author Cecil Castellucci on Colleen Mondo's effort with the Parkview Baptist Church of Baton Rouge to put requested titles in the hands of kids affected by Katrina. Includes mailing information and links to wishlists of books and games available for purchase from Amazon.com. My picks: Jazzy Miz Mozetta by Brenda C. Roberts, illustrated by Frank Morrison (FSG, 2004); Going North by Janice N. Harrington, illustrated by James Lagarrigue (FSG, 2004); Code Talker: A Novel About The Navajo Marines of World War II by Joseph Bruchac (Dial, 2005); Whales on Stilts by M.T. Anderson (Harcourt, 2005)(2 copies).
Resources To Help Understand and Explain Natural Disasters from the Austin Public Library. Includes links to Web sites and both fiction and non-fiction youth bibliographies. Yesterday I corresponded with the APL head children's librarian who noted that locally there is a need for books of Africian American authors, illustrators, and themes as well as children's books and reference materials.
Thursday, September 08, 2005
Author Interview: Rosemary Graham on Thou Shalt Not Dump The Skater Dude (And Other Commandments I Have Broken)
Thou Shalt Not Dump The Skater Dude (And Other Commandments I Have Broken) by Rosemary Graham (Viking, 2005). Kelsey is trying to adjust to the sudden move to the west coast. She is excited at the prospect of a new school (preferably of her own choosing). Her divorced parents seem to be getting along a lot (too much?) better. And then, boom! A hand reaches out to her as if from on high. It's supersmooth C.J. Logan, California "It" Boy AKA "The Skater Dude." At his side, she's in--into the hottest social scene, in somebody's arms. But "side" is the key word there, as in "sidelines." How long can Kelsey endure of C. J.'s accessory, and what if she dares to do the unthinkable? What if she dumps The Skater Dude? Ages 12-up. Read an excerpt. See more of my thoughts on Thou Shalt Not...
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Kelsey. Kelsey came to life in my first novel, My Not-So-Terrible Time at the Hippie Hotel (Viking, 2003; Puffin, 2005). She was the pretty, happy girl envied by the narrator, Tracy. When I first introduced Kelsey in that book, I saw her much in the same way Tracy did, as the stereotypical California Girl-blonde, beautiful, and not-so-brainy. The fact that Kelsey's family was rich made her life seem that much more charmed-and easy-to Tracy (and to me). But at the crisis point in Hippie Hotel, when Tracy lashed out at Kelsey, Kelsey revealed herself to be a much more substantial person than people (including her creator) had assumed. I wanted to get to know that more substantial person I glimpsed in the attic of the Hippie Hotel.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
Oy. I wrote the first scene with Kelsey in November of 2001, while my agent was submitting Hippie Hotel to publishers. I wrote the last seen in November of 2004. Now, I did work on edits for Hippie Hotel during that time, and I do have a full-time job teaching college English, but it pretty much took me three years to figure this one out. (Compared with the one year it took me to write Hippie Hotel.) The first draft of Skater Dude, which was called Hey, You Never Know, sucked. Big time. Despite my intentions, I didn't really get beneath the surface of Kelsey. Portions of that book read as satire, like I was more interested in making fun of her than I was in understanding her.
So I wounded her.
This was a huge breakthrough. Once I realized how truly vulnerable she was (as we all are), I was able to see inside this rich, pretty, and sometimes happy girl. Only after wounding her was I able to look at the world through her eyes rather than looking at her through the world's eyes.
The other major "event" was working with my editor, Joy Peskin, at Viking. I was halfway through a new draft of what I was then calling "Kelsey's Book" when Viking bought it and Joy became my editor. Joy was tremendously helpful. She helped me find the story by urging me to follow Kelsey's lead. Rather than superimposing a plot I thought would be "interesting," I realized that the process of being wounded and surviving was the plot. Finally, "Kelsey's Book" was truly Kelsey's.
Cynsational News & Links
Author Talk with Rosemary Graham from Teenreads.com. May 2003.
An Interview with Caldecott Winning Illustrator David Macaulay by Brigid Barrett from the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance.
An Outsider, Out of the Shadows: An Interview with S.E. Hinton from The New York Times.
KidMagWriters.com: September Update: features editor interview with Susan Buckley of Appleseeds; an article on query letters; an article on craft writing; and an article on poetry. See also Inside Markets for the magazine market update.
Thanks to Liz B at A Chair, A Fireplace and a Tea Cozy for mentioning my site, blog, and recent author interview with D.L. Garfinkle!
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
Kelsey. Kelsey came to life in my first novel, My Not-So-Terrible Time at the Hippie Hotel (Viking, 2003; Puffin, 2005). She was the pretty, happy girl envied by the narrator, Tracy. When I first introduced Kelsey in that book, I saw her much in the same way Tracy did, as the stereotypical California Girl-blonde, beautiful, and not-so-brainy. The fact that Kelsey's family was rich made her life seem that much more charmed-and easy-to Tracy (and to me). But at the crisis point in Hippie Hotel, when Tracy lashed out at Kelsey, Kelsey revealed herself to be a much more substantial person than people (including her creator) had assumed. I wanted to get to know that more substantial person I glimpsed in the attic of the Hippie Hotel.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
Oy. I wrote the first scene with Kelsey in November of 2001, while my agent was submitting Hippie Hotel to publishers. I wrote the last seen in November of 2004. Now, I did work on edits for Hippie Hotel during that time, and I do have a full-time job teaching college English, but it pretty much took me three years to figure this one out. (Compared with the one year it took me to write Hippie Hotel.) The first draft of Skater Dude, which was called Hey, You Never Know, sucked. Big time. Despite my intentions, I didn't really get beneath the surface of Kelsey. Portions of that book read as satire, like I was more interested in making fun of her than I was in understanding her.
So I wounded her.
This was a huge breakthrough. Once I realized how truly vulnerable she was (as we all are), I was able to see inside this rich, pretty, and sometimes happy girl. Only after wounding her was I able to look at the world through her eyes rather than looking at her through the world's eyes.
The other major "event" was working with my editor, Joy Peskin, at Viking. I was halfway through a new draft of what I was then calling "Kelsey's Book" when Viking bought it and Joy became my editor. Joy was tremendously helpful. She helped me find the story by urging me to follow Kelsey's lead. Rather than superimposing a plot I thought would be "interesting," I realized that the process of being wounded and surviving was the plot. Finally, "Kelsey's Book" was truly Kelsey's.
Cynsational News & Links
Author Talk with Rosemary Graham from Teenreads.com. May 2003.
An Interview with Caldecott Winning Illustrator David Macaulay by Brigid Barrett from the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance.
An Outsider, Out of the Shadows: An Interview with S.E. Hinton from The New York Times.
KidMagWriters.com: September Update: features editor interview with Susan Buckley of Appleseeds; an article on query letters; an article on craft writing; and an article on poetry. See also Inside Markets for the magazine market update.
Thanks to Liz B at A Chair, A Fireplace and a Tea Cozy for mentioning my site, blog, and recent author interview with D.L. Garfinkle!
Wednesday, September 07, 2005
Author Update: Alex Flinn
Alex Flinn is an award-winning young adult author. Her books include: Breathing Underwater (HarperCollins, 2001); Breaking Point (HarperCollins, 2002); Nothing To Lose by Alex Flinn (HarperCollins, 2004); and Fade To Black (HarperCollins, 2005). Alex is a former attorney who lives in a suburb of Miami.
We last visited Alex in 2003 when she shared the Story Behind the Story of Breaking Point and the Story Behind The Story of Breathing Underwater. (Note: my site is being redesigned in fall 2005, so if these links don't work, simply check the site guide and/or search engine).
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
Since we last chatted, I've published two new books, Nothing to Lose and Fade to Black. Nothing to Lose is about Michael, who runs away with the carnival to escape his mother's abusive marriage, then returns a year later to find himself involved in a murder trial. It was chosen a Booklist Top-10 Youth Mystery and is new in paperback. Fade to Black, my newest, is about a hate crime against an HIV-positive student, told in three viewpoints, victim, witness, and suspect. You can find discussion guides for both at my website, www.alexflinn.com.
Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
Diva will be released in Fall, 2006. It's a companion to Breathing Underwater and deals with Caitlin, who has broken up with Nick and is going to a performing arts high school to study voice (something I did myself in high school). While it deals with Caitlin's healing from her relationship with Nick, and also her bizarre relationship with her mother, it is also a funny, touching, coming-of-age story. At least I hope so.
I also have two short stories in upcoming anthologies, What Are You Afraid Of? edited by Donald Gallo (I am particularly proud of this story, both because it is a great story about an agoraphobic trapped in his parents' home and because it was the inspiration for the anthology itself) and Twice Told, stories based on the art of Scott Hunt. Both will be released in 2006.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
Fade to Black was written because I really enjoy experimenting with viewpoint, so I thought it would be interesting to write a book in several different viewpoints, with each character having a different take on what happened. There's a saying that a villain is a hero in his own story. In Fade, there is a character who might be considered a villain and one who might be considered a hero. However, I have tried to give each his own voice in a non-judgmental way.
Diva was written in response to hundreds of requests I received for a sequel to Breathing Underwater, and also to many conversations I had with girls about relationships in high school. I realized that a lot of girls stay in relationships like the one in Breathing Underwater because they feel they have to have a boyfriend. I wanted to write a book about Caitlin finding something of her own. I think this is a book I would have enjoyed as a teen. It's a little different from my other books, because it's not about violence, but it's still "realistic fiction" in that it is about things that many teens are dealing with.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
Sandpiper by Ellen Wittlinger (Simon & Schuster, 2005). Sandpiper is, to me, a book that every teenage girl should read because it deals with a young woman who has tried and failed to find a relationship through sex. I see a lot of young girls going down this same destructive path. But what makes Sandpiper more than a problem novel is the great characters -- particularly Sandpiper's relationship with her mother and sister.
True Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet by Lola Douglas (Razorbill, 2005). It's about a child star who, after an overdose and rehab, is sent to live as a normal teen in a small Indiana town. I love this sort of behind-the-scenes Hollywood thing, so I thought this was a lot of fun.
A Room on Lorelei Street by Mary E. Pearson (Henry Holt, 2005). This is about Zoe, who has been taking care of her alcoholic mother for years, then decides to move out. It's an intense novel with beautiful prose. While similar in tone to Margaret Haddix's Don't You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey (which I also liked) and Heather Quarles' A Room Near Here, it is unusual in that it offers no easy solutions to a problem many unseen teens face.
I update my website fairly regularly with books I've been reading. Visit www.alexflinn.com and click on "Favorite Books."
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
I just finished Diva, so I'd like to start something new. I have some ideas, but nothing engraved in granite yet.
Cynsational Notes
See my recent author interview with Mary E. Pearson on A Room On Lorelei Street (Henry Holt, 2005).
Cynsational News & Links
Award-Winning Author Elizabeth Partridge by Sue Reichard from suite101.com. Elizabeth's books include Dorthea Lange: A Visual Life (Smithsonian, 1993), Clara and the Hoodoo Man (Dutton, 1996), and This Land Was Made For You and Me (Viking 2002), a biography of singer/songwriter Woody Guthrie (Viking, 2002) that won the Boston Horn Book Award. Elizabeth's latest biography is" John Lennon: All I Want is the Truth (Viking, 2005). See also Elizabeth Partridge's Web site. September 2005.
The Purpose of Literature -- and Who Cares? by Natalie Babbitt from the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance. Presented at The Ann Carroll Moore Lecture at the New York Public Library, 1989. See also "We're All Mad Here" by Natalie Babbit from the NCBLA. Presented as the Zena Sutherland Lecture; Chicago, June 30, 2004.
The Texas Library Association's Disaster Relief Fund "has been expanded to collect donations for libraries in the Gulf Coast area as well as for libraries providing support for the evacuees. One hundred percent of your donation will be sent to the state library agency or library association in the state of your choice. TLA is also developing a plan to accept book donations..." See TLA Web site for more information.
We last visited Alex in 2003 when she shared the Story Behind the Story of Breaking Point and the Story Behind The Story of Breathing Underwater. (Note: my site is being redesigned in fall 2005, so if these links don't work, simply check the site guide and/or search engine).
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
Since we last chatted, I've published two new books, Nothing to Lose and Fade to Black. Nothing to Lose is about Michael, who runs away with the carnival to escape his mother's abusive marriage, then returns a year later to find himself involved in a murder trial. It was chosen a Booklist Top-10 Youth Mystery and is new in paperback. Fade to Black, my newest, is about a hate crime against an HIV-positive student, told in three viewpoints, victim, witness, and suspect. You can find discussion guides for both at my website, www.alexflinn.com.
Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
Diva will be released in Fall, 2006. It's a companion to Breathing Underwater and deals with Caitlin, who has broken up with Nick and is going to a performing arts high school to study voice (something I did myself in high school). While it deals with Caitlin's healing from her relationship with Nick, and also her bizarre relationship with her mother, it is also a funny, touching, coming-of-age story. At least I hope so.
I also have two short stories in upcoming anthologies, What Are You Afraid Of? edited by Donald Gallo (I am particularly proud of this story, both because it is a great story about an agoraphobic trapped in his parents' home and because it was the inspiration for the anthology itself) and Twice Told, stories based on the art of Scott Hunt. Both will be released in 2006.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
Fade to Black was written because I really enjoy experimenting with viewpoint, so I thought it would be interesting to write a book in several different viewpoints, with each character having a different take on what happened. There's a saying that a villain is a hero in his own story. In Fade, there is a character who might be considered a villain and one who might be considered a hero. However, I have tried to give each his own voice in a non-judgmental way.
Diva was written in response to hundreds of requests I received for a sequel to Breathing Underwater, and also to many conversations I had with girls about relationships in high school. I realized that a lot of girls stay in relationships like the one in Breathing Underwater because they feel they have to have a boyfriend. I wanted to write a book about Caitlin finding something of her own. I think this is a book I would have enjoyed as a teen. It's a little different from my other books, because it's not about violence, but it's still "realistic fiction" in that it is about things that many teens are dealing with.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
Sandpiper by Ellen Wittlinger (Simon & Schuster, 2005). Sandpiper is, to me, a book that every teenage girl should read because it deals with a young woman who has tried and failed to find a relationship through sex. I see a lot of young girls going down this same destructive path. But what makes Sandpiper more than a problem novel is the great characters -- particularly Sandpiper's relationship with her mother and sister.
True Confessions of a Hollywood Starlet by Lola Douglas (Razorbill, 2005). It's about a child star who, after an overdose and rehab, is sent to live as a normal teen in a small Indiana town. I love this sort of behind-the-scenes Hollywood thing, so I thought this was a lot of fun.
A Room on Lorelei Street by Mary E. Pearson (Henry Holt, 2005). This is about Zoe, who has been taking care of her alcoholic mother for years, then decides to move out. It's an intense novel with beautiful prose. While similar in tone to Margaret Haddix's Don't You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey (which I also liked) and Heather Quarles' A Room Near Here, it is unusual in that it offers no easy solutions to a problem many unseen teens face.
I update my website fairly regularly with books I've been reading. Visit www.alexflinn.com and click on "Favorite Books."
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
I just finished Diva, so I'd like to start something new. I have some ideas, but nothing engraved in granite yet.
Cynsational Notes
See my recent author interview with Mary E. Pearson on A Room On Lorelei Street (Henry Holt, 2005).
Cynsational News & Links
Award-Winning Author Elizabeth Partridge by Sue Reichard from suite101.com. Elizabeth's books include Dorthea Lange: A Visual Life (Smithsonian, 1993), Clara and the Hoodoo Man (Dutton, 1996), and This Land Was Made For You and Me (Viking 2002), a biography of singer/songwriter Woody Guthrie (Viking, 2002) that won the Boston Horn Book Award. Elizabeth's latest biography is" John Lennon: All I Want is the Truth (Viking, 2005). See also Elizabeth Partridge's Web site. September 2005.
The Purpose of Literature -- and Who Cares? by Natalie Babbitt from the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance. Presented at The Ann Carroll Moore Lecture at the New York Public Library, 1989. See also "We're All Mad Here" by Natalie Babbit from the NCBLA. Presented as the Zena Sutherland Lecture; Chicago, June 30, 2004.
The Texas Library Association's Disaster Relief Fund "has been expanded to collect donations for libraries in the Gulf Coast area as well as for libraries providing support for the evacuees. One hundred percent of your donation will be sent to the state library agency or library association in the state of your choice. TLA is also developing a plan to accept book donations..." See TLA Web site for more information.
Tuesday, September 06, 2005
Author Interview: Lori M. Carlson on Red Hot Salsa
Red Hot Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Being Young And Latino in the United States edited by Lori M. Carlson, introduction by Oscar Hijuelos (Henry Holt, 2005). From the anthologist who brought us Cool Salsa, this new collection reaches farther and deeper, chronicling the perspective of young Latinos today. Includes helpful glossary and biographical notes. Featured poets include Gary Soto. Ages 12-up. See more of my thoughts on Red Hot Salsa.
What was your inspiration for Red Hot Salsa?
Eleven years ago I published Cool Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Growing up Latino in the U.S. This poetry anthology took the publishing world by surprise. Not only was it a landmark book--a book of its type had never been done before--but it was critically acclaimed and commercially successful. I have been told by librarians that it is now considered "a classic." And yet Cool Salsa, for all the enthusiasm and appreciation it generated, never really made, let's say, a splash. By that I mean, it wasn't one of those books that was on the radar in the media. It found its way quietly to its readers because the Latino population in those years wasn't on the radar of the nation's media, either.
I had been asked to do a companion volume to Cool Salsa by my editor but I never felt compelled to do so, because I don't like to repeat my book efforts. And yet, a few years ago, I suddenly realized that 10 years seemed like a publishing anniversary of sorts. And so much had changed in the U.S. vis a vis the Latino population--in a good and inspiring way.
One day, while riding the bus down Broadway, I was inspired to do Red Hot Salsa. I experienced an epiphany. Cool Salsa needed a follow-up.
What was the timeline between spark and publication? And what were the major events along the way?
The timeline was just over a year. Red Hot Salsa, unlike Cool Salsa, was formed in a very timely fashion. First, because I had a model from which to work and secondly I had a new tool in my office: the internet.
What made Cool Salsa so hard to create was finding the poets and getting their permission to include their work. I remember one poet in particular whom I just couldn't locate. I had discovered a beautiful poem by him--of a somewhat religious nature--in an obscure little magazine. I don't remember the name of the publication, but it looked as if it had been published on a shoestring budget. Anyway, after months and months of trying to locate him, I did! It turned out that he was a penitente in New Mexico. And he decided not to let me include the poem because he felt he couldn't enter into any kind of "commercial" exchange. Fascinating. I still have the poem in a file...and I read it occasionally when I am asked to speak.
Red Hot Salsa emerged in a very different way. I found people quickly online. I found the poems by tootling around in musty libraries, magazines, vanity publications, self-published journals, little bookshops, churches, language institutions, my old folders that contain excerpts, poems, and stories from years of research--I love research--and even friends' homes (personal libraries can offer up a plethora of literary delights).
What were the challenges in bringing the anthology to life?
Unlike writing a novel--a challenge that both of us have experienced--editing a collection of bilingual poetry is more about sensibility. Of course, there are challenges; particularly in the art of translation. (Translating poetry requires precision of thought as well as faithfulness in one's own interpretive and writing skills. And I might do six to ten versions of one poem before I settle on the final translation.)
But specifically, regarding Red Hot Salsa, I would say the major challenge to me as the editor of the book was psychological in nature. I was concerned that people who so loved Cool Salsa would not embrace the "second" volume as much. And so I put myself through a very, very rigorous process of selection. I agonized over the choices, constantly second-guessing myself and my instincts. I thought--and there is no better way of saying this than by simply being blunt--that the critics were going to be tough on me because Red Hot Salsa was a follow-up. Cool Salsa got stars from every single major publication that reviewed it. While I know that the quality of the poetry I chose for Cool Salsa is part of the reason for the stars, the other part is simply "the novelty" or invention of something that hadn't been done before.
But I am very grateful to the reviewers of Red Hot Salsa, as they have been very positive about the volume. And I did get a star--from School Library Journal--which just thrilled me. Really, thrilled me.
Cynsational News & Links
An Interview with Kathianne M. Kowalski from Northern Ohio SCBWI. "Kathi is a prolific writer with over 375 articles and stories to her credit. Her list of 17 books for young people includes titles such as: Order in the Court: A look at the Judicial Branch (Lerner, 2004), The Everything Kid's Nature Book (Adams Media, 2000), and Global Warming (Marshall Cavendish, 2004). Her topics range from political science to space science to alternative medicine."
Pooja Makhijani offers a middle/high school teacher's guide and a reading group guide for her anthology, Under Her Skin: How Girls Experience Race in America (Seal Press, 2004). Perfect for middle and high school literature classes.
What was your inspiration for Red Hot Salsa?
Eleven years ago I published Cool Salsa: Bilingual Poems on Growing up Latino in the U.S. This poetry anthology took the publishing world by surprise. Not only was it a landmark book--a book of its type had never been done before--but it was critically acclaimed and commercially successful. I have been told by librarians that it is now considered "a classic." And yet Cool Salsa, for all the enthusiasm and appreciation it generated, never really made, let's say, a splash. By that I mean, it wasn't one of those books that was on the radar in the media. It found its way quietly to its readers because the Latino population in those years wasn't on the radar of the nation's media, either.
I had been asked to do a companion volume to Cool Salsa by my editor but I never felt compelled to do so, because I don't like to repeat my book efforts. And yet, a few years ago, I suddenly realized that 10 years seemed like a publishing anniversary of sorts. And so much had changed in the U.S. vis a vis the Latino population--in a good and inspiring way.
One day, while riding the bus down Broadway, I was inspired to do Red Hot Salsa. I experienced an epiphany. Cool Salsa needed a follow-up.
What was the timeline between spark and publication? And what were the major events along the way?
The timeline was just over a year. Red Hot Salsa, unlike Cool Salsa, was formed in a very timely fashion. First, because I had a model from which to work and secondly I had a new tool in my office: the internet.
What made Cool Salsa so hard to create was finding the poets and getting their permission to include their work. I remember one poet in particular whom I just couldn't locate. I had discovered a beautiful poem by him--of a somewhat religious nature--in an obscure little magazine. I don't remember the name of the publication, but it looked as if it had been published on a shoestring budget. Anyway, after months and months of trying to locate him, I did! It turned out that he was a penitente in New Mexico. And he decided not to let me include the poem because he felt he couldn't enter into any kind of "commercial" exchange. Fascinating. I still have the poem in a file...and I read it occasionally when I am asked to speak.
Red Hot Salsa emerged in a very different way. I found people quickly online. I found the poems by tootling around in musty libraries, magazines, vanity publications, self-published journals, little bookshops, churches, language institutions, my old folders that contain excerpts, poems, and stories from years of research--I love research--and even friends' homes (personal libraries can offer up a plethora of literary delights).
What were the challenges in bringing the anthology to life?
Unlike writing a novel--a challenge that both of us have experienced--editing a collection of bilingual poetry is more about sensibility. Of course, there are challenges; particularly in the art of translation. (Translating poetry requires precision of thought as well as faithfulness in one's own interpretive and writing skills. And I might do six to ten versions of one poem before I settle on the final translation.)
But specifically, regarding Red Hot Salsa, I would say the major challenge to me as the editor of the book was psychological in nature. I was concerned that people who so loved Cool Salsa would not embrace the "second" volume as much. And so I put myself through a very, very rigorous process of selection. I agonized over the choices, constantly second-guessing myself and my instincts. I thought--and there is no better way of saying this than by simply being blunt--that the critics were going to be tough on me because Red Hot Salsa was a follow-up. Cool Salsa got stars from every single major publication that reviewed it. While I know that the quality of the poetry I chose for Cool Salsa is part of the reason for the stars, the other part is simply "the novelty" or invention of something that hadn't been done before.
But I am very grateful to the reviewers of Red Hot Salsa, as they have been very positive about the volume. And I did get a star--from School Library Journal--which just thrilled me. Really, thrilled me.
Cynsational News & Links
An Interview with Kathianne M. Kowalski from Northern Ohio SCBWI. "Kathi is a prolific writer with over 375 articles and stories to her credit. Her list of 17 books for young people includes titles such as: Order in the Court: A look at the Judicial Branch (Lerner, 2004), The Everything Kid's Nature Book (Adams Media, 2000), and Global Warming (Marshall Cavendish, 2004). Her topics range from political science to space science to alternative medicine."
Pooja Makhijani offers a middle/high school teacher's guide and a reading group guide for her anthology, Under Her Skin: How Girls Experience Race in America (Seal Press, 2004). Perfect for middle and high school literature classes.
Authors April Pulley Sayre and Jeffrey P. Sayre Launch Children's Media Professionals' Forum
What is CMP Forum?
Children's Media Professionals' Forum (CMP Forum) is an online community where media specialists, booksellers, authors, illustrators, agents, educational consultants, publishing industry professionals and television producers can have targeted, professional, friendly discussions of ideas, problems, and solutions for creating, packaging and marketing children's content. It'’s a place where new media minds--people interested in using new technologies to spread content--can gather and discuss the issues that matter most to them today.
What will we find on CMP Forum?
A meeting place for media specialists, publishing industry professionals, and educational consultants involved in children'’s media;
a meeting place for authors, illustrators, and producers of all children's genres;
featured authors, illustrators, and media producers who share the stories behind their work and respond to questions about their projects;
a community of colleagues where you can post questions or help answer questions;
fresh information on new books and new media;
frank, professional discussion on the state of the children's media market;
discussions of new media such as ebooks, DVDs, HD Video programming, website creation;
listings of authors, illustrators, and educational consultants who visit schools, libraries, and stores;
a marketplace subforum for job postings in the publishing industry, to list work-related items you have for sale, to post a link to your resume, to learn of editors accepting manuscripts and producers looking for television programming ideas;
ideas for marketing, sales, and promotional events;
links to research that can help justify funds and information to help satisfy mandates.
Is this another listserve?
No. Listserves, although wonderfully friendly and helpful, are a blunt instrument. They throw lots of information at you and you have to sift through. It's a process that devours time. This forum is organized into threads that act as living chapters--—places for discussion about grants, books, authors, computer problems, and so on. The site also includes a marketplace where you can advertise your services, request paid services, or ask for volunteer help from other media professionals. You visit the forum which lives on a website and you read the threads you want when you want.
Does it cost to join CMP Forum?
No. It is free to join and participate in Children'’s Media Professionals Forum. The only paid part of the site is the marketplace section where, for an annual fee of $35, members can post as many listings as they wish. This small, annual fee helps support the cost of running the community. Of course, all members can visit and read the marketplace postings whenever they like, for no cost. The annual fee is charged only to those members who wish to post their own service, item for sale, or job announcement.
Why create CMP Forum?
Because more than ever people who care about the quality of the content that reaches children need help. The challenges of presenting fresh, relevant content, understanding new media, finding grants, creating storytimes, marketing books, working with editors, working with authors and illustrators, teaching writing, presenting talks, setting up promotional events, and programming new media productions are complex.
Who is behind this forum?
In essence, the members will run the forum by bringing quality discussion to it. As the community grows, professional volunteers in each area will moderate selected subforums. Husband-and-wife team April Pulley Sayre and Jeffrey P. Sayre, authors of One is a Snail, Ten is a Crab (Candlewick, 2003) and 50 other children's books are subsidizing and running the forum with the help of their many colleagues who care about great content for children. The forum will be hosted via April'’s website.
How do we reach CMP Forum?
It's easy! Just go to www.aprilsayre.com and click on the CMP Forum link. You can always read forum postings as an anonymous guest. But, we encourage you to take a few minutes and become a member. As a member, you'’ll have the ability to not only read postings, but join in, creating your own threads or adding to discussion in on-going threads!
Cynsational News & Links
Hurricane Katrina Relief Efforts from The Children's Book Council. See also relief-related information for national SCBWI members from author Chris Barton and news of SCBWI Austin's book drive from author Varian Johnson.
"Be Part Of My Next Book--Nominate An Environmental Hero!" a poll on "individuals and organizations who have been making a difference in any environment-related issues" from author Tanya Lee Stone's LiveJournal. She asks who "deserves to have an environmental spotlight shone on them for their efforts?" Tanya offers suggestions to get you started and says that if you nominate her perfect enviro-hero, you'll be thanked in the acknowledgements.
Children's Media Professionals' Forum (CMP Forum) is an online community where media specialists, booksellers, authors, illustrators, agents, educational consultants, publishing industry professionals and television producers can have targeted, professional, friendly discussions of ideas, problems, and solutions for creating, packaging and marketing children's content. It'’s a place where new media minds--people interested in using new technologies to spread content--can gather and discuss the issues that matter most to them today.
What will we find on CMP Forum?
A meeting place for media specialists, publishing industry professionals, and educational consultants involved in children'’s media;
a meeting place for authors, illustrators, and producers of all children's genres;
featured authors, illustrators, and media producers who share the stories behind their work and respond to questions about their projects;
a community of colleagues where you can post questions or help answer questions;
fresh information on new books and new media;
frank, professional discussion on the state of the children's media market;
discussions of new media such as ebooks, DVDs, HD Video programming, website creation;
listings of authors, illustrators, and educational consultants who visit schools, libraries, and stores;
a marketplace subforum for job postings in the publishing industry, to list work-related items you have for sale, to post a link to your resume, to learn of editors accepting manuscripts and producers looking for television programming ideas;
ideas for marketing, sales, and promotional events;
links to research that can help justify funds and information to help satisfy mandates.
Is this another listserve?
No. Listserves, although wonderfully friendly and helpful, are a blunt instrument. They throw lots of information at you and you have to sift through. It's a process that devours time. This forum is organized into threads that act as living chapters--—places for discussion about grants, books, authors, computer problems, and so on. The site also includes a marketplace where you can advertise your services, request paid services, or ask for volunteer help from other media professionals. You visit the forum which lives on a website and you read the threads you want when you want.
Does it cost to join CMP Forum?
No. It is free to join and participate in Children'’s Media Professionals Forum. The only paid part of the site is the marketplace section where, for an annual fee of $35, members can post as many listings as they wish. This small, annual fee helps support the cost of running the community. Of course, all members can visit and read the marketplace postings whenever they like, for no cost. The annual fee is charged only to those members who wish to post their own service, item for sale, or job announcement.
Why create CMP Forum?
Because more than ever people who care about the quality of the content that reaches children need help. The challenges of presenting fresh, relevant content, understanding new media, finding grants, creating storytimes, marketing books, working with editors, working with authors and illustrators, teaching writing, presenting talks, setting up promotional events, and programming new media productions are complex.
Who is behind this forum?
In essence, the members will run the forum by bringing quality discussion to it. As the community grows, professional volunteers in each area will moderate selected subforums. Husband-and-wife team April Pulley Sayre and Jeffrey P. Sayre, authors of One is a Snail, Ten is a Crab (Candlewick, 2003) and 50 other children's books are subsidizing and running the forum with the help of their many colleagues who care about great content for children. The forum will be hosted via April'’s website.
How do we reach CMP Forum?
It's easy! Just go to www.aprilsayre.com and click on the CMP Forum link. You can always read forum postings as an anonymous guest. But, we encourage you to take a few minutes and become a member. As a member, you'’ll have the ability to not only read postings, but join in, creating your own threads or adding to discussion in on-going threads!
Cynsational News & Links
Hurricane Katrina Relief Efforts from The Children's Book Council. See also relief-related information for national SCBWI members from author Chris Barton and news of SCBWI Austin's book drive from author Varian Johnson.
"Be Part Of My Next Book--Nominate An Environmental Hero!" a poll on "individuals and organizations who have been making a difference in any environment-related issues" from author Tanya Lee Stone's LiveJournal. She asks who "deserves to have an environmental spotlight shone on them for their efforts?" Tanya offers suggestions to get you started and says that if you nominate her perfect enviro-hero, you'll be thanked in the acknowledgements.
Monday, September 05, 2005
Author Interview: Joseph Bruchac on Code Talker: A Novel About The Navajo Marines of World War II
Code Talker: A Novel About The Navajo Marines of World War II by Joseph Bruchac (Dial, 2005). From the catalog copy: "Throughout World War II, in the conflict fought against Japan, Navajo code talkers were a crucial part of the effort, sending messages back and forth in an unbreakable code that used their native language. They braved some of the heaviest fighting of the war, and with their code, they saved countless American lives. Yet their story remained classified for more than twenty years. But now Joseph Bruchac brings their stories to life for young adults through the riveting fictional tale of Ned Begay, a sixteen-year-old Navajo boy who becomes a code talker. His grueling journey is eye-opening and inspiring. This deeply affecting novel honors all of those young men, like Ned, who dared to serve, and it honors the culture and language of the Navajo Indians."
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
I think the thing that inspired me most about the story of the Code Talkers was not that it was a war story or even (important as this aspect of it is) that it is a story that deals with American Indian life in the 20th century.
What most inspired me is that it is a story about the importance of native language and its survival against amazing odds. All the Navajos who became code talkers, using Navajo language in the service of the United States, were sent as children to government boarding schools where they were forbidden to speak anything other than English.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
I first became aware of the the story of the Navajo Code talkers in the early 1970s. It fascinated me then for the reason I've already mentioned. I first thought about doing a story about this more than 20 years ago, but realized I didn't know enough. Over the years I continued to learn, through reading, through friendships with numerous Navajo people (such as Shonto Begay, Luci Tapahonso, Harry Walters, and many others), through travel, more about Navajo history and culture.
I also was fortunate enough to meet a number of men who were code talkers--such as in Carl Gorman, who I met in 1996. In 1998 I was asked by the National Geographic Society to write a book about the Long Walk of the Navajos and the Trail of Tears of the Cherokees and I spent two years in research that resulted not only in Trails of Tears, Paths of Beauty (National Geographic Books, 2000), but four other books--fiction and nonfiction--that deal with Navajo and Cherokee subjects.
In 2001 I was fortunate enough to spend some time with two more Code talkers, Jesse Samuel Smith and Keith Wilson, when we were all in Washington DC doing presentations for the first National Book Fair. Mr. Wilson was even kind enough to read my manuscript in first draft. I'd better stop here because I could go on for pages about the people who helped me along the way. You'll find some of it in my acknowledgments In the back of Code Talker.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing it to life?
The main challenge, I think, was having the patience to wait until I knew enough before I started trying to write the book--while also trying to be flexible and humble enough along the way to keep learning and be ready to correct any missteps I made when they were pointed out to me.
Fortunately, for my research for this story, this period is extensively documented and there are still many living WW II vets, both code talkers and other vets, who were willing and eager to help. Among them was my own uncle, Jim Smith, a marine who survived many of those terrible landings on such islands as Guam and Iwo Jima.
I should also point out that although this might be described as a book "about war" I tried very hard to neither glorify war nor demonize the enemy, but to see it all through Indian eyes, which is a very different way of seeing. War, as the Navajos and many of our other nations understand, injures the spirit. Those who have been to war, victorious or not, have been damaged by it and must find ways to regain their spiritual and emotional balance.
Cynsational News & Links
Joseph Bruchac: We All Have A Story: Q&A in Flagpole by Elizabeth Deroshia. (Includes author photo).
Author Answers with Nancy Castaldo by Debbi Michiko Florence. Nancy's debut picture book is Pizza for the Queen, illustrated by Melisande Potter (Holiday House, 2005). See also my own thoughts on Pizza for the Queen.
Literary Vacations: A Wish List from BCCB. Elements the editors find "tired" in fiction.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
I think the thing that inspired me most about the story of the Code Talkers was not that it was a war story or even (important as this aspect of it is) that it is a story that deals with American Indian life in the 20th century.
What most inspired me is that it is a story about the importance of native language and its survival against amazing odds. All the Navajos who became code talkers, using Navajo language in the service of the United States, were sent as children to government boarding schools where they were forbidden to speak anything other than English.
What was the timeline between spark and publication, and what were the major events along the way?
I first became aware of the the story of the Navajo Code talkers in the early 1970s. It fascinated me then for the reason I've already mentioned. I first thought about doing a story about this more than 20 years ago, but realized I didn't know enough. Over the years I continued to learn, through reading, through friendships with numerous Navajo people (such as Shonto Begay, Luci Tapahonso, Harry Walters, and many others), through travel, more about Navajo history and culture.
I also was fortunate enough to meet a number of men who were code talkers--such as in Carl Gorman, who I met in 1996. In 1998 I was asked by the National Geographic Society to write a book about the Long Walk of the Navajos and the Trail of Tears of the Cherokees and I spent two years in research that resulted not only in Trails of Tears, Paths of Beauty (National Geographic Books, 2000), but four other books--fiction and nonfiction--that deal with Navajo and Cherokee subjects.
In 2001 I was fortunate enough to spend some time with two more Code talkers, Jesse Samuel Smith and Keith Wilson, when we were all in Washington DC doing presentations for the first National Book Fair. Mr. Wilson was even kind enough to read my manuscript in first draft. I'd better stop here because I could go on for pages about the people who helped me along the way. You'll find some of it in my acknowledgments In the back of Code Talker.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing it to life?
The main challenge, I think, was having the patience to wait until I knew enough before I started trying to write the book--while also trying to be flexible and humble enough along the way to keep learning and be ready to correct any missteps I made when they were pointed out to me.
Fortunately, for my research for this story, this period is extensively documented and there are still many living WW II vets, both code talkers and other vets, who were willing and eager to help. Among them was my own uncle, Jim Smith, a marine who survived many of those terrible landings on such islands as Guam and Iwo Jima.
I should also point out that although this might be described as a book "about war" I tried very hard to neither glorify war nor demonize the enemy, but to see it all through Indian eyes, which is a very different way of seeing. War, as the Navajos and many of our other nations understand, injures the spirit. Those who have been to war, victorious or not, have been damaged by it and must find ways to regain their spiritual and emotional balance.
Cynsational News & Links
Joseph Bruchac: We All Have A Story: Q&A in Flagpole by Elizabeth Deroshia. (Includes author photo).
Author Answers with Nancy Castaldo by Debbi Michiko Florence. Nancy's debut picture book is Pizza for the Queen, illustrated by Melisande Potter (Holiday House, 2005). See also my own thoughts on Pizza for the Queen.
Literary Vacations: A Wish List from BCCB. Elements the editors find "tired" in fiction.
Sunday, September 04, 2005
Author Update: Jane Kurtz
I last interviewed author Jane Kurtz in 2002 about her picture book River Friendly, River Wild, illustrated by Neil Brennan (Simon & Schuster, 2000). It was inspired by her own family's experiences surving a devasting flood in Grand Forks. See The Story Behind The Story: Jane Kurtz on River Friendly, River Wild. We'd also recently talked about her writing life, favorite reads, and body of literary trade fiction and resource books in An Interview With Children's Book Author Jane Kurtz. (Note: my site is being redesigned in fall 2005, so if these links don't work, simply check the site guide and/or search engine).
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
I see scary trends in the children's book world around me.
The kinds of things I've been drawn to write about...the Ethiopia of my childhood...stories of kids from Africa now living in the U.S...a fantasy that explores questions about nationalism and where is home?...have gained critical acclaim.
The New Jersey School Library Association recently came up with a list of their "pick of the decade" books for various grade levels, and five of my books were on it--at the kindergarten, second, fourth, and sixth grade levels.
But schools and libraries are in an enormous budget crunch all over the U.S. My editors are telling me that they can't make most picture books work financially, and when I study lists of what is selling, it mostly isn't my kind of book.
I worry a lot about the whole multicultural book scene--and, beause of my own passions--I worry particularly about books that connect with Africa.
The future from where I sit looks grim. One result is that, when I can, I urge people to take the power they do have to loudly speak out for books that matter. Another is that I've started to cling with determination to the deep-down love of writing that sustains me even when the atmosphere around is unremittingly gloomy.
Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
For the first time since the early 1990s, I don't have a picture book under contract. That means my life is all about novel-writing these days. My brother and I spent most of last year working on a fun one, and I'm about to dive into a revision of a more serious one set in ancient Egypt.
I'm not giving up on picture books, though. Since Pulling the Lion's Tail (Simon & Schuster, 1995) is out of print, I've been talking with Yohannes--my friend who moved back to Ethiopia to put books into the hands of Ethiopian kids--about how we might do an Ethopian version with new illustrations in three different languages.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
Since we grew up in Ethiopia without television and movies, my siblings and I sang together all the time. One of our favorites was a boisterous pirate ballad. A year ago in Kansas, my brother [Christopher] (co-author of Only a Pigeon and Water Hole Waiting) and I wandered into a spooky-feeling glade of trees that made us think about that song. My brother asked, "Do you think we could write a story using the slight plot in the ballad?" We were intrigued by the challenge and jumped in to try. I've never laughed so hard and often while writing a book. Now we have to see if an editor likes it as much as we do.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
My main goal is to savor the writing itself--that frustrating, fascinating, messy, infuriating, thrilling process that traipses me endlessly down wrong canyons and--blessedly--up the other side again.
In the past couple of years, I've had the delight of watching Ethiopian kids reading. Kids who've never had a chance to hold a book in their hands before. It has reminded me of just how much in love with books I was as a kid and how glad I am to have had a life of writing them.
Cynsational News & Links
Meet Jane Kurtz: Author, Traveler, Teacher by Sue Reichard from Suite101.com.
Magical Things: An Interview with Julianna Baggott by Nikki Tranter from PopMatters Books.
Three Against That Which Is The Peshtigo School by Kimberly Pauley (YA Books Goddess) from Young Adult Books Central. A review of Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo by Greg Leitich Smith (Little Brown, 2003, 2005). See also Tofu and T. rex by Greg Leitich Smith from Booktalks -- Quick and Simple. (Happy anniversary, Greg!)
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
I see scary trends in the children's book world around me.
The kinds of things I've been drawn to write about...the Ethiopia of my childhood...stories of kids from Africa now living in the U.S...a fantasy that explores questions about nationalism and where is home?...have gained critical acclaim.
The New Jersey School Library Association recently came up with a list of their "pick of the decade" books for various grade levels, and five of my books were on it--at the kindergarten, second, fourth, and sixth grade levels.
But schools and libraries are in an enormous budget crunch all over the U.S. My editors are telling me that they can't make most picture books work financially, and when I study lists of what is selling, it mostly isn't my kind of book.
I worry a lot about the whole multicultural book scene--and, beause of my own passions--I worry particularly about books that connect with Africa.
The future from where I sit looks grim. One result is that, when I can, I urge people to take the power they do have to loudly speak out for books that matter. Another is that I've started to cling with determination to the deep-down love of writing that sustains me even when the atmosphere around is unremittingly gloomy.
Do you have a new/upcoming book(s) to tell us about?
For the first time since the early 1990s, I don't have a picture book under contract. That means my life is all about novel-writing these days. My brother and I spent most of last year working on a fun one, and I'm about to dive into a revision of a more serious one set in ancient Egypt.
I'm not giving up on picture books, though. Since Pulling the Lion's Tail (Simon & Schuster, 1995) is out of print, I've been talking with Yohannes--my friend who moved back to Ethiopia to put books into the hands of Ethiopian kids--about how we might do an Ethopian version with new illustrations in three different languages.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
Since we grew up in Ethiopia without television and movies, my siblings and I sang together all the time. One of our favorites was a boisterous pirate ballad. A year ago in Kansas, my brother [Christopher] (co-author of Only a Pigeon and Water Hole Waiting) and I wandered into a spooky-feeling glade of trees that made us think about that song. My brother asked, "Do you think we could write a story using the slight plot in the ballad?" We were intrigued by the challenge and jumped in to try. I've never laughed so hard and often while writing a book. Now we have to see if an editor likes it as much as we do.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
My main goal is to savor the writing itself--that frustrating, fascinating, messy, infuriating, thrilling process that traipses me endlessly down wrong canyons and--blessedly--up the other side again.
In the past couple of years, I've had the delight of watching Ethiopian kids reading. Kids who've never had a chance to hold a book in their hands before. It has reminded me of just how much in love with books I was as a kid and how glad I am to have had a life of writing them.
Cynsational News & Links
Meet Jane Kurtz: Author, Traveler, Teacher by Sue Reichard from Suite101.com.
Magical Things: An Interview with Julianna Baggott by Nikki Tranter from PopMatters Books.
Three Against That Which Is The Peshtigo School by Kimberly Pauley (YA Books Goddess) from Young Adult Books Central. A review of Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo by Greg Leitich Smith (Little Brown, 2003, 2005). See also Tofu and T. rex by Greg Leitich Smith from Booktalks -- Quick and Simple. (Happy anniversary, Greg!)
Saturday, September 03, 2005
Author Update: Diane Gonzales Bertrand
Author Diane Gonzales Bertrand writes award-winning books for family reading. Even her novels that feature adult characters, such as Sweet Fifteen (1995) and Lessons of the Game (1998), as well as her romantic novel, Close To The Heart (2002), have found a strong readership among teens and senior citizens alike. Her novels for middle school readers, Alicia's Treasure (1995)(PDF file), Trino's Choice (1999)(PDF file), and Trino's Time (2001) were inspired by requests by Texas teachers and librarians who wanted more variety in the literature for their students. She has also published bilingual picture books, Sip, Slurp, Soup, Soup/Caldo, Caldo, Caldo (1997)(PDF file), Family, Familia (1999), The Last Doll (2001), and Uncle Chente's Picnic (2001). Diane's books are published by Arte Publico Press in Houston. She lives in San Antonio.
I last interviewed Diane in March 2002. At that time, she was taking a year off school visits to work on a novel manuscript. That summer, Arte Publico had scheduled the release of an updated reprint of Diane's novel Close To The Heart. See An Interview with Children's and YA Book Author Diane Gonzales Bertrand. (Note: my site is being redesigned in fall 2005, so if this link doesn't work, simply check the site guide and/or search engine).
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
At the American Library Association meeting held in Chicago in late June 2005, I was presented with the Schneider Family Book Award for my book, My Pal Victor (Raven Tree Press, 2004).
This award recognizes a book that depicts a positive look at the disability experience for children. This manuscript was rejected by a variety of publishers before tiny Raven Tree Press in Wisconsin took it, so I was very pleased by the response of the library committee to this story. It is a bilingual book with one of the first Latino characters who is a child with a disability.
Do you have a new book(s) to tell us about?
Three new books are in the process at Arte Publico Press. In Fall 2006, my new novel, The Ruiz Street Kids, will be published. In spring 2007, my first picture book biography, Ricardo's Race will be published. In Spring 2008, another bilingual picture book, We are Cousins/Somos Primos will be out.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
The Ruiz Street Kids celebrates the neighborhood where I spent my childhood. It was a multicultural mix of kids. It's a humorous story, just meant for the readers to enjoy.
Ricardo's Race is the story of Dr. Ricardo Romo, president of the University of Texas at San Antonio. He earned recogition as a runner and after an injury, became an educator. He is also a San Antonio native like me, so I am thrilled to share his inspiring story.
We are Cousins/Somos Primos is a simple book for preschoolers about a group of cousins who explain the relationship they share as family.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
I got a sneak peek at Pat Mora's new picture book about St. Francis of Assisi and a book called Dona Flor (Knopf, October 2005). Beautifully illustrated!
The Meaning of Consuelo by Judith Ortiz Cofer was another favorite YA title I read this sumer.
However, my favorite book for my summer reading was Zorro by Isabel Allende (HarperCollins). I can't remember when I was so charmed by a book.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
I am still being rejected by New York publishers, but the library groups keep me so busy with speaking engagements, I can't dwell on it for long. Lucky for me, Arte Publico is publishing my work, understands my goals, and continues to maintain an excellent reputation for distribution and promotion.
Cynsational News & Links
Meet the Authors and Illustrators: Diane Gonzales Bertrand from Children's Literature. See the Diane Gonzales Bertrand Teacher Resource File from the Internet School Library Media Center. See also Diane Gonzales Bertrand from Arte Publico Press.
Interview with Joanne Yates Russell, Associate Art Director of Random House/Golden Books from childrensillustrators.com.
Writer's Block Begone! by Kimberly Pauley at Young Adult Books Central.
I last interviewed Diane in March 2002. At that time, she was taking a year off school visits to work on a novel manuscript. That summer, Arte Publico had scheduled the release of an updated reprint of Diane's novel Close To The Heart. See An Interview with Children's and YA Book Author Diane Gonzales Bertrand. (Note: my site is being redesigned in fall 2005, so if this link doesn't work, simply check the site guide and/or search engine).
What is new in your writing life since we last chatted?
At the American Library Association meeting held in Chicago in late June 2005, I was presented with the Schneider Family Book Award for my book, My Pal Victor (Raven Tree Press, 2004).
This award recognizes a book that depicts a positive look at the disability experience for children. This manuscript was rejected by a variety of publishers before tiny Raven Tree Press in Wisconsin took it, so I was very pleased by the response of the library committee to this story. It is a bilingual book with one of the first Latino characters who is a child with a disability.
Do you have a new book(s) to tell us about?
Three new books are in the process at Arte Publico Press. In Fall 2006, my new novel, The Ruiz Street Kids, will be published. In spring 2007, my first picture book biography, Ricardo's Race will be published. In Spring 2008, another bilingual picture book, We are Cousins/Somos Primos will be out.
If so, could you give us some insights into how this book(s) came to be?
The Ruiz Street Kids celebrates the neighborhood where I spent my childhood. It was a multicultural mix of kids. It's a humorous story, just meant for the readers to enjoy.
Ricardo's Race is the story of Dr. Ricardo Romo, president of the University of Texas at San Antonio. He earned recogition as a runner and after an injury, became an educator. He is also a San Antonio native like me, so I am thrilled to share his inspiring story.
We are Cousins/Somos Primos is a simple book for preschoolers about a group of cousins who explain the relationship they share as family.
How about children's or YA books that you've read lately? Which are your favorites and why?
I got a sneak peek at Pat Mora's new picture book about St. Francis of Assisi and a book called Dona Flor (Knopf, October 2005). Beautifully illustrated!
The Meaning of Consuelo by Judith Ortiz Cofer was another favorite YA title I read this sumer.
However, my favorite book for my summer reading was Zorro by Isabel Allende (HarperCollins). I can't remember when I was so charmed by a book.
What are your writing goals for the immediate future?
I am still being rejected by New York publishers, but the library groups keep me so busy with speaking engagements, I can't dwell on it for long. Lucky for me, Arte Publico is publishing my work, understands my goals, and continues to maintain an excellent reputation for distribution and promotion.
Cynsational News & Links
Meet the Authors and Illustrators: Diane Gonzales Bertrand from Children's Literature. See the Diane Gonzales Bertrand Teacher Resource File from the Internet School Library Media Center. See also Diane Gonzales Bertrand from Arte Publico Press.
Interview with Joanne Yates Russell, Associate Art Director of Random House/Golden Books from childrensillustrators.com.
Writer's Block Begone! by Kimberly Pauley at Young Adult Books Central.
Seventh Annual Jewish Children's Book Writers' Conference
The Seventh Annual Jewish Children's Book Writers' Conference will take place Sunday, Nov. 20 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the 92nd Street Y at 1395 Lexington Avenue in Manhattan (New York City).
The event is co-sponsored by the 92nd Street Y Buttenwieser Library and the Jewish Book Council. The cost is $80 before Nov. 1, and $95 after Nov. 1. The fee includes a kosher breakfast and lunch.
Featured speakers are editor-in-chief Regina Griffin of Holiday House, editor Jodi Kreitzman of Delacorte Press, marketing and sales director Michael J. Miller of Pitspopany Press, publicist Susan Salzman Raab of Raab Associates, literary agent Rebecca Sherman of Writers House, and production editor Aviva Werner of BabagaNewz magazine.
Author Michelle Edwards, winner of a National Jewish Book Award, will give opening remarks, and the day will include the popular "Query Letter Clinic and First Pages" with the editors, sessions on Sippurim: Israel Books for Kids and the Association of Jewish Libraries' Sydney Taylor Manuscript Competition, and door prizes.
The registration form is available for download (PDF file). Call 212-415-5544 or e-mail library@92y.org for additional information or to request the form by mail. The final registration deadline is Nov. 14. The conference filled up quickly last year, so register early.
Cynsational News & Links
Thanks to author Lisa Yee for complimenting yesterday's author interview with D.L. Garfinkle on Storky: How I Lost My Nickname and Won The Girl (Putnam, 2005)!
"Nonfiction in its Infinite Variety" by Shari Lyle-Soffe, in the Writing Nonfiction section of Writing Tips from the Institute of Children's Literature.
"Children's Writing: Poetry, Plays, Picture Books, and Middle-Grade Novels:" a chat with Sue Alexander from the Institute of Children's Literature. September 2005.
The event is co-sponsored by the 92nd Street Y Buttenwieser Library and the Jewish Book Council. The cost is $80 before Nov. 1, and $95 after Nov. 1. The fee includes a kosher breakfast and lunch.
Featured speakers are editor-in-chief Regina Griffin of Holiday House, editor Jodi Kreitzman of Delacorte Press, marketing and sales director Michael J. Miller of Pitspopany Press, publicist Susan Salzman Raab of Raab Associates, literary agent Rebecca Sherman of Writers House, and production editor Aviva Werner of BabagaNewz magazine.
Author Michelle Edwards, winner of a National Jewish Book Award, will give opening remarks, and the day will include the popular "Query Letter Clinic and First Pages" with the editors, sessions on Sippurim: Israel Books for Kids and the Association of Jewish Libraries' Sydney Taylor Manuscript Competition, and door prizes.
The registration form is available for download (PDF file). Call 212-415-5544 or e-mail library@92y.org for additional information or to request the form by mail. The final registration deadline is Nov. 14. The conference filled up quickly last year, so register early.
Cynsational News & Links
Thanks to author Lisa Yee for complimenting yesterday's author interview with D.L. Garfinkle on Storky: How I Lost My Nickname and Won The Girl (Putnam, 2005)!
"Nonfiction in its Infinite Variety" by Shari Lyle-Soffe, in the Writing Nonfiction section of Writing Tips from the Institute of Children's Literature.
"Children's Writing: Poetry, Plays, Picture Books, and Middle-Grade Novels:" a chat with Sue Alexander from the Institute of Children's Literature. September 2005.
Friday, September 02, 2005
Author Interview: D. L. Garfinkle on Storky: How I Lost My Nickname and Won The Girl
Storky: How I Lost My Nickname and Won The Girl by D.L. Garfinkle (Putnam, 2005). Told in a diary format by high school freshman Michael "Storky" Pomerantz, this sparkling debut novel chronicles its hero (1) befriending a Scrabble geezer, (2) embracing a family that "includes" Mom's boyfriend "Dr. Vermin" and Dad's rotating bimbos delight, (3) landing a first girlfriend (which one?), and (4) finding self-acceptance. It's funny, real, and unapologetically boy-like with a solid heart. Great for avid readers and reluctant ones. Strongest on voice and humor, jam-packed with "life lessons," Storky is a must-read from a novelist to watch. Ages 12-up. Highly recommended. See more of my thoughts on Storky.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
I’ve always been a bookworm. Three novels in particular inspired Storky: Catcher In The Rye, Bridget Jones' Diary, and Anne Tyler’s A Patchwork Planet. All three books have great humor and sweet but misguided characters, which is what I attempted. I tried to capture a strong voice like Salinger had done, the journal format of Bridget Jones' Diary, and A Patchwork Planet’s plot twist in which the main character fails at his goals but realizes they weren’t the right goals for him anyway. Of course, I don’t claim to have succeeded as well as Salinger, Fielding, or Tyler. But their novels inspired me.
Also, I wanted to do more than entertain readers. I didn’t want to write a preachy book, but I didn’t want to write pure fluff either. It took me into my mid-twenties to learn a very important truth: that if people treated me poorly, it was a reflection of their personalities rather than my shortcomings. Storky learns this at the end of the novel. With this lesson, I hope to shave a few years and maybe some therapy sessions off of my teen readers’ learning curve.
What was the timeline between spark and publication and what were the major events along the way?
Sigh. Would you believe 21 years? Okay, but from starting to write in a dedicated manner to getting an offer from Putnam was “only” four years, so I guess that’s not too bad.
The spark began in 1984. My creative writing teacher gave us seven words to use in a one-page short story. I wrote about Mike, a teenage boy who was spending his first Thanksgiving without his father. The teacher liked the story so much, she kept it as an example for future classes.
Years later, after concentrating on law school and beginning my legal career, I took another creative writing class and wrote a ten-page short story about Mike going out on his first date while grieving for his father.
A few years later, I decided to write a novel. I told it from the points of view of Mike and his sister, Amanda. Because I wanted my book to be humorous, I decided to make the father absent by divorce rather than by death. I wrote 40 pages, got frustrated, and stopped writing.
In 1997 I had a 3-year-old and an infant. I was working part-time as a lawyer. I had given away my maternity clothes, confident that I didn’t want a third child. Then I was diagnosed with cystosarcoma, a rare form of breast cancer. Typical symptoms are the discovery of a very large tumor while pregnant in the upper, outside quadrant of the breast. I had all the symptoms. Fortunately, cystosarcoma has a very low mortality rate. But I figured with my luck I was a goner.
I re-evaluated my life. I realized I was most proud of my children and a short story I’d gotten published in 1985. I decided to quit my job, have another baby, and finish writing my novel. The doctors removed the tumor and surrounding tissue, and then discovered the tumor was benign. Of course, I was thrilled. I still quit my job and started writing my novel. I got pregnant a few months later and borrowed a bunch of maternity clothes. My friends were so generous that my borrowed wardrobe was much bigger and better than the wardrobe I’d given away.
I wrote my novel in a weekly critique class, titling it “Michael A. Pomerantz’s Lame Journal.” I finished it fourteen months later and set out to get an agent. Instead of querying, I bound my 200-page manuscript at Kinko’s and sent it to agents listed in a directory. My agent signed me up in February 2001.
After revising my manuscript at her suggestion, she sent it to publishers and there was a bidding war. Just kidding. Actually, I got a bunch of rejections. Most said they liked the humor and the voice, but that the plot was weak or Mike’s problems were too “ordinary.”
Worried that my agent was going to drop me, I entered the manuscript in the San Diego Book Awards. It won for Best Unpublished Novel. Along with attaining confidence in my book again (one of the judges wrote “sure to be published”), I also got 100 dollars and critiques from the three judges. One of the judges said my manuscript needed a better narrative arc. My agent independently came to the same conclusion. I spent the summer of 2002 revising it solely to build an arc. My critique group jokingly called me "Noah" or "Joan of Arc."
My agent sent it out again, and an editor from a big publisher requested a rewrite, telling me she hadn’t been so excited about a manuscript in years. I don’t know if that’s her standard line, but it sure got me excited. I spent another few months revising to her specifications. I even changed the title, which she thought was too negative, and deleted my favorite scene, which she thought was too maudlin. She loved the revision. Unfortunately, the acquisitions committee did not.
My agent sent out the revised manuscript, and John Rudolph at Putnam made an offer in August 2003. After I had a contract, I did two revisions for John and one for the copyeditor. The title changed again. When I sneaked back my favorite scene into the first revision and John put exclamation points all over it, I knew that I’d found the right match.
Finally, my first novel, featuring Mike “Storky” Pomerantz, was published in April 2005, 21 years after I first created Mike for the one-page writing assignment.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing it to life?
I didn’t have to do a lot of research. Because I was writing about someone of the opposite sex and decades younger than me, for my own sanity I decided to “write what you know.” I made Mike’s mother a law student, I made Mike and his family Jewish, and I made his hobbies Scrabble, bowling, and reading, just like mine. I even included a pregnancy in the book.
It was challenging to write in first person as a male. Luckily, I had two guys in my critique group. They kept telling me to add more sex. And my male editor wanted more added also. Reading aloud the scene in which Mike gets an erection at the whiteboard in Spanish class was really embarrassing. It was also embarrassing discussing it with my editor. It’s not the typical conversation one dreams about when one thinks about publishing a novel.
Writing humor is a lot of fun for me. Getting used to rejection and the slow pace of publishing was not. Seeing my book in stores and getting fan mail from readers makes all the challenges pay off. And it sure beats practicing law.
Cynsational News & Links
"The Child in the Attic" by Katherine Paterson from the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance. Presented at the Ohio State University's Chldren's Literature Festival, February 2000. See also An Interview with Katherine Paterson by Mary Brigid Barrett from the NCBLA.
The Louisiana Library Association Disaster Relief Fund is now accepting monetary donations to assist school, public, and academic library restoration efforts in southeastern Louisiana. Please make checks payable to: LLA-Disaster Relief and mail to: LLA; 421 South 4th St.; Eunice, LA 70535.
The South Dakota State Library Staff Best Reads Book List for National Library Week 2005 includes Rain Is Not My Indian Name by Cynthia Leitich Smith (HarperCollins, 2001).
Lately on spookcyn, I'm blogging about the Buffy The Vampire Sing-A-Long, and on GLSBlog, Greg is blogging about his Round Rock book signing.
What was your inspiration for creating this book?
I’ve always been a bookworm. Three novels in particular inspired Storky: Catcher In The Rye, Bridget Jones' Diary, and Anne Tyler’s A Patchwork Planet. All three books have great humor and sweet but misguided characters, which is what I attempted. I tried to capture a strong voice like Salinger had done, the journal format of Bridget Jones' Diary, and A Patchwork Planet’s plot twist in which the main character fails at his goals but realizes they weren’t the right goals for him anyway. Of course, I don’t claim to have succeeded as well as Salinger, Fielding, or Tyler. But their novels inspired me.
Also, I wanted to do more than entertain readers. I didn’t want to write a preachy book, but I didn’t want to write pure fluff either. It took me into my mid-twenties to learn a very important truth: that if people treated me poorly, it was a reflection of their personalities rather than my shortcomings. Storky learns this at the end of the novel. With this lesson, I hope to shave a few years and maybe some therapy sessions off of my teen readers’ learning curve.
What was the timeline between spark and publication and what were the major events along the way?
Sigh. Would you believe 21 years? Okay, but from starting to write in a dedicated manner to getting an offer from Putnam was “only” four years, so I guess that’s not too bad.
The spark began in 1984. My creative writing teacher gave us seven words to use in a one-page short story. I wrote about Mike, a teenage boy who was spending his first Thanksgiving without his father. The teacher liked the story so much, she kept it as an example for future classes.
Years later, after concentrating on law school and beginning my legal career, I took another creative writing class and wrote a ten-page short story about Mike going out on his first date while grieving for his father.
A few years later, I decided to write a novel. I told it from the points of view of Mike and his sister, Amanda. Because I wanted my book to be humorous, I decided to make the father absent by divorce rather than by death. I wrote 40 pages, got frustrated, and stopped writing.
In 1997 I had a 3-year-old and an infant. I was working part-time as a lawyer. I had given away my maternity clothes, confident that I didn’t want a third child. Then I was diagnosed with cystosarcoma, a rare form of breast cancer. Typical symptoms are the discovery of a very large tumor while pregnant in the upper, outside quadrant of the breast. I had all the symptoms. Fortunately, cystosarcoma has a very low mortality rate. But I figured with my luck I was a goner.
I re-evaluated my life. I realized I was most proud of my children and a short story I’d gotten published in 1985. I decided to quit my job, have another baby, and finish writing my novel. The doctors removed the tumor and surrounding tissue, and then discovered the tumor was benign. Of course, I was thrilled. I still quit my job and started writing my novel. I got pregnant a few months later and borrowed a bunch of maternity clothes. My friends were so generous that my borrowed wardrobe was much bigger and better than the wardrobe I’d given away.
I wrote my novel in a weekly critique class, titling it “Michael A. Pomerantz’s Lame Journal.” I finished it fourteen months later and set out to get an agent. Instead of querying, I bound my 200-page manuscript at Kinko’s and sent it to agents listed in a directory. My agent signed me up in February 2001.
After revising my manuscript at her suggestion, she sent it to publishers and there was a bidding war. Just kidding. Actually, I got a bunch of rejections. Most said they liked the humor and the voice, but that the plot was weak or Mike’s problems were too “ordinary.”
Worried that my agent was going to drop me, I entered the manuscript in the San Diego Book Awards. It won for Best Unpublished Novel. Along with attaining confidence in my book again (one of the judges wrote “sure to be published”), I also got 100 dollars and critiques from the three judges. One of the judges said my manuscript needed a better narrative arc. My agent independently came to the same conclusion. I spent the summer of 2002 revising it solely to build an arc. My critique group jokingly called me "Noah" or "Joan of Arc."
My agent sent it out again, and an editor from a big publisher requested a rewrite, telling me she hadn’t been so excited about a manuscript in years. I don’t know if that’s her standard line, but it sure got me excited. I spent another few months revising to her specifications. I even changed the title, which she thought was too negative, and deleted my favorite scene, which she thought was too maudlin. She loved the revision. Unfortunately, the acquisitions committee did not.
My agent sent out the revised manuscript, and John Rudolph at Putnam made an offer in August 2003. After I had a contract, I did two revisions for John and one for the copyeditor. The title changed again. When I sneaked back my favorite scene into the first revision and John put exclamation points all over it, I knew that I’d found the right match.
Finally, my first novel, featuring Mike “Storky” Pomerantz, was published in April 2005, 21 years after I first created Mike for the one-page writing assignment.
What were the challenges (literary, research, psychological, logistical) in bringing it to life?
I didn’t have to do a lot of research. Because I was writing about someone of the opposite sex and decades younger than me, for my own sanity I decided to “write what you know.” I made Mike’s mother a law student, I made Mike and his family Jewish, and I made his hobbies Scrabble, bowling, and reading, just like mine. I even included a pregnancy in the book.
It was challenging to write in first person as a male. Luckily, I had two guys in my critique group. They kept telling me to add more sex. And my male editor wanted more added also. Reading aloud the scene in which Mike gets an erection at the whiteboard in Spanish class was really embarrassing. It was also embarrassing discussing it with my editor. It’s not the typical conversation one dreams about when one thinks about publishing a novel.
Writing humor is a lot of fun for me. Getting used to rejection and the slow pace of publishing was not. Seeing my book in stores and getting fan mail from readers makes all the challenges pay off. And it sure beats practicing law.
Cynsational News & Links
"The Child in the Attic" by Katherine Paterson from the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance. Presented at the Ohio State University's Chldren's Literature Festival, February 2000. See also An Interview with Katherine Paterson by Mary Brigid Barrett from the NCBLA.
The Louisiana Library Association Disaster Relief Fund is now accepting monetary donations to assist school, public, and academic library restoration efforts in southeastern Louisiana. Please make checks payable to: LLA-Disaster Relief and mail to: LLA; 421 South 4th St.; Eunice, LA 70535.
The South Dakota State Library Staff Best Reads Book List for National Library Week 2005 includes Rain Is Not My Indian Name by Cynthia Leitich Smith (HarperCollins, 2001).
Lately on spookcyn, I'm blogging about the Buffy The Vampire Sing-A-Long, and on GLSBlog, Greg is blogging about his Round Rock book signing.
Thursday, September 01, 2005
Secrets of Success: An Interview with Greg Leitich Smith
My husband, children's book author Greg Leitich Smith, is the focus of the September 2005 edition of Secrets of Success, a wonderful column from children's author Ellen Jackson that each month offers the inside scoop from "a children’s writer who is breaking new ground in his or her career and who is willing to share her secrets with the rest of us."
Greg talks about my influence (yikes!), how he gets and frames ideas for novels, connecting with a publisher, writing humor, our upcoming picture book, and tips for writers trying to break into the business today.
Greg is the author of Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo (Little Brown, 2003, 2005)(Recorded Books, 2004) and Tofu and T. rex (Little Brown, 2005). The interview is a great read and offers an insightful peek into his experiences as a children's writer breaking into publishing in the past few years.
Read Greg Leitich Smith's interview on his Secrets of Success.
Learn more about Ellen Jackson, sign her guest book, and read her blog (September's post is a must read about Writing Non-Fiction for Children)!
Cynsational News & Links
Meet The Author: T. A. Barron: The Writer's Magic Wand from CBC Magazine. See also Hot off the Press: New Books from CBC (cheers for Sketches From A Spy Tree by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer, illustrated by Andrew Glass (Clarion, 2005)).
Greg talks about my influence (yikes!), how he gets and frames ideas for novels, connecting with a publisher, writing humor, our upcoming picture book, and tips for writers trying to break into the business today.
Greg is the author of Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo (Little Brown, 2003, 2005)(Recorded Books, 2004) and Tofu and T. rex (Little Brown, 2005). The interview is a great read and offers an insightful peek into his experiences as a children's writer breaking into publishing in the past few years.
Read Greg Leitich Smith's interview on his Secrets of Success.
Learn more about Ellen Jackson, sign her guest book, and read her blog (September's post is a must read about Writing Non-Fiction for Children)!
Cynsational News & Links
Meet The Author: T. A. Barron: The Writer's Magic Wand from CBC Magazine. See also Hot off the Press: New Books from CBC (cheers for Sketches From A Spy Tree by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer, illustrated by Andrew Glass (Clarion, 2005)).
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