Natalie--The Lite Version

Image courtesy of piyato / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

After contemplating various words as my Word for the Year 2014, I finally picked one: Light.  To me, there are so many directions to go with this word:

1. Health: Recently I visited a holistic doctor who wanted me to lower my sugar intake and increase my fruits and vegetables.  Urghhh…But I have been suffering from various esophageal problems for a couple of years.  So I know I need to do this.  So, sticking with my word, I want to eat lighter—less red meats, less sugar, less GMO-filled, boxed foods…more healthy.  If it ends up making me lighter, too, well terrific.

2. Lighting my Load: A couple of years ago, I read a wonderful Zen fable: "Carrying the Burden."  The message: not to continue carrying our burdens long after the situation has passed.  I want to forgive and forget—feel like weights are off of me this year.  So after someone honks at me on the highway, wave to them and LET IT GO…lighten up.

3. Posture: When I first heard this word as a possibility, my immediate thing to do was sit up in my chair.  To feel lighter would be to lift myself up physically.  A dance teacher once said to picture a string pulling you up from the top of your head.  That's how I want to feel.  When I stand straighter/taller, I do feel different: more confident, more fit.

4. Having a Lighter House: This one is both figurative and literal.  I want my house to lose weight—as in, if I put it on a scale right now, I want it to weigh about 40% less by the end of the year.  Time to purge.  I have way too much stuff just sitting around.  And this fits another of my wishes for the year—to be more charitable.  I have a ton of great stuff that someone else can use.  Now it's a matter of getting it to them.

5. The Sun: the Official Lightener/Lighter/Light of the Earth: And I can't leave out the science-y definition for light: the energy source.  I want to get outside more.  I'm an advocate for No Child Left Inside, so I need to get myself and my kids out more.  I love writing about insects.  Where's a better place to have an office than outside? 

That's my goal.  I hope that December 31 I can report that I have, indeed, become a lighter person.

My Word-for-the-Year brainstorming session

Making a Memory into a Picture Book

This is my grandma and my aunt.  As you can see, my aunt has a leg brace from polio.  The question is, how much of her true life story do I use in my polio novel?

One of the main reasons people seem to begin writing a children’s book is that they have a personal story they want to tell.  It’s often a childhood memory.  What can be difficult is separating fact from fiction.  Maybe you have this wonderfully vivid memory from your childhood.  You feel that everyone will enjoy it, too.  There are a couple of problems I have noticed as I've read other people's work.

1—Number of Characters: Many times the real incident had quite a few friends or siblings or cousins or dogs.  Often, the heart of the picture book story doesn’t need so many.  Your seven-year-old reader doesn’t need Uncle Larry and Milky the Cat in your story.  Maybe the character said one funny line you just can't bear to take out.  But was that one line something someone else can say in the story?  Try melting two characters into one.

2—Setting Details: I know I pride myself on having a good memory.  When writing a story based on a real-life experience, you often want to include everything you remember, down to the color of the bathroom shower curtain.  Again, is this detail something crucial to the story?  Often the writer tries to complicate the layout of the house, yard, etc. because they want the story to take place in the house they grew up in.  This can add a lot of superfluous explanation.  Change your setting to make it detailed but simple to picture.

3—Plot: The plot can be the biggest obstacle when using a memory to create a story.  Sometimes your memory is just a moment in time—no real conflict happened.  If you’re really serious about making your book stand out to editors, you need something to happen in your book--a conflict.  This can be hard—you’ve written this sweet story about your real cousin, Melba, and her adorable kitten, Jingles.  You just can’t make something bad happen them.

I challenge you to find a book (in the same genre you’re writing for) where nothing happens.  It’s rare.  There are concept books (books on shapes, words, numbers, etc.) as well as night time books where you could argue that nothing happens.  But, chances are you pictured the book you are working on as a picture book or a novel.  Physically pull from the shelves of your Barnes & Noble, library or kids’ bookshelf books with the look and feel of your potential book.  Dissect those books’ plots.  Does something happen?

4—Character Names: Do you come from a family of all p-names? Peter, Patty, Pamela, Perry, and Patrick.  This might work for some stories, but reading off all these names each time you’re referring to the characters in a book may be distracting to the reader.  Often writers try to avoid names that start with the same letter or sound too similar—it can get confusing to the reader (wait, was Brandon the murderer or was Brendon?).  You may also have to change a character's name to fit the mood of the book.  If it's a serious book, you don't want a somewhat silly-sounding name.  If it's a silly book, make it sillier with a fun name.

What it boils down to is keeping your reader in mind.  Are the details you’re including necessary and interesting?  Are they universal enough that they automatically make sense to the reader?  If not, figure out how to cut or change them.  You want to make your memory as special to the reader as it was to you.

Going Inside A Match Made in High School

Did you grow up watching Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, and Pretty in Pink? Then you’ll love Kristin Walker’s debut novel, A Match Made in High School. Although it is written for young adults, I had a blast feeling like I was back in high school as I read it.

I have known Kristin for quite a few years (as well as her path to publication). After reading her novel, I really wanted to find out some of the inside details about A Match Made in High School. Kristin was kind enough to respond to my questions via email. Here is our cyber interview:


Give a one sentence summary of your book.

Seniors in high school get paired up for a course in marriage education to disastrous and hilarious results.

Who is your ideal reader?

A teenage girl. But if a teenage boy wants to read it, that’s cool. Adults, too. (I mean it’s okay for them to read it, not that they’re cool. *shudder*)

Who were you in high school?

Pretty much a dork. I think I was one of those people you don’t remember you ever went to school with. I was a cheerleader and I dated the captain of the basketball team for a while (he was new in school), and that was about the sum total of my high school social life. I occasionally was invited to parties and things. I was smart, but not exceptionally. I was insecure. But a snob, too. Good times! High school then was like high school now…a big, complicated, exciting, emotional mess.

What aspects of the main character are based on you in high school (Fiona’s dry wit, your thoughts on cheerleading, etc.)?

Well, I loved being a cheerleader, so Fiona and I differ there. But I certainly had her sarcasm and cynicism. Thank God I grew out of that. It often got me into trouble, just like it does for Fiona.

How many references to John Hughes’ movies were in your book? (I found Sixteen Candles—the scene at the end where a car moves and the guy is standing there in front of his car—your book p. 249)

YAY! I’m so glad you picked up on the car moving scene! That was my heartfelt homage to the great John Hughes. The world will miss him. I will miss him. And I’ll never get the chance to ask him why Billie Bird crouches down next to the car when they’re all getting in to go to the wedding. For years, I’ve wanted to ask him that. *sigh*

My book reflects some of The Breakfast Club, too. In both, opposites “types” are forced together and end up realizing that people aren’t always who they appear to be, or what they’ve been labeled.

Now that I think about it, there’s a bit of Samantha Baker and Andie Walsh in Fiona, some Del Griffith and Duckie Dale in Johnny, some Ferris Beuller and Steff McKee in Todd. Even some Claire Standish in Amanda. Hughes’s characters were always full and believable and lovable.

I think for me, the biggest influence from John Hughes just came from his sense of humor and comedic timing. And romantic timing, too. It seems that every time I see one of his films, I notice something new that he must have stuck in there just for viewers to stumble upon. Even though he’d stopped making films a while ago, his death made me very sad. I’m a bit of a fangirl, obviously. I could talk about him all day.


I know at one point you were ready to throw in the towel on your novel (as most authors are at some point). What got you back on track?

What makes you think that? Huh? Could it have been when I completely disintegrated in tears in front of you in a conference hotel room, perchance? Yes, I was ready not only to throw in the towel on the novel, but on writing altogether. What got me back on track was the support and encouragement of my writing friends, like you, and my family. (So thank you, dearest Nat.) I also really thought that this novel idea had a shot, despite the horrid reception the first few pages received at that conference. (Take note, fledgling writers…never, ever, EVER show anyone your first draft. EVER. That’s just my opinion, but DON’T DO IT! Trust me. You may not be as lucky as I was to have a compassionate friend there for hugs and reassurance.)

What is the biggest change you made from the original draft?

I have to say, the plot. During my first revision for Razorbill, I cut and re-wrote about a third of the book. The plot became more focused, thanks to my editor’s guidance. On the whole, my plots do tend to meander about.

What hasn’t changed that much from the original draft?

Fiona’s voice and character. She’s remained the same from the start. Same goes for Todd, Marcie, Johnny, and Amanda. All the characters, really. I just gave them slightly different things to do.

What feedback, that you’re willing to share, have you gotten on your book?

I’ve gotten a ton of positive feedback, which is great, of course. On the negative side, a lot of readers find Fiona unlikable and get sick of her. That’s understandable, since Fiona is definitely flawed. That’s one of the major transformations she undergoes—realizing that she’s partially responsible for the unraveling of her relationships. Her behavior in the beginning can easily be seen as jerky. But she does finally realize it, and changes.

Is there anything you wish you could change/add in your book (such as a character trait, a plot line, a reference to something)?

I would love to have been able to go deeper into the issue of gay marriage than I could. It’s such a weighty topic that it would’ve pulled too much focus from the main story, though. I honestly did try to address it with the parade, as well as with the Uncle Tommy subplot. Gay marriage really requires and deserves a book of its own.

I recommend A Match Made in High School. It will really take you back to those days of boys, pep rallies, and partner work.

To find out more about Kristin Walker and to order her book, visit her website at http://kristin-walker.com/.

A Writer's Getaway

This past December, my husband was nice enough to give me the gift of time and privacy for my birthday by allowing me to have some uninterrupted writing time. So after spending the day packing, getting my 10-month old all set for my husband and mom to watch (including writing up directions), and cleaning the house for my mom, I was off. I drove across the Elgin border to St. Charles for a writing retreat at a hotel.

What I needed was a chance to read my work-in-progress novel without interruptions. With a baby, that’s next to impossible. Usually I read a couple of chapters and then don’t get a chance to look at it again for a couple of days. By then, it’s hard to remember little details of consistency: (What day of the week was the last chapter? Was X in this version or my last draft? Did I use Y expression already?) Staying in a hotel where I could concentrate seemed perfect.

I left on a Friday night and returned on Sunday. It was just the right amount of time to get through a middle grade novel. I would highly recommend doing this, even if you live alone. Being in a different environment can be inspiring, not to mention being excuse-free of reasons not to write (“the laundry’s piling up,” “let me just mop the floor, then, I’ll write,” “I haven’t made bread from scratch in a while,” etc.).

To save you some time, I’ve written up a list of what to bring, besides your basic packing stuff:

Writing Related

• notebook paper—Be optimistic: bring lots.


• a clipboard or other hard surface if you like to work on the bed instead of a desk like I do.


• different colored pens—I found it useful to write all the changes I wasn’t sure I wanted to make in a different color pen. That way, if I changed my mind, I could easily find those particular changes and remove them.


• Post-It notes—Good to bookmark pages when you flip back and forth between sections.


• different colored highlighters—I learned a terrific exercise by attending a conference by Darcy Pattison. You shrink your manuscript to a font small enough to fit your entire manuscript onto 32 pages (play with the margins and single space). You then use different colored highlighters to highlight whatever you want to examine for flow in your novel. You then lay out your novel on the floor and can see the entire thing in one look.


• laptop computer (Note: ask ahead of time whether the hotel AND YOUR SPECIFIC ROOM have wireless. My room must have been just on the cusp of wireless coverage. I got a good 30 min. of online time and that’s it. (It ended up being a good thing, as I didn’t have access to time-sucking Facebook).


• keyboard, mouse, etc.—It was worth it to me to have a mouse instead of using the touchpad of the laptop. I was fine with the mini-keyboard of the laptop, but if you’re not, keep that in mind. Nothing’s worse than having time to type and being uncomfortable.


• printer—Yes, you heard me correctly. I purchased a small HP printer from Walmart for $35 (color and black ink included). It was SO WORTH having with me. Sometimes I redo a page so extensively, I need to edit it a couple of times. It was helpful to be able to print it and write on a clean copy.


• printer paper


• flash drive—If you don’t bring a printer, you still may want to print. By bringing a flash drive, you can print in the hotel’s business center (or, you can always email yourself your manuscript and open it that way).


• scissors—in case you want to cut your story apart to lay out


• stapler or hole punch—I keep my novel in a binder. After I printed some new pages, I wished I was able to stick them in my binder.


• synopsis—If you change your novel, you may want to update this as well


• other drafts of the novel—I know I ended up referring to old copies of my novel for parts I had deleted from the most current version.
  

Non-writing Related

• snacks—Lots. Now’s not the time to worry about calories. Okay, I’m rationalizing the fact that I brought a jumbo bag of M & Ms, Red Vines, and Sun Chips, but let’s just refer to these foods as fuel for creativity.


• meal-ish Foods—I regret that I didn’t pack anything that could count as a meal. Because my hotel had a HUGE children’s chess tournament going on, the parking lot was packed. In an effort to not lose my great parking space, I refused to leave the hotel. That meant I had to eat at the restaurants at the hotel. Saturday morning, I spent $4 on a cup of Dannon yogurt and a microscopic box of Cheerios. I should have brought a couple granola bars, an apple, a box of raisins, etc.


• cooler—Again, for bringing your own food. My room didn’t have a refrigerator. If it had, I could have packed my own yogurt for under a dollar (can you tell I’m still bummed my yogurt cost $2.50?)


• water


• hand soap—Am I the only one that can’t stand how hotels still provide a bar soap instead of having a pump by the sink? I bring my own instead of using the slimy bar. A tip for any hotel stay.


• ipod and headphones, workout clothes, etc.—It was nice to take a break on the treadmill for a bit to clear my head. It also helped to work off about 4 M & Ms.


• swimsuit—A hotel with a pool was a must for me. I forced myself to make it to a certain page before I could take a swim break though.

Simple & Complicated

When I get stuck writing a novel, I like to turn to published middle grade novels for guidance. There is so much to examine in a book. Here are some things I’ve looked at to help my own writing:

• How many characters are there in the book?
• How long are the chapters?
• What’s the word count for the book?
• Is the problem presented in the first chapter?
• What’s the average sentence length?
  

What I’m pondering right now is how complex to make my plot and subplot. I wanted to look at books that are at both extremes, but I would love some help finding them.

When thinking of middle grade and young adult novels, what are some examples of books with very simple plots? What are some examples of books with very complex plots? Please post in the comments section.

Sled Dogs as Teachers

Teachers: need a fun topic to draw your class in? Especially during testing time?

This Friday (March 6) begins the Iditarod—one of the hardest, longest, and most well-known of the sled dog races that take place annually in the United States (there are over one hundred annual races, including ones in Arizona).

Being from Chicagoland, until recently, I had only heard the word Iditarod but knew nothing about the sport. After doing sled dog research for my book Famous Firsts (about the history of various sports in the U.S.), I was hooked (or ganglined!). I tried to learn everything I could about sled dog racing, including attending some local sled dog demos and an actual race in the Wisconsin Dells (highly recommended). There are great resources out there on the mushers and the races (but be prepared to want to mush yourself afterward).

Now, back to the teaching part. I’m personally bummed that I’m not currently teaching, as I’d love to get my class as excited about the Iditarod as I am. There are so many ways to tie sled dog racing into learning. The Iditarod’s official website has lots of resources for teachers, which I encourage you to check out: http://iditarodblogs.com/teachers/. Here are some I’ve come up with as well:

• Learning about the state of Alaska, including the geography, climate, and culture


• Learning about the history of sled dogs (before racing) and how dogs and sleds were used to transport people, mail, and, goods


• Reading online biographies about the mushers (on the Iditarod website, they also have information on writing to mushers—another good curriculum tie)


• The physics of a team of sled dogs pulling weight


• Using math to figure out percentages and fractions for comparing various numbers, such as number of mushers from Alaska vs. rest of U.S.; number of mushers from U.S. vs rest of world; number of veteran vs newcomers; and number of women vs men


• Creating organized data charts for information, such as dropped dogs or speed each particular musher goes to each checkpoint


• History of the race


• Exploring what materials would be best to stay warm out in the cold (science)


• Reading about and creating a Venn diagram on different types of dogs used for sled dog racing (and it’s not just Huskies and Malamutes)


• Inventing equipment for sled dog racing


• Writing a short narrative from the perspective of a lead dog, a point dog, a wheel dog, and the musher


• The Iditarod will also be using GPS tracking so you and your class can follow the mushers as they go along the trail. Although the race begins this Friday, you have plenty of time to get your materials together for this unit as it usually lasts ten to seventeen days.
  

Another excellent race to follow with your class (next year) is the Yukon Quest, which occurs each February. It is a 1,000-mile race that travels from Fairbanks, Alaska to Whitehorse in Yukon, Canada. It also has great coverage on their website, as well as through Facebook. The link for their official page is http://www.yukonquest.com/.

Here are some great resources I have read/watched:

• Toughest Race on Earth: Iditarod (a Discover Channel documentary) I would think kids would really enjoy this as well. However, it’s quite lengthy (I think close to 6 hours?). You could show during lunch and recess for those interested. Be sure to preview first to make sure suitable.


• Cold Hands, Warm Heart: Alaskan Adventures of an Iditarod Champion by Jeff King (4 time winner of the Iditarod and 1 time winner of the Yukon Quest)


• Iditarod Country: Exploring the Route of the Last Great Race by Tricia Brown (for kids)
  
• My Life in Dog Years by Gary Paulsen (for kids)


• Dashing Through the Snow: The Story of the Junior Iditarod by Sherry Shahan


• Winterdance: The Fine Madness of Running the Iditarod by Gary Paulsen


• Honest Dogs: A Story of Triumph and Regret from the World’s Toughest Sled Dog Race by Brian Patrick O’Donoghue


• The Iditarod Fact Book: A Complete Guide to the Last Great Race by Sue Mattson
  
• Backstage Iditarod by June Price


• Mush! A Beginner’s Manual of Sled Dog Training Edited by Charlene G. LaBelle


• The Great Serum Race: Blazing the Iditarod Trail by Debbie S. Miller (for kids)


• Coming out this month: The Lance Mackey Story: How My Obsession with Dog Mushing Saved My Life By Lance Mackey (3 time winner of the Iditarod and 4 time winner of the Yukon Quest)
  
  Here are the books the Iditarod recommends: http://iditarodblogs.com/teachers/iditarod-books/

Photo at top of page by Paul Retherford Photography, LLC. http://www.PaulRetherford.com

The Birth of a Character

A while back I mentioned what it took to switch a male character to female (David to Dana). As I ended that entry, I said how, before I could rewrite the scenes, I needed to know who Dana was.
There are many exercises for developing a character. Typical ones include answering such questions as:
What movies does your character watch?
What’s your character’s favorite color?
What could be found in your character’s backpack or purse?
What does his/her bedroom look like?
What bands/types of music does your character listen to?
Does your character have any hobbies?

(There are about a million sites with lists to help you think about your character. Here are two good ones: http://www.tarakharper.com/k_char2.htm and http://www.writingclasses.com/InformationPages/index.php/PageID/106 )

All these questions are helpful, but I didn’t even have a clue how to answer these questions because I still couldn’t picture my character. I decided to get inspiration from the Internet.
As my character was a female sled dog racer, I typed in “junior sled dog racer” into google images. Nothing helpful. Probably for protection purposes, there weren’t many photos with children’s faces. Okay, I thought, if I couldn’t find a young sled dog racer, what other topics could I try that would serve my character’s personality (which I didn’t know much about yet)?
I knew this girl was outdoorsy and into animals…4H? I punched it in. Bingo!
I found a terrific picture of three outdoorsy girls holding a pile of weeds. As I studied the picture, two of them were potentials for being Dana. They were very different from one another—a new dilemma. I decided to rewrite my boy scene from each of the two girls’ point of view based on the way they look. One of the girls looked very outgoing and carefree (based on the fact she had no bangs, tousled hair, and a huge (metal) smile on her face. The other girl seemed serious and shy, although she may have a confidence about her when doing something she loves (this girl was thin with long bangs, her hair pulled back in a ponytail, and a half-smile on her face).
After reading my two passages, I decided to go with the carefree girl—she would make for a more interesting character. What worked out well was that the serious girl would work as my main character, Ana. I now had a picture of my two characters together! Perfect!
So, with a picture of a couple of girls in a 4H garden group, I could continue writing my novel.

Help! I Have an Idea but No Paper!

Writers: Have you ever had the idea for the next bestseller when there was no paper or computer in site? If you’re like me, you told yourself, “This idea is so great, I definitely won’t forget it.” Of course, five minutes later, it’s gone.

I thought I’d offer some creative ideas for holding onto your thoughts for later use.

“Help! I’m Trapped on the Highway with a Great Idea in my Head!”: I have found keeping a hand-held tape recorder on the passenger seat can really come in handy. I actually completed a whole freelance assignment on my way to Indianapolis once using it. Tip: I always date my entries. This helps 1. When I transcribe them, I have some idea of when they’re from. 2. Because I use an old-fashioned audio tape that I rewind and reuse, there are old entries that will still play after the new ones. This can get confusing. By dating the entries, I can tell when the older ones begin. If you don’t want to invest in a tape recorder, you can also call your home or cell and leave a message with the idea. Of course, regardless of how you do it, always use safe driving practices. No idea is worth injuring yourself or others.

“Help! I’m Trapped in the Car with my Napping Baby and no Paper!”: This is my newest writing challenge. If my baby falls asleep in the car during designated nap time, I let her sleep until she wakes. This often means arriving at my destination but having to sit in the parking lot for forty-five minutes to an hour. After twiddling my thumbs a few times, I learned this was a great opportunity to get some writing done or even just brainstorm. Now I don’t leave home without a chapter of my manuscript to work on and/or blank paper. (I also pack a book I’m reading as research.)

“Help! I’m Trapped in a Meeting but my Mind is Feeling Creative!” I used to get my best ideas during meetings, conferences, seminars, and workshops. I used to jot them down in the margins of my meeting notes--never to be seen again. Now I try to keep a second piece of paper beneath my notes that I flip to to write my ideas/thoughts. It also looks like I’m taking wonderful notes on the speaker’s topic.

“Help! I’m Out and About and Have no Paper on Me!” This has happened to me while sitting in the bleachers of a basketball game. Women, rummage through your purse; men, try your wallet. There’s bound to be an old receipt, business card, or something similar. Otherwise, look around your location: are there any pamphlets or flyers? How about napkins? (Isn’t that what J.K. Rowling used to write Harry Potter?) You can even write on your hand if you’re desperate. If you have a smartphone, you can also call or email yourself.

“Help! I’m Trapped in the Shower with my Idea!” Sorry, no clue to help you with this one. Any suggestions?

“Help! I’m in Bed Already and too Lazy to Write Down my Idea!” Here’s where I usually try to convince myself I’ll just remember it in the morning. No way. Try keeping paper by your bedside. I have become quite good at writing in the dark. All you really need are some key words that will jog your memory later.

One last tip: If you’re with someone else in your unfortunate paperless situation, see if they’re willing to help you out. Sometimes my husband won’t remember what I told him, but will 1. remember that I told him to remember something or 2. remember one word, which is often sufficient.

If you have a handy tip, please share.

Gender Issues

I haven't blogged in quite a while, so I thought I should kick off my return to blogdom with a bang: how I changed David to Dana...

While reworking my entire work-in-progress novel for a third time, I had a revelation. After getting asked over and over by my fellow critiquers if my girl main character had feelings for the boy sidekick character, David, I thought about whether this sidekick really needed to be a boy. By changing him to a girl might help some of my plot problems. I decided to go for it: David would become Dana.

At first thought, all I would need to do was a quick find/replace of the word "him" to "her," "he" to "she," etc. But, as I reread the scenes with Dana, I realized that changing a character's gender wasn't going to be that simple.

As David, the sidekick character was nonchalant, active, and outspoken. As a boy, these characteristics weren't anything that stood out. However, once the character became a girl, the traits made quite a statement about her personality. For instance, when David guzzled his milk, it wasn't anything out of the ordinary. But when I changed the character to a girl (Dana), she no longer could get away with guzzling the milk without the reader drawing conclusions about what she was like.

As I shared the problem with a writing listserv I belong to, the topic caused quite a stir. Many people felt that we need more strong, tomboyish girls in children's literature. Although I agree, I also worried about creating a different stereotype. You see, this character races sled dogs. By having her be a "tomboy," I was afraid I was then giving the impression that a girl has to be masculine to be a musher. I didn't want that either. I went back and forth as to how "feminine" Dana should be. I wrote scenes both ways: with Dana as what might be considered a traditional female character and with Dana as what would be considered a tomboy. I was still torn.

I went back and forth with advantages to both traits for this character. Unfortunately, I had to decide for myself who this character was before I could begin my David to Dana transformation. Regardless to what I did, it was definitely going to be more than a matter of changing some "he's" to "she's"...