This is What I Learned, Part II
(A late post today–a teething, snugglier-than-usual Mir-cat is keeping me busy!) This is What I Did revolves around Logan’s reaction to an event–an event that occurred before the novel begins (and isn’t fully explained until around 135 pages in). Hints are sprinkled through the text, sometimes as flashbacks, but more often as Logan’s thoughts and actions. The latter–reveals–are very hard to do well, and something many authors, YA and adult alike, fail at....
Read MoreThis is What I Learned, Part I
Here’s the jacket blurb from Ann Dee Ellis’ debut novel: Imagine if you had witnessed something horrific. Imagine if it had happened to your friend. And imagine if you hadn’t done anything to help. That’s what it’s like to be Logan, an utterly frank, slightly awkward, and extremely loveable outcast enmeshed in a mysterious psychological drama. This story allows readers to piece together the sequence of events that has changed his life and changed his perspective on...
Read MoreAnn Dee Ellis & the BYU Writing & Illustrating for Children Workshop
Some time ago, I was lucky enough to attend BYU’s weeklong workshop for children’s writers and illustrators. The workshop is more like a workshop and conference, with morning classes and afternoon seminars. I was only just starting to shop my fiction then, and thought the workshop would me get a handle on the ins and outs of the publishing world. Despite my great love of books and book-learning, there really isn’t a substitute for chatting to someone who’s been there,...
Read MoreBook Trailers
Book trailers are an absolutely smashing promotional tool, and there are lots of great ones out there. Depending on the genre, book trailers run the gamut from funny (Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, Quirk Books, 2009) to inspiring (The Great Call of China, Speak, 2009). Some, like this one for Maggie Stiefvater’s Shiver are artistically edgy, while others have a more contemporary feel. But, as great as book trailers are, they can be quite expensive to produce. Pam...
Read MoreFinding Your Voice: Dialogue
Dialogue is one of my weak points. I’ve been known to pore over just one page of dialogue for the better part of a day, tweaking this and twiddling that, all to no avail. Why ? Writing natural dialogue is difficult. There’s so much to consider – speech patterns, word choice, contractions, slang, creating distinct character voices – and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. When it comes down to it though, the most important thing to remember about dialogue is this:...
Read MoreSherman Alexie @ Brattle Theatre, Oct 26
Just about everybody’s who’s ever spent time in the YA section of a bookstore has heard of Sherman Alexie, right? Author of the award-winning YA novel, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, he’s been publishing since the early 90s – check out his body of work here. Anyway, he’ll be speaking at a Harvard Bookstore event, held at the Brattle Theatre in Harvard Square, Cambridge on October 26th. (via Amitha Knight – see her kid’s lit...
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