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First – congrats to my friend David Macinnis Gill on the publication of his new book, BLACK HOLE SUN!!

I got to read an early copy and here is what I said about it: “Black Hole Sun grabbed me by the throat and didn’t let go until the last page. In the best tradition of Heinlein and Firefly, Black Hole Sun is for readers who like their books fast-paced, intense, and relentless. Buy it, read it, pass it on!”

I hear Mockingjay is awesome, too.

Yesterday was the first day in a long time I was able to write for hours and hours and hours. It was heaven. Am trying to sneak in even more writing today!

But first, a short speech.

Teens! Parents! Teachers! Librarians! Friends! Romans! Lend me your ears! (no, wait…. wrong speech…)

(here it is)

The voting is now OPEN for the YALSA Teens’ Top Ten “teen choice” list! Click through and vote for up to three of your favorite titles! Voting is open Aug. 23 through Sept. 17, 2010. Winners will be announced in a webcast at www.ala.org/teenstopten during Teen Read Week, Oct. 17-23.

(And if one of those titles should happen to be, um, I don’t know, like maybe WINTERGIRLS, that sure would make my day!)

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I received this request from a reader last week.

“Thank u so much for the prompts!! could u mayb please write abt how u get to know ur character? & the charcters devlpment?”

There are oodles of places where you can find lists of character traits that you might find handy when you are trying to make up a fictional person using nothing more than your pencil and the wet clay of your imagination. They tend to look something like this:

Name

Age

High school & reputation

This summer char. has been..

Next year char. will…

Parents

Loves -

Hates

Is afraid of

Worries about

Secrets

Physical quirks, nervous habits

Fav. Phrase

Triumph

Best quality

Dares to

Appearance

Car

Music

Food

[note - I wrote that list and have used it many times]

But for me, a list like this is just the starting place. It is my introduction to the character. If you never explore your character beyond what is in the list, you tend to wind up with a person that is shallow or one-dimensional.

That’s why a lot of my writing prompts have you take your character and put her into situations to see how she will react. There is so much about writing fiction that happens at a subconscious level that you can rely on your imagination to supply you with answers as long as you have the courage to ask the questions.

Here are some questions that I am asking myself about a character today:

Why did they wait so long to get her the car?

Where did she live before the move?

How did she try to avoid having to move?

Who was the last person she felt was a friend? Where is that person now? What happened between them?

What if she deliberately takes the wrong turn? How long before anyone notices? Will she tell them it was on purpose? Why or why not?

As I scribble the answers to my questions, doors open in my mind and I find new paths of the story I am trying to tell.

Ready…. “It might seem that the writer needs a gift of mimicry, like an impersonator, to achieve this variety of voices. But it isn’t that. It’s more like what a serious actor does, sinking self in character-self. It’s a willingness to be the characters, letting what they think and say rise from inside them. It’s a willingness to share control with one’s creation.” Ursula K. Le Guin

Set….. turn off your preconceived notions about your character, along with the Internet and phone

Today’s prompt: Fill out the list of characteristics above. Then write ten questions about your character’s actions and motivations for the actions that you don’t have answers for yet.

Bonus points: answer your questions.

Scribble…Scribble…Scribble!!!

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Saturday’s post on the censorship issues surrounding the Teen Lit Fest In Humble, TX led to a wonderful series of comments and ongoing discussion. Thanks again to everyone who has chimed in.

One reader wrote in with a link to a censorship lesson plan for 3rd – 5th graders.

Janni Lee Simner wrote about the difference between a boycott and a strike and came to the conclusion that the authors who pulled out of the book festival were closer to workers striking because of working conditions instead of participating in a boycott. I agree; it’s an important distinction.

This strike would have the most impact if the financial loss suffered by the festival organizers put a severe hurt on the decision maker(s). Or if they decided never to hold the festival again because of the hullabaloo. This would be awful for the readers in the Humble, TX, but I really doubt it would affect the decision makers. Their full-time job is supported by tax payers.

Unless and until the citizens of Humble rise up and holler about the decision to cancel Ellen’s appearance, and the subsequent pulling-out of the other authors, I don’t see how this strike can affect change within the festival or community at the heart of it.

However, Matt de la Peña made an excellent point in his comment to my post on Saturday. Matt wrote:

That seems to be working, at least in the blogosphere. The crusty, cynical part of me worries that a discussion of intellectual freedom on blogs written by and read by lovers of YA fiction is a classic example of preaching to the choir. How do we engage in conversation with the people who disagree with us?

Striking workers can refuse to do their jobs until working conditions change. As Janni points out in her post, censorship qualifies as a working condition for writers.

One of my concerns is that a strike like this forces the decision makers underground. Instead of inviting someone who might be controversial at all, they simply won’t issue the invitation in the first place. They’ll stick to authors who write books that deal with situations that don’t make censors break out in hives. And the censors will win again and the readers will lose.

But doing nothing isn’t exactly an option either, is it?

Perhaps our community should start talking with regional and national groups of school superintendents. Maybe with the help of NCAC? (If you haven’t checked out their Kids Right to Read Project yet, do it today.)

What do you think?

Ready… &#

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Wow!!

Thank you to everyone who chimed into yesterday’s discussion about the most effective ways to deal with censorship. I really appreciate the obvious time and thought that went into your comments.

I’ll post more on this tomorrow, including a link to a lesson plan from a teacher who has put together a unit on censorship for grades 3 – 5. If you have classroom ideas or if you talked about these ideas on your blog, leave me a note in the comments section. I’ll try to include links to everything you tell me about this.

Now on a different topic….

Our president and his daughters supported an independent bookstore this week. Yay for them!! I did, too, and started my Christmas shopping. The independents in my area seem to be doing great, I am very happy to report

When was the last time you shopped in your local independent bookstore? Do you know where it is?

Ready…. “If there’s a book you really want to read but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.”  Toni Morrison

Set…. if it’s not raining where you live, go for a walk before you write. If it is raining, go for a walk anyway. I dare you to do this without an umbrella. I dare you to let the rain fall on your head.

Today’s prompt: Create the flap copy for your book. Doesn’t matter if you are writing fiction, non-fiction, or memoir. Write the two or three sentences that convey the essence of your story in a way that will convince someone to read the entire book.

This can be incredibly hard. In fact, I can’t do it in the earliest draft of my book. This is usually because I haven’t yet fully figured the internal journey of my main character. Take a half dozen of your favorite books off the shelf and read the flap copy to learn how the book was distilled into a few lines. Does that flap copy do a good job of it? Would you have written it differently?

(If you are totally stuck and can’t figure out how to write the flap copy for your story, rewrite the copy for a book that you love.)

Then go back and try to do it for your own work.

If you are still stuck, ask yourself this: What does your character want? What is the most basic driving desire that compels your character through your story? What stands in the way of that desire?

Scribble… Scribble…. Scribble!!!

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Sometimes you just have to push the silly button. Maybe that’s why it is time for the annual Pimp My Bookcart competition.

Last year’s winner was a Good Humor-themed cart created by welding students at Harlem High School.

If you need to smile, check out all of last year’s winners.

Two more smile makers come to you courtesy of  Jim Averbeck and Kristin Clark Venuti.  Jim interviews people at the American Library Association Annual conference every year. Then he and his minions go home and put together really fun videos.

Here is one of this year’s videos, with fashion statements by authors, which in itself is a hysterical concept because we spend our days in our pajamas, most of us.

And another, in which you can see how completely useless I am at game shows.

(More videos from this year’s ALA can be found on Jim and Kristin’s website.)

Ready…

“If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh. Otherwise they’ll kill you.” Oscar Wilde

Set… relax. It’s Friday. Summer is winding down. Life is good. Smile.

Today’s prompt: pure silliness. Your character wakes up and can no longer speak any human language. Can’t write either. But she can still understand what the people around her are saying. And she can understand everything said by any animal or insect within fifty feet of her.

Write a funny scene in which she tries to figure out what is going on. Build the absurdity of her situation by piling on misunderstandings and pratfalls. Make yourself chuckle.

Scribble…Scribble…Scribble…

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Summer is hurrying to a close. I saw geese migrating a few days ago and when we were running last night, we passed a huge flock of birds gathered on the phone wires; the equivalent of people flooding an airline terminal as they prepare to fly to Florida for the winter.

I’m bummed because I am so busy with writing and getting ready for October’s booktour, it doesn’t look like I’ll have time for any canning this year. ::pouts::

Good thing I made a lot of jam two years ago!

I’ve had a couple of tabs open that need to be closed. First, a review of the Spanish version of WINTERGIRLS, Frío. The author of the post loved the book, saying “Me ha encantado. Me ha emocionado. Me ha hecho llorar…. Frío es una historia dura y real.” She also has the following to say about the publisher’s decision to change the title:

“Puedo entender que cambien los títulos al traducir los libros porque en la lengua origen puede sonar genial pero no en la lengua meta, pero ¿tan mal sonaría “Chicas de hielo”? El libro se titula Wintergirls, lo que en realidad sería Chicas de invierno (vale, ése no suena tan bien), pero si durante toda la novela Wintergirls ha sido traducido como Chicas de hielo, ¿por qué no lo han hecho también en el título? Frío me gusta, pero, a mi modo de ver, ese título no dice nada de la novela, no tiene nada que ver con la historia. Chicas de hielo, por el contrario, es, simplemente perfecto y precioso. Pero bueno, aparte de esto, recomiendo esta novela al 100%.”

I agree!

Next, the poem I wrote about reader’s reactions to SPEAK was featured on the website for Grrl Power! Girls Studies at UCF.

And last, BUT NOT LEAST AT ALL, FORGE made the Autumn 2010 Children’s Indie Next List!

Ready….

“This is the moment when faith is called for. Faith in the creative spirit within me, which is part of what I’ve been given by God; faith in the process, faith in my intelligence and my imagination… I suit up and show up. I sit down at the computer and I do the work, moving it forward a sentance at a time, which is ultimately the only way there is to write a book.” Elizabeth George

Set… dig a hole in the ground and bury your doubts. Cover them with salt and then spit on them. Now that you have put your doubts where they belong, you can write.

Today’s prompt:

I had an interesting Twitter exchange with a reader yesterday about book pirating. She had tweeted about an illegal download site where her friends could get stolen copies of my books. I wrote to her and asked her to direct her friends instead to the library where they could read free books that had been purchased, not stolen. She wrote back:

“I don’t steal books, just that one.”

Add a Comment

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NPR recently did a segment on the best meals shown on film.

If your book doesn’t have a scene of someone eating something, you might want to consider one. Most people eat at least three times a day – often more – and a meal can carry every imaginable kind of metaphorical weight. It’s a great way to show fault lines in relationships or to bring people closer.

It is also a wonderful way to avoid the dreaded “talking heads” chapters in which you need to have characters talking, but can’t figure out what they should be doing. The trick is to make the meal fit into the larger story arc naturally. Make sure it is motivated beforehand and that it triggers something later in the story.

Ready… “We ate well and cheaply and drank well and cheaply and slept well and warm together and loved each other.” Ernest Hemingway, Movable Feast

Set…. You might want to eat a snack before this one.

Today’s prompt:

Do not write about a meal. (Ha! Got you!) Write a scene in which your characters prepare a meal OR write about a memory you have of a meal being prepared. Try to focus in on tiny details in the kitchen that will give clues about the the people in the scene. It is natural to have lots of smells and tastes in a scene like this – remember to add in sound.

Scribble… Scribble… Scribble!!!

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Do you dare disturb the universe?

This question is what holds many of us back from writing, or from writing the things that we really want to. Because our lives are ordered and comfortable and to become creative just might mess all that up.

But…

I’ve met so many people who want to write, who talk with tremendous passion about wanting to pour their hearts on the page, but they can’t…. quite… bring themselves to start. Or to scribble for more than a few days. Or to stop allowing unimportant things to sabotage their dream.

If you fit into that category, let me share a phrase occasionally heard in my house. It is used by my husband and me when trying to point out (with great love and tenderness) that the other partner needs to loosen up a bit and have some fun, or try something new, or get out of a rut.

The phrase? “You’re going to die.”

It’s inevitable; the one fact you can know for certain about your life. You will die. Sorry – you have no control over this.

You have total control, however, about the pursuit of your writing dream. If you don’t write, you will one day die. If you write, you’re still going to die, but you will have disturbed the universe in the best possible way. You will have explored your heart more fully. You will leave behind your stories. The ripples of your creativity will touch countless lives and butterflies will sing your praises.

OK, maybe not that last bit. But the rest is as true as you care to make it.

Ready….

“Giving characters free will, instead of outlining them in detail before the writing begins, allows a story to flow naturally and allows the characters to become more real and more interesting than they could be if they had to act within a rigid profile created in advance of the actual writing….” Dean Koontz

Set…. Don’t turn off the Internet until you complete step one of the prompt below. Then turn it off. In fact, see if you can leave it off for the next 24 hours. I dare you.

Today’s prompt:

1. Pick a random name.

2. Write down the name and follow it with this “grabbed the car keys and closed the door quietly so no one would wake up.”

3. Next line write AND THEN

4. Next line write another action that your newly named character did. Don’t overthink this. Just move the story forward by one sentence that has action in it – no internal narrative, no dialog, no long-winded description.

5. Repeat Steps 3 & 4 until you have written 50 sentences of sequential action. The point is to exercise the pure storytelling muscle in your brain (hence the AND THEN) while allowing your imagination free rein.

Scribble…Scribble…Scribble!!!

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Such a strange thing writing is, don’t you think?

Visions of other people and other worlds swim in your head until you have no choice but to write them down. Then you have the burning need to have someone else read what you’ve written, so you embark on the rocky path to publication.

The writing life is at once filled with companionship – all those characters in your head – and often quite lonely, because you are essentially alone for nearly all of your working hours. (I’m talking about the creating part, not things like book tour.)

For many people, this is lonely. Not for me.

I love the solitude, but even for people like me, its good to make time to be in the company of other writers. Creativity expands exponentially when creative people hang out with each other.

If you haven’t joined networks or support groups for writers like SCBWI, do it today. Look for writing conferences or retreats or workshops in your area. Find yourself some writing buddies who share your commitment to your dream and make time to work together.

Not just manuscript critiquing or meeting for coffee so you can trade news about which editor has moved where. Set up time with your writing friends so you can write together.

It helps to come up with a couple of guidelines before you start; how much talking is allowed, how long will the writing go on, will you share what you’ve written after the quiet time or just go straight to the gossip and pastry portion of your get-together.

Who can you write with this weekend?

Ready….

“WRITE. FINISH THINGS. KEEP WRITING.” Neil Gaiman’s advice for aspiring writers.

Set…. After you make this weekend’s writing date, find a quiet spot and make the world go away.

Today’s prompt: Your character finds a box hidden at the back of her closet. Inside it are things from her childhood that someone saved for her. What is in the box? (Hint – focus on the way things smell.) OR If you found a box of items from your childhood, what would it contain?

Scribble… Scribble… Scribble!!!

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I was going to blather on more about the state of flow and mindfulness today, but the universe had other plans.

Every once in a while something happens in the news that you can use in your writing, whether its in your Work In Progress or in free-writing.

What am I talking about? The Jet Blue flight attendant, Steve Slater, who reached his breaking point with a rule-breaking, rude passenger, deployed the emergency chute, grabbed a beer and left the airplane.

Is your character going to do that?

Probably not.

But it is a great example of the reaction of a person who is under pressure.

Anyone can behave well when life is going swimmingly. It’s the choices that people make under pressure that give you the most insight into who they really are. Sometimes it takes tremendous pressure or drastic change for a person to learn about herself.

Writers sometimes care so deeply about their characters that they hesitate to make the going too tough for them. The early drafts of SPEAK all featured pathetically lame endings because I didn’t want the main character to have to be traumatized even more than she already was.

It took a while but I finally figured out that I had to (rather literally) back Melinda into a corner to force her to fight her fear and find her voice.

Got that?

Ready…

“Write about what you’re afraid of.” Donald Barthelme

Set… Turn off the phone, Internet, and inner critic who doesn’t want you to make waves.

Today’s prompt: Craft a scene in which your character is backed into a corner, pushed against the wall, driven to the brink. Force her into an emotional reaction that is the sort of thing she has never done before. What will she do? Why? What does this tell you about her that you didn’t know before?

Scribble… Scribble… Scribble!!!

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I spent the weekend in a haze of gunpowder and sunscreen, visiting the largest American Revolution reenactment in New England at Old Sturbridge Village in Sturbridge, Massachusetts.

I visited this reenactment a couple of years ago when I was scouting out scenes for FORGE. In some ways, writing historical fiction might be easier than writing contemporary fiction. OK, not easier, exactly. Definitely more time consuming. And more maddening.

But you can make no assumptions when writing historical fiction; no assumptions about, say, how people pulled on their socks, or when they ate their breakfast, or how they greeted old friends.

In an early draft I’ll sketch a scene like “Curzon is seen by Trumbull. Tries to run. Is caught. Confrontation. Officer intervenes. Enlistment scene.” At first I picture this in a modern context. Once I have the actions and motivations of my characters, I do the primary source research that will enable me to write the scene in a manner that is as historically accurate as possible.

Visiting reenactments helps, but is not the key to all my problems. Because I can’t assume that the reenactors are getting it right. (If you allow other people to do your research, I can guarantee you’ll get burned.) But watching the reenactors has helped spark my imagination and set me on the path to some great scenes.

Ready…

Here is a poem for you, written by Emily Dickinson. Read it out loud a couple of times.

"Luck is not chance --
It's Toil --
Fortune's expensive smile
Is earned --
The Father of the Mine
Is that old-fashioned Coin
We spurned --"

Set… turn off the phone, step away from the internet, and the tell the world you’ll be back in fifteen minutes. Or an hour.

Today’s prompt: Think of a scene or a story that you want to write, but that requires a lot of research. Jot down the central idea in a sentance or two. (If you can’t think of anything off the top of your head, consult the list you made yesterday.)

If you had all of the time and the money that you needed, how would you research this story? Be as detailed and specific as you can.

Bonus prompt: When your fifteen minutes is up, hop on the internet and see if you can find affordable and time-reasonable alternatives to your research ideas. For example, you may not be able to spend a week hiking in the Abruzzo region of Italy, but you can track down people who lived there, seek out Italian documentaries, contact photographers who have been there. I find that if I write a rough draft of a scene, then write the specific questions I need answered (What was the procedure for enlisting Cont

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Start your engines!! Write Fifteen Minutes A Day© is here!

Get ready to scribble!

The rules are simple. In fact, they aren’t even rules. They’re more like guidelines, the Pirate Code of Writing.

1. Commit to write for 15 minutes a day for the entire month of August.
2. Just do it.

Seriously. That’s all there is to it. You don’t have to sign up anywhere, or meet minimum word count goals or complete a whole freaking novel in 30 days. You can write fiction, non-fiction, memoir or poetry. Personally, I don’t think blog writing should count because that is immediately published and you always have your audience in mind. I think this month should be a chance for you to go deeper inside yourself. But if blog writing makes you happy, go for it.

Just. Write. Every Day. This. Month.
15 Minutes.

This is not the time for editing or outlining. Just keep your pen, pencil, crayon, or fingers on the keyboard moving for 15 minutes. You can use the entire time to write “I don’t know what to write and LHA is crazy” the whole time if you want.

I’ll give a prompt a day for anyone who is feeling stuck. But you don’t have to use it if you don’t want to.

I would love it if you guys checked in with me by posting in the comments section. There will be a prize each week for the person who wrote the most intriguing or funniest or most moving comment. Be shameless. (I will disclose the prize in a day or so.) Tell me where you wrote today or for how long, or what you were working on. Tell me what kind of resistance thoughts cropped up as you were writing, or trying to start writing. Tell me what it felt like when the 15 minutes were up.

OK, that’s enough blathering.

Ready….
Disconnect from the Internet.

Set…
Turn off your phone.

Today’s prompt*** Give yourself permission. Write yourself an excuse note that gives you permission to not do something else in your life for fifteen minutes a day for the next 31 days. Be specific and clear about when you are going to write. Bonus points for writing about what might get in the way of your WFMAD writing, and how you are going to combat it.

Scribble…Scribble….Scribble!

***LEGAL STUFF: These prompts, like all the rest of the stuff I write for WFMAD and my blog entries, are my material and, thus, under my copyright. You have permission to reproduce them for classroom use only. Yes, you may link to these posts. Spread the word! The more the merrier!!

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Twenty-four hours to go until my annual Write Fifteen Minutes a Day (WFMAD) Challenge!!

I feel like a boxer’s trainer, rubbing her shoulders, fanning her with a towel, about to push her to the center of the ring and say “Go get ‘em, champ.”

Are any of you taking the plunge a day early? Can’t wait?

I do have one suggestion. It might not sound related to writing, but it is. Go for a long walk today. If you walk with a friend, use the time to talk about your hopes for your writing in the upcoming month. If you walk alone, focus your thoughts on the same thing.

Moving your body is a critical part of the writing process. I’ll talk more about that in the next month.

The other news around here all centers on the upcoming publication of FORGE. (Which happens in 80 days, for those of you counting down at home.) I’ll be getting my booktour details very soon. Should we work out a secret handshake or something for those of you participating in WFMAD who come out to my signings this fall?

Abby the Librarian was able to score an advanced reading copy of FORGE and has written a terrific review about it.

Do YOU want an advanced reading copy of FORGE? Denise Jaden is holding a contest to do exactly that over on her blog. You have until Tuesday to enter. (And seriously – this contest is the sweetest thing ever and I swear I had nothing to do with it, which makes it even sweeter.)

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Are you ready?

Pencils sharpened, pens lined up, fingers nimble?

The Third Annual LHA Write Fifteen Minutes a Day challenge starts on Sunday, August 1st!

::cue roaring crowd and bawking chickens::

WFMAD is a bit like NaNoWriMo, but better. Because writing the draft of a novel in one month (which is the goal of NaNoWriMo) is a great challenge, but overwhelming for a lot of people. My approach is smaller and often, more effective. It simply requires that you write for fifteen minutes every day during the month of August.

Can you do that? Of course you can. Do you want to? That’s sort of up to you, isn’t it?

I will be posting every day during the month. My posts will be part writing prompt, part cheerleading, part gentle kick in your backside. (You don’t have to use the prompts if you don’t want to.  They are just to help stir your creative pot a bit.)

In a way, this blog can become your writer’s group for the next month. If you already have a writer’s group, no worry. You are not being unfaithful to them, you are expanding your circle.

My writer’s group met on Tuesday. We were missing Bruce Coville. I think he was off gallivanting with unicorns. One of our members, MJ Auch, was recovering from surgery, so she beamed into the meeting on Skype.

This is what MJ looked like on the computer sitting on the end of the kitchen table. (Note her cat lounging in the background.)

Suzanne Bloom is pointing the camera down at her latest amazing artwork so that MJ can see it. Standing with her back to the camera is author, cook, and amazing writer’s group hostess, Ellen Yeomans.

And this is what we looked like on MJ’s computer!!

Distance and circumstance need not stop anyone who has the writing dream in their heart. I’ll be reworking the rules for this year’s WFMAD challenge a bit – details on Sunday. But the general guidelines are the same that they’ve been for the last two years. New this year will be prizes – tee-shirts and maybe an ARC of FORGE (or two) for the people who write the funniest or most moving comment each week.

Any questions??

One more thing…. I have shifted blog hosting sites. The Mad Woman in the Forest blog is now found at WordPress. The blog will continue to feed to FaceBook, LiveJournal, and a bunch of other sites, but if you want

We did it!!!

One entire month (a long one, too! August has 31 days! remind me to do WFMAD in February next year) of daily writing. For those of you who rose above your doubts and fears and met this challenge with daily success, I bow my head in respect and offer my congratulations.

This writing thing is a whole lot harder than it seems.

If you didn't meet the challenge, please don't waste any time beating yourself up. Life is too short for that kind of nonsense. Instead, use this as an opportunity to figure why you couldn't find fifteen minutes a day to write. Were you able to find time each day for other habits? What about those other habits is more rewarding to you than writing?

I am not criticizing or judging. You are the person in charge of your life, not me.

This is the second year I've offered this challenge. I do it in response to the most common questions I receive about writing:

1. How can I become a writer?
2. I want to be a writer but I am too busy. How do I change that?

I believe that, at some level, we can all be writers, because we are all natural-born storytellers. I believe that if you have a passion for something, you have necessary seeds of talent. But if your goal is to have your work published, you have to nurture those seeds. Develop the craft. Commit to daily writing and make space in your life for it.

Answers:

1. To be a writer, you must write.
2. Cut out the unnecessary things from your life.

I have a confession to make here. This has been the worst summer of my life. It came after one of the most challenging years of my life. At this point twelve months ago, I was gearing up for the publication of CHAINS. Then I went on book tour. Came home and started on the pre-publicity interviews and craziness for WINTERGIRLS. Then I went on book tour, again. Then I went to Peru. Finally, when I came home from the last roadtrip in May, my mother spun into her final illness. I spent weeks taking care of her and held her as she died. Then we took in a relative who needed a home. Then my father-in-law died.

We're calling this our Summer of Sorrow. (Alternative title: Summer of Suck.)

Did I write every single day through all that craziness? Hell, no. I did get some scribbling in here and there. Worked on my next book between book tours. Journaled. Wrote emails. But I found it impossible to hold on to the daily discipline that is fundamental to keeping me healthy, not to mention it's my job.

Orchestrating this challenge has helped me find my path again. I'm still kind of a mess, still mourning the deaths of our parents, still pretty damn tired. But I am writing again. Every day. Some days for ten hours or more.

That is one of many beautiful things about our Muse. She is patient and understanding. If life takes you away from the craft, She'll be there when you get back. It doesn't matter how many times you fall down; what matters is how many times you get up again.

So thank you for helping me pick myself up and dust myself off.

How has your writing been this month?

Ready...

Today's advice: "Don't be a writer. Be writing." William Faulkner


Set....

Today's prompt: Write about what worked for you this month and what didn't work. Is your life too complicated to write every day? Why? If it is, how often can you stake out writing time? What needs to change in order for you to feel you have permission to write?


Scribble....Scribble.... Scribble...

We spent a little time at the State Fair last night with Number One Son and his girlfriend. We had hoped to enjoy the Shinedown concert, but the sound was pretty bad and crowd not really chill enough for our tastes.

I did have a good time checking out the chickens, bunnies, and cows. Saw one rabbit that is larger than my pillow and had way better hair than me.

I had hoped to make up the rest of the pesto today, but writing comes first. 


Ready...

Today's advice: "I write for a couple of hours every day, even if I only get a couple sentences. I put in that time. You do that every day, and inspiration will come along. I don't allow myself not to keep trying. It's not fun, but if you wait until you want to write, you'll never do it."  Dave Barry


Set....

Today's prompt: Signs taken out of context are wonderful sparks for creativity. If you follow this blog regularly, you'll see I often post photos of signs that strike me as funny, or intriguing, or as... yes, a sign about a larger experience than the physical, literal sign might imply at first glance.

On the way to the State Fair last night, I came across a sign that made me chuckle and is going to be the basis for my free-writing time today.

You can use my sign, too, or you can go for a walk or drive and find a sign of your own.

My sign?

Scroll down and all will be revealed...






The oracle is ready to speak.....






Can you feel the wind rise as She opens Her mouth?.........





and whispers:........



"Comfort window"

What would you see if you looked through YOUR comfort window?


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Yesterday was a low energy day for me, perfect for a day spent running errands and doing the tedious and necessary things in life one must do. Bah. Now they're over with.

My reward was to make the best pesto I have ever made with basil from my garden and fresh garlic grown by a guy near the village. This is a lean month here in the Forest and the price of pine nuts was too hight, so I used finely chopped walnuts instead. If the writing goes well today, I will make up a massive batch of pesto and freeze it. (Last year's frozen pesto was a little disappointing. But I have figured out what I did wrong. Don't add the cheese to any pesto you are going to freeze; it messes up the consistency a bit when thawed. This year I'll add the cheese to pesto once it is defrosted.)

The other reward from the garden last night was boiled potatoes. I sort of accidentally on purpose unearthed a bunch when checking on them. I've never grown potatoes before and am very excited by these. I think we'll have enough to store... maybe enough to feed us through the winter. Stay tuned.

Ready...

Today's advice: "I think it's bad to talk about one's present work, for it spoils something at the root of the creative act.  It discharges the tension."  Norman Mailer


Set....

Today's prompt: This is about perspective and age. Brace yourself for the scroll-down.

1. Write a list of ten objects you can see from where you are sitting right now.

2. Now write a list of ten more objects. The first ten items that drop into your mind.

now scroll down....







scrolling, scrolling, scrolling.....







::opens refrigerator:: did I mention how awesome this pesto is?




almost done scrolling!! ::wipes pesto off keyboard::



3. Describe the color of the objects you listed from the perspective of a five-year-old.

3a. Describe the color of the objects you listed from the perspective of a fifteen-year-old.

3b. Describe the color of the objects you listed from the perspective of an eighty-year-old.

Because they have different life experiences and cultural contexts, they will see (and probably experience) the colors differently.

Bonus points: Write a scene where two of these characters disagree about the name of the color of one of your objects.


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Bitch is the best name for a magazine ever.  Hands down.  Next time you see it on the newsstand, buy a copy. Next time you are puzzled about what to give someone who would love a "smart, snarky, hilarious, and feminist response to popular culture" you should buy them a subscription.

The Bitch blog has one of the best interviews with me. Thank you, Ellen Papazian, for asking awesome questions.

What do you think about it? Let them know in the comments section of their blog and/or here. They are also looking for suggestions about other YA novelists to interview? Whom do you think?


Ready...

Today's advice: "I am not a writer except when I write."  Juan Carlos Onetti 


Set....

Today's prompt: Movement = story.

Today you are going to take a walk. Or a run. Or you are going to draw circles on a sidewalk and hop between them. If all else fails, you are going to close your eyes and rock back and forth.

The movement of your body will help move your story. I swear.

You have a mantra to repeat while you are moving your body through space and your mind through time. Here it is.

_________________ (insert name of character)  wants  __________________ (insert character's desire), but  then ________   (something)  happens and ___________ (make up something)

You might want to write this mantra on your hand. On a piece of paper at the least.

Ideally? You are going to say this out loud. Over and over again.

Once you have filled in the blanks, repeat it, dreaming up another scene.
 
You might feel dumb, but who cares? You are creating art. Your are summoning ideas out of the ether. You are entitled to look and feel a little silly, if that's what it takes.

Warning: be prepared to be flooded with ideas. If this happens, you have permission to stop moving and write them down. But start moving again the instant your mind starts to wander.


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I still feel pretty punky, but managed to make some headway on my novel yesterday, which makes up for a lot of internal ickiness. I also started a large map of the territory of the book. There are several scenes in which I've written (this is the craptascular first draft, remember): "MC goes from Point A to Point B. Insert interesting details of his path." I imagine my editor and reader are going to expect me to actually make that stuff up and insert it. I'll work on that today.

Do you have a Creature With Fangs, like mine, who has an unseemly need to be adored by millions? Enter this contest.

I have hundreds of cherry tomatoes. Anyone have a good recipe?


Ready...

Today's advice: "Discipline is the refining fire by which talent becomes ability."


Set....

Today's prompt: Elizabeth George (Write Away) has a wonderful technique to get rid of those pages of dialog that meander along until your reader fears she has accidentally picked up a screenplay.

George calls them THADs: Talking Head Avoidance Devices.

You are going to make up a bunch of them.

Think about your MC's life, and where and when she has conversations. Brainstorm 50 different kinds of actions that might reasonably take place while she is talking.

Hint: setting often determines action. If you are not clear about the What The Heck Is She Doing in a scene, first insert more details of the setting. That should get you going.

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I'm struggling with both allergies and some kind of stomach bug, so don't come too close.

I am tempted to ramble on in horrifying detail about the various sensations and infestations and colonies of bacteria all busy breeding a world under my skin, but frankly, I don't have the energy. I'm going to post this blog and curl up with a nice tome about 18th-century surgical techniques.

Be sure to read this interview with poet/photographer/picture book wizard, Charles R. Smith Jr.

Do you have any thoughts about this map of book banning and challenges?


Ready...

Today's advice: "Stay away from all other human beings because they will just make you sick."  Me

Today's writing advice: "Keep away from people who belittle your ambitions." Mark Twain

(If you are in the mood for an essay, compare and contrast today's two quotes.)

Set...

Today's prompt: (This is a good one. Feeling like something the cat threw up inspires me.)

1. Pick a fairy tale.

2. Write your own version of it.

3. Start with "Once upon a time..." (Read the opening to my book, Prom, if you want.)

4. Write a modern and or twisted version of the story.

Extra Bonus Points: Keep it under 750 words and set it in picture book format.

Crown of Gold Award: Illustrate it, too.


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On September 7, 1992, this child went to first grade.



That is the OfficeMouse.

I bring this up because today is her first day of school again, this time as an eighth grade science teacher. Congratulations Ms. Anderson!!!

The day she started school in 1992 is the day I mark as my first day of being a "real" writer. I had been a freelance journalist for a while and had been playing around with the notion of trying to write books for kids.

After I put OfficeMouse on the bus that day, I went up to my little writing nook and wrote myself a long journal entry. In it, I gave myself the goal of being published in five years.

It took me four years.

Looking back, I should have given myself ten years. That is a much more realistic time line.

Ready...

Today's advice: "Most of us spend half our time wishing for things we could have if we didn't spend half our time wishing." Alexander Woollcott

Set...

Today's prompt: Write down where you want your writing life to be in 2010, in 2014, and in 2026.

Be specific and bold. What kinds of books do you want to write? When will you have them ready to submit?

Don't worry about the things you can't control, like editors or publishing houses or marketing plans.

You have total control over the quality of your work and the amount of time and energy you put into it. Write yourself a road map from now to 2026 defining how and what you're going to write.


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Our local coyote pack was restless last night; running and feeding and dancing and howling. I gave up trying to sleep around 4:30. That, of course, was when they turned in for the night.

But this is a good thing because now I am awake and the page is itching for me to cover it with ink and love and disaster.

Ready...

Today's advice: "The artist's only responsibility is his art.  He will be completely ruthless if he is a good one.... If a writer has to rob his mother, he will not hesitate..." William Faulkner

Set...

Today's prompt: Part 1. Write down the name of the kind of animal that scares you.



scrolling...scrolling.....




Part 2. Read Hunting Power, by Robert Moss. (It's short, I promise.)



just keep scrolling, just keep swimming




I mean scrolling!.......





Part 3. Write a poem or a bit of prose about being trapped in a tight space with the animal you most fear. Here's the tricky part: do NOT use the word "fear" or "afraid". Make the reader feel your fear without you telegraphing your emotional state.


Extra Bonus Points: turn this writing piece into something mythological. Make yourself a god, or the animal a messenger or something like that.




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Here is an almost typical writing day for me. I woke up yesterday at 5am, ate breakfast, wrote my blog entry and wrote in my journal. Then I had to drive BH 40 miles into the city so he could pick up his car. When I got back to my village, I took care of a couple of errands and wrote in our new bakery for a while. (Greco's, for all of you guys who live near me. It's next to the Dollar Store in Mexico. A GREAT place to write.)

When the traffic outside the bakery got too heavy, I headed back home and wrote until dinnertime. How many words did I write? I have no idea. 

I was struggling and struggling with the elements of a new chapter. I knew what was going on with my character up until that chapter. I sort of knew what was going to happen after it. Chapter X, however, remained murky.

I brainstormed several courses of action my character could take. Didn't like any of them. Checked my email. Didn't like any of that, either. Went back to some of the primary sources that were the inspiration for this chapter. Felt like the right idea was teasing me; staying just out of my line of sight, but rushing up and poking me in the side to let me know it was there.

And I felt like an idiot for not being able to solve this knot.

I looked at the possibility that this was an unnecessary chapter. Nope. I needed it. This is a turning point chapter in which one series of events resolves and another begins. A new character was present in this chapter; he showed up two chapters earler, and I didn't know much about him. I finally figured my character's emotional journey in this pivotal chapter, but I was stuck on how to show how he makes that journey through action and dialog.

BH and I ate dinner. I talked to a couple of our kids and read for a couple of hours. I had planned on going back to my office to write before bed, but just couldn't find the energy. So it was off to the shower.

My answer was in the water. This happens so frequently, I don't know why I don't just work in the shower ever day.

In the course of the shower, all of the answers dropped into my skull: the new character's name, motivations and background, his connections to my Main Character, and best of all, the way this irritating chapter was supposed to unfold.

Eureka!

The interesting thing was that my new understanding of the new character requires me to go back two chapters where he is introduced and completely change his reaction to the Very Awful Bad Thing that happens back there. That's today's work.

Ready...

Today's advice: "Every writer I know has trouble writing."  Joseph Heller


Set...

Today's prompt: Part 1. Go to the Poem-A-Day archive at Poets.org.  Choose three poems at random. Print them out.

Part 2. Take a page out of your local newpaper.

Part 3. Grab your scissors and cut up the newspaper and poems into narrow slips of paper that contain no more than two lines of text. When you are done slicing and dicing, mix all the pieces of paper together.

Part 4. Close your eyes and pull out a couple or three or five slips of paper. Use the words on them to spark your writing today.


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All of the peaches have been skinned, sliced and frozen! Now it is on to more green beans. My tomatoes have been blighted, so I might have to buy a peck or two to make salsa.

But more important than filling the freezer and pantry is writing.

I had a good day yesterday; I threw out almost everything I wrote. Why is this good? Because what I wrote and threw out helped me better understand the motivation of my character in those scenes. A long walk helped me figure out what was missing. (The character had long-term desires, but not enough immediate internal pressure.) So I am proud of what I wrote yesterday and excited to see what today brings.

If you've been mostly playing by the rules of The Challenge, you've been writing daily for three weeks now. Has it been harder than you thought? This article at Zen Habits will help you understand why you went off track. Don't waste any time beating yourself up. Make a minor course adjustment in your life and recommit to your 15 minutes a day.

Writing makes you happy. You are allowed to write and be happy and proud about it.

Since we're in a reflective frame of mind, please take a moment to answer the following questions in the Comments section or email them to me at laurieAtwriterladyDOTcom.

1. What interfered with your writing in the last 21 days?
2. What did you do differently to protect your writing time for the last 21 days?
3. Which prompts were the most useful?
4. What part of your writing do you need the most help with?
5. What questions do you want me to answer about writing or the writing life?

Yes, you are allowed to count the time you spend answering the questions as your fifteen minutes!


Ready...

Today's advice: "I try to leave out the parts that people skip." Elmore Leonard


Set...

David Small has written a memoir of his childhood in graphic novel form. Read this interview with him first.

Sounds fascinating, doesn't it?

Secrets have dark power. Their impact can be felt for generations.

Write about a secret from your childhood. Don't be afraid - you don't have to show this to anyone, unless you choose to. Try to write about it from your POV as a child, not with the wisdom and perspective of an adult.

OR
Write about a secret from your character's childhood, or from someone who is close to her.


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I had a first yesterday; an email from a reader who said she was going to have "speak" (as in the title of my book that holds a lot of meaning for her) turned into a tattoo. She's thinking of putting it on her neck.

Someone on Twitter asked me what I felt about that. Twitter is a great place for gut responses. I wrote: "Good chills. "Thank you, universe" chills. Humble chills."

There are layers, dermatological and metaphorical, to the words that we inscribe in our skin.


I have the first word of Beowulf inked (in Anglo-Saxon) just below my right hand.

There are volumes and libraries and bookstores of people out there who put their story into their skin. I think of many of their tattoos as short, epic poetry; the Song of Their Self. I know mine is.

For the record I spent about 5 minutes in the garden yesterday, picking tomatoes. In my defense, I did an absurd amount of writing and had to have my sore fingers pried from the keyboard by my BH rather late.

And I'm ready to go at it agin. You?

Ready...

Today's advice: "Writing is a socially acceptable form of schizophrenia."  E.L. Doctorow

Set...

Today's prompt: Your character steps into a locker room or bathroom, or a dressing room and sees someone she knows without any clothes on. The nakedness does not shock her. It's the tattoo. Describe the location, the person, and give the story behind the tattoo.

OR - after ______________ (insert significant incident here) your character steps into a tattoo parlor and puts her cash on the counter. What ink does she want, where does she want it, and why?

OR - If I gave you a magic cream that would cause your dream tattoo to be shielded from the eyes of people who would make your life miserable if they saw it.... what would you have inked. Why?


Extra bonus points: Go get that tattoo. Life is short.


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