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Author M.T. Anderson spoke at the 2010 SCBWI LA Conference about why experimental literature is perfect or children, even more so than for adult literature. The following notes are from his breakout session on the topic. Also visit my previous post “What is Experimental Literature” where Anderson breaks down the different techniques and terms of experimental lit.

The Three Main Points of This Session…

• Experimental fiction is not really experimental. These techniques have been used for many years.
• Experimental fiction is great for children because kids pick up on these techniques naturally and take to them better than an adult might. They are more accessible than in adult literature.
• Experimental techniques teach us how to read the book. They are a process of learning in and of themselves. They will show us world and character. These techniques show more and are less subliminal.

A Reading of Kurt Schwitter’s Experimental Poem #25…

• Anderson performed Kurt Schwitter’s poem #25. This was a poem entirely of numbers (i.e. 25, 25,26,27,25… etc.) However the key to the poem is not in the narrative but in hearing it out loud. It was about experiencing rhythms and repetitions, sets of numbers that create a language within themselves in how they are repeated and organized.
• This poem was an example of form without content. The poem has complex structures despite its lack of content.
• The poem teaches us how to enter the poem. It creates patterns through the relationship of numbers. Such as a number repetition (4,4,4) or the ascension of numbers (25,26,27). Despite the fact that there is no specific math in the poem.
• There are surprises and disruptions in the poem. For example the introduction of a fraction. This creates new sequences, new rules, and new movements n the flow of the poem.
• The poem relates to the operation of language.
• The speech act (reading it aloud) creates structures of meaning. We define the words as we use them.
• The repetition of the number 25 could relate to: memory, recollection of fate. The number does repeat itself later.
• When we are sensitized to the underlying structures and patterns we create meanings when putting them together.

Why Experimental Fiction is Great for Kids…

• Children learn narrative without even thinking about it.
• As a child our learning is more malleable. Where as an adult we have already learned a set structure, we are less inclined to be open to alternative structure.
• Children have a light and unpretentious approach to story.

The Experimental Work of Dr. Seuss…

• Anderson also read/performed sections of Dr. Seuss’ book One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish. This is a book without a clear or cohesive narrative, but uses pattern and repetition to move you through the book, as well as teaches you the structure as you go.
• The book begins with organization in counting, followed by organization in color. Then the book switches to emotion.
• There are specific rhyt
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Newberry Honor winning author Gennifer Choldenko spoke at the LA SCBWI 2010 annual conference. The following notes were taken during her keynote speech on how to write novels for today’s kids.

Are Today’s Kids Different Than When We Were Kids?

• Do kids grow up faster now that when we were kids? True? Each child and age group has a huge range of behaviors.
• Kids are more outwardly sophisticated today than we were as kids. But on the inside they are the same.
• It’s hard work growing up.

Why Was A Wrinkle In Time So Successful?

• Great characters.
• Original Story.
• No Fat.
• It’s not the Newbery that makes the book still resonate with kids today.
• Another book that still has resonance today is The Little Princess. And it’s over 100 years old!

We Need More Multi-Cultural Authors!

• Kids need to see voices that reflect their circumstances in life.

How to Get Boy Readers…

• Ask yourself if you can compete with Xbox. Video games are getting more complex rather than shorter, they also have more action.
• We need books that reflect the emotional reality of boy’s lives.
• Kids don’t start reading at age 14. Publishers don’t only want YA. They need readers early so they will grow into YA. Think through what you hear.
• Human beings need stories!

How Publishing and Media is Evolving…

• The delivery systems (for books) are expanding!
• The industry is not getting easier to break into, but there are now more doors/ways for books to be published.

On Writing For Kids…

• “Write up for kids, not down.” – E.B. White
• Childhood is a lot harder than it looks. Dig deep.

Craft and The Writing Process…

• What you experience while you are writing is what we (the reader) will experience when reading.
• Don’t trick-out your protagonist and no one else. Be sure everyone is three-dimensional.
• Pay attention to how people walk, talk, etc. Be a notorious eves dropper.
• Every detail must work within the context of the world you have created.
• If you’re not totally engaged in your work, then something is wrong.
• No set-up scenes! Each scene must be gratifying within itself.
• If every risk you take pans out, then you may not really be risking much.
• Push your protagonist. Readers like to see a protagonist do something they (the reader) would never do.
• Put your characters in the lion’s cage and see who they really are.
• Skill matters! Varying levels of practice is more important than talent. It’s about the time!

Clever Quotes and Anecdotes…

• “Once you have your first draft, re-read to see what you have been avoiding.” – Her editor
• “The idea for my next novel is contained in the scribble my subconscious hands me.” – Choldenko
• “Next time fail better.” -?
• “You need to feel your way through a novel, not think your way.” – Mailer (?)
• “Throw your heart over, and follow.”  -?

Take Care of Your Writer Self…

• Keep the caffeine flowing (or not.)
• Stay away from toxic people (who want to tear you down).
• Make yourself the time to read and write!

Set Small Goals…

• BIC = Butt in Chair
• Try to make a page count or word count for the day!
• Beware of quantity over qu
  4 Comments on Writing Novels for Today’s Kids, last added: 11/7/2010
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  Laura said, on 11/6/2010 11:49:00 AM
  

  Thanks, Ingrid! There’s amazing info here. This is encouraging for me as my MG novel is complex and action filled. (I was afraid it might be too advanced for MG readers.)

  The only part that surprised me is about the critique groups. All the good writers I know had groups that helped them learn to write. I’m a big crit-group advocate.

  Thanks again for your devoted reporting!

  amanda said, on 11/6/2010 12:56:00 PM
  

  So happy to find your blog today…I was in need of some writerly inspiration. Thanks for sharing!

  Michelle Dennis Evans said, on 11/6/2010 8:29:00 PM
  

  Thank you!!!
  So much great info – great post.
  

  Paul said, on 11/7/2010 8:49:00 AM
  

  Great post, very inspiring and encouraging!!

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Boy, do I have a bug-tastic treat for you all today! My SCBWI friend and now DEBUT AUTHOR, Lori Calabrese, has just published her first picture book: The Bug That Plagued The Entire Third Grade. Woohoo!

Lori has also decided to make my blog a stop on her rockin’ bug-tabulous blog tour. She was kind enough to let me interview her and share with you some of the trials and triumphs of her publishing journey!

An Awesome Interview With Author Lori Calabrese:

First off, tell us a little bit about your book The Bug That Plauged the Entire Third Grade.

Lori: Hoping to win the upcoming Bug-A-Fair, Matt pries a strange bug off the grille of his Dad’s car. But as the fair nears, Matt catches a different kind of bug: a cold. Will Matt become student of the year or will he create a third grade epidemic?

Watch Lori’s amazing book trailer here:

Okay, onto the nitty-gritty writing and publishing stuff. What was your favorite thing about writing this book?

LORI: My favorite thing about writing The Bug That Plagued the Entire Third Grade was seeing it transform into what it did. As writers, we all know that the first draft is usually WAY different than the final draft and that was definitely the case with this picture book.

The Bug That Plagued the Entire Third Grade was a huge learning process for me and it will always hold a special place in my heart since it was my first children’s book.

What struggles did you meet in the writing process, and how did you overcome them?

LORI: I think the biggest struggle I met in the writing process was writing a good story in so few words. There are many people out there who think writing a picture book is a walk in the park. I know because I used to be one of them! But when you finally sit down and realize everything that goes into it—from the rhythm, meter, character development, plot, having your child protagonist solve his own problem, and making it entertaining, you become aware that writing a picture book is far more difficult than it looks!

To overcome the struggle, I read a ton of picture books. Fortunately, I’m obsessed with picture books, so that wasn’t such a hardship, but I really read and studied them to find out what works and what doesn’t.

How did you go about selling this book? And how did you find your small publisher?

LORI: Unfortunately, the picture book market is a difficult market to break into right now as most of us are aware from the recent NY Times Article and from reading agents ‘and editors’ blogs. Due to a tough economy, it’s hard for a debut picture book author to break in, but I truly believe that if you have the passion for it, it’s not impossible.

I found my publisher, Dragonfly Publishing, Inc., online. Since 2008, DFP has held a children’s picture book contest. DFP has to keep their submissions closed most of the time because they get too many and just can’t physically handle the volume, so Senior Editor Pat Gaines came up

Narrative is the new “it word” in the game of non-fiction! Narrative non-fiction has become a new hot commodity in children’s literature, so much so that SCBWI dedicated a whole panel discussion to the (often under represented) subject. I must admit, I did not manage to attend the whole session. (Yes, I slept in). After hearing the last half of the panel, I sure wish I’d been there for the first half.

The following notes are from the last 30 min of the Narrative Non-Fiction panel at the 2010 SCBWI LA conference featuring authors Elizabeth Partridge, Tanya Lee Stone, Deborah Heiligman, Susan Campbell Bartoletti, and agent Ken Wright.

About Talking to Your Sources:

• Let go of the order in which you think you’ll do something. Real people tell you things you don’t expect.
• Interviews and books can be unreliable – talk to real sources!
• Learn what you can before interviewing your sources.
• Get your sources to sign a release form. Use a tape recorder and read the release on tape and have the source agree on tape as well. Both parties should get a copy of the release form, as well as the publisher.
• There is no such thing as subjective. Everything has a point of view.

What Makes a Non-Fiction Book Interesting?

• Try and to do something new and original, don’t rehash the same old biography.
• You want there to be multiple layers in your non-fiction book.
• Be careful of the three paragraph data-dump. Try to strive for emotional resonance in each paragraph.
• What emotion drives the scene you are writing? Always ask yourself this.
• Breathe your story to life.
• Find the heart of your non-fiction story. For Charles and Emma that was the love story.

How Do You Decide on the Form of a Non-Fiction Book?

• Let the content dictate the form.
• Trust yourself. Stay true to the story versus the kind of book you thought it should be. What you are doing can change.

Non-Fiction Submissions: What You Need:

• When submitting to an editor you will need to include: Cover Letter, First Chapter, and an Outline for the whole book.

Respect Your Subject Matter:

• It doesn’t matter if who you are writing about is alive or dead, there’s always someone out there to whom you are accountable. You must tread your subject matter with respect.
• Nothing can be made up! You can’t make up dialog! This is narrative history, and you can’t write anything that didn’t happen.
• There are mistakes that alter the truth of a book, and those that do not. We all will make mistakes, all books have them. They aren’t perfect. The key is does that mistake change the truth.

Getting Photographs For Your Book:

• Always make sure you have a photography budget in your contract.
• Getting a celebrity photograph will be very expensive.

Other Anecdotes:

• Tanya let all 13 women read her book before she published it in order to fact check the work.
• Non-fiction writers are “Archive Rats” – we love digging into research.

Susan Campbell Bartoletti is a Newbery-Honor award winner who has published poetry, short stories, picture books, novels, and non

School, Drool, and Other Daily Disasters was the title of author Rachel Vail’s keynote speech at the SCBWI LA 2010 Conference. In it she shared her process, writing for middle grade readers, and how to get inside your characters head. Notes from her speech are as follows:

Why Do We Read?

• A book is more than a story well told. It needs to have humor and heart.
• The theme of my writing career has been: What does love require of us?

My Writing Day…

• Typing
• Making Tea
• Wandering around and imagining
• Making more tea

Books That Really Influenced Vail:

• Of Mice and Men
• Tales of a 4^th Grade Nothing

What is Middle Grade?

• Middle grade is the age group of 3^rd through 7^th graders.
• Most middle grade books are structured like a one-act play.

What is the Middle Grade Dilemma?

• Middle grade is the moment you emerge into the world and you discover that your family is weird.
• It’s when you wonder if there are others out there like you.
• Life or death moments are a dime a dozen in middle grade. Those feeling knock you down. Your bones ache you are growing so fast.
• Little kids harbor secrets and worries that adults are not privy to.
• Being brave is not the same as being fearless.
• Remember that one somebody who took you seriously when you were a child? (Vail shared a story about her uncle who was the only one who wanted to know the rain cycle, which she had just learned in school and was excited to share with someone).

The Impossible Task of Writing…

• Writing a book opens a window.
• Writing a book is like building a sky scraper from the top down. You build, and then tear it down. You build again, and tear it down again.

Getting Inside the Head of Your Character…

• How do we become someone else? We aren’t all memoirists.
• Start with what you know.  J.K.Rowling probably didn’t live in a cupboard as a child, but she may have lived in a metaphorical one. I’m sure she knew the loneliness and dreamed of more.
• Mine and re-purpose. I write for a girl who is like me but not like me.
• Try speed writing. Write for ten minutes on your dad’s car. Go!
• Voice sometimes comes later, after many drafts.
• We have to listen to our characters as much as we do our own kids. It’s just as hard.

Finding Your Story…

• Michelangelo once said that when he was sculpting he was “chipping away at the stone to find the sculpture inside.” It’s the same thing for writing only we have to barf out our first draft to
  3 Comments on School, Drool, and Other Daily Disasters, last added: 10/20/2010
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  Laura said, on 10/19/2010 10:07:00 AM
  

  This is one of the most informative and encouraging posts I’ve ever read. I’ve been having doubts about voice and the number of times I must revise, and this makes me feel I’m not alone and not wrong.

  Thanks so much, Ingrid. You ROCK!

  Catherine Johnson said, on 10/20/2010 1:51:00 PM
  

  Thanks for this, I hope it applies to animal protags in MG too!

  Ruth said, on 10/20/2010 8:29:00 PM
  

  Great thoughts, thanks for sharing!

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Author Paul Fleishman spoke at the 2010 LA SCBWI conference about the daunting task of writing a novel. He advises that the best thing to do is to stay organized! The following notes are his tips on how to keep the task in check.

Long Form Writing…The Novel!

• If you’ve only been writing short form then the novel can be daunting. It may look like the Himalayas off in the distance. Insurmountable.
• Make sure a longer book is what you are looking at before you begin. A novel will be multi-characters, complications, strong tone.
• The span (time covered in the book) is not important. It is the level of detail that will denote length.
• Longer form = longer hours.
• Long doesn’t mean you waste time in the book. Every word and scene must count.
• The years pile up.
• The novel writer is part of a community that stretches past the globe and time.

Organization and Keeping from Feeling Overwhelmed:

• Be sure to have separate documents for your drafts and story development elements.
• Devon-Think is a great program to help you keep organized.
• I like to separate my documents into the following categories:

a)      Manuscript

b)      Working out (For experimentation or figuring out decisions in story/plot) This is thinking on the page.

c)       Outline (An outline is a great wall that will hold back the barbarians of chaos! An outline is where you mentally walk through your book and ask the big question. This will help you from hitting the wall.)

d)      Improvise (Ride the wave, though having a surf board is nice too).

e)      Research

f)       Unused Lines

g)      Back Matter (Lists of names, reminders, acknowledgements, possible scenes, character forms, titles, etc.)

• Keep bookmarks (online and in books). They will be handy later.
• Save your different versions of your book. Email them to yourself so you have a back up.

Things to Keep in Check as You Go Along…

• Look for continuity in your book. Is your character still wearing the same red dress many days later?
• Watch out for repetitive words. You don’t want verbal ticks.

When You Revise…

• When revising make notes on what you did so you can find those sections in previous drafts.
• Do a read-through without fixing things. Highlight as you go.
• Do open heart surgery on your book. It happens. There’s no way around it but through.

When Researching…

• If using the internet, copy and paste the text into a word file and change everything to the same font. It will be easier on the eyes.  
• The highlighting button is great when doing research. It makes things easy to find.  
• Listen to Pod Casts and take notes.
• “Research should be like a slip. It should be there but never show.” – Sonja Something

Quotes and Anecdotes:

• “Every book I write teaches me how to write IT. But not the next one.” – Fleishman
• To me, a vacation is whether or not I have a book project. It’s a mental vacation. The book st
  2 Comments on Surviving the Novel, last added: 10/17/2010
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  Laura said, on 10/16/2010 2:32:00 PM
  

  I haven’t updated my blog in weeks and here you are churning out useful notes and helpful advice every couple of days. Great post! Thanks very much.

  Catherine Johnson said, on 10/17/2010 4:04:00 PM
  

  Perfect timing for me. Just about to try my hand at MG (again) thanks for this!

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Author of over 30 books, Rachel Vail, has created her own fair share of characters. As an author of young adult, middle grade, and picture books, Vail gave insight on how to create believable adolescent characters for all age groups. The following notes were taken from her breakout session at the 2010 SCBWI LA Conference.

You Are Your Best Source…

• We often feel like our own lines are boring and obvious. But we are sometimes our own best source of material. Start with what you know.
• You contain multitudes!
• If you want, start with your own story. It’s a way in. A way to start writing.

Find a Core Part of Your Character to Guide You…

• A note Vail left on her computer for herself said “Don’t redeem Morgan.” This was an important point for her character. She didn’t want to redeem the “mean” character. However later, she replaced this note with the word “Shattered.” This seemed a deeper element of the character and why she was mean in the first place.

Writer’s Block is a Character Problem…

• If you find you are blocked it means you don’t know your character well enough.
• It could also mean you are avoiding a certain scene that you are afraid to write but the book probably needs you to write.
• If your character starts to use dialog where they say things like “I don’t even know what I want anymore,” the character is talking to YOU the author. The character lacks motivation and is asking you for some!

Use a “Character Form” to Develop Your Characters…

• A Character Form is a list of questions you ask your character so you can get to know them better and really understand who they are. These start out simple with what the character looks like and their mannerisms. But you want to be sure to get into more complex questions as well. Some character form question examples are:
• My name is _____________. Who named her/him? Who are they named after?
• Character age____________.
• How do I look? This is a good question to answer in the voice of the character. This is more than the physical appearance. This is the character’s opinion of his/her own appearance. This will really help you to find the character’s voice.
• I cannot stand….
• I love my mother, but…
• My friends are…
• I wish…
• If I could change one thing about myself it would be…
• What is my favorite food?
• I love to wear…
• The worst thing I ever did… (this is a great one to help you with plot!)
• I wish I was more…
• Don’t panic if your character surprises you when answering these questions. That’s a good thing! That means your character is coming to life.

First Drafts and Brutal Rewriting…

• The story begins when the main character’s life is thrown off balance. Your job is to re-find balance for your character.
• A fully developed and realized character is not going to come out in the first draft. It will probably be somewhat boring and clich�
  3 Comments on Seeing Your Characters: Creating Adolescent Charaters From the Inside Out, last added: 10/11/2010
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  Laura said, on 10/10/2010 10:31:00 AM
  

  Thanks for the great post, Ingrid. Gee, I feel I don’t know any of my characters as well as I should. I guess that’s something to work on in the re-write!

  Janet Wagner from Creative Writing said, on 10/10/2010 8:48:00 PM
  

  This is a great “cheat sheet” for fleshing out my characters; in fact, many of the kids I tutor in creatice writing would benefit from modified versions of these notes! Thanks so much!

  B. A. Binns said, on 10/11/2010 2:17:00 PM
  

  The problem with making adolescent characters is that adolescence is a time we’d rather forget (at least in my own life). Which makes it all the better as subject matter for thoughtful novels, but all the worse for us to go back and dredge all that up. In my case, I went further, I wrote about an adolescent male. As I told my friends, I didn’t have an inner 17-year-old boy to conjure up. And they really are different from girls in some core ways.

  I’m still not sure how I managed it once, and attempting to duplicate the feat with a second book is proving daunting, especially since I know all about that BS detector and strive to be realistic enough to avoid it going off. Thanks for this blog, it’s refreshing and helps me as I strive to become better at my craft.

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Multicultural authors Jennifer Cervantes, Christina Diaz Gonzalez, and Guadalupe Garcia McCall presented the breakout session Stories that Cross Borders and Boundaries at the 2010 SCBWI LA Conference. The following is a handout they provided from their session on how to avoid stereotypes and negative images of cultural groups.

Developing and Applying Evaluative Measures

The following is criteria that is important when writing multicultural literature and will help you avoid stereotypes and negative images of cultural groups. When considering writing multicultural literature, it is important to first consider your purpose.

Purpose: Although good literature contains universal themes, there should be a purpose for using a particular setting or for representing characters of a particular cultural background. To asses purpose consider questions such as:

• Does the cultural setting add to the work, or does it seem superfluous?
• Could the work succeed equally well if it used a different cultural setting or characters from a different culture?

Once you have determined that your story requires a specific cultural setting, consider the following:

1. No distortions or omissions of history: Look for various perspectives to be represented.

2. Stereotyping: Make sure there are no negative or inaccurate stereotypes of the ethnic group being portrayed.

3. Loaded Words: Make sure there are no derogatory overtones to the words used to describe the characters and culture, such as “savage,” “primitive,” “lazy,” and “backward.”

4. Lifestyles: Make sure the lifestyles of the characters are genuine and complex, not oversimplified or generalized.

5. Dialog: Be sure the characters use speech that accurately represents their oral tradition.

6. Standards of Success: The characters should be strong and independent, not helpless or in need of the assistance of a white authority figure. Characters do not have to exhibit extraordinary qualities, or do more than a white character to gain acceptance and approval.

7. The Roles of Females, Elders, and Family: Women and the elderly should be portrayed accurately within their culture. The significance of family should also be portrayed accurately.

8. Possible Effects on Child Self-Image: Make sure there is nothing in the story that would embarrass or offend a child whose culture is being portrayed. A good rule of thumb: you would be willing to share this book with a mixed-race group of children.

9. Relationships between Characters from Different Cultures: Minority characters are leaders within their community and solve their own problems. Whites do not possess a power while cultural minorities pay a supporting or subservient role.

10. Heroines and Heroes: Heroines and heroes are accurately defined according to the concepts and struggles for justice appropriate to their cultural group. They are not those who avoid conflict with and thus benefit the white majority.

11. Author’s and/or Illustrators Background: Creators of multicultural literature must have sufficient background knowledge to create accurate portrayals of a cultural group. Have

Gail Carson Levine, author of Ella Enchanted, spoke at the 2010 SCBWI LA Conference. In her keynote speech she shared the following tips on how to develop your characters.

Seven Ways to Create Compelling Characters:

1) What role will my character play? I always start with plot when writing a book, then I think about the role in which my character will need to play in this story. That role is essential to creating your character. Do they need to grow into that role? Is it something inherent about their character to begin with? Etc. This is a keystone to build your character from.

2) There’s a tarantula on your head. What are you gonna do? I need to be with my characters for awhile to learn how they will react. I discover who my character is through writing dialog, actions, and internal thoughts about who he/she is. Put your character in different situations and see how they will surprise you.

3) What if? What if? This is a book full of great questions that will help you to get to know your character. Answer the questions for your character.  A lot of authors also use a character form or questionnaire with a list of questions they have created. (Examples of character forms can be found at: Elfwood Character Creation Form or Writing.com Character Development Form).

4) Invented characters vs. real humans. In a novel it is not possible to create a character with as many layers as a real human. The reader is going to end up doing a lot of the work themselves, that’s okay. The reader will build from their own experience to create depth for your characters. But you have to show the reader the way.

5) You know, like, dude! It’s just how I talk, duh! Look for speech mannerisms in your characters. For example, I have a friend who always starts a sentence with: “You know what…” and always follows it with something angry, “…this sucks.” Etc. Some people always start sentences with “I have to tell you…” How does your character start sentences? What tags do they put at the end of sentences? This will help each of your characters to sound unique.

6) Don’t invite the circus! Don’t overload the reader with a circus of exotic talkers. You want each character to stand out and be unique, but if everyone has crazy lingo and weird phrases, the audience is going to get tired. No to mention the in-authenticity of too much jargon!

7) I could have danced all night! Movement is a tip off to character. Use body language. Simple examples include: She rolled her hands. or Her eye twitched when she was nervous. Why do people touch one another? Some do it  to show dominance, others just have a touchy feely nature. Another character might twirl their hair while they are plotting. Show us actions! In a movie we see all these actions, but in a book you need to remind the reader.

Gail Carson Le