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No matter how my writing students define “success” – perhaps beginning a picture book, completing a novel, earning an advanced degree or maybe winning a grant, their stories of success gladden my heart.
Today I share my former student Stefanie Lyons’ Success Story to celebrate this month’s publication of her debut novel DATING DOWN (Flux), a YA novel in verse, with hopes her story will gladden your heart too.
Thanks to Flux’s generosity, one lucky TeachingAuthor reader can win a copy of DATING DOWN simply by entering our Book Giveaway which runs from today May 4 through midnight May 15.
(Please see details at the end of Stefanie’s Q & A).
I first worked with Stefanie independently almost 15 years ago on a middle grade novel that still plays in my head. We worked together again in 2008 in my University of Chicago’s Writer’s Studio Novel Workshop. I was honored to recommend her to the Vermont College’s MFA in Writing for Children program in 2009 and of course, cheer her on as she completed her graduate degree.
Stefanie describes herself on her website as a writer of all things young adultish. The tag line for DATING DOWN is a grabber: When a good girl falls for a bad boy.
“She thought she loved him. She thought she could change him. She thought if she just believed in him enough, his cheating and his drugs and his lying would stop, and she'd be his and he'd be hers and they'd love each other forever.
But for Samantha Henderson, X--the boy she will not name--is trouble. He's older, edgier, bohemian . . . and when he starts paying attention to Sam, she can't resist him. Samantha's family and friends try to warn her, but still she stays with him, risking her future and everything that really matters.”
The Booklist review lauded Stefanie’s musical, poignant verse, calling the story “lyrical and heart-wrenching, exploring the emotional vicissitudes of love, sex, and drugs.”
Kirkus recommended the book to fans of Ellen Hopkins. “Turbulent love via turbulent poems.”
She’s also appearing on my First-Timers Panel at the Chicago Printers Row Lit Fest the weekend of June 7 and 8.
Take heart and hope from my interview with Stefanie and be sure to enter our Book Giveaway for a free copy of Stefanie’s DATING DOWN.
And thanks to Stefanie who's out and about connecting with her readers for taking time to share her Success Story with our readers.
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
Your unswerving focus from the year 2000 on to learn and hone your craft coupled with your non-stop efforts to grow as a writer, is note-worthy. What’s kept you going all these years? How did you come to know and believe what I shared in my 2009 VCFA recommendation: i.e. Stefanie Lyons was seated on the Right Pew in the Right Church.
What has kept me going all these years was the thought that I couldn’t quit. I’m a very
stubborn person when I want to be! Also, writing was something that took ahold of me from a young age and never let go. (Maybe it’s more stubborn than I am.) Writing is how I find fulfillment. It’s my joy. As for me being seated in the Right Pew in the Right Church, as you put it, I would rephrase it to say that I made sure I was in the Church and never got up from the Pew. It’s a story of tenacity, mostly.
Can you share with our readers how DATING DOWN, a YA novel in verse, came to be – and the revisions it underwent, under the guidance of first your agent and then your editor?
I was in grad school when I started DATING DOWN. I needed something to turn in and found this in a folder in my house. I pulled it out and thought, “Well, this isn’t as bad as I remember.” I revisited it and sent it in. My advisor loved it and helped me pare the voice into a more traditional verse novel. At the time, it was a prose/verse hybrid. My agent didn’t weigh in on this novel because it was already in the hands of Flux when we met. But that’s another story.
You’re an enthusiastic member of the debut 2015 debut author blog Fearless Fifteeners. How has this group helped you grow as an author now out in the world bringing her book to readers?
I’ve learned so much from them. Honestly, they’ve made this journey so fun. Having a group of writers going through the same debut experience at the same time has made the scary stuff a bonding experience and the highs that much higher. They provided a place where I could ask the dumb questions without bugging my editor or agent. How do I request my book be stocked in independent bookstores? Where do I go to make bookmarks? How do you sign your name to readers? Stuff like that. And the cheer-leading on release day. Banding together to do panels. These things have made all the difference. It has been the #1 most defining thing that has shaped my debut year. And that’s saying a lot.
You – also – have a solid career in advertising! How do you balance your days so you have time to write – and – promote?
Priorities. Some things are more important than others. Like sleep. Who needs it?
What’s that One Thing You Wished You’d Known when you began your Writer’s Journey?
How truly wonderful the Children’s Writer’s community is. And how much I’d grow just by befriending them. I always considered writing as a solo sport. It is quite the opposite, actually.
. . . .
Enter via the Rafflecopter widget below to win a copy of Stefanie Lyon’s YA novel in verse, DATING DOWN. You can enter between now and midnight, May 15, 2015.a Rafflecopter giveaway 
Jim Trelease, author of THE READ-ALOUD HANDBOOK, properly praised this essential book for teachers and librarians in his review: "Amidst the clanging noise of today's technology, Steven Layne offers here a clear clarion call on behalf of reading to children. It is insightful, reasoned, entertaining (rare in the field), and carefully researched for those who might doubt the urgent need for something that doesn't need a Wi-Fi hot spot. It should be on every teacher's must-read list."
Be sure to enter our Book Giveaway of an autographed copy of IN DEFENSE OF READ-ALOUD. Instructions follow after the Wednesday Writing Workout. The deadline to enter is April 6.
Were I entering our TeachingAuthors Book Giveaway, I’d share my #1 read-aloud title - Norton Juster’s THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH (Random House). As I wrote in my post celebrating Leonard Marcus’ 50th anniversary annotated edition of THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH, reading aloud this beloved classic marked the first day of school for every fifth grade class I taught. Once grown and married, many of my students wrote me to share how they in turn shared Milo’s tale with their children.
So what about you? What is your favorite read-aloud title?
Once again, I thank Steven – this time for allowing me to share his Read-aloud Tips and Recommendations - as listed in IN DEFENSE OF READ-ALOUD, in today’s Wednesday Writing Workout.
Enjoy!
Esther Hershenhorn
. . . . . . . . . .
Wednesday Writing Workout:
Dr. Steven L. Layne’s Read-aloud Tips and Recommendations
As Dr. Layne declares in his newest book, when it comes to read-aloud, practice makes perfect!
Here are a few of his practical read-aloud guidelines as shared in his March 1-released IN DEFENSE OF READ-ALOUD (Stenhouse).
Become familiar with the book before reading it.
Launch the book successfully.
· Provide a purpose for listening.
· Work out an advantageous seating arrangement.
· Plan your stopping point. “Every stopping point is a secret reading-skill-reinforcement lesson just waiting to happen.”
· Teach reading skills such as visualization, inferring, and sequencing.
· Plan strategically for the end of the read-aloud.
· Work out a positive solution for those students who get the book and read ahead.
· Choose and balance the books and genres we read-aloud.
Just in case you’re looking for a good book to read aloud, read through his list of “The Twelve Books Steven Loves to Read Aloud.”
· COUNTERFEIT SON by Elaine Alphin (“My go-to- read-aloud for high school kids who need to be enticed back into the experience of being read to by an adult.”)
· Sue Stauffacher’S DONUTHEAD (“It has proven itself to me time and again when it comes to delighting students in the intermediate grades.”)
· Bill Grossman’s MY LITTLE SISTER ATE ONE HARE. (“How can you not fall in love with a picture book about a girl who eats all manner of disgusting things and then throws up – when it’s written by a guy whose last name is Grossman?”
· Jerry Spinelli’s STARGIRL. (“Of all the books I have read aloud to students in my career, it is Jerry Spinelli’s STARGIRL that takes center stage.”
Happy reading aloud!
And don’t forget to enter our TeachingAuthors Book Giveaway! The deadline is midnight, April 6.
Today, I was supposed to continue our series of posts in honor of National Bullying Prevention Month. Instead, I've decided to dedicate this blog post in memory of my friend and fellow writer, Laura Crawford, who died on September 30 at the much-too-young age of 46. And since today is also Poetry Friday, I've included a poem at the end of this post inspired by Laura.
Those of you who've been following this blog for awhile may recognize Laura's name--she was our very first "Student Success Story" interview, posted back in 2009. At that time, I had no idea Laura had been diagnosed with chronic lymphatic leukemia (CLL) the year before. As she wrote on her CaringBridge page, her disease was managed effectively with chemo and treatment until this past May, when it became more aggressive. That's when Laura chose to finally share the information about her illness with her many friends in the children's writing community. We were all shocked at the news. Laura was such a vibrant, energetic, optimistic person. You can get a sense of her vitality in the photo below, which is how I always picture her--bright-eyed and smiling. It was hard to imagine that she'd been dealing with cancer for five years.
 |
| Photo courtesy of Jennifer DuBose |
But after the shock wore off, we still had hope, mainly because Laura herself sounded so hopeful. She was preparing for a bone marrow transplant. On September 22, she posted the following on her Facebook page:
"had a FANTASTIC weekend! I feel normal...and that is saying a lot. Thanks for all the visitors, laughs, treats, jello, ice cream and support of the new 'hairdo.' I'm so very blessed."
Like so many of Laura's friends, I was heartbroken when she passed away eight days later. It didn't seem possible. Even now, nearly two weeks later, my eyes fill with tears at the thought that I'll never see her smiling face again, at least not in this life.
We have a custom on our
SCBWI-Illinois listserv to share "good news" about our writing and illustrating projects at the beginning of each month. Given the timing of Laura's death, Lisa Bierman, the Illinois chapter's co-regional advisor, invited members to share a short memory of Laura instead. Laura was a long-time
SCBWI Network Representative for the Geneva, IL Network and a regular volunteer at the annual
SCBWI-IL Prairie Writer's Day, so she was well-known throughout our writing community. The email tributes poured in. It was amazing, and uplifting, to read about how Laura had touched so many lives.
In my email to the listserv, I talked about how I first met Laura as my student, when she took my College of DuPage class in Writing for Children back in the summer of 2001. As I mentioned above, she was also our first
"Student Success Story Interview" here on TeachingAuthors. After her death, I reread that blog entry and heard again Laura's exuberant voice. I also recalled how she almost hadn't made it into my class because it was filled before she registered. She'd called the college and asked if there was any way she could still register for the class, and my supervisor contacted me. I normally don’t make exceptions regarding maximum enrollments because I want to allow enough time for manuscript critiques, and I returned Laura's call planning to tell her so. I remember sitting in my home office talking with Laura. I could hear the enthusiasm in her voice. She told me how much she wanted to take the class, and that, being a teacher, she didn't have time to do so during the school year. When she asked me to please let her join the class, I couldn’t say no.
J
I’m so grateful I made the exception to include Laura in the class. It was the beginning of a long, rewarding friendship. As it turned out,
Cathy Cronin was also in that class. She, too, became a "
Student Success Story" and a friend to both Laura and me. On Wednesday, October 2, Cathy and I drove together to attend Laura's wake and say a final good-bye. We learned from Laura's sisters that she'd kept writing and editing up until the end--she was optimistic that after her bone marrow transplant she'd be well again.
That evening, I decided I wanted to dedicate this blog post in Laura's memory, and to write a poem in her honor. I'd saved all the tributes posted on the SCBWI-Illinois listserv with the idea that I might write a "found poem" from what people had shared. Member after member wrote of Laura's warm smile, infectious laugh, generous spirit, amazing optimism, welcoming nature, and fun sense of humor. I soon realized I didn't want to write a "sappy" poem--Laura wouldn't have wanted that.
Then I thought of what Laura said in her Student Success Story interview about being a "math and science person." That gave me the idea to write my poem in the form of a “Fib,” a 5-line, 20-syllable poem with the number of syllables per line based on the Fibonacci sequence: 1/1/2/3/5/8. I thought this form would be especially appropriate because the Fibonacci sequence is often found in nature, and Laura loved nature. Plus, "Fibs" tend to be rather playful. [To read more about Fibs, see
this blog post by Greg Pincus, author of the recently released middle-grade novel,
The 14 Fibs of Gregory K (Arthur A. Levine Books).]
The Fib that follows was inspired by all the comments to the listserv, but especially by what Cathy Cronin wrote:
"I will always treasure her friendship. Her bright spirit will live on in all the hearts that she's touched and in all of her wonderful books. I am keeping a picture of her by my laptop as a reminder to 'Live like Laura.' She knew what was important to her and spent her time well. "
I agree with Cathy. Laura lives on in the hearts of all who knew her, not only the members of the children's writing community, but also the students she taught in her 20 years at Sleepy Hollow Elementary School. You can read more about how she touched their lives
in this article.
Finally, here's my Fib poem in memory of Laura.
To Live Like Laura
by Carmela Martino
Smile
wide.
Embrace
everyone.
Laugh with gusto.
Leave us grateful to have known you.
poem © 2013 Carmela Martino. All rights reserved.
When
I first read Nancy’s manuscripts, some 19 years ago, I knew instantly: she was the Real Thing, ripe
with talent, original stories and a unique voice. Her teaching experience showed through, too,
helping her target the right format for the right story for the right reader.
Nancy
also evinced Passion, with a capital P, and enough Perseverance to serve three
children’s book writers no matter where they were in their careers.
Editors
and agents as well as writing kin agreed, offering the necessary encouragement,
revision suggestions and interest to keep Nancy keepin’ on.
Today
she’s represented by Holly Root of the Waxman Leavell Literary Agency; Kirkus
starred This Journal Belongs to Ratchet; and Sourcebooks
just bought her second middle grade
novel! She also contributes to the group
blog of the debut authors of 2013 – the Lucky 13’s.
A
Student Success Story indeed.
As for Ratchet's "Student Success Story," she
spends her days fixing cars with her dad in the garage, living in a world of spark plugs, pistons, and crankshafts –not exactly normal for
an eleven-year-old girl. Even with the odds stacked against her, Ratchet endeavors to change her
life and realizes her skill as a mechanic might just be the path to her first
friend. But in the process, she alienates her father and discovers a secret she
wishes she never knew. She finds a way to, not only accept the truth she
discovers, but also accept herself and her dad.
As
I wrote in a blurb for Sourcebooks, “Readers will fall in love with
eleven-year-old Rachel, nick-named Ratchet by her car mechanic-environmentalist
Dad, as she writes from her Life in her Home School Language Arts Journal, wanting
to repair what’s broken, needing to replace the missing parts, so her very own
engine can run true and on course.
Ratchet’s journal proves a user-friendly Instruction Manual for readers
– and especially writers – eager to discover the wonder of their own life
stories.”
I’ve
been sharing this original story in this original format with teachers and
Young Authors since I received my ARC from Nancy in February. All love the book – and Ratchet - as much as
I do.
Be
sure to enter our TeachingAuthors Book Giveaway for AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF This Journal Belongs to Ratchet.
Include a shout-out for your Favorite Car – real, imagined,
long-ago, present, fictional, cinematic, even longed-for. The deadline to enter is June 3. See contest details following the interview below.
And, also be sure to check back in two days for Nancy J.
Cavanaugh’s Wednesday Writing Workout!
Thank you, Nancy J. Cavanaugh, Children’s Book Author (!), for sharing your Writer's Journey, yourself and This Journal Belongs to Ratchet with our TeachingAuthors readers.
Esther
Hershenhorn
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
We first worked together privately in the early 90’s when
you were just beginning “your race to the finish line,” on two picture books
that still remain in my heart and on
my brain’s Hard Drive. Do you recall
what you were hoping to learn – and – what you indeed took away – about
writing, the Children’s Book World, publishing - so you could keep on writing?
I was hoping to take my writing to the
next level, so my questions were: Do I
have all the essential parts of the story?
And, what will make my story marketable?
Two things I remember learning from you:
1. not to miss opportunities – opportunities to develop my characters,
opportunities to add layers to my story, opportunities to add emotion to the
overall plot; 2. to dig deep and find
out what my story was REALLY about – not just on the surface, not just what was
happening, but what “life thing” the story was really about.
I’ve always considered your classroom teaching experiences
That Extra Something that bolstered both your writing and the stories you chose
to tell. Please share how your teaching
impacted, influenced and inspired your writing?
As a teacher, and then later as a
librarian, I got to read SO many books aloud to students, and I had the
opportunity to see what young people were reading and what they liked
best. That’s sort of the obvious way in
which my school experience helped my writing, but something not quite so
obvious is the impact of the repetition of certain stories over the years. There are many books which I read over and
over throughout the years, and as I did this, I was learning the patterns of
language that we find in stories. These
patterns were practically becoming engrained in my DNA. The understanding of what “story” really is
was becoming part of my soul. I believe
that understanding of story is always at work in me now as I write.
What kept you going all these years so you could indeed
cross your much-desired Finish Line?
Wonderful writing friends.
Enriching experiences (researching
topics, attending meetings, conferences, workshops, and retreats)
The satisfaction of always having
something to strive for
Small successes along the way (having
articles and short stories published in magazines and books)
How did Ratchet’s story come to be – and – why did you
choose a home-schooled student’s journal as her storytelling vehicle?
The idea started with a character, and
her name was always Ratchet. My ideas
usually start that way, and then I let my imagination dream up what the
character’s issues are and what her story might be. I chose Homeschooling for Ratchet because it
seemed to be the best way to isolate her.
Also, because of her father, it made sense that he wouldn’t want her to
go to school in mainstream society. The
idea of writing through the assignments in Ratchet’s journal came to me in the
very beginning, but it took a lot of figuring out along the way in order to
tell the whole story in this format.
What about the revision process for This Journal Belongs to Ratchet? How did your agent Holly Root and
your Sourcebooks editor Aubrey Poole help you fine-tune the manuscript to earn
a prized Kirkus-starred review.
My agent Holly is a wonderful editor
and always has helpful suggestions before we send something out, but I had
already done a great deal of revising before sending it to Holly, so we didn’t
really have to do much – just a few tweaks here and there. When my editor Aubrey read Ratchet, though she loved the character
and the story, she asked for revisions even before Sourcebooks acquired
it. She gave me some specific direction as
to what she was looking for and thankfully I was able to deliver. After Sourcebooks bought the manuscript,
Aubrey and I did two more rounds of revisions, and I absolutely loved it
because she’s a fabulous editor. She
always had an amazing vision for what the book could be, and she guided me so
that my writing would get there. I also
have to add here that Aubrey worked hard to get just the right cover and
artwork for Ratchet, and I think that
has really made this book stand out and become something special – so much more
than I ever imagined.
Finally, can you let us in on your next book, also to be published by Sourcebooks? :-)
My next book will be coming in Fall
2014 and will be another alternative format.
The entire story is told in lists, letters, and writing assignments, in
which a girl named Abigail uses her language arts class’s Friendly Letter
Project to cope with the worst school year ever – and in the process turns it
into the best year ever.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
And now, for the giveaway details:
Our
blogiversary giveaway was such a success that we're again using
Rafflecopter to run this giveaway. If you've never entered a Rafflecopter giveaway, you may want to read their info on
how to enter a Rafflecopter giveaway and/or the
difference between signing in with Facebook vs. with an email address.
To enter for a chance to win an autographed copy of
This Journal Belongs to Ratchet (Sourcebooks/Jabberwocky) log into Rafflecopter
below (via either Facebook or an email address). You'll see that we've provided
three different options for entering the giveaway--you can
pick one or up to all three. The more options you choose, the greater your chances of winning. While we haven't made it a requirement, we hope that everyone will pick the first option--subscribing to the
TeachingAuthors blog. If you're already a
TeachingAuthors subscriber, you still need to click on that button and
tell us how you follow our blog, which will give you THREE entries in the giveaway! (If you received this post via email, you can click on the Rafflecopter link at the end of this message to enter.)
As it says in the "Terms and Conditions," this giveaway is
open to U.S. residents only. You must be 18 or older to enter. And please note: email addresses will only be used to contact winners. The giveaway will run from now through June 3, 2013. Winners will be notified June 4, 2013.
If you have any questions about the giveaway, feel free to email us at teachingauthors [at] gmail [dot] com.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Happy Poetry Friday, all!
Today, the TeachingAuthors are celebrating Poetry Friday in a special way with a sneak peek at a poem from the soon-to-be-released Gone Fishing: A Novel in Verse by Tamera Will Wissinger, illustrated by Matthew Cordell (Houghton Mifflin). And one lucky TeachingAuthors follower will win an autographed copy of the book. See the end of this post for complete details.
We're also thrilled to feature a Student Success Story interview with Tamera, a former student of mine. As Tamera shares in her interview, she's also taken classes with two of my fellow TeachingAuthors. That's half the TeachingAuthors' team! I can tell you, we're all smiling like proud mammas today. :-)
But I'm getting ahead of myself. First, let me introduce you to Tamera by sharing her official bio:
Tamera Will Wissinger writes stories and poetry for children. She was inspired to write
Gone Fishing: A Novel in Verse after writing “Night Crawlers,” a poem that stemmed from her fun childhood memories of night crawler hunting with her parents before fishing trips. A graduate of
Hamline University’s MFA program in Writing for Children and Young Adults, Tamera shares her time between Chicago and Florida.
Here's an excerpt from Tamera's
website describing her middle-grade novel,
Gone Fishing: A Novel in Verse:
"Using a wide variety of poetic forms – quatrains, ballads, iambic meter,
rhyming lists, concrete poetry, tercets and free verse – this debut
author tells the story of a nine-year-old boy’s day of fishing. Sibling
rivalry, the bond between father and son, the excitement – and
difficulty – of fishing all add up to a day of adventure any child would
want to experience."
You can connect with Tamera online via
Goodreads,
Twitter, or
Facebook. For more of her lovely poetry, visit her online journal,
The Writer's Whimsy, where you'll find links in the sidebar to several group blogs she participates in.
And now, for the interview.
1. Tamera, it's hard to believe that it’s been 10 years since we met “virtually” when you took my online class in writing for children. Do you recall what inspired you to sign up for that class?
I just came across notes from that workshop; that can’t have been ten years ago! That class was Fundamentals of Writing for Children, the first children’s writing workshop that I had ever taken. At that time I was writing stories and quite a bit of poetry, but I wasn’t focused on a specific age reader. It was my husband who suggested that I might want to try writing for children. That sounded like an interesting idea, so I found the
Writer’s Online Workshop that you were instructing, and I signed up.
2. Do you recall any specific ways the class helped you?
I remember being really nervous and also glad for this new online way of learning and for the opportunity to explore writing for children. The class itself was wonderful and you put me at ease right away by your genuine interest in the students, the focus on our stories and our writing habits, and the study of writing for children. You learned during that class that your novel,
Rosa, Sola, was going to be published. When you shared that news I remember being so thrilled for you and your achievement and excited for me to be learning from someone with so much experience and success.
That class gave me an excellent foundation for understanding the range and limitations of children’s literature, but there was so much more to it. I remember feeling really welcomed and cared for, as though I had found a place in the writing world where I belonged. And I can trace a direct path between that first class with you and my first novel. Here’s how:
- During the workshop with you I learned about SCBWI,
- Shortly thereafter I met you in person at an SCBWI event,
- At that event you introduced me to several other students from your online workshops,
- We formed a critique group,
- Some in the group were planning to attend the Vermont College MFA program in Writing for Children and Young Adults,
- I was intrigued, but not quite ready to commit,
- In the mean time, Hamline University announced their MFAC program and
- When Hamline began receiving applications in 2006 I was ready,
- I applied, was accepted, and
- What I learned there helped prepare me to write Gone Fishing.
I don’t know if I ever told you that story, Carmela, so I’m really glad for this opportunity to tell you now! When I look at this chain reaction, I’d say that first class has helped me immensely.
3. Wow, Tamera, reading about this chain of events gives me goose bumps! I do remember how wonderful it was to finally meet you and some of your classmates face-to-face after only knowing you through your online classwork. And I recall how pleased I was to learn later that you'd received your MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Hamline University. What made you decide to enroll in the program? And would you share a bit about your experience there?
After several years of attending writing workshops and conferences and participating in critique groups, I started to believe my writing was good and I began to submit stories to editors. Eventually I began to receive positive and specific feedback, but aside from stand-alone poems, I hadn't received any offers to publish. I recognized that there were still things about writing for children that I needed to know and since I was committed to finding a way for my stories to reach children, I felt that connecting with experts in the field of children's writing was the best way to try and reach my goals.
I feel so lucky to have had that opportunity. Each residency I got to hear lectures by the talented faculty and a variety of visiting children's authors. I also got to interact with classmates who were as committed as I was to learning about writing for children. Each semester I was paired with a faculty advisor. The two of us would work together to develop a personalized study plan that included the creative writing I hoped to develop, as well as aspects of craft that I intended to study. I learned to love essay writing; thinking critically about a specific story aspect or technique is one of the keys to becoming a better writer, and that's something that I've carried with me beyond the program.
One other wonderful outgrowth of the program has been the sustained connection that I have with the Hamline MFAC writing community. I'm in touch with fellow graduates, current students, faculty, and staff, and I feel a close bond with everyone because of those common experiences and interests.
4. Your experience sounds a lot like mine at Vermont College! Now can you tell us more about what inspired you to write Gone Fishing? Why did you choose to write it as a novel-in-verse? Did that format present any special challenges?
My inspiration for the story came from my good childhood memories of going fishing with my family. The first poem in the book was initially a stand alone poem. It’s called "Night Crawlers" and is based on the excitement I remember feeling when I got to stay up after dark in the summer and hunt for worms to take fishing the next day. After that first poem, others followed until I had a collection of father and son fishing poetry. Later, poems that included a younger sister began to emerge and that’s when the sibling rivalry story line started to take shape.
I didn’t originally set out to write a novel in verse. Even with the inclusion of the sibling rivalry, the story that I first submitted included around twenty poems – enough for a picture book. My editor had the wonderful idea to expand the story and the number of poems. That idea intrigued me and I continued to work on it. The final story ended up at around forty poems, which gave it enough text to be a novel in verse.
Writing using this format did present special challenges. In any novel, the story is the most important aspect of the writing. In a verse novel, the poetry has to enhance the storytelling, or it won’t work. What helped me keep focus on the storytelling was to pay careful attention to conflict, crisis and resolution. If a poem didn’t advance the story or aid in some element of storytelling, then it didn’t belong. Add to that the different poetic forms, and that was another layer of complexity.
5. Expanding a picture book into a novel sounds like it would require some major revisions. Would you share a bit about that process?
As I mentioned above, the story initially had twenty poems. We expanded it to about forty, so, yes; the book had some pretty significant revisions. I was lucky that my editor had a good sense of direction. She provided me with enthusiastic encouragement, asked many insightful questions, and gave intriguing suggestions that I was eager to explore. By the end of the first revision, more specific scenes and interactions were filling in and the story was taking shape. It was challenging and fun to see what might emerge and whether or not I would be able to produce more poems that had substance. The miracle of it was that one new poem often led to another and another, each exposing more depth and breadth to the story.
6. Gone Fishing includes a “Poet’s Tackle Box” in its back matter. What does the box contain? How might classroom teachers use its contents to extend their poetry lessons?
Developing this section was another of my editor’s smart ideas that stemmed from one of my dearest critique partners suggesting that I label the poetic forms I had used in my original manuscript. The Poet’s Tackle Box contains poetry writing tips and definitions, including information on rhyme and rhythm, poetry techniques, and poetic forms. I hope that this section can be a good reference for classroom teachers who are helping students learn the joy of reading poetry and writing their own poems.
Before I go, Carmela, there are two more things that I’d like to mention, first, I want to say hello to two of your fellow
TeachingAuthors :
Hello, Esther Hershenhorn! Esther taught a picture book writing workshop that I attended at
Ragdale on a chilly Chicago day. Inside, though, it was a wonderful, cozy, enriching day of reading, critiquing, and talking about picture books. Esther was so enthusiastic and encouraging and shared all kinds of good and important information on picture books and the publishing industry!
Hello, Jill Esbaum! Jill led a weekend rhyming picture book workshop that I attended at
The University of Iowa Summer Writing Festival. It was a sunny Iowa summer weekend and Jill was so welcoming and even came with the students to an alfresco lunch and talked informally about children’s writing. Jill was such a champion of rhyming text and finding fresh story ideas; she gave me hope that there was a market for rhyming picture book manuscripts!
And finally, in celebration of
Gone Fishing’s release this coming Tuesday, here is the opening poem in the book – "Night Crawlers" – the one that started it all:
Sam
NIGHT CRAWLERS
Tercet Variation
Dark night.
Flashlight.
Dad and I hunt worms tonight.
Grass slick.
Worms thick.
Tiptoe near and grab them quick.
Hold firm.
They squirm.
Tug-o-war with earth and worm.
Ninety-four.
Worms galore.
Set our bucket near the door.
Next day.
No delay.
Look out, fish — we’re on our way!
poem © Tamera Will Wissinger. All rights reserved.
Thank you for hosting me today on
TeachingAuthors, Carmela! I had a great time.
Thank YOU for joining us, Tamera. We especially appreciate your sharing your wonderful poem with us today.
Readers, for more of Tamera's lovely poetry, visit her online journal,
The Writer's Whimsy. There, you'll find links in the sidebar to several group blogs she participates in. You can also connect with Tamera via
Goodreads,
Twitter, or
Facebook.
And now, as promised, here's your chance to win an autographed copy of
Gone Fishing: A Novel in Verse written by Tamera Will Wissinger and illustrated by Matthew Cordell (Houghton Mifflin).
You must follow our TeachingAuthors blog
to enter our drawing. If you're not already a follower, you can sign
up now in the sidebar to subscribe to our posts via email, Google Friend
Connect, or Facebook Network blogs.
There are two ways to enter:
1) by a comment posted below
OR
2) by sending an email to teachingauthors [at] gmail [dot] com with "Book Giveaway" in the subject line.
Either way, to qualify, you must:
a) give us your first and last name AND
b) tell us how you follow us AND
c) tell us if you'll keep the book for yourself or give it to someone special.
If you enter via a comment, you
MUST include a valid email address
(formatted this way: youremail [at] gmail [dot] com).
Contest open only to residents of the United States. Incomplete entries
will be discarded.
Entry deadline is 11 pm (CST) Wednesday, March 13, 2013. Winners will be announced Friday, March 15. Good luck to all!
And after you've entered, don't forget to visit the Poetry Friday round-up at Julie Larios' blog,
The Drift Record.
Happy Writing!
Carmela
Mystery Guest Wednesday Writing Workout: Five
Tips for Tightening Your Manuscript
Today’s Wednesday Writing Workout comes to you courtesy of
an award-winning author whose talent, pluck and love define her. Her titles include the tween novels Julia’s Kitchen
and Jemma Hartman, Camper Extraordinaire (both
Farrar, Straus & Giroux). Her newest book, The Yuckiest, Stinkiest Best Valentine Ever (Dial), tells the story
of Leon who’s hopelessly in love with Zoey Maloney. But the valentine he
creates for her wants nothing to do with Leon’s mushy sentiments. The valentine
thinks this holiday is all about candy, and he runs away rather than suffer the
embarrassment of saying "I love you." As Leon follows the valentine
through town, boys, girls, and teens join the chase and chime in on their
perspectives of love until finally, the conflict comes to a heart-pounding,
sweaty-palm conclusion in of all places – a candy shop. Our Mystery Guest lives in Deerfield,
Illinois, sharing her days, nights and writing time with her husband and three
teenagers.
Have you identified our Mystery Guest Author
yet? She’s a true Student Success Story!
The Wednesday Writing Workout: Five Tips for Tightening Your Manuscript
Once you’ve finished your manuscript and revised
the story so that the characters are authentic, the setting comes to life, and
the plot makes sense and is filled with tension, before you submit it to an
editor or agent, you should turn to the writing itself and see how you can make
it tighter and more effective. Here are a few tricks I’ve learned over the
years. Give them a try:
1.
Circle all your verbs. Make sure each one
is powerful and specific. Then delete as many adverbs as possible. If you’ve
chosen the best verbs, you won’t need them anyway.
2.
Look for rhetorical questions in your
manuscript and delete them. Chances are you don’t need them and they’re slowing
your story down. In the rare event that you do need them, change the question
to a direct sentence. And in the even rarer case that you absolutely must have
a rhetorical question, keep it. Just be conscious about it.
3.
Watch out for word echoes. Don’t use the
same word more than once on the same page or even on consecutive pages.
4.
Read the first and last sentence of each
chapter and make sure you are varying them and starting and finishing with a
bang.
5.
Find twenty words to cut on each page. I
promise, you won’t miss them.
Why bother with all this cutting and tightening?
Simply put, it makes for a better reading experience, and that’s the whole
point.
* * * * * * *
So, in the wild chance you didn’t identify Brenda Ferber, click here to read my last week’s January
14 Student Success Story Interview with this award-winning author.
Click here to learn more about her newest book –
The Yuckiest, Stinkiest Best Valentine
Ever.
And, finally, congratulations, Karen Casale of Connecticut,
this week's TeachingAuthor Book Giveaway Winner! You won an autographed copy of Brenda’s
newest book.
Thank you, Brenda, from the bottoms
of our TeachingAuthors’ hearts, for sharing yourself, your Writing Life, a copy
of your book – and – today’s Wednesday Writing Workout with our TeachingAuthors readers, writers and teachers.
Esther Hershenhorn
What
a pleasure to introduce our readers to the talented and determined award-winning
author Brenda Ferber, my unforgettable Ragdale Picture Book Workshop student, and
her newest book, the picture book The Yuckiest, Stinkiest, Best Valentine Ever (Dial).
Brenda’s
original story, lively writing, Positive Mental Attitude and incredible
open-mindedness marked her as The Real Thing; she soaked me up and wrung me out as
if I were a sponge. I knew her moxie and
PMA would help her keep the Faith and I was right: The Yuckiest, Stinkiest, Best Valentine Ever collected around 70
rejections!
(Note:
that particular Ragdale Workshop’s roster boasts three published children’s
book creators (one an illustrator), two MFA in Writing for Children holders and
two oh, so close pre-published writers.)
Brenda
is the author of tween novels Julia’s
Kitchen and Jemma Hartman, Camper
Extraordinaire (both Farrar, Straus & Giroux). Her newest book tells the story of Leon who’s
hopelessly in love with Zoey Maloney. But
the valentine he creates for her wants nothing to do with Leon’s mushy
sentiments. The valentine thinks this holiday is all about candy, and he runs
away rather than suffer the embarrassment of saying "I love you." As Leon follows
the valentine through town, boys, girls, and teens join the chase and chime in
on their perspectives of love until finally, the conflict comes to a
heart-pounding, sweaty-palm conclusion in of all places – a candy shop.
Finally,
be sure to read how YOU can win your very own autographed copy of The Yuckiest, Stinkiest, Best Valentine Ever
in the Book Giveaway that follows the interview.
Enjoy and learn from one of our Children’s
Book World’s Bests!
Esther
Hershenhorn
* * * * * * *
What inspired you to sign up for my 2004 Spring Picture Book
Workshop at Ragdale?
I had written what I thought was a
picture book manuscript that was receiving its share of rejections, so I knew I
wanted someone with a great critical eye to tell me what I could do to revise
it. I learned a ton from your workshop, and I ended up deciding that what I had
written was not actually a picture book but rather a short story. It didn’t
quite have that re-readability factor, and there weren’t enough different
moments to illustrate. I could have revised it to try to make it more “picture
booky,” but instead, I decided to send it to Ladybug magazine, and they bought
it! That story, “A Cheer for Charlie,” was the first thing I ever published.
Do you recall any specific ways the class helped you?
I remember you telling us to study a
picture book thoroughly, not just the words and pictures, but also the end
papers, the flap copy, everything. Since then, I always look at the Library of
Congress description on the copyright page, I always check out the author and
illustrator bios, I always read the flap copy, and I always take note of end
papers. Not only do beautiful endpapers (as opposed to just a solid sheet of
color) indicate that the publisher has put extra care into the book, but they
also set the reader up for what’s inside. I have to say that I was so pleased
with the end papers for The Yuckiest,
Stinkiest, Best Valentine Ever. The candy hearts set the perfect tone for
what’s to come when you turn the page.
You eventually went on
to publish, but first the middle grade novel, Julia’s Kitchen (FSG), which won the Sydney Taylor Book Award for
Older Readers , then Jemma Hartman, Camper Extraordinare (Farrar Straus & Giroux). Why and how did you move from writing picture
books to writing middle grade fiction?
The
truth is, I always wanted to write children’s novels, but I thought that
picture books would be easier. Silly me! I had this crazy fantasy that I’d whip
out a few picture books, develop a relationship with an editor, and then easily
write and sell novels. Not one part of that fantasy was accurate! First of all,
writing picture books is way harder than writing novels (for me anyway), and
even though I wrote this picture book before I wrote my novel, I wasn’t able to
sell it until after I had sold two novels, and even then it wasn’t to the same
editor. Second of all, no matter how many books I write and sell, it never gets
any easier. But I have to admit, I wouldn’t have it any other way. I love the
challenge.
The Yuckiest, Stinkiest, Best Valentine Ever has remained in your heart despite years of rejection. What kept you on task and what kept you
believing, in this story as well as in yourself as a picture book writer?
Yes,
I collected around 70 rejection letters over the course of five years for this
book! The thing that kept me believing in this particular story was that I
truly loved it, and I could imagine it finding a large audience. Right after
college, I worked at the Leo Burnett advertising agency, and I learned there
the importance of Big Ideas – specifically how to recognize when you have one
and when you don’t. I believed Yuckiest
Stinkiest was a Big Idea, and I knew I just had to find the right editor to
see it that way. Happily, Kathy Dawson ended up being that person! Meanwhile,
two things kept me believing in myself as a writer while collecting all those
rejection letters. First, I’m sort of insanely optimistic, and I saw each
rejection as getting one step closer to acceptance. Second, I absolutely love
to revise, and I used any and all personal comments on the rejection letters as
fuel for my revision. Just about everything except the initial concept changed
in those five years, and the story is so much richer, funnier, and heartfelt,
thanks to rejection.
You’re not only a Student Success Story –
you’re a Teacher Success Story! What
insights that you gleaned from the
learning process do you make sure you share with your learning writers?
When
I was revising my first novel, Julia’s
Kitchen, with my wonderful editor at FSG (Beverly Reingold), I learned the
most important thing I’ve ever learned as a writer, and I try to pass that on
to every student I have the privilege of coaching: Be authentic. It sounds
simple, but it’s not. You’re making up a story. It’s pretend. But when a reader
comes to it, it has to be 100% truthful, 100% believable. Every thought, every
description, every action, every emotion, it all has to be real. So I tell my
students (and myself) to imagine that you’re writing a true story. It’s a story
that happened to a friend of yours, and you’re telling your best friend about
it over coffee. If there are any places in the story where your best friend
would say, “What? No way? I don’t believe you. That couldn’t have happened!”
or, “That doesn’t make sense. What are you talking about?” then you are not
being authentic, and you’ve got some revising to do. Even with a picture book
like Yuckiest, Stinkiest, where a
valentine comes to life, the emotions and actions need to be authentic. The
valentine needs to act like a real person who is terrified of expressing
emotions, and Leon needs to be a believable boy who wants nothing more than to
share his love with the girl of his dreams.
How do you balance your
full-time writing job with not only marketing and teaching but also mothering
three adolescents?!
I
just make the commitment to do it. I try to write every day. Of course some
days and weeks are harder to find the time than others, and I get frustrated
when I don’t write as much as I want. But I remind myself that being a mom is
my first priority, my first love, and such a privilege. In a minute, my kids
will all be in college, so I might as well appreciate the chaos, laughter, and
very full schedule in my life right now.
Can you describe your
elation and sense of satisfaction when you first held the f & g’s (folded
and gathered pages) of The Yuckiest,
Stinkiest, Best Valentine Ever?
That
was amazing, but the biggest thrill came before that when I saw a pdf of the
whole book. I was blown away by Tedd Arnold’s hilarious and heartwarming
illustrations. I’d been a fan of his since my kids were young and we had all
fallen in love with his book, Parts.
I could hardly believe he was illustrating my story! When I opened that pdf and
saw his vibrant illustrations and Sunday-comic-style approach, tears sprung to
my eyes because his art exceeded all my expectations, and I knew that the book
would find the audience I had dreamed of all those years ago.
Book Giveaway
Win
an autographed copy of Brenda Ferber’s The Yuckiest, Stinkiest Best Valentine Ever! (Dial)
To enter our drawing, you must follow the TeachingAuthors blog. (If
you’re not already a follower, you can sign up now in our sidebar to
subscribe to our posts via email, Google Friend Connect, or Facebook Network
blogs.)
You may enter the contest one of two ways:
1) by posting a comment below OR
2) by sending an email to teachingauthors [at] gmail [dot] com with "Book
Giveaway" in the subject line.
Whichever way you enter, you MUST: (1) give us your first and last name AND
2) tell us how you follow us (via email, Google Friend Connect, or Facebook
Network blogs) .
3) If you enter via a comment, you MUST include a valid email address
(formatted this way: youremail [at] gmail [dot] com) in your comment. And JUST FOR Fun, share your favorite Candy
Hearts Valentine inscription!
This contest is open only to followers who can provide a mailing address in the
United States. Incomplete entries will be discarded. The entry deadline is
11 p.m. (CST) next Monday, January 21, 2013. We'll announce the winner on Wednesday,
January 23. Good luck!
Hooray! Today I'm pleased to share a Student Success Story interview with my former student and now picture book author (and fellow poet) Eileen Meyer. I believe all of you who are aspiring writers will be especially interested in learning about Eileen's path to publication.
Eileen's brand-new book,
Who’s Faster? Animals on the Move, (Mountain Press) is a nonfiction picture book illustrated by Constance Bergum that introduces readers to 14 different creatures from the animal kingdom. Written in lyrical prose, the book starts with the slowest animal and builds to the fastest, describing each creature’s unique locomotion. An informative appendix provides fun facts about animal movement and speed. After reading my interview with Eileen, I hope you'll enter our drawing to win an autographed copy for your children or classroom.
First, let me tell you a little about Eileen Meyer. In addition to her picture book, Eileen also has a new poem in the recently released sports anthology
And the Crowd Goes Wild: A Global Gathering of Sports Poems edited by
Carol-Ann Hoyte and Heidi B. Roemer. (If that title sounds familiar, it's because one of my poems is also in the anthology! I wrote about it in
this interview with Heidi.) Eileen's upcoming picture books include
Ballpark (Amazon Publishing) and
Sweet Dreams, Walrus (Mountain Press). Her poetry has appeared in children’s magazines, including
Highlights for Children, Ladybug, and
Highlights High Five. She lives in the Chicago area with her family. When she’s not writing or visiting schools, she enjoys reading, watching sports and traveling. To learn more, visit
Eileen's website.
And now, for the interview:
1. Eileen, it’s been a long time, maybe 10-12 years, since you took
my introductory class in "Writing for Children" at the College of DuPage.
Do you recall what inspired you to sign up for the class and/or any ways the
class helped you?
I remember the first writing course that I took from you
with such clarity, Carmela!
My three sons
were in preschool and elementary school and we loved to spend hours together reading
fabulous contemporary children’s books. So for me, it was my interest in great
children’s books that directed me towards your class and prompted me to
consider writing for children. Your class was filled with a group of
like-minded starry-eyed students and it was an informative introductory program.
You encouraged us to join the
Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), to attend programs and network meetings, to
learn how to properly critique work, and to consider submitting to the magazine
market. These were all excellent pieces of advice for new writers beginning to
find their way.
2. I'm so glad you found the class helpful, Eileen. And that you took my advice to heart! In your article in the current SCBWI-Illinois newsletter,
you discuss the importance of writing classes in your career development. Would
you tell our readers a bit about some of the classes you took and how you found
them?
When I joined SCBWI, I signed up for many different courses
in order to explore and learn more about myself and what I liked to write. Most
class offerings were either advertised on the SCBWI-IL website, posted on our
Listserv or listed in the College
of DuPage Course Catalog.
Through
Heidi Bee Roemer’s class, "
The
ABC’s of Children’s Poetry," I not only discovered my interest in writing
poetry, but I was able to connect with classmates and form a special poetry
critique group. Through
Pat Kummer’s program,
"Nothing but the Facts: Get the Scoop on Writing Nonfiction for Children
and Young Adults," I found that I enjoyed researching and sharing
information with young readers. I’ve taken many courses over the years, but
Heidi’s and Pat’s classes were critical in my personal development. I encourage
new writers to find their own pace by attending a wide array of programs. You
never know what course or speaker might expand your horizons.
[Speaking of classes, if you live in the Chicago area, you may be interested in a new one I (Carmela) am teaching this Saturday, Oct. 13, from 1-5 pm at the Mayslake Peabody Estate in Oak Brook: "Fundamentals of Writing Fiction for Children and Teens." See my website for details.]
3. Terrific advice, Eileen. Your first publishing credits were poems in children’s
magazines. As it happens, both you and I have poems in the recently-released
anthology, And the Crowd Goes Wild: A Global Gathering of Sports Poems.
Would you tell us about the poem you wrote for that collection?
Yes,
Carmela, it’s really exciting that a number of Illinois poets have work in the newly
released,
And the Crowd Goes Wild: A Global Gathering of Sports Poems. For my sports poem,
The Letter, I
wanted to combine two interesting themes: first, introduce a situation where a
parent is the coach and highlight the awkwardness that may result on occasion,
and second, expand upon the concept that we all have had a sports outing where
nothing seems to go our way – one of those days in which absolutely everything
goes wrong! I was able to weave these two themes together in a humorous fashion
in this poem. Volleyball’s fast-paced action provided the perfect setting for
this young player’s all-too-silly mishaps. In addition, it was fun to work
outside of my comfort zone and write something humorous.
[Note to readers: Eileen and I will join editor Heidi B. Roemer and 4 other contributors to And the Crowd Goes Wild for a special Book Launch Party and Poetry Celebration to be held at Anderson's Bookshop, Naperville, at 7 pm, Tuesday, October 16, 2012. The event will be especially geared to children ages 6-12, though adults are welcome, too. See the Anderson's website for details. And if you'd like to reserve a copy of the book to have autographed by the poets that evening, be sure to call Anderson's as soon as possible: 630-355-2665.]
4. Would you tell us how you came to write and publish Who’s Faster? Did the book go through a
lot of revision between acceptance and publication?
My first children’s book,
Who’s Faster? Animals on the Move (Mountain Press), was a project that I wrote during
winter 2007. Interestingly enough, I have come to find that the January–March
time frame is a very productive one for me.
I’m not an active winter sports participant,
so when I am chased inside by our frigid temperatures, I’ve used my time
productively for a number of manuscripts. This project was an outgrowth of the fact
that I had found books about fast moving animals, and detailed nonfiction books
about particular animals, but there didn’t seem to be a book that represented
the broad spectrum of slow-crawling to fast-racing mammals. So I began my
research and drafted the manuscript within a few months. I had the work
critiqued by two different writing groups that I met with at the time and both
groups had excellent ideas for tightening the text, incorporating repetition,
and including substantive appendix materials. The manuscript text is less than
350 words, so it was a great experience to carefully reduce the text as much as
I could. The appendix was 1000 words and included detailed research.
Additionally, the book was fact-checked by local
zoo staff. Once the manuscript was polished and ready to go, I began to submit
to a few publishers at a time.
Early on,
I received a number of no's but I also had one close call – the editor noted
that he turned it down after quite a bit of deliberation. That was one of my
first so-called “good rejections” and it spurred me on. As it ended up, my
lucky 13
th submission hit the jackpot. In March of 2009,
approximately 2 years after I had finished writing the manuscript, Mountain
Press, contacted me about publishing the book.
5. Your story is yet another example of perseverance paying off. I always tell my students how valuable it is to attend
events where they can hear editors and agents speak, but I’m not sure they
believe me. ☺ Would you share your story of how attending a conference led to one of your book
contracts?
I make it a point to attend the fabulous
Illinois Prairie Writer’s Day
Conference held in mid-November. The line-up of editors and agents is always
very compelling. In 2010, I listened to a panel of editors talk about their
particular interests for manuscript submissions, and I jotted down notes that one
editor was looking for sports-related picture books. A month later, I submitted
my manuscript to her, and then I forgot all about it as I immersed myself in
other projects. About nine months later, the editor contacted me and asked for
a revision to my manuscript,
Ballpark.
After my resubmission, I was offered a contract for that picture book! This was
an opportunity only afforded to conference attendees. SCBWI-IL was critical in
opening this door for me to earn my second book contract.
6. On your website, you mention that you didn’t always want
to be a writer. Your first career was in business. Has your business experience
influenced your writing career in any way?
Yes, I previously worked for over 10 years as a software
consultant in California and Texas after I earned undergraduate and
graduate degrees in business.
I designed
training programs, helped market the programs and interfaced extensively with
customers.
After my children were born
(three in less than two years – yes, I have twins!) I elected to stay home with
my sons and it was a wonderful period in my life. After about six years at
home, I decided to write for the children’s magazine and book market, I was
glad that I had a varied business background that would aid me in my current
efforts. I’ve been able to create and produce some professional looking
marketing materials myself – such as bookmarks, school visit brochures,
promotional flyers and then have had other projects such as my website, farmed
out to experts after I wrote the copy. As a former professional software
trainer, those skills transitioned easily to the classroom as I designed and
created new school programs offerings. All in all, it’s been a nice blend of
new and old skill sets that I’ve been able to utilize.
Thanks for joining us today, Eileen. I'm always excited to share stories of my students' success.
And now readers, as promised, here's your chance to win an autographed copy of
Who’s Faster? Animals on the Move written by Eileen Meyer and illustrated by Constance Bergum. You must follow our
TeachingAuthors blog to enter our drawing. If you're not already a follower, you can sign up now in the sidebar to subscribe to our posts via email, Google Friend Connect, or Facebook Network blogs.
There are two ways to enter:
1) by a comment posted below
OR
2) by sending an email to teachingauthors [at] gmail [dot] com with "Book Giveaway" in the subject line.
Just for the fun of it, tell us what animal you think is the fastest. (This is optional.)
Whichever way you enter, you
MUST give us your first and last name AND tell us how you follow us. If you enter via a comment, you MUST include a valid email address (formatted this way: youremail [at] gmail [dot] com) in your comment. Contest open only to residents of the United States. Incomplete entries will be discarded.
Entry deadline is 11 pm (CST) Tuesday, October 23, 2012. Winners will be announced Wednesday, Oct. 24. Good luck to all!
Happy Writing!
Carmela
P.S. Don't forget--
tomorrow is the last day to enter for a chance to win an autographed copy of Carolee Dean's paranormal novel in verse,
Forget Me Not. See
April's post for complete details.
Hooray! Today I'm pleased to share a
Student Success Story interview with author Allan Woodrow. His path to publication was a relatively short one, but that's due not only to his great writing talent, but to his dedication and discipline. (I think aspiring writers will find his responses especially interesting.) After reading the interview, I hope you'll enter our drawing for an autographed copy of Allan's debut novel,
The Rotten Adventures of Zachary Ruthless (HarperCollins). And a special note: if you've had trouble posting comments for our previous contests, see below for information on our
NEW option for emailing your entry.
For my "summer fun" this year, I treated myself to a self-directed weekend-long writing retreat offered by SCBWI-Illinois. I used my time at
Words by the Lake to revise the latest draft of my young adult historical novel set in eighteenth-century Italy. While there, I had the pleasure of catching up with my former student, Allan Woodrow. Seeing him reminded me that I wanted to interview him to celebrate the release of his humorous middle-grade novel
The Rotten Adventures of Zachary Ruthless (HarperCollins). Here's a hint of the book's plot: Zachary would do anything to join the Society Of Utterly Rotten, Beastly And Loathsome Lawbreaking Scoundrels, the world's most horrible gang of super villains. So when Zachary hears SOURBALLS is looking for someone to join their nefarious gang, he jumps at the chance. Bwa-ha-ha!
If you read
Esther's post about the First Time Authors' Panel at this year's Printers Row Lit Festival, you already know a little about Allan. And here's a bit more from the bio he sent me:
Growing up, Allan Woodrow was cursed with a boring, happy, and loving family, giving him nothing interesting to write about. He resented it for years. Allan eventually harnessed his feelings into his new children’s series,
The Rotten Adventures of Zachary Ruthless (HarperCollins, ages 7-12) about the world’s most evil kid. Allan is also an advertising writer and Creative Director, and has written for TV and the stage. He currently works at the
Chicago Tribune. Learn more
at his website, and be sure to also
check out his blog.
Following the interview, you'll find instructions for how to enter for a chance to win an autographed copy of
The Rotten Adventures of Zachary Ruthless. And for a good laugh, be sure to watch the book trailer at the end of this post.
Allan, you were a student in my one-day workshop, “Introduction to Writing for Children and Teens,” back in 2008 (or was it 2009?) What inspired you to sign up for that class? Do you recall any specific ways the class helped you?
xxx
Howdy! If you read and comment on this post by Friday, October 15th at 11 pm CST, you'll be entered in TeachingAuthors' newest book giveaway to win today's interviewee's--Candace Ryan's--wonderfully inventive and wildly playful picture book, ANIMAL HOUSE, illustrated by Nathan Hale.
Some students make almost no impression on their teachers. Candace Ryan made a mighty impression on me. In 2007, about half-way through my UCLA Extension course,"Writing The Children's Picture Book" I remember thinking, "This woman is SO determined, SO focused and takes this field SO seriously, it's just a matter of time before she's published...and then, WATCH OUT WORLD!" Boy, was I right!
Meet
Candace Ryan, former student, now friend and colleague. Candace lives and works in a Los Angeles-based toy museum curated by her 5 year-old son. She tinkers with words when she can find her pen in a pile of robots and Japanese monsters.As head of her department, Candace is in charge of cataloging and organizing the museum’s extensive collection of owl, bat, and octopus toys. It’s not as easy as it sounds, but it sure is rewarding.
In her dwindling free time, Candace prefers splitting infinitives over splitting atoms. Clunky puns give her a splitting headache. And she wishes there was some way to share a banana split with Dr. Seuss and Rene Magritte in a Japanese tea garden.
ANIMAL HOUSE, illustrated by Nathan Hale and published by Walker and Company, is Candace’s first picture book. As you can tell from the cover, the main character Jamie's house is alive--with puns! Jamie's teacher discovers that his "living room is truly a
living room," complete with "floormingos," a "chandeldeer," "armapillows" and MUCH more. Kirkus raves, "Ryan has so much fun coming up with increasingly ridiculous wildlife that it’s to Hale’s credit that his fine-tipped acrylics can keep up with the punny pandemonium. This book will stand up to multiple rereadings."
Candace's second book, RIBBIT RABBIT, will be published in 2011 by Walker/Bloomsbury.
Thanks for coming by, Candace! What’s the story behind your book? How did it come about?Actually, it all started with my son’s box of dinosaur magnets. The outside of the box lists all of the dinosaurs in the set. I happened to be reading the list one day and discovered a pattern.
My curiosity led me to search for similar patterns in animal names. As soon as I had about a dozen puns that fit the "animal-plus-furniture" formula, I knew I was onto something. By the way, if all of this sounds kind of scientific or mathematical, welcome to the way my brain works. I’m proud to make a poet-like statement when I say that ANIMAL HOUSE began with language, not story.
I submitted a very rudimentary version of ANIMAL HO
By:
Carmela Martino and 5 other authors,
on 4/7/2010
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I am again thrilled to feature one of my former students as a TeachingAuthors "Student Success Story"!
We hope that sharing the accomplishments of our writing students will help inspire other teachers and aspiring writers. Today I am honored to introduce you to Cathy Cronin.
Cathy was a student in a Continuing Education class I taught on Writing for Children and Young Adults at the College of DuPage in the summer of 2001. (One of her classmates, Laura Crawford, is another Student Success Story.) Cathy is a writer, poet, blogger, and a busy mother of three. Her poems have been published in a number of magazines for children. One of her poems also appears in the anthology, Ladybug, Ladybug and Other Favorite Poems (Cricket Books). Cathy is donating a copy of Ladybug, Ladybug for our giveaway today in honor of National Poetry Month. (If you haven't been following our own April Halprin Wayland's Poem-A-Day challenge, I encourage you to do so here.) Instructions for entering our drawing are at the end of this post.
Cathy, what inspired you to sign up for my class?
I have always loved writing and have done it since I was a child. But it wasn’t until after my second child was born that I started to consider writing for children. After reading so many books to them, I was reminded how much I loved children’s books and wanted to give it a try. I read several books on how to write for children and joined a critique group. When I heard about your class “Writing Fiction for Children and Young Adults” I knew it would be perfect. Your course covered all aspects of children’s writing and was taught by an experienced author. It was just the foundation I needed.
Do you recall any specific ways the class helped you?This class was a wonderful experience. It covered everything from elements of fiction, manuscript preparation, revision, submitting and more. The group critiques in class were so helpful. My favorite part was studying other picture books. Analyzing them helped me to identify “why” I liked certain stories and helped me to make my stories better. I also left the class with solid “next steps” for submitting and a new focus for my writing journey.
Since taking my class, you have had success getting your poetry published in a number of children’s magazines. Do you have any particular strategy for deciding where to submit your work and/or tips for other writers trying to break into magazines? The summer of your class (July 2001), I sold my first three poems to
Today, it is with great pride that I introduce a new feature here on www.TeachingAuthors.com: Student Success Stories!
We hope that by sharing stories of some of the accomplishments of our writing students we will help inspire other teachers and aspiring writers. I am honored to feature one of my former students as our first Student Success Story: Laura Crawford.
Laura was a student in a Continuing Education class I taught on Writing for Children and Young Adults at the College of DuPage back in the summer of 2001. About a week before our first session, the college called to say the class had filled and to ask if I'd be willing to take an extra student. I'm normally fairly strict about the class size to allow enough time for manuscript critiques. After talking to Laura on the phone, I decided she was a serious student, so I made an exception for her. I'm so glad I did! I believe that of all my former students who have gone on to have their work published, Laura has been the most prolific. I was especially thrilled when I found out that a manuscript of Laura's that we had critiqued in class was to be published by Raven Tree Press as Postcards From Washington, D.C. The book became part of a series that also includes Postcards From Chicago, and Postcards From New York City.
Interestingly, Laura's first published book was one she wrote
after Postcards From Chicago. The Pilgrims’ Thanksgiving From A to Z was published by Pelican Publishing in 2005. Her second book,
In Arctic Waters, a cumulative tale about Arctic animals, was published by Sylvan Dell. Her newest book,
The American Revolution From A to Z, is another alphabet book with Pelican Publishing. To celebrate the book's release, we will be giving away an autographed copy. Instructions for how to enter our drawing will be at the end of this post.
Laura is not only a writer, she's also a full-time teacher and reading specialist who works with second- and third-graders at Sleepy Hollow Elementary School in Sleepy Hollow, Illinois. I recently interviewed Laura about her path from teacher to student to published children's author:
Laura, what inspired you to sign up for my class?
Your poem says much in those few words, Carmela. I like especially, "grateful to have known you"-says much, doesn't it? What an amazing person your Laura must have been, and I'm glad you shared so much of your connection to her these past years. I'm sorry for her passing, but glad she had such wonder in her brief life.
Thanks, Linda. Laura was an amazing person. She will be missed by many.
Ah, reading this has me tearing up. Laura came to Iowa in April for our conf, and she was her usual cheerful, wise-cracking self. It was such a shock to hear that we lost her a few short months later. Beautiful post (and poem), Marti.
Jill
I only met Laura online, but I was also saddened to hear the news of her death. Your poem is a lovely tribute, Marti.
Oh, lord. What a beautiful, heartbreaking post and tribute. Hugs, Carmela, and thank you for sharing Laura with those of us who didn't know her...
Your poem is beautiful, Carmela - Laura would have loved it! She will truly be missed!!
What an amazing tribute. I'm reminded how few words we need to honor a life and all the things that exist in the universe.
Thank you, Carmela. Laura's spirit shines in your anecdote of her determination to register for your class. She was hard working, generous, charming and determined - she was going to become an author and she worked so very, very hard to perfect her manuscripts. She was such a great author, teacher, critique partner, and SCBWI-IL ambassador!
Thank you Carmela, this was perfect.
What a wonderful spirit your friend had - your poem honors her memory.
Thanks Jill and JoAnne. Laura, thanks for your kind words and hugs. I appreciate your taking time out from your busy day to comment.
Lori, I hope Laura would have loved poem . Actually, I hope she IS loving it. :-)
Thanks, Julia. Yes, Laura was all that you say and more!
Thanks, Louann, Tara, and everyone else who read this post. It does my heart good to share this poem with so many people, both those who knew Laura and those who didn't.
Condolences.
Your tribute is perfectly beautiful.
This tribute touched my heart. The fib poem is just perfect. I want to keep it close as a mantra. Now Laura's spirit has touched even more people through you.
Thank you, Carmela, for sharing this eloquent tribute with us.
Thanks for the condolences, Mary Lee. Margaret, it's comforting to know that Laura is still touching people's lives. Thank you, too, Tabatha, for taking time to read it.
What a lovely poem for a lovely spirit. When I first started connecting to the SCBWI community, Laura welcomed me in and made me feel like an old friend. She is truly missed.
Oh, my, Carmela. I can feel "Laura's exuberant voice" breathing in every line of your post.
This poem is golden--it's utterly personal and also movingly universal.
Thank you for letting us in.
The Fib poetic form serves Laura's life and loves perfectly.
I know she would have loved your words, Marti.
Laura sounds like a real firecracker and you've honored that spirit well. Thanks for sharing her story with us.
Thanks so much, Mary Jo, April, Esther, and Michelle. I appreciate your comments, and knowing that you tool my poem to heart.
I'm sorry about Laura. It sounds as though many people were touched by her life, and are missing her now.
Thanks, Ruth. Yes, Laura is missed by many.