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Congratulations to Heather! I'm so excited to celebrate the RITA nomination for The Clearing this week with another post about inspiring elders (and another chance to with the fabulous farmhouse prize pack Heather is giving away).
When I was in graduate school (studying Historic Preservation at Columbia University) one of our first year required classes as called Basic Principles of Traditional Construction. We studied things like brick recipes, house framing, and roofing techniques. The professor was a distinguished old (like 85-years-old old) Czech-born architect named Jan Pokorny. He wore a blazer and a bow tie every day and always showed up early for class.
I have a special connection to the Czech and Slovak people because my dad's theatre design mentor was also Czech. Actually, he was also Moravian, the area between the Czech republic and Slovakia. He once told my father that, when the country was still Czechoslovakia and they would play the national anthems at events, Moravia was the space between the two.
I really enjoyed that class because I love learning how things are built. I loved learning about the different kinds of siding used in Colonial housing and how to make different colored bricks by adding certain things to the recipe. The class also happened to be right after lunchtime, so I often got there early to eat lunch in my seat before the other students started showing up.
One day, Jan came in and started making notes on the board. Feeling a little awkward, I tried to make some small talk and asked him about being Moravian. When he saw that I knew what Moravia was, his eyes lit up. He asked if I was Moravian. I told him no, but that we had close family friends who were.
From that moment on I was his favorite student (well, it did help that I scored highest on the midterm test). He eventually made me T.A. for the class and was the faculty sponsor of our class trip to Prague before graduation.
Jan is no longer with us, but I can still picture his smiling round face, his quirky bow ties, and the neat and precise architectural drawings he used to make on the board. At 85 he still swam laps every day, still taught every semester, still designed and sat on committees and made a significant contribution to the world of historic preservation and the world in general. I am inspired to be as active as possible for as long as possible.
Okay, to enter today, comment with a favorite or inspiring teacher and why. Be sure to comment on all the other posts this week for more entries and check back on Sunday to find out if you've won!
Hugs,
TLC
teralynnchilds.com@teralynnchilds
In honor of its RITA® nomination, we are celebrating The Clearing by our own Heather Davis this week, with stories of elders who inspired us, with The Clearly Farmhouse Prize Pack (details listed in yesterday’s post) going to one lucky commenter!
I am delighted to talk about my maternal grandmother. She lived all of her 71 years in Moline, Illinois, and was lucky in love twice, first marrying a railroad worker (with whom she had two daughters--my aunt and my mother), and years later, following his death, a grocery store owner, a widower with four sons. Here she is around the time of her second wedding:
In her last years, she visited us in New York several times, bringing with her a stack of her favorite magazines. By 12 years-old, I was already reading my mother’s magazines like McCall’s and Ladies Home Journal. My eyes always went to the fiction, especially anything to do with romance, so when I got a look at what my grandmother was reading, I knew I'd hit pay dirt.
They were called Confession magazines, and while the titles were often sensational, the actual stories were mostly about love and self-discovery. Here’s a photo of a cover from back-when:
My mother did not approve of me reading these magazines, but my grandmother, bless her heart, slipped them to me secretly. I remember reading one issue in a walk-in closet with a flashlight!
Some years later, sadly, my grandmother passed away, and I went to Moline to help with the closing of her house. There I found a mountain of Confession magazines, which I poured over during the visit, and crammed into every available space in our suitcases. By then, my mother had given up keeping me from reading them. I was older, and I think she rather liked that her mother and her daughter had had this common obsession.
Little did any of us know that this would just be the beginning for me and Confession magazines. Because after college, looking to break into publishing, I decided to try my hand at writing them. I sold the second one I submitted, and at last count, I had about 80 publications to my name, many about first teen loves. Here’s a cover that features two stories I wrote: “Secret Love at a Summer Carnival” and “I Saved My Kisses for My Boyfriend’s Roommate.”
I owe a huge debt of gratitude to my grandmother for a) passing on the roman
So, you may have heard that my book
The Clearing is nominated for the RITA award for Best YA Romance this year. I couldn't be happier to see this little book get recognition from an organization I've been a part of for nearly a decade. The ceremony will be in NYC on July 1st, and I'm already getting a little nervous.
This week on BooksBoysBuzz, we're celebrating the nomination with stories about special elder people in our lives. In
The Clearing, Amy has moved in with her Aunt Mae in the country. Aunt Mae's home is anything but glamorous -- it's a double-wide trailer. The special part of Amy living there is the kindness that Aunt Mae shows her. She tells Amy that she doesn't need a boy to tell her how special she is, that she should know that she is special already. And then, of course, Amy meets Henry Briggs, the one boy who realizes how beautiful and amazing Amy really is. The only problem is, of course, that he's living in the endless summer of 1944.
How did the character of Aunt Mae come to life? I've always been close to the older people in my family. From my grandmas to my great aunts, there were always elders who offered my father advice on raising us kids and shared their perspectives on life with us. To date, all of my books have an older secondary character in them. There's no way that's a coincidence!
For those of you who haven't seen the field that inspired The Clearing, here it is in this photo from my old hometown in the North Cascades. That's Rinker Ridge in the background, and the red barn belongs to my old neighbors, The Dellingers. When the bad weather would come in, the barn would disappear in a curtain of mist. One day I began to wonder if it was still there, if it really still existed when I couldn't see it, and what might be in its place if it didn't. Pretty deep thoughts for me, right? I imagined a family, trapped in the 1940's living behind that curtain of mist -- and Henry Briggs was born.
The Clearing ended up being the book of my heart. It's so gratifying to get letters from readers who connected with Amy and her journey and wished for a Henry Briggs of their own.
So, how about the giveaway?
Comment each day to be entered to win The Clearing Farmhouse Prize Pack:
Signed Copy of The Clearing
Assorted Fine Teas
Briggs Family Biscuit Recipe
Biscuit Cutters
Cool Fortune-Tellers Tea Cup
We'll draw a winner on Sunday, June 19th from all the daily comments. US and Canada winners only. No purchase necessary to win, of course!
Today's question:
Who has been the most influential older person in your life so far?
Good luck!
Heather
You might have already heard but if not, it's my great pleasure to announce that our own Buzz Girl Heather Davis's The Clearing has been nominated for the prestigious RITA award which is given by the Romance Writers of America at their national conference each summer. (Read Donna's post below for more info.) This is an epic accomplishment and we'll be celebrating all week long right here.
Since The Clearing is a YA romance (and if you haven't read it yet, you're in for a treat once you do) I thought I'd talk about what we all love about YA romances, whether realistic or paranoramal or sci fi or whatever you like to read.
Here's what my agent, Christina Hogrebe, has to say about what makes YA romance so fun to read: "[It captures the] intense feelings of awkwardness that surround all of the firsts. ... It's messy and embarrassing and scary and irrisistible."
I couldn't have said it better myself. I adore a story where awkwardness reigns, and where there's an exciting mystique to the beautiful ordeal of falling in love. Where the ending of the emotional trip isn't necessarily a wedding or even a desire to get married (as it oftentimes is in "adult" romances), but a new level of understanding and self-acceptance--a golden piece of the puzzle of life.
Here are some quotes I found that nicely portray teen love:
"Once in a while, right in the middle of ordinary life, love gives us a fairytale." ~ Author unknown
"There is a time for risky love. There is a time for extravagant gestures. There is a time to pour out your affections on one you love. And when the time comes, seize it, don't miss it." ~ Max Lucado
What do YOU like most about YA romances in general and the romance in The Clearing in particular?
Thanks to everyone who commented to win a signed copy of my book, The Clearing, this week!
I'm so happy everyone has something to celebrate and touched by the intensity and diversity of all those things that are happening in your lives! Wow - big beginnings and endings..!
Ok.... so the random winner this time around is:
lostinbelieving
I'll be in touch soon, lost, to get your mailing deets. Off to finish revisions on the new book. Hope you're all enjoying the summer!
hugs,
Heather
http://www.heatherdavisbooks.com/
My students, well, the female students, were captivated by Nicholas Sparks' novels this year. What with the movie versions of Dear John and The Last Song coming out recently, and "A Walk to Remember" and "The Notebook" out on DVD, the girls can certainly squeeze out a hanky-ful of tears right about now. As much as they love The Clique and Alphas and other such schoolgirl fluff, it's sappy romantic fluff that they crave at the end of the day. And Nicholas Sparks really delivers the romance. Well, romance and fatal diseases.
Personally, I have never read a Nicholas Sparks book. Sure, I dig the romance thing, like all of us chicks do. I cried my eyes out at "The English Patient." Of course, that was back in 1996... Oh, and I sobbed during the series finale of Lost. Does that make me a romantic or just a geek? Whatever the case, I think I can recognize a heartstrings-puller when I come across one.
And that's exactly what The Clearing is. This novel by Heather Davis covers all of the territory that Nicholas Sparks covers- the heroine with a rocky past and a chip on her shoulder, the seemingly simple yet tragically complex boy who's hiding secrets from the girl he loves, lots of mist and rain falling on lovers who just don't care how wet they're getting as long as they're together. The Clearing has all of that fluff. And a bit of substance, too.
Amy needs a fresh start for her senior year. Leaving an abusive relationship behind in Seattle, she moves to a tiny town in the Cascade Mountains to live in a run-down trailer with her great-aunt Mae. On Mae's land Amy finds a clearing shrouded in mist, and she is drawn into the mysterious haze. It is here that she meets Henry Briggs, a kind, polite young man who doesn't speak or dress or behave like any boy Amy has ever met. Amy feels safe with Henry, and as he helps her to put her past behind her, the two fall in love in the clearing.
But there is a reason Henry is so different from the other guys. On his side of the clearing, Henry and his mother and grandfather are trapped in time, stuck in an endless summer in 1944. Both Henry and Amy are reluctant to move forward: Amy, who has been hurt so terribly, cannot face her future, and Henry knows that a family tragedy awaits if they see the end of the summer. Together, Amy and Henry help one another find the courage to move on with their lives, even as the unknown future threatens their love.
The Clearing is a charming story told from alternating points of view. Both Amy and Henry are vulnerable and afraid, but they fall hard for one another. Their love grows in a sweet, old-fashioned way, and Davis creates plenty of very tender moments between them. She also understands the mind of a teenage girl, and she gives Amy a true, believable voice. There's even a little twist at the end that you won't see coming, a twist that will leave you simultaneously heartbroken and satisfied.
Is The Clearing the best book I've read recently? No. The whole construct of the story feels forced and is never fully e
We have had a super fun week talking about time travel fantasies in celebration of the release of
The Clearing.
Now it is time to announce the winners of a signed copy!
Tetewa(Please e-mail your contact information to
[email protected].)
Elizabeth Briggs
(Please e-mail your contact information to
[email protected] as well as to
[email protected] to let her know if you want a signed copy of
Oh.My.Gods or
Goddess Boot Camp).
Jessy(Please e-mail your contact information to
[email protected] as well as to marley_gibson AT yahoo DOT com and let her know if you want a signed copy of
Ghost Huntress: The Guidance or
Christmas Miracles).
GirlforChrist
(Please e-mail your contact information to
[email protected].)
Samantha R.
(Please e-mail your contact information to
[email protected] as well as to
[email protected] for a signed copy of
The Alpha Bet.)
Jessica Rabbit
(Please e-mail your contact information to
[email protected].)
Congrats to the winners...and to those of you who entered my contest two weeks ago called “How to Encourage an Author,” check back tomorrow for two more winners’ names!
The celebration of Heather's latest release, The Clearing, continues. Today it's my turn to answer the question: If I could time travel anywhere, when and where would I go?
Now, as a history junkie, this is a tough question. I mean, I'm fascinated by Regency England and Renaissance Italy and Revolutionary France. I want to know what Manhattan looked like before Europeans moved in and how Vikings really lived. To narrow it down to just one place and just one time... that's hard! I'll have to go with one of the places closest to my heart:
Ancient Greece
I have always been fascinated by ancient cultures, and Greek is top of the list. I would love to go back and visit the Parthenon while it was still in pristine original condition. To walk into a temple or an agora or a gymnasium or even a common residential house.
I would love to see the source of the Western theatre tradition, the roots of the all classical drama and production, the plays that are still relevant and still produced today. I would love to attend a play at a Dionysian festival in one of the massive amphiteaters, like this one at Epidaurus.
I would love to see how the people lived, from the very rich to the very poor. To learn, firsthand, how the myths of their religion wove into everyday life. I would love to watch the armies from two opposing city-states clash on the field of battle.
I'm sure that the ancient world had it's downfalls (hygiene, slavery, disease, war, poverty), but if I knew I could return home a the flick of the time travel switch, that's definitely when I would want to visit for a few days.
ContestNow, for your chance to win a copy of Heather's new release,
The Clearing (which is getting fabulous reviews, by the way), and a copy of either Oh. My. Gods. or Goddess Boot Camp, and to clock another 50 cent donation from Heather to
Teen Feed, then comment with your answer to this question:
If you could time travel back to the ancient world, which ancient culture would you visit?
(And it doesn't just have to be a western culture, like Greece or Rome. Think globally, like pre-Columbian Mexico, Han dynasty China, or Berber Morocco.)
Hugs,
TLCOH. MY. GODS. and
GODDESS BOOT CAMP (out now)
FORGIVE MY FINS (coming June 1, 2010)
The newest release from Heather Davis, The Clearing, hits shelves on April 12, and in celebration, the Buzz Girls are answering the question of where we’d love to time travel!
My (perhaps surprising) answer follows, but first, I want to put on an administrative hat and tell our readers that:
--one signed copy will be given away each day this week, so please keep dropping by and commenting;
--Heather will be making a 50 cent donation to the Teen Feed charity for each unique comment left this week, so not only will comments lead to entering the contest, but helping feed homeless teens;
--I will be posting the 6 winners of her signed books next Sunday, April 19;
and
--I'm postponing announcement of the winner of my "How to Encourage an Author" contest until next Monday, April 20 because I basically I wrote myself into a corner and had to back up and start again. So for those of who have yet to enter, there’s still time.
Okay now, back to the fun!
If I could time travel anywhere, would I go?
Well, starting with the fact I’d like to limit my time travel to short vacation, and to shave a bunch of years off my age so that I’d wouldn’t look like somebody’s mom?
It would be Hamburg, Germany, in the early 1960’s, in a club called the Kaiserkeller, when The Beatles were featured performers.
I’ve read several nonfiction accounts of the early Beatles days, of their trials and tribulations and various member changes, and have seen the movie, Backbeat, a couple of times, and just would love to experience the youthful energy and craziness that spurred what is (arguably but commonly) known as the greatest rock band of all times. And how much fun would it be to Twist and Shout with them while they were still trying out their sounds and materials?
So...keeping to the rock and roll theme to my time travel fantasy, is there a time and place--maybe a concert--from one of your favorite bands that you wish you could go experience?
Tina
Tina Ferraro
The ABC’s of Kissing Boys, 2010 Rita® Finalist
How to Hook a Hottie, 2009 Rita® Finalist
Top Ten Uses for an Unworn Prom Dress
www.tinaferraro.com
One of my favorite teachers is my Creative Writing teacher. He has learned so much throughout his life, and I know his childhood was far from easy. (That's his story, so I don't want to share any details, really. It's not my business.) Whenever I need to know something, he has the answers. He works hard with everything, especially his writing, so I find him really inspiring. Overall, he's just awesome, and he inspires me. Other people may not understand, but he was the first person I thought of.
One of my fave teachers was Mrs. Blankenship, who I had from 4th to 6th grade. She encouraged me to write stories and plays and held reading contests. Loved her!
I will be forever grateful to the second grade teacher who called my mother to tell her I showed great promise in creative writing, and then had me read my stories to the class!
Sounds like it was a pretty cool class. One of my favorite was a history teacher in HS. Really knew how to make the class interesting and not boring like it very well could have been.
bacchus76 at myself dot com
One of my favorite teachers was Mrs. Myers. She was the drama teacher at my elementary school and she was the first person to introduce my little second-grade self to Shakespeare. She instilled a love of the Bard and his marvelous plays in me that has continued to grow. She encouraged me in my pursuit of Shakespeare, and we put together numerous plays, getting the rest of the school involved. I was able to talk to my mom, another Shakespeare lover, about my favorite parts and she (both my mother and my teacher) helped to explain parts that I didn't understand as well as to really feel the words as I said them. She was an inspiration, full of life and bubbly energy that was contagious and made me want to learn more.
My favorite teacher was one of my college professors and also my mentor. His name is Clyde and as a somewhat lost student I looked up to him for a lot. He taught me everything from canoeing to kayaking to rock climbing and knot tying. In addition to all these amazing skills he also taught me a lot about being a good person and how to treat other people in times of difficulty. I still look up to him and enjoy the times when I make it back to my alma mater to have a quick lunch and catch up.
I liked my middle school teachers
I'll have to say my third-grade teacher, Mr. Dewey. He just loved teaching, and loved all of us. He would give us nicknames: I was carrot-cake, or Caracas, or puddin-head. :-) And for a shy little girl who generally didn't feel that people noticed her, I was so happy when random folks started using some of those names for me. :-)
Mr. Dewey got us excited about all sorts of things, including whales! And he read almost every one of the Little House books to us in class...
Aww that such an endearing story, thanks for sharing Tera! :)
My "gifted and talented" (enrichment class) teacher in elementary school, Mrs. Davis, always inspired us to do and be more. I remember we even put on a play that I wrote (for an audience and everything!) back in third grade. It was an adaptation of a scene from one of Laura Ingalls Wilder's books, which I was completely obsessed with.