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Yes, it's been forever since I've posted as I've allowed my wrist and thumb to heal, but I just found out who my next advisor will be for my 3rd semester at Vermont College. Drum roll, please........ Julie Larios! Okay, I'll admit it, when I saw my name in her group I let out a whoop. Julie is a fabulous poet, brilliant and just plain delightful. I AM THRILLED!

As you know, I had the priviledge of having Kathi Appelt as my advisor last semester at Vermont College. Last year, at the summer residency, Kathi gave a fabulous lecture that left me saying, "Everyone should hear that lecture. Every single person in the world. Especially if they're a writer and/or educator."

I turned in my first packet for this semester over the weekend. This semester my advisor is the fabulous Laura Kvasnosky. Whenever I turn in a packet I never quite feel like I'm done until I receive the feedback from my advisor. So, I sit on pins and needles, eagerly anticipating...

...until, TA-DA! My amazing advisor (at a lightspeed pace) sends back a complete and thorough set of comments about my entire packet of work. I love this aspect of the semester because I find out specifically what is working with my writing, and more importantly, what I need to learn more about--craft issues, suggested readings, revision tips, etc. It's like going to the candy store for writing-improvement.

This morning I fist-pumped and yelled, "YES!" when I read Laura's comment that I'd successfully used "objective correlative." (chuckle if you will, but this was new to me). I loved seeing her revision suggestions for my picture books--seeing how I can sculpt my stories into better pieces of art. I wrote an essay comparing dialogue in beginning readers and picture books; I knew, with her being an expert at this, that she'd have a lot to say on this subject. I definitely have a lot to think about on that topic and am looking forward to having a discussion with her about it.


Yes, packets are a stressful and joyful part of the Vermont College experience. To me, they're like a compass. They give direction and the hope that I'm heading the correct way.

Now, onto re-reading Laura's comments so they can sink in even more...

Okay, so I'm not being quite as prompt about posting on my blog during the rez, but you should see the schedule they created. These people never sleep. Sometimes I don't think they even take time to breathe!

It's definitely cold here, I think our lowest temps were -3 one night, but the rooms are well-heated and the walks to class are short (sometimes shorter--depending on how cold it is!). As you can see, the campus is quite lovely covered in snow, and I delight at the beauty just outside my window every morning; quaint New England houses across the street, layered in snow with white puffs rising from their chimneys.

The academic experience has been fabulous thus far; amazing and insightful lectures from the faculty and graduating students, critiquing of manuscripts that cause you to have so many lightbulb moments that your head looks like a fourth of July nightsky. Yesterday the picture book semester group had the treat of having Lynne Rae Perkins speak to us. Lynne Rae shared her process (writing and illustrating) and let us pick her brain for about two hours.

This morning we'll hear Lynne Rae speak to the entire student body, and this afternoon Kimberly Willis Holt well speak to us. Tomorrow we get her all to ourselves for our PB workshop group. I can't wait to hear her talk about Waiting for Gregory. If you haven't seen this book, get your hands on a copy. The art is amazing and transformed the sweet text to a whole new level.

Today our faculty preference forms are due--this is the list we give of the advisors that we'd like to work with next semester. Honestly, the staff is so fabulous that I couldn't narrow it down to just five, so I listed six. We had a chance to "speed date" them on Tuesday, where we ask them questions and get to know how they work. It was enjoyable to sit a bit with the advisors and chat about our upcoming projects. It doesn't really matter which advisor I'll get because I know they'll all be good, plus I trust the VCFA system to match me with the best advisor. I'll find out who my new advisor is on Friday morning (technically at midnight, but I'm not so sure I'll be up at that hour).

Speaking of advisors, I know I'll miss working with Kathi Appelt terribly (horribly, no goodly, very badly) but that's just the way it is. I'm sure with each advisor I'll grow in a different way--at least my writing will!

Okay, must get ready for the next lecture...

I really did have the best of intentions--I was going to get back to posting regular entries on my blog, set up some more Mini-Views and do some more book reviews.

I wish I could blame my lack of attention to the holidays, but considering that I didn't put up a single decoration and am still hunting for gifts, I can't blame them. I haven't even made any New Year's resolutions, other than to just do what Vermont College tells me to do. To the best of my ability. Period.

The fact is, when you enroll in the Vermont College MFA program, the universe applies a vortex that sucks time out of your life. Seriously. You get up each morning, with the intention of running this errand, posting a blog entry, calling that old friend, baking cookies for your kids, but no. Evening rolls around and as you drop into bed, you realize that once again, you've left all those things uncrossed on your "to do" list. Now don't get me wrong--the great sucking vortex does leave you room for reading, writing, listening to lectures on CDs and researching-- but time for anything else? Nuh-uh. Nada. Zippo.

And now I'm staring at the winter residency that begins on Sunday. I have two days to pack all my "stuff" (AKA, school materials and anything that will help prevent me from freezing to death) then hit the Saturday 5:00 AM flight (yes, you read that right, A.M.) from the high desert down to LA. Oy.

I will try to post from Vermont when I can. No promises, but I'll try!

Only a meager three months into the Vermont College MFA Writing Program and I've already discovered there are signs that indicate such enrollment. I'm up to ten so far, and I'd love to hear any others from my fellow classmates. So, here are the signs that let you know you're really doing the VC MFA program:

1. You know your public library card number by heart.
2. Your public librarians all know you on a first name basis.
3. Dust bunnies have overtaken your house. And you're okay with it.
4. Your living spaces are consumed with piles of books, notepads, writing implements and computers.
5. You develop a taste for convenience foods.
6. You need new glasses. But won't take the time to see your eye doctor.
7. You have to ice down your writing hand nightly.
8. Your friends stop calling.
9. Your spouse actually knows what a "packet" is.
10. So does your cat.

(but you're still smiling!)

Okay, any of your Vermont College students out there, let me hear what your signs are!

I am learning so much this semester in the Vermont College writing for children program. I’ve been writing with purpose for about ten years now, so I thought I had a little bit of a handle on picture books, but I’ve realized there is so much to learn. So much more.

One of the things that I’ve found most fascinating is revision. Revisions are a part of writing; we all get that. First drafts are one thing. Revisions are another. This is where an author rolls up her sleeves, puts on her editorial hat and starts analyzing her work. She figures out what needs to be improved, shows her work to other writers for feedback, and takes out the machete to cut words and the polish to make her writing shine. Yeah, I “got” all that.

Then I started the Picture Book Intensive semester. I now see revisions not as a “one-stop” reworking attempt where I try to make my work shine in one fell swoop but instead as working my way up a series of steps. Now, each revision feels much more deliberate because I know that sometimes I have to climb up to the next step, in order for me to gain steady ground so I can climb up to the next level (eventually reaching the top).

For example, one particular piece I started with was over 800 words long. My first revision challenge was to cut it by 80%. I did that, feeling quite proud of myself; but then despite its 200-word length, I still had to cut more to eliminate places where I was doing the illustrator’s job (meaning, describing too much). Okay, that was the next draft. Once I had my story down to 100 words, my next revision challenge was to write it in rhyme. Okay, I did that, and quite happily. I’d thought about writing this piece in rhyme before, but I was so lost in my overly narrative language that I didn’t know where to begin. You see, I had to go through all of the other revisions so I could climb to a place where I could see my work in rhyme. Kind of like climbing a cloud-encased mountain until you can break through and more clearly see the view. After I wrote it in rhyme, my next challenge was to improve the format and structure. Which I’ve done. And working on.

My point is, it’s been eye-opening for me to now see revisions more as climbing to the next level, so I can see my work differently, thus allowing me to again take it to another level. Like mountain climbing.

Now, I must give credit where credit is due. My advisor acts as the rope and pitons that keeps me safely secured to the mountain. She has guided me along and given me many challenges to help me work my way through my stories, much like a climber works his way up the face of a granite dome. And my classmates are like my climbing buddies—belaying me, guiding me, letting me know I’m not alone.

It’s seeing the revisions as a series of levels, which must be reached before proceeding to the next that I find so fascinating. Not one fell-swoop, but necessary steps for the climb.

YEAAAA!!!

This morning a friend called to see how I was doing. "How's the MFA going?" she asked.

I laughed and said, "Well, I'm so punchy from writing and researching that last night it took me three tries to put on my facial lotion--first I picked up the toothpaste, then the sunscreen, and finally on the third try, picked up the jar of nighttime face cream. Then this morning I emptied my cats' water bowl and left it in the drying rack. The cat sitting by the food mat reminded me to refill it, as he was obviously thirsty. Oh, yesterday I was so punchy I walked into a wall. And this morning I realized I ordered the same book twice from Amazon."

"Oh no, are you regretting that you signed up for the program?" my friend asked.

"Heck, no!" I said. "I'm loving every minute of it!"

And that's how it is, really. I don't know if I've ever been this busy in my entire life, or put out so much mental energy. Maybe I did in college, but that was a logn time ago, when I had a few thousand or million more brain cells. As soon as one project is done, there's another waiting. It's kind of like the Russian front during WWII. You know how the Russian soldiers just kept going up against the Germans, and if the soldier in front of them dropped, they picked up his weapon and kept moving forward. This has that same never-ending feel to it. But without guns. And nobody fires anything at you. And there's no death or destruction. Maybe that wasn't the best analogy...

There are times when I can't sleep at night because my mind won't shut down. I feel guilty if I take a full day off (oh wait, I haven't done that yet. Never mind). And there is an ever-growing pile of picture books, research materials and three laptops in my living room that seem to have taken up permanent residence.

Yet, I love it. I cannot think of a single thing I'd want to be done differently. I love that my advisor pushes me to try new things and see things in a different light. I love reading and critiquing the work of my four other classmates and receiving their feedback on my own work (they're brilliant) . I love the support the students and faculty give each other. I love the critical aspect of the program (I never dreamed I'd actually enjoy writing critical essays--who knew?). I love trying new forms of writing, like the biography I'm working on right now.

Yes, life is good in the VCFA MFA program.

Even if I do fall asleep on my keyboard sometimes.

You almost left the house without wearing any pants. Yep. Last week was just that crazy-busy for me.

I'd turned in my second packet, received the feedback, and was working hard to get a revision done that was due today (as Kathi Appelt says, I was "writing like my fingers were on fire"). My head was filled with research ideas, dancing animals, an Italian educator, cats and a T-ball game (yes, it was crowded in there).

Amidst all this, I wanted to see my chiropractor. So, when his office called and said they could see me right away, I ran upstairs to change clothes. I got distracted with something while changing (can't recall what it was). Minutes later, I got to the top of the stairs and thought, "What am I forgetting?" I looked down and realized I wasn't wearing any pants. OOPS!!! Yeah. Working on my MFA keeps is keeping me just that busy...

This story really is writing-related. I promise.

Years ago, on my first ever backpacking trip, my husband and I did a summer hike in Kings Canyon National Park, in the Sierras. We were green as the meadows (experience-wise). Not one lick of overnight backpacking experience. But off we went, ready for adventure. Well, our first night out, all of our food was stolen by a very dexterous raccoon (he managed to untie the straps on our backpacks). The real miracle was that a bear didn't get to it first, as we didn't even hang our food (I said we were green) and we were in the heart of black bear country.

So there we were, the big adventurers, with no food. My husband gave out a big sigh and said, "Well, we'll just have to catch some grasshoppers." I was taken back. "I am NOT going to eat grasshoppers!" I declared. I had my limits. After he stopped laughing, he explained that he needed grasshoppers as bait to catch trout. Oh. Heh, heh. Yeah, bait. Good idea. (can you see why I married this man?)

Phew! I've been busy, but I wanted to say that I've survived my first "packet." What is a packet, you might ask? Well, as part of the VC MFA requirements, during the semester, under the guidance of an advisor, students complete a certain amount of required work each month and turn it into his/her advisor for review/feedback.

For the Picture Book Semester (what I'm enrolled in this semester), once a month I turn in an annotated bibliography (min. of 25 books), a critical essay, 2-4 manuscripts (at least one has to be new, others can be revised mss), and a letter to my advisor discussing my progress. Amazingly, my advisor gives me thorough feedback within a day or two. Then it's time to begin the whole process again...

What? You mean we were there to learn something? ;-)

Here are some of the picture book lovin' crowd.

Now that you've seen the landscape of VCFA, here are a few of it's residents...



"First semesters" at the Mexican restaurant in Montpelier (Meg, Anna, Me, Hannah, Katherine).







Escaping to the great outdoors for dinner.








"First semesters" big night out to Barre, to see Harry Potter.

Dinner at Positive Pie (thats' Sue and Anna).

Helen, Katherine, Me, Caroline at Positive Pie.

I'm doing this a little backwards by posting pictures after the rez, but dang it, I couldn't figure out how to download them from my camera (new camera) to the laptop. Oh well! Here they are, by the batch.


Dewey Hall, the VCFA "Hilton" and home to fine dining. That's me and my son in front.









My dorm room. Only hit my head on the block wall twice the first night. :-\







Other side of my room.










Majestic College Hall, home to sore knees (they put the admin offices on the fourth floor).








The brand new VCFA bookstore. It has everything from aspirin to clothing to a wide assortment of books.

The 2009 summer residency is officially over, yet I'm still here. Why? Well, with flights such as they are, I thought it would be much more enjoyable to hang out here, rather than an airport. Sooo, I don't leave for the aiport until later this morning. I really wish I COULD leave sooner, but it just didn't work out.

This morning I was so excited that I woke up at 5:00. Couldn't get back to sleep, so I finally crawled out of bed at 6:00. Praddled around a bit and had my leftover coffee drink from yesterday. Then I walked my "dorm box" of "stuff" that I'd mailed to myself here, back over to the VC mailroom to ship it back to myself at home.

I ran down to the cafeteria for some juice. Couldn't stomach eating anything. Couldn't bear to go into the dining room. Just the smell made me want to leave. It's not that the food here is always bad, it's just that it's bad often enough to cause one to tire of it quickly. And really, even if it were delicious, how often can one eat off a plastic tray and stand in a chow line without it becoming a bit old? I was reminded of the infamous scenes from M*A*S*H when Hawkeye and BJ would sniff the food followed by some hilariouis comment about the cuisine.

Anyway, I'm eager to get home, unpack, hug my family and get to work. My head is spinning with ideas so I want to get to it!

I can see the light at the end of the tunnel of my first residency at VCFA. It's been quite an experience thus far, with the rez definitely taking on a life of its own. It got quite intense there for a while, but then yesterday was the Good vs. Evil Symposium, where we had guest lecturers speak (Margo Lanagan, Deborah Noyes and Nancy Werlin) and some special activities. It also seems that in the past couple of days, there were a few more chances to grab some time to head into Montpelier for a meal, steal some library time or grab a catnap. Or blog.

On Friday, Kathi Appelt gave a lecture titled, Blurred Lines. I wish the world could hear this lecture. It was so moving. Like a piece of well-crafted writing, her talk pulled me in, made me laugh, touched my heart and mind, and all tied together beautifully in the end. If you ever have a chance to hear this lecture, GO. You won't regret it.

Let's see, what else? I've turned in my study plan, which is basically the work that my advisor and I agree that I will do for the upcoming semester. Write 12 picture books? No problem. (gulp). Critical essays? Sure! Love 'em to death. (gulp, gulp). Bibliographies? Heck, I read all the time anyway, why not add a few more titles to my regular reading regiment and annotate them while I'm at it. (gulp, gulp, gulp). When I was a kid, I loved the Matterhorn roller coaster ride at Disneyland. I'd wait in that far-stretching line, inching-inching, hearing the screams, knowing I was going to be terrified but yet I couldn't help myself from trying. This feels the way. Yeah. It's a little like that.

Two days and counting until I get to climb onto the bobsled...

Lectures.
Workshops.
Semester study plan looming.

Can't...come...up...for...air...

Okay, this place is awesome, and awe-inspiring. I had my first workshop session yesterday and I was blown away at the insightful comments on the work being critiqued by the students and advisor, Uma Krishaswami. Uma has a calming energy along with keen eye and amazing insight into picture books (not to mention she's stunning). I was totally floored by our workshop session. Tomorrow is my turn for getting my two stories critiqued, and Kathi Appelt should be there as well, which I'm really looking forward to.

I've seen six faculty/graduating student lectures thus far, on a variety of topics. Very interesting and packed with information.

The dining experience has been...hit and miss...so tonight, when my fellow first semester students opted to go into Montpelier for dinner, I jumped on the chance. It was kind of funny--it felt like we were breaking out of the big house or something (not that VCFA feels like a prison at all, but we've just been confined to the program for five days now and all felt the need for a little break...out). And even though it wasn't quite like the Mexican food I'm used to in CA, it was still good.

Tomorrow AM I hope to walk into Montepelier and get some real coffee (not the cafeteria stuff). I'm craving a decent cup of coffee like you wouldn't believe!

Until then...

Unbelievably, I have a few mins. of spare time so I thought I'd squeeze in a quick post. It's the morning of day 3 here at the rez and this is when I feel the real work begins. Today we have our first "workshop" (group critique session). I'm super-excited about this as we'll be immersing ourselves in our picture book manuscripts. I'm also eager to meet and work with Uma Krishniswami, last semester's PB semester advisor (Kathi Appelt won't be here today, as she's at ALA receiving her Newbery Honor Medal for The Underneath). I've heard fabulous things about Uma so it'll be a pleasure to meet and work with her.

Today I also will hear three faculty lectures. Much to my disappointment, I had to miss last night's opening faculty lecture because I had a migraine. It killed me to miss out on hearing Tim Wynne-Jones, but I knew I needed to take care of myself in order to prevent the headache from worsening.

Friday evening and yesterday involved a lot of orientation (how many times can one state their name, where they're from, and an interesting tidbit about themselves?). We were flooded with info on using the library's vast amount of resources for research (a good thing--but wow--so much to absorb at once) and finally in the late afternoon joined the returning students and faculty. Yes, I slept well. Exhaustion will do that to you.

Two frustrating things thus far are that I can't seem to access my email very often (very hit and miss), and I can't seem to figure out how to download photos to put on my blog. That might have to wait until I return home.

But so far, so very good! I can't wait to get started with today's events. I'll keep you posted...

I've checked into the VC dorms and will soon begin my MFA adventure. My son and daughter-in-law drove me up and helped bring my bags to my room. Yes, life is full of ironies--the son drops his mom off at college. He even warned me, "It's okay to experiment in college, just don't make it a habit." ;-) Hmm...experiment with writing--sounds like a good plan to me. And if it works, I'll definitely make it a habit!

The dorms are...uh...sparse? Yes, sparse, that's a good word to describe it. But that's okay. This isn't a vacation and my focus is on the writing program, not feeling pampered. The room definitely has an institutional feel to it, but it has the basics (even a big fan, which feels very nice right now considering the warm temps today). Because of my potential for migraines, I'm in a single room, which is fabulous because I can spread my "stuff" all over.

Today the new students check in; tomorrow the returning students arrive then we let the games begin!

I couldn't sleep last night, a million thoughts swirling in my mind, so I'm looking forward to getting a good night's sleep tonight. It may be my last for a while!

I'm in New England now, enjoying a little family time before I start my first VCFA rez. You know, since I've been here, I've noticed a couple of differences between Rhode Island and California. First, the drivers. Folks here don't seem to honor traffic lights and signs as much as those do on the west coast, so I've found that I have to watch carefully before crossing any streets! (yep, hold hands and look both ways).

Second, people here don't use Bluetooths or other hands-free cell phone devices. This morning I strolled down to a local coffee house and bought a drink, some freshly ground coffee for home use, and a muffin. I was talking to my husband on my cell phone and realized that I didn't have enough hands to carry everything plus the cell phone, so I put on my Bluetooth. As I was sitting in the park chatting with him, and later walking home while continuing our conversation, I received many a raised eyebrow from passers by. They must have thought I was talking to myself. One person even purposefully avoided me, giving me a wide berth as he walked past, staring at me like I was crazy!

I also received the schedule for the residency, which begins in four days. My initial reaction was, "Holy cow, don't those people EVER sleep?" It's a ten-day packed schedule of interesting lectures, activities, workshops and social events. Kind of like an SCBWI national conference on steroids--but longer! Today I'm going to sit down with the schedule and prioritize the "must-see" events, the "really want to see" events, and the "if I have any energy left" events. And I still need to re-read all of the mss from my workshop group to refresh my memory, and finish one book from the recommended reading lecture list.

Phew!

Tens days and counting! My body is still in CA but my mind is in VT.

I've finished all of the manuscripts for my workshop group (wow, some pretty great writing!). I mailed myself a CARE package for my stay in the dorms. Today I received one more book I want to read before the rez begins so I'll dive into that tonight. And I've got a three-page list of all I need to do and pack before I leave--ahh, don't you just love making lists?

I'm hoping I'll have the time to make posts during the rez, but until I'm there and living through it, I won't know. Folks say it's exhilarating, educational and exhausting, so we'll see what the schedule allows.

Until then...

Eighteen days and counting... (okay, is this too much? Am I overdoing the countdown?).

I'm also starting to think about the details of housing and life in the dorms. Not being a "spring chicken" anymore, I don't travel quite as lightly as I used to. It amazes me that I used to be happy spending my nights in a sleeping bag on the ground with a pile of clothes for a pillow and an occassional mouse darting over my legs (from my backpacking days).

Twenty-four days and counting to VC!

I've been busy organizing my thoughts, making a ka-zillion lists, doing the suggested reading, and yesterday I received a lovely packet of twenty-four picture book manuscripts that I'll need to critique before my arrival. The manuscripts are all written by the nine other people in my workshop group for the residency (which I'll call "the rez" from now on, to expedite typing). I'm so excited to read them and get a sense of the other writers I'll be working with. Five of the students have just finished the Picture Book Semester and the other five are those who will be doing it this fall (including myself). Talk about hanging out with like-minded folks!

And fun of all fun, last weekend I went to Staples to buy new school supplies. Yep, I'm just THAT big of a nerd that I get excited over buying new school and office supplies :-}.