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The ivory tower is granting me a one day pass to go out and see the real world. The things good behavior will get you!

GLEE!

I'm being let out to speak at Oklahoma's school librarian conference, EncycloMedia. I'm excited. Thrilled. And a little nervous. Okay... a lot nervous. I'll be out with real people. I have to talk. I have to talk intelligently, in complete sentences, with no editing, about my middle grade novel, Dragon Wishes. I have to sound like I do this regularly. But all I've done for weeks now is sit in the ivory tower with my imaginary friends - and a few dead writers - and write. My social skills have sort of fallen by the wayside. Ask my kids. My husband. My dog, even.

Fortunately, should my skills waver, I'll be in amazing company and so hopefully no one will notice. I'm speaking with Eileen Cook, What Would Emma Do, Cynthea Liu, Paris Pan Takes the Dare, Jenny Meyerhoff, Third Grade Baby, and Suzanne Morgan Williams, Bull Rider.

We're followed the next day by P.J. Hoover, The Navel of the World, Jessica Anderson, Border Crossing, Barrie Summy, I So Don't Do Spooky, Donna St. Cyr, The Cheese Syndicate, and Zu Vincent, The Lucky Place.

Beforehand, we're being interviewed for a televised program that the Metropolitan Library of Oklahoma broadcasts throughout the state. Please, please, please let my hair cooperate so that I look like someone who actually styles her hair every once in a while, rather than pulling it back in a haphazard ponytail because dead writers and fictitious characters don't care what your hair looks like. And after that, there is a luncheon with librarians. Gulp. Can I carry on a coherent conversation for a whole hour? Or will I get that far off, I-have-an-idea look and start scribbling on my napkin? Librarians will understand if I do, right?

Maybe after all of that real world experience, I'll be ready to lock myself away in the ivory tower again, but I have a feeling, it'll be the other way around. I used to be a pretty social person, some time in the distant past...I think. Either way, I think that seeing, talking and interacting in a spontaneous way with real live people who don't need me to edit their dialogue could be, what's the word?

Oh wait, I know...FUN!

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2k8:Can you tell us how the book came about? How did you begin writing it?

Jenny Meyerhoff: I started writing THIRD GRADE BABY because of a title. The original was “The Top Secret Files of the Tooth Fairy.” It came to me in a flash, and I really wanted to know the story that went with it. It was a fantasy about a girl who got to help the tooth fairy. Unfortunately, that book wasn’t very good, so after a major revision (from fantasy to contemporary realistic fiction) THIRD GRADE BABY was born.

2k8: And how did it find a publisher? Where were you when you got The Call?

Jenny Meyerhoff: The call didn’t come quite out of the blue. I had been told that my books were being taken to acquisitions and so was hoping to hear from my agent at any time. (Not that I was obsessively checking my email and voicemail or anything.) When the call finally came, I somehow was unable to locate my cellphone. I could hear it ringing, but ran frantically around the house trying to locate the source of the sound without success. Voicemail picked up and my agent had to deliver the news via message. (Which I saved. However, to preserve my dignity, I cannot tell you how many times I listened to it.)

2k8: Imagine you have an offer from your dream press to publish your dream book, no matter how insane or unmarketable it might be (though of course it might not be). What story do you want to write next/someday and why?

Jenny Meyerhoff: I already feel like this has happened for me. Publishing my first book with FSG was everything I could have imagined and more. And right now I’m working with them on my second book, THE IMPOSSIBLE SECRETS OF ESSIE GREEN. It’s a young adult novel.

2k8: What question won't most people know to ask you? What is your answer?

Jenny Meyerhoff: Well, my book really tackles the question of whether or not third graders are too old to believe in the tooth fairy. One of the characters states emphatically that they are. Another one says she will continue to believe in the tooth fairy no matter what. The main character tries to decide what she should believe; she really isn’t sure.

So far, no one has asked me if I believe in the tooth fairy.

The answer is yes, I do.

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This week, join the Class of 2k8 in welcoming the talented Jenny Meyerhoff, who is celebrating the release of her book, Third Grade Baby!

Polly Peterson knows that baby teeth are for babies like her little brother Max. And yet she’s the only kid in her third grade class who hasn’t lost a single one. Her best friends, Oliver and Amelia, try to make her feel better, but it’s hard to be cheerful when Zachary, the new boy at school, starts calling her babyteeth. As if that weren’t bad enough, Polly worries about what to do when she finally does lose a tooth. Can third graders leave teeth under their pillows? Or is the tooth fairy also just for babies?



Now read an excerpt!

Polly Peterson tightened her ponytail and skipped alongside her mother on the sidewalk in front of Barker Elementary School. School hadn't even started, and already there was a problem. Everywhere Polly looked, students were running, climbing, and waiting for the bell to ring, but she didn't see any parents. Since third graders used the upper elementary playground, Polly guessed they were supposed to walk to school by themselves.

Uh-oh.

Polly turned to her mom, who was pushing Max, Polly's baby brother in a stroller. Max chewed on his fingers, and a big glob of drool dripped from his mouth. Eew!

"We can say goodbye here, Mom," Polly said.

Polly's mom looked at the school and then back at Polly, as if she wasn't sure. Then she asked, "You'll be okay?"

Polly nodded. "I'll be fine." Then she wiggled her loose front tooth. It was on the bottom, right in front.

The bell rang, and the third graders lined up. Oliver Wu and Amelia Sanchez, Polly's two best friends, stood at the front of the line. Their parents were already on their way to work. Polly hoped no one could see that her mom had walked her to school.

Polly's mom leaned down. "Can I at least have a hug?"

Polly guessed a hug would be okay. She squeezed her mom goodbye. Then Polly's mom gave her a big kiss on the cheek. "Oops!" she said when she stood up. "I got lipstick on you. Just a second."

Polly's mom reached into Max's diaper bad and pulled out a baby wipe. A baby wipe! She grabbed Polly's chin. "Hold still."

Polly squirmed but she couldn't escape. Her mom cleaned her cheek with the wipe. Disgusting! Polly thought having a baby brother would make her parents treat her like a bigger kid, not like a toddler. She hoped no one had seen. She looked back at the playground. A tall, blond boy was staring at her, a fifth grader probably. Polly bet he thought she was a baby because her mom was wiping her face.


Huge Congrats, Jenny! What an accomplishment!

Tomorrow, we meet Jenny up close and personal as we continue to celebrate her debut week!

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Do you remember that cute Schoolhouse Rock song all about how the little Bill fights his way through all the red tape and goes through all the committees in order to become a Law? Well, it is the same long and complicated trek a story idea takes to becoming a book on a shelf. This week we're going to follow the path a story takes from idea all the way toward its goal of becoming a book on a shelf--from author to agent to editor to book store buyer! Today we're going to talk about how story ideas form and what authors go through to get them down on the proverbial paper!

"The reason I started writing The Gollywhopper Games is well-documented in my acknowledgements (and in some resulting reviews). But wanting to write a book that might appeal to a lover of Charlie and The Chocolate Factory provided a huge set of challenges. Dahl had already claimed candy. Dahl had already claimed a spot as a top master. So how could I craft a book one particular 5th grader would love without being derivative of a master work? I'd give you a replay of my process, but my methods of brainstorming are near-impossible to document. They do, however, involve doodling, massive amounts of pacing and utter disregard for household chores." Jody Feldman author of The Gollywhopper Games

"I was a model booker for years, which gave me lots of material for the book. I worked at two busy agencies, but I was always scribbling down story ideas onto notepads instead of working. Sometimes I’d be interviewing a model, looking at her portfolio, and a detail about her photos would strike me as interesting or funny, so I’d say, 'Excuse me just a sec,' then I’d whip out my notepad and start jotting away while the poor girl had to wait. I also took notes when models made comments I liked, usually something like, 'I’m an excellent actress, as long as there’s no dialogue.' Years later, I referred to all those notepads when I sat down to write BRALESS IN WONDERLAND. I guess I only pretended to be a model booker. I spent most of my time scribbling. I should probably give my ex-boss her money back. " Debbie Reed Fischer author of BRALESS IN WONDERLAND and SWIMMING WITH THE SHARKS

"I paid for my writing time. Seriously. After my third child was born, I hired a babysitter to come for three hours a day, three days per week. I would need a sitter to go to any other job, I rationalized, so why not for being a writer? It is amazing how much you can get done in three hours, especially when those hours are costing you money. However, it’s not the cheapest way to write. Until I sold a book, my job actually cost me more money than I earned. But it was so worth it! I never would have finished my novels without it." Jenny Meyerhoff author of THIRD GRADE BABY and THE IMPOSSIBLE SECRETS OF ESSIE GREEN

Tomorrow our story must head to agent Erin Murphy at the Erin Murphy Literary Agency!

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Web sites…
Most authors have them, need them, or want them. But are they truly necessary? For the rest of this week, members of The Class of 2k8 will give you their innermost thoughts on being part of the World Wide Web. Stay tuned for some great insight, and be sure and check out each member's site.

(Drum roll, please.) Let’s get to that list: 28+ Reasons Why You Need A Web site.

A Web site is where people go to find out information.
The first thing I do when I finish a book that I love is visit the author’s Web site. Here, I learn more about the author, what other books he published, where she was born. A good Web site makes me feel closer to the writers I enjoy, and much more likely to buy their next book. I hope readers who come to my site feel like they’ve gotten to know me a bit, and have found some way in which we connect.
~Jenny Meyerhoff, Author of Third Grade Baby
http://www.jennymeyerhoff.com

A presence on the Web means being a part of a community.
For me a Web presence isn't just a matter of advertising, it's a matter of community and process. So many essays have begun as blog posts, and soooo many of my friendships and professional relationships have started the same way. I've also had old friends find me through my online life, and I've been approached by publications like Salon.com, as well. So, really... I have to say that I think I'd still be waiting tables if it weren't for the Web!
~Laurel Snyder, Author of Up and Down the Scratchy Mountains, http://www.laurelsnyder.com/

A Web site brings people to your site.
It's really fun to see what kind of search brings people to your site. Let's see, some of the phrases that have brought viewers to my site include:

"didactic stories read"
So, you want to read a didactic story, and if so, may I ask why?
"sleeping babies"
Ah yes, with a picture book titled, Baby Can’t Sleep, I get lots of parents wanting the secret to getting your baby to sleep. Guess what? There is no secret. Babies simply don't sleep as much as people have led us to believe. So, buy my book and have a laugh over it at the very least.
"slush pile garbage"
Yeah, I think editors would agree, there's a lot of garbage in the slush pile. Are you trying to figure out what defines garbage? I think it's pretty much anything that's not so fabulous an editor wants to snatch it up the second he/she reads it.

See? What a fun game! Get a Web site, and find out what fun phrases bring people to your site.
Lisa Schroeder, Author of I Heart You, You Haunt Me, http://www.lisaschroederbooks.com/

Our Totally Important Post for today is about Lisa, as well.
T.I.P.
Kids are loving I Heart You, You Haunt Me! Check out what this blogger’s daughter has to say.

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