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Environmental Epigenetics is a new, international, peer-reviewed, fully open access journal, which publishes research in any area of science and medicine related to the field of epigenetics, with particular interest on environmental relevance. With the first issue scheduled to launch this summer, we found this to be the perfect time to speak with Dr. Michael K. […]

The post A Q&A with the Editor of Environmental Epigenetics appeared first on OUPblog.

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I often get emails from people looking to break into children’s publishing. I don’t have all the answers, but I do have some general advice I find myself giving again and again. Below are three steps, in order of importance, that I think writers should focus on:

1) Write a Really Good Book
First time writers don’t sell books based on partial drafts or outlines. They sell finished manuscripts. And there are a lot of finished manuscripts in the world. That means the first step is completing a book and revising it until it is airtight. Don’t expect an agent or editor to look at a sloppy manuscript and see the potential–that same agent or manager has hundreds (not an exaggeration) of other manuscripts to consider, and they’ll take the one that demonstrates the greatest professionalism and craft. Taking an example from my first book, Peter Nimble, I did about 15 complete re-writes before showing it to an agent … and then did another 3 drafts before the book went to an editor. I have yet to talk to a professional author who didn’t go through the same level of revision before finding a publisher.

2) Join SCBWI
The “Society of Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators” (SCBWI) is a national organization with local chapters all over the country. This group is a fantastic place for both professional and aspiring writers and illustrators to gather and discuss craft and business of children’s publishing. The annual conferences are often attended by agents and editors who are looking for new books. I have a number of author friends whose careers were launched when they met an editor at an SCBWI event who requested to see their really good manuscripts (see above point).

3) Query Agents
If a lot of industries, the “it’s who you know” rule applies. Not so in publishing! Book agents read and consider manuscript submissions from unknown writers all the time–that’s their job. Nearly every writer I’ve ever met was pulled out of the “slush pile” from an agent who discovered them. Your job is to query agents who will best understand your work and be in a position to sell it. This means doing a bit of homework, by reading the Writer’s Market and finding agents who are looking for material like your book. The internet is awash with resources about how to approach agents. A good place to start might be Kidlit.com, a website run by children’s book agent Mary Kole. She answers questions about the dos and don’ts of querying better than anyone!

The above steps aren’t a guarantee of any success, but they are a good place to start! Also, I might as well link to this brief but eloquent video of Neil Gaiman talking about step one (which is really the only step that matters):

 

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Ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes at your favorite independent book publisher? If you've been following this series, then you've already met the key players from our editorial staff, as well as members of our production, publicity, and sales and marketing teams. Today the Overlook employee spotlight returns to catch up with Contracts and Subsidiary Rights Manager Amy Yang, the legal whiz

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Find out about our Teaching Authors Book Giveaway running all this week! Click here for details on how to enter for a chance to win your own autographed copy of S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet. And be sure to try out the related Writing Workout at the end of this post.

Now here's the fifth and last in our series of Q & A posts related to Esther Hershenhorn’s newest book, S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet, an A-to-Z journey through a writer’s life and process.

JoAnn: Each book is a ribboned and bowed gift—for the writer as well as for the reader. What was the surprise for you when you unwrapped this book?

Esther: I’m smiling just thinking about my answer.

My book’s closing Y and Z words and their accompanying entries shout to the world, “Writing is a gift!”

The word story comes from the word history, which means a narrative of events. And history’s story? It comes from the Greek word historia, which means to ask or inquire to learn and know.

“Writing,” I tell my reader, “helps you learn the story behind your story.”

Y is for Your Story
Yours to live and grow,
Of all you do,
And where you’ve been and where you hope to go.

My writer’s story, to date, told of fictional picture books and middle grade novels.

But writing S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet opened all sorts of doors to writing nonfiction.

The learner in me loved researching the bounty of possible supportive details for each of my entries. I was lost in thought, I was in the flow, as one fact led to another.

The wordsmith in me loved the doable concreteness of crafting 180-word pieces; I found the cutting, refining and polishing oddly satisfying.

I was teaching again, via words on paper, as I did when I long ago published for the educational market.

My journalism degree served me daily and well, enabling me to focus on each entry’s important facts.

I was telling my story – my Writer’s story, my Teacher’s story, my Author’s story, my Teaching Author’s story, up close and personally, all in the service of helping young writers tell their stories.

My current project? I’m writing a picture book biography of a little-known slave the world needs to know.

My “Z is for Zorro” entry reminds readers that we need to sign our names beneath our singular stories, maybe with three quick sword-drawn lines, as Zorro did, or with a John Hancock-like bold hand or a telling mark. Perhaps, I suggest, we could use a signature quote, words that tell the world something about us, the way the quotes throughout my book tell something about writing.

Each day brings me new and meaningful quotable words to place beneath my name. For now, though, as I sign off with thanks to my fellow Teaching Authors for their questions and support the past seven days, I choose Milo’s words from The Phantom Toll Booth.

Esther Hershenhorn
“Anything is possible as long as you don’t know it’s impossible.”

FYI:

Zachary Pullen’s singular, compelling S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet’s illustrations reflect his respect for young writers and writing. Visit Zak’s website to learn more about his work and other books.

My website offers Young Writers Extras – opportunities to write, read and discover, at home, in school, or at the library.

Visit my website’s newest page, Tour, to learn the What, When and Where of my out-and-about book events, signings, school visits, conference engagements, writer presentations, teacher workshops and upcoming October-through November Blog Tour.

Click here for Sleeping Bear Press’s Teacher’s Guide to S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet.


Many writers today place a famous quotation beneath their names when they sign letters, emails and reports. Such quotations are called signature quotes.


Bartlett’s Book of Familiar Quotations sits on the reference shelf of most libraries.

A Gift of Days: The Greatest Words to Live By (S & S/Atheneum) offers powerful words from 366 artists, writers, political figures and visionaries.

What quote would you choose to write beneath your name to show the world you’re here and just who you are?

Think about your favorite books (Winnie the Pooh, the Harry Potter series), movies, characters, poems, ads, tag lines, song titles and lyrics, sports figures, musicians and games.

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Find out about our TeachingAuthors Book Giveaway running all this week! Click here for details on how to enter for a chance to win your own autographed copy of S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet. And be sure to try out the related Writing Workout at the end of this post. Now here's the fourth in our series of Q&A posts related to Esther Hershenhorn’s newest book, S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet, an A-to-Z journey through a writer’s life and process.


Jeanne Marie:
How would you like to see teachers, parents, and young readers and writers use S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet?

Esther:
I decided to follow my own advice when creating my Writer’s Alphabet.

“K is for four Kinds of Writing,

each a style to know.

Describe or preach?

Recount or teach?

Think purpose, then readers, then GO!”


My purpose was to inform, inspire and affirm young writers – as well as – celebrate the all-important Reader-Writer Connection.

And, my audience was young writers.

Fortunately, the iconic two-tiered format of Sleeping Bear Press’s alphabet books made the going easy and doable. Each entry’s rhymed verse captures the essence of the selected word for younger readers, ages 6 to 8. The accompanying sidebar’s text written in prose enhances, amplifies, and extends the chosen word. Of course, each of Zak Pullen’s compelling images visually tells the chosen letter’s story.

Most of my texts offer mini-Writing Lessons – e.g., how to create rounded characters, how to brainstorm, how to use a Writer’s Notebook.

Many of my entries include Writer’s Tips – e.g., on saving drafts, editing, collecting ideas, naming characters.

Each double-page spread shares a relevant, meaningful quote from a treasured award-winning children’s book author.




Young writers can use the book on their own – turning the pages from A to Z, or choosing letters at random, or singling out a specific element of narrative, writing process step, or subject of interest that draws their interest. The mini-lessons, the Writer’s Tips, the peeks at how writers work and the authors’ words are young writer-friendly, young-writer accessible.
In the classroom, library, or home, teachers, librarians and parents can do the same, using the entries to introduce, support, extend, and/or summarize a specific item of the writing curriculum. Included writing tools, such as Writer’s Notebooks, journals, and letters, are meant to be tried. Referenced children’s book authors, titles, and characters are meant to be read and explored, sparking authors’ studies to help writers grow.

Whether sitting on a writer’s bookshelf at home, in the library, or in the classroom, S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet offers limitless possibilities and opportunities to seed and feed young writers. The trick, Christopher Paul Curtis reminds readers, is to “make sure the writing’s got your own natural funk all over it.”


FYI:

• Zachary Pullen’s singular, compelling S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet’s illustrations reflect his respect for young writers and writing. Visit Zak’s website to learn more about his work and other books.

• My website offers Young Writers Extras – opportunities to write, read and discover, at home, in school, or at the library.

• Visit my website’s newest page, Tour, to learn the What, When and Where of my out-and-about book events, signings, school visits, conference engagements, writer presentations, teacher workshops and upcoming October-through November Blog Tour.

• Click here for Sleeping Bear Press’ Teacher’s Guide to S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet.


Writing Workout
 
Some writers borrow expressions to use as pen names, names under which they write. For instance, Charles Lutwidge Dodgson translated his first two names into the Latin “Carolus Lodovious” and then into the English pen name Lewis Carroll.


Mark Twain’s true name was Samuel Clemens, P. L. Travers was borne Helen Lyndon Goff. Theodore Geisel used the title Dr. Seuss. Paging R. C. O’Brien? Try Robert Leslie Conly. Write Lemony Snicket c/o Daniel Handler.

Create a pen name for you to use.
Think about foreign languages, code words, synonyms, antonyms, acronyms, the street on which you live, favorite characters, names of pets.

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Find out about our TeachingAuthors autographed Book Giveaway running all this week! Click here for details.

This week we’re celebrating fellow TeachingAuthor Esther Hershenhorn’s newest book, S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet, an A-to-Z journey through a writer’s life and process.

April:
Can you give us a feel for the time-line of S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet, from the story’s spark to its first review?

Esther:
I loved sharing with readers in my D is for Drafts side-bar text that Abraham Lincoln spent seventeen days crafting his 272-word Gettysburg Address! S is for Story’s time-line totaled 971 days, from its January 11, 2007 story spark to its September 9, 2009 official release.
But, who’s counting anyway?
And, unlike Lincoln, I saved my many drafts.


Here’s how my book’s plotline played out across 2 2/3 years, in scenes that moved forward to its happy resolution, despite the twists and turns.

January 11, 2007 My story’s spark: a writing alphabet!

January 13, 2007 Submission of Book Proposal to SBP editor Amy Lennex

October 10, 2007 Amy’s phone call, offering me a contract : )

November, 2007 Brainstorming the book idea with my Chicago Alcott School 5th graders

January 7, 2008 Submission of my 26 selected alphabetically-ordered words

Note: I’ve titled this particular Plot Episode “Esther’s Lost Weekend” because that’s what preceded the submission of my letters. My driving question? What story was I telling? What was my narrative arc? I simply could not alphabetically list word after word. My Aha! Moment? When I realized this book was my School Visit, wrapped and ribbon-ed and tied up with a bow, shouting, when opened, “Writers are readers!”

My welcoming, affirming narrator’s voice would address the reader, moving the story from WE writers (and readers) to and through writing’s Magic and on to writing’s gift, namely YOU and YOUR story.

My 26 words needed to offer a balanced representation of (1) the writing process, (2) the six traits of writing, (3) the elements of narrative and (4) the writer’s life.
My quoted and referenced children’s book authors, titles and characters would reflect a multitude of formats, genres and ethnicities.

January, 2008 – March, 2008
Research! Googling! Reading! Oh, My!
Selection of supportive concrete details and a relevant quote for each of my 17 double-page spreads

Note: I’d never solved such a challenging acrostic-like puzzle! I needed to represent award-winning authors living and dead, male and female, inclusive of all genres, formats and ethnicities, whose words enhanced my selected subject word

March, 2008 The writing of my book’s rhymed text – 26 poems that convey,
for my youngest readers, the essence of my chosen subject word.

Note: Writing these poems, adhering to my established meter, yet varying the sentence structure and word choice in unique and original ways, took me all 31 days! I have a new respect for the always-admired Mary Ann Hoberman and Lisa Wheeler.

April, 2008 The writing of the 180-word text for each of my 26 side-bars.

Note: The word count included my chosen author’s quoted words. Revising, cutting and refining my copy proved editor Jean Karl’s advice right on: a writer can always cut five words more. I actually loved this challenge. Verbs became my best friends.

April 30, 2008 Submission of manuscript, electronically to Amy Lennex!

May, 2008 A few minor revisions requested and honored

May 23, 2008 An arranged conference call that included Amy Lennex, the Art Director Melinda Millward, the book’s chosen illustrator Zachary Pullen and me!

Note: I’ve never been offered this opportunity before.
I shared how I came to write this book and why I loved it so.
Zak shared that he was thinking about following a given set of young writers through the book’s many pages. Our respect for young writers came through loud and clear.

August, 2008 Amy shared Zak’s rough thumbnail sketches

October, 2008 I honored Amy’s request to choose a new U and X;

Note: my original U was for Uses and the X was for Rejection;
my revised U was for Unstoppable and X was for eXpression.

November 24, 2008 Amy Lennex’s emailed revision requests, with an attached document.

Note: Though still full of Good Will from Turkey Day,
I was not instantly thankful for Amy’s sharp, smart editorial eye.
In fact, it took a good two days for me to see the wonder of her comments, each posed as a question. Amy was reading my words on behalf of my readers, young and old, who deserved utmost clarity. I twinge now rereading the draft I thankfully revised. I also needed to tweak 25 of my 26 poems, again for clarity, again for my readers. After but one phone conversation with Amy, I was on my way, eager to get my words and story right.

December 22, 2008 I emailed Amy my completed revisions. : )

March, 2009 I received color images of Zak’s cover and a few letter pages –
B, C, D/E, F/G,M, P, Y/Z. I joined the chorus of viewers’ “WOW’S!”

April, 2009 Line-editing/proof-reading


Early July, 2009 Shipment of book to China for printing.

August 27, 2009 Arrival of books in SBP warehouse!

September 9, 2009 Official release date

September 13, 2009 Chicago Tribune review

Mary Harris Russell’s enthusiasm for our book was palpable.

“These attention-getting pages – often featuring unusual angles on a scene – slow readers to an appreciative pace for each piece of Hershenhorn’s advice. Hershenhorn is experienced as an author and writing coach; that dual expertise show. The words chosen for each letter are distinctive and strongly central for writers: genre, journal, notebook, revision and voice. She is not talking down. Her allusions are to a variety of writers children know and like – Ann Martin, Richard Peck, Beverly Cleary, Sid Fleischman, as well as to Superman, Longfellow and text-messaging.”

Somewhere in my cartons of drafts, emails, sketches and auxiliary materials sits the Chicago Tribune Sagittarius horoscope for Saturday, January 13, 2007, the day I mailed my Writer’s Alphabet proposal to Sleeping Bear Press. Georgia Nicols advised me to muster patience and trust in a Bigger Plan: I was planting seeds that in time would grow to bear prized fruits beyond my imagination.

FYI:

• Zachary Pullen’s singular, compelling S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet’s illustrations reflect his respect for young writers and writing. Visit Zak’s website to learn more about his work and other books.
• My website offers Young Writers Extras – opportunities to write, read and discover, at home, in school, or at the library.
• Visit my website’s newest page, Tour, to learn the What, When and Where of my out-and-about book events, signings, school visits, conference engagements, writer presentations, teacher workshops and upcoming October-through November Blog Tour.
• Click here for Sleeping Bear Press’ Teacher’s Guide to S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet.

Writing Workout:
A Reading and Discovery Opportunity








Dr. Seuss figured he could knock off his The Cat in the Hat in a week. After all, he wasn’t using more than 250 words. Imagine his surprise when after one year, he was still working on the story. Page through Philip Nel’s The Annotated Cat, Under the Hats of Seuss and His Cats (Random House) to see and study Dr. Seuss’ revisions.

What are some of the changes Dr. Seuss made in word choice and the story’s action?


[Note: book images used with permission.]

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Carmela:
Can you share with our readers, Esther, how being a TeachingAuthor informed your book?

Esther:
My Inner Child wasn’t the only one keeping me company while I brainstormed, grew, and wrote S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet.

The Teachers in me, plural (former fifth grade and writing) couldn’t sit still, checking off subjects each insisted I include.
For instance, elements of narrative, such as character and plot.
The Four Kinds of Writing, from Persuasive to Descriptive.
What about Word Choice?
Don’t forget Voice.
Remind young writers: mechanics are important.
      
The Author in me seconded the Teachers, before promptly adding a few Musts of her own. 
Introduce Journals.
Recommend Notebooks.
Share Writer’s Tips.
Share the glory and the fun.
Let writers know the need for revision and drafts.
Inspire writers with stories of success.

It was the Children’s Book Author in me, though, who helped me reach my story’s heart.
I’d personally learned my craft by reading, studying, typing out, and taking apart children’s books, across all formats in a multitude of genres.
I still read as a writer.
I still write as a reader.
All of me celebrates the Reader-Writer Connection.

What better way to Show, Don’t Tell as well as support my chosen content than to reference children’s books, their authors, their characters?
What better way to affirm today’s young writers than to let them know: they are not alone?
E.B. White’s eight drafts of Charlotte’s Web.
Dr. Seuss’ 1 ½ year-long revision of The Cat in the Hat.
Christopher Paul Curtis’ surprising Writer’s Journey.
Beatrix Potter’s letter-writing.
Sid Fleischman’s magic.
My book’s sidebars teem with All Things Children’s Book.
Each double-page spread offers a treasured author’s words.
Andrew Clements’ words close the double-page B spread.
“I don’t know a single writer who wasn’t a reader first.”

FYI
•    Zachary Pullen’s singular, compelling S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet’s illustrations reflect his respect for young writers and writing.  Visit Zak’s website to learn more about his work and other books.
•    My website offers Young Writers Extras – opportunities to write, read and discover, at home, in school, or at the library.
•    Visit my website’s newest page, Tour, to learn the What, When and Where of my out-and-about book events, signings, school visits, conference engagements, writer presentations, teacher workshops and upcoming October-through November Blog Tour.
•    Click here for Sleeping Bear Press’ Teacher’s Guide to S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet.



Reading biographies of children’s book writers helps you learn how other writers kept on working to learn and hone their craft, no matter their disappointments, doubts, and early failures.

Check out these writer biographies:

Jen Bryant: A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams
Sid Fleischman: Trouble at 8: A Life of Mark Twain in the Wild, Wild West
Karen Hesse: The Young Hans Christian Andersen
Kathleen Krull: 
   The Boy on Fairfeld Street: How Ted Geisel Grew Up to Become Dr. Seuss
   The Road to Oz: Twists, Turns, Bumps, and Triumphs in the Life of L. Frank Baum
Mark Nobleman: Boys of Steel: The Creators of Superman
Yona Zedia McDonough: Louisa: The Life of Louisa May Alcott

[Note: book images used with permission.]

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Mary Ann:
Can you share with our readers, Esther, how and why you came to write this nonfiction book?

Esther:
How could I not begin an alphabetically-arranged writing book with A is for Alphabet?  I especially love Lewis Carroll’s words from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland which end my book’s first double-page spread: “Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end; then stop.”

As for the story behind S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet, believe it or not, it begins, “It was a dark and stormy night ..."

Or rather, it was a dark and stormy Thursday in early January, 2007.  I sat across the lunch table from my friend and fellow author Steven Layne at Chicago’s Grand Lux Café.

A part of me was back at my Lincoln Park writing desk, eager to tackle my middle-grade novel’s revision. In fact, I’d hemmed and hawed about keeping the lunch date, torn between my writing and catching up with a dear friend, even while CTA-ing my bundled self to the restaurant.

Still, I watched and listened as Steven made his way through his soup-and-sandwich combo singing, non-stop, between bites and sips, the praises of his P is for Princess publisher.

“Esther,” Steven declared, readying for dessert, “you need to publish with Sleeping Bear Press!”

My brain instantly played Connect the Dots: Sleeping Bear Press?  Oh, ABC books!  A book on writing because that was what I knew!  Website searches of SBP and Amazon followed.  Next, a review of every writing book I used with Young Writers.

By dinnertime, I’d dedicated the next 42 hours until my U.S. Mail Lady’s Saturday noon pick-up to thoughtfully readying a proposal for (what I then titled) W is for Writing.

Theodor Seuss Geisel wrote of his own serendipitous meeting with his former college friend-turned-Vanguard Press juvenile editor who purchased And To Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street after the good Dr.’s twenty-some rejections, “If I’d been going down the other side of Madison Avenue, I would be in the dry-cleaning business today.”

I’ve asked myself often during the past two years: what if I had stayed home that dark, damp, gray and cold Thursday?!

My, oh, my, what I would have missed.

As further luck would have it, throughout those 42 early January hours, that little girl I once was who lives inside of me poked and prodded and wouldn’t let me be.  Maybe, she whispered, I could write the book she’d wanted to own, when she’d decided to someday write children’s books.  Maybe my book could answer her questions.

Of course, her questions are those of any young person interested in writing.  I answer these questions daily, on school visits, in libraries, when coaching writers in my Author-to-Author program, when celebrating Young Authors at city and state events.

How nice that I can now answer those questions by handing children my Writer’s Alphabet.

And when I do, I’ll be sure to speak the words Steven taught me to share when gifting a student with a carefully-chosen book.

“Here,” I’ll say, “I’ve been thinking about you.”

FYI:
•    Zachary Pullen’s singular, compelling S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet’s illustrations reflect his respect for young writers and writing.  Visit Zak’s website to learn more about his work and other books.
•    My website offers Young Writers Extras – opportunities to write, read and discover, at home, in school, or at the library.
•    Visit my website’s newest page, Tour, to learn the What, When and Where of my out-and-about book events, signings, school visits, conference engagements, writer presentations, teacher workshops and upcoming October-through November Blog Tour.
•    Click here for Sleeping Bear Press’ Teacher’s Guide to S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet.


The word “abecedarian” (ā-bē-(ˌ)sē-ˈder-ē-ən) just about gives away its meaning.

An abecedarian  is a person who’s learning the letters of the alphabet.  The word abecedarian also describes anything that is related to the alphabet.

S is for Story: A Writer’s Alphabet tells the story of a writer’s life and process from A to Z.  How might you tell your story from A to Z?  Or the story of your family, or your favorite sports team, recording artist, or classroom even?

List the letters A through Z.  Choose meaningful subject words that tell your subject’s story.  For example, The A-to-Z of Me might include:

            A is for Aunt Anne.
            B is for my books.
            C is for my cousin Jane who lives in New Jersey.

            First choose naming words or nouns.
            Next, grow your story by adding verbs (actions words) or adjectives (describing words) or even both.

[Note: book image used with permission.]

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Find out about our Teaching Author Book Give-Away Contest running all this week! Click here for details.

Happy New Year! This week we’re celebrating the new school year and our very own April Halprin Wayland’s book, New Year at the Pier—A Rosh Hashanah Story, which is about another kind of new year—the Jewish New Year.

JoAnn:
Give us a feel for the time line of this book—from the first inkling of an idea to Book On the Shelf.

April:
I’ll tell you, but if you’re an aspiring children’s author, it might be best to cover your ears and sing “La, la, la” through today’s post…especially the very end.

So—here’s how it started. An editor asked me if I had any Jewish stories in me. I had a few…but one ritual was the standout for me: tashlich.

I began by writing down everything I knew about tashlich—how it feels to walk up the pier, singing, with two hundred of my friends, the sun, the waves, the butterflies in my tummy, the feeling I have when I give my “sins” to the winds.



Next, I read books about tashlich, starting with children’s books, though there weren’t many. The most recent children’s book I found in which tashlich is the main subject is Carol Levin’s A Rosh Hashanah Walk (Kar-Ben, 1987).

Then I interviewed my friend, Rabbi Neil Comess-Daniels of Beth Shir Sholom Temple in Santa Monica, California. Rabbi Neil is very tuned into kids; he’s written many albums of children’s songs.

I just re-read my notes from that afternoon and realize how much of what he taught me infuses the book. Look over my shoulder at a few of my notes:

• Rabbi Neil doesn’t like using the word “mistake,” as mistake means not on purpose, and sometimes you do some of these things on purpose.

• There’s a famous story of a man who goes to his rabbi and says that he gossiped about someone in town and he is now sorry and wants the rabbi to help him make it right. The rabbi said no, he can’t help this man. What? What do you mean, says the man. I really am sorry. I want to make it right. No can do, says the rabbi. But why? Asks the man. Go get me a knife and a feather pillow, says the rabbi. The man does. The rabbi stabs the feather pillow and takes out all the feathers and throws them to the winds. The idea is that you can’t always fix a situation. A situation can be changed through apology, but not undone.

• His example, regarding how you can’t fix something completely, was of a child stealing a doll and bringing it back. She might say, “I know I can bring the doll back, but I can’t make you trust me again.”

• Not: “It’s okay.” (Because maybe it’s not okay.) But: “I accept your apology.”

• Neil suggests that instead of burning her list, she uses it as a checklist.

After the manuscript was written and accepted, my editor, Lauri Hornik, guided me through the rewrites with her clear vision. I growled at her under my breath. She sent edits. I stomped around my computer. She sent more edits. Back and forth, back and forth.

But ask her now how many “Thank you, my dear darling editor!” notes I’ve sent her since the book came out! (Lauri’s since been promoted to President and Publisher of Dutton Children's Books, in addition to her previous title of President and Publisher of Dial. My new fabulous editor at Dial is Jessica Garrison.)

So here, finally, is the spoiler…the actual time line of New Year at the Pier:

• April 2002: interviewed rabbi

• October 2004: accepted by Dial

• many, many, many edits, changes, drafts…

• May 2007: projected publication date is 2008

• September 2007: book delayed until 2009

• April 2008: tiny edit—five small word changes

• June 2009: book is on bookstore shelves—YAY!

SEVEN YEARS?!?!?! Well, yes. Would you believe me if I told you it was worth the wait? Look at the harvest—a starred review in Publishers Weekly and lots of other wonderful reviews!

image credits:
photo of people walking up the pier by Rachel Gilman

erase writing:
http://christinabakerkline.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/red_pencil.jpg

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Find out about our Teaching Author Book Give-Away Contest running all this week! http://www.teachingauthors.com/2009/08/1-take-deep-cleansing-breath-2-set-goal.html

Happy New Year! This week we’re celebrating the new school year and our very own April Halprin Wayland’s book, New Year at the Pier--A Rosh Hashanah Story, which is about another kind of new year--the Jewish New Year.

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Purdy, Director of Publicity

Dr. Robert J. Wicks, author of Bounce:Living the Resilient Life, is also a professor at Loyola College in Maryland. In Bounce, Wicks suggests that simply becoming more self-aware can help us decrease stress and live life more fully. Below, OUP interviews Dr. Wicks about the importance of learning to live with resilience.  Read Wicks’s previous OUPblog post here.

OUP: Resilience seems so important to how you live your life but is it really that essential?

Dr. Robert J. Wicks: Physician and author Walker Percy in one of his novels poses the question: “What if you missed your life like a person misses a train?” Unfortunately, in today’s stressful world with multi-tasking being the norm of the day, this is easy to do—especially for those who fail to pay attention to the forces which strengthen our inner life and help us grow through and from the difficult experiences all of us encounter.

OUP: But can resilience be learned? Some people seem born resilient and others seem to have difficulties dealing with adversity almost from the time they are born.

Dr. Robert J. Wicks: You have a point. Some people do seem more resilient all the way from childhood. However, that is not the crucial issue for leading a fuller life. Each of us has a range of resilience—in other words, the ability to meet, learn from, and not be crushed by the challenges and stresses of life. This range is formed by heredity, early life experiences, current knowledge, and the level of motivation to meet life’s challenges and enjoy each day to the fullest—no matter what happens! However, of even more import than the different ranges people have is their conscious decision to maximize the ways in which they can become as resilient as possible.

OUP: Is part of this resiliency-training, learning ways to avoid stress?

Dr. Robert J. Wicks: Yes and no. Living a full life is more than the absence of negative occurrences or pressures. The sources of all stress cannot—and probably should not—be prevented. Yet, there are ways stress can be limited and, more importantly, as those who study resilience report, the way stress impacts us does not have to be totally negative. As a matter of fact, each of us has an opportunity to become deeper and more compassionate in response to the stressors in our lives if we are aware of some basic practices to: contain and understand stress; seek to be more mindful; are reasonably self-aware; and are interested in learning how to maintain a healthy sense of resilience and perspective.

OUP: How did you get so interested in the concept of “resilience”?

Dr. Robert J. Wicks: For almost 30 years I have dealt with a unique kind of darkness called “secondary stress”—the pressures experienced by persons who are in the healing and helping professions. In observing and working with physicians, nurses, psychologists, educators, relief workers, counselors, and persons in full time ministry, I have observed that especially among the most resilient in these groups, how they experience even the most difficult encounters in life is quite telling.

OUP: In a nutshell, what would be some of the more essential ways to maximize your “resiliency range?”

Dr. Robert J. Wicks: Improving your own self-awareness through using a daily de-briefing program, developing a realistic but comprehensive self-care program, understanding better the practice of “mindfulness”, applying the recent findings on positive psychology, and ensuring that 4 types of friends are present in your interpersonal network would all contribute to strengthening your personal and professional resiliency.

OUP: That last point about needing “4 types of friends” intrigues me. What types of friends are you referring to with respect to becoming more resilient?

Dr. Robert J. Wicks: We all know we need friends. Psychology has also long emphasized the need for an excellent interpersonal network. I think anthropologist Margaret Meade expressed well what everyone knows in their heart when she said, “One of the greatest human needs is having someone to wonder where you are when you don’t come home at night.” However, who makes up your “personal community” is also an essential element. In my work I have found that for our interpersonal circle to be rich we need, at the very least, four “types” or “voices” present—since one friend may play more than one beneficial role at different points in our lives. These four types of friends include “the prophet” who asks us “What conscious and unconscious voices are guiding us in life?” They also include “the cheerleader” who is sympathetic and supportive, “the harasser” who teases us and helps us laugh at ourselves to avoid the emotional burnout that results from taking ourselves too seriously, and finally the inspirational guides who encourage us to gather all of the information we receive from others so we can put this feedback to good use.

OUP: You also mentioned that resilience can be enhanced by developing a daily debriefing program and a comprehensive approach to self care. Would you give us a very quick sense of what is involved in doing this?

Dr. Robert J. Wicks: In terms of a daily debriefing, I wanted persons to be able to use a similar approach to the one professional helpers use since it has such a long proven track record in allowing them to process their day’s interactions, let go of the daily emotional “hot spots” so these events don’t keep them up at night, and learn from the day’s encounters so this knowledge can deepen them as persons and professionals. If we take out time to become intrigued by our own behavior, thoughts, and feelings, we can avoid wasting energy on projecting all the blame on others, condemning ourselves or becoming discouraged when things don’t change in our lives immediately.

With respect to self-care, each of us needs to have a program or “protocol” that is both comprehensive and doable.

OUP: A final question I have for you is with respect to “mindfulness”. What exactly do you mean by this term and why is it so important with respect to resilience?

Dr. Robert J. Wicks: I remember once seeing by a garden a little sign that was covered with mud. When I scraped the mud away, I saw that it said, “There is always music in the garden amongst the trees…but your heart must be quiet to hear it.”

Psychology, philosophy, and many of the world spiritualities extol the benefits of time spent in silence and solitude. In addition, it is beneficial to have a sense of mindfulness—being in the present moment with a sense of openness—as we move through the day’s interpersonal encounters. Formal mindfulness or meditation can sharpen our sense of clarity about the life we are living and the choices we are making, enhance our attitude of simplicity, let us enjoy our relationship with ourselves more and, as I note further in Bounce, provide numerous other benefits.

The really good thing about mindfulness is that it can be learned. It just takes reflection on some basic guidelines and a willingness to try some simple steps for a few minutes each day. The results can be truly remarkable in how centered and aware we can become. It is really a cornerstone of resilience.

Q: Would you sum up for us the lessons you are hoping people learn from Bounce?

A: The range of resilience is different for each person based on a unique combination of hereditary, psychological and sociological factors. However, if we are truly interested in resilience, the goal is to find ways to maximize our own range of resilience, and in doing so, improve our quality of life and the ability to continually renew ourselves. In studying resilience and putting into practice some basic lessons, we can begin to recognize—as resilient helping professionals have—that it is not the amount of darkness in the world that matters. It is not even the amount of darkness in ourselves that matters. It is how we stand in that darkness that makes all the difference in how we are able to lead our lives.

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Martin Powell is the author of a number of our graphic novels and chapter books, such as Hound of the Baskervilles, Red Riding Hood, Rumpelstiltskin, Swiss Family Robinson, Adventures of Hercules, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, SUPERMAN: The Stolen Super-Powers, and BATMAN: The Fog of Fear. Here, he answers questions from the Stone Arch Books staff. Thanks, Martin!

Stone Arch Books: How did you become a writer?
Martin Powell: It was a very deliberate decision. I've wanted to tell stories since I was six or seven years old, and started writing and drawing my own books from around that time, in crayon. I've had other interesting jobs from time to time, from an educator in the paleontology gallery of a museum, to acting on stage and as an extra in film. Writing fiction has always been the most driving creative force in my life, and I always kept coming back to it. I'm very fortunate to have been a professional writer for 22 years. I love my job.

SAB: What’s your writing process?
MP: Depends upon the project. I'm a firm believer in research, and writing "what you know". For example, if you're composing a story about, say, a scientist or a detective, then you really need to take the trouble to learn something about them and how they work in real life. If you don't believe in your characters, your readers won't either. I do this full-time, eight to ten hours a day, five or six days a week.

SAB: What were you like as a kid?
MP: Oh my. Well, I have two older brothers who introduced me to comic books, and Batman, which helped me learn to read. My mom took me to the library a lot, too, so I was always bringing home these great books about dinosaurs, ghosts, and outer space. When my friends were out playing ball in the street, I'd rather be inside reading, writing, or drawing, like building a plastic model kit, or watching an old monster movie on our old grainy black-and-white TV. On weekends I spent a lot of time with my cousins on their farms in Kentucky. Being in the wide, open fields and deep, dark woods was very magical and mysterious, and certainly stirred my imagination. I had a wonderful childhood.

SAB: When you were a kid (the age of your readers) what did you want to be when you grew up?
MP: A writer! Guess I'm one of those very lucky individuals who always knew what he wanted to be pretty much from the start. My mom bought herself a portable typewriter when I was about nine years old.. Sometimes she let me use it to do my homework, and almost immediately I was hooked on that little machine. I used it a lot more than she ever did. Eventually she gave the typewriter to me, and hardly a day went by when I wasn't pounding away on it, mostly just to entertain myself.

SAB: What’s your favorite book?
MP: That's a tough question. There are so many. I love books. I guess it would probably be something in Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan series, or L. Frank Baum's Oz books. The stories of Ray Bradbury are special favorites of mine, too.

SAB: What do you eat or drink as you’re writing?
MP: Diet Coke. Plenty of it. Too much of it. I really, really should cut down.

SAB: If you could have written any book, what book would it be and why?
MP: It would be extremely thrilling to write a graphic novel adaptation of Tarzan of the Apes. The jungle hero has always been a big influence to me. Also, someday, I'd love the chance to write a long-running series of mystery-adventure books with my own characters, for a younger audience. That would really be a dream come true!

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I don't believe the results of every single quiz I take but this one was spot-on. I am 3:15pm which says a whole heck-uv-a-lot about me, I dare say.

What Time of Day Are You?

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5 Days on Psychology of Revising

For six years, I've taught the Novel Revision Retreat across the country and I've thought a lot about the psychological issues that writers face as they face the work of revising a novel. It's interesting that most psychological discussions of writing involve writer's block. Not much discussion of everyday issues of a working writer. Of course, I'm not a psychologist: these are just my observations. Your experience for any particular novel may vary widely from this!

Hope
Fear and Humility 1
Fear and Humility 2
Gifted and Talented
Perseverance

Top 10 Ways to Stop the Sting of Critiques

Yesterday, we talked about the fear and humility of receiving critiques. Here are my slightly tongue-in-cheek Top 10 Ways to take the Sting out of Critiques!

1. Avoidance: Have someone else read the critique for you and only highlight the good comments. Read only the highlighted comments.
   
2. Revenge: Give the creep back an ever harsher critique than you just got.
   
3. Denial: Write out the reasons why the critiquer is totally off base. Ignore all suggestions.
   
4. Excitement: Fake excitement about the critique and tell everyone you know exactly what's wrong with the story and how you plan to fix it.
   
5. Suspicion: Read each comment with the suspicion that the critiquer is trying to get your manuscript out of the running, so their own manuscript will do well. Therefore, you can safely ignore any comments you want to.
   
6. Surprise: Allow each comment to be a revelation at how far off base this critiquer is.
   
7. Pride: Take pride in your ability to "take it" from the tough ones.
   
8. Loneliness: Understand that you and you alone are in the situation of receiving harsh critiques; such things have never been written about any manuscript and will never be written again.
   
9. Forgiveness: Realize that the critiquer has sinned by so harshly criticizing your story and at some point they will have to come and ask for forgiveness; be ready to give it gracefully.
   
10. Hope: Find hope in the good things the critiquer noticed, and Hope in the process of revision.
    

How else do you deal with the Sting?

Tomorrow: Gifted and Talented.
If you have a full draft of a novel, you are indeed Gifted and Talented. What does that mean as you revise?

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5 Days on Psychology of Revising

For six years, I've taught the Novel Revision Retreat across the country and I've thought a lot about the psychological issues that writers face as they face the work of revising a novel. It's interesting that most psychological discussions of writing involve writer's block. Not much discussion of everyday issues of a working writer. Of course, I'm not a psychologist: these are just my observations. Your experience for any particular novel may vary widely from this!

Hope
Fear and Humility 1
Fear and Humility 2
Gifted and Talented
Perseverance

Fear and Humility: I Don't Want an Honest Critique

     No, don't tell me what's wrong with this novel. I don't want to hear it. Minor problems? OK, I'll fix those. But major structural, plot or character problems–don't tell me.

     Cynthia Ozynick says, "Writing is essentially an act of courage." When I get an honest critique, my courage fails me. I fear the revision needed: I won't ever be able to "get it right." Obviously, I thought that I had communicated my intentions well in the first draft, or I would have changed it before you read it. But you say that you don't understand, or that I'm inconsistent, or that I'm unfocused. How could that be? I see it so clearly. And if my vision of my story is so skewed, then how will I ever get it right?

     I fear that you're right and I'm wrong. But how can I be sure? This is my story and it comes from my psychological leanings, my background, my research. How can you tell me what is right for my story? If the story doesn't communicate what I want, then, yes, I need to revise. I repeat: Obviously, I thought it did communicate what I wanted, or I would have revised it before you saw it. Do you just have a different vision of the story because of your psychological leanings, your background? Are you trying to envision what I intended, or are you envisioning what you would have written? Where does your ego slam up against my ego? And where does your objective appraisal need to push my ego back into line with what it really wants to do anyway? Perspective is hard to achieve.

     I fear that all my hard work–all the months spent thinking and rewriting– will be wasted. As a novelist, time haunts me. To write a novel isn't the work of a week or a month. It takes many months, a year, a year and a half. More. It's a long, long process. Your revision notes mean that the time is extended, and that without any guarantee of being finished even then. Meanwhile, that means that I'm a year older, that it's a year in which I couldn't write anything new (even if I could find the courage to begin again).

     I fear your honesty; I need your approval (or someone's approval; if not yours, then whose?). Will it crush me emotionally if you don't "like" my story? I gloss over the approval part of critiques and agonize over the "needs work" assessment. Is there a way for you to only show approval, yet open my eyes, so that I recognize what needs work? I'd rather recognize it for myself than have it pointed out.

     I fear that my standards are too lax. I want to be finished, I want to have this story out there. I want to have written, but in the throes of writing, I want the end of the process long before the story is really finished. Submission comes too early and then I get rejections. Then, it's harder than ever to revise. But waiting is excruciating. Typical advice: Put the manuscript in a drawer for three months and then pull it out and read it with a fresh eye. What? Waste three more months? Never. It's done and ready to send out. (Ok, maybe it isn't, but I can't stand looking at it one more time and in three months, my editor could read it and buy it. OK, maybe they won't buy it until I revise, but three months? Isn't there any other way?)

     Critiques, especially honest and on-target critiques, are fearful things. I know that I need them; but they are painful, emotionally draining, and confidence shaking.

     But I need them. OK, can you give me a minute? Let me find my mask of courage. There. I have it on. Now bring on your best critique!

More reading:

Other thoughts on critique of an artist and humility.


Art and Fear: One of my favorite books on the psychology of making art. It deals with fears about our unworthiness, fears of critiques, fears of displaying our art and much more.

Tomorrow: Fear and Humility 2

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