On Saturday morning, I had the incredible opportunity to meet and talk with the legend storyteller, Lois Lowry (in a giant zoom meeting). She is the author of more than 47 books spanning across ages and genres including The Giver and Number the Stars. The Q&A was organized by the Middle Grade Hub (mghub), the collective online middle grade writing group I belong to, which I've mentioned before on this blog. It would be impossible for me to give a full account of the full meeting. I will, however, tell you one or two things I learned from her. Genres and Writer's Block Someone asked her what it was like to write for so many genres. (Btw, she swears she doesn't write sci-fi, but several of us in the meeting felt like The Giver was sci-fi.) Lois Lowry said, "Each genre has its own built-in challenges...[but] I think of challenges as a good thing!" I love her positivity! She went on to tell story after story about writing, rewriting, and discover-drafting her stories. As a follow up, someone asked her to go into more detail about her writing process and advice for those of us attempting to write. Her advice was something she learned a long time ago from a good writing friend. It's this: to stop your writing session when you know what's going to happen--- when you're excited and ready to write more. She explained that whatever energy you end with is what you will return to when you come back to your writing. So, if you do the opposite of her advice--- end when you're bored or not sure where you want to go with the story--- that same energy will return when you come back. It's much better to end with excitement for that reason. After giving that advice, she went on a small rant (which I loved!) about writer's block. She said that people always treat it like it's an exotic disease. "To me," she said, "it [simply] means that you wake up and you don't feel like writing... You don't have dentist's block..." or any other profession block. "People use it as an excuse!" Character Development For Lois Lowry character development is intuitive. "Characters come to me with a name and an age," she says. "I can see that character and I inhabit that character." She knows them so well, she knows what clothes are in the closet. For me, character development takes work, especially because I don't want all my characters sounding the same, but I love this idea of "inhabiting" them for a season, long enough to know what they're interests and tastes are--- down to what's in their closet! "There's usually something not quite right about them," Lois Lowry says, which means there's often a need to dig deeper or discover something about them "as you go along." Sounds to me like she's a bit of a pantser! Inspiration If you were to talk to anyone who attended this Q & A, I think they'd all agree with me that the best part about this zoom meeting was the stories. She talked about her time with publishing, her experiences collaborating with the people that made The Giver movie, and the friendships she's made with other well-known writers (eg. Jerry Spinelli). I loved her stories about where she got her inspirations for her stories. I haven't read them, but she says the inspiration for the Gooney Bird books was the fact that she skipped second grade and always felt like she missed that part of her life, so she wrote about second grade and from a character who she wished she could be more like. I had a mentor once say, "that the fact that you survived childhood means you have enough writing material to last you a lifetime!" I bet Lois Lowry would agree with that. I'm so glad I got the chance to meet Lois Lowry! It's something I will always remember.
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I am active member of an online middle grade writing critique group called the magnificent narwhals, which is one of over thirty groups under the middle grade hub (mghub) umbrella. I remember when the groups were formed--- probably about two years ago, maybe three. It was an exciting time to be placed into a group of serious writers. Since then, I've made lasting friends who have given me valuable feedback on my writing. I love looking at my group members' writing because they're so creative and talented! Periodically, the whole hub will come together (on zoom, of course since we're scattered across the globe!), usually for an author reading or agent Q and A. This spring, however, they did something a little new... There was a pitch event in May! Basically, we could submit our book pitches to private google form created by the hub. They then shared our pitches to participating agents who could then request more materials (eg. query, synopsis) from us. In preparation for the pitch, we had several workshops, which you can see outlined in the image above. Each was taught by members from the hub, most agented or with books coming out in the next year. After each workshop, we had the opportunity to sign up for swaps with members outside our regular mghub groups. So, for the first workshop, I got to swap pitches, for the second, synopses... etc. It's a week or so since the official pitch event, and I've received a few agent requests (eg. query, first five pages). I don't know what will become of these requests, but I'm so glad I participated, especially in the workshops and swaps because I feel that much more confident querying my project!
A few years back, I learned and practiced a technique that can help you get to know your characters: interviewing. Most of us do this I think in some form or another. I'm pretty sure I've seen a list of questions in one of my Nanowrimo prep packets. My creative writing teacher said it's okay to ask questions about favorites (eg. color, food, hobby), but eventually, you need to move away from those and ask the "tough" questions. For example, biggest fears, regrets, motivations, etc. In a previous post, I listed a bunch of questions I've used to get to know my characters. I don't know about you, but listing questions and answers like this sometimes feels more like "homework" than actual writing or brainstorming. That's why (over the years), I've tweaked the method into something that makes a little more sense to me. Late Night Talk Shows Have you ever watched a late night talk show? I grew up (and fell asleep) to David Letterman and Jay Leno telling jokes and interviewing celebrities, but I know Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel both have late night shows. There are others. (Conan is the one with the funny red hair right?) Anyway, I recently developed a passion for looking up celebrity interviews online, especially for movies I was planning to see soon or had just watched. For example, I looked up interviews with the Marvel cast before I saw Avengers: End Game. I also watched all the interviews with the Pitch Perfect cast because I loved those movies and wanted to "get to know the cast" better outside their character roles. My favorite interview was one I stumbled upon. It was with seven-year-old Drew Barrymore and Johnny Carson. Johnny Carson interviewed Drew on his late night show after her role in ET. She has the best answers to his questions and--- it's just super cute! You have to watch it. (See video link below.) Welcome to my book! I write middle grade fiction (ages 8-12), and after I saw Drew Barrymore's interview with Johnny Carson, I realized I'd been interviewing my characters all wrong. Yes, it's good to have a list of questions, but I needed to interact with them--- really talk to them, you know? That's when I developed my own private talk show called, "Welcome to my book!" in which I periodically have my characters come into my imaginative studio---and interview them. I image what they might be wearing for the interview, how they step onto the stage, whether they give me hug, high-five, or a handshake. I think about whether they'd dance or spin before sitting down or silently slip into their chair. Next, I create a dialogue between me and the character. Sometimes I refer to a list of questions to get the conversation started, but most often, I welcome them and ask how they're doing, and I go from there! At the end of the interview, I always ask them if they'd be willing to come on the show again. If they are hesitant, I suggest we meet more privately in a coffee shop (and I take on either a friend role or the role of a journalist). Most of my characters say they're happy to come back on. In this way, I'm able to interview them throughout my drafting process. Like, if I'm stuck in a scene, I might bring them onto the show and ask about how they feel in that moment, what their motivations are, etc. Or, I might interview them after a completed draft and ask how they feel about their role or if I missed anything they really wanted in the book. Practice makes perfect
I think as adults we don't always make the time to play make-believe as often as we should. Sometimes we're out of practice, and using our imagination is essential to writing an interesting and successful story. I can see how interviewing your characters in this way can feel uncomfortable because (if you think about it) you're essentially talking to yourself. Don't think of it like that. If you want your readers to believe your characters are real on the page, it's time to think of them real off the page, too. This technique is just one way to begin doing that. There's a lot to learn when it comes craft: world building, setting, dialogue, word choice, etc. There's a lot to learn about the publishing industry, too. It's competitive, challenging, and loooong. My understanding of both craft and the publishing world (self-pub and trad) has been (and is!) a line upon line process. I've accessed tidbits in a variety of ways: writing courses, blogs, YouTube videos, author readings, etc. Today, however, I want to give a shout-out to one of my all-time favorite affordable online writing conferences that has helped me tap into writing life, craft, and the publishing industry: WriteOnCon! What is WriteOnCon? It's an online writing conference--- a three-day weekend event--- focused on kid-lit, open to the public. Traditionally published or agented authors (as well as agents and editors!) do workshops, panels, discussions, podcasts, and blogs on a variety of topics geared for those of us wanting to write for kids. And it's all online, so no need to get a hotel, fly or drive to a conference center. As much as I love in-person conferences, I feel like a lot of writing conferences are often far away from where I live. It's also a perk that you can wear your pajamas! How much does WriteOnCon cost? Like I said, it's extremely affordable, ranging from $10-$25, depending on the membership you want to purchase. Personally, I feel like you get a lot of content for your buck! This year, I purchased a full admission ($15) and I was able to access all the content. The only thing out of my reach was content from past years, but I've attended the last three or more, so I feel like it's okay that I don't have that access because I don't plan on diving into those older videos, blogs, and podcasts. I know I have more than enough to go through for the current conference. What can I expect at WriteOnCon? Like I said, there are a variety of blogs, podcasts, panels and such, some live-streaming, others pre-recorded. And, yes, if you have the full-admission ticket, you can view the live sessions after they've happened as well as live. The advantage of attending live is you can ask questions! I always get a little tickled when my question gets answered. I'm like... whoa... they're talking to me! It's fun! There's also feedback sessions you can participate in, as well as the critique boutique, which is where you can pay for a specific professional to look at your work. I find, however, that I get more than enough for money by simply exploring the various blogs and podcasts and such. There are a variety of topics each year. I'll list some of my favorites from this year so you can have a taste of what you might expect if you choose to attend WriteOnCon in the future:
Again, these topics and titles are about 5% of the conference... this year! There's so much more. You usually get a week or two, so even though I try to take "time off" for the first or second day of the conference I always need another week or so to go through the rest of the content. And, honestly, I don't always get through all of it, which (in my opinion) is fine because WriteOnCon can feel a bit like drinking from a firehose. You can take notes, skip content that doesn't apply to you, and rewatch your favorite stuff. There's more to learn
I wish I could tell you I know everything there is to know about writing and publishing, but I can't. The truth is, I'm still learning and navigating the world as I write, revise, query, and daydream about signing on with a literary agent and publishing house. But does WriteOnCon make me feel like I'm a little closer to my publishing dreams? Absolutely! At the very least, I feel like I belong in the "writing" and "publishing" club even though--- I haven't published, yet. Attending WriteOnCon--- at whatever degree I'm able--- shows myself that I'm serious about this career choice, that I am getting closer to my dreams of traditionally publishing. Receiving feedback on my writing from authors Amanda Hill Rawson and Karina Evans via WriteOnCon!7/18/2022 In a previous post, I introduced what WriteOnCon is and my (general) level of participation. If you don't know anything about WriteOnCon, check out their website or check out my post! WriteOnCon Feedback You can get feedback on your pitches, first-pages, and queries in a few different ways at WriteOnCon. There's the critique boutique (which is where you pay extra money for a specific professional to give you feedback) and there's the Peer Feedback Forums, which is where participants swap feedback with each other. You can also submit writing for a feedback session, which takes place live during the conference. There's no guarantee they'll get to your writing because they do "as many as they can get to" for the time they're allotted. (Note: You have to have full admission, the second payment tier, to access live events). I've watched people getting feedback from professionals at WriteOnCon as I've attended in the past, but I never felt "ready" or confident to submit any of my work... until this year!
I was nervous, though, to hear what she had to say about my writing because I watched her rip into (in a good way!) the picture book submissions (which I did not participate in) from the day before. Whenever I ask for feedback, I think there's always a part of me that hopes I won't need to make any changes, mostly because I tend to put a lot of my heart into anything I put on paper. But I never expect them to say it's "good to go"! There's always something to improve, right? Well, it happened. Amanda didn't have anything to critique. Okay, one tiny suggestion, and that was to hint at who the main character is in my first poem, but that's it! I nailed the poetry and conveyed the setting expertly. Yay!
I was floored when Karina got to my query and told me she wished she had something to suggest for improvement, but she couldn't find anything. I trust she would if she could because I heard her give important revision ideas to others who submitted. Floating on Cloud Nine
I recognize that I was able to get such encouraging praise for my writing because I've had beta readers and critique partners give ideas for improvement before submitting to the conference. Nevertheless, these feedback sessions have put me on cloud nine. I'm even more in love with my manuscript and that much more excited to finish another round of revisions and start querying because... I nailed it! I'm that much closer to publishing. Yay! I took courses on poetry in college a few years back but hadn't thought too much about being a poet because I knew I wanted to write prose fiction. That is... until I discovered and fell in love with verse novels like Home of the Brave by Katherine Applegate, Other Words for Home by Jasmine Warga, and Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai.
The year 2020 was tough on a lot of people, me included, so when it came time to think about the new year, 2021, I decided to keep my resolution(s) simple but worthwhile. This is when I came up with my "year of poetry" goal. I figured I wanted to write a verse novel, like the ones I'd read, but I did some other things as part of my year of poetry. I spent the past year reading as many Middle Grade verse novels as I could, and I started a poetry blog---a place where I can practice short poetry. I professionally published two poems this year, one of which was read from outer space. (lol) I also attended several poetry readings (mostly virtually) and attended writing workshops, including one about writing and revising Middle Grade verse novels with the amazing Rajani LaRocca (author of the verse novel Red, White, and Whole) and Chris Baron (author of verse novels All of Me and The Magical Imperfect)! I've made a lot of New Year's resolutions in my day, but I think this is one I will always remember. Maybe because it was so open? Maybe because I did so many cool things related to poetry? Either way, I finally consider myself a poet! I call that a successful resolution. What resolutions have you made? What resolutions will you be making for next year? If you're part of the writing community, it's likely you've heard the terms "plotter" and "pantser." But if not, essentially, a plotter is someone who (not surprisingly!) plots their entire story or book before drafting. A panster is someone who "flies from the seat of their pants," meaning they get an idea and "pants" their way from start to finish without having any solid outline. For years, I've sat somewhere in the middle, wanting some structure but enjoying the freedom to discover as I go. When I heard the term "plantser" for the first time, I screamed for joy! I finally felt like I had a title that described my writing process. In reality though, claiming my planster status only skimmed the surface of describing what my process truly is. For example, I do a lot of editing as I go, which is a no-no for plotters and panters alike and, I'm assuming, for plansters as well. (oops!) A few weeks ago, I had an unforgettable experience while drafting. I figured out a mind-blowing plot twist! After the experience, I reflected on where and how I got that awesome idea and wrote about it in a tweet thread. In it, I talked to those of us who have been told to never-ever edit while drafting. You see, I got my mind-blowing plot twist idea as I was rereading and editing sections I'd already written. After sharing this thread of thoughts---mainly focused on how I needed to embrace my chaotic process even though it doesn't follow any of the "rules" we're taught...in order to move forward in my draft---a friend of mine asked me if I'd seen this video that breaks the plotter and plantser personalities into subgroups. I hadn't, so I gave it a listen, which I suggest you do as well! This concept tracks with my gut-feeling I had a year ago while teaching Freshman Composition, which is I believe most writers aren't pure plotters or pantsers; they're almost always somewhere in between (like me!).
Apparently, this awesome writer YouTuber breaks the plotter and planster concepts into four subgroups, and as my friend suspected, I am what she calls a "methodological pantser," which means I crave structure (or a method for story telling) while, at the same time, excel at doing bursts of discovery writing. I also get inspiration by "doing," rather than "waiting" for inspiration. This is likely the reason why I've related so well to the Save the Cat! Writes a Novel methodology so well and why I often have to "sit in the chair" and type something, anything, or walk around the room to get ideas. I find all of these concepts fascinating, but also helpful because they can help you understand your unique writing process. Which kind of plotter or pantser are you? I'd love to know in the comments. I was cruising around on social media when my favorite local bookstore, Bookman's, posted something about a virtual speculative poetry workshop... happening today... in four hours. What is speculative poetry? I wondered. I'd never heard of it! I'm still in my year of poetry, so I decided I'd like to learn more. I know how our new world works, though. There's usually only X number of participants allowed in a zoom meeting. Was I too late to sign up? Would there be space for me? I found the registration email and asked. I received a reply instantly, and was told that (of course!) I could still join, and I was given the zoom link to jump in when it started, which I did! At first, I thought there might have been something wrong with my zoom. I could see the Bookman's dude, Todd, and someone else who must be the presenter, but where were all the participants? It turned out that I was the only one. ha ha! Well, y'all missed out! What inspires us? After brief introductions, the presenter asked us what inspires us to read. In other words, what keeps us reading a book? I said characters. I didn't say it, but I didn't finish Twilight because I couldn't stand Bella. I couldn't imagine going on an adventure with her, no matter how popular or engaging the plot premise was. Todd said setting, which is another great answer! Especially as we were talking about sci-fi and speculative fiction. Some of the best stories I know are those set in space or in fantastical worlds. The presenter agreed and said that the reason we read sci-fi or speculative fiction is because we want to be somewhere other than where we are. What is speculative writing? In short, it's asking speculative questions:
An example of the first one would be, what if there were a school for witches and wizards? (Harry Potter.) The second might be if only humanity could travel through intergalactic space (Star Trek), and the third might be if these games go on, we're going to be in deep sludge (Hunger Games). Writing Practice As you'd expect from a writing workshop, there were a few writing exercises. The presenter gave about 5 minutes for each and played some music while we drafted. Because I wanted to combine the speculative writing we'd just learned about with my poetry practice, I wrote poems for all the exercises! I posted my poems in the poetry tab, but I'll also include links to the individual poems associated with the exercises... Exercise #1 Write about a triumph or challenge. I wrote about finding a single Oreo in the back of the package. Exercise #2 What would that triumph or challenge look like 200 years ago? (I wrote about 2,000 years ago.) Exercise #3 Rewrite that triumph or challenge as though you were using a superpower and/or how that triumph or challenge will be described in generations to come. These were supposed to be separate exercises, but I combined them. We ran out of time, so after I read my last poem, we got disconnected. (Oops!) But I had a really fun time, and I think I might try these exercises out again sometime.
I'm glad I learned about speculative poetry because it makes me think about poetry in all genres. Poetry in sci-fi. Poetry in horror. Poetry in romance. Poetry in adventure. Poetry in... every day life! What poetry should I try next? Let me know in the comments.
Anyway, I belong to an exclusive group of middle grade writers, the MGnarwhals. Our fearless team captain read an interesting blog post by Ann and reached out to her with questions. He somehow managed to book a chat for all us narwhals. I probably shouldn't go into too much detail on the meeting as it was informal in structure (mostly a Q&A) and some bits of advice about writing and publishing was meant just for us narwhals, but I'll share a couple nuggets or takeaways from the Q&A. But first, can I just say how much I loved her energy? So much energy for writing and reading and doing the best you can! Nugget #1 When talking about her writing process, she talked about all the false starts, the messy drafts, and manuscript flops. (They happen to all of us!) What I won't forget, though, is her optimism. "You keep getting better!" she said, meaning that the secret to writing (and maybe even publishing traditionally) is to keep writing. It's such a simple recipe for success. Keep writing. Get better! I know this to be true. I think about the writer I was even last year, and I'm completely different. I'm better... I can't wait to see how my writing skills improve next year and the next... Nugget #2 You can read her publishing story on her blog (link above), but she had a few setbacks when her book was released. Instead of hanging her head and moaning about her challenges, though, she got to work. "When it comes to promoting," she said. "Don't shy away." She talked about how retweeting something positive about her book was easy because it wasn't about her. It was about Zoe (her main character) and her story. Why wouldn't she support her friend? "It's like your baby!" she said. "Advocate! No regrets!' Her method worked because it was through word of mouth that I heard about the book. It was the same for many of us, I think. Conclusion
I'm thinking about the meeting and I can't remember all the questions or even all the answers, just the excitement and energy! You know how some people say they can see themselves in others? You know, I think I can see myself in Ann. Years from now. After publishing my first book and having a second soon to be released. I'll be as excited as her. ha ha! I hope so anyway. I know some people get worn down by the politics and sloooow process of publishing, but if there's anything I've learned it's that writing is writing. Whether you're starting in on your first book, in the query trenches, or published... you've got to love telling stories to get your through. This post is based on my personal notes while taking the InkVoices course. All videos, power points, and other material from the class are purposefully left out to preserve course privacy. A couple months ago, I was scrolling through the social media and I found a post about about a verse novel intensive course. I stopped in my tracks. (eeeerrrr!) Verse novel? That's what I'm writing right now. Taught by Rajani LaRocca and Chris Baron? I've read their books. Great! I signed up right away... Who is Rajani LaRocca? She is a talented MG (Middle Grade) and PB (Picture Book) author. Most notably, she wrote the award winning Red, White, and Whole, a verse novel about balancing life as an Indian American and finding solace in a family member's illness. I liked her book because of the running metaphor (blood) throughout the book, but also because of the simple and beautiful poetry throughout. Who is Chris Baron? He is also a talented MG (Middle Grade) author and poet. He wrote All of me, a verse novel about teen weight and learning to accept yourself. He also wrote, The Magical Imperfect, which is another verse novel about a boy who is selectively mute and a girl who won't leave her house because of a skin condition. I enjoyed both of his books and recommend you read them, too! What was the intensive course? The intensive course was online. There were two live-online workshops, weekly activities, and included two or more bonus "office hours" where participants could ask questions either before or during times the two authors were available. There were also opportunities to post your own poetry, based on the activities within the course, and ways to critique and meet with other poets and writes of verse novels. Totally worth it! Workshop 1: Writing a Verse Novel by Rajani LaRocca The first live (and recorded) workshop was about verse novels in general and how to write them. For the record--- because I asked--- you can say in "Novels in Verse (NIV)" or "verse novels." Both are acceptable in the community, although I've noticed verse novel more often. That might just be me, though! We reviewed some "basic" poetry terms, such as
We also talked about how poetry is like music! We have:
How do you write a verse novel? This is something we talked a lot about in Rajani's workshop, in the course, and during the office hours. A verse novel, a story told in a collection of poems, can be drafted in a lot of different ways. In general, though, writing a verse novel is like writing any other genre. You need a character. You need a conflict. So, brainstorming and developing setting, background, etc. are important to the process. For Rajani, she said she had a metaphor (blood), and wasn't sure how to make it into a story, so she wrote a bunch of poems until she found her voice. I loved when she talked about having a "key defining poem," or a keystone poem that helps you see the heart of your story. This can be especially useful if you end up drafting poems "out of order." Workshop 2: Revising a Verse Novel by Chris Baron The second live session was taught by Chris. He talked about revising, and one of the things I liked that he talked about was--- in response to the question about how to begin revising--- he said that most of us have already begun. We know we're supposed to revise after drafting, but he says, "how do you not?" revise as you go? So, yes, we need to write without revising, but there may be a bit of revising along the way. Finding our "Why" He also talked about finding our purpose for why we wrote our stories that we're revising. Understanding our why can help us home in on our themes or messages we were hoping to share but didn't know we were saying them while we were drafting. Common Revision Techniques Chris also gave a list of techniques we can try as we revise our verse novels, things like:
Looking at the "big picture" and "ask big questions" I think the advice he gave in this section is useful no matter what you're writing. Looking at the big picture and asking big questions means deciding if
Making hard decisions Chris says he's often asked about how to cut or how to make the hard decisions about what can stay, what needs to go, and what needs to be added. He says for All of Me, he had drafted 70,000 words, which is ridiculously long for this genre! He had to make hard cuts. Of course, talking to critique partners, his agent, and other trusting people helped him make a lot of those hard decisions, but ultimately, he had to do them himself. He had to make the cuts. For his second book, The Magical Imperfect, he said he had (almost) the opposite problem. He had to add in. Basically, every manuscript is different. You need to ask the big questions and make the tough calls. It's the only way your story will get to where it needs to be. Final thoughts on the course
I'm glad I registered and took this course! Yes, there was a bit of time involved, not only watching the workshops and doing the activities, but I feel like my confidence in finishing my verse novel is growing. In fact, I feel like I'm on fire! I wonder if I really can finish before the end of the year. |