Next up is a 2011 Printz honoree, Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A. S. King. After I read this book, I immediately read the other two King books in my library: Ask the Passengers and Everybody Sees the Ants. Needless to say, King is a new favorite author. I love her kind of magic realism where the protagonist's world is normal except for one or two teensy things. In Vera Dietz' life, that thing is the thousand transparent, two-dimensional, expandable Charlies who show up at the worst possible moments. The book opens with this prologue: Before I died, I hid my secrets in the Master Oak. This book is about my best friend, Vera Dietz, who eventually found them. --Charlie Kahn (the pickle on Vera's Big Mac) To say my friend died is one thing. To say my friend screwed me over and then died five months later is another. --Vera Dietz (high school senior and pizza deliver technician) Just before Vera's best friend Charlie dies, someone sets fire to the pet store. Charlie is blamed and his thousand ghosts want Vera to clear his name. But in order to do that, she has to face her true feelings for Charlie and the wreck he made of them. A. S. King unveils this story through multiple points of view, including Charlie, Vera, her recovered alcoholic father who makes flow charts to help him sort out his daughter and an abandoned pagoda that provides witty commentary about the teens who hang out in its parking lot. King has a unique voice and she tells stories that are hard to forget.
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The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, a 2009 Printz honoree by E. Lockhart isn't my typical read. I don't normally relate to girls who have everything and Frankie most definitely does. During her fifteenth summer, she transforms into a girl boys notice. She's barely begun her sophomore year at a prestigious boarding school when she snags the attention of senior, Matthew Livingston, the most popular boy on campus. It launches her into an select circle of boys who belong to a decades old secret society called The Basset Hounds. Frankie's father was a Basset Hound and he reveals just enough about the society to plant a seed of curiosity in Frankie. Hoping for an invitation to the club, she tries to distract Matthew from her face and body and impress him with her keen mind. But The Basset Hounds has been exclusively male since its founding in 1941 and the members aren't about to change that. When no invitation is offered, Frankie activates Plan B. Taking on the leader's identity via email, she organizes a series of pranks so ingenious the whole school is buzzing. To save face, the real leader takes credit, just as Frankie planned. Plotting bigger and bigger escapades, Frankie controls the Bassets like a puppet master. For awhile, she's satisfied with the thrill of proving to herself she's brighter than Matthew and his cohorts. But a part of her wants the boys to recognize her efforts. When her pranks push the headmaster to threaten severe punishment, Frankie is faced with a dilemma. How far will she go to get the Bassets' attention and who will get hurt in the meantime? As a reader who relates to outcasts, it wasn't easy stepping into Frankie's shoes. But while Frankie isn't an outsider, she's also never been special or part of the popular crowd. I did relate to her need to be accepted and even more so, to her desire to be intellectually respected. I enjoyed Lockhart's thought-provoking, imaginative style and I'd like to think if Frankie and I met today, we'd find something to talk about. Wednesday, as part of the celebration of National Children's Book Week, the winner of the Teen's Choice Book Awards was announced. Readers on Teenreads chose the top five books: Ellen Hopkins' Smoke, Rainbow Rowell's Eleanor and Park, Veronica Roth's Allegiant, Rick Yancey's The 5th Wave and Cassandra Clark's Clockwork Princess. Then teens voted from March 25 - May 12, 2014 at ccbook awards. And the winner is . . . Allegiant. Science Fiction. Again. Don't get me wrong, I love fantasy (for brevity's sake, I'm lumping sci-fi, paranormal and wizarding worlds), but there are other genres. And there are so many well-written, compelling books ignored for the trendy books, the ones Hollywood turns into blockbuster films. This is my worry -- those films are steering readers to bookshelves, virtual and real. They're creating readership for people like Roth. I enjoyed Divergent and I wish her success but do we really want our literary tastes determined by Hollywood? The movie industry is counting on teens' supposedly insatiable appetite for fantasy. There's still the final Hunger Games, Hobbit and Divergent movies to come. Plus a film trilogy based on JK Rowling's Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. I expect those movies to drive readers to those books, tightening fantasy's grip on the literary throne. Despite this trend, John Green's contemporary novel The Fault in Our Stars won the 2013 Teen's Choice award, beating four fantasy titles. And Hollywood noticed. The Fault in Our Stars, the story of two teens who meet in a cancer support group, is being released June 6th. Will the movie achieve the blockbuster success of YA fantasy? If it does, will more contemporary books be converted to film and will that catapult the genre into readers' hands? No doubt, Green, Rowell and Hopkins are super stars writing award-worthy YA books. If their books become movies that lead readers to contemporary work, well, that's not a bad thing. But I encourage readers to diversify. Sample titles outside your preferred genre and try authors who aren't on Hollywood's radar. Check out the lonely books. I've challenged myself to read five books from the Newberry award list and five from the Printz list by the end of this year. I'm starting with Sir Terry Pratchett's Dodger, a Printz winner. Pratchett creates worlds and characters every bit as rich and amusing as the ones in Harry Potter's world, and he was doing it long before J.K. Rowling dreamed up the boy wizard. Makes me wonder if she might have been a wee bit influenced by him. Pratchett's fantasy series Disc World boasts forty-one books, including the Tiffany Aching subseries, written for YA readers. Set in Victorian London, Dodger is historical fiction with a twist (Pardon the pun. I promise, it wasn't intentional.) "I'm Dodger on account of I'm never there if you know what I mean. Everybody knows Dodger." That's the voice of Pratchett's seventeen-year-old protagonist, a tosher by trade. Toshers troll the city's underground for the things people drop. On good days, that's coins and jewelry. On bad days, it's . . . well . . . it's the stuff people usually deposit in sewers. Although, believe it or not, in those days, London's sewers were fairly clean. Dodger is king of the toshers, an expert pick pocket and petty thief, and he's never once been caught by the Peelers (If you don't know what this is, you will by the end of the book). Dodger also has a heart. Living with an old Jewish man that he saved from thugs, Dodger never hesitates to jump in if someone needs help. When writer and journalist Charles Dickens discovers Dodger saving a badly beaten young woman named Simplicity from attackers, he hires Dodger to help him discover who beat her and why. Dodger is smitten with Simplicity. He agrees to help Dickens. The mystery draws him out of his comfortable, lower class world into the realm of the educated and wealthy. While Dodger upends aristocratic London, he begins to believe toshing may not be all his future holds. Pratchett wrote this book as a tribute to Henry Mayhew, a peer of Dickens who published articles and a book highlighting the horrible conditions of London's poor. Dickens' work is too dark and tragic for me. But there's no denying his talent for creating unforgettable stories and characters. Pratchett plucked Dodger from Dickens' Oliver Twist, added his limitless imagination and edgy humor, then set the teen loose to tell his story. It's a fantastic read. If you haven't already read it, what are you waiting for? Sir Terry Pratchett is sadly suffering from the early stages of Alzheimer disease. But he continues to write with the help of a dedicated assistant and his daughter. He also enjoys speaking so there are lots of videos of him on YouTube. You'll find some of them posted on his site. Go there, check it out. Dodger has a healthy respect for rats, being as he spends so much time with them. Since rats are notorious hoarders, I imagine they do their own toshing. And that's where today's sketch comes from. For Christmas, Teddie, the much adored leader of my critique group, The Skyway Writers, gave each member a beautiful, red-beaded bracelet. Now, I wear it every time I write. It makes me feel connected to my talented peers as I sit at my lonely desk, trying to find the right words to tell a story only I can tell. I love starting the year with a positive new tradition. I announced at the end of last month that I planned to steer this blog in a new direction. My focus will be encouraging teen readers, writers and artists. There's no better way to start than by celebrating great books. This week, one of my favorite authors, Kate DiCamillo, won the John Newbery award for the second time with her latest book, Flora and Ulysses. Have you read it? I haven't and I'm eager to get my hands on it. I've loved all her other books so I know what to expect. That's the thing about favorite authors. They don't disappoint. Since November slipped by in silence on this blog, I'm posting twice in December. As holiday shoppers race towards the Frenzy Zone, better known as Last-Minute-Shopping-and-No-Idea-What-To-Get, I'd like to recommend more middle grade and young adult books (see previous post for other recommendations). And although it's mighty tempting to order online, I encourage visiting local bookstores, especially the independent type. They're quiet retreats from the hustle and bustle. Here are some of my favorite middle grade reads this year: 1) Okay for Now or anything by Gary Scmidt 2) Hound Dog True by Linda Urban 3) The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate 4) The Mouse with the Question Mark Tail by Richard Peck And for young adult readers: 5) The Book Thief by Markus Zusak 6) Chime by Franny Billingsley 7) Bruiser by Neal Shusterman 8) Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater 9) Hope Was Here by Joan Bauer No doubt, there were many more books I could add if only I had written them down. Alas, I did not. And that, my friends, will be the start of my New Year's resolutions. I just received a tidy little notebook and pen set from my critique partner and it will be the perfect spot to jot favorite books. In fact, I've never kept track of the books I've read so maybe I'll list them all. See what happens when you tend to your blog. You start with a Christmas post and end up looking forward to the new year! Until now, this blog has focused on what I'm learning as a writer. But there are many excellent authors blogging about the craft and at some point I asked myself, what use are my words? So next month, I plan to steer this blog towards young adult readers, writers and artists, hoping in some small way to encourage their efforts. Thank you to those who have followed my posts so far, especially those who took the time to comment. I hope you'll continue to stop in and pass on this link to teen readers, writers and artists. I wish you a holiday steeped in love and a 2014 that makes your heart sing. Yesterday, I finished the fifth revision on my work-in-progress and sent if off to three invaluable readers. While I wait for their feedback, I'm pondering all I've gained from this book. Each novel is a journey. I learned the basics writing my first book. I knew nothing. Not point of view or how to format dialog or why all that lovely description puts young readers to sleep. I was as unpolished and new as new could be. When I started this book, I had a couple conferences behind me. My writing toolbox seemed adequate, my confidence boosted by a contest win and a published story. But I was without a writing group and one-hundred pages in, I sent the manuscript off for professional review. Although the feedback was positive, the suggestions called for a rewrite I couldn't comprehend. My brain twisted into a knot trying to sort it out. In the end, I shelved the project and my creativity spiraled. A year later, I was accepted into a most wonderful critique group. The story, of course hadn't let go of my brain. It had percolated into a nice, bubbly stew, begging to be restarted. So I did, ignoring the old version entirely. What I've written since doesn't even resemble it. And although I couldn't follow the professional's advice because I scrapped what she'd read, I did finally accept her wisdom and I think my work benefitted from it. So the first thing I learned during that painful year was even through the dry spells, there's growth. Just keep writing, keep trying, even if it feels like the worst writing you'll ever do. Even if it ends up in junk files. Write. Another year has passed. I've written and revised the book and added to my toolbox. My critique partners challenge me to craft better sentences and paragraphs, to choose the right words and place them carefully. I listen now to the rhythms in the story, think about syntax and cringe at discords. My previously unstructured chapters now follow arcs, or they try to anyways, and my story strives to hit prescheduled points on a plot map: binding, low and turning. When I think of all I've learned through the writing of this book, I imagine my brain as a house with doors and windows wide open and knowledge sifting through. The greatest things is, the doors and windows didn't close when the book was finished. I'm primed for the next story, ready to learn what it has to teach. It's been two months since I've blogged. To tell the truth, the blog slipped to some dusty corner of my mind while I typed a thousand words a day, finishing the first draft of a novel. When the book loosened its grip on my mind for a sec, I remembered I had a blog! Now, I'm deep into revising and obsessed with making the story the best it can be. But I thought I'd take a minute to update this site. Since my last post in April, my critique partners have been all kinds of busy. Sandra Markle's picture book Waiting for Ice made Bank Street's Best Children's Books of the Year list, Janet McLaughlin released Psyched Out, the second in her Get Psyched series and Augusta Scattergood's debut novel, Glory Be has won multiple awards, including the prestigious Crystal Kite Award. That's a photo of us above, celebrating Augusta's win last week with other Tampa Bay children's writers. I'm honored to be part of this talented, dedicated group. They deserve credit for my productivity and the growth of my writing. I come away from each critique energized and eager to get home so I can write more story and improve on what they've read. This week, they'll review my synopsis and find the weak points in my plot so I can shore up those places as I revise. In the weeks ahead when this book is ready to submit to agents, they'll be there to keep me sane while I wait for responses. They know the cost of rejection and the value of even the slightest encouragement from an agent or editor. I was motivated recently to join Goodreads so I can review books, including those of my new writer friends. It's a rewarding way to support authors and good books. The more published authors I meet, the more I realize how important these connections are to success. And it isn't all about money or selling our books. It's about sharing our love for children's literature and our desire to create books worthy of a child's bookshelf. Besides polishing my manuscript, another summer goal is to revamp my blog and website. When I created it, I was studying picture books, thinking my art background would translate into that genre. But I learned after two years, that I don't have a picture book voice. I'm not sorry for the experience. Learning is never wasted and I met the most wonderful, talented people. Now, my writing travels a young adult path and I'd like the website to reflect that. I wish you happy writing and encourage you to connect with other writers. If physical connections aren't possible, meet writers online. It will enrich your life and your craft. "Jessie has a choice to make Wondering 'bout which road to take Jessie has a choice to make Will Jessie Pearl be a lonely girl?" So reads a stanza from the ballad gifted to fourteen-year-old Jessie by her sister. Shannon Hitchcock's debut novel, The Ballad of Jessie Pearl, set in 1922, rural North Carolina presents a feisty, young heroine facing adult challenges. Jessie Pearl dreams of going to teacher's college, a dream she shared with her late mother. Jessie's sisters are all married and settled. They tease that Jessie will be wed by seventeen to her beau, J.T. But Jessie holds tight to her dream. Then her sister dies from tuberculosis after giving birth to a son. Jessie quits school to care for her nephew, cook and clean for her family. As the year passes, her affection for J.T. grows and Jessie wonders, even if she finds a way to finish her basic education, could she leave her family and J.T. for teacher's college? The ballad her sister wrote is unfinished and Jessie isn't sure how it will end. Despite the odds, will she achieve her dream? It's worth reading the book to find out. Shannon Hitchcock's southern roots shine in this book. If she appears in your area, don't miss her reading this gem with her fabulous Carolina drawl. For the next few months, maybe longer, I'll be posting once a month and I celebrate the freedom to do this because . . . I don't have a book to promote! That's right. There are some positives to not having a book deal. At a local SCBWI event, writing coach, Joyce Sweeney, encouraged us nonpubs to embrace this time. Published authors in the room shared knowing glances and smirked. They remember their prebook days with fondness: no agent and publisher prodding you to do backflips and handstands to sell your book; no full calender of signings and school visits; no mad scramble to lure readers on blog, Facebook and Twitter. Joyce offered many sage morsels that day. I sat in a back corner, womanning the sign-in table, and though Joyce couldn't see me, twice her words struck like a bullet. First, she talked of focusing on your sweet spot as a writer. She said often new childrens' writers explore every avenue from picture book to young adult and that's helpful if you use it to find your strengths. Then, it's time to concentrate. If it's PBs, start cranking out stories like a factory. If it's middle grade or YA, write short stories and work your way up to novels. I've been writing for four and a half years and I've juggled PBs, MG and YA for almost the entire journey. I've always felt that my voice is better suited to MG and YA but the artist inside urged me to try PBs. I've been blessed to belong to the best PB group (in my biased opinion) in Florida, Rob Sanders' PB&J, Picture Books and Java. They are my writing family. Perhaps my attachment clouded my reasoning because from the beginning, I've heard: "Your voice is too old for PBs" (my words not there's. They were always much kinder.) So, Joyce's advice hit the target. I needed to quit struggling with PBs and focus on my novels for older children. A small part of me rejoiced, the sensible writer who fought the artist for my attention. A large part of me silently wailed at my inevitable resignation from PB&J. As I recovered from that shock, Joyce addressed branding and how not focusing on one genre can affect new writers. She cited a writer who had a pending deal on a MG novel. The interested agent (or editor, I can't remember which) Googled the writer and up pops a website featuring the author's self-illustrated PBs. The agent wasn't interested in representing PBs so she turned the novel down. Joyce continued, saying agents and publishers want to see an author committed to building devoted readership by producing consistent books. OUCH! I slunk down in my chair, feeling as if a path had cleared from Joyce to my seat and all eyes targeted me. My website is all over the place. I tried to focus it on writing but . . . well, look at it; there's a giant, clothed rabbit hosting the home page! And even though there's only one portfolio page, the art is what viewers notice. No one ever comments on the writing. So, guess who will be revamping their website? One day, I hope to have agents and publishers Googling my name and when they do, I want to be ready. Until then, I'm enjoying my freedom. Today, I don't have to worry about branding or book promoting. The Bible says there's a time for every season. Rejoice fellow nonpubs! This is our season of learning to write the best book we can. Since, I'm only posting once a month, I'm throwing everything I've got here. If you're in Florida, Tennessee or Missouri, please watch for events promoting Rob Sanders' debut PB, Cowboy Christmas. The launch party is Saturday, Nov. 3 at Inkwood Books in Tampa and you don't want to miss it. Rob's hired cowboy strummers and there's sure to be tasty refreshments. Happy Halloween everyone. Wishing you treats, no naughty tricks! |
AuthorI write middle grade and young adult books with a magical twist, and I'm represented by the fabulous Leslie Zampetti at Open Book Literary. Writer Websites
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