DOGSLED DREAMS

Recently, I had the privilege of reading a fantastic middle grade novel: DOGSLED DREAMS by Terry Lynn Johnson. Terry and I share a love of dogs and writing, so I was honored and thrilled when she asked me if I would be willing to read an ARC (an advanced reader copy) of DOGSLED DREAMS, due out in January of 2011. What a treat reading this novel turned out to be!

I loved Terry’s writing, to begin with. Crisp and vivid details pulled me right into her story about twelve-year-old Rebecca and her hopes of becoming a famous dog sled racer. And the first chapter includes an event that propelled me right into the second chapter despite the fact that it was long past my snooze time and I’d had a crazy schedule waiting for me the next day. Let me assure you that reading past my bedtime, especially when I know that the nasty alarm will be screaming too early, is an indication that I am very much into a story.

DOGSLED DREAMS kept me interested and flipping pages until the very end. I found this novel to be engaging, often exciting, and really funny at times. It is full of fascinating information about dog sled racing and some of the dogs that are a part of it. Rebecca and her wonderful pups came alive and brought me along with them on their adventures. What could be better? I loved it!

You can read more about Terry Lynn Johnson and DOGSLED DREAMS at http://www.terrylynnjohnson.com/

Happy reading!

A wonderful opportunity came my way this summer. I was invited to join the KidLit Authors Club. What is the KidLit Authors Club? A group of children’s book authors from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. These fabulous authors have published picture books, middle grade novels, and young adult books. Here are the profiles of everyone in the club: http://www.kidlitauthorsclub.com/Who_s_In_The_Club.html

What does this group do? Ah, this is the fun part. Kidlit Authors Club members participate in book signings, appear on panels, present writing workshops, visit schools, and more. Amazing, right? I am thrilled to be included as a member of this fantastic crew. This week, as a matter of fact, I am presenting with other authors from KidLit Authors Club for the first time. Two other members and I will be at the East Brunswick, N.J., Barnes and Noble tomorrow evening. Thursday evening, some of us will be at the Clifton, N.J., Barnes and Noble. Fun!

Promoting great books with great people? What could be better? To learn more about the Kidlit Authors Club, check us out on Twitter (http://twitter.com/KidLitAuthors ) and on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/KidLit-Authors-Club)

Happiness is sharing the wonderful world of children’s books with great people!

The Bliss of Organization

I may have a file addiction. It began after hearing the wonderful Paul Fleishman speak at the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrator’s conference in L.A. The second he spoke a certain magic word, organization, I leaned forward in my seat. From that moment on, I ignored everything else. He went on to describe how he stays organized while writing a novel. I leaned even farther forward as he outlined how he creates separate file documents on his computer. Documents such as: a “work in progress” file, a “working it out” file where he outlines story problems he encounters and possible solutions, an outline file, and a back matter file for title ideas and people he needs to acknowledge.

I could not scribble notes fast enough. These files, I thought, are exactly what I need. I am happiest when I am organized. Yet, most of the information for my current work in progress was crammed into two humungous documents. And believe me when I confess that each file was a dump of tangled, knotted, piled together information. So, I decided to try out Paul Fleischman’s file ideas. Wow. What a difference.

I now have, in addition to my first draft document, a file for my characters, a revision file where I note what I will need to fix after the first draft is completed, a “to do” file, and a file of calendars and time lines. I also created a “darlings” file. Here, I stow copy that I adore even though it is not working in my manuscript. Writers are supposed to “kill their darlings,” which means nixing the copy that isn’t working, no matter how fabulous the writing may be. Hatchet murdering beloved sentences, phrases and even blocks of writing that came from blood, sweat, and tears, though, seems a bit harsh. Now, I send my darlings away to hang out in a cozy document. Much better than cold-blooded murder, I think.

Yes, I’ve been hitting the “new blank document” button on my laptop enough that I am wearing out the plastic key. Whatever. This is a small price to pay, I think, for the bliss of organization. Now, if I could only work this file magic on other disheveled elements of my life that often take a backseat to my writing. Yeah, those.

So, tell me: How do you stay organized?

Scene Wrestling

I spent two full days last week wrestling with a scene while writing the first draft of my present work in progress. Rolling around in a mosquito-infested swamp, trying to subdue an alligator with a bad attitude and even worse breath would probably have been easier.

Some experts would advise that it is best to step away from a ferocious, uncooperative scene when it gets all snarly and dominant and unmanageable. I’ve heard that some authors will revisit a difficult scene after both writer and manuscript have calmed. This makes perfect sense for someone other than me. Call me stubborn or obsessive or both, but I could not walk away from my snarly scene. It taunted me. If I turned my back on the bared teeth of this arrogant creature, it might, I imagined, rip my arms off of my body. So I fought on, cursing and pounding the keyboard of my poor beleaguered Mac.

Exhausted, I finally subdued the scene. This brought me great satisfaction. Of course I didn’t tame it, I only corralled it. The taming will come, I hope, in the revisions. For now, I am looking ahead to other scenes that I hope will be more puppy dog than two hundred pound alligator. But even if I come upon another sharp-toothed chunk of text, I am ready. Because now, I am more confident.

A question for the writers: Do you leave a really difficult scene and return to work on it later, after crafting other scenes? Or, do you wrestle?

A question for the readers: Do you ever sense, while reading, that an author has rolled in the mud to write a certain scene?

Amazing Animals

Most people who know me know that I love animals. My novel Dog Gone involves dogs. This is sort of obvious from the title, right? My second novel, Buck Fever, involves deer. Both novels include people and are really about them, but this is not the point of today’s blog post. Today, I am sharing four video clips about some amazing and hilarious animals. Because, well, why not? Here they are:

Meet Sampson the kissing pony. This guy is amazing and adorable. I love the way Sampson makes people smile and laugh.

http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/local&id=7656983

Next, meet a dog that dances much better than I do (probably too much information there).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MUhb00kiXs

Speaking of dancing, meet Snowball. Can this cockatoo rock or what?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vgp6gP2kUm0

Last but not least, meet a bunch of crazy kitties. Anyone who loves and appreciates kittens and cats knows that they can be wacky. The following video proves how wacky. It also proves that there is a reason why cats need nine lives.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IytNBm8WA1c

Where would we be without our animal friends?

Enjoy!

Good Question

I love reading articles and books discussing the craft of writing. Recently, I’ve been focusing on the intricacies of plot. Maybe you’ve heard the advice “write what you know.” This makes sort of obvious sense to me. I mean, it’s kind of hard to write about the social habits of baboons in southern Africa if you know nothing about them, right? Unless, of course, you live to do lots and lots of research.

Anyway, I came upon a slightly different take on the wisdom of writing what you know. In Plot and Structure: Techniques and exercises for crafting a plot that grips readers from start to finish,James Scott Bell writes about the advantages of crafting stories based on who you are. Yes, who you are. Well, that got my attention. According to Mr. Bell, a writer would do well to dive into his or her inner self and dip into his or her heart and soul to find and mine gems that could, potentially, be fabulous story ideas. By doing this, the ideas are practically guaranteed to be fresh and instilled with a passion that is unique to that writer. Interesting, right?

So, what matters most to you? What topics do you most often comment on? What are your hopes, dreams, fears, and insecurities? What are your strengths and weaknesses? What are your talents and failings? What events from your past have shaped who you are now? What has embarrassed you beyond measure? Or made you proud enough to strut? What makes you cry? Do you have a secret? Do you have a philosophy that guides you? Do you have an unfulfilled wish or wishes? Any regrets? Is there some activity that you’d like to do, but may not be willing to talk about? Is there some person that you would like to meet?

These questions could go on and on, of course, but perhaps one or more of them could spark an idea for a story. An exciting, wonderful idea. Once you have that spark, ask yourself the best question of all (at least I think this is the best): Does this story idea hit some emotional place inside me? Does the story idea slam at least one of my nerves head on? “If not,” James Scott Bell asks in Plot and Structure, “why write it?”

Good question.

A Week With Critter

It's been a fun-filled and busy week with my new pal, Critter. If you're wondering what a Critter is, check out my last blog post: http://cynthiawillis.blogspot.com/2010/08/meet-critter.html

And now (insert drum roll, please), here’s a photo recap of my time with Critter:

I took Critter to a yoga class in Oldwick, N.J. Because, frankly, he seemed a bit stiff. Yes, he's made of foam and cardboard, but never mind that. Nonetheless, here is Critter on my yoga mat just before a downward dog. Or something:

Critter also joined me at my favorite Barnes and Noble bookstore in Bridgewater, N.J. We shopped for books, of course:

And Critter kept me company while I worked on my latest novel in the B&N café. He didn’t even spill my iced tea (lucky for him).

Of course I showed Critter around my part of New Jersey. I didn't want him to think that N.J is only about the exits on the Turnpike and some reality show about the N.J. shore.

Below is a picture of Critter with an assortment of tomatoes, corn, and cucumbers at a local farm stand.

I considered taking Critter to one of the beautiful N.J. beaches, too, but Critter seemed a bit nervous about the aggressive seagulls (they are rather infamous). Plus, the rip tides from Hurricane Earl (who didn’t really visit, but stirred up the ocean anyway) were intimidating. Also, I worried what sunscreen might do to Critter’s beautiful art work self. Instead, we went for ice cream and a ride on the back of hubby’s Harley Davidson motorcycle. Crazy Critter.

The next stop for Critter is the fabulous state of Texas, where the motto is friendship.

Lucky, lucky Critter.