I used to have nothing but a blanket contempt for drug dealers and soldiers alike. To my way of thinking, they both were murderers, and both chose their lifestyles. Carl Deuker's novel, Runner offers a thoughtful exploration of motivation and assumption. It elicits several questions, among them: What would you do to be thought a hero? Would you join the army? Would you sell drugs? How far could you be driven to bend your ethics to keep body and soul together?
Long distance runner Chance Taylor and his alcoholic, Gulf-War Veteran father live, on their broken-down 30-foot sailboat, a bare half-step away from homelessness. Clarence's worries about his father's chronic joblessness lead to concerns about power and grocery bills, moorage fees for the boat slip, and an host of other concerns that average teens don't have to shoulder. Clarence can't afford the fees and the shoes to run for the high school, so he runs on his own, and one day he meets up with someone who makes him an offer he can't refuse. It's just picking up a few things.
Financial peace of mind seems too close to ignore. His Dad just can't pick himself up, and his Mom's never coming back. It's up to Clarence to be the hero of his own story this time. But what does it take to be a hero? Clarence's dad saw action in the Gulf War, and now he's just a broken down drunk. A high school thug shows up in a spiffy military uniform and is suddenly a respected member of the community. He is mourned as a hero when killed on duty in Iraq. Who is a hero? And what does heroism take? Deuker dispels simple assumptions in this thoughtful, timely, and relevant novel.
November 09, 2005
From the New Yorker to Children's Lit: Adam Gopnik
Another cheery draftee to children's literature is New Yorker columnist Adam Gopnik, profiled in The San Francisco Chronicle this morning. Interviewer Regan McMahon writes:
"He was 75 pages into writing an adult novel and realized "it was boring." Then one day he was in the American Library in Paris, in the room with what he calls stories of the marvelous and the supernatural -- "I hate to say children's literature because it sounds condescending" -- "and I thought, those are the kind of books I loved with all my heart and soul, rather than reading with my mind and taste. And as long as I was going to write a book, I wanted to write it from my favorite images and my deepest obsessions, and that was the kind of book where the magical and extraordinary suddenly enters into the life of an ordinary person."
The article gives a quick sketch of the book's premise; The King in the Window tells the tale of 11-year-old Oliver, an American boy in Paris with his family who gets drawn into a parallel universe by the revenants in the hotel mirrors who've stayed 'active' since the reign of Louis XIV. This middle grade novel sounds like an extraordinarily creative jaunt into the paranormal.
Admittedly, it's always great when an able, articulate general fiction writer crosses over to the kid's side of the world. However, Gopnik bewilders me a little when he tries to find an apt description of the other literature from the American Library in Paris that he read as he was working on this piece. Do the words 'children's literature' sound condescending to you? (Gopnik prefers to call it 'literature of the marvelous and the supernatural.') Whatever you call it, the heartfelt sentiment that 'these are the books that I love' rings true, and I hope we all follow the call to write what we love, no matter what anyone else says is marketable, acceptable or trendy.
YHappy WritingY
"He was 75 pages into writing an adult novel and realized "it was boring." Then one day he was in the American Library in Paris, in the room with what he calls stories of the marvelous and the supernatural -- "I hate to say children's literature because it sounds condescending" -- "and I thought, those are the kind of books I loved with all my heart and soul, rather than reading with my mind and taste. And as long as I was going to write a book, I wanted to write it from my favorite images and my deepest obsessions, and that was the kind of book where the magical and extraordinary suddenly enters into the life of an ordinary person."
The article gives a quick sketch of the book's premise; The King in the Window tells the tale of 11-year-old Oliver, an American boy in Paris with his family who gets drawn into a parallel universe by the revenants in the hotel mirrors who've stayed 'active' since the reign of Louis XIV. This middle grade novel sounds like an extraordinarily creative jaunt into the paranormal.
Admittedly, it's always great when an able, articulate general fiction writer crosses over to the kid's side of the world. However, Gopnik bewilders me a little when he tries to find an apt description of the other literature from the American Library in Paris that he read as he was working on this piece. Do the words 'children's literature' sound condescending to you? (Gopnik prefers to call it 'literature of the marvelous and the supernatural.') Whatever you call it, the heartfelt sentiment that 'these are the books that I love' rings true, and I hope we all follow the call to write what we love, no matter what anyone else says is marketable, acceptable or trendy.
YHappy WritingY
November 07, 2005
First YA Novel Contest
Fellow WritingYA member JR sent a reminder that the submission period is open until December 31 for the Delacorte Press Contest for a First Young Adult Novel. Novels should be in a contemporary setting and the winner will receive a book contract. Not too shabby!
I wish I could enter, but my book is about 100 pages longer than the specified maximum of 224 pages. Evidently I'm long-winded on the printed page, but not so much in person...
I wish I could enter, but my book is about 100 pages longer than the specified maximum of 224 pages. Evidently I'm long-winded on the printed page, but not so much in person...
November 02, 2005
Snazzy Cover Art, Snappy Title: Marketing Earned Its Props This Time!
Man, if I'm good and turn in my homework and sit up straight and all, when I get to be a great writer, can I have Greg Paprocki do my cover art?? I just got done reading Black Taxi, and it just sings -- and part of it has to do with the sweet black cover and the dashing driver on her cell, whipping through a starry blue landscape while a sinister shadowy type hunches in her back seat. Now, I don't know from art -- is this digital? is this Japanese-influenced? -- but it's almost like it's cut out of construction paper. Everything is so stylized and outlined that it just pops off of the page.
The storyline's not slouching, either. Written by Australian novelist James Moloney, who wrote the most recently YA-novel-trashed-by-TV book, A Bridge to Wiseman's Cove (which I haven't yet read), the plot revolves around Rosie Sinclair, whose Granddad is just a bit of a crook. When his crooked ways catch up to him, it's granddaughter Rosie whose entrusted with his classic black Mercedes. Rosie also is inadvertently entrusted with his elderly riders, and she begins to feel like she's got a black taxi as she ferries oldsters from the hospital to the grocery store.
I didn't relate personally to Rosie as a character -- she's not much for school (and her mother is a hairdresser and wears fake animal skin skirts). I've noticed that quite a few of the books I've read from Australian writers are about teens who aren't the most reliable students, and I actually think that's cool -- who says all of teen readers are good students, or even still bother to darken a classroom door?
Anyway, Rosie's life gets more complicated fast, because since her grandfather's gone for six months, she's discovered that someone thinks he's left a little business undone. Rosie needs help and advice -- fast. She's got both, since she's got a great best friend and she's mixed up with two guys, too -- one a good cutie, the other a bad hottie. Of course, the bad hottie is more interesting. Lots more interesting. I won't elaborate, but the ending will make you stand up and cheer. A fast, fun read with enough twists in the mystery storyline to keep me hooked. Check it out!
The storyline's not slouching, either. Written by Australian novelist James Moloney, who wrote the most recently YA-novel-trashed-by-TV book, A Bridge to Wiseman's Cove (which I haven't yet read), the plot revolves around Rosie Sinclair, whose Granddad is just a bit of a crook. When his crooked ways catch up to him, it's granddaughter Rosie whose entrusted with his classic black Mercedes. Rosie also is inadvertently entrusted with his elderly riders, and she begins to feel like she's got a black taxi as she ferries oldsters from the hospital to the grocery store.
I didn't relate personally to Rosie as a character -- she's not much for school (and her mother is a hairdresser and wears fake animal skin skirts). I've noticed that quite a few of the books I've read from Australian writers are about teens who aren't the most reliable students, and I actually think that's cool -- who says all of teen readers are good students, or even still bother to darken a classroom door?
Anyway, Rosie's life gets more complicated fast, because since her grandfather's gone for six months, she's discovered that someone thinks he's left a little business undone. Rosie needs help and advice -- fast. She's got both, since she's got a great best friend and she's mixed up with two guys, too -- one a good cutie, the other a bad hottie. Of course, the bad hottie is more interesting. Lots more interesting. I won't elaborate, but the ending will make you stand up and cheer. A fast, fun read with enough twists in the mystery storyline to keep me hooked. Check it out!
November 01, 2005
Catching Up...
Quite awhile ago, a.fortis suggested that I read Feeling Sorry for Celia, by Jaclyn Moriarty, queen of the epistolary novel. I've FINALLY gotten to it, and I just fell in love all over again with Moriarty's style, and the way she depicted the fabulous friendship between Christina and Elizabeth. I like the use of letter writing as a Lost Art (why isn't there some kind of career I can get into where letter writing's all I do??), and the idea of letters as being something an English teacher assigns that opens a new world to the characters. If every student unplugged just briefly from their iPods, life at school could be so different...
The best part for me was Moriarty having Elizabeth getting letters from her subconscious. That's the part that resonated the most with me, since I am forever having doubts, second thoughts and simple paranoia crop up in my brain as if it's my brain's job to tell me every little thing that could go wrong. The weird Greek chorus that serenades my conscious mind likely sings to others, and Moriarty captured the finest point of good YA literature -- that part that lets everyone know that their secret fears are shared. Thanks for suggesting this one, a.f., and I really hope Moriarty puts out something else soon.
It would be fun to figure out how to incorporate more letters in my writing. Here's hoping letter writing doesn't become an art that is completely lost!
The best part for me was Moriarty having Elizabeth getting letters from her subconscious. That's the part that resonated the most with me, since I am forever having doubts, second thoughts and simple paranoia crop up in my brain as if it's my brain's job to tell me every little thing that could go wrong. The weird Greek chorus that serenades my conscious mind likely sings to others, and Moriarty captured the finest point of good YA literature -- that part that lets everyone know that their secret fears are shared. Thanks for suggesting this one, a.f., and I really hope Moriarty puts out something else soon.
It would be fun to figure out how to incorporate more letters in my writing. Here's hoping letter writing doesn't become an art that is completely lost!
Favorite Teen Reads
Teens voted for their favorite young adult book during Teen Read Week earlier this month. Read the full article here. The top ten were:
1. Girls In Pants: The Third Summer of the Sisterhood by Ann Brashares
2. The Truth about Forever by Sarah Dessen
3. Looking For Alaska by John Green
4. My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult
5. Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick
6. Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment by James Patterson
7. The Gangsta Rap by Benjamin Zephaniah
8. Teen Idol by Meg Cabot
9. The Garden by Elise Aidinoff
10. How I Paid for College: A Novel of Sex, Theft, Friendship & Musical Theater by Marc Acito
1. Girls In Pants: The Third Summer of the Sisterhood by Ann Brashares
2. The Truth about Forever by Sarah Dessen
3. Looking For Alaska by John Green
4. My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult
5. Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick
6. Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment by James Patterson
7. The Gangsta Rap by Benjamin Zephaniah
8. Teen Idol by Meg Cabot
9. The Garden by Elise Aidinoff
10. How I Paid for College: A Novel of Sex, Theft, Friendship & Musical Theater by Marc Acito
October 30, 2005
Endings that Leave You Wanting More
Endings that leave you thinking, gee, I wish there was MORE here...sometimes that's a good thing, and sometimes it's not so good.
I'll start with the good. This weekend I finished reading Neil Gaiman's new novel, Anansi Boys, which is a loose sequel to American Gods. And yes, I wished it didn't have to end. Gaiman is excellent at creating these alternate realities that I wish I could inhabit for more than just the length of the book. I started reading his work when I was in high school, and have tried to keep up with his work as much as possible ever since. Though I'm no longer in the habit of buying individual comics very often, I've gotten just as much enjoyment out of Gaiman's novels as I used to from going to the comic store every month and buying the latest issue of Sandman.
Anansi Boys is a really absorbing yarn, but of a quieter sort than you get from American Gods or Neverwhere. Fat Charlie Nancy, a sort of hapless yet likeable character, was always exceedingly mortified by his father's ridiculous behavior. But when his father dies, Fat Charlie discovers that old Mr. Nancy was really the Afro-Caribbean spider/trickster god, Anansi, and that he has a brother who goes by the name of Spider. Spider, however, inherited all the god-like faculties, and poor Fat Charlie seems to have lived out his life in most mundane fashion after moving from Florida to England as a child. But all hell breaks loose when Spider moves into Charlie's London flat, invading Charlie's space and stealing his fiancee. In this novel, magic creeps in, and before you know it you're looking in corners for tricky little spiders to wink at, and singing to yourself at odd moments for no real reason. Read it and find out why!
Last week I also read Guitar Girl by Sarra Manning, which, incidentally, got half-a-star higher rating than Anansi Boys. I have to disagree with that. Although I eventually got into this book somewhere in the middle, I found the beginning rather slow and the characters not as fully developed as I would have liked; moreover, the ending seemed rushed and abrupt.
In Guitar Girl, 17-year-old Molly Montgomery and her friends decide to start a girl band, mainly out of boredom. But when the rather repellently rude Dean and his silent, stoner-ish friend T sort of force their way into the band, things quickly change. Dean has lofty goals of fame and fortune, and though he forces them to do useful things like practice regularly, he also constantly badmouths Molly and the songs she writes. The author makes him a truly hateful character--until suddenly the heat of their hatred for each other causes them to develop a powerful attraction, or something like that. Meanwhile, they're being pushed around by a cute yet sleazy agent, and various band members suffer the usual tribulations of early fame and the rock-and-roll lifestyle.
It was the train-wreck aspect of things that got me more interested, sad to say, in the middle. Plus, by then, the characters were a little more developed. But they didn't have as much individuality or roundedness as they could have, to make this story more real instead of just a rock fantasy. And the end was little more than a "where are they now" epilogue, and not enough to really push the irony of the VH1-special in a way that might have been truly funny. I enjoyed it, but I was left wanting a lot more.
I'll start with the good. This weekend I finished reading Neil Gaiman's new novel, Anansi Boys, which is a loose sequel to American Gods. And yes, I wished it didn't have to end. Gaiman is excellent at creating these alternate realities that I wish I could inhabit for more than just the length of the book. I started reading his work when I was in high school, and have tried to keep up with his work as much as possible ever since. Though I'm no longer in the habit of buying individual comics very often, I've gotten just as much enjoyment out of Gaiman's novels as I used to from going to the comic store every month and buying the latest issue of Sandman.
Anansi Boys is a really absorbing yarn, but of a quieter sort than you get from American Gods or Neverwhere. Fat Charlie Nancy, a sort of hapless yet likeable character, was always exceedingly mortified by his father's ridiculous behavior. But when his father dies, Fat Charlie discovers that old Mr. Nancy was really the Afro-Caribbean spider/trickster god, Anansi, and that he has a brother who goes by the name of Spider. Spider, however, inherited all the god-like faculties, and poor Fat Charlie seems to have lived out his life in most mundane fashion after moving from Florida to England as a child. But all hell breaks loose when Spider moves into Charlie's London flat, invading Charlie's space and stealing his fiancee. In this novel, magic creeps in, and before you know it you're looking in corners for tricky little spiders to wink at, and singing to yourself at odd moments for no real reason. Read it and find out why!
Last week I also read Guitar Girl by Sarra Manning, which, incidentally, got half-a-star higher rating than Anansi Boys. I have to disagree with that. Although I eventually got into this book somewhere in the middle, I found the beginning rather slow and the characters not as fully developed as I would have liked; moreover, the ending seemed rushed and abrupt.
In Guitar Girl, 17-year-old Molly Montgomery and her friends decide to start a girl band, mainly out of boredom. But when the rather repellently rude Dean and his silent, stoner-ish friend T sort of force their way into the band, things quickly change. Dean has lofty goals of fame and fortune, and though he forces them to do useful things like practice regularly, he also constantly badmouths Molly and the songs she writes. The author makes him a truly hateful character--until suddenly the heat of their hatred for each other causes them to develop a powerful attraction, or something like that. Meanwhile, they're being pushed around by a cute yet sleazy agent, and various band members suffer the usual tribulations of early fame and the rock-and-roll lifestyle.
It was the train-wreck aspect of things that got me more interested, sad to say, in the middle. Plus, by then, the characters were a little more developed. But they didn't have as much individuality or roundedness as they could have, to make this story more real instead of just a rock fantasy. And the end was little more than a "where are they now" epilogue, and not enough to really push the irony of the VH1-special in a way that might have been truly funny. I enjoyed it, but I was left wanting a lot more.
New Online Goodies
I've been meaning to post these for quite some time, and apologize for that. I also apologize for being sort of absent. Part of the writing process for me seems to be occasional periods of down time and total hermitude.
Anyway, I heard on the SCBWI discussion board that there is a new, free weekly e-mail newsletter from Publishers Weekly on the topic of children's and YA books called Children's Bookshelf. It's not necessary to be a PW subscriber. The SCBWI post said "The newsletter carries industry news, features, author interviews, stories on books people are talking about, links to articles in the media about children's books, bestseller lists, and many other features. It's written for publishers, booksellers, librarians, teachers, authors, agents, and anyone interested in news about current children's books." The free subscription, as well as back issues, can be found here.
There is also a new website called Reading Zone, which "is dedicated to helping young people, parents & adults and teachers to find out about children’s books. Each area on the site provides information about new and classic titles with expert advice to help you find the best children’s books available." It was apparently the work of The Bookseller's Children's Editor Caroline Horn and is backed by Arts Council England. It's a very nice-looking site. Thanks to the SCBWI e-newsletter for this item.
Anyway, I heard on the SCBWI discussion board that there is a new, free weekly e-mail newsletter from Publishers Weekly on the topic of children's and YA books called Children's Bookshelf. It's not necessary to be a PW subscriber. The SCBWI post said "The newsletter carries industry news, features, author interviews, stories on books people are talking about, links to articles in the media about children's books, bestseller lists, and many other features. It's written for publishers, booksellers, librarians, teachers, authors, agents, and anyone interested in news about current children's books." The free subscription, as well as back issues, can be found here.
There is also a new website called Reading Zone, which "is dedicated to helping young people, parents & adults and teachers to find out about children’s books. Each area on the site provides information about new and classic titles with expert advice to help you find the best children’s books available." It was apparently the work of The Bookseller's Children's Editor Caroline Horn and is backed by Arts Council England. It's a very nice-looking site. Thanks to the SCBWI e-newsletter for this item.
October 27, 2005
Competitions and Contests
NaNoWriMo is the NAtional NOvel WRIting MOnth competition, where you attempt to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. (Look here for more information.)While I have nothing but faith in you, my darlings, I do urge you not to be dismayed if you're not finished with it by the end of the month. Plug away!
Can't hang with the novel? There's a new short story contest coming up from Writer's Digest. The deadline is coming up, so start now on getting your entry form and details squared away. Good luck!
The Milkweed Prize for Children's Literature,is a writing competition into which anyone who submits to Milkweed Editions is entered. Milkweed is in search of quality children's novels intended for readers in the 8-13 age group. This competition is part of Milkweed's children's book publishing program for middle-graders. Prize: Judging will be by Milkweed Editions, and the winner of the prize will receive a $5,000 cash advance on any royalties agreed upon in the contractual arrangement negotiated at the time of acceptance. Check out their The World As Home series -- very, VERY cool.
Now, here's a different kind of contest: Through the cool connectivity of the Web, you can submit a favorite book while recommending it to a another person via email and be entered to win a 15 book library of titles recommended by contributors from Bookmark Now a Bay Area book/blog/web buzz phenom.
As for my peoples doing the SmartWriters short story contest...good luck! Good luck! You've all got great stories!
Can't hang with the novel? There's a new short story contest coming up from Writer's Digest. The deadline is coming up, so start now on getting your entry form and details squared away. Good luck!
The Milkweed Prize for Children's Literature,is a writing competition into which anyone who submits to Milkweed Editions is entered. Milkweed is in search of quality children's novels intended for readers in the 8-13 age group. This competition is part of Milkweed's children's book publishing program for middle-graders. Prize: Judging will be by Milkweed Editions, and the winner of the prize will receive a $5,000 cash advance on any royalties agreed upon in the contractual arrangement negotiated at the time of acceptance. Check out their The World As Home series -- very, VERY cool.
Now, here's a different kind of contest: Through the cool connectivity of the Web, you can submit a favorite book while recommending it to a another person via email and be entered to win a 15 book library of titles recommended by contributors from Bookmark Now a Bay Area book/blog/web buzz phenom.
As for my peoples doing the SmartWriters short story contest...good luck! Good luck! You've all got great stories!
October 26, 2005
Blooming Tree Press
Writing for the SmartWriter's W.I.N. Contest is just as hard as I thought it would be!!! If all else fails, and I totally bail on the competition, I hope to win entrance to an anthology by going directly to the source. Word has it that, since August, Blooming Tree Press has been seeking to increase their middle grade and YA lines. One of their editors, Judy Gregerson is interested in YA contemporary or historical fiction. Agent reports from various SCBWI conferences have reoprted that there's a dearth of solid historical fiction for kids, and I know other agents who profess a liking for it. Blooming Tree is the one printing the anthology for SmartWriters, and I hope everyone is writing like mad to meet the deadline! The Contest ends on Monday!
Write away!
October 24, 2005
There Is Something To Be Said
...for major revisions. As soon as I figure out what that is, I'll let you know.
October 23, 2005
Cooking Flops And Other Jinxes
At the distinct risk of spilling all of my deep secrets, I'll tell you what prompted me to begin writing the food novel I hope to someday publish. I read a book about a teen boy who cooked, and it didn't end the way I thought it should. Yep. That's all it took...
Flavor of the Week, by Tucker Shaw, is probably a harmlessly predictable love triangle story. It's another retelling of Rostand's Cyrano de Bergerac, first told in 1897, and revamped for the newest century. This time, Cyril is in the starring role of the boy with the blemish. His blemish isn't his nose, however; it's his weight. He's a master chef already at the age of sixteen, auditioning to gain acceptance into a prestigious cooking academy, but right now his mind's not on his work. See, there's this girl...
Told like a cross between a sardonic romance novel and a cooking guide, FOTW is the Like Water for Chocolate for the YA set. There are recipes at the end of every chapter -- and they're amazing: rhubarb iced tea, kitchen-sink cookies, baked pumpkin seeds with cumin, M&M brownies... this book just might make cooking cool for everyone. (The fact that Cyril HATES Emeril "Bam!" Lagasse, yet watches him like a train wreck, makes me feel even happier.)
Of course, there's a downside: the Bergerac tale is one that's been done to death, and Shaw's story escapes from the greatness it could've achieved by a number of slips in the end, including dumbing down its women. Oh, grievous sin, my friend. It doesn't take ditzy female characters to make a boy book.
Cyril's mother is an ER nurse who works weird hours; her only lines are odd ones. She wanders through the script, apparently for charm, being fed by her son, and going to sleep. Somehow, despite the burgeoning weight issues and the fact that a health professional is in residence, the fat thing isn't touched on more than a 'isn't this a nuisance' issue. The recipes are high fat and high sugar, for the most part. Ouch.
Cyril's father is completely absent, though we're told he still resides in the house...the parental lack of presence is so unremarked upon that it is notable. The words "charged prop" come to mind - but nothing happens with the mother, or the father, and I almost wonder why they're there.
Roxanne/Rose goes from being just a pretty lab partner into a "crunchy granola" hippie chick, until she decides to 'seduce' someone. In the end, she simply falls into Cyril's arms, and the credits roll, and everything is happily ever after: he gets the girl, his best friend gets the OTHER girl, he gets a SECOND CHANCE at a cooking audition (Oh, since WHEN does the American Institute of Culinary Arts do that???). The shallow best friend is never anything more or less than he is written to be -- amazingly, thoughtlessly, blemish-less-ly perfect. No cartoon anvils drop on his head. Darn.
As I mentioned, I found the ending somewhat lacking. Shaw could've killed all of his characters off in the last scene and been more creative. And speaking of piles of dead characters, FOTW is suspiciously like a Shakespeare story, where there's a convenient twin of the right sex for the poor prince who's left without. Also lacking was the fact that there was a major problem with Cyrano -- that is, the lack of self-esteem it takes to continue to help someone win over a heart that you want for your own. Especially in a YA book, it's important to at least touch on a theme like that. The question of 'why do we do the things we do?' is the end all, at least to me, of YA.
So -- here's the book that started it all. Sincere thanks, Tucker Shaw.
Flavor of the Week, by Tucker Shaw, is probably a harmlessly predictable love triangle story. It's another retelling of Rostand's Cyrano de Bergerac, first told in 1897, and revamped for the newest century. This time, Cyril is in the starring role of the boy with the blemish. His blemish isn't his nose, however; it's his weight. He's a master chef already at the age of sixteen, auditioning to gain acceptance into a prestigious cooking academy, but right now his mind's not on his work. See, there's this girl...
Told like a cross between a sardonic romance novel and a cooking guide, FOTW is the Like Water for Chocolate for the YA set. There are recipes at the end of every chapter -- and they're amazing: rhubarb iced tea, kitchen-sink cookies, baked pumpkin seeds with cumin, M&M brownies... this book just might make cooking cool for everyone. (The fact that Cyril HATES Emeril "Bam!" Lagasse, yet watches him like a train wreck, makes me feel even happier.)
Of course, there's a downside: the Bergerac tale is one that's been done to death, and Shaw's story escapes from the greatness it could've achieved by a number of slips in the end, including dumbing down its women. Oh, grievous sin, my friend. It doesn't take ditzy female characters to make a boy book.
Cyril's mother is an ER nurse who works weird hours; her only lines are odd ones. She wanders through the script, apparently for charm, being fed by her son, and going to sleep. Somehow, despite the burgeoning weight issues and the fact that a health professional is in residence, the fat thing isn't touched on more than a 'isn't this a nuisance' issue. The recipes are high fat and high sugar, for the most part. Ouch.
Cyril's father is completely absent, though we're told he still resides in the house...the parental lack of presence is so unremarked upon that it is notable. The words "charged prop" come to mind - but nothing happens with the mother, or the father, and I almost wonder why they're there.
Roxanne/Rose goes from being just a pretty lab partner into a "crunchy granola" hippie chick, until she decides to 'seduce' someone. In the end, she simply falls into Cyril's arms, and the credits roll, and everything is happily ever after: he gets the girl, his best friend gets the OTHER girl, he gets a SECOND CHANCE at a cooking audition (Oh, since WHEN does the American Institute of Culinary Arts do that???). The shallow best friend is never anything more or less than he is written to be -- amazingly, thoughtlessly, blemish-less-ly perfect. No cartoon anvils drop on his head. Darn.
As I mentioned, I found the ending somewhat lacking. Shaw could've killed all of his characters off in the last scene and been more creative. And speaking of piles of dead characters, FOTW is suspiciously like a Shakespeare story, where there's a convenient twin of the right sex for the poor prince who's left without. Also lacking was the fact that there was a major problem with Cyrano -- that is, the lack of self-esteem it takes to continue to help someone win over a heart that you want for your own. Especially in a YA book, it's important to at least touch on a theme like that. The question of 'why do we do the things we do?' is the end all, at least to me, of YA.
So -- here's the book that started it all. Sincere thanks, Tucker Shaw.
Their Own Little Worlds
They're not for everyone, these two books, but for those who become enmeshed in the worlds they depict, they are can't-put-it-down, compulsive reads.
An agent I spoke with mentioned that there's hardly room in the already stuffed sci-fi/fantasy field for one story more, so I may be reading Jean Thesman's newest novel, The Singer with a bit of jaded eye! However, it is a lush and evocative fantasy, filled with detailed descriptions of a barren childhood and an evil mother, in the traditional fairytale style. There is a dark castle, knights, trolls, and the works.
Loosed basely on an Irish folktale called The Children of Lir, this tale is of Gwenore, daughter of the power-mad Queen Rhiannon, who hates her magic-touched daughter and wishes her dead, and a son in her place. Gwenore escapes, and lives her life in hiding, and her near escapes and constant dread of discovery make for high drama for some young readers, but may become somewhat tiresome for others. In the end, Gwenore's mousey ways are challenged when her mother threatens other innocents. Gwenore must rise into her strength to save herself and those dear to her.
While this is a complex and descriptive amplification of the traditional tale, it brings little new to the familiar story -- except the rarely glimpsed strong female fantasy character. Religious sisters carry the bulk of the power in these tales, not by their weight at court or in the ranks of men, but as healers and listeners, saviors of downtrodden women and those who endure and rise again. For this subtle and excellent characterization, I would recommend this as a great read for young girls.
"The longer I'm alive, the more I'm interested in how people learn from their mistakes, not in the fact that they make them."
These are the words of Madeline Gladstone, Quality Manager of Gladstone shoes, and a fabulous character in a book that encapsulates a world all its own. Joan Bauer's Best Foot Forward, a sequel to the unique Rules of the Road, focuses on the narrowly explored world of ...Shoe salesmanship. It's just not your average YA topic.
Jenna Boller is tall, an ace shoe saleswoman, and the daughter of an alcoholic. She's got big goals and a serious work ethic, and knows a few things. One, in corporate America, there's no time to mess around, and two, if you're not there to do a good job, to put your best foot forward, you're not going to be to in business for long.
Jenna turned a summer job at Gladstone Shoes into a job as the assistant to the Quality Manager by sheer hustle and hard work. Therefore, she's shocked when Madeleine Gladstone assigns her to mentor a shoplifter -- and gives him a job! Jenna's struggles to accept and work with attitudinal Tanner Cobb are further complicated by changes coming down from the corporate office. Quality is slipping, the customors are complaining, and something strange is going on at Gladstone, something even worse than their recent corporate merger.
As she's learned in Al-Anon, there's a time to forgive, and there's a time to let go -- and a time to put your best foot forward and keep moving on. Jenna is a great believer that life is either black or white. Forgiveness and acceptance are tough, and for the child of an alcoholic, learning to relax isn't second nature. Part of putting your best foot forward is learning to allow others to make their own choices and mistakes, and to do the best you can for yourself.
This is a great story, and though selling shoes and dealing with older people isn't going to make a great read for every teen, the memorable and resilient Jenna makes you want to cheer for her successes. This is a story, and a sequel, with heart.
An agent I spoke with mentioned that there's hardly room in the already stuffed sci-fi/fantasy field for one story more, so I may be reading Jean Thesman's newest novel, The Singer with a bit of jaded eye! However, it is a lush and evocative fantasy, filled with detailed descriptions of a barren childhood and an evil mother, in the traditional fairytale style. There is a dark castle, knights, trolls, and the works.
Loosed basely on an Irish folktale called The Children of Lir, this tale is of Gwenore, daughter of the power-mad Queen Rhiannon, who hates her magic-touched daughter and wishes her dead, and a son in her place. Gwenore escapes, and lives her life in hiding, and her near escapes and constant dread of discovery make for high drama for some young readers, but may become somewhat tiresome for others. In the end, Gwenore's mousey ways are challenged when her mother threatens other innocents. Gwenore must rise into her strength to save herself and those dear to her.
While this is a complex and descriptive amplification of the traditional tale, it brings little new to the familiar story -- except the rarely glimpsed strong female fantasy character. Religious sisters carry the bulk of the power in these tales, not by their weight at court or in the ranks of men, but as healers and listeners, saviors of downtrodden women and those who endure and rise again. For this subtle and excellent characterization, I would recommend this as a great read for young girls.
"The longer I'm alive, the more I'm interested in how people learn from their mistakes, not in the fact that they make them."
These are the words of Madeline Gladstone, Quality Manager of Gladstone shoes, and a fabulous character in a book that encapsulates a world all its own. Joan Bauer's Best Foot Forward, a sequel to the unique Rules of the Road, focuses on the narrowly explored world of ...Shoe salesmanship. It's just not your average YA topic.
Jenna Boller is tall, an ace shoe saleswoman, and the daughter of an alcoholic. She's got big goals and a serious work ethic, and knows a few things. One, in corporate America, there's no time to mess around, and two, if you're not there to do a good job, to put your best foot forward, you're not going to be to in business for long.
Jenna turned a summer job at Gladstone Shoes into a job as the assistant to the Quality Manager by sheer hustle and hard work. Therefore, she's shocked when Madeleine Gladstone assigns her to mentor a shoplifter -- and gives him a job! Jenna's struggles to accept and work with attitudinal Tanner Cobb are further complicated by changes coming down from the corporate office. Quality is slipping, the customors are complaining, and something strange is going on at Gladstone, something even worse than their recent corporate merger.
As she's learned in Al-Anon, there's a time to forgive, and there's a time to let go -- and a time to put your best foot forward and keep moving on. Jenna is a great believer that life is either black or white. Forgiveness and acceptance are tough, and for the child of an alcoholic, learning to relax isn't second nature. Part of putting your best foot forward is learning to allow others to make their own choices and mistakes, and to do the best you can for yourself.
This is a great story, and though selling shoes and dealing with older people isn't going to make a great read for every teen, the memorable and resilient Jenna makes you want to cheer for her successes. This is a story, and a sequel, with heart.
October 17, 2005
Strangely Helpful Writing Tools
Okay, this one's actually more like an amusing writing tool, but now you can link your slang to definitions on the web. In 2003 a smart chap at Cal made, as a project, a slang dictionary. I think he's probably graduated by now and given up on every trying to finish it -- language and linguistic subcultures multiply faster than cells divide. Frankly, I get more out of watching an episode of Kim Possible than out of this dictionary, but should you be in need of old-school slang that you mostly already know, check it out.
Should you be in need of a Chinese name you can always find it and other helpful hits on the Mandarin language on this nifty site.
Finally, I've found my fantasy writing greatly expanded by reading information posted on the Orb. ORB stands for the Online Reference Book for Medieval Studies. These are factual, scholarly and sometimes deeply involved and labyrinthine dissertations on medieval fact. Now, how cool is that?
Happy writing.
Monday Scattershot
It's only days away - the October 31 deadline for the SmartWriters.com short story contest. Just a $10 per entry fee gives you the chance for cash and prizes, plus inclusion in that sought after YA shorts anthology! Don't forget to give yourself a shot at this!
And now, perhaps in response to my carping about how few book prizes there were for YA writers, Publishers Weekly has come up with The Quill Awards. In an attempt to "inspire an energy and focus around the importance of reading," and together with such partners as Parade Magazine, Borders, Barnes & Noble and The American Booksellers Association, this new award is trying for the populist vote in American literature from readers.
I guess we can expect this to be like voting for the queen and king of prom. Pardon my cynicism, but can we expect real literary merit from this prize? And by that, no, I don't mean the snobby "high art" concept that people sometimes think 'real litt'rechure' must have. I just wonder if at the scope for effort within the general population. What if there was no one who forced people to read difficult things, things that made them think and struggle to uncover new thoughts within themselves? Surely, some people would still strive and reach, but for the rest... Does this award really prove anything/change anything? Does it encourage literature by American Idol poll vote? Does anyone think talent-by-poll really proves anything except that someone can look good and get chosen or be audacious and get more attention? Doesn't 'Reader's Choice' mean that the readers will choose nothing other than stuff that is already popular, already what everyone else is doing?
Maybe I have an appalling lack of faith in the American public. Correct me if I'm wrong.
And now, the envelope please:
Winner, Book of the Year and Children's Chapter Book/Middle Grade - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, by J.K. Rowling, Mary GrandPré (Illustrator), with Arthur Levine/Scholastic
Winner, Young Adult/Teen -Girls in Pants: The Third Summer of the Sisterhood, by Ann Brashares, with Delacorte Press
(for the record, the winner of the Children's Illustrated Book, and possibly the only possible surprise in the bunch was Runny Babbit: A Billy Sook, by Shel Silverstein with HarperCollins Children's Books, but, after all, they had a lot of celebrity board books from which to choose. Going with an actual writer like Silverstein must have been tough. Maybe it was made easier because they could choose to award him posthumously?)
All right, all right. No further snarky comments.
Oy, it's awards season, and I'm falling behind!! Has anyone yet read any of the finalists for the National Book Awards Young People's Literature Prizes? On the positive side, these books aren't what you would call popular favorites at all. They seem to be a really varied group, and there are a couple of new voices and others we've heard from before, but not with this depth. (Being a National Book Award finalist really means something, unlike other popular... okay, OKAY!)
The Penderwicks is writer Jane Birdsall's first novel. Go Jane! Adele Griffin who wrote The Other Shepards, a book we read at Mills for YA lit, is notable for her semi-creepy style and dealings with life and the shadows of death in Where I Want to Be.
Printz Award-winning Scotland resident Chris Lynch writes what I call "boy books;" intelligent, yet pretty scary with tough and often violent characters. His Inexcusable is a scary story of a date rape from the point of view... of the accused. Walter Dean Meyers' work also depicts the gritty urban texture and bleakness of boys, and often their life in gangs in Autobiography of My Dead Brother. And it's another funny and sweet Southern coming-of-age tale in Deborah Wiles' Each Little Bird That Sings.
It's always encouraging to write about more new books that I haven't even had time to hear about! We writers are still out there, still working, in spite of incredible odds. Well, brava for us. I'll be running these down as soon as I can. Pull out your comforter and snuggle down these brisk fall evenings with a good read.
Happy Autumn!
And now, perhaps in response to my carping about how few book prizes there were for YA writers, Publishers Weekly has come up with The Quill Awards. In an attempt to "inspire an energy and focus around the importance of reading," and together with such partners as Parade Magazine, Borders, Barnes & Noble and The American Booksellers Association, this new award is trying for the populist vote in American literature from readers.
I guess we can expect this to be like voting for the queen and king of prom. Pardon my cynicism, but can we expect real literary merit from this prize? And by that, no, I don't mean the snobby "high art" concept that people sometimes think 'real litt'rechure' must have. I just wonder if at the scope for effort within the general population. What if there was no one who forced people to read difficult things, things that made them think and struggle to uncover new thoughts within themselves? Surely, some people would still strive and reach, but for the rest... Does this award really prove anything/change anything? Does it encourage literature by American Idol poll vote? Does anyone think talent-by-poll really proves anything except that someone can look good and get chosen or be audacious and get more attention? Doesn't 'Reader's Choice' mean that the readers will choose nothing other than stuff that is already popular, already what everyone else is doing?
Maybe I have an appalling lack of faith in the American public. Correct me if I'm wrong.
And now, the envelope please:
Winner, Book of the Year and Children's Chapter Book/Middle Grade - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, by J.K. Rowling, Mary GrandPré (Illustrator), with Arthur Levine/Scholastic
Winner, Young Adult/Teen -Girls in Pants: The Third Summer of the Sisterhood, by Ann Brashares, with Delacorte Press
(for the record, the winner of the Children's Illustrated Book, and possibly the only possible surprise in the bunch was Runny Babbit: A Billy Sook, by Shel Silverstein with HarperCollins Children's Books, but, after all, they had a lot of celebrity board books from which to choose. Going with an actual writer like Silverstein must have been tough. Maybe it was made easier because they could choose to award him posthumously?)
All right, all right. No further snarky comments.
Oy, it's awards season, and I'm falling behind!! Has anyone yet read any of the finalists for the National Book Awards Young People's Literature Prizes? On the positive side, these books aren't what you would call popular favorites at all. They seem to be a really varied group, and there are a couple of new voices and others we've heard from before, but not with this depth. (Being a National Book Award finalist really means something, unlike other popular... okay, OKAY!)
The Penderwicks is writer Jane Birdsall's first novel. Go Jane! Adele Griffin who wrote The Other Shepards, a book we read at Mills for YA lit, is notable for her semi-creepy style and dealings with life and the shadows of death in Where I Want to Be.
Printz Award-winning Scotland resident Chris Lynch writes what I call "boy books;" intelligent, yet pretty scary with tough and often violent characters. His Inexcusable is a scary story of a date rape from the point of view... of the accused. Walter Dean Meyers' work also depicts the gritty urban texture and bleakness of boys, and often their life in gangs in Autobiography of My Dead Brother. And it's another funny and sweet Southern coming-of-age tale in Deborah Wiles' Each Little Bird That Sings.
It's always encouraging to write about more new books that I haven't even had time to hear about! We writers are still out there, still working, in spite of incredible odds. Well, brava for us. I'll be running these down as soon as I can. Pull out your comforter and snuggle down these brisk fall evenings with a good read.
Happy Autumn!
October 16, 2005
Lit Crawl YA Venue a Success!
Though I had to miss our own Meeta at the VONA venue, the Lit Crawl's first annual YA reading venue was definitely a success. Valencia Street Books had a nice, intimate atmosphere for a reading, but by the time things got going it was standing room only, as a crowd of about 35-40 people spilled out of the chairs and into the aisles.
I felt lucky to be able to introduce the group of authors and give our blogs a little plug before and after the readings, and I enjoyed listening to the variety of different styles the authors brought to the reading. The only minor setback to the evening was that the author who we had intended to read first was late, so the order got shuffled around slightly. We started with Kathryn Reiss, who read passages from three of her works, including her newest, along with a little explanation of some of the ways a book can set a creepy tone.
After that was Katherine Sturtevant, who read from her period piece At the Sign of the Star, whose narrator is a young woman in 1600s London who works in her father's bookshop and publishing house and yearns for more than a typical woman's domestic life. After hearing what seemed like an all-too-brief passage, I'm now eager to go and read more. This was true of the other authors whose work I wasn't familiar with, such as the next reader, Gennifer Choldenko. She first took a few minutes to explain how her work as a docent on Alcatraz helped inspire her novel Al Capone Does My Shirts, and showed some pictures of the island at the time during which her novel takes place (including a fascinating image of the elaborate setup used to transport Al Capone to the prison--I had no idea that they were so concerned about security that they just drove his entire train onto the boat, to avoid any possible escape while getting him off the train!). Then she read the first brief chapter of her book, which is written from the point of view of a boy who lives on the island, where his father works in the prison. And, even for the families of workers on the island, guess who did the laundry?
The fourth reader was Michael Cadnum, who explained with dry humor the difficulties of writing about a character who is a Greek god before reading a passage from his latest release, Starfall--the story of Apollo and Phaeton. Joyce Maynard, the fifth and final reader, recently published The Cloud Chamber but read from her previous release The Usual Rules, which describes the profound change in the life of a young woman whose mother is working in the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Afterward there was time for one question from the audience--all five authors spoke about a few of the writing-related challenges they faced as authors of young adult fiction.
Overall it was a great evening, and although I was a somewhat nervous emcee, it was a great experience and I really enjoyed myself. It also reminded me that going to readings, art exhibits, plays, etc. can really get the creative juices flowing. Having a chance to see a variety of authors was inspiring and I found myself coming up with a few ideas for new work before I even left the bookstore. If you didn't have a chance to drop by this year's Lit Crawl, definitely consider it for next year.
I felt lucky to be able to introduce the group of authors and give our blogs a little plug before and after the readings, and I enjoyed listening to the variety of different styles the authors brought to the reading. The only minor setback to the evening was that the author who we had intended to read first was late, so the order got shuffled around slightly. We started with Kathryn Reiss, who read passages from three of her works, including her newest, along with a little explanation of some of the ways a book can set a creepy tone.
After that was Katherine Sturtevant, who read from her period piece At the Sign of the Star, whose narrator is a young woman in 1600s London who works in her father's bookshop and publishing house and yearns for more than a typical woman's domestic life. After hearing what seemed like an all-too-brief passage, I'm now eager to go and read more. This was true of the other authors whose work I wasn't familiar with, such as the next reader, Gennifer Choldenko. She first took a few minutes to explain how her work as a docent on Alcatraz helped inspire her novel Al Capone Does My Shirts, and showed some pictures of the island at the time during which her novel takes place (including a fascinating image of the elaborate setup used to transport Al Capone to the prison--I had no idea that they were so concerned about security that they just drove his entire train onto the boat, to avoid any possible escape while getting him off the train!). Then she read the first brief chapter of her book, which is written from the point of view of a boy who lives on the island, where his father works in the prison. And, even for the families of workers on the island, guess who did the laundry?
The fourth reader was Michael Cadnum, who explained with dry humor the difficulties of writing about a character who is a Greek god before reading a passage from his latest release, Starfall--the story of Apollo and Phaeton. Joyce Maynard, the fifth and final reader, recently published The Cloud Chamber but read from her previous release The Usual Rules, which describes the profound change in the life of a young woman whose mother is working in the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. Afterward there was time for one question from the audience--all five authors spoke about a few of the writing-related challenges they faced as authors of young adult fiction.
Overall it was a great evening, and although I was a somewhat nervous emcee, it was a great experience and I really enjoyed myself. It also reminded me that going to readings, art exhibits, plays, etc. can really get the creative juices flowing. Having a chance to see a variety of authors was inspiring and I found myself coming up with a few ideas for new work before I even left the bookstore. If you didn't have a chance to drop by this year's Lit Crawl, definitely consider it for next year.
October 13, 2005
Ten nails down, one manuscript, to go.
A. Fortis really inspired me to push forward through my rejection letter angst awhile back, and try to get an agent. I've pitched three or four different stories now to different people, and finally I got a "bite." Until I'm sure that one of us is on the proverbial 'hook,' (am I hooking him? Is he hooking me?) I won't speak in specifics, but I've been thrilled that my story caught someone's eye. Better still, it happened on D's birthday, which, to him, was probably the best gift ever; proof that finally his freeloading partner might actually get paid.
As I said, it was a thrill. Or, rather, I was thrilled. That was before the first slew of emails and rampant postal abuse.
Now, I'm as big a publisher-whore as the next writer, so at first I was twittering at all the communication I was getting. He wrote to me at odd hours in the morning - 5 a.m. on a Sunday, midnight on a Friday night. He'd write that I didn't need to answer him, but he just had been thinking -- and he'd dash off a comment on my characters. Why did so-and-so need to say that to his mother? If her family was so wealthy, why did she have an after school job?
As I said, it was a thrill. Or, rather, I was thrilled. That was before the first slew of emails and rampant postal abuse.
Now, I'm as big a publisher-whore as the next writer, so at first I was twittering at all the communication I was getting. He wrote to me at odd hours in the morning - 5 a.m. on a Sunday, midnight on a Friday night. He'd write that I didn't need to answer him, but he just had been thinking -- and he'd dash off a comment on my characters. Why did so-and-so need to say that to his mother? If her family was so wealthy, why did she have an after school job?
No need to answer, he'd say.
At first, I tried to answer all of the questions -- seriously. I pondered them all, and then I started worrying. Did he like my story, as it was, at all? Why did he contact me?
You know how you're supposed to send a SASE to publishers and agents during the query process? Since my person initially replied via email, the two envelopes I'd sent them I thought would be unused. Oh, no. Never one to waste trees, these envelopes have returned to me, full of my pages (out of order), filled with the scrawl of red pen. On every page.
For a finale? He sent, in one of my postage envelopes, a page of somebody else's story, to represent to me what a properly formatted page should be.
People don't waste their time on minutiae without a reason. This I promise myself faithfully, as I sit here with a stomach ache from pounding down two boxes of sugar-free Mentos and all the fingernails from both hands. He's got to be seriously planning to extend a contract to me. Or else I've got to find him and exterminate him in his sleep. I have never been so stressed out -- aside from PMS, I don't think I've ever been this ill-tempered for so extended a time in my life.
An hour ago, I finished the manuscript revisions. Tomorrow I'll print The Beast again, and wrap it lovingly in white paper, and mail it with reverent hands to the east coast. And yes, I'll add the requisite postage filled envelope so it can be returned. Again.
Cross your fingers.
October 10, 2005
Words Fail Me
When the ideas won't come, and the words no longer seem to be your friends, what do you do? Personally, I have a bible of creative block, and it's called Art & Fear by David Bayles and Ted Orland. It's a nice, reassuring, quick read that reminds us when we have those moments of paralyzing fear, of demotivation, that we are not alone or insane, but experiencing feelings that almost every creative person goes through at some point or another.
I say "almost every creative person," because I read an unenthused review of this book on Amazon--one of very few negative reviews--that said: "This book is for people that are very afraid and very insecure. It will give you lots of reassurance and make you feel better about yourself. However, if you are not depressed and on the verge of quitting, then I think you may find this book to be very annoying." I have to say that a) I disagree, and b) Congratulations to you, Mr. Reviewer, for having never had a single doubt in your life! ;)
Another fun book for getting out of a creative block is Free Play by Stephen Nachmanovitch, which I'm currently reading for a painting class, but, like Art and Fear pertains to all creative endeavors. It's got a bit more of a mystical approach to artmaking and creativity, but really gets you thinking about ways to loosen up when you're stuck. It reminded me that play and fun are important elements of the creative process, and that when we as writers can let go of any doubts, fears, or even our own expectations about ourselves, then our creativity really lets loose.
I say "almost every creative person," because I read an unenthused review of this book on Amazon--one of very few negative reviews--that said: "This book is for people that are very afraid and very insecure. It will give you lots of reassurance and make you feel better about yourself. However, if you are not depressed and on the verge of quitting, then I think you may find this book to be very annoying." I have to say that a) I disagree, and b) Congratulations to you, Mr. Reviewer, for having never had a single doubt in your life! ;)
Another fun book for getting out of a creative block is Free Play by Stephen Nachmanovitch, which I'm currently reading for a painting class, but, like Art and Fear pertains to all creative endeavors. It's got a bit more of a mystical approach to artmaking and creativity, but really gets you thinking about ways to loosen up when you're stuck. It reminded me that play and fun are important elements of the creative process, and that when we as writers can let go of any doubts, fears, or even our own expectations about ourselves, then our creativity really lets loose.
October 06, 2005
New Voices in Short Stories
It occured to me, after musing away on short stories the other day, to wonder why there aren't more anthologies and prizes celebrating the best in emergent YA writers... the answer, I guess, might be because there aren't loads of schools and literary programs aimed specifically at us, so we're not as well funded, or as well read. The bottom line is, the only folks interested in YA writing seem to be directly related to the American Library Association. We get the Michael Printz for YA lit, the Newbery Award given out by librarians for all of children's lit, and The Golden Kite for children's, picture books and YA lit from SCBWI, and that's pretty much it. It's not 'nothing,' by any means, but not nearly the number of prizes are awarded for YA shorts. Hmm.
Putting that aside,I was pleased to go out and check out the Best New American Voices, which came out this month, and includes a story by a friend. It's not YA lit, but maybe someday one of us will get included in there. In the meantime, the party's at Seren's! You go girl!
Putting that aside,I was pleased to go out and check out the Best New American Voices, which came out this month, and includes a story by a friend. It's not YA lit, but maybe someday one of us will get included in there. In the meantime, the party's at Seren's! You go girl!
October 05, 2005
From Space Down to Earth
I have to admit that although I haven't posted lately, I've been doing an awful lot of reading. Some of it was re-reading. There is a very absorbing sci-fi trilogy by Joan D. Vinge, the Cat trilogy--Psion, Catspaw, and Dreamfall. I read these several years ago, probably in my late teens or early twenties, and had forgotten what a detailed, fast-paced, and exciting set of adventures these are. A young, half-alien street punk named Cat has been suppressing his inborn telepathic abilities since suffering trauma at a young age; but when he is discovered by a researcher into psychic powers, his life really gets going. This trilogy is so much about the ultimate moral victory--albeit not without cost--of the downtrodden underdog. Cat is someone whose heart hurts, but is in the right place, and so the reader is there rooting for him all the way, even when it seems like nothing can possibly go right. I felt that the third book lost momentum a bit compared to the other two, but nonetheless, I was extremely depressed when I came to the end of it and realized there were no more (although I did find out that it's been published in French...).
So I went in a different direction and tried some realistic middle grade fiction. The House on the Gulf, by Margaret Peterson Haddix of Shadow Children fame, is a pretty darn good one-off about a twelve-year-old girl named Britt who begins to suspect her older brother of some shady doings after they move with their mother to a Florida beach town. Although the premise, to me, was a little predictable, I still enjoyed reading it, and Haddix is always a master of quick-reading suspense.
I also decided to try out Sons of Liberty by Adele Griffin, whose YA novel The Other Shepards I completely adored. This middle grade piece was very different, but frankly, the three books I've read by her have been quite different from one another with the exception of their pensive tone. Her narrators always seem, to one degree or another, to live in their thoughts, and show us the world through their eyes, to the point of being unreliable narrators at times. This is a tricky fence to walk when writing for younger readers, I think--you don't want the narrator to be difficult to relate to or unsympathetic, and you don't want readers to be confused by what the narrator says and what he or she does or sees--rather, you want them to notice an incongruity and let that build tension in the reader's mind.
Anyway, the narrator of Sons of Liberty isn't altogether sympathetic--but the reader can easily understand that his hardness, his head-in-the-sand, stubborn, unwillingness to change his worldview, is something that arose from his family life. Rochester--aka Rock--has to learn to change his focus from himself and his father, whom he both feared and idolized, to the happiness and safety of his friends and the rest of his family. It's a story about relationships with others and with oneself, and about some of the moments of understanding and loss that inevitably accompany growing up. It's very, very good. I didn't expect to like it as much as I did. It also ended at the perfect moment, and I always admire writers who can manage that.
And speaking of ending...
So I went in a different direction and tried some realistic middle grade fiction. The House on the Gulf, by Margaret Peterson Haddix of Shadow Children fame, is a pretty darn good one-off about a twelve-year-old girl named Britt who begins to suspect her older brother of some shady doings after they move with their mother to a Florida beach town. Although the premise, to me, was a little predictable, I still enjoyed reading it, and Haddix is always a master of quick-reading suspense.
I also decided to try out Sons of Liberty by Adele Griffin, whose YA novel The Other Shepards I completely adored. This middle grade piece was very different, but frankly, the three books I've read by her have been quite different from one another with the exception of their pensive tone. Her narrators always seem, to one degree or another, to live in their thoughts, and show us the world through their eyes, to the point of being unreliable narrators at times. This is a tricky fence to walk when writing for younger readers, I think--you don't want the narrator to be difficult to relate to or unsympathetic, and you don't want readers to be confused by what the narrator says and what he or she does or sees--rather, you want them to notice an incongruity and let that build tension in the reader's mind.
Anyway, the narrator of Sons of Liberty isn't altogether sympathetic--but the reader can easily understand that his hardness, his head-in-the-sand, stubborn, unwillingness to change his worldview, is something that arose from his family life. Rochester--aka Rock--has to learn to change his focus from himself and his father, whom he both feared and idolized, to the happiness and safety of his friends and the rest of his family. It's a story about relationships with others and with oneself, and about some of the moments of understanding and loss that inevitably accompany growing up. It's very, very good. I didn't expect to like it as much as I did. It also ended at the perfect moment, and I always admire writers who can manage that.
And speaking of ending...
October 04, 2005
Litquake!
Finding Neverland Lit Crawl Countdown!!!
Count the days, people: 11 left. Start thinking of dinner, books, authors and Ess Eff!
September 28, 2005
The Joys of Short Stories and Other Musings
Okay, here's the thing. I wanna be in an anthology. Yeah, I know, cool people like Seren are in anthologies, and it should be enough that my friends are so cool, but nope. It's not doing it. I couldn't write a story about fruit and New Jersey for Mei's anthology either, so I'm kind of stuck - I love reading the things, and short stories are pretty fascinating, when done well, and I want to be the kind of writer who leaves readers dying for more. So, anthologies. And, here, offered to me in a really cool package - the first SmartWriters.com short story contest ever! And the winner wins -- inclusion in that sought after anthology!! And how could I not be jazzed? Oh, wait. There's that little matter of actually writing a YA short story, huh. Sad, but true - I'm beginning to really resent Raymond Carver. Seriously.
The fact is, there are ten million books of commentary on how to write a really good short story. There's theory about 'pyramid structure,' there's conjecture about situational writing (i.e., get a man up a tree, throw stones at him, get him down), but the fact is, modern short stories kind of ruined the simple stuff. It's not good enough to just have a story... that's...short. Now there's all this enigma and stuff. I'm not sure I can do that.
Actually, I'm pretty positive I can't. I'm not enigmatic. Is young adulthood enigmatic? Was mine? I was reading a comment from A.Fortis the other day where she mentioned hearing publishers asking for stuff that was described as "nasty" (as in brutish or dirty, I couldn't tell ya) when talking with writers at a recent conference. That word lacks, um, subtlety. So, am I completely pursuing a wrong rant, here? Is subtlety not needed in YA shorts?
This is all in the service of actually keeping me from attempting to write said short story. I'll admit it -- I'm struggling to convey something pertinent in 8000 words. It seems like that should be enough words, but I'm going to have to edit, I see. Sharply.
As usual, when in doubt, I try and read something. I've heard that Kelly Link's Stranger Things Happen is a really good read, and that she's one of the best short story writers writing for this age group. I've been reading short stories for weeks. Something's got to give, here!
Wish me luck and I wish the same to you. Enter the contest!
September 24, 2005
News Tidbits from SCBWI
In my latest SCBWI e-newsletter was the news that Scottish writer Julie Bertagna had won the Eco-Prize for her young adult novel Exodus, set in a future version of Glasgow. The book sounded interesting enough on its own for me to want to scrounge my library for it. But then I visited her website and loved reading her comments about her writing process--things every writer can relate to:
Also, here's a link to First Book's Hurricane Katrina Book Relief Campaign, where you can sponsor a new book for as little as 50 cents.
I mustn't waste time. But I do. I drop my daughter at school and tell myself I must grab a coffee in Little Italy to jump-start my brain. Staring out of the window at the traffic and flicking through a newspaper or a book is essential. I used to feel guilty about this until a friend told me work rituals are a warm-up for your brain, so now I do it with relish and think smugly of everyone else stuck in their offices and classrooms!
Also, here's a link to First Book's Hurricane Katrina Book Relief Campaign, where you can sponsor a new book for as little as 50 cents.
September 22, 2005
Getting Unstuck
Lately, after a longish and very irritating bout with writer's block--or writer's demotivation--I thought about how I got un-blocked and moving again. There are probably just as many ways to get unstuck as there are writers, but I thought I'd share a few in case my experiences can be of help to anyone out there who's having trouble facing their computer or notebook or even canvas.
One thing that worked for me recently was trying something new and unusual. I was revising a short story and didn't like the way a particular section was flowing. I liked lots of individual parts, but it just wasn't coming together in a way I was satisfied with. I didn't really know how to continue. Should I trash and rewrite? Should I just leave it alone and hope I'd done enough to make it passable? What I decided was to print out a copy of that section, take out my scissors, and chop it up into those little parts or scenes that I saw as the building blocks. Then I moved them all around to see if a new chronology could solve the problem. And you know what? It really helped. I saw what I'd already written in a fresh way, and was able to fill in some gaps I hadn't been able to see before because I just couldn't see the forest for the trees after staring at it for so long. So next time you're at a sticking point, don't be afraid to be drastic--just keep a copy of your original draft in case you decide it's okay after all...
Of course, having an encouraging and productive writing group is also an excellent way to keep from being unstuck. I can speak from experience here--your group, even if it's just a few of you, can be cheerleaders for each other, critics, and even idea-generators. A related un-sticking factor is guilt. If you have something you're supposed to submit that week to your writing group, and by hook or by crook, you're determined to do it, that can give you a little extra motivation to power through anything from writer's block to pure laziness. Again, that's my personal experience talking. Many times over the past year, it's only been my writing group that has kept me going--the mini-deadlines, the regular dialogue on what we're all writing and the process itself.
Lastly, for getting unstuck--don't forget good old-fashionedinspiration. And don't forget to look for inspiration in unexpected places. I try to let myself get inspired by anything and everything, mining the world around me for ideas. Even books and television (what's that famous quote? Supposedly Lionel Trilling said "Immature artists imitate. Mature artists steal.") can spark things in your brain, as long as you go on to develop those ideas into something of your own. So, go get unstuck!
One thing that worked for me recently was trying something new and unusual. I was revising a short story and didn't like the way a particular section was flowing. I liked lots of individual parts, but it just wasn't coming together in a way I was satisfied with. I didn't really know how to continue. Should I trash and rewrite? Should I just leave it alone and hope I'd done enough to make it passable? What I decided was to print out a copy of that section, take out my scissors, and chop it up into those little parts or scenes that I saw as the building blocks. Then I moved them all around to see if a new chronology could solve the problem. And you know what? It really helped. I saw what I'd already written in a fresh way, and was able to fill in some gaps I hadn't been able to see before because I just couldn't see the forest for the trees after staring at it for so long. So next time you're at a sticking point, don't be afraid to be drastic--just keep a copy of your original draft in case you decide it's okay after all...
Of course, having an encouraging and productive writing group is also an excellent way to keep from being unstuck. I can speak from experience here--your group, even if it's just a few of you, can be cheerleaders for each other, critics, and even idea-generators. A related un-sticking factor is guilt. If you have something you're supposed to submit that week to your writing group, and by hook or by crook, you're determined to do it, that can give you a little extra motivation to power through anything from writer's block to pure laziness. Again, that's my personal experience talking. Many times over the past year, it's only been my writing group that has kept me going--the mini-deadlines, the regular dialogue on what we're all writing and the process itself.
Lastly, for getting unstuck--don't forget good old-fashionedinspiration. And don't forget to look for inspiration in unexpected places. I try to let myself get inspired by anything and everything, mining the world around me for ideas. Even books and television (what's that famous quote? Supposedly Lionel Trilling said "Immature artists imitate. Mature artists steal.") can spark things in your brain, as long as you go on to develop those ideas into something of your own. So, go get unstuck!
September 21, 2005
Shaking Up YA Writers & Readers Around the Bay
Litquake Rocks!!!
Thanks to the ever fab Tara Weaver, our humble Finding Wonderland writers are getting a primo chance to be involved with Litquake, San Francisco's fun and flighty literary festival. For the first time since their beginning in 2002, YA writers will be really represented, and a will be featured as a stop on the infamous toddle down Valencia Street, Lit Crawl.
Five fabulous YA writers will be reading selections from some of their latest works October 15th from 5-6:15 pm at Valencia Street Books in San Francisco, as part of the much anticipated Lit Crawl. They are: Mills College professor and mystery writer Kathryn Reiss, reading from SWEET MISS HONEYWELL'S REVENGE, the talented Gennifer Choldenko, reading her newly released AL CAPONE DOES MY SHIRTS, the irrepressible Joyce Maynard, reading from THE CLOUD CHAMBER, Katherine Sturtevant reading from the complex and thoughtful novel AT THE SIGN OF THE STAR, and thought-provoking historical novelist Michael Cadnum, reading from STARFALL. (These books have not yet been reviewed on our sister site! Read them? Let's hear about them!)
Hosted by our own A.Fortis, this event promises to be exciting and inspirational to all of us fledgling and would-be writers. Why not catch more of the Litquake '05 events if you can? Check out their website now!
September 19, 2005
Random Booknotes
This month's Book Page had a great feature on Jane Smiley's new book 13 Ways of Looking at the Novel. This book sounds a lot like what we might have read in Micheline Aharonian Marcom's class at Mills, since she's all about making lazy readers into better writers by requiring them to really dig into some tough novels they might normally just set aside. Smiley's book talks a bit about what makes good novels and what makes escapist novels. She overviews 100 novels that more or less span the history of literature -- from the obscure to the popular, a sort of Best Novels canon. What did she discover? Serious novels, says Smiley, don't allow you to escape. Instead they ask you to reconsider what you were thinking about in a new way. Sounds like a book to look into to me.
Wow, what a rush it must be to be Christopher Paolini. Paolini, just 19, wrote Eragon, the first book he'd ever written, as a first novel in a trilogy when he was just 15. Yeah, this, after having read all the books in his local library and graduating from high school that same year... He finished and self published at 17. Of course, it helps if your parents have a publishing company, but what a rush when you skip college to write a book that not only sells, but sells 1.5 million copies in North America alone, and remains on the bestseller list for eighty-five weeks. An even bigger rush might include the film rights being optioned, and Ed Speeler, Jeremy Irons and John Malkovich shooting it in Budapest! It's due to be released in 2006.
But surely - the greatest buzz of all? In its third week on the NY Times bestseller list, Eldest the second volume in the Inheritor trilogy, has passed the latest Potter epic to take its place at number one. Granted, Harry has been on top for nine weeks, but this is quite a feat for someone under 20, who hasn't yet made it to college, and has only written two books in his life thus far. Go Chris Go! We ain't seen nuthin' yet, obviously!
Carolyn Keene, the imaginary writer who won't die: Strangely located on the Style page of the Chronicle is a review of a new book on Carolyn Keene, the composite pseudonym of several writers behind the celebrated Nancy Drew series. Melanie Rehak, whose first book Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and the Women Who Created Her, became completely intrigued with the pre-feminist history of this literary character when she heard the NPR obituary of Mildred Wirt Benson on the radio one day. She wanted to know who the 'real' Nancy Drew really was. Fans of the plucky blonde sleuth will thrill with all the attention being paid to the reborn 40's teenager. From a new Manga-styled cover art to more modern character sketches, Nancy Drew seems fated, at 75, to be here to stay...
We have more writers wandering through the SF Bay Area than we know what to do with. Here are a few highlights of who's in town this weekend:
Though this isn't really a YA book, the protagonist of Jim Lynch's The Highest Tide is thirteen, and growing up in a wonderful autumnal coming-of-age book. There's a great luncheon planned in Pleasanton with the author at 11:30 a.m. this Thursday (9/22) It's $10/lunch; $28 lunch and book. Towne Center Books, 555 Main St., Pleasanton. (925) 846-8826.
Wouldn't it be the coolest to have a dad who worked on Alcatraz Island in 1935? Okay, maybe not. But if the warden's daughter was cool... how much fun could you get up to? Okay. Fun is another name for t-r-o-u-b-l-e. But that's the schtick in this well spoken of YA novel of historical fiction called Al Capone Does My Shirts. Author, Gennifer Choldenko is having a meet-n-greet next Saturday at 2 p.m. Crissy Field Center, Bldg. 603, Mason and Halleck streets, the Presidio, S.F. (415) 561-7752. Also don't forget that Pratchett's in town this week, too!
Autumn arrives this week. Celebrate with a new book!
Wow, what a rush it must be to be Christopher Paolini. Paolini, just 19, wrote Eragon, the first book he'd ever written, as a first novel in a trilogy when he was just 15. Yeah, this, after having read all the books in his local library and graduating from high school that same year... He finished and self published at 17. Of course, it helps if your parents have a publishing company, but what a rush when you skip college to write a book that not only sells, but sells 1.5 million copies in North America alone, and remains on the bestseller list for eighty-five weeks. An even bigger rush might include the film rights being optioned, and Ed Speeler, Jeremy Irons and John Malkovich shooting it in Budapest! It's due to be released in 2006.
But surely - the greatest buzz of all? In its third week on the NY Times bestseller list, Eldest the second volume in the Inheritor trilogy, has passed the latest Potter epic to take its place at number one. Granted, Harry has been on top for nine weeks, but this is quite a feat for someone under 20, who hasn't yet made it to college, and has only written two books in his life thus far. Go Chris Go! We ain't seen nuthin' yet, obviously!
Carolyn Keene, the imaginary writer who won't die: Strangely located on the Style page of the Chronicle is a review of a new book on Carolyn Keene, the composite pseudonym of several writers behind the celebrated Nancy Drew series. Melanie Rehak, whose first book Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and the Women Who Created Her, became completely intrigued with the pre-feminist history of this literary character when she heard the NPR obituary of Mildred Wirt Benson on the radio one day. She wanted to know who the 'real' Nancy Drew really was. Fans of the plucky blonde sleuth will thrill with all the attention being paid to the reborn 40's teenager. From a new Manga-styled cover art to more modern character sketches, Nancy Drew seems fated, at 75, to be here to stay...
We have more writers wandering through the SF Bay Area than we know what to do with. Here are a few highlights of who's in town this weekend:
Though this isn't really a YA book, the protagonist of Jim Lynch's The Highest Tide is thirteen, and growing up in a wonderful autumnal coming-of-age book. There's a great luncheon planned in Pleasanton with the author at 11:30 a.m. this Thursday (9/22) It's $10/lunch; $28 lunch and book. Towne Center Books, 555 Main St., Pleasanton. (925) 846-8826.
Wouldn't it be the coolest to have a dad who worked on Alcatraz Island in 1935? Okay, maybe not. But if the warden's daughter was cool... how much fun could you get up to? Okay. Fun is another name for t-r-o-u-b-l-e. But that's the schtick in this well spoken of YA novel of historical fiction called Al Capone Does My Shirts. Author, Gennifer Choldenko is having a meet-n-greet next Saturday at 2 p.m. Crissy Field Center, Bldg. 603, Mason and Halleck streets, the Presidio, S.F. (415) 561-7752. Also don't forget that Pratchett's in town this week, too!
Autumn arrives this week. Celebrate with a new book!
September 14, 2005
Odds 'n' Ends
I'm going on a little vacation at the end of the month, and I'm not taking my computer. I'm going to try and write some snatches of atmosphere -- descriptions of countryside, cityscapes, and more. I'm going to try some old-school writing techniques and take lots of notes to hopefully find some great scenes to stick in books someday.
I feel like I'm going back to grad school and sitting down in coffee shops, writing down conversations I overhear...
REMINDER: The Kimberly Colen Memorial Grant, established by SCBWI and the family of Kimberly Colen, honors the memory of this children's writer by helping authors and illustrators publish their first book. Two grants will be awarded in 2005, each for $2500, along with transportation, lodging and tuition to the SCBWI Winter Conference in New York. One grant will be for a picture book and/or an early reader book, but the other will be for a chapter book for middle grade, and or a YA book. Applicants must write a 1-page letter (250 words maximum) about the book they propose to write, and include their an excerpt from the book, and their contact information. The letters must be put in a #10, business-sized envelope, postmarked no earlier than October 1, and no later than November 15 mailed to:
SCBWI Kimberly Colen Grant Letter
Box 20322 Park West Finance Station
New York, NY, 10025-1512
The 24th Annual Delacorte Press Contest is open again for submissions October 1 through December 31! First time writers may submit book entries between 100 to 224 pages in length, suitable for readers aged 12-18, and Delacorte is specifically asking for stories with contemporary settings.
Writers, start your engines!
I feel like I'm going back to grad school and sitting down in coffee shops, writing down conversations I overhear...
SCBWI Kimberly Colen Grant Letter
Box 20322 Park West Finance Station
New York, NY, 10025-1512
The 24th Annual Delacorte Press Contest is open again for submissions October 1 through December 31! First time writers may submit book entries between 100 to 224 pages in length, suitable for readers aged 12-18, and Delacorte is specifically asking for stories with contemporary settings.
Writers, start your engines!
September 13, 2005
A Devil of a Bear
"In my land we have a saying," said the pilgrim. "A man should not care if a bee buzzes in his ear or if a child babbles at his feet."
"I don't think I care for that saying," said Clovermead. "The tone is very superior, very lofty. It sounds very silly coming from a young man who can't be much older than I am. Did people say that a lot to you when you were younger? It must have been very annoying to hear it from a grown-up on a regular basis."
David Randall's Clovermead: In the Shadow of the Bear is the story of the most complex twelve-year old characters I've come across in recent readings. Verbally astute one moment, infuriatingly hyperactive another, Clovermead is the innkeeper's only child, and the darling of the poky old village of Timothy Vale. Clovermead wants nothing more than adventure, and she forever pesters the pilgrims who pass on their way to Snowchapel, the high mountain retreat, to tell her about their lives, about the fighting further South, about anything. She longs to be a spy, a fighter, a thief -- and one day, she gets her wish.
I like Randall's characterization of this indomitable cub who roars and rips her way through the pages of this book. Even as she realizes that the life she's known has all been a lie, even as she is betrayed, fearful and angry, her spirit is an indistinguishable spark. She is known to herself, and her internal wisdom knows that she is strong. The choices she makes are because of who she is. Clovermead makes a deal with evil, in the form of Lord Ursus, a bear, because she longs for the power of bears, the ability to make others afraid. She hates being a little girl who is only lied to and shuffled around. It would make life easier if she could bite.
Ultimately, Clovermead chooses to bite - but Randall grants her grace with giving her the ability to change her mind and to know her own heart. Just because we give in to it once, evil doesn't always win forever. With the lightest hand possible, Randall makes the point that choosing wrongly isn't always a permanent "and everyone died" mistake, and that immense strength and power to destroy isn't inherently only something aligned with evil.
This was a complex, bright and interesting new book, and I look forward to seeing what else this writer, who is currently finishing his Ph.D. in British history, can produce.
"I don't think I care for that saying," said Clovermead. "The tone is very superior, very lofty. It sounds very silly coming from a young man who can't be much older than I am. Did people say that a lot to you when you were younger? It must have been very annoying to hear it from a grown-up on a regular basis."
David Randall's Clovermead: In the Shadow of the Bear is the story of the most complex twelve-year old characters I've come across in recent readings. Verbally astute one moment, infuriatingly hyperactive another, Clovermead is the innkeeper's only child, and the darling of the poky old village of Timothy Vale. Clovermead wants nothing more than adventure, and she forever pesters the pilgrims who pass on their way to Snowchapel, the high mountain retreat, to tell her about their lives, about the fighting further South, about anything. She longs to be a spy, a fighter, a thief -- and one day, she gets her wish.
I like Randall's characterization of this indomitable cub who roars and rips her way through the pages of this book. Even as she realizes that the life she's known has all been a lie, even as she is betrayed, fearful and angry, her spirit is an indistinguishable spark. She is known to herself, and her internal wisdom knows that she is strong. The choices she makes are because of who she is. Clovermead makes a deal with evil, in the form of Lord Ursus, a bear, because she longs for the power of bears, the ability to make others afraid. She hates being a little girl who is only lied to and shuffled around. It would make life easier if she could bite.
Ultimately, Clovermead chooses to bite - but Randall grants her grace with giving her the ability to change her mind and to know her own heart. Just because we give in to it once, evil doesn't always win forever. With the lightest hand possible, Randall makes the point that choosing wrongly isn't always a permanent "and everyone died" mistake, and that immense strength and power to destroy isn't inherently only something aligned with evil.
This was a complex, bright and interesting new book, and I look forward to seeing what else this writer, who is currently finishing his Ph.D. in British history, can produce.
Terry Pratchett
I'm not one of those people who likes, say, jokes... I'd rather just smirk sardonically at life than go to a comedy club. Surprisingly, I do like funny books, if they're just funny incidentally, and I do like weird British humor. I find writer Terry Pratchett one of the better writers of surrealist comedy of any kind, and he writes... well... It's kind of fantasy...only in the sense that the world is actually a disc set on the back of four massive elephants... who are, in turn, are riding atop a giant turtle. (Kind of like ours, right?) The disc is a board game for the various panoply of gods who bet on the stakes of hapless wizards and random citizens.
As for the worlds in that universe, well, they've got vampires and trolls. Death makes occasional appearances... with his granddaughter. And his horse. And his lovely black and white house and garden. And his four buddies, apocalyptic horsemen, who've stayed in touch all these years. There are kingdoms, and witches, and the odd Handsome Prince with his beloved werewolf girlfriend. There's an interspecies police force that employs a golem. And dwarves. Mostly, Pratchett's Discworld books are like a fairy tale gone quite thoroughly mad. And I await each new one with glee.'
They're impossibly relevant to present day, this-world politics and history. They're satire. They're just darned funny. Check them out!
I'm off to get Pratchett's newest book! He'll be in the Bay Area soon.
Wednesday, September 21, 2005 7:30 PM
CODY'S BOOKS
Speaking/Signing autographs
2454 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94704
Thursday, September 22, 2005 7:00 PM
THE BOOKSMITH
Speaking/Signing autographs
1644 Haight Street, San Francisco, CA 94117
Enjoy!
As for the worlds in that universe, well, they've got vampires and trolls. Death makes occasional appearances... with his granddaughter. And his horse. And his lovely black and white house and garden. And his four buddies, apocalyptic horsemen, who've stayed in touch all these years. There are kingdoms, and witches, and the odd Handsome Prince with his beloved werewolf girlfriend. There's an interspecies police force that employs a golem. And dwarves. Mostly, Pratchett's Discworld books are like a fairy tale gone quite thoroughly mad. And I await each new one with glee.'
They're impossibly relevant to present day, this-world politics and history. They're satire. They're just darned funny. Check them out!
I'm off to get Pratchett's newest book! He'll be in the Bay Area soon.
Wednesday, September 21, 2005 7:30 PM
CODY'S BOOKS
Speaking/Signing autographs
2454 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94704
Thursday, September 22, 2005 7:00 PM
THE BOOKSMITH
Speaking/Signing autographs
1644 Haight Street, San Francisco, CA 94117
Enjoy!
September 12, 2005
Enigmatic
I agree wholeheartedly with A. Fortis' observations on Patricia McKillip. Many readers either love her, or hate her entirely because of that elusive quality in her writing of formulating a beautiful, dreamlike world in which subtleties are the order of the day. Her work is incomparable, but her universes, at least, seem to resemble Tanith Lee's, in that there is often no single "evil" to battle, but a diffident and soulless way of life. For some readers, this way of writing doesn't work - and sometimes McKillip's work doesn't resonate with me.
One McKillip book that DID work, though, is this year's Alphabet of Thorn. It's highly imaginative and beautiful, and I hope you get a chance to snag it. I especially loved it because there was a Floating School for Mages, which works at the behest of Queen Tessera, who is new Queen and young and inexperienced. The Mages sense impending doom for her and many doubt that she will be able to hold the twelve Crowns of Raine into one dominion. One Crown is already in revolt, but that isn't the doom to come. The true doom of Raine is being shown in dreams, and has something to do with thorns.
Meanwhile, in the library under the palace, in the archives, an orphaned translator named Nepthene is working away at deciphering a message written in throny script. She's jealously guarding her secret task, trusting in no one to help her... which should already give her second thoughts about why it's so important. As the palace falls under siege, Nepthene and her friends realize that the information she's guarding may be able to tell how the Queen can save her kingdom...
It's a short novel, and has quite a rich plotline, so I don't want to give too much away. The ending may frustrate, as the beautiful world ends with all the abruptness of a bubble popping... but it's worth reading, even though some bookstores don't yet carry it. McKillip may be enigmatic and elusive, but her work is worth seeking out.
One McKillip book that DID work, though, is this year's Alphabet of Thorn. It's highly imaginative and beautiful, and I hope you get a chance to snag it. I especially loved it because there was a Floating School for Mages, which works at the behest of Queen Tessera, who is new Queen and young and inexperienced. The Mages sense impending doom for her and many doubt that she will be able to hold the twelve Crowns of Raine into one dominion. One Crown is already in revolt, but that isn't the doom to come. The true doom of Raine is being shown in dreams, and has something to do with thorns.
Meanwhile, in the library under the palace, in the archives, an orphaned translator named Nepthene is working away at deciphering a message written in throny script. She's jealously guarding her secret task, trusting in no one to help her... which should already give her second thoughts about why it's so important. As the palace falls under siege, Nepthene and her friends realize that the information she's guarding may be able to tell how the Queen can save her kingdom...
It's a short novel, and has quite a rich plotline, so I don't want to give too much away. The ending may frustrate, as the beautiful world ends with all the abruptness of a bubble popping... but it's worth reading, even though some bookstores don't yet carry it. McKillip may be enigmatic and elusive, but her work is worth seeking out.
September 10, 2005
Revisiting McKillip
Last week I reached a hand into a pile of fantasy and sci-fi that had recently been rescued from a long sleep in a box, and came up with Winter Rose by Patricia McKillip. I know I've read a few books of hers, but it had been so long that I could not call to mind either this one or any other. So I knew it was prime time for a re-read, because I've been in a sci-fi/fantasy kind of mood.
What I realized, reading the lush and gorgeous prose of McKillip's story, is that great fantasy will transcend the bounds of genre and go somewhere that's difficult to label or define; and that excellent writing can be found in small packages. This isn't an incredibly long book, but like poetry, so much is condensed into a small space that you can turn to almost any page and find word-images so vivid you can almost taste them:
The mysterious journey of Rois Melior into the secrets of the mysterious Corbet Lynn parallels her journeys into the heart of the surrounding woods and into her own knowledge of self. The journeys weave together eerily, seamlessly, until one is inseparable from the next and none has meaning without the others. In the end, to me, it resembled less a fantasy novel, and more a work of magical realism along the lines of Marquez or Rushdie.
It leaves you with questions at the end, and not many answers; if you like your fantasy straightforward and clearly narrative, it might not be for you. But if you harbor a secret wordlust for poetic turns of phrase, if you're willing to read something that blurs the boundaries of dream and reality and leaves it up to you to decide which is which, give it a try.
What I realized, reading the lush and gorgeous prose of McKillip's story, is that great fantasy will transcend the bounds of genre and go somewhere that's difficult to label or define; and that excellent writing can be found in small packages. This isn't an incredibly long book, but like poetry, so much is condensed into a small space that you can turn to almost any page and find word-images so vivid you can almost taste them:
Winds shook me apart piecemeal, flung a bone here, a bone there. My eyes became snow, my hair turned to ice; I heard it chime against my shoulders like wind-blown glass. If I spoke, words would fall from me like snow, pour out of me like black wind.
The mysterious journey of Rois Melior into the secrets of the mysterious Corbet Lynn parallels her journeys into the heart of the surrounding woods and into her own knowledge of self. The journeys weave together eerily, seamlessly, until one is inseparable from the next and none has meaning without the others. In the end, to me, it resembled less a fantasy novel, and more a work of magical realism along the lines of Marquez or Rushdie.
It leaves you with questions at the end, and not many answers; if you like your fantasy straightforward and clearly narrative, it might not be for you. But if you harbor a secret wordlust for poetic turns of phrase, if you're willing to read something that blurs the boundaries of dream and reality and leaves it up to you to decide which is which, give it a try.
September 07, 2005
Wading through my brain
More hurricane stuff:
There's not much space to avoid reality when it keeps leaking into my brain via all kinds of media outlets. I'm doing my best to single-handedly support the Red Cross ($10,124,762.25 raised as of today and counting!) by shopping where there are donations made tips and change, and sending the cash I can afford to hopefully buy underwear and clean water for those in need. Today I found out where to send packages of necessities to various locations in the Gulf States (and I can give you the 411 if you really want to know), and I'm having fun collecting basic needful things - and stickers! I mean, isn't this a bad enough disaster without glittery underpants and stickers! -- for kids. No books yet, since displaced people have to schlepp their stuff... and they have enough to shoulder at present.
So much political debate is going on -- are they 'refugees?' or are they survivors? I vote for 'survivors.' People in the Gulf states, where they are annually wind-battered, flooded and flattened, have got to be some of the toughest people around. May their spirits be as resilient... I hope that people like Mills alum and former classmate Mahmud Rahman and the Neo-Griot New Orleans Project who will be going around in New Orleans, collecting stories not only of the disaster, but of the lives of the survivors, remembers to record the stories of the children... The stories that kids can tell should be told. Every other kid in America needs to hear what it was like living in New Orleans before this last month. Every child needs to think about how they will act and feel and be during a disaster. The best children's and YA books give kids a chance to fill another kid's shoes, if just for awhile.
New Orleans resident and Project leader, Kalama ya Salaam adds,
"Too often when major historic events take place, those who are live at the margins of the mainstream are ignored. We know what the presidents and generals did, we know what the business leaders and major cultural figures thought, but do we know anything about the poor, the disenfranchised, the people of the Dome, the overpass, as well as those who left the city on Sunday and as of Tuesday night had no city to return to?
During the Great Depression the WPA collected the stories of people who had experienced slavery. Today we will collect the stories of people who survived a defining moment in American and World History."
The project objective is:
1. to put the words and images of the people on the internet via a New Orleans
Project website.
2. to teach the respondents how to access the internet, so that they can
continue sharing their views after the neo-griots leave.
3. to archive the resulting information so that it can be researched and
accessed worldwide.
There are stories yet to be heard, and yet to be written. Like a campfire shining clear in a dark and unfamiliar wood, I hope the smaller stories will shine out and be seen...as hope, as memory, and as the means to rebuild a world.
There's not much space to avoid reality when it keeps leaking into my brain via all kinds of media outlets. I'm doing my best to single-handedly support the Red Cross ($10,124,762.25 raised as of today and counting!) by shopping where there are donations made tips and change, and sending the cash I can afford to hopefully buy underwear and clean water for those in need. Today I found out where to send packages of necessities to various locations in the Gulf States (and I can give you the 411 if you really want to know), and I'm having fun collecting basic needful things - and stickers! I mean, isn't this a bad enough disaster without glittery underpants and stickers! -- for kids. No books yet, since displaced people have to schlepp their stuff... and they have enough to shoulder at present.
So much political debate is going on -- are they 'refugees?' or are they survivors? I vote for 'survivors.' People in the Gulf states, where they are annually wind-battered, flooded and flattened, have got to be some of the toughest people around. May their spirits be as resilient... I hope that people like Mills alum and former classmate Mahmud Rahman and the Neo-Griot New Orleans Project who will be going around in New Orleans, collecting stories not only of the disaster, but of the lives of the survivors, remembers to record the stories of the children... The stories that kids can tell should be told. Every other kid in America needs to hear what it was like living in New Orleans before this last month. Every child needs to think about how they will act and feel and be during a disaster. The best children's and YA books give kids a chance to fill another kid's shoes, if just for awhile.
New Orleans resident and Project leader, Kalama ya Salaam adds,
"Too often when major historic events take place, those who are live at the margins of the mainstream are ignored. We know what the presidents and generals did, we know what the business leaders and major cultural figures thought, but do we know anything about the poor, the disenfranchised, the people of the Dome, the overpass, as well as those who left the city on Sunday and as of Tuesday night had no city to return to?
During the Great Depression the WPA collected the stories of people who had experienced slavery. Today we will collect the stories of people who survived a defining moment in American and World History."
The project objective is:
1. to put the words and images of the people on the internet via a New Orleans
Project website.
2. to teach the respondents how to access the internet, so that they can
continue sharing their views after the neo-griots leave.
3. to archive the resulting information so that it can be researched and
accessed worldwide.
There are stories yet to be heard, and yet to be written. Like a campfire shining clear in a dark and unfamiliar wood, I hope the smaller stories will shine out and be seen...as hope, as memory, and as the means to rebuild a world.
September 02, 2005
Two Magical Journeys
Perhaps it's a feeble excuse, but one major reason I haven't contributed in a little while is that I've been reading voraciously. When I have a lot going on in my life, I seem to gravitate towards books that really take my mind on a journey somewhere else. Some might call this escapism. Whether it is or not, I always welcome a well-written fantasy of the archetypal journey variety. What is life but a journey? And when our own journeys become confusing, how wonderful it is to have others' journeys—albeit fictional—to look to for inspiration and enlightenment.
A couple of weeks ago I read Nancy Farmer's latest The Sea of Trolls. Shelved in the children's section, I nonetheless found this coming-of-age journey to be ageless and timeless. When I first started reading—and from time to time throughout—it reminded me of that godfather of fantasy classics, T.H. White's The Once and Future King—still one of my favorite bits of required reading from high school.
Somewhere on the eastern shore of the British Isles in the 8th century, young Jack lives with his little sister, mother, and father in a peaceful Anglo-Saxon village. He whiles away his days as apprentice to a very Merlin-like bard who came to the area some years ago floating in a lone coracle. One day, though, the bard foretells the coming of berserkers from the wild realms of the Northmen. Sure enough, the warriors loot and pillage and do their Viking thing, capturing Jack and his sister Lucy in the process. But there's so much more magic to the story than that, and Jack enters a world of magical bardic verses, trolls, and Norse mythology come to life.
These are myths that still rear their heads in our Western belief systems even today, and have left their mark on our language—the stories of Beowulf, the sagas of gods and goddesses like Thor and Freya and Odin and the great tree of life Yggdrassil. And Farmer has really done her research well. If you want to journey into a past where the world of magic had not yet fled in the face of modern progress, this is a wonderful, wonderful tale.
Another book that deals with the loss of past closeness between the world of magic and our own world is Charles de Lint's The Little Country, a re-read for me. But I'd forgotten just how absorbing this story-within-a-story is. Cornish folk musician Janey Little, who lives in the tiny village of Mousehole in Cornwall, gets caught up in a world of magic, music, and a power-hungry dark conspiracy when she opens the pages of a previously-unknown book by her favorite author.
For the book itself holds magic, and a powerful secret that the bad guys will stop at nothing to obtain. At the same time, the reader is treated to a parallel story, that of young Jodi Shepherd's journey into a world where faeries, witches, and monstrous drowned sailors are all too real. To find out how the stories relate, you'll just have to read it. I highly recommend it, along with The Sea of Trolls, for some beginning-of-the-school-year escapism. And de Lint's book is also a great antidote to the non-plucky female characters that TadMack was recently grumbling about.
A couple of weeks ago I read Nancy Farmer's latest The Sea of Trolls. Shelved in the children's section, I nonetheless found this coming-of-age journey to be ageless and timeless. When I first started reading—and from time to time throughout—it reminded me of that godfather of fantasy classics, T.H. White's The Once and Future King—still one of my favorite bits of required reading from high school.
Somewhere on the eastern shore of the British Isles in the 8th century, young Jack lives with his little sister, mother, and father in a peaceful Anglo-Saxon village. He whiles away his days as apprentice to a very Merlin-like bard who came to the area some years ago floating in a lone coracle. One day, though, the bard foretells the coming of berserkers from the wild realms of the Northmen. Sure enough, the warriors loot and pillage and do their Viking thing, capturing Jack and his sister Lucy in the process. But there's so much more magic to the story than that, and Jack enters a world of magical bardic verses, trolls, and Norse mythology come to life.
These are myths that still rear their heads in our Western belief systems even today, and have left their mark on our language—the stories of Beowulf, the sagas of gods and goddesses like Thor and Freya and Odin and the great tree of life Yggdrassil. And Farmer has really done her research well. If you want to journey into a past where the world of magic had not yet fled in the face of modern progress, this is a wonderful, wonderful tale.
Another book that deals with the loss of past closeness between the world of magic and our own world is Charles de Lint's The Little Country, a re-read for me. But I'd forgotten just how absorbing this story-within-a-story is. Cornish folk musician Janey Little, who lives in the tiny village of Mousehole in Cornwall, gets caught up in a world of magic, music, and a power-hungry dark conspiracy when she opens the pages of a previously-unknown book by her favorite author.
For the book itself holds magic, and a powerful secret that the bad guys will stop at nothing to obtain. At the same time, the reader is treated to a parallel story, that of young Jodi Shepherd's journey into a world where faeries, witches, and monstrous drowned sailors are all too real. To find out how the stories relate, you'll just have to read it. I highly recommend it, along with The Sea of Trolls, for some beginning-of-the-school-year escapism. And de Lint's book is also a great antidote to the non-plucky female characters that TadMack was recently grumbling about.
September 01, 2005
Judy Blume's Forever was first published in 1975, which is why it is held as the first Serious Book About Sex that YA's had available to them. There is still a huge firestorm of controversy about the book, even as late as 2004 a school librarian in Texas was appealing to have it banned for all time from school shelves.
Oddly, Norma Fox Mazer's Up in Seth's Room has all but submerged without a splash, and vanished in relative obscurity. Published in 1979, this book writes in more specific detail about different kinds of sexual activities, but surprisingly it's out of print, and the first edition copy I was able to run down was borrowed from a library in Lake County, at least five hours away. I wonder at the reasons why this book didn't catch on as well. Did it seem to be a copycat effort after Blume? Was it because the sex wasn't actual intercourse? Was it because everyone was still distracted by being annoyed with Blume?
Mazer's writing is, in my mind, actually better than Blume's. Finn is fifteen, and in high school. She has friends, she has a family, and she has definite sexual feelings. Seth, at nineteen, is a high school dropout who wants to go into agriculture the old fashioned way -- buy some land and start a farm. Both teens are smart and articulate, and know what they want... and what they don't want. Finn has a lot of signals from her body, but she doesn't want to have sex. Seth ...does.
There's a heightened sense of push-pull throughout the book as the characters enable obstacles to getting what they want. Finn first dreams, then dares, then openly defies her parents -- in what surely to me was a groundbreaking (for that time, anyway) show of independence in a YA character. She gets slapped. She gets screamed at. She gets ignored. She goes to see Seth anyway. Her sister, kicked out of the house for "living in sin" with her boyfriend, Seth's older brother, even sides against Finn, telling her she's too young for the commitment, and that Seth's "bad news." Seth moves out of their house. It all seems like it's going to go Romeo & Juliet: two teens against the universe, until we remember that Finn... doesn't want to have sex.
And then Seth has to remember that, too.
It's a bittersweet ending -- it's like the point in a relationship where you know you'd better commit or end. Mazer chooses to end the book, and Finn realizes that she will move on. I really like that she is a solid character who makes up her mind and isn't swayed by a handsome boy, and doesn't drift from sexual conquest to conquest for whatever reason, as does her best friend. She's not anti-sex... she's very interested in being with Seth, and just wants to be assured that he's listening to her about what she wants. Seth has to have a wake-up call about what a girl says and what a girl means when she says yes to some things and no to others. All in all, it seems like it was a really well-thought out plot, and featured the life of one very strong-willed person in such a positive light that I was amazed that more hadn't been made of it long ago. She pursued him, she got what she wanted, she rejected what she didn't want, and she wasn't a nerd, she still had respect and friends and good physical feelings in the morning.
I wonder why I never heard of this?
After Hurricane Katrina: Is It Too Soon To Think Of Books?
Okay, people are needing shelter. I know that.
People are needing basic necessities like food and untainted water and medical care and protection from gun-toting thugs and gun-toting vigilantes.
I wish I could rock the South to sleep and tell them this hurricane/levee breakage/rising water/flooded homes/floating corpses/lost loved ones thing is a bad, bad, dream that will dissipate with the mists of morning.
Wishful thinking aside, I am trying to find something to do here, since I can't go and rescue my relatives (blessedly missed by most of the rising water, as they don't live IN New Orleans; the flood waters didn't rise quite as high in the parishes further away. They're just low on food, have no power and limited phones, and are low on pharmacologicals, but are alive... Thank God, Shiva, Buddha, or whomever - insert your Deity here.) and weeping every time I watch the news is somewhat, um, counter productive...
MoveOn.org, being the remarkably righteous people they are, have come up with a civic arm that ignores such absurdities as blue/red state, and have come down to the real issues, like housing -- which is a wonderful thing for the people who live within 100 miles of the worst of the grief. I can't help out with that, but here's my best thought so far: I realize the schools and the libraries are going to be rotted stinking pulps of paper waste, in an already low literacy area (Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana - AND all three have rural poverty rates that are amazingly high, no coincidence)... Maybe we can do something like what Pamela Ribbon did for the Oakland School Library system, and come up with some kind of groundswell thing to collect books to support the libraries and schools, in a positive "you're going to reopen someday" kind of mindset. Maybe the LitCrawl thing (which may have our name on it?) can somehow be involved in raising funds or collecting books...? Trying to think... but there's still a lot of static.
We were planning to go to New Orleans for Thanksgiving. Still trying to recalibrate the brain.
Other thoughts, anyone?
People are needing basic necessities like food and untainted water and medical care and protection from gun-toting thugs and gun-toting vigilantes.
I wish I could rock the South to sleep and tell them this hurricane/levee breakage/rising water/flooded homes/floating corpses/lost loved ones thing is a bad, bad, dream that will dissipate with the mists of morning.
Wishful thinking aside, I am trying to find something to do here, since I can't go and rescue my relatives (blessedly missed by most of the rising water, as they don't live IN New Orleans; the flood waters didn't rise quite as high in the parishes further away. They're just low on food, have no power and limited phones, and are low on pharmacologicals, but are alive... Thank God, Shiva, Buddha, or whomever - insert your Deity here.) and weeping every time I watch the news is somewhat, um, counter productive...
MoveOn.org, being the remarkably righteous people they are, have come up with a civic arm that ignores such absurdities as blue/red state, and have come down to the real issues, like housing -- which is a wonderful thing for the people who live within 100 miles of the worst of the grief. I can't help out with that, but here's my best thought so far: I realize the schools and the libraries are going to be rotted stinking pulps of paper waste, in an already low literacy area (Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana - AND all three have rural poverty rates that are amazingly high, no coincidence)... Maybe we can do something like what Pamela Ribbon did for the Oakland School Library system, and come up with some kind of groundswell thing to collect books to support the libraries and schools, in a positive "you're going to reopen someday" kind of mindset. Maybe the LitCrawl thing (which may have our name on it?) can somehow be involved in raising funds or collecting books...? Trying to think... but there's still a lot of static.
We were planning to go to New Orleans for Thanksgiving. Still trying to recalibrate the brain.
Other thoughts, anyone?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)