The Pen And Ink Blog

The Night Before Christmas For Book Lovers

noreply@blogger.com (Susan B James) — Thu, 23 Dec 2021 23:11:00 +0000

Twas The Night.

by Susan J Berger

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house,

Each creature was reading. Yes, even the mouse.

In a nest made of cotton that used to line pills,

he read Mouseman Saves Christmas and shivered with thrills.

Miss Padpaws turned pages of Elf off A Shelf

And purred as she read it aloud to herself.

Bad Dog, on the hearth, was devouring a book.

He'd chewed up five chapters and turned them to gook.

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,

reading books, with their blankets pulled over their heads.

Mamá in her headset heard Time and Forever.

I chortled o'er Hogfather. That Pratchett's so clever.

Not one of us heard jingle bells on the roof.

No prancing and pawing of each tiny hoof.

Santa slid down the chimney and only Bad Dog,

looked up and woofed softly at the man on the log.

"Good Bad Dog," said Santa, and opened his pack.

He pulled out a bushel of books from his sack.

Latkes For Santa Claus, Midgrades for Simon,

Thrillers, romances, and even Neil Gaiman.

Geronimo Stilton, he gave to the mouse.

A copy of Archie, he left for the louse

He patted Miss Padpaws and handed her Cats.

For Bad Dog, a cake book that tasted like Brats

He filled every stocking with poems and prose.

Then ate all the cookies; brushed crumbs from his clothes.

On Prancer! On Dancer!" Their bells jingled bright.

"Happy reading to all and to all a good night".

SCBWI Conference Adventures

noreply@blogger.com (Susan B James) — Thu, 05 Aug 2021 00:21:00 +0000

I know everyone who attended SCBWI 50 had a glorious time. Pen and Ink first attended SBWI's Summer Conference in 2010

During a meeting at Taco Tuesday at El Torito's Kris Kahrs decided it wasn't enough to simply attend, we had to have a gimmick. Kris suggested we create a picture book.

So we did. We designated Lupe as our cameraman. Sue as our costumer. And Kris and Hilde began to shanghai victims… hem, potential participants to take part in the fun. I have to admit, I was a bit skeptical that people would want to do it, but we were surprised at how little convincing people needed. They were quite willing indeed.

And you wouldn't believe the caliber of pirates we had join our ship! You will have to click on the link to see the cast of bandits… I mean… award-winning authors extraordinaire.

Side-note from Sue. I was sitting next to Judy Blume at one of the breakout sessions and she agreed to be part of our adventure. I frantically texted the rest of the gang, but they were busy in the main room. So - no Judy Blume. But so many others agreed to play along. The letter A pirate was Arthur Levine and then there was . . .. No. Click and see for yourselves.

Take a look. Happy summer all.

TwasThe Night Before Christmas A Parody For Book Lovers

noreply@blogger.com (Susan B James) — Wed, 23 Dec 2020 06:24:00 +0000

Twas The Night.

by Susan J Berger

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house,

Each creature was reading. Yes, even the mouse.

In a nest made of cotton that used to line pills,

he read Mouseman Saves Christmas and shivered with thrills.

Miss Padpaws turned pages of Elf off A Shelf

And purred as she read it aloud to herself.

Bad Dog, on the hearth, was devouring a book.

He'd chewed up five chapters and turned them to gook.

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,

reading books, with their blankets pulled over their heads.

Mamá in her headset heard Time and Forever.

I chortled o'er Hogfather. That Pratchett's so clever.

Not one of us heard jingle bells on the roof.

No prancing and pawing of each tiny hoof.

Santa slid down the chimney and only Bad Dog,

looked up and woofed softly at the man on the log.

"Good Bad Dog," said Santa, and opened his pack.

He pulled out a bushel of books from his sack.

Picture books, YA, some Midgrades for Simon,

Thrillers, romances and even Neil Gaiman.

Geronimo Stilton, he gave to the mouse.

A copy of Archie, he left for the louse

He patted Miss Padpaws and handed her Cats.

For Bad Dog, a cake book that tasted like Brats

He filled every stocking with poems and prose.

Then ate all the cookies; brushed crumbs from his clothes.

On Prancer! On Dancer!" Their bells jingled bright.

"Happy reading to all and to all a good night".

NanoWriMo Time. Quotes to keep you writing

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Wed, 18 Nov 2020 06:30:00 +0000

By Susan J. Berger

It's NaNoWriMo time again. If you've never tried National Novel Month, it's a great way to get a first draft. This year I hope to come out with a finished short story. No harm in setting your own personal goal. I have three published NaNoWriMo Novels, two first drafts I haven't revised and a fourth novel I am currently querying.

This isn't about being perfect. It's about getting the words out. If you get the words out, the story will come. I guarantee there will be lots of surprises.

"Here's the bottom line; writers write. Sometimes words flow easily. Sometimes it's like sloughing through mud. Either way a professional writer keeps writing."

P.C.Cast

"A word after a word after a word is power." - Margaret Atwood

Dory and I have so much in common. I often stop to Google.
“Don't worry about what you're writing or whether it's good or even whether it makes sense.” Lauren Oliver

“Remember: Plot is no more than footprints left in the snow after your characters have run by on their way to incredible destinations.”
Ray Bradbury.

Advice from a Hollywood NaNoWriMo coordinator.

"When all else fails, throw in a Zombie."

Will you revise after NaNoWriMo? Of course, but right now the trick is meeting the deadline.

"There's an old folk saying that goes: whenever you delete a sentence from your NaNoWriMo novel, a NaNoWriMo angel loses its wings and plummets, screaming, to the ground. Where it will likely require medical attention.”
Chris Baty

“You can't edit a blank page”

Nora Roberts

Happy writing.

More on NaNoWriMO It's COVID Season. Here's Something to Do

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Mon, 26 Oct 2020 10:00:00 +0000

Have you started a book which you’ve never had time to finish? You are not alone. I had ideas galore. But getting them down and finishing that first draft? Let me say it took me a year and an half, a commitment to my critique group and a lot of personal nagging to finish a first draft of a middle grade book. Then I discovered NaNoWriMo.

National Write a Novel Month takes place in November. It began in 1999, when Chris Baty and a group of friends got together and challenged each other to write a novel of 50,000 words of more in ONE MONTH. Why? Who knows? Crazy!

But seven people completed the challenge. They did it again the next year with more people… This will be the sixteenth year of the marathon. It has become an international event with more than 100,000 [R1] participants.

This blurb from their website:

National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is a fun, seat-of-your-pants approach to creative writing. On November 1, participants begin working towards the goal of writing a 50,000-word novel by 11:59 PM on November 30.Valuing enthusiasm, determination, and a deadline, NaNoWriMo is for anyone who has ever thought fleetingly about writing a novel.

IN 2018 which is the last year for which I can find statistics 450,000 participated. 53,000 finished. This year's NaNo winners - 2020, Get a free upload and editing with Ingram Sparks

Sound interesting to you? My first thought was 50,000 words in one month? No way!!! The longest piece I’d ever written was that mid grade novel – about 16,000 words. But what if I could? I explored the NaNoWriMo website and decided to give it a shot.

It was an amazing experience. What I had given myself was a huge gift – a deadline.

In November 2004, I sat down at the PC without an idea in my head, just a determination to do a daily stint of 2000 words. (I belong to the Pantser school of writers. The plot emerges from my subconscious as I write.)

The first sentence was “I am beginning. I don’t know how I got here and the world is full of strangers..” Horrible sentence, but I kept on writing.

Often my inner critic would look at what I wrote and say, “This is awful!” But my looming deadline gave me the courage to silence my inner snarker with these words. “Never mind, it is word count. Keep writing.”

Another joy of NaNo? Getting a pep talk from a well known author in your mail box every week in November. Here are a few SCBWI members gave: Kate DiCamillo, John Green, Tamora Pierce, Walter Dean Myers Here’s is a link to all the previous SCBWI author pep talks.

I kept writing. I attended local NaNo write-ins. I powered through sticky awkward sentences to scenes I was proud of, and on November 30, 2004, I had a 50,000 word first draft of a first person YA novel called Missing. Frabjous joy!!

(Slight problem: After I read it through, I realized I had used Robert Heinlein’s Mars stories as a model and that science is no longer valid. Someday I will figure out how to overcome that and revise the novel.)

Next!

In 2006 I gave NaNo another shot and didn’t finish. I hated what I’d written. No one yelled at me except my inner critic.

Next!

In 2009 I tried again. This time I came up with a first draft I knew I could revise into a better story.

Many drafts later, Soul Mate Publishing offered me a contract for Second Chances, which was reborn as Time and Forever and published in 2014.

Time and Forever was a Golden Quill Finalist for Best First Book and a RONE Award finalist for Best Time Travel Novel.

I wrote four more books during Nano. Two of them are published. I am submitting the third now. And I believe I will do NaNo this November.

Biggest pieces of advice:

Be like Dory in the movie Finding Nemo.

“Just keep writing, just keep writing.

Do. Not. Edit.

As author Sarah MacLean says, “That’s for future you to worry about.”

Name your inner critic (I call mine Ethel), and tell her/him to take a vacation till the end of November. If you keep your fingers moving and write through the junk, a beautiful something will emerge.

Go ahead! Give yourself an adventure. http://www.nanowrimo.org/

You have no idea what is possible till you try it.

NaNoWriMo It's happening Soon

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Tue, 20 Oct 2020 02:33:00 +0000

Originally posted October 14, 2010.

Susan Berger

November is officially Write a Novel Month

(Thirty days and thirty nights of literary abandon)

In 1999, Chris Baty and a group of friends got together and challenged each other to write a novel of 50,000 words of more in ONE MONTH. Why? Who knows? Crazy!

But seven people completed the challenge. They did it again the next year with more people… This is the eleventh year of the marathon. It has become an international event. In 2009 167,150 people signed up. 32,178 people completed their 50,000 word count. I was one of them.

I first participated in 2004. When I heard about it, my thought was “No way!” The longest piece I had ever written was 16,000 words. Then I went on the Nanowrimo website. I bought Chris Baty’s book. “No Plot No Problem” and I decided to give it a shot.

It was an amazing experience. What I had given myself was a gift – a deadline.

I gave myself a daily stint of 2000 words. Often I would look at what I wrote and say, “This is awful!” Then I would say, “Never mind, it is word count. Keep writing.”

I silenced my inner editor and on November 29th 2004, I had a 50,000 word first draft of a YA novel. I made new friends, and had an amazing experience.

The odd thing about the experience was that the 2000 words per day on the novel seemed to fuel my other writing.

I started Nanowrimo again in 2006. That time, I did not complete the book. But I still go back to it. I am glad I started it. No one (including me) gave me a bad time about not finishing.

On November 3rd 2009, I started Nano with not an idea in my head. But if you show up at the page…I ended up with a novel called Second Chances which I hope to pursue to publication. I was lucky enough to have Kelley Armstrong critique the first 40 pages. I am working on her suggestions.

Nano now sends pep talks from established authors. http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/pep I was amazed by how many of my favorite authors gave pep talks. I LOVED getting those emails

Have any been published?

NaNoWriMo books have borne the logos of presses such as Warner Books, Ballantine, and Berkley Books. Published novels include, Sarah Gruen's Flying Changes, Rebecca Agiewich's Breakup Babe, Dave Wilson's The Mote in Andrea's Eye, and Gayle Brandeis's Self Storage. This is a link to the Nanowrimo FAQ on their published stats.

http://www.nanowrimo.org/publishedwrimos

Go ahead! Give yourself an adventure. http://www.nanowrimo.org/

Look around the site and see if it appeals to you.

Once you sign up for Nanowrimo, you will want to “customize” your experience.

Set your region. Mine is Los Angeles. I attended several “write outs” in my area. We met at coffee shops and libraries.
Set your forums: There an active online community for your genre. Check which areas you want hidden or visible. Far down the list are “Genre Lounges” There is a lounge for Young Adult and Youth. There are a lot of lounges you may prefer to keep visible.

There are other things to do on the site, i.e. set up your “Author Information, upload a picture. Watch the Nano video on October plotting. I once thought 50,000 words in a month was impossible. Now I know I can do it.

Favorite Writing Advice from the Inkers.

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Thu, 23 Jul 2020 01:30:00 +0000

From July 2010
Everyone probably has one or two bits of favorite writing advice. Here are some of ours.

Sue

Writing on Both Sides of the Brain by Henriette Anne Klauser

“When you first began to write, you had someone standing over you (for your own good) correcting your form, grammar, and spelling…..Today when you sit down to write, chances are that your teacher is still with you, standing over your left shoulder, correcting, critiquing, circling uppercase letters with her red pencil, and in other subtle and not so subtle ways discouraging your from writing, generally stemming the flow of words.” (Right on!! Greg Dean, a stand up comedy teacher, came up with a solution for this: Never criticize your self in your performing space. Get yourself a cheap bath rug. When you feel yourself getting ready to criticize your output, leave your performing space. Stand on the rug and critique yourself. Then return to your performing space. This really helped me. It also gets you to stand up from your computer on a frequent basis.) Libba Bray at 2010 Writers Day suggested naming your critic. I love that one.

And from NanoWriMo: Give yourself a gift: a deadline

Hilde

Jane Yolen on Writing

There is no such thing as the time fairy dropping bits of time for aspiring writers to trip over or find. If you want to be a writer, you find or make or grab or take time from whatever else is going on. Otherwise you really don’t want to be a writer, you just want to have written.

First rule of writing- B I C- Butt in chair

Second rule or writing- follow rule one.

Kris

From the Medicated and Motivated School of Writing and Anne Taintor, Ms. Dish recommends the following:

1) “Why yes, I am that kind of girl – thank you.” - Write what you know.

2) “Old enough to know better, too old to give a rat’s ass.” - Learn the rules, then break them.

3) “…And then Fairy Godmother said, ‘Mojitos for everyone!’….” -Get it all out. Overwrite first, you can always clean up later.

4) “A true friend would help hide the body.” - Get someone to edit your work in an objective manner.

Lupe

"Always start with a fresh tablet." Hammurabi, King of Babylon

"And the Lord said, 'smite the Adverbs, for they are a blight upon thy manuscript.'"

3:14 Book of Grammar

"A little sacrifice goes a long way."

Tezcatlipoca, Aztec Sun God

"Sharpen thy quill, scribble on thy parchment and heed not the call of naysayers."

St. Ernesto, Patron Saint of Unpublished Writers

"Find the gold in your landscape."

Hernando Cortez, Spanish Conquistador

"Fear not to cut, cut and cut."

Jack The Ripper

"Every period is a revolution."

Pancho Villa, Mexican Revolutionary

"Ahhhh....write some 'em about rabbits."

Bugs Bunny

"Whadda I look like, Pablo Neruda?"

Joe the Cook, Good Grub Diner

What was the advice that stuck with you?

Full Cicada Moon a Wonderful Diverse Book

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Sat, 27 Jun 2020 22:43:00 +0000

I was looking through earlier Pan and Ink Posts and found this book.

Full Cicada Moon by Marilyn Hilton. Written in verse the book tells the story of a half black, half Japanese girl who moved with her family to Vermont to be the new girl halfway through seventh grade. It's 1969 and she dreams of being an astronaut.
I read the first two pages:

I wish we had flown to Vermont
instead of riding
on a bus, train, train, bus
all the way from Berkley.
Ten hours would have soared, compared to six days.
But two plane tickets--
one for me and one for Mama--
would have cost a lot of money,
and Papa already spent so much
when he flew home at Thanksgiving.

Mama is sewing buttons on my new slacks
and helping me fill out the forms
for my new school in Hillsborough, our new town.
This might be a new year
but seventh grade is halfway done,
and I'll be the new girl.

I'm stuck at the ethnicity part.
Check only one, it says.
The choices are:
White
Black
Puerto Rican
Portuguese
Hispanic
Oriental
Other

I am
half Mama,
half Papa,
and all me.
Isn't that all anyone needs to know?
But the form says All items must be completed,
so I ask, "Other?"
Mama pushes her brows together,
making what papa calls her Toshirô-Mifune face.
"Check all that apply," she says.
"But it says just one."
"Do you listen to your mother or a piece of paper?"
I borrowed it.
I do not usually read verse novels. This one captivated me. I raced through it, loving every sentence.
The what was not said was as important as what was said. Highly recommend.
What is one of your favorite mid grade diversity books? I will so a separate post on picture books.

Full Cicada Moon is available in Libraries, Hoopla and at your Indie Bookstore.
https://www.indiebound.org/search/book?keys=+Full+Cicada+Moon
https://www.amazon.com/Full-Cicada-Moon-Marilyn-Hilton/dp/0147516013

Age Range: 8 - 12 years
Grade Level: 3 - 7
Lexile Measure: 790L (What's this?)
Paperback: 400 pages
Publisher: Puffin Books; Reprint edition (April 4, 2017)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0147516013
ISBN-13: 978-0147516015
Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 1 x 7.8 inches
Shipping Weight: 9.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Customer Reviews: 54 customer ratings
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #30,074 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #81 in Children's 1900s American Historical Fiction
- #188 in Children's Prejudice & Racism Books
- #250 in Stories in Verse

The author, Marilyn Hilton is the mother of a multicultural family.

Covid Blues and Links to great first lines

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Thu, 09 Apr 2020 21:46:00 +0000

by Susan J Berger

Wow! Are we having crazy fun or what? My hair is gray and red because I have two weeks of filming left on Joel Coen's Macbeth and I can't cut or dye my hair till it's over. Production shut down March 13 along with every other film. Production to be continued when Shelter in Place ends.

I don't know about you, but I am finding it hard to concentrate. I only want to reread books. Books in which I know what will happen. Books I know will leave me happy.

I watch little TV, Zero news, and try to visit Facebook only once a day. I find it to be a sinkhole.
I did find this wonderful video there: Some Good News with John Krasinski and a couple of wonderful surprise guests.
I cried for happy at the end.

My picture book critique group held its first Zoom meeting last Friday and it was so soul-satisfying to see everyone.

I forget who mentioned the SCBWI Digital workshops. When The Zoom meeting was over I headed to SCBWI and signed up for the next one.You can do that here: https://www.scbwi.org/scbwi-digital-workshops/

. While listening to this workshop I realized that I had used all of Sara's and Lin Oliver's examples for great first lines in blog posts on Pen and Ink. Here's a link to the list of First Line Posts
https://thepenandinkblog.blogspot.com/p/links-to-first-line-posts-by-susan.html
If you fell like some great first lines, please start there.
First lines can be really inspiring.

If you can't write now, that's okay. You are storing up.
Please take care of yourself.
Stay panic-free. Avoid News and Facebook rumors.
If you have a critique group, please consider a Zoom meeting.
Sending you all air hugs.

Meet Andrea J Loney Picturebook Author and So Much More

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Fri, 07 Feb 2020 20:44:00 +0000

Reprinted from November 2015 with exciting new details.
By Susan J Berger

Andrea J Loney is a lot of things. Teacher, Activist, Screen writer, Picture book writer, Ex circus girl? Circus?!!!!!
Yup, I ran away from academia to join the circus.

How did you end up in a circus?

After I earned my Masters Degree in Dramatic Writing from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, I realized that I’d spent my entire life as a student with no time off to explore the world I was writing about. When the chance to join a traveling show came along, I leapt at the opportunity. I originally joined The Big Apple Circus to work as a roustabout crew girl, but I barely lasted three hours in that job — once I broke my pinky nail on a floor board, I was out of there!

So I ran back to the office trailer where I worked for a year as the assistant to the General Manager, the House Manager, and the Concessions Manager. I also served as a Tour Guide, an Usher, and an unofficial liaison between the crew people and the executives in the show’s New York Office. I got to know people (and animals) of all ages, from all around the world, and from all walks of life. And I got to watch the entire lifecycle of a show from rehearsals, to previews, to opening night, to multiple performances almost every day. It was a great hands-on education in entertainment.

That's awesome!

The most exciting thing about Andrea right now is

Her latest book, Double Bass Blues , illustrated by Rudy Gutierrez, is a 2020 Caldecott Honor Book.
I am so happy for her because I know she fought for the kind of illustrations she wanted.

Previously, Andrea won the 2014 Lee & Low New Voices Award for her biographical picture book, Take a Picture of Me, James Van Der Zee illustrated by Keith Mallett.

And her first book, Bunnybear , illustrated by Carmen Saldana, was selected for the 2018 ALA Rainbow list.
I am so happy for her. I met Andrea when we were fellow volunteers at Reading To Kids. And then we were in a couple of critique sessions together. I love her work.

When did you first see yourself as a writer?

My grandmother was an English teacher and a literacy specialist so she taught me how to read when I was three years old. As soon as I could read stories, I wanted to write them too. I won my first award for writing at the age of eight — it was a story about a swan in the park. From then I was hooked! I wrote poems, short stories, comic strips, plays and more.

You have a Master degree in writing, what made you decide on picture books?

I distinctly remember reading a book in the second grade and thinking, “Someday I will make a book like this and some little girl just like me will find it and fall in love with words forever and ever.” I’ve always dreamed of telling stories so compelling, they could stay in a child’s heart for the rest of their lives, just as the work of Ezra Jack Keats, Maurice Sendak, and A.A. Milne still live in my heart to this day.

Also, as a young black girl growing up in the suburbs, I did not find many books that reflected the reality of my life. Now as a supporter of the We Need Diverse Books campaign, I am committed to do what I can to expand the range of heroes and heroines in children’s books to reflect the range of diversity our society. Lifelong impressions and biases — positive and negative — can form quite early in a child’s life so the earlier a child sees broader representations of race, gender, class, ableism, and more, the better it is for our society as a whole, in my opinion.

Finally, I love the unique challenge of crafting a character’s story in as few words as possible, while invoking an entire universe without the use of actual images or the overt description of those images. When it works it’s magical! Even though I have written professionally for film, television, and theater, picture books have always been the most beloved form of storytelling for me.

I love firsts, so tell me about the moment when a publisher told you they wanted to publish your book.

When I first got the call from Lee & Low, about Take a Picture of Me James Vanderzee
I was on my way into an appointment so the unfamiliar New York number went straight to voicemail. Back in my car I listened to the voicemail, which said that the publisher wanted to discuss my New Voices submission, my first thought was, “Oh man, they hated it. They hated it so much they had to tell me on the phone.” Crazy right? So I wrote the number down in my notebook and just waited it out because they were three hours ahead of Los Angeles and their office was already closed.

That night I didn’t sleep a wink. Was it possible that I won the Honor Award? I couldn’t have won the big award. Anyway I sprung out of bed at 5:30 am, ready to call them at 6 am which would be 9 am New York time. And just as I started to call them, my kitten jumped at the phone and erased the number. It was just gone.

After a moment of panic, I realized that I had written the number in my notebook, which was in my car. So I ran outside to my car in my nightgown and tried not to hyperventilate as I dialed the number. I was completely shocked when when the editor, Jessica Echeverria, told me that I had won the New Visions Award. She told me how much everyone loved the manuscript and the story about my subject. I could hear in her voice how my passion for James Van Derzee and his work had somehow traveled to a publishing house across the country and how she was excited to share that passion with others too.

My impulse was to blurt out something ridiculous, so I just kept saying “Thank you, thank you, thank you so much!” Then when the call was over I screamed and cheered and bounced around in my car. In my nightgown. And it was December 22nd — what an amazing Christmas gift!
Yes! Love this story!

Other than your own, who are your favorite (heroes/heroines/writers) in your genre?

Wow, there are so many writers whose work I adore. At the moment though it would be Jacqueline Woodson, Kevin Henkes, Kate DiCamillo, Jonah Winter, Mac Barnett, Andrea Davis Pinkney, and Joyce Sidman. And so many more!

What is the most exciting moment, so far, in your writing career?

Honestly, it was the moment I met Jacqueline Woodson at the Los Angeles Festival of Books. I told her that I won the Lee and Low Award as she signed my well-loved copy of her masterpiece BROWN GIRL DREAMING, and then she said, “Yes, I know of James Van DerZee. Which illustrators are you considering?” I don’t even know how I replied because all I was thinking was, “Holy moly, I am actually talking shop with National Book Award Winner Jacqueline Woodson! Just like a professional author! How is this happening?”

What is your favorite pastime, other than writing?

If I am awake and not writing or driving, I’m probably reading. Other than that, I like to play video games with my family, make jewelry, knit, hula hoop, and nap. Wow, do I love naps!

How do you motivate yourself when inspiration takes a vacation?

Deadlines! I belong to a few different critique groups and I submit manuscripts regularly to my agent and editor. I usually have about five writing projects going at any given time, so if I get stuck on one story I just hop into another one. If I am on a deadline or tackling a particularly stubborn problem, I journal about the story instead of trying to write the text. Sometimes I write a series of questions about the plot or characters before I go to bed, then see if the answers bubble up the next morning.

Other inspiration jumpstarts include drawing or coloring, talking to a friend, listening to new music, going for a walk, making lists, reading something fascinating , and, of course, napping. Most importantly, I try to see inspiration more as a bonus than a requirement.

Any advice for new writers just starting out?

The best advice I ever got was to read stories that work and then figure out how and why they work. After that, my suggestion would be to write regularly — it doesn’t need to be daily but it does need to be often enough to build writing chops and to give inspiration a space to show up. Oh, and always keep a pencil and paper handy to capture ideas.

The best choice I ever made for my children’s writing career was joining SCBWI, reading their articles, attending their events, meeting other writers, and sharing my work with a critique group (and finding a critique group that suited my needs).

The next best choice was joining Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo in November to find great tips on how to come up with ideas, and then come up with at least 30 new picture book ideas of my own and then…

…Signing up for Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 Picture Book challenge to join a community of other picture book writers as I refined those ideas and submitted them to agents. Also Kristen Fulton’s Nonfiction WOW website and Facebook group introduced me to the wide world of Nonfiction writing.

Oh and the best advice that I stubbornly refused to follow for years? While waiting to hear back on one manuscript, write another one. And another one after that. And another one after that. Keep writing NEW pieces while revising the old ones and once they are ready, keep sending them out. By the time my first picture book sold, I had already recieved over 25 manuscript rejections. But I was determined to keep going until someone said “yes”. And eventually they did!

Tell us about James Van De Zee. How did you find your subject.

James Van DerZee was a studio photographer in Harlem, NY, who took photographs for nine decades. He was prolific and creative, but most of all he took elegant and glamorous photos of the black residents of his neighborhood — whether they were rich, poor, or middle class. He just loved people and that compassion came through in every shot. From childhood I was always fascinated by this charming old-time black photographer who was “Photoshopping” pictures long before computers were invented. The more I learned about his astounding life story, the more I wanted to share it with others.

What’s your current WIP?

At the moment, I am working on three picture book revisions, four new picture books, a middle grade historical fantasy, and a cozy winter scarf.
Wow!!

And finally, where can we find you?

http://andreajloney.com

andreajloney(at)gmail(dot)com

andreajloney on Twitter https://twitter.com/AndreaJLoney

andreajloney on Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/AndreaJLoney/

Or in the children’s section of a local library, squished in a tiny chair behind a stack of picture books.

Congratulations, Andrea. I am so proud to know you!

Accountability How to Submit

noreply@blogger.com (Susan B James) — Mon, 27 Jan 2020 03:33:00 +0000

I don’t know about you, but I find it hard to force myself into submission mode.
I keep an excel spreadsheet to track my submissions. I pulled it out in November and realized it looked sparse. It’s so easy to put off submitting.
Even if you have achieved a good query letter, and wrestled your synopsis into shape there is still all the trauma of researching the right agent to submit to.
Three months ago I designated Thursday on my Google calendar as Submissions Thursday.
That simple act gave me accountability.
And improved my submission pattern 100%
Now on the Thursdays I do this (I'm averaging two Thursdays a month which is infinitely better than one submission every three to six months.)
But I digress.
I'd much rather digress than submit.
On Thursday I pull out my spreadsheet and open Twitter on my computer. I search for #MSWL
I find an agent who says they are looking for what I am querying.
I go to their website and read their submission guidelines.
Some have forms. Some have email query requirements.
I follow the guidelines for the ones I think have possibilities and I click Submit.
I do at least two. Sometimes three. And I feel good.
My friends, it is so easy to convince yourself that no one will ever want to read whatever it it you've written.

Fight it.

Submit.

It’s NaNoWriMo Time Quotes To Keep You Writing

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Sun, 10 Nov 2019 18:17:00 +0000

November 10, 2014

It's Nano Time. Quotes to keep you writing

By Susan J. Berger

It's NaNoWriMo time again. I am following Dawn Knobbe's lead and using this years' NaNo to make last years novel into a readable 2nd/3rd draft.
She also did a post on inspirational quotes for NaNoWriMo.
If you've never tried National Novel Month, it's a great way to get a first draft. Deadline is everything . You have thirty days to do it.

This isn't about being perfect. It's about getting the words out. If you get the words out, the story will come. I guarantee there will be lots of surprises.

"Here's the bottom line; writers write. Sometimes words flow easily. Sometimes it's like sloughing through mud. Either way a professional writer keeps writing."

P.C.Cast

"A word after a word after a word is power." - Margaret Atwood

Dory and I have so much in common. I often stop to Google.

“Don't worry about what you're writing or whether it's good or even whether it makes sense.”

Lauren Oliver

“Remember: Plot is no more than footprints left in the snow after your characters have run by on their way to incredible destinations.”
Ray Bradbury.

Advice from a Hollywood NaNoWriMo coordinator.

"When all else fails, throw in a Zombie."

Will you revise after NaNoWriMo? Of course, but right now the trick is meeting the deadline.

“You can't edit a blank page”

Nora Roberts

Happy writing.

Picture Book Querys

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Tue, 30 Jul 2019 06:30:00 +0000

Picture Books queries are a different animal from Mid grade and YA queries. You are going to be emailing your entire ms.

I met with two of the four other members of my picture book critique group this week and we each tried to hammer one out.
One question that came up immediately was what do you put in the "experience" part of the query letter when you have yet to be published?

Everybody had to have a first query. Even Dr. Seuss. And we all know how that one went. It took him lots of tries to get a "yes" for To Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street. And he had illustrations!

Then there are those of us who write stories only. Doreen Cronin's first book was Click Clack Moo. Cows That Type. What did she put for experience?
Best advice I could find was if you have not yet been published. Don't put anything. Except that you are a member of SCBWI.

Advice from Query Letter Wizard:
The first paragraph. Always. Why? Because most query letters are not read top to bottom. Sad, but true. Agents, buried under mounds of submissions, will give your query only a quick look to determine if the first paragraph grabs and sustains their interest.
This is why you must write and re-write those three sentences so they tell the plot and give compelling information about your protagonist and their challenge.
SENTENCE ONE: Introduce your protagonist (main character) and what they want in the first sentence.
SENTENCE TWO: Describe the obstacle (s) that stand in their way.
SENTENCE THREE: Hint at the possible outcome and the terrible "or else" that could happen if your protagonist does not succeed. Write this "tease" to motivate the agent to read your query second paragraph which expands the plot as it involves your protagonist.

Here's another POV Mary Kole's From KitLit.com

Since most agents ask that the picture book manuscript be included in the submission, writing a really meaty query for that short a manuscript seems a bit silly. When I see picture book queries — and when I write my own picture book pitches, in fact — I keep it very simple.

I’ve had a book by Katie Van Camp and illustrated by Lincoln Agnew called HARRY AND HORSIE in my sidebar for a while as an example of a great picture book with an outside-the-box friendship hook. If you haven’t picked it up yet, I’m sorry for you, because you’re missing out.

If I were writing a query for HARRY AND HORSIE, it would read something like this:

Harry and plush toy, Horsie, are the best of friends. One night, Harry is trying out his bubble-making machine when one of his bubbles swallows Horsie and hoists him into outer space! Harry has to rescue his best friend — and go on a wild space adventure — before returning safely home.

A quirky picture book with a great friendship hook, spare text and retro-style illustration, HARRY AND HORSIE is sure blast your imagination into the stratosphere! This is a simultaneous submission and you will find the full manuscript of XXX words pasted below. I look forward to hearing from you and can be found at the contact information listed below my signature.

Easy peasy. No need to write an elaborate letter. Just present the main characters, the main problem, and the resolution, then work in a hook (“great friendship hook,” above), and sign off like you normally would with a novel query.

After that, just paste the picture book manuscript. If you are an author/illustrator, include a link to an online portfolio where the agent or editor can browse your illustrations. Do not include attachments unless the agent requests to see more illustrations or to see a dummy.

If you are an author/illustrator you provide a link to your portfolio. One of my PB critique members, Cassandra Federman has a wonderful website. Check out her portfolio. She also has a wonderful book to query.

Places to Query. Things to do.

Here's a link to Manuscript Wish List agents who are looking for Picture Books. I know you always go to the agency website and check guidelines. Here is a link to more picture book agents. It includes link to their websites and my notes. (Suggest opening it in Excel.)

Do set up your own excel sheet so you can tract your queries. I have columns on my submission sheet for Agency, Email, Project queried, Date sent, Date responded and a note about the response - or lack of response. So many agents do not respond. I know it hurts. We put so much time and thought into querying. But don't let lack of response stop you.

“It is not your business to determine how good it is, nor how valuable it is, nor how it compares with other expressions. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open.”
― Martha Graham

How do you query your picture books? Want to show us one? Leave it in comments or send to penink04 @gmail.com. Write on!

SCBWI Conference HiJinks When Pen and Ink filmed a Pirate Alphabet.

noreply@blogger.com (Susan B James) — Mon, 15 Jul 2019 19:02:00 +0000

The 2019 SCBWI Summer Conference is coming and it seems an appropriate time to share what Pen And Ink did at our first conference together in 2011.
On Kris Kahr's suggestion, we gathered up our pirate paraphernalia and asked authors to put on the pirate gear we thoughtfully provided and take a letter of the alphabet.
You may be surprised to see some of the wonderful people who participated. Below are a few frames from the film.
Lupe Fernandez was our videographer and Hilde Garcia, Kris and I lured volunteers to him. My Only regret? I was sitting next to Judy Blume at one event and she agreed to do it. But I couldn't find Lupe and the rest of the crew. We had so much fun with this.
Here's a link to our film.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scELy4oxtFU&feature=youtu.be'

The Pirate Alphabet

in 2012 we tried a different stunt. More on that later.
We hope to see you at this year's Summer Conference
https://www.scbwi.org/events/48th-annual-summer-conference-in-los-angeles-la19/

Writing for the Transitional Reader

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Mon, 03 Sep 2018 20:32:00 +0000

by Susan J Berger
For those of you writing for this market, Here's a post from 2012. Has anything in this market changed?

I attended Bonnie Bader's breakout session, Writing for the Transitional Reader. Early Chapter Books at the SCBWI Summer Conference because I wanted to know more about them.

I find it a confusing subject.

Bonnie clarified many things for me. I did some internet research to try fill in the gaps. As best I can figure out, this information varies by house, so take it with a grain of salt.

Leveled readers: Usually 32-48 pages. Leveled readers have a structured vocabulary.

The best known structured vocabulary list is is the Dolch List I've linked to the one that is alphabetical by grade.

Beginning Readers:
This is taken from Mary Koles's Kid Lit.com

Early readers are the earliest “chapter” stories that a kid can get. They’re very short in terms of manuscript length (1,500 words max) but are broken up into either chapters or vignettes that will give the reader the feeling of reading a book with real chapters in it. Your target audience for these is kids ages 4 to 8. Early readers feature a smaller trim size, some the size of or slightly bigger than a paperback novel, and can go from about 32 to 60 pages. The font size is smaller and they feature spot illustrations in either color or black and white instead of full color throughout, like a picture book. Even if you think you have a great early reader idea, it has to be a very precise fit for a publisher’s established vocab/sentence/word count guidelines.

Some examples of early readers: LING AND TING: NOT EXACTLY THE SAME by Grace Lin and Good Night Good Knight by Shelly Moore Thomas.

If you use the "look inside me" feature, you can get a very good idea of this format.

Bonnie's example was Young Cam Jensen, (a level three book) 4 chapters. Color illustrations Probably under 48 pages. But, I believe more words than Ting and Ling

Easy Chapter Books

The Princess Posy series:
These books have 10 chapters, and black and white illustrations. They run 96 pages, 2400-3000 words per book - approximately 300 words a chapter. If you go to the link, you can see how the illustrations meld with the text, making some description unnecessary. "She slipped a spoonfull of green peas into Danny's mouth." (Yes you can add an art note to your manuscript Mom feeding Danny in High Chair.) The illustrations shows a mom feeding a baby in a high chair.

Bonnie said this type of book requires simple plot lines,memorable characters with a short hook, and familiar settings. We need to know who the character is and what their problem is right from the beginning. The sentences are shorter in these books. You have to figure out your chapter breaks carefully so that you reader is left with a hook and a sense of accomplishment in finishing the chapter.

Henry and Mudge, by Cynthia Rylant. Color illustrations Seven chapters. 100 words per chapter. Average 25 words per page)

The ever popular Captain Underpants series
These are longer books. 29 chapters LOTS of black and white cartoon illustrations. about 185 pages long.
Boys and girls love this series.

You may have noticed these books are all series books. That's what publishers prefer. Is there room for a single book? Why, yes. Deborah Underwood's Pirate Mom is a stand alone level three reader published by Random House (Three chapters 48 pages color illustrations) I bought a copy at the SCBWI Summer Conference and I think it's hilarious and very accessible to young readers.

Early Chapter Books

These are aimed at ages 7-9, Grades 2-4, depending on the level of reading competence. They run around 128 pages and 10,000 words. The illustrations are black and white and the number of them seem to vary by series. The characters are usually aged 8-10

Bonnie says George Brown Class Clown is about 10,000 words. Take a look at the layout.

The Author, Nancy Krulik, also writes the very popular Katie Kazoo, Switcheroo Katie looks to be a bit more word dense than George Brown,(smaller print. I counted 100 words on on page and 10 pages in the chapter.) but they are both listed for the same reading level.

My current favorite early chapter books is Clementine by Sarah Pennypacker and illustrated by Marla Frazee. This one breaks some rules. There is no Chapter 2. It goes from chapter 1 to chapter 3. I believe it is seven chapters for the days of her "not so good of a week. " I love the humor and the wonderful first person voice.

Another popular early chapter books is Judy Moody This one had 141 pages but many full page illustrations.

My friend and fellow author Nancy Stewart's blog post Early Chapter Books for Young Readers. mentions several books I want to check out.

I hope this clarifies a few things. If you want to look further for information on leveled readers, the best place I found was ReadingA-Z.com. Here's a link to their criteria for Early emergent readers, Level aa to Z. (phew!!) and here is the list of books that match their criteria. If you click on the books. you will see a picture and a word count. Levels aa-books have 17-24 word. Levels A-C seem to average 50 words and use a High frequency word list.

Happy writing and researching.

Kid's Magazine Submissions Quick Guide

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Fri, 22 Jun 2018 20:44:00 +0000

by Susan Berger

Anybody have an article, a story, a poem, a Puzzle or Rebus suitable for a children’s magazine? Here is a list of places where they might be accepted. Be sure and grab a copy of the magazine to check their style, before submitting.

Highlights Magazine

Pays $150 per article or story.
500 words younger reader
800 words older reader

Cricket Magazine Age 9-14

Stories: 200 to 2,000 words (2 to 8 pages)
Articles: 200 to 1,500 words (2 to 6 pages)
Poems: not longer than 50 lines (1 page, 2 pages maximum)
An exact word count should be noted on each manuscript submitted. For poetry, indicate number of lines instead. Word count includes every word, but does not include the title of the manuscript or the author's name.
Stories and articles: up to 25¢ per word
Poems: up to $3.00 per line
Payment upon publication

Spider Magazine Age 6- 9

Stories: 300 to 1,000 words
Poems: not longer than 20 lines
Articles: 300 to 800 words
Puzzles/Activities/Games: 1 to 4 pages
An exact word count should be noted on each manuscript submitted. Word count includes every word, but does not include the title of the manuscript or the author's name.

Rates for Spider Magazine:

Stories and articles: up to 25¢ per word (1,000 words maximum)
Poems: up to $3.00 per line
Payment upon publication

Ladybug Ages 2-6

Fiction: read-aloud stories, picture stories, original retellings of folk and fairy tales, multicultural stories. Length: up to 800 words.
Rebuses: focus on concrete nouns. Length: up to 200 words.
Nonfiction: concepts, vocabulary, simple explanations of things in a young child's world. Length: up to 400 words. (Be prepared to send backup materials and photo references—where applicable—upon request.)
Poetry: rhythmic, rhyming; serious, humorous, active, from a child's perspective. Length: up to 20 lines.
Other: imaginative activities, games, crafts, songs, and finger games. See back issues for types, formats, and length.
An exact word count should be noted on each manuscript submitted. Word count includes every word, but does not include the title of the manuscript or the author's name.

Rates for Ladybug:

Stories and articles: 25¢ per word; $25 minimum
Poems: $3.00 per line; $25 minimum
Payment upon publication

Skipping Stones (multi cultural no pay)

Cobblestone Publishing Group Magazines

APPLESEEDS - general history and cultures (for ages 6-9)
CALLIOPE - world history (for ages 9-14)
COBBLESTONE - American history (for ages 9-14)
DIG - archeology (for ages 9-14)
FACES - world cultures and geography (for ages 9-14)
ODYSSEY - science (for ages 9-14)
Appleseed ages 8 and up
Assume 150 words per page; payment approximately $50 per page

US Kids Magazines

Their magazines are:

Turtle age 3-5
Humpty Dumpty age 5-7
Jack and Jill age 8-12

US KIDS RATES AND PAYMENT POLICIES

Turtle: up to 35¢ a word fiction — up to 350 words nonfiction — up to 200 words
Humpty Dumpty: up to 35¢ a word fiction/nonfiction, up to 450 words
Jack and Jill: up to 25¢ a word fiction/nonfiction, up to 700 words
Poetry: $25 to $50
Photos: $15.00 minimum
Puzzles and games: $25 minimum

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC KIDS MAGAZINE

(they sent me this by email. You cannot find guidelines these on their website)

Submission Guidelines

Thank you for your interest in contributing to NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC KIDS, a monthly general-interest nonfiction magazine for 6 to 14-year-olds. NG KIDS' tagline is:

Dare to Explore. It's our mission to find fresh ways to entertain children while educating and exciting them about their world.

Submission Guidelines

What types of stories does NG KIDS publish?

NG KIDS stories cover a broad range of topics, including science, geography, history, and cultures from around the world. For our departments, we are looking for animal anecdotes and stories about endangered animals.

What kinds of proposals is NG Kids looking for?

Although our staff generates most of our story ideas, we'd be delighted to hear from you about stories that have kid appeal.

Here are things to consider before pitching to NG Kids:

Entertainment story ideas must offer some behind-the-scenes perspective that is unusual and informational.

Geography, archaeology, paleontology, and history story suggestions must answer the question, "What is fun about that?"

Science and technology story ideas must answer the question, "How does this directly affect a kid's life?"

Natural history story ideas must be tightly focused and exciting. For example: Don't pitch a general story about cheetahs. Do pitch a story on how a cheetah's physical attributes make it the ultimate hunting machine.

For "Amazing Animals," we're looking for animals that have stories to tell about unusual abilities, animal heroes, friendships, or silly situations.

How should one propose an idea?

A carefully considered proposal should be based on a well-researched premise or hook. Do your homework and check the online NG KIDS index to be sure that your idea has not already been covered within the last three years. A good query is short and to the point (about 250 words). It should include a headline that suggests what the story is, a deck that amplifies the headline, a strong lead, and a paragraph that clearly sets out the premise and approach of the piece. The query should represent the style in which the piece will be written. We look for a writing style that's informed but speaks the reader's language and has a sense of humor. Tell us which area of the magazine your story fits into. Please include clips and a resume.

Once you have the perfect idea, here's who to pitch to on the NG KIDS staff at:

1145 17th St. NW, Washington DC 20036

Science, technology, environment, natural history, and wildlife: Science Editor, Catherine Hughes.

Human interest, "Amazing Animals," and entertainment: Special Projects Editor Rachel Buchholz.

Cultural stories, “Wildlife Watch,” "Fun Stuff," geography, archaeology, paleontology, history: Senior Editor Robin Terry.

If you're not sure about which editor to pitch, send your query to Jill Yaworski and she'll forward it to the appropriate editor.

Any photographic queries should go to photo director Jay Sumner, jsumner@ngs.org.

Please note that we cannot accept phone queries and we cannot acknowledge or return submissions. All submissions become property of the National Geographic Society, and rights therefore are transferred to the Society.

Happy Writing

In Memoriam. A Conversation With Richard Peck from the 2013 SCBWI Conference

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Sat, 26 May 2018 05:58:00 +0000

Our youngest Pen and Inker, eight-year-old Victoria Kroll did a wonderful interview with Richard Peck by telephone after meeting him at the 2013 SCBWI Summer Conference. Her mom helped her. The original interview was published in January, 2014. We are reprinting it In Memoriam. All of us at Pen and Ink revered Richard Peck's work. He will be sorely missed.

In 2018 Hilde Garcia's class read his trilogy featuring Mrs. Dowdle, (A Season of Gifts, A long Way From Chicago, and Way Down Yonder.) They all wrote thank you notes to Mr. Peck, dated the day he died. Hilde will be doing a post featuring the notes.
In the meantime, here is the original conversation with Mr. Peck.

by Victoria Krol and Hilde Garcia

Pen and Ink met Richard Peck at the 2013 SCBWI Summer Conference. Hilde asked if she and Victoria could interview him for the blog. He said yes. It took some time and doing, but we finally connected.

Scene 1- The Call

Hilde: (The number on the screen is a NYC number I don’t recognize.) Hello?

Richard Peck: Is this Hilde Garcia?

Hilde: Yes.

Richard Peck: This is Richard Peck. (My heart skips a beat. My hairdresser waits patiently, blow dryer in hand.) Is this a good time for an interview?

Hilde: Umm, well, (I sound so dopey), I'm getting my hair styled for a party. Could we possibly do it in 30 minutes?

Richard Peck: (chuckle) Yes of course. You can call me.

Hilde: I know I said I would drop whatever I was doing to be at your disposal, but I don’t think I can drop the hair dryer.

Richard Peck: (chuckle) No, I don’t think you should.

Scene 2- The Introduction

One very excited eight-year-old, pen and pencil in hand, was waiting for me to run in through the door, with perfect hair, no doubt.

I am ready mom.


Me too.

(I am about to interview THE Richard Peck, author of more than 30 incredible novels. I am most certainly not ready.)

We run to the garage and set up our call. We dial.

Hello.

Good evening, Mr. Peck. We are ready and the hair dryer is safely put away.

That’s good.

Hi Mr. Peck, remember me? We met and I was wearing my Hello Kitty earrings.

Yes I do. Hello Victoria.

(To me, she mouths: “He remembered me!")

To Mr. Peck: May I ask my first question?

Yes, you may.

Scene 3- The interview

Why do you use a typewriter to write your stories and not a computer?

I use a typewriter because I have never lost a young reader to a typewriter, but I have lost too many to computers, games and texting.

My teacher says that we have to rewrite our stories to make them better. How do you revise your stories, because there are no mistakes in them at all?

I write each page six times because I don’t get it right the first 5 times. Then when I get it right, I take out 20 more words because I wasn’t confident initially with the words I chose. Then I go to the next page.

Why did you decide to become a writer?

I was a teacher but I couldn’t find things for my students to read that had any worth.

Well, that answers the question of what other jobs have you done.

Yes, it does. My students didn’t know it was stuff I had written. And eventually, I had to stop teaching because I needed the time to write.

I had a teacher in high school for advanced English Literature, Mr. Harrell, who did the same. He would write poems, essays, and short stories, and then have us analyze them for daily assignments or exams. I never realized he was writing these original pieces of literature. I simply thought they were from some famous writer I hadn't studied yet. I think I figured out it was Mr. Harrell a couple of years after I graduated. I was in a college literature class and it suddenly dawned on me that none of those pieces were actually published. Thank you, Mr Harrell.

In The Secrets of Sea, you made the mouse, Louise, and the girl, Camilla, friends, and then their lives took a lot of crazy turns. Why?


Louise and Camilla. Well I created the story with three sisters. The older sister was bossy. The youngest was the rebel. And then Louise was the communicator even with human beings. I often use middle children in my stories because they are good communicators. And taking the story through many turns is what makes it compelling.

So in essence the middle child or mouse becomes your reliable source of information.

Yes.

Mrs. Dowdel (from A Season of Gifts, A Long Way Down from Chicago, and The Year Down Yonder) is a completely unique character.

Yes, she is unparalleled and works her way into your soul the more you read of her in each of those books.

Is she inspired by someone you know?

She is inspired by all the old ladies in my house. I had a grandmother that was six feet tall with a crown of snow-white hair, that lived in that house and in that town. My dad told me the story so in a way, these stories are his, and I felt they had more poetry than my own, so I wrote them. I will share with you something serious, too. Mrs. Dowdel loved her grand-kids, where my own grandmother didn’t.

WOW.

(This was whispered to me, and Mr. Peck obviously couldn’t see Victoria’s face, which was both excited and sad.)

I love the chapter in A Long Way from Chicago entitled “Shotgun Cheatham.” Why did you decide to have the cat jump out of the coffin?

Mom, why wouldn’t you? That was the funniest chapter I have ever read. A cat jumping out of a coffin, but everyone thinking the dead person was still alive.

(chuckle) Well, the cat in the coffin was from a story I heard as a child. The idea intrigued me and stayed with me throughout until I finally wrote it down. And here’s a little something about Mrs. Dowdel. She is a free thinker. She doesn’t care what other people do or other people think. She decides what’s right.

I think she’s a great example of what our current generation lacks, this moral compass, which guides each and every individual. Everything about today’s world is about mass mentality and conglomeration. Free thinking is a lost art.

Yes it is.

Mr. Peck, have you read The Harry Potter series?

I haven’t read all of it. I don’t really like fantasy and witches and all of that business. But it wouldn’t be bad to be J. K. Rowling. (Another chuckle). Not every character is for every child.

Which is why we need so many writers, to write for each child.

So true.

Our principal’s book club chose to read A Season of Gifts. It was amazing to see how many children -- and in some cases, very young children -- identified themselves with Mrs. Dowdel and Bobby and how many of them understood very well the scene in which Bobby is bullied into the privy. It seems a universal feeling.

Principal Atikian's Book Club - Morning Meeting

Bullies are mean. Mr. Peck, did you write your stories about your time in school and places you lived in or visited?

I am very fond of geography and when I grew up, classrooms had maps.

Imagine that! Well, I am happy to say that my classroom has one map.

Good. I’ve never written a story about a place I haven’t visited. I tried once, but it didn’t work. My newest book is set in the gardens of Buckingham Palace. It took me a long time to get into the gardens because they weren’t public until recently, but once I visited them, I could write the story. It wasn’t enough to look at photos for me. I had to be there.

Now, the three books that feature Mrs. Dowdel were about my father’s home and I did visit that house. On the Wings of Heroes and Dreamland Lake are about my hometown and my experiences, though I doubt you can find those books in print anymore.

Well, I'll just have to pay a visit to Amazon or eBay and see what they can turn up for me.

Do you have a favorite character that another author wrote?

Yes of course, because I am a writer. My teacher in the 4th grade gave me a book about a boy named Huck Finn, and then I knew what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

I love that story too! I also love Phyllis and Ruth Ann in A Season of Gifts. What inspired you to make the sisters so different?

Yes, they are quite opposite aren’t they?

Here’s another story about a middle child. The brother is very protective and that I find interesting. Having three siblings in my stories always fascinates me even though that wasn’t the case for me, as it was only my sister and I, and I was the oldest.

Also, in A Season of Gifts, these kids are PKs- Preachers' Kids- and where ever they live, they are watched and judged for everything they do. Ruth Ann ends up becoming a little Mrs. Dowdel. This is an example of how your characters become living people and will do and say things that don’t seem to come from you, the author.

Mr. Peck, I am a writer too. And I was wondering if you had any advice for me?

Yes. Learn five new words a day. Every book has a new vocabulary. You want to use words to create new worlds. And you need more words than you and your friends use every day. If you are going to be a writer, you need to collect words.

I will do that, I promise. I do have one more burning question.

Yes?

Well, you spelled Ruth Ann with an E at the end of Anne. My middle name is Anne with an E like the main character Anne in Anne of Green Gables. Well, with or without an E, she’s a great character and you are a great writer. I love your stories, all of them that I’ve read so far.

Thank you, Victoria.

Mr. Peck, it was an honor to have your book selected by our Principal for her book club and to have so many children inspired by Mrs. Dowdel. Many of the students in our club drew their own version of the cover for A Season of Gifts and I promise to send you photos of our bulletin board.

That would be wonderful.

I hope to see you at the next SCBWI conference in LA next summer, Mr. Peck.

Look forward to it.

We hang up the phone.

Scene 4- The Aftermath

Hoo Boy.

Indeed.

My daughter and I sat in euphoria in our garage studio, trying to linger in the glow of the interview, letting the words fall on our memory.

We were on our way to a holiday party for the teachers at our school, and couldn’t help bouncing on our way there.

There are magical moments in life, moments you know you will not forget. I remember turning 19 and waking up in Paris. I remember holding my children the day they were born. As a child, I remember the day I won the school’s spelling bee at age 8.

And for my daughter, I think this become her first of what I hope will be many magical moments, the evening she interviewed Richard Peck. I have to say, I was quite impressed with her poise, her calm, her questions. She is a greater woman at 8 than I could ever have been, even now in my 40’s.

I will add this magical moment to my collection and she will use it to start hers.

Thank you, Mr. Peck.

Working on your Query

noreply@blogger.com (Susan B James) — Sat, 03 Feb 2018 06:10:00 +0000

How to be a Writer
by Victoria Anne Krol
Victoria Anne Krol wrote a post two years ago on what it takes to be a writer after she came to our Pen and Ink query session. It's still very relevant.

When you submit your story, you have to write a query letter (new word for me). You first have to look up agencies on line and see if you can find ones your really like. Then you read the rules, which are called the "submission requirements" so you do it correctly.

My mom's group was meeting to this together. Mom spent all day on the couch with her computer reading about agencies and agents. By the end of the night, she had picked four she thought would be good. Her writing partners, Sue and Lupe, helped her re-write her letter. Mom got upset when they made lots and lots of changes to her letter. And by the time they finished, Mom loved the letter. She told me that writer's often "get attached" to their words. She's glad she has her writing buddies to keep her on track.

Steps for a Query Letter:

1- tell them who you are and what you have written.
2- where you have submitted your work
3- then include a synopsis (really cool word) and the word count
4- and finally, make your letter succinct (another good spelling word)

I asked the group what else they thought makes a good writer. They said-

writing
re-writing
editing
and more editing
typing and more typing

I think I get it.

And mom added sharing and networking too.

I really, really enjoyed watching the Pen and Ink team work on query letters and support each other. Lupe lives in Northern California, so he was Skyping with us. Sue, Mommy, and I set up our large folding table in the living room and set up our computers and got to work.

Just call us the Query Ladies.
You can't see Lupe, but he's on the TV in front of us.

I was able to read Sue's book, Tasha, and too bad I am not an editor or it would already be published. It was excellent. And I read everyone's query letters and they were very good.

The result of the meeting? Everyone submitted to at least one agency.

Cool!!!

Writing is a lot of hard work and some of the work isn't even about writing your story. I guess you have to really, really love it to do it because it's harder to do than my homework.

And I can't wait to do it more!

I took lot of notes- if I could only read my handwriting!

What are some tips you have about query letters and submitting? Let's share!

12 Days of Christmas For Writers

noreply@blogger.com (Susan B James) — Sun, 31 Dec 2017 21:46:00 +0000

We interrupt our hiatus to share this post with youl
This post is from writer Julie Jarnagin and was first published in 2010
Happy New Year.
May all your best dreams come true.

http://juliejwrites.blogspot.com/2010/12/12-days-of-christmas-for-writers.html

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

12 Days of Christmas for Writers

On the twelfth day of Christmas my true love gave to me

12 Fulls Requested

11 Muses Musing

10 Plots-a-Flowing

9 Bloggers Blogging

8 Hours-a-Writing

7 Editors Editing

6 Tweets Retweeted

5-STAR REVIEWS

4 Best Sellers

3 Query Letters

2 Agents Calling

And a Contract to Fill you with Glee!

Merry Christmas to all my wonderful writing friends!

A FOND FAREWELL FROM US ALL

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 06:14:00 +0000


Photo courtesy of Ffffound

Things change. Needs change. After 429 blog posts, eight years and who knows how many batches of Hilde's famous chocolate chip cookies, the four founders of The Pen and Ink Blog need to say farewell to the beloved Pen and Ink Blog and its cherished readers. Thank you all for your support, encouragement and friendship over the years. In the writing trenches, you are the readers who had our backs and we are grateful.

Below are the farewell thoughts from my co-founders. We had some fun times together and supported each other through thick and thin. Among my personal favs that will stay with me forever were the great times at the SCBWI conventions, fab posts by the kids, hamsters, pirates and ah, you know the rest. I love you all – always.

Write On – Kris Kahrs

--------------------

Eight years ago, Kris suggested we do a blog. I laughed. “Who would want to read anything I write?” I was brand new to the world of children’s publishing and didn’t think anyone would want to hear what I had to say. But somehow, everyone got me on board, and we launched the Pen and Ink Blog, which ironically, was a name suggestion from me.

What did I learn? So much. First of all, it inspired me to write a YA book and I completed it and have been submitting it. That happened because of the amazing replies to our post, all that I learned from the posts, and feeling supported as a writer.

I had been an actor once upon a time and can tell you that it does tend to crush your soul. How different to be lifted up by your peers and others in this industry who have reached a high level of success and to be told that you, too, will be worthy one day and not to give up on your book.

And while we’re going to be dormant for a bit, our blog will stay up so you can enjoy some of the fun we created over the years. And who knows, we may pop back in and say hello. But know this, your support has meant a great deal, especially to me, and when I succeed in publishing my book, YOU will be the first to know.

From all of us at Pen and Ink, thank you for your friendship and collaboration. Happy Writing.

Hilde

------------------------

by Lupe Fernandez
First Draft: (mic drop)
Second Draft: Dear Gentle People, I'd like to <WARNING! WARNING!> This the a Test of the Emergency Management Quality Control. Had this been a real blog post, our Foreign Correspondent wouldn't be a sluggard at reporting from the Northern Hinderlands and we would have more posts to post. And now back to your regularly scheduled blog in progress... the one about the Maine Coon cat and the tuna fish? Hahahahahaha!
Third Draft: I thank my colleagues Hilde, Kris and Susan for their encouragement in writing essays for the Pen And Ink blog. This is the end of this post, but the work continues. Ciao.

-------------------------------------------

Pen and Ink will always be a joy to me. We are leaving up the site so you can enjoy some of our jokes like the pirate alphabet and first line posts and recipes Someday we may be back, who knows. In the meantime we wish you every kind of good reading and great luck publishing.

Blessings,

Susan

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Memorial Day Picture Books and Memories

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Mon, 29 May 2017 10:00:00 +0000

By Susan J Berger
We all know Memorial Day is not just for picnics. But sometimes, that's easy to forget.

I remember Memorial Day parades from my childhood in the 1950's. In those days we not only had soldiers from World War II and the Korean War. Riding in autos draped in bunting were soldiers from the Spanish American War, World War I, and even the Civil War. A parade of wars going back almost a century. I remember marveling at the Civil War veterans. Fewer of them each year.
I haven't been to a memorial Day Parade since I left the small towns I used to live in New York and Connecticut. I am sure those parades still exist.
I also remember fondly teen books by Janet Lambert set against a background of World War II and a bit before. The Penny Parrish series are still available as Kindle books. So are some of the Jordan Family books. I read the first one, Just Jennifer over and over. It was published in 1945 and is only available in hardback.
I mention these because these books could be considered source material. I am unaware of any current books set against a background of WWII in America. Maybe one of you would like to write one?
I did find three picture books about Memorial Day and one about soldier moms.
I deep searched and found a few self published ones with no reviews.
Any one want to add to the field? Here are my finds. I wish you inspirations for new books and a Happy Memorial Day.

Kate Messner's new picture book Rolling Thunder illustrated by Greg Ruth, pays tribute to Washington DC's Memorial Day Parade.
Every Memorial Day in Washington, DC, more than a million veterans and their supporters gather for the Rolling Thunder® Ride for Freedom, a demonstration that pays tribute to the men and women of the US armed forces. This lyrical story honors the bravery and sacrifice of those American heroes -- the ones who have returned home, and the ones who haven't.

Here are the first lines:

Lines of bikes are miles long,
Shining, half a million strong.
Rumbling, grumbling engines roar.
Peace signs. High Fives
Spirits soar.

Of course the inimitable Eve Bunting has a picture book about Memorial Day. The Wall. It's illustrated by Ronald Himler.

This is the wall, my grandfather's wall. On it are the names of those killed in a war, long ago.
"Where is Grandpa's name?" I ask.

The Poppy Lady Moina Belle Michael and Her Tribute to Veterans by Barbara Walsh. Illustrated by Layne Johnson
When American soldiers entered World War I, Moina Belle Michael, a schoolteacher from Georgia, knew she had to act. Some of the soldiers were her students and friends. Almost single-handedly, Moina worked to establish the red poppy as the symbol to honor and remember soldiers. And she devoted the rest of her life to making sure the symbol would last forever. Thanks to her hard work, that symbol remains strong today. Author Barbara Elizabeth Walsh and artist Layne Johnson worked with experts, primary documents, and Moina's great-nieces to better understand Moina's determination to honor the war veterans.

Hero Mom by Melinda Hardin. Illustrated by Bryan Langdon

Our Mom's are superheros.
My mom doesn't leap over tall buildings—she builds them.

My mom doesn't fly in to save the day—well, sometimes she does.

My mom doesn't command animals—she works with them to find missing people and dangerous objects.

Do you know any other Memorial Day picture books? Please share.

Revisit Avonlea with Victoria, Sam and Hilde

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Mon, 15 May 2017 10:00:00 +0000

Netflix has a new version of Anne of Green Gables called Anne With an E. From what I read in Vanity Fair it's more Dickens than L.M. Montgomery. Other reviewers agree. Some reviewers like it's darker side. You decide for yourselves what you think.
For those of us who are devoted to Anne, Pen and Ink is republishing Hilde Garcia and Victoria and Sam Kroll's 2014 account to their journey to Avonlea.

Our Journey to Avonlea.

by Sam and Victoria Krol

with some thoughts from our mom, Hilde Garcia

I always knew that Avonlea was a fictions name that L. M. Montgomery gave to the setting that served as a backdrop for her novels. She grew up in Cavendish, the prettiest spot on the north shore, as many have commented, and in her enchanting novels, she had us all fall in love with a place called Avonlea.

Then on Canada Day, while in line for Cow's Creamery ice cream, the best ice cream we have ever tasted, a lovely family told us that we had to go to Avonlea. I, of course, said, that was not the real name of the town, but they said, "No, you have to go to Avonlea. It's an actual place." Well, we attempted to find it on our phone and the woman says, "You can't miss it. It's on the way to Montgomery's Cavendish home." Imagine my delight when I thought about really traveling there. No journey to P. E. I. could be complete without a visit to Avonlea.

SO we put our phone away. No one else had theirs out and we trusted we'd find it in the morning. I stayed up late that night and read all about it on the internet though, and couldn't sleep for the anticipation of being able to walk through time.

I wondered if it would be captivating for the rest of my crew. From what I could tell, we were going to go back in time and "play" as if we were in the novel. It sounded like fun to me, but you know how kids are today, so I wasn't sure what to expect.

SO here are their takes on visiting Avonlea.
VICTORIA KROL
It was fun pretending to live in 1901. Josie Pye asked me what air conditioning was when I mentioned it to her. So I explained it during flag making time. We also did wool dying with Ms. Rachel Lynde. We had to fetch water from the water pump because there wasn't a sink. And then we brought the bucket back to the tub where we were going to place the wool. We all took turns.

"Today, we are going to dye wool," Mrs. Rachel Lynde said. Then she pulled out some samples in different stages of the dye process. The she said, "We're going to use this new fangled thing called Kool-aid." Some adults chuckled. Then she let us smell it. It smelled like beets. She poured the grape kool-aid into the bucket full of water. Then she stirred it, then she dumped in the yarn and said "Let's soak the yarn in the bucket until 4 o'clock. I ended up coming back two days later and I bought the yarn I helped die and made a scarf for me and one for my doll.

Then we did a whole bunch of other stuff.
For example, step dancing, square dancing, (not the same thing), pie eating contest, and more.

Okay readers, here's a little news flash. The whole time we were on Prince Edward Island, we saw no one on a CELL PHONE!! And in Avonlea, everyone was having wholesome fun!!! The second day in Avonlea, I went to and played around with Josie Pye who was glad we had returned. We had this shannanigan going on that started when she wrote Anne's name incorrectly on the chalk board. My middle name is Anne, with an e, so I had to let her know.

It all started when Josie Pye told a falsehood on the first day of school. She said that Anne broke her tablet over Gilbert's head 117 times. We knew that couldn't be true, because we saw it, it was only once. I of course, defended Anne and told Josie my middle name was Anne, with an e.
Josie said, "It should be Victoria Josie." And preceded to call me that the rest of the day. During knitting with Mrs. Lynde, she announced it to everyone in the store. I went, "Uggh!" My dad asked why I was annoyed and I said, "Because she dislikes that my name is Anne and is calling me Victoria Josie." (But I secretly love it.)
During this whole time, Josie was waiting for me so we could go and play, but I told her I would catch up with her. My dad and I decide to have some fun and we ran back to the school house and wrote on the chalk board Josie's name wrong five different ways. We wrote Josey Pye, Josee Pie, Josie with the Pi symbol, and even José Torta which is Josie Pye in Spanish.

Then she came and read it and left me a note, "Dear Viktoreeeah Josie, You should focus on your spelling more. Love JOSIE PYE." What I loved was how much she played along and she was all grown up and loved pretending.
It was hard to say goodbye. She hugged me and told me to have a safe journey out West. I could have stayed in Avonlea forever.
SAM KROL
When I went to Avonlea in Prince Edward Island, which is in Canada, I played a game called Crokinole with three of the townspeople who were named Tommy, Gilbert, and Moody. Crokinole is a game where you shoot discs across the circular game board trying to land in the higher scoring regions of the board, while also attempting to knock away opposing discs. We played about ten games together on one of the games I shot the disc so hard that it bounced off of the board and landed in Moody's shirt pocket. Since there were four people, we made teams of two. Every few games, we switched teams so we got to play with everybody. Crokinole is a game that's hard, but fun.

There was also a fair and in the fair they had a pie eating contest. The contestants that were in the pie eating contest were my mom, known as Hilde, a town boy, and two other visitors. The winner of the pie eating contest was one of the two visitors. My mom didn't win because the crust was stuck to the plate and she couldn't get it up off of the plate! The contest was very funny because you could only eat with your mouth. What I mean is you couldn't use your hands. At the end of the pie contest, my sister and I, started to dip our fingers in the pie. A few dips later, my mom told us to stop. All the contestants had a pie mustache and by the way, the pie was chocolate!
We also participated in a sack race. Well, it was actually four sack races. One for the small and young ones, one for the the big and older kids and two for the adults- ladies and gentlemen. My sister got placed in the little kid race because she is short and she WON first place, and was given an
"I love Gilbert!" tattoo. In the older kid race, I WON that race and I got the same tattoo. My mom yelled, "Those are my twins." My mom asked if I could have the tattoo so I gave it to her.
The adult race was very funny. My dad came in last place because he fell down. My mom got 3rd place because two taller girls beat her by one jump and they tied. I think it was too close, but there wasn't any kind of replay camera.

I also played a kick ball game and threw balls into a wooden board that had holes in it and every time you made it in, you had to back up and throw from a farther distance. I did really well in that game.

And the pig races were awesome! It was fun and I didn't want to go.
Today's kids have a world of electronic gadgets at their fingertips. Many children today do not look up when they speak to you, have trouble reading facial expressions, and simply cannot pretend, converse, or make believe. It's a travesty.

Avonlea to all the visitors that came and to me was a haven, hope that we haven't lost all the kids of today just yet. So many kids loved the story and loved that it was brought to life. My kids reveled in it and suspended their reality for not one day, but two, as we simply couldn't get enough of the first day there.

The second day, feeling like we had come home, I simply let the kids run amuck doing whatever they wanted while I wandered around and shopped. They shadowed the town "children" and played with them and even skipped down the side walk.

Happier times. Simpler times. I cannot wait to return.

Dispatch #64: Not My Story II

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Mon, 08 May 2017 14:00:00 +0000

A Musical

by Lupe Fernandez

Last time on Not My Story, I wrote about Ms. N_, Vietnamese hair stylist, harrowing escape from Viet Nam at age 14 on a raft. The story was hers to tell. Not mine to embellish.

But my job is to tell stories. What if Ms. N_'s story was a screenplay in Hollywood studio development hell? What would they do?

NOT MY STORY - THE MOTION PICTURE
Based on a True Story

Change the Title

Raft
Escape from Terror
South China Sea Travel Tips

Add Love Interest

Ms. N_ falls in love with a pirate, but her loyalties are divided between running away with her dream-boat or staying with ailing grandmother and face hardship in a refugee camp.
Ms. N_ meets a cute boy on on the raft, but he has an ailing grandmother who disapproves of refugee romance. Will the they consummate their forbidden love?
Ms. N_, after her boyfriend is killed by pirates, becomes a pirate and ravages the South China Sea in search of her beloved's murderers. Will she find love again? (Grandmother is written out.)

South China Sea. Caribbean. What's the difference?

Action, Action, Action

Ms. N_ is caught in the middle of an international naval incident, bringing the superpowers to the brink of World War III.
Ms. N_ fights off aquatic monsters to save her ailing grandmother and fellow refuges.
Ms. N_ versus Zombies.

You get the idea.

Tasteless Elements

Ms. N_ is played by a Caucasian actress.
Ms. N_ makes soft-focus, orchestra music love on the raft.
Ms. N_ stays glamorous. Everybody knows exposure to sun, starvation and salt sea spray is good for the skin.

Based on True Story.

Item:
Ms. N_'s father served in the South Vietnamese Army, killed in 1972. Commenting on the disposal of her father's remains, Ms. N_ said, “They dig a hole where you die and dump you in."

Still not my story.
What's not your story?

Mother Goose Day and Other Story Inspirations

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Mon, 01 May 2017 10:00:00 +0000

Mother Goose Day

This is only one of the many unique holidays celebrated in May.
If you are looking for new inspiration for a story I suggest looking through any calendar of wacky holidays and picking your favorite. http://www.holidayinsights.com/moreholidays/may.htm
In Honor of the first week of May Pen and Ink wishes you Happy Mother Goose Day, Happy Lei Day (May 1 in Hawaii,) Happy Star Wars Day, (May 4th) and Happy Cinco De Mayo. Please feel free to leave us your favorite holiday wishes in return.

by Phil Nast, retired middle school teacher and freelance writer

Found In: Language Arts & Literature, PreK-2, 3-5, 6-8

Rhymes in Full Text

The Real Mother Goose is one of the larger collections of rhymes for children. It was originally published in 1916 and has pen and watercolor illustrations. Project Gutenberg provides the complete book in HTML and plain text and access to individual rhymes by title and by first line.

Rhymes Recited on Video

MOTHER GOOSE

In 1958, Cyril Ritchard, Boris Karloff, and Celeste Holm recorded Mother Goose for Caedmon Records. The sometimes creepy voice performances (Boris Karloff played Dr. Frankenstein’s monster and voiced the Grinch in How The Grinch Stole Christmas) are accompanied by music and illustrations.

Mother Goose (48:09)

THE TRUTH ABOUT MOTHER GOOSE

In 1957, Walt Disney released The Truth About Mother Goose. Selected rhymes are recited and then a story explaining their origin follows:

Part 1 (06:58)
Part 2 (07:42)

MAINLY MOTHER GOOSE

In 1984 the popular children’s entertainers Sharon, Lois and Bram released an LP titled Mainly Mother Goose. The CD may be available in local libraries; a track list can be found Wikipedia. Many of these songs can be found on YouTube. Sharon, Lois & Bram's Elephant Show also aired a program devoted, in part, to Mother Goose:

Part 1 (09:57)
Part 2 (09:31)

More Blog Reviews!!

noreply@blogger.com (The Pen and Ink Blogspot) — Mon, 24 Apr 2017 10:00:00 +0000

By Hilde Garcia

here is my second review from the first ten sites that talked about HOW TO WRITE A BLOG POST.

These are sites 4, 5 and 6. And they are so great. I really enjoyed reviewing them.

Happy Reading!

101 Fabulous Blog Topic Ideas | Molly Greene: Writer

http://www.molly-greene.com/101-blog-topic-ideas/

101 Fabulous Blog Topic Ideas

I started off the year all gung-ho and self-righteous that I had a solid editorial plan and a never-ending list of blog post ideas I could ride through winter and beyond. But like many bloggers, I hit a wall. Ooops. My topics were boring. The content I’d planned lacked sparkle. I was tired, stuck, burned-out. I needed an infusion of creative ideas that would get my blogatude back on track. So I wrote this list of possibilities for myself, and I’m sharing them with you.

Here are six basic types of posts you can write, plus 101 blog post ideas and prompts. I threw in a few links to other resources in case you want more.

“Best of the web” posts

Essays – personal

General interest posts

How-to posts

Ideas for how-to posts:
Interviews and profiles

Ideas for interviews:

Lists

Opinions, rebuttals, trends, debates, and predictions

Ideas for opinion and predictions pieces:

Recap posts

Reviews

Media-related posts

And on her site, each one of these topics has at least 10 examples each!

NEXT UP:

How to Write a Blog Post Outline: A Simple Formula to Follow by Ginny Soskey

http://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/how-to-write-blog-post-outline

What makes a blog post bad?

There are lots of reasons a blog post could be less-than-perfect. Poor formatting. Poor grammar. Poor word choice. Poor shareability.

The most pervasive problem?

Poor flow. The post jumps from one idea to the next to the next and then circles around again for a split second to the first idea, then back to the fourth, and so on. Or the post reads like a stream of consciousness -- but it wasn't a stylistic choice.

Luckily, you have a simple solution. Before diving headfirst into writing your post, you can create an outline.

I'm not talking about jotting down a few quick bullet points -- even experienced writers can go astray with just a few talking points. I'm talking a fully fleshed-out outline with enough details that make it virtually impossible for your writing to go off the deep end. And it's pretty easy to do.

1) Nail your working title.

2) Write down as many distinct takeaways from the article as you can.

3) Break up those takeaways into larger sections.

4) Add more takeaways to some sections.

5) Revise, remove, and reorganize details in each section.

6) Include links to your examples and/or data.

7) If any details come to you that you don't want to forget, add them in.

How to write blog posts faster with an outline – Simple Writing by Leah McClellan

http://simplewriting.org/use-an-outline/

You’re beating your head against a wall. Staring at a blank screen. You need to write a blog post fast, and it’s got to be good.

You google “writers block” and hope to find a solution. If you had all day or all weekend to write, you know you’d come up with something. You always do.

But this time, you only have a few hours, and you can’t think of anything. Maybe you’ll just skip it. Who’s going to notice?

Stop. Right. There. If you’ve been posting regularly, your readers are going to notice. Even if they don’t, you will. And one of the most critical keys to a writer’s success is following good writing habits—and sticking with them.

Plus, the problem isn’t the vague, catch-all excuse called writer’s block. The problem is that you don’t have a system in place you can rely on.

Using a standard outline based on a 5-part essay can be a lifesaver.

With an outline, you can go from blank screen to polished post in a few hours or less, depending on the length and complexity.

No matter what kind of blog post you’re writing, though, or how much time you take, using an outline can reduce time, stress, and worry. Plus it keeps you organized and on track, especially if you’re writing something long and involved.