Jealous of Writing Spaces

On Saturday I got to hang out with the illustrious up-and-coming YA novelist/writing professor Nikki Mantyla along with a bunch of other awesome writers I met at WIFYR last year. (You can read about all the goings-on here.) So fun to see everyone!

Also great to FINALLY see Nikki’s pergola. I want a magical outdoor haven to retreat to when I am writing. I’ve always felt inspired by places, and maybe the muses would come more regularly if they knew a few places I’d always be found—besides in the pantry with the door shut behind me.

I’m also jealous of Emily’s office. On Martin Luther King Day, the SIX crashed at Em’s house, and I got to see her sunny writing room with TWO desks and TWO bookcases. So clean! So crisp! So inspiring!

My writing space involves a Staples close-out particle-board desk, a treadmill, and an exercise bike. What do you think? Do the shadows of failed new year resolutions past and the glowing hope of new years resolutions present belong in the same room? I sense a clash coming, sending the muses scurrying out the window.

Where are your favorite places to write? Does location matter or can you sink into the zone anywhere, as long as you have a laptop or a pen?

Highlights Opportunities

For those who don’t get e-mail updates from Highlights, check this out:

Once upon a time I was a wife and mom and would-be children’s writer living in the Pacific Northwest. Every year, I sent off a request for a report on the previous summer’s Highlights Foundation Writers Workshop at Chautauqua. Every year I pored over the excerpts from workshops taught by such icons as Jerry Spinelli and Patricia Lee Gauch. I looked at photos of faculty members interacting with participants: chatting on benches, eating ice-cream cones, strolling down brick-cobbled paths.

I can’t tell you how many times I imagined myself at Chautauqua or how much I longed to go there and learn what I needed to know to reach my goals as a children’s writer.

What I can tell you is this—I never went, at least not as a student. Why not? Because I thought I couldn’t afford to go. You see, somehow I missed one essential bit of information: the Highlights Foundation offers scholarships!

There’s no doubt I would have met the criteria:

1. You must have a serious interest in writing for children.
2. You must have an established financial need.

If you’ve read this far in the e-mail, I’m confident that you’re serious about writing for children. If you long to attend Chautauqua as much as I did, it’s likely that financial concerns have stopped you. Now you know—they don’t have to.

It took me two master’s degrees and eight years of editorial experience to finally get to Chautauqua, but I’ve been blessed to serve on the faculty for seven years. If I’d known back then what I know today, I wouldn’t have wasted a moment getting my scholarship application in the mail. Now that you know, don’t wait. Make 2010 the year you go after your dream of writing (or illustrating) for children. Be sure to say hello when you get to Chautauqua. I’ll be looking forward to meeting you there!

Sincerely,
Kim T. Griswell
Senior Editor

It’s easy to apply! Just contact Jo Lloyd at 570-253-1192 or e-mail jalloyd@highlightsfoundation.org.

Scholarship applications must be postmarked by February 12, 2010, for consideration.

And guess what—there’s another way to get to Chautauqua. Check this out.

Let me know if you get to go! It’s a great time. I had the opportunity to attend in 2003.

All You Need to Know about Jan. 2

Only one thing could entice me to blog two days in a row, let alone two weeks in a row: this.

It’s the best place to get an autographed one of these:

and possibly some of this:

Plus, you’ll get to say hi to these ladies all in one place:

COME!

Twenty Ten

I admit to all my co-workers out there that today I started wondering what room number the annual post-New Year employee party was going to be held in this weekend. Then I started wondering if I got an invitation. When I couldn’t find one, I wondered why I didn’t get one. Then I started wondering why we had a potluck party over our lunch break a few weeks ago that we’ve never had before. Then I realized I should probably check the staff meeting notes that have been sitting unopened in my inbox for two weeks to confirm that maybe there is no post-New Year party this year. I didn’t see anything about a party. But I did see this: “We ask Kim Reid to start coming to staff meeting, if possible.”

Heh. Oops.

Despite my many failings, my New Year resolution is NOT to get more organized. Forget it, my heart’s not in “getting it together” and “managing my time” and “waking up before 8:00 a.m. on a regular basis.” I’ve learned that a few new years in a row now.

I do like having a fresh start, though, even if my goals are dumb. This year’s resolutions are:

1. Eat oatmeal from my food storage for breakfast at least once a week. Maybe I’ll like it so much, by 2011 I can eliminate the cereal budget altogether! And oh, the things I could buy with the cereal budget.

2. Write one page or one hour five days a week, whichever comes first. On the days when I’m in a big hurry, that one page is probably going to have a lot of crappy dialogue and white space.

3. Don’t dress frumpy on vacations. Either that or remember to take more family pictures when I’m not on vacation—one that would be acceptable for the Christmas card, for example.

In addition to resolutions, I usually entertain a few maybes:

1. Do yoga sometime?

2. Run a 5k?

3. Go to bed before midnight occasionally?

4. Finish the Christmas shopping before Thanksgiving?

We’ll see.

I don’t remember setting any goals last year, but I think I managed to accomplish some anyway:

1. I signed with the lovely and talented Mary Kole at Andrea Brown Literary Agency.

2. I got serious about writing my dad’s personal history. And by that, I mean I started emailing him sometimes with a question or two, and he writes me back, and I save the emails in a Word doc. Brilliant!

3. I updated my 2004 iBook G4 with a new Macbook. (Today! Just in time to be a 2009 accomplishment. I like it when shopping counts as an “accomplishment.”)

4. I didn’t get fired.

What’s your favorite memory or achievement of 2009?

How do you hope you’ll answer that question this time next year?

And what’s the word on the street—are we living in “two thousand ten” or “twenty ten?”

Christmas Movie Trivia

I love Christmastime. And what better way to ring in the commemoration of the Savior’s birth than a salute to cheesy 80s Christmas TV specials (and a few other classics)? An orange goes into the stocking of anyone who can name five of the movies quoted below.

1. “Happy birthday!”

2. “I’ve killed it. Everything I touch gets ruined!”

3. “The salt turns the bodies into mummies.”

3. [to music]: “Keep Christmas with you all through the year. When Christmas is over, save some Christmas cheer. These precious moments, hold them very dear. And keep Christmas with you all through the year.”

4. “Ohhhh fuuuudge.”

5. “Strange, isn’t it? Each man’s life touches so many other lives. When he isn’t around he leaves an awful hole, doesn’t he?”

6. “At this time in the proceedings, it is a tradition for me to make a little speech.”

“And it is a tradition for us to take a little nap.”

7. [To music]: “Let earth receive [BAAAA] her king.”

8. “Dropo, you are the laziest man on Mars.”

9. “I’m cute. I’m CUTE!”

10. “Burn some dust here. Eat my rubber.”

11. “Hey, it’s a stump sock.”

12. “I gotta have money. Money! MONEY!”

13. “Maybe wassail is an old word that means waffle.”

14. “Is it time to open our presents yet?”

“It’s 1:30 in the morning, and *no*, it’s not time to open presents yet.”

“It is Christmas morning now, you know. “

“Doc Boy has a point there, Dad. Any time after midnight is technically Christmas morning, you know. “

“Go to bed! “

15. “You smell like beef and cheese.”

*Hint – None of these are from the He-man and She-ra Christmas Special nor the Star Wars Animated Christmas Special because I never saw them. If anyone still has those on VHS, send them my way. I’d love to see the holiday gems I missed.

Merry Christmas! Tell me if you remember any of these movies and remind me of any of your favorites I might have forgotten.

When you’re finished here, don’t forget to check out some of the best Christmas music ever recorded.

The Six

I’m pretty snowed in here, gang. So I have a minute to post and add the snowflake option to my blog. You like?

After a weekend snowed in with friends, here are my top six reasons every writer should have a critique group:

1. One of them is bound to have four-wheel drive when going to dinner in the middle of a snowstorm. Going out to eat is an essential part of the creative process, rain or shine.

(This is a going-out-to-eat picture from July, but you get the point. Here you see Bree Despain, Valynne Maetani, Brodi Ashton, Emily Wing Smith, Sara Bolton, and me.)

2. One of them is bound to have a condo in Midway you can use for various writer retreats.

3. Three to four of them are game for a round of Scattergories or Scrabble when you don’t feel like writing anymore.

4. One of them owns a Snuggie so you can see for yourself it’s really not that great. It needs Velcro on the back to hold it on. I’m thinking of starting a new line of Snuggies with fasteners. What should I call them?

5. All five crit group members will crash at your house when your husband goes to Vegas with his brothers. Otherwise you’d probably be murdered in your bed. No hardened criminals would dare invade a house with six known crazies inside.

6. Surrounding yourself with writers makes you feel a little less odd. (Unless you’re voted #1 crazy.)

I’ve had a great weekend with The Six, as we shall be known at future conferences and in the tabloids. But I’m sure my famous writing sister Brodi Ashton—currently at #1 crazy—will describe our shenanigans better than I could. I’m better at summary than description.

So here’s my writing weekend wrap-up: Thai food. Wassail. Pajamas through all daylight hours. Dyed hair. Dyed hair again. Failed gluten-free brownies that look like pot rock. Festive Christmas dinner. Poor sleep. Good laughs.

As for the writing, I’m not sure. I didn’t get any done, personally.

If you’re looking for an awesome critique group, you probably wouldn’t like The Six, unless you prefer styling hair over reading manuscripts. If you ever go against your better judgment and ask to join us, be advised that you must own a condo in St. George or Park City. And you must pay for new t-shirts—it wouldn’t make sense for seven people to be identified as The Six. Ha ha. But seriously, I’m pretty sure our name is the main reason we consider ourselves “closed” for the time being. A runner-up is that we barely fit into Brodi’s condo as it is. If you have a larger condo and are insane enough to join the ranking of crazy, let me know.

(*UPDATE – I just reread this post and decided I sound like a snob. Or worse, as Emily Wing Smith—currently #2 crazy—once said, “cliquish.” I fully don’t anticipate any readers actually wanting to join the crit group. And on the rare occasion someone asks me if we are open, I cringe because I feel that “critique group” in our case is probably a misnomer. “Snack group” might be more accurate. Those looking for a productive amount of time discussing writing would probably leave our meetings disillusioned and sleep deprived.)

So what are the essential characteristics you look for in a crit group? Besides access to a timeshare in Maui? And what are your views on the Snuggie?

A Persuasive Thanksgiving Essay

Courtesy my cousin Lola:

Poor tourkeys.

Hope your holiday is delicious!

Books in Verse

I had an idea

while reading The Weight of the Sky

by Lisa Sandell.

 

Would writing a

free verse manuscript

make the writing go by

faster

help me reach my page count

quicker—

 

Or would it only make me seem

a poser?

 

Methinks I will try it and delete all the line breaks when I am finished, making the mansucript only 20 pages short.

What verse novels have you read that seem to work well? I’ve only read three or four books in verse—The Weight of the Sky, Out of the Dust, and True Believer come to mind—and since I’m not too familiar with poetry, I don’t feel like I could say one way or the other if they were better in verse than they would have been in prose. I can only say I read them much faster than prose novels, and this I like.

And We Have a Winner

Thanks to everyone who stopped by to read Emily’s interview. Amy is our lucky winner of The Way He Lived.

Another contest I think you will like happens on Thursday. Head over to giveawaytoday.blogspot.com and win shoes from my friend Sara. Good luck!

The Way She Lives

Today I’m honored to have Emily Wing Smith on my blog. Welcome to the show, Em.

I’ve mentioned her book, The Way He Lived, a million times on this blog, but it’s time Emily got a full spotlight from me because a.) her book recently made the “challenged” list in some county in Florida, and b.) last week she competed with Sara Zarr’s Sweethearts for the Utah Book Award in the young adult category. Both true signs of greatness!

For those who don’t know, “The Utah Book Award was established to honor outstanding achievements by Utah writers and to recognize books written with a Utah theme or setting.” The awards ceremony took place last Thursday, but I sent these questions to Emily beforehand, so they sound a little old news. Sorry about that, readers.

Emily, what’s so “Utah” about your book that you’re up for this prestigious award?

Well, contrary to popular belief, although this is called the Utah Book Award, it doesn’t mean the book has to be about Utah—only that the author needs to live here. Many times the books are set in Utah—as with my book—but this isn’t always the case.

What will you do with the money if you win?

Sara and I were planning to pool the money and split it 50/50, but when I won she generously rescinded her offer. Which is her loss, really, because with my winnings I plan to go see Barry Manilow in concert. Who wouldn’t want to be a part of that magic?

Let’s talk about your book first and then your writing life.

What other recognitions has your book received thus far?

I was very pleased to receive a starred review in Publishers Weekly—a big deal for me, especially because I think so highly of PW. It also received a starred review from the Teens Know Best Galley Review at School Library Journal. The upcoming edition of ALAN, a journal for secondary school English teachers, will feature an interview with me as well as a spotlight on my book. And I’ve been honored to receive a lot of glowing reviews here locally.

Your book is composed of six stories from six perspectives. Which of the six was your favorite to write and why?

No one story was my favorite. While in the process of writing this book, I told my critique group (including the lovely and talented Kim Webb Reid), “Each one of these narrators is completely different, yet they each sound exactly like me. How is that possible?” I think the reason I’m not most attached to any certain character is because a part of me is in each one of them. Some were easier to write than others, though. Likewise, I’m equally pleased with how each one turned out. Some flowed very naturally, some didn’t, but eventually they all got to the right place.

Why was your book challenged? Is it racy?

Recently, my book was challenged in Lake County, FL. I don’t know the details, as no one ever notified me about it (except my agent, who, after reading an article about the challenge, told me: “Way to go!”). Is the book “racy?” I guess that depends on your definition. There are definitely some serious topics touched on in the narrative—mental illness, gay marriage, and suicide, just to name a few. But for me, that doesn’t make a book racy—it makes it an honest look at the complicated world we live it.

Now let’s talk about your writing and publishing.

You’ve talked before about hearing voices; it’s not hard for you to write from multiple perspectives because the characters for this book popped fully formed into your head. Is that similar to the writing process for your other manuscripts? Do the characters always come first?

For me, the characters always come first. This isn’t to say they don’t change in the process of writing. Sometimes I’ll get to a scene, thinking I know the direction it will take, and then realize, “That isn’t what she would do!”

What are some of your current and future projects?

Currently, I’m working on revisions for my next book, another young adult novel called Back When You Were Easier to Love. It will be released from Dutton/Penguin in early 2011. I’ve also started another YA novel I’m quite excited about.

Every author seems to have a different path to publication, and sometimes the amount of luck that is seemingly involved can be frustrating to writers who are working hard. Of all the factors that led to your publication, what are three strokes of luck or genius that you think played the most key parts in your becoming a published author?

For me, writing is a business inherent with frustration. My personal belief is that you have to be a writer simply because you can’t be happy doing anything else. If you find another profession equally or more fulfilling, do that instead!

People often ask me how I got published, and the story is short. What they never ask me is how I didn’t get published, and that story is long. I’ve wanted to be a writer ever since I was a child, and I’ve constantly worked toward that goal. I completed my first novel in 2001. My first novel was accepted for publication in 2007. The fourth book I wrote was the first one to be published. For six years I dealt with everything involved in being an aspiring writer: the near misses at publication, the weird looks I got when people found out about my “career plans,” the helplessness I felt about finding the right match for my work.

While you need strokes of luck in this business, you also need strokes of genius, and they’re not the same thing! So I’m including two strokes of each!

MY “GENIUS” :

• I continued writing and submitting. This is key. It’s not what anyone wants to hear. You want to hear that your talent, or your killer story idea, or whatever it is, shines through. But this happens rarely. Most often it takes continuing in the face of rejection galore, and it takes a mad genius to keep at it. And I mean mad as in crazy, not mad as in cool.

• I went to writing conferences and got my MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College. While getting an MFA is certainly not necessary, it does help you learn the discipline you need as a writer—and helps you hone your craft. For me, it helped to spend time with other writers, talking about issues and bouncing ideas off them in ways you really can’t with non-writers. Conferences are important for the same reasons. You need to spend time with like-minded individuals so you know what you’re getting into! But mainly you need to go to prove you’re serious about writing and are treating it like a professional. Plus, you learn a lot and often can make contacts in the publishing world.

MY LUCK:

• One of my best friends at Vermont College, Carrie Jones, had recently sold her first book to Flux, a then brand-new house publishing exclusively young adult titles. She read my manuscript and thought her editor would like it. I sent it to him, he did indeed like it, and it was published just over a year later.

• After my book was accepted, I joined an online community and met Sara Zarr, Anne Bowen, and James Dashner. Not only have they all been great friends, Sara recommended me to her agent, Michael Bourret, who I then signed with. He’s great, and he negotiated my sale to Dutton within weeks.

Now let’s talk about, “Who is this Emily Wing Smith?”

You just had your 29 birthday. What are 5 things you’ll do before 30?

• Meet M.E Kerr

• See Barry Manilow

• Finish writing another book

• Sell another book

• Gain a working knowledge of very basic technology

Who are your favorite YA authors?

M.E Kerr as well as our local YA authors.

How do you go about stalking a favorite YA author without getting arrested?

I am not the person to ask about this! Number of YA authors I’ve successfully stalked: Zero. Would I like to change this? Yes. Am I working to change it? Yes. Is it likely? No. I’ve unsuccessfully stalked quite a few YA authors, but I’ve never been arrested for it.

I know that writing is life, but what about when you’re not writing? What are two other prominent interests and hobbies in your life? (Or three? Or five?)

It’s boring, but I like to hang out with my family. My husband and I have Game Night with my sister, bro-in-law, and their one-year-old every weekend. I also love to organize! My label maker is my best friend.

One of my favorite sayings is, “Everyone loves Emily.” I like it because a.) I made it up, and b.) it’s true. But in order to be loved by everyone, you have to be known by everyone. How did you meet every writer in the world by the ripe age of 29? Do you ever feel shy around famous people or do you feel like most writers are your peeps because you’re all involved in the same thing?

Kim, does anyone except you actually use this phrase? I’m not sure that everything you say qualifies as a “saying,” but whatever. Meeting every writer in the world by age 29 is easy if you simply find out how many writers there are in the world, divide it by the number of days in your life, and then meet that many writers per day. You can do it, too. And, as a start, you already know me.

Pretend you’ve just been presented with the Utah Book Award. What is your speech as you accept the trophy/medal/money/candy bar/gift basket?

Last year nobody at the Utah Book Awards gave acceptance speeches, so I wasn’t planning one for this year. I did end up thanking the Utah Center for the Book, who presented the award, and Sara Zarr, my friend and fellow finalist who was rooting for me the whole time. Had I actually written a speech, I would have also thanked my writing group, my husband, and my family, especially my dad.

Congrats, again Emily.

Readers, if you would like to win an autographed copy of The Way He Lived, leave a comment, congratulations, or question for Emily and you’ll be entered in a drawing. Deadline is Halloween at midnight.

*Update* – I’m pushing the deadline to Nov. 1 at midnight. I forgot you are all probably making elaborate Halloween costumes this weekend instead of blog-reading. While you’re at it, make me one too. I’ve always wanted to be Snow White.