Hello, Chicago

The last weekend of summer, before I put away the white shorts and drag out the backpacks, we took a trip to Chicago.

My family is lucky enough to live where Chicago is an easy train ride away. Once we get there, nothing is easy. This small town girl was overwhelmed by the crowds and impatient with the traffic. Glad I didn’t have to drive in it!

We met a Forrest Gump impersonator at Bubba Gump’s. He only comes twice a year, and although he has the accent and costume down, he is no Tom Hanks.

Still, my kids were absolutely star stricken to meet this impersonator of a fictional character. They looked at him with wonder lighting their eyes. It reminded me of what we, as storytellers, give to the world if we are good at our jobs. We give them a world so believable, that people are honored to meet other people who look and act like the characters we created. It is an enormous task, yet a privilege to do this. It is, essentially, what built Disneyland and Disney Worlds. People go to these massive theme parks and come home with star struck children and cameras filled with pictures of awestruck offspring with Disney characters.

We all can’t be Walt Disney, but sometimes even Forrest Gump will do. 

Inspiration

I love a walk through a garden. Getting outside and seeing beautiful things relieves stress and inspires creativity for me. I must be aesthetically inclined.

I recently took a guided tour of the Allen Centennial Gardens in Madison, WI. This is a garden in the middle of the university campus (but not supported by university funds, I am told).

It was quite beautiful, and unusually serene against its urban landscape. 

This tree made me think of secret places with that opening that looked like a doorway to wonder. 

These had to be painted plants in this "natural" garden, because I could not get over their color. 

Who wouldn't want to ponder plots and characters on this bridge?

One last piece of garden as inspiration. This French garden is supposed to mimic a tapestry. I loved the idea of a garden imitating such permanent art. 

Point of View – Pick One (some exceptions allowed)

A plea to authors, especially the aspiring kind: choose one point of view. I promise, it will do your book a world of good.

I spend a lot of time reading and critiquing and reviewing books at various points of publication. One of my biggest pet peeves is when the point of view shifts. I get nice and comfortable in the head of the protagonist, and I am bulleted to another head. Most often, the shifts are unnecessary and detract from a good story. They chop it up.

Now, I know it can be done well. "Flipped," by Wendelin Van Draanen, is famously written from two different character's perspectives. "Little Women" is written from an omniscient point of view, dropping in on each character in turn (although it should be noted this was published so long ago, it may not be relevant to today's market). 

These are fine examples of doing it right, and if your story demands more than one point of view, study the masters on how it was done before. Most of the time, chapter breaks help the reader get in the right head. Changing the speaker by scene breaks gets messy. Really messy. You don't want your reader wondering who is in charge while reading your book. 

 

 

 

 

 

Book Review: The Fault In Our Stars

I would like to thank John Green for writing this book, “The Fault In Our Stars,” (Dutton, 2012) because it saved my summer. I have been on a string of disappointing reads, which I won’t bother to tell you about on this blog. I have no reason to write about books I wouldn’t recommend.

“The Fault In Our Stars,” does not disappoint. Although there are examples of delicious vocabulary and deep thoughts instilled in the narrative, it does not impede the rate at which I could consume the story. Extremely readable with a tragically likeable main character, Hazel, Green’s newest novel captures the state of being for teenagers. Hazel has terminal cancer, but has survived for a surprising number of years. Her trauma isn’t one of insistence, but a state of perpetuity living with a terminal illness she literally carries with her in the form of an oxygen tank. Her years are short, but her days are long.

I laughed, I cried, and then I wanted to read it all over again.

The 7 Cs of Success

My family recently attended a program at Northwestern University on Careers of the Future. The intent was to inspire my middle schooler to look beyond study hall and consider his future. I hoped he would be inspired to better strategize his academics toward getting into college. 

The surprise keynote speakers for the hubs and I turned out to be a highlight. Drs. Virginia H. Burney and Kristie Speirs Neumeister gave us a recipe for success, and there are only seven ingredients….

1. Critical Thinking – (learn to formulate questions, evaluate your source, organize the information, analyze the relevance, synthesize it into your own words and reflect on what you learn) There are many steps to critical thinking. It is no wonder it is the #1 key to success.

2. Communication – written, oral, body language. Clear communication is necessary.

3. Confidence

4. Content knowledge – specifically, they said upper level math courses were important and predictive of college completion. You don’t just go to college, you should come out with a degree.

5. Commitment – this includes all those key words for success….resilience, persistence, working hard, work ethic

6. Collaboration - learn to work with others. The village raises the child. The village can do a lot of things.

7. Creative Thinking – different from critical thinking. We are moving from the Information Age to the Innovation Age. Creative thinking is vital for survival in an Innovative Age. Everyone is looking for something new. Technology is constantly changing and folks have to adapt and work with it.

Now that I have these keys to success, I should be a millionaire soon, right? If only I took more math classes. 

In Editing

Many of my friends and family have been asking about the book. Publishing takes a long time, and it probably seems like forever since I announced I had a book deal. It really hasn't been that long. Being a writer requires a lot of patience. I don't have a lot of patience, but I have learned to exercise this when it comes to my writing life (while getting immediate satisfaction elsewhere, like defeating the zombies in Plants vs. Zombies).

I am happy to announce that we are in editing. Right now, as I type this, I should be reviewing edited material and send changes to my editor. 

Somehow, the editor turns this working copy into a master copy that gets edited again (and maybe again, I don't know). This becomes the book. 

I am enjoying dipping into "Divided Moon" again. I can’t wait to share it with the world. I think it will give readers a wonderful ride. The hard part of editing it is slowing down. I still get carried away by the story. 

Book Review: The Year the Swallows Came Early

"The Year the Swallows Came Early" by Kathryn Fitzmaurice (The Bowen Press, 2009) is the perfect summer read. Set in California, one can almost smell the salty air of the ocean breezes in this quiet tale about the year Eleanor “Groovy” Robinson turned 11, and the swallows came early.

The book opens with Groovy’s father being arrested in front of her. The next 100 pages is her trying to find out why.

The book has a vivid theme of forgiveness, and reminds the reader how harmful it is to hold onto anger and draw too quick conclusions. There is always another side of the story, which may not seem any better, but should be heard.