YA Book Pick: How I Live Now

Once a month, we choose an outstanding YA book to review. We want to spotlight books of interest to aspiring writers, as well as highlight some of our favorite books and authors!

Perfect day. Meg Rosoff's How I Live Now, and a lot of sunscreen.

This month's book pick is HOW I LIVE NOW by Meg Rosoff

Synopsis (from good reads): “Every war has turning points and every person too.”

Fifteen-year-old Daisy is sent from Manhattan to England to visit her aunt and cousins she’s never met: three boys near her age, and their little sister. Her aunt goes away on business soon after Daisy arrives. The next day bombs go off as London is attacked and occupied by an unnamed enemy.

As power fails, and systems fail, the farm becomes more isolated. Despite the war, it’s a kind of Eden, with no adults in charge and no rules, a place where Daisy’s uncanny bond with her cousins grows into something rare and extraordinary. But the war is everywhere, and Daisy and her cousins must lead each other into a world that is unknown in the scariest, most elemental way.

First lines:  "My name is Elizabeth but no one's ever called me that. My father took one look at me when I was born and must have thought I had the face of someone dignified and sad like an old-fashioned queen or a dead person, but what I turned out like is plain, not much there to notice."

I want to use this as an example to my students on why specificity matters, and the importance of revision. Perhaps Rosoff spews genius like this without the refining tools on which most writers rely, but most likely a first draft would not have been as specific as "old-fashioned queen or a dead person." But after revision, that is so much better than "my father must've thought I looked like someone special, but what I turned out to be was plain," or even "thought I had the face of someone dignified and sad like a queen." It's the nuances of the phrasing that tells us who this girl is in ways no self-description could. 

Highlights: I somehow missed the book when it came out a decade ago and nabbed the Printz award , but since I signed up for Rosoff's workshop at SCBWI LA this year I figured I needed to remedy that mistake. After reading this, I'm definitely thrilled to have a workshop with her.. Anyway, it came out before the wave of high-concept dystopians that have dominated the market for the past several years, and instead of focusing on new ways to spin the dystopia genre for just the right hook, it focuses more on the complexities of the emotional truths, and employs a series of classic symbolic images to render it allegorical.

The fable-esque writing feels teen-honest as she lets the horror of war sneak in slowly, which feels more realistic. At first, the kids don't care; they're even somewhat happy for the freedom. She then paces the plot perfectly as she takes her time to let realistic ordinary details from the outside, like a doctor coming around looking for antibiotics, trickle in. Later, when the horrors of war hit, it's far more powerful than if she'd shocked us at the start. She also employs classic symbolism at its finest in her final garden scene. I won't spoil it here, but gardens do usually allude to the garden of Eden (the Biblical paradise one leaves with knowledge), and her haunting use of that garden is one of the most powerful PTSD scenes I've encountered in all my reading of war stories.

A good read for: Anyone who wants to read a deeply resonant story that will help them understand those around them who suffer from PTSD, or who wants to study how to write with spot-on deep simplicity. It's also just a great dystopian.

More Lessons from LA SCBWI - Confident Writing

While attending the LA SCBWI there was one theme that continued to percolate for me – confident writing.

I’m not talking about confidence in your actual writing ability (although every writer needs to be confident in their story telling craft to be successful.) I’m talking about having confidence in your reader, and letting that trust shine through by what you don’t say in your story.

How often as a writer do you feel the need to explain something to the reader? Perhaps it’s an emotion you want to share with the reader, so you tell them how your character is feeling. Or maybe there’s a recurring theme you want your book to have, so you tell it to the reader. Several times. Because you really want to make sure they get it.

Often times it’s referred to as telling, but it’s also a perfect example of a writer that doesn’t trust that their reader will figure things out on their own.

A confident writer believes in their reader. Confident writers trust that if they paint the details, the reader will be able to see the whole picture.

Take The Golden Compass as an example. In the first few chapters we are introduced to Lyra – a curious little girl. But Philip Pullman never actually says “Lyra is a curious little girl” so how do we know she’s curious? We know because he shows us.

In the first scene we see Lyra snooping around the dining and retiring rooms of her school. It’s in her simple actions that we start to uncover Lyra’s curious nature, not in the explicit words Pullman uses. She flicks a glass. She studies the table setting. She explores her surroundings. She eavesdrops. These are all actions that demonstrate curiosity without once ever using adjectives associated with the word curious.

Pullman very easily could have used a dialogue tag to explicitly tell readers about Lyra’s nature:

“What d’you think they talk about?” she whispered curiously.

But he never does this, because he never needs to. He has confidence that his reader will pick up on her character traits through her actions.

Another fantastic example of confident writing can be seen in the first chapter of The Hunger Games. Suzanne Collins never expressly tells us that Katniss is a survivor, or that she feels responsible for taking care of her family. Instead, she shows us Katniss’ hardened persona when she describes her reaction to the cat. What kind of person wants to drown a kitten so they will have one less mouth to feed? What kind of person spares a kitten’s life because her sister begs her not to drown it? It is through these actions and reactions that we come to see who Katniss is as a person, not simply through adjectives, adverbs and explicit explanations.

The next time you’re reading through your manuscript, ask yourself – what am I explicitly telling the reader that they can figure out on their own? Is there a way I can showcase that emotion or character trait through actions and reactions versus explanation? Are there explanations I can take out that won't take away from the story?  If so, you may be over-telling.

Go back and reread the first chapter of your favorite books with an eye for confident writing. The more you can develop an eye for what works in other stories, the more you'll be able to apply those tactics to your own writing.

Most importantly, have faith in your reader. Give them a beautiful story, and trust that they will be able to read between the lines. (Pun intended!)

Happy writing!

SCBWI LA 2012: The Highlights

The hostess with the mostest.
Lin Oliver & Stephen Mooser rock.

We'll be covering many gems from SCBWI LA later, but here are some pics and a few highlights from my incomplete notes from the sessions I attended (when I still had battery left in my computer.)

*Arthur Levine tells us to tap into the deepest needs we have as humans in order to create a timeless work.

*Tony Diterlizzi keeps objects from his youth nearby so he doesn't forget what it's like to be young.

A sea of amazing people

*Jordan Brown wants writers to study the market to find the gaps. He's also drawn to people who are telling old stories in new ways, a younger version of an adult hit, a sports story that isn't just about the sport like Friday Night Lights, an alternate version of history "what if", or a darkly comic religious story.

*Sara Shepard worked writing for others before starting her own series, and learned how to write quickly and efficiently. The hands-on experience taught her more than her MFA. She also says that people love to read about seemingly good people doing bad things.

*Patricia MacLachlan reminds us to always remember that children experience life beside us-- not in front of or behind us.

Chocolate makes listening even better.
Thank you Chuao!!!!

*Emma Dryden says that the key so social media is that it's about relationships. Also, Twitter and Facebook are great for networking, but it's tough to reach kids that way.

* Dan Gutman tells us to break rules and just keep going. You're going to get rejected a lot. Be a boxer. Take your beatings and keep going.

* Karen Cushman suggests there must be production and repose. Discover the world through writing, and know who you are.

*The editor's panel wants you to read all you can, be wary of too much advice, be aware of the market, create what is authentically you, and don't be afraid to finish and get out there.

*Bryan Collier went to art school, got a day job, and spent the next seven years taking his portfolio in for review once a week to publishers whose work he liked.

* Jay Asher says that the key to suspense is anticipation. Anticipate more wise words from him coming soon!!!

*It took Clare Vanderpool 16 years to be published. Then she knocked it out of the park with a Newberry win. She says "discipline" doesn't count if you don't have to battle through screaming kids to write.

*Deborah Underwood talked about the need for quiet and pondering time in the creative process.

* Ari Lewin gave an inside scoop on what goes on in an acquisition meeting. They all need to love it, and then look at the P&L (profit and loss) statement to see if they can sell it. She highly encourages new writers to avoid going out too soon.

* Deborah Halverson gave an encouraging snapshot of the marketplace. Character-driven picture books (but less positive for first day of school, grass is always greener, or books lacking character development or voice). There is a lot of room for growth in chapter books and middle grade seems to be the sweet spot right now. Teen is still going strong (with ebook numbers still rising), but mid list is still struggling, and over trends are dying down. Realistic fiction is on the rise. Overall, there is room for debut authors, and agents find most clients at conferences.

Ducked out to Thinkspace gallery &
saw this right after Ruta Sepetys
phenomenal keynote. Almost cried.
* Ruta Sepetys brought the house down by encouraging writers to go to the emotional places they really don't want to go. Stay a while, and go from participant to observer. For research, she went to a re-created Soviet prison, was beaten up, and had to face her savage side to write her award-winning novel.

* At the agent's panel, they suggested things like: follow your own path, read a LOT of books, houses don't want books will compete with ones they already have, once a trend is identified it's too late, you will need to market yourself, be aware of book scan (tracks sales and will often determine whether or not they can sell your next book, make decisions based on having a long-term career -- not a quick sale,  and have confidence when you write (it shows up on the page.)

Hippie Hop dancing with the (literary) stars!

Having fun, but missing Triona

* Tim Ditlow chatted candidly about Amazon taking on Marshall Cavendish, and how when considering who to take on, he wants to his as many key markets as possible: Institutional, Trade, ebook, & box stores. Books should work for all channels.

*Jennifer Bosworth is an introvert who believes that great publicity comes in all forms; you just need to be true to who you are. Her sincerity in the first video made a bigger splash than the uber-fancy super super cool trailer her director husband made so play to your strengths, and watch her videos. :)

* Gary Schmidt ended the conference beautifully with his keynote where he reminded us that "surprise is the only gift God gives us that he, himself, cannot experience," and that we have a great responsibility to our young readers to help anchor them in the truths of being good.

All in all, it was a phenomenal experience. Really inspiring.

Signing lines almost as long as bathroom lines :)

Jay Asher

Sara Sheppard

Jennifer Bosworth

Meaningful Small-Talk and the Art of Networking at SCBWI

Alert: I will be handing out free gourmet chocolate to Thinking to Inking readers at the conference. If you find me, please let me know so I may thank you in Chuao's finest. To find out how I got my hands on said chocolate, keep reading. 

Tomorrow SCBWI kicks off SCBWI's annual Los Angeles conference, and one of my esteemed colleagues will be bringing you fantastic coverage of it. But, on the eve of the conference, I am remembering my first SCBWI (this will be my fourth), and how terrified I was to attend. I even blogged about preparing myself for it as it was in NYC, I knew no one, and their round table would be the first official critique of my completed work. Yikes. And, to be fair, it was rough. I was used to marketing/ working trade shows for my brother's company, but found everything more tough when I didn't have his products to hide behind. 

This time, after a few conferences of applying my trade show techniques to conferences,  I thought I'd break down my core strategies for networking/conferencing/ trade show-ing/ etc. after over a decade of numerous events a year (I do freelance PR, and have rarely attended a conference where I wasn't offered several jobs).

1. Care about the person in front of you. It seems like a no-brainer, right? But, if I'm not aware, I can slip into a mode where I'm more worried about what idiot things I'm doing that I barely even see the person in front of me. Or, worse, if I'm out to "network" as a goal, I can see complex beautiful human beings as a means to an end. Neither of those has ever turned out well for me. On the other hand, actually caring about the person has ended in hearing hilarious/ fascinating stories, and deep long friendships with really cool persons I never would have met otherwise. And, as a bonus, by knowing what people need/have to offer, I can often help "matchmake" friends with other friends solving problems and deepening relationships.

2. Have things you're sincerely passionate about to talk about. I hate small talk. HATE. HATE. To keep from a series of questions that don't matter to anyone, I prepare. At a conference, when I'm taking notes, I'll often star a few key ideas I really like, and have pertinent questions prepared that will prompt a longer discussion. I also have a few topics I can talk about endlessly without getting bored. Many do well talking about sports, but to me, my favorite is chocolate. I'm obsessed! I always have a generous supply  of chocolate of various flavors on hand so instead of small talk, I can be critiquing the benefits of single-origin beans over a mixed variety. 

3. Get/give contact info. In our earlier post, the lovely Stacy showed how to prep your business card. Now, don't forget to hand it out, and to acquire the card of your new friend. I like to jot down key points of our conversation on the card as soon as I get it and tuck it into the back of my name badge. Once home, I collect them all, and write quick notes to each person referencing specifics to our conversation. You may want to also adding the person to Facebook if you hit it off, and/or following them on Twitter to keep up the new friendship depending on your/their feelings on social media. 

How I got my hands on said chocolate: I'm a regular at San Diego's finest chocolatier (Chuao), and am friends with all of the cashiers, manager, etc. So when the VP of marketing came in, we had a delightful chat about his new product line, I offered to work a trade show for them for their divine chocolate (had already done it once before), and mentioned that I use their Chocopods to make it through conferences. He asked when my next conference was, I told him, and then he offered to give me some to make it through. When I went to pick up the box, there were 160! Soooo....chocolate anyone???? I'm taking it as an omen for an exceptional conference, and I hope you come see me for a bite of chocolate and some delightful conversation. 

Writers Resource: Business Cards for Conferences

This August I will attend my first ever in-person writing conference at the Los Angles based SCBWI.  (I say "in-person", because my first real conference was last summer at the virtual WriteOnCon.)

As I've been doing my research on what to expect and how best to prep, I stumbled upon one reoccurring theme:  business cards.  It seems like anyone and everyone who has attended a conference recommends having a business card.

Why have a business card?  There are two main purposes:

1) Networking with other writers
2) Networking with agents (and perhaps publishers, depending on where you are in the process)

There will be hundreds of other children's book writers attending the conference, which means hundreds of names, faces, blogs and work-in-progress titles to remember. A business card is a simple and hassle-free way to exchange info and hopefully keep in touch with other like-minded individuals after the conference ends.

To this end, a business card should include the basic  information you want to share with other writers: your name, email address, blog/website/twitter handle, and a short blurb about the genre you are focused on. You can also include a telephone number, but there's no need to add your address unless you're feeling really friendly.  :-P

Okay, seems easy enough.  But what about agents?  Do they really want a business card from me? And if I do happen to have the opportunity to give them my card, what information do they care about?

These were exactly the questions I posted to my fellow aspiring writers on AgentQuery Connect (check out my two posts about this resource if you have not already.)  They gave me some fabulous advice, but perhaps the best suggestion came in the form of a blog post from agent Lauren Ruth.

I considered posting a number of different resources about writers' business cards, but in all truth Lauren Ruth's was the best.  In addition to reading it in its entirety, I highly recommend reading through the comments - there are some great thoughts and ideas that built on Ms. Ruth's suggestions. It's a must-read post for anyone trying to figure out what to include on your business cards.

Regarding where to go to make your business cards, there are a number of online resources that are easy to use, reputable, and cheap.  Below are a few links.

Vista Print - they offer 250 free cards - who doesn't love free? I can also vouch for this company from personal experience.

Zazzle - if you're not into the photo idea Lauren Ruth suggests, this site offers some fun writing-themed graphics

Uprint - In addition to the traditional card, they offer unique die-cut designs, and have a section focusing on business cards for writers

Happy writing!  And if you're planning to attend the LA SCBWI conference please let me know - I'll have a business card waiting for you.