On Location

My work-in-progress takes place in the town where I grew up. Pretty, isn't it? The water is the Pacific Ocean, specifically the Santa Monica Bay. The same coastline is shown in the top picture of the sidebar.

This house is similar to the imaginary one where my protagonist lives. It is built into the side of a hill with only the garage showing from the street. Most of the rooms have views of the ocean.

Early morning fog. Chapter 3

White stone stairs where protagonists runs. Chapters 3 and 33

The lights of Los Angeles. Chapters 2 and 15

Overheard #14

"It'll be fun. Trust me."

I'm Back

It's back to reality and back to work. We had a terrific vacation. The body surfing was wonderful. We visited the town where my work-in-progress takes place, and while I had little time for writing, I tried to absorb as many details as possible. I'll blog about that later.

The photo shows my family on the way to the beach. (I'm the short one.)

Vacation!

Creativity

Have you ever wondered how creativity works? Bob and Michele Root-Bernstein have a new blog about creativity called Imagine That!


Robert and Michele Root-Bernstein are also coauthors of

Sparks of Genius: the 13 thinking tools of the world's most creative people

(Houghton Mifflin, 1999)

To read more about Sparks of Genius, click here.

Descriptions and Hooks

Tonight's Write Night exercise was designed by Tim Bogar. We started with a picture from a magazine. Then we were asked to write a one-sentence description, a two-sentence description and a four to six sentence description of the picture. Finally we wrote a paragraph including description and a hook (something that would make a reader want to continue reading).

The first set of pictures were of scenery. The second was people and the third buildings. Some of our efforts were moving or funny. Others needed more work/thought. Personally, I found the hook for a non-peopled picture of scenery the most challenging.

I Get a Charge Out of You

Here are some electrons that are seriously misplaced. A Japanese firm, will soon market a 15-inch robotic girlfriend that kisses on command.

While I find this idea disturbing, a tiny female robot could play a hilarious role in a YA novel. Maybe next time.

Overheard #13

"If you give 100%, you can get better and learn it right. If you give 95%, it’s good exercise."

A Rose Is A Rose...

Photo by Z.F. Burton

This was too pretty to postpone until next Sunday.

Sunday

Photo by Z.F. Burton

Words of Wisdom

I collected these tidbits at yesterday's SCBWI-MI conference.

"Dare to look at life and story on a slant." -- Patricia Gauch

"Don't ever throw something away you have worked on." -- Sarah Cloots

"Complaining is a big part of my process." -- David Small

"I want us all to slow down to andante." -- Sarah Stewart

The Day Before the Conference

Back in the days when I was a Regional Co-Advisor for SCBWI-MI, the week before any conference was harried with last minute arrangements. Still, I tried to spend at least some of the day before the conference writing. Initially, I was trying to figure out why I was doing all this stuff. I wanted to write books not plan events. Quickly, I discovered that taking some time for me and my project changed my frame of mind, inspired me to work harder for the conference, and helped me approach the event with a peaceful mind.

Nowadays, I don't plan conferences. (Yippee!) I did spend some time writing today. And so, I am looking forward to tomorrow's conference with a greater appetite.

The Lazy Days of Summer

Anybody seem 'em?

The next couple weeks are over-scheduled beyond the limits of sanity. Not a week has past since my post about free time and revising my manuscript. I should probably write, "Don't Panic in large friendly letters on the cover" of my calendar.

In a couple weeks, we go on vacation. Maybe I can be lazy and dazed then.

Overheard #12

"Doubt is my strong suit … I think."

Pondering the Fifth Draft

It doesn't have to be perfect; it just has to be better than the fourth.

Facts and Questions

An Abundance of Katherines

by John Green

Dutton Books, 2006

I have read several books about gifted kids. John Green is the first author I’ve encountered to differentiate between the sort of intelligence that memorizes facts and the sort that asks questions then seeks the answers. It's fine to know lots of things, but ultimately, problem-solving is more useful.

Sunday

Photo by Z.F. Burton

A Little Help from My Friends

At today’s critique group, my brilliant friends suggested a new approach for my revision. In recent posts, I’ve been whining about having to give up Ryan and how his absence deflates other characters. Now I know how to fill this void.

I had toyed with this concept earlier, but the idea was under-developed. It needed to be expanded or removed. As the expression goes, “I had to fish or cut bait.” I opted to cut bait because enough was going on in the novel without this conflict. Now the novel has room for this subplot and a decided need for it.

Thanks, guys. Time to fish.

Overheard #11

"I see that your wisdom in this matter is great."

Last Day of School

Three months of no homework! Perhaps more accurately, three months of me not having to inquire about homework. On second thought, I'll probably have to persuade the younger one to practice guitar and tuba, and the older one to apply to college. Piece of cake.

They don't need me to accompany them to parks and lakes anymore. If the older gets his driver's licence, I won't even have to be a chauffeur. Could it be that I will have some extra time? Could it be that I will finish revising my novel?

Hard Work

Reading Like a Writer
a guide for people who love books and for those who want to write them

by Francine Prose

Harper Collins, 2006



I read this book. I learned from this book. I wanted to love this book. And so, during the hours I spent studying it, I endeavored to be an artsy.

But I am not.

Memory

Memory is a strange thing. Some ideas stick with the tenacity of superglue, others float away like dandelion fluff.

Nearly every day my mother inquires if my younger son is “still interested in music,” and then she asks, “What is your older boy’s name?”

She cannot remember my brother’s profession, although he has been a Los Angeles County Sheriff for decades. One day, she asked me to write sheriff on her tablet, so she could recall his job when I’m not visiting. Sheriff is a word I have trouble spelling. Are there two Rs, two Fs, or both? Is there just one I, and, if so, where does it go?
“How do you spell sheriff?” I asked.
“S-H-E-R-I-F-F,” she said.

The Good News

About half of my current draft is complete. I've cut 4,287 words (almost a 12% reduction).

Removing Ryan

I am in the process of eliminating a character from my novel. Yes, he and his subplot have to go. But something will have to replace him.

Ryan added a layer of uncertainty. Other characters couldn’t figure out who he was and what he was doing. And Ryan had his own agenda up his sleeve.

Good dialog is like a game of Clue. Players try to figure out what others know without revealing their own secrets. Taking Ryan out of the manuscript causes several players tip their hands. Too much becomes obvious.

Fun Book

Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village

by Laura Amy Schlitz

illustrated by Robert Byrd

Candlewick Press, 2007

Three cheers! Using this book in a classroom would be a kick and a half.

Click. Click.

I finally reviewed Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson on Write Brainers.

Also Debbie Diesen has a lovely new blog called Jumping the Candlestick.

Overheard #10

"There's nothing but fear stopping you."

Air Time

Photo by Z.F. Burton

This Tae Kwon Do Tournament is one of the reasons why I haven't been blogging much lately. My sons competed; I volunteered. I worked at concessions: 300 hungry martial artists and their families wanting pizza, hot dogs, muffins, donuts and beverages.

The daring young man breaking two boards with a flying side kick is my older son.

Next weekend, I have two volunteer opportunities for football, then I have a break until school starts.

Sunday

Photo by Z.F. Burton

13% Leaner Manuscript

Progress Report:
Approximately 1/3 of my current revision is complete. I've cut one subplot, one character and over 3000 words.

Overheard #9

"To be a good math teacher, you have to be a few standard deviations from the mean."

Novel Math

Darcy Pattison's book arrived from amazon on Friday. I got as far as the one-sentence chapter summaries. Then, I realized that my current revision is all about subtracting subplots, adding scenes, dividing chapters and multiplying problems. I need a coherent document before I start Darcy's plan.

Soon.

Sunday

Photo by Z.F. Burton

A Star is Dead.

About 88 million years ago, a star collapsed in a massive thermonuclear explosion. This news, traveling at the speed of light, reached planet Earth on January 9, 2008.

Why is this supernova different from all other supernova? Usually star death isn't detected until after the explosion (and release of light), but Dr. A.M. Soderberg had been observing a different supernova when she detected an unexpected burst of X-rays nearby. This flash of X-rays was the first hint that a star was about to die. Soderberg and colleagues were able to watch the new supernova explode.

Read more about this in the New York Times Science section, or see the abstract from Nature.

Overheard #8

"There's nothing worse than someone getting to the point, so early in the sentence."

Breakthrough

Yesterday, I finished Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson (Viking, 2007). This novel helped me figured out what ails my own WIP.

I'm wondering why I didn't see this sooner.

Probably/maybe/hopefully, I'll review Twisted on Write Brainers, my critique group's blog.

The Odds Were Against It

Amazingly, I won one of the manuscript critique slots at the upcoming SCBWI-MI conference. My critique is with Sarah Cloots, an editor at Greenwillow Books.

Takes Two To Tangle

Yesterday evening was Write Night, and I brought the exercise. Kay Grimnes suggested I post it here.

1. List 3- 4 of your protagonist’s friends, family or followers.

2. List 2-3 reasons why your protagonist might quarrel with each.

3. Zero in on one of these scenarios.
a. Who started the fight?
b. How do things change if the other character starts the fight?
c. Why is the fight important? (stakes)
d. What does each character have to lose?
e. Are there hidden reasons for the fight? (Are the characters fighting about something trivial because they can’t/won’t verbalize the critical stuff?)
f. If so, how can you, as a writer, communicate the hidden, important stuff?

4. Write a scene describing the build up to the quarrel or fight. (The build up to a blow up may occur over many scenes, choose one.)

5. Write a scene describing the quarrel or fight.

6. Repeat 4 and 5 with:
a. The other character starting it, or
b. A major change in intensity (a quarrel becomes a fist fight or one character refuses to rise and stalks off in a huff, or laughs etc.) or
c. A different cause resulting in the same quarrel.

Overheard #7

"If the mean value theorem stopped working, the universe would collapse in fiery ruin."

Desperately Seeking Electrons

Yesterday evening we had a power failure. The entire street lacked those incredibly useful misplaced electrons that power our electronic entertainment.

In December 2006, an ice storm knocked out power for a chilly 48 hours, so now my neighborhood knows what to do. Within an hour of the power failure, everybody had their gas-powered generator fired up and connected to their refrigerators and sump pumps.


We had time on our hands. My younger son brought his acoustic guitar down to the living room to play for us. Later I heard my older son giving my younger son advice on his upcoming year in high school. My husband and I sat on the front porch, smelling the crab apple blossoms, speculating when the peony buds would open, and listening to the generators.

Then the power came back.

Maybe we do this more often.

Encouraging, I Guess

This morning on Darcy Pattison's blog, I encountered a link about quantity vs. quality. The theory is that producing high quantity gives an artist room to experiment and learn. In the end higher quality is achieved through experimentation.

My current WIP is a hefty 70,000 words. I realize that is not outrageous for a YA novel, but it will be a better manuscript when I've trimmed it to fighting weight. I've produced the quantity, I merely need to sift and winnow* for quality.

* I went to graduate school at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, home of the sifting and winnowing plaque. (I am not the young woman in the picture.)

Sunday

Photo by Z.F. Burton

Something to Strive For

I found this definition in Dictionary.com

com·pel·ling
1. tending to compel; overpowering
2. having a powerful and irresistible effect; requiring acute admiration, attention, or respect

The word, compelling, is often applied to manuscripts. The discussion goes on to discuss strong characters, intelligent plots and unique voice. Yet the terms are still imprecise enough to include that moment of magic when a writer causes an "irresistible effect" on the reader to obtain his or her "acute admiration." There can be nothing wishy washy about acute admiration. It is an arrow to the heart, that causes the reader to fall in love with written words.

Slash and Burn Editing

I wish I could say my revisions were going swimmingly.

At least they're going again. I need to cut A LOT. Perhaps I should keep a tally of words removed instead of words written.

Today I ordered Darcy Pattison's book, Novel Metamorphosis.

Overheard #6

"Driving is a non-contact sport."

Hodgepodge

On Reading

Lately, I haven't read a book that swept me away. I don't know if I'm cranky, or if my library-shelf-perusal-time has been rushed. I wanted to find a stellar book to review on Write Brainers. No luck, so far. I'll have to keep searching. (tough job, but somebody has to do it)

Paula Payton introduced me to a cool website for keeping track of books. Goodreads can be used to record and/or review books, or to hold book discussions with a group. I'm part of a book discussion group from SCBWI-MI, although, I'm not sure I'll take time to post additional opinions of our books of the month. The site does keep an orderly list of the books I've read. It also displays cover art which a simple Excel file wouldn't do.

On Writing

I haven't encountered a lightning moment, but I've enjoyed many small flashes of insight. Lightning bugs? I hope, someday, the total lumens will add up to a revised novel.

I'm about to pull up my socks and submit the first two chapters of my work-in-progress for a paid critique at the SCBWI-MI spring conference.

On Arithmetic

Paid critiques at conferences are awarded by lottery. Statistically speaking, the chances of me getting one are small. There are 8 slots for one-on-one critiques, and about 150 people will attend the conference. Here is where the math gets blurry. I don't know how many of the 150 would want a critique, and how many are ineligible because they received a critique at last fall's conference. Still, what do I have to lose?

Ruth

Ruth McNally Barshaw drew this cartoon of me after Debbie Diesen's book reception for The Pout Pout Fish when my critique group met for lunch.

Five links in one sentence - not bad.




To see more of Ruth's art, check out her book, Ellie McDoodle, Have Pen Will Travel.












And her upcoming book, Ellie McDoodle, New Kid in School.





Both books are from Bloomsbury.

Subsequently

Photo by Z.F. Burton

Click here for the before picture.

Overheard #5

“If bullets could kill, this would be a lethal résumé.”

Dinosaur Proteins

Scientists have detected protein sequences from a 68 million year old Tyrannosaurus rex fossil. Like wow! Until last week, I would have said it was impossible.

Let me explain why this is so cool.
1. 68 million years is such a long time, it’s hard to contemplate.
2. Proteins generally don’t last long because organic materials decay. This is a giant soup bone that has been in the back of the fridge for millions of years.
3. Fossils form when minerals replace the components of bone, so nearly all fossils are preserved bones. Sometimes paleontologists find the impressions of hair, feathers or organs, but the actual tissue is long gone.
4. Collagen, the protein they managed to extract, is usually not preserved. Think about a human skull. Where is the nose? Noses are made of collagen, so they don’t fossilize. Tweak your nose. It bends because the inner structure is made of collagen.
5. The collagen they did extract was from the center of the femur (thigh bone). Scientists speculate that this T. rex was preserved in an oxygen-free environment which prevented the decay of some soft tissue.

The peptide sequences from T. rex were compared to similar peptides from living animals. More similarities were found between T. rex and living birds (chickens and ostriches) than between T.rex and alligators. This provides further evidence that living birds are derived from theropods (bipedal, meat-eating dinosaurs).

The New York Times science article can be seen here.

The scientific paper is:
C.L. Organ, M.H. Schweitzer, W. Zheng, L.M. Freimark, L.C. Cantly and J.M Asara, Molecular Phylogenetics of Mastodon and Tyrannosaurus rex, Science, 320: 499 (2008).

Overheard #4

"Self esteem is over rated."

Some Muddy Spots and a Sprinkling of Dead Wood

Photo by Z.F. Burton

My revisions have stalled. I could spend this post listing excuses. The critical reason is the lack of a new idea. Still banging my head, still hoping to see lights.

Overheard #3

"Spare the red pen, spoil the manuscript."

New Approach

Don't change the scene. Cut the scene.

Pout Pout Party

Today I attended a book reception for Debbie Diesen's new book, The Pout Pout Fish. What fun. No one was pouting, and Debbie was terrific. Click here to read a book review by Lori VanHoesen.

The Pout Pout Fish was published by Farrar Straus Giroux in 2008.

Skunk Cabbage

Photo by Z.F. Burton

My new revision idea isn't working. The concept looked pretty from a distance, but when I got close, I discovered it stinks. Thus, the skunk cabbage. What I need now is a better idea, a lightning moment, a flash of clarity. My husband says, "Sometimes you have to bang your head on something for a long time before you start to see lights." Bang. Bang. Bang.

On a lighter note, the center of the cabbage depicts a Fibonacci sequence. (Look at the diagrams at the right of the link.)

Overheard #2

"95% of all statistics are made up on the spot."

What Did I Gain?

On our writing retreat, I recaptured my peace of mind and envisioned an approach for revising my work-in-progress.

I need to remove one character (Ryan) and his associated subplot. The manuscript is a bit long, and this particular subplot distracts from the story. Losing a level of complexity grates on me. But, the manuscript will benefit. So far, this revision has been easy, but I don't delude myself. Ryan's subplot is concatenated to the main plot in the later chapters. Extracting it will require less of a hatchet and more of a surgeon's scalpel.

Goodbye, Ryan. I'll miss you.

Grand Rapids Retreat

The retreat was wonderful! The picture shows the view from the front door. We went to a place called Riverside Writers' Retreat near Grand Rapids, Michigan. The cottage was lovely.




Here is a picture of the living room. I saw a river otter out that window this morning.







Okay, I'm gushing. I so needed this retreat, and now I feel inspired and motivated.







Spending time with Paula was great. Unfortunately she had a nasty cold.









Photographic evidence of me working on revisions.








Progress Report
The stack on the left has been revised - for now.
The stack on the right remains.

DNA Day

Happy DNA Day!

Click here for the story.

Tomorrow

I leave tomorrow for our retreat. I hope to revise, recharge and renew an old friendship.

The temperature is supposed to cool off to the low 60s. It's been mid 70s and beautiful all week. We also might get a thunderstorm or two, but I don't think I've ever driven to Grand Rapids in good weather.

I'm looking forward to diving into my YA work-in-progress again. I haven't worked on it since I sent it to Paula in February. Maybe the time away will give me perspective. I know her comments will.

New Blog

You are cordially invited

to visit a new blog by

The World's Greatest Critique Group.

My critique group has started a blog to discuss writing, kids' books and publication. Click here to visit Write Brainers.

First Impression

Until I sent my current work-in-progress to Paula, no one else had read the entire manuscript. Of course I'd brought chapters to critique group, but the whole story, from start to finish, was unknown to anyone except me.

For past manuscripts, I'd been part of an online critique group, and week by week, we'd slog through submissions, getting to know each other's characters, refining our own. This manuscript is far less influenced by the reactions of others. Will that be positive or negative? Time will tell.

I chose this photo because I like the little weed amid the cluster of bluebells. How many weeds will I need to yank from my work-in-progress? How many weeds will contribute to to the composition?

Photo by Z.F. Burton

Unexpected

Photo by Z.F. Burton

Beauty in a dandelion.

Overheard

"Winners never quit, and quitters never win, but people who never win and never quit are idiots."

Idiotically yours,
A

Dreams

"All men dream: but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity:but dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dream with open eyes, to make it possible."

These words are from Seven Pillars of Wisdom by T.E. Lawrence. The manuscript was initially written during the Paris Peace Conference following WWI. The manuscript was lost, then recreated by T.E. Lawrence during the winter of 1919-1920. T.E. Lawrence is also known as Lawrence of Arabia.

Still Counting

Our writing retreat is one week from today.
Progress report: I finished the detailed critique of Paula's manuscript. My written comments need a little tweaking. I should probably check mapquest soon.

Perseverance

"...be prepared to fail initially. For no quest is worth pursuing that does not require you to pass many tests, take numerous risks. Jason had to tame the wild bulls, Ulysses had to resist the sirens calling him onto the rocks; Captain Nemo had to face the giant squid...The test you must pass is not whether you fall down or not but whether you can get back up after being knocked down...the hardest tests of all will look to see how determined you are to live your dream, how strong is your heart."

That quotation is an excerpt from a commencement speech by Robert D. Ballard, the leader of the expedition that found the sunken R.M.S Titanic. He spoke at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, Massachusetts on May 23, 1992.

The entire speech can be found in Hold Fast Your Dreams: Twenty Commencement Speeches by Carrie Boyko (Editor), Kimberly Colen (Author), Scholastic Inc. 1996.

Countdown

Two Weeks!

We leave for our writing retreat two weeks from today.
Progress report: The detailed critique of Paula's manuscript is 78.4% complete.

What Makes a Good Writing Exercise?

Some writing exercises are designed as entertainment, an icebreaker at a social gathering of writers and illustrators. These party games are intended to be humorous and usually have an extraordinary number of criteria. I write for my allotted time and find I was able to incorporate a 15-year old male character, fear, the color turquoise, the scent of wet asphalt, five golden retriever puppies and no one-syllable nouns. But somehow, I never got to the melting polar icecaps. That doesn’t matter. The point was to have fun.

At Write Night, our intention is to work on our current projects or explore ideas for future manuscripts. The assignment is simple; the required thought process is complex. Several months ago, Tim Bogar suggested we write a scene in which a secondary character makes the protagonist laugh. I wrote the scene, but it didn’t ring true. By the time this passage evolved into my work-in-progress, the protagonist had stopped laughing. She was hurt and infuriated that a person she idolized would make fun of a real problem in her life. In resolving that conflict, I started to shape the interaction between these two characters.

A good writing exercise is just the push out the airplane. It allows a few moments of glorious freefall before the writer pulls the cord to release the parachute. And then once the parachute opens, the writer must determine what to do if there is no soft, grassy meadow for landing.

pictures from http://www.gettyimages.com/Creative/RoyaltyFree.aspx

Revisions

I used to think manuscripts were written in blood, sweat and tears.

Maybe they're written in coffee and chocolate - which, for the most part, are easier to read.

The Retreat of the Wonder Twins

In just under three weeks, I'm going on a writing retreat with my friend and critique partner, Paula Payton. I got to know Paula when we served as Regional Co-Advisors for the Michigan Chapter of SCBWI (2003-2005). Early in our tenure, she jokingly referred to us as The Wonder Twins, and the name stuck. The wonderful cartoon at the top of this entry was drawn by Ruth McNally Barshaw.

Paula and I used to belong to the same online novel critique group. That group dissolved, but our friendship didn't. I learned a huge amount about manuscript critiquing (and writing) through my years with that group.

About a month ago, we exchanged copies of our works-in-progress. We'll critique each other's manuscripts before we arrive. At the retreat, we will discuss the comments and work on revisions.

Progress report: I have read Paula's novel through once, and I'm about half way through making detailed comments. I still have to compose my impressions and write a summary.

Moms and Memories

The SCBWI-MI listserv is currently having a terrific discussion initiated by the brilliant Debbie Diesen. This is National Poetry Month, and April 17 is national Poem In Your Pocket Day. On Debbie's suggestion, many listerv members are sharing the poems they will carry with them. Today, Buffy Silverman posted The Lanyard by Billy Collins. Click here to read it.

My mother no longer remembers the things she did for me. Each day, when I visit her in that small over-heated room, she asks, "How can I ever repay you?"