Moving Resolutely Forward

My New Year's Resolutions:

1. Continue to write two pages per day of my new project
2. Organize my files, computer and otherwise
3. Continue to run five days per week, and participate in at least five 5k races in 2010
4. Post to my blog at least once per week; review at least one book once per month
5. Tame my internal editor, put her in a nice little cage with plenty of food and water, perhaps a tiny TV, and then don't let her out until needed.

I'm getting a head start on these; what are your New Year commitments?

Author Interview: Sue Stauffacher

Today I have the privilege of chatting with Michigan Writer, Sue Stauffacher. Her Donuthead books are favorites of mine. Welcome Sue!

Lori: What were your favorite books to read as a young person?

Sue: Secret Garden, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Lori: How does your job as a book reviewer affect your artistic process?

Sue: I don’t like to review books I don’t like because I know how it feels to get a bad review. I try to stick to the ones I can recommend. Also, it can get a little criticism-heavy at times and then I take a break from it.

Lori: We know all writers, even published ones, deal with rejection. How much rejection did you receive before your initial acceptance?

Sue: Thirty rejections on my first book and ten years between book one and book two. I am deeply acquainted with rejection

Lori: Can you tell us anything about what you’re working on now? Upcoming publications?

Sue: I have four books coming out in 2010—a series called Animal Rescue Team for Knopf about a family of urban wildlife rehabilitators. I studied Beverly Cleary’s books over and over to try to pick up her gentle humor and timing. And a picture book called Tillie the Terrible Swede, about the amazing long-distance bicycle racer of the 1890s, Tillie Anderson

Lori: Please tell us about any of your upcoming appearances.

Sue: I am focusing on writing this year…spending a lot of time as a volunteer with school kids and also volunteering in the costume shop for the ballet. Folks who want to keep track of such things in the future, can look for my newly revised web site suestauffacher.com this winter. I’ve engaged the talented folks at Winding Oak. They specialize in children’s book authors.

Lori: What books are you loving in 2009?

Sue: I just read Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco Stork. It’s a young adult book. Really really good.

Lori: How would you feel about your book(s) being made into movies or plays? Is anything like this in the works?

Sue: The ‘exclusive right to review’ Donuthead has been sold three times : ), but so far no movie. I think I could handle it from this distance. Maybe right after publication would be hard.

Lori: Do you prefer milk chocolate or dark chocolate?

Sue: Dark chocolate, definitely

Lori: Desserts or hors d’oeuvres?

Sue: Chocolate chip cookies and seven layer cookie bars—that was an easy one!

Lori: Describe a typical day in the life of Sue Staffacher :o)

Sue: Typical day…well, write, revise, work in my massively overgrown native plant garden, work on community projects, try to be a housekeeper, a mom of two teen boys and a wife of a college professor (he’s in the writing department)

Lori: Thanks so much for taking the time to appear at Quill today, Sue. I’m looking forward to your upcoming books and, for the record, I’d love to see Donuthead as a film!

Plot, Splot, Kershplot

Over at Fiction Notes, Darcy Pattison is offering lots of ideas and resources for those of us who are STILL learning how to plot our novels well. Even if you are a seasoned plotter, there's much food for thought here.

Belly up to the buffet, I say. . . .

Newbery Trivia

Did you know that Ellen Raskin, who won the Newbery Medal in 1979 for The Westing Game, did the original cover art for A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeleine L'engle, who won the Newbery for that book in 1963?

Chipmunk Stuck

Photo by John Van Hoesen

We rescued this little chipmunk, but his predicament was so unbelievable we had to take his picture first. Kinda reminds me of a certain episode of Winnie The Pooh--there, a literary connection. :)

The Lazier than Lazy Person's Book Club

Over at Jumping the Candlestick, Debbie has been hosting a Lazy Person's Book Club. I have been wanting to join, but was too lazy until now.

Anyhoo, here is a partial list of the books I plan to read. In keeping with the lazy theme, it is incomplete (to be finished when I am not too lazy to find books to fit remaining criteria).

So far:

1. A book of fiction you've been looking forward to reading:

Emma Jean Lazarus Fell in love, by Lauren Tarshis

2. A book of non-fiction you've been looking forward to reading:

3. A book by someone who's last name begins with Z:

4. A book from a genre you rarely, if ever, read:

Prairie Tale by Melissa Gilbert

(Despite the fact that I do not make a habit of reading kiss and tell books, I am intrigued by this memoir because I was SUCH a Little House on The Prairie fan. I wanted to BE Melissa Gilbert. I suspect after reading about her life I'll probably be glad I wasn't).

5. A book that was an award winner, or bestseller, from the year you were born:

6. Your best friend's favorite book:

7. A book you figure you probably should read, even if you don't want to:

Too many, but I've settled on Animal Farm, by George Orwell, because my son is reading it for English class in fall.

8. A book that has recently received rave reviews:

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, by Shaffer and Barrows

9. A book by someone who shares your first name:

The Girls, by Lori Lansens

10. A book that pertains to a skill you do not, and never will, have:

Math Doesn't Suck, by Danica McKellar

(I was a Wonder Years Fan, and a math phobic)

11. A book recommended by your hairstylist:

I've started "Guernsey Literary. . ." (too lazy to type the whole title again), which my mother is also reading.

Stay Tuned. . . .

A Fresh Start

It was a blustery day yesterday and we flew kites! I thought of SCBWI, and how this organization has helped me grow as a writer and a person over the years. It gave me a wonderfully critical and supportive critique group. The camaraderie alone is worth the membership fee, the friendships are priceless.

In honor of kites (and, well, because the kite pictures turned out so well), I start a new chapter of this blog. One in which I begin the work of becoming a school teacher, a better writer and always a freer thinker. Look for more interviews, book reviews and stories about process.

Below is an article I wrote for an SCBWI newsletter a few years ago. I'd forgotten about it until yesterday, as I fought at times to keep my kite from taking a nose dive. . . .

Keep Your Kite Flying

In the alternate whirlwind and stillness that is a writer’s inspiration there are plenty of opportunities to ponder one’s motives. Am I concentrating on publication too much? Am I even any good at this? Do I really like to write after all?

Inevitably I wonder, when the wind of inspiration is gone, how do I keep my own kite flying? The answer should be simple. If one truly loves to do something, they do it. Period. In times of ordinary frustration, I resort to this answer to get through the day’s work. But the truth is, as an artist, I need something a little more poetic for the long haul.

So I think of my breath catching in response to a beautiful sentence, or ponder the deep satisfaction that comes from choosing the right expression. I think about a character that vibrates with life on the page and makes my own heart beat. Before long, a whisper stirs and my pen is ready. I am a writer after all.

This is the breeze keeping my own kite in the air. Sure, writing a beautiful story worthy of publication would send me over the moon. But I will still be a person who has to ask myself again and again, “Why do I do this?” The answer is what keeps any writer’s kite flying. Even on a still, windless day.

Jam Session

In my life I have jammed many things: to music playing Guitar Hero, staplers, photocopy machines, my finger, the gears on my Mazda. The list goes on. Even so, there is a kind of jamming I had overlooked until yesterday. The kids and I went strawberry picking at a local farm and discovered a dying art.

Freezer jamming.
We picked a few different kinds, tart and sweet, big and small. We are an equal opportunity freezer jamming operation.
My children, quiet and working together. We've not only been introduced to a new hobby, but I'm now convinced that these particular strawberries contain a kind of miraculous, "peaceful sibling" property. My research is not scientific, but I'm thinking it's in the seeds.
My son's favorite part was "murdering the fruit," which, though somewhat in conflict with the berry's miracle attributes, was quite theraputic for all of us.
There is a lot of sweetness in jam, but we decided to focus on vitamin C and antioxidents instead. And miracles can be only encouraged by sugar.
Stirring jam is loads of fun, until you feel a handstand coming on. . . and must take a break to indulge acrobatic urges.
And to think, if we wanted jam a hundred years ago, we'd have HAD to preserve it ourselves, and probably not the easy, freezer kind!

"Then I'm glad I live now," Mary said.

Me too. There is charm in the unnecessary.
Yet I think it is necessary to focus on process when I need a little inspiration. My writing suffers when I'm too focused on product, and forget that the work itself has sweet rewards of its own. Twenty jars of jam later, I can't wait to open one next January, and remember the miracles of June.

Story Gatherers

Today my husband and I went to the Detroit Institute of Art where I gathered much inspiration, and saw this, one of my favorite paintings. We had a wonderful time.

About this painting called, The Nut Gatherers : It was created in 1882 by Les Noisettes and, I found out today, was a little edgy for it's time. The perspective is very low to the ground and close up to what's happening between these people. Doesn't it look as if you are sitting right next to them? This is (according to the DIA) the first painting to depict children in a way that invites the viewer right into their world.

I don't know enough about art to have realized this before it was pointed out to me at the museum. Perhaps it's why I've always liked this piece so much. I want to hear the secrets these girls are telling, and the painter has put me excruciatingly close without letting me hear. My imagination is captured. The Nut Gatherers is a great example of what good children's lit, or any good book is supposed to be. Real and honest and true.

An interview with N.D. Wilson, author of 100 Cupboards

N.D Wilson's debut novel, an adventure called Leepike Ridge, prompted comparisons to Mark Twain and garnered much recognition.  Now, with his 100 Cupboards trilogy, Wilson is dipping into the fantasy realm with great success.  Check out his blog and website for writing tips and all around great content.  He's also a fun interviewee:  

Lori:  I come from a family full of teachers.  How does your teaching inform the kind of writing you do?

NDW:  I've had to learn to shift and slide my verbal approach on the fly (tone of voice, inflection, comic vocab, sudden anecdotes, etc.) in order to keep students awake and interested. That forced me into a degree of versatility I might not have come by otherwise. I'm sure there are other ways that my teaching has influenced my writing, but according to me, right now, at this moment in time, that's the most notable.

Lori:  You seem like a ham (See author photo).  Do you have any theater in your background? 

NDW: Ham?  I'm quite serious about photos. . . Actually, I have (throughout the duration of my remembered life) been completely unable to take a "traditional" (note the scare quotes) photo without first ruining several shots. It's only one of the ways in which I have failed to grow up. As for theater, I have only a little in my background. Some junior high stuff (I'm sure I was amazing), and one community theater performance which I enjoyed immensely (a comedy called Leave it to Psmith). Not sure I could ever be involved in something that wasn't a comedy.

Lori:  What were your favorite books to read as a young person?

NDW:  Nothing original here. Narnia and Lord of the Rings from a pretty early age. In junior high, I expanded into C.S. Lewis's Space Trilogy. The third book (That Hideous Strength) remains my all-time fav.

Lori:  What have you read lately (for adults or kids) that you'd recommend?

NDW:  Hmm. Define lately? On the kid side of things, I really enjoy Megan Whalen Turner's stuff. And Holes remains as close to perfect as a book can get. For adults, I recently read (and truly enjoyed) Truck: a Love Story by Michael Perry.

Lori:  I read that you've turned book three of the cupboard series in to your editor.  Can you tell us anything about what you're working on now?

NDW:  Too many things. But on the top of the pile, there is a picture book called The Wisdom of Ninja-Boy and a new five book series that I'm shaping (the name of which I am not currently sharing). Both are for Random House.

Lori:  If you had a secret cupboard in your house, where would it take you?

NDW:  When I first pondered this question (in adulthood), I came up with far too many answers. Eventually, I was able to narrow it down to 98 possibilities, and the 100 Cupboards trilogy was born. Currently, I think I would want it to take me up to my daughter's palace in the sky. She's been inviting me to a picnic up there, and I just haven't been able to find my way.

 

Lori:  How do you feel about your books being made into movies?  Is anything like that in the works?

NDW:  I feel conflicted. There is no greater marketing tool than a film. Incidentally, there is also no greater tool for inflicting authorial pain. Various movie types are eager to chat, but nothing's in production.

 Lori:  Do you write every day, and do you have any of those quirky writer rituals like, say, the required company of a rubber chicken?

NDW:  I don't write every day, but every day contributes to my writing (research, reading, sketching, etc.). No rubber chickens here, but I do have a large, smooth, 1911 British penny that always stays with me while I write. I also tend to find a single album for each project. That album is the only one that gets played until a project is finished, so it's important for me to choose wisely. (Example: Coldplay's X&Y provided background for Leepike Ridge.)

Lori:  What books do your kids love?

NDW:  My son (who just turned seven) has been sucked completely into Dandelion Fire. Obviously, that's a lot of fun for me to watch. We generally have to pry it away from him to get him into bed, and he gets up early to read it before we wake up.

Lori:  Please tell us about any upcoming appearances.

NDW:  The L.A. Times Festival of Books is next on the slate. I'll be on the Target Children's Stage at 4:4o in the pm on April 25th. I'm wrapping up a hectic spring and am looking forward (hopefully) to a quiet summer.

Lori:  Finally, do you prefer milk chocolate or dark?  Dessert or hors d'oeuvres?

NDW:  Dark everytime. But dessert or hors d'oeuvres? My stomach is an inclusive operation. There's room for both.

Lori:  Anything I didn't ask that you have an answer for?

NDW:  Notta. Cheers, and thanks so much for the grilling.

Lori:  Thank you.  It was a pleasure!

Hiatus

As of today, I'm going on a blogger hiatus.  Deborah Wiles had an interesting post about "face time," a while back that was quite insightful, and it got me thinking about how much time I spend staring at this screen.  While I'm not ready to write long-hand yet, I think I could decrease my screen time a bit, and connect some more with the faces around me.  

Yes, connecting is good.

I don't know when I'll be back, but when I do, I'll have more interviews!   

Interview Friday

More interviews are in the works.  Stay tuned!  I'm substitute teaching today so, unfortunately, that means no time for a substitute post of any substance.

Have a good Friday all!

Wednesday

Dig up
every bit
of the possible
and then plant all your seeds
there
in the yet-to-be-named.


Wait
because this is the only way to see

New Ground

It is the only way
To grow.

Diamond Willow by Helen Frost

Farrar Straus and Giroux

(Frances Foster Books)

April 2008

Ages 9-12

I was drawn to Diamond Willow because of its creative structure. The novel is told in a series of concrete poems shaped like diamonds. Diamond Willow is a type of wood that grows in the northern woods, and is polished to be used for walking sticks and lamps and the like. The distinctly shaped scars create something striking and singular, much like this story, which is an ode to Alaska and sled dogs and the diamond willow.

Willow is growing up. She wants to be understood and trusted to do adult things. When her parents allow her to drive the family's prized sled dog, Roxie, to her grandparents' house, disaster strikes.

When she enlists her best friend (who has lately been paying more attention to a certain boy than Willow) in a plan to help the injured Roxie, they fight to survive the elements.

And then there are the animals in the forest, reincarnated ancestors, who watch over and protect Willow. Their contributions, in prose form, are the only departure from the diamond poems.

All this would have been enough for me to put the book down and say, "That was really good." Then Frost puts in such an unexpected plot twist I had to set the book down to thoroughly savor the surprise. Wow. And this book has been out since last April! I think it should have received more attention than it did. I highly recommend this novel--added bonus--you can read it in an evening. A pithy, sparkly read.

Interview Interlude

I'm sorry to say, there is no interview today. In an attempt to offer an inferior substitute post, here are a few things that currently interest me. Got the idea from Kara Lareau.

1. Cute summer shoes and where to get them.
2. Picture books and learning to write them.
3. Dancing with the Stars
4. American Idol (though not as interested as I've been in the past, for some reason)
5. The shift from soup to salad for my lunch (It's spring!)
6. Allison Krauss
7. my son, who I caught perusing the "Parenting Teens" book I've been reading.
8. Learning to control the particular brain chemistry that causes inspiration (Why not? Doesn't it seem like you should be able to?)
9. The plot structure of Helen Frost novels (The Braid, Diamond Willow)
10. bike riding (It's spring!)
11. The fragility of the brain.
12. Economic Bailouts. Can't live with'em, can't live without'em. The economy doesn't usually interest me beyond my own wallet, but I'm worried enough to be quite interested at the moment. Banks: okay. Everyone else? Not so sure. Of course I want the automobile industry to surivive and thrive, but where do we draw the line then? And where is the money really coming from? Who is really bailing us out? And how will we ever pay it back?

What's knocking around in your head lately?

Ellie McDoodle!!

Ruth Barshaw has up and been nominated for a 2010 Beverly Cleary award! What wonderful, prestigious recognition. Read more about the whole thing on Ruth's blog. Wouldn't it be great if she won?

An Agent Interview: Erin Murphy

The Erin Murphy Literary Agency is one of the most successful around, and it’s not even located in New York City! Indeed, I’ve heard the words “Dream Agent” bandied about among authors seeking representation from this Arizona native. She also happens to be one of the nicest people on the planet. Welcome Erin! And thanks for being the first agent interview in my series.

Lori: With all the changes happening in the industry right now, do you think writers should still be submitting to houses without an agent?

Erin: Well, I think agents have become especially important in that we do have our fingers on the pulse and know what editors are looking for and what they just can't take to acquisitions right now--and we also help our clients put aside their long-shot, narrow-readership manuscripts in these hard times and present only the very best work to editors.
But if an unagented writer has a good connection with an editor via a critique or a conference or the like, and has a good manuscript that is ready to go, I don't think she should pass up the opportunity. Don't have an attitude of throwing whatever you've got and seeing what sticks--save some opportunities for later if you need to--but make good use of what you have.


Lori: Aside from honing one’s skills to the level required for the market, how important is it to develop a platform of sorts before attempting publication?
Erin: This depends entirely on the project. Here's a great link to an interview in which a publicist talks about playing to your strengths when promoting a manuscript:

http://shrinkingvioletpromotions.blogspot.com/2009/01/publicist-interview-jennifer-taber-of.html

As Jennifer Taber says, you simply focus on what you're good at and develop opportunities there. If you have a platform and it matches with your book, that's terrific. If you write nonfiction, it can even be key. But for fiction, it's not required.
Here's a good example: My client Susan Vaught published a book called TRIGGER, about a kid who tried to kill himself with a gun, but survived. It's a powerful piece of fiction just as fiction, and has gotten plenty of buzz among book reviewers and such for that, and Susan was already a published author when it came out, with connections among booksellers and librarians. On its own, that would have been enough.

But Susan is also a neuropsychologist specializing in head injury issues, and can speak with authority about the issue of suicide and suicide prevention. With that platform, she was able to reach into some areas that another author might not have reached--psychology magazines and journals, teachers who take a special interest in suicide prevention, radio programs focusing on mental health issues, and so on. So she was able to come at this from both angles, and I think it benefited the book.


Lori: That makes a lot of sense. Since you consider clients only that you’ve attended conferences with, or on referral, would you tell us about any upcoming appearances?

Erin: I attended five conferences last year! I usually try to limit it to two. At this point I'm scheduled for only one, a fall conference with the Central Ohio SCBWI (a new chapter whose website should be up soon here: http://www.coscbwi.org/). I've sworn to do no conferences this spring at all--my reading pile has been out of control. And at this point, I've signed a few new clients in the last several months, so I'm finding it much easier to pass on submissions than usual, as well--I've referred several writers to other agents who have signed them, which says something about the quality of work I'm saying no to at the moment. I'd say it would be smart, if you have an avenue for querying me, to hold off until well into the spring at this point, if you want to catch me in a good mood!

Lori: Do you ever represent authors who write exclusively for the picture book market?

Erin: Yes. But I have a good number of picture book authors, and they tend to be fairly prolific, so it's rare I sign new ones.

Lori: The dreaded market trend question: What kinds of projects are you looking for right now that you believe can be sold relatively easily in this tight time?

Erin: I'm really sorry to say something entirely unhelpful: Terrifically strong writing that absolutely blows me away. Truly, that's what it takes. When I visited editors in New York last fall, I was told over and over again that they're looking for "sure things and award winners." If only we could predict in either category!

Lori: Please tell us a little about your upcoming publications in 2009.

Erin: I have lots of new things by well-loved authors, which of course is always exciting--two new YA novels by Janette Rallison, MY FAIR GODMOTHER and JUST ONE WISH, each breaking a little into new territory and together marking her best work to date, I think; the debut of a new series by R.L. LaFevers, the author of THEODOSIA AND THE SERPENTS OF CHAOS, called NATHANIEL FLUDD, BEASTOLOGIST, a chapter book aimed at adventure-loving boys; THE INDIGO NOTEBOOK, the first of a new series by Laura Resau, author of RED GLASS, marrying her international sensibility and magical realism with a slightly more commercial approach; and Susan Vaught and her first-time-writer son, JB Redmond, have a meaty new fantasy, OATHBREAKER, coming out in two parts, starting with ASSASSIN'S APPRENTICE in June. Perfect for die-hard fantasy fans.


I'm also very excited about some authors making their debuts in 2009. Lisa Glatt and Suzanne Greenburg have an adorable young middle grade novel called ABIGAIL IRIS: THE ONE AND ONLY coming out in March; another Abigail Iris book is in the works, too. Penny Blubaugh's magical YA novel SERENDIPITY MARKET is out this month as well. Lewis Harris has a really fun middle-grade novel called A TASTE FOR RED coming out in June--this features a girl named Stephanie who insists on being called Svetlana and believes she is a vampire. A bookseller who read it in advance said it was Buffy meets Nancy Drew.

I’m especially looking forward to seeing a spring picture book, THE HAT THAT WORE CLARA B., illustrated by Frank Morrison. The author, Melanie Turner-Denstaedt, passed away last year and did not get to see her first book release, but she did see Frank's sketches. The publication will be a bittersweet event.

Lori: What is your favorite way to spend a Saturday?

Erin: Depending on the weather, kayaking on the local lake, hiking in the woods with the dogs, or knitting while watching a movie or listening to an audiobook.

Lori: Do you prefer dessert or hors d’oeuvres?

Erin: Dessert! But not too sweet.
Lori: Dark chocolate or milk chocolate?

Erin: Absolutely without a doubt dark.

Lori: Describe a typical day in your life.

Erin: A typical workday starts around 7 a.m., with reading and responding to email, catching up on blogs and Facebook, and generally staring into my laptop for a couple of hours with the TV on in the background, vaguely catching up on news or whatever TV show has my attention at the moment. Usually on the couch, with sleeping dogs and cats sprawled around me.

Then I move into my sunny home office and start the "where did the day go" blur--making calls, going over royalty statements, reading partial manuscripts to respond to queries, talking or emailing with clients about their works in progress or where their attention should fall next or how to interpret what editors are saying about their manuscript on submission, handling one crisis or another, negotiating deals, sending manuscripts to editors via email, trying not to trip over the pile of submissions I moved to the floor so I can't avoid it, and somewhere in there, stopping for lunch or yoga or a walk or moving laundry from washer to dryer. Once a week I go to lunch with a friend and get reminded there's a real world out there. Once every six weeks or so I have a "reading week," when clients know not to call or email unless it's an emergency, and I give the vast majority of my focus to reading their manuscripts. (I spend more time on the couch that week.)
At about 5:10 p.m., my husband's car pulls into the driveway, one of my dogs presses her head down on my laptop and closes it, and I shut the door on the workday.

Lori: Thank you so much for stopping by today, Erin. It was a pleasure. I should add that Erin Murphy is the agent of my writing buddy, the inimitable Ruth McNally Barshaw, author of the Ellie McDoodle Series (and the artist who provided the sketch for this post--thanks!) Erin recently sold the third installment of the Ellie series to Bloomsbury. Yay!

Shred

Lately, my husband and I have been talking about exercising together. My mother and sister recommended I check out the Jillian Michaels SHRED workout they just started doing. Jillian is a trainer on, The Biggest Loser television program. We get the work-out in our On Demand menu.

The idea is you are constantly multi-tasking: working your upper body with weights while doing lunges, that type of thing. This alternates with some pretty intense, high impact cardio.

So, I'm thinking, my sixtyish year old parents do this routine every other day. It must not be THAT intense. Maybe it would be the appropriate portal back to the world of fitness for me.

Oh, how wrong wrong wrong I was.

I dragged my poor husband out of bed on Sunday morning. "We're going to get FIT!"
We did the workout. My husband, having had knee surgery this past fall, was smart and stopped short of injury.

But I did the whole thing. There are three ladies leading these moves. There's our militant leader, Jillian, and two others demonstrating "lower" and "higher" ability.

I'm still in my thirties! I think to myself. Doesn't that make me high ability?

No No No No NO.


At certain points, I wanted to curl up and expire, and Jillian would say,

"I know you want to die right now! But DON'T stop!"

Okay, Jillian.

Six thousand four hundred ninety two crunches, jumping jacks, lunges, push-ups and Hail Mary cries later, I honestly felt great.

"Wow," I said to my husband. "This is a GREAT workout! I feel GREAT!"

"Good," he said. "Can we go upstairs now?"

I thought it was pretty good for someone who's been letting things like opening rejection letters pass for a workout regimen. In fact, I was downright thrilled with myself. Hey, I'm not so old after all!

I took a long, hot shower. Nice.

Then, as I tried in vain to get out of the bathtub, an urgent message surged from my quadriceps. Loosely translated: "We are very angry with you."

It is Thursday, and I am just now walking normally.

My mother called the other day to tell me Dad hurt his leg doing the Jillian Michaels workout. "You know, Lori, it dawned on me, I'm sixty years old. Your father and I probably shouldn't be doing quite so much jumping up and down."

I love my parents.

It actually is a good workout, if you ease into it a bit more.

As for my husband and I, we'll be looking at Debbie Diesen's Wednesday Workout Reviews to find a supplement to the jump-till-you-croak-insanity that is SHRED.

And keep a "shred" of our dignity in the process.

My Dog is Airborne

We're having gusts up to fifty miles per hour here in my little midwest town. I'm posting to inform you that for the second time in her, so far, short yet meaningful life,

My shitzu has blown off the deck.

She's fine, just a little surprised. I mean she was kind of close to the edge, but not that close. I wish I had a picture. Imagine a scene out of the Wizard of Oz, for when our dear little Molly hit the grass, squinting and making a valiant attempt to stay on all fours against the elements, I'm quite certain I heard her whisper, "We are not in Kansas anymore."

Perhaps I'll hire her out as a stunt dog.

An Interview with: Janet Taylor Lisle

This week’s author is highly acclaimed Newbery Honor and Scott O'Dell award winning author, Janet Lisle. Her latest book is HIGHWAY CATS (you can see my review here). Welcome Janet!

Lori: Where are you from?

Janet: I'm a New Englander with deep roots in Rhode Island. My home is in a small, rural town, on the coast. I love the fields, ponds, beaches and woods surrounding my house and many of my stories contain passages that describe real places I walk every day. Near my home are ocean coves where rum-runners like those in my book BLACK DUCK once landed on moonless nights. The magical garden featured in THE LOST FLOWER CHILDREN is off my side porch. The forest that provides the scene for my novel about how wars start, FOREST, is just down the road.



Lori: Tell us a little bit about your writing process.


Janet: I wrote my first books with a pencil, pages that I then typed up on an electric typewriter before mailing them to my editor. I work entirely on computer now. Otherwise the process is the same. Writing is like fishing: first comes the small tug of an idea, then a cautious reeling in, a stronger pull from the water and then a big fight (usually about mid-way through) where the story tries to get away and you have to play it with cunning and patience. Finally, if you're lucky, you land a creature that isn't at all what you thought it would be, but you're so relieved the fight is over that you don't care.

Lori: Do you listen to music while you write?

Janet: I love music, and sing in several choruses. But I don't listen to it while I write. It tends to drown out the voices of my characters. Also, I like to read my work out loud from time to time to hear how it sounds. Words, sentences, even whole chapters, make music of their own.

Lori: Do you ever work on more than one book at a time?

Janet: No. Once I'm into a story, I can't think of anything else.



Lori: Tell us about the play adapted from your novel AFTERNOON OF THE ELVES.
Janet: AFTERNOON OF THE ELVES was optioned by a children's theater company and written as a script for stage so quickly that I didn't have time to participate. I would have liked to. It's been a big success and I like the play a lot, but I find it both sadder and less magical than my story. I'm basically an "awe and wonder" writer, someone interested in the power of imagination. It's why I love writing for children. They're more in touch with this side of themselves than adults. In the play, Sara-Kate's backyard elves are no longer real by the end. They've become a way to describe Sara-Kate's terrible social problems. In the book, I leave room for my readers to imagine what they please about the elves. Personally, I've always believed that, within the scope of the story, the elf village is awesomely and powerfully alive. This is what gives the story its imaginative depth.

Lori: What do you like to read?

Janet: My favorite books growing up were J.R.R. Tolkien's THE HOBBIT, and his RING TRILOGY. I loved his invention of an alter world complete with history, geography, moral code, and even a literature. The writing in those books, with its over-elaborate, mock heroic tone, isn't the best, I see now, but I still admire the sweep of Tolkien's imagination, and the sinister creep of evil that shadows his plots.

Lori: Can you tell us anything about what you’re working on now?

Janet: At the moment, I'm writing a history of my town for the local historical society. The town is one of the oldest in America. This fall, I've been researching what happened to the Indians who lived here first, back in the 17th Century. There's a mystery about where they went. Were they simply killed or deported, or did they gradually blend in with the newer inhabitants? I may use these ideas in a fictional book later.

Lori: Is there anything else you’d like to share about your writing life?

Fiction is a kind of writing that's best done on a full tank of ideas and emotion. I need time between books to fill up. For me, the best stories have meanings that go deeper than the surface narrative. It isn't enough that characters are "well developed", as the critics often say. Or that a story is deftly plotted or a fast, exciting read. Ambiguity, voice, the uneasy thrill of teetering at the edge of reality, are things I've learned to treasure in novels written for adults, and I work to bring them to my stories for children and young adults. This doesn't make me the most popular writer out there, but for those who care to look, there are special sights to be seen.

Lori: Thank you so much for dropping by. Your books are worth the wait! (Janet has a wonderful, informative website with more interviews here).

I'm so out of it I posted to the wrong blog.

So, it's Friday.
I promise next Friday there will be another interview.
Really.
For sure.
I've been working and writing and dealing with middle school stuff this week. Blogging has taken a backseat. Yay Friday!
And a Happy Friday to you!

This post originally appeared on Writebrainers, my critique group's blog. Sheesh. I didn't even notice until I went to look at it.

Friday Interview Hiccup Haiku*

Please enjoy this
interview intermission--
Good and Plenty calls


When I was little, my mother would sometimes buy a box of Good and Plenty when we went to the movies. This is my first candy memory, even before M&Ms, which came shortly after. As an adult, I prefer M&Ms for taste, but hearing the name Good and Plenty still gives me a delicious nostalgic pause. It's one of the best candy names ever. I mean, if you have good and you have plenty, what more do you really need?

What is your favorite candy from childhood? Now?

*My apologies to Kay, friend and haiku genius.

An Interview with Patrice Kindl

This Friday’s author is Patrice Kindl, author of OWL IN LOVE, GOOSE CHASE, THE WOMAN IN THE WALL, and LOST IN THE LABYRINTH. Welcome Patrice!

Lori: Your theater background is interesting to me. Do you ever do any acting (besides character creation on the page), even though your career went in a slightly different direction?

Patrice: A few TV commercials, some off-off-off Broadway and a few months with an improv. group. Not much, really. Like any of the arts, it's hard to break in and a hard way to make a living.

Lori: What were your favorite books to read as a young person?Patrice: I was an Anglophile. I loved MARY POPPINS (the books, NOT the movie), THE BORROWERS, the Narnia books, T.H. White's THE ONCE AND FUTURE KING. Actually, I was an omnivore; I devoured nearly anything I got my hands on.



Lori: Do you write every day? On more than one project at a time?

Patrice: I am a slow, lazy writer with a severe shortage of ideas.

Lori: Ha! I guess the number of ideas isn't important, as long as you have a few great ones! We know all writers, even published ones, deal with rejection. How much rejection did you receive before your initial acceptance?

Patrice: Not too bad, actually. I wrote one novel that disappeared into some publisher's filing system and never reemerged. Then I wrote OWL IN LOVE, which was published by the first editor I sent it to.

Lori: Can you tell us anything about what you're working on now?

Patrice: I wish I could. I repeat: I am a slow, lazy writer with a severe shortage of ideas.

Lori: Have you read any books recently that you'd recommend?

Patrice: Lying face-down next to the computer as I type is Joan Aiken's THE SERIAL GARDEN. Many of the stories (the Armitage family) are old, but there are four new ones (Ms. Aiken died in 2004, so the proper way to put it, I suppose, is that they are being published for the first time) and all the stories are collected here under one cover.


Lori: Would you ever write a memoir?

Patrice: Goodness! The thought never occurred to me. I am too fond of the quiet life for my doings to be of much interest to anyone outside of a severely restricted circle.

Lori: How would you feel about your book(s) being made into movies or plays? Is anything like this in the works?

Patrice: Oh sure. I'm all for it. Is anything like this in the works? Maybe. At last count there have been ten separate inquiries of varying degrees of seriousness. Some were single emails about the availability of film rights, some were initiatives that came quite close to actually happening. So you never know. It always cheers you up to get an inquiry, anyway.

Lori: Describe a typical day in the life of Patrice Kindl :o)

Patrice: Well, hmm. How about if I give you a snapshot of myself at this exact moment? I'm typing at a computer in a big old house in a small, rural village, in an intensely green room filled with books and birdcages. There's a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel asleep on my lap (this is the largest breed of lapdogs, so he overflows a bit -- his head is on my wrist, impeding my typing, and, as he shifts in his sleep, his foot presses down on the sp ace bar). He barks in his sleep and twitches all over; he's dreaming about the dobermans next door. From time to time a bright green parrot (a Panama Amazon) perched on top of my head says abruptly in a threatening tone, "I SEEEE you," and digs her claws into my scalp. Behind the three of us, Clyde the eclectus (another parrot) makes a sound like a foghorn.

Above my head -- Oops. Bree the Amazon just took careful aim and pooped on the dog's head. Those two are always squabbling over who owns me -- interval for damp paper towels required.

Above my head my much beloved husband is packing to go to the Philippines (again!), watched mournfully by the cat and our other dog, Boufe the gigantic Newfoundland, both of whom understand the significance of suitcases. Outside an ice storm beats steadily down; the frozen rain making little tinking sounds as it hits the ice-slick snow.


The radiators all wail in chorus.See what I mean? Not much scope for an autobiography here. Mostly just animals, a husband leaving for foreign climes, reading and (very little)typing.However, for what it's worth, there it is: my life. I hope you can do something with it.

Lori: Thank you so much, Patrice, for sharing your writing life (and your menagerie) with us!

Learning to Think

I have spent the better part of my adult life now trying to learn how to think better. I'm one of those who is hopelessly focused on emotions, which does have it's own rewards. As a writer, though, I'm constantly in search of the elusive pure thought. I came across this exerpt from David Foster Wallace's 2005 commencement address(Per Cheryl Kline's blog). I think it speaks to this struggle quite well:

"As I'm sure you guys know by now, it is extremely difficult to stay alert and attentive, instead of getting hypnotized by the constant monologue inside your own head. Twenty years after my own graduation, I have come gradually to understand that the liberal arts cliché about teaching you how to think is actually shorthand for a much deeper, more serious idea: learning how to think really means learning how to exercise some control over how and what you think. It means being conscious and aware enough to choose what you pay attention to and to choose how you construct meaning from experience. Because if you cannot exercise this kind of choice in adult life, you will be totally hosed.

An Interview with Emily Jenkins

This week I’m so happy to have Emily Jenkins visit for a Friday Interview. Her young middle grade novel, Toys Go Out, with illustrations by Paul O. Zelinsky has been called “Toy Story meets Winnie the Pooh.” It’s sequel, Toy Dance Party, is in stores now. She is the author of many picture books and novels.

Lori: Welcome Emily! You’re very active in the Children’s Lit world. How does your work, reviewing picture books in The New York Times, inform your own art?

Emily: It forces me to think critically about what I think makes a good picture book -- something that teaching did, when I used to teach, and that being on the Ezra Jack Keats Award committee does. If I articulate my values and opinions, I have a clearer sense of what I want to do myself.

Lori: Do you write every day? On more than one project at a time?

Emily: I write most weekdays. Usually picture books are procrastinations of larger projects. As in, I can't write today -- oh, a picture book sounds fun! I will try to work on one of those. But then, of course, picture books are as hard as anything else to write well. I'm just deceiving myself.

Lori: I just finished reading Toy Dance Party, and loved it just as much if not better than Toy's Go Out. Will there be more “Toys” novels?

Emily: Yes, there will be a third book! It's a prequel.

Lori: We know all writers, even published ones, deal with rejection. How much rejection did you receive before your initial acceptance?

Emily: The first thing I ever shopped around was a proposal for an adult book which was never published. So maybe a year's worth of consistent rejection before my first-ever acceptance, which was for a middle-grade book, The Secret Life of Billie's Uncle Myron. But I have continued to have rejections. Even recently.

Lori: Can you tell us anything about what you’re working on now? Upcoming publications?

Emily: I am working on that third Toys book, and then a series of chapter books about a kid with an invisible friend. In the Spring I have a picture book with Giselle Potter called Sugar Would Not Eat It, and I'm doing picture books with illustrators G. Brian Karas and Barbara McClintock.

Lori: Please tell us about any upcoming appearances.

Emily: I have none! I don't tour much.

Lori: What have you read lately that you’d recommend?

Emily: For kids, I like Wild Boars Cook, by Meg Rosoff and Sophie Blackall. Those wild boars are so disgusting! I love them! I also just read Educating Esmé, by Esmé Raji Codell. It's a brilliant and heartbreaking diary of a first year teacher in an underserved Chicago public school.

Lori: Do you think the declining word count over these past years has been an overall improvement in picture books being published today?

Emily: I think it means there are more high quality books for very very young readers, which is a great thing. I mean, it's all good with books like I Kissed the Baby! or Ella Sarah Gets Dressed, just to name two with real meaning, charm and low word counts. But it's sad that it's hard to find picture books with longer texts for older readers. And I have one or two in a drawer that I wish could find a publisher.

Lori: How would you feel about your book(s) being made into movies or plays?

Emily: I would like the paycheck, I suppose. But it seems unlikely that it would be a satisfying artistic experience.

Lori: What typically happens on Wednesdays in the real life of Emily Jenkins?

Emily: What Happens on Wednesdays is a true story. Except of course, I am the mom and not the kid. Thanks for having me on your blog, Lori!

It's an honor, Emily. Thank you so much.

There are many more books (Emily also writes for adults) on her website. Check it out here.