So often, as I critique picture book manuscripts, I’m drawn into a story that has a fabulous premise which as carried out is “nice.” But “nice” is usually not good enough for a picture book to be competitive in today’s market. In novel writing we talk about “raising the stakes” or “tension on every page.”… Read more »
The Writing Process
Examine Your Scene Arcs with Chapter Titles
I’m currently revising my latest middle grade novel and going through the exercise of dropping the chapters into a spreadsheet with columns labeled for chapter numbers, chapter description, setting, and a column for each major character where I place an “x” if the character appears in the chapter. This helps me find scenes more easily… Read more »
Pay it Forward Friday: Minute Mentoring for Writers
Today I’m participating in a Speed Mentoring program at a local high school. I’m one of 30 mentors giving kids my best 3 minutes of advice, rotating through five groups of 10 kids each. So essentially I’ll be imparting “wisdom” on 50 kids. Wow! Talk about the weight of responsibility. But as I honed that… Read more »
MOCKINGBIRD and “Showing” Emotion
So I pulled MOCKINGBIRD from the shelf because I’d been aware but not completely in touch with the praise it’s received. I hadn’t read the reviews. I didn’t even know what it was about. I just knew that people – a lot of people – thought it was good – really good. But I’m not… Read more »
So you want to write a novel…
Thank you Jennifer Nielsen for bringing this to my attention:
My Thoughts and Actions After Manuscript Submissions
Perfect.(Hit send)(Immediately check inbox)Editor is reading it right now.Editor is pumping her fist mouthing “You nailed it, Jean.”(Check inbox)Editor is calling Caldecott Honor illustrator and saying, “Your other projects will have to wait.”(Check inbox)Editor is reading it to her staff and they’re toasting me.(Check inbox)Editor is waiting to read it over her lunch break.(Check inbox)Editor… Read more »
The Temptation to Teach a Lesson
I recently autographed dozens of bookplates for TOO PICKLEY! with personalizations for children, but requested primarily by adults. In many of the requests, I was instructed to inscribe mini-warnings like “Remember to eat your veggies” or “Fruits come first.” I find it interesting that, as adults, we can’t seem to let go of those “teachable… Read more »
Pay it Forward Friday: Getting Over Your Perspective
I got a chance to share one of my favorite writing exercises on My Word Playground. If you haven’t visited Lynne Marie’s blog yet, check it out. It’s full of thoughtful prompts, exercises and general advice for children’s writers. While our lives and experiences provide inspiration for a playground full of stories, our perspective can… Read more »
My Writing Space
A listserv question prompted me to talk about my writing space today. I have plenty of possible “offices” in my house, but I’ve always been a kitchen table kind of girl. I remember doing high school geometry across my family’s kitchen table from my “Nonna” who lived with us. She would ask me, in Italian…. Read more »
Next PB Peek and a Gift to my PB Writer Friends
Just when I thought life couldn’t get crazier, June hit like a Volkswagen of clowns. But not to worry. The end of July and beginning of August will bring not only my TOO PICKLEY! Party but also my next Picture Book Peek Week – a free critique contest for my fellow picture books writers. I… Read more »