Reviewing

NaNoWriMo is moving right along, and I've managed to keep about three days word count ahead of the goal. Fingers crossed that keeps up through the rest of the month.

Over the weekend the kids and I read the second of the Magic Tree House books, Knight at Dawn.  The premise of these books is great-- kids find a magic tree house full of books that takes them to different periods in history. 

Well written, informative without being heavy handed.  However, following so closely on the tail of the laugh-fest that is Captain Underpants, it came across as a little dry. Didn't hold the 4 year old's interest, but the 6 year old was willing to sit still and follow the story.  This series gets all sorts of Mom Points though, including calm-down-it's-bedtime awards. I won't get asked to read it again anytime soon though. 

I think next on our book radar is  Phineas & Ferb chapter book. Maybe we'll strike a balance between Kid Likes, Mom Approved? Fingers crossed.

-Meagan

The Adventures of Captain Underpants- review

In the midst of NaNoWriMo, I resolve to not read anything, lest my free time be taken up consuming a good book instead of writing one. However, that does not stop me from reading to my 4 and 6 year old boys at bedtime.  I hit the local library pretty much every weekend, and come across a lot of good books, so I thought I'd start reviewing them here.

Generally we read picture books, 1-3 a night, but this week we're diving into an early chapter book.

The Adventures of Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey.

We're currently about two-thirds through the book, but the kids are loving it. My 6 year old first grader, whose sense of humor has recently turned to fart noises and giggling at the word "booty", finds it hilarious. The 4 year old and I look at him incredulously every time he bursts out laughing at the mention of underpants. Clearly he's the target audience. The story is paced well though, and is easy for everyone to follow along. Pictures on every page give them something to focus on while I'm reading aloud, so everyone's happy. While the humor's not my taste, I'm thrilled that the story's got both boys involved enough that they beg for one more chapter before bed. Note: not actually the best "calm down, go to sleep" vibe with this one. Great for encouraging reading though.

**EDIT**  The 4 year old gave this his ultimate stamp of approval by asking to keep the book in his room after we finished it. This means he's going to go through it after I leave, poring over his favorite parts and reenacting the action.  This is the first chapter book to get this treatment. Bravo Pilkey!**

-Meagan

Avoiding writing

Today I've written myself into a corner, (a scene I'm not terribly interested in) and therefore am spending more time procrastinating than usual. The upside of this is that now I have a pseudo book cover!

Picture by me.  Muffin by the grocery store.  At least I'm not delaying enough to do my own baking. If that happens, you know I've hit a real block.

I've also posted an excerpt of the novel to the NaNoWriMo website, so I thought I'd paste it in here as well. This is the first scene in the book, as we're just meeting the female main character, Mabel.   Enjoy!

-Meagan

"Welcome to Mabel's. What can I get started for you?" Janie asked.

"Uhm, a vanilla latte? And, uh, is Mabel around?" the blonde woman asked, fiddling with her keys.

"Yup, she's in the back. I'll get her for you," Janie answered while ringing up the order. "She'll be right out with your coffee."

The woman moved to a table with two chairs, perching in hers anxiously. Her eyes darted around the shop, as though she expected to see a ghost at any second. A casual observer would think she'd already had too much coffee this morning, but to Mabel's trained eye, she knew that the woman's visit to her shop had nothing to do with coffee. This customer was really here for the extra service, unlisted on the menu.

"Vanilla latte with a side of Mabel?" she herself joked as she handed over the coffee. The woman half smiled, but was clearly too hyped up to relax.

Mabel sat down across from the woman, pushing her short dark hair behind her ears. This was going to be a prickly one. No joking, no pushing. Most of the people that requested Mabel's palm reading service were wary. They'd heard something from a friend about her, or perhaps had seen her do a reading on a previous visit. The latter were prepared to take the reading lightly, and had no agenda of their own about the visit. The former were prepared, they knew exactly what they hoped to find out, had their question firmly in mind. If Mabel could only read minds, these visits would go a lot smoother. Alas, few of them wanted to give her anything at all to work with.

"You look worried about something. Perhaps I can help?" Mabel said gently.

The woman nodded, but stayed mute.

"I dabble in palm reading...?" Mabel lead. This woman wasn't giving her much to go on. Some didn't, the ones that thought she might be a sham, not wanting to give any information away that she couldn't "see" on her own. 

"Yes, please," the woman finally spoke. Mabel smiled encouragingly as the lady put her hand out, palm side up. Mabel braced herself internally for the onslaught she was about to feel, and cradled the woman's hand in her her own.

The images came fast, a past lived out of order. The woman's children featured prominently in recent memories, as did a man, perhaps their father. Older memories were tinged with sadness, mostly at the loss of... her father? Mabel wished there were subtitles, speech bubbles, something. Only a rush of images, an onslaught of feeling. When the slideshow abated, Mabel could speak again.

"You have a strong head line. It tells me that you're very practical. I don't see that often, most practical people find it hard to put much stock in a palm reading. I appreciate you suspending your disbelief," Mabel said musingly. "Your heart line..." Mabel hesitated.

"Yes?" the woman prompted, edgy.

"Your heart line shows you set a high standard for your partner. Your husband?" Mabel asked, having noted a wedding ring on the woman's other hand. She didn't use charlatan tricks often, but even her gift could be aided with some external clues.

"Yes! He's..." the woman said before stopping herself. She'd been about to reveal the reason she'd come, and she didn't want to lead the answer.

And this is where Mabel's voluntary job got complicated. Mabel stretched her Sight forward towards the woman, willing her mind into the future. The woman stilled, as though she felt her mind focus, unbidden, on the future of her situation. Mabel clearly saw the woman's husband, smiling, happy. A feeling of relief came with the picture, and then it was gone as the woman steeled herself. She looked at Mabel questioningly, warily.

"It's not as bad as what you think. He does have a secret, but it's nothing bad. Trust him," Mabel said quietly. The woman's eyes widened, and then she smiled with wonder as the words sunk in.

"Oh thank you!" she said.

"Of course. I'm glad the news was good. Let me get you a scone on the house to celebrate," Mabel said. "Pumpkin's the special today." She rose and started toward the counter.

"Oh thank you, that would be lovely. Just lovely," the woman said, only half speaking to Mabel. She was lost in the joy of hearing her fears put to rest. She smiled beatifically at Mabel when she brought the treat back to her table. Mabel hoped she'd eat some of the pastry; the sugar would help with the weariness from having her past and future viewed. The effect was similar to that felt after giving blood, so Mabel always made sure they at least took something with them after a reading.

As Mabel returned behind the counter, she noticed two men watching her from a booth. Neither had purchased anything yet, and they weren't speaking to one another. Just watching her. She hadn't noticed them before, but they were likely close enough to have heard her palm reading. 

"Looks like it's going to be a busy day for me," Mabel mused to herself as the two men came up to the counter.

NaNo- Day 3

Chugging right along on my word count this weekend, powered along by an informal write-in with my novelist buddy Nicole today. We manage to anchor each other in our seats, so writing together is proving invaluable. It takes the normally solitary task of writing and makes it social. Having someone to complain to when the right word is just there out of reach is a pleasurable addition to a generally quiet task.

In non-writing news, I saw the Ender's Game movie today.  But as all things do, it brings me back to the writer's frame of mind of the original book.  Creating a whole world in a novel, and then handing it over to someone to read, to see through their own mind's eye, is so difficult. I have an illustrator friend, and she has been kind enough to make a sketch of some of my characters.  Her art work is amazing, and it allows me a glimpse into the picture I'm creating in someone else's head.  Perhaps that is what Orson Scott Card feels as he sees the movie based on his work?

Anxious customer at the coffee house

a rather beautiful Detective Maxwell

Note: I'm not going to debate the controversy on watching Ender's Game.  I'm aware there has been a boycott called due to Card's views on gay marriage, which I do not agree with.  There are, however, a good deal many more people that put work into the movie that have not voiced such opinions. I have, in the past, bought the book (before knowing anything about Card's views), which he's far more likely to profit from personally than the movie, I would think.  So, that's all I'm saying about that, truly.  Don't flame me.
That's it for now.  Go check out Tehya the illustrator's art blog, she has beautiful things there.

-Meagan

Big Day

Today has been quite a mix.  After conquering the blank page this morning, (yay) I was notified I did not win a grant I'd been competing for (boo). The decline had a great piece of (positive) feedback on one of my favorite pieces (that I've currently got out as submission to publishers).  I did my portion of voting for the SixFold.org competition.  The short stories I read were interesting and none too painful to partake, so we'll call that a yay.  I surpassed my NaNoWriMo word count for the day before 5 o'clock. (yay) Then I got my first, honest to goodness rejection email on a submission I'd made to a publisher.  (boo) I'd been wondering how I'd take my first rejection.  No tears. More a badge of honor really, as I'm choosing to see it.  I did pop a couple antacids, but I think that's par for the course. Right now I'm debating on whether to print it out and frame it, print it and just stick it in a file, or let it simply sit filed in my email.  Decisions decisions.

Oh, and I also received this beauty in the mail.

It's a 5 inch hand model with Palmistry lines on it!  I'm incredibly excited about this little talisman for my NaNo'ing.  One of my main characters dabbles in the art, and I think she'd get a kick out of the little statue.

That's all for tonight folks.  I've added a NaNo word count widget to the right over there, if you're interested in keeping track of my progress.  Actually, it's there even if you're not interested, so there.  

-Meagan

NaNoWriMo!

One of my favorite days of the year-- day one of National Novel Writing Month.  A day full of possibilities, excitement and too much coffee/swiped Halloween candy.  Today I find myself with a bit of performance anxiety, staring at that blank white page.  The first pages are supposed to be particularly great, right?  To get your reader hooked?  And despite my glorious outline, I don't have a particularly glowing beginning.  But there will be rewrites later, I can strengthen it then, must remember that.  NaNoWriMo is all about just getting the story on the page.  So for today, we're borrowing from Nike.



Nothing more from me until wordcount is achieved.  No promises about Twitter though  -- MeaganIsWriting.

-Meagan

Longest day

My household is full of excited tension today.  I have 3 small boys, ages 2, 4 and 6.  It's Halloween.  They're antsy as all get out, ready for dark ("is it dark yet?"), ready for Trick-or-Treating.  They've got costumes (Super Why, Green Lantern & Batman), they've got plastic pumpkins ready for candy holding, and they've got a whole neighborhood of houses purported to be housing free candy.  Kid in a candy store is nothing; kid on Halloween, now that's where the wide-eyed excitement really exists.

I am also full of excited tension.  It is NaNoWriMo Eve!  Midnight tonight, I get to start on The Book! Working title: Able Mabel's Coffee & Treats (AMC&T, when I get tired of typing that mouthful).  I have a storyboard outline, I've got notecards, I have dual main characters, and I am ready!  But I also find myself staring mournfully at the clock, asking if it's dark yet.  We haven't hit Daylight Savings yet, but the days are already so much longer.

In order to give myself something to do besides twiddling my thumbs, I've been reading a bit of the terribleminds.com blog.  Freelance penmonkey who uses more profanity in every entry than most people do in a month, he's got some solid advice.  His NaNo bundle is what's going to get me through today, and probably any "down time" I have in November that I, for one reason or another, can't write during.  Terrible Minds is where my favorite writer's prayer comes from, which I will now share here.



How can you not love that?

In other news, I managed to bang out a synopsis the other day.  To my chagrin, all it actually took was reading the back of a few kids chapter books.  Immediately put me in the right frame of mind, made the task seem more manageable.  Now to figure out the rest of the query letter to stick it in.  Le sigh.

That's all I have for the moment.  For all those about to write, I salute you!  May the odds be ever in your favor!  So say we all!  (and many other great things other people have written)
-Meagan

Distilling

My writing endeavor for today, and yesterday as well, have mainly taken place in my own head in the form of an argument.  What I should be doing is writing a synopsis of my early age chapter book, for the purpose of sticking in a query letter.  I hate writing synopses.  I don't even like summarizing a book someone else has written.  If I could shorten the story to under 300 words, why would I have used so many in the first place?!  I jest, but only a little.  But since this query letter is the only task I've given myself before NaNo, and the days are dragging by, I should just get on with it.  

In fact, in practice of making something short, this is where this post will end.  See, I can learn!

-Meagan

NaNo Prep

Life got in the way of writing for a few days, with Halloween being the main culprit.  Luckily a NaNoWriMo planning session with one of my best friends allowed me to still get a lot done in that regard.  As of Sunday, I have a plot! And characters with weaknesses and strengths, pets and favorite beverages! Well, may have not made quite that much progress, but having a plot (and complications, oh my gosh the complications!) has eased my mind a great deal.

Speaking of complications, my friend had one come up during our prep.  Two hours of her work disappeared through an auto save vs. backup vs. program crash error.  This was heart-wrenching for her, and I felt sympathy pains for her that stayed with me most of the night.  While I have faith that she can (and will!) recover the lost information, either by sifting through her mind and notes or rediscover the intended pathos during the writing process, it weighed on me.  A couple spiked eggnogs did nothing to lift the pallor I felt falling over our NaNo process, and I found myself in need of something to, if not lift my spirits, at least allow me to let it go.

I did a quick app search on my phone for Buddha, (not that I'm particularly Buddhist, but he is a good "let it go" inspiration), and stumbled upon the Buddha Board app.  You may have seen the real life meditation toys in stores like Brookstone.  

Their line is "Master the art of letting go".  You paint on this little board with water, and then watch as your artwork evaporates.  The little app is much the same, but less wet.  I highly recommend.  I was able to let go of my angst, and this morning I woke up singing "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" and having new NaNo insights.  I hope my friend is able to find the same clean slate before November starts.

All this talk of impermanence aside, queries must go on!  This morning was spent querying two agents with one of my picture book manuscripts.  One auto-responded (again) that she's not accepting new stuff for another two months.  C'est la vie.  But the kind auto-response from the other agent confirmed that she is accepting queries, and I'll (hopefully) hear back in 6-8 weeks.  That puts us right at Christmas time, so hopefully I'm too busy with holiday hoopla to be watching my mailbox obsessively. 

That's it for now.  May all your backups be uncorrupt and your mailboxes contain acceptance letters.

-Meagan

Agents

Today's writing time has been spent more on the business side of things; researching agents.  I've got the book 2014 Children's Writer's and Illustrator's Market.  Great resource, along with www.writersmarket.com, to find publishers & agents.  Not that I've had luck yet with either, but I'm still early in my submission timelines.
Having only submitted to one agent, I'm looking to send out a few more submissions.  Doing the research on where to send is a bit of necessary procrastination on my part, because the next bit is scary.  I have to polish up something new to the point I think someone else would enjoy it enough to give me their vote of confidence and/or money for it.  Or at very least not laugh in my face.  That's never the goal.  Unless it's a humorous piece I guess, then that's what you're going for, but I digress.
Through all of my panning for agency gold today, I've come up with one new agent idea.  Since I'm seeing requests for exclusivity, only adding one doesn't hurt my brain too much.  Now to decide if I want to send off my early-grade chapter book, or another picture book (or two).  It's nice having a portfolio of writings to choose from, so I can make sure the submission is right for the recipient.  I was hoping to even have an illustrated work to send off to a couple publishers that prefer that, but it looks like my illustrator idea is falling through, at least for the time being.  Oh well, maybe it's not meant to be.

That's it for today.  Screaming babies & all.
-Meagan

Obstacles

We all have our obstacles keeping us from our writing.  Some of the hardest to overcome are those in our own heads.  But outside of that?  There's "real" work, and all the other things one must do during the day.  My personal obstacles keeping me from enjoying the peace and quiet while I write away?  My three little boys.  Only the oldest is in school, so that leaves my day full of a two year old and a four year old.  Enough to wear out any sane person, and I'm not promising I'm that most days.  Today has worked out well in that I got in about 45 minutes of relatively uninterrupted fiction writing time, which, btw, is not counting the time I'm spending blogging.  Blogging is easier-- just writing about writing instead of actually doing the writing in question.  Procrastination, so therefore it's easy as pie.

My precious writing minutes were spent on a small project for a writing contest.  I'd actually intended to let this writing deadline pass me by, as I don't have anything in mind that's the right length.  It turns out the competition is running short of their goal number of participants though, and that hits me right in the guilt.  So I'm trying to get something cobbled together in the next two days to enter the competition.  Let me tell you about this contest though, it's one of the cooler ones I've heard about.

From the sixfold.org website:

How It Works

Upload your own short-story or poetry manuscript PDF for a $6 entry fee by October 24, 11:59 pm ET. Then, vote within your genre to select the three prize-winning manuscripts of $1000, $200, and $100, and everything published in each issue. Sixfold is a completely writer-voted short story and poetry journal. Every writer who uploads a manuscript votes to choose the prize-winning manuscripts and all the short stories and poetry published in each issue. Everyone's equally weighted vote selects what's published, instead of one judge, or one or a few editors. With a fair, transparent,  rule-based voting process, all writers find the best writing together.

Sounds spiffy, right?  I'm excited to take part, so I'm hammering away at my little piece that takes place in a specialty bar.  Sounds intriguing, right?  Hope so.  You also get a lot of feedback from the other writers who vote, which is so valuable.  Getting an honest critique is hard.  Who do you ask?  A friend is afraid to hurt your feelings, so holds some info back.  What stranger are you going to tie down and ask to give you information?
But these writers, they're also putting their own hearts on the line, getting their works reviewed.  Hopefully this keeps people from being cruel, but manages a nice balance between with fair and honest reviews. Fingers crossed and all that jazz.

Back to the work in question now.
-Meagan

Destructive thoughts

Destructive thoughts vs good ones by chibird


It's so easy to let the insecurities we face, as artists, as writers, be the loudest voices we hear.  If you have even one person in your life that is encouraging, or even you just occasionally find little things like this comic that lift your spirit and remind you that you don't completely suck, save those.  Guard them, treasure them.  I was having a day where I was convinced I was a talent-less hack, that I had no business trying to get published.  I, in a moment of outgoing vulnerability, turned to my Facebook friends for a shot in the arm.  I asked what they did when they, in whatever medium they create, do to turn the tide around, to get back in the game instead of throwing their hands up and just watching Netflix for the rest of my life.  Their life.  You know.

And the response I got was so heartwarming.  I've saved it away for myself, but most of the advice translates to everyone out there that is having a crap creation day, so I thought I'd boil it down and share.

1. Everyone feels this way sometimes.  I got responses from writers, photographers, cake decorators, quilters, singers and the all-around-crafty-types.  Knowing that everyone that creates something that they hope someone else will appreciate has days like this, that bucked me up a bit on it's own.

2. Take a little break.  Not a forever break. Not a break your favorite pen, throw your computer out the window kind of break.  But a little break, doing something you enjoy.  After you've given it your all for the day, after you've really tried to squeeze water out of that stone, give yourself a break.

4. Laugh at yourself.  Laugh at your situation.  Laugh at the wind, at the rain, at the hail.  Have a sense of humor about yourself and your surroundings, every chance you get.

5. Remember to enjoy what you're doing.  You started writing because it spoke to something inside you.  Don't get bogged down by hopes for the end product, remember to enjoy the therapeutic, aesthetic beauty of what you're actually doing.

6. And furthering that... create to please YOU.  Writing what you think someone else is going to like first isn't going to please anyone.  Write for you first.  Polish, redraft for others, if necessary.  But the first draft, in all it's shitty glory, is just for you.  Take joy in that, and then be pleasantly surprised if anyone else likes it too.

7. Be kind to yourself.  Don't compare yourself to those you think great, just compare to yourself.  Are you getting better, growing in your art?  Don't think about what Joe Schmoe does.  That's his problem.  Don't let comparison be the thief of your joy.

8. Work on a deadline.  Then you have permission to stop tweaking, a finish line to cross where you throw your hands in the air and say it is what it is, and I gave it everything I could with the time I had.

9.  You've dealt with harder crap than this.  Don't let it beat you.

10.  I also got a vote of confidence from my best friends.  The people that have read my stuff, and have confidence in my abilities.  Maybe some editor in New York will pass on my book this time, but my mom likes it dammit, so that counts for something!


I hope something in this list speaks to you, gives you an idea for how to get out of your own dungeon of self-loathing.  I know I'll be back to reread this post again.  Hopefully it's only every month or so and not every day, but always remember-- you're not alone.

-Meagan

I'm so submissive

Today seems to be a solid writing day.  Mental health is stable, coffee is plentiful (if cold) and the muse is flitting about the place with regularity.

9:30 and I've managed to enter the latest Writer's Digest Your Story competition, pencil up a new idea for a kid's book, and rehammer a line for a Christmas poem.  This doesn't seem like much (the entry was only 25 words!), but having hit the great Writing Well a lot recently and found it bone dry, blocked off by police tape and guarded by some scruffy dude named Block, it's refreshing to get anything out at all.  If only all those impotence pills worked for writers as well.  Of course, then the slush piles would be even bigger, and more difficult to work my way to the top of,  cream-of-the-crop style.

Checking the mail box once and my email umpteen times a day isn't quite enough torture, so let's go to the countdown app and see how much time has passed for my various submissions.


Submission A (publisher): 2 days till up. This one had a 6-8 week suggested time, but they WILL RESPOND.  Most of the publishing houses don't send rejection notices anymore, so I value the ones that do above all others.  I may not be able to paper a wall with rejection notices, but at least I'll get some sort of response, instead of dead air, which means "Your heart on paper isn't even worth a stamp to us: Not interested".

Submission C (publisher): This one's still grating on me.  Their own guidelines said one month (which we're past that by two weeks now), but Writer's Market gives them two months (so we're still shy a couple weeks).  Another that WILL RESPOND though, since they asked for a SASE.  Yep, if I get a rejection from them, it'll come to me using my own stamp and envelope.  Adding insult to injury, but I'd gladly pay for a stamp for all my submissions if they'd just send me word back.  Just seems cruel not to, though I suppose they do get a lot of just crap.  Here's hoping they don't consider my baby that way.

Submission D (agent): This is the only agent submission I have out right now, but I intend to send another out in two weeks, when this one's exclusivity runs out.

5 other submissions range from 6-19 weeks before I can consider myself kissed goodbye.  In the meantime, I keep visiting the blank page, keeping myself from going crazy (most days) by writing more pieces.  Mostly kids books at the moment, but NaNoWriMo starts in 10 days, and that will be an adult, urban fantasy book.  That should definitely keep my mind off the mailbox, eh?  50,000 words in 30 days, always a kick.  I intend to get another win under my belt this year, and I have a strong writing buddy this year as well.  Hopefully we'll drag one another kicking and screaming (or more likely silently protesting) over the finish line.

That's all for now.  Back to the grindstone.
-Meagan