Editors Day in KY

These days I'm swamped with revisions on my MG, end of the school year stuff (in the next few weeks my kids have three, major school trips) and trying to get my oldest graduated and registered for college. (Excuse me a moment but how is it possible I have a child going to college? I'm too young. I swear!) But I wanted to pass along this information. If anyone is near Kentucky, there's a great editors event coming up June 11th. Check it out

HERE

Happy writing!

~Carmella

Release of Carmella Van Vleet’s Latest Book!

The MiGs have more great news! We are thrilled to announce that Carmella Van Vleet’s latest book, Seven Wonders of the World: Discover Amazing Monuments to Civilization has been released!

For more information on her amazing books, check out her website here: http://www.carmellavanvleet.com

We know you want to hear all the juicy details on how this book came into creation from Carmella herself. And she has offered to answer the MiGs’ questions as well as give away an autographed copy of her book!

Here’s the blurb:

Seven Wonders of the World: Discover Amazing Monuments to Civilization is an activities book devoted to the seven ancient—and modern—wonders of the world. (For Ages 9 & up)

Andrea: What did you like most about writing your book? And what was the most challenging part of the process?

Car: I love doing research. I would find one cool piece of information and it led me to something else. (I’m easily distracted!) It was the thrill of discovery.

The most challenging part of the process - besides the 2 year wait between submission and publication - was the seemingly endless job of checking facts. When you’re writing a kids’ book, you’ve got a responsibility to get it right.

Christy (eating peppermint patties): If you could visit only one of the monuments in your book, which one would it be?

Car: The Great Pyramid. It looks seriously impressive. In one of my earlier books on ancient Egypt, I included a scale model project of the Great Pyramid. I have my own wooden version that I take to classroom visits and kids are in awe when I tell them it would take one MILLION of my models just to fit on the *base* of the Great Pyramid.

Debbie: How did your Seven Wonders project get started?

Car: I had written numerous books for my publisher (Nomad Press) and they asked if I’d be interested in writing one on the Seven Wonders. I knew about a few of the wonders already because they were in my other books, so I thought the project would be a fun way to expand on that research.

What's next up on your writing plate?

Car: I am taking a break from non-fiction to concentrate on middle grade and young adult. I’ve written two books and just started a third. These days, I’m revising my MG for a couple of agents who are interested in it.

What was one of your favorite moments in researching/writing your Wonders book?

Car: Hmmm. How about I tell you one of my favorite things about the final project? (Besides the cover!) When I was writing this book, I had trouble pronouncing all the names and places. I decided that if I was having trouble then kids would struggle too, so I did something new for me and included pronunciations. I was delighted to see the publisher kept these in.

How did you prepare for writing your book? (e.g. note organization? outlining?)

Car: The very first thing I did was make an outline. It was quite basic: chapter title and craft idea. (The activities often changed, however.) Next, I created a timeline.

I spent about a week-and-a-half working on each chapter. The first part of the week was spent researching. The second part was spent writing. The following week I’d work the accompanying project and start researching for the next chapter and so on. Some chapters, of course, took longer to complete. But I tried hard to keep on schedule so I didn’t get overwhelmed.

Kate: What skill from writing non-fiction do you carry over most into your fiction writing?

Car: This is a really tough question. Writing fiction is a whole new ball game for me. The process is completely different. For instance, I need a lot more time to think through things before I commit words to paper. My timeline has gone out window!

However, I think my ability to remain calm has carried over from non-fiction to fiction. What I mean is this: when you’re starting a new project and you know you have to produce 30,000+ words, it’s very easy to freak out. You start asking yourself things like “Am I crazy?” and “How will I ever get this done?” I got around this before by concentrating on one chapter at a time. I do the same thing now - One. Scene. At. A. Time.

Fun Facts
Any favorite music when you're writing? I love to listen to Brother Iz (Israel Kamakawiwo’ole). He was this amazing Hawaiian singer whose beautiful voice makes me cry.

What kind of chocolate do you prefer: dark or milk? Dark if I’m eating it by itself. Semi-sweet if it’s going in cookies.

What's your typical writing outfit when you work? Since I typically sit cross-legged while at the computer, I usually wear sweats and slippers. I gotta be comfortable to think. (Yes, Mom. I know sitting cross-legged at my desk is not a healthy work position.)

What was the last thing you finished reading? Does the newspaper count? :-) I tend to read in spurts. That’s because when I’m working on my own project, I have trouble reading fiction. I either start borrowing the author’s voice or get swept up and don’t want to work. The last book I read, though, was “Before I Fall” by Lauren Oliver.

Thank you so much Carmella! To enter the contest to win an autographed copy of Seven Wonders of the World: Amazing Monuments to Civilizations, fill out the form below and answer the question in the box provided.



Revising the Ending

I've been trying to revise the ending of my middle grade novel because I want it to be really amazing. What I had before was okay, but not memorable enough. I'm working on making it stronger and I thought I'd share a couple of the questions I've been asking myself.

What does the reader want to happen? How much of that do I want to show the reader?

I think that part of creating an emotionally satisfying ending is to give the reader a lot of what they want to happen. That doesn't mean I have to do it in a straightforward way. I can throw in some unexpected twists. Since I write MG, I think my readers do want a mostly happy ending. They want the heroine come out as a winner and the bad guys get punished. The main character should mostly get what she wants.

Thinking this way also shows me which scenes will be most important to the reader. Those are the scenes I don't want to sum up in a few lines or rush through. I can create suspense and stretch out those scenes to build up more of an emotional impact.

What is the simplest ending that will work for my story?

I want to wrap up most of the the loose ends so the reader can feel the problems are resolved. Even though I'm throwing in some unexpected twists, I think the book will be strongest if it ends without too much complexity.

After all, if the route to the final scene is too convoluted, the reader will get caught up in following the thought process instead of the emotional experience.

What questions do you ask yourself when you're revising the ending?

Revision

I visited my daughter’s school this morning to do a workshop on revision. The kid were high schoolers and I think they liked me because I let them play with Play Dough the whole time. I was trying to show them revision is nothing more than playing with what you already have. (The dough was supposed to represent your draft.) If nothing else, maybe they thought I was cool because I wore a shirt that showed off my wrist tattoo. (Please tell me tattoos are still cool!)

Anyway, I brought a few examples of my own writing to share. During the part of the lesson where I talked about revising your “take away” value, I began to read an essay I wrote about Baylee Almon. 

“I know Baylee,” I read, “in the way most people know Baylee - through a photo. Baylee Almon was the limp baby with tiny, white socks, who was carried by a firefighter away from the Alfred Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995. She was one year and one day old when she died.”

“Wait,” one of the kids interrupted, “Baylee was real?” 

I looked at the teacher and he looked at me. Without any further communication than that, the teacher went to his computer and pulled up the photo along with a photo of the decimated building. The kids - who were all babies when the Oklahoma bombing happened - were shocked and angry and full of questions. So I dropped the lesson on revision and we spent a few mintues talking about the tragedy. 

I wasn’t frustrated by the impromptu history lesson. As a former teacher and parent I know the best learning takes place when you least except it and don’t plan for it.

Besides, writing is like that, too. Sometimes you start off one path and wander onto another. And more often than not, that new path is the one you needed to take all along. 


~Carmella 

Writing- A Way of Life

I started writing 5 years ago, but when I started, it was more of a hobby than anything serious. I had made a list of the top 100 things I wanted to do before I died (morbid, I know) and writing a novel was on that list. I started checking things off my list (like walking on the Wall of China!) but lurking in the back of my mind was #14- Write a novel.

Easy peasy right? Hardly. It wasn’t easy. And I had NO idea what I was doing. Even today I’ve got to say to anyone who has written a novel “Wow.” Because it is a wow. Just the mere fact of sitting your bottom into the chair and being disciplined enough to be able to write “The End” is huge. Never let someone tell you otherwise.

I go back and read some of the pages from that first book atrocity and cringe.

And smile.

Because that’s where it all started. In the awfulness of that first book it made me the writer I am today. It really is an encouragement to compare my writing then and now. So if you’re ever feeling down, go back and read some of your first pieces of writing. You’re going to feel a whole lot better.

Then there’s the fact that this is only the beginning. Think of how much better I’ll be in another five years. Because it’s a never ending process. Reading, writing, learning, listening.

Steven Malk gave me some fantastic advice at a writing conference. He reminded me to never rush my writing career. Take my time to write my very best because isn’t that what I want the world be to reading?

My very best.

~ Christina

A Story in Pictures

What I Found on My Porch Today

or

Why I Came Home From Shopping and Ignored My Groceries 

By Carmella 

(Yep. That would be me and my new book, Seven Wonders of the World: Discover Amazing Monuments to Civilization (Nomad Press). Love the cover. Love the illustrations. Love days like this!)

Writing and Food

Just the other day, us MiGs were chatting (via email), and we got talking about food and writing. Okay. I admit it. I eat a LOT when I write. The usual healthy stuff like Twizzlers, peppermint patties, dark chocolate.

And drinks. Coffee, Coke Zero, ice water.

The thing I found is that depending on what I eat, it sets me in a particular mood. Like if I want my characters to be annoying and obnoxious, I just don’t eat chocolate. Maybe nothing at all. Because obviously I’m happy when eating chocolate.

If I eat coffee, I tend to be more methodical.

Twizzlers? Light and carefree.

Peppermint patties? Overdramatic evidently. (That one is for you Andrea!)

Am I crazy? Probably. But what I’m dying to know is if you are as crazy as me and use food for inspiration too. What types of foods do you eat while you write and do they put you in a particular mood?

~Christina