Revisiting the Seat-of-Pants, Seat-of-Chair Rule

"I just don't have time to write."  Hmmm.  Think again!

January, a new year, a fresh start.

And the same old bad habits?  Still there.  You're still telling yourself "I'll sit down and write something when I have more time" or "I just need to get a few things off the To Do List" or "I'm just too busy right now."  I've heard them all and, probably, voiced them all at some point, too.

But it simply won't do.  It's time to make a few promises to yourself.  Don't call them "resolutions" or you'll doom yourself to failure; instead, call them "rules" (a perfect word because it suggests a straight line, order, discipline).

To get started, let us revisit my favourite writing rule, which is actually a quotation from American writer Mary Heaton Vorse:

The art of writing is the art of applying the seat of the pants to the seat of the chair.

Translation: sit down and write.

It's as simple as that.

So, writers (and I'm thinking especially of the young writers in my Writer In Residence program this year - you know who you are!), don't put it off.  Don't make excuses.

Instead, make time. Find a chair, sit down, and write.  I guarantee you will feel so much better for having followed this simple rule.

(Photo by Jean Mills)

Letters to the Editor

One of Life's pleasures is writing a Letter to the Editor

I encounter a news item or feature in the paper - my morning read is The Globe and Mail - that draws an immediate reaction: yea or nay, sometimes gentle, sometimes fierce. The next thing I know, I'm walking around the house marshalling my ideas into three or four sentences that capture the absolute essence of my response. 

It has to be short. It has to be focused. It has to be relevant. No tangents, no wandering, and, if possible, not too much "I".  The secret of a good letter to the editor is to send a message that is more about the issue and less about you.

Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn't.  Today it did work, and my response to weekend columns about hockey (a passion of mine) by Roy MacGregor and Christie Blatchford made it into The Globe.

Another one of Life's pleasures is opening up to the Comment page and seeing your name in print. Okay, it's just a Letter to the Editor. But it's still the product of careful reading, contemplation and writing.

A Letter to the Editor is the writing process in a nutshell - with a nation of readers built in for free.

NaNoWriMo: Why I’m sitting on the sidelines

The plan was to spend the month of November hammering out a novel.

The plan was to have a story and some characters sitting in place, just waiting for me to hit the laptop every day and push out 1600 words.

The plan was to embrace NaNoWriMo – for the first time.

The plan – well, the plan failed.  Here it is, November 2 and I am plotless, characterless, novel-less.  And you know what?  I don’t really mind.

My14-year-old son and I were going to tackle the challenge together this year. He did the Young Writers NaNoWriMo last year and successfully met the 15,000-word target, producing the first draft of a fantasy novel that he’s continued to work on since.

What a great way to share some writing time, we thought.

What an opportunity to shackle ourselves to the writing life for an intensely limited time, we thought.

What fun, we thought.

But the truth is, as October waned and the first of November approached, both of us (without mentioning it to the other) were starting to notice something – something that felt a lot like pressure. Worry. Stress.

One day I finally spoke up.

“You know,” I start, a bit nervous, “I’m just not sure I’ve got what it takes this year.”

He looks up at me.

“I mean, I’m really loaded at work right now, and I have deadlines coming up.”

He’s still looking, but he’s not frowning. He’s looking…hopeful?

“I just can’t help feeling worried every time I think of NaNo,” I blurt out.  “I mean, it’s supposed to be something you look forward to, isn’t it?  Something fun?”

He’s nodding enthusiastically because, smart boy that he is, he’s read my mind.

“Would you mind if I skipped it this year?” I end.

“I feel the same way!” he exclaims.

We bail, and we bail together.  Whew!

NaNoWriMo isn’t for everyone.  It’s a great idea, a useful creative prompt, a unique writing adventure.  But right now, it’s a burden I don’t need.

This Salon article trashes NaNoWriMo as a colossal waste of time.

No, I don’t agree.  NoNoWriMo is not a waste of time. But it’s a project that needs to be embraced wholeheartedly in a spirit of commitment.

I’m cheering you from the sidelines this year, all you NaNoWriMo writers, and I’m perfectly content to be here. Good luck!

 

Technorati Tags: NaNoWriMo,National Novel Writing Month

Teen Writers Need This Book!

I have a teen writer in my house.  He’s written one novel and is planning another.  He’s also won prizes in local writing contests.

When I presented him with Heather Wright’s new book, Writing Fiction: A Hands-On Guide for Teens, he submerged himself in it immediately, surfacing sometime later with this review:

“This. Book. Is. Awesome!!”

And he’s not the only one who thinks so.   Canadian Materials  published a review in its online magazine.  Their response?

“Highly recommended.”

Writing Fiction: A Hands-On Guide for Teens is a must-have book for creative teens or those who work with teen writers – teachers, librarians, parents. With its practical, workbook-style approach, this book provides prompts, inspiration and guidance, all from an author/teacher who knows kids and writing – in short, the whole package.

My teen is using this book to prepare for the upcoming NaNoWriMo challenge – and I think I’ll do the same. 

Check out the book’s website,  and order it from Amazon.

Dundurn’s Ghost Story contest for young writers

Publishing house Dundurn and author Deborah Kerbel have joined forces with What If? magazine to encourage young writers to get scary: ghost story style.

Kerbel is the author of Lure, which is – guess what? – a ghost story set in a Toronto library.

Here’s the contest scoop from the Dundurn website:

Try your hand at a truly scary ghost story!

One winner will receive a story critique from author Deborah Kerbel, a ghostly prize pack of books from Dundurn Press (retail value: $150.00), AND will have their story printed in an upcoming issue of What If? Magazine!

Every entry will be posted on our website. Get your friends and family to read the stories and vote for their favourites here at dundurn.com/ghoststory. The stories with the best votes will be considered by our team of professional judges.

First, read the rules.

Then….

Get writing! Now! Go!

Air Lift To L.A.: Canadian authors helping a school library in need

Libraries are in need everywhere, but here's one initiative - the brainchild of Canadian author Helaine Becker - that actually took flight. Three of my novels, including Abby and the Curling Chicks, Wild Dog Summer, and The Toymaker's Son will be among the books finding a home on the shelves of Ralph Bunche Elementary in Los Angeles.

Five authors are making the trek to deliver the books and show support for a school library in need.  Read on for the official press release:

ACCESS BOOKS AND "AIR LIFT TO L.A." DELIVER BOOKS

 TO COMPTON SCHOOL ON OCTOBER 2

Los Angeles – As part of their ongoing commitment to strengthen inner-city school libraries throughout Los Angeles and beyond, Access Books has joined forces with a team of Canadian authors to help impoverished families gain access to books. The event will take place at Ralph Bunche Elementary (16223 Haskins Lane, Carson, CA 90746-1092) on October 2, 2010 at 9 a.m. This school is one of 25 elementary schools in the Compton Unified School District (CUSD) that is in desperate need of books for its 450 students.

Access Books, "Air Lift to L.A." and a team of volunteers from Bunche will spend October 2nd revitalizing the library by painting murals and cataloging brand new books. In addition to the books, Access Books will provide a reading rug, rocking chair and sofa to create a warm and inviting environment for students. Five authors from Canada will be on hand for the event and to give fun and exciting presentations to the students.

The participating authors are:

Rob Weston, author of Silver Birch award winner Zorgamazoo

Kari-Lynn Winters, author Jeffrey and the Sloth, On My Walk, and other award-winning books.

Jill Murray, YA author of Rhythm and Blues and Break on Through

Wendy Kitts, Freelance Writer, Book Reviewer, and author of a soon-to-be published picture book from Nimbus Press

Helaine Becker, author of more than 40 books for children including Silver Birch award winners Boredom Blasters and Secret Agent Y.O.U.

Sadly, only 48 percent of Bunche's students are scoring "proficient" or "advanced" in English & Language Arts on the California Standards Test. Research has shown that the best predictor of how well a child will learn to read is the number of books to which he or she has access, but 61 percent of economically disadvantaged children don't have age-appropriate books at home. The students of Bunche Elementary fit this profile: 90 percent live at or below the poverty line. According to a 2009 report from the Jumpstart Foundation, communities ranking high in achievement tests share a common denominator: an abundance of books in their libraries.

California's Department of Education recommends 28 library books per student, according to the February 2010 draft of its School Library Standards. Bunche, however, has a mere three books per student. Therefore, Access Books has set a goal: Collect at least 5,000 books for Bunche's library and classrooms. Many of these will be brand new, popular fiction titles – books that have been carefully selected to get students excited about reading.

Access Books' partner for this endeavor, "Air Lift to L.A.," grew wings after Canadian children's author Helaine Becker visited a Long Beach elementary school and saw the empty shelves. Shocked and saddened, she rallied her Canadian colleagues and started a book drive. "The conditions [in Los Angeles] are on par with the worst of the Third World countries," she writes on the "Air Lift to L.A." Facebook page. "Actually, they are worse, because in much of the Third World, people are doing their best to raise their standards, while in Los Angeles, conditions have deteriorated abysmally in the last ten years."

Bunche has just moved its campus library into a new, larger space to afford room for growth, but unfortunately, many of the shelves are bare. The library assistant nicknamed the library "The Dream Shop," but with so few books, its dreams have yet to be realized.

California ranks last in the nation in funding for school libraries, spending less than one dollar per child. Although the 2011 federal budget proposal includes a $400 billion investment in education, there's no mention of federal funds specifically geared toward school libraries. According to Sandra Barnett, head of the American School Library Association, "the budget is proposing to take away the last access to literacy for these kids in high-poverty areas." The American School Library research data clearly shows that students with access to school libraries and good books score higher in state reading scores and are more interested in reading.

"I think the big issue is that we really need to make reading part of school and make reading fun and interesting," said Rebecca Constantino, P.h.D., the founder and executive director of Access Books. "And that starts with having a good library."

About ACCESS BOOKS: Access Books provides quality, high-interest books to Southern California's most impoverished school libraries. Since 1999, they have donated more than a million books to school and community libraries in the greater Los Angeles area. Access Books has been featured in USA Today, the L.A. Times, the New York Times and School Library Journal among many other media outlets. Access Books' founder, Rebecca Constantino, is a recipient of Oprah's "Use Your Life" award. She has published over 100 articles and a book in the areas of literacy development, equity in education, urban school and cultural perspectives of language acquisition.

Give a Child a Book, She'll be Happy
Give a Child a Library, She'll be Literate

P.O. Box 64951, Los Angeles, CA 90064
310-284-3452
www.accessbooks.net

Terry Fallis: A writer shows how to make self-publishing worth the effort

If you haven’t read Terry Fallis’ award-winning – and laugh-out-loud funny – novel The Best Laid Plans, you should run to your local bookstore and get busy. Now.  Today.

I make this suggestion because Terry’s second book, The High Road, is now available.  It’s the second installment in his Parliament Hill series featuring political aide Daniel Addison and his charge, Engineering professor-turned-public servant Angus McLintock.

Madcap antics and mayhem ensue on practically every page – what a great read!

I met Terry when he read at the Elora Writers’ Festival in June, and since then he’s been everywhere promoting his book and talking to people about his fun journey from self-published author to Stephen Leacock Award-winning Author. And if you don’t believe me (about the “everywhere” part), just check out the Appearances link on his website. 

 The Best Laid Plans was chosen by Waterloo Region for its “One Book, One Community” selection this year. With interest so high, I was asked to review The High Road, and did so with trepidation. The words “sophomore jinx” hovered in my mental background, but no fear: the second book in the Addison-McLintock saga holds its own quite nicely, thank you. You can read the review here, posted on Terry’s website.

For me, the most interesting part of Terry’s rise-to-fame story is that he was just another self-published author – until he sent his 10 free copies of The Best Laid Plans (part of the self-publishing package he subscribed to) to the selection committee for the Stephen Leacock Award for Humour. He was a first-time author without a book-publishing history or a literary agent, one of the masses of self-published authors who frequently draw the disdain of “real” writers (i.e. think agents, editors, publishing houses, review in Quill & Quire, etc.). In fact, as Terry tells it, he did approach several agents with his manuscript, but didn’t get any bites.  Self-publishing was the obvious alternative.  He also took it a step further and tapped into the social media scene by podcasting his book and offering audio chapters for free.

But guess what? The Best Laid Plans was short-listed for the the award.  Did that change anything?  Yes – one of those previously-uninterested agents perked up her ears, the book won the Leacock Award and found a publishing home with McClelland & Stewart and – well, the rest is history.

The moral of the story: persevere, writers.  If you’re good enough and creative enough to get your work out there, good things can happen. Terry Fallis is the perfect example of self-publishing as a means to a very happily ever after.

**************

Interested in self-publishing?  If you live in the Waterloo, Ontario, area, Terry  will be part of a panel discussing his journey down this road.  Here’s the scoop from the One Book, One Community blog:

Self-Publishing 101

Monday, September 27 at 6:30 p.m. With Terry Fallis, OBOC Author; Dean Froome, President, Volumes Publishing; Ron Stadnik, Print Collection Development Manager, Library Bound; Sharron Smith, Manager of Readers’ Advisory Services, KPL.

When the doors to traditional publishing houses were locked, One Book One Community author Terry Fallis decided to forge his own key.  He released his first novel on the internet – free – as a chapter-by-chapter podcast, then turned to social marketing for promotion.  Following encouraging feedback, Terry decided to publish his own novel.  Later that year, his novel won the prestigious Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour.  Within a week of his “Leacock shock,” he signed a publishing contract with McClelland & Stewart, a well-established Canadian publishing house.If you are still knocking on closed doors, join our panel for an informative discussion on self-publishing.  Find out what services are available and how to keep the process affordable.  Gather tips on marketing your product and the criteria used to select new books for library collections.

Kitchener Public Library – Country Hills Community Library
1500 Block Line Rd. To register, please call 519-743-0271 519-743-0271  ext.  255.

 

Technorati Tags: Terry Fallis,The Best Laid Plans,The High Road,Waterloo,One book one community,self-publishing,literary agents