Guess which book is featured this week over at Dear Reader! Come on, guess! Okay maybe it’s obviously, since I’m blogging about it.
But … The Geek Girl’s Guide to Cheerleading is the featured book in the Teen Book club. Do any of you subscribe to Dear Reader? They have a club for just about everything from fiction, to nonfiction to even a pre-published club. It’s a great way to discover books you might not otherwise know about.
Start your writing week with Writers’ Blok by Ja¢kson Pearce:
And really, Darcy and I are writing, not searching out empty mall parking lots for impromptu dance routines. We swear it.
I shared this on Facebook, but it’s too funny NOT to post here.
Look what I found today! A terrific interview with 2009 Deb Carrie Ryan. She talks about writing what you love and, of course, zombies.
Enjoy!
Courtesy of Lara Zielin, one of the fantabulous 2009 Debs, comes this video:
While I haven’t knocked on anyone’s door … yet, I’ve been known to sing the praises of “The Donald” more than once. Okay. A lot. All the time. Actually, I probably need a 12-step program, the one where I promise not to annoy my writing friends.
But, but, but … their (writing) lives would be much more fulfilling if only they listened to Donald Maass. Try the gateway drug Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook. Just one exercise. Or two! How could it hurt? It’s an exercise, silly, not a way of life.
That comes later.
And look, he’s going to be in Madison, WI in November! I may have to make a pilgrimage.
Seriously. I used Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook extensively with Geek Girl. But you know, writing craft books are just like any other book–they work for some people and not for others. For me, voice and tone go a long way in whether I simply enjoy a writing craft book.
But, yeah. I’ll try to stop curb the proselytizing.
So … yeah, as Andrew would say. We got the word that The Geek Girl’s Guide to Cheerleading is a finalist in the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence contest, in the young adult category.
Since I put my home phone (and not my cell) on the contest entry form, the coordinator emailed me to tell us the news. This is maybe just as well, since for a few moments, I forgot how to type. On the phone, I would’ve been all: Dude, no way! (And really, I don’t think you’re supposed to refer to contest coordinators as dude.)
So, when I sent Darcy the news, I asked her for a squee. She saw my squee and raised me a woot.
Anyway, we’re stoked here at Geek Girl central, and check out the other YA finalists:
That’s some fine, fine company to be in. Plus, I first met Tricia when we both were finalists for the Golden Heart waaaay back in 2003. It’s neat that both our debut YA novels are finalists together now.
(Oh, and to my horror, I’ve just done the 2010 – 2003 math. Oy. Apropos to yesterday’s post with Jasper Fforde.)
This is a great five minute or so interview with Jasper Fforde. He talks about the long haul of writing and publishing. And if you hear a little cheer at the mention of ten years and six and a half manuscripts, that’s just me.
Because … ten years … six manuscripts. Wow. Sounds like someone I know. Wait! I do know her. That’s me.
Enjoy!
Via Nathan Bransford:
I have one thing to say today:
It. Is. Finished!!!!!
Okay, what is actually finished is this round of revisions. Unfortunately, “It is revised!” doesn’t have the same ring to it.
I still have miles to go before I sleep–or rather, before it’s ready to go. But I think/hope I have the main restructuring slog out of the way. This is really a “my reach may exceed my grasp” kind of story. So for now, I’ll let The Fine Art of Holding Your Breath compost.
Even with the all the work ahead of me, I can’t help feeling a little bit like this:
This leaves me free to revisit Dating on the Dork Side, which I’m also very excited about. Although, I accidently opened one of its files yesterday. As I told Darcy: it reads like I downed half a bottle of NyQuil before I sat down to write.
So. Miles to go there as well.
Think I’ll go list to Ode to Joy one more time.
Because really, when you finish any draft of a manuscript, the skies should open, light should pour down, and all the animals of the forest should burst into song.
And the Berlin Philharmonic should personally come to your house.
I’ve been writing. I’ve been writing/revising/brainstorming nearly every day (if not every day) of 2010. Okay, so we’re only on day 13. Still. I also started back in December on this revision, so I’ve been at it for a while.
I’m working to integrate a new subplot, remove a few other plot threads, and I’ve combined a few characters, which means the relationship vibe between many of the characters has change.
It’s like The Novel 2.0 or writing the alternate universe version of the original manuscript.
It’s also a lot of fun.
But here’s the thing: the spine remains essentially the same, but what the characters do and how they react to each other has changed. So, same problem = different solution.
This is also fun. But here’s where it gets weird. The other day, while I was walking to the car after work, I was pondering one of those plot problems and thought:
“Wow, MacKenna had a really good solution for that.”
Yes, that’s right. My character, a fictional creation, is thinking up answers to the story’s plot problems. Or at least, that’s how I apparently view it in my mind.
Nice.
This is why I haven’t been blogging much either. At some point, MacKenna might just take that over too.
Writing Wrongs 