Authors

Where Do Story Ideas Come From?

/ still a dreamer

Back in December, I devoted a post to where ideas for picture books come from. With energy still running high from the NJ SCBWI June Conference, I feel inspired to expand that post. I’ll start with an example.

The photo below tells a story that may or may not have interest to you, but it definitely does to me. You may not even see the story right away. But stick with me. By way of background, I put food and water on my back porch for the 2 cats next door who are outside most of the time, and often visiting me. In time, a small tuxedo feral whom I’ve named Little Fee found the food, and now he’s a regular. I feed him morning and night, and he can graze whenever he’s inspired until I bring the food in. But who else is at the food bowl?

Well, if you know animals, you can look at the photo and know that it’s not just a cat. Towards the end of this past winter, when food sources were slim, I had two visitors who discovered the food – a young skunk, and a young opossum. While neither bothers me, I don’t need animals with lots of teeth or who can spray horrible smells on my porch. So I started bringing the food in as soon as it got dark. They left and found food elsewhere.

Feeling confident, now that it’s June, I started leaving it out a bit later again for when Little Fee comes around. So look again … and check that footprint. Here it is enlarged – Exhibit A. Based on my research last time, I’m pretty sure that I have a possum again. But he’s not the only visitor … I started noticing an increase in bird poop on my porch railing. Closer observation has revealed that a mama Blue Jay swoops down several times in the morning and late afternoon, takes a piece of food and flies away. She’s either feeding her young or eating it herself and regurgitating for her young.

For me, that’s a story idea. Three cats, a skunk, a possum and a Blue Jay all coming for dinner. I’m always enamored with nature, and this inspires me!

So where do story ideas come from? Always something of meaning and interest to ourselves. It can be something as simple as an observation of nature on our back porches, or something we’ve always wanted to know more about, or experiences or observations we feel compelled to write about. It’s when we are trying to write about “not us” that stories fall flat. We need to know ourselves, (or be willing to discover), and write from our hearts. So simple.

At the June Conference, I had a PB critique which inspired me to improve my story and rework my dummy. In a First Page Session, I got some suggestions that got wheels turning about really writing that middle-grade novel I only occasionally thought about. Where are those ideas coming from? My past, my love of horses, and all the information I’ve been absorbing over the last 7 years from helping an equine rescue and having friends who ride. The ideas are flowing as through an open faucet. I didn’t expect that from a simple First Page critique.

And in one workshop about breaking picture book rules, we split into 2 groups halfway through, and one of the two presenters, Alison Formento, gave us a writing exercise. What we participants wrote in such a short time was both amazing and moving to us all. And right there was another idea for each of us, because Alison had triggered our writing about something meaningful in our lives.

It all starts with an idea … what has meaning for you? What MUST you share with the world in whatever genre or whatever format or voice you choose? That’s where story ideas come from. And sometimes it can be as tiny as a muddy little paw print.

Hold on to the Dream – NJ SCBWI Conference

/ still a dreamer

There’s always one bad thing about the NJ SCBWI Conference … it’s over.

Dr. Seuss, now …. my book, tomorrow!

Driving home from the conference, I am always tired, but also revved up, thinking of all the things I learned, what manuscripts I want to get right back to, editors/agent’s comments, etc.  And then there’s the next step – I walk in the door. Lo and behold, the life I left behind to immerse myself in days of children’s books is still there. Waiting for me. Needing me. Demanding of me. I don’t imagine it’s terribly different for many of you. And unless you have reached that wonderful position in life where you spend your waking hours writing and illustrating children’s books, you, like me, can watch your dream start to fade into the laundry, kids, pets, dinner, work, etc. And we haven’t even put our bags and portfolios down yet.

So, I’ve been working on some ways to hold on to that wonderful dream we nurtured at the NJ SCBWI June Conference. I hope these work for you.

  1. First off, I make the time to make a list of all the things I want to do as a result of the Conference, from sending a thank-you to jotting down what I will be focusing on. (Details can come later.)
  2. In the next day or two, I write out thank-you’s to the editor’s and/or agents who have helped me with my work.
  3. I find a couple of photos of the conference – or even the conference center – and print them out and put them on my desk. If I can find a printable one of the agent I met with, I do that, too. Even on days when I have no time to write or draw, those images keep the experience alive.
  4. I follow up by filling out the survey that Laurie sends out and by checking Kathy’s blog for post-conference news and updates. (I check her blog daily anyway, because she is such a wealth of information about children’s books, but especially now, I look forward to her posts on this event.)
  5. I pull out whatever MS was/were critiqued over the weekend and put them in a separate folder – this is what I will be working from – I put the names of the MS on the front, and place it in plain view.
  6. I next set up a real schedule for myself regarding what time frame I want to get what done – what is the date I want to get a revised MS back to the agent?, etc.  I also, at this time, review the bios of the editors and agents attending – who might be appropriate to send something to …. now while the iron is hot!  Some of those submission windows close sooner than others. And then I send them within the next few weeks. Setting up a special calendar where you mark your deadlines can be very helpful. It’s one thing to do it on your computer, but another when it’s 3-D and you look at it every day!
  7. Back to the list – take a little time to think .. how can I fit what into my schedule and when. I managed to really step up my game pre-conference. How can I keep that energy going, (and yes, still sleep, etc.)? When can I block out some time consistently to focus on one of my dummies and/or illustrations each week? Where can I block out some time to write until it becomes a habit again? If I really want to write and illustrate children’s books, I must figure this out now.

That’s what I do. I admit that I do well with a list, but … I don’t want this experience to fade, or fold in on itself in the face of the many demands of everyday life. I plan to hold on to the dream, and imagine that the little reading group up there is reading MY children’s book. Who knows? They might be reading yours!

If you have any more ideas of how to hold on to the dream of writing and illustrating children’s books post-NJ SCBWI June Conference, let me know.

Rich Beyond Words – The Annual Library Book Sale

/ still a dreamer

“Wouldn’t it be great if the world could be run like a book sale?” A fellow book lover and I chatted and laughed over the metaphysical/self-help section in the armory annex, home to all the non-fiction books organized for purchase. Why not? Helpful, knowledgeable people running the event, happy shoppers roaming the aisles in delight, and fellow book lovers sharing their reading experiences and recommendations with their fellow man, (and woman), while we graze over the 149,000 titles available.

Above, my haul minus one.

It can be a mind-boggling experience for the newbie. One friend, a first-timer, went with nothing particular in mind and became immediately overwhelmed. She only brought home 3 books. The friend I went with – it’s now an annual tradition – had the goal of picking up more good novels to read. She went home with a full tote and a second tote filled with books for her daughter. It’s not uncommon to see people leaving with multiple cartons of books. At $1 for a hardbound and $.50 for a paperback on Sunday, (double that for Saturday), it’s hard not to get a little crazy.

This was my plan – I had a short list of 1) authors I would like to read more of, 2) one specific title, 3) some selections from children’s books at whatever level appealed to me, and 4) surprise me! Oh, and with a peek, of course, in the metaphysical section. How did I make out? Like a bandit.

In the 1) section, I found something by Sue Monk Kidd, Firstlight, Barbara Kingsolver, The Bean Trees, and Anna Quindlen,  A Short Guide to A Happy Life. Check! In 2), I found A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, (which will take me a bit to get to, as I am still kind of blown out from The Kite Runner.) Check! In the 3) group – who could go wrong with another Jerry Spinelli book, (Maniac Magee), and one I saw as a movie when I want something light, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. Check! In 4), I picked up a a book by Eckhart Tolle, A New Earth, an author recommended to me by a fellow writer.

But the main armory, which is crowded with novels of every kind – including best sellers, best-selling authors, mysteries, science fiction, romance, and books made into movies – is where I really found the most, my 3) section.  Some of these are by authors I’m totally unfamiliar with, but the book jackets sold the books; others, I knew of the author or the book and wanted to broaden my reading experience.

So I picked up Snow Falling on Cedars, by David Guterson,  which was made into a movie, an unexpected find from Annie Proulx, That Old Ace in the Hole, because I loved The Shipping News, two books that have been on a list in my computer that I’d forgotten about completely – The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski and The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan, several books whose titles just drew me to them – The Last of the Honky Tonk Angels, (Marsha Moyer), World of Pies, (not a cookbook), by Karen Stolz, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison,  and By the Light of My Father’s Smile by Alice Walker. Then a couple best sellers, The Lovely Bones by Alice Siebold and The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards, and a recommendation by a fellow shopper – his favorite by Toni Morrison – Beloved. I picked up The Poe Shadow by Matthew Pearl because The Dante Club was pretty good and I have a friend who also loves Poe, and Henry Beston’s The Outermost House, because it’s been in the back of my mind for some time. Check! Throw in 2 cookbooks that have great recipes and photos to match … and I’m done!

Quite a haul! Have I read everything from last year’s sale? No, not yet, but as every one is a book I want to read, that’s OK, too. All that’s left now is to find a place to put them, toss the totes in the laundry, and figure out where to start. Let the reading begin!

The Kite Runner – Layers of Heartbreak

/ still a dreamer

I am still sitting with The Kite Runner. Not moving onto another book yet, and not really wanting to. That’s how powerful this book is for me.

I feel compelled to write about it, though I wonder what I can say that hasn’t been said a thousand times over. I have no intention of writing a synopsis or the like – this is personal. I can say this … Khaled Hosseini is an outstanding writer – part of the brilliance of this book is that it’s hard to imagine that it is not completely autobiographical, yet I know it is not. I can say that I don’t believe one could read The Kite Runner without easily forgiving Amir for what he felt was his horrific betrayal of Hassan. From the standpoint of an observing adult, Amir’s was the realistically-based fear of a child that he would have suffered the same cruelty as did Hassan at the hands of Assef. Yet Amir bore the burden of failing his friend, and this is a pivotal point around which spins The Kite Runner’s tale.

The relationships between the characters are so beautifully drawn … the tender yet precarious boyhood friendship between Amir and Hassan; the  great need of Amir to please Baba; the much needed acceptance in Amir’s relationship with Rahim Khan, his father’s business partner; his later love with Soraya; and then his overwhelming compassion for Sohrab. I must say, I loved being taken to a land of which I know so little. Despite the telling of its tragedy and violence, it was someplace I’ve never been, and in this, Hosseini artfully painted a picture. The beginning of the story takes place against the backdrop of a beautiful, richly colored Afghanistan, but which is then torn apart and destroyed in the Soviet invasion, followed by the chaos of a civil war, leaving people in the even more cruel hands of the Taliban.

As moving as this story is to me, so artfully woven around the characters and the painful events of their lives, I was almost equally as moved by the devastation of a land, of a life, where people had known happiness. The destruction and poverty which changed all of the characters’ lives forever is, of course, a critical part of the story … broken characters, a broken country. The brutality of man against man – even amongst different sects/classes within the country itself, (Baba and Amir, Pashtun, and Ali and Hassan, Hazara),  eloquently described and tragic beyond words. Thankfully, Hosseini found them.

As mentioned, I know very little about Afghanistan. That part of the world was never a subject of much attention when I was growing up and studying history. The Soviets invaded Afghanistan in the late 70’s followed by 10 years of war. Not long after the Soviet withdrawal, more chaos followed in civil wars within the country and greater world repercussions, but I am no expert here. Different parts of The Kite Runner took place over these periods, and it all brought an immense sadness to me … over man’s relentless quest for power and control over one another, of his endless and shameful inability to respect, if we cannot love, our fellow man.

Yesterday, I went online to learn more about Afghanistan – something to help me better understand The Kite Runner and the events befalling its characters. I looked at maps and traced the routes of the characters to Jalalabad, and at other times to Peshawar and Islamabad in Pakistan. I watched videos where the author spoke about this, his first novel, and his country. He is an insightful, likable and empathic man, trying still to bring attention to the plight of his people who are living in desperate poverty. Some of these videos included the Afghani … they are a very handsome people. I felt much like a child with my eyes just opening to another part of the world which has, up until now, escaped my attention, my consideration. It just got me thinking …

I wondered if the man who pumps gas in the town next to me might be from Afghanistan … did he leave his country at some point as Baba and Amir did … to try and find a better life here? Although Baba and Amir were escaping the Soviet invasion, might this man have left behind the Taliban or some other political pressure of which I know nothing? Considering the deep resentment, and often hatred, this country can have for the West, would he see a question of where he came from as a rude intrusion, or maybe a moment of unexpected friendliness from an American? I am not saying I would, (or would not), ask, but I know The Kite Runner tore open another part of my heart … a part that has more questions, more curiosity, for what I have not known … a part brimming with compassion for the Amirs, the Hassans and the Sohrabs. This is the gift Khaled Hosseini gave to me, and for which I am grateful.

p.s. I have just found that Khaled Hosseini has established his own foundation to help the Afghan people. The Khaled Hosseini Foundation‘s site lists the needs of the people, what the foundation is doing to help, and what you can do to help if you are inspired.

So This is Lemony Snicket! (The Miserable Mill)

/ still a dreamer

I may be the last person on the planet to have finally read one of the Lemony Snicket series. I may also be one of the only to not be totally enamored by the one I read, as well. Another selection at the wonderful annual library sale, it was an opportunity to increase my familiarity with what kids are/have been reading nowadays.

I must say, as I read The Miserable Mill, the 4th in the Lemony Snicket series, I wondered what would be the attraction for children in a continuing series of misfortunate events happening to the Baudelaire orphans. It just seemed like an awful lot of doom and gloom … not that I am one to revel in endless parades of flowers and fairies … but I was curious as to the attraction of the never-ending succession of misfortunes that befell the three main characters – Klaus, Violet and Sunny.

It kept my attention enough that I wanted to see how it all came out for the orphans, and it did manage to become rather silly and enjoyable towards the end, but what is the appeal of knowing that the children’s lives continue to get worse with each chapter? It was quite dour and gloomy. What I did certainly enjoy was Sunny, the baby’s, bursts of nonsensical words and phrases, which were always interpreted by the author afterwards. That was funny.

Are the other books in the series this gloomy? Perhaps I’d try another, but probably it won’t be tops on my list just yet.