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Peachy Weekend

I (and a group of local children’s authors) spent a great time last weekend in historic Hermann, Missouri–a scenic wine town along the Missouri River. http://www.hermannmissouri.com/ We stayed at Captain Wohlt’s Inn where innkeeper, Mat Wilkins took special care of all us. http://www.captainwohltinn.com/
Senior Editor, Lisa Mathews, joined our company and provided us with many interesting insights into children’s literature. http://www.peachtree-online.com/info.aspx

Here’s her explanation of STORY STRUCTURE:

1. Act I: Setup—here is the mood/tone, hook, catalyst, antagonist (which can be a situation as well as a person), the intro to the MC/personality, the issue which will lead to the turning point—conflict must come right away. There does not have to be a great deal of setting and character analysis right at first. It’s more important to have action with a purpose which propels the story
2. By the end of Act I, there should be a problem/turning point (a challenge revealed)
3. Act II—problem intensifies/ a barrier/ complication
4. Character has a temporary triumph
5. New info (a reversal) leads to more problems/ and perhaps a deadline looms
6. Dark Moment—the MC fails (or seems to) and the goal seems even farther away
7. Another turning point—the MC has to make a decision
8. Act III—the final obstacle (MC is pushed to her limit)
9. Climax—she faces the obstacle
10. Resolution

Lisa also spoke of a STEP OUTLINE for help in writing a story.
In this type of outline, a phrase/sentence for each chapter provides a very brief outline of the story and shows the story arc. I was encouraged to hear her explain this concept because it is basically what I do when developing a story. It provides a very loose framework that allows me to know where I’m going—which helps eliminates writer’s block—but it is so basic that it also encourages me to be creative with each new scene. I usually don’t know exactly how the scene will play out or what the characters will say or do. I think it helps keep the story fresh.

The two Peachtree books at the top are by my writer friends, Kristen Nitz and Jeanie Ransom, who also attended the weekend retreat. Here are their websites where you can find out more about them: http://www.kwnitz.com/ http://www.jeanieransom.com/

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Best Books of 2007

School Library Journal has posted their list of the best children’s and young adult books for 2007. http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/article/CA6504067.html?q=best+books+2007

One of my favorite poems (by Lewis Carroll) JABBORWOCKY has earned a spot on the list with ultra-cool illustrations by Christopher Meyers. In Meyers’ version of the poem, the Jabborwock brings his intimidating battle to the basketball court. What a clever, updated look at all the “galumphing” and “burbling.” This book is truly “frabjous.”

Our featured illustrator from last Saturday (Marla Frazee) also had a book on the list: THE TALENTED CLEMENTINE by Sara Pennypacker. http://www.amazon.com/Talented-Clementine-Sara-Pennypacker/dp/0786838701

Congrats to both Marla and Sara!
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Super Saturday

On Saturday, I had the privilege to hear Allyn Johnston, Editor-in-Chief at Harcourt, and Marla Frazee, children’s author and illustrator, give a presentation on picture books in Washington, Missouri.

Ms. Johnston spoke of “the power of picture books.” She said she believes good ones have “the ability to affect lives.” She also referred to a picture book as “a piece of theater on a 32-page stage.” She looks for the rhythm and repetition in a well-written picture book. “Perfect words in perfect places.” She said the last line of the story should resonate and the story should come full circle. To find out more about Allyn Johnston, here’s a link to an interview with her:http://www.scbwi.org/faces/getting_to_know/previous/johnston.htm

Ms. Frazee spoke of the physical structure of a picture book–the 32-page format. She said it is the combination of words and pictures that tell the complete story in a picture book. She emphasized her respect for children as her audience–how well they “read” her pictures. She stressed that picture books need to have an emotional component–even humorous ones. For more information on Marla Frazee, you may visit her website at http://www.marlafrazee.com/

What a great opportunity this was to hear these special insights from two such knowledgeable women in children’s literature.

The other excitement I was a part of on Saturday was Jody Feldman‘s premeir of her first children’s book, THE GOLLYWHOPPER GAMES, at Left Bank Books in St. Louis. Jody’s idea for THE GOLLYWHOOPER GAMES began many years ago when she was volunteering in a school library and witnessed a boy unable to satisfy his book thirst after finishing CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY. Jody wanted to write a book that would be similiar to Roald Dahl’s masterpiece. Her love for word games and puzzles led her to create this story featuring the Golly Toy & Game Company. For a read filled with interactive adventures, be sure to find a copy of Jody’s new middle grade novel. The official release of THE GOOLYWHOPPER GAMES is tomorrow, March 3. And to read more about Jody, you may visit her website at http://jodyfeldman.typepad.com/writing/
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A Morning with Constance Levy, Poet Extraordinaire

I had the great fortune to attend a workshop today given by Constance Levy, St. Louis’ own children’s poet guru. She spoke to OASIS reading tutors for the Rockwood School District on ways to interact with children using poetry.
“Poems don’t have to rhyme,” she said. “But they do need to flow and to have rhythm.” She explained that children should be encouraged to “write in a natural way.” She cautioned that teachers and tutors shouldn’t “squeeze the juice out of creativity” by restricting children’s poetry to a set subject or style.
“William Stafford (another Midwest poet) said a poem was ‘talk with a little luck in it’,” Ms. Levy said. She suggested reading several poems to children and asking them which one they liked best and why. Discuss with the children “who is talking in this poem, and who are they speaking to?”
Ms. Levy encouraged the OASIS tutors to help children take chances in poetry by using wild and crazy words–to have fun. And for elementary students, she talked about helping them learn “to break lines.” At school children are taught to write sentences and fill up each line, only breaking for paragraphs. But when writing poetry, the children must be re-taught to listen for phrasing and how to construct a poem.
Ms. Levy had all of us brainstorm for a few minutes on FOG, jotting down words and phrases which came to our minds. We were encouraged to be inventive, to think in colors and metaphors. To be open to the senses. Later after briefly discussing haikus, we were encouraged to try one–but not necessarily strictly limited to the 5, 7, 5 syllables in each of the three lines if that didn’t quite work for our poem.
Here is my morning haiku created with help from the earlier brainstorming session
FOG
A shrouded ghost mist
swallows me up as I walk
into its mystery.
Give yourself a treat and visit your local library where you’ll find copies of Constance Levy’s poetry books: A TREE PLACE,
WHEN WHALES EXHALE
A CRACK IN THE CLOUDS
SPLASH!
I’M GOING TO PET A WORM TODAY
THE STORY OF RED RUBBER BALL
To find out more about Ms. Levy, you may visit this biography link at Pennsylvania State University, compiled by Pam Goldberg. http://pabook.libraries.psu.edu/palitmap/bios/Levy__Constance.html
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New Writer Helps

becoming a children's author

Today I’m offering a couple writer helps:

The first is a new book from children’s author and WEE ONES magazine editor, Jennifer Reed–BECOMING A CHILDREN’S AUTHOR, illustrated by Kevin Scott Collier.
http://www.lulu.com/content/2040679

This book provides 200 + pages of information on what it takes to write and sell stories and nonfiction for the children’s book and magazine market.
But that’s not all. It also has online resources for reference: websites on grammar, creating a bibliography, writer support groups, writing websites, and more!
This children’s author and magazine editor has 15 years experience in the industry and has published over 20 children’s books


The next offering is an article written by Jan Fields of THE INSTITUTE OF CHILDREN’S LITERATURE. In this article she offers advice for dealing with publishers.

Balancing Business and Emotion by Jan Fields http://www.institutechildrenslit.com/rx/ws06/business.shtml
Online links are also provided, such as this very helpful site:
Preditors and Editors http://anotherealm.com/prededitors/

So if you want to improve your odds for being a successful children’s author, these two sources would be a good starting point.

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Writing for the Children’s Educational Market

Today’s entry is especially for children’s authors. Here is information from Margot Finke (http://www.margotfinke.com/ and http://margotfinke.blogspot.com/), children’s author and one of the CHILDREN’S WRITERS’ COACHING CLUB.

The National Writing for Children’s Center ( http://writingforchildrencenter.com/cwcc/)is the home of the Children’s Writers’ Coaching Club (CWCC) –a growing resource for children’s writers, aspiring children’s writers, and elementary school teachers and/or librarians.
This Thursday, February 28 , 2008, at 2:00 p.m. eastern time,the Children’s Writers’ Coaching Club will offer another excitingand informative teleclass for children’s writers. Rita Milios will present session #1 in her:Writing for Children’s Educational Markets Series – The Lucrative Educational Market: Where Do YOU Fit In?
Find out on Thursday if writing for the educational markets is right for you. When you join, you will receive links to the other three teleclasses that were presented earlier this month.
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Today’s Guest Writer: Susan Berger

Susan Berger is the author of Jamie’s Dream, a children’s picture book she created with her son, Christopher Corbin. Kim Sponaugle’s colorful illustrations help bring Jamie to life in a story where dreams are for sale.

http://www.guardianangelpublishing.com/jamies-dream.htm

Here’s an interview with her by Mayra Calvani.
http://mayrassecretbookcase.com/http://mayrassecretbookcase.blogspot.com/

Did you always want to be a writer?

No. I wanted to be a ballet dancer. Then I wanted to be a nurse. (I was reading the Cherry Ames, Girl Nurse Series) Then I wanted to be a reporter. (I was reading the Beverly Gray, Girl Reporter series.) In my defense, I did not want to be everything I read. I never wanted to be an inventor (Tom Swift Series) or a detective (Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys) In my daydreams I wanted to be queen of the world so I could end all hunger and give all the orphans good homes. Then I wanted to be an actress. By this time, I was twelve and knew myself for a fickle person since I wanted to be so many things.

I did not want to be a writer. I knew I was a writer. I won my first writing prize at St Cyprians School in Cape Town, S. Africa in 1955. It was a very nice story about the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus. It began… “Far away in the land of Holidays, where no mortal child has ever been, lived the Easter Bunny….” I wish I could remember the rest of it.

In 8th grade, in Westport Connecticut, I had a poem published in an anthology of high school poetry. I suppose I wrote some more after that, but it must have been schoolwork. By the time I was in 9th grade, all my extracurricular activity was acting.

When I started to write again in 1992, the first story I worked on was Jamie’s Dream with my son Christopher.

Tell us about your recent release. What was your inspiration for it?

I was attending the 1992 Pacific Northwest Writers Conference. They gave out an exercise. “Write about a saying as if it were real” I chose “Buy a Dream”. I came home and discussed it with Christopher. I asked him “Where would you go to buy a dream?” He gave me that LOOK that children give grownups when grownups are being particularly stupid. “Dream’s R Us, of course” he answered. And so our collaboration began. Chris was 9, but he was going to a school where writing was highly valued. His school mornings began with 20 minutes of creative writing. Then they read their work aloud. They critiqued each other, just as they did in my adult writer’s group. He was a great partner. Over the next 12 years, Jamie was sent out many times. It was rewritten at least 16 times. Then Guardian Angel said they wanted to publish it. The joy of that moment is equaled only by the moment I first saw Kim’s Illustrations.

What are you working on now?
This week I worked on Disasters Happen: Earthquake which will be published by Guardian Angel in 2008. It is a nonfiction book for the science series. It is aimed at first – third graders. (What causes earthquakes? Can we predict them? Where do they happen? How do we prepare for them? What to do during a quake? What happens afterwards.)
I am also working on a storybook called Brittany’s Wall, and a mid-grade chapter book called Tasha the Magnificent. Brittany is going into its 8th rewrite. Tasha is going into its 9th rewrite. I have contacted the SCBWI for a new critique group for Tasha. I find re-writing to be both drudgery and magic. When I finish a story, I am always convinced that I have written the best story I am capable of writing. It is amazing to see how much better it can become.

What is the best writing advice you have ever received?

It is not your business to question your talent. It is your business to show up at the page. (okay, it’s short, but it’s great advice.)

Do you have a website or blog where readers may learn more about you and your works?

http://jamiesdream.com/ links to my live journal and to mine and Christopher’s IMDB.com pages. I am looking forward to making another website where I can list other books as they come out and link to other authors.

What is the IMDB?
It is the internet movie data base (http://imdb.com/) It is a wonderful site. You can look up any movie or TV show and see the full cast and credits. You can also look up any actor and (hopefully) see what movies and TV shows they have done. I say hopefully because I cannot seem to get my Hannah Montana Episode added. I don’t have a large Movie and TV resume. Most of my professional work is theatre.

Do you have any other words of widsom?

Andrea says to Melina in The Magic Violin by Mayra Calvani (http://www.guardianangelpublishing.com/magic-violin.htm), “I’ll tell you what’s magic-believing in yourself. That’s magic!” Jamie says in Jamie’s Dream “But mom, you said I could do anything I believed I could do.” I think Andrea and Jamie’s mom give very good advice. May you always find the magic.

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Awesome Interview

I had a great time today with Suzanne Lieurance at BOOK BITES FOR KIDS on BlogTalkRadio. Truly, the 30 minutes flew by, but I was discussing a subject I knew well and had great interest in–ME!

So if you missed the opportunity to hear it broadcast live, never fear. Click on the link below, and you can hear the archived interview.

I would rate this as a 3Brownie interview–at least that’s how many brownies I ate before the interview. No power drinks or coffee for me. This children’s author runs on Triple-Chunk Fudge Brownies. 🙂

Hope you enjoy the interview….

and don’t forget about the CONTEST. Go to the FOR KIDS section of my website and look under PUZZLES for the SOLVE A MYSTERY…or just click https://www.cynthiareeg.com/kids/mystery_questions.html

February 29 is the deadline for submitting your answers!
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Website Additions & a CONTEST

Greetings All!
Please pass the word around that I’ve added the following new treats to my website.
In the WRITINGS section, you’ll find:

BUGGY ALPHABETICS with illustrations by NIKKI SCHAEFER (www. nikkischaefer.com) This poem is an ABECEDARIAN–an alphabetical poem which uses the letters from A-Z for the first letter in every line. (https://www.cynthiareeg.com/writings/alphabetics.html)

A DAY in TASMANIA with photos–taken from my travel journal over the holidays. (https://www.cynthiareeg.com/writings/tasmania.html)

In the TIPS FOR WRITERS section, you’ll find:
INTERVIEW with NIKKI SCHAEFER–the very talented author/illustrator soon to be joining the GAP team (https://www.cynthiareeg.com/tips/nikki_schaefer.html)

More RESOURCES — helpful websites for writers (https://www.cynthiareeg.com/tips/resource_2.html)

In the FOR TEACHERS & PARENTS section, you’ll find:
BOOK SUGGESTIONS for DIVERSITY–a quick list to help celebrate the uniqueness in each child. (https://www.cynthiareeg.com/teachers/diversity.html)

In the FOR KIDS section, you’ll find:
BE A NEWS REPORTER–an easy break-down of the 5 W’s and a link to a Weekly Reader page to start the young news hound on his/her story. (https://www.cynthiareeg.com/kids/reporter.html)

SOLVE A MYSTERY–be the first to unravel the clues and answer the questions, and you’ll win a prize. (https://www.cynthiareeg.com/kids/mystery_questions.html)
Enjoy!