BORROWED WORDS OF WISDOM

 

To mark the end of 2013, I'd like to share some of the words of wisdom I've gleaned from other writers over the year. These are random with no particular theme but I'm hoping they'll inspire (and sometimes make you smile) you the way they've inspired me!

 

Only bad writers think their work is really good. (Anne Enright)

Just leave out the boring parts. (Elmore Leonard)

 

Backstory developed early on crashes down on a story's momentum like a sumo wrestler falling on his opponent. (Donald Maas)

Every true writer, I believe, starts a new story with a troubled mind. (Pierre Burton)

Rule #5 Keep trying to top yourself.

Some years ago, my old college friend and fellow broadcaster Lister Sinclair asked: "Is writing getting easier for you?"

"No," I told him. "I'm trying to make it harder."

(Pierre Burton)

Strong characters are at the heart of great literature. Not many readers could outline the plot of The Sign of the Four, but no one has any difficulty bringing Holmes and Watson to mind. (Andrew Miller)

 

We live in the best time for dialogue heavy books because it's fast and we're fast. Pace sells and dialogue is pace. A reader who falls into good dialogue on the first page of your book is in your pocket. (DBC Pierre)

Don't sit down in the middle of the woods. If you're lost in the plot or blocked, retrace your steps to where you went wrong. Then take the other road. (Margaret Atwood)

Give the work a name as quickly as possible. Own it and see it. Dickens knew Bleak House was going to be called Bleak House before he started writing it. The rest must have been easy. (Roddy Doyle)

Finish the day's writing when you still want to continue. (Helen Dunmore)

If you are going to be obsessive about anything in the writing business, make it your word quota. (James Scott Bell)

What we take away from our reading of a good novel mainly is the memory of character. (Elizabeth George)

You will be published if you possess three qualities - talent, passion and discipline. (Elizabeth George)

A lot of writing is simply showing up. A lot of writing is being willing to show up day after day, same time and same place.

Lots of people want to have written; they don't want to write.

(Elizabeth George)

If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot. (Stephen King)

Let me end with a wonderful story that Stephen King tells about James Joyce:

According to the story, a friend came to visit him one day and found the great man sprawled across his writing desk in a posture of utter despair.

          "James, what's wrong?" the friend asked. "Is it the work?"
          Joyce indicated assent without even raising his head to look at the friend. Of course it was the work; wasn't it always?

          "How many words did you get today?" the friend pursued.

          Joyce (still in despair, still sprawled facedown on his desk): "Seven."

          "Seven? But James. . . that's good, at least for you!"

          "Yes," Joyce said, finally looking up. "I suppose it is . . . but I don't know what order they go in!"

 

HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR AND LOTS OF WRITING SUCCESS IN 2014!!!

WHOSE STORY IS THIS ANYWAY?

                        

 

As I work on my picture book manuscript, I can see the pictures clearly in my head. I can visualize each page and I am full of ideas for funny little details the illustrator could add. I am dying to make notes in the margins for the illustrator because I know how this book should look.

Right?

Unfortunately not.

My job is the words. I have to trust the illustrator to do his job which is the pictures.

I admit I was dismayed to read the following list of Don'ts in The Business of Writing for Children by Aaron Shepherd:

Do not find an illustrator on your own.

Do not send sketches or a dummy (mock-up of a book) or show page turns.

Do not write notes describing illustrations - unless an essential element cannot be described in your text.

The problem is, I know what I want the pictures to look like.  It's going to be hard to let someone else make those decisions.

But that is exactly what a picture book writer must do unless you illustrate your own books. Trust the illustrator. Allow him his own opportunities for creativity. You wouldn't want someone to tell you what words to use.

The end result may not match the pictures in your head.   It may be even better!  I have a friend who visualized her characters as people and the illustrator turned  them into animals - it turned out to be a charming book that everyone was happy with.

 Ann Whitford Paul in Writing Picture Books says "Ironically, while we must write with a visual image in our mind, we must eventually let that image go."

Whose story is it? Both of yours. 

 

 

 

 

THE MUSIC OF THE WORDS

 

The more I study the craft of picture book writing, the more I realize that so many of the things I'm learning apply to all writing for kids. Using as few words as possible to convey your meaning, using carefully chosen words, leaning towards dialogue and action with limited description, avoiding adverbs and going light on adjectives - all these things are important when I write a juvenile or young adult novel as well as a picture book. You can just get away with mistakes a little easier in a novel.

In a picture book, every word needs to go under a microscope. When you're used to writing novels like I am, it's challenging to tell your story in  1000 words. You absolutely don't want to waste any of them! And when you're choosing your words, one of the things you need to think about is rhythm.

  I like what Theodore Cheney says about rhythm in his book Getting the Words Right. He talks about ancient storytellers and how "stories with the most satisfying sounds and rhythms were remembered easiest and longest."

That's what we want -  children to remember our stories and, with picture books, to ask for them again and again.

The best way to test for rhythm is to read your story aloud. Picture books are meant to be read aloud so this is doubly important (novels can benefit from being read aloud too). Try reading your manuscript into a tape recorder and listening to it. Or ask someone to read it out loud to you. 

There are some tried and true ways to get rhythm into your writing.

1. Vary your sentence length. A longer leisurely sentence slows the pace. A short snappy sentence gives punch to your story. You want both.

2. Use alliteration (repetition of initial consonant.) Don't overdo this and create a tongue twister (unless deliberate!) The words don't have to be side by side but can be scattered throughout the sentence. eg. There are some tried and trued ways to get rhythm into your writing!

3. Have fun with onomatopoeia (words that imitate sounds.)  eg. slish slosh swish

4. Pay attention to where the stress falls naturally  in your sentence and how changing the order of your words can change where the stress falls.

Listen to the difference between:

He fell over with a crash.

Over he fell with a crash.

A comma can change the stress.

Listen to the  difference between:

And he never said a word.

And, he never said a word.

Time words and superlatives are often stressed:

Lyle could spend hours watching building construction.

Harry's bath was the soapiest one he had ever had.

I'm planning to print a copy of my manuscript-in-progress and mark the stressed word or words in every sentence. Maybe I'll move some words around and make some changes. I'm sure I'll learn something.

 In The Business of Writing for Children, Aaron Shepard says . .

One of the greatest compliments a reviewer can bestow on a children's story is to call it a "great read aloud." But how does a story come to merit such praise? The secret is rhythm.

Rhythm. It will make your story sing.

Favourite Kid's Book of the Week:

Mr. Zinger's Hat by Cary Fagan

A story is trying to escape from Mr. Zinger's hat. Leo contributes all the important details and learns that his cap has a story in it too!

A terrific story with charming illustrations.

Dr Seuss Look Out?

                                

Rhythm and rhyme. Once I learn how to spell them, I've learned that they are two things I should definitely consider when attempting to write my picture book. (Please note I say attempting! I'm still not comfortable saying I am writing a picture book as there is so much more I have to learn!)

I told a few friends I was working on a picture book and their immediate response was "Will it rhyme?"

No, no and no! Writing this story in 1000 words (the goal I set) is daunting enough. Trying to do it in rhyme - the stuff of nightmares! Fortunately for me, it's probably not a good idea anyway.

Many editors will not look at a rhyming submission. Some publishers guidelines even state No RHYMING BOOKS. Why is this when children love rhymes?

The main reason is probably that it is so hard to do well. Most attempts at rhyming books fail. You need to have a clear understanding of how rhyming works to pull it off. You need to study things like iambic, anapest and trochee (see what  I mean it's not easy - if you're interested, Ann Whitford tells all in her book Writing Picture Books.)

Ann Whitford also states that it is easy to get swept up in the fun of rhyming and forget what the darn story is all about. Your word length grows by leaps and bounds as you dream up the next rhyming word - often a word that doesn't even express the meaning you want. When I taught creative writing in elementary school, by far the best poems the kids wrote were the ones that didn't rhyme. That's where the kids could really focus on what they wanted to say.

I'm not rejecting rhyme entirely from my work-in-progress. I have a couple of places where I threw in a rhyme and I think it adds to the read aloud fun.  But I think I'll leave rhyme to Dr Seuss and pay much more attention to the rhythm of my story.

More about rhythm in my next blog!

Favourite Kids Book of the Week:

Frog and Toad are Friends by Arnold Lobel

If you haven't already discovered this classic, go look for it now! Frog and Toad are such engaging delightful characters. Arnold Lobel is a master at achieving characterization with so few carefully chosen words.

There are three more books in the series and they are all gems:

Frog and Toad Together

Frog and Toad All Year

Days with Frog and Toad

BRAVE NEW WORLD CONTINUED!

My attempts to enter the world of picture book writing continue. I find it both daunting and fascinating! Who knew you could pour for hours over a fairly short piece of writing - my first draft ended at about 1000 words. I've since written and rewritten it at least half a dozen times but I'm no where near satisfaction.

I have my story line and my characters and I'm learning how to make them come alive in such a short number of words. Every word counts! I've heard that said lots of times about picture books but it never really hit home until I tried to condense my story into 1000 words. I knew I was in trouble when I'd only got started and had already hit 350 words! This is  what I'm finding out . . .

Description - don't need it. The illustrations will take care of it.

Character development - not really room. That doesn't mean your character can be flat or one dimensional. He's just not going to change a lot.

Colourful enriching vocabulary - yes! Most picture books are read aloud to kids by adults so you don't have to worry that the words are too difficult for a child to read. But they should be easily understood in context.

Probably the best thing I've done so far is check out a stack of quality picture books from the library and read and reread and reread them.

I'm learning lots but I'm still scratching the surface. I've found the book Writing Picture Books by Ann Whitford Paul useful. The other book I purchased from Amazon called How To Write a Children's Picture Book Volume 2 by Eve Bine-Stock is helpful in the beginning chapters but the second part loses me completely.

Ann Whitford lists the characteristics of kids aged two to eight years old that I think are worth repeating here:

Everything is new to children.

Children live in the present.

Children have had few experiences.

Sometimes childhood is not happy.

Children understand more than we think they do.

Children have short attention spans.

Children are self-centered.

Children long to be independent.

Children are complicated.

Children have rich imaginations.

All these are important things for me to think about as I carry on  wrestling with this fascinating, sometimes frustrating and always challenging project!

Favourite Kids Book of the Week:

Big Brown Bear's Birthday Surprise by David McPhail

This is a heart warming picture book with the wonderful characters of Big Brown Bear and Rat. It's a story of friendship at its very best. The illustrations are  charming.

A BRAVE NEW WORLD

                        

I'm heading into uncharted territory right now for me - the world of picture book writing! I have a kernel of an idea that's been niggling at me for awhile so I'm going to give picture book writing a go!

I know I have a lot to learn.  In other words, I haven't a clue how to start. I also know it's not going to be easy. Shorter does not mean easier.

I can visualize marvellous illustrations for my book but I'm a little vague about the words. I haven't read many picture books since my daughter passed that stage and I retired from teaching school. I'm full of questions - How long should it be? Do I include description? How many characters? What kind of vocabulary? Do I give the illustrator suggestions?

My journey has begun! I bought two books from Amazon on writing picture books and I checked out a dozen picture books from our local library. I've just got my toes wet but already I've learned a lot.

A good starting point for me has been the idea of a story question and a story answer. In her book Writing Picture Books, Ann Whitford emphasizes the importance of knowing your story question. Note: one question because picture books are short. It might start with What happens when . . . ?  What happens when two friends find an abandoned boat? What happens when a dog is bored? What happens when a baby bat is separated from his mother? A story question will keep your story focused. The story answer should be specific to your story and should be only one sentence.

I set myself some homework and wrote down a story question and a story answer for each of the dozen books I got out of the library. These are all quality award winning picture books and they all had a clear story question and answer! So it does work.

Do I know my story question? Not yet. It's okay to start playing around with the first draft before I'm sure exactly what it is my story is about, but I think I'll breathe a little easier when I can write my question on a card and stick it above my computer.

I'm loving this new challenge in my writing life and will keep you posted on my ups and downs as a wanna-be picture book writer, as well as other useful tips I come across!

My favourite picture book of the week:

Stanley's Party by Linda Bailey

A rollicking picture book that I guarantee will change the way you look at your dog! There's lots more in the series, all hilarious.

 

THE INVISIIBLE SAID

Often writers who are new to the craft panic at the long line of "he said" and "she said"  on their page. They try it solve the problem by searching their thesaurus for synonyms for "said" - shouted, explained, retorted, intoned, exclaimed etc.

I tried inserting "said synonyms" into a passage from my book "Whiteout." This is what it sounded like:

"I don't eat meat," April explained.

Molly's eye's widened. "None?" she questioned.
April buttered a bun calmly. "Nope," she replied.
"Since when?" Robin shouted.
"For awhile. I thought I told you about it," she retorted.
"I guess I forgot," Robin muttered.

Sounds terrible, right? Said is considered an invisible word. The reader doesn't notice it. But the reader will notice all these other variations of said. They are distracting and just plain annoying.

That doesn't mean you should never use a synonym for said. But use said most of the time.

Especially watch out for synonyms that are physically impossible - he laughed, he giggled, he smiled, he grimaced.  "I don't like onions," he grimaced. "Come to my house," she smiled. Try it. Hard to do, right? "Come to my house," she said with a smile works much better.

Said is invisible, but a long string of them can be monotonous. Use a beat of action instead. Back to that passage from "Whiteout."

"I guess I forgot." Robin stirred grated cheese into her steaming chili and watched it melt.  The action of Robin and her chili tells us who is talking. You don't need "she said" as well.

When the dialogue goes back and forth between two characters, it is often obvious who is talking and you don't need anything.

"Dad?" Robin said.

"Yup."
"Did these steaks come from one of Kim's family's cows?"
"Yes. What's the matter? You're not going over to the other side too, are you?"
"Never."

You can go along like this for awhile, but it will read better if you stick in an occasional beat of action. You never want your reader to have to stop and figure out who is talking.

Another pitfall to avoid: propping up your "saids" with adverbs. He said angrily, she said wearily, they said enthusiastically etc.

The emotion should be contained in the dialogue.

"I can't believe you did that to me!" he said angrily. Angrily is unnecessary and distracting.

 

The best way I know to steer clear of these problems is to read your passage of dialogue out loud. Even better, record it and play it back and listen to it. You will naturally hear where to insert the beats, when you need to up the emotion in your dialogue, how to eliminate the distracting words.

"It's fun to read your dialogue out loud," the author said. "You can pretend you're on the stage."

"I'm going to try it." The reader reached for her manuscript.

"Good luck!"

MY FAVOURITE KIDS BOOK OF THE WEEK:

Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff

Hollis Woods has been in so many foster homes she can hardly remember them all. When Hollis is sent to Josie, she’ll do everything in her power to make sure they stay together. This is a Newberry Honor Book and has been made into a movie with Sissy Spacek.

Show More

Show Less

 

 

Hollis Woods has been in so many foster homes she can hardly remember them all. When Hollis is sent to Josie, she’ll do everything in her power to make sure they stay together.

Show More

Show Less