Category: You Are Not Alone

Posted in The Nitty Gritty of Children's Writing, The Publication Process, You Are Not Alone

Don’t Throw in the Towel

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

I just read a fantastic kids book! You know the ones–unforgettable, award winning, really really good. Will I ever write like that? Can I ever write like that? My first reaction is: NOT LIKELY! The book was so real, so powerful that I just want to give up. Yet, I can’t stop writing–the ideas and characters in my mind won’t let me. “Real courage is when you know you’re licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what,” Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird, said. If she feels that way, then it is okay for me to as well.

“This is a marathon, not a sprint,” author Marilyn Singer said. “Don’t throw in the towel, use it.” She’s seen what she calls the TOWEL principal in her successful career. “TOWEL stands for talent, optimism, widespread interests, endurance, and luck.” I can’t change talent and luck, though I can definitely work on craft so that when a chance comes my work is the best I can make it. But I can work on the other three.
towel.jpg

(Image courtesy of Michael J. Connor)

Optimism
This is where it is helpful to have a good support group. It might be your family, your critique group, or as Jenn Bailey, Social Media Expert, calls them: your Jedi Council, aka writing partners. I get encouragement from all three. Let them know when you’re down and want to quit.

Read an inspirational book where someone succeeded because they worked hard and endured.

Remember you aren’t alone; many authors had many many struggles and rejections on the road to publication.
• Margaret Mitchell rewrote the first chapter of Gone With the Wind 70 times.
• Madeline L’Engle had a ten year dry spell before she sold A Wrinkle in Time.
• Dr. Seuss received the following rejection: “…too different from other juveniles on the market to warrant its selling.”

Widespread Interests
Shake yourself up. Don’t just read in your genre. Maybe you should try writing a picture book or a magazine piece for a change. Learn something new. Maybe you need to learn more about a hobby or career that someday you’ll give to one of your characters. C.S. Lewis said, “You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” What other dreams do you have? Can you follow up on them?

At a conference author Lorie Ann Grover used the analogy of filling a soup pot. Before you can scoop out any stew, you have to put in some ingredients and let them simmer. Live some life and you’ll have more to write about or more breadth to add to your writing. “Writing tends to spring from what you know, what you think, what you imagine, and you can build on those by reading and being actively involved in life and remaining curious about things you see, hear, read, etc.” – Victoria Sherrow, author

Endurance
Elizabeth George in Write Away: One Novelist’s Approach to Fiction and the Writing Life said, “You will be published if you possess three qualities: talent, passion and discipline. You will probably be published if you possess two of the three qualities in either combination–either talent and discipline or, passion and discipline. You will likely be published if you possess neither talent nor passion but still have discipline. But, if all you possess is talent or passion, if all you possess is talent and passion, you will not be published.”

Discipline goes hand in hand with endurance. Keep on keeping on. Two things that keep me going are my critique group and my writing partners. If they’re going to endure, so am I. And one last quote from Harper Lee: “To be a serious writer requires discipline that is iron fisted. It’s sitting down and doing it whether you think you have it in you or not. Every day.”

So I shouldn’t give up. And neither should you.

Posted in The Nitty Gritty of Children's Writing, You Are Not Alone

Bloggers Supporting Other Bloggers

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

versatile.jpgI met Kristen Hilty at the Kansas SCBWI Conference last month. We talked and later she started reading my blog. Last week she awarded me the Versatile Bloggers Award, saying, “I thought some other authors could benefit from your great articles. Thanks for the advice.” Thank you, Kristen, for the award and the kind words.
Being of inquisitive mind, I wondered how the award got started. The earliest reference I could find on the net was a May 14, 2009 entry on Bits and Bytes of Life blog. The creator, Arpit, wanted to recognize fellow bloggers and created a list of awards, including this one, in celebration of the blog being a year old. Arpit is no longer blogging, at least not since January of this year. I wonder if he’s aware of where his award has gone.
Here’s the award definition from Bits and Bytes:
Versatile Blogger Award: This award is meant to appreciate the versatility of the bloggers who have the capability to divulge into different areas and yet emerge victorious. Be it sports, politics, entertainment they have always emerged with flying colors by impressing us with their opinions and posts.
I found this award scattered all over the internet with a variety of different award images. Some were personalized. Many were the image you see above. I couldn’t locate who created this image. If anyone does know who created it, I’d love to know.
I also discovered that rules vary. The rules Kristen and I received are:
Award Rules:
1. Thank the person who gave you this award and provide a link to their blog.
2. Share 7 things about yourself.
3. Pass the award along to 5 other bloggers whom you have recently discovered and whose blogs you think are fantastically versatile/resourceful/functional/adaptable.
4. Contact those bloggers you’ve picked and let them know about their award.
Seven things about me.
1. I hate chain letters, which this reminds me of. Yet, recognizing other bloggers is a good thing, so I’ll play.
2. My husband and I have been happily married for 35 years.
3. I grew up in Oregon and really miss the Oregon coast.
4. Dark chocolate is my preferred flavor.
5. I was very shy as a kid.
6. In some ways I’m a perfectionist, which is why not all of these 7 points can start with “I.” But only in some ways, which is why I don’t have five “recently discovered” bloggers in my list below.
7. I believe children’s writers are the friendliest writers on the planet. 🙂 I met Sharon Mayhew, who award this award to Kristen, at the same conference. If you’ve never gone to a children’s writing event, they are a great place to make friends!
So here’s my list of bloggers I’ve discovered recently:
Mary Kole at Kidlit.com – She is an associate agent at the Andrea Brown Literary Agency and writes young adult and middle grade, too.
Mike Jung‘s Little Bloggy Wog – a writer whom I had the privilege of meeting at the LA SCBWI conference this summer. I’d already been amused by his tweets.
From the Mixed-up Files…of Middle-Grade Authors – started this spring by 30 middle grade authors who celebrate MG books.
Do you have any blogs you’ve come across recently that you’d like to celebrate? Go for it. We all like receiving encouragement now and then.

Posted in The Nitty Gritty of Children's Writing, You Are Not Alone

Give up or press on?

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

I think everyone in the creative world struggles with this question at times. Every time I do, I always come down on the side of PRESS ON.
But that’s obviously not the case for everyone. I see this as an instructor for ICL. Students unexpectedly drop out of the course. Is their writing hopeless? No. Do they need to learn more? Yes. But they often aren’t the worst of my students. If they have trauma going on in their lives, they don’t communicate that. They don’t take the leave of absent option the Institute offers. They quit. I have many other students who don’t officially drop, but don’t turn in their next assignment either. Perhaps they need a reminder that anything worth doing is going to be work.
Those who don’t see that fact may be those who give up, drop out, fade out. I’m guessing if you’re reading this, you aren’t in that group. You know learning to play scales on the piano doesn’t make you a concert pianist. You know you have to work at craft. You know you have to persevere.
persevere.jpgWhen answering a student’s question about her typical workday, Harper Lee said:
“To be a serious writer requires discipline that is iron fisted. It’s sitting down and doing it whether you think you have it in you or not. Everyday. Alone. Without interruption. Contrary to what most people think, there is no glamour to writing. In fact, it’s heartbreak most of the time.”
Ouch. That’s reality. But we also need encouragement now and then. So here are some quotes from other writers I’ve come across recently. I hope they encourage you as they do me.
If one dream should fall and break into a thousand pieces, never be afraid to pick one of those pieces up and begin again. – Flavia Weedn
I would go to sleep at night feeling that I’d never be published. But I’d wake up in the morning convinced I would be. – Judy Blume
Talent is helpful in writing, but guts are absolutely essential. – Jessamyn West
Finish what you’re writing. Whatever you have to do to finish it, finish it. – Neil Gaiman
You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream. – C.S. Lewis
“Now” is the operative word. . . . You don’t need endless time and perfect conditions. Do it now. Do it today. Do it for twenty minutes and watch your heart start beating. – Barbara Sher
So I’m lifting my cup to finishing, never too old, and never give up.

Posted in The Nitty Gritty of Children's Writing, You Are Not Alone

After the Critique

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

CatittudeYou’ve heard or read the comments on your manuscript. Now what? Rewriting, obviously. But it’s not usually that simple. Now you have to decide what to do with the comments and suggestions. How do you decide which to accept and which to reject?

Those easiest to deal with, of course, are mechanical: misspellings, corrections in punctuation, formatting, etc. If what the critiquer said makes sense, do it. If you’re unsure of the accuracy of the feedback, go to a resource and check it out. My favorite for grammar issues is Errors in English and How to Correct Them by Harry Shaw.

Some suggestions aren’t better or worse. They’re just different. i.e. “penciled” instead of “wrote.” Use what you like best. Though perhaps neither is the perfect word, which means more work for you.

Next, are what I call the “ah ha” sections. An observation that gives you insight. It may be an area where you struggled. “I knew something wasn’t right!” A suggestion to add more dialogue, emotion, action, etc., gives you a tool to make your story clearer. You may even feel eager to attack these.happy dog

Some suggestions are to “improve your writing” in general, such as “watch out for passive verbs,” “limit adverbs,” or “show don’t tell.” The critiquer may have marked specific examples, but you have to carry the concept through all the text and future manuscripts. Eventually as you work on these issues, these concepts will get engrained into your writing.

At times what a critiquer says doesn’t make sense. Ask for clarification. If you now understand, but disagree, move on. You don’t have to make the change. But if you can’t dismiss the point, try to figure out why it keeps bugging you. One short story, my silent response was “but that’s what the character would do.” It wasn’t until I realized I’d gone off story focus with the internal dialogue, that I was satisfied and took it out. If you can’t come to a conclusion yourself, get additional feedback and see if others mention the same issue. They may not know what is “wrong” either, but if multiple people independently see a problem, you have a problem to fix.

Others may try to take your story in a different direction than where you plan to go. Don’t be easily swayed. It’s your story.

giraffe_profile.jpgBut now to the nitty gritty–those suggestions that make you feel your “baby” is ugly. The comments that hurt–how could my manuscript have such a big problem? Don’t do anything right away. Give yourself time to experience what agent Jennie Dunham calls the “fruitful darkness.” It’s okay to grieve. Then let go of defensiveness. Remember the critique’s goal is to make your manuscript better. When you can look at the problem more objectively, don’t jump in and make immediate changes. Ponder options. Your first idea is not necessarily your best.

For many of us being critiqued isn’t easy. However, like many things, it does get easier with practice. In time you may even reach the stage where you look forward to rewriting after a critique.

Posted in The Nitty Gritty of Children's Writing, You Are Not Alone

Cut in the Critique

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

princessdiariesToo long, needed to more quickly get to the point, didn’t add to the story, wasn’t enough of a comeuppance for the bad girl… The comments by the director about the deleted scenes for the movie The Princess Diaries (2001) are valuable reminders for editing our own stories. (Watch them on the DVD.) As I did, you’ll probably find yourself agreeing, yes, that scene wasn’t necessary. Or, yes, it’s a stronger story without this one. The director even cut some of his favorite scenes to make a better movie.
Enabling us to produce better manuscripts is why critique groups exist. Watching the director commentary was almost like getting a bird’s eye view of a critique from start to finish: the pre-critiqued version and the tightened, more focused version. For me, it gave me additional tools for looking at scenes in my own fiction. I learned these questions*:
• Does this add to the story?
• Does this get the emotional reaction I want?
• Am I getting to the main point here?
• Will the reader care about this?
• How does this make my main character appear?
• Is my antagonist getting what he deserves?
• Is this the right time for this relationship/problem to be resolved?
I shouldn’t just ask these questions of myself, but ask my critique group to respond, too.
Does this mean I might have to cut a scene I like? Yes. Does this mean I’ll have to do rewriting and reordering? Yes. Will it be worth it? YES! If my story goes out to an editor stronger, clearer, better focused, my odds of acceptance are increased.
*Variants of these questions may also be useful when critiquing others.
• What is the emotional reaction you want from this scene?
• Your main character seems rather useless here, is that what you want me to think?
• Do you think your villain is getting what he deserves here?
• Should these characters be getting along so well in this scene?
In addition to being more thought provoking, critique questions can also make a nice variation from “too long,” “need to get to the point more quickly,” etc. statements.
Got any other movie examples that help remind us what to edit in our own stories? Feel free to share them here.