Kelly beat me to the post about Earth Day, so just go there and leave your comments. I think it’s important to continue increasing our awareness of how vital each of us is to making a difference.
Don’t Ever Give Up
Take a look at this great post about not giving up as a writer. I laughed about the agent’s take on the dog narrator and how the writer took control. Hurray! So many books, so little time From the blog post I immediately wanted to hear what that canine character had to say.
In The Knife of Never Letting Go everything talks including a particularly wonderful dog. I loved that book. (I didn’t love the loss of the dog, but that’s another issue–one I’d like to take up with the author.)
I’ve added a favorite picture that I keep above my desk. It has helped me a lot.
Deva Fagan Visits The Write Game
FORTUNE’S FOLLY is here and so is DEVA FAGAN to tell us about her book and the author behind the story. Welcome, Deva. Let’s start by knowing a bit about Fortunata, your fortune-telling main character. Here’s how Fortunata’s story goes.
Ever since her mother died and her father lost his shoemaking skills, Fortunata has survived by telling fake fortunes. But when she’s tricked into telling a grand fortune for a prince, she is faced with the impossible task of fulfilling her wild prophecy-or her father will be put to death. Now Fortunata has to help Prince Leonato secure a magic sword, vanquish a wicked witch, discover a long-lost golden shoe, and rescue the princess who fits it. If only she hadn’t fallen in love with the prince herself. . . .
So how about Deva? Here’s what I’ve read.
Deva likes searching for patterns, which is how she explains both her degree in mathematics and the echoes of old fairy-tales in her stories. She also loves tea, gardening, and playing the fiddle. She lives in Maine with her husband and her dog.
Deva took some time to tell a bit more about herself as a person. I asked her a few questions and here’s what she told me.
Of all your favorite books, which one do you wish you had written?
Tough question! I don’t think there’s anything quite like the experience of reading a book — writing a book is fun and thrilling in its own way, but I don’t know that I would sacrifice the enjoyment of the first time I read WATERSHIP DOWN or THE BOOK OF THREE or THE HUNGER GAMES or ANNE OF GREEN GABLES to be the one who wrote them.
You’ve chosen one of my favorite books, Anne of Green Gables. What fictional character do you wish you could be?
I would be Betsy Ray, from Maud Hart Lovelace’s Betsy-Tacy series. I’d get to enjoy the wonderful, warm Ray family, taste one of those onion sandwiches Mr Ray is famous for, have Miss Mix make me pretty clothes, hang out with a bevy of high-school chums, making fudge and singing and dancing, go on picnics with Tacy and Tib, flirt with Joe Willard, and even spend a year touring Europe in preparation for being a Writer.
Everyone who writes complains in varying degrees about “writer-block,” and most of the ones I’ve talked to say they rely heavily on comfort food during these muse-less days. After chocolate what do you eat to make the writer-block pain go away?
When I encounter writing troubles I tend to drink even more hot black tea with milk than I do usually.
Sounds very comforting, Deva. Thanks so much for the interview. I’ve enjoyed your visit.
Deva’s book is available at Amazon.
Waiting to Score
The strength of this young adult book lies in the pacing and character development. None of the people and none of their stories are predictable and you relate in some fashion to each of them–even the bad guy.
I would recommend this for teens (both male and female), for parents, and for teachers. There’s a lot to pay attention to in J.E. MacLeod’s book.
Taxes and other Incidentals
So today is the day to lick those stamps and seal those envelops and kiss your bank account goodbye.
Tax preparation has consumed hours of time, diminished my capacity to write anything coherent because all I can think about are numbers, and in general made me examine my patriotism.
April 15th! May it not return for another year.
Carrie Ryan Interview
I’m so excited to have CARRIE RYAN here. Her book, THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH was released in March and is quite prominent on the book shelves.
About The Forest of Hands and Teeth
The Forest of Hands and Teeth is about a young girl named Mary growing up generations after an apocalypse in a village surrounded by fences protecting them from the Unconsecrated, zombie-like creatures inhabiting the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Cut off from the rest of the world and told they are the last survivors of the Return, every part of her life is controlled by the religious order called the Sisterhood. As Mary starts to fall in love with someone she shouldn’t, she learns the extent of the Sisterhood’s power and starts to discover more of their darkest secrets. When the security of the fences is threatened and her world is thrown into chaos, Mary must decide what she’s willing to risk to find out if there’s life beyond the Forest.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Carrie was born and raised in Greenville, South Carolina, Carrie Ryan is a graduate of Williams College and Duke University School of Law. A former litigator, she now writes full time. She lives with her writer/lawyer fiancé, two fat cats and one large puppy in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are not at all prepared for the zombie apocalypse.
Hi Carrie. I’ve been blogging about the opening lines of books for the past few days. I know authors take a lot of time crafting those lines, so I hope you don’t mind my sharing the way your book begins. It did all of the things a good opening should: It made me curiosity about the character, it introduce the setting, and gave the story resonance. Here’s how The Forest of Hands and Teeth starts.
“My mother used to tell me about the ocean. She said there was a place where there was nothing but water as far as you could see and that it was always moving, rushing toward you and then away.”
So immediately I need to know who this person is that doesn’t know what an ocean looks like and what kind of world she lives in. Great start.
Readers like to know about writers, so here are some questions that might give your readers a peek at the person who created this world of dark secrets.
Of all your favorite books, which one do you wish you had written?
I wish I’d written a Dr. Seuss book. I was reading a few to my nephew recently and had forgotten just how fun and clever his language is! Those books are just pure fun!
He was a master at making language fun.
What fictional character do you wish you could be?
I’d probably want to be someone like Batman — he has so many cool gadgets! Having the fate of humanity resting on my shoulders wouldn’t be fun though…
I thought you were going to tell me The Cat in the Hat. Now that’s one cat that has nothing resting on his shoulders.
I know writers have some times when they just can’t put those words down–at least not the way they want. So, after chocolate what do you eat to make the writer-block pain go away?
Pumpkin seeds and diet coke. Most random food ever, I know, but it’s what I practically lived on while I was revising the sequel to The Forest of Hands and Teeth!
Random or not, it worked. The Dead Tossed Sea is on its way. Congratulations.
Thanks for the visit, Carrie. I’ll be looking for your next book.
Be sure to visit Carrie at her website. The Forest of Hands and Teeth is available at Amazon and at your local Indie.
Carrie’s making the rounds of a lot of blogs. Catch her next interview with Sarah Ockler tomorrow.
Opening Lines
I’ve become more and more interested in how books begin. If a book doesn’t capture a reader immediately that book doesn’t leave the shelves. Here’s what Stein on Writing says about that first paragraph.
“The ideal goals of an opening paragraph are:
1. To excite the reader’s curiosity, preferably about a character or a relationship.
2. To introduce a setting.
3. To lend resonance to the story.”
Wow! No wonder those opening paragraph take so much time to write. That’s a lot to pack into such a small space. But how does a writer do it?
I’ve been looking at some openings and here’s what I see in the ones I like.
The writers give their character(s) personalities that tweak my interest. I want to know who these people are. What they might do or not do? Here are a couple of my favorites.
“If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you’ll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield crap, but I don’t feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth.
Catcher in the Rye
“My name is India Opal Buloni, and last summer my daddy, the preacher, sent me to the store for a box of macaroni-and-cheese, some white rice, and two tomatoes and I came back with a dog.”
Because of Winn Dixie
So different, right, but both hook you by the nose and pull you right into those books. Immediately you have to know what happens to these characters.
Good Openings
Once Upon a Time
I remember when “Once Upon a Time” lured me into stories where I could be guaranteed a handsome prince, a few elves, and maybe a unicorn. These words promised an adventure and hours of enjoyment.
I still read the beginning of books that I consider buying and it’s those opening words that either capture my interest or don’t. I thought it might be interesting to see what kinds of openings grab people.
So, here’s a challenge. Once a month (this is not a contract, but a goal) I’ll post a story type: Young Adult Adventure or Romance or Fantasy. And then I’ll write an opening (no more than one sentence, but it doesn’t have to be a sentence).
I’d love to see what kinds of other opening lines you’ll contribute. Hey, maybe I’ll think of a prize for the BEST STORY OPENING–one I won’t be eligible to win.
So how about this month we play with that YA Adventure story? Here’s how my story would start.
I’ve kept the secret for almost three months, but I have to tell someone soon because I’ve only got another week before it’ll be too late.
Gearing Up
I’m looking forward to interviewing Carrie Ryan next week. Her Forest of Hands and Teeth is out and on the shelves.