Weekly Round Up--For Those of Us Not at BEA

The temps in Austin climbed to 105 earlier this week. Yikes, it was hot. But, over at the Writing Barn we can now stay cool as we check on the daily progress. The french doors have arrived and the AC had long been installed. We cooled the place down last night and took a couple of new pics. 

instructor apartment/guest bedroom

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kitchen with loft area above. Stove gets installed today.

 

 

Instructor/guest bathroom

 

 

 

 

French doors with inner blinds.

By next week, we have some of the furniture in (my comfy love seat and overstuffed chair from my apartment) and the books in the bookshelves--should the cement floor get painted this weekend in the main area of the barn. There still will be a screened porch to come where the horse stalls were but much, much progress has been made!

In the Wider World

Another week has come and gone and with it some good news: BEA is winding down in NYC, a  Dear Teen Me post from Cynthia Leitich Smith (geektastic!), the blog tour of The Grand Plan to Fix Everything by Uma Krishnaswami--and some sad--the death of author/librarian Bridget Zinn. I never met Bridget Zinn but I know those who have. A group of Austin authors were writing yesterday and Jenny Moss shared a picture of Bridget holding a beautiful colorful umbrella. She looked like a thirty-something on her way to school for the first day. When I got home the PW Children's Bookshelf had arrived in my inbox and I read a tribute to Bridget by her agent and friend, Michael Sterns. If you haven't already, read it--hug someone you love--and countdown the days until Bridget's novel Poison is released.  

Bridget and her writing group--with colorful umbrella.

April Fools's Friday Week In Review

I can be funny. In fact, someone once told me I should have been a comedian (umm...it was an ex, before we broke up, so I am not sure it was career advice) but I have never been good at any April Fool's trickery. So I swear, there are no misleading links or facts or anything in the weekly round-up below.

Last Saturday I presented a workshop, Creating Your Own Canon, to the SCBWI of Brazos Valley. Lots of learning was had.

Fired! You're all fired.  (My Donald impression)

Scenes were read, books were analyzed, tools of the trade were swapped. Plus, there were cupcakes for when our sugar ran low. It was a great day and I would gladly go back to College Station anytime. 

A big thank you for planning the event to BV SCBWI RA Liz Mertz and ARA Jacqueline Gramman. 

On Tuesday night, the Delacorte Dames and Dude got together to talk shop at House Pizza. I love Shana Burg, April Lurie, Margo Raab, Varian Johnson, and Jennifer Zeigler each individually but as a group when we get together something wonderful always happens--whether one of us (or all of us) need encouragement to go deeper in a project, navigate life outside of writing, or whatever it is we have been shouldering camaraderie, pizza and friends makes it all easier.




On Thursday I visited with Mr. Farr's creative writing class at Anderson High. Mr. Farr is the kind of teacher I wish I had, and hoped I was when I was teaching. He is passionate, encouraging, and he believes in his students and their abilities. It was fun to sit at the head of the room on a big chair (no high chair jokes allowed) and talk craft and the biz with his very serious students. For an hour and a half, I shared my journey from being a HS writer to a published author, to how to develop authentic characters, to how to navigate finding the right agent, to crafting the inevitable endings and to finding the right and perfect title. I encouraged the students to enter the Hunger Mountain  Prize for Young Writers being judged this year by the bestselling Austinite Cynthia Leitich Smith. I have nothing to do with the judging but I am keeping my fingers crossed one of those intent writers win. 


And today, Kirsten Cappy, of Curious City is going to be at the WLT leading her one-on-one consultations. Kirsten is in Austin from Portland, Maine to share her book publicity knowledge and I'm the lucky leaguer who gets to take her to coffee.


Not to Be Missed Links of the Week

Austin's Own Don Tate makes the Huffington Post on the opening day of the baseball season. Let's hear it for She Loved Baseball, written by Audrey Vernick and illustrated by Don Tate.







Run don't walk over to the Dear Teen Me Blog and read this amazing letter from author Saundra Mitchell,  which begins...

Dear 16,

All right, look. You didn’t kill him.
You’re going to spend tonight in the laundry room, sitting on the dryer. Shuttered doors closed, and phone pulled as far as the cord will let it so you can start out complaining about it to your best friend.


And wrestles with the hard stuff from there on out. Bravo to Saundra for being brave and speaking about her brother's suicide. 






And anyone and everyone is keeping up with the SLJ Battle of the Books. Head over and see which book has succumbed to defeat and which books are headed to be judged in the Big Kahuna round.





Happy April Fool's Day!

Friday Round Up: Lots, Lots, Lots Happening

A brutal cold hit Austin this week (but no snow) and it made for cozy writing time. I am in deep again (finally!) with my new MG work in progress titled, for now, Flights of Fancy. It feels good to be spending time in Creation Creek, Texas where the book is set and forging ahead along with Fancy as she faces her fears head on. I learn so much from my characters, from their persistence, their longing, their urgency. Writing their stories, giving voice to them, is the life I have always wanted for myself and knowing kids and teachers and parents and friends are out their reading about these kids makes me more than happy. I feel truly blessed. 

Next Thursday I am teaching a Creating Character Workshop at the Travis Heights Elementary Young Writers’ Program. The event was put together by Laura Cottam Sajbel and on the line up are: Liz Garton Scanlon, Debbie Gonzales, Lindsey Lane, moi…and a host of other authors, cartoonists, and other  awesome Austin folk.

Saturday night I am hoping to get to attend this Black History Month event, with Varian Johnson on the panel, and the TBF hosting, it is a not to be missed event. (5-7pm, details in link above.)

And, I need to pick a date and get my tickets for the Zach Theatre’s performances of my friend April Lurie’s novel turned musical, Brothers, Boyfriends & Other Criminal Minds. 

And as of this morning, I am the featured author of the day over at Dear Teen Me. I wrote about interracial dating as a kid and as an adult. I portray race and class in my books, but aside from my personal speaking and a few mentions of instances in my life on my website, I haven’t ever spoken of these experiences online. It didn’t feel frightening to write, as it was in the privacy of my own home, and everyone who knows and loves me knows that I have dated outside my race, but talking to the 15 year-old me, in a public way is scary. I read the piece to the new man in my life and he said, “Whoa. You put yourself out there.” I did. I do. I hope I always continue to. (Still scary though!)

Outside Awesome Austin

In sad news, author of the Redwall series Brian Jaques died this week. I heard Mr. Jaques speak about two years ago in NYC at an NYPL event and he was engaging, energetic and had such vim and vigor. I was able to get an illustrated version of his Redwall series for my nephew, Allen. I am now so glad that I was there and got to see this legendary author in action.

There was a great round up by SLJ of some authors of their favorite books to celebrate black history month. Contributors included are Rita Williams-Garcia, Pam Munoz Ryan and others.

Monday I did a post on Kekla Magoon’s new novel, Camo Girl and Catherine Stine posted an interview with Kekla Magoon this week as well. Check it out.