Kate Messner's Blog, page 15

Thoughts on Inspiration, Part 2: The Fine Art of Faking It

Writing is special. It is.

Telling stories for a living and having other people connect with those stories is magical.

And that's part of the problem when it comes to inspiration. Sometimes, honoring the magic of writing prevents us from doing the work of writing, especially when we buy into the belief that we shouldn't write unless the great and almighty voice of Inspiration is visiting on that day.

When we accept that idea, we go about your business of day jobs and picking up kids and making lasagna…waiting for Inspiration to come.  And the more we wait, the further away she drifts until it feels like we might never write anything worthwhile again.

For me, the best invitation for Inspiration to show up is a nicely set table…or desk as the case may be.  When the laptop is humming and the notebook open, the planning pages laid out just the way she likes them, with the colored pens and Post-It notes, she starts to snuffle outside the door. The clincher, though, is me, inside the room, working without her.  If I show up to work, with or without her, it's a whole lot more likely that Inspiration will consider showing up, too.

So how to get started?  Here are five things I do to feel inspired when I'm not.

1. Go to your writing place.  For me, that place is now the room we built off the back of the house, a tiny room for only writing and not the business of writing.  But it doesn't have to be anything that fancy.  For years, it was a corner of the kitchen table after my kids went to bed, the third table by the wall at my local coffee shop, and the study carrel near the books on tape at my public library.

2. Brew a really nice cup of tea.  Fact: I have special, nicer tea for when I'm feeling like I need to make a writing time feel more sacred.   Or hot chocolate. Or water with extra lemon. Or whatever your writing beverage of choice might be.

3. Find a focus object. Sometimes, I'll change my computer background to an image that relates to my project – a tornado, a snowflake…something beautiful or powerful. Sometimes, I'll put an object on my desk to ground me in the world of my book. This symbolic act can make writing more of a ritual, and that helps to honor the magic while still honoring the work. I know a writer who lights a candle when she starts a new book, and I think that's lovely.

4. Protect the time.  Set a timer, and stay off the Internet. Silence your phone. The muse is a jealous sort and isn't likely to show up if you call her and then start texting with someone else.

5. Make peace with the imperfect. If you regard those crummy sentences you write when you first sit down as the warm-up, the invitation that simply must be issued before Inspiration arrives, then you'll feel less pressure to make them perfect. Look at writing without Inspiration as an act of courage, and be proud that you've shown up to do your job.

What about you? What do you do to feel inspired when you don't start out that way?

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Some thoughts on Inspiration, and writing anyway

How do you get inspired to write every day?

I get asked this question quite a bit…by writers and people who think they might like to be writers. It's a question that popped up even more often when I was still teaching full time as well as writing, and even though my writing time has shifted from late-night to middle-of-the-day, the answer to that question hasn't changed.

How do I get inspired to write every day?

I don't.

I also don't get "inspired" to do the breakfast dishes every day or exercise every day, but on most days, those things get done.

For the record, I like writing a LOT better than doing dishes, but I am trying to make a point here.  One doesn't need to be inspired to do something in order to do that thing. One really just needs to get going on it.

Have you ever noticed that we don't ask this question of people with too many other jobs?  I didn't ask my mail carrier how she got inspired to deliver the mail today, nor do I ask my husband how he gets inspired to figure out the weather forecast.  I think that's a real myth of writing…that we somehow need to be inspired or else shrug our shoulders and go have a cookie instead of writing that day. And it's just not true.

Inspiration – true, holy-cow-I-need-to-write-it-down-this-very-second-because-I'm-channeling-the-goddess-of-creativity inspiration  — does happen, and when it does, it's an amazing feeling and a true gift. But as a writer, I can tell you that it's not a feeling that I have every day or every week or every month.  It strikes when it strikes, and that's great. But if you want writing to be your job, you can't really just wait around for those rare and sparkling moments.

The rest of the time, when I'm not feeling that rush of inspiration, I get myself writing the same way I get myself to go running or to yoga class on cold mornings, with some friendly, firm self-talk. "Hey, you chose this thing. Let's go now. You'll be happy about it once you get started."

And so I sit down, and I start writing, and most often, I just write some stupid thing so I can say I started. But once I've made the commitment to show up for the work, something happens, and the next thing that shows up on the page is a little less stupid. And from there, if I just keep going and don't stop to think about that stupid first sentence, some pretty good stuff shows up by the time I'm done.

So it's really not about the inspiration. It's about the showing up.

I'd also argue that inspiration is a whole lot more likely to strike when you're there at your keyboard than it is if you're upstairs watching Oprah.

It's okay if you don't feel inspired to write. If you want to be a writer, just write anyway. It will work out.

You should also watch this TED talk by Elizabeth Gilbert, in which she says some of the same things I just wrote but way more eloquently.   Watch the whole thing – the ending is my favorite part.

 

Tomorrow, I'll some thoughts on faking it and feeling inspired even when you're not.

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MARTY MCGUIRE Contest Winners Announced!

Many thanks to all who entered my winter contest to help spread the word about MARTY MCGUIRE and its upcoming sequel, MARTY MCGUIRE DIGS WORMS!  The winners are…. (drum roll, please)

Signed Copies of MARTY MCGUIRE DIGS WORMS in April:

Alisa KohnDebbi Michiko FlorenceMarilee HaynesColeen PatrickKathy Schmidt **
Crystal Brunelle **
Cally FlickingerKellee MoyeMichelle BowkerDana Schreiner

** Starred teachers also won virtual writing workshops for their classroom efforts to share Marty!

And the winner of the $100 bookstore gift card is… Abi Kurfman!

Thanks – again – to all who entered and to everyone who's been sharing Marty McGuire with readers far and wide. Book #2 is just a little over two months away!

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Real Revision: An Interview with Lauren Oliver

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you know that my first book for teachers, REAL REVISION: AUTHORS' STRATEGIES TO SHARE WITH STUDENT WRITERS, was released from Stenhouse last summer. I've celebrating with a series of author interviews on the topic of real revision…the nitty gritty, make-the-book-better strategies that some of my favorite authors use when they're revising a project. Since most of the author interviews in the book are with middle grade writers, I wanted to feature some authors of my favorite YA novels in this series

Today…we're chatting with Lauren Oliver, the author of terrific YA titles like DELIRIUM and IF I FALL as well as her new middle grade fantasy, LIESL AND PO.

 

Thanks for visiting, Lauren! How do you tackle the revision process? A little at a time as you write? Or all at once after you've finished a draft?

I'm definitely of the "write-through" philosophy. I write a full draft—a pretty messy first draft, often—and then I revise all at once from the beginning.

Do you have a favorite revision strategy that helps with any particular part of the process?

I definitely believe in taking a break between the first and second drafts; it helps you get clarity and perspective. And then I make a very manageable goal for myself: I tackle ten pages a day, for example, and I spend all my time making sure those ten pages work.

How do you revise to make sure your pacing works for the story you're telling?  Were there any parts of your original manuscript for this book that ended up being cut?

I tend to write way too much material and then have to prune it back, and I often rely on my editor to help guide me in this capacity. It can be rough to do the slash-and-burn thing, which is why it's important to have readers you trust and on whose opinion you can depend.

What strategies do you use when you're revising to make characters feel real & believable?

I think that it's important to know your characters the way you know your best friends. You have to understand them in a deeper context and framework than just the world of the story. It's only with strangers that you think of people in terms of superficial identifiers (blond hair; tall; pretty). When you get to know people more deeply, you know their quirks and habits, and you see them as the sum of those details (loves bananas but hates apples; chews loudly; cries at Hallmark commercials). I try to ask myself questions about each of my characters—favorite foods, music, etc—and also to think deeply about their wants and needs.

What was the biggest revision job for this particular book?  (timeline changes, new chapters, rearranging scenes, etc?)

To be honest, Liesl & Po underwent very little revision. Probably the most significant piece was making sure that all of the different threads of the book were resolved, and then also going through the text with a fine-tooth comb to check for inconsistencies or repetition.

Did this book keep its original title, or did it change along the way? Where did the title come from?

It kept its original title—it seemed a natural fit to name the book after two of the major characters, whose friendship forms such a critical part of the story.

Anything else you'd like to say about revising this book?

I'll say about revision in general: it's fascinating because really every single book requires a different set of editorial revisions and skills. That's kind of the amazing thing about being a writer—you are constantly challenged by new books and projects, and constantly forced to reevaluate your process. It's a beautiful thing.

Thanks, Lauren!

If you'd like to read LIESL AND PO (and it's wonderful, so you really should) you can click here to find it at your favorite independent bookseller.

And if you'd like to read more author revision stories, I hope you'll check out REAL REVISION. There's a preview up on the Stenhouse Publishers site, and you can order the book from your favorite indie bookseller, direct from Stenhouse, or elsewhere online.

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I'm giving a TED Talk!

While I got the official invitation in December and have known about this for several weeks, it's still surreal, like maybe I've been imagining the whole thing.

But today, TED announced the speaker lineup for its 2012 Conference in Long Beach, and there it was…in black and white (and polka-dots!)

The full TED 2012 speaker lineup is here, and truly…every time I look at the list, I'm absolutely blown away.

Weeks ago,  I'd clicked on a Twitter link saying that TED put out a call for proposals for its 2012 session called The Classroom.  I thought, "Wow, that would be pretty amazing," and filled out a simple online form. Then I went to bed and promptly forgot about it. When I got the email that said "Get ready to give the talk of your life," I was sure it was a mistake.

Wait…they want me to speak at… not that TED. It can't be that TED, right? This must be some…different TED.  Or maybe a smaller, not-quite-as-amazingly-cool sister conference. FRED, perhaps?

But then more emails came, and a request for a bio and speaker photo, and then,  a list of speaking tips called "The TED Commandments," engraved on a slab of marble that arrived at my door via FedEx.  Seriously – you can't make this stuff up.

It was that TED, all right.

Once I understood that the invitation was real, I went through a short terror-and-stomach-ache phase, thinking about giving a talk to these incredible 1500 people.  But then my husband looked at me and said, "You're going to be fine. And this is the coolest thing ever, so you really need to just let go and enjoy it."

That seemed like good advice, because truly… what an incredible gift. The opportunity to speak to people who care so passionately about making a difference in the world, making it better and more beautiful.

The opportunity to sit in the audience for the full conference, to hear speakers that include:

An urban naturalist who photographs birds' nests.

The curator of the Met's Costume Institute.

The most accomplished organist in the world.

A two-term U.S. Poet Laureate.

A peace activist who helped end Liberia's civil war.

The co-founder of LinkedIn.

Bill Nye the Science Guy.

Philippe Petit, the man who walked between the towers.

A psychopath expert.

The writer of Toy Story movies and Wall-E.

…and on and on…

I decided I'm not willing to lose even a second of this experience because of nerves. So I'm writing and revising and practicing now, and getting ready for my six-minute talk on March 2nd. My TED Talk is about the power of what-if, world building in dystopian and post-apocalyptic fiction, and how we might encourage young people to use those same world building strategies to problem solve for our real life future.

In the weeks after the conference, the talks will be shared online, just like all the other TED Talks, and I'll be sure to share a link when it's live.  In the mean time, I'm going to check that speaker lineup once more…just to make sure it's still real.

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OVER AND UNDER THE SNOW's fox…in real life!

OVER AND UNDER THE SNOW illustrator Chris Silas Neal just shared this YouTube video on his blog, and it was too amazing not to pass along. Remember this spread in our picture book?

Well, the BBC shared a video of a real-life red fox doing just the same thing. I watched this over and over again because even though I'd heard and read about how a fox hunts in the snow, I'd only imagined what it might look like. Check it out…

 

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Starting a New Book

I'm starting a new book on Monday morning.

Not starting, really. Because there have already been many months of research and brainstorming, timeline-drafting, character-building, outlining, and scribbling of scenes.  The story is written in my head. But on Monday morning, after the kids are at school, I'll open an empty page and type Chapter 1, followed by…something.

For me, this is the scariest moment of the whole writing process, and no matter how many books I write, the days leading up to that empty page are always full of choking what-ifs. Learning to answer those what-if questions for myself kindly and firmly, the way I'd talk with one of my kids, is what gets me sitting down to write.

Me: I think I'll clean out the linen closet today.

Other Me: You need to start that new book. I know you don't like starting, but you'll be really happy once you're a few pages in.

Me: I can't start with the linen closet looking like THIS!

Other Me:  The linen closet has looked like that for five years, and it's never bothered you before. Get to work.

Me: But I still don't know how to start it. What if I get the beginning wrong?

Other Me: You will. You always get the beginning wrong, and it works out okay. You'll fix it later, once you discover what this story is really about.

Me: But maybe it's not about ANYTHING AT ALL!!!!

Other Me: Stop that. You sound like a harpy, and you know very well that's not true.

Me: Fine. But seriously…what if this book is the one I can't finish?

Other Me: You say that every time you start a new book. In five pages, you will be happily skipping along. So really…light a candle and just start.

Me: I need some chocolate.

Other Me: It's in the cupboard. But you'll feel better if you have tea instead.

Me: You are not being very supportive, you know.

Other Me: (looks pointedly at writing room door)

Monday is the day. And so when the tea is brewed, I'll go down to my writing room. Maybe there will be ducks diving on the lake outside my window, amid the ice chunks that are forming, and that will help. I will do my best to quiet the shrieking what-ifs, and I will open a new, white page. And begin.

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Cover art for MARTY MCGUIRE DIGS WORMS!

The second MARTY MCGUIRE book is less than three months away!  There's nothing like a final cover to make it seem real.  My editor sent this today…

And hey… there's still time to enter my Spread-the-Word-About-Marty-McGuire contest.  You could win a $100 gift card for your favorite book store, signed books, a virtual writing workshop for your school or library. Details are here – good luck!

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Skype with an Author on World Read Aloud Day 2012

Did you know that LitWorld's annual World Read Aloud Day is coming up on March 7th?

"World Read Aloud Day is about taking action to show the world that the right to read and write belongs to all people. World Read Aloud Day motivates children, teens, and adults worldwide to celebrate the power of words, especially those words that are shared from one person to another, and creates a community of readers advocating for every child's right to a safe education and access to books and technology."            ~from the LitWorld website

Last year, a bunch of us who write books for kids got together and volunteered to read aloud via Skype to classrooms and libraries all over the world, for free. These weren't big, fancy presentations — just a few minutes of reading aloud, followed by some questions — but they were great fun.

This year, a number of authors have again volunteered their time to read aloud to classrooms and libraries all over the world. If you'd like to have an author visit your classroom or library for World Read Aloud Day, here's how to do it:

Check out the list of volunteering authors below and visit their websites to see which ones might be a good fit for your students.
Contact the author directly by clicking on the link to his or her website and finding a contact form or email.  Please be sure to provide the following information in your request:


Your name and what grade(s) you work with
Your city and time zone (this is important for scheduling!)
Possible times to Skype on March 7th.
Your Skype username and a phone number where you can be reached on that day


Please understand that authors are people, too, and have schedules and families just like you, so not all authors will be available at all times. It may take a few tries before you find someone whose books and schedule fit with yours. If I learn that someone's schedule for the day is full, I'll make a note of it here.  (Authors, please let me know that if you can!)

World Read Aloud Day – Skyping Author Volunteers for March 7, 2012

Authors are listed in alphabetical order, along with publishers and the age groups for which they write.  (PB=picture books, MG=middle grades, YA=young adult, etc.)

Sarah Albee
Simon and Schuster/Random House/Walker-Bloomsbury
MG fiction/PB/MG nonfiction
http://www.sarahalbeebooks.com
R.J. Anderson
Carolrhoda Lab (US) / HarperCollins (US/Canada) / Orchard (UK)
upper MG / YA (Ages 10+)
http://www.rj-anderson.com
Jennifer Carson
L&L Dreamspell
MG
http://www.findawonder.com
Stephanie Burgis
Atheneum Books
MG
www.stephanieburgis.com
Loree Griffin Burns
Houghton Mifflin/Henry Holt
MG Nonfiction
http://www.loreeburns.com
Samantha Combs
Astraea Press/Musa Publishing
YA and MG
http://www.samanthacombswrites.webs.com
Karen DayRandom HouseMGhttp://www.klday.com
Alison Ashley Formento
Albert Whitman & Company
PB
http://www.alisonashleyformento.com
Joan Holub Holt/Aladdin PB/MG http://www.joanholub.com
Jacqueline Houtman
Front Street/Boyds Mills Press
MG
http://www.jhoutman.com
Kate MessnerChronicle Books/Scholastic/Walker-Bloomsbury
PB/Chapter books/MGhttp://www.katemessner.com
Saundra Mitchell
Houghton/Delacorte/HarperTeen
YA
www.saundramitchell.com
Note: Though Sandra writes for older readers, she says she'll happily read other people's picture books to elementary classes, too!

Ammi-Joan (A. J.) Paquette
Tanglewood/Walker
PB/MG
http://ajpaquette.com
J.L. Powers
Cinco Puntos Press
Young Adult Fiction
http://www.jlpowers.net
Sarah Prineas HarperCollins (US), Quercus (UK, India, Aus) Middle grade http://www.sarah-prineas.com
Kim Purcell
TRAFFICKED
Penguin/Viking Feb 2012
YA
http://kimpurcell.com
Olugbemisola Rhuday-PerkovichScholasticMGhttp://olugbemisolabooks.com/
Lisa Schroeder
Sterling/Aladdin/Simon Pulse
PB/MG/YA
http://www.lisaschroederbooks.com
Laurel SnyderRandom HousePB/MGhttp://www.laurelsnyder.com

For authors…

How to be added to this list: Are you a traditionally published author who would like to Skype into classrooms & libraries to read aloud to kids for free on March 7th? Just leave me a comment with your name, publisher(s),  the age groups for which you write, and a website where teachers & librarians can find contact information.  Please use this format to keep things simple:

Kate MessnerChronicle/Scholastic/Walker-BloomsburyPB/Chapter books/MGwww.katemessner.com

For teachers & librarians:

Are you new to Skype?  Wondering how a Skype author visit works?  Click here to read a blog entry about my students' virtual visit with the fantastic Laurie Halse Anderson. It includes an overview of how a Skype chat with an author might work, as well as tips for teachers, librarians, & book club organizers to help your virtual visit run smoothly.  Check out my SLJ feature, "An Author in Every Classroom: Kids Connecting with Authors via Skype. It's the next best thing to being there."

Thanks – and happy reading, everyone!

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Making Plans for World Read Aloud Day 3/7/12

Did you know that LitWorld's annual World Read Aloud Day is coming up on March 7th?

"World Read Aloud Day is about taking action to show the world that the right to read and write belongs to all people. World Read Aloud Day motivates children, teens, and adults worldwide to celebrate the power of words, especially those words that are shared from one person to another, and creates a community of readers advocating for every child's right to a safe education and access to books and technology."            ~from the LitWorld website

Last year, a bunch of us who write books for kids got together and volunteered to read aloud via Skype to classrooms and libraries all over the world, for free. These weren't big, fancy presentations — just a few minutes of reading aloud, followed by some questions.  I made a list of read-aloud authors with links so teachers & librarians could contact them and plan Read Aloud Day Skype sessions for their students. Some authors also posted video read-alouds to share, and it was all great fun.

So…that brings us to this year. World Read Aloud Day is March 7, 2012.

Are you a traditionally published author who would like to Skype into classrooms & libraries to read aloud to kids for free on March 7th? Just leave me a comment with your name, publisher(s),  the age groups for which you write, and a website where teachers & librarians can find contact information.  Please use this format to keep things simple:

Kate MessnerChronicle/Scholastic/Walker-BloomsburyPB/Chapter books/MGwww.katemessner.com

Once I hear from a bunch of people, I'll create this year's list and keep adding to it as we get closer to World Read Aloud Day.

(Note: This list will include traditionally published authors only. I have nothing against self-publishing, but I'm one human being with limited time, and that helps to limit the scope of this project so that I can still write books and feed my kids and things like that.  If someone else wants to make a list of self-published authors volunteering to do Skype read-alouds, I will happily link to it here.)

Teachers & librarians…please give us a few days and then check back; we'll have a list of authors ready to go so that you can start planning for Read Aloud Day, 2012!

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