Jennifer R. Hubbard's Blog, page 104
February 23, 2011
Preparing for library love
The past couple of years, I've held a challenge on my blog to raise money for libraries (the aptly named Library-Loving Blog Challenge). Basically, I pledge money to my local libraries for every comment received on my blog during the challenge. I've also encouraged others to do likewise, donating to their local libraries, and many wonderful people have stepped up to do this.
This year, I'm planning to do the challenge March 28 - April 2. I'll use my blog again, but this year I will also have a Twitter component. I'm not on Facebook, but if anyone wants to join in and coordinate a Facebook effort, I'm open to that.
If you're interested in participating, please email me at jennifer[at]jenniferhubbard[dot]com or leave a comment with your email address below. You pick your own library, pledge amount, donation cap, and which days you want to participate. It's a lot of fun, and libraries are hurting worse than ever this year.
February 22, 2011
Revenge
I've heard it said that one motive for artists is often revenge--the chance to make a story turn out the way it "should have." The chance to disguise a real-life enemy as a fictional villain. The opportunity to create something so amazing it "shows the world" what they overlooked.
I don't think revenge operates much in my own creative process. In fact, I rarely even use anger as a motivator. Everything I write when angry tends to come off priggish and didactic; apparently my Angry Writer Side cannot resist the soapbox. It's one reason I rarely rant on this blog. Some people can do angry writing in a very entertaining manner; some use angry writing to make great points. Nora Ephron's novel Heartburn is a perfect example of a revenge-based novel that really works as a piece of fiction.
For me, inspiration comes from another place. I seem driven to try to make human behavior understandable. Not necessarily justifiable or condoned or celebrated, but understandable.
Are you ever motivated by revenge or anger?
I don't think revenge operates much in my own creative process. In fact, I rarely even use anger as a motivator. Everything I write when angry tends to come off priggish and didactic; apparently my Angry Writer Side cannot resist the soapbox. It's one reason I rarely rant on this blog. Some people can do angry writing in a very entertaining manner; some use angry writing to make great points. Nora Ephron's novel Heartburn is a perfect example of a revenge-based novel that really works as a piece of fiction.
For me, inspiration comes from another place. I seem driven to try to make human behavior understandable. Not necessarily justifiable or condoned or celebrated, but understandable.
Are you ever motivated by revenge or anger?
February 21, 2011
That's just what they're expecting us to do
One way for writing to go in unexpected directions is to violate people's assumptions about familiar storylines. Another is to break social norms.
For example, let's say we have a budding romance between characters who didn't hit it off right away--but the reader has reached the point where it's obvious the characters like one another. In this storyline, there will typically be a lot of friction and a lot of denial, which can work just fine. After all, in real life people strive to protect themselves in just that way. But sometimes a reader gets tired of watching this dance. Why not have one of the characters reach the breaking point and make a full-out, over-the-top play for the other? Or, on the other hand, why not bring in an alternate love interest for one of them--not someone the character pretends to love to evoke jealousy in the other, not someone the reader can tell is really shallow and will disappoint the main character eventually--but a real, viable challenger?
These are just examples off the top of my head. Of course any twists must fit the characters, plot and theme. There shouldn't be random twists just for the sake of fooling the reader. My point is to encourage writers to think: What could happen next? What else could happen next? What usually happens in this situation? Is there a different way to go? How would these characters really act? Is the reader too far ahead of the characters here--will the characters seem stupid if they go on like this much longer? Where's the fresh ground, the fresh angle?
For example, let's say we have a budding romance between characters who didn't hit it off right away--but the reader has reached the point where it's obvious the characters like one another. In this storyline, there will typically be a lot of friction and a lot of denial, which can work just fine. After all, in real life people strive to protect themselves in just that way. But sometimes a reader gets tired of watching this dance. Why not have one of the characters reach the breaking point and make a full-out, over-the-top play for the other? Or, on the other hand, why not bring in an alternate love interest for one of them--not someone the character pretends to love to evoke jealousy in the other, not someone the reader can tell is really shallow and will disappoint the main character eventually--but a real, viable challenger?
These are just examples off the top of my head. Of course any twists must fit the characters, plot and theme. There shouldn't be random twists just for the sake of fooling the reader. My point is to encourage writers to think: What could happen next? What else could happen next? What usually happens in this situation? Is there a different way to go? How would these characters really act? Is the reader too far ahead of the characters here--will the characters seem stupid if they go on like this much longer? Where's the fresh ground, the fresh angle?
February 19, 2011
Descriptive or prescriptive?
I suspect that the descriptive/prescriptive divide is a particularly contentious one in the world of children's literature, because it depends on basic philosophical differences about what stories should do.
Some think that stories should reflect the world as it is, and should give kids a safe place in which to think through challenging situations. To ask themselves, "What would I do in that situation? Did the characters' actions work for them? Why or why not? What else could they have done?" This is the descriptive school.
Others think that stories should reflect the world that ought to be, and should give kids a safe place that represents the ideal situation. This is the prescriptive school, and its adherents tend to be more concerned with concepts such as role models.
An author of the descriptive school might write about a character with, say, a drug addiction, while a prescriptive author might shy away from including such a character. In real life, both authors may be equally opposed to drugs. The prescriptive author might say that kids need to be protected from all mention of drugs, for fear of glamorizing them. The descriptive author might believe that kids need to be protected from real drugs, but that stories in which characters encounter drugs are useful in helping readers figure out what they want to do when they're eventually faced with the real thing.
Another way to look at it: Prescriptive authors may think the world is tough enough, and books should provide a pleasant haven from the grit of real life. Descriptive authors may think that readers are comforted to know they're not alone in sometimes having negative thoughts and feelings, scary experiences, tough challenges.
My own writing tends to fall into the descriptive school, but I think it's useful to have both kinds of books on our shelves.
Some think that stories should reflect the world as it is, and should give kids a safe place in which to think through challenging situations. To ask themselves, "What would I do in that situation? Did the characters' actions work for them? Why or why not? What else could they have done?" This is the descriptive school.
Others think that stories should reflect the world that ought to be, and should give kids a safe place that represents the ideal situation. This is the prescriptive school, and its adherents tend to be more concerned with concepts such as role models.
An author of the descriptive school might write about a character with, say, a drug addiction, while a prescriptive author might shy away from including such a character. In real life, both authors may be equally opposed to drugs. The prescriptive author might say that kids need to be protected from all mention of drugs, for fear of glamorizing them. The descriptive author might believe that kids need to be protected from real drugs, but that stories in which characters encounter drugs are useful in helping readers figure out what they want to do when they're eventually faced with the real thing.
Another way to look at it: Prescriptive authors may think the world is tough enough, and books should provide a pleasant haven from the grit of real life. Descriptive authors may think that readers are comforted to know they're not alone in sometimes having negative thoughts and feelings, scary experiences, tough challenges.
My own writing tends to fall into the descriptive school, but I think it's useful to have both kinds of books on our shelves.
February 18, 2011
Whether to laugh or cry
Last night I posed this question on Twitter: Do you prefer a book that makes you laugh or cry?
Several people said "laugh." But most people said "both." (Crying, by itself, didn't get many votes.)
I've been thinking about that message: both. I think we appreciate books that have the emotional richness of life. In life, we often share a smile or a teary laugh even at funerals; we may feel a pang of sadness even at the happiest times. We deal with tragedies and comedies back to back, and sometimes simultaneously.
It makes me think that a good test for a writer to apply to a manuscript is this: Does this story hit only one emotional note--and if so, is that what I really want? Or does it evoke several different emotions?
Several people said "laugh." But most people said "both." (Crying, by itself, didn't get many votes.)
I've been thinking about that message: both. I think we appreciate books that have the emotional richness of life. In life, we often share a smile or a teary laugh even at funerals; we may feel a pang of sadness even at the happiest times. We deal with tragedies and comedies back to back, and sometimes simultaneously.
It makes me think that a good test for a writer to apply to a manuscript is this: Does this story hit only one emotional note--and if so, is that what I really want? Or does it evoke several different emotions?
February 17, 2011
Playtime
Recently I issued a challenge on this blog--to buy a book of poetry (or a magazine with poetry in it, or a verse novel). My own assignment for the challenge was to purchase and read John Grandits's book Blue Lipstick: Concrete Poems.
I was taught in school that concrete poems are poems written in a shape that reflects their topic. A poem about a circle would be written in circular form, to give the simplest example. And I thought Grandits's concrete poems would be that simple.
But--wow.
If you read this book, get ready to turn it every which way in your hands. It starts with the poem on the cover, which is written around the edges of the book cover (mimicking the frame of a mirror. The background on the cover's center is a silver mirror finish, though you can't tell from the above picture). There's a poem about volleyball in which the poem's lines zoom back and forth across a net. There's a poem about going all over town that follows a meandering path reminiscent of Family Circus cartoons. There's a poem in the shape of tangled hair.
This book isn't just about being dazzled by the wild shapes Grandits comes up with. The poems' narrator, Jessie, is a teen with a vivid voice--sometimes snarky, sometimes enthusiastic, and every emotion in between.
The unusual design, the shortness of the book, and the strength of Jessie's voice make this book a good candidate for reluctant readers. It's also good for inspiration--even for us non-reluctant readers--because it's fun and different. Something about engaging with this collection made me want to try new things. Best of all, it reminded me of the bottom line about creative writing: It can be fun!
To play a bit more: the book contains a "name-your-rock-band chart." I figure it could apply to book titles too, right? Here are three I came up with, using the title generator:
Magic Coathangers of Death
Muscular Eyeballs in Love
Quiet Onions of Justice
Whatever else you do today, find a moment to play.
I was taught in school that concrete poems are poems written in a shape that reflects their topic. A poem about a circle would be written in circular form, to give the simplest example. And I thought Grandits's concrete poems would be that simple.
But--wow.
If you read this book, get ready to turn it every which way in your hands. It starts with the poem on the cover, which is written around the edges of the book cover (mimicking the frame of a mirror. The background on the cover's center is a silver mirror finish, though you can't tell from the above picture). There's a poem about volleyball in which the poem's lines zoom back and forth across a net. There's a poem about going all over town that follows a meandering path reminiscent of Family Circus cartoons. There's a poem in the shape of tangled hair.
This book isn't just about being dazzled by the wild shapes Grandits comes up with. The poems' narrator, Jessie, is a teen with a vivid voice--sometimes snarky, sometimes enthusiastic, and every emotion in between.
The unusual design, the shortness of the book, and the strength of Jessie's voice make this book a good candidate for reluctant readers. It's also good for inspiration--even for us non-reluctant readers--because it's fun and different. Something about engaging with this collection made me want to try new things. Best of all, it reminded me of the bottom line about creative writing: It can be fun!
To play a bit more: the book contains a "name-your-rock-band chart." I figure it could apply to book titles too, right? Here are three I came up with, using the title generator:
Magic Coathangers of Death
Muscular Eyeballs in Love
Quiet Onions of Justice
Whatever else you do today, find a moment to play.
February 15, 2011
Not your typical Valentine's Day
First, a couple of links. In honor of Valentine's Day, my favorite Valentine's post ever, in which Kristina Springer points out that everyone's idea of romance is different, and many women are much more practical than TV commercials would have you believe. (Says the woman who chose a honeymoon trip hiking in Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks over a diamond engagement ring. Yes, I made the right decision!)
In other news, I visited the blog of Judith Graves because, like me, she's doing a series on writers and the "second-book experience," and I'm her first guest in that series. I even dropped some major hints about what my second novel contains.
And speaking of guest posts, the latest installment in my bloggers' exchange program! Tracy D., known here on LiveJournal as tracy_d74, wrote one for me. I suggested "worst vacation" as a topic because, as I've observed before, best and worst stories are usually interesting. This also ties in with Valentine's Day, because I heard on the radio today that you could name a Madagascar hissing cockroach after your sweetie as a V-day gift. You'll understand the connection after you read this ...
Miami Vacation
by Tracy D.
Thank you, Jenn, for inviting me to your place. It’s so exciting to see how others live, sneak a peek in the medicine cabinet … check out your bookshelf. You asked me to write about a vacation memory. After all, vacations are fodder for story ideas. I considered giving you a boring spiel, but then I thought, “Hey, I’m a writer. I can make it fun (I hope) and maybe show how to write in first person, past. Something I have never done.” The names have been changed, but not the event. So here we go … Miami, Florida, December 29, 2002 . . .
We stood in the doorway. Karen’s mouth agape, my eyes wide, and India’s mouth tilted in a smirk. The black lacquer furniture was ripped out of a 1980’s home décor catalogue.
This was free, I thought. It’s the only way I could afford to come to Miami for New Years.
I took a few steps, crawled across the king-size bed, wedging myself between the bed and the closet. India wedged herself between the dresser and other side of the bed. Karen remained in the doorway.
“Well, this will make an even better vacation story,” I said.
“I was expecting—” Karen started.
“Something from this decade,” India finished.
“I’m sorry, guys. My aunt described the room … very differently.”
“No worries,” I said. “Look, we came to play. We won’t even really be here.”
India unpacked our food supplies, placing them on the dresser.
“I get first dibs on the bathroom,” I said crawling across the bed and squeezing past Karen.
I flicked on the bathroom light, and my hand reflexively covered my mouth, stifling a scream. You should know something about me. I am a tad … just a smidge … germ-phobic. Meaning? I don’t use antibacterial wipes after I shake a hand. But I do have images of cat-sized germs lunging at me; their black claws tipped with dried blood ready to tear into my flesh. So, when I saw a bathroom that Clorox would shy away from and met one of the locals--a LARGE roach--my first instinct was to scream.
I heard angry voices—Karen’s in the fray. The thick Jamaican accents disguised words, but not their meaning. Karen yelled for me. Thank God, a reason to leave this … this … the roach stopped and glared at me. I shivered and turned off the light.
“We have to go,” Karen said.
“What? Why?” I said, glancing at India; she was talking on the phone, asking about hotel reservations.
“My aunt says our food will bring bugs.”
I glanced at our six-pack of water and unopened Little Debbies. Seriously? Did the woman not know she already had a squatter in the bathroom?
So, it’s your turn. Share a moment from your vacation. Or tell us what Tracy should've named the roach!
Tracy Dickens is a socially sanctioned voyeur (aka, a psychologist) during the day and hangs out with words at night. She writes young adult fiction.
In other news, I visited the blog of Judith Graves because, like me, she's doing a series on writers and the "second-book experience," and I'm her first guest in that series. I even dropped some major hints about what my second novel contains.
And speaking of guest posts, the latest installment in my bloggers' exchange program! Tracy D., known here on LiveJournal as tracy_d74, wrote one for me. I suggested "worst vacation" as a topic because, as I've observed before, best and worst stories are usually interesting. This also ties in with Valentine's Day, because I heard on the radio today that you could name a Madagascar hissing cockroach after your sweetie as a V-day gift. You'll understand the connection after you read this ...
Miami Vacation
by Tracy D.
Thank you, Jenn, for inviting me to your place. It’s so exciting to see how others live, sneak a peek in the medicine cabinet … check out your bookshelf. You asked me to write about a vacation memory. After all, vacations are fodder for story ideas. I considered giving you a boring spiel, but then I thought, “Hey, I’m a writer. I can make it fun (I hope) and maybe show how to write in first person, past. Something I have never done.” The names have been changed, but not the event. So here we go … Miami, Florida, December 29, 2002 . . .
We stood in the doorway. Karen’s mouth agape, my eyes wide, and India’s mouth tilted in a smirk. The black lacquer furniture was ripped out of a 1980’s home décor catalogue.
This was free, I thought. It’s the only way I could afford to come to Miami for New Years.
I took a few steps, crawled across the king-size bed, wedging myself between the bed and the closet. India wedged herself between the dresser and other side of the bed. Karen remained in the doorway.
“Well, this will make an even better vacation story,” I said.
“I was expecting—” Karen started.
“Something from this decade,” India finished.
“I’m sorry, guys. My aunt described the room … very differently.”
“No worries,” I said. “Look, we came to play. We won’t even really be here.”
India unpacked our food supplies, placing them on the dresser.
“I get first dibs on the bathroom,” I said crawling across the bed and squeezing past Karen.
I flicked on the bathroom light, and my hand reflexively covered my mouth, stifling a scream. You should know something about me. I am a tad … just a smidge … germ-phobic. Meaning? I don’t use antibacterial wipes after I shake a hand. But I do have images of cat-sized germs lunging at me; their black claws tipped with dried blood ready to tear into my flesh. So, when I saw a bathroom that Clorox would shy away from and met one of the locals--a LARGE roach--my first instinct was to scream.
I heard angry voices—Karen’s in the fray. The thick Jamaican accents disguised words, but not their meaning. Karen yelled for me. Thank God, a reason to leave this … this … the roach stopped and glared at me. I shivered and turned off the light.
“We have to go,” Karen said.
“What? Why?” I said, glancing at India; she was talking on the phone, asking about hotel reservations.
“My aunt says our food will bring bugs.”
I glanced at our six-pack of water and unopened Little Debbies. Seriously? Did the woman not know she already had a squatter in the bathroom?
So, it’s your turn. Share a moment from your vacation. Or tell us what Tracy should've named the roach!
Tracy Dickens is a socially sanctioned voyeur (aka, a psychologist) during the day and hangs out with words at night. She writes young adult fiction.
February 14, 2011
The bell of recognition
Random quotations from my reading this week, all of which struck a special chord. These first three are from Main Street by Sinclair Lewis:
"'When I die, the world will be annihilated, as far as I'm concerned.'"
This one perfectly captures the horror that grips us when we consider our own mortality, the fear that swings us into carpe diem, the bittersweetness of realizing how short life is.
"She had the neophyte's shock of discovery that, outside of tracts, conservatives do not tremble and find no answer when an iconoclast turns on them, but resort with agility and confusing statistics."
(In this quote, "conservative" doesn't necessarily mean politically conservative, but any adherent of the status quo.) This one makes me laugh. How often have we believed we could bring someone over to our way of thinking with an argument that seems so obvious to us, crystalline in its flawlessness! And how often has our opponent in the debate failed to yield, expressing the argument in entirely different terms.
"'What if you do drop back? You'll have had the adventure. Don't be too meek toward life! Go! ... Try everything!"
Here, one character urges another to try his wings and follow his dreams. He can't really lose, this statement says--because even if he doesn't succeed, he'll know his capacity. He'll never have to wonder.
This is why I read and write: to find the sentences that make me feel communion with another mind. Even if it's the mind of someone I've never met.
Finally, this writerly one is from the journals of Sylvia Plath, a caution against overusing one's thesaurus:
"... I believe in not being Roget's trollop, parading words and tossing off bravado for an audience."
"'When I die, the world will be annihilated, as far as I'm concerned.'"
This one perfectly captures the horror that grips us when we consider our own mortality, the fear that swings us into carpe diem, the bittersweetness of realizing how short life is.
"She had the neophyte's shock of discovery that, outside of tracts, conservatives do not tremble and find no answer when an iconoclast turns on them, but resort with agility and confusing statistics."
(In this quote, "conservative" doesn't necessarily mean politically conservative, but any adherent of the status quo.) This one makes me laugh. How often have we believed we could bring someone over to our way of thinking with an argument that seems so obvious to us, crystalline in its flawlessness! And how often has our opponent in the debate failed to yield, expressing the argument in entirely different terms.
"'What if you do drop back? You'll have had the adventure. Don't be too meek toward life! Go! ... Try everything!"
Here, one character urges another to try his wings and follow his dreams. He can't really lose, this statement says--because even if he doesn't succeed, he'll know his capacity. He'll never have to wonder.
This is why I read and write: to find the sentences that make me feel communion with another mind. Even if it's the mind of someone I've never met.
Finally, this writerly one is from the journals of Sylvia Plath, a caution against overusing one's thesaurus:
"... I believe in not being Roget's trollop, parading words and tossing off bravado for an audience."
February 12, 2011
Where the boys are
Here's how it goes: Someone asks if YA with male main characters is hard to get published, or says that it's difficult to find such books on the shelves. I start reeling off titles of YA books with male main characters.
This has happened often enough that I've decided to just compile a list already. So I'm starting one here: YA novels with male main characters, published in 2009 or later (an arbitrary cutoff, selected because some are interested in what the most recent trends are). Feel free to suggest books in the comments, although if I haven't read them myself, I won't add them to the list until I can tell that they meet the criteria. But to get us started:
Candor, Pam Bachorz (2009)
Crash Into Me, Albert Borris (2009)
The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin, Josh Berk (2010)
The Demon's Lexicon, Sarah Rees Brennan (2009)
David Inside Out, Lee Bantle (2009)
Eighth Grade Superzero (2010), Olugbemisola Rhuday Perkovich (some may consider MG or tween)
Escaping the Tiger, Laura Manivong (2010)
Flash Burnout, L.K. Madigan (2009)
Freaked, J.T. Dutton (2009)
Freefall, Mindi Scott (2010)
Going Bovine, Libba Bray (2009)
Invincible Summer, Hannah Moskowitz (2011)
King of the Screwups, K.L. Going (2009)
The Maze Runner, James Dashner (2009)
The Secret Year, Jennifer R. Hubbard (2010)
Split, Swati Avasthi (2010)
Struts & Frets, Jon Skovron (2009)
Surf Mules, G. Neri (2009)
Swim the Fly, Don Calame (2009)
Waiting to Score, J.E. MacLeod (2009)
White Cat, Holly Black (2010)
Will Grayson, Will Grayson, John Green & David Levithan (2010)
This has happened often enough that I've decided to just compile a list already. So I'm starting one here: YA novels with male main characters, published in 2009 or later (an arbitrary cutoff, selected because some are interested in what the most recent trends are). Feel free to suggest books in the comments, although if I haven't read them myself, I won't add them to the list until I can tell that they meet the criteria. But to get us started:
Candor, Pam Bachorz (2009)
Crash Into Me, Albert Borris (2009)
The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin, Josh Berk (2010)
The Demon's Lexicon, Sarah Rees Brennan (2009)
David Inside Out, Lee Bantle (2009)
Eighth Grade Superzero (2010), Olugbemisola Rhuday Perkovich (some may consider MG or tween)
Escaping the Tiger, Laura Manivong (2010)
Flash Burnout, L.K. Madigan (2009)
Freaked, J.T. Dutton (2009)
Freefall, Mindi Scott (2010)
Going Bovine, Libba Bray (2009)
Invincible Summer, Hannah Moskowitz (2011)
King of the Screwups, K.L. Going (2009)
The Maze Runner, James Dashner (2009)
The Secret Year, Jennifer R. Hubbard (2010)
Split, Swati Avasthi (2010)
Struts & Frets, Jon Skovron (2009)
Surf Mules, G. Neri (2009)
Swim the Fly, Don Calame (2009)
Waiting to Score, J.E. MacLeod (2009)
White Cat, Holly Black (2010)
Will Grayson, Will Grayson, John Green & David Levithan (2010)
February 11, 2011
There's some there there
I'm all for writing the projects that we need to write, listening to the inner voice, and so on. I think my best projects have chosen me as much as I've chosen them.
But I like to think that books also contain something for the reader: something to uplift or amuse, encourage or entertain. Something to open their eyes to new experiences, or make them feel less alone as they recognize their own experiences on the page. Something to make them feel that they haven't wasted their time; they've come away richer for the time they spent with our words.
I suppose I'm talking about theme. I don't start writing with theme in mind, but I generally find the theme at some point during drafting or revision--otherwise, I sense that something's missing. Theme is the thread of coherence running through the story; theme is what makes the story make sense, gives it its significance. So often in life we don't know why things happen the way they do; we don't get the point. But with stories, it's very satisfying when we can identify the point.
But I like to think that books also contain something for the reader: something to uplift or amuse, encourage or entertain. Something to open their eyes to new experiences, or make them feel less alone as they recognize their own experiences on the page. Something to make them feel that they haven't wasted their time; they've come away richer for the time they spent with our words.
I suppose I'm talking about theme. I don't start writing with theme in mind, but I generally find the theme at some point during drafting or revision--otherwise, I sense that something's missing. Theme is the thread of coherence running through the story; theme is what makes the story make sense, gives it its significance. So often in life we don't know why things happen the way they do; we don't get the point. But with stories, it's very satisfying when we can identify the point.
