Jennifer R. Hubbard's Blog, page 123

Sunday stew, June 6 edition

This is one of those stew-like posts made up of a little of this, a little of that.

First, for our historic flashback:

"'This is D-day,' came the announcement over the English news and quite rightly, 'this is the day.' The invasion has begun!"
--from Anne Frank's diary, June 6, 1944. Every D-Day, I always think of the inhabitants of the Secret Annexe huddled around their radio, getting that long-awaited news. And I always wish they could have made it just one more year.

Some random thoughts from ...

What to write about

Occasionally I see bloggers setting goals for how they want to blog more often, or more formally, or on certain topics, or they'll ask readers what they should blog more or less about. When I comment on such posts, my comment is usually some form of this: "Blog about whatever you want."

I read a lot of blogs, far more than I ever have the time to comment on. If you're on my LJ Friends list, I read your blog regularly; I also have a few dozen Blogger and WordPress blogs that I visit either dail...

The Great Santa Barbara Oil Disaster, OR:

On this Poetry Friday when the TV news is talking about oil globules washing up on the coasts, a poem I read years ago has been nagging at me. "The Great Santa Barbara Oil Disaster, OR:" was written by Conyus in 1969.  I read it while in high school, so many years after the oil spill it describes that, if not for this poem, I would not have heard of the Santa Barbara oil slick.

Apparently, Conyus has revised the poem, and the new version appears in its entirety at the blog of Al Young, Poet L...

The evolution of ideas

1. Hm, this is a great idea for a book.
2. OMG! It really is a great idea! I love it!
3. I love it! I think.
4. So far, so good.
5. I seem to have hit a wall.
6. What is this about, anyway? What do these characters want?

Possible road from here:

7. What was I thinking? This isn't a book.
8. Is this fixable?
9. No. At least not at this stage of my life.
10. Oh, look! Shiny new pretty idea for totally different book! Catch ya later!

Alternate possible road:

7. Oh, I get it! Back on track now.
8. I love this...

Moral compasses

Today's guest post is by J.T. Dutton, who ponders the questions of goodness and morality, and how our moral compasses can change over time.

I think I adapted my writer’s perception of character in the one class I took on Greek Philosophy in college. I remember discussing the idea that humans are like acorns. They are planted on the earth and grow toward light. The greater “good” people approach is embedded within, but because humans are bound by the limits of their earthly form, they don’t fu...

Weekend wrap-up

Well, our virtual mini-retreat is winding down. Thanks to everyone who joined in, whether you posted on the blog or not. I hope your weekend was as happy and productive as mine.

Here are the stats:

Number of dresses purchased, suitable for ALA and other appearances where I impersonate a professional: 1
Number of dresses rejected for extreme hideosity: scores
Number of words used in this blog post that aren't really words: 1 (hideosity)
Number of manuscript passes completed: 1
Number of hikes/walks...

Taking a breath

I got a thank-you note today from a student at one of the schools that received books from the Guys Lit Wire and Operation Teen Book Drop book fair. The student is reading one of the books I selected to donate, and she writes, "I am going to read it today and everyday. If I have free time." This note made me so, so happy. Book enthusiasm tends to do that to me.

This is also a weekend in which I have no author events planned--I have been doing author events pretty steadily since January--and n...

Owning it

Sometimes when people respond to critique, they wonder whether to adopt certain suggestions. The internal debate might sound like this: "I don't know about this ... but I really trust her judgment ... but I never envisioned it this way ... although I shouldn't be closed-minded ..."

I think a good test for a situation like this--especially if one version of the manuscript isn't screaming "I'm better!" than the other--is to think about what would happen if a reader later criticized me for the c...

Secrets

It probably won't surprise anyone to learn that I believe the concept of "secrets" has a lot of power in literature. One of the most rewarding experiences I have as a reader is when I recognize a description of a feeling or a situation that I have, until now, thought of as mine alone. One of the best things that art does is to help us feel less alone.

Art has other functions, of course: to show us the familiar in a new way, to provoke us into questioning our assumptions, to amuse and entertain...

Unpredictable

I featured this book when it debuted, as part of my Books of 2009 series, but I wanted to do a more in-depth interview with its author for a couple of reasons. I think this book hasn't gotten nearly as much attention as it deserves. Also, it's funny and quirky and unexpected; it isn't quite like anything else I've read.



My Invented Life, by Lauren Bjorkman, is a contemporary YA novel about many things: sisters (and the love-hate relationship they can have); a drama club; civil rights; friendsh...