Cynthia Chapman Willis's Blog, page 22

An Interview: Shannon Hitchcock

With The 39th Annual Summer Conference still ringing in my head, I thought that I would post an interview with wonderful, first-time attendee, Shannon Hitchcock. Shannon has published in Highlights for Children, Cricket magazine, Pockets, and Wee Ones Children's Magazine. But the most recent big news is that she was nominated for the Sue Alexander Most Promising New Work Award at the conference this year. Awesome, Shannon! This is one of those jump up and down with excitement moments!

Manuscripts

Back to Reality

I'm back from the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators conference. Physically, anyway. I'm still in a California haze made up of wisdom and inspiration, with amazing conversations still swirling in my head. Four days of keynote speeches, workshops, and encouragement from fabulous writers, artists, editors and agents. For me, some of the highlights included Sherman Alexie's opening keynote where he talked about how kids feel trapped and how books become their way of escape from

SCBWI ANNUAL CONFERENCE

In a few days, which will probably be too short given everything that I need to do, I'll be flying out to Los Angeles, on my way to the 38th annual Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators conference. And I am soooo excited about this! Because I've been to this conference before and it has always been informative, inspiring, and entertaining. In summary, an absolute blast. There is just something fabulous about getting hundreds of people who love children's literature together in a bi

Three Months and Counting

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The countdown begins! Three months until my second novel, BUCK FEVER, hits the streets. On October 27th. Yes, I am excited about this. I first scratched out the idea for this novel when I became fascinated by the many different points of view surrounding hunting. Because I grew up in a suburb of NYC until I was thirteen, I knew nothing about hunters and hunting. In fact, I'd only seen deer in zoos. When my family moved to a rural part of New Jersey, however, this changed. We lived on a dirt r

Gratitude

Once upon a time, not too long ago, I was an editor of reading textbook materials for elementary schools. I loved my job in New York City and the people I worked with. So, when DOG GONE found a home with the wonderful Feiwel and Friends, I was determined to keep my job. Unfortunately, the increasing demands of being a textbook editor pushed me into a position where I had to choose between my passion for writing novels and the career I had built as an editor. I thought it would be really hard to

Self-Editing For Fiction Writers

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I love reading books on and about the process of writing. Not just because I'm always interested in improving my own writing, but because I find the complicated and often maddening ordeal of creating a story fascinating. And sometimes never ending. And sometimes infuriating. And sometimes. . . Okay, someone stop me. Please.

Anyway, I wonder if there is any writer anywhere that feels that his or her writing no longer needs improvement. Someone who has perfected his or her craft. If so, I bo

Chapter Focus

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Shall we chat about the importance of focus when writing chapters? I'll assume you said yes.

Let me begin by saying that ever so selfishly, I love reviewing the work of other writers because it helps me to pinpoint issues in my own writing. For example, the other night I was reviewing a beautifully written story that I was really enjoying. However, after finishing a chapter, something didn't feel quite right. Unfortunately, this was a familiar discomfort. Because I'd been having the same sense

Writing, An Obsession?

Summer is a time when family and friends come to visit, picnics and parties seem like fine ideas, and vacations are scheduled, right? For me, though, summer is also a time when I quietly wonder if my writing is my obsession. According to my trusty dictionary, an obsession is "the domination of one's thoughts or feelings by a persistent idea, image, desire, etc." Exactly. As much as I love guests, parties, and vacationing (really, I do!), I get a bit nutty about giving up any of my writing, revis

The Dog Days of Summer

Are you a dog lover? Okay, I know some people are "cat people" and some are "dog people." And, of course, there are "horse people." And I once met a self-proclaimed "llama person," but I digress. Here's my point: No matter what kind of animal person or even non-committed animal person you may be, it seems to me that it's hard not to appreciate the traits of most pooches. The devotion, the unconditional love, the soulful eyes and overall cute factor, just to name a few attributes. And yes, I'll a

Liar, Liar, Pants On Fire!

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Looks like it’s time for some blogging fun, kids! I’ve been tagged by Sarah. Thanks, Sarah! This is fun. Here we go!

Sinful Nature

"Sometimes you can learn more about a person by what they don’t tell you. Sometimes you can learn a lot from the things they just make up. If you are tagged with this Meme, lie to me. Then tag 7 other folks (one for each deadly sin) and hope they can lie."

Pride -- What is your biggest contribution to the world?

I discovered the Internet. Yes, that’s right. I found it