Alisa M. Libby's Blog, page 28

let’s all give Anne Boleyn her due…

Today, May 19, is the anniversary of Anne Boleyn’s execution. According to what the Guard at the Chapel of St. Peter ad Vincula told us, there will be a dozen red roses gracing Anne’s burial place today. And more besides, I imagine…I wonder what she would think about her story being currently so popular in the modern consciousness? I’m pretty sure she would love it.

Last night I read from The King’s Rose at a “New England Voices” reading arranged by the Foundation for Children’s Books. It was a w

my revision techniques

Thanks to author Sarah Aronson for inviting me to guest post on her blog! Here is my post, all about what I do when I’m revising a beast of a project that just…isn’t…quite…working: http://community.livejournal.com/thru_the_booth/112119.html. I’ve touched on the idea of the “desperation document” in an earlier blog post, but I go into it in more detail here.

In a recent post Sarah also has great suggestions for writing rituals, such as treating yourself to a special meal when you’ve hit 100 pages,

fretting

I’ll admit it: I’ve been fretting about my new work-in-progress.

This may be depressing for the writers out there to hear, but insecurities about your writing do not vanish the moment you’ve signed your first publishing contract. At least they didn’t for me. I had a prolonged bout with writer’s block when I was trying to find out what I would write after The King’s Rose. This current project was the thing that pulled me out of it. I put every image or idea that inspired me as a kid (and still doe

pirate basset

The reading on Saturday went really went – a small crowd, but very engaged and full of great questions. However, there was this fantastic children’s event going on at the library the same day which involved face-painting, balloon hats and live animals. Needless to say, my two nieces were otherwise engaged when my talk began, and I don’t blame them. They hear me babble plenty, but how often do they get to see a baby wallaby? Not often enough, my friends. Nevertheless, bravo to the library for off

reading at the Hudson Public Library tomorrow (Saturday)

I’ll be at the Hudson Public Library tomorrow at 2 p.m., talking about the book and about writing and publishing in general. I’m hoping I’ll get some Tudor fanatics and/or some writers with questions about the whole process. I love talking to writers about my adventures in book-writing. I try to think of what I wanted to hear before I was published, what would have helped inspire me to stick with it.

In the meantime, I’ve been doing a lot of reading. I’ve said goodbye to the lovely Katsa (of Grac

dinner with Andrei Codrescu

I get nervous around authors. Yes, I realize the irony implicit in this statement; I love it when people talk to me about my books and I can only assume that other authors feel the same way. But I still find it nerve-wracking to be on the other side of the signing table, as it were. I don’t want to come across as needy or weird or moronic or any number of other bad things. And my fears increase in proportion to just how much I loved the author’s book.

Case in point: last night I went to the BPL t

reading lust…no, I mean “list”, reading list

There is a certain pattern to my writing life: put simply, there are times when I’m writing, and times when I’m not writing. Sometimes the not-writing comes in the form of the demon writer’s block that perches upon me like some hideous gargoyle. But other times, like right now, it’s because I’m taking a little break from my current work-in-progress and reading as much as I possibly can. So here is my current reading list:

The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins
Graceling, Kristin Cashore
The Hobbit, J.R.

Back from NE SCBWI Conference!

No doubt you’ve noticed me fretting about presenting at the New England Society for Children’s Writers & Illustrators Conference. Well, I’m happy to say “mission accomplished”! I’m home and recuperating from a wonderful weekend of “schmoozing and musing.”

This was my first presentation and I had 80 people signed up for it, so I knew I needed to swallow all of my nerves and deliver the goods. My talk was “Writing Historical Fiction for Young Adults” and I had a lot to cover and only one hour to ta

My literary heroines

Alice from Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll: she follows that white rabbit, even though he’s already in a rush, even though it’s really none of her business. And when she falls down that rabbit hole, she just seems game for anything that comes her way. Good for you, Alice.

Emily from Emily of New Moon by L.M. Montgomery: Emily was so much darker than Anne of Green Gables; she had more of an artist’s temperament, not to mention that strange extra-sensory perception that helped her solve a myst

School Library Journal review!! (yes, two exclamation points but I think it’s necessary)

LIBBY, Alisa M. The King’s Rose. 297p. Dutton. 2009. Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-0-525-47970-3. LC number unavailable.

Gr 8 Up–Beautiful Catherine Howard, 15, has attracted the attention of aging King Henry Tudor, who is becoming increasingly desperate for a son. His only son, Edward, is a sickly youngster, and Henry is worried about the succession. He has already rid himself of three wives and, now, he finds a way to dispense with his fourth wife, Anne of Cleves, so he can marry Catherine. Catherine has