Mindy Hardwick's Blog, page 48

Map Writing Exercise

I’ve been accepted for another three years on the Washington State Arts Commission Teaching Artist Roster. This is my second, three-year term on the roster, and I’m thrilled!  The first two years I was on the roster, the grants were slim pickings and there wasn’t much work. But, things are gradually improving, and so I’m hopeful to pick up a few teaching artist jobs over the next couple years. In order to be on the roster, a teaching artist must demonstrate they are both a strong teacher and a strong writer. Then, during each of the three years that I am on the roster, I am required to complete a renewal application stating where I have been a teaching artist for the previous year, and listing classes and workshops I’ve taken, along with any goals.

My official listing can be found here.

Over the last week, I’ve been in some planning and discussion with Discovery Community School for an after-school creative writing class. I’m not entirely sure it’s going to happen yet, (we’re working out funding and details), but it reminds me a little bit of the “Young Authors Club” my Mom and I once facilitated when I was a seventh grade teacher. Mom ran a Young Authors Club at my sister’s middle school, and so, we thought it’d be fun to do one at the school where I had my first teaching job. Each week, Mom arrived with snacks and writing ideas. We spent Monday afternoons writing with five young writers–some of whom where very good! One young man went on to place in the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards and another young lady went on to work as an editor. It was at the Young Writers Club that I  first realized I wanted to write for kids.

One thing I know about working with kids after-school is they need activities which encourage not only creative writing, but also integrate some art. So, in the first few weeks, we’ll be working on a  Map Writing Exercise to help the kids build their story worlds. This spring, I took an on-line class at Savvy Authors, called Building a Contemporary World for Romance Stories. The class opened my eyes to the fact it’s not just fantasy and science fiction writers who need to build story worlds, it’s also contemporary writers.  By the end of that class, I had the ideas for three, linked romance stories.

Here is the exercise I’ll be using with the young writers:

The Map Writing Exercise

Take a large butcher piece of paper and draw a map of your story character’s neighborhood include places such as: school, best friend’s house, enemies house, parks, shops, churches, woods, rivers, streets, libraries, etc.

Mark at least three significant incidents on the map with a large X.

Imagine your character in one of those incidents. Write a list of sensory details (sight, sound, taste, touch, smell) that is associated with the incident. Be sure to think about the season. Winter will have different sensory details than spring.

Repeat for each significant incident marked with an X

Write a one to two page scene with your character in each scene.

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Launching an Ereader program in a school library

Last spring, I spoke on a panel of YA authors to a group of students at Everett High School. The school district allocated funding for 12 Ereaders to each school. Before the author visit, the high school librarian bought a dozen copies of STAINED GLASS SUMMER and loaded the book on the school’s Ereaders. I was thrilled!

However, one of the things I hear from school librarians are questions about logistics for Ereaders. How do the kids check them out? Do they load the Ereaders up with themed book sets? Or individual books? What if the school doesn’t really have a way for kids to check out Ereaders? Can they partner with the public library?

There is an excellent article in School Library Journal this month by Travis Jonker. entitled, “Travis’s Excellent (Ereader) Adventure.” Travis is an elementary school librarian and blogs at 100 Scope Notes. In the article, Travis answers many of the above listed questions as well as discussing the pros and cons to starting an Ereader program at a school. I’d highly recommend this article to anyone considering starting an Ereader program at their school.

One of the resources provided in the article is a place to find grants for educators called FableVision. You can subscribe to their newsletter to be notified of new grant opportunities. I am always looking for places which offer grants for the Juvenile Detention Writing Workshop, and this looked like a fabulous resource.

Here is the link to “Travis’s Excellent Ereader Adventure” article.

August Round-Up

It’s time for a little August Round-Up of news.  A couple fun things for STAINED GLASS SUMMER

STAINED GLASS SUMMER is now available at the San Juan Islands libraries. This includes, San Juan, Orcas, and Lopez Islands. Orcas Island is the Island which inspired Jasmine’s Island, and I’m thrilled that the Island readers will be able to find the story at their library!
STAINED GLASS SUMMER is also available at the Navy General Library. Yes…that is the U.S. Navy’s library! Very fun!
September Book Signing: I’ll be at Uppercase Bookshop in Snohomish on Sunday afternoon, September 16 for a book signing of the limited edition, print copies of STAINED GLASS SUMMER. I am signing with my very good writing pal, Carole Dagg, author of THE YEAR WE WERE FAMOUS. The exact time is to be announced soon.

On a personal note, my Grandfather passed away this month. He was 94 years-old. My Grandfather was a huge supporter of my writing. When we cleaned out his apartment in the retirement community, I found multiple copies of SUMMER SHORTS (The anthology for my first published short story, “Hurricanes,”), multiple copies of THE FIRST YEAR IN THE CLASSROOM (another anthology with a personal essay I wrote about a challenging student my first year of teaching), and copies of the detention center poetry books I’d once given to him and my Grandmother.

But there was another gift waiting for me. About half-way into cleaning out things, my step-dad found my Grandfather’s camera. On the camera, were pictures taken from an author visit  at the middle school  where I attended in St. Louis. That day was the last time  I saw my Grandfather. My aunt drove him over to St Louis so he could see me present a poetry workshop to a group of eighth grade students at North Kirkwood Middle School. He loved to eat candy corn and had an entire bag sitting in his lap when they pulled into the parking lot.

Here are a few of those pictures of me presenting a workshop at the school in the classroom where I was once an eighth grader. This is the age group I write for and these pictures are priceless. In the hero’s journey, this would be the part where the heroine returns “home” with her gift to share with others.

WEAVING MAGIC Giveaway

I’m guest interviewed on Living for the Books Blog today. As a part of the interview, I’m giving away one copy of YA, WEAVING MAGIC. The book is available in any format of ebook. (Kindle, Nook, IPad, PDF).

I am thrilled to be a part of Living for the Books Blog. I heard about Living for the Books Blog on Goodreads. One of the groups I belong to at Goodreads is an author group. There was a thread posted in the group where book bloggers could request author interviews, posts, and giveaways.  I popped over to Living for the Books Blog and discovered it’s hosted by fifteen-year-old Erika!  I love when teens host blogs and I’m honored to be a part of them! Who better to talk about YA books, than teens themselves!

The interview and giveaway can be found here.

Good luck!

YA Anthology Seeks Submissions

This looks like a good opportunity for those who write YA. Thanks to Hope Clark’s Funds for Writers Newsletter.

Young Adult: (Deadline for submissions September 1, 2012).

Young adults deal with many issues – peer pressure, bullying,

and self esteem, just to name a few. For this anthology we are

looking for stories that inspire hope, feature main characters

that overcome great odds/obstacles, or leave the reader

inspired. We are open to any genre as long as it is intended

for the YA audience and meets the guidelines mentioned below.

The common threads tying these stories together are the themes

of hope and encouragement. Deadline September 1, 2012.

Word count between 500 words and 7,000 words. No sex scenes.

Previously published stories are accepted as long as you have

the rights to them. Payment:

500 to 2500 words – $50

2,501 to 5,000 words – $75

5,001 to 7,000 words – $100

To find the submission guidelines click here.

Stained Glass Summer Book Signing

I’m signing limited edition, print copies of STAINED GLASS SUMMER at the Waterfront Book Festival on Sunday, August 26. I’ll be signing from 2:00-4:00 p.m. The event takes place at the Everett Waterfront Marina outside Lombardi’s Restaurant.  There will be 25 authors signing books including Susan Wiggs and Robert Dugoni as well as many local authors. The Waterfront Book Festival is sponsored by the Evergreen Chapter of RWA.

You can find out more here.

See you there!

Plotting with Beat Sheets

Last spring, I took Anastasia Suen’s on-line Writing the Chapter Book Class. In the class, I learned a lot about plotting and structuring a chapter book. One of the plotting techniques that I studied was the Blake Snyder Beat Sheet. The beat sheet breaks a story into 15 parts. There is more than just the “dark night of the soul” and the mid-point moments. The Blake Snyder Beat sheet also includes focus on the opening and closing images (they should be opposites), as well as the B story (a love story of some sort–can include best friend stories in children’s stories).

You can find the Beat Sheet with definitions here

This month, I’ve been using the Blake Snyder Beat Sheet to help with a revision of my current work-in-progress–a middle grade novel entitled, GRANDDAD’S TOYS.  I’ve done a lot of character work with GRANDADS TOYS. And I’ve done a lot of free-writing on the story.  But, when I sat down to read my manuscript draft, I said, “Lots of interesting characters here, but not much plot!”

In my first two books, STAINED GLASS SUMMER and WEAVING MAGIC, I spent a lot of time on trying to figure out plot. I muddled around in characters for years. But, for GRANDAD’S TOYS, I’d like to hope I’ve gotten a little bit smarter about my writing process and plotting. And this time, I took a lesson from my chapter book writing.

In July, I used the Beat Sheet to write and polish the first in a chapter book series which is now on submission. Chapter books have to be tight in the plot with a strong character voice. When I was working on my chapter book, the beat sheet made it easy for me to adjust the plot in an outline, rather than writing drafts and drafts of interesting characters who weren’t doing anything.

So, when I realized GRANDAD’S TOYS was lacking in plot, I pulled out the Beat Sheet and outlined a plot. In my draft manuscript, I had three large events which take place in the story. I used those events and then gave them structure with the Beat Sheet. Now, when I sit down to revise my manuscript, I have a map to follow.

If plotting is a challenge, I’d highly recommend the Beat Sheet and Blake Snyder’s popular book, SAVE THE CAT! THE LAST BOOK ON SCREENWRITING THAT YOU’LL EVER NEED.

Author Interview–Meradeth Houston

I’m thrilled to have young adult author, Meradeth Houston, on the blog today! Meradeth is the author of COLORS LIKE MEMORIES, a young adult novel published by MuseItUp Publishing.

Julia has a secret: she killed the guy she loved. It was an accident—sort of.

Blurb: Julia is a Sary, the soul of a child who died before taking her first breath. Without this ‘breath of life’ she and others like her must help those on the verge of suicide. It’s a job Julia used to enjoy, until the accident that claimed her boyfriend’s life—an accident she knows was her fault. If living with the guilt weren’t enough, she’s now assigned to help a girl dealing with the loss of her mother, something Julia’s not exactly the best role model for. If she can’t figure out a way to help her, Julia’s going to lose her position in the Sary, something she swore to her boyfriend would never happen.

Check out the tantalizing book trailer preview here:

You can find COLORS LIKE MEMORIES at

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

MuseItUp Publishing

COLORS LIKE MEMORIES is also at Goodreads and on Facebook.

When I asked Meradeth to tell me a little bit about herself, she said:

Meradeth’s never been a big fan of talking about herself, but if you really want to know, here are some random tidbits about her:

She’s a Northern California girl. This generally means she talks too fast and use “like” a lot.


When she’s not writing, she’s sequencing dead people’s DNA. For fun!


She’s been writing since she was 11 years old. It’s her hobby, her passion, and she’s so happy to get to share her work!


If she could have a super-power, it would totally be flying. Which is a little strange, because she’s terrified of heights.

Find out more about Meradeth at her website, blog, twitter, or Pinterest.

Welcome Meradeth!

Can you tell us a little bit about what inspired you to write Colors Like Memories?

COLORS LIKE MEMORIES was built on a world I’d been playing with in my writing for quite a while, but this story itself came from listening to the radio. I was driving home listening to Linkin Park’s Shadow of the Day and the story just kind of hit me! I got home and started drafting it right after J.

Colors Like Memories is such a fabulous title. How did you come up with the title?

Thanks! I kind of like the title, too. Honestly, this book went through like ten titles, but this final one came to me when reading an essay by Jorge Borges called “The History of Angels” and the last lines were just so amazing that I had to use them (slightly modified) as my title.

What did you find the most challenging about writing your story? How did you work through that challenge?

Revisions were totally the most challenging thing! I swear I revised this thing, re-wrote lots of it/all of it, and went over it a hundred different times. I’m not a huge fan of revisions (drafting is my favorite part), but I kept at it because I loved the story, the people in it, and just couldn’t leave it alone.

Your cover is gorgeous! Can you tell us a little bit about your cover and the cover art process at MuseItUp?

I’m pretty partial to my cover—I love the colors! When I first signed with MIU, I was really happy that I’d have some say in my cover art. I know most people don’t, and that can be really hard! It was great being to have at least a say in what I would like, and what to avoid. My cover artist and I went through lots of photos and other covers, picking out what worked best, until we came up with the cover as it stands. Out of all the editing and everything, working on the cover was the most fun!

What authors and/or books inspire you?

So many authors have inspired me over the years! I love to read and am never without some book (almost always YA). One of my biggest inspirations has been Madeline L’Engle—I adore A Wrinkle in Time and almost all of her books. Also, the Harry Potter series will always have a special place in my heart. And, yes, I’ll admit it, but Twilight, too, because I think every writer wants their fans to adore their characters as much as that series has been loved J.

 What advice would you give to a teen who loves to write?

To write! And never to give up, no matter what people say! Also, to read. Lots! And then read more. Both of these things will help you get to the point you want to be, even if it might take time.

Thanks so much, Meradeth!

Thanks for having me!

Goodreads Book Giveaway–Stained Glass Summer

It’s time for a giveaway! I am giving away one PRINT copy of STAINED GLASS SUMMER on Goodreads. To enter, all you have to do is click on the link in this button and follow the directions! Easy! Good luck!

Goodreads Book Giveaway


Stained Glass Summer
by Mindy Hardwick

Giveaway ends September 09, 2012.

See the giveaway details

at Goodreads.

Enter to win

PRINT Copies of Stained Glass Summer

Guess what arrived? The limited edition, print promotional copies of STAINED GLASS SUMMER!

Where can you buy one of these PRINT books? Well, here is the deal……In order to purchase one of these lovely PRINT limited editions of STAINED GLASS SUMMER, you must either buy one at a book signing, or win a copy through a giveaway.

So…the first place I will be SIGNING print books is at the Waterfront Book Festvial on Sunday, August 26 from 2:00-4:00 pm. at the Everett Marina near Lombardis Restaurant.  I will be one of my many local authors signing books in all genres. Other NY Times Best Selling authors signing books at the Waterfront Book Festival include Susan Wiggs and Robert Dugoni. Yes…Susan Wiggs is signing at the Book Festival!

You can find out more information about the book festival here.

I’m also participating in a Goodreads giveaway and I will post those details soon!

And, more book signings are to follow this Fall!