Sarah Sullivan's Blog, page 6

HOME FROM KINDLING WORDS - VISITING BREECE D'J PANCAKE'S GRAVE

As I watch friends dig out from the big snow over this past Friday and Saturday, I am feeling particularly grateful for a weekend of inspiration and rejuvenation at Kindling Words the weekend before.  How lucky we were to have that time before the storm shut down airports and roads!  Time to channel all that energy into new work.  Time to silence the inner voice that says "you can't do it."  Time to find my way back into the story.

Last week I made a road trip to do some research for my current work.  As I was near the cemetery in Milton, WV where the writer Breece D'J Pancake is buried, I decided to stop and search for his grave.  This is something I had always meant to do as I have long admired Pancake's work.  On this day, the sun was shining.  The hilltop where the cemetery is located was quiet with a gentle breeze.  I found the marker in the newer section.




Not far away was this piece of funerary statuary.





If you know the story of Breece D'J Pancake, you will appreciate why I found it appropriate that a lamb stands guard over his resting place.  Pancake was a gifted young writer whose life came to a violent and tragic end when he was only 26.  Cynthia Kadohata wrote a beautiful essay about making a pilgrimmage to this gravesite in the Mississippi Review in 1989.  Here is how it begins:
A few years ago, when I first read Breece D'J Pancake's stories, I knew I had to know more about him. The Atlantic Monthly Press published his collection of stories in 1983, four years after he killed himself at age twenty-six. The collection, tense and paradoxical with startling descriptions, is written as if Pancake were possessed by his home state of West Virginia the way you can be possessed by another person. The paradox is here: these are stories about the power of redemption that are also about the power of sin, stories about estrangement and empathy, stories about disorder in which everything seems to happen for a reason, stories about leaving that are also—always—about staying.

I went to search for Pancake this year,...
The entire article used to be available on-line via a google search.  That does not appear to be the case now, but here's a link in case you want to locate it.  http://www.bookrags.com/criticism/bre...
Susan Straight talked about reading THE STORIES OF BREECE D'J PANCAKE in an episode of "You Must Read This" on NPR.  You can find it here.  http://www.npr.org/templates/story/st...
And if you are interested to learn more about Pancake's life, there's a good biography by Thomas E. Douglas entitled A Room Forever.
 Pancake's letters are as haunting as his stories.  Here's an excerpt from one of them.  It was written to his mother while he was studying at the University of Virginia.
I'm going to come back to West Virginia when this is over. There's something ancient and deeply-rooted in my soul. I like to think that I have left my ghost up one of those hollows, and I'll never really be able to leave for good until I find it. And I don't want to look for it, because I might find it and have to leave.  

STUDENTS INSPIRE ME

On a recent wintry day when I was feeling particularly discouraged, struggling to find my way into a new story, a good friend emailed this photo from a recent reading fair at the school where she used to work.  Each year this school hosts an event called "Everyone's An Author." The principal brings in children's writers, assigns each of them a grade level and schedules one hour a day for each writer to conduct writing workshops with each of the classes in her assigned grade. I have been honored to participate in this program for a number of years.  Each year the program grows stronger.  The principal at this school is committed to his students and to education.  He does a phenomenal job of organizing the event. His positive spirit extends throughout the entire school.  I love visiting this school.  I love the students and the teachers.  I am bowled over by their enthusiasm and hard work and creativity.  At the end of a teaching day, I am thoroughly drained and exhausted, but I also feel good.  I feel like we have all accomplished something.  We've shared our stories.  We've celebrated the wonder of storytelling.  And we've affirmed the magic of language.  There are so many wonderful stories.  The students do incredible work.  They make me laugh.  They restore my belief in the power of story.  Thank you to my friend for sharing this photo.  Thank you Mr. James and all the teachers, students and staff at this wonderful school for inspiring me with your creative spirit and hard work and for allowing me to be a part of your outstanding program.  And THANK YOU to this beautiful student for sharing my story with others and for lifting my heart on an otherwise dreary winter afternoon.

WEST VIRGINIA READING ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE

It's been ages since I've posted here.  Sorry.  Couldn't be helped.  I've been putting the finishing touches on my novel.  Yes, the copyedited version is going back in the mail tomorrow.  Whew...  It will be out next fall.
Meanwhile, I hope to see some old friends at the Greenbrier on Friday for the Authors Luncheon and also in a presentation that same day.  I'm going to share some of my favorite new books from 2012; picture books, middle grade novels, non-fiction and a few YA novels.

Come say hello if you're there!

LIBRARY UPDATE - WV LIBRARY TV

from SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL HERE
In May, I had the honor of being the featured speaker at the Awards Ceremony for this year's Letters About Literature competition in West Virginia.  The star of the show was sixth grader Darius Atefat-Peckham whose beautiful letter to poet Mark Doty moved many in the audience to tears.  Darius was a winner in the National Letters About Literature competition, as well as placing at the state level.  You can watch him read his letter here . 

"Two National winners were chosen from each of the three competition levels: Level 1 (grades 4-6), Level 2 (grades 7-8) and Level 3 (grades 9-12). National winners each designate a favorite library that he or she wishes to receive a $10,000 grant from Target. The students each receive a $500 Target GiftCard."  [quoted from the Library of Congress website ].

Darius designed the library at his school in Huntington, WV -- Meadows Elementary -- to receive the grant.


On the morning of the ceremony I was interviewed by Megan Tarbett of the West Virginia Library Commission for her program LIBRARY UPDATE.  You can view that interview HERE .

Otherwise I am holed in a quiet space finishing the final revisions to my novel!

LETTERS ABOUT LITERATURE

 Darius Atefat-Peckham
from School Library Journal websiteOn May 10, I had the pleasure of hearing 11-year-old Darius Atefat-Peckham, a sixth grader at Meadows Elementary School in Huntington, WV, read his award-winning letter to poet and writer Mark Doty.  The occasion was the awards ceremony for the 2012 Letters About Literature contest, a program sponsored by the Library of Congress and the Center for the Book.  Here's a description from the website of the West Virginia Center for the Book: Letters About Literature competition [is] a reading promotion program of the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, presented in partnership with Target. To enter, young readers write a personal letter to an author explaining how his or her work changed their view of the world or themselves. Readers can select authors from any genre—fiction or nonfiction, contemporary or classic. The program has three competition levels: upper elementary, middle school, and secondary. The contest theme encourages young readers to explore his or her personal response to a book, then express that response in a creative, original way. Darius wrote his letter after reading Doty's memoir, DOG YEARS, in which Doty wrote about adopting a dog as a companion for his dying partner.  The adopted dog, a golden retriever named Beau, joined Doty's other dog, a black retriever named Arden, and together, they became Doty's close companions as he struggled through dark and difficult days.  Darius felt a connection to the book, having lost his mother and older brother in a car crash eight years ago.  His father had bought him a Golden Retriever named Jack-Jack to help him cope with the loss.  You can read more about Darius in a SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL article here .
I hope his letter will become available somewhere.  It's astounding and incredibly moving.
In addition to the honor of being a state and national winner, Darius also receives $10,000 to go to a library or school of his choice.  Darius selected his school library at Meadows Elementary.  He hopes the money will help the library widen their selection of books.  In the SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL article, Darius is quoted as saying:
"A lot of things in the library are little kids books,"[he says.]  "I would like them to widen the selection and keep their minds open. There are a lot of beautiful literary works that they don't have, in that they're too deep or sad. And I think adults should understand that kids can handle that stuff, and they deserve to have the right to read what they want to read."
Amen, Darius.  I hope adults everywhere are listening...

 

Southern Kentucky Book Fest

In a few weeks, I'll be headed west toward Bowling Green for the Southern Kentucky Book Fest . The Festival stretches over 2 days.  Friday is Children's Day and Saturday is when the main Festival events take place. Last year I was  bowled over (sorry.  couldn't resist) by the number of students who came -- Over 1300.  Truly amazing!  What a great idea!
It was fun sharing stories about playing music . I'm looking forward to doing it again!  And to meeting Helen Frost.  I love her work and I've never had an opportunity to hear her speak.  Maybe in a few weeks . . .
Meanwhile, I'm working on the next revision of my novel.  It's always daunting work -- worrying if you're headed in the right direction, if you're making the right decisions.  Ultimately, you have to turn off that irritating voice in your head that second-guesses every choice you make.  I expect to be hitting my internal MUTE button a lot over the next several weeks.  In fact, I may even wear it out!

WRITERS' TOOLKIT

On St. Patrick's Day, I'll be leading writing workshops at the Culture Center in Charleston, along with WV State professor and filmmaker Danny Boyd, newspaper columnist and essayist Karin Fuller, and romance writer Sandy Tritt. 
The event is sponsored by the West Virginia Library Commission and the Division of Culture & History.  Click here for more info .
Join us on Saturday from 9 to 3.  Registration begins at 8.  Workshops are free and open to the public.
Also join me the evening before at the Culture Center for a keynote address where I'll be talking about the creation of my latest picture book, Passing The Music Down - based on the real life story of two West Virginia musicians -- and about the process of going from rough draft to completed book.  There's a reception afterwards.  Hope to see you there.

TURNING TOWARD SPRING

Last week I sent the revision of my middle grade novel to my editor.  As I take a breather, it's time to get ready for spring school visits and writing workshops. 
I'll be visiting schools in Washington, D.C. and Martinsburg, WV very soon. 
After that, I'll be the keynote speaker for a West Virginia Library Commission event called Writer's Toolkit on March 16-17 at the Culture Center in Charleston. Karin Fuller, Danny Boyd, and Sandy Tritt will be there too, so there will be workshops on all different genres from screenwriting to picture books!  Did I mention it's free? 
Here's more information in case you'd like to attend. 

books4yourkids.com: on Once Upon a Baby Brother

When my editor and I were finishing revisions on Once Upon a Baby Brother, the book's title was LIZZIE PRESENTS: THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF MARVIN (WITH BIG GEORGE, THE WONDER DOG). In my mind, the story was about two things - family and where stories come from. I wanted readers to realize that we all have stories to tell. I wanted to suggest that the next time somebody at home or at school does something really irritating, you should consider using that experience to create a story. That's what my character Lizzie does.

Recently, I ran across a posting in a blog called books4yourkids.com/.  This blogger was writing about Once Upon a Baby Brother and she wrote:

What Sullivan excels at in Once Upon a Baby Brother is how succinctly and expressively she writes about the joys of creativity and writing, specifically. In describing Lizzie's experiences, on her own and when Marvin is making her life difficult, Sullivan describes the writing process and even gives tips that should inspire and encourage aspiring authors.


It should come as no surprise that one of my favorite quotes comes from Nora Ephron - "It's all copy," Ephron says, quoting her mother, the screenwriter who would utter this phrase when something bad happened. All that bad stuff, the time your brother ate the last piece of birthday cake even though it was YOUR birthday and YOUR FAVORITE KIND OF CAKE and YOUR MOM PROMISED she was saving it for YOU, it's all potential story material. You can use it to create something wonderful!
Macmillan included Once Upon a Baby Brother in its "Writing Kit" for kids.  You can find that Editors' List of books about writing for kids  here .

BOOKS TO GIVE TO MIDDLE GRADE READERS- THE LONGER VERSION

Here's the longer version of my earlier post about books for gift-giving.

One of my favorite parts of holiday shopping is buying books for kids. For a couple of weeks in December, I let housework slide in order to catch up on reading.  Stricken by guilt, I often remind myself that --

-- I need to finish this book so I can decide whether to buy it for . . . .


Over the past several weeks, I've had the pleasure of reading terrific books. Here's a list of some of my favorites for middle grade readers:


A MONSTER CALLS by Patrick Ness. Inspired by an idea from Siobhan Dowd. Illustrated by Jim Kay. Older middle grade and YA- This is a riveting, heart-breaking and brave work of fiction. In the book, thirteen-year-old Conor is dealing with the final days of his mother's illness, fighting the inevitable on the surface and yet, wrestling with darker emotions underneath. At seven minutes past midnight a monster in the form of a Yew tree that has come to life appears at Conor's bedroom window. "I will tell you three stories," the monster informs the boy "and, after that, you will tell me a fourth ... and it will be the truth." Devastating in its power, this is a novel that should appeal to adults as well as upper middle grade and young adult readers. An amazing and daring work of fiction! Not to be missed.  (Candlewick)


OKAY FOR NOW by Gary Schmidt- middle grade and young adult. In the summer of 1968 Doug Swieteck's family moves from Long Island to a small town in the Catskills. Doug's father is an abusive jerk. His mother is long-suffering and supportive of her three sons, one of whom is in Viet Nam. Struggling to fit in, Doug befriends Mr. Powell who works at the local public library.  As part of his job, Mr. Powell "curates" (for lack of a better term) a book of original Audobon prints which someone has given to the library. Doug is fascinated by the artwork and soon begins taking informal art lessons from Mr. Powell.  Doug also befriends Lil, a classmate whose father owns the local deli. Soon he is working as a delivery boy for Lil's father. This job enables Doug to get to know a number of characters around town, including the slightly-eccentric playwright who lives by herself in a large house outside of town. Doug has a knack for getting her to pay her bill on time, a skill which has apparently eluded former delivery boys. Schmidt manages to weave together several subplots, all the while employing the spot-on sense of humor he demonstrated in The Wednesday Wars. Readers will root for Doug as he tries to do the right thing despite the obstacles thrown in his path each step of the way.  (Clarion)


THE APOTHECARY by Maile Meloy.  Illustrated by Ian Schoenherr -Adult readers may already know Meloy's work from her two short-story collections and two novels. Her second story collection, Both Ways Is The Only Way I Want It was one of the New York Times' Best Books of 2009. Now you can read Meloy's first foray into books for young people, a page-turning fantasy adventure set during the early days of the Cold War in England. Fourteen-year-old Janie Scott's family has just moved from Los Angeles to London in order for her television-writer parents seek to escape the threats of what will soon become black-listing in Hollywood. At her new school, Janie befriends Benjamin whose father runs the local Apothecary shop. Benjamin attends school on a scholarship for future pharmacists, but he longs to become a spy.  When Janie discovers a connection between Benjamin's father and the Russian man in the park whom Benjamin suspects is a spy, events take a sudden turn for the unexpected.  Soon Benjamin and Janie are off on an adventure beyond their wildest imagining.  Along the way, they befriend an orphan named Pip who provides life-saving assistance on more than one occasion.  A fast-paced fantasy by a wonderful writer! I especially love the cover.  (Putnam)


BREADCRUMBS by Anne Ursu - A modern-day fantasy inspired by the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale "The Snow Queen." A young girl named Hazel witnesses her classmate and best friend Jack being lured into the woods. When Jack fails to appear in school and his parents offer an implausible explanation for his absence, Hazel goes in search of him.  (Walden Pond Press)




MY NAME IS MINA by David Almond-(maybe more YA than MG). Almond's earlier novel Skellig has been on my all-time favorites list since I first read it when it was published a decade ago. This prequel to Skellig is a first person account written in the voice of Mina, the girl who befriended Michael in that earlier work. Mina is a highly-imaginative, home-schooled child who is working her way through the grief and emotional trauma caused by the her father's death some time before the novel begins. Written as a series of journal entries this book explores the disorienting side of adolescence and affirms the importance and value of individuality in the face of the institutionalizing aspects of civilized society.
(Delacorte)

THE TROUBLE WITH MAY AMELIA by Jennifer Holm- I've loved Holm's work since Our Only May Amelia and was delighted to learn she had written a sequel. May is still the brave, spunky girl of the Nasel Valley who endures the hardships of life in a logging community of the nineteenth century. Nobody does historical fiction for middle graders better than Jennifer Holm with her gift for plot and character and creating a satisfying mix of humor and dramatic arc. My only quibble is the cover. What gives? Does this look like a girl living in the 1800's?  Let's hope they change it for the paperback.  (Atheneum)


THE PENDERWICKS AT POINT MOUETTE by Jeanne Birdsall - The third installment in the series by National Book Award winner Jeanne Birdsall. Satisfying in an old-fashioned way, even though I saw the ending coming, I still loved it.  (Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers)






LIESL AND PO by Lauren Oliver. An alchemist and his apprentice, an orphan girl locked away in a cold, attic room by a cruel stepmother and a ghost named Po combine  combine to creat an eerie fantasy.  Victorian in tone and with a lively pace and satisfying plot, this fairy tale adventure is highly entertaining!  (Harper)









THE UNFORGOTTEN COAT by Frank Cottrell Boyce- Carnegie-Medal-winner Frank Cottrell Boyce says he was inspired to write this novel after hearing students at a school he visited in Netherton, England talk about a classmate who had suddenly disappeared after being removed by immigration officials in the middle of the night. Speaking with Catherine Jones for an article in The Liverpool Echo, Boyce said,

"And the kids in Bootle were really distressed her coat was still there. They knew it was a cold country she was going to, and that seems a really powerful emotional starting point for a story."

Read More http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-entertainment/echo-entertainment/2011/02/21/frank-cottrell-boyce-on-how-jackanory-and-school-memories-inspired-his-new-our-reads-story-100252-28204596/3/#ixzz1ghuMUeK3about

In writing his story, Boyce created two refugee boys from Mongolia named Chingis and Nergui. The boys appear one day as students in the Sixth Form at a school in Bootle. The older boy, Chingis picks Julie to be their "Good Guide," the person who will help them find their way in a new country. Julie is the narrator of the book which is told as a sort of lined journal with photographs. This is a magical and heartwarming novella filled with humor and poignancy which will provoke thoughts about immigration.  (Candlewick)