Carolee Dean's Blog, page 27

Join Me over at Cynsations for a piece I wrote about...

Join Me over at Cynsations for a piece I wrote about the HISTORY OF VERSE NOVELS.

Here's a sneak peak:


With authors like Ellen Hopkins, Sonya Sones, and Lisa Schroeder, there has been a virtual explosion of verse novels in the past decade, but do we really understand their place in literature?

Are verse novels a YA or middle-grade fad, a new art form, or something else? Are they even really poetry? Were there verse novels before Out of the Dust won the Newbery in 1998?

In truth, verse novels have quite a long history.
Looking back just a few years, we find that before Out of the Dust there was Soda Jerk by Cynthia Rylant in 1990 and Make Lemonade by Virginia Euwer Wolff in 1993.

And if we go back just a litter further in time we find Homer (not Simpson), who lived around 850 B.C.E. – the presumed creator of "The Iliad" and "The Odyssey," two Greek epic poems. Two of the oldest surviving works of Western literature happen to be written in verse. ...

For the rest of the post head over to Cynsations

TEN DAYS AND COUNTING

It's ten days until the release of FORGET ME NOT on October 2.

Check out a preview of the GHOST TOUR which will begin Oct. 3.

And if you haven't seen the BOOK TRAILER check it out and pass on the link on Twitter and Facebook and email, etc.

EXCITING PREPARATIONS

The release of FORGET ME NOT is 17 days away (and counting).

Last week, in between working at three different high schools, attending soccer functions, arriving late at our monthly SCBWI meeting, and going to craft stores on three different occasions to find 14 t-shirts (all the same shade of neon green - at which time I discovered that an XL youth is the same size as a S adult), I met the gals who are making the jewelry for my October Ghost Tour and Bookstore Book Launch and found something exciting from UPS waiting on my doorstep...

It was the box containing my author copies of FORGET ME NOT.



Earlier in the week I was absolutey stunned when I met Sherri Erler, Shauna Mellady, and Debi Hennigen at Alamosa Books to work on the display for the book launch and saw the amazing pieces they had created. Here is Sherri showing off her many different styles of forget-me-not bracelets, necklaces, and earrings.


And here are some pieces created by Shauna and Debi. Each piece is linked to a stop on the blog tour and has symbolic significance in the book. Ravens figure prominently at Raven Valley High School and there is an allusion to Odin, the Norse god of death and poetry. He had two ravens called Hugin and Munin, also known as Observation and Memory, who travelled the world and returned to report what they saw... exactly what a writer does, by the way.

There are also allusions to Shakespeare, Dante, Poe and 2Pac, so come back October 2 when the Ghost Tour begins, right here on my blog. In the meantime, if you live in Albuquerque, mark your calendars for the book launch at Alamosa on Saturday, October 27th at 6:00pm.

See you there!

How Hiking is Like Writing

I've been doing a lot of hiking this summer, usually with my family and our boxer, Maya. On this trek through the Sandias, I started thinking about how much hiking is like writing.

1. I always start out strong.
2. About halfway through I discover the path isn't as clear as I thought.
3. I often forget it's all about the journey.

1. I always start out strong. I have my trusty Sandia Mountain Hiking Guide, my good shoes, my camelback filled with water and my trail mix, but somewhere along the way, I realize I left the trail guide in the car, the frozen water in my camelback didn't thaw as fast as I drank it which has left me sucking ice, and I've eaten all my trail mix (or else the chocolate pieces have started to melt). I always start out strong with stories too. The ideas feel fresh (like the trail mix), and I feel well equipped for the task. It's important to remember that initial enthusiasm as my motivation begins to fade. 



2. About halfway through I discover the path isn't as clear as I thought. Sometimes it's hard to know which direction to take. Either there seem to be too many choices, or else the path comes to a dead end and I have to back track. Sometimes I just need to sit quietly until I can get my head together.



3. It's all about the journey. When I'm in the middle of writing a story, or hiking a trail, it's easy to think about reaching my desination, but in the case of hiking, I always wind up at the exact same place where I started... my car...hopefully. When I'm writing a story I always wind up at the same place too... The End. Then I begin the process all over again. In both cases I need to focus more on relishing the experience than simply completing the task.

FOUR FRIENDS JEWELERS

A few weeks ago I attended a home jewelry party put on by a collaboration of women who call themselves FOUR FRIENDS. We got to talking and they are now in the process of making some very exciting giveaways for my October book launch. Pictures will be revealed soon, but in the meantime, look at some of their wonderful pieces.

I was immediately drawn to Sherri's display. Sherri, top left, is a physical therapist who works with my friend Desiree who hosted the party. I had been looking all around town for flowered beads because I wanted to make forget-me-not bracelets as giveaways for my book launch and blog tour. Then I found the lovely pewter necklace at the right.
I was so excited. I love pewter and Sherri's work was so earthy. We spent half an hour collaborating on a bracelet design and she agreed to make bracelets for my book launch. Then I thought about how fun it would be to have all of the FOUR FRIENDS at my book release party at Alamosa  Books on October 31. Forget Me Not comes out in October and ghosts figure prominently.
Sherri said I had to talk to Day of the Debi. That's their nickname for Debi (seated in the photo next to Sherri). Debi specializes in Hauntwear featuring skeletons from The Day of the Dead, but she also has some wonderful steam punk pieces. Debi and I got to talking and she's going to make some cool necklaces and maybe even something with a picture of Shakespeare, who so strongly influences one of the major characters in the story that he spends several weeks speaking in iambic pentameter.
That all lead to a conversation with Kristen who makes amazing sterling silver necklaces and earrings and is also a painter. She agreed to make hand painted journals for the blog tour giveaway. Next stop was Shauna, seated to the far right, whose work is very gothic. She's going to do something fun with raven feathers and bookmarks.
So, if you happen to be in Albuquerque, New Mexico on Halloween, stop by Alamosa Books for books and baubles and beads, Oh my!
FORGET ME NOT BOOK LAUNCHAlamosa  BooksOctober 31, 20126:00 p.m.
8810 Holly Avenue NEAlbuquerque, NM505-797-7101

FORGET ME NOT Book Trailer - Cast and Crew

I am VERY excited to announce the release of the book trailer for FORGET ME NOT. I'm trying to get 2,000 YouTube views before the book is released on October, 2, so if you like the trailer please pass on the link via Twitter or Facebook or email or whatever.Go here now to see the FORGET ME NOT BOOK TRAILER

I was lucky to have a very talented group of young people working on this project. Most of them are recent University of New Mexico Graduates. Josh Stuyvesant, second from the left, who just completed his degree in Media Arts, created the script and storyboard and basically put the whole video together. Check him out at his blog. His very talented friend, Kyle Ruggles, created the musical score, Jessica Garrett did makeup, and Jesus Ordóñez was in charge of photography.
Josh also played the part of Elijah, the boy you see running down the street and holding the forget-me-not bracelet. Haleigh Chwirka, who went to school with my oldest daughter through sixth grade, played the part of Ally. I didn't even know that Josh knew Haleigh until I arrived at the cast party at La Cumbre. Haleigh just finished her teaching degree and will be leaving soon to teach English in Thailand.
Jeremy Kinter played the Hangman, the creepy guy in the hall, and also served as production assistant. He's actually a very nice guy in spite of his role in this video. When Josh and I got together for the final stages of production, we met at one of my favorite coffee shops, the Satellite, where Jeremy happens to work as a barista.
Nate Steinberg played Davis, the football stud. He also helped with set up. He is sort of semi-famous, having played an extra in "The Social Network." His father is David Steinberg, book reviewer for the Albuquerque Journal.
These kids all did an amazing job, so if you like what you see, pass it on. BOOK TRAILER LINK

Preparing for a Book Launch: Searching for Flowers

I can't believe it's a mere 8 weeks until the release of FORGET ME NOT.


[image error]

[image error] While looking for flowers to use in the book trailer, I called the local florist to see if they had forget-me-nots. They did not, nor could they order any. I went to the craft store to see if they had plastic versions of the tiny blue plastic flower. They didn't. I finally went to Jackalope, a local nursery based on the fictitious animal that is supposedly a cross between an antelope and a jack rabbit. To my dismay I discovered that forget-me-nots were NOT in season. 

They suggested growing them from seeds. I told the helpful plant lady that I doubted my publisher would delay the release of my book to allow me time to grow flowers.
[image error] Trying to be helpful, the plant lady showed me white barcopa. It also has five petals, but it's white, not blue. I seriously considered painting the flowers, but since I've never been artistic, I put this thought aside. Just as I feared all hope was lost, I found this pretty little blue flower whose name I can't remember. It's not forget-me-nots but as long as we don't do any close up shots, I think we'll be okay.

I now have complete sympathy for those movie people who have to go around town searching for props and sets and drug stores with jukeboxes and flowers that aren't in season and whatever else the crazy author decided to put in the story.

I now also know that flowers can have stunt doubles.
There's a lot more to being an author than I ever imagined.

8 Great Ways to Get Teens to Read with You

The following is an introduction to an article I recently wrote for Simon & Schuster's Online Magazine Tips on Life and Love. To read the entire article and find the 8 tips go to Life and Love.

8 Great Ways to Get Teens to Read with You
My 15-year-old daughter and I recently took a summer road trip from New Mexico to California. How did we entertain ourselves for 24 hours on the road? Audio books. We learned Spanish from the Pimsleur program, easily downloadable to my iPhone, and got ahead on required sophomore summer reading by listening to The Grapes of Wrath .
As we traversed through the dessert I was able to point out Needles, Calif., and say, “This is where the Joads stopped to camp along the river. Imagine what it was like traveling in the back of the truck with all those people and no air conditioning.”

At the end of each chapter I would ask my daughter to give me a summary of what happened. At first all she could say was, “Uh, nothing.” It reminded me of many similar dinner conversations when I asked what had happened at school that day and got the exact same response. In her defense, I will say that a lot of pages can pass in The Grapes of Wrath without much happening. An entire chapter is devoted to a turtle crossing the road. A lot of required reading can feel this way to kids (and adults).

Much has been written about the importance of reading books with young children. We all know how important it is for them to decode words and learn vocabulary in the early years. As they mature and learn more complex tasks like comprehension, prediction, and synthesis, we often leave them to their own devices, assuming they are getting this instruction at school—but secondary teachers often don’t teach these skills as directly as we may assume. On numerous occasions I’ve asked my teenage children how the class discussion went over this book or that. Sadly, they often say there was no discussion, just a test.

As a mother, I feel like these teachers are not teaching the truly meaningful skill of how to think. As an author, I fear they are missing the point of what books are all about and how rich and life changing the reading experience can be. As a speech-language pathologist working in the public schools, I know teachers are under tremendous pressure to improve test-taking skills. Their curriculum is often dictated week by week by their department, sometimes leaving little time for meaningful class discussions which, even if attempted, may not go very far because many of the students have not read the “required” reading.

What can a parent do to help? Understanding the required reading selection is only part of the picture. We also want our kids to know how to comprehend a book’s meaning and ultimately to develop a passion for stories. Here are some suggestions I’ve found helpful...

To find the 8 tips and read the rest of the article go to Tips on Life and Love.

Books and Baubles and Beads, Oh My!

[image error] It's ten weeks and counting until the release of FORGET ME NOT. I decided to take a break from writing and blogging and book launch preparations to go to my friend Desiree's house for a home jewelry party.

[image error] I went to graduate school with Desiree and she was my clinical supervisor when I was a wannabe SLP (speech-language pathologist), but we hadn't had time to connect much recently, so I decided to stop by her place for her jewelry party, and what a treat it was. 
I made four new four friends who call themselves FOUR FRIENDS. They are four creative and inspiring local women who make jewelry and do home shows in their spare time (as if any woman has spare time).

[image error] I was immediately drawn to Sherri's display. Sherri, top left, is a physical therapist who works with Desiree. I had been looking all around town for flowered beads because I wanted to make forget-me-not bracelets as giveaways for my book launch and blog tour. Then I found the lovely pewter necklace at the right.
I was so excited. I love pewter and Sherri's work was so earthy. We spent half an hour collaborating on a bracelet design and she agreed to make bracelets for my book launch. Then I thought about how fun it would be to have the FOUR FRIENDS at my book release party at Alamosa  Books on October 31. Forget Me Not comes out in October and ghosts figure prominently.
[image error] Sherri said I had to talk to Day of the Debi. That's their nickname for Debi (seated in the photo next to Sherri). Debi specializes in Hauntwear featuring skeletons from The Day of the Dead, but she also has some wonderful steam punk pieces. Debi and I got to talking and she's going to make some cool necklaces with poetry quotes from my book.

[image error] That all lead to a conversation with Kristen who makes amazing sterling silver necklaces and earrings and is also a painter. She agreed to make hand painted journals for the blog tour giveaway. Next stop was Shauna, seated to the far right, whose work is very gothic. She's going to do something fun with ravens.
So, if you happen to be in Albuquerque, New Mexico on Halloween, stop by Alamosa Books at 7:00 p.m. for books and baubles and beads, Oh my!
[image error] FORGET ME NOT BOOK LAUNCHAlamosa  BooksOctober 31, 20127:00 p.m.-8:30 p.m.8810 Holly Avenue NEAlbuquerque, NM505-797-7101
[image error]

Chocolate Covered Cherry Smoothie

Part of leading a writer's life is finding the perfect balance between sedentary activity, exercise, and diet. Something that helps me stay on track with my diet are decadent but healthy treats, such as the Chocolate Covered Cherry Smoothie.  This protein rich drink also provides the perfect afternoon pick me up so I can work on that next chapter of the Maya book I'm writing. The Maya loved chocolate so much, they used the cacao beans as a monetary exchange.

Now that's a culture with the right priorities!

Visit the Simon and Schuster Healthy Living online magazine for the recipe.

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