Heather Demetrios's Blog, page 22
November 15, 2013
Friday Goodness #5
Ahoy! A proper blog post coming soon – I haven’t had time as I’ve been shivering under a pile of copyedits and thesis drafts. Until then, here’s your Friday Goodness. Sit back, relax, and set your course for Awesome.
This folk duo just came out with a new album, For Freedom, whose proceeds go to fighting human trafficking. These are great covers for a great cause (one close to my heart, since my jinni book is all about trafficking). Check them out!
Tonight I’m going to see The Book Thief and I can’t wait! I adore this book and from what I’ve heard, the movie is going to do it justice.
Re: The Book Thief
If you love the book and are going to see the movie, his Tumblr is a great companion. He talks about his experiences with the actors on set and is just an overall wonderful kinda guy.
My friend recently got into Georgetown and on her visit to the campus, she picked up some cupcakes at this famous shop. In a word: YUM. So treat yourself to a fancy cupcake in your neck of the woods today. They really do make the world a better place.
My best friend posted these shoes on my Facebook page and it’s the answer to the following question: What to get the writer who has everything? If you’re on speaking terms with Santa (he and I split years ago over a stupid tiff about reindeer rights), let him know I’d love a pair under the tree this year.
Have a great weekend, everyone! And you NaNoWriMo folks – keep on keeping on!
November 14, 2013
Friday Goodness #5
Ahoy! A proper blog post coming soon - I haven't had time as I've been shivering under a pile of copyedits and thesis drafts. Until then, here's your Friday Goodness. Sit back, relax, and set your course for Awesome.
My friend recently got into Georgetown and on her visit to the campus, she picked up some cupcakes at this famous shop. In a word: YUM. So treat yourself to a fancy cupcake in your neck of the woods today. They really do make…
November 8, 2013
Friday Goodness #4
Friday! Goodness! Is here!
Blog post goodness wasn’t here this week because I’m suffering through writing a critical thesis on top of copyedits for EXQUISITE CAPTIVE and revising my second Holt book, so, basically, there was no time to wax poetic about the various things I think on all day. Nevertheless, it’s Friday and that means I get to take a break and share some things that have kept my spirits up this week.
1. Woman Having A Dance Party In The Operating Room Before Her Double Mastectomy
My number one is definitely this story, which my friend Becky wrote about a woman (and her whole operating crew) dancing to Beyonce just before getting both her breasts removed in a double mastectomy. She is my freaking hero. People are so beautiful – I mean, I couldn’t WRITE this, it’s just so fantastic.
Look, if you haven’t read Rainbow Rowell’s new book Fangirl, I’m sorry for you because oh-my-gosh-gush-gurgle-coo-swoon LEVI.
This BuzzFeed list will make you fall in love with bookstores all over again. I know it’s so easy to just go onto Amazon and buy what you need and it’s cheaper and very efficient. But isn’t it nice to just BE in a bookstore and find something you love and buy it?
4. The Current
So, I started listening to this NPR radio station when I lived in Minneapolis (one very cold year, my friends). This is, hands down, the best radio station you will ever hear. They play everything from the Yeah, Yeah, Yeah’s to MIA to Blackalicious to Bowie. The DJ’s know their stuff and they also have guest DJ’s like Neko Case (who took over the station this week). Also, it doesn’t suddenly get all weird like a lot of indie music stations. It’s good music, all the time.
Last week I got to see ABT perform Tharp’s Bach Partita, which is one of the most beautiful dance pieces I have ever seen. Absolutely transcendent. I tried to find a video of it on YouTube, but no luck. However, I DID stumble upon Tharp’s website, which catalogues all her work and includes short video clips and photos. So for you dance aficionados out there, this is kind of a gold mine.
Have a great weekend!
November 7, 2013
Friday Goodness #4
Friday! Goodness! Is here!
Blog post goodness wasn't here this week because I'm suffering through writing a critical thesis on top of copyedits for EXQUISITE CAPTIVE and revising my second Holt book, so, basically, there was no time to wax poetic about the various things I think on all day. Nevertheless, it's Friday and that means I get to take a break and share some things that have kept my spirits up this week.
This BuzzFeed list will make you fall in love with bookstores all over again. I know it's so easy to just…
November 1, 2013
Friday Goodness #3
Happy Friday, everyone! You’re up, possibly recovering from a massive candy hangover, and are now ready to face November all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, right? Not that you need an excuse to like Friday even more, but here are five additional reasons to do a happy dance:
This is the first year I will be doing the real NaNoWriMo. I wrote SOMETHING REAL in my own version of National Novel Writing Month over Christmas and January, but this year I am plugged in and totally psyched. I’ll be working on the second book of my YA jinni trilogy, The Dark Caravan Cycle. If you’re still on the fence about NaNoWriMo, just dive in. What’s the worst that could happen – you wrote 50,000 words in a month? I’d say those are pretty good odds.
2. A Plethora of Writer’s Quotes
This is the time of year (re: NaNoWriMo) when Twitter and Facebook are bursting with inspirational quotes and fun, geeky writing memes. When you need a break from sweating out your novel, read some of them for that extra kick in the pants (or big ‘ol hug) you might need from some of literature’s best and brightest.
3. Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellan in bowler hats
If you aren’t twittering, you might not have seen the fabulous series of pictures that these two gentleman are doing all around NYC. They’re in town for their Broadway show, a combo of Pinter and Beckett, and when they’re not being brilliant on the boards, you might just see them around the city, wearing bowler hats in all manner of iconic locations.
4. SNL’s Wes Anderson spoof “The Midnight Coterie of Sinister Intruders”
If you love Wes Anderson, then this SNL segment is going to crack you up. It’s so spot on and just a bloody good time.
5. Gravity
First, you must go see this movie this weekend. Second, don’t be cheap. You need to see it in IMAX 3D. If you don’t, you’ll have to go see it again and that will be even more expensive. It is GORGEOUS filmmaking, brilliant acting (Sandra Bullock is kickass), and deeply moving. This is not hyperbole! Do yourself a favor and go see it – this is one of those movies you need to see on the big screen.
Happy weekend!
Friday Goodness
Happy Friday, everyone! You’re up, possibly recovering from a massive candy hangover, and are now ready to face November all bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, right? Not that you need an excuse to like Friday even more, but here are five additional reasons to do a happy dance:
This is the first year I will be doing the real NaNoWriMo. I wrote SOMETHING REAL in my own version of National Novel Writing Month over Christmas and January, but this year I am plugged in and totally psyched. I’ll be working on the second book of my YA jinni trilogy, The Dark Caravan Cycle. If you’re still on the fence about NaNoWriMo, just dive in. What’s the worst that could happen – you wrote 50,000 words in a month? I’d say those are pretty good odds.
2. A Plethora of Writer’s Quotes
This is the time of year (re: NaNoWriMo) when Twitter and Facebook are bursting with inspirational quotes and fun, geeky writing memes. When you need a break from sweating out your novel, read some of them for that extra kick in the pants (or big ‘ol hug) you might need from some of literature’s best and brightest.
3. Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellan in bowler hats
If you aren’t twittering, you might not have seen the fabulous series of pictures that these two gentleman are doing all around NYC. They’re in town for their Broadway show, a combo of Pinter and Beckett, and when they’re not being brilliant on the boards, you might just see them around the city, wearing bowler hats in all manner of iconic locations.
4. SNL’s Wes Anderson spoof “The Midnight Coterie of Sinister Intruders”
If you love Wes Anderson, then this SNL segment is going to crack you up. It’s so spot on and just a bloody good time.
5. Gravity
First, you must go see this movie this weekend. Second, don’t be cheap. You need to see it in IMAX 3D. If you don’t, you’ll have to go see it again and that will be even more expensive. It is GORGEOUS filmmaking, brilliant acting (Sandra Bullock is kickass), and deeply moving. This is not hyperbole! Do yourself a favor and go see it – this is one of those movies you need to see on the big screen.
Happy weekend!
October 29, 2013
My First Solo Reading!
THE ARC for SOMETHING REAL…cover reveal coming soon!
Last week, I had the opportunity to travel to Wheelock College in Boston to do a reading for SOMETHING REAL and a YA Q&A. This was my first reading on my own and the start of working to get the book out there, since it comes out in about THREE MONTHS! It wasn’t my first *official* reading, since I read an excerpt from it at the awards ceremony for the 2012 PEN New England Susan P. Bloom Discovery Award (which I, along with one other YA author, received for SOMETHING REAL, then titled Streaming). That reading was way more nerve-wracking – you try reading your debut novel in front of Lois Lowry while she is sitting in the front row. The lack of author icons notwithstanding, this was a really great opportunity to test the waters and I couldn’t have asked for a better group of readers. HUGE thanks To Gillian Devereaux, who organized the event. There were over thirty people there, most of them students or faculty at Wheelock, which is a college focused on social work and education. An entire aesthetics class attended, as well, which brought up lots of interesting questions regarding YA book covers and how to view YA in the overall literary canon.
A view from the back – look at all these people!
I admit, I was a bit nervous before I got there – you never know how many people are going to show up. What if it was just me and the janitor?! (Alas, he or she didn’t make an appearance). Well, actually, my husband came along (and took photos and was generally supportive and fabulous, as usual). I knew he would laugh at the funny parts. Worries about attendance aside, I was pleasantly surprised to see a nice-sized crowd. Most of the time was spent on the Q&A, since I find readings to be a bit awkward (this is maybe just my thing, but I’m not much of an auditory person – my very favorite writer could be up there reading from their new book and I’d have trouble focusing). I think some authors are great at reading aloud, whether or not their work seems to lend itself to that medium, but I’m not at that comfort level. I recently went to a reading where David Levithan shared some of Two Boys Kissing and he killed it. I had major reading envy. Even so, I actually enjoyed getting to spend time with the characters again and it was cool introducing them to new people – kind of like having your parents meet your boyfriend for the first time.
The Q&A was AWESOME. I have never heard such probing, insightful questions at any panel or reading I’ve attended. We pretty much covered everything I care about in regards to YA, from what makes a book YA to authorial responsibility. It was really funny to see how few people raised their hands when I asked who read YA, but then when I shouted out specific book titles (Hunger Games, The Book Thief), all the hands went up! I do think there is still a YA stigma out there, but I also think that a lot of people are still not really sure if a book is YA, children’s, or adult. I like to think everyone walked away from our time together feeling pumped to read YA (and hopefully SOMETHING REAL).
Having fun answering questions and doing an advanced copy giveaway
After the reading and fun YA trivia game with ARCs as prizes, I got to sign my very first copy of SOMETHING REAL (it was the ARC, but it still counts!). This, more than anything else, made me feel like an *real* author. The whole event was sort of like a coming out party, though I’m no debutante.
Signing ARCs! I love my readers already!
I’m really looking forward to future readings, not because I want to read my book out loud (not sure if I’ll ever think that’s fun), but because I’m really excited to engage with other readers. Maybe I should start sneaking onto panels or something. Below is the content of a handout I gave to everyone, a YA “cheat sheet” with resources on writing, YA, and a book list.
Thanks, Wheelock! I had a blast. 
Your YA Cheat Sheet
YA Primer:
The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks (e. lockhart)
Looking for Alaska (John Green)
The Sky is Everywhere (Jandy Nelson)
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian (Sherman Alexie)
The Book Thief (Markus Zusak)
The Chaos Walking Trilogy (Patrick Ness)
The Scorpio Races (Maggie Stiefvater)
Eleanor and Park (Rainbow Rowell)
Lips Touch Three Times (three short stories by Laini Taylor)
Code Name Verity (historical fiction by Elizabeth Wein)
Everyday (David Levithan)
Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist (David Levithan and Rachel Cohn)
Okay For Now (Gary Schmidt)
Feed (M.T. Anderson)
On the Jellicoe Road (Melina Marchetta)
How To Save A Life (Sara Zarr)
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (Benjamin Alire Sáenz)
Before I Fall (Lauren Oliver)
My Book of Life By Angel (novel in verse by Martine Leavitt)
Between Shades of Gray (Ruta Sepetys)
Tithe (Holly Black)
Daughter of Smoke and Bone (Laini Taylor)
Tyrell (Coe Booth)
Going Bovine (Libba Bray)
Stardust (Neil Gaiman)
Ask The Passengers (A.S. King)
Stitches (graphic novel by David Small)
Speak (Laurie Halse Anderson)
Want to Write YA? Here are some resources:
Websites / Blogs
Society for Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI):www.scbwi.org
Agent Mary Kole’s popular blog, with great craft tips: www.kidlit.com
For help writing queries: www.queryshark.blogspot.com
A YA editor’s insights: www.cherylklein.com
A place for sharing your work: www.figment.com
News, reviews, and fandom: www.foreveryoungadult.com
Agent Interviews: www.literaryrambles.com
My Fave Books on Writing & the Artist’s Life
Bird by Bird (Anne Lamott)
The Art of Fiction (John Gardner)
Story (Robert McKee)
On Writing (Stephen King)
Art and Fear (David Bayles and Ted Orland)
The Artist’s Way (Julia Cameron)
Fantasists on Fantasy (Robert H. Boyer and Kenneth J. Zahorski)
The Elements of Style (Strunk & White)
Children’s and Illustrator’s Marketplace (Writer’s Digest Books) – comes out once a year
Scholarly Books on Young Adult and Children’s Literature
The Pleasures of Children’s Literature (Nodelman / Reimer)
Keywords for Children’s Literature (ed. Nel / Paul)
Writing Workshops, Classes, Etc.
SCBWI offers workshops and hosts two huge conferences each year
VCFA (Vermont College of Fine Arts) MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults: www.vcfa.edu
Gotham Writers Workshop (has online classes): www.writingclasses.com
NaNoWriMo: National Novel Writing Month (November): www.nanowrimo.org
October 25, 2013
Friday Goodness
Happy Friday, camerados! I didn’t get a chance for a proper blog this week, so this is all you get. I know, it’s painful and makes you question the meaning of life, but there you have it. An update: last week I mentioned Humans of New York being on sale as part of my Friday Goodness – I am happy to report that it is #1 on the NY Times Bestseller list. Woot, woot and bravo Brandon Stanton! It makes me happy that so many people also recognize the beauty of humanity. It seems like, well duh, but humanity can be a drag sometimes. So, without further ado:
1. The Students at Wheelock College
This past Wednesday I was invited to do a reading of my debut novel SOMETHING REAL at Wheelock and have a Q&A about YA afterwards. It was AWESOME. More on the whole experience later, but I just wanted to shout out these incredible students. I have never heard such thoughtful questions in any Q&A I’ve been to and I was really impressed by their curiosity and passion for such a wide range of things. Also, a whole aesthetics class came, which was pretty cool – not just that the whole class came, but that they have a class on aesthetics. Big love to everyone who came out!
So, I didn’t really start watching TV until I graduated college and Netflix finally got its claws in me. Since then, I’ve watched way more than I’d like to admit. Recently, one of my favorite things to do has been to watch shows that were either on when I was a teenager or shows that feel specifically YA. I’ve already given up on The Vampire Diaries, but I am happy to report that Freaks and Geeks is great fun. Not only are there some really honest portrayals of teen life, but the acting is good and I’m invested in the characters. Plus, it’s funny.
3. Roar /Katy Perry
I was going to attach a video to this, but it was, um, not to my aesthetic taste, so instead I recommend checking this out on Spotify. Although, let’s be honest, put any pop station on for two seconds and you’ll hear it. I can’t help it – I like this song! I’m a sucker for anthem/girl power songs. They’re so YA and they make you want to break up with your boyfriend and then immediately take over the world. Side note: not gonna lie, I kinda like Miley’s “Wrecking Ball” song, too. Look, my favorite band is Radiohead and usually I have excellent taste in music but it’s Friday and I can listen to shitty pop if I want to.
4. Robin Wasserman’s essay on Stephen King
So, every week The Atlantic has a cool essay where writers discuss their favorite passages. I blogged about Sherman Alexie’s last week, but today I suggest reading YA novelist Robin Wasserman’s essay on how influential Stephen King was to her as a teen and now as a writer. I had the opportunity to hear her read from her new book and talk about King a bit – she’s one cool lady. This is just an excellent essay, both rhetorically and thematically. She’s got lots of great stuff to say about the nature of adolescence, the power of horror, and why Stephen King writes teens so well.
I went to dinner last week with a friend of mine from Ireland and she was amazed by our country’s obsession with pumpkins, especially this time of year. Well, our obsession just got better: pumpkin M&M’s, yo! Enough said.
October 18, 2013
Friday Goodness
So I’m starting this new thing called “Friday Goodness,” which is basically a compilation of things from the week that made me do a jig – or at least one in my head. Also, I like turning adjectives into nouns, hence “goodness.”
1. The Humans of New York book is on shelves now!
I’m sure many of you are aware of the amazing meme that’s been exploding on the Internet, but the book is even better. The photos are gorgeous and they just make you feel goddamn proud to be human. Get it for instant smiles and happy tears and then buy one for everyone you love.
I finally have time to read this! If you haven’t checked out Maggie Stiefvater’s second book in the Raven Boys cycle, then do so ASAP. Gorgeous writing, as usual, and a thoroughly unique fantasy.
3. The National Book Award Finalists
A big shout-out to VCFA faculty member, Kathi Appelt, who made the cut! So proud of my school. Basically, VCFA brings sexy back Every. Day.
4. Lady Gaga and the Muppets’ Thanksgiving Day Special
I loved her last special and this one proves to be even more fun. I’m gaga for Gaga and I won’t pretend otherwise.
5.
Sometimes, you’re just glad you found out that somebody exists. It’s very creepy to watch a movie (The Host) and feel like a character from your book was cast in that movie. Max, you’d be a perfect Josh. (Nobody knows who this character is yet, but this time next year, he’ll be making the rounds).
Well, that’s it for this Friday – happy weekend, everyone!
October 17, 2013
Entering Our Prisons: Writing the Hard Stuff
I wasn’t really sure what I was going to write for today’s post, but when I read Sherman Alexie’s piece in The Atlantic, it sparked an idea. Well, it’s his idea and I’m going to riff off of it. You can read the whole Sherman Alexie piece here, but this is the section that really stuck with me since it’s so universally applicable.
“The line also it [sic] calls to mind the way we tend to revisit our prisons. And we always go back. This is not only true for reservation Indians, of course. I have white friends who grew up very comfortably, but who hate their families, and yet they go back everything [sic] thanksgiving and Christmas. Every year, they’re ruined until February. I’m always telling them, “You know, you don’t have to go. You can come to my house.” Why are they addicted to being demeaned and devalued by the people who are supposed to love them? So you can see the broader applicability: I’m in the suburb of my mind. I’m in the farm town of my mind. I’m in the childhood bedroom of my mind.
I think every writer stands in the doorway of their prison. Half in, half out. The very act of storytelling is a return to the prison of what torments us and keeps us captive, and writers are repeat offenders. You go through this whole journey with your prison, revisiting it in your mind. Hopefully, you get to a point when you realize there was beauty in your prison, too. Maybe, when you get to that point, “I’m on the reservation of my mind” can also be a beautiful thing. It’s on the res, after all, where I learned to tell stories…So there is power in this. I get to pick and choose what the prison means to me, float in between the prison bars, return in my mind when and how I want to. We’re all cursed to haunt and revisit the people and places that confine us. But when you can pick and choose the terms of that confinement, you, and not your prison, hold the power.”
I was really moved by the line “I think every writer stands in the doorway of their prison. Half in, half out.” This feels so true to me. Lately I’ve been noticing that all my new ideas have to do with containment. Either society is boxing in my characters or their bodies are setting limits that seem downright oppressive or their personal demons, their pasts, are keeping them from free ranging in their futures. And looking back at all of my current work, these same ideas are present. I also keep hitting on slavery as a theme. My jinni trilogy is all about jinn being trafficked or forced into serfdom and a new idea I’ve been kicking around deals with my characters being bought and sold, as well. Clearly, I have an obsession. So what’s the deal?
I think it must have to do with my own “prison.” It’s interesting to look at the topics I fixate on and the situations I put my characters through in light of my own memories and perception of my past–and being able to claim that prison without fear of judgement because, as Alexie says, “I get to pick and choose what the prison means to me.” What’s funny is that I didn’t realize how much my prison was influencing me. All along, I’ve been straddling the divide between past and present, prison and freedom. I suppose I’ve had some awareness of the common threads in all my work; I write YA because being a teen was such a confusing, formative, and insane time in my life and I want my books to be a safe harbor for teens as they try to navigate their own adolescence. But I didn’t realize just how much I was returning again and again to my own personal prison or that I wanted, needed, to be there. I like that Alexie challenges us to rest in that place, in fact suggests that it’s downright necessary. It’s a gift to be able to return to your prison by choice, always with the key to get out, but with an eye on the bars and why they’re there and what they keep us from. Writing the hard stuff necessitates sacrifice and commitment on the part of the writer–you need to willingly place your comfort on the alter of the work, an offering of the heart to the jealous god of story. Only then will you really be able to pierce the emotional core of your characters and discover the heart of your story. The places you shy away from exploring could be the dark corners of your prison, as seen through the eyes of your characters. To do your job–to shed light on those areas–the writer needs to plunge into that difficult space and stay there (but always with one foot out, so as to remain sane and healthy).
I’m not exactly sure how this idea of the prison is going to affect my work, but it goes a long way toward helping me articulate it for others (why I write what I write, etc.) and affirms the choices I have made for the stories I need to tell. I think some of the most powerful stories are ones in which the protagonist recognizes their prison and is able to escape it, on their own terms and with their dignity intact or restored. When the writer revisits that painful place and brings back a boon for the rest of us, it is not only the beginning of wisdom, it’s a generous and beautiful act of courage.
Here’s to breaking through bars and holding the keys in our pockets.
