Laura Langston's Blog, page 34
November 4, 2015
It’s All About the Tingle, Baby
Author Monique Polak visited Vancouver Island not long ago and I was lucky enough to hear her speak. Polak, who is also a college teacher, is the talented author of 17 books for teens, an active freelance journalist, and she’s a dynamic presenter too. The night she spoke to the Victoria Literature Roundtable, she focused on writing for teens. She shared with us how she began her journey, some of the challenges she faced, and what it takes to get to the final draft. Much of what she said reson...
October 28, 2015
My October Reads
The leaves have pretty much fallen from the trees, our apples have been harvested (and turned into crisps and pies), and later this week we set our clocks back an hour to standard time. Many people don’t like the fact that it gets darker earlier, but I don’t mind. It means it’s lighter in the morning, which makes it easier to get up. Not only that, the darker evenings are a perfect time to curl up and read a book.
Here’s what I’m reading this month:
Beside the fire: The Precious One by Maris...
October 15, 2015
More Happy News
I’m delighted to have The Art of Getting Stared At included on the White Pine list for this year’s Forest of Reading in Ontario. Established and administered by the Ontario Library Association, the program encourages children from kindergarten to grade 12 to pick up a book.
The White Pine is a teen reader’s choice award and thousands of teens in grades 9 – 12 read the books and vote for their favorites. And they have ten wonderful titles to choose from. To check out the shortlisted books, go...
October 2, 2015
The Renovations Continue
We’re still working on converting Teen Freud’s bedroom into my new office. In the process, we painted and put down a new oak floor. Team Sheltie didn’t like the noisy air gun or all the activity so I sat with the two of them in my current office while Mr. Petrol Head nearly broke his back doing the floor. That was a few weeks ago. It’s almost time to put the handles back on the door and start moving furniture.
But one half of Team Sheltie is not impressed with all the changes. Trace, our male...
September 16, 2015
It’s Nomination Season
‘Tis the season for book award nominations and The Art of Getting Stared At has garnered two this month!
The novel has been shortlisted for the inaugural Amy Mathers Teen Book Award, a national award honoring excellence in teen/young adult fiction. Only five books are chosen annually and The Art of Getting Stared At made it this year. Nominated in the same category are Blues for Zoey by Robert Paul Weston, The Bodies We Wear by Jeyn Roberts, The Gospel Truth by Caroline Pignat, and What We Hi...
September 9, 2015
Rallying for People
Normally in this space I blog about books and the writing life, and sometimes about my garden or my dogs or how the raccoons are tearing up the pond yet again. The main point of today’s blog is to share this link: https://www.canadahelps.org/en/pages/canadian-childrens-authors-and-illustrators-suppor/
Canadian children’s authors and illustrators have joined together in an effort to raise money to support Syrian refugees. Inspired by the enormously successful UK fundraising campaign organized...
September 2, 2015
My September Reads
As I write this, change is in the air. A late summer storm is knocking out power and bringing down trees, a reminder that even though it’s only the beginning of September, fall is on the way. The leaves on some of the trees are turning yellow and dropping early too. The hot, dry summer has stressed them; they don’t have the energy to hang on until the first frost. In the garden, the tomatoes are ripening at a frightening speed, the basil peaked weeks ago, and the raccoons wiped me out of figs...
August 26, 2015
Lessons in Birthing a Book
In April I wrote about how I self-published What Lainey Sees, a paranormal romance novel I’d had in the works for years.
It’s been an interesting six months. The indie book birth reminds me of childbirth, only my breasts aren’t leaking milk and I’m getting more sleep (most nights). When I was pregnant with my daughter, I was as prepared as most first-time mothers are: I’d read the books, taken the classes, listened to the advice of those who’d given birth before me. I’d made decisions on ever...
August 19, 2015
A Final Look at Filling the Well
Here’s a last look at what some writers do when they’re not at their desks, and how that time doing something completely different impacts, informs or deepens their writing.
Lena Coakley:I love swimming, and I find it really helps get me unstuck when I have writers’ block.I’m convinced that the repetitive motion is a form of meditation. For me there is nothing like it to unravel a plot knot or come up with a fresh, new idea.Lena Coakley is the author of Worlds of Ink and Shadow, coming Januar...
August 12, 2015
More Filling the Well
Taking a break from any kind of work – even writing – is an important part of renewal. This week another five authors share what they like to do in their down time and how it impacts or informs their writing.
Sylvia McNicoll:Lately I have been attending Improv classes with my 14 year-old grandson, Hunter. My acting may not be improving, but I’m collecting some very interesting characters for future reference.Sylvia McNicoll is the author of Best Friends Through Eternity (Tundra) www.sylviamcn...
