Enjoying creative writing's pace

 

“Thedeadlines are much, much longer with books. When I was a reporter, a lot oftimes I'd come in at 8:30 a.m., get an assignment right away, interviewsomebody, turn the story in by 9:30, and have the finished story in the paperthat landed on my desk by noon.” – Margaret Haddix
Anyone who’s ever worked injournalism – particularly on “breaking news” – knows the reporter’s daily mantra: “Write tight and write quick.”  Born on this day in 1964, Haddixstudied at Miami of Ohio before starting her writing career as a reporter in Fort Wayne, IND, and Indianapolis before switching to the creative side in the mid-1990s.
Today she’s best known for herseries’ Shadow Children and The Missing and her best-selling standalone books RunningOut of Time and The Girl With 500Middle Names.  She has authored more than 30 books and won the          International Reading Association’s Children’s Book Award for her body of work. 
As most journalists know, creativewriting is a luxury after dealing with the daily deadlines of the reportingworld.  “Generally I finish a first draftin 2-6 months, then I set it aside for a while so that when I come back to it Ican read it with fresh eyes and figure out how to improve it.   I can spend as longrevising a manuscript as I spent writing it in the first place.”

She said she prefers the ‘Creative’world.    “It's just so much fun to makeup characters, situations, and everything else about a story,” she said.  “I have so much freedom and flexibility to dowhatever I want.”

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