I Hatched! Giveaway, Part 2

These are my National Geographic books. Seven published, six in the pipeline. What do they have to do with I Hatched!? None of them would be published without it. Well, they’d be published. But someone else would be their author.

A National Geographic editor was featured at one of our state conferences six or seven years ago. The staff dinner (I was on staff at the time) was a relaxed affair held at a member’s home, so when I saw the editor, who seemed the quiet type, leave the buffet and take her plate into a comfy (and empty) den, and nobody else was following, I made myself take the plunge. I was a painfully shy kid, and initiating conversation with strangers still isn’t easy for me. But I was more concerned, in this case, that she feel welcome. I wasn’t even writing nonfiction, so it wasn’t like I was going to try to pump her for secret submission tips or anything. (I know. Overthinking. But yes, that ran through my mind. I was hoping if I mentioned that I only wrote fiction, she’d know she could relax around me.)

As I always do when talking with somebody I don’t know well (or at all), I turned every conversation to her. She warmed up as she answered my questions about working at nat geo – telling me about the beautiful atrium, frequent opportunities to attend talks by explorers, their amazing photo archives, etc. One topic kept leading to others, and we ended up having a long and extremely pleasant conversation. I stopped thinking of her as Ack, an editor! and came to see her as a really nice, fascinating person.

I hadn’t written I Hatched! then, but a few years later, when it was ready to submit, I thought of her. My agent sent it her way. Sadly, she’d left nat geo not long before. The current staff passed on I Hatched! BUT. They liked my writing enough to ask if I might be interested in writing a couple of books for a new series they were planning. Um, gee, let me think about it for a min–YES!
I learned a long time ago that when a new writing opportunity arises, the answer is ALWAYS yes, even when I’m not sure I know what I’m doing (which is most of the time, honestly).

So what is all this leading up to? Well, since my fellow TAs have been posting about One Thing for 2014 they’ll do more or less of to support their writing, I hope the rest of you introverts out there will vow to make a special effort to step out of your comfort zones at least once this year. Attend a writing conference and talk to people, take an on-line workshop, write an e-mail to the author of a favorite book. Making a new connection might end up leading to Big Things, writing-wise. But getting involved, expanding your relationship pool – however you do so – will definitely enrich your life and make you a more interesting person. What do you have to lose?

                                                                                                      Two introverts passing through our farm. 

Remember, there's still time to enter our contest to win an autographed copy of I Hatched! 

Good luck!

Jill Esbaum

Focusing Fifteen Minutes a Day, and a Downton Abbey Poetry Reference

Today I continue our One Thing for 2014 series, in which we talk about one thing we want to do more (or less) of this year to support our writing. I'll also provide information about a contest for young writers. And at the end of today's post, in honor of Poetry Friday, I'll share a snippet from a poem I discovered in an unusual way--via this week's episode of Downton Abbey.

My One Thing for 2014:
I could really relate to what Esther said on Monday about putting other responsibilities ahead of her writing. I've been wanting to start a new novel for awhile now, but I've allowed myself to be distracted by other responsibilities, including freelance work and finding new teaching venues. I figured I needed long blocks of time to tackle something new. Then, last September, I participated in Laurie Halse Anderson's Write Fifteen Minutes a Day (WFMAD) Challenge and I discovered something important: you can get A LOT done in 15 minutes! And often, that 15 minutes magically stretches out into 30, 40, even 90 minutes. Unfortunately, I fell back into old habits during the holidays, putting off my FUN writing (as April calls it) to focus on other things again. Unlike Esther, I've been doing plenty of writing, including drafting a work-for-hire project, crafting query letters, and revising my YA historical romance (which, I'm happy to report, recently won the YA category of the Windy City RWA 2013 Four Seasons Contest). I just wasn't working on the new idea that was calling to me.

image from doctor_bob at morguefile

So my One Thing for 2014 is to Focus Fifteen Minutes a Day (FFMAD) on my new project. I've been actually setting a timer and keeping a record of my time spent. While I did miss a day this week, I am making progress. My new mantra: Slow Progress Is Better Than No Progress. And now that I've put my goal in writing for all the world to see, I hope to be even more consistent. J

So what's your One Thing for 2014? A few of our readers have been sharing theirs via the comments and emails. Perhaps if you share your intention with us, it will help you follow-through, too.

A Contest I Learned about this Week:
This week I learned about the Listen to a Life contest, sponsored by the Legacy Project. Students ages 8-18 are invited to:

"Travel through time as you interview a grandparent or grandfriend about their life experiences – you may be surprised by what you learn! Then, submit a 300-word story to send a message around the world and into the future." 

Teachers, why not encourage your students to participate? Entry deadline is March 28, and the contest is open to residents of U.S. and Canada. For details, see their How to Enter page.

A Poem for Poetry Friday, Courtesy of Downton Abbey:
I'm a big Downton Abbey fan. I have to admit that this week's episode was a real downer. (Episode 2 of Season 4.) However, one highlight was a brief reference to a Christina Rossetti poem. If you haven't seen the episode yet, you can watch it online. About 27:40 into it, Maggie Smith, in her role as the Dowager Countess of Grantham, says the last two lines of the sonnet "Remember." Not recognizing the poem, I went in search of it, and found it on the Poetry Foundation website. You can go there to read the whole poem. I'll share only the last 6 lines here.

               from Remember
              by Christina Rossetti
          . . . 
          Yet if you should forget me for a while
                   And afterwards remember, do not grieve:
                   For if the darkness and corruption leave
                   A vestige of the thoughts that once I had,
          Better by far you should forget and smile
                   Than that you should remember and be sad.

Now it's time to check out all the other great poetry in today's Poetry Friday round-up over at Keri Recommends.

Happy Writing!

Carmela

POV: Greg Pincus' Wednesday Writing Workout & One Thing for 2014

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Howdy Campers! 

It's time for TeachingAuthors' first WWW of 2014!

Starting this year, we're cutting back a bit: we'll be featuring WWWs just once or twice a month. Why? It's our collective New Year's Resolution so each of us has more time to...W R I T E.

In fact, in our cozy TeachingAuthors's treehouse lounge this month,we're each sharing One Thing for 2014 to support our writing. Just One!  What a fine idea.

JoAnn talks about "developing fresh ideas while kneading, baking, and eating fresh bread" (yum!) while Esther plans to spend the first hour of her writing day (at least) living inside her own heroine's story--before she edits her students' work.

Me? I resolve to...wear more fun earrings--not just the default pearl studs I've worn forever.

Wait--what? A resolution about my writing?  Oy--it scares me to make a resolution about my writing.  What if I never actually do it?

But maybe I can make a teeny resolution.  Just One Thing.  Baby steps.

Okay...deep breath.  I'm going to focus on writing what's fun to write, whether it makes sense for my career or not: picture book, adult article, poem for kids or adults. 

And now...it's Wednesday--time for our guest author WWW!

In case you missed it, author Greg Pincus stopped by for a fabulous chat a few weeks ago about his debut novel, The 14 Fibs of Gregory K  and promised to come back with a writing exercise for you...and here it is!

No!!!! Anything But That!
A Prompt from a Different Perspective
Writing Prompt Thingee
by Greg Pincus

Playing with different perspectives can be a lot of fun as a writer...  but putting yourself into another person's mind can also be daunting.  One way to simplify that is to eliminate the other person and instead take the perspective of something inanimate. 

So... look around you right now. What do you see?

An apple? A pencil? A window? The floor?

morguefile.com

Whatever it is that you saw has a purpose in our world (a window can be to see through or serve as for decoration, for example) or is used by humans in some specific way or another (we walk on a floor; we eat an apple).

The writing workout is to write from the perspective of what you saw... and tell a story that will prevent a person from using "you" in the way we usually would.

For example, here's me as an apple...

morguefile.com

...who doesn't want to be eaten:

You can't see it, I know.
But a worm's just below
My glistening skin.
So when you bite in,
You won't get a crunch
But rather you'll munch
That poor worm's guts and pieces
And the gunk it releases.
Yes, I expect if you ate me
You'd expectorate me.
So please leave me be.
Go try cookies and tea.

poem © 2014 Greg Pincus. All rights reserved

morguefile.com

While this is a poem of simple couplets, the prompt can work as the way to start a  persuasive essay or as a way into perspective taking in poetry or fiction or, really, any sort of writing.  Unless, of course, the object you see is an essay and it tries to convince you NOT to write an essay. Then, well, who knows what happens?
Thank you, Greg--this sounds like fun!  I can hear my earrings talking to me now...

Readers: what object is calling you?  What is your One Thing for 2014? Fess up!

posted by April Halprin Wayland.

Of Geese and Ganders and New Year's Resolutions...

The truth is,
I don’t need to spend hours kneading dough to think of that One Thing that would make a difference in my writing life this year.
I know it and I’ve known it throughout 2013.
I must begin each day living inside my stories.

                                                          (Morgue Files, Jim Munnelly)

There’s no getting around it.  Once I’m caffeinated, and even sometimes before, all of me writes best in the day’s early hours.
Usually at my desk, in my writing room,
or on the couch,
or in my bed,
but always, at my keyboard.
That’s my M.O.
It works because I work best first thing in the morning.

This past year, IMHO, I continued to do my best work in the a.m.

I eagerly arose to dig into stories, except and alas,
they were the stories of the writers I teach and coach.
Which wasn’t all bad, because, to my delight, as my teaching and coaching plate overflowed, so did my Gratitude Journal.
In 82 lifetimes I’d never come to know the fine people with whom I've worked.
My writers allow me to give everything I’ve got.  They keep me sharp.  They make me smart.
But I was so caught up living inside their stories first, investing in their characters, their plotlines, their hopes and hearts, all in the name of telling their good stories well,
sadly my Heroine sat last in line, waiting.  

She was patient at first.

But this past year, as I wrote notes and narratives and follow-up emails for and to my writers, as I shared tools and shortcuts and hard-gained wisdom, she whimpered and whispered, then heaved heavy sighs.
She scratched at my insides, poking, pinching, finally punching come Fall.
“You promised me you’d tell MY story to the World!” she scolded.  “You can’t break your promise!”

So this year, I’m keeping it.

I’ve now spent at least the first hour of the past thirteen days living inside my Heroine’s story.
I'm re-reading first drafts, re-viewing revisions, re-visiting notes and my Writer’s Journal. 
I’m creating a GPS of sorts for my final revision - singling out Turning Points, re-weaving subplots, ordering scenes, layering plotlines, reconsidering motives, short-handing themes, summarizing the story, readying my pitch.
I’m working hard, doing everything I tell my writers to do.
And THEN I go on to live inside their stories.

What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.

 

                                                   (Morgue Files, emlyn)

I’ve even returned to an earlier writing practice I used with each of my books: falling asleep with my story on my mind so it’s there in the morning, waiting with the sun.

Here’s to new days and (hopefully) new ways!

Esther Hershenhorn

One Thing for 2014

Can you think of one thing that would make a difference in your writing life in this new year? What could you do more or less of to improve your skills, your acceptance rate, or your overall outlook? We Teaching Authors will answer that question in a new series of posts starting today.

This week, cold weather added two extra days to our holiday break. While my husband (an accomplished baker) was home to coach me, I decided I wanted to learn how to bake bread. I’d made plenty of batter breads but never attempted the yeast kind before.

You know how some projects seem daunting until you try them, and then you wonder why you waited so long? Baking bread was like that.

I followed the very helpful “Illustrated Guide to the Baking of Yeasted Bread” and the Basic Bread Recipe in The Enchanted Broccoli Forest by Mollie Katzen. With my husband looking over my shoulder, I sprinkled yeast into wrist-temperature water, beat in flour and a few extra ingredients, kneaded, punched, kneaded, shaped, and baked.

In the middle of all my kneading, I thought.

I concentrated.

I wondered.

I consciously socked away old worries and focused on future possibilities.

Keeping my hands busy allows my brain to function more freely. Almost any repetitive motion, including chopping fresh vegetables and hanging laundry outside, coaxes back-burner ideas to the forefront. After all that kneading, I felt less stressed, more energetic, and more optimistic. (I can do this! Hooray!) That result alone was worth the effort.

And at the end of the process, we got to eat warm homemade bread. Hooray and yum! Now I’m researching recipes, gluten, and different kinds of flour. I’m looking forward to developing fresh ideas while kneading, baking, and eating fresh bread. Try it! Happy New Year!

JoAnn Early Macken