Sara's client Rachel Greer writes this post (sent our way by Liz Mills): I’ve heard other writers say that when they get a rejection letter, they post it on the wall of their office. A well-known poet I know says his walls are just plastered in them. I have never understood this; it’s one of... Continue Reading →
Before She Takes My Log In Privileges Away…
Check out this great article/interview on Lane Morris Buckman's Outside Lane blog about our very own super friend and Chinook Update editor, Women Worth Knowing: Meet Martha.Martha is also the push behind this up-at-dawn working routine that other SCBWI locals like Benjamin Watson, Kim Baker, and Jolie Stekly are now practicing. Follow them on Twitter... Continue Reading →
Mitali Perkins keynote: Risky Business #scbwiwwa
Her subtitle is "not your mother's publishing industry," and she is starting off with a poster from the movie Risky Business. Suddenly, some people in the audience begin to feel old. Mitali has just taught us how to say hello in Boston. Surprisingly, you don't throw a can of beans at someone when you say,... Continue Reading →
Jay Asher’s keynote address: How to publish a book in 12 years…or less #scbwiwwa
Jay is taking us through a time line of his publishing adventures, including, but not limited to: free fruit smoothies; the truth about men and women and what they say about foot sizes; and ill-advised laminated bookmarks featuring The ChocoBarn Cow (tagline: for Adam Kinski, life is one problem after an udder) One of his... Continue Reading →
Laini Taylor keynote: in search of street performer with an eyepatch #scbwiwwa
OK, so she's not really still looking for that.She does tell us that a turning point for her was when a famous writer read some of her early work and said, "You are the real thing. Keep writing."She stopped writing right after that.But then she went to art school and met the man she'd marry,... Continue Reading →
Do you dare to suck?
Here's some liquid courage from the one and only Maureen Johnson.
Leaving it all in the ring
If you need some inspiration to dig deeper, don't miss this blog post by Brian Hodge. Here's a tease:Tell me you haven’t been here before: You’re about to introduce a character, inject an idea, or just lay down a nice turn of phrase … and then stop. Not because it isn’t good enough, but because... Continue Reading →
Today’s inspiration: Grace Lin
Grace, who spoke at our last annual conference, really could be any day's inspiration. But here's a Blue Rose Girls post about entropy and her recent wedding: So, I've been a bit busy lately and haven't really kept up with all the posts here at the BRG as well as I should. So I am... Continue Reading →
100 things about a novel
Alexander Chee waxes poetic about the way novelists work. Here's the first few things:Sometimes music is needed.Sometimes silence.This is probably because a novel is a piece of music, like all written things, the language demanding you make a sound as you read it.Sometimes I have written them on subways, missing stops, like people do when... Continue Reading →
Jane Yolen at SCBWI
Kathy Temean published a great list of tips from Jane Yolen:Here’s the start:No exclamation points.Easy on the adverbs.Don’t let your characters float by giving them endless dialogue.Have fun.BIC – Butt in chair. HOP – Heart on Page.P not F – Passion not fashion. Write what you like.Remember your story does not have to have a... Continue Reading →