{fiction, instead of lies}

This past weekend (MANY days ago – sorry!), SF Chronicle Staff Writer Reyhan Harmanci reviewed YA novel Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist. Harmanci is a reviewer I like, because she’s never mean, but she’s straightforward, and calls it like she sees it. Of Nick and Nora, Harmanci says that the dialogue isn’t exactly realistic, and “can appear to be written for and by pretentious adults.”

Hm. I wonder if that’s a product of a.) really hep-cat authors or b.) the sort of crossover thing that’s going on between certain types of YA novels and children’s novels written for adult readers. I know MotherReader has talked about it happening with picture books… does it happen in YA? With some novels, there’s this insistent sort of …über-hipness that makes me feel… uncool when I read them. The chapter I read of Special Topics in Calamity Physics made me feel like that too (but there it was also rampant comma abuse and multiple insect names as well). Now, when I read YA novels, I usually like the feeling of “Oh, that happened to me too,” and I like to impart that feeling to my readers. So, I’m thinking? Maybe I have some sort of a suburban experience, and the hep-cat novelists grew up Urban Cool. Because some YA books still feel sort of ..Unassailable to me. Of course, that doesn’t mean they aren’t good, and I will read Nick & Nora at some point. Just… still. Weird feeling. Discussion?

And speaking of dialogue: As I’ve been editing, I’ve had to do some fairly major surgery. One of the …victims of my edit was this brilliant — or so I imagined — conversation between my two principal characters that included Gumby, Woodstock, and other strange couplings from fiction. I edited the entire novel three times without removing it. This time, it got the axe. (Or, “The chair! The chair!” which suddenly comes to mind from the movie Shrek.) For a lot of reasons, but mostly because I think the Keyboard Strokes of Authordom were far too visible, the scene had to go. Now that I am …finished editing, (until my agent and editor get together to sharpen their claws) I can speak from the oh-so-great vantage point of having completed a major novel overhaul. So, here is my first Novel Lesson for you:

When you love something… give it the axe. See if the novel survives. If it does, you probably didn’t need your too-clever-by-half little scene. This goes for characters, too. I loved a pair of sisters – Persephone and Halcyon – and I completely wiped out Halcyon, even her single-sentence mention because it was just too …twee.

I still think sisters named Persephone and Halcyon operating a vegan coffee shop are hilarious. Maybe they’ll resurface someday. But until then, it’s enough that they exist in my imagination.

Ladies and Gentleman, mark this hour: The edit, she is finito.

And may I just say, it is a far, far better thing than I have done… than… something.

(Yes, I majored in English. Can you tell?) I tell you, it’s really scary when you finish an edit and you can tell how much better your final copy is than your previous four or five versions. But that’s what has happened. And, barring any unforeseen entanglement, like the Mailbox Store disappearing into a parallel dimensional vortex between now and tomorrow morning at Eight A.M., it’s outta here. She shoots, she scores!

Okay. Sports analogies. You know it’s time for this non-jock to faceplant somewhere.
Thanks for listening to all of my rants and whining, people. Promise I’ll do the same for you.

Assistant Professor of Writing for Children
University of British Columbia

The Department of Theatre, Film, and Creative Writing at the University of British Columbia invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Writing for Children effective 01 July 2007. An MFA or related graduate degree, or an MA or PhD with a major component in Creative Writing, is essential. The candidate should have a record of successful teaching in Creative Writing, and a significant publication record including no less than three books for children. Applicants should demonstrate a genuine interest in a wide variety of writing styles and techniques in order to deal with the diversity of work from students at the graduate and undergraduate levels in the Creative Writing Program at UBC. Publication or production credits in a second (adult) genre are required.

The successful candidate will teach workshops and classes in writing for children, and an introductory-level Creative Writing course or lecture. The successful candidate will be responsible for maintaining Creative Writing’s commitment, including thesis supervision, to the interdisciplinary Masters of Arts in Children’s Literature Program (MACL), which is offered jointly by the Department of Theatre, Film, and Creative Writing, the English Department, Language and Literacy Education (Faculty of Education) Department, and the School of Library, Archival, & Information Studies (SLAIS). This program gives the students involved a multi-disciplinary perspective on the full literary life cycle: the genesis of the work (Creative Writing), its critical analysis (English), and pedagogical approaches to literature in its interaction with children in schools (LLED), homes and libraries (SLAIS). Please consult the Creative Writing Program website www.creativewriting.ubc.ca for details about this program.

The Department of Theatre, Film and Creative Writing at UBC is unique in Canada, with 24 full-time faculty and numerous part-time faculty and guest artists. Each of the Programs has a national and international reputation for excellence, strong undergraduate and graduate degrees, and is a significant centre for creation and production. Opportunities for multi-disciplinary collaboration are abundant, both within the Department and with scholars and artists across the campus.

The University of British Columbia hires on the basis of merit and is committed to employment equity. We encourage all qualified candidates to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority. The position is subject to budgetary approval and salary will be commensurate with qualifications and experience. Applications should include a C.V., a published example of their work, and letters of reference from three referees (under separate cover). Application materials should be received no later than 15 December 2006 and should be addressed to:

Chair, Search Committee for Writing for Children
Department of Theatre, Film, and Creative Writing
The University of British Columbia
6354 Crescent Road
Vancouver, BC, Canada V6T 1Z2.

Siiiiiiigh.

…and I feel fine.

Really.

Counting down to the end of this edifying, soul-strengthening, mind-clarifying edit (Maybe if I don’t call it bad names, it’ll get easier?), I am going to totally scam off of Jen Robinson and list a list of things I wish I had time to read. No, no, don’t think it’ll be full of wise books and fun titles like she has. No, mine is just a wee bit more …basic. To begin:

* Five days worth of newspapers. Five. When a moment with the press has been mistaken for a sacrament in this little house! Five.

* A stack of catalogues from Coldwater Creek, my guilty-pleasure, fantasy wish-I-was-as-well-or-as-adult-ly-dressed browsing catalog.

* Two chunky adult books: Julie & Julia, which I’ve had to postpone, since my novel is somewhat food-esque (Julia Child appears as a patron saint) and Linda Ellerbee’s Take Big Bites, which is a shame, since I’ve loved Ellerbee since she did that weekly news wrap-ups way back when, and I learned to say in suave, worldly (and gravelly) tones, “And so it goes.”

* An enticingly thick tome called The Battle of the Sexes in Science Fiction by one Justine Larbalestier, which was her DOCTORAL thesis, and I’ve been dying to get into it, since I actually love old science fiction, and an exploration of women and feminism in its development would be great fun to read. If I had the time. (Edit: Apologies to Justine, who informed me sweetly that it was NOT her Master’s thesis, as I had said earlier, and trust me, I do know that between a PhD Dissertation, and a Master’s Thesis: they’re many years of work and agony different!!) (and how cool is it that one of my current YA idols has read this post?)

* A stack of library books, one of which is The Penderwicks, which I’m halfway through, The Star of Kazan, which I’ve somehow started without finishing the first, plus there’s Dairy Queen, Horn Dawgs and Sex Kittens Fall in Love, and Anatopsis sitting on the floor next to my bed.

* And let’s not get into unfinished manuscripts, things I launched into before this edit. And trying to follow the online novel AF mentioned. And the knitting projects I was trying to do to — ha hah! — unwind.

As my mother always says, “As long as you owe me, I’ll never be broke.” As long as I have ten million projects left unfinished, I guess I’ll never be bored. But good grief! I’d like to finish …something. Perhaps beginning with this … soul-fulfilling edit…

In scanning the newspapers before ruefully setting them aside, I noted that there have been reportedly fewer attempts to ban books in the past year than before (Not that that South Florida or that L.A. area school board have gotten the memo). Of course, that may be because people who like to legislate morality have found another angle…after all, the the separation of church and state is a lie, and not Constitutional… sigh. Maybe I’d better go back to the quiet, insular world of editing… and when I finish, I can look forward to going back to the classics and “reading like a writer.” This New York Times review promises to help me start. I have my doubts.

Via Greenlake Library Blog, I found that Publishers Weekly has a great interview with the ever-hip Scott Westerfeld about the use of the apocalyptic in his novels. I really love the title to his upcoming novel The Last Days , not to mention its gorgeously surreal cover. There’s nothing like the wee yellow eyes to alert one to the fact that the people you’re dealing with…? Are just not like you. They have… special powers. Or else some major health issues…

I hope you all enjoy your well-earned rest during Labor Day like I’m going to.

Cheers! Hang in there, people… the weekend draweth nigh.

…and I feel fine.

Really.

Counting down to the end of this edifying, soul-strengthening, mind-clarifying edit (Maybe if I don’t call it bad names, it’ll get easier?), I am going to totally scam off of Jen Robinson and list a list of things I wish I had time to read. No, no, don’t think it’ll be full of wise books and fun titles like she has. No, mine is just a wee bit more …basic. To begin:

* Five days worth of newspapers. Five. When a moment with the press has been mistaken for a sacrament in this little house! Five.

* A stack of catalogues from Coldwater Creek, my guilty-pleasure, fantasy wish-I-was-as-well-or-as-adult-ly-dressed browsing catalog.

* Two chunky adult books: Julie & Julia, which I’ve had to postpone, since my novel is somewhat food-esque (Julia Child appears as a patron saint) and Linda Ellerbee’s Take Big Bites, which is a shame, since I’ve loved Ellerbee since she did that weekly news wrap-ups way back when, and I learned to say in suave, worldly (and gravelly) tones, “And so it goes.”

* An enticingly thick tome called The Battle of the Sexes in Science Fiction by one Justine Larbalestier, which was her DOCTORAL thesis, and I’ve been dying to get into it, since I actually love old science fiction, and an exploration of women and feminism in its development would be great fun to read. If I had the time. (Edit: Apologies to Justine, who informed me sweetly that it was NOT her Master’s thesis, as I had said earlier, and trust me, I do know that between a PhD Dissertation, and a Master’s Thesis: they’re many years of work and agony different!!) (and how cool is it that one of my current YA idols has read this post?)

* A stack of library books, one of which is The Penderwicks, which I’m halfway through, The Star of Kazan, which I’ve somehow started without finishing the first, plus there’s Dairy Queen, Horn Dawgs and Sex Kittens Fall in Love, and Anatopsis sitting on the floor next to my bed.

* And let’s not get into unfinished manuscripts, things I launched into before this edit. And trying to follow the online novel AF mentioned. And the knitting projects I was trying to do to — ha hah! — unwind.

As my mother always says, “As long as you owe me, I’ll never be broke.” As long as I have ten million projects left unfinished, I guess I’ll never be bored. But good grief! I’d like to finish …something. Perhaps beginning with this … soul-fulfilling edit…

In scanning the newspapers before ruefully setting them aside, I noted that there have been reportedly fewer attempts to ban books in the past year than before (Not that that South Florida or that L.A. area school board have gotten the memo). Of course, that may be because people who like to legislate morality have found another angle…after all, the the separation of church and state is a lie, and not Constitutional… sigh. Maybe I’d better go back to the quiet, insular world of editing… and when I finish, I can look forward to going back to the classics and “reading like a writer.” This New York Times review promises to help me start. I have my doubts.

Via Greenlake Library Blog, I found that Publishers Weekly has a great interview with the ever-hip Scott Westerfeld about the use of the apocalyptic in his novels. I really love the title to his upcoming novel The Last Days , not to mention its gorgeously surreal cover. There’s nothing like the wee yellow eyes to alert one to the fact that the people you’re dealing with…? Are just not like you. They have… special powers. Or else some major health issues…

I hope you all enjoy your well-earned rest during Labor Day like I’m going to.

Cheers! Hang in there, people… the weekend draweth nigh.

As always, when I come away from an alumnae brunch, I feel grateful to know so many bright people, and a little envious of how great everyone looks and how positive everyone sounds about what they’re doing and where they’re going. This time we celebrated MeiMei‘s scriptwriting promotion at OLTL and ABC, and then WriteGrrrl told us about the television pilot she’s writing with friends, IGG introduced us to her new little one, and Seren and Pari told us about doing The Artist’s Way, and how that’s been for them.

And all the while I’m thinking to myself how lucky we all are — even as we piss and moan about editing (yeah, yeah, I know I should be doing that right now) and complete laziness, and unlearning some of what we ingested in grad school, and being tired and taking home work on weekends, and not taking time to rest… even now, as we’re all on the bumpy part of our roads to success, we are all so lucky because we are doing what we want to do. Even as it hurts. Even as we have to throw out 684,456 pages of our last novel because we figure out they’re pure crappola right before our editor does; even as we carve out forty minutes a day to read something — anything — while we’re on the exercise bike we’ve been using as a clotheshanger; even as we’re coming home from work and putting the baby down for a nap, and trying to steal thirty minutes to write something that isn’t a grocery list… we are lucky, lucky, lucky, lucky.

And I will try to remember this.

Because, truthfully? Sometimes all I think of writing is that it’s a pain. Via Jen Robinson’s Book Page I found a funny, realistic post from Fred Charles’ site which tells The Truth About Writing. And it is true! Although writing is not really a hard job, per se, it really is a pain at times. But again, it’s a good pain… because this is the gamble I chose for right now. And as Seren said yesterday, “…it 100% for sure won’t happen if you don’t try.” And so I give a roll of the dice with nothing to lose… and keep on writing…

Ooh! The newest Edge of the Forest is up. In the YA section, new novels The Rules of Survival, by Nancy Werlin, Dial Books (to be released next month), Fringe Girl, by Valerie Frankel, NAL Trade, and Out of Patience, by Brian Meehl, Delacorte Press, are reviewed, and there’s more interesting stuff from other children’s lit writers in the blogosphere. Check it out.

…should give you some indication
of how the edit is going.

One more week…

Okay, everyone loves the Fonz, so I won’t say anything too snarky: This morning on the Today show, Henry Winkler talked about his newest… kid book… My Dog’s a Scardey-Cat (Grosset & Dunlap, $13.99), title #10 of his Hank Zipzer (the World’s Best Underachiever) YA series.
Not a word about “jumping the shark,” people. Not a word.

You all see how much I adore you? I actually watched the video and had to stare at the oddly deflated Al Roker on the MSNBC website for several minutes, just so I could tell you who the nominees are for the Quills this year in young people’s literature. (Actually, I couldn’t figure out where the Nominees were, thus scalding my eyeballs with the vision. That won’t happen again soon, I can tell you.)

Without further ado, the Nominees in the Children’s Chapter Book/Middle Grade Category are…
Carl Hiaasen’s Flush
Cornelia Funke’s Inkspell, which is currently sitting on my nightstand;
Kate DiCamillo’s The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane,
Lemony Snicket’s The Penultimate Peril (which is just such a cool title),
and Ptolemy’s Gate, by Jonathan Stroud.

In the category of Young Adult/Teen, the Nominees Are…
The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak, which I think might win;
Dairy Queen by Catherine Gilbert Murdock, (also on my bedside table);
Christopher Paolini’s Eldest, which didn’t impress me as much as it did the rest of humanity, apparently,
Gabrille Zevin’s Elsewhere,
and Bay Area local Frank Portman’s King Dork, which I can’t wait to read

Authors at a black tie event, gaining the long sought-after celebrity once selfishly guarded by mere movie stars. It’s all about you, writers.
Right? Right!
Uh-huh.

Got a funny email from our erstwhile classmate, J.R., who reports that she’s practically gone into debt at the bookstore this last month. High on her list of things to go into debt over next month is newbie Special Topics in Calamity Physics, by Marisha Pessl.

Pessl, just twenty-seven, has had her own cross to bear. Bookslut last March made mention that she is one of several new authors who have been outed as just ‘pretty faces,’ that create a buzz that has little or nothing to do with their work, but has everything to do with their huge advances and media attention. (Pessl incidentally also lists ‘model,’ ‘dancer’ and ‘actress’ on her CV .) The fact that nowadays sex sells, even in publishing had a lot of bloggers – justifiably – growling. It could be that Pessl’s comparisons as a ‘wunderkind’ with Dave Eggers will do her good — or not, but these days, it does make you wonder, just a little, exactly what is creating such hugely money-driven opportunities for certain writers. Is it really just their talent? The NY Times says yes, looking toward the fact that after two weeks on the market, the book is in its fifth printing.

Because of the buzz? Because of Pessl’s talent in writing? Is this really a YA novel, or …what? The description in various industry rags of Special Topics being “Nabokovian” and “Hitchcokian” make me “Chundernauseam,” but that just may be my snark speakin’. Click on the link and read the excerpt… I’d be very interested in your opinion.

Via Jen Robinson’s Book Page, I found a nifty article in the Philadelphia Inquirer about how more and more adults are looking to YA books as good reading. Of course, the unfortunate tagline is that “Harry Potter changed the rules,” but we have to give ol’ Harry his props — the novel did much for allowing adults to see that what is marketed toward their children is solidly written, entertaining, satisfying and thought-provoking. I think the level of sophistication found in YA literature is helping bridge age-gaps in other ways as well. After reading something challenging, who can say that the average 11-18 year old is limited, bored, boring or listless ever again? And after reading a great YA novel, don’t you have the urge to thrust it into the hands of the nearest young reader and say, “Oh, you’ve got to read this!”

Ah, the power of great literature.