It’s that time of year again. No, I don’t mean NaNoWriMo. For me, November is for dance. My local dance studio, where I grew up dancing and now teach and still take class has it’s annual recital every year in November. It’s been–lets just say–awhile since my first performance. LOL!
Yeah, I started out as a Can-Can Girl. And I still remember parts of that dance and have the costume. Can you tell this stuff doesn’t mean anything to me. *grin*
Well, the recital isn’t for a couple weeks yet, but our stage rehearsal is TOMORROW!!!! And can I let you in on a little secret? I think I love rehearsal day the best. It’s exciting, yet relaxed. I get to see all the new dances for the first time. There’s an audience, but they’re my peers. And I love watching the newest dancers put it together for the first time. Watching someone discover what it’s like to dance on stage is like watching magic happen.
So, in my mind, the show starts tomorrow. And if that’s the case we should probably bless our show…
If you are a local yokel like me, tickets for the show are on sale at the studio. They sell out every year, so don’t wait. I you check out the show, you’ll get to see me and my “sisters” Bless our Show on November 18th and 19th. Lots of fun–I promise!
And because I can’t resist talking about writing, remember that 2012 is right around the corner. It won’t be long until the Apocalypsies and Class of 2k12 books hit the book shelves. And in fact, many are already making the rounds as ARC’s (Advanced Reader Copies.) I’ve had the pleasure of getting a sneak peek at many of the books and 2012 is going to put on quite a show!
What book are you looking forward to the most in 2012? (And while I appreciate the love–you can’t say TOUCHING THE SURFACE.) Although feel free to stop by Goodreads and add it to your To-Be-Read list. (((hugs)))
Yesterday kicked off another year of NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) and I’m jealous. I want in on the action. I love the group energy and the idea of vomiting words out on the page, but I have to face reality, this experience may never happen for me.
Some of the reasons have nothing to do with “writing.” I am previously committed to other endeavors that are really important to me. The dance studio where I teach and take class, has its annual recital in November. I’m passionate about dance and love this time of year. I can’t imagine taking something I really love and making it stressful. Also, my sister-in-law and her family live out of town and every other year she’s home for a Thanksgiving/Christmas Festivus in November. I can’t imagine cutting into that special time with family. And then there’s the holidays…I’m not a good elf.
Basically, November is just not an optimal time for me to write a novel. So…if NaNoWriMo was in March–would I do it? I’d be a lot more tempted, but the answer is still–probably not. Why?
Because I’m a crock pot.
And NaNoWriMo is a salad bar.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I love a good salad bar. But this is about writing, not eating. Although I’m getting hungry right now. But in the context of novels, some people (the salad bar folks) take their ingredients, throw them into a big pile and digest them later. The other group of writers (the crock pot gang) carefully think about how to put their ingredients together ahead of time, then let everything cook slowly so that things can blend together. Both dishes are tasty. Both writing styles have advantages and disadvantages. And ideally, my preference is to have a little of both–for balance.
But at the end of the day, I’m not sure I could JUST be a salad bar. Which means I’m not sure I’ll ever do NaNoWriMo. But hey–you never know. I just might get hungry enough.
OMG! I have copy edits. This is simultaneously thrilling and scary. It means that I’m one step closer to TOUCHING THE SURFACE being a “real” book, *becomes dizzy at the thought* but it’s also a little bit like learning a completely new language. Here is a little example of what my manuscript pages look like now.
It’s a little like hieroglyphics, don’t you think? Of course I was given a crash course on how I should tackle this, but in case your curious, here is what some traditional copy editing marks mean.
As you can see, the copy editor used red pencil to make his/her changes. The production editor uses a brown pencil. (In case you’re wondering what a production editor does.) And my editor uses blue to make her comments. Now get to add one more color to the mix. This is so everyone can quickly distinguish who made what mark or comment on the pages. And more importantly its an excuse to buy a brand new package of colored pencils. LOL!
I’m leaning towards the darker purple or possibly green if the purple doesn’t work. Did I mention that brand new colored pencils just make me happy? Love it!
I’m dying to hear about your experience with copy edits. I’ll take any advice you’re willing to share. If you haven’t gotten to this phase yet, I’ll do my best to answer any question you might have. And if you’re not a writer at all…you can just tell me what you’re favorite pencil color is. :o)
If you’ve seen the movie Freaky Friday, you know that its premise is about change and growth through role reversal. For my Friday Blog entry I thought it would be interesting to interview aspiring authors–writers who spend lots of time reading the interviews of published authors and dreaming of the day when they might get their book on the shelves..
Today’s Freaky Friday Interview is with the very talented by shy Heather Chriscaden Versace. Heather and I are members of my local SCBWI Shop Talk. So we’ve gotten a chance to read each other’s work, hang out in person and cause all kinds of trouble in our local Barnes & Noble. You’re going to love her, so let’s not wait another minute.
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
My name is Heather Chriscaden Versace and I am a music lover and a bookworm.You can bet that if I am not playing or teaching or listening to music, you’ll find me with my nose in a book or at the computer writing stories of my own.
Music has always played a large role in my life, and I have played many instruments, including piano, clarinet, electric bass, and double bass …and once I even played a version of Misty on the nose flute that had the audience in tears (OK, so maybe they were tears of mirth).
Music has taken me around the world -from Seattle to New York City, from Poland to Japan,and from the U.S. Ambassador’s residence in Bogotá, Colombia to Leonard Nimoy’s living room.
Music was the course of my studies in college.
I earned a Bachelor of Music Degree in Double Bass Performance from WSU, and then became the first student to earn a Masters Degree in Jazz Studies from the University of Oregon.
Since then, I have spent time as a full-time freelance jazz bassist, a full-time teacher of college music theory and ear-training, a teacher of private music lessons, and, always, a closet composer of music and stories.
Wow! You’ve seen and done so much. It’s incredible. So…what made you start to write for kids and what the heck is a nose flute? :o)
As soon as I realized that people actually wrote books (that they weren’t just placed on library shelves by fairies), I wanted to write them — don’t worry, this was when I was about six years old. Since then I was always writing one thing or another that I was convinced would be my first “novel.”
Then, in middle school, though I was still an avid reader, I started to get really serious about music, and at the same time my passion for writing dimmed because I wasn’t inspired by the writing we were required to do in school.
Since then, my life has been all about music. That is until three years ago, when this nagging urge to write a book reappeared unannounced on my doorstep. Instantly we became fast friends again.
I didn’t really choose to write for children, so much as the most compelling story that presented itself to me happened to involve a 13-year-old girl. But that being said, I do love middle grade and young adult literature. Young people that age are at such an exciting time in their lives – walking the tight rope between discovering their uniqueness and figuring out how they fit in in this crazy world.
As for the nose flute … hmmm. It looks like a hard plastic binky, really. You play it by changing the shape of your mouth the way you would if you were whistling a tune … but at the same time, you have to blow through your nose to produce the sound. It sounds a little like a slide whistle. There are some videos on youtube for those who want to see and hear it for themselves. Unfortunately, many budding nose flute careers have been derailed by the common cold : )
In fact, here is link to a video…
OMG!!!! That was more “interesting” than I’d expected. ROTFL!!! So glad you sent the link LOL!
So does your WIP have a nose flute in it? Can you tell us about it?
Haha. No, my WIP doesn’t have a nose flute in it … yet. You may be on to something there …
At any rate, my main character, Edra Edwards, does play the flute. She wants to be a great composer and is off to Camp Komeekha, a summer music camp in the Catskill mountains. Unfortunately, things don’t go as planned: she bombs her audition and is placed last in all performing groups, she is not selected to study composition with her idol, Maestro Dupree, and her beginning composition teacher seems to have it out for her.
At the same time, strange things are happening at camp. There is a warning from Tristan Bridges — a camper who supposedly fell off the top of Komeekha Falls nearly 15 years ago. It is assumed to be a hoax until a mysterious man dressed in gladiator attire is seen roaming the forest, and a student is injured while hiking the trails alone.
When Edra has a particularly bad day, she breaks the rules and heads up to the cave behind the waterfall. As she explores the cave, she finds a passageway to a beautiful meadow, but before she has time to check it out, someone grabs her from behind, and everything goes black.
The following weekend, Edra and two friends return to the cave to investigate. They don’t find the meadow, but they do find an old journal – the journal of Tristan Bridges. The journal is the first of many discoveries as the three are pulled into the mystery of Tristan Bridges and find themselves in a race to rescue him.
Ohhh sounds intriguing!!!! I can’t wait to read all of it!!! Ummmm one last question…see I can’t stop myself. What are your top five books–ya know–the ones that would make you get our the old nose flute and do a jig?
Okay, I’m going to cheat on this one because I’m a series girl and always have been. There’s just something wonderful about finding an exciting world inhabited with characters you love – and then getting to spend an entire series with them.
So here are my favorite series, some which had a great impact on me as a child, some as a teen, and some not so very long ago:
1) Madeleine L’Engle’s Wrinkle in Time series
2) C.S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia
3) Anne McCaffrey’s Harper Hall Trilogy
4) J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series
5) Suzanne Collins’s Hunger Games Trilogy
Thank you so much Heather. I’d stick around and chat a little longer but I’m heading out to get a nose flute. Shhhh don’t tell anyone. *wink* If you would like to find out more about Heather’s books and music, you can find her on Facebook. Have a great weekend. :o)
I’ve been thinking about manuscript critiques a lot lately. This might be because I’m evaluating the manuscripts of two different friends. It’s a ton of fun, but so much work. It is a time consuming process, but if you do it right, it can be as beneficial to you as it is for the person you’re helping.
Have you ever critiqued someone else’s writing?
It is scary (or at least it was for me) the first couple times I did it. I second guessed everything I commented on. Then I expended just as much energy worrying about what I had missed. I was convinced that I was an idiot who lacked the magic editorial gene. I KNEW I was doing it wrong.
What I didn’t realize is that critiquing is a lot like writing. It’s a muscle that gets stronger when it’s flexed. Or to make it easier to visualize–it’s just like running. The more you do the activity, the better you become at it. You get faster and go further. But running doesn’t just make you a better runner, as you become stronger, you become a better athlete. The benefits carry over.
So how does this translate to writing? Sometimes it’s hard to practice the things that we’re learning (about writing) in our own writing. We have so many balls up in the air at one time, some days we’re just lucky not to knock ourself unconscious trying to keep them all aloft. CLONK! When we work on someone else’s manuscript, we have the distance needed to safely practice using the tools in our bag of tricks. And the beauty of this, is that our critique partner wants the exact same skill-set we’re bringing to the table. They want fresh eyes. It’s win-win for everyone.
Now, I freely admit that over time, I’ve grown by leaps and bounds in my ability to make suggestions in a manuscript. The very fact that I’ve been through several rounds of edits with my brilliant editor, Anica Rissi of Simon Pulse, has given me the equivalent of a master class in critiquing. And I won’t lie–I’m a lot more helpful now than I ever was. Do I still have a long way to go? You betcha! But, even when I started critiquing and didn’t really know my ass from my elbow–you know what? I was still giving a good and helpful critique.
Huh?
Seriously–I was–because I cared. I read the manuscript with the same attention that I would want for my own book. I commented with praise for the things that I thought were well done. I tried to be honest in a kind way. My suggestions for improvement were not attacks. I gave a good critique because, at the core, I’m an avid reader. I might not have been able to point out the same details I know today, but I could give an honest evaluation of when I was confused and state why. I could tell you why character A made me swoon and why character B infuriated me. In the margins, I carefully logged my organic responses as a reader. And even though a question I raised, might get clarified two sentences later, the author now had a running record of my thoughts and how I processed their writing. This is valuable.
If you are a writer, you should have your work critiqued. You’ll learn a tremendous amount from the experience. You should also evaluate the writing of your peers. It is an equally powerful exercise. In the video below, Jackson Pearce gives a visual guide of how to work with a critique partner. She gives great advice.
Take it a step further if you must… There are lots of things that you can do to enhance the critique experience. There are a million blogs and books and videos that will give you wonderful advice on how to do it better. Or even how to survive a bad critique partner. *shudders*
But in my opinion, if you’re a kind and thoughtful person, the only way you can really mess up a critique, is by being too afraid to try. So get out there and throw on those scarves, hats and gloves. Pull the skirt out of your Buddy’s underwear. We are a tribe. We work together to up the quality of everyones writing. And equally as important, to ensure that no one gets picked to star in the show What Not to Wear. Team work is excellent!
What is your favorite tip for critiquing or being critiqued?
