If you read yesterday’s blog, you know that it was the 5th anniversary of of my father’s death. In typical fashion my family spent the day together remembering him and spending time with each other. The day before I pulled out my baby book in order to copy a picture of myself and my dad. During the search I found some really fun pictures and decided to bring the book to my mom’s house. We had lots of laughs sitting at the table looking through the pictures and the memories that went with them. While we talked, I decided to take a closer look at the things that my mom had stuffed in the pockets over the years. When I was little I was only interested in the pictures and as I got older I tended to avoid moving the fragile pages. Tucked between my first plane ticket and a post card from Mr. Doo Bee I found two letters from my father. I was 2 when he’d sent them to me, but I never knew they were in there. It was as if they had been lost in the mail for 38 years and had arrived today…
November 18, 1972
Kim,
I miss you very much. I hope you are being a very good girl for Mommy. It is very cold here where Daddy is working but I like it very much. There is a nice school here. There are many buses for children to ride on. I am going to a big church which you may remember. It is called Saint Bernard’s.
Is there snow on the ground in Beacon? There is a little here. I must go now but I would like you to keep helping Mommy and please be a good girl.
Love you Daddy
XX
Dear Daddy,
Thanks for writing to me. It warms my heart to know that you like where you are. I wish you were with me, but the next best thing is knowing that you’re happy. I’ll keep taking care of Mom and don’t worry about me…I’ll be a good girl. I had a wonderful role model to guide me. Don’t forget to write again soon. I miss you every day.
Love you~ Kimmie
XOXOXOXOXO
December 1, 1972
Hi Kim,
I hope you are being a good girl and helping Mommy. I miss you and Mommy very much. There is a lot of snow here. It seems like Santa Claus will be able to come with all his deer and bring you your Christmas presents.
Are you watching Sesame Street and Mr. Rogers? I think you are learning your A-B-C’s and numbers and becoming a big girl. I am very proud of you. You will soon be reading big books. Have you gotten any new books lately? I will see you soon.
Your Daddy,
Rich
XXXXXXXXXXXX
Dear Daddy~
I’m writing my own books now. I won’t stop until I get it right, but I think you know that already. Keep an eye on those book shelves…someday I will get to write a very very important dedication. You won’t want to miss it. By the way, Santa was great to me this year…he brought me you. I love and miss you…always.
Your Beautiful Baby~
Kimmie
XOXOXOXOXOXOX
Tags: Dad
Its become a bit of a tradition. I come home from celebrating the New Year and then, when the whole house is quiet, I sit down to write and think about my father. At 2am on New Years Day it will be five years since he died. I also think about how its been five years since I was born…
I’m not sure I would be a writer if my father hadn’t died at the age of 57. He died of an inoperable brain tumor on his optic nerve. He also died of want. Most people don’t expect someone like my dad to die of want, but its the sunny ones that are the trickiest. On the outside he was beloved by almost everyone who met him. He was a wonderful husband and father, he was a volunteer fire fighter, a coach, a counselor, a friend. He was an all-around good guy. In fact there was a two hour wait on line at his wake. The line was out the door and around the block in 20 degree weather. How does a man like that die of want and even if he had, how could I possibly know?
I know because when I watched him die, I was afraid that one day I might die of want too. I was afraid of what we both knew… that you could live your whole life being what you are without ever being who you are.
There is value in being good at what you are, but there is loneliness in never being good at who you are.
I lost so much the night my father died, but I found something too. I found the courage that he left behind. It wasn’t enough courage to take him to the places that he wanted to go, but when combined with the bit that I’d been given for myself…it has become enough. Its let me find my voice. It has allowed me to write the things that are in my heart and soul. Through my writing I say things aloud that I’d barely allowed myself to think in the past. When I write, I am who I am. I picture him standing behind me, reading over my shoulder, knowing that I will never die of want because of who he is.
I love you Daddy…
Tags: Dad
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 writers; the same 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 Friend is
Barbara (Bobbie) Wells. Bobbie is the RA for Eastern NY SCBWI. She’s wonderful and I can’t wait for you to get to know her better. As you can tell from her picture…she is a kid at heart.
Bobbie, can you tell me a little bit about yourself and how you became a children’s writer?
I always thought six the best age to be. At six I could ride my tricycle to the end of the street and back by myself, and at six I would learn to read. Six decades later, I still believe it’s the best age to be.
Color, form, texture, and words have long been a part of my life. Combined with a healthy six year old mentality, you’ve got a natural born children’s book writer. Of course dual degrees in fine arts and education, and thirty years in an elementary school classroom, doesn’t hurt.
So you’re a perpetual 6 year old. I’m about 16-17 so at least you have someone to babysit for you LOL! Having 30 years in a classroom under your belt means that you’ve seen the changes in publishing from a much different perspective. What do you like and dislike about how children’s books are evolving?
Children’s books are a reflection of our social structure, and as our society changes and evolves, so do our arts. Once upon a time children were more willing to settle down for a lyrical, soft, tale that pretty much began that way. Today’s children are accustomed to getting their information and entertainment in bytes. PBs are mostly three hundred words or less, and often deliver more of a punch line than a plot. They are far more visual than verbal. And look at the growth of graphic novels. While I bemoan the loss of the literary, I celebrate the high quality of illustrations that have evolved, almost filling in the blanks.
Subject matter, too, reflects our changing social values. PBs often deliver more of a punch line than a plot. And some of the YAs, Wow! And certainly, children’s non-fiction has come into its own. So changes, good, bad? Probably a little of both. There were wonderful writers thirty years ago, and we have wonderfully, talented authors among us today.
We’ve had the pleasure of meeting through our local SCBWI. Can you tell us a little bit about your experiences with the Eastern NY SCBWI?
Until three years ago there was no Eastern NY. Ellen Yeoman, bless her heart, was RA for all of NY except the metro area (NYC incl. Long Island and Westchester). How she managed to find the energy to handle a region that size, raise a family and get published at the same time… but she did.
Finally NY State was divided into three regions, metro, eastern and western. Eastern covers Putnam north to the Canadian border, and the counties just west of the Hudson, and east to Ct, MA, and Vermont. Ellen asked if I would be willing to serve as RA for the newly created region. So Nancy Castaldo as ARA, and I took over, and with two of us we were able to add on events in addition to the Shop Talks and annual June conference. In November of 2006 we hosted an illustrators master class. In 2007 we expanded the idea, turning the event into an alternating weekend retreat. Last year was a novel master writing class. This year 2009, we did a picture book (including illustrators) master class.
In January I will be stepping down and Nancy will assume full responsibility for this region.
Thanks so much for having been involved-we will miss having you as RA, but you must promise to keep popping into Shop Talk.
How was this year’s Picture Book Retreat? Any tips we could all benefit from?
Falling Leaves Picture Book Master Class was excellent. How often do you get to spend 25 minutes, one on one, with an editor discussing your writing? The emphasis in a master class is the writing process, yours in particular. So what I came away with really pertains to my own work, and the general information is pretty much what you would hear at any conference. It was basically an immersion weekend, and I highly recommend it to every serious writer.
Sounds like you are inspired! Since we all like a little inspiration, can you tell us your five favorite books and how they’ve influenced you?
Favorite is such a difficult word for me; it seems so final. And to pick out five books, well… So I’m going to give you five authors whose works I greatly admire, and why. In no particular order, Kate DiCamillo, Katherine Paterson, Nancy Willard, Dick King-Smith, and E.B. White.
Language is their medium, and these authors are masters at using words to paint wonderful tales. With humor and pathos, they examine the human condition, and always speak to the highest common denominator in man, love. Their works inspire children (of all ages) to never give up hope, to be all they can be.
Some very excellent choices! I know you had the lovely and talented Nancy Willard at one of our Eastern NY SCBWI Conferences. It was a treat to listen to her speak. Glad you could stop by and be a little Freaky and thank you again for all you’ve done for the Eastern NY SCBWI. Don’t forget to stop by and say hi to
Barbara on Facebook!
Great News for friend and fellow writer Jodi Moore. Her picture book WHEN A DRAGON MOVES IN has been picked up by Flashlight Press!!! I am so excited for her and hope to document a little bit of her journey to publication. You can also find Jodi Moore on Facebook. She is also JustJodi on the Verla Kay Blue Boards and from time to time, in April at the Eastern PA Poconos Mountain Retreat, you can find her in the golf bag holder!
Tags: WHEN A DRAGON MOVES IN by Jodi Moore
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 writers; the same 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…
For our post turkey festivus…we have
Mary Ann Scott. I first met Mary Ann in person at the 2008
Rutgers One-on-One Conference. We connected because both of us are
Verla Kay Blue Boarders. Another Rutgers Blue Boarder,
Lisa Mullarkey, had a fantastic get together at her house giving Mary Ann and I that first opportunity to get to know each other in person. I know you’re dying to meet her too, so lets get started.
Can you tell us how you started your journey as a Children’s Writer?
I guess my journey started like many others. I was a high school English teacher who truly loved her job and her subject. I had always wanted to write, but when you have 150 essays to grade every time you give an assignment, there is little time for your own writing. But I was also a perpetual student, and when I was expecting my second child, I quit teaching and started working on my Ph.D. full time at Purdue University. Yeah, I know. Smart, huh? When the little sprout arrived, a lot of things changed. I took time off school and parked myself in the kids’ play room with a crappy old laptop. There I sat, surrounded by Fischer-Price little people, a toddler with a huge imagination, and a baby in a bouncy seat. And like so many others before me, I decided to start with picture books. No, I never fooled myself into thinking that was the easy road, it was just where my first stories were headed. And to put it quite plainly…they sucked.
But, even from the start, I took myself seriously. This wasn’t a hobby; it was my next vocation. So I joined the SCBWI and went to my first conference. After a very gracious paid critique, I figured out that PBs were not my calling. I had actually started a YA novel several years earlier, but I was a teacher. No time to write a novel! Well, now was the time. Thus was born UNDER A BROKEN TREE, my first YA novel.
Well, I never went back to school, and my husband took a job in Pennsylvania, so there I was in a new city, a new state, starting over. But two crucial things happened that set my journey in stone—I met my friend Lee (an amazing artist) and I hooked up with a the SCBWI Eastern PA chapter and attended the Fall Philly conference. Talk about feeding your soul. I knew I was in the right place. Lee became my Beta Reader and biggest fan (aside from my husband) and the SCBWI EPA Chapter was like another home to me. Before I knew it, I was working on another novel, which earned me a scholarship to the Highlights Foundation Chautauqua Writers Workshop. And Patricia Lee Gauch changed my life. As my mentor at Chautauqua, she gave me permission to really write the way I wanted. I had always constrained myself a bit. She encouraged me to listen to the voice in my head and follow my instincts. I felt as though I had been to college for 4 years! What a phenomenal experience.
So now I have a truly awesome agent submitting BEHIND THE DARKLING VEIL while I work on my next book and organize the next Pocono Mountain Retreat.
Oh, I can picture you in that playroom…I’ve been there before. Congratulations on the scholarship! Can you tell everyone a little bit about Chautauqua? I hear it is an amazing experience.
Oh wow!
Chautauqua in itself is an amazing story—rich setting, unforgettable characters, lots of action. First, it is set in what started as a utopian community, filled with gingerbread-style houses and lovely gardens at the edge of a beautiful lake. Every evening was filled with music as the symphony or the opera or a touring rock band played in the amphitheater, the sound wafting over the whole village. The workshops with people like
Carolyn Coman,
Jerry Spinelli, and
Donna Jo Napoli made you feel like a “real” writer. And the Brown brothers kept you well-fed and laughing all week long. But the most amazing part of it all for me was my time with my mentor. Everyone is paired with an editor or a published writer who does some intensive, one-on-one work with them on their manuscript. Patti carted a bag full of books everywhere so she could share examples with us. She gave me so much and encouraged me to let go and follow my voice. We were given 2 official meetings, but Patti was so dedicated, she wanted to see me one more time before the end of the week, so there I was, up until 2:00 am, pulling at my hair while I revised an extra chapter for her to look at. I looked a little like
Don King when I was done, but I had hammered out an awesome chapter and Patti squeezed in the time to go over it with me that last day. I can honestly say, my work would not be where it is now without
Patti Lee Gauch and all the faculty at Chautauqua. So if you can work it out, GO to Chautauqua!
Chautauqua sounds amazing and I once again take off my hat and bow down to Patti and the others in the children’s writing community who pay it forward everyday.
I’d also love to here a little bit about your books and why you’re called Ghostgirl.
Ghost Girl…I grew up in in a house that was haunted by the ghost of a young Miami Indian who loved to rearrange the furniture from time to time and sit on the bed in the middle of the night. Ever since those early mystical experiences, I’ve been fascinated with ghosts and the possibilities of what happens after this life, especially if this life has been a rocky one. UNDER A BROKEN TREE is a contemporary take on some of those explorations. But I’ve always loved cemeteries, too. Not in a morbid way. For me, the stones are little stories of what used to be. Love letters to the past. So now I write my own love letters to what could have been. BEHIND THE DARKLING VEIL is a ghost story set in the 1850s amid the spiritualist movement that changed our perception of life after death forever. Indian ghosts, menacing preachers, and even a god machine are waiting for some eager young readers to drink them in. My latest work is set in the same time period, but it has a much sharper, feminist twist and I can’t wait to see where it leads me.
Your books sound fascinating and I hear you have an awesome agent who thinks so too. Can you tell us a little bit about where you are on the journey to publication?
Thanks! I took my first step into publication this month with the appearance of my article, “Abe and the Magic Lantern” in CRICKET MAGAZINE, and I’m hoping to add a book contract to that soon. No doubt, one of the things high on my list of things to be thankful for this season is my fabulous agent,
Elena Roth from the Caren Johnson Literary Agency. She has seen me through two solid rounds of revision and is now submitting my darling child to some amazing publishers. We’ve had a few very encouraging rejections so far, as ironic as that may sound—very complimentary, but not a perfect fit. Yet. Through it all, I’ve had a great mentor and a phenomenal advocate in Elana. So, while I continue to pull my hair out in anticipation as Behind the Darkling Veil makes its rounds, this Ghost Girl will keep walking through cemeteries, writing haunting YA stories, and obsessing about a shiny new contract.
I had the pleasure of having Elena at my 5-on-5 table at Rutgers this year. She was very sweet and helpful. You guys are a great match.
I also know that you’ve been very active in the Eastern PA SCBWI but have recently moved. Can you tell us a little bit about what its been like to be such an active SCBWI member for Eastern PA and what its like to have to pick-up and start over again?
Talk about a rough year! I have a whole new understanding of what it means to multi-task. And I think SCBWI is what kept me sane through it all. I joined in 2001 (when I still lived in Indiana) and a year later we relocated to PA. One of the first things I did was hook up with the SCBWI EPA crowd and go to my first Fall Philly. It really is true that you would be hard-pressed to find a more inviting and supportive crowd than kidlit writers, especially the EPA group. Never in a million years would I have imagined I could coordinate a conference, though. But with my husband starting a new job in Georgia and me staying in PA with the kids, waiting for the house to sell (which took 8 months), I was glad I had the Retreat to focus on. They always say, the more you have to do, the better you are at time management. (Well, somewhere somebody said that!) Doing the single mom thing with two kids who went through withdrawal every time Daddy came up for a visit and left again, revising a novel with my new agent, and coordinating the retreat faculty and workshops and putting up a new website…let’s just say I’m not exactly sure when I would have considered myself sane—before, during, or after all of that. To top it off, we actually moved from PA to GA exactly 5 days before I had to be at the Retreat. So I had to turn right around and fly back up to PA, which I didn’t mind one bit!
The move to Georgia has been much more challenging than our move to PA. While it is a beautiful state, we have landed in the most isolated corner of it. One chain bookstore in the mall and that’s the closest thing I have to a writing community. How would I ever survive without the internet and all my Blue Board buddies? I have met a fabulous group women, though, and we meet every Thursday night for what my husband refers to as our “stitch ‘n bitch.” For now, I am very happily continuing my work with the
Eastern PA chapter of SCBWI, but I look forward to meeting more of our
Southern Breeze friends as we get settled. Who knows? Maybe I’ll catch the whole Flannery O’Connor vibe and start writing some Southern gothic.
My hat is off to you! I’m sure you will have Georgia eating out of the palm of your hand in no time. Time to hear you top 5 books and how they’ve influenced you.
This is the toughest question of all because there are just so many books that have shaped my life, both as a writer and as a person. One of my early favorites was THE WITCH OF BLACKBIRD POND, by Elizabeth George Speare. I immediately connected to Kit and admired her spunk and sense of loyalty. She was the lone voice of reason and compassion. At that time in my life, I knew just how that felt.
I didn’t read kid lit a lot when I was in Jr. & Sr. high school, so I tended to be hooked on some heavier stuff, like George Orwell’s 1984 and most of his essays. His descriptive style blew me away and kept me thinking about the “big picture” all the time.
It was really in my adulthood that I started seriously reading YA and MG books. One book that has never lost its hold on me is Robert Cormier’s I AM THE CHEESE. I cried when I came to the end, when I truly understood the significance of the title. How desolate! And I loved his experiment with different POV’s. It still haunts me.
I’ll round out my 5 with a couple of more recent YA reads. First, THE SONG OF THE MAGDALENE by Donna Jo Napoli. Here’s a historical piece that hit me at so many levels. Her story of Mary Magdalen spoke to me as a writer, a reader, and spiritual person who is always looking for the less obvious answers.
Finally, I can’t leave out one of my all-time favorite authors—Neil Gaiman. It’s difficult to choose just one, but I’ll go with his most recent THE GRAVEYARD BOOK. Atmosphere, expert story-telling, unforgettable characters, and of course…Ghosts! I couldn’t put it down.
Thanks so much for allowing me to raid your blog and blab about my life. I hope to have some good news to share by the time we all meet at the Retreat. And happy Thanksgiving!
Love it! Thanks so much for dropping by and being Freaky. I have a feeling you won’t be an “aspiring author” for long, so I’m glad we got you in while we could. If you are interested in keeping up with Mary Ann, she has a great blog called HAUNTING THE BROKEN TREE. You can also find her on Facebook, Twitter and Livejournal.
Mary Ann, I’ll see you in April at the Pocono Mountain Retreat. If you’re interested in attending a GREAT Conference, registration begins on Tuesday December 1st. Happy Haunting Ghost Girl!
