Show Me the Love

When I hop in my time machine and journey back to my YA years for material to pop into my writing, there is one word that flashes in neon above my head.

LOVE – LOVE – LOVE.

Ah, the many faces of love in those chaotic days of high school never disappoint in making our stories ring with truth.

FIRST LOVE: Sweet, delicate, and completely uninformed.

UNATTAINABLE LOVE: Aiming higher than your social sphere.

POWER PLAY LOVE: Dating the right person for social advancement.

TRUE LOVE: Shut up Mom, it is possible to find your soul mate in high school.

CONVENIENT LOVE:  Sticking together for social events especially in senior year.

FORBIDDEN LOVE: Your best friend’s boyfriend.

ON AGAIN – OFF AGAIN LOVE:  You’re my boyfriend THIS week. 

SLOPPY SECONDS LOVE: Next…

MY PARENTS DON’T WANT ME TO DATE YOU LOVE:  Rebellion.

SEXUAL-TENSION LOVE:  Combusting hormones blot out all logical brain function.

OMG LOVE: When you give a so-called “friend” a second look and voila…

Which face of love fits your favorite characters?   What new faces would you add to the list?

Shine

It’s conference week in the 5^th grade trenches.  Today I asked my students to list three things in the following categories to share with their parents during our meeting.

I shine at…

I need to improve in…

As my student’s were listing their positive attributes with no qualms about bragging, I realized that as writers we tend to dwell on the areas in our work that need improvement rather than celebrate our strengths.

So for today, let’s share the shine.  I’ll go first.

I shine at dialogue.  (That BA in acting finally paid off.)

I shine at settings.  (That MFA in design finally paid off.)

I shine at humor. (My irreverence and smart-alecky mouth finally paid off.)

Now blind me with your shine. 

View From the 5th Grade Trenches - February 2011 - Meeting Mark Hamill

A long time ago in a galaxy not so very far away, my boyfriend, dragged me to what I thought was going to be a stupid war movie.  By night's end I was bombing the Death Star with Luke Skywalker, using the imaginary firing button on the armrest of my seat.  I was smitten.  The boyfriend didn’t like STAR WARS, A NEW HOPE.  I dumped him.

Since that day I have dreamed of meeting Luke Skywalker, and last Thursday my wish came true.  The amazing Mark Hamill came to our school and spent time with our 5^th and 6^th grade students.  He answered what seemed like a thousand questions with generosity, humor, and graciousness.  The man is a genuine Jedi through and through.

Mark was a wonderful inspiration to the kids.  He told them to follow their hearts and they can achieve anything in this world.  Here here, Mark Hamill.

Here are a few wide-eyed revelations from the 5^th grade trenches about our awesome guest:

He does so many amazing different voices.  Robyn

He loves video games and is the voice on some of our favorites.  Jerry and Fernanda

He came from a big family that moved around a lot.  Lexi and Cade

He’s a regular dad with kids.  Gage

He wasn’t popular or an athlete in school. Rylee and Kayla

He was student council president. Hunter and Alex

He’s a writer and created the Black Pearl comic.  Tyler and Kyle

He is a director too.  Rylee

He says he’s a comic book geek.  Kait

He likes the weird/cool Star Wars characters like Yoda and Darth Vader. Rian

He was the last human filming on THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK with puppets and snakes.  Ava

I had a tear in my eye when Mark shared that if he were to be anything besides an actor, he’d be a teacher.  I remain smitten.

The force was definitely with us.  Thank you, Mark Hamill for being our shining star.

Time to Go Greek with PLAYTHINGS OF THE GODS

I am honored today to have author Lisa Gail Green as a guess star.  She is one of several contributors to the anthology PLAYTHINGS OF THE GODS, which gives us a new twisty POV on the classic Greek myths.  Cue the spotlight…

Leslie: Lisa, tempt me with the anthology, especially your story.

Lisa:  PLAYTHINGS OF THE GODS includes retellings of Greek myths for a modern young adult audience.  Some of the stories are a bit edgy - which I love.  Mine is called CURSED, and is the story of Cassandra and Agamemnon, if Cassandra were a modern day teenager.  Not familiar with it?  Cassandra was cursed to see the future, but have no one believe her.  That's enough to drive anyone insane if you think about it.  

Leslie: What was your path to being included in this work?

Lisa:  Some writers don't try to go the short story route, but I've always been eager to publish in any form, and in fact my first publications were poems and short stories in E-zines.  It's a great outlet for writing, and I really do credit it with helping give me enough confidence to pursue writing as a profession.  This particular opportunity came via our critique partner, Julie Musil, who passes on any paranormal calls to me.  Thanks, Julie!!  I remember being really intrigued by the idea of retelling a Greek Myth, and didn't have a whole lot of time before the deadline.  But I work well under pressure, and saw it as a challenge.  It never hurts to try, if you don't you can't succeed.  I chose this particular story because it is one of the lesser-travelled stories lately, and I worked on the play Agamemnon in college, which really left an impression on me. 

Leslie:  How can we get our hands on the anthology?

Lisa:  Why through the amazing interweb of course! Here's the link:

http://drolleriepress.com/books/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=49&products_id=110

It will soon be available via Amazon, Apple, and B&N as well.  But if you want a chance at winning a free copy come visit my blog http://paranormalpointofview.blogspot.com/  and enter.  I'm throwing in a critique too, so it's a pretty good deal.  

Leslie:  What are you thoughts on the e-book format?

Lisa:  Good question!  E-books have taken off in an unbelievable way, so there is no longer any doubt as to their legitimacy.  Traditional bookstores are in danger, and Amazon has reported greater EBook sales than paperback sales.  I think it's fantastic that teens are discovering new ways to enjoy reading.  Whatever gets books into their hands I'm in favor of.  Heck - I LOVE my Kindle.  I still have a special spot in my heart for paper books, and collecting those that are my faves, but I also see E-books as an exciting step forward in the publishing industry.

Thanks for having me on your blog, Leslie!  Nice place...

THANK YOU, Lisa and congratulations.

Okay everyone, let’s hit that link and go Greek!  For another tasty treat go visit Lisa’s blog:  PARANORMAL POINT OF VIEW.

Doncha Hate...

We all have the dreaded “doncha hate…” moments.  I’m sure you are familiar with those Defcon 5 high blood pressure situations that make us shriek to the skies for someone else to blame, even though we know we are completely at fault. 

• ·      Doncha hate dropping your keys to the ground multiple times before you finally pick them up and unlock the door.
• ·      Doncha hate leaving slightly late for an appointment and hitting EVERY SINGLE RED LIGHT.
• ·      Doncha hate locking yourself out of the house – car – work.
• ·      Doncha hate dropping your clean pajamas on the dirtiest part of the bathroom floor before you have a chance to put them on.
• ·      Doncha hate totally blanking on your ATM pin code.
• ·      Doncha hate sticking your dirty dishes in the dishwasher with the clean ones.
• ·      Doncha hate putting on BLUE pants that you thought were BLACK.
• ·      Doncha hate leaving your lunch on the kitchen counter and knowing it will go bad by the time you can get home to rescue it.
• ·      Doncha hate walking downstairs without getting the thing you walked upstairs for in the first place.

These glitches in your otherwise perfect lives are not enemies, they’re friends.  Maddening moments are one hundred percent authentic.  Don’t let them win and claim your sanity. No, I say.  Sentence them to a place in your stories thereby adding a subtle dusting of realism to characters and actions.

Seriously, I’ll bet even vampires drop their keys.  What are some of your “Doncha hate…” moments?        

Writer's Rights

What is that you say?  Writers have rights?  Darn tootin’ they do.  Every artist has creative rights, except perhaps royal portrait painters of the past.  They had that sticky little beheading issue from time to time which put the kibosh on some of their creativity.  “The Queen does NOT have four chins, or a mole with a protruding hair on her left cheek.”

In my position as a teacher, I get to double-dip in my ongoing education as a writer.  Many books on methods for teaching writing are marvelous resources on the art of writing itself.

One such book is THE 9 RIGHTS OF EVERY WRITER, A GUIDE FOR TEACHERS by Vicki Spandel.  I had the privilege of attending a workshop presented by Vicki several years ago.  Not only did I walk away with fabulous lessons for my students, but thanks to her insights and love of the art of writing, I left the building a better writer.  I highly recommend this book. 

Vicki Spandel’s 9 Rights of Every Writer:

1. The Right to Be Reflective
2. The Right to Choose a Personally Important Topic
3. The Right to Go “Off Topic”
4. The Right to Personalize the Writing Process
5. The Right to Write Badly
6. The Right to See Others Write
7. The Right to Be Assessed Well
8. The Write to Go Beyond Formula
9. The Right to Find Your Own Voice

I’d like to add two more:

10.  The Right to Give Yourself Time to Write
11.  The Right to Rip Up What You’ve Started and Begin Again Without Feeling You’ve Wasted Time

What Rights would you add?

http://www.heinemann.com/authors/3545.aspx

View From the 5th Grade Trenches - January 2011 - Hooked on a Series

Here in the 5^th grade trenches we LOVE a good middle grade literature series.  My credit card is steaming from overuse as I fill our shelves with the latest installments of our favorites.  I get excited when a kid comes charging in the door waving a new series they’ve just discovered.  I’m a pushover.  I’ll make a beeline for the bookstore and grab up every piece of the series I can get my hands on.   

What hooks a middle grader on a series?

О   Characters – Who wouldn’t want Harry Potter for a friend? 

О   Adventure – It’s a blast to face obstacles, danger, or wonders we’ll never face in real life.  Let’s ride a dragon, fight the Minotaur, or live underwater.

О   Humor-Humor-Humor – Make us laugh and we’ll follow you home. 

О   New Worlds and Fantastic Places – We all voted here in Room 15 that we want to go to school in a castle like Hogwarts.

О   Relatability - Kids love seeing themselves in the situations and dilemmas they find in books.  It helps them understand similarities in their own lives and can be very validating.

О   Attachment – Readers, 5^th graders included, make emotional investments in stories that we follow over multiple books.  There is a sense of loss and sorrow when the path we’ve been sharing with our characters comes to an end.  How many of us took to our beds for weeks after finishing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, knowing it was the last time we’d break bread with Harry, Ron, and Hermione? 

The top three series being read in our classroom even as we speak are:

                        PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS by Rick Riordan

                        “It’s fun watching a kid have to make big decisions.”

Robyn, Kyle, Ilker, Fernanda

                        “Every page is heart pounding, exciting, and breath taking.

                                    Mark, Tyler, Sal, Caleb, Aryanna

                        HARRY POTTER by JK Rowling

                        “The Harry Potter books make you wish you had magic.  We would

like to have teachers like Mad Eye Moody, Dumbledore, and

Lupin.”

                                    Hazel, Kathleen, Pratik, Rylee

           

                        DIARY OF A WIMPY KID by Jeff Kinney

                        “It’s a funny look at facing challenges.”

                                    Melina, Jerry, Kait, Gage

HONORABLE

MENTIONS:             THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA by CS Lewis

                                    LAST DRAGON CHRONICLES by Chris D’lacey

                                    SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS by Lemony Snicket

THE 39 CLUES by Various Authors 

What are your favorites?

To Plot, or Not to Plot...

“…That is the question

Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer

The slings and arrows of outrageous over thinking

Or to take arms against a sea of graphic organizers and tedious outlines…

…To sleep, perchance to dream; Aye there’s the creative process

For in that sleep of subconscious ideas, what dreams may come”

I don’t plot.  I just lied.  I don’t consciously plot.  I subconsciously plot.  Anyone who survived public school has ingested countless plotting tools such as Roman numeral outlines, story maps, flash cards with the word dénouement, and Joseph Campbell’s hero’s journey. (Which I LOVE.)  Our gray matter is permanently stamped with format.   

I have tried the pre-planning route in my creative writing and I find it stifling.  I prefer a plethora of post-its smattered all over my mirrored closet door with scribbles of ideas I didn’t want to lose.  Do I use them all?  Nope.  Doesn’t matter.  They helped form the subconscious shape of my story. 

I love Stephen King’s take on plotting in his book, ON WRITING.  (I'm lamely paraphrasing Mr. King's phenomenal philosophy) He discusses setting a situation and then narrating how the characters handle it.  He doesn’t force them to follow a prescribed step-by-step plan, but rather lets the story organically evolve around character reactions and decisions as they navigate their situation.  In this style sometimes what you visualized happens and sometimes it doesn’t.

I say, WHAT FUN!  This is my cup of tea.

Okay, I know some of you are freaking out.  Too much freedom?  Too much unknown?  If it is – you need to be a conscious plotter.  No judgment here.  Every creative process has it’s own preferences.  The bottom line is to write the way that brings you that rush of joy and makes you shout, “I love doing this.”

Fess up.  Are you a conscious or subconscious plotter?

Treat yourself to these two books on writing: ON WRITING by Stephen King and RON CARLSON WRITES A STORY by Ron Carlson.  They are better than chocolate.  

Stealing Characters

Yes, I admit it.  I am a character thief.  Beware if you know me, you will probably end up in a story.  Everyone in my immediate air space is unsafe.  I’ve fictionalized my entire family, pets included.  This habit of mine makes the likelihood that I will someday end up in the witness protection program highly probable.

Here are some of my offenses:

1. The Direct Steal: No one is immune.  I’ve taken your looks, your accent, your clothing, your occupation, your quirks, your morals, that questionable hair-do, and possibly even your name.
2. The Mash Up: I love it on GLEE when they take two songs and combine them for a mini medley.  My favorite character mash up is to take two people who absolutely HATE each other and morph their beings into one person.  Ah, inner conflict.
3. The Magic Genie/Djinn:  I am personally attached to this infraction.  I take the unfortunate incidents in your life and give you a fabulous outcome instead.  Make no mistake, I give the bad stuff to someone else, but you get a free pass this time.
4. The Flaw Machine: Remember the “spanking machine” that we of a certain age were subjected to in grade school on our birthdays?  I pummel you with the exposure of every character flaw I have uncovered in your soul.
5. The “That’s not you.  It’s one of my college boyfriends.”: Swear.  Totally swear.  The likeness is purely coincidental.
6. Stranger Danger: I love to sit on a bench with my notebook and spy my hiney off.  I lift people and their dialogue off the street and slap them in my journal.  Las Vegas and Disneyland are my two favorite thieving venues.  If you see someone furiously writing in a notebook…flee…it’s me.

I Vote: Cockeyed Optimist

Okay, okay, I know it’s a brand spanking new year, and I’m supposed to make some goals.  Heaven knows I have enough areas of my life that need some tidying up, but I’m choosing instead to pass on specific goals and wrap myself in a blanket of positive “what ifs.”

·      What if I sign with a literary agent this year? (I may just sprout wings and fly.)

·      What if I finally get the boxes unpacked in the garage? (I’ve been in the house 8 years.)

·      What if a publisher slurps up one of my manuscripts? (Back handspring, even though I haven’t done one in 30+ years.  Get the hip surgeon ready.)

·      What if I unravel the mystery of the wily comma? (I will tame the shape shifter of the punctuation world.)

·      What if I actually do lose weight? (Hush falls over the crowd)

I’ll let Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II sum up my philosophy for 2011 with a few lyrics from their awesome song, “Cockeyed Optimist,” from the musical, SOUTH PACIFIC.

“I could say life is just a bowl of Jello

And appear more intelligent and smart,

But I'm stuck like a dope

With a thing called hope,

And I can't get it out of my heart!

Not this heart...”