Saturday, April 28, 2012

Trying to write next chapter in kids' novel

I've written 6290 words over 6 chapters so far in my kids' novel but I'm still struggling with plot and subplot. There is nothing much at stake besides popularity and friendship for my main character which is pretty important for 11 and 12 year olds. But, I'd like to have an event coming up at the end of the summer which somehow would be like a time bomb like Family Fest Pigeon Shooting Day in Jerry Spinelli's Wringer. Or the end of summer in The Penderwicks with the threat of Jeffrey having to go to Pency Military Academy. Or the birthday party in There's a boy in the Girls Bathroom by Louis Sachar.

Other kids' novels that I love are about survival. This is not a book about survival, there is no escape from a prison for bad boys like in Sachar's Holes, no surviving a wreck and life on a unmapped island in the South Pacific like in Gordon Korman's Shipwreck or Kensuke's Kingdom by Michael Morpugo.
I just want to write a quiet novel about life and friendship. Do I have to kill off a beloved character like in Bridge to Terabithia by Katherin Paterson? Or start off with a child being abducted and murdered like in The Egypt Game?

Sunday, April 8, 2012

Poem appears in Long Story short poetry page

Yeah. My poem, "I'll tell you who I write for" appears in this month's Long Story Short poetry page. Here is the link.

Wow! As I look at my last entry date, I realize that I've been pretty dormant this winter. I could give loads of excuses for not posting.

Practicing guitar for a concert in late February.
Deflated ego after receiving comments back on book writing assignment
General lethargy ( I only went snowshoeing once, no skiing at all this winter)
Considering dropping my book writing course, but what was left of ego wouldn't let me.
More interested in putting together a chapbook of my poetry than slugging it out writing a novel.
 More fun and less demanding to read a bunch than to write a bunch.

Check out some of the books I've read here on Library Thing.

It's really hard to get back into a place and time or a certain mental space when you're away from writing. I never not write, I just wasn't writing the 2 novels I've started because that requires a lot of mental fortitude on my part.

I didn't even spend any time on the novels during March Break. I needed a break from everything. So this long Easter weekend, I've gotten back into my youth novel. I went over my instructor's comments and the rewrite I'd started in January, the chapter by chapter outline and I started writing the fourth chapter. I was thankful for the detailed character studies I'd made last fall. I couldn't even remember some of the characters' surnames or quirks.

So now, I've dealt with my ego. I'd rather struggle to write a book which may not be great than to not try at all.