Well I finally did it.  I'm on facebook.  My daughter was mortified when I told her.  So if you find me, ask to be my friend.  I promise to say yes!  

You might be asking, "Why join facebook now?"  Well, I chose not to go to my 20th HS reunion this past weekend, and wanted to  find out what I missed.  Now I'm regretting not going.  I was so shy in HS that I felt like I didn't really want to go through that again.  But now I'm a totally different person now, and I really should've gone.  Oh well, I think there's another one in 5 years!

As for school, I just sent out packet 4 and am ready to start on packet 5.  This packet will be all about creative non-fiction and historical fiction.  I think this will be the toughest packet yet, since I rarely read those genres.  It's a stretch, but that's what going to school is all about.  What do you write, and what would be your biggest stretch?

Has it really been almost 2 months?!

I'm still here!!!!  Buried under packets and books, but here.   

My third packet was on YA, with the beginning of a new YA novel.  I don't want to say too much about it since it's still so deeply under construction (I don't want to jinx it!).  My advisor's comments on it were mostly positive, with some criticisms of course.  I keep making the same mistake in all of my beginnings of novels:  stereotyping.  For example, I've made the mean girl in a MG novel blonde and beautiful.  I've made the teenager in my YA an angry girl who hates her parents.  I need to stop doing what's already been done and think of something new!

My completed MG novel is coming along quite well; revisions should be done very soon (maybe by the end of the semester!)  Then what?  I don't know.  I guess I begin the submissions process.  Uh-oh.

I'm now working on my 4th packet:  horror, sci-fi, and fantasy.  My new beginning for this packet is YA horror story with a ghost, but NO VAMPIRES!! Some days the work is easier than others.  Today was a good day and the scene flowed.  Yesterday, not so much.  And the essays for this packet are stumping me, so I just keep reading and hoping that something will come to me before the packet is due.

My residency is coming up soon:  Jan. 12-22.  I've already gotten my train tix, and now I'm deciding which beginning of a novel (3 to choose from) or  picture books I want to submit for the workshop.  Do I choose the one that I think is the best?  Or the one that needs the most help?  Or the one that's closest to submission-ready (which would be the picture books, I think)?

On the Vermont College MFA forum we are discussing our fantasy plans for the few weeks we have at the end of the semester, after our last packet is handed in and before the residency. Here's mine:

1.  Read FOR FUN (preferably an adult book).

2.  Catch up on the last 6 months of scrapbooking that I've fallen behind on (actually I was behind before I started school, so it's more like a year behind).

3.  Work on my needlepoint that's been collecting dust in a corner.

4.  Go to the movies!

5.  Go out to dinner without feeling like I should be at home working!

6.  Sleep late.

7.  Go to bed early.

8.  Watch TV with my husband.

9.  Play a game with my kids.

10.  Eat chocolate (ok, I've been doing this all along, but I love chocolate, and it's my fantasy!)

What would you do?

Hi, my name is Dawn, and I'm an anal-organizational freak. (Everyone: Hi Dawn.)

It's true, I admit it.  I am anal when it comes to organizing my life and plans.  My friends call me rainman.  But I didn't really see it for myself until earlier this week.  A writer friend asked me how I was doing my packets for school.  I proceeded to tell her exactly how I was handling this semester, and when I finished I realized how completely psycho it sounded!  

As you know, I have to send in a packet each month to my faculty advisor containing 20 pages of new writing, 20 pages of revision, 2 critical essays, and an annotated bibliography of at least 10 books.  Well, I wanted to try as many new things as possible this semester, so my plan is to do something different with each packet.  Packet 1 was all about picture books.  I read 23 (?) of them, my essays were on topics surrounding them, and I wrote 7 of them (some better than others!).  

Packet 2 was all about Middle Grade novels.  I read 20 of them, my essays involved them, I wrote 20 pages of a new MG novel, and revised my completed MG novel.  

For my third packet, I'll be working on a new YA and revising PBs.  

The 4th packet will be sci-fi/horror/fantasy.  

And the 5th will be creative non-fiction/historical fiction.  

So by the end of the semester, I'll have one completed and revised MG, 3 completed and revised PBs, and the beginnings of a YA, a MG, a Sci-fi or horror YA/MG novel, and a creative non-fiction or historical fiction YA/MG novel.  Then next semester I can focus in a little more on the things I enjoyed most.  I'd love to have all of those beginnings completed by graduation, at least in first drafts.

That's my plan.  I know-rainman.  

What are you rainman-ish about?  Do you ever get anal about your writing life?  Or are you free and spontaneous?

Preparing packet #2

Packet 2 is due next week-the 11th-and I have one essay left.  My first essay was entitled:  I Hate This Character.  So Why Am I Still Reading?  I asked the question, does the reader have to like the protagonist?  So many times, we writers hear how we need to make the protagonist "likable", "identifiable", or "interesting".  I agree the main character needs to be interesting, especially if he's not easy to like or identify with.  Emotion is such an important part of every story, and we must feel something for the characters or we won't bother reading the story.  But can we hate that main character?  

I think it's ok to hate the character, as long as it's a believable character and we hate them the way we'd hate a person in real life.  If we hate them because they are too flat, or they say things that don't fit with their personality, then we will stop reading.  But if we hate them because we believe they are doing/saying horrible things, and we believe they really would say/do these things, then we, as readers, are eager to keep reading to see what they will say/do next.  Does that make sense?  

I used the example of Touching Spirit Bear by Ben Mikaelsen.  His main character, Cole, is despicable, but we believe he would be that way because of his home life.  The motivation makes sense with his personality.  Still, the reader Hates him until he changes about midway through the book.  The reader doesn't really sympathize with him until he begins to realize how awful he's been.

In my MG novel, the main character says and does horrible things because she is so angry and sad and guilty over the loss of her sister.  I think, I hope, I've painted her in a realistic fashion and that readers will stick around to see if she can get past all these emotions.  In fact, my advisor read a particular scene and said she wanted to slug my character.  I think that's good, because it means she believes in this character.  I think any time we can get the reader to feel a strong emotion about our characters because of who they are or what they've done in the story, we have accomplished our goal of capturing the reader's attention.

Do you have any unlikable characters in your stories?

  

I'm back!

Yes, I'm still alive.  I have been down the Jersey shore for the entire month of August with no internet access.  You don't realize how addicted you are to technology until you don't have it.

We had a wonderful time at the beach-but a month is a loooooooong time to be away from home.  I'm happy to get back to a normal routine.  The kids start school in a couple of days and things can get back to the way they are supposed to be-with everyone out of the house!  I sent my first packet in to my Vermont College faculty advisor a couple weeks ago.  She gave me some wonderful feedback on the picture books I'd written as well as my completed novel. The best news was that she really liked the novel and gave me some suggestions on a few things that pulled her out of the story.  She called one part of the novel "bloody brilliant"!  I did a happy dance around the house for that one!

I have to tell you, I'm sick of picture books, though, after focusing on them last month.  This month I am working on middle grade novels, and enjoying it much more.  In addition to revisions on the finished one I mentioned, I also am about 20 pages into a new one.  This packet is due on Sept. 11, so I'd better go get to work!

Home sweet home

I got home on the 18th after a long train ride from Vermont.  I was so happy to be home with my family, but I truly missed all the friends I made at school.  I never expected to develop such strong connections with so many people-people who are going through the same thing I am.  No one here quite understands my life right now, but my Vermont friends get it.  

On the 16th, the first 20 pages of my middle grade novel was workshopped.  I was terrified that someone would say, "Oops, now we see that you don't belong here.  You aren't good enough yet.  Come back in a few years."  But no one did.  In fact, I got many compliments on the novel, and lots of helpful feedback.  The common thread in all the critiques was that it was ambitious, and complex, and that I had taken on a big task for myself.  That kind of freaked me out.  But the novel is finished, and no loose ends were left hanging.  So I guess it's not too bad.  I gave the entire novel to Sarah Ellis to read, and she'll give me some feedback on it with her response to my first packet.  Which is due on August 13th.  OMG!  

I am focusing this packet on the picture book.  I've written a couple first drafts  so far-I intend to turn in 4 or 5 picture books with this packet, an annotated bibliography of about 20 books (mostly pb's), and 2 critical essays whose topics will be something to do with picture books also.  I'm feeling pretty confident about the rest of the packet-but those essays are stressing me out.   I'm beginning to think that maybe picture books are not my thing.  They are really hard to write well!!

What day is today?

Yesterday, whatever day that was, I went to graduate lectures, graduate readings, workshop, and I met with Sarah Ellis and the rest of her group of students (there are 5 of us).  I also read one of my picture book manuscripts (minus the pictures) to the rest of the newbies.  We each read a piece of work for 3 minutes or less.  I am part of an amazingly talented group of writers.  I am honored to be a member of this class-the Working Titles.  

What did I learn today?  I learned about the controlling belief of characters.  I will explain more about this when I have more time.  I've learned so much over the last week that my brain feels full.

Today's agenda?  Lecture by Rita Williams-Garcia, graduate lectures and readings, meet with Sarah Ellis privately to talk about what, exactly, I will be working on this semester.  It's an early night tonight, and I will be hitting the sack as soon as I can.

Tomorrow? I forget.  Lack of sleep will do that to a person.