New LJ Column: Teen Reads

I know I've been AWOL for a bit, but that can't be helped. (Well, I suppose it could be helped if pushing the PUBLISH POST button triggered a paycheck. But that's not how this blog rolls. Dang!)

Popping in today to share a new column called "35 Going on 13: Teen Books for Adults" hosted at the Library Journal site and written by librarian Angelina Benedetti (from somewhere in my local library system).

I like the premise because not only are the lines between YA and adult fiction getting blurrier and blurrier, but — as Benedetti points out — some adult readers simply enjoy indulging in a good teen read.

Some of My Favorite Writing Resources

Below is a list of writing resources I gave my students in last spring's online class Children's Writing Workshop. I've learned from and/or been inspired by each of these titles over the years, and I think that as a group the books cover tons of useful and important ground about craft, discipline, various must-know topics, and the publishing industry.

The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron

Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Annie Lamott

Children's Writer's Reference by Berthe Amoss & Eric Suben

Children's Writer's Word Book by Alihandra Mogilner

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Publishing Children’s Books by Harold D. Underdown

Creating Characters Kids Will Love by Elaine Marie Alphin

Dear Genius: The Letters of Ursula Nordstrom by Ursula Nordstrom & Leonard S. Marcus

If You Want to Write by Brenda Ueland

On Writing by Stephen King

On Writing Well by William Zinsser

Picture Writing: A New Approach to Writing for Kids and Teens by Anastasia Suen

Take Joy: A Book for Writers by Jane Yolen

Worlds of Childhood: The Art and Craft of Writing for Children by William Zinsser, editor

The Writer’s Guide to Crafting Stories for Children by Nancy Lamb

Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg

Writing to Learn by William Zinsser

Now, go add something new to your library "hold" list!

New Madeline Book

Madeline author Ludwig Bemelmans' grandson has produced the first completely new Madeline story in 50 years. I'm not sure yet how I feel about that. I'll check out the new book, though.

Read a PW article about Madeline and the Cats of Rome and author John Bemelmans Marciano here.

I'm Okay with YA!

I saw this article from Sunday's NYT calling out the stigma of writing YA material. Writer Margo Rabb, a YA author herself, talks about the experience of having her intended-for-adults novel picked up by a YA publisher. Sympathy from those who consider publishing in the YA milieu "less than" ensued.

I can't tell you how many times I've had people ask me about my work, hear that I write for the children's market, assume a stance of concerned pity, and then express a sincere hope that, someday, I'll be able to make the crossover into (insert implied modifier "real") writing for adults. Happens all the time. And it makes me laugh.

Not that I have anything against writing for adults. I'm no genre-classification bigot. But what's so awful about making your way writing for the younger set? Can't think of a single thing!

My Interview with FreelanceSwitch

Freelancing super site FreelanceSwitch recently interviewed me about life in the children's writing and editing business. We talked about my 15+ years as a freelancer, making the final transition to full-time freelancing, and maintaining the work. I had a good time with the questions.

Read the full interview "Freelance Writing and Editing? That's Child's Play" here. Let me know what you think — feel free to leave comments either here or there.

Scholastic Reports on Kids' Reading Habits

I'm still buried in work and life, but I took a minute to click on this article from Publishers Weekly Daily today.

Scholastic has just released a report discussing a recent survey on kids' reading habits. The good news is that the majority of kids think it's important to read for fun — and most of them at least "like" to. But many don't get to it. Main reasons given include having more interesting things to do, spending too much time on homework, and not being able to identify enjoyable books.

The Harry Potter series seems to have had a positive effect in recent years, getting more children reading just for the fun of it. Interestingly, though, many kids would rather just make do with the Harry they've got, and 31% of the children surveyed think the series will continue . . .

You can read the full report here.

Life Creeps In to Stories

I read this PW Q&A with Kevin Henkes today. Henkes briefly talks about using life experiences in his stories, saying, "Whenever I’m writing a book, small details from my life always creep in."

I know that's true for me — and I believe that it's true for every writer, whether you write for kids or adults, focus on fiction or nonfiction, create ad copy or textbooks. I'm not talking about always literally dropping your experiences into your work (although, certainly, writers successfully do that every day), but about the myriad emotions, colors, dialogues, people, thoughts, relationships, perceptions, and mundane activities that inform the ability to describe ANYTHING. No place else to get all that but from life.

I guess my reaction hinged on the fact that people constantly ask writers the "Does your life show up in your stories?" question. Which is natural. I'm as interested as everyone else in each writer's answer. But I can't even think of a circumstance in which it wouldn't.

Thoughts?

New Couple Alert: Fairy Tales and Science?

This article by Chris Gorski (posted on LiveScience) discusses how scientists might pick apart your favorite fairy tale to match nifty fantastical phenomena with equally spiffy scientific counterparts. Fun! Here's a teaser:

Kids of any age love to read fairy tales because the storyline never limits the possibility that anything could happen. Curses, spells, and handsome princes reign in worlds beyond the reader’s imagination.

But are the most magical moments from some of our favorite stories actually possible? Basic physical principles and recent scientific research suggest that what readers might mistake for fantasies and exaggeration could be rooted in reality . . .

Thoughts?