School Building

Hey guys,

I posted this workshop a while back at Key Publications Network. I'm head of the (YAWR) Young Adult Writers Rock group. Group heads were coming up with workshops and since I have finals and haven't been able to post very interesting things lately I figured that this workshop on "school building" could prove beneficial and perhaps even fun :]

School Building Workshop

Let’s face it. Every young adult is going through a learning stage. Whether it’s in middle school, high school, wizarding school, or just learning from the elder in a tribe.

The beauty of YA books is that they can be in any genre so there are many variations in how schooling can be portrayed. If it is just a YA romance..it may be drama filled at a high school. If it’s a YA fantasy then a school may not exist in that time period. A young adult may be under the instruction of just one person for one particular subject.

Think about the world J.K. Rowling created with Harry Potter. She came up with O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s to be like finals and the SAT’s. We have all these different genres why not create a genre-specific school. Take horror for example: A school for serial killers, masochists, and cannibals? How crazy freaky would that be? What would be the rules? Does it create these people or does it try to help them and turn them back into regular citizens?

For Sci-fi: What about a school for guys who need to learn how to impress girl robots because they are the only kinds of females on the planet left. (Oh! I may try that one!)

When writing a novel a common phrase to hear is “World Building” well, instead of world building, this week we will be “School Building”. Write in whatever genre you choose and create a school to fit that time. Remember, try something new; Like a school for werewolves or pixies? Just give it a shot :]

Happy Writing

Kids Movies

I don't care what anyone says, I'm still a bit of a kid at heart and do enjoy those heartfelt kids movies. And I consider them "research" for my writing. Have you taken a look at any Disney movies lately? Take the Lion King II for example. Kiara and Kovu (I think that's how you spell it) fall in love pretty fast in like one scene and then the plot quickly turned into saving the pride etc.

Well, that is what happens in a lot of MG novels I've noticed. At least for younger readers.They are naturally shorter novels (20-40k) more if its historical, fantasy, or paranormal, but that's beside the point. Because they are shorter a lot of character relationship building tends to happen a bit faster to move the story along. That is just something I've noticed. If you still don't know what I'm saying, then watch the movie and then you'll probably understand.

Also! I can't wait for the new Princess and the Frog movie! I was starting to miss the old drawn cartoons ya know? Everything is all 3-D like Monsters Inc.

If you don't know about it then click the title of this post to check out the trailer.

Happy writing!

When an Agent Offers Representation

Since I am waiting to hear from an agent I figured knowing what to say in case she does like my work and wants to represent it would be important. I found a great source on what to do and say after an agent offers you representation. It is on www.agentquery.com

Click on the title of this post and it will take you to the specific page. Hope this helps :]

Where Does Inspiration Strike?

I know I usually get randomly inspired just about anywhere and from just about anything; from a word, phrase, picture, place, person etc.

But where is the place you go when you really need to think? A place where thoughts just cascade out? Is it your office, the bathroom, your backyard, the local coffee shop?

For me it's the shower. I know random, but when I'm in the nice, hot shower thoughts flow out and while I'm shampooing my hair I start thinking about my plot and what I need to write next and how to improve it. Anyone have an interesting place where ideas are molded and shaped to work with the plot?

Co-Writing Adventure!

So last week I talked about co-writing projects (writing a story with another writer-switching off with every paragraph) and stated that I was interested in giving it a shot. Well, I did and let me tell you it was fun! After 2 chapters my friend and I are adding another writer who should be introducing her character in chapter 3. All in all it's fun.

It may prove to be a fun exercise to hone your writing skills. You never know what your partner will throw at you, but it also helps if you have similar writing styles and an interest in the same genre you are working with.

All you have to do is write a paragraph or so and then your partner writes another and so on. See where your imaginations paired together take you. And don't worry if you don't like where the story is going, you can always throw in a random evil twin or something and take the story in a new direction. It'll broaden your horizons. :]

Life and Our Characters

Sometimes we hurt, sometimes we feel anger, sadness, guilt. These emotions collide within us sometimes all at once or one at a time. But we all feel these emotions. We know why. The emotions that bring us to our knees and force us to reexamine our lives; the emotions that seek our understanding are useful.

How will anyone care about your characters if they don't come alive. Let's face it. We use what we know to breathe life into our characters. No one cares about a two dimensional character. Yes, she has anger issues so what. Give her a past. Every guy she has ever loved has betrayed her in one way or another. Of course she's always angry, especially when the class A jerk comes sniffing around her. Turns out he's not exactly a jerk, just has his own broken heart to deal with. Give your characters depth. Take from experience.

The anger you felt clawing at you when you found out your best friend hurt you-use it to your advantage. Remember it and apply it to your character. How does it feel to have anger build up within you? You know. So put it on paper; make us care about the character. Make us give a damn. It's up to you. You have the tools and the understanding of what creates a memorable person; one readers can truly care about. So use your experience and just do it.

Collaborative Writing?

So a friend on my online critique group suggested a co-writing project where about 3 people or so each write a paragraph and continue a story. I'm curious to see how it pans out and I may even have a go at it myself. But something I've always wondered about is how writers collaborate on an entire story.

Take for example The House of Night Series by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast. It is co-written by a mother and daughter. I can't really tell where they switch off but occasionally you can tell who is writing what. I read about two of the books and they weren't bad, but they weren't amazing either. Sometimes it felt like they were trying to make it so teenish. What with the language and all I kinda ended up losing interest. And I swear I thought their was a motherly lesson nestled somewhere in there. Perhaps, I'll re-read them and give an actual review. Then again they do have plenty of books out and so I'm sure they've learned one another's style more so as they've progressed with their stories.

As for the Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson-I couldn't tell where one's writing began and ended. Their styles are so similar that together they create a great story. I think that for collaborative works to work out writers must really have an understanding of one another's styles and preferences when writing and try to bring those to light when working together.

Dreams, Nickelback, and Writing Ideas

Hello lovelies!

As I write this I'm listening to S.E.X. by Nickelback...such a hot song.

Anyway, I woke up this morning struggling for breath with the comforter pressing against my nose. That would explain my weird dream. It was as if I was in a video game (thinks Mario 64), but with wayyyyy better graphics. Anyway, I was following my Dad and brother down a really long dock that stretched out toward the middle of the ocean. I don't know why, but I kinda jumped on a giant fish in my way like Mario would and the thing turned into those awesome gold coins! Haha, so random.

I continued on and there was a part where the dock was broken so my Dad and brother told me to jump in after them. Note, I've got this slight fear of the water...that and I could've sworn there was a shark! Yet, somehow, I jumped in and promptly wondered why I couldn't breathe and why my arms wouldn't paddle. Don't you hate those dreams that don't let you move? So I just kept sinking, desperately trying to breathe and then I woke up and threw those blasted covers off of me! It was 6 am too...I still had 3 hours of sleep left...(the beauty of college).

So here's what I'm wondering. Do your dreams ever give you any writing ideas? I know I've written two short stories to do with two dreams I've had. Do they help? Doesn't it feel like you're cheating because the idea came so easily? Don't worry about that feeling..your subconscious just gave you a gift-use it.

If you have any cool dreams turned writing ideas. Let me know! Or even just a really interesting dream that has potential to become an idea. Quickly, write it down!

Peace!

Liz