A Year of Blogging, Including My Top 10 Posts

So I should have done this post a couple of weeks ago. I started my blog on May 2, 2012, in order to participate in The Writer’s Voice contest. I’d debated for about a year whether to start a blog, mainly because I wasn’t sure what value I could add to the conversations already out there. The Writers Voice forced me to do it because I couldn’t participate without a blog. I’m so glad I did! Here are a few of the things I love about blogging.

The relationships. I’ve met a number of new people, especially through contests and Marvelous Middle Grade Monday. I might have met some of them on Twitter or in forums, but through this blog we can have conversations we couldn’t in 140 characters or might not in a forum somewhere.

A forum for my thoughts. There are so many times before this blog I had something I wanted to share and didn’t have a way to do it. And I mean this in reference to my publishing journey, because in general I don’t use the blog or Twitter for personal opinions. They might slip in every once in a while, but mainly I want to talk about my path to publication–a path I’m still on. It helps to talk about what I’m going through and hear from others who are in the same boat.

The record. I like being able to look back and see what I’ve read and where I was earlier in this journey. Like when I was about to blast out DUET queries and then received the R&R that changed my focus for months. Or what I thought about querying a year ago versus now. It shows how I’ve grown, and the blog has become its own body of work.

The reference. I love that when people ask me about where I am in this publishing journey I can say, “Go read my blog!” Or when friends ask me about books for their kids to read, I can send them here. It gives me a way to update people without having to repeat the same thing a million times.

So, I was curious about what posts received the most views over the past year, and here are the top 10 with some comments from me about why I think they were so popular.

10. MMGM: SAMMY KEYES AND THE HOTEL THIEF – This book is popular in my searches, too, so I think kids must be reading it for school.

9. MMGM: KEEPER OF THE LOST CITIES with a giveaway! – Obviously, it was a giveaway, and it was for Shannon Messenger, who started MMGM, so that makes perfect sense.

8. MMGM: THE UNWANTEDS: ISLAND OF SILENCE – I also see a lot of searches for this one. Either they’re reading this one in school, too, or readers are trying to find out what happens in the sequel. No spoilers here! Well, unless you haven’t read the first one…

7. Why It’s So Hard to Get Your First Novel Published – I think this must be a very popular search term. Someone’s starting out and wants to know why it’s so hard. I’m always hopeful someone will learn from my mistakes, although I’m not sure you really can.

6. What I’ve Learned in a Year of Querying – I’m only two months away from doing a What I’ve Learned in Two Years of Querying post. Come on, agents! I’d love it if one of you prevented me from writing that post .

5. My Thoughts on SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN (Spoilers!) – A rare rant about a movie, but it gets so many hits. At least once a week I see “what happened to the huntsman’s wife” in the list of searches that led to my blog. Clearly that movie left too many things hanging.

4. MMGM: THE WESTING GAME – My highest rated MG review, and since it’s a classic, I’m sure in this case that kids are researching it for reports.

3. 10 Tips for Titling a Manuscript – This is the most recent post on the list of top 10. Another blogger linked to it, and she gets a lot of hits, so now I do, too. Thanks!

2. The Writer’s Voice – When you enter a contest that requires people to go visit all the blogs involved, you’re bound to get a lot of hits. I’ve had a bump recently with the current contest going on. By the way, best contest ever! Half the people from #TeamKrista are now my CPs or betas.

1. YA Review and Giveaway: PERFECT SCOUNDRELS by Ally Carter – This one is a no-brainer. Ally Carter retweeted my giveaway, and her fans flooded my blog.

Even though it’s interesting, knowing what gets the most hits won’t affect my blogging efforts too much. I don’t host this blog for the purpose of getting followers, although I love all of you who do follow! I do it to connect with other people and to have an outlet for my opinions about the books I read and what I’m going through. That being said, if there’s a topic you want me to cover, let me know! I’m always open to suggestions.

If you’re a blogger, why do you do it?

MMGM: PLASTIC POLLY by Jenny Lundquist

It’s only been three weeks since my last MMGM post, and I’m back! Plus I have a few other middle grade books I just picked up, so I should be participating for several weeks.

Some of you may recall that Jenny Lundquist’s debut book, SEEING CINDERELLA, was my favorite MG read of 2012. So of course I had to pick up her new book, PLASTIC POLLY, right away. Here’s the description.

Polly Pierce likes being the second-most-popular girl at Winston Academy, right after her best friend, Kelsey. Being popular means special privileges, including a coveted spot on the planning committee for Groove It Up, the annual talent competition between Winston Academy and its rival school, American River Middle School.

Though things look rosy, life at the top isn’t as perfect as it appears to be. Polly misses her ex-best friend, Alyssa; her workaholic mom doesn’t think her daughter has any motivation; and kids at school call her Plastic Polly behind her back–since all she ever does is agree with whatever Kelsey says.

But when Kelsey has a freak accident, Polly is suddenly thrown into the top spot as PlanMaster of the Groove It Up committee. Backstabbing frenemies, diva interference from Kelsey, and a crush who knows more about Polly than he lets on all threaten to derail her plans. In the midst of the chaos, Polly finds an unlikely ally and finally has a chance to prove to everyone–and herself–that she’s more than just Plastic Polly.

Here are the five things I loved most about this book:

1. Polly’s dilemma – I love the way Jenny Lundquist describes Polly’s struggle between being popular and being herself.

“But here’s the other thing about popularity: It doesn’t come cheap. Sometimes it makes you choose one best friend over another. And you can never admit to anyone that sometimes you wonder if you made the wrong choice. Because if you admitted that, they’d just laugh and say, ‘You’re popular. What problems could you possibly have?’ So instead, you keep your mouth shut, stick a fake smile on your face, and pretend you don’t have any. Problems, that is.”

Another time she describes popularity as the middle school equivalent of a security blanket. It was an interesting look into a group that many of us never enter. I really identified with Polly, even though I’ve never been in that position. It’s very well done.

2. Polly’s journey – While I could group this point with the previous one, it really is a different issue. Popularity is just one of the things Polly deals with, and it certainly factors into her journey, but the more important part of the character arc is Polly figuring out who she is. Up until now, she’s gone along with what others expect her to be and doesn’t know who she wants to be. I really enjoyed seeing her grow into her own. It was such an apt expression of the middle school experience.

3. The friendships – Here’s something else everyone deals with in middle school–figuring out who your friends are. Polly’s struggle is amplified by a choice she made her first week of seventh grade. It’s not a matter of one friend being better than the other. They’re different, and Polly cares about them for what makes them unique. It’s more a question of what she’s willing to do to keep both–not an easy thing when everyone else is trying to slot you into a certain mold.

4. The mean girls – Ok, I don’t love the mean girls themselves. What I appreciate about them is how true to life they are. Every girl in this story shows her mean streak at some point, including Polly–a few times to hold up her reputation and once to her mom. We’ve all been there. Middle school is rough! I know I wasn’t an exception. My mom says I was awful to her as a thirteen-year-old. Sorry, Mom!

5. The ending – I’m not going to give it away, but I found this ending thoroughly satisfying. Kudos to Jenny Lundquist for not making it a cookie cutter ending.

I still loved SEEING CINDERELLA more than this one, but PLASTIC POLLY  certainly holds its own, and I highly recommend it.

Without CPs and Betas, I’d Never Get Past the Slushpile

This morning I finished up revisions from my second round of readers and sent my work-in-progress off to a third round. I’m always amazed at the things I miss when I’m editing my own work, and I came to a definite conclusion.

If I didn’t use critique partners and beta readers, my manuscripts would never get past the slushpile.

How do I know? Because I tried that with my very first manuscript. Zero requests and that’s not surprising when I look back on that first effort. With each successive manuscript, I’ve received more requests, and I credit that to what I’ve learned from other writers. We all have our weaknesses, but here are a few of mine:

Without my CPs and beta readers, …

… my MS wouldn’t make any sense. The crazy leaps of logic make perfect sense to me, but that’s because I know all of the backstory I’ve been careful to sprinkle in sparingly. In my earlier manuscripts, I gave too much backstory, but lately I’ve tended the other way. The good news is, I often can fix this issue with a sentence thrown in here or there to explain how or why the character got from point A to point B. Or, in the case of this latest WIP, put a scene back in that I thought I could get away without. When my CP says, “I want to see that happen,” I know it was a bad idea to take it out .

… my MS would start/end in the wrong place. While the opening hasn’t been as much of an issue with my current manuscript, I definitely started in the wrong place with my earlier efforts. With this WIP, I had more of an ending issue. There was this cliffhanger I really wanted, so I decided to run it past my first round of readers. I knew better. But that’s why I need them–they resoundingly confirm the gut feelings I ignore.

… I wouldn’t go deep enough with my characters. This is true on multiple levels. In my early drafts, I never go deep enough with the emotion, and I never make things hard enough on my main characters. I think it’s another one of those blinders we have in our own writing. I know what’s going on in the character’s head, what she’s feeling, but I have to get it down on the page so the reader gets it, too. As for going easy on them, even when I think I’ve really put the MC in an impossible situation, it’s never enough the first time around. Maybe I’ll figure that out someday!

… my descriptions wouldn’t be clear enough. I don’t know if this is a problem with everyone or if it’s just because of the premises I choose to write (a girl sucked into the music, twins seeing through each others’ eyes), but I often have to go back and explain what’s happening more clearly. I certainly don’t nail my descriptions on the first try. My CPs and betas help me figure out why those descriptions aren’t working so I know how to fix them.

… the stakes wouldn’t be high enough. This goes back a bit to not going deep enough with the characters, but I also tend to write antagonists that are more in the background orchestrating things than confronting the MCs directly. Added to that, I usually don’t make the antagonist’s reasons clear enough. If you don’t get what the antagonist wants from the MC, it’s hard to identify with why the MC has to go against them. It’s a definite blind spot for me. It happens with every manuscript, but fortunately I have people who point it out so I can fix it!

… the climax wouldn’t be as exciting. I often get to the climax and then let out a huge breath of relief. Yay! The MC won! Except usually I don’t make it big enough and get comments like “I wanted more.” So then I go back and expand it.

On the plus side, I learn with every new manuscript. My first drafts have gotten progressively better. I’ve even eliminated some of the comments I got on earlier manuscripts. I’m sure I won’t ever eliminate all of them as we all have our blind spots, but I do know that without my CPs and beta readers, my manuscripts just wouldn’t be enough. So thank you to everyone who’s read for me in the past or will in the future. You make me a better writer, and I’m so grateful. Have a cupcake on me!

GOING VINTAGE: Could You Do It?

I love it when a book makes me think. GOING VINTAGE by Lindsey Leavitt definitely fits into that category. The premise is that the main character’s boyfriend has a cyber-affair, so she gives up modern technology. Her hypothesis is that life was simpler when her grandma was a teenager, so she will only use technology that was available in 1962. As I’m sure you can imagine, the ultimate lesson is that being a teenager is hard in any decade. I discussed the book with my own grandma, who is 85. She confirmed that, yes, it was hard in the ’40s, too.

What I came away with was that even though technology does make authentic communication harder in some ways, there are also a lot of benefits. As with anything, you just have to weigh the good with the bad.

I could write a review of this book, which I thoroughly enjoyed, but I thought it would be more fun to list the five modern technologies I couldn’t live without. (If you really want to see what I think of Lindsey Leavitt’s writing, check out my review of her middle grade novel, A FAREWELL TO CHARMS.)

1. My smart phone – I haven’t even had my smart phone a year, but I can’t imagine living without it now. It’s my connection to the world, my calendar, information immediately at my fingertips, my camera … the list goes on and on. I didn’t text before this phone because I had a flip phone where I had to press 1 three times to get a C. But I’ve discovered it keeps me in better touch with some friends and family members who just don’t want to talk on the phone anymore. There’s a scene in the book where someone calls Mallory on the house phone and she doesn’t quite know how to talk to them that way. I find that a little sad as I spent hours on the phone with my friends as a teenager, but at the same time, texting keeps me in contact with some people I never would have talked to on the phone.

2. The Internet – I’m old enough I remember a time before the Internet. It really got going while I was in high school and exploded while I was in college. How did we find information back then? How did we stay connected? Heck, I live on Twitter during the day. It’s how I get my news, how I connect with people. And everything I’ve learned about the publishing business I’ve learned online. Yes, it’s easy to misinterpret conversations online, particularly in places like Facebook, but if I weren’t on Facebook, I wouldn’t have any idea what was going on with my high school or college friends or extended family. And my college roommates wouldn’t have scheduled a weekend away last year, so overall it’s a positive thing.

3. My computer/laptop – If I had to write longhand or on a typewriter (which I did use back in grade school), I don’t know if I would be writing novels now. For sure the quality wouldn’t be as high. I spend hours moving things around and playing with word choices. I can’t imagine trying to do that longhand or even with a typewriter. Plus, my laptop is where I store my life–pictures, videos, music, etc. And believe me, I back it all up, too!

4. DVR – Maybe I will be able to do without this eventually thanks to shows being posted online, but the quality is still better through my TV service. I remember when we got a DVR. It was during the summer Olympics in 2004. It revolutionized the way we watched TV. I never watch commercials anymore. If I’m somewhere I have to, I get very impatient. My kids do, too. “Why can’t we fast-forward?” Or, “Can you pause that?” It’s part of their vocabulary to think everything in life can be fast-forwarded or paused. Just the other day my almost 3-year-old asked me to pause a book so she could go get a drink.

5. Kitchen appliances – I know this is really two, but I can’t live without my microwave or my dishwasher. I hate washing dishes by hand and usually get my husband to do it since he doesn’t mind. And as for the microwave, well, how did they heat up food before it existed? In the oven? On the stove? That would take so long! I love my conveniences.

What could you not live without? Have I missed anything?

The Benefits of Reading Your Work Aloud

Do you ever hear advice and discard it because you don’t understand why you would do that?

For me, one of those pieces of seemingly pointless advice was to read your work aloud. I didn’t understand what I would gain from an exercise that would take much longer than just reading the way I usually do.

Well, last week I decided to try it. I can’t say it caused me to make sweeping changes. But I did figure out why it’s beneficial, and so I’m going to share my experience in case any of you are on the fence about reading aloud.

Point of view. My work-in-progress is written in alternating points of view, so reading it aloud was extremely helpful in keeping those voices distinct. I noticed turns of phrase or words that sounded out of place for a particular character. For example, half of my WIP is set on another planet, so Earth-based metaphors wouldn’t be relevant there. When I heard the words in addition to seeing them, I could see more clearly that they didn’t fit the character.

Dialogue. As with point of view, dialogue needs to be unique to each character. Often I would read something and think, “Character A wouldn’t say that, but Character B would,” or vice versa. And within a scene, I could tell if the characters sounded too similar.

Repeated words. Although I have a pretty good eye for noticing repeated words or phrases, reading aloud helped in that I’d notice if I’d said something a lot. Maybe the phrases weren’t on the same page or even in the same chapter, but they were more noticeable out loud. I also caught a number of things I’d have one character think or say and then a different one would think or say something similar, so that repetition became a voice issue.

Flow. Often things that look fine on the page don’t sound as strong when you say them out loud. Sometimes I’d read something that looked perfectly fine but sounded awkward. Even if the book is never read aloud to kids or put into audiobook form, I’d still like for it to flow.

So, those are the benefits I discovered, and I’ll definitely do this again. Do you read your work aloud? What benefits have you discovered?

MMGM: LIAR & SPY by Rebecca Stead

Hi there, MMGMers! I was on a bit of a YA kick there for a while, but I’m finally back with an MMGM review this week. I’ve had LIAR & SPY on my TBR list for a while. I loved WHEN YOU REACH ME (who didn’t?), so I was anxious to see how Rebecca Stead followed it up. I’m happy to report she doesn’t disappoint! Since I’ll cover that in the review part, here’s the description:

When seventh grader Georges (the s is silent) moves into a Brooklyn apartment building, he meets Safer, a twelve-year-old coffee-drinking loner and self-appointed spy.

Georges becomes Safer’s first spy recruit. His assignment? Tracking the mysterious Mr. X, who lives in the apartment upstairs. But as Safer becomes more demanding, Georges starts to wonder: how far is too far to go for your only friend? 

And, as usual, here are the five things I loved most:

1. Sir Ott – I love how a painting by Seurat is so woven into the story it becomes both a character and a metaphor for what’s happening in Georges’ life. He’s even named after the artist–Georges Seurat. There are multiple passages I could choose to demonstrate, but I’ll go with the introduction of the painting.

“What you can’t tell from our poster is that the picture is painted entirely with dots. Tiny little dots. Close up, they just look like blobs of paint. But if you stand back, you see that they make this whole nice park scene, with people walking around in old-fashioned clothes. There’s even a monkey on a leash. Mom says that our Seurat poster reminds her to look at the big picture. Like when it hurts to think about selling the house, she tells herself how that bad feeling is just one dot in the giant Seurat painting of our lives.

“When I was little, I thought my parents were calling our poster the ‘Sir Ott,’ which is how you pronounce Seurat, the name of the artist from France who painted the picture. And I still think of the poster that way–like it’s this guy, Sir Ott, who has always lived with us.”

2. The friendships – Georges navigates through multiple friendships in the book–his former best friend, Jason; his new neighbor, Safer; and the kids at school, including Bob English Who Draws. He learns something from each of these friends–something about himself and something about friendship. I really love how these storylines developed.

3. The mystery – This was so well-done. There’s a mystery set out by Safer that masks another undercurrent running through the entire story. I was always aware something else was going on in the background, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on what it was until I got to the end. I won’t spoil it for anyone by dropping any hints.

4. The parents – I really loved the picture Rebecca Stead drew of Georges’ parents. I could see them so clearly, even when they weren’t in the scene. The Scrabble conversation Georges has with his mom is so poignant. And their financial difficulties were handled in a way that the reader gets it without it becoming the main focus of the story. I always appreciate it when there’s a good family relationship.

5. The theme – There’s an overriding theme of figuring out how to face your fears. It’s carried out through the whole taste unit at school, but also through what’s happening with his family and Safer. By the end, I could see how it played out in almost every subplot, and yet I didn’t feel beat over the head with it. Very well done.

Have you read LIAR & SPY yet? Let me know what you thought.

Some Stories Never Get Old

Last week I had some down time and decided to check out a phenomenon I’d heard about on Twitter: The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. I was immediately hooked. What an innovative way to retell this timeless story! I totally neglected my reading the past week, instead watching 10-12 episodes every night after my kids went to bed. The creators did an excellent job modernizing the story while keeping its original themes and staying very close to the characters. And it got me thinking …

Some stories just never get old.

PRIDE AND PREJUDICE is one of them. I re-read it for the thousandth time earlier this year and posted about why it stands the test of time. I’ve read a number of books based on P&P, and I watch every adaptation they make, whether it’s a straight interpretation or something more liberal like Bridget Jones’s Diary or Bride and Prejudice (the Bollywood version). It’s surprising it took me so long to watch this, but I’m glad I waited until it was over and could go through the whole series. I can’t wait to see what the producers do next!

So then I started thinking about other stories that get retold over and over without getting old. For me, Cinderella is one of those. I have at least five movie versions, and I’ve read countless books based on the fairytale. Who doesn’t love a story about a girl who rises from the dust and falls in love with a prince? Even better if she does it on her own and just happens to end up with the prince. If you’ve been following my blog, my love for Cinderella stories is no surprise. My favorite middle grade (SEEING CINDERELLA) and young adult (CINDER) novels from last year were both based on it.

Another one that comes to mind is TAMING OF THE SHREW. 10 Things I Hate About You is one of my favorite adaptations, but there are numerous movies, plays and even a musical. Shakespeare had such a great understanding of human nature, so it’s no surprise his works are continually remade.

Then there’s the Chosen One story. We know it so well–a character born to save the world, usually requiring the ultimate sacrifice and often a resurrection. Harry Potter, Buffy, Neo, Katniss, and countless others follow the pattern. We love a hero who puts others above him/herself. It’s why THE HOLY BIBLE is the best-selling book of all time. (And just for the record, I’m a Christian, so Jesus is more than a story for me.)

What stories will you read/watch over and over again? Are there any I’ve missed?