http://www.darcypattison.com Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:34:03 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en "She stopped and remembered her home town and how it felt to be ten years old when she moved. . ." I checked out two books-on-tape yesterday and tried to listen to them. The first one started at a certain point, then immediately went into a flashback, within the first page. ... http://www.darcypattison.com/plot/fatal-backstory/ New comparisons you never thought of before: As red as a ?????. No related posts. http://www.darcypattison.com/asides/red/ Today, I get to revise. I will . . . . . . rewrite the opening of a picture book ten different ways. I make my freshman composition students rewrite their openings three ways and always, the later tries are better. This picture book needs that kind of work to get ... http://www.darcypattison.com/revision/o-happy-day/ John Green is discussing which is better: a big or little advance? These contract issues are vitally important. Which would you prefer? Related posts:First Contract AdviceDon’t Sign that Book Contract Until – http://www.darcypattison.com/asides/big-or-little-advance/ How do you find fresh eyes to read through a manuscript? Don't claim it. One trick I've heard is to put another writer's name on it and print it out. For example, "Goldilocks by Eve Bunting". Then read it and see if it lives up to Bunting's reputation. Reimagine it. One thing ... http://www.darcypattison.com/revision/fresh-eyes/ I've followed the book trailer phenomenon for a couple years and wanted to do a post. In 2003, it was just beginning; in 2006, there was lots of experimenting; in 2009, it seems here to stay and writers should take it as a given that they need a book trailer ... http://www.darcypattison.com/marketing/book-trailers/ A guest post I'd love to see: How to Write a Kissing Scene in a Romance Novel Related posts:3 Ways to Salvage a SceneEvents NOT Worthy of a Full Scene? http://www.darcypattison.com/asides/kissing-scene/ In July, I'll open enrollment for an Online Picture Book course.[caption id="attachment_1698" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="photo by Bisayan Lady"][/caption] The online study class will include: 36 lessons Forum for questions and discussion One critique of a picture book manuscript AND a second critique of the revision of that same manuscript Self-paced 90-day access to Lessons and Forum Picture ... http://www.darcypattison.com/featured/picture-book-course/ What Age Do you Have to Be to Write a Novel? The question of the perfect age to write a novel comes up sometimes when I do school visits. Too young? At what age are you too young to write a novel and have it published? I've seen a 13 year old ... http://www.darcypattison.com/authors/all-ages/ Introduced first in 2007, authors debuting children's books have formed a cooperative effort to market their novels. Last year, I featured many of the stories of how the 2k8 Novels Were Revised. This is part of the ongoing stories from the Class of 2k9 authors and how they went about ... http://www.darcypattison.com/authors/jt-dutton-2k9/