Fiction Notes » teen

Introduced first in 2007, debut children’s authors have formed a cooperative effort to market their books. I featured Revision Stories from the Classes of 2k8 and 2k9 and this feature returns this year with the Class of 2k11.

Revision: A Survivor’s Checklist

Guest post by Christina Mandelski
I’ve had many writers profess to me their love of revision, claiming that they get some sort of weird thrill from the process.

I think they’re lying.

I’m not saying that there’s absolutely no joy in revision. In fact, I love revision – when it’s over. Mostly, though, I think revision is hard.

When I’m pounding out that first draft, I throw caution to the wind – my goal is to get the story out. I do love that part. But revision means I have to sit down, pay attention, focus and make it work. This scares me.

Still, no one can argue that revision isn’t necessary, it IS. And certainly, after all the time, effort and love you’ve put into your story, you owe it to yourself to hone it until it sings.

But where to begin? Over the years I have developed a list of three things that I need to ensure a successful revision. They are:

A plan.
Someone/thing to make me accountable.
Good walking shoes.

#1: A plan of revision.

I can’t go into revision willy-nilly. I make a list of all thoughts, notes, suggestions from other readers. Even if an idea sounds ridiculous, I write it down, just in case. Then I sit down and begin to re-type the manuscript, keeping one eye on my to-do list.

#2: Accountability

This leads to #2. I need something to keep me on task, to keep my butt in the revision chair. For me, that’s usually my critique group, who expect to read work from me every other week. Deadlines also help: before we leave for vacation, in time to submit for a conference critique, before my agent gives birth. In other words, something to keep me opening the document every day.

#3: Walking On

And finally, #3. Whether working on your tenth book or preparing for your very first submission, you need to ask and answer certain difficult questions: “Why is the main character doing such-and-such? What is their motivation? Is this plot twist believable? If not, what can I do to make it believable?”

Answering these questions can feel overwhelming and even impossible, but this step is crucial to the success of your manuscript. This is also the point where you may want to throw your laptop across the room.

That’s when I go to get my walking shoes. Usually, in the course of a thirty minute walk, my mind is able to focus on the problem at hand, and inevitably I come up with a solution. Is it always the right solution? No, but it’s a start – it is forward momentum.

Keep moving forward, this is key. Ask and answer the tough questions, meet real or imaginary deadlines, stick to the plan, and one day, you’ll be on the last page of your manuscript with a stronger story than when you began. You’ll be the last one on the island. A true revision survivor.

What about you? What is on your revision survival checklist?

Note: Christina Mandelski is one of four 2011 debut novelist coming out of Darcy Pattison’s Novel Revision Retreat. Read what Christina says about the retreat.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Amy Holder 2k11

Darcy Pattison — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 11:32:19 +0000

Amy Holder debuts with THE LIPSTICK LAWS

Guest post by Amy Holder

Black, white, gray, red–and a machete

Honor Your Process. The process of revising is not black and white, and its gray area is vast and subjective. What works for some won’t work for others, so it’s important to know what works best for you and your writing style. This comes with trial and error. Chocolate consumption may also help. For me, I’ve found that hibernation is an essential part of revising. I’m not talking about gorging myself on Thin Mint cookies before sleeping for months upon finishing a first draft (although that might be tempting)… I’m talking about putting away my finished draft for a couple weeks and detaching a bit from it before coming back to it with a red pen and machete. Revising a manuscript after some time away from it helps me read and revise it with more of an impartial editorial eye. It also allows me to cut unnecessary content without feeling like I’m cutting off my left arm.

Murder Your Characters. Another extremely helpful revision tip I use is about the characters. I believe that characters drive a story, and a great plot without compelling characters can fail miserably. One of the first things I do when revising is cut characters that don’t add anything to the plot and story scenes. If your storyline wouldn’t miss one of your characters, it’s time to give that character the axe. While revising The Lipstick Laws, I cut five characters at various points of revision. FIVE CHARACTERS! That’s like a semi-crowded elevator! The result was a cleaner storyline, less character confusion, and a more concise and manageable cast of personalities.

Focus on Remaining Characters. After I got rid of all the dead weight characters, I was able to focus more on the characters that I kept. I concentrated on their back stories, unique characteristics, patterns of speech, interactions, etc. I really tried to make each character’s voice recognizable, so that if all the names were erased from the manuscript, a reader would still be able to tell the characters apart.

Soften Evil Characters; Roughen Sweet Ones. Last but not least, I picked up a great character revision tip from James Scott Bell’s fabulous book (which I highly recommend): Revision & Self-Editing. His advice was to avoid making a villain/oppositional character all bad (and if a villain is mostly bad, give him/her a sympathetic reason), and never make a protagonist all good. Most “bad” people have at least one redeeming quality and a back story to their antagonistic characteristics, whereas all “good people” make mistakes at times and have flaws. I took this tip and ran with it, applying it to The Lipstick Laws during revision. With this pointer, I was able to make my protagonist and antagonist a lot more well-rounded, believable, interesting and less one-dimensional.

These are just a few of the things that have helped me with my own revisions. I hope you’ll find them useful when you revise as well!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Author as Publisher?

Darcy Pattison — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 16:27:39 +0000

Richard Curtis in a recent EReads post asks a provocative question: Do authors make good publishers? The question is in the context of ebooks, keep that in mind.

They point to high-profile authors who have tried this route this year: Cory Doctorow, Seth Godwin and J.A. Conrath. Curtis concludes that the services of a publisher are valuable.

As he quotes Doctorow, “With a Little Help has helped me realize something: whatever I do next, I don’t want to be in charge of all these moving parts. I can’t be both a Zen, let-it-all-happen-at-its-own-pace writer and an aggressive, deadline-pushing publisher. If I were realistically going to keep up this publishing stuff, I would need to outsource every task that requires the virtues inherent in agents, editors, sales, marketing, distribution and retail, especially that willingness to tithe a large portion of my working day to logistics, follow-ups, and calls.”

Here Conrath however, takes issue with Curtis’ conclusion, reporting, “In December, I made over $24,000 self-publishing, and I’m currently averaging $1300 per day. But I’m far from the only one doing well.”

He then lists many authors with sales figures of over 1000 ebooks in December and concludes that you should self-publish.

May you always Find your Way!

What do YOU think? Know anyone who is doing well by selling ebooks or Kindles? My own Kindle version of The Wayfinder did well in December, but didn’t hit 1000 sales. It was originally published by Greenwillow/Harpercollins, but went out of print after a couple years. For me, it’s a way to keep the book in print, make some money from it and test the ebook waters.

What do you think? Know anyone successfully selling ebooks? Ready to move toward self-publishing? Or, like Doctorow, do you still appreciate the professional team of a publisher?

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

New Life for OP Novels?

Darcy Pattison — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 10:28:55 +0000

New Life as an E-Book?

The Wayfinder by Darcy Pattison

When a novel goes out of print, it’s sad. There are many what-ifs: What if the publisher had done thus and so? A different cover? A different promotion? What if I had done thus and so? More promotion?

In the end, novels run their course. Or do they? In today’s digital world, is it possible for a novel to “find its audience” in a different way? Maybe. Maybe this time, you’ll actually DO the thus and so that will make a difference?

I’m going to find out. The Wayfinder went OP, but is now available as an ebook!

Preload The Wayfinder

Buying a Kindle, Nook, iPad or other eBook reader for Christmas? Why not pre-load The Wayfinder?

Read a sample. The Wayfinder will be the featured book this weekend and next week on the Kindle Nation Daily Blog.

Great gift for a kid, a teacher, a librarian, or really–any reader.

Review it. If you’ve read The Wayfinder, please consider writing a review for it on the Amazon Kindle page.

Order the Kindle version now. Only $2.99

Order the Nook version now.
Also available on iTunes and most ebook stores.

Now an EBook

In the teen fantasy novel, The Wayfinder, Eleven-year-old Win, an apprentice Finder, must go into the mysterious Great Rift to find the Well of Life, the only hope of healing the Heartland of plague and freeing himself from grief.

Why I Love This Book

Setting. This fantasy creates a world set on the edge of a Great Rift. I asked myself questions: given this setting, what stories would parents tell their children? what dangers are specific to this setting? what could NOT take place in this setting?

Theme. The story is written as a hero’s quest, but is overlaid with the stages of grief. I was afraid that this “skeleton” would be too overt, but kids tell me they didn’t notice it. Instead, it’s a great adventure with the danger of climbing cliffs, facing a blazing grass fire, escaping a wolf pack and more. The theme is still there, but the adventure reigns.

My First. The Wayfinder was my first novel to be published and for that reason alone, I love it.

Reviews of The Wayfinder

Booklist Review

Winchal Eldras is an apprentice Wayfinder, a member of an elite group of people who can locate anything or anyone. When Win’s little sister slips out of the house one foggy night, he tracks her to the edge of the Great Rift, where his fear of heights causes him to freeze, and she falls to her death. Bereft, Win retreats into himself. Then a prince of the Heartland arrives with news of a rapidly spreading plague and taps Win to journey through the Rift to find the Well of Life, whose waters are the only cure. With resignation, Win begins the arduous trek, joined by Lady Kala, a royal gazehound with her own special powers. The pair winds its way past a giant eagle, a deadly crocodile, a venomous tatzelwurm, and other dangers. The relationship between the haughty dog and the boy is handled well, growing from mutual abrasiveness to bonding. The plot is simple, but the adventures will keep readers turning the pages. –Sally Estes. Booklist

Locus Magazine Review

“In this YA fantasy, a boy with special talents has to face the thing he fears most in order to find a cure for a plague that threatens his home and kingdom. This basic boy-comes-of-age quest is nicely fleshed out with details of the people and their world. Winchal has the Wayfinders talent that lets him find things, including his way in the dense fog that frequently blankets his town–a talent so useful it has its own guild. Winchal is a promising apprentice, but is terrified of heights, and is stunned to be chosen to go on a quest into the nearby Rift, with only a telepathic dog–an imperious breed owned only by royalty–for a companion. His adventures follow familiar formulas, but have a charm of their own, for a very promising first novel that holds hints of being only the first in a series.” Carolyn Cushman, 15/2000. Locus Magazine.

The Wayfinder: A Teen Fantasy Book Trailer

And, of course, here’s my book trailer for the eBook.

Resources for The Wayfinder

Accelerated Reader Test–Reading Level 5.2, 7 points
Scholastics Reading Counts! Quiz
Interest Level: 6 – 8
Grade Level Equivalent: 5.3
Lexile® measure: 670L

Question: Have you tried putting an OP book into ebook format? Tell us about your experience!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Do You Make This Basic Story Mistake?

Darcy Pattison — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 15:25:00 +0000

When Stories Start to Go Wrong!

Here are some descriptions of manuscripts. Read them and figure out what’s wrong:

6000 word, ABC book
13,000 word middle grade
250,000 YA/teen novel
2000 word YA poetry book
4000 word picture book

Match Audience with Length and Format of Your Story

In each of these cases, the format, especially the length of the manuscript, does not match up with the intended audience.

Here’s a typical run down of manuscript lengths for different formats:

Picture book, including ABC titles. The hottest items are under 500 words. Some picture books can go up to 2000 words, but those are iffy. The audience for picture books can be anything from birth to about 10 years old. Usually the break down is something like 1-3 years old, 2-4, 4-8 or 6-10, though it varies from publisher to publisher.

The best advice for a picture book manuscript is “cut it in half.” Yes, it’s hard in 500 words to have a beginning, middle, end, a satisfying narrative arc, and a character that kids want to spend time with. Welcome to the difficult world of picture books.

ABC books, especially Sleeping Bear Press ABC titles, sometimes will go longer. But essentially the ABC format is just a way to organize information. These are not true ABC books for preschoolers.

Beginning reader and early chapter books. These are aimed at the beginning reader, so ages 4-8. For the truly beginning reader, the text may just be a couple words on each page. This is the only place where a publisher will try to control vocabulary, choosing words with regular spelling or from the sight vocabulary lists. By second grade, though, kids are reading short chapter books, and there’s more leeway in vocabulary and complexity of texts. These run maybe 6000-12,000 words, again depending on a publisher’s inclination and publishing program. Usually these are contemporary stories, grounded in a child’s real world.

Short chapter books. Some people add this category for 3-4th graders. These are short novels (novelettes?) of about 12,000-20,000 words. The topic of these books changes slightly to allow for historical fiction, science fiction or fantasy, or mysteries.

Middle grade novels. For grades 5-8, or about 10-14 years old, the middle grade audience has a wide variety of interests that are reflected in their fiction. Novels for this group run 30-80,000 words, but tend to fall more in the 40-60,000 range. Only the rare Harry Potter will go to 100,000 or more.

YA/Teen novels. For ages 12 and up, the YA or Teen novel has an almost free rein in length, complexity and subject matter. Still even here, the average novel might run 60,000 or so. You can go longer or shorter, if there’s a good reason for it. Some have said that YA novels are just like adult novels, just 100 pages shorter and without the sex scene. Today, you can add both the 100 pages and the sex scene. What distinguishes this literature is the tone of the story, particular the tone of rebellion of some sort. It’s a time of life when kids must break with their parents and figure out life for themselves; that’s what is reflected in the literature they embrace.

When I start to critique a manuscript and the cover letter states that the manuscript breaks the length/audience conventions, I start to worry. Of course, break any rule you want–as long as you do it well. But this is a major red flag in the concept and execution of a story. Have you matched up the audience and format?

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

AR Teen Book Award, Gr.10-12, Opening Lines

Darcy Pattison — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 11:56:00 +0000

I hail from Arkansas and until now, we’ve been known for the Clinton Presidential Library, the US’s only diamond mine (Crater of Diamonds State Park), and the headquarters of Wal-Mart. But this year we’ll be known for the Arkansas Teen Book Award, established by Arkansas Librarians. (Facebook page.) The reading list was announced in December, 2009 and this year’s winners will be announced in December, 2010.

Two days ago, we looked at opening lines from 100 top novels and categorized them to learn how to open a novel. Yesterday, we looked at the opening lines from the teen novels on the 7-9th grade, 2010 Arkansas Teen Book Award reading list and challenged you to identify the novels. Today’s opening lines are from the 10-12th grade reading list for the Arkansas Teen Book Award.

Identify These Teen Novels from Their Opening Lines, #2

OK, TRY to identify these without any help. They are all 2008 copyright books. Need help? See the tip below.
(Actually, many of these are graphic novels and there’s at least one non-fiction on the list.)

Tip No. 1: The Reading List (pdf) can be found here. These are the opening lines for the Level 2, Grades 10-12 list. I didn’t scramble up the list, it just goes down the line.
Tip No. 2: The links will take you to the Amazon page for each book.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

AR Teen Book Award, Gr.7-9, Opening Lines

Darcy Pattison — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 11:43:25 +0000

Yesterday, we looked at opening lines from 100 top novels and categorized them to learn how to open a novel. Here, I’m taking the opening lines from the teen novels on the 2010 Arkansas Teen Book Award reading list and challenging you to identify the novel.

Identify These Teen Novels from Their Opening Lines, #1

OK, TRY to identify these without any help. They are all 2008 copyright books. Need help? See the tip below.

Interestingly, the list includes several graphic novels, but not as many as the grade 10-12 list (opening lines coming tomorrow), which is about a third graphic novels. Arkansas is currently having a big push in schools about encouraging kids to eat right and control their weight. So, both lists include books about eating.

Tip : The Reading List (pdf) can be found here. These are the opening lines for the Level 1, Grades 7-9 list. I didn’t scramble up the list, it just goes down the line. Tomorrow, we’ll do the same thing for the 10-12 grade list.
Tip No. 2: The links will take you to the Amazon page for each book.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Keeping Current: Read Newly Released Books

Darcy Pattison — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 11:44:24 +0000

Take a Reading Day

Standard advice: read what you want to write.
If you want to write a novel, then read mysteries or thrillers or teen or easy readers or whatever genre you want to write.

Last week, I took a reading day and had great fun. I often advise people to read 100 picture books (published within the last 5 years) in preparation for writing picture books. One way I accomplish this is to visit my local bookstore and read new books from their Picture Book Wall. However, this only gets the books that this large chain bookstore chooses to put on said wall. So, last week, I had a library day. I only read ten books, but it was interesting.

Picture Book Illustrations:

I liked 8 out of the ten illustrations. The two I disliked were watercolor that had turned muddy. They had nice details, good characterization, but the muddy watercolors made it a dark, uninviting book.

Picture Book Texts I Didn’t Like

I didn’t like four of the texts. A couple of these were from author/illustrators and the illustrations carried the book; of these, the poetry had ineffective rhyme just there to rhyme and the meaning was lost; another had text that would have been rejected if from an author as “too slight.” (It’s that maddening double-standard applied to texts from picture book authors and picture book author/illustrators.)

One text had a typo on the second page – it was a popular author, good company, someone just slipped up. Another had text WAY too long, lots of purple prose and lapses in the storyline. One nonfiction surprised me because the author’s note explained that she had created some of the dialogue; from another publisher, I might not have noticed, but I was shocked to see this from this author/publisher.

Picture Book Texts I Liked

Simple, yet effective was one of my notes on a text. Some texts were generally good, but some of the double-page spreads were less effective because of long-winded text on a particular page. The best texts were funny, age appropriate, simple-yet-effective.

These were just books that were in my library that day, set upright to entice readers. No attempt to be random or scientific, just “found” books. Here’s a different breakdown.

1 rhymed text
3 historical fiction
2 broken or twisted fairy tale
3 celebrations of art from author/illustrator
1 contemporary/multicultural set in Asia

Lessons from a Reading Day

What did I learn? I was reminded what I love and what I dislike about picture books. I still like short, but effective texts. I like bright, clear illustrations. I still like reading and writing picture book texts.
Plan for the week: Write a new picture book.

If you go to the library or bookstore for a reading day, give us a report!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win