Katie L. Carroll

Books for kids, teens, & those who are young at heart

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Science, Math, and Nature as Inspiration for Themes in Writing and Beyond

Long-time readers of the Observation Desk might remember that I’m a fan of science. Some of my old posts include “We Are All Stardust”, “Big New for the Big Bang,” and “Seems the World Will End in a Bang, Not a Whimper.” I find science and nature (and even sometimes math!) to be a great source of inspiration, not only for writing but for my life.

There are so many wonderful, beautiful, crazy aspects of our universe. An exploding star, called a supernova, sends particles shooting across the universe. These happen all the time in our universe and have been happening for billions of years. All the elements that make up earth, including our own bodies, were once ejected particles from a supernova.

Then you have the Fibbonacci Sequence, which starts at 0,1 and each subsequent number is the sum of the previous two (0,1,1,2,3,5,8, etc…) and put in order in boxes make a spiral. Many things in nature follow this pattern, from flower petal and seed arrangements to how spiral galaxies are formed.

To take a look at a math example, did you know that a computer cannot truly generate a random number? Because computers function via algorithms, or sets of rules programmed in to the computer, it’s not possible for a computer to do random.

And whether or not I totally understand all these concepts that fascinate me (spoiler alert: I don’t, but I keep trying anyway!), they never fail to inspire me. They push me to examine the patterns in my writing. On a micro level, I look at the the words, language, and sentence structure patterns I fall back on, so I can push myself beyond my own cliches.

On a macro level, it pushes me to recognize emerging themes in my writing. What themes did I go in with and maybe didn’t follow through on properly? What themes didn’t I notice, ones that maybe stemmed from my subconscious, that can make my story better if I tease them out more and reinforce them? Where are there more opportunities to refine any symbols I’ve used or places where I can introduce more?

Taking a patterned analysis to my writing allows me to make sure every detail (word, sentence, symbol, description, etc…) counts to work toward a greater whole through theme and plot.

To take all this a step further, trying to understand the science and math that governs nature can help me examine my own life for themes and patterns. It pushes me to a greater level of introspection and hopefully to a better place as human being. And that will only contribute to me being a better, more deliberate writer.

When I work at honing that merging of the creative and analytical thinking, stuff  moves in ways I could never have imagined before. The world, my stories, my life…everything reaches a whole new level of understanding in my mind. And that feels like a pretty incredible phenomenon.

What Is This Life Even?

I’ve got all these thoughtful blog posts simmering in my brain, ideas sketched out in my notebook. What I haven’t got is time to write them. Which is actually a good thing. I haven’t had the time because I’ve been lucky to have a bunch of writing events this fall, I’ve got three wonderful kiddos that keep me busy and laughing and loving, and some days the weather has been too beautiful not to get outside. Plus, I’ve been devoting as much of my writing time as I can to drafting ELIXIR SAVED, and that’s actually been going well (fingers crossed I can writeTHE END by the end of the year).

And while my personal life is in a good place, the larger country and world is more often than not a trash fire, so on days when I do sit down to write, it’s easy to get distracted by that. And then I feel guilty that I have the privilege to be able to call all the politics and stuff a distraction. Yet I also know that my work of writing books for kids is an important and political act (as is all art), so when I’m working, I’m not actually ignoring those things but contributing (hopefully) to the growth of the very people who will be running the country and the world one day.

I try to remember to pause and be in the moment and appreciate where I’m at. I have this writing life that is gaining a little bit of steam and maybe (maybe!?) one day will be a full-time career. And, of course, I have this beautiful family that is a joy and a pain and a million other things all at once.

I guess what I’m saying is life is complicated in a wonderfully messy way. I love my blog, but lately life has been moving too fast to stop and give it the attention it deserves. But that’s okay…it’ll be here when I have the time for it.

PIRATE ISLAND Event Pictures and News

It’s been a whirlwind this past week with two book events (plus all the usual shenanigans that go on around here with the kiddos and such)! The PIRATE ISLAND One City, One Story event at the library was so much fun. I always enjoy talking about Charles Island, the real island that inspired Pirate Island, and the legends of Captain William Kidd’s lost pirate treasure that may be buried there.

Since I’ve talked about this topic at the library once before I hit some of the old favorite facts and legends but also mixed in some new ones. Then we had cookies, a writing prompt, and pictures…lots of pictures. A photographer from the Connecticut Post stopped by and took a bunch of pictures and put a nice little write up about the event in the newspaper with a slideshow. The librarian also set up the green screen and the kids hammed it up. Here are a couple of shots from her.

Then on Saturday I was at the Milford Barnes & Noble signing books and helping raise funds for the Friends of the Milford Public Library. You can shop online at BN.com/bookfairs through Friday, September 28 with bookfair code 12394516 to help out the Friends! If you’re local, the are probably still some signed copies of PIRATE ISLAND at the bookstore as well.

I’ve got one more event coming up on Saturday, October 13 at the Norwalk Public Library for their Indie Author Day. They don’t have a lot of details listed on their website yet, but I can tell you that it’s an all day event with a ton of authors of all age groups and genres. I’ll be reading in the Children’s Room in the morning and selling copies of PIRATE ISLAND and ELIXIR BOUND (with the new cover!) all day. And hopefully catching up with a few of my author friends that I think are going.

I’ve been slowly but steadily pecking away at the second Elixir book, ELIXIR SAVED. I’ve finally passed that muddy middle and have tipped over into the second half with THE END in sight! I’m hoping to have a good draft done by the end of the year to send out to beta readers for feedback. This in anticipation of releasing it some time next year!!!

My reading goals have been going well this year. I actually bumped up my number goal recently, and I feel like I’ve been doing well mixing in lots of books from underrepresented communities and indie authors as well. So what have you all been up to? Reading, writing, and otherwise?

Conference Panels Writing and Publishing Advice #LA18SCBWI (Bonus Jane Austen and Salt-N-Pepa)

Last #LA18SCBWI post was devoted to the amazing (and many!) keynotes, so this post is devoted to the panels. Where the keynotes are largely inspirational, the panels tend to get more into the nitty-gritty of publishing and the craft of writing. These are snippets from each panel, which are done in a Q&A style and often turn into conversations, so these are simple highlights I’ve pulled out and tried to keep in context as much as possible. (And make sure you get all the way to the end to see me dressed as Jane Austen!)

Editor Panel with Laura Godwin, Elizabeth Law, Amanda Maciel, Krista Marino, Francesco Sedita, and Namrata Tripathi:

Question: What makes you keep reading on when considering a manuscript?

  • A pulsing heartbeat throughout the story. – Francesco Sedita (president and publisher of Penguin Workshop at Penguin Young Readers)
  • You can tell when a writer has a deep investment and curiosity about a topic. She takes notice when she doesn’t care about a thing and she is transformed to care about that thing by the writing. – Namrata Tripathi (VP & publisher of Kokila, a newly-formed imprint of Penguin Young Readers dedicated to centering stories from the margins)

Question: What do you see too much or or can’t see enough of?

  • It’s super exciting to see something that’s been done a million times and it’s done in a new way. – Krista Marino (senior executive editor at Delacorte Press, part of Random House Children’s Books)

Question: What is the most important skill a writer for children can possess?

  •  Persistence. Have passion and stay in the game. – Elizabeth Law (editor at Holiday House)
  • An endless curiosity about the world and yourself. You need a great idea and to keep asking questions and developing that idea. – Amanda Maciel (executive editor at Scholastic)
  • A curiosity and drive to satisfy it in an endless loop. – Laura Godwin (vice president and publisher of Godwin Books, an imprint of Macmillan publishers)

Panel “Truth vs. Innocence in Children’s Books” with Elana K. Arnold, Brandy Colbert, Erin Entrada Kelly, Carolyn Mackler, and moderated by Linda Sue Park:

Question: How go you define dark in literature?

  • It’s what I have. When the well has filled us and whatever we’re filled with we have to work with. – Elana K. Arnold
  • Dark is part of life. Leaning into the sadness of life, as I also lean into the the light and find humor in sadness. – Carolyn Mackler
  • The further away from hope, the more interesting the road to coming back. – Erin Entrada Kelly

Question: Tell us the initial spark or kernel for one of your books.

  • After my first two books, I had emptied the well of shame. New water had filled the well, and it was rage. I’m not holding back and saving anything for the next book. – Elana K. Arnold (on her upcoming book DAMSEL)
  • It’s wish fulfillment in an alternate universe. – Brandy Colbert (on her book LITTLE & LION)

Question: How do you respond to critics who say your books are too dark?

  • One of the greatest disservices we do to young people is to underestimate them. – Erin Entrada Kelly
  • I pull out the letters from young readers to show me how important my books are to them. – Carolyn Mackler
  • Children are whole people. Book are a wonderful way to practice saying no. It’s good practice to recognize when they feel uncomfortable or unsafe. – Elana K. Arnold
  • I get really angry because I think of the kids going through those things. It’s telling those kids their lives or experiences are too dark. – Brandy Colbert

Panel “Culture, Identity, and Writing: Where do they intersect?” with Malinda Lo, Dashka Slater, Aida Salazar, Ibi Zoboi, and moderated by Arthur Levine:

Question: Was there a time during the writing that you felt the joyful intersection of culture, identity, and the work at hand?

  • I was writing about my own identity but not my own experiences. When I was telling a complete truth, my own truth, about my culture. – Ibi Zoboi
  • I was proud and joyful to rescue my story from obscurity. It’s a revolutionary act. – Aida Salazar

Question: What are the talismans of power in your writing?

  • I use my writing as a tool for social change. My characters have emotions in spite of white narrative and hostility. – Aida Salazar
  • Having to think of yourself and having to think about how you are being perceived by others in a white space. I always feel like I’m on the outside looking in. I can’t help but having a worldwide perspective. – Ibi Zoboi
  • Using gender and race and performance. The point is to center the Chinese-ness of the character and the point isn’t to be concerned about making sure others get it. – Malinda Lo

Question: As part of a minority culture, do you ask “Is there part of me that I shouldn’t show because it will be too scary?” Do you feel that way in your writing, that you’re censoring a part of yourself?

  • I definitely did. I imagined the characters in ASH as Asian. The gay thing was enough of a problem, so I did not include any Asian-ness in the book. You don’t see these stories that represent you. You have to imagine they exist in the first place. The message is everywhere, no one has to outright tell you. – Malinda Lo
  • Self-censoring comes in telling the truth. It comes when we’re afraid of telling these truths and thinking about who will be mad. – Ibi Zoboi
  • Authenticity is marginalizing. It centers the mythological one story line. – Malinda Lo

Agent Panel with Jenny Bent, Tina Dubois, Kirsten Hall, Kevin Lewis, Ammi-Joan Paquette, and Tanusri Prasanna, and moderated by Alexandra Penfold

Question: What’s strong in the marketplace right now?

  • Books addressing complicated and ugliness of our world. – Kirsten Hall
  • Fiction that digs deep into the personal experience, the heart coming through in a deep way. – Ammi-Joan Paquette

Question: Should you write a book outside your own identity?

  • If you want to write a book outside your culture, if it’s in your heart, then do it. But realize you have to take what comes with that. Actions have consequences. – Kevin Lewis
  • Look internally. Ask yourself why you want to write this book. If you’re writing it just to be diverse, then don’t do it. If you feel it in your loins, then do it. – Tanusri Prasanna

Question: What is your best advice for writers?

  • Be you and do you. Spend a lot of time on your work. – Kirsten Hall
  • Take risks and do something different. – Ammi-Joan Paquette
  • Celebrate any victory. Celebrate yourself. – Jenny Bent

Panel “The Secret of Crafting Engaging Non-fiction” with Jason Chin, Candace Fleming, Deborah Heiligman, and Barbara Kerly, and moderated by Melissa Stewart

  • I believe people’s lives have themes. Look for things in people’s lives that has those themes. – Barbara Kerley
  • A life is a story. It has a beginning, middle, and end. This is why narrative non-fiction works for biographies. – Deborah Heiligman
  • The difference between fiction and non-fiction is like cake. In fiction, I get to buy the ingredients for the cake, bake it up, and gobble it down. In non-fiction, I don’t do the shopping. The ingredients are all crazy, but I still have to make delicious cake. – Candace Fleming

No L.A. conference would be complete without the Saturday night gala. This year’s theme was a tribute to writers and artists. There were tacos and dessert food trucks and dancing. I chose to go as the incomparable Jane Austen. This may or may not have been a tweet about me that night (I’m pretty sure I saw at least one other Jane Austen, but I’m not sure I saw any others dancing to this particular song), “You haven’t lived ‘till you’ve seen Jane Austen dance to Salt-N-Pepa.” 

PIRATE ISLAND is the 2018 Milford Public Library’s One City, One Story Middle Grade Pick!

I’ve been sitting on this news for awhile and am so excited to finally announce that my middle grade adventure PIRATE ISLAND has been selected by the Milford Public Library for the One City, One Story program this fall. The library states that the “One City One Story is a program encouraging all residents, preschool to seniors, to read books sharing a common theme, encouraging dialogue and fostering a greater sense of community…one page at a time.”

The books are all pirate themed this year. TREASURE ISLAND by Robert Louis Stevenson is the adult title and SHIVER ME TIMBERS! PIRATE POEMS AND DRAWINGS by Doug Florian is the elementary title. The library has been so supportive of PIRATE ISLAND, putting my book on their shelves, hosting my launch party, and now this!

I’ll be doing a special event on Wednesday, September 19 at 2:30 (this is a day off from school for the kids…apologies to my Jewish friends who will be celebrating Yom Kippur and won’t be able to make it) at the library. Learn a bit about the real pirate lore that inspired the book, play some fun games, grab a cookie and a signed book, and get inspired with a writing prompt.

I have a few more events in the pipeline for this fall, so stay tuned for those announcements. Non-local friends, I’ll be posting a video of me reading the first two chapters of PIRATE ISLAND in the next couple of weeks, so you can join in on the fun too! I’ve also updated my Pirate Island Curriculum Guide for the occasion.

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