Category: Books (Page 79 of 81)

WIP Wednesday

February 8, 2012 / Katie L. Carroll

I’ve got quite a few works-in-progress, so I’m instituting a new column about a WIP on the second Wednesday of each month.

Why Wednesday? Because it begins with the same letter as WIP, and you all know how us writers love our alliteration. Why the second one of the month? Because that’s when my critique group meets, so it’s easy to keep track of. Why once a month? Because it’s a good way to make sure I have at least one post a month (which lately is about all I’m managing to do!).

My soon-to-be published novel (oh, it’s so satisfying to write that) Elixir Bound is up first. A buddy of mine from my aforementioned critique group share a Wordle of his WIP, which inspired me to create one of my own. I used the entire manuscript of Elixir and Worlde spit back this image.

That big, orange word “Katora” that dominates a huge chunk of the Wordle is the main character’s name. I think that’s fitting, especially for a YA book, because so much of the preteen/teen experience is focused on the me and discovering who you are as a person.

Many of the other large words are also character names, which I guess means my story really is about the characters. Or I just need to stop using their names so darn much! Another interesting thing I noticed is that there are quite a few body parts listed (“Lips” and “mouth” anyone! You know there’s going to be kissing in the book!). Some of my other favorite words: “Elixir,” “family,” “power,” “breath,” “fire.”

I’d love to see what kind of Wordles you all come up with!

A Big Deal

January 19, 2012 / Katie L. Carroll

Some months ago I posted that an opportunity had come up, a big one, one that I was very excited about. Back in October I was on maternity leave from my job at the puzzle factory and had just gotten back into subbing agents with my YA fantasy Elixir Bound.

This was the first full novel I had ever written. Back when I first thought I had “finished” this manuscript, I started sending it out to a few publishing houses, mostly to editors I had met at conferences or ones I had been following online. I got a few bites (and waited a very, very, very long time to get a heartbreaking rejection from an editor I would have loved, loved, loved to work with), but nothing came of them. I put the manuscript away and worked on a new project.

Time passed and I started thinking about that YA fantasy again. It just so happens that this manuscript was very close to my heart, originally written as a way to mourn the death of my sister. Then it became more than that and I was hooked on writing. I attended a seminar with an agent who offered a ten-page critique. She like the pages, offered some very good advice on revisions, and wanted to see the whole thing after I worked on it. She was very kind and praised my writing, but ultimately passed on offering me representation.

Another close call. The manuscript was better than ever. I was ready to start submitting hardcore. But not to editors. The world of kidlit publishing had changed since my first round of subbing and most editors wouldn’t even look at unagented material and even when they did, it took forever to hear from back, if you ever did hear back.

I said to myself, “No more submitting to editors. I am only going to query agents. That’s the route I want to take to publication.” So I did a ton of research to find the right agents. I wrote, rewrote, and rewrote my query letter. I had other writers critique my letter and rewrote some more. Finally I started subbing. Again, there was some interest, but no offers.

Then I gave birth to The Boy. And that brings us back to maternity leave and subbing to agents…only agents. Somehow, though, I ended up on the Muse It Up Publishing website. I did some research, heard some good things about this Canadian e-book publisher. They had a buzz about them. I broke my rule and sent in Elixir Bound.

A few weeks passed and I got an e-mail from Lea Schizas, the founder of Muse It Up. She wanted to publish Elixir Bound! A myriad of emotions overwhelmed me. I was excited, shocked, nervous. I still had no agent, but one offered to take a look at the contract for me. She said, “Go for it!” And I did.

You’ll be able to buy your very own copy of Elixir Bound for your Nook, Kindle, PC, or any other e-reader device in August…of this year! I first conceived of a there-and-back-again tale of two sisters nearly ten years ago. It took a very long time to get to this point of publication, and now it’s moving very fast.

My son will grow up most of his life knowing his mommy is a published novelist. My sister will live on in the pages of a story, my story, our story.

No More Waiting!

October 24, 2011 / Katie L. Carroll

I’ve never thought that sitting around wishing for something to happen makes that thing happen. Not that I haven’t done my share of wishing on shooting stars, on eyelashes that have fallen out, when the digital clock reads all one number (like at 11:11, for example), on a coin thrown into a fountain, when splitting a wishbone, when blowing out birthday candles…okay, I really don’t just sit around wishing on things all day.

Oddly enough, though, a lot of writing is sitting–the old butt-in-chair as you write–is waiting–to hear back from critique partners, agents, or editors–and is wishing–because you’ve got to have something to keep the hope alive. But you also have to be active too. I need to experience life in order to be inspired while I’m sitting and writing, I need to send out my work in order to wait to hear back, and I need to actively daydream about my life as a best-selling author to fuel all those wishes (okay, that last one doesn’t really work, but you get the idea!).

So for that past year or so, I’ve been submitting my writing more actively than I have in all my previous years as a writer. Some opportunities have come up. And a strange thing happened: I found myself turning some of them down.

It wasn’t because they weren’t good opportunities or because I had so many offers pouring in that I could just shrug off the ones that didn’t give me the most gain. It was because they didn’t feel right in my gut. Not that the offers were bad; it’s more that they were not the right fit for me at the time. Every time I’ve said no, it’s been very, very hard. What if I never get another opportunity for that piece of writing? What if I never get another opportunity for any piece of writing? Did I just say no to the only chance I ever had as a writer?

The thing I’ve come to realize is that a single no or a string of noes (I originally typed “a string of nose,” which would be an entirely different thing…LOL!), whether it’s someone else telling me no or me telling someone else no, doesn’t mean the end of my writing career. My career ends when I stop sitting and writing and waiting and wishing.

It just so happens that some 3,120 days since I first conceived of the idea that, yes, I can be a writer for real (this is an estimate because I don’t remember the exact date I thought this), a pretty big opportunity has come up. One that I feel is right in my gut…one that I am going to say yes to. One that makes me want to climb to the top of my house and shout “YES!” from the rooftop (admittedly, this wouldn’t be too hard because I live in a one-story ranch).

So maybe sitting, waiting, wishing worked out okay for me after all. I think I’ll go do some more of that and maybe the next offer will be even bigger.

The Irony of it All

July 31, 2011 / Katie L. Carroll

My English teacher my freshman year of high school was quick to point out when discussing irony that most of the things Alanis Morissette sings about in her song “Ironic” (rain on your wedding day and having ten thousands spoons when you really need a knife) are really not ironic, they’re just bummers. The truth is irony is so often misused in today’s world that the meaning of it has been muddled. I’ve been wondering if it even plays a role in contemporary literature anymore, and specifically in children’s lit because that’s what I write.

I’m going to specifically focus on dramatic irony and verbal irony that isn’t sarcasm (because sarcasm is so not used in today’s world and nobody ‘gets’ it anyway!). (Caveat: I’m not sure I actually understand what irony is and I’m probably going to do a terrible job of discussing it, and you will only end up more confused by the end of this post.)

Let’s start with dramatic irony, which is when the audience/reader/observer is privy to information that allows them to better know the true implications of an action/speech/situation that involves an unknowing character/speaker/subject. A classic example in when Romeo takes his own life because he thinks Juliet is dead, but the audience knows that Juliet only took a potion to appear dead.

Verbal irony is when something is stated that seems to mean one thing, but the speaker actually intends it to mean something else, often the opposite of what was said (and this is done with intent on the part of the speaker…as opposed to dramatic irony which occurs without the subject’s knowledge). Now sarcasm can be a form of verbal irony, but verbal irony doesn’t have to be sarcastic. In A Series of Unfortunate Events the narrator starts the story by saying not to read the book because only bad things happen, but of course, the narrator doesn’t really want the reader to put down the book.

I think it’s a bit more obvious how verbal irony is prevalent and relevant in today’s society. We see it in books, on TV, in everyday life. Dramatic irony is a little bit tougher to observe, especially in children’s lit. Today’s kids are so savvy about everything that it’s harder to create a character that is believably in the dark about something that is obvious to the reader.

Going back to the Romeo and Juliet example, are we really supposed to believe that Romeo was so dense that he couldn’t figure out that Juliet wasn’t dead? In a historical context, we can buy that Romeo wouldn’t have known to check for a pulse and that he could have actually believed that Juliet’s “crimson” lips and cheeks were possible even after death. But today, it’s hard to believe that a guy–even a young one with a minimal amount of medicinal knowledge–wouldn’t be able to to tell the difference between a dead body and a live person.

I feel like I could go on and on about irony and really come to no conclusion at all. I’ve been researching definitions of irony and asking others for examples of irony in contemporary children’s lit and I’m just feeling more confused about the whole thing than when I started. Frankly, I was kind of sick of the whole idea of irony before I even started writing this post and now that I’m rereading what I’ve written, I’m thinking I didn’t really say much at all in this ever-growing post.

And who’s to say that Alanis Morissette didn’t know that all the crap she says in “Ironic” wasn’t ironic? Maybe she knew that the whole time, and the song ends up being even more ironic because it isn’t talking about irony at all. Now I’m throwing my hands up in frustration! Please, someone post an intelligent comment about irony so that this whole thing doesn’t feel so pointless.

Also, check out the SCBWI Writers of Lower Fairfield blog where I’ll be occassionally posting about writing-related topics.

“Charlie Joe Jackson’s Guide to Not Reading” Release

July 14, 2011 / Katie L. Carroll

I’ve got to give a shout-out to a member of my critique group who had his first book signing last night. Congrats to Tommy Greenwald on the release of his MG novel Charlie Joe Jackson’s Guide to Not Reading.

This book has a great hook for reluctant readers with a main character who may possibly be the most reluctant reader ever (and he gives tips on how to get out of reading), but it is also full of great characters, hilarious moments, and a fun plot that enthusiastic readers will enjoy. (And really, even though Tommy is in my critique group, I’m not the least bit biased.)

At the book event, Tommy shared a few of his favorite tips that Charlie Joe gives the readers. Here’s a few of my favorites:

Tip #2: “Never read a book by someone whose name you can’t pronounce.” (I must confess that I don’t adhere to this particular rule. Otherwise I never would have picked up Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater.)

Tip #4: “If you want girls to like you, don’t read.” (Not a particular concern for me, but I could see how the target audience might be interested in this tip.)

Tip #9: “Reading can make you fat.” (And I thought I was getting fat because of the whole pregnancy thing…I guess I’ll have to cut back on my reading.)

Tip #20: “When you’re more than halfway through a book, pick up the pace, skim a bit, and get it over with as quickly as possible.” (I have done this one before…not often, but there are some books that I’ve had to read and just couldn’t connect with.)

Tip #25: “When finishing a book, never look at it again.” (With this tip, Charlie Joe makes ten suggestions on what to do with the book…my favorite, “Wrap bacon around it and give it to the dogs.” Proof positive that everything is better with bacon!)

I’m afraid you’ll have to read the book to find out what the others are. Next up, I’ve got some more good reading when I share the latest round of magnetic poetry!