writerjenn

You can thank Lisa Schroeder for putting today's topic in my head. Until I read her recent post on shoe shopping, and the comments on it, I thought I was the only woman in America who doesn't think that buying footwear is just the biggest thrill ever. 

I am not a girly girl; I'm not stereotypically feminine. I don't think of shopping as recreation, I don't scream when I see a spider, and I never ask my husband if this dress makes me look fat (I don't wear dresses anyway, unless absolutely forced to). Sometimes stereotypes are thrown in our faces so repeatedly, it's easy to forget that there are huge numbers of people to whom they don't apply--even when we ourselves don't fit the mold.  How else would I, of all people, have bought into the mindset that "women love to shoe shop" so I must just be some kind of aberrant freak?

And now, watch this deft transition as I explain what the heck my shopping habits (or lack thereof) have to do with writing . . .

Our characters shouldn't fit a mold either.  We are free to mix things up, to build characters by pulling some behaviors and traits from Column A, some from Column B, and others from thin air.  I mentioned some good examples of 3-D characters in my recent post on Sara Zarr's SWEETHEARTS.  I'll also mention another recent read, Diane Les Becquets's SEASON OF ICE--not only because the female MC races cars on ice and is probably a character you haven't seen much before--but also because this story of a girl's search for the truth about her father is so compelling.

So, if I can choose a pink flower to decorate my blog, and like to watch football, and adore dark chocolate, and like to hike, and hate to wear makeup, and love reading about Himalayan mountaineering, and excel in science and math, and enjoy dressing up like a princess on my wedding day, and also rejoice in the fact that I never have to dress up like a princess again, then I think my characters can have multiple facets too.   I just need to keep reminding myself of that truth.

I got my hands on Lisa Schroeder's verse novel I HEART YOU, YOU HAUNT ME a few days ago, but I put it aside until I could devote a block of uninterrupted time to it--which came today.  Knowing that it deals with grief and guilt, I was a little wary of the emotions it might bring up.  But I am happy to report that it is about so much more: healing, hope, and all the faces (both positive and negative) of change.  

The main character, Ava, feels the presence of her late boyfriend soon after his death.  This ghostly relationship becomes ever more complicated; events close in on Ava.  And then the poem called, "But how?" reveals that all is not exactly as she (and we) have thought.  It's an elegant resolution that manages to be natural and yet surprising, and the unfolding of the final pages is particularly beautiful for being so skilfully done.  Throughout the book, Ms. Schroeder balances the opposing pulls of past and future, hot and cold, joy and grief, loneliness and love.  And if you're reading as a writer, take note of how her imagery appeals to all five senses.

A reminder: Lisa Schroeder's 12 Days of Christmas book giveaway is winding down. If you post a comment to the Lisa Schroeder LiveJournal page today (Dec 20), you have a chance for STUCK IN THE 70s. If you post tomorrow, the 21st, you can be the first kid on your block to read Lisa's upcoming I HEART YOU, YOU HAUNT ME, a verse novel. You will be the first kid because these are precious advance copies she's giving away! 

In other news: I was reading a back issue (Summer 2006) of GLIMMER TRAIN today (a wonderful literary magazine, whose current and back copies are scattered throughout my house) when I came across these lines in an interview of David Malouf by Kevin Rabalais. This is David Malouf speaking:

"The reader is more affected by the music and rhythm of the book than we take account of. Sometimes, I deal with sentences on a musical level."
and
"I frequently put down a notation of long and short stresses for a phrase or an adverb or adjective in a sentence when I can't yet think of the words. I'll know the rhythm, though."

Yikes, it's another mention of prose rhythm! Before I started blogging about this, I couldn't recall seeing it discussed much. Now it's everywhere!  Not because of me, of course--either this topic has made its way into the collective consciousness, or I'm just noticing it because I started thinking about it so much.

And finally, I'm still plugging away at my revision.  It's amazing how many mental doors critique can open up.  This book that I've lived with for months is revealing new aspects of itself daily.

Shortly after I posted the news about Lisa Schroeder's book giveaway, I found that Jo Knowles is giving away 3 signed copies of her book LESSONS FROM A DEAD GIRL in a similar type of contest. For info about Jo's contest, see the rules here.

The holiday spirit is afoot in YA-writers'-land!

Here are some random thoughts and opportunities.

First, the opportunities:

If you like YA books, check out this contest by Lisa Schroeder. She's awarding FREE YA books this month! And not just any old books, but really good ones! Including National-Book-Award and Printz caliber! See the link for contest rules.

If you live in the Philadelphia area and would like to hear some poetry or recite some, check out this event featuring one of my former poetry teachers:
Poets and Prophets presents Deborah Fries on Tuesday, Dec. 11th at 7 PM. Harvest Bookstore, 9 East State Street, Media, PA. An open reading follows the feature. $2 donation requested.

Now the thoughts:

My writing office is a mess. For 3 weekends running, I've had "clean office" on my to-do list. Today I realized I still did not have a big enough chunk of time to do the whole thing. But I decided that, instead of putting it off again until I could do it all, I would just do a little of it. And so I did manage to make a dent! It reminds me of a quote I have in my office, which I've heard expressed several different ways, but I like this phrasing: "You are not required to complete the task, but you may not abandon it."

Here's what I've been doing instead of cleaning my office: 1) continued work on my current writing projects; 2) attended a performance of Gamelan Semara Santi; 3) filled out a bunch of holiday cards while listening to corny seasonal music (I am covered in glitter from the cards). I don't regret these choices one bit. 

Happy writing and reading, everyone!