No Phone Zone Winner

The winner of the No Phone Zone McDonalds Gift Card Giveaway is Stephanie Jenkins! Congratulations, Stephanie. I am proud of everyone who promised to make their drivers' seats no phone zones. The roads will be a little safer because of you.

Blog Contest: Take Oprah's No Phone Zone Pledge

Yesterday, Oprah’s show was on driving while distracted. According to University of Utah researcher David Strayer, our brains can’t multitask the way we would like to believe they can. Drivers who are on their cell phones talking or texting experience a sort of tunnel vision that is equal to or worse than driving while intoxicated. One of the points raised was, even if you are able to stay between the lines while distracted, you are not as alert to the people around you who are weaving, and your reaction time is worse. I don’t text, but admit to checking in with my husband while driving. The idea that my flippant phone call could cause anyone’s (especially a child’s) death is horrible.

This morning I signed Oprah’s No Phone Zone Pledge, and I want to challenge all of you to do the same. I’m providing the link to Oprah’s challenge. Sign it, commit to it, and leave me a comment on my blog telling me you took the pledge. On Monday, January 25, one commenter who took the challenge will win a $10 McDonalds gift card. After all, you deserve a Happy Meal for committing to something that will make the world a safer place for kids.

Remember, I must be able to contact you to send you a prize, so make sure you leave me your twitter name or email address if I can’t find it through your blog account. I will only mail the prize to a U.S. address. Good luck, and thanks for taking the challenge.

http://www.oprah.com/questionaire/ipledge.html?id=4

Less Whine. More Win. (A Writer's Pep Talk)

It’s easy to whine about how tough it is to break into the publishing industry. It’s easy to whine about form rejection letters and “if you haven’t heard from us in 6 months, we are not interested” policies. It’s easy to whine about how hard it is to get any writing done with “Mom, Mom, Mom,” in the background.


You know what’s not easy?


Writing. Perseverance. Taking negative feedback on your work and transforming it into positive changes. Finding the courage to send the manuscript you’ve nurtured to someone who may or may not even acknowledge it arrived. Having faith that the right publisher is out there and will love your work as much as you do.


So why do it? Do it because this is your story. Because the writing, the revising, the rejection, and the perseverance are all part of your grand adventure. If you want a shot at a happy ending, you’ve got to keep turning the page. Don’t let yourself get stuck on the negatives. Keep going. Work harder. Less whine. More win. Happy New Year.

Advice for Writers from Carrie Ryan

Carrie Ryan’s THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH grabbed me from the first line and didn’t let go until the end. Her workshop at the SCBWI-Carolinas Fall Conference was equally engaging.

Don’t let her bubbly personality fool you. Ms. Ryan does bad things to her characters and challenges others to do the same. Her advice? Take readers to the point where they believe the situation can’t possibly get worse, then, make it worse. Keep raising the stakes. Pull away your main character’s support system. Don’t shy away from situations where reaching the external goal would mean not reaching the internal goal. And by the way, there doesn’t have to be a happy ending.

Carrie Ryan also discussed her theory of credibility points. She believes readers give writers about 100 credibility points. If a writer asks the reader to believe something big (like in the existence of zombies), that will take lots of points. This means the writer should add details to make the smaller leaps of faith more believable.

So, how about you? Do you let your main character struggle or are you too quick to race to the rescue? Please leave a comment and share.

And The Winner Is...

Robin Constantine is the winner of my First Pages Blog Contest. She will be receiving the Mad Libs American Idol edition, where she may use adverbs as freely as she pleases.

I appreciate those of you who shared what you've learned. You rock!

First Pages: An American Idol for Writers

First Pages create lots of buzz at SCBWI conferences. Writers can choose to turn in a first page of a manuscript. If the page is picked, it will be read in front of a panel of experts (usually editors and agents) and an audience of conference participants. These sessions are a bit like an American Idol for writers. You hear the good, the bad, and the ugly. Everyone wants to watch, but only the brave participate. Sometimes the feedback is brutal. At least names are left off the manuscripts, so a bad “audition” won’t cost you your dignity. Every now and then, a piece will shine.

I’ve watched American Idol since the first season. I pride myself in my ability to predict what the different judges will say after a performance. This is the beauty of attending a First Pages session. As the panel responds to the pages, those listening get a better understanding of what editors and agents want to see and what turns them off. Although I’ve never had a piece read during one, I can still apply the feedback.

For example, during the last SCBWI Carolinas Fall Conference, an editor pointed out that it was not a good idea to use brand names in a manuscript, because it can make your work seem dated in later years. This was new to me, and I was able to change the brand names in my work in progress to generic ones before sending it out again.

So what have you learned from a First Pages session? Leave a comment and follow my blog. On Monday, one sharer will be randomly picked to receive the AMERICAN IDOL MAD LIBS edition. Remember, I must be able to contact you to send you a prize, so make sure you leave me your twitter name or email address if I can’t find it through your blog account. I will only mail the prize to a U.S. address. Good luck, and thanks for sharing.

David Macinnis Gill's YA Workshop

YA stands for young adult, and according to SOUL ENCHILADA author David Macinnis Gill, YA is a marketing category, not a genre. At the SCBWI Carolinas Fall Conference, he explained what YA is and how it distinguishes itself from middle grade and adult books.

Generally, YA books span ages 12 to 18+. But not all YA is appropriate for 12-year-olds. As YA reaches out for college students, the themes become darker and more complex. The language and content of YA books often keep them off the shelves of libraries.

So how do you know if a book is a YA? Gill listed four characteristics:
*a teen main character
*an inherently teenage story problem
*written for a teen audience
*told in the here-and-now, rather than from adult retrospection.


Middle grade and young adult books can share similar characteristics and have an overlapping audience. The main difference between the two is intensity. In a middle grade book, romance might involve hand holding or some kissing. Young adult takes it further. In middle grade books, a bully might hit or push. In a young adult story, a bully might kill or cause serious injuries. In a middle grade book, a teacher might be mean. In a young adult book, the teacher might be a predator.

Writers should have a good idea who their audience is when pitching manuscripts, but the final decision is often out of their hands. Editors, sales and marketing, and agents help decide a book’s category.