It's Okay to Be Chicken . . .

especially when you're at the amazing 2013 Florida SCBWI Conference in Miami.

For example, I'm sure the five people speaking on the "First Books" panel (Laen Ghiloni, Shannon Hitchcock, Nicole Lataif, Rob Sanders and Jessica Souders) were chicken, but they got up and made inspiring speeches anyway about the experience of publishing their first books.

Shannon Hitchcock telling the touching story of why she dedicated THE BALLAD OF JESSIE PEARL to her son, Alex

Then we were off to Books and Books in Coral Gables where being chicken wasn't an option.  I thanked owner, Mitchell Kaplan, for his wonderful store and for being so supportive of authors.  I met with writers/illustrators/editors, etc.

Becky and Aaron from Books and Books operated the bookstore at our conference.

Aaron and Becky from Books and Books.  This photo was stolen from Augusta Scattergood's blog.

Saturday was filled with wise words from authors, illustrators, editors and agents.  We had the pleasure of hearing Bruce Coville, Rubin Pfeffer, Michael Sterns, Toni Buzzeo, Ellen Hopkins, etc.

Here's Bruce Coville, talking about the ripples that extend from what we do.  What a wise and witty speaker!

The evening found us at the Barnyard Stomp.  We were dressed as hillbillies, farm animals and even Honey Boo Boo Child. 

Becca Puglisi, Stacie Ramey, Me, Jill Nadler

Jill Nadler, Fred Koehler and me!

Sunday workshops included a workshop by Becca Puglisi, who, along with Angela Ackerman, are the authors of The Emotion Thesaurus.

One of the highlights of the excellent workshop was connecting with Augusta Scattergood, author of the highly acclaimed novel, Glory Be.

Augusta Scattergood and me, after a long, wonderful conference

As always, the conference tired me out and energized me.  It was GREAT to connect with old friends and make some fine new ones.  THANK YOU to Linda Bernfeld and all the people who worked so hard to make this conference so memorable.

My life is far richer for our Florida chidren's literature community!

TOOLS OF THE TRADE

Doctors have stethoscopes.  Teachers have Smartboards.  Accountants have calculators.

Writers have tools, too.

Here are the ones I turn to when I write a book . . .

1.  Before I begin, I remind myself about story structure and character arcs with Robert McKee's excellent STORY:  SUBSTANCE, STRUCTURE, STYLE AND PRINCIPLES OF SCREENWRITING.  (I found this book so helpful that I made pages of notes and refer to the notes now instead of the original hefty volume.) 

2.  Early in the process, I create a synopsis -- a map, a blueprint, a guide -- that helps me navigate from the beginning through the murky middle to the inevitable ending.  For that, I need to ask and answer hard questions about my intentions.

I find those handy dandy questions in Appendix A:  Outlining Your Novel at the back of Donald Maass' WRITING THE BREAKOUT NOVEL WORKBOOK.  (I enjoyed his WRITING THE BREAKOUT NOVEL, too.  But I can summarize the main point of that book in three words:  Work incredibly hard.)

I find Cheryl Klein's SECOND SIGHT:  AN EDITOR'S TALKS ON WRITING, REVISING AND PUBLISHING BOOKS FOR CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULTS helpful at this point.  This book has lots of useful exercises to help reveal your characters and story in a meaningful way.

Walter Dean Myer's has a great book for young writers called JUST WRITE HERE'S HOW.  In this book, Myer's offers a six-box system for organizing your novel or short story.  In the back are tips for writers, and I found his wisdom applicable for writers of any age.

3.  If I get muddled in the middle of a novel, I'll pull out Rochelle Melander's WRITE-A-THON:  WRITE YOUR BOOK IN 26 DAYS (AND LIVE TO TELL ABOUT IT).  Besides the practical advice throughout, there are perfect quotes at the beginning of each short chapter.

4.  While writing, if my character's keep smiling or gasping or their stomachs keep knotting or twisting, I grab THE EMOTION THESAURUS:  A WRITER'S GUIDE TO CHARACTER EXPRESSION to find fresh ways to show how they are feeling.  Thanks to authors Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi for this invaluable, easy-to-navigate guide. 

I can't wait for Ackerman and Puglisi to come out with their guide for creating characters, which I think is next on their list.  (Places hands on hips, taps foot, clicks fingernails against table, lets out a loud breath, glances repeatedly at clock and crosses arms . . . Oh, thank you page 94!)

5.  When the draft is done and revisions are in order, I'll revisit Cheryl Klein's SECOND SIGHT and I'll read Kate Messner's REAL REVISION:  AUTHORS' STRATEGIES TO SHARE WITH STUDENT WRITERS.  Besides great ideas, charts and examples, there are oodles of interviews with authors like Jane Yolen, Tom AngleBerger, Cynthia Lord, Kathi Appelt, me and many others.  Again, I found much of the advice and information applicable for writers of any age.

In addition to these great tools, I have an accountability buddy.  Each morning, my friend and I exchange a quick email sharing our day's writing goals.  We check in at day's end to share our progress and encourage each other.

What are YOUR favorite writing tools?

And the Winner is . . .

Thanks to everyone who left a comment on my post celebrating the release of the excellent resource for writers The Emotion Thesaurus by Becca Puglisi and Angela Ackerman of the rockin' site The Bookshelf Muse.

The winner of a SIGNED paperback copy is . . . RUTH DARRINGTON.  Congratulations, Ruth!

Check back soon for more giveaways and other fun posts.