SEASHELL SECRETS

One of the great parts of writing is the research needed for every new novel. The search for knowledge, while challenging, is invigorating. It's why I became a researcher to begin with, and why I worked as a researcher in both early child development and youth corrections. During the difficult and often frustrating tasks of developing believable characters and interesting plots, the research keeps your mind busy learning about different cultures, personalities, relationships, and the world around you.

I recently completed revisions to my tween novel, SEASHELL SECRETS, about a twelve-year-old girl growing up during the Civil Rights Movement. She carries a dark secret in her heart for a whole year: while her pastor father was away at a pastors' conference, her white mother gave birth to a baby with black features. Despite a cross in the woods marking the baby's grave, CASSIE believes the baby is alive and living somewhere in their coastal town of Calico Beach, Florida. She's determined to learn who the father is, and what happened to the baby.

The research for this book was fascinating. I read extensively on the Civil Rights Movement, and even took a trip down the coast of Florida to help me describe the countryside. To my delight, I found the little town of Fernandina Beach which was strikingly similar to my fictional town of Calico Beach. I learned about segregation and housing in the 1960's, and paid close attention to the foliage, birds and scenery, all of which helped build the story. There's a certain sadness that goes with completing a novel. But there's a rejuvenation that comes with starting something new requiring a whole new cast of characters, wildly different scenery and times, not to mention a whole new quest for knowledge to make the story come alive.

I belong to a writers' listserv that recently exchanged information about their "writing space"--where they like to do most their writing. While my desktop computer sits on a rolltop desk in a bedroom converted to an office in a quiet cul-de-sac with deer grazing in the garden, this is actually my second choice of a place to write. First is Panera Bread located in Parker, Colorado. I love the atmosphere, a mixture of friends gathering to discuss whatever over a danish or egg souffle and a cup of coffee (morning is my favorite writing time), and other patrons turning on their laptops and digging into their own writing or business world. Friends ask me if I get distracted trying to create in such an environment. The answer is no. I can lose myself in my story while feeling comforted by the surroundings. It's like working out at a gym with others working up a sweat along with you. Although my husband works and we have no kids at home, that's where I get distracted. I could do laundry...or read something written by someone else...I should answer the phone...So I leave, and go to my favorite place to write.


At this particular moment, though, I am sitting at my desktop. Outside my window, snow is blanketing the trees and bushes, and swirling past my window in the wind. Oh, wait, maybe this is a good place to create. It's that inbetween time of year, the holidays, when there's much to do and buy, and summer when the beautiful weather is bekoning you away from your computer. In Colorado, March weather can change from sunny to blustery in minutes. Sunny is good for shopping, but I love blustery because it's the perfect excuse to put off shopping, and write--guilt free. Which reminds me, I have some revisions to make.



My current project is a few minor revisions to my YA novel, AWAKENING AT SPIRIT LAKE. This contemporary, paranormal romance is about a twelve-year-old girl who dislikes the Native American side of her half-breed heritage. When her family decides to spend the summer in the Rocky Mountain town of Grand Lake, Colorado, she prepares herself for a summer of boredom. Instead, she encounters strange and frightening events around the lake when she meets and falls for a boy descended from a rival tribe, a tribe blamed for the untimely death of April's great-great-great-great grandmother. My husband and I own a small cabin in Grand Lake and I wrote much of the novel there. The manuscript was awarded first place in the Pikes Peak Writers Paul Gillette Contest and was a finalist in the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers Colorado Gold Contest. Unfortunately, now that I'm ready to start sending it out, I'm worried that almost anything from unproven authors will be denied in this terrible economic time. I'm struggling with whether to hold the manuscript until the economy looks brighter, or take my chances and send it out, knowing I could be burning some bridges if my fears are valid.

To write what you know...or not?

Wow -- I can't believe it's already fall. I recently read a blurb emailed to me by one of my critique group members. It's on "writing demotivators" in the form of word definitions for writers. The one that applies most to me right now is the definition of Writing: the recording of life as it passes you by. (For more demotivators, check out http://101reasonstostopwriting.com/demotivators/ ) But instead of recording, I was immersed in revisions of two middle grade novels. Still, I couldn't help but lift my eyes from my manuscripts long enough to observe the world around me. This summer, life was filled with story ideas--happy, interesting and tragic--the breathtaking summer olympics, two horrific hurricanes, a mindboggling presidential (and vice presidential) campaign, and a heart-stopping economic crisis. If you're having trouble coming up with story ideas, stop and smell the roses, or manure, depending on the story you want to write.

The whole topic of finding story ideas is fascinating. The exotic topics I mentioned above are enticing, but are they really accessible to writers still trying to get their feet wet? I've found that the old adage "write what you know" is still a good idea for beginner writers. Once you have the craft down, then it might be fun to venture into unknown waters. I don't mean limit yourself to telling your own story in your own town and in your own neighborhood. There's a ton of information on other environments in travel books and on the internet. And creative minds can build incredible universes for fantasy novels. But when it comes to describing emotions, reactions and even the five senses, I've found that it's easier to do if you can draw upon your own experiences.

In my most recent middle grade novel, DON'T LOOK BACK, my setting is a fictional town in western Kansas (I've been through Kansas, but never lived there. I relied a lot on articles and travel guides.) The protagonist is a twelve year old girl on probation for stealing. I spent fifteen years as a researcher in youth corrections and I know a lot about the system. I've also visited numerous juvenile detention centers and talked with the kids. Another main character is an elderly man with failing eyesight. My father had macular degeneration and before he died (which prompted another emotion I'm painfully familiar with) we discussed it--what he can and can't see, what's hard, what he can't do anymore, etc. I incorporated real experiences and emotions in writing the book. Sometimes they made we laugh, other times they made me cry, because they were real. Reliving them through writing can be difficult, but if you're putting your characters in difficult situations, they need to have real reactions to them. What better resource than your own experiences?

Now, that said, I'm dying to delve into an exotic topic, like swimming for nine gold medals in the next Olympics, but that's a topic for another blog.

The short synopses

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind with trips to Arizona and Cancun, and a weekend in Colorado Springs to attend the 2008 Pikes Peak Writers Conference. The trips away were both fun and restful, and I think these breaks from writing help stir the creative juices when you return. The PPW conference was fabulous, as always, with a good mix of speakers and hands-on writing exercises. Carol Berg, Vicki Lewis Thompson and David Liss all gave wonderful keynote presentations. I love the mix with agents and editors during meals. Few conferences that I've attended give you the opportunity for these social encounters. I pitched to Cecile Goyette and was fortunate to sit next to her at dinner Saturday night. She's direct and helpful during the pitch, and delightful and fun socially. She said I could send her a few chapters of my manuscript as well as a one page synopsis, leaving me with two strong suggestions: 1) make sure the first 3 pages of the manuscript are tight and make we want to keep reading, and 2) don't leave me hanging in the synopsis. I want to know how it ends.

I think the vast majority of agents and editors would agree with Cecile. The one-page synopsis is tricky to write. I believe the key is to think general, the way you have to do when you write your log line. In fact, to me it's almost an extension of the log line, leaving out many secondary characters, subplots and situations you'd love to include because they involve your favorite scene or scenes. It's tempting for beginning writers to leave out the ending, hoping it will make the reader want to read the whole manuscript, but as Cecile indicated, it doesn't work that way in synopses. Don't leave them hanging!