Tuesday Writing Tips – Somebody’s House – Writing and Illustrating a Picture Book

Today I’m pleased to welcome talented author, Katrina Germein and amazing illustrator, Anthea Stead to my blog.

To celebrate their new book, Somebody’s House, Katrina and Anthea have dropped in and generously agreed to share their tips on how they created their vibrant new story. And I’ll be reviewing it at the end of this post.

KATRINA’S TOP 5 TIPS ON WRITING A PICTURE BOOK

Katrina Germein is a best-selling Australian picture book author, published worldwide.

Her popular picture book, My Dad Thinks He’s Funny, was Highly Commended in the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards.

The sequel, My Dad STILL Thinks He’s Funny, will be published in 2013. Katrina’s work has been featured on children’s television programs such as Wurrawhy, Yamba’s Playtime and Play School and several of her titles have won Notable Book commendations from The Children’s Book Council of Australia.

Here are Katrina’s tips on picture book writing:

1.  Don’t force a story. Write the story that’s dancing around your head when you’re doing the dishes or stopped at the traffic lights. Write the story that’s desperate to be written. (The story that is still shadowy will reveal itself when it’s ready.)

2.  Make it shorter. Your first draft is too long. Even if your first draft is short it’s still too long. Give it time to settle and then you’ll be able to see where you can tighten your manuscript.

3.  Ignore people who don’t know what they’re talking about. Your neighbor who teaches Year 10 Maths doesn’t know everything about children’s books just because he works in a school. Find people who can give you genuinely helpful feedback.

4.  Connect with a positive writing community. Find others (on or offline) who understand what it’s like to be a writer and will encourage and support you. Encourage and support them back. At some point you’ll need them.

5.  Write with heart. The aim of the game is to make your reader feel something.

Learn more about Katrina at www.katrinagermein.com

ANTHEA’S ILLUMINATING ILLUSTRATION TIPS

Anthea works long hours on her illustrations – often drawing late into the night. She does whatever it takes to get the job done – and her colourful illustrations are a reflection of her extraordinary talent and dedication to her art.

Here’s how she illustrates.

1. Worry. (I’m very good at it.)
1a, Helpful tip to stop worrying – Eat chocolate.! Works a treat . . . no pun intended, well maybe.
2. Take lots of photos of anything that may have the colour I am looking for. Eg. Purple cabbage was my inspiration for the roof of the yellow house.
3. Drink lots of coffee, work really late and then get up and re do in the morning light!
4. Create so many layers of paint and pastels you can lay your head on it (re previous point)!
5. Don’t let family members comment on drawings as it saves LOTS of time!

See more of Anthea’s illustrations and find out more about her at http://www.antheastead.com.au/ or her blog http://www.antheastead.blogspot.com.au/

MY REVIEW OF SOMEBODY’S HOUSE

I remember as a small child walking down the street and wondering who lived in the houses we passed. Katrina Germein and Anthea Stead’s Somebody’s House took me right back to that place in my childhood.

One of the charms of this book is the familiarity it evokes in the reader’s mind. I love that it encourages the child to use their imagination and picture what might be behind each front door.  Let me tell you, it won’t be what you’re expecting. Anthea’s vibrant illustrations are hilarious and so full of imagination that kids will love them.

Take the time to enjoy the lilting rhythm of Katrina’s text and the rollicking details of Anthea’s beautiful pictures. Look closely into the blaze of colour and texture and you’ll find many surprises. My favourites would have to be the occupants of the yellow house, but I’m not going to tell you who they are – you’ll have to read the book for yourself:)

This is another compelling story by popular author Katrina Germein and I’m sure that adults will love it just as much as the kids. Let’s face it, who isn’t curious about the neighbours?

I enjoyed the cute little twist at the end of Somebody’s House and I’m sure that young readers will too.

I can imagine this book read over and over again and each time children will pour over the pages to find more and more to enjoy in the text and illustrations.

I hope you’ve found  Katrina and Anthea’s tips helpful.

Happy reading and writing:)

Dee

 

Tuesday Writing Tips – Where Should I Start My Story?

What’s the best place to start my story?

I have been asked this question a lot lately and while there is no one answer or ‘right way’ to do it, there are some things to keep in mind.

The main character

Particularly if it’s a story for kids or teenagers, the reader will need to meet your main character straight away.  The sooner they connect with your character, the sooner you will hook them into the story.

Start AT the story

This might seem like a strange thing to say, but especially when you first begin writing, it’s quite common for writers to start their story before it actually happens.

For example, if your story starts with the character’s brother arriving home from the war, don’t show the character walking down the hallway to open the front door and find their brother standing there, start your story from the moment he/she opens the door and finds their long lost brother standing there.

Don’t start with back story or information dumps where you give the reader lots of detail about your characters. Try and show characterisation by action and dialogue and how a character interacts with the setting.

Think about how you are starting your story. Are you starting it with something that the reader needs to know or something that the author needs to know? (Authors need to know a lot of background information about their characters because that’s what makes them who they are – but readers don’t necessarily need to know all this.) If your story starts with something that you have discovered as the author, but the reader doesn’t necessarily need to know, then you need to think about a stronger beginning.

Your story must start with a piece of action that’s essential for the reader to understand, be hooked into or be interested in your story.

By action, I don’t necessarily mean a murder or a shooting or a car chase – I mean something has to actually happen in your story, not just be talked about – for example, the long lost brother arriving home. Don’t talk about him arriving home – show it happening – show your character’s actions and reactions.

Inciting incident

This brings me to the next point.  Every story needs an inciting incident – this is the event that starts the story off – it’s the reason why things change for your character now, on this day at this time.

An inciting incident could be something like the long lost brother arriving home from the war, a letter in the mail, an accident – a piece of action that starts the story in motion.

An inciting incident is the thing that starts the chain of events that are your story – the chain of events that are going to change your main character’s life forever.

I hope this helps you getting started with your story.

If you have any other tips about how or when to start your story – or experiences to share, please feel free to post them in the comments section of this article.

Happy Writing:)

Dee

Tuesday Tips – Blending the real and the futuristic world – The Originals by Cat Patrick

Cat Patrick’s new YA novel, the Originals is a fabulous example of how you can blend the contemporary world and a futuristic setting to create a compelling, believable story that even non sci-fi fans can relate to.

It’s the story of Ella, Betsey and Lizzie who could be triplets, but in fact they are clones. And not only that, they are clones in hiding, but they’re not really sure what they’re hiding from. All they know is that their mother is so secretive about their existence that she insists they live as one person.

If you think this is just another clone story, you’re wrong. Ella, Betsey and Lizzie are illegal clones and if their identity becomes known they could be split up and taken from their mother. So they are forced to divide their days and nights into thirds and live only one third of a life. The three of them have to pretend to be one person, which means they are never allowed to be seen  in public together.

By using contemporary teen issues of love, sibling rivalry, coming of age and the need to be an individual, Cat Patrick’s the Originals manages to appeal to a much broader readership than the traditional sci fi reader.

She uses these teen issues to create a sense of urgency, and tension that make the Originals hard to put down.

We are clones in hiding. We split our lives and exist as one person in the outside world. And we’ve always been happy.

But now I’ve fallen in love … and that changes everything.

Because to let love in, I need to be allowed to be Me.

Lizzie’s desire to be ‘herself’ inspires her to rebel and the others soon follow. But if they want to live their own lives, they’re going to have to band together and risk everything.

The Originals is compelling – especially if you enjoy sci fi that’s set in a world that’s a lot like you could imagine ours being in the future – a world that you can picture in your  mind.

Apart from being a great read, this book will show you at least five important things about writing:

1. How to create a believable futuristic world that readers can relate to.
2. How to add a twist that turns an everyday story into something unique and tension filled.
3. How to develop a well rounded main character with flaws and virtues that connect her to readers.
4. How to decide on your point of view character.
5. How to use one character’s point of view to reveal what’s going on with other characters.

The Orginals is published by Hardie Grant Egmont.

Happy reading and writing:)

Dee

Tuesday Tips – Getting Started – Once upon a Slime

I recently read Andy Griffith’s and Terry Denton’s new book, Once upon a Slime, and I have to say it opened my mind to a whole new collection of story possibilities.

This book had so many fabulous ideas for people with writer’s block, or anyone looking for a new idea to write about.

Once upon a Slime is Andy Griffith’s challenge for young writers to come up with the silliest, stupidest, wackiest, craziest ideas and stories of all time. But this book also provides great prompts to get older writers scribbling too.

Once upon a Slime contains 45 fun writing and storytelling activities, such as lists, instructions, cartoons, personal stories, poems and pocket books … all gleaned from the mad bad mind of bestselling Australian children’s author, Andy Griffiths.

It has simple, practical and inspiring ways to have fun with words and pictures.

My favourite prompts were:

1. Fun with food
2. I hate …
3. Just terrifying
4. Lifting the lid
5. Stretching the truth
6. That’s embarrassing

See how a few words can conjure up all sorts of ideas – read the chapters and you’ll be even more inspired.

This book is a great example of how to combine biography with instructional content to provide  informative and entertaining reading – how sharing a part of yourself and your personal experiences can add credibility. Andy and Terry reminded me that ‘how to’ books don’t have to be dull and boring.

Once upon a Slime opens with Andy telling the reader how he wrote his first story when he was eight – a get well card to his dad – and ends with the ‘what if’ question that writers ask themselves a lot.

It shares the personal experiences of both Andy and Terry and gives you insight into where they get their bestselling ideas from.

They use examples from their books to demonstrate techniques and despite being an instructional guide, the book unfolds in funny and surprising ways just like their madcap stories.

If you’re looking for an entertaining and inspiring book to generate writing ideas in the classroom or even in your own brain, this could be the book for you. Once upon a Slime is published by Pan Macmillan Australia.

I’m going to have limited internet access over the next two weeks so if it takes me a while to moderate your blog comments, please be patient.

Once upon a Slime provides great inspiration for writers of all ages. Feel free to share your inspiration sources in the comments section of this post.

Happy writing:)

Dee

Out of Internet Range

I’m going to be out of internet range for the next ten days but I’ve still scheduled a couple of posts to appear while I’m ‘off the air’.

I hope you find them helpful.

If you wish to leave comments, it might take me a little while to get online to moderate them so please be patient.

Sorry for any inconvenience caused and thank you for your interest in my blog.

Happy writing:)

Dee

Tuesday Writing Tip – Coping With Creative Disappointment

Every time we submit a piece of writing or artwork to be read or judged, we’re putting a very personal piece of ourselves ‘out there’ so it’s inevitable that this will sometimes lead to disappointment.

Last week the CBCA shortlists and notables were announced so for some authors and illustrators these feelings of hurt and possibly sadness will be particularly acute at the moment.

As usual there was some discussion after the announcements about the fabulous books that had missed out. And it’s inevitable that some great books won’t make the list because the judges are people, and their decisions must be affected by things like mood, personal circumstances and preferences – all things that a book creator has no control over.

I didn’t have anything entered in this year’s awards but I have friends who triumphed and some who weren’t mentioned on the lists – and for those people, I felt the disappointment.

Between awards, negative reviews and rejections, it’s no wonder that creative people go through emotional slumps, crises of confidence and disappointment.

10 Tips to Help You Cope With Creative Disappointment

So how do you work through these times and come out the other end stronger and with a greater desire than ever to get your work out there?

1.  Don’t take rejections or disappointments personally. They are not a rejection of YOU, they are a response to ONE particular piece of work – often just one person’s opinion.

2. Try to be analytical about any feedback or suggestions that come with the rejection. Do you think they will make your work better or will they take your work in a direction that doesn’t fit with your vision for the work? If so, you don’t have to take them on board.

3.  Be kind to yourself. Allow yourself time to come to terms with the disappointment. You are allowed to be disappointed. Be sad, but be determined not to let this stop you from creating. It might be that what you have created isn’t right for the market just now, but it could be a bestseller in the future – or in another form – or even another country.

4.  Keep creating. Channel that disappointment into something new – a project that excites you. Allow the disappointment to motivate you and spur you on.

5.  Eat chocolate – this is a great temporary fix:) Or do something else that makes you happy.

6.  Don’t dwell on it – don’t look at every Facebook post and Twitter post about the awards and stew.  If it makes you angry to read posts about an award you missed out on or an author who succeeded with a publisher who rejected you, then don’t read them. Stay away from Facebook and Twitter until you stop feeling like this. Dwelling on disappointments can stifle your creativity and just make you more unhappy.

7. Vent and move on. Discuss your disappointment with trusted fellow creators. It’s absolutely normal to feel disappointment. Empathy for your situation can help you feel better, but don’t overdo it or it could make you feel worse. Vent then move on to new projects that excite you.

8.  If you don’t have a new project in mind – read and read until you find a book that is so wonderful it inspires you to pick up your pen, computer, paintbrush or drawing tablet again.

9.  Do something that makes you feel good about yourself. It might be creative, it might be something totally unrelated like volunteering to read to children who don’t have anyone to read to them. When you see how much pleasure they get from books, it might inspire you to go back and create them.

10.  Be happy for the people who were on the awards list. Consider that they have probably worked just as hard as you and are no less deserving. Be optimistic that your turn will come.

How do you cope with disappointment?

If you have any tips please feel free to share them in the comments section of this post.

Happy writing:)

Dee

Tuesday Writing Tip – Who Needs Subplots?

Sub plots add interest and depth, but they can’t be allowed to overpower the main story

I have been working through the maze of my current work in progress, trying to discover the reasons why it almost works, but not quite.

One of the problems I’ve identified is subplot. One of my subplots has grown so big that it’s taking over the story. The other thing I’ve realised is that one of the characters in the subplot (even though he’s dead), doesn’t actually need to be there – he just complicates things – and not in a good way.

When you look at a spider web, you’ll see that there are some threads that seem to hold the whole thing together. They interconnect with and support the more delicate threads – that’s kind of how a subplot works. It has to be strong and relate to other threads, but it’s usually the same size and thickness as the others – at looks like it belongs.

Another thing with my subplot is that I had just used it as a device to explain things about my main characters. It wasn’t actually essential to the story. While it explained a lot about certain characters, it didn’t actually add anything to their story – in fact, it distracts the reader from what the book is really about.

The other thing about this subplot – and one of the reasons why it seemed to take over the story was that it stood out – it didn’t link to other subplots – it didn’t connect to or have a place in the web of my story.

Not only that, but the subplot had a strong theme that was equal in weight to the actual plot – so in fact it wasn’t a subplot, but a plot for another story. My main theme involved drug addiction. My sub plot involved a child being interfered with by a family member – both strong themes – but not ones that really belong in the same book.

So here’s what I’ve learned about sub plots:

1. A sub plot has to be essential to the story
2. A sub plot can’t be too overpowering and take over the story
3. A sub plot should connect with other sub plots
4. A sub plot shouldn’t be used as a device – it should be essential to your story
5. Characters in a sub plot should be essential to your story
6. The sub plot must affect the outcome of your main plot – it must help drive the story
7. Too many sub plots can confuse the reader and weaken the impact of the main story

Have you ever had a subplot that’s tried to take over your story? What did you do about it? Feel free to share your tips and experiences in the comments section of this post.

Happy writing and apologies to any arachnophobics, but I do think stories plots are like a web – don’t you?

Dee

Tuesday Writing Tip – Finding Time to Write

You work full time and when you get home there’s tea to cook, washing, cleaning, kid’s homework to supervise and the list goes on.

So where are you going to find the time to write?

Ask yourself, do you really WANT to write?

Or is part of the reason you don’t write – that you keep yourself so busy you won’t have time?

Perhaps writing just plain scares you – and you wouldn’t be alone there. After all, when there’s just you and the paper or you and the computer screen, it can be kind of confronting. There’s nowhere to hide.

If you’re wondering why I ‘bolded’ the first part of this piece, that’s because I wanted to show you what 100 words looks like. Not much is it?

But if you write 100 words every day, that’s 700 words a week and more than 36,000 words a year. And if you can manage 150 words a day, that’s nearly 55,000 words a year (the length of a Young Adult novel).

Once you get into the habit of writing regularly, you’ll probably find that you can write those 100 or 150 words in just 15 minutes – that’s all you will need to allocate in your day for YOU and your writing.

How to Find 15 Minutes in Your Day

• Get out of bed 15 minutes earlier
• Go to bed 15 minutes earlier (with paper and pen)
• Write during your lunch hour at work
• Write on the train/bus to or from work
• Watch 15 minutes less television
• Have paper and pen next to you while you cook tea
• Keep pen and paper in the car and leave for work 15 minutes earlier – pull over somewhere and write

Realistically, most writers have to work in a day job to support their writing habit. But if you can find more than 15 minutes in your day, even better. Imagine what you could achieve if you had an hour?

Writing isn’t just about words on paper, it’s also about thinking out your story so even if you can’t find the time to write, try to allocate head space to your story – time for you to think – to get to know your characters, their world and their journey.

But be warned – writing can be addictive. The more you write, the more you may find yourself wanting to write.

Perhaps you have other ideas about how you can find time to write? Please feel free to share them in the comments section of this post.

Tuesday Writing Tip – Allow Your Story to Bloom

I was recently given a climbing plant.

It was a mess of shoots and branches tangled together and it reminded me of the plot of my current work in progress.

It made me realise I have so many loose ends going in all different directions – many of them not really heading anywhere. Because things are such a tangle, it’s also difficult to identify some of the individual plot threads.

As I planted the vine in a pot (so it wouldn’t get completely out of control) I untangled the shoots and trained them around and through the wire garden obelisk.

I pointed them all towards the top of the obelisk – just like I need to do with the loose ends in my story – they have to be moving towards the climax.

When I looked at the vine from the top it looked more like a bush – which is kind of how a story needs to be – a lot happening in the middle to sustain it through to the end. But through all that there has to be continuous threads that wind their way through the story.

As I carefully separated and guided the arms of the vine in the direction they needed to go, I worked out how I could do this same thing with my novel.

SIMPLIFYING A TANGLED STORY

1.  Identify the main threads of the story – the ones that will sustain it to the end – and make them strong, clear and memorable.

2. Identify threads that don’t seem to be going anywhere and either wind them into the main part of the story or chop them out.

3.  Just like the vine and the obelisk, everything in the story needs to be ultimately heading in the one direction – towards the pinnacle or climax of the novel.

4.  The dead wood needs to be cut from the story.

5. Clear the clutter so the characters and the story have a chance to bloom.

Do you find you write overcomplicated plots or stories with threads that aren’t really going anywhere?

How do you overcome this?

Feel free to share your suggestions in the comments section of this post.

Happy Writing:)

Dee

Tuesday Writing Tips – Joining/Starting a Writer’s Group

I moved to a new town recently, and I’m about to join the local writer’s group. So I started thinking about why I want to join this group and why writer’s groups are so important – not to mention a lot of fun.

If you don’t have one in your area, you can always start one. You’d probably be surprised to find out how many local writers there are.

Our Writer’s Group secured funding to produce this anthology of short stories, poems and illustrations.

I’ve set up two writer’s groups so I can tell you that it’s as easy as putting up a notice in your local book store or supermarket saying, “Always wanted to write? Meet likeminded people at the … Writer’s Group”.

Whether you want to write for a living or just for fun, belonging to a successful writer’s group will help and inspire you on your journey.

Benefits of a Writer’s Group

1. You get to meet likeminded people
2. It’s a forum where you can be inspired
3. You can learn more about writing
4. You can learn more about your own writing
5. You can get your work critiqued
6. You can have fun with writing
7. There’s a sharing of writerly information so you get to learn industry news
8. You get to learn about publishing opportunities and competitions
9. You’re in a place where your writing is supported – and you will have people who understand to share the ups and downs of your writing journey
10. You can apply for arts funding as a group and produce your own publication

Tips for running or being in a Writer’s Group

1. Find somewhere comfortable to meet (low cost or no cost).
2. Be democratic – find out what members of your particular group want to do and make this the focus of your activities
3. Be constructive and encouraging with feedback on people’s work
4. Don’t force people to have their work critiqued – they might not be ready for it
5. A writer’s group is just that … a group. It’s about sharing. It’s not about power … and it’s not about any one person. Don’t allow any one person to dominate too much – have a quiet word to them if this is happening. If you don’t, you’ll find that your group quickly becomes a lot less fun, and you may lose members.
6. Go on writerly excursions
7. Remember, this is social too – your members are people as well as writers – building trust is very important with critique groups or partners so take the time to get to know members of your group
8. Be open minded to other genre. Don’t be afraid to experiment. Just because you don’t write in a particular genre doesn’t mean you won’t enjoy reading it
9. Try and meet regularly (perhaps the same time every month) so this is somewhere people can look forward to going – a place they can go for support and inspiration
10. Have professional development sessions – pay to get people in to do workshops and talks. Members need to feel that the group offers new opportunities

So, what are you waiting for? If you don’t have a writer’s group in your area, go start one. Put a flier in the local book store or supermarket – ask your local newspaper to do a story – let teachers and students at the local high school know that you are starting a group.

Have you ever started a writer’s group or belonged to one? Feel free to share what worked/works for you and your group.

Good luck and happy writing:)

Dee