Happy Halloween

Time to decorate your pets and children! And yourselves!

How about some Halloween-related character building activities?

• Dress as your character.If you do this while writing, it may help you to keep aware of their physical selves. Think about their senses – and not only from the head. How do they walk? How do their clothes feel on their skin? What shoes are they wearing?
• Go into the world as your character. Spend a day on a field trip – being your character. See what he/she would see. How would he/she respond to environmental triggers? Does he feed seagulls or chase them down the beach?
• Choose a Halloween costume for your character. How does he/she want to dress up? I’ve heard that Cynthia Leitich Smith takes writing workshop participants to a costume shop and has them actually try on and pick out costumes for characters. Apologies to Cyn if I have this wrong. But it’s a pretty awesome idea, I think!

Related to this idea is my post on party planning for characters.

Be safe out there! Enjoy the fun – unless you are a mother of a teenage girl. In that case, please accept my empathy and condolences. I’m sure this past weekend was the worst. It’s almost done with… until next year.

Sarah Wones Tomp

WRITING ON THE SIDEWALK

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Friday Fun Recipe: Mini Caramel Apples

Mini Caramel Apples

Yum!

I found this recipe for mini caramel apples on the FamilyFun website. I thought they were a perfect way to celebrate Fall. They would also be a great party activity for those of you planning a Halloween get together this weekend. Son #2 is thinking of inviting some friends over this weekend and I thought this would be a fun for a bunch of teenagers before they head off to the haunted house.

Ingredients

• 4-inch lollipop sticks
• Melon baller
• Granny Smith apples (one apple makes about 8 mini apples)

• Butterscotch or peanut butter chips
• Chopped nuts, nonpareils, sprinkles, shredded coconut (optional)
• Small paper candy cups

Instructions

1.  First, cut the lollipop sticks in half at an angle (the pointy end will go into the apple pieces easier). With the melon baller, scoop little balls out of the apple. Each ball should have a section of apple peel. Push half of a lollipop stick into the peel of each ball. Pat the apple pieces dry.

1.  Melt the chips according to the package directions. Dip and swirl the mini apples in the melted chips, then roll the apples in nuts, sprinkles, nonpareils, or coconut, if desired. Place the mini apples in paper candy cups to set.

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It’s an Honor to be Nominated…And That’s Not a Cliché

Tomorrow I’ll be taking a break from work and writing to attend a very special event. I will be attending the Women in Leadership Luncheon (WILL) here in San Diego.

Here’s a description from the East County Chamber of Commerce website that describes the event:

Each October the Chamber honors the professional accomplishments of several deserving and outstanding San Diego women in the categories of Arts/Media & Culture, Business, Education Government, Healthcare and Non-Profits. This year, on Friday October 28th, the Chamber will, for the 9 straight year, again honor a series of San Diego women, as well as host Dr. Mary Lyons, President of the University of San Diego. Dr. Lyons will share her rich personal narrative, lend what skills and attributes she believes are crucial for the modern woman in the workforce, as well as inspire those who attend to become involved and engaged in our respective communities.

What makes this event special for me is that I will be attending as a nominee. Yes, I have been nominated to be Woman of the Year in the Arts /Media & Culture category and I am truly humbled and honored to be included on this list. The other nominees for this event are true leaders in our community and I am verklempt to be included on this list.

Since the event falls on a Friday and it’s Sarah’s turn to post next week I’ll share all of the details of my WILL luncheon when it’s my turn to post next.

Happy Reading,

Suzanne Santillan

Writing on the Sidewalk

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The Top Ten Halloween Picture Books

I found a list on Good Reads of the Best Halloween Picture Books. There were 100 books on the list, so to save space I have listed only the top ten:

 

 

 

The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything

by Linda Williams

The Hallo-wiener

by Dav Pilkey

The Berenstain Bears and the Spooky Old Tree

by Stan Berenstain

Room on the Broom

by Julia Donaldson

Scary Stories to Tell In the Dark

by Alvin Schwartz

Scary, Scary Halloween

by Eve Bunting

Space Case

by Edward Marshall

The Teeny-Tiny Woman

by Paul Galdone

Ghosts in the House!

by Kazuno Kohara

Arthur’s Halloween: An Arthur Adventure (Arthur Adventure Series)

by Marc Brown

If you’d like to see some of the other 90 books on the list be sure to select the link above. I was happy to see many old favorites that I read with my own boys on the list. I am looking forward to reading some new favorites as well.

Happy Reading,

Suzanne Santillan

Writing on the Sidewalk

 

 

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Can We Talk? Writing Effective Dialog

I have been working on revising my current WIP and have been focusing on how to write effective dialogue. If you listen to a real-life conversation you will notice that it rarely matches the dialogue written in novels. In a real-life conversation sentences are clipped as we talk across each other and most of the time use non-verbal cues for communication.  Dialogue in a novel is used to fulfill one of two very distinct goals:

 

• To provide plot or character information.
• To develop characterization and build the depth of your characters.

Here are some great tips to write better dialog I found on Word Serve Water Cooler:

Good dialogue develops and establishes characters. Characters need to speak differently from one another. Give your characters a verbal tic—“Ya, know.” Have one character refer to dad as Dad and another call him Pops. Consider that characters may have different vocabularies with different people. A polished lawyer will speak one way in court, but when he goes home to the bayou, he’d speak differently.

Dialogue describes conflict, setting, and characters. Rather than writing, Angela was the kind of woman you couldn’t trust, have one of your characters say, “Look out for Angela. That girl will stab you in the back and then accuse you of carrying a concealed weapon.” Also consider that what is not said in dialogue is just as important as what is said.

Dialogue can control the pace of the story. To speed up the story, use short sentences with few action beats. This will give you a lot of white space on the page and create a feeling of fast motion. To slow down the pace of a story, put action beats, thoughts, or description into the story.

Avoid using dialogue as an information dump: “Edward, I know you’re sensitive about people questioning your motives because of that incident that happened to you in high school when the principal misunderstood why you were leaving the campus early.”

Dialogue is more than a way to express your character’s words—it’s a way to express the world you’re inviting your readers to enter.

I also found some great tips about dialogue on Jody Hedlund’s site and some great tips for the mechanics of writing dialogue on Girls With Pens.

If any of our readers know of other dialogue tips or sites please post below. I still have a lot to learn.

Suzanne Santillan

Writing on the Sidewalk

 

 

 

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Book Thoughts: Writing Young Adult Fiction for Dummies

Writing Young Adult Fiction for Dummies by Deborah Halverson is a thorough guide for authors ready to dive into novel writing for young readers. Most of the information and tips could be used in writing either young adult or middle grade fiction.

From the get go, Halverson makes a few assumptions about her readers: They want to be published, they have a story to tell, they want to be better writers, and they want to enlighten and entertain young people between the ages of 9 and 17.

If this fits you, then this book is worth a look.

This clearly and succinctly written book is organized into five large topic areas:

1. Getting ready to write young adult fiction. General information on young adult literature and its audience as well as the actual how to find space and time to write.
2. Writing riveting young adult fiction. The crucial story elements are explored here–I definitely sense that Halverson knows even more than she could include in this format; but she briefly explores writing the almighty hook, character development, plot with teen-driven action, setting, and creating an authentic voice. She even suggests places to find inspiration for captivating and relevant stories.
3. Editing and Revising with Confidence. She provides a comprehensive self-editing checklist and also discusses the how-to of being in a critique group, along with a critique checklist too. She then moves on to formatting and polishing.
4. Getting Published. The nitty-gritty details of submitting are explained here as well as consideration of self-publishing to help make an informed decision regarding that choice. She goes on to discuss marketing strategies as well.
5. Common pitfall in writing young adult fiction. This is brief but helpful list of things to check for and to consider in writing your story – I’d suggest checking this chapter as soon as you have a story idea to prevent writing yourself into a sort of fatal hole.

My favorite part of this how-to book are the personal thoughts, tips, and anecdotes from authors, editors and agents.

• Darcy Pattison on marketing and book trailers.
• Cynthia Leitich Smith on paranormal fiction.
• Mary E. Pearson on beating writer’s block.
• Deborah Wiles on the use of dialect in dialogue.
• Jennifer Donnelly about setting and place.
• Gary Soto on developing plot, complication by complication.
• Kathi Appelt on raising the stakes and making the reader worry.
• Erin Murphy on making quiet books loud.
• Karen Cushman on character.

Obviously, Halverson tackles a wide range of topics and issues to consider – and does so in an easy to read, easy to follow style. Perfect for beginners, but worthwhile for more experienced writers as well. I think it would make an excellent textbook in writing courses.

Don’t forget to check out her “Free First 20 Pages Critique Giveaway!“

You don’t even have to be a dummy…

Sarah Wones Tomp

WRITING ON THE SIDEWALK

 

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Stepping Outside

It’s so easy for me to get bogged down in the routines of life – and bogged down in my own head too.

Sometimes the best thing is to step outside and breathe some fresh air.

Last night Hubby and I took advantage of a free concert sponsored by a local radio station, KPRi. I didn’t even look into the band ahead of time- I just knew it would be fun to have a night out listening to music. Especially since the concert was held aboard a Hornblower cruise ship!

Well, well, well… listening to Needtobreathe was exactly what I needed. I am feeling much much love for the banjo, harmonica and rhythm box at the moment. Literally a box. (I am so curious about the box!)

The ship cruised back and forth in the San Diego Harbor – seeing a skyline which is pretty beautiful and magical anytime, but a soundtrack made it amazing. There were even fireworks set off as we pulled back in to port – not sure why!

And because my new story is oh so present in my mind, I have to marvel at the fact that they could be the band I was thinking of when I was writing…

Oh, how I love the blessings of stepping outside.

Sarah Wones Tomp

WRITING ON THE SIDEWALK

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Thinking Like a Teen… according to Deborah Halverson

Deborah Halverson, editor, author, (and previous Writing on the Sidewalk spotlight star),  gave a fantastic presentation at the San Diego October SCBWI meeting.

Articulate and informative, Deborah gave the audience some concrete tools to use in writing for the young adult reader. Her presentation was a companion talk to go with her new craft book, WRITING YOUNG ADULT FICTION FOR DUMMIES.

Which has a new book trailer out this week:

In honor of its debut, she is offering a “Free First 20 Pages Critique Giveaway” – I would very much like to win!

On to a few highlights from her talk…

I loved the way she obviously respects adolescent readers and treasures that  very particular developmental stage of life as a time of great feeling and passion. She reminded us oldies in the audience that most teen behaviors and attitudes (of over-reaction and exaggeration as well as grandiose perceptions self, for example) – in other words, the things that make parents nuts – are a natural part of adolescence and growing up.

In writing for teens, we can hope to build vocabulary, open and expand minds and imaginations, and create life-long reading habits; BUT she reminded us why teens read… to be entertained!

As Deborah said, “Show, Don’t Preach.”

A few more tidbits from her talk:

• Most teens judge-act-react-deal with consequences. They don’t over-analyze the why of what they do.
• Think big, push hard. This is what teens do – and what authors should do in the books written for them.
• Know your character’s goal, flaw and strength that will help them overcome their flaw.

I plan to share my thoughts on her craft book later this week. Be sure to check out her Dear Editor blog where she answer a multitude of questions from real live writer-readers. You could get your questions answered too!

Sarah Wones Tomp

WRITING ON THE SIDEWALK

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Got Your Back… Secondary Characters

It’s the rare novel where a character stands completely alone. Friends play an important role in literature for children and young adults. These companions for your main character can serve various functions:

• Plain and simple, they are someone to talk to and to do things with.
• They show that your character is lovable and likable, even when they don’t feel that way about themselves.
• Friends can offer lenses through which readers see the main character from another perspective.
• They reveal information about the main character through dialogue and other interactions.
• Their expectations may provide a past for the main character – they can be someone who knew them when things were different.
• Friends may create obstacles for the main character – intentionally or not.
• Their simple friendship and caring and/or need to protect the main character may actually be an obstacle in itself – perhaps they keep the character from doing what needs to be done.

Although secondary characters can enrich and deepen a story, they must be carefully placed within the story. Keep a few things in mind:

• Don’t let them steal the show. Don’t give them the best lines and most exciting story lines.
• Be aware of the secondary characters’ own arcs and lives. They do not have to change the way that the main character does, but they shouldn’t fall into a vacuum whenever they disappear off-page.
• Make sure they are there to impact, influence, change, help, or perhaps foil the main character’s quest and/or growth.

By the way, I’ve been enjoying Audrey Vernick’s blog on Literary Friendships.

Sarah Wones Tomp

WRITING ON THE SIDEWALK

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Congratulations James Burks

I just recently learned that Gabby and Gator has been selected by the California Teachers Association as one of two books to represent the 2012 Read Across America Program! The theme for next year’s program is, “Sink your teeth into a good book” – a perfect theme for hungry Gator. Gabby and Gator is written by friend of the blog James Burks, who we featured in an Author Spotlight  back in January.

James will be visiting schools and various California state wide teachers conferences starting in January. There will be more info on those events as they get closer. He’s planning on releasing some new, exclusive material for Gabby and Gator fans everywhere through his blog and Facebook in conjunction with each event.

For more information about the Read Across America program and the CTA please visit www.cta.org.

Congratulations James.

Suzanne Santillan

Writing on the Sidewalk

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