Anne Osterlund

The Battle Scene: The Hazards of Listening to Your Source

2011-12-16T19:17:00.000-08:00

My main character and I have just conquered our first battle scene.

This challenge made me nervous. While I am a fan of epic battles in fantasy—especially the one in King’s Shield by Sherwood Smith (If you have not read that book, you are missing out on one of the most amazing battle scenes in fantasy literature), I am not a great fan of wartime nonfiction.

My "Source," however, whom I introduced to you in a previous blog, has probably read ninety percent of the non-fiction Civil War and World War II books currently published.

Naturally, I called my Source. “Hello,” I said, “So I’m writing a battle scene and this is what I think should happen. Yada yada—”

The Source interrupted. “I don’t they would really do that—”

“Oh,” I said.

“This is what they would do,” said the Source.

“Oh,” I said again. “I suppose that would be the clever way to do it. But what about . . .”

“No,” said the Source. “They wouldn’t want to do that.”

“Oh,” I said again. “But I can have this, right? And this? And this?”

“I suppose,” said the Source.

“But I have to change this?”

“I’m not telling you that you have to change anything. I’m just telling you how someone in that situation would have fought the battle.”

“Oh, but—”

And at this point my Source had had enough and hung up the phone.

Drat. You see, I always draft a scene first before consulting my source. (There’s no point in pestering someone about a scene until you actually know you want to keep it). And I was feeling pretty good about the chapter. Before that phone call.

This was going to be a major revision. Which one never wants to do, but one feels like one should. Otherwise why consult the expert?

So . . . I rewrote the scene.

It didn’t work. You see the problem was that the general within my book is not an expert. In fact he isn’t a general at all, but someone given the title of “captain.” And he wouldn’t fight this battle like an expert. If he did, he might have a chance to win. And I don’t want him to.

He is going to die.

Which is exactly how my chapter felt after I rewrote it.

Dead.

Nine days on the same twelve-page chapter, and I wasn’t getting anywhere. I was frustrated. My source wouldn’t talk about it anymore. And my main character was furious.

Finally I consulted my other main character. You see this hadn’t occurred to me because this character isn’t in the scene. He is off suffering emotional damage and other tragic events during this battle. He doesn’t show up until after it’s over.

“At which point,” he told me, “I am appalled by how stupidly this battle was fought.”

Ding! Ding! Ding!

Oh! I realized. I don’t have to fight the battle the way the experts would have fought it. I just have to let this character explain afterwards how they should have fought it.

I scrapped the whole revision, and wrapped up the chapter in twenty-four hours.

Always consult your other main character.

Kidnapped!

2011-12-04T15:49:00.000-08:00

Clearly, I have been kidnapped.

"By what?” you might ask, as you have undoubtedly noticed my pathetic failure to blog over the past month.

I could lie. I could accuse sixth graders, the flu, or fall report cards.

I could even be more creative by accusing Title I meetings, state testing trainings, make-up conferences, collecting special materials for students’ Egypt projects, pre-observation forms, fighting with the copy machine, post-observation meetings, SIOP inservices, cutting squares for Roman mosaics, IEPs, baking chocolate chip cookies for family meetings, or ordering flashcards.

“You could not,” Aurelia says, “I would never allow you to neglect our blog on account of these trifling excuses. Tell them what you have been kidnapped by.”

Ambition.

This year I am both a freelance writer and a freelance teacher (a profession often maligned & more often described as “substitute teaching”). Ultimately, this frees me to do a lot more writing-related teaching, writing events, and venturing into the great unknown.

AKA earning more writing-related income.

Sadly, blogging does not fall under this category and has, therefore, been woefully neglected as I work my way up the steep learning curve of applying for writing events, following-up on e-mails, signing contracts, and even braving the world of subbing in kindergarten—yikes!

However, fear not! My characters have been collecting plenty of ideas for us to blog about in the future.

See you again soon!

Interview

2011-10-10T19:41:00.000-07:00

Sending you all over to Readinista for my recent interview! Meant to post this link last week, but . . . well . . . there were three days of substitute teaching, followed by a trip to the vet, an author presentation for the Patrons of the Gilliam County Library Night, a journey to the coast for my grandmother's ninetieth birthday, and Wordstock--the largest literary festival in the Pacific Northwest.

Readinista interview

Folding Paper—It’s All About Character

2011-09-10T18:11:00.000-07:00

Twain needed to fold a piece of paper this week and put it in his pocket.

You haven’t heard from Twain before. (I have a feeling you might hear a lot. He’s in one of my book proposals, and he has a reputation for yakking).

Anyway, he had to fold this piece of paper. And it had to be folded into fourths so that it would stay flat. This is not because he is anal—he was very definite about this—but because he had to show it to someone else. Who might flip out if the paper was a mess.

Which made me think about Beth. Who is a mess. And would probably lose the form before it ever made it into her pocket.

And Dane. Who would probably crumple it up and shove it in his pocket. In order to make someone else flip out.

And Salva, who would no doubt put it in his folder so there would be no creases.

And Robert, who would fold the paper carefully.

And Aurelia who would argue about having to show it to anyone at all.

Because every character is different. And that dictates action.

As an author, I really believe you don’t have to know everything. You could spend years doing research. And research is helpful, but it won’t tell you how Twain folds his paper. Or crashes his bike. Or pops it over a mud puddle.

For that you have to know Twain.

It’s all about character.

Simba

2011-08-15T19:56:00.001-07:00

I have another new kitty! His named Simba. He is a small orange kitten with long fur. Here is what I have learned about him so far.

1. He is very smart. He mastered the use of the litter box, drinking milk from a bowl, drinking water, and eating dry food all in his first week of living in a house. (Prior to this he had been quartered in the rafters of a shop and the inner hidey holes within a combine).
2. He has sharp teeth. He gnawed off three rubber bottle nipples in three minutes prior to mastering the skills above.
3. He is a fantastic climber, believes in heading for high ground, and likes to scale the back of the couch.
4. He loves to play.
5. And play.
6. And play.
7. He snuggles!
8. He hates being locked in the cat carrier.
9. When hiding, he heads directly for the deepest darkest corner of the room. Which in a kitchen, means the back of an open cupboard.
10. He is totally unafraid of my other cat, Charlotte, which FYI is more than I can say for my parents’ kitty, Billy, or the one-eyed tomcat she pestered—i.e. yowled at—for two hours the other day in the jungle next door.

Hope your kitties are all doing well!

Paranormal Romance with HUMOR

2011-08-08T17:12:00.000-07:00

Me: It is time to introduce you to the Blossom Culp books.

Aurelia: The what?

Me: Four novels by Richard Peck starring the main characters, Blossom Culp and Alexander Armsworth. Four books which, BTW, are A. Fabulously entertaining reading for anyone between the ages of 9 and 99. B. The best teacher read-a-louds I have ever come across. And C. Technically examples of paranormal romance published way ahead of their time. With superior humor.

Book 1: The Ghost Belonged to Me—in which seventh grader, Alexander Armsworth, has the unfortunate experience of . . .

-Becoming trapped in a fire escape with his classmate, the spidery-legged girl from across the tracks—aka Blossom Culp.
-Finding a small wet dog in his family’s barn, and . . .
-Discovering that the dog belongs to a ghost.

Book 2: Ghosts I Have Been—in which the narrative is now taken over by the vibrant voice of eighth grader, Blossom Culp. Who has the remarkable experience of . . .

-Scaring the pants off her neighbor, Alexander Armsworth, and the “low-lifes” he has regrettably teamed up with for the night of Halloween.
-Been invited—against ALL likelihood—to attend one (and only one) exclusive meeting of the Sunny Thoughts and Busy Fingers Sisterhood, and . . .
-Begun seeing a small ghost boy who appears to be on the recently sunk Titanic.

Book 3: The Dreadful Future of Blossom Culp—in which our heroine . . .

-Moves on to the frightening, and entirely unspiritual, hazards of high school.
-Rescues the entire freshman class from embarrassing themselves during the Freshman Haunted House, and . . .
-Fast forwards one hundred years into the modern day.

Book 4: Blossom Culp and the Sleep of Death—in which Blossom . . .

-Attempts to rescue Alexander Armsworth . . . from himself. And the clutches of the popular Letty Shambaugh.
-Spies upon Alexander, who appears to be scrubbing the library floor with a toothbrush.
-And, along with Alexander, is in serious peril of being cursed by the ghost of an Ancient Egyptian princess.

All in the average lives of two teens from the opposite side of the tracks in 1800’s Bluff City. Two teens with NOTHING in common. Except the ability to run into each other. And see ghosts.

Post-its, Paperclips, and Miniature Skateboards

2011-07-18T15:28:00.000-07:00

Me: Ah! The beauty of the contemporary novel.

Aurelia: What?! I thought we were in firm agreement that fantasy and historical fiction are your favorite genres.

Me: They are, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t some serious advantages to writing modern realistic fiction.

She growls behind her teeth.

Aurelia: Like what?

Me: Like description.

Aurelia: Hold on! That is not fair. Just the other day you were saying what a struggle it was to decide how to describe a realistic riverbank for a modern novel without actually choosing a real riverbank.

Me: That’s true. But generally the description in a modern novel is so much easier because you don’t need nearly as much. And when you do, you can usually just look in your own desk.

She rolls her eyes and sits down on a footstool.

Aurelia: Explain.

Me: Well if my character is a fifth grade boy and I have him sit down at his desk, the average reader already has an image. He or she doesn’t need me to go into vivid detail about the type of screws in the desk.

Aurelia: And you feel like describing screws when you put a desk in a historical novel?

Me: Maybe not. But I’d better research the type of desks that were around then, just in case I slip up. And how am I supposed to figure out what might be inside the desk? Quill pens, ink; those seem likely, but that’s nothing compared to the wealth of possibilities my student might have in a contemporary novel: glue sticks, number 2 pencils, sharpeners with annoying motors, miniature plastic skateboards with wheels, radically altered paper clips—

Aurelia: I’m sure students a hundred years ago had plenty of ways of distracting their teachers too!

Me: I’m sure they did. But I have to research them. And if I’m writing fantasy, I have to invent them. Which, don’t get me wrong, I love to do. Just not necessarily for every little thing or at 4:30 p.m. when I reach that scene or on a day when I’m in a bad mood. And this is when it comes in really handy to be writing a contemporary novel. Because you can just open your own mental desk, pull out all those random details from personal experience, and toss them into your scene.

Aurelia: Only if you’re trying to make a mess.

Me: Which is perfect for the average desk of a fifth grader. All hail the contemporary novel!

She opens my desk and flings about a hundred post-its at me.

Throwing Up and Climbing Down the Fire Escape

2011-07-06T16:13:00.000-07:00

Writing is 1/10th first draft and 9/10ths revision. Or 19/20ths revision. Or 39/40ths revision.

You spend hours and hours and hours perfecting your story. You agonize over it. You mull over it. You dream about it.

But sooner or later you have to share it. This is the hard part. Because you have to take this story that you’ve agonized and dreamt and mulled over for what seems like forever. And give it to someone else. Who inevitably is going to suggest something wrong.

This isn’t your peer editor’s fault. It’s just that he or she doesn’t know how the story’s supposed to go.

As a writer, when you hear one of those wrong suggestions, you’re gut reaction is to say, “No. That’s not going to work because . . .”

And that’s the important word: Because.

Because obviously that because isn’t obvious to the reader yet. So your job is to make sure it’s clear. And that’s the beauty of an editor. They can point out to you where the becauses aren’t clear.

For example. Character A throws up in church.

This happens in Chapter 3. Character A (aka the hero) throws up in church. He or she leaves the building early to lie down in the car. While Character A is outside the building, Character B (the villain) pulls the fire alarm. Character A then watches in shock from the car as the entire church congregation climbs down the fire escape.

Your peer editor is concerned that Character A is missing out on all the action in Chapter 3. So he or she suggests you have character C (aka the sidekick) throw up instead. Because that will free up Character A to climb down the fire escape along with everyone else.

But obviously this isn’t going to work because Character A is afraid of heights and, therefore, would never climb down the fire escape, which is why you had character A removed from the scene early by having him or her throw up.

And of course, it’s very important that Character A is afraid of heights because the same character has to overcome that fear later on in Chapter 22 during the climax of your whole book.

Ha! Take that, peer editor!

But here’s the thing. Your editor didn’t know that. Why didn’t your editor know that? Because you didn’t make it clear enough that Character A is afraid of heights.

Maybe you mentioned it during the climax. But obviously that didn’t make a large enough impression on your editor. Or he or she would have known that Character A couldn’t climb down the fire escape.

Now . . . how can you make it more clear that Character A can’t climb down the fire escape?

You can have Character A try to climb down the fire escape and fail. Now you’ve accomplished the following:
1. Meeting your editor’s concern about Character A getting in on the action.
2. Making it very clear that your character is afraid of heights. And . . .
3. Strengthening your entire story by clarifying the challenge and conflict within Character A during the real climax of the book.

This is what having a peer editor is all about.

Interview with Candace

2011-06-29T18:38:00.000-07:00

Candace: Can you describe Aurelia in 10 words or less?

Me:
Headstrong
Stubborn
Impatient
Caring
Determined
Afraid
Insecure
Demanding
Idealistic
And LOUD

She also happens to be the crown princess of Tyralt. At least she was when I first met her. Though she’s never been very fond of the title. Her—and Robert’s—series is a young adult fantasy about a princess who should not be a princess. Her first book, Aurelia, is kind of Cinderella inside out, with an assassination plot. The summary for the brand new sequel, Exile, is below.

Candace: Now can you tell us about yourself in 10 words or less?

Me:
No. I require eleven.

“Voyeur of the magical realm of the written word.”

And . . .

“Cat person.”

Check out the rest of the interview at Candace's Book Blog:
http://www.candacesbookblog.com/2011/06/mft-guest-interview-with-anne-osterlund.html

Thanks, Candace!

Ode to Summer

2011-06-20T18:26:00.000-07:00

Yours truly is spinning and spinning and spinning around.

Aurelia looks at me with suspicion. “Are you OK?” she asks.

“It’s summer!” I sing.

“And the term summer leads you to appear as blissfully happy as when Exile came out?” she asks.

“Of course,” I reply.

Her jaw drops. Why? she is clearly thinking.

Let me enlighten her.

The top ten reasons summer is my favorite time of year:

10. No school! The children are all off swimming, camping, traveling, and running around—doing exactly what they (and their teachers) have been dreaming the children were doing since mid-May.

9. Fresh fruit: watermelon, strawberries, apricots, peaches, nectarines, raspberries—many of which are extremely good with whipped cream on angel food cake.

8. Trips! To the Willamette Writers Conference, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the Pacific Coast, and of course . . . bookstores!

7. Time to walk and/or hike every day.

6. Sunshine! Enough daylight so that it is light when I wake up, light while I work, light when I travel, and light when I come home:)

5. Sleep. The complete and utter disappearance of my alarm clock deep in the recesses of my nightstand drawer.

4. Spending all day with my new kitty, Charlotte, and giving her multiple opportunities to fulfill her true destiny as an Adventuress of the Great Outdoors.

3. Time. For family, learning, friends, and of course . . .

2. Writing! All day, every day as long as the characters insist I keep telling their story!

1. Said characters (yes, Aurelia, I’m talking about you) all cease to pester me about how I should be writing more!

Author Spotlight: Ann Rinaldi

2011-06-11T20:16:00.000-07:00

In the seventh or eighth grade, I stumbled across The Last Silk Dress at the Oregon State University bookstore. It was clearly my kind of book. A little long, actually, compared to what I was reading then, but the cover was gorgeous. The heroine was a southern belle during the Civil War. Besides, there were only about two rows of young adult books in the whole store.

Little did I know I had just discovered one of my favorite books.

And more importantly, one of my favorite authors. To date, Ann Rinaldi has written about fifty novels. I’ve read at least forty. She specializes in historical fiction with strong female voices. Many of her newer novels are mid-grade—and I enjoy them—but I especially love her YA.

Before I plunge into Ever-After Bird, my newest Rinaldi read, it’s high time I paid homage to the author. And directed you to some of my favorites. The following summaries are either from the book jackets or from Goodreads, with a few of my personal notes in the parenthesis below.

Role Call:

1. The Last Silk Dress

High-spirited, beautiful Susan Chilmark, fourteen, vows to do something meaningful to support the Confederacy during the Civil War. Despite the wishes of her mother, Susan and her best friend, Connie, collect silk dresses from all the ladies of Richmond to make a balloon that will be used to spy on the Yankees.

But the issues behind the war aren’t as obvious as Susan thinks. When she meets her dashing, scandalous older brother and discovers why he was banished from the family, Susan unlocks a Pandora’s box of secrets that forces her to rethink and challenge the very system she was born into. Does she have the courage to do what is right even though it may hurt the ones she loves?

(Susan isn’t your typical Southern belle. Her father is dead. Her mother is abusive. And when Susan believes in something, she doesn’t hold back).

2. Time Enough for Drums
Fifteen-year-old Jemima Emerson can’t believe her Rebel father is allowing John Reid to tutor her! Not only is John a noted Tory, he’s a bully as well. And he rules her studies with a strict hand, then steps in and rules her life the same way.

Jem rebels until she discovers a shocking and dangerous secret about John that drastically changes her feelings for him.

(A traditional revolutionary war romance, and a pure pleasure to read).

3. Wolf By the Ears

Harriet Hemings has always been happy in the comfortable, protected world that is Monticello. She's been well treated there; no one has ever called her a slave. But that is what she is, a slave of a man who wrote the Declaration of Independence. And there are rumors that she might be more than Thomas Jefferson's slave - she might be his daughter.

Now Harriet has to make a choice - to run to freedom or to stay. If she stays, she'll remain a slave. But how can she choose freedom, if it means leaving behind her family, her race, and the only home she's ever known?

(Probably Rinaldi’s most famous book—or at least most professionally honored. The awards are well-deserved. The main character is a wonderful heroine, and Rinaldi doesn’t stint on the real dangers and dilemmas Harriet must face.)

4. Term Paper

One of Ann Rinaldi’s four early contemporary novels (all of which are terrific). I can’t find a great summary online, and it’s been a long time since I read this, but it’s definitely worth the read—the story of Nikki, a traumatized teenager whose older brother happens to be her English teacher, and who forces her to write out events she would rather forget.

5.The Color of Fire

Someone is setting fires in New York City. It is 1741 and, as a colony of Britain, America is at war with Spain. The people in New York City are on a heightened state of alert. Phoebe, an enslaved girl, watches as the town erupts into mass hysteria when the whites in the city convince themselves that the black slaves are planning an uprising. Her best friend, Cuffee, is implicated in the plot, and the king's men promise to let him go if he names names.

(This one is dark and violent and an amazing read).

6. Or Give Me Death

What do you do when your father is Patrick Henry, hero of the American Revolution, and your mother going insane?

(Need I say more?)

7. Taking Liberty

"When I was four and my daddy left, I cried, but I understood. He had become part of the Gone."

Oney Judge is a slave. But on the plantation of Mount Vernon, the beautiful home of George and Martha Washington, she is not called a slave. She is referred to as a servant, and a house servant at that — a position of influence and respect. When she rises to the position of personal servant to Martha Washington, her status among the household staff — black or white — is second to none. She is Lady Washington's closest confidante and for all intents and purposes, a member of the family — or so she thinks.

(Like many of Rinaldi’s heroines, I loved Oney. Her voice carried this story far beyond what I originally expected).

In Summary:

Ann Rinaldi’s books are always about the character. She may specialize in historical fiction, especially set in the south, but her stories are never just about historical events. She has a real gift for crossing barriers: time, cultures, and social status. Her heroines have family. And family issues. And the great historical dramas that play out around them are always secondary to the characters’ own personal dramas.

On that note—I intend to go plunge into one.

Got Books?

2011-05-28T20:10:00.000-07:00

Aurelia, who is looking a bit tattered after her journey in her new book, Exile, arches her eyebrow at me. “Look who’s here.”

I ignore the raised eyebrow. I led sixty sixth graders to the top of Multnomah Falls this week. I refuse to feel guilty about my failure to blog last weekend. Instead, I barrel into the conversation. “You’d better find a new outfit, Aurelia. Next Saturday we are going to Klindt’s!”

She fiddles with a rip in her blouse. “What is Klindt’s?”

I clasp my hands together and spin around. “One of the most miraculous places in the realm of stories!”

That captures her attention. “Why?”

“Guess!”

She stops fiddling with the blouse, snags my laptop, and runs a search. “It’s a bookstore,” she announces.

“True. But this one is especially important because . . .”

“It’s the oldest bookstore in Oregon,” she proclaims.

“Also true, but . . .”

“That’s not why it’s especially important,” Aurelia gathers, then starts scanning the Klindt’s website. www.klindtsbooks.com

“Found it!” she proclaims, very excited.

“Found what?” I ask.

She flips around the laptop and shows me the Got Books announcement. “It’s holding a huge young adult book event!” she announces.

I smile. “You’re getting warmer.”

Her mouth falls open. But her curiosity holds sway over her temper, and she elaborates. “A book event with Sara L. Ryan, Jesse Freels, Stephanie Bodeen, Kenny Knight, Rosanne Parry, Dave Anderson, R.A. McDonald, Inara Scott, Conrad Wesselhoeft, Sherrida Woodley and Neil Wolfson, representing his late wife L.K. Madigan.”

I smile some more.

“And with us!” Aurelia declares, jumping up and down, using the couch as a trampoline.

“Yes. But do you know why Klindt’s is really amazing?”

She collapses on the cushions. “No. But I would know if you would stop being cryptic and just tell me!”

“Because Klindt’s has Carol and Angela and all kinds of amazing people who work there. And because it’s the place where I used to order books when I was little. Klindt’s is the place that sent me the Satin Slippers series. And the Mandie books. And the Black Stallion series. And Alanna, the First Adventure!”

“Oh!” Aurelia sinks into the cushions. Then Klindt’s is a magical place.”

“Of course.” I smile.

“And now it sells my books?” she whispers nervously.

“Yes.”

She hops up and spins around. “I can’t wait ’til Saturday!”

The official press release for Got Books is pasted below:

GOT BOOKS?
Saturday June 4th 11am-3pm
Klindt’s YA event.
twelve authors, one day.
books. food. free stuff.
www.klindtsbooks.com

On Saturday June 4th 2011 the oldest bookstore in the Pacific Northwest will host 12 Young Adult genre authors to encourage and excite the next generation of readers. From 11am until 3 pm at Klindt's Booksellers, authors Sara L. Ryan, Jesse Freels, Stephanie Bodeen, Kenny Knight, Rosanne Parry, Dave Anderson, R.A. McDonald, Inara Scott, Conrad Wesselhoeft, Anne Osterlund, Sherrida Woodley and Neil Wolfson, representing his late wife L.K. Madigan, will spend the afternoon talking with local YA lovers about their works. Two of these writers, Anne Osterlund and L.K. Madigan, are both up for the Oregon Book Award this year and you may recognize Roseanne Parry from last year’s Oregon Battle of the Books list. Parry’s newest title, Second Fiddle, has also been selected as an Indie Next Pick. While several of our guests write teen fantasy/paranormal fiction, we have also included other genre writers who may interest YA readers. These genres include mystery, autobiography, science fiction, historical fiction, and teen romance.

In addition to these 12 wonderful authors, Klindt’s will provide a free BBQ and soda as well as book give-aways and other fun gifts and prizes. Author Rosanne Parry will collaborate with budding local fiddlers to play a few songs in the back parking lot and we heard a rumor that the famous TDMS group D.A.C will also make an appearance!

Klindt's is working closely with local schools and libraries to encourage summer reading. The Dalles-Wasco County Library runs a summer reading program and hopes that this event can help expand their program. The Library will host an ice cream social and scavenger hunt immediately following the author event at Klindt's. We are also providing a program for teachers to offer extra credit for student participation.

Klindt’s Booksellers has been bringing literature to our community for over 140 years. We hope you will be just as excited as we are about this event and that you will support us in encouraging YA readers to join us for a creative afternoon! At Klindt’s, we strive to continue a long tradition of community stewardship. We often have customers in their 70’s and 80’s come in and tell us that they used to purchase their school texts at our bookstore as children. It is our joy to help bring the love of books to yet another generation.

We are glad to provide advance reader copies of books to media outlets interested in reviewing them. We would also love to put you in contact with our twelve authors and their publicists. If you would like more information on this event, or would like to schedule an interview, please contact our event coordinator, Angela, at 541-296-3355 or info@klindtsbooks.com. Thank you for your continued support of the oldest bookstore in Oregon.

The Whole "No-Magic" Thing

2011-05-14T17:52:00.000-07:00

First, More Exile Reviews:

-The Story Siren: http://www.thestorysiren.com/2011/04/exile-by-anne-osterlund.html

-The Merry Genre Go Round Reviews: http://harstan.wordpress.com/2011/04/30/exile-anne-osterlund/

-And check out Karen's (one of my favorites) & Courtney's on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0142417394/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=yarr-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399349&creativeASIN=0142417394

Now Moving On . . . At last

I promised in an earlier blog post, to tackle the topic of why there is no magic in Aurelia. Or her entire series, for that matter.

You see, it isn’t that I don’t love magic.

We are talking a huge Neverland-Fantasia-Tortall-Oz fan here.

It’s just that, in this case, magic would be cheating.

It is very important that Aurelia deals with her problems herself. (OK, I’m leaving out someone pretty important here, but ultimately you see what I mean, right?)

And that the danger she deals with is real.

She can’t just . . . use a sword.

Which, again, is not to say that I don’t love female warriors.

To me, Aurelia is totally a warrior.

But not in a masculine or magical sense.

She was raised as a young woman. And she has to deal with all the implications that come with that. And all the limits.

Her gifts are the kinds of gifts anyone could have. Intelligence. Passion. An open mind.

And stubbornness.

Which isn’t just a weakness. It’s something she needs.

Aurelia isn’t “superior” just because she was born a princess. The danger she faces is real. And no matter how “good” she is, she can’t defeat overwhelming odds just because I would like her to. She has to face that danger head-on. And she has to grow and learn and fight.

And sometimes lose.

Because that’s why there’s a story.

And it's not the kind of story that changes with pixie dust.

Release Day!

2011-04-28T22:54:00.000-07:00

Exile Countdown--Today is the day!

In honor of Exile's release, a few thoughts about Aurelia and Robert's sequel . . .

Exile began with Aurelia, of course.

She has always insisted on a sequel to her first book—at least as far back as I can recall.

Though, technically, I started typing the initial draft of Exile the weekend after my first submission deadline for Academy 7.

Vroom! We were off—Robert, Aurelia, and I, thundering through their expedition.

Of course, there were certain things Aurelia didn’t inform me of in that first draft.

The forest, for example. Silly me, I thought the Asyan Forest was the setting for a single chapter. Little did I know it was going to snatch us up and refuse to let us leave. I spent an entire Christmas in the forest. The beginning of the following summer, we were still there.

And then I had take a detour into the draft for a different book.

Ooh! Aurelia was mad! “You’ve leaving us stuck here!” she yelled at me. “How can you leave us here?!”

I used logic.

Penguin used logic.

My brand new agent, Kelly Sonnack from the Andrea Brown Literary Agency, used logic.

Guess who won?

Not anyone using logic.

By the end of the summer, Aurelia, Robert, and I were out of the forest and onto the frontier (definitely worth the struggle) with the scariest deadline I’ve ever had in my life.

Aurelia, on the other hand, was happy.

Exile Sample Chapters:

Scenes from Chapter 1 & 2 are posted on the book excerpts page of my website: http://www.anneosterlund.com/. Come read!

Exile Reviews:

Fiction Folio: http://www.fictionfolio.com/2011/04/exile-by-anne-osterlund.html

Exile Blogposts:

Today's Adventure: http://www.todays-adventure.com/2011/04/anne-osterlund-guest-post.html (The author/character relationship aka "The Discovery")

The Book Butterfly http://thebookbutterfly.com/2011/04/guest-post-on-strong-heroines-by-anne.html (Aurelia & I felt like discussing the term "bossy" in this one).

Exile Interviews:

One Writer's Journey: http://pennylockwoodehrenkranz.blogspot.com/2011/04/interview-with-childrens-author-anne.html

Book Nut: http://www.thebooknut.com/2011/04/10-questions-for-anne-osterlund.html

Adventures in Children's Publishing: http://childrenspublishing.blogspot.com/2011/04/in-stores-this-week-with-interviews_26.html

And the Winners Are . . .

2011-04-23T19:34:00.000-07:00

Countdown to Exile--1 day!

First, for more Exile reviews, check out the following:

My Love Affair With Books

YA bibliophile

Sugarpeach

And for another Exile guest post (Aurelia & I are rather fond of this one):

The Neverending Bookshelf

The winners for the advanced reading copies of Exile are ...

For Option 2 (Name your cat. And tell me his or her special talent): Michelle!

Michelle's answer:

My cat, Belle (who I’m totally just realizing has a namesake who also shares her interest…Hint: Disney princess), has a knack for reading…or maybe just nudging books with her little pink nose until she can get them to pop open. Then she sits on them. I’m thinking she might be lucky enough to have the ability to absorb knowledge through osmosis. Wouldn’t surprise me. (She’s staring at me looking very smug right now). Lucky cat.

For Option 1 (If a very strong female character started talking to you, what would her particular strength be?): Lacey!

Lacey's answer:

I walk into the coffee shop, the scent of coffee beans lingers in the air. I survey the room before taking a seat by the window where I look out at the soft rain hitting against the window. I sigh before pulling out My laptop and turning it on. As I was waiting for my old machine to boot up, I heard footsteps walk up to me and ask if she could sit down. I nod my head, briefly lifting my eyes before concentrating on my computer once more.

"School work?" She asks.

I sigh once more and look up and my eyes nearly pop because sitting across from me is Grace, THE GRACE. She looks exactly as the Grace in my story, she even sounds like how I would imagine her to sound like. I stare at her in wonder, it takes all my willpower to stay rooted in my seat.

"Are you alright?" She asks, her eyebrows lift in concern.

I nod my head, "Your Grace, " I mutter out.

She smiles. "Yes, your Grace, my creator."

I take in a deep breath, I must be losing it, I HAVE to be losing it.....

"Can you tell me what my greatest strength is?" She asks challenging me.

I nod my head in excitement, "Of course....your greatest strength is the ability to comfort your family and friends by putting up a false shield and convincing everyone else that they're okay and you're okay... You create an appearance of togetherness. You're the leader,their guardian angel that leads them out of the darkness....but deep down, you're suffering. You're eyes show it, but you're intelligent enough to avoid any long periods of contact.... But I think your greatest strength can be your own downfall, but isn't that like that with every strength? Doesn't every strength end in turmoil eventually?" I ask, my mind rambling on and twisting down rocky and cloudy paths....

Grace just sits there and shrugs, "I suppose so..."

I stare at my computer that is now booted up, the screen glowing back at me, demanding me to put in a password before it'll proceed forward.With frustration I slam the screen back down and stare over at Grace. She is growing uneasy. I have unrattled something inside her; I have started her downfall and I can do nothing but watch her shatter as she tries to put everything back together, but I smile. I know her; I know she will fix this because, unlike her, I know her ending.

I pack my laptop back in my bag and get up from the table, I can see that Grace has finally shattered all she is going to. She gives me a brief smile before poofing into golden dust and floating out the opened door to the coffee shop as a customer came in. I wasn't sad to see her go; I'll be seeing her soon in my story. I'll fix everything because her strength will manifest into something greater. I leave the shop and see the rain finally stop and the sun try to break through the clouds. I push back my bangs and walk down the sidewalk, thinking of only Grace.

Congratulations Michelle & Lacey! Wonderful answers!

Aurelia's Song

2011-04-17T19:16:00.000-07:00

Countdown to Exile--6 days!

“Hi, Aurelia,” I say, piling my current edited draft of my upcoming fourth book, Salvation, on top of last weekend’s edited draft.

“My book is coming out. My book is coming out. My book is coming out,” she sings, dancing around the room to The Music Box Dancer.

“Yes,” I sigh.

“Something wrong?” she pauses, her skirt swishing around her, an expression on her face which says that clearly nothing is allowed to go wrong when her book is coming out.

“Just thinking about final rehearsals all week for The Taming of the Shrew,” I say. Final rehearsals are always my most stressful week of the year.

“They’ll go fine,” she says.

As I said, nothing can go wrong in her opinion right now.

“The Oregon Book Awards are next Monday night!” she adds. And starts spinning again. “Aerin and Dane are all excited about going.”

“Yes.” I manage a weak smile, thinking about the eight hours I’m going to spend in the car between school on Monday and school on Tuesday in order to attend the Monday night awards ceremony.

“And the Portland Writing Festival is coming up in early May!” She spins faster.

I need to prepare a forty minute speech for the festival and find a way to feed thirteen children at least three meals for two days. “Yes.” My voice gets weaker.

“And you’re presenting at Highland Hills Elementary in between!”

“I believe so.”

“And then there’s--”

“OK!” I shout.

She stops and stares at me.

But I keep going. “And I have a newsletter to type and interviews to complete and Goodreads messages to answer and bills to pay and a car headlight to fix and event updates to send to my editor and web designer. And followers to track down—since the pictures of all 117 of them have apparently disappeared from my blog. And--”

“Is Salva giving you a hard time?” She eyes the manuscript I’ve just set down.

He doesn’t want to go on a date, but I’m hopeful that he, Beth, and I can work our way around this before June.

“I’m just . . . a little overwhelmed,” I admit.

She shakes her head, then smiles and I know exactly what words are going to come out of her mouth. “My book is coming out,” she whispers.

A Dizzying Conversation

2011-04-09T19:27:00.000-07:00

Exile Countdown--12 days!

For details on my Exile Giveaway, see my March 26th blog post.

“It’s almost here!” Aurelia bounds into the room spinning.

I pause, my spoon midway to its bowl of Cocoa Puffs. “What is?”

This is just me, pushing her buttons because I know perfectly well what she’s excited about.

She stops spinning, looking appalled. “The release date for Exile.”

“Is it?” I laugh.

And she returns to her spinning. Apparently this is one of those things that cannot be spoiled by an obtuse author. “I’ve been waiting forever!” she declares.

“I know,” I say, setting aside the bowl of Cocoa Puffs. “I’ve been waiting just as long.”

“Yes, but you didn’t have to trek through a forest or climb the Gate, or cross a desert.”

Her spins become a little less steady, and I hope she doesn’t crash into a potted plant.

“I certainly did,” I argue. “How do you think we made it to the far reaches of your kingdom?”

She stops spinning and shrugs. “Robert.” Which I suppose is fair. He was the expedition guide, and I did make him do most of the planning.

“Really,” I say, “I think we’ve all earned a reading vacation.”

She collapses onto a purple bean bag. “Where?” Her eyebrows rise in a challenge.

Read the rest of "A Dizzying Conversation" and a new Exile review on Melina's blog, A Reading Vacation!

And another Exile review at Yearning to Read!

Exile--Cool Stuff!

2011-04-04T20:44:00.000-07:00

Exile Countdown: 24 Days!

Check out Yearning to Read's and Melina’s new Exile reviews from Yearning to Read and Reading Vacation!

And see my March 26th blogpost to participate in the giveaway!

Aurelia: Three exclamation marks in a row?

Me: Too much?

Aurelia: A bit.

Aurelia: Why are we updating your review list here instead of on the Mar. 26th blogpost?

Me: Because of the scary “html error” message that won’t let us edit that page.

Aurelia: Oh yes.

Exile Reviews: Check out the following sites for reviews of Robert & Aurelia’s second story. (To be updated repeatedly)

A Reading Vacation: http://readingvacation.blogspot.com/2011/04/exile-book-review.html

Yearning to Read: http://yearningtoread.blogspot.com/2011/04/exile-by-anne-osterlund.html

The Book Nut: http://www.thebooknut.com/2011/04/exile.html

The Authoress: http://theauthoress-amelia.blogspot.com/2011/03/arc-exile-by-anne-osterlund.html

YA Book Nerd http://yabooknerd.blogspot.com/2011/03/review-exile.html

Exile Guest Posts & Interviews: Check out the following sites for witty guest blogs & interviews by yours truly—and sometimes Aurelia. (To be updated repeatedly)

A Reading Vacation: http://readingvacation.blogspot.com/2011/04/guest-post-dizzying-conversation-by.html

YA Book Nerd http://yabooknerd.blogspot.com/2011/03/chatting-with-anne-osterlund.html

Exile Countdown & Giveaway!

2011-03-27T17:22:00.000-07:00

Exile Countdown--27 days!

See my previous blog post to participate in the giveaway! And for Exile review links & interview/guest post links.

Aurelia: Why are you writing a whole new post just to update the countdown?

Me: Because the blog gods refused to let me edit yesterday's post. Something about an "html error."

Aurelia: Scary.

Me: I thought so too.

Exile Countdown & Giveaway!

2011-03-26T19:30:00.000-07:00

Exile Countdown: 33 Days

Aurelia: It’s time! It’s time!

Me: Time for what?

Aurelia: To start counting down the days before Exile’s release.

Me: Why do we need to have an Exile Countdown?

I receive a look of disdain. Which, truthfully, I deserve.

Aurelia: Because you sent out lots of ARCs to wonderful bloggers who are taking the time to read my story & review it.

Me: True.

Aurelia: And your readers need a location to find links to all those reviews.

I think to myself that Aurelia will not be very happy if I post links to negative reviews. But of course, we don’t talk about those.

Aurelia: That location is here!

Me: OK.

Aurelia: And because you’ve been spending hours writing creative interview answers and quirky guest blogs which those bloggers will also be posting.

Me: True. (Admittedly not at my peak writing time).

Aurelia: And you need a location to post the links to those as well. That location is here!

Me: Yes, that sounds good. (Inspiration strikes). And because I have two—count them two—extra ARCs (advanced copies) of Exile to be given away the week before Exile’s release.

Aurelia: And that location is. . .

Me: Here!

Exile Reviews: Check out the following sites for reviews of Robert & Aurelia’s second story. (To be updated repeatedly)

--The Authoress

--YA Book Nerd

Exile Guest Posts & Interviews: Check out the following sites for witty guest blogs & interviews by yours truly—and sometimes Aurelia. (To be updated repeatedly)

--YA Book Nerd Interview

EXILE Giveaway Contest Rules:

Simple: Answer one of the following questions and post your comment below, or send me an e-mail with the answer at

anneosterlund@yahoo.com.

Giveaway Contest Question:

Option 1: If a very strong female character started talking to you, what would her particular strength be?

Option 2: Name your cat. And tell me his or her special talent.
______________________________________________________

Aurelia: Are you going to give them an example for the first question?

Me: For example, would your female character be particularly good at giving orders?

Aurelia: Very funny. Don’t you think it’s possible she might have many strengths?

Me: Like sarcasm?

Aurelia: Yes.

Me: And wit?

Aurelia: Yes.

Me: And intelligence?

Aurelia: Yes.

Me: And a particularly awesome ability to ride a horse.

Aurelia: No. I haven’t been talking to any authors other than you.

OK readers, we need your answers!

New Kitty

2011-03-21T20:46:00.000-07:00

I have a new kitty.

First, before I introduce her, I must share the sad news that my best feline friend, Dance, passed away last month. Dance, and her sister, Tease, were exceptionally special kitties, as you can tell if you read the bio on my website. I will be leaving the bio up, in honor of them (after all they took all that trouble to write it). And if you read the dedication at the beginning of Exile when it comes out, you will see that they were vital to the completion of that story, of which we are all very proud.

But today, I would like to introduce you to Charlotte.

I just met Charlotte last Tuesday. She arrived at my house around 4:30 p.m. and promptly decided that underneath the desk was a rather appropriate place for an author kitty to hide (beside several boxes of my books, school author visit brochures, Academy 7 postcards, and an all but empty box of Exile arcs). We discussed the fact that I could not pet her under the desk, and she scooted next to the outer edge to say that, “Yes, I could.”

We have progressed from there. Here is what I have learned about Charlotte since then . . .

-Her name is Charlotte. The people at the Home at Last Humane Society in the Dalles were under the impression it was Cappuccino, but this was incorrect, and we have agreed that Charlotte is her true name. She is a lovely grey and peachy kitty with short fur and a long tail.

-She can open drawers. In fact she is exceptionally fond of opening drawers that roll, and she finds bathroom drawers with funky objects in them far more exciting than kitchen drawers with towels.

-She can also bang cupboards. (She can open and climb in them too, but she prefers just to bang the doors).

-She can, in fact, use a scratching post, though she prefers knocking it down. (She and Tease have this in common).

-She is missing the tip of her right ear. This I think gives her an air of mystery and intrigues me about what will happen when I permit her into the wide world for her first expedition outdoors.

-She does not like being “scooped;” however, she is considering altering her opinion upon this point in exchange for the following:

-Feathered toys are the way to her heart.

-She also approves of plastic balls that jingle and balls of green yarn.

-But feathered toys . . .

-Feather toys make her amenable to sleeping on the back of the couch, my fuzzy blanket, and the bed.

I think we will be investing in quite a few.

The Whole "Genre" Issue

2011-03-13T15:59:00.000-07:00

How to Sell Your Book: Tip #1—Determine the genre.

Duh, I remember thinking back when I was writing AURELIA, it’s a young adult fantasy. On to tip #2.

Why did I think it was so obvious that Aurelia was a fantasy? Because in my head I categorize it with the following novels I love: Alanna, the First Adventure by Tamora Pierce, Summers at Castle Auburn by Sharon Shinn, and Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith. Strong heroine. Check. Palace/royal setting. Check. Fantasy world. Check.

I always thought of Aurelia as a fantasy. Had absolutely no doubt.

Until later when researching query letters online, I stumbled into a list of fantasy subgenres and realized that not one of the fifteen descriptions failed to include magic.

There is no magic in Aurelia.

“Why not?” you ask.

That is a whole other blog post.

So . . . concerned by this long list of fantasy subgenres that didn’t include my book, I e-mailed someone on the SCBWI discussion page and asked, “Can’t you have a fantasy without magic?” I explained the whole princess-in-a-fantasy-world thing.

“Yes,” was the reply. “A fairytale fantasy.”

Problem-solved, I thought. Moving on. And forgot about the issue.

Until the book came out. And I read—in the reviews, newspaper articles, and various synopsis—that Aurelia was a “mystery,” a “teen romance,” and “historical fiction.”

This past week, an interviewer asked me if my books are “cross-genre.” I’d never heard of that term before. (I know, you probably have, but clearly my master’s degree in education; master’s focus in ESL, ed, and Spanish; bachelor of arts degree; major in elementary ed; minor in Spanish; second teaching fields in Spanish and English; and multitude of haphazard post-graduate coursework have left me uneducated). To me, everything is a mix of genres. There are mysteries to be solved in fantasies, levels of suspense in horror novels, romance within contemporary fiction. It’s just a matter of degrees. Isn’t it?

Perhaps not.

I’ve also heard that some ideas are “too genre.”

And here, I assumed everything was a genre.

So . . . LOL. I think it’s very clear that I don’t know what a “genre” is.

Aurelia: Yes you do.

Me: Oh, do I?

Aurelia: My story is a fantasy.

Me: Well, I’m glad you’re certain. And does that go for Exile as well as Aurelia?

Aurelia: Of course.

Me: And what genre are people going to call Exile?

Aurelia: Um . . . a teen adventure historical romance?

Me: LOL! We’ll see.

L.K. Madigan

2011-03-07T18:55:00.000-08:00

Fellow Oregon author, L.K. Madigan, passed away last week.

I met Lisa twice, once on a young adult panel last spring when she was spoke about her award-winning novel, Flash Burnout. And once this past fall when we presented together on the topic of realistic fiction for teens. My ultimate impression of her, after both meetings, was that she was very kind. (And quite brave, as she was presenting both times and both times mentioned her fear of public speaking). Her second novel, The Mermaid's Mirror, has been on my to-read list since October.

Her husband has posted a special blog on her site and set up a memorial fund to help pay for her son's college tuition.

I hope some of you will visit.

http://lkmadigan.livejournal.com/185397.html

There was also an article posted in the Oregonian recently about her life.

http://www.oregonlive.com/books/index.ssf/2011/02/friends_admirers_remember_gene.html

Hot Lemonade

2011-02-26T19:03:00.000-08:00

Aurelia: (to me) You look awful.

Me (croaking): I feel worse.

Aurelia: Your lips are cracked; your hair isn’t brushed, and you’re voice sounds like someone is grading the road behind your house.

Me (still croaking): You needn’t elaborate.

Aurelia: Would you like some peppermint ice cream?

Me: Yes, but I had two bowls already today.

Aurelia: Three bowls are allowed when you’re sick.

Me: I have the chills too.

Ni pops in. (Note to readers: you haven’t met Ni yet. She is Beth’s best friend in Salvation).

Ni: How about some hot lemonade?

Me: Mmm. I don’t know . . .

The characters consult one another, then Aurelia turns back to me.

Aurelia: You were a very good teacher this week.

I know I look bad when I start earning sympathy praise from Aurelia.

Me: Maybe I’ll just sleep.

Ni disappears into the kitchen. Aurelia follows her. I hear the fridge open, a cupboard closing, and the running of the water from the faucet. Someone pushes the button on the microwave, but the water keeps running. The characters’ voices carry over the running water.

Ni: You know this is your fault, Aurelia. If she wasn’t all anxious about Exile coming out, she would have postponed her magazine interview tomorrow and slept today. Instead of cleaning house.

The microwave beeps.

Aurelia: I think she’s much more worried about your book coming back from the editor. It’s causing stress.

Ni: Are you sure it’s not all those ARCs of Exile waiting to be packaged and her school visit in two weeks, and preparations for the Portland Writing Festival?

Aurelia emerges from the kitchen, a steaming mug in her hands. Ni follows. They both look at me skeptically.

Aurelia: (to me) You can’t do everything you know.

Me: (sigh) I don’t think either of you are to blame for a sore throat & fever.

Aurelia hands me the hot lemonade.

Aurelia: The next time you’re sick, you have my permission not to blog.

I close my eyes, take a sip, and say, “Thank you.”

Highlighters

2011-02-15T16:22:00.000-08:00

Subtitle: A Brief Foray into the Realm of Copyediting

In the life of an author, the most magical phrase in time is “Congratulations! We would like to publish your book!” This phrase, of course, leads to jumping up and down, the scooping of cats and/or young children, and giddy spinning.

Lesser known, but also worthy of giddy spinning, is the following phrase:

“Dear author, I sent your manuscript on to the copyeditor.”

Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!

Spinning. Blurry backgrounds. And the ecstasy of knowing one is done making hard decisions about why your character insisted upon throwing him or herself off a cliff. Life is good.

Unless, of course, one happens to be doing the copyediting.

As I was last weekend.

This year I am mentoring a former student on her senior writing project.

She is very like me. As is her writing. Wings and magical realms and special descriptive phrases that abound in the world of young adult fantasy. You know, fun stuff! I’m good with that.

Apparently what I am not good at is highlighting.

Click on the yellow color. Highlight the excessive use of “was.” Click on the red color. Explain why “was” is highlighted.

Click on the yellow color. Highlight the two contradictory terms. Click on the red. Explain that people don’t “pound on things silently.”

Click on the yellow color. Highlight the use of an unclear pronoun. Click on the red. Explain that “they”—rather than referring to the two characters in the paragraph—is technically referring to the purple socks which were mentioned in the same line.

Click.

Unclick.

Click. Reclick. And on and on and on.

I am not a fan of highlighting.

As a teacher, I can sit down one-on-one with students and explain two or three details about conventions during the dissection of one paper.

A copy-editor doesn’t have this privilege. They have to mark everything.

Don’t get me wrong.

I have always valued copyeditors.

After this weekend, though, I must give them a shout-out! And impart to them the imaginary scepter of ultimate appreciation.

For their mind-blowing knowledge of the English language.

Their incredible attention to detail.

And their extraordinary patience with highlighters.

Who the heck is Ryan Bradley and what is a Shibutani?

2011-02-05T17:22:00.001-08:00

Are you aware that Ryan Bradley won the U.S. Championships?

Who? You are thinking. Is Ryan Bradley?

And that the Shibutanis scored 4s on their elements?

What the heck is a Shibutani? You are also thinking. (If this is the case, BTW, you are really missing something and should look up Maia and Alex Shibutani on YouTube).

And that Sarah Meyer just defeated Kiira Corpi and Carolina Kostner at Europeans?

No, of course, you aren’t. Because this is an author blog. And none of these people have anything to do with books.

But honestly, I’m quite sick of talking books today, so we’re going to have to talk about figure skating. I LOVE figure skating. Watching it that is. From home. On TV. Or IceNetwork. Or, when I’m very, very lucky, in an actual arena.

No, I don’t skate.

But I love the stories.

You don’t have to read books to find stories. Stories are in movies, plays, songs, television, dance, life . . .

And figure skating.

Ryan Bradley won the U.S. Figure Skating National Championships last weekend. It was a mess. He botched two jumps (basically fell, though not technically), the most important jumps in his program. This was not a stellar performance by any stretch of the imagination.

But it was a story.

Because Ryan has been skating FOREVER.

Since he was junior champion way back in . . . it was more than 11 years ago.

And he ALWAYS falls down in every competition.

And he’s tried retiring twice, but he just can’t stand it.

And he has lousy speed and lousy spins and lousy technique on his triple axle.

But he’s HILARIOUS. He’s an amazing performer. He’s about the best modern skater on the planet at connecting with his audience, and totally deserves to be opening Stars on Ice (which would benefit from more performers and fewer medal winning Americans who don’t connect).

So it’s PHENOMENAL that Ryan Bradley won the U.S. Championships.

It’s just the best story! And apparently I needed to blog about it.

Oregon Book Award Finalist!

2011-01-30T16:20:00.000-08:00

Me: Guess what! Guess what!

Aerin: Something’s wrong.

Me: No! Nothing’s wrong.

Aerin: There’s definitely something wrong. You’re using too many exclamation points.

Me: Academy 7 is an Oregon Book Award finalist!

Aerin: A finalist?

Me: Yep!

Aerin: You mean we didn’t really win before?

Me: Yes, you won the Spirit of Oregon Award by the Oregon Council of Teachers of English. This is the Oregon Book Award by the Oregon Institute of Literary Arts. And you and Dane are nominated for this one as well!

(Dane mutters something from a distance).

Me: What?!

Aerin: He says he thought we were cut from the list of nominees last fall. Didn’t you see the list of finalists on the Literary Arts table at Wordstock? And we were not on it?

Me: Apparently that was last year’s list of finalists.

Aerin: Our book came out in May 2009.

Me: I know, but the Oregon Institute of Literary Arts had this weird delay in their schedule last year.

Aerin: So you’re saying we are really finalists?

Me: Yes, along with Scott William Carter for The Last Great Getaway of the Water Balloon Boys.

Aerin: Nice title.

Me: And Kerry Cohen Hoffman for It’s Not You, It’s Me. And L.K. Madigan for Flash Burnout.

Aerin: She’s the one you presented with at Wordstock. She’s very nice.

Me: Yes! And Emily Whitman, who I presented with at the YA Extravaganza last spring, was also nominated for Radiant Darkness.

Aerin: That’s the book you read last fall, the one where the three-headed dog guarding the river Styx bounds like a giant puppy?

Me: Yes. I enjoyed that a lot!

(More distant muttering).

Me: What?!

Aerin: Dane’s concerned.

Me: About what? This is awesome!

Aerin: About the number of exclamation points.

The SOURCE (aka My Favorite Form of Research)

2011-01-22T20:42:00.001-08:00

Me: Ring. Ring.

The SOURCE answers, “Hello.”

Me: Hi, I need some help with . . . (Insert research topic here that yours truly knows nothing about).

The SOURCE laughs. “OK, what do you want to know?

Me: Well . . . (Insert inane question and uneducated plan for what I want to write about). Can I do this?

The SOURCE wavers, attempting to be polite, then says . . . (Insert reason here why my idea is not particularly likely. Or believable).

Me: OK, what about this . . .

The SOURCE says, “Why don’t you just do it this way . . .? (He/she suggests a perfectly logical idea that interferes with something absolutely essential to the plot of whatever book I am writing).

Me: No, that’s not going to work. (I try to explain).

“OK,” says the SOURCE. “Well, what about this . . .” (Provides another suggestion, less common, but for some reason more suited to my story).

Me: I don’t know. Possibly. Though it doesn’t sound as good as my original idea. What about this . . .? (I make another suggestion).

“I guess maybe that could work,” the SOURCE replies, “if you . . .” (He/she mentions a technical term that the author was heretofore unaware of).

Me: Oh, what’s that?

The SOURCE explains.

Me: That’s cool. Could you tell me a little more about that?

The SOURCE explains some more.

This pattern continues while I ask three million more questions, ending with the following:
Me: OK so how about this? (I provide a new plot idea).

"Yes," says the SOURCE.

Me: (Jumping up and down inside because I think I’ve finally found a viable solution). And this would be correct?

“Yes,” replies the SOURCE, “Well, you realize this . . .” (A new problem arises).

Me: No, I didn’t, what is . . .

The SOURCE explains some more.

We haggle.

Me: OK, I can work with that. Now, let me read over my notes, and you tell me if all this is right.

The SOURCE says, “You realize my lunch break is over, and I really wasn’t planning on spending it all on the phone discussing . . . (whatever inane topic I have called about).

I read through the notes.

The SOURCE picks apart said notes, corrects said notes, and fixes stupid assumptions within said notes.
Then eventually gives me the magic words. “Yes, that’s right.”

Me: Thank you!

“Is that all?” asks the SOURCE who can’t wait to return to reality.

Me: “Yes, I think that’s it!”

I can hear the SOURCE’s sigh of relief.

Me: I might call you tonight if I have any follow-up questions.

“I know,” replies the SOURCE.

Five Star Review: Romance, Espionage, and an Awesome Heroine

2011-01-16T16:10:00.000-08:00

Me: Time for another favorite book of all time!

Aurelia: Entitled?

Me: Mara, Daughter of the Nile by Eloise Jarvis McGraw.

Aurelia: Which is?

Me: My favorite historical fiction novel.

Aurelia: Why haven’t I ever heard of it?

Me: I have no idea. It’s fabulous!

Mara is a slave girl in Ancient Egypt. Determined to change her fortune and be free no matter what it takes. When a messenger from the queen makes Mara an offer to act as spy in the role of a royal interpreter, she accepts the challenge.

And when Sheftu, the scribe who is not a scribe, makes her the same offer on behalf of the queen’s enemy, Mara chooses to hold her tongue and walk the double-edged sword of political chance.

But too many chances add up to death, and the more Mara learns, the more she wishes she did not know.

Of course she could always sell out Sheftu. To save her own hide.

But what will happen to Egypt if she does?

Mara, Daughter of the Nile has EVERYTHING, in my opinion, that makes great historical fiction: a heroine with enough guts to put her entire world on the line. Enough detail to make you feel like you’re living in the time period. A romance composed almost entirely of impossibility. And plenty of political drama to keep you turning pages well into the night and beyond.

Aurelia: Let me get this straight. This is a royal drama with danger, romance, and intrigue? Are you’re sure this isn’t one of my books?

Me: It’s set in Ancient Egypt.

Aurelia: Right. Now where’s your copy?

The Art of the First Draft

2011-01-08T18:41:00.000-08:00

Word Count. Speed. Trash.

Get it all down on the computer. Drag your characters across a continent or half a world or even the universe.

Pick them up. Dump them down.

Skip the transitions.

Oops! You forgot the horse. Just make a note to stick him in there and keep on traveling.

10,000 words. Doesn’t matter how bad they are.

Moving on to 20,000.

Starting to wonder why your main characters haven’t had a one-on-one conversation yet? Going to have to fix that. Later.

30,000.

Just typed a battle scene with a long drawn-out dialogue by a captain you’ve decided to kill off even before your main character gets there? No problem. Just poach the captain’s dialogue and hand it over to the lieutenant.

40,000.

Because here’s the thing. Every time you type a chapter, you figure out what’s wrong with it.

The images start spinning. The characters start talking.

They yell at you, “Hey, this is stupid!” or “I would never say that!” or “When are you going to let me get a word in edgewise?”

And you file away their complaints.

50,000.

Or scribble them in your notebook or stick them in parenthesis beside the scene you mis-wrote.

And move on. Because . . .

60,000! Yay! Done!

It’s the beauty of the first draft.

Ahhh!

2011-01-01T18:07:00.000-08:00

My To-Do List for Christmas Break:

1. Revise Salvation

2. Plan for 2 School Visits

3. Answer 300 e-mails

4. Make math vocab cards

5. Plan Shakespeare Unit

6. Update Oregon Teaching License

7. Revise book proposal

8. Write up to three chapters for book proposal

9. Outline two books which are not sequels for possible other book proposals

10. E-mail agent & find out what the heck I need for those book proposals

11. Write said book proposals

12. Grade algebra tests

13. Blog

14. Make 2 weeks worth of lesson plans

15. Re-plan math units for rest of the school year

16. Watch the new Narnia movie

17. Celebrate Christmas with family

18. Make first 2 weeks worth of assignments for Shakespeare unit

19. Keep house from becoming a disaster area

20. Walk

21. E-mail Emily Whitman & tell her how awesome Radiant Darkness was.

22. E-mail Fishtrap & resend inquiry letter I sent last summer.

23. Pester former 4-6th grade student about the chapters she’s supposed to be sending me for her senior project.

24. Revise & provide feedback on said chapters.

25. Make list of possible people to send ARCS of Exile.

26. Complete four online interviews.

27. Read the entire Maximum Ride series

Time Left: 24 hours.

Progress: Dismal.

Conclusion: It’s hopeless. Will be staying after school until midnight on Monday.

Plan for tomorrow: Spending it all with Robert and Aurelia because I WANT to!

Guilt and Book Shopping

2010-12-28T17:16:00.000-08:00

Me: Confession time.

Aurelia: Let’s hear it.

Me: I have not been blogging because I have been reading.

Aurelia: I noticed.

Me: The entire Maximum Ride series.

Aurelia: I noticed that too.

Me: And also because I have been immersing myself in the three levels of Christmas time book shopping.

Aurelia: I wasn’t aware there were three levels.

Me: Of course there are. First there’s the pre-Christmas book shopping, i.e. buying books while one is supposed to be shopping for someone else (nasty habit—also irresistible). This year I bought Forged in Fire by Ann Turnbull, The Eunuch’s Heir by Elaine Isaak, Dating Ophelia by Lisa Fieder, and A Sweet Disorder by Jacqueline Kolosov (though I’m afraid UPS has lost this one because it STILL hasn’t arrived).

Aurelia: Poor you.

Me: Umm . . .

Aurelia: And the second level of Christmas book shopping?

Me: That would be gift card shopping!

Aurelia: You sound a little too excited about this.

Me: Impossible.

Aurelia: Go ahead. Reel them off. I can tell you’re dying to.

Me: That Certain Spark by Cathy Marie Hake, A Tailor-Made Bride by Karen Witemeyer, At the House of the Magician, By Royal Command, and The Betrayal by Mary Hooper, and Cast in Chaos by Michelle Sagara.

Aurelia: And that wasn’t enough for you?

Me: Well, some books weren’t in the bookstore and I had to re-order something from Amazon anyway .

Aurelia: So . . .

Me: So I also purchased A Time to Dance by Karen Stickler Dean and Spyglass and Inside Out by Maria V. Snyder.

Aurelia: Why do I have a feeling I haven’t heard everything yet.

Me: Maybe because I ordered some books from the library?

Aurelia: Of course.

Me: Nobody’s Princess by Esther Friesner, Found by Margaret Peterson Haddix, Envy by Anna Godbersen . . .

Aurelia: And . . .

Me: Once a Witch by Carolyn McCullough.

Aurelia: Guilt is just pointless right now; isn’t it?

Me: Yep.

So readers, what are your holiday books?

The Prologue Conundrum

2010-12-19T17:49:00.000-08:00

As a reader, I dislike prologues.

I know. I know what you’re thinking. If you’ve read Aurelia and Academy 7, you’re thinking, You hypocrite!

Bear with me. We’ll get to that.

As I was saying, prologues build tension, get you wrapped up in the story, and then leave you hanging. Ahhh!

(Now as a writer, that’s not really not a bad thing. Is it?)

I have to admit, as a reader, that I can’t really think of a single book in which I’ve stopped reading directly after the prologue.

Because—you know—sooner or later, whatever left you hanging is going to have to come back into play, right?

At least, I hope so.

Though sometimes one wonders . . .

On to the writer’s perspective. There are a number of excellent reasons to have a prologue.

Reason 1: Begin with the action.

This is one of those little pieces of advice you learn at writing conferences. And in How-to-Sell-Your-First-Novel-books. And when you take your novel to a critique group, or pay to have it critiqued.

It is also one of those things you can ignore.

Unless you hear it, as Aurelia and I did, several times. In which case you might want to pay attention.

You see, most chapters build. They build and build and build toward the climax, then drop you off the cliff. At least they do if you are raised to believe, as I was, that Mark Twain was the ultimate story-teller.

But at the beginning of a book, this is a problem because the reader doesn’t have a cliffhanger yet to push him or her through the build-up.

So . . . think of the prologue as the final scene in a chapter. The climax, without the build-up.

Makes sense, doesn’t it?

FYI, this is exactly what happened with Aurelia. The Prologue was always there. It just used to be at the end of chapter one.

Until it moved to become “The Prologue.”

Reason 2: Prologues are short.

I always had this image of Aerin, from Academy 7, lost, flying in space, and getting rescued.

It made sense to put the scene into the beginning of the book. Since, you know, it’s kind of cool.

The problem was there was nothing cool about what happened immediately after Aerin was rescued. She’s in a total state of panic and won’t say anything for at least a month. There was this other scene that I cut—because it was boring and didn’t go anywhere and required two characters I really didn’t need. And well, when you cut half a first chapter, you’re left with . . .

A "Prologue."

Reason 3: The Prologue is in someone else’s head.

The beginning of the book I’m writing now starts out in the head of a secondary character. There are reasons for this which I can’t avoid. Nor do I want my readers to fall under the impression that this character has been granted story-teller status. He hasn’t. He’s just volunteered to provide a different perspective.

For “The Prologue.”

And finally . . .

Reason 4: The Prologue simply happens before the rest of the book.

Salvation is about a school year. Senior year—to be exact. It starts off on the first day of school and works its way through Senior Skip Day at the end.

Except this one short scene in August.

You guessed it, “The Prologue.”

So . . . as a reader, I don’t care much for prologues.

As an author, I kind of ADORE them.

Swearing

2010-12-11T14:08:00.000-08:00

Dane swears.

I don’t. I don’t swear. Seriously. Maybe once in a hundred and fifty days. Rarely enough that people tend to make a huge deal about it if I do. So it was no surprise to me that there was no swearing in Aurelia. Actually, Robert made the attempt—he really didn’t like watching Gregory beat up the colt, but even that one comment didn’t make it through my critique group. So there is literally no swearing in Aurelia. Remember me mentioning how polite and helpful Robert is?

Dane is not.

I said, “You know, Dane, maybe you shouldn’t swear.”

And he said—

Well, if you’ve read Academy 7, you have a pretty good idea of what he said.

I find it interesting how many people comment about the swearing or lack of swearing or relative lightness of swearing within books as if it is the choice of the author. Or the editor for that matter.

This is not my experience.

I find that swearing is almost exclusively the choice of the character.

Salva and Beth both swear. Generally lightly and just in their heads.

I could give excuses to explain this. Such as the observation that real teenagers growing up in less than affluent neighborhoods and less than affluent high schools tend to swear, but the truth is, this is just the way Salva and Beth talk. Or think.

And really they are extremely well-spoken—class acts—especially in comparison to Pepe, whom you haven’t met yet.

And whom Beth can’t stand.

And who I admit to having had reservations about until Salva explained his best friend to me.

But censoring Pepe is like asking him to shut up.

It doesn’t work.

So . . . I’m apologizing to you all for this now.

Because, truthfully, it’s a whole lot easier than trying to have the discussion with a hundred and ninety pound linebacker.

Though goodness knows I’ll make the attempt if my editor asks for it. In which case, you can expect to see me back here for a report on how that undoubtedly painful conversation with Pepe went.

Inadequacy

2010-12-04T20:24:00.000-08:00

Beth, one of the main characters in Salvation, has a tendency to be right. A lot.

She and I have been discussing the concept of inadequacy this week. Actually she’s been trying to discuss it with me, and I’ve been ignoring her until now, but here’s the gist.

She feels quite inadequate quite a lot, and I don’t want that particular trait to get in the way of anyone’s appreciation of her so I edited out one of her lines (thoughts really) in my last draft of Salvation before I sent it off to my editor.

Beth says this isn’t OK.

“All right,” I say. “I can put it back in (It’s only one line. I seriously doubt my editor will mind), but are you sure you want your readers to know exactly how inadequate you feel in that scene? They might misunderstand and view you as weak.”

She rolls her eyes. And then she points out to me that I’m totally underestimating the beauty of inadequacy.

“What?” I say.

“Don’t play dumb with me,” she replies. “You know there’s something wonderful about feeling inadequate.”

And she’s right.

I’ve been studying art today. Great art. Ladder to the Moon by Georgia O’Keefe, The Railroad by Edouard Manet, The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Katsushika Hokusai, and on and on and on.

Don’t worry if you don’t recognize any of these. I wouldn’t have when I started my current art history class.

But here’s the thing.

They’re all amazing. In completely different ways. In ways I couldn’t even really see when I first looked at them. Which makes me feel inadequate.

The same as the scene in the Hunger Games in which District 11 sends Katniss the bread. Until that point in the story, I was still a little uncertain about the book. Because it was hugely popular, and I don’t usually love hugely popular books. But that scene (frankly any scene that makes me cry) just blew me out of the water. This small, tiny moment in the midst of rushing intensity.
As a reader, I felt moved. As an author, totally inadequate.

And two weeks ago I saw the movie, In the Time of the Butterflies, about the Mirabal Sisters and their fight against corruption in the Dominican Republic. Based on the book by Julia Alvarez. I’ve read two novels by Alvarez, both about exile, but the immediacy of this story and the joy—the constant depiction of joy within a film so deeply embedded in tragedy—was breathtaking. I . . . am . . . in awe.

And I LOVE this feeling.

Because really, it’s amazing that art can make us feel at all. That you can be sitting there on your couch, or reading by your lamp, or eating popcorn in a movie theater and react so powerfully to something that isn’t even “there.”

So yes, I have to admit, Beth is right.

There’s something truly wonderful about feeling inadequate.

Deadline

2010-12-01T17:31:00.000-08:00

Dec. 1, 2010

My first deadline for Salvation. Which Salva, Beth, and I met! Talk to you all this weekend.

Anne
(who adores snow days, especially when they come right before deadlines)

Thanksgiving Top Ten

2010-11-22T19:03:00.000-08:00

As an author I have tremendous number of “Thank you’s” to pass out this year . . .

1. To my mother for making chicken & dumplings, pumpkin bread, and lemon meringue pie. And leaving them all with me last Thanksgiving so that I would not be too broken-hearted about spending the holiday alone (with the exception of some spectacular furries) as I madly endeavored to meet my Dec. 1st deadline for Exile.

2. To Robert & Aurelia for detaching themselves from the Asyan Forest, climbing the Gate (despite Aurelia’s fear of heights), crossing the frontier, traversing the desert, and arriving at Darzai all of 24 hours before said terrifying deadline.

3. To my editor, Angelle, for miraculously reading all of the first draft of Exile in about 12 days and returning it ready for revision before the start of Christmas Break.

4. To my Dad for answering umpteen million questions about highly important literary factoids such as . . . “How exactly does one change the oil in a car?”

5. And to my sister for answering similar such questions about medically relevant literary factoids like “What color does someone’s skin turn after they’ve had a central line?”

6. To my cat, Dance, for informing me that she much prefers when I spend the entire summer attached to my couch typing away than when I disappear for days on end having exciting adventures to which she is not privy.

7. To the internet for permitting me to find a plethora of facts about highly non-academic subjects, such as different types of flavored lemonade.

8. To whatever amazing person realized that I was an Oregon author (even though I do not live anywhere near Portland—the social hub of various writing groups—or near any hubs of any writing groups whatsoever) and nominated Academy 7 for the Spirit of Oregon Award.

9. To Beth for helping convince Salva to do what he didn’t want to do (even though she and I now realize he was completely justified in his reluctance).

10. And to Salva. For going home anyway.

Do Princesses Get a Bad Rap?

2010-11-15T18:28:00.001-08:00

Me: Do you think princesses tend to get a bad rap?

Aurelia: A what?

Me: My friend and I were talking about the color pink and how, at a certain age, pink tends to become “uncool” because it’s associated with little girls. And well, considering the whole “Disney Princess” phenomenon (i.e. girls walking around in miniature Disney princess costumes until they generally no longer fit in the ones sold off the shelf, do you think princesses face the same anti-little-girl backlash as, say, the color pink?

Aurelia: I’m not a fan of pink.

Me: OK, but that wasn’t exactly my question.

Aurelia: And I think some princesses deserve a backlash.

Me: Again, not my question.

Aurelia: Also a lot of Disney princesses rock!

Sigh.

Aurelia: The littlest mermaid doesn’t let anything intimidate her.

Me: True.

Aurelia: And Belle is very intelligent.

Me: She is.

Aurelia: And I’m rather fond of Jasmine. She knows Aladdin is being an idiot, and she—

Me: OK, I think we’re getting off track here.

Aurelia: No, actually I think I’m agreeing with you. Because you’re talking about marketing, and it’s silly to market fairy tales and strong heroines (princesses or not—Mulan is quite as awesome as Jasmine) to only little girls. Look at the villains in these stories: the evil queen in Snow White, Maleficent in Sleeping Beauty, Ursula/the sea witch in The Little Mermaid. These are some of the creepiest, most insane examples of cruelty in film. Or literature, for that matter. Any character who can defeat them is clearly more than a token in a McDonald’s happy meal.

Me: I agree.

Aurelia: I said you did.

Me: And you agree that people do have a tendency to underestimate princesses?

Aurelia: Well, yes. It’s no big achievement to be a princess, but it is rather an accomplishment to survive being one without—say—winding up with your head spiked on London Bridge.

Me: Not very appealing.

Aurelia: No.

The Idiotic English Language

2010-11-07T15:17:00.000-08:00

The inspiration for this post comes from two personal experiences. First, the nightmarish adventure of trying to teach students how to correctly punctuate dialogue. They often do quite well, but . . .

How many times must one repeat “No, the punctuation comes before the final quotes!?”

Or “You need a comma to introduce the quote.”

Or “You can’t have a period in the middle of a sentence.”

Or “It is OK to have an exclamation point in the middle of a sentence.”

Or “Just because the quote is an exclamation doesn’t mean you need an exclamation point at the end of the sentence.”

Or—

You get the picture.

Meanwhile, this week, I am reading Girl in the Arena by Lisa Haines.

Which has no quotation marks in any of the dialogue.

Nope, not one set!

Each quote is started off with a dash. And that’s it.

What a concept! Do you know how much easier it would be to teach writing dialogue with this system? As a reader, it was distracting at first, since I wasn’t used to it.

But after half the book, I’m fine.

As a teacher, I am in awe. Absolutely, one hundred percent in favor of simple.

While we’re at it, let’s “simplify” a few of the other time-sucking annoyances within the English language.

I hereby announce that there should only be one spelling of "there.”

Think of all the hours which could be saved from a. teaching the difference, b. reteaching the difference, and c. fixing the errors for people who can’t catch themselves even though they know the difference between there, their, and they’re.

And let’s make up our mind about its and it’s; to, too, and two; and threw and through.

Even more valuable, how about a whole different way to spell the words though, through, and thought?

To quote the sovereign of the English language:

“When to the sessions of sweet silent thought
I summon up remembrance of things past,
I sigh the lack of many a thing I sought
And with old woes new wail my dear time’s waste."

Any language beautiful enough to create that is surely powerful enough to withstand a few small simplifications. So . . . what would you like to change?

Excuses

2010-11-01T18:19:00.000-07:00

Me: Umm . . . Aurelia?

Aurelia: Yes?

Me: It was report card weekend.

Aurelia: I know. It's OK.

Me: It is?

Aurelia: Yes, because your technical web designer, Dawn (aka DMS Graphics), has been working hard to update your website, http://www.anneosterlund.com/, with a brand new "Fun Fluff" page, new reviews for Academy 7, a new Publishing & Submissions Tips page via your Writing Friends and Resources page, and an updated faq page.

Me: Dawn is awesome!

Aurelia: Yes, she is. As is Maria, your artistic webdesigner.

Me: Maria, is awesome times two.

Aurelia: I particularly like the picture she chose to go next to the question about writers' block on the new faq page.

Me: That was my idea!

Aurelia: So . . . I will forgive you for your failure to blog. This weekend.

Me: Thank you.

Aurelia: But I will not be hearing next Monday about how this was "Conference Weekend." Right?

Me: Umm . . . right.

On the Graveyard of Good Ideas

2010-10-24T20:12:00.000-07:00

This week I had a Whitworth Spotlight article posted online about winning the Spirit of Oregon Award for Academy 7. Awesome, really, but I thought you’d probably rather hear Aerin and Dane's reaction to the award than mine. So I took the idea to Aerin and Dane. And, well, sometimes good ideas don’t work out. This was how the conversation went.

Aerin: He says, “No.”

Me: Really, why not?

(Aurelia enters.)
Aurelia: Haven’t you noticed? He never pulls his weight around here!

Me: Aurelia, this was a conversation between Aerin and me.

Aurelia: You’re both going to let him get away with this, aren’t you?

Me: Aurelia, this is NOT your book.

Aurelia: Fine! (She exits.)

Aerin: They’re too much alike.

Me: I’ve noticed.

Aerin: Anyway, he says he doesn’t do interviews.

Me: But it’s not really press.

Aerin: He says if Aurelia wants to run this blog, that’s fine with him, but we’ll have to do it without him.

Me: And what did you say to that?

Aerin: I said I wasn’t talking in public all by myself.

Me: You’re saying no interview.

She shakes her head.

Me: But don’t you think people would rather hear from you than me?

Aerin: I think they’d rather hear from him.

Me: And he thinks . . . ?

Aerin: He says . . .

Dane: No!

So, I guess I’ll just have to send you all over to the Whitworth Spotlight article instead. http://news.whitworth.edu/2010/10/whitworth-education-alumna-wins-oregon.html

The VOICE and the Laundromat

2010-10-16T22:45:00.000-07:00

We’ve all heard it. The VOICE.

As authors, we’re writing our way through a big dramatic climax somewhere around chapter 21, and there’s this voice calling from a short little scene back in chapter four, saying “You’re going to have to fix this . . .”

And sometimes it's the dumbest thing!

Maybe Aurelia forgot to pack her bag correctly on the trip.

Or someone stole Robert’s sword, and I forgot to give it back to him. (Yes, I did this. Robert was fine with it, but apparently the VOICE was not).

Or someone has to cry in such and such scene, even though your editor doesn’t think so.

Or some bird was friggin’ the wrong color.

Or I failed to take Salva to the Laundromat.

Yes, this was the noisy complaint all the way through my second draft of Salvation.

How could I have failed to take him to the Laundromat?

Turned out Salva didn’t want to go. (I know you’re in shock—but really, what 17-year-old boy wants to spend his Tuesday evening doing homework at the Laundromat?).

But apparently this was necessary.

The VOICE must be heeded.

The “Laundromat scene” is really dinky—maybe three pages. I tried to write it in the Laundromat earlier, and it just wasn’t working (turns out this was due to a misinterpretation of the role of a certain friendship bracelet), so I gave up and let Salva study at home. In his kitchen.

Seemed to go fine when I wrote it.

But oh no, the VOICE didn’t think so.

Continued to pester me. For—count them—152 more pages. And through the whole moral dilemma of whether it would be better to turn this in early or go through a full third draft. “You need to take Salva to the Laundromat,” said the Voice.

“It’s not important,” I said.

“Yes, it is,” said the Voice.

“My editor will never know the difference,” I said.

“You will,” said the Voice.

OK, OK, OK.

So here I am. Literally about ten writing days left before my ultimate deadline. Fixing the Laundromat scene.

Which by the way, I like better now. For NO DISCERNABLE REASON.

Except the VOICE is happy.

Crazy Weekend

2010-10-10T16:15:00.000-07:00

Am afraid I don't have time to write a regular blog post this weekend. In the past two days, I managed to achieve the following:

Follow fellow author Rosanne Parry's directions to her house without getting lost, then follow her car to Lake Oswego High School, which is covered in scaffolding a la Academy 7.

Accept the Spirit of Oregon Award from the Oregon Council of Teachers of English for the best YA book of the year by an Oregon author for Academy 7. All my characters were very supportive of Aerin and Dane!

Meet fellow author, Laini Taylor, who has brilliant pink hair & was tremendous fun to talk to.

Teach an Author's Toolbox workshop at the OCTE Conference for other teachers (very brave people to attend early on a Friday which they could have taken off from work).

Follow my friend Maria's car to the Cedar Hills location of Powell's (in which I purchased the first Maximum Ride book and The Girl in the Arena (for me), and two illustrated classics for my classroom.

Meet fellow author, Sydney Salter, who was very sweet, and present a dialogue workshop with her for young writers at Powell's.

Purchase gas so that my car would not die in the middle of the city.

Miss the freeway entrance (this was the beginning of the end).

Find the address on Google & my printed Wordstock information for the Ace Hotel, but no Ace Hotel. Ask directions to the Ace Hotel, and head downtown where I attempted to find parking in the dark twice, finally ran out of time to attend the Wordstock author reception, managed to find my location on a map, and returned to Rosanne's.

Had a lovely breakfast of hot chocolate & cheese blintzes at Marcos's in Multnomah.

Survived I-5 gridlock in the rain to get lost on my way to find parking by the convention center. Again, managed to read the map & found my way back to a parking lot.

Arrived at Wordstock, and after again searching on a map, managed to find the "main" staircase with the author reception desk at the bottom. Wandered around looking lost but talked to some college students getting a masters in publishing by running Ooligan Press (very cool). Met my fellow panel members, Patrick Ness, L.K. Madigan, and Conrad Wesselhoeft. Moderated my first author panel in front of a quite large crowd! And gave an interview for three freshman girls who must have an awesome English teacher.

Managed to take the wrong turn trying to get back on I-84. Went around the block, made it onto the freeway and survived the drive all the way back to Eastern Oregon.

Where two dogs, one gray kitty, my family, and one very LONELY Dance kitty were waiting for me.

Anne
(who also finished her LAST revision of Exile, revised a paltry ten pages of Salvation, and is now going to read chapter 8 of Mockingjay)

Author Spotlight: Tamora Pierce

2010-10-03T18:03:00.000-07:00

Me: Let’s talk about Tamora Pierce.

Aurelia: The name sounds vaguely familiar.

Me: Tamora Pierce!

Aurelia: Oh, you mean your favorite author.

Me: Of course, she’s my favorite.

Aurelia: Why?

Me: Because of Alanna, who disguises herself as a boy in order to train to become a knight! And faces all kinds of dilemmas—including accepting herself: her strengths, her gift, and her weaknesses. Alanna’s quartet, The Song of the Lioness, comes first in Tamora Pierce’s books about the land of Tortall.

After Alanna, there is Daine—a girl with the ability to shoot a bow, overcome her past, and talk to animals: magical, nonmagical, and immortal. Daine’s quartet, The Immortals, comes second.

Following Daine is Kel (from the Protector of the Small quartet)—the first girl in the Land of Tortall to train legally to become a knight.

And then Alianne (in Trickster’s Choice and Trickster’s Queen)—who doesn’t want to become a warrior at all, but a spy.

And finally, in Pierce’s current Tortall books, there is Beka (the Beka Cooper Trilogy) who is battling her way through the streets in the early Tortall police force.

In addition to this, Tamora Pierce has written a WHOLE other series, which I also love, but which merit an entirely separate entry in my blog.

Aurelia: And why is she your favorite author again?

Me: Because she writes about strong heroines!

Aurelia: Of this, I approve.

The Glory of Stubborn Characters

2010-09-26T15:49:00.000-07:00

Salva, I have decided, is as stubborn as Aurelia, in his own way. This is, of course, rather inconvenient at times.

But it is also, I think, imperative.

You see stubborn characters defy logic.

“So what if 99.8% of the manuscripts authors submit never get published,” they say. “This is not going to happen with mine!” And “Who cares what that reviewer thinks? If I was really one-dimensional, would I have given you such a hard time figuring out why I was refusing to do what you asked me to do?” And “Honestly, the toxic skeptics are wrong! This is my story. I’m telling you it’s important.”

Thank goodness for stubborn characters. If it weren’t for them, how would one manage? How would authors ever find the time to sit down and write?

When there are so many more pressing tasks—like grading papers or mowing the lawn or washing dishes.

If it weren’t for our characters’ demands, would we ever agonize our way through synopsis and outlines--not to mention query and cover letters?

Would we ever dare to tell the truth? Or something new? Or something that appears to be familiar, but isn’t at all because our characters have wreaked havoc on the stereotype?

How would authors ever live out their dreams?

If they didn’t have someone insisting, “Wake up! It’s time! It’s my day! If you dare roll over and close your eyes, I’ll clobber you with a scene involving three hundred versions of the same pronoun.”

“All right, all right!” you say. “I’m up. And I’ll tell your story.”

Top 10 Reasons an Author Should Have a Cat

2010-09-18T15:50:00.000-07:00

10. When the author is in the middle of a writing epiphany, she can be meowed at as a reminder of the far more significant necessity of providing dinner.

9. When the author is tormented by a particularly complex writing problem, said cat can fail to come home on time, therefore making her human very nervous and unable to resolve any writing problems whatsoever.

8. When the author is trying to avoid extra distractions, she can be compelled to defurr the keyboard.

7. When the author is finally about to complete a draft at 3:00 a.m., said cat can sit directly in front of the computer screen, making the completion of the draft impossible.

6. When the author is trying to meet a scary deadline, she can have a paw with thinly veiled claws tap her on the head repeatedly and inform her that she is taking her work too seriously.

5. When the author must read the same page aloud forty times before it is perfect, said cat can sit tolerantly beside her without griping.

4. When the author has an epiphany in the middle of the night, turns on the light bulb, and begins scribbling, said cat can provide support by yawning, closing her eyes, and continuing to sleep.

3. When the author is forced to write a long cold scene set in the midst of space, said cat can curl up on her feet as a perfect foot-warmer.

2. When the author’s noisy, opinionated, and stubborn main characters refuse to speak to her, said cat remains close and reminds her that she is never alone.

1. When the author finds out spectacular writing news, said cat allows her human to scoop her up and celebrate!

The Magic Answer

2010-09-12T17:09:00.000-07:00

Aurelia: You haven’t blogged this week.

Me: I know. I know. What would you like me to blog about?

Aurelia: What have you been doing?

Me: Cleaning my house. It was a disaster.

Aurelia: You did not start cleaning until today.

Me: Sigh. True. I was also writing story ideas.

Aurelia: That sounds fun. Let’s talk about those.

Me: It’s a tad early to—

Aurelia: Then let’s talk about how you get ideas. People always want to know that.

Me: Ummm, it’s always different.

Aurelia: For example?

Me: Well, you introduced yourself by griping about an itching ankle.

Aurelia: It was driving me crazy.

Me: And Aerin was standing in that compartment on the spaceship, removing her headband and contemplating whether she could wash away her past as easily as she had scrubbed the dirt from her bare feet.

Aurelia: That scene is posted on the excerpt page of your website: http://www.anneosterlund.com/.

Me: Mmhm.

Aurelia: And Salva?

Me: Oh, he was checking out the pretty girl on the church steps.

Aurelia: You mean Pepe was checking her out.

Me: You’ve been talking to a biased source.

Aurelia: Ha! OK, so these new ideas you were writing this weekend. Where did they all come from?

Me: Alexandra was hiding under the steps during a barbecue. Anna was walking in the powdery dust while collecting water from the spring. Ecaterina was peering down a cliff and thinking about hurling a clay pitcher over the edge.

Aurelia: She sounds interesting.

Me: And Miranda. Well—the idea for Miranda’s story comes out of three months of directing twelve-year-olds in a play.

Aurelia: That cannot be worth it.

Me: You asked.

Aurelia: I suppose I did. So . . . what you’re really saying is there is no magical way to come up with ideas.

Me: The best way is to sit down with a pad of paper and start writing.

Aurelia: But that’s so BORING!

Me: That’s why I’m the author, and you’re not.

Aurelia: Point taken.

Brainstorming (aka Why One Should Listen to One's Main Character)

2010-09-04T22:32:00.000-07:00

Me: Hola, Salva.

Salva: Hi.

Me: It’s good to hear from you.

Salva: You know perfectly well why you haven’t been hearing from me.

Me: Yes, well, our followers don’t. So . . . let’s not mention that OK.

Salva: I’m not stupid.

Me: No, but maybe a bit defensive.

Salva: Maybe.

Me: Look, I need your help.

Salva: You should probably ask Beth.

Me: I’m asking you.

Salva: (sigh) All right. ¿Qué es?

Me: I'm moderating a panel for Wordstock in the first week of October, and I’m supposed to create the questions. It’s a panel on writing realistic young adult fiction.

Salva: Uh-huh.

Me: And I need some assistance coming up with questions.

Salva: You’re sure you don’t want to ask Beth?

Me: I’m asking you.

Salva: OK. So there’s your standard: “Why did you choose to write a contemporary novel?”

Me: Because you told me I had to.

Salva: I thought we were brainstorming questions, not answers.

Me: Right.

Salva: And what are the challenges of writing contemporary fiction?

Me: You mean like your refusing to go home.

Salva: Yes. Like that. And you can’t blame me; can you?

Me: I suppose not.

Salva: And what is the best thing about writing realistic fiction?

Me: Hmm.

Salva: You’re thinking we should ask Beth for help.

Me: Yeah, sort of.

Salva: Beth?

Beth: You should ask “How do the challenges of writing contemporary fiction differ from the challenges of writing other genres such as fantasy, historical fiction, or sci-fi?” and “How do you balance the need to create a real world while remaining within the fictional realm?” and “Do you think the impact of a contemporary novel is more immediate than that of other genres because of the immediacy of the time period?” and “What are your favorite contemporary novels by other YA authors?” and “What drew you toward writing contemporary fiction in the first place?”

Me: Gracias, Beth.

Beth: You’re welcome.

Salva: (grinning) You see?

Me: OK, you were right.

Salva: Claro.

Me: So, readers, any other ideas?

The Kiss

2010-08-28T17:10:00.000-07:00

This is a SPOILER! Do NOT read it if you have not read Aurelia.

There is no kiss on p. 241 of Aurelia.

This is not because yours truly felt like torturing her readers. Or because it didn’t occur to her that her readers might expect a kiss. Or because the people at Penguin did not want one.

They did.

Aurelia refused to discuss it. She said quite clearly that kissing was Robert’s job, and if I wanted to have this discussion, I could have it with him. Normally, this would be good news because Robert is much more cooperative than Aurelia, by which I mean, more polite, more willing to listen, and more willing to bend for the good of a story.

He and I discussed the issue. In the car. At 5:30 a.m. one morning.

“Robert,” I said, “you know I wouldn’t ask you to do this if I didn’t have to. I already sent in a more romantic version of this scene, and the people at Penguin still think the readers won’t be satisfied. And I am a brand new author, who has never had anything published in her life, not even in a school newspaper. So . . . is there any way we could compromise here?”

He pointed out all the things I already knew. That at this point in the book, both he and Aurelia have suffered great trauma. That he is, in fact, horrified at what he has done. And that this story is not over yet. Not even close. “I’ve been gone for four years,” he said, “and only back a week. I don’t think this relationship is ready for the kind of commitment Penguin is talking about.”

“But you want to kiss Aurelia,” I said. “I mean, you wanted to kiss her all the way through the book.”

“I did kiss her,” he said. “And she didn’t kiss me back.”

“Yes, well she was surprised. You can’t blame her for that. And you can’t deny that you still want to kiss her.”

“No. But I can’t kiss her on p. 241.”

“Are you sure? You know she’s going to be royally ticked off with you right at the beginning of Exile. This could help head things off.”

“Nothing is going to head that off.”

“What happened to the gambler? I mean, Robert, you showed up here knowing perfectly well she was a princess, and you were prepared to take that risk.”

“To save her.”

“Yes. But more than that. I mean you walked right across that ballroom on your first night here, in front of everyone, and asked her to dance. That wasn’t exactly necessary in order to save her life.”

“I’m not that person anymore,” he said. “I’m not the person who walks across a ballroom without taking into account the consequences. I gambled. And I lost. And I won’t do that again.”

So . . . there is no kiss on p. 241.

But there is a sequel.

Smashing Sequels

2010-08-21T20:32:00.000-07:00

Me: Let’s talk sequels.

Aurelia: Excellent topic!

Me: I think sequels are exceptionally hard to please people with because the reader can never recreate the amazement they had when they ran across a great first book.

Aurelia: Well, aren’t you negative.

Me: Maybe, but you know, when you love a first book, you always imagine how you want the rest to go. And it’s so hard for a sequel to live up to that!

Aurelia: Then you aren’t imagining right. Because the characters have their own lives. It’s your job to learn about them. Not to change the way their stories work.

Me: Mmhm.

Aurelia: I mean, just because you want Ophelia to marry Hamlet doesn’t mean that would make the story better.

Me: I suppose not.

Aurelia: Besides, there are tons of great sequels.

Me: For example?

Aurelia: All three of the later Blossom Culp books. Because she is such a better narrator than Alexander.

Me: I would agree with that.

Aurelia: And In the Hand of the Goddess. You never reread Alanna, the First Adventure without also rereading In the Hand of the Goddess.

Me: True.

Aurelia: And all the later books in the Tomorrow, When the War Began series by John Marsden. Admit it, you thought the first one was kind of slow.

Me: Shh! We’re being polite. Though it’s true. After the first, those books exploded. You really can’t sleep when you’re in the middle of one. So what do you think is important in a sequel?

Aurelia: Besides me?

Me: We weren’t talking about yours in particular.

Aurelia: Well, I think the action should come out of the first book. That it shouldn’t be an entirely separate story, like the episode of a bad sitcom.

Me: I agree.

Aurelia: And I think the characters should grow. I don’t like those series where no one seems to change because someone is hoping the books will keep on going forever.

Me: I agree with that too. Though I admit, I read a lot of those books when I was in grade school.

Aurelia: I’m so glad you got past the Sweet Valley Twins stage.

Me: Yes, well you aren’t exactly Elizabeth or Jessica.

Silence.

Me: Aurelia?

Aurelia: I will not dignify that with an answer.

Me: O-kaaaay.

Aurelia: I also don’t like a whole lot of repetition. I mean . . . I always read the first book. I don’t need to read it all again at the beginning of a sequel. A little review is fine but some authors go on and on and . . .

Me: Hmm. I don’t know anyone who goes on and on.

Aurelia: Funny.

OK readers, so what do you think? What are your favorite sequels. And why?

5 Star Review

2010-08-19T20:49:00.000-07:00

Me: Hi, Aurelia.

Aurelia: Good to see you’re still living.

Me: My foot hurts. It must be three million miles between everything and the sixth grade wing.

Aurelia: So what do you want to talk about today?

Me: I want to review one of my all time favorite books that no one’s ever heard of.

Aurelia: OK, let’s hear it.

Witch of the Glens by Sally Watson

Kelpie is a sixteen-year-old thief. And a gypsy lass with the second sight. She cares nothing for the rumors of war now sweeping the Scottish Highlands, for she is far more interested in her own outrageous dreams—of becoming a real witch and defeating Mina and Bogle, the two people who stole her as a wee bairn and raised her with their own set of brutal morals.

But when Kelpie is ordered by her guardians to spy in the house of Glenfern (a place rife with the dangers of sweet wee Marie; the skeptical questions of the twins, Ronald and Donald; the open friendship of Eithne; the confounding trust of handsome Ian; and the even more baffling tongue of the wretchedly annoying Alex), Kelpie learns that sometimes dreams change. Sometimes what you know is right . . . isn’t. And sometimes war is unavoidable.

This is one of my favorite books ever! I’ve read it at least a dozen times.

IMO Witch of the Glens is the perfect blend of adventure, history, romance. And a sharp-tongued, quick-witted heroine.

Set in 1644, rather than the later and more commonly portrayed Bonnie Prince Charlie period, this book is the reason I always wanted to travel to Scotland. And finally did. For years, you couldn’t buy Witch of the Glens, unless you could afford $800.00 to purchase it from a rare book dealer online. But it is available for a regular cost now through Image Cascade Publishing at the following site: www.ImageCascade.com. And possibly through Amazon. Or you may be lucky enough to find it at your local library, as I first discovered it, or through interlibrary loan.

Aurelia: How quick-witted is she?

Me: Not quite as quick-witted as you.

Aurelia: All right then. I think I’ll read it.

Reading Addict

2010-08-16T21:26:00.000-07:00

Check out my most recent interview on Amber's Reading Addict blog http://addicted2reading4evr.blogspot.com/2010/08/author-chat-anne-osterlund.html (yes, another beautiful blog, far more spectacular looking than mine, LOL! I suppose I should ask my web designer if she can fix this, but she's a wee bit busy now updating my website and school visit brochures.

Toughest question ever! Describe your novels in 7 words or less.
Yikes!

Anne
(whom Aurelia should be very proud of right now)

A Conversation with Aurelia (and Robert)

2010-08-15T22:36:00.001-07:00

Me: We need to talk.

Aurelia: You know I’m always willing to talk.

Me: School starts tomorrow.

Aurelia: No it doesn’t. It doesn’t start for two more weeks.

Me: The kids don’t start until then. Teachers start earlier.

Aurelia: Teachers don’t start until Monday a week from now.

Me: Officially. But you know what teachers do that week? Attend meetings. District meetings. Staff meetings. Family meetings. There is no way I can be adequately prepared for school if I wait until next week. So this means I will not be able to blog as—

Aurelia: You certainly will!

Me: No, really, I—

Aurelia: My story is far more important than meetings!

Me: Yes, of course, but I—

Aurelia: Robert!

Me: Would you just—

Aurelia: (to Robert) Did you hear what she just said? She’s going to claim she can’t blog anymore.

Me: That’s not what I—

Aurelia: Yes, it is, that’s what you—

Robert: Aurelia.

Aurelia: What?

Robert: Let’s listen.

Aurelia: (sigh) Fine.

Me: I was going to say that I’m not going to be able to blog as often as I have been doing.

Aurelia: Oh.

Me: Seeing as I will be busy teaching lots of children important things like how to value great stories.

Aurelia: That seems fair.

Me: But I promise to blog at least once a week.

Aurelia: ONCE a week?! You have three day weekends!

Me: The children have three day weekends. I often have only—

Aurelia: And then you have two day weekends.

Me: Yes, but the priority on those weekends must be helping Salva and Beth finish their story.

Aurelia: (sigh) Yes, of course, but once a week. Robert, do you think once a week is adequate considering everything we went through on that expedition?!

Robert: I think Aurelia has a point.

Me: I said at least once a week. Of course I’ll try to do better. And if any of you have something pressing to say, you know I won’t have any choice but to listen.

Aurelia: True.

Me: So . . . we’re OK then?

Robert: Are we going to get some of those chocolate chip cookies you made in preparation for those family meetings?

Me: Of course.

Robert: Well, then it sounds fair to me.

Me: Aurelia?

Aurelia: You’re going to try to do better than once a week?

Me: Yes.

Aurelia: And you pledge to write at least once a week.

Me: I will not break that promise without discussing it with you first.

Aurelia: That sounds like hedging.

Me: It’s being honest. You value honesty.

Aurelia: (sigh) Very well. But Robert and I want to go to the awards ceremony to cheer on Aerin and Dane.

Me: Absolutely.

Aurelia: OK then. Moving on . . .

Award!

2010-08-14T21:19:00.000-07:00

Guess what? Aerin, Dane, and I just learned that Academy 7, won the Oregon Spirit Book Award. Selected by the Oregon Council of Teachers of English.

We are thrilled! Our very first award!

All my characters are excited.

Anne
(who also miraculously finished her second draft of chapter 21 today despite the "sewing moment" yesterday. It's amazing how much faster a chapter goes when it's down to six pages. Beth and I are both relieved to have this one out of the way--for now, of course).

P.S. And guess when the awards ceremony is going to be held? Yep. The same weekend as Wordstock and my writing workshop at Powell's. Not to mention the Sirens: Women in Fantasy Literature Conference (you will not believe who is going to be there this year--how I wish I could go), The SCBWI-Oregon Fall Retreat, and yet another Oregon Book Awards ceremony. Yikes!

A Sewing Moment: For Authors

2010-08-13T20:43:00.000-07:00

I abhor sewing. This is not a temporary little hatred due to ignorance. This is an educated passionate hatred based on nine years of 4-H clothing projects: i.e. three thousand hours of ripping, stitching, and ripping again, all to complete a product which never fit, never looked the way it did on the pattern cover, and generally, was never worn.

After nine years of being a good little committed clothing member, I effectively learned one vital lesson which every author should know.

And which, regrettably, I had to use today.

You see, today I rewrote chapter 21 of Salvation.

I expected to rewrite it.

My process for a second draft generally runs like this.

Day 1: Make decisions and plan out how the chapter from the first draft will change. Type up the changes. And print.

Day 2: Rewrite the whole draft. And make it sound good. Print.

Day 3: Count and cut three or more syllable words and adverbs. Print. Revise. Print. Revise. Print. Revise. Start throwing out pages that no longer scream “You need to revise!” Print. Revise. Print. And celebrate.

Back to today.

I was on Day 2.

Problem. It doesn’t sound good. I rewrote the whole blooming thing, and it still doesn’t sound good. Beth and I hate the first six pages of this chapter. She sits. She mopes. She does nothing.

In the planning stage, it looked fine. Theoretically, all kinds of things happen in these six pages. In reality, not so much.

After Day 1, I did what every respectable, well-behaved clothing member would do. I ripped and stitched—put in transitions, clarified the timeline, and dug more deeply into Beth’s head (really not a very pleasant place to be right now).

And after all this, I have come to grips with the reality that these six pages are the writing equivalent of a “sewing moment.”

When you rip out an entire six pages. And rewrite them all entirely by hand. And you still hate the scene. Cut the scene.

Because when you abhor something, it really is OK to quit.

This is the lesson I learned from 4-H sewing.

Pitiful

2010-08-13T01:23:00.000-07:00

It's 1:29 a.m. I have spent the whole day ordering library books about Egypt for my sixth graders, hemming the various too-long pairs of pants I managed to walk on all last year, and baking a double batch of chocolate chip cookies. Believe it or not, all of these are school/teaching related.

In addition to this, I signed up to moderate a panel on YA realistic fiction (Salva and Beth are thrilled!) at Wordstock in Portland at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 9th.

I e-mailed two jpegs and a workshop description for the Young Writers Workshop I'm teaching on dialogue at the Cedar Hills location of Powell's Books, also on Oct. 9th but at 4:30pm (What is with writing events and the second weekend in October?).

And I finished reading Catching Fire.

I also went for a walk, packed/drove/unpacked the car, and watched the finale of So You Think You Can Dance.

I completed one measly page of the second draft of chapter 21 of Salvation.

Pitiful.

Tomorrow I shall be writing!

When "Happily Ever After" Fails

2010-08-11T18:39:00.000-07:00

Let’s talk endings. (I promise I won’t give anything away). Endings are tough. Don’t let anyone lie to you. They are.

A perfect ending, which I do not claim to have written, must deal with the main dilemma in the book. It should provide closure and resolution, but not too much closer and resolution. Are you confused yet? Don’t worry. It gets worse.

Because for the ending of a novel, there are actually a multitude of endings. There should be an ending for the action, an ending for the main characters, an ending for the other characters (every friggin’ character), an ending for the romance, an ending for the theme, and an ending for the emotional arc of the story.

As I said, endings are tough.

Which brings us to Academy 7.

My first draft was complete. I had spent a year and two summers writing the second one. It was almost finished. Until the last chapter.

At which point, nothing happened.

No progress.

I tried. I turned that chapter into three chapters. I introduced weaponry. I allowed a one on one face off against Yvonne (Yvonne really didn’t merit a one on one face off). I added. I cut. I blamed Dr. Livinski for talking too much. Nothing worked.

Finally I decided the book was finished. I had done my best. I was going to send it off to my critique group members and let the thing rest.

Having made this momentous decision, I went to take a shower. The water was warm; the shampoo smelled like strawberries, and I was finally free! When I remembered something: how the opening sentence of a book should encompass the entire story. I loved my opening sentence. “Aerin tried to ignore the bloodstain on the control panel of the fugitive.”

Really, it’s an awesome sentence.

And then suddenly I knew.

There I was with the water pouring down around me. And I knew that Aerin had to visit the fountain one more time.

So when “happily ever after fails,” I recommend a shower, with strawberry shampoo.

Meow

2010-08-10T21:14:00.000-07:00

There comes a time.
In the life of every human being who crosses my path.
When they must learn about my cats.

For many of you, this is that time.

Roll call, please.

Dance: AKA Her Royal Highness is the toughest cat on the block. There are those who have misinterpreted her gorgeous appearance and beautiful white coat as signs of innocence. These are the same people whose own special kitties are terrified of her. Dance has a penchant for cornering tomcats under the house, knocking over garbage cans when no one is looking, and waking up her human in the middle of the night. She is magnificent.

Billy is the gray kitty who lives at Mom and Dad’s and professes their house as his territory. He enjoys pestering Dance, romping all night when she comes to visit, and terrorizing mice by trapping them in his own personal gladiator arena: the bathtub.

Cinder is the king of the outside. He has survived various brushes with danger and never crosses an open space without looking both ways. His hideouts included the rafters of the shop, the cab of the wheat truck, and occasionally the very risky chicken house. Cinder has never met a screen window he could not break.

Courage, Brave, Milkshake, Soda, Rise, and the as yet unnamed gray kitties in the barn spend their days zipping under floorboards, scaling walls, and romping on thin wooden rafters high above the reach of even the most determined cat person.

AKA yours truly.

What’s your roll call?

Exile Cover!

2010-08-09T21:43:00.000-07:00

Ta dah! Here is the cover photo for Exile. Hope you love it as much as I do! Robert and Aurelia asked me to share with you a single paragraph from Exile so you can truly appreciate the amazing job Michael Frost and Theresa Evangelista did with this picture.

Red-orange-violet fire defined Aurelia’s first view of the frontier. Not a polite, watered-down shade, but a drastic wildness flaming the upper echelons of the sky—a sky unlike any she had ever seen. No boundaries, or barriers, nothing to slice apart the spectacular curve of the vision. Not even the faintest wisp of a cloud. Only the ferocious brilliance of color over the landscape.

Copyright@2011 by Anne Osterlund. Used by permission of Speak, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc. All rights reserved.

Cover photo © Michael Frost, 2010, and Shutterstock.com
Cover design by Theresa Evangelista

Why Aurelia Loves Writing Conferences

2010-08-07T23:28:00.000-07:00

Five years ago, Aurelia brought yours truly to a writing conference. She was excited. I was terrified. And broke.

But she had said I had to come.

I had paid and signed up to talk to two editors and an agent; hence the terror.

Aurelia thought all this was kind of premature, but she knew I had to practice, so she let me do it. I had also carefully printed three copies of Aurelia’s book and packed them in my bag.

She thought this was just silly, but she kept her mouth shut. She wanted me to go to the conference.

On the morning of the first day, she dragged me to a class on grammar. I felt this was unnecessary as I had taken Advanced Grammar, Punctuation, and Usage in college. I was very proud of myself for knowing how to use dashes, colons, and semi-colons. FYI, five years later, after working with copyeditors, I am now quite clueless about semi-colons.

The teacher at the writing conference began talking about the difference between en dashes and em dashes. I had no clue there were two kinds of dashes! The teacher then said that one must always, always, always begin a sentence with a capital letter. My second chapter started with a lower case letter! (FYI, in this case, the teacher was wrong. The second sentence in the second chapter of Aurelia still begins with ellipses and a lower case letter). I decided there was no way I could show anyone my manuscripts yet. Aurelia thought this was wise. She allowed me to leave the grammar class. And go to something more fun.

We went to Children’s Literature. Where I learned that young adult books are not chapter books. Who knew? I also learned that Aurelia was the wrong age. Clearly, she felt this was a vital detail. Though it caused a serious problem with the plot line, one that was quite a debacle. And which freaked me out.

Aurelia thought this was good. She knew I would figure it out, eventually.

She then held my hand while we went to all the scary pitch sessions with REAL editors and a REAL agent. It turned out they were all REAL people. And they all said I could mail Aurelia’s book to them. This made me feel much better.

Of course by this time, I had also realized I had a lot of revising to do. Which made Aurelia feel better.

So she took me to the BEST class. How to Write a Page Turner by Marc Acito. Where I learned all kinds of cool stuff! And Marc Acito turned out to be the motivational speaker at lunch. And made all the people in the audience raise their hands and say out loud that they were writers. Which is SO important. And I did!

Then Aurelia took me home, where I thought about that HUGE debacle I had discovered in the Children’s Literature class. And thought about it. And thought about it. And OMG! finally figured out who the real villain in the story was.

Which made Aurelia very proud of herself.

So she signed me up for another conference.

Yum! An Author's Adventure

2010-08-06T21:33:00.000-07:00

I am spending my weekend at a writing conference.

What is a writing conference you may ask?

Excellent question.

A writing conference is . . .

Chocolate cookies with white chocolate chips. (They served these at 3:00 p.m. today).

A place where you get to meet hundreds of other people who aren’t afraid to say, “Hey! I write YA paranormal fiction or sci-fi suspense thrillers or graphic novels. What do you write?”

A place where you get to say “I don’t know anything about how to get published, and I’m dying to learn!”

A place where you can meet incredible authors like Tamora Pierce and Sherwood Smith and Kristin Cashore.

Where you can learn to write a YA romance or a psychological thriller or a dystopian fantasy.

And where you can find out whether your character is slightly, or moderately, or totally insane.

A writing conference is . . .

A place where can you ask those extremely pressing questions like: “Do I need a capital letter at the beginning of a sentence that starts with ellipses? Or can I put swear words in a middle-grade novel? Or what the heck is a middle-grade novel?”

A place where you can meet editors and agents and sell your book.

Where you can have authors and editors read your stuff and give you real feedback, one on one.

Where you can walk around the waterfalls in an Oregon State Park or spend the morning chatting at a fireside on Whidbey Island or have a massage at a resort in Vail, Colorado.

Where you can meet tons of other people who read and love and write books. What could be better?

And did I mention the chocolate cookies with white chocolate chips?

The Emergence of a Villain

2010-08-05T20:33:00.000-07:00

Yvonne is a villain in Academy 7.

If you’ve read the book, you’re thinking. Duh. That’s like, obvious, from her first appearance.

Not so much.

You see, here’s the problem with villains. They lie.

Yvonne introduced herself as a main character—she and Paul both, actually. But Yvonne was more persistent. At the time, I must have been reading the Circle of Magic books by Tamora Pierce because I remember thinking it was OK to have four main characters.

Dane didn’t think so. Aerin didn’t either, but she was too polite to say so. Yvonne very clearly stated that she was of vital importance.

Never listen to the villain.

But how do you know not to listen to him or her when you don’t know he or she is the villain? Ah, the conundrum.

About halfway through the book, Aerin and Dane headed off for Chivalry. And Yvonne made her big move—trying to drag the whole story off on some random tangent of her own. It didn’t belong, had no relevance, and was totally unnecessary.

So I cut it.

She pouted. She sulked. And she shut up. Disappeared completely from the rest of the first draft.

Which was a great thing. I got to the end of the book, realized I’d totally scrapped her, and thought. Yay! I get to cut her.

Again, not so much.

I did my best. I reclaimed all the action she’d stolen from Dane in the center of the book (no wonder he didn’t like her). In fact, working one’s way backward through the book, I cut anything and everything she did. Until Aerin’s arrival.

Where Yvonne refused to leave. Absolutely refused to go.

Sigh.

OK, so now what? Why won’t she leave? I don’t like her. Dane doesn’t like her.

"I don’t like her either," Aerin whispers.

Duh! Yvonne is the villain!

Surprise! I'm Dead.

2010-08-04T17:41:00.000-07:00

So, you’re whipping through your first draft. Your main characters are doing what you want them to do and saying what you want them to say. The action is flowing. And you’re coming up toward your big scenes. When you notice that someone is failing to talk.

We’ll call this character “A” for the sake of this discussion.

Now the truth is you noticed this a while ago, but you ignored it.

“A” isn’t a major character and doesn’t mean much to you. Though “A” does mean a lot to your main character.

At this point, you finally pause long enough before your big dramatic battle on the cliff scene in order to spare a moment of your time. Just to think to yourself: Really, “A” ought to be saying something. I wonder why he or she is not –

And then it hits you. “A” is dead.

Frigging dead.

You’re on page 160, and you have failed to realize that this character is already dead.

What’s the big deal? You may be thinking. This character doesn’t talk anyway. Just cut him or her.

Well obviously, BUT . . .

Remember how I said “A” means a lot to one of your main characters.

And now “A” is dead. Is this going to affect your main character?

Y . . . E. . . S.

How long has “A” been dead? Clearly throughout the entire book.

So how long has this been affecting your main character?

Throughout the ENTIRE book.

?%^*!

So . . . what are you going to do about it?

Well, you’re going to sleep on it. Maybe if you’re lucky, this epiphany is just a temporary one, and by morning you’ll be over it.

Then you’re going to continue your first draft, from right where you stopped. If “A” continues to be dead throughout the rest of this draft of the book, you’ll know this is serious.

And then you’re going to begin your second draft.

And you’re going to explore the impact upon your main character of “A” being dead. In chapter one.

And if you’re fortunate, extremely fortunate, you’re going to find out that “A” is FAR more powerful dead. And that this lovely little surprise you had no desire to have is already right there in your story. Just waiting for you to realize it.

A Passion for Bugs

2010-08-03T23:19:00.000-07:00

MY characters have been talking a lot. So today I thought I’d introduce you to what I love about someone else’s characters. Deeanne Gist. I’m currently entrenched in one of her six historical novels, A Bride in the Bargain, and wishing I could be reading it right now! She is definitely one of my new favorite authors.

Here’s why. Her characters always have some wonderful quirky love or passion. Which pulls me to them.

I’m only beginning to learn about Anna (a Mercer bride in 1860’s Seattle), but I have a suspicion she is extraordinarily fond of seashells.

Then there’s Rachel, in The Measure of a Lady, just your average young pioneer woman in early San Francisco--who loves collecting and cataloguing bugs!

And Constance, from A Bride Most Begrudging, a tobacco bride in the Virginia Colony—who has a passion for creating mathematical story problems (about spiders crawling around the cabin & such).

And Essie, from Courting Trouble and Deep Into Trouble, a rich young woman in turn of the century Texas, who adores bicycling! And doesn’t give a hang if she shows her ankles.

Deeanne Gist writes romantic Christian historical fiction, but her characters are universal. Yet, so very much only themselves.

Beth totally approves .

Beware the Trauma!

2010-08-02T21:37:00.000-07:00

You may be wondering why Aerin, the main character in my most recently published book, Academy 7, hasn’t said anything. This is because getting Aerin to talk is like pulling teeth. (You should ask Dane. He knows).

People talk to Aerin. And she thinks back.

Working with a traumatized character can be tough. I didn’t know about this when I started Academy 7.

As a reader, I love the dramatic scenes. Go ahead! Drop your characters off the side of a castle. Stick them in the middle of a raging forest fire. Kill off both their parents and their best friend.

But as an author, if you put your main character through serious trauma, you have to deal with it. For the REST OF THE BOOK. Or the series, as Robert can attest. This isn’t like a nice little physical wound that can go away after a month. Or if you fast forward in time. (Very nice of Dane to let me do that).

Trauma doesn’t go away. At least not easily. And once your character is seriously traumatized, everything is traumatized. The stairs. The hall. The scrap of paper with the password to your dorm room on it. Here’s an example from Academy 7 to show you what I’m talking about.

Aerin was alone. She slowly crossed the room, then wound her way up the tight staircase to the third floor, and entered a stark hallway spotted with rows of closed doors. Nothing else moved in the hall, not a voice or a breeze or a scrap of paper. Her throat constricted, and she had an image of herself walking unknowingly to execution.

There. She stopped at a door identical to the others except for the number 307 etched in the chipped paint. With trembling fingers, she opened the envelope in her hand and shook out a slick piece of paper. The numbers written on it blurred before her, but she blinked to clear her vision and forced her hand not to shake as she punched the code into the keypad. The door screeched its way open.

I mean, really, an untraumatized character could walk down a hallway and push a few buttons without making a big deal about it. NOT Aerin.

But you stick this girl in a fight. Surround her with twenty hulking guys and a grenade. And she could lay them all flat in about sixty seconds.

Which is SO totally worth it.

Interview!

2010-08-02T11:15:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a 3:00 a.m. day. As in I was up until 3:00 a.m. finishing the second draft of the climax for Salvation (Salva & Beth are OK with this, especially as it was Aurelia's fault since I received my first ARCs for Exile and stayed up until 5:00 a.m. the night before reading one).

Blogging, however, did not happen. Or walking. Or paying bills. Or lawn-mowing. Yeah, yeah, you don't care.

But as recompense, I have a treat for this morning. Christine posted my most recent interview on her blogsite, Reading on the Dark Side, so I am sending you all over there!

And for those of you wanting the summary for Salvation (so that you can actually have a clue what I've been blogging about), the summary is hidden, somewhere in the middle of that lovely interview. Enjoy!

Christine's Interview:
http://readingonthedarkside.blogspot.com/2010/08/interview-anne-osterlund.html

Anne
(who will someday have to learn how to make her blog look as spectacular as Christine's, but for now is going to go help Beth deal with a phone call.

Blueberry Lemonade (The Taste of Research)

2010-07-31T19:16:00.000-07:00

Beth, one of the main characters in Salvation, the book I am writing now, likes blueberry lemonade. I learned this yesterday. Discovery is one of the things I love the most about writing. Every day, every revision, there are discoveries.

I didn’t know there was such a thing as blueberry lemonade. But here was the problem. Beth said that plain lemonade was too ordinary. She is not ordinary.

And she couldn’t have strawberry lemonade because she was going to have strawberry shortcake. And you don’t want to reuse the word strawberry too many times on a page. Not only would it be repetitive, but it’s a three-syllable word, which can be an issue when writing YA. I mean, you want to make your three-syllable words count.

So at this point, I knew I had to do some research. There were raspberries, but this would be two red berries in the same scene, and Beth and I both felt that that was inadequate. We had already determined that this was a very colorful scene.

So I tried searching “flavored lemonade” on Google images. This resulted in all kinds of weird things. Ginger lemonade. Beth is definitely not stuffy enough for ginger. She is all for vintage, but not uptight old-fashioned. And there was tarragon-flavored lemonade. What the heck is tarragon? Neither Beth nor I have any desire to find out. And pomegranate? We don’t think so. And lavender? That is just a little too soap-like for Beth.

So we returned to the berries. And blueberries are blue. Beth is a fan of bubble-gum ice cream, also blue. And we agreed that while we couldn’t get away with repeating the word strawberry, the repetition of the second half of the word wouldn’ t be bad. After all, once we introduce the lemonade as blueberry, we don’t have to again. Because the reader will know.

Plus, Beth is rather fond of blueberry lemonade.

News

2010-07-30T23:22:00.000-07:00

Well, it is 11:26 p.m., and obviously I don't have time to blog today. But I do have news.

Salva went home! It wasn't pretty. And it required a great deal of help from Beth, as well as a little divine intervention, but he made it.

Anne

Chocolate Chip Mint Cheesecake Pt. 2 (AKA The List)

2010-07-29T22:50:00.000-07:00

While we are at Powell’s, we should make The List.

The List is plausibly the most enjoyable part about book shopping.

It’s a bit like picking Barbies. When I was little, my sister, friends, and I would take all our Barbie stuff—all our Barbie stuff—throw it onto a bed, and pick. One item at a time, from the huge Barbie pool down to the ugliest hand-knitted Barbie sweater. Ostensibly with the idea that the stuff we chose was what we were going to use when we began to play. Picking took at least an hour, and often by the time we were done, we’d decide we would have more fun picking again, rather than actually playing.

The List is like picking Barbies because there’s no commitment. But plenty of inspiration for the future. You just write down all the books that make you think Hey! That would be cool. Next time. Because, of course you can’t afford to buy out the store.

Now it’s no small thing for a book at a bookstore to make my list. I am an author. I spend hours online searching and writing down book titles in my blue notebook. So when I take a trip to a bookstore and find a book that’s not already in the notebook, that’s impressive.

Here we go:

The Fool’s Girl by Celia Rees—I have seen this online, but I had not read the summary before or written it down. And it’s based on Shakespeare! So it goes on the list.

The Education of Bet by Lauren Baratz-Logsted—Another one I’d see online and was absolutely thrilled to a. read the summary and b. find out it’s a skinny book. Which means I might even get through it during the school year.

A Voice of Her Own: Becoming Emily Dickinson by Barbara Dana—This is an honest to goodness find, and I’m pretty excited about it. Because Emily Dickinson is an enigma. And anyone who can write like her deserves a YA novel. So I’m going to dig this up. Eventually. And for now, it’s on the list.

Rogue’s Home, the second book in the Knight and the Rogue Series by Hillari Bell. To be fair, Rogue’s Home was not available at Powell’s, at least not on the day I was there, but I found the title listed on the back of another book so I wrote it down.

Player’s Ruse by Hillari Bell. The third book in the Knight and Rogue series. Isn’t it lovely when there are more books in a series than you had realized?

That Perfect Someone by Johanna Lindsey—because sadly, I am a sucker for the Mallory Novels.

And finally . . .

Purple Heart by Patricia McCormick. How is I had not seen this? Not anywhere. But if you have not read Cut by Patricia McCormick, or her second book, Sold, then you are missing out. Her books are memorable. I will definitely be reading this one.

And that’s the list!

Chocolate Chip Mint Cheesecake

2010-07-28T18:51:00.000-07:00

Let’s take a trip.

If you have never been to Powell’s Bookstore on Burnside in Portland, the best way I can describe it for you is to compare it to chocolate chip mint cheesecake. Absolutely out of this world.

Powell’s is a block. A complete city block. And on top of that, it has at least three stories. Filled with new and used books.

Within this incredible structure lies The Rose Room. This is heaven on earth for fans of young adult literature. At least 7 rows. Seven high, long rows of young adult books. And that does not count the ones on sale. Or the ones in the Pacific Northwest section. Or the ones in the educational section. Or—you get the point.

The problem with going to bookstores as an author is that you feel like you ought to work. So on my most recent trip, I went to Powell’s with three goals in mind. The first two were utter failures. You don’t want to hear about them. The third goal was to find absolutely wonderful books. TO READ.

Ding, ding, ding! Success!

So here’s what I bought:

Catching Fire--because I am weak and cannot wait until it is out in paperback.

Hunger Games--because I checked it out of the library and, of course, now I need to own it.

The Letter Writer--because a. It is by Ann Rinaldi, b. I can’t get it from the library, and c. I read the first page and was hooked. Her characters have wonderful voice.

Climbing the Stairs by Padma Venkatraman--because it is about India, and I love books set in other cultures. And it has romance. And it is in paperback. I am really looking forward to this one.

And finally—dum da dum dum dummm.

Because it’s based on a fairy tale. And the heroine doesn’t want the prince (Aurelia and I have a special fondness for princesses who don’t want to marry the prince). And someone on Goodreads recommended it to me. And the cover is absolutely gorgeous. And Mercedes Lackey wrote The Changeling Sea. I bought The Sleeping Beauty.

Ah, now that is definitely as good as cheesecake.

Disobedient Characters

2010-07-27T17:05:00.000-07:00

Salva does not want to go home. Salva (aka Salvador) is the main character in the book I am working on now, Salvation, and he does not want to go home. Which is where I need him to go. For various reasons. But . . . did I mention he does not want to go?

Apparently this is not a unique phenomenon. When I had the opportunity of hearing Tamora Pierce speak at the Sirens: Women in Fantasy Literature Conference last fall, she talked about how Evy refused to go to the palace. Somewhere about thirteen chapters later, Evy finally went.

So what do authors do when a character refuses to go where we need them to go?

There are several approaches.

First, there is listening. Nine times out of ten, I would say that listening is successful. Once you find out why your character has issues, you can usually find your way around them.

This did not work with Salva.

Next there is detouring. Detouring usually involves more effort. It requires an extra scene or an extra chapter or two in order to help the character get whatever issues he or she has out of the way.

This also has not worked with Salva. He needs to go home. So he can be yelled at. And he doesn’t want to.

Sometimes there is bowing to your characters’ wishes. “OK,” you say to them. “We won’t go there. We’ll go here instead.” And they cheer up and follow blithely along and you zip them back into your plotline via a circuitous route.

This also will not work with Salva. It is imperative that he go home.

Which brings me to the last option. You tell the character to suck it up and just go where you want them to go.

Ninety-nine percent of the time, this will not work. I’m not sure it would ever work with Aurelia. But Salva is being a coward, and Beth and I agree that he should just go home.

So we’re sending him.

2010-07-26T18:05:00.000-07:00

To Blog or Not to Blog

Aurelia thinks I need to begin a blog. A real one. If you aren’t acquainted with Aurelia, you should know she is the main character in two of my books, thus far. She was raised to be a crown princess, and no doubt, this is partly responsible for the fact that she is A. stubborn, B. opinionated, and C. very LOUD. I find her rather difficult to ignore. This is how our conversation went.

Aurelia: You need to begin a blog.
Me: What?
Aurelia: Don’t be obtuse. My next book is coming out in April, and you want it to be successful, don’t you?
Me: Of course. But I don’t have time to blog. Why don’t you do it?
Aurelia: I’m busy rescuing a country. You are NOT that busy.
Me: I teach school. I had 29 students last year. I wake up at 4:50 a.m. and don’t get home until around six. Every day I have off from teaching, I write. You know that.
Aurelia: You’re whining.
Me: Aerin and Dane did not insist I blog.
Aurelia: They want you to write one too.
Me: Great. And exactly what am I supposed to blog about? I can’t blog about what I’m writing today. That would give away the story. And I can’t blog about school. That would infringe on my students’ privacy.
Aurelia: Duh. You’re an author. Blog about books.
Me: OK, well, I admit I could talk forever about books.
Aurelia: That’s what I thought. And you can blog about writing. Just don’t give anything away.
Me: You say this because I’m not writing one of your stories right now.
Aurelia: Salva and Beth want you to blog too.
Me: OK, OK, I will try to blog.
Aurelia: Good. Glad that’s settled. Moving on . . .