What’s YOUR Word?

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Yesterday I was conversing with a writer friend, who was telling me about her daughter’s weekly spelling tests. The conversation turned to how it seems that everyone has “a word” we recall from childhood that really stumped us on those weekly spelling tests.

My “word” (I put it in quotation marks to make it seem more ominous) was “continent” (quotation marks again, because just thinking about it in terms of the fourth grade makes it seem ominous). For some reason, I always switched the “i” and the “e.” Every week, for what seemed like decades. My teacher and parents were dumbfounded at how I could make the same mistake over and over. Then one day I finally spelled it correctly and received my gold star on the class spelling chart. My teacher’s face lit up and her blue eyes sparkled so much that I thought she might call the office and have the principal make an announcement to the entire school. My parents took me out for ice cream!

My writer friend’s word was “recipe” which she read as “re-sipe” (which makes perfect sense if you compare it to “recite”). My husband’s word was “poem” which he consistently spelled as “peom”. He still complains about how our language makes no sense.

And the irony I’ve found in this is that when my son was four years old and in his second year of Montessori school, he could easily spell “continent”. Thank goodness for Montessori education, as spelling never was a problem for him!

So, what’s YOUR word? Which “word” was your biggest obstacle with spelling tests?

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FRIDAY FUNNIES: Spring Break Poem

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It’s spring break, humor month and poetry month. Here’s what’s on my mind:

Spring vacation,
Cannot write.
Hubby’s home,
No time in sight.
He’s my buddy,
He’s my dear.
But when will he get outta here?
:-}

For a feast of poetry, head on over to Gotta Book. Greg Pincus is posting a poem every day in April.

Catty Riddle

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Why can’t cats get married?

Because they cantaloupe!

Okay, that was a weak excuse to post this picture of my cantaloupe-loving cat, but hey, it’s humor month and everyone comes up with a few groaners now and then!

National Humor Month

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April is a great month that honors many things, including National Poetry Month and National Humor Month (hmm…do I sense a funny poem coming on?).

In honor of National Humor Month, I’m running a joke-writing contest for kids. Please visit my website for details. If you know any kids who like to create jokes and riddles, please steer them to the contest. It’s going to be a lot of fun and the top three “comedians” will receive autographed joke books as prizes.

Kids are amazingly creative at making up jokes and riddles, and there is nothing more joyful than hearing a child tell a joke (whether it’s funny or not). Telling jokes gives a child confidence and helps to develop his social skills. And we all know how valuable humor is to human spirit.

So let’s welcome in April with laughter, just like the woman pictured in the photo (taken at the 2006 Oregon Small School Association conference). She had been reading PET JOKES THAT WILL MAKE YOU HOWL! (co-authored with Ruth Musgrave, pictured on left). She couldn’t stop laughing–and you know how contagious laughter is!

Friday Funnies: KidLit Folks Jokes

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Here are a couple of funny jokes (okay–funny to me, and please bear with me if you’ve already heard them).

How many editors does it take to screw in a light bulb?
Two. One to unscrew the old bulb and another other one to write it a rejection letter.

A hundred children’s book illustrators walk into a bar.
The bartender says, “Sorry, we don’t serve children’s book illustrators.”
The illustrators said, “Are you trying to give us the brush-off?”

A hundred young adult writers walk into a bar.
The bartender says, “Sorry, we don’t serve young adult writers here.”
The writers said, “Word!”

No cyber tomato throwing, please! Would you like to share a joke of your own? Please do so with a comment. After all, we’re heading into National Humor Month this weekend!

Staying Connected

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Yesterday I attended a Ventura/Santa Barbara SCBWI Workshop in Bakersfield, “Finding and Capturing an Agent”, with guest speaker Erin Murphy. As usual, Ms. Murphy was very personable and shared her terrific insights on being an agent. I love speakers who make you feel like you’re sitting at the kitchen table (or Starbucks), chatting over a cup of coffee–and Ms. Murphy does just that.

The other great thing about the day was the “connection factor” that comes with attending writing events. I love meeting new members, putting faces with my cyber-friends (via our listserve) and of course, seeing my old friends. This is just as valuable to me as any other part of the day. I wanted to jump up and cheer when Ms. Murphy complimented my friends’ writing and I loved seeing the faces of people when they heard her say positive things about their work. There’s nothing like being validated, especially in this business. It’s simply uplifting!

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FRIDAY FUNNIES: Bits O’ Sage Advice

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It’s time to reach out and share, folks. Let’s see how many bits of sage advice we can brainstorm. Even if you’re new to this business, I’m sure you’ve already learned a thing or two, and goodness knows the plethora of knowledge our more experienced writers possess.

I’ll start the list with a few bits o’ wisdom, beginning with my number one rule. Please add more to the list by posting a comment. And don’t be greedy, folks. You know that the more you give, the more you receive.

1. Never rely on spell-chick (its bin known two make sum misteaks).
2. Never follow an editor into a restroom stall.
3. Never write your initials + editor’s initials on the outside of your envelope, such as, TP + LF = ♥
4. Never expect to seal a deal with your witty repartee. Speaking face to face with an editor or agent has been known to cause writers to spontaneously grow a second tongue and subsequently choke on it.
5. Never begin your query letter with:
Dear Editor,
If you love Dr. Seuss, you’re going to love this even more!

Okay, folks. Come on, now. What bits o’ advice would you like to share?

Five Things That Give Me Goosebumps

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1. Creepy movies–not gorey, chop up the stupid teenagers, don’t-go-in-there-alone movies, but the creepy kind that pull you in then BAM! Make you jump out of your seat (i.e., “What Lies Beneath” with Harrison Ford).

2. Hearing Yanni live in concert. His music makes causes me to “chair dance,” “aisle dance,” cry, laugh and definitely gives me goosebumps.

3. Sleeping at 10 below zero in the mountains. ‘Nuf said.

4. Reading authors like Richard Peck and Graham Salisbury.

5. Getting an email message from my Random House editor (a phenomenal editor, BTW) telling me that my easy reader, Tae Kwon Do! has been named one of The Best Children’s Books of the Year for 2007 by the Children’s Book Committee at the Bank Street College of Education. Hearing that news (only my second “list” ever) not only gave me goosebumps, it made me do a little chair dance as well :-).

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Wednesday Wordplay Switches to Friday Funnies

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Okay, I’ve discovered that my Wednesday Wordplays were turning more to humor posts that actual wordplays (not that wordplays aren’t funny–sometimes they’re just plain fun). Therefore, I’m switching things up a bit. From now one, I’m going to feature a humorous post on Fridays. Why Fridays? Well, I like the alliteration factor of “Friday Funnies” plus it’s the end of the week when everyone could use a good laugh as we gear up for the weekend.

So, here is my farewell send-off to Wordplay Wednesdays:

Change one word of a book title to create a humorous new title (See? There I go again with the humor). Here are a few possibilities by some of my favorite authors (okay, I admit it, they’re also my friends):

The Recess Queen (by Alexis O’Neill) becomes The Recess Sardine.
101 Ways to Bug Your Teacher (by Lee Wardlaw) becomes 101 Ways to Bug Your Preacher.
Sleepy Me (by Marni McGee) becomes Creepy Me.

If you want to post a comment with your own titles (and yes, please toot your own horn), I’d love to hear from you. Otherwise, I’ll see you on Friday!

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Rejections Part II: Don’t Let ‘Em Drive You Crazy

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Rejection letters are a popular topic to discuss amongst writers. So many aspects to cover—how to cope with them, what they mean, what to do with them, which room to wallpaper with them… They can drive you crazy!

When I first started writing–no, submitting–a wise writer at an SCBWI conference (whose name escapes me) said, “There are different kinds of rejections.” She further explained that moving up the ‘rejection ladder’ is a good thing. My husband says I’m nuts for being happy over a rejection letter. Well, first off, I’m never happy to get a rejection letter. Period. But certain letters do initiate a feeling of encouragement in me. And that’s what I look for. Is there something in that letter that I can gain (something for the next submission or something as simple as feeling encouraged about my work). What is the positive aspect of that letter? How can it help me?

Here’s what I’ve learned about rejection letters (what I prefer to call “letters of decline”) in climbing the rejection ladder:

1) Bottom rung: A form letter. Usually comes on a piece of paper so small that you wonder why they even bothered (although I applaud their efforts in saving paper and helping the environment). Not much to learn from here, except that if you accumulate a few of these for the same body of work, you need to go back, seriously review your work, and revise.

2) 2nd rung: Form letter with your name inserted. The positive aspect: They got your name right and you know it was indeed your ms they passed on. Same as above: if you get a lot of these on the same material, seriously review and revise. Seriously.

3) 3rd rung: Form letter with a handwritten word or two scribbled somewhere on the page, such as “Nice work” or “Not quite.” Positive aspect: A busy editor took the time to give you some encouragement. You’re doing something right!

4) 4th rung: Typed letter that includes a specific reference to your ms, such as, “Thank you for considering us for THE ABCS OF DESERT ANIMALS.” The letter might even have comments such as, “While your descriptions of the desert are quite lovely…” Positive aspect: This editor took the time to give you comments. Your work has something that piqued his/her interest. Advice: Put the letter away for a week or so, then go back and read it again. Try to understand what he/she meant (this can be tough with phrases like, “Too slight” or “A sense of disconnect.”

5) 5th rung: A personal letter that includes specific suggestions for improving your work. Positive aspect: This editor liked your work but for some reason had to decline it. As in #4 above, put away, go back later, and re-read (when you’re less emotional about it).

6) 6th rung: A personal letter with revision suggestions and a request to see your work after the revisions. Positive aspect: You have his/her attention. THIS IS GOLD! Take your time to do the revisions. Don’t rush. Editors expect you to take your time in making revisions.

7) 7th rung: An acceptance letter. An acceptance usually comes in the form of a phone call, but occasionally it comes via a letter. Congratulations! Only 1% of the thousands of annual submissions receive a personal response from an editor, and of those responses, only 1% are acceptances, so this is a fantastic accomplishment.

So there you have it. My take on the rejection ladder. And you might wonder which room I wallpaper with my many, many, many rejections (see photo). I don’t. I put them in a folder (by year) labeled, “Learning Experiences.”