Normally this time of year I write a post called “My Year in Books” in which I describe every single book I read in the past year. To be honest, I do it (at least in part) so I can brag. In 2016, for example, I read close to 60 books, which I think is brag-worthy. Well, no bragging this… View Post
The Great Children’s Literature Study: Holes by Louis Sachar Welcome to my new, regular feature in which I analyze great children’s literature. As a writer of children’s fiction myself, I need to study kidlit the way one might in school: look closely at the structure, the language, the characterization. Think about these great books, write about them, learn from them…. View Post
Are you writing autobiographical fiction? Recently I heard back from a literary agent who had requested my full manuscript: an upper middle grade contemporary that I wrote after reading some of my adolescent diaries. Here’s part of what the agent said: I was seriously getting flashbacks to my first relationships–dating in eighth/ninth grade was SO AWKWARD! You absolutely nail… View Post
I know what you’re thinking: unless you’re a non-native English speaker, it’s pretty easy to avoid verb tense mistakes. Well, okay, there’s the whole lie versus lay situation (read Grammar Girl’s explanation of it here), but I’m not talking about irregular verbs. I’m talking about global issues with tense that you might not notice in your own writing. So check out these… View Post
The Great Children’s Literature Study: Bridge to Terabithia It occurred to me the other day that in high school and college I studied plenty of great novels — The Great Gatsby, Beloved, The Scarlett Letter, etc. – but what I need to do now, as a kidlit writer, is study great children’s literature. By this I mean I need to… View Post