Why yes ma'am I can write an essay about that. I can write an essay about anything...

My final assignment was returned in the post today - an essay on why (or why not) poetry from the past is relevant to today's children. I had started it in plenty of time before the deadline but every time I approached it, the topic got away from me and my thoughts ran all over the place and refused to hold hands in a circle. Finally on the way home from dropping my daughter off at some after school thing I had an epiphany. I emailed my tutor and asked if I could get the essay in a few days late. The rubbish I had already written wasn't going to wash. I needed to start again and take a different tack. The age of the poetry wasn't what mattered. It was the poetry itself. What was it about successful poetry for children that made it successful? The essay nearly wrote itself. I wracked my brain for the rules about referencing and bibliography that I had used during earlier university courses and went through the process. I am very happy to report I got an A+. Essay writing, like fiction writing, needs the right idea. Find the right approach and it falls out on the page almost fully formed. And when you have hit on the right idea, you know its the one. My earlier attempts had felt awkward and uncomfortable. Even though I ended up using a lot of the same material, I now had focus and cohesion and everything fell into place and made sense. Just three more papers to go. Next year I think I'll have a go at the research paper. I've been nervous about doing this one but I think I have to do it before I can move on to the others. I feel like I can do it now. I can essay the heck out of just about anything.


And its about time we had some more juicy links. My mantra is always 'be polite and professional.' You can do a lot of brave and bold things as long as you are polite and professional. Following up with publishers is less scary and more fruitful if you are polite and professional. In fact everything is more fruitful if you are polite and professional. Everyone likes to be treated well and with respect. And its not just me saying it. Nicola Morgan over at Help! I Need a Publisher agrees. Although I am not sure I agree with the statement
Always wear a suit when preparing your submission. If you wear pyjamas, they will see. :) 
If you write for children not only are pyjamas the right choice, your slippers should be animal themed or extremely fluffy.


Nicola also has an excellent post on praise. I adore praise (I also adore chocolate) but praise is never without strings attached. Make sure you know where all the strings lead back to and what this means about the praise and the thing praised. 


Last but not least I would like to draw your attention to this. It is a sobering read but also hopeful. Yes publishing can be an unfair place. It may not be you or the quality of your work that is the reason you have been rejected. Keep believing in yourself and try again.

Dan's shirt just wasn't wet enough....

This is a classic case of avoidance behaviour. I should be doing my next assignment (there's no escaping them at the moment - they are lined up back to back like a queue for the latest ride at Disney World). And I am trying not to think about all of my submissions because things seem to be getting complicated. Just when I thought I was getting the hang of how things work they go and bend it like Beckham and I have to go do some goalie up-skilling. Ack...So here I am mooning over the latest BBC production of Sense and Sensibility instead (okay, it's not that new but its only just gone into the dollar for 7 days on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at the local dvd rental store and I was too miserly to get it out beforehand and folks it was worth the wait). Oh all those zipped up emotions and stifling manners and the dos and donts of genteel society. In those days folks, blushing was an art form. And the lovely Edward Farrars and the uncomplaining Elinor Dashwood, how could anyone hold it all in like that, I bet she was horribly constipated. And Willoughby was really just todays Robbie Williams and no one blinks too much over men like that anymore and take that why don't you Jane Austen. Actually I love Jane Austen most of all and I am praying someone discovers a secret hidden unpublished manuscript of hers which I would love much much more than a fourth Steig Larsson novel. After all that being careful with my money so I only had to pay a dollar I may now have to go out and buy the DVD outright so I can re-watch it multiple times at my leisure, especially the good bits. Sigh.

And I can't believe that all that superstitious stuff I went on about last post is purely a NZ phenomenon. I would have thought we were potentially the least superstitious so some of you just aren't owning up.

I'm off to critique The Wolves in the Walls and talk about sexism and its cultural function in fairytales.

No black cats near my submissions, thanks...

Got my first university assignment back and felt pleased to see my sweating and straining had been worth it. Of course now I will have to keep sweating and straining to keep the standard up. I don't mind :) I'll take an A+ any day.

Had dinner with a bunch of writery folk last night and managed to ask the only illustrator present what he was writing at the moment - I didn't even have the excuse of being a little tiddly. Maybe it was ESP as he does have an interest in writing his own material. It was fun to gossip and grizzle (I am only slightly ashamed) and to hear how people were going about the business of developing and maintaining their writing careers. There is always something new to be learned.

I have not previously considered myself a superstitious person but as a result of recent behaviour I have come to realise that is just not true. This morning out dog walking with one of my besties, as we discussed whether I would get the flu injection or not, I did not even want to confirm my opinion on the current state of my health lest it should bring a decline in said state. A shocking display of superstition! But folks, I am even more superstitious about the state of my writing career. The other day I included two sentences in my new blog post outlining the current status of a project of mine. And about two hours later I had to remove it, for no other reason, than that it may somehow jinx the outcome. In my more normal, rational, lucid moments I know that these things do not influence the publishers decision. Heck, they don't even know about it. And yet I try and keep things as close to my chest as possible, tell the least number of people, put enquiries off as long as possible, just in case any of these things somehow mess karmically with the progress of my submissions. You may scoff, LOL, guffaw or chortle at all of this, but I KNOW I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO BEHAVES THIS WAY. I comfort myself with the fact that I have not yet developed any special rituals or tics.

Leapin' lizards...

I have a solution to my self-sabotage but I'm still undecided whether I'm going to sabotage the solution. Besides resisting finishing the WIP to avoid the attendant frustrations of trying to get it published, there is also the undeniable fact that finishing it will require some effort on my part. However I believe the key to overcoming the self-sabotage is to take advantage of a friend's kind invitation to participate in an authors collective. This involves hanging out with a bunch of other authors at a neutral (for me) location with no house work or other distractions. If I use my laptop I won't be writing blog posts, facebook entries or checking my e-mails a thousand times a minute because its a hassle to do on the lappy. I'll have other authors standing over me expecting me to do some work. This could get results and I'm hoping to give it a go this week. I'll let you know whether its a success or not...

I received my first posting for my university paper today. Anything over an inch fat is a little scary. This package is in the two inch zone. Leapin' lizards! I know I do this to myself and it is completely voluntary and on some level I love doing it (and this year its studing children's lit looking at story and meaning in myths, legends and folktales which rocks) but there is also an element of masochism. But hey - I can look on the bright side - its another distraction :)

My juicy link for today is over at one of my fave blogs - Help I need a Publisher . Today Ms Morgan has herself linked to another post on querying, but rather than giving advice on how to write a query itself (something we haven't really yet needed to do in NZ) the discussion is on what you should be querying and it makes some very good points which Ms Morgan goes on to further expand on. These are good things to know, especially if you are as yet unpublished. I don't think all the advice should be applied wholesale to all writers, but the underlying message about 'how' you choose what to send in and that 'holding back' is most often the right move makes sense. Put yourself in the agents/publishers shoes - piquing their interest is better than overwhelming them with a deluge of material. And always put your best foot forward...

Excited about writing...

I got my last assignment back in the post along with the exam to be sat this saturday in the comfort of my own home with my study guides open. It will not (despite possibly appearing otherwise) be easy. I am sure they factor in that it is done at home with the books open and expect a little bit more accordingly. I am required to assess and analyse something previously unseen. And then on Sunday it will all be over. I love being a student but I am always glad when the exam is done. I can smell freedom already.

I have been tinkering away with a new, old manuscript in a happy way on my new toy. If things go well I could have another piece of junior fiction finished and submitted by the end of the month (35 to 40,000 words - yippee). The YA is currently on hiatus. Bahamas I think. Hope it packed sunscreen. It needed a break and it better come back rearing to go is all I can say. In breaking news apparently R Patts and Kristen have finally (FINALLY) come out as a couple. Quel surprise.

Next week as part of NZ Book month (got your book by a NZ author yet?) I am reading The Were-Nana at Thames Public Library (Wednesday 21st) in the morning and running a writing workshop in the afternoon. Then Friday 23rd I am at Owairaka Primary in Auckland for the opening of their new library, along with fab author Kyle Mewburn. They are devoting the day to a love of books - how cool is that!! In early November I am part of a days workshop for children's writers run by KiwiWrite4Kidz on the topic of Before and After Publishing. With most events over and the academic year wound up I will have some large chunks of writing time after this which is a dizzyingly exciting prospect. My eldest has NCEA exams and I will be doing what I can to help her but the rest of the days will be mine. Folks I feel about this like a five year old feels about Christmas.

Normal transmission will resume...

The holidays have gone like an overexcited chihuahua. Here we are at the second friday and the kids have only just hit their holiday stride - poor things - back off to work they go on monday. Of course, you can guarantee that the sun will finally come out then too after playing hide and seek with some pretty aggressive rain clouds over the last fortnight.

Well the good news is I finished my final assignment, or more truthfully, I printed off what I had, put it in an envelope with sufficient postage and bunged it in the post box. Its not my best work but I ran out of time and the love just wasn't there anymore. It is what it is. I hope I pass. Just the exam to look forward to now.

I finally got to sit down (in the flesh) with the lovely and talented writers Tania Roxborogh, Michele Powles and Jeannie McLean round my dining table last wednesday afternoon. One of the benefits of blogging that I never anticipated was the opportunity to make friends with people round the country (and round the world). Tania lives in Dunedin but blogging has bridged the gap and when you do get to meet the people whose blogs you read all that awkward first meeting stuff isn't there. We had a fab afternoon supping some wine and chatting. This would be one of the benefits of sharing some space with other writers - a collective of sorts - to overcome the otherwise solitary nature of this business. My experience on wednesday and at spinning gold has shown me how much fun and how beneficial socialising with other writers can be. More please! BTW Tania launches her latest book Banquo's Son this saturday at 5pm at Takapuna Library. It looks like a ripping read. Go buy a copy, stat.

I have been interviewed by Little Miss Pink Hair and you can read it here!

And because I'm in a state of writing/writers confusion right now here is an interesting bit of advice related to the debate on whether you should market and promote your own work, pinched from here via Maureen Crisp's blog, which should be the cattle prod to your grey cells - just what you need when you're winding down on a friday.

I heard some excellent advice from Lisa Earle McLeod at the Foothills Writers Guild workshop last weekend, which she heard at the beginning of her career: Many talented writers will never be successful due to mediocre marketing skills. Many mediocre writers will be successful due to marketing talent.

This comes from a much bigger post here with a horde of publishing advice that is definitely worth checking out.

Have a good weekend folks...

No excuses left...

It was my annual pilgrimage to watch my son play soccer today. Today's weather would put many hardy souls off - it rained, it blew, it froze - but I really should go more often. For a bunch of eleven year olds there were some impressive skills on display and in the second half my boy played in goal and made some breath taking saves. His team squeaked in 1-0.

I have few excuses left not to finish my assignment (apart from still waiting on some important material). Its raining, the dishwasher and washing machine are full, switched on and doing their thing and the kids are on the playstation, taking turns on a rented game (and yes I am shocked by how chummy they currently are - I shall enjoy it while it lasts). My SO is off playing soccer. We are out to dinner tonight in honour of his birthday so I don't have to prepare any food. I want to write but know I can't until I get this assignment completed. All the calculations needed for our companies GST Tax return are complete. There are no excuses left. So I shall leave you with the opening lines of an as-yet-unpublished picture book story of mine while I go off and do my assignment:-

Nobody was surprised when Mick turned into a monkey.

Although its quite true he liked to swing on the gate, climb doorways and hang upside down from trees...
...it wasn't that, that did it.

It was dragging everything out of every drawer and cupboard...
...and never putting them back,

slamming doors...
...pulling his sister's hair...

...and jumping up and down screaming.

His Grandma said, "if the wind changes you'll be stuck like that."

I'm just a word nerd...

Been studying today. I am so out of the habit that I am having to relearn how to be a student as if I'd never done it before (and having spent YEARS as a student I can only laugh at my greenness). That'll teach me :) In one of those spooky coincidences (cue twilight zone theme tune) today I've been reading about the definition of picture book (versus picture story book and illustrated book) and checking in with the latest post at the editorial anonymous blog an hour ago, the blogger is discussing this very issue, although her take on the topic is somewhat less academic and more practical than the one I am wading through. Academic definitions can give us insights but won't make the publisher pick your manuscript.

I am also still trying to get my head around everything that has been happening to my picture book The Were-Nana. Its like a dream and is perhaps best kept that way. The Were-Nana has now gone to reprint. Yowza. I will be sorry when this train stops and the conductor boots me off (I did buy a ticket - really). I'm trying not to look at the desert flashing past the windows. And reprint is a magic miracle word that I'm trying not to get over fond of. I would like to be its best friend but its the most popular word on the block and I'm just a word nerd. I think I have a crush. Please don't tell.