Spring into Writing

It's here.

Don't let the snow fool you. This is springtime in the mountains.
#SnowShoeing Last weekend

After what has been a long winter with days made gray by skies capped with heavy clouds, SPRING is standing on my doorstep -- threading its yellow light across my lawn, nudging the crocus flowers from the flowerbeds, and urging the tulip flowers that are still sleeping in bulbs beneath them to take notice.

In my yard, salmon pinks will follow purple.

These small events... that make SPRINGTIME springy... make me happy.

They awaken the creative sparks, leading me in slightly new directions, allowing me to see manuscripts I've been working on in new ways, making the revision process more crisp and fresh.

With such feelings stirring, it seems near impossible to do anything but breathe more life into the characters that have been reaching out from the page.

Which means it's time for spring cleaning. Or rather, re-energizing.

For that, I'm springing into my writer's chair at my writing desk and tackling a new list, which really is nothing more than the same old list, but with more verve.

1. Write. Write new. Write fast. Write now by visiting the ideas for picture books I've jotted down in notebooks over the last few months at different conferences and in different settings. Choose 10 of the best ideas and crank out rough drafts for at least 5.

2. Write more. Write with focus. Write with intention. Start with the most promising draft from above and revise that into a 1st draft to work on. Repeat for the others.

3. Write through Resting. While those manuscripts simmer on the back burner through April, work on finishing the first draft of the middle grade I've got going.

A full sunbow (like a rainbow
 and a moon bow) encircled the sun during our trek

4. Revise and Restock. I write most of my drafts in notebooks, so I'll have to allow time for restocking ink. Jetstream pens are my favorite. And one of them ran out of ink today. (Which is good, because it means I've been writing). (But I'm okay for now because I've got pens in bundles. Well, 6 to be exact.)

5. Assess my spring and summer calendars. Set goals, plan ahead to make deadlines. Summer won't last forever and I want to make the most of it.

6. Continue sharing and learning what I can from my writing groups and critiques and conferences. Yes, Write.

7. Keep writing, and keep reading, and repeat.

Happy Springtime!

View from a snowshoe trek last weekend above Bear Lake, Utah, #AllSnowAndSunshine

Meet children's author Laura Roettiger and her new picture book, Aliana Reaches for the Moon

Teachers and parents strive to inspire their students and children to become engaged and excited about the world around them.

As a parent, I loved discovering new ideas on how to have my children interact with nature when they were younger.  I believe that fostering this interest in learning played a large part in their ability to put themselves on their own paths to successful futures now that they're grown, because they learned how to ask questions and get excited about possibilities.  Looking back, their journeys began with picture books. There were so many that we read before bedtime.  Some of our favorites that featured nature were We're Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen, Owl Moon by Jane Yolen, and When Will It Be Spring? by Catherine Walters. 

Today, I'm excited to share a new picture book by Laura Roettiger called Aliana Reaches for the Moon.  This story is centered on the process of discovery and creative interaction with the natural world by a young girl as she creates a birthday gift for her brother. I anticipate that children will enjoy looking for clues about the gift Aliana makes in subsequent re-readings, and will be inspired to make marvelous creations of their own. 

Laura took time out of her schedule to share some insights about her new book. The book's birthday is tomorrow, February 19, so you will be able to bring this book into your own personal libraries to enjoy with the young readers in your life! 

What was your inspiration for Aliana Reaches for the Moon?

The inspiration for the story comes from a few different people and observations that I have woven together.  I moved from Chicago, Illinois to the mountains west of Boulder, Colorado in July 2016. It was the first time I lived away from the light pollution of a city and I was amazed by the brightness of the full moon. This is what starts Aliana’s journey in the book. Aliana is based on my own daughters and some of the wonderful children I taught in Chicago at Carlos Fuentes Charter School.

Your story is set in Colorado. What are some of your favorite outdoor places to explore in Colorado and beyond?

Colorado has so many ways to enjoy the outdoors. I had vacationed in Colorado many times including ski trips, hiking, river rafting, and a little mountain biking. Now that I live here, I hike trails with my Goldendoodle Charlie in all seasons. One of the biggest differences between living here and Chicago is the amount of time spent enjoying nature. My "backyard" is National Forest, so I can hike from my house or drive a few miles to a variety of trails. I've also learned to snowshoe which is an amazing workout. Several years ago, I took a hiking trip on the Oregon-Washington border seeing amazing waterfalls near the Columbia River Gorge. Minus the waterfalls, it's very much like that here. 

Do you have any favorite artists that combine science and art, perhaps like Aliana does?

I love impressionism. Artists like Monet, Degas, and Pissaro and their Post-Impressionist disciples Van Gogh, Seurat, and Gauguin have inspired me. I'm not sure if they combined science and art like da Vinci is known for, but I'm sure there are connections. My writing and photography are the way I express my art.

What were some of your favorite books when you were younger?

My favorite books included Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Sydney Taylor's All of a Kind Family, and all of the Beverly Cleary books.

What is your typical day like as a writer? No real typical day. 

What is your favorite advice to share?

Author Laura Roettiger (on Left), signing a copy for a reader

Advice for writers: Join the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), connect with other writers as much as possible - if you write picture books, Julie Hedlund's 12x12 Picture Book Challenge is an excellent source of support and education. Read widely, especially in the genre you write in. It’s important to study craft by reading and knowing what works and why. Be patient, because publishing is a long slow process.

Advice to support writers: Buy the book for yourself or to give as a gift. In addition to that, some of the other ways that are free and also valuable to writers include requesting a book from the library. Libraries make purchases based on patron requests. Write reviews online at Amazon and Goodreads. You can submit reviews on books you purchased elsewhere or read from the library. Talk about the books you enjoy. Recommendations from word of mouth are an important factor in purchasing books.

Find more information about Laura and connect with her at her website: https://lauraroettigerbooks.com/

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12 Gifts for the Writer to help them (and you) Survive NaNoWriMo

NaNoWriMo is well underway - the month where writers commit to writing every day in order to bring a novel length book into existence. I'm actually cheating this year with a modified month of writing. The first half was dedicated to a new picture book text which I researched and wrote during the first half of the month (note the break to self allowed for writing this post), while the second half of the month will be dedicated to finishing a novel that is already half-written. See the justification? I am looking forward to finishing it with the same sense of urgency experienced by everyone else by leaving myself with only half of a month to do it, because the first half of the month was dedicated to another project.

Yet, here I am, about to dive in, and already I've thought ahead as to the list of things I will need to survive. Since I am a person whom others depend on for food, I hope you will see that this list stems from a altruistic desire to see others in my family survive as well. Their survival ultimately depends on my survival.

Because I am not all that much of an extra-ordinary kind of human being, I am willing to bet that some of the items on this list will resonate with others, so here goes. If you are a writer yourself, pass this list on to the others you live with. If you interact with a writer who holds special significance in your life, take note!

1. Turkey. Yes. Get the turkey.

If you live in the US of A, guess what? In six days I am willing to bet that your household is counting on a roasted turkey, and with your Writer-in-Residence spending his or her free-time sitting at the computer, pounding on the keys, that Turkey is not going to get itself bought and dressed and roasted by itself.

Plus, time is of the essence, because that turkey is going to need to be thawed before cooking, and it takes a couple days of fridge-time to do it. So, off to the market you go! Turkey.

2. Bubbly, as in drinks that Sparkle and Fizz. Lots of them. A variety.

Why? Because we are at Day 17 in NaNoWriMo, which means that your Writer is probably at the midpoint in their novel. The Muddy Middle. And quite frankly, it may suck.

It's one of those dreaded places where writers can get lost, feel adrift, be left wondering if the end will ever be in sight. So, bubbly is most needed now. And because you love your Writer-Friend-Mother-Father-Brother-Whoever-They-Are in your life, you should help them. Better yet, think of it as helping yourself. Their state-of-mind = your state-of-mind.

I plan on starting my NaNoWriMo task off with something bubbly, since I last left my book when it was approaching the Muddy Middle. And already, because bubbly drinks leave me feeling a slight bit more happy, I am looking forward to it, instead of dreading it. My mindset is altered to the positive, simply because the fizz and the sparkles lend themselves to celebration. So, help your writer celebrate! They are half-way to their destination!

3. Eye protection. You may wonder if I am missing the mark with this one. After all, the writing life hardly seems like any sort of dangerous undertaking. But apparently, staring at a digital screen with its unceasing load of high-energy blue light that streams directly into the Writer's eyeballs--which are basically connected to your Writer's brain--can disrupt sleep patterns. And... because mesmerized eyeballs do not blink as much, Writers connected to computers may be prone to dry eye and eye fatigue.

Plus, if a lack of sleep and irritated, uncomfortable eyeballs isn't enough to get you searching the internet for more information before practicing your purchasing power, too much exposure to blue light can damage the cells on the all-important retina. Vision problems associated with the cornea and lens can be corrected, but not those vision problems associated with the retina. Damage to the retina is nearly impossible to fix.

So, a strong dose of preventative medicine here could be an unnoticed blessing, which you'll know you can be thankful for with each day that passes where you don't need to invest in a Braille keyboard.

4. Popsicle Sticks. What? Well, perhaps I mean finger splints.

I have joints in my fingers that get a little achy with prolonged periods of typing. Plus, I have a broken pinky, that never healed itself after a break about 5 years ago. For a while, I had an unwieldy popsicle-stick-splint on my finger so that I could hit the keys for the letters P and O, along with the punctuation marks on the right side of the keyboard. To this day--5 years later--sometimes hitting those letters still leaves me wincing, and wondering if I can write words that don't need the letters of O and P.

Which is silly. So then I look for a splint. Which I never seem to have on hand.

Because I doubt I am the only person on the planet with this annoying ailment, I suggest popsicle sticks at the ready. Or finger splints, rather, as better educated peeps might attest. And they actually exist.

It's an item that easily can be added to the grocery list under Turkey and Bubbly.

5. Sweets. Again, a variety. So that your Writer-in-Residence is reminded of the variety of life, whose details can be brought into their unfolding story.

Starburst, Skittles, Mints, Chocolate, although personally, I have lost my taste for Chocolate. I don't know why, but I realized as I stopped at the store for headache medicine the other day that I have a new fondness for pastries. Which Definitely is Not a good fondness to develop.

Yet, I decided then and there that with a headache on in full-force, I deserved comfort food in the form of mile-high, ready-made, frosted cinnamon buns. Usually, I am a food snob and walk past such delectables, thinking that really good cinnamon buns must come from a really good bakery. Unfortunately, I discovered that the buns from my local store are pretty darn tasty.

So, with hesitation, I add Sweets, a.k.a, Cinnamon Buns to the list.

6. Hydration. If you refer back to the Bubbly at Item 2, and note that you opted for the alcoholic kind, you'll want to take additional measures to stay hydrated.

I had both legs and both feet cramp up on me at the same time after swimming one day last week because I forgot to drink water during the day--which may explain the headache....  Anyway, I nearly passed out from the agony and had a hard time walking for a bit. It would be a bummer to find your significant Writer-in-Residence passed out from dehydration with their face pressed to the keyboard, effectively filling page after page with strings of non-sensical letters of JKjkkkkkkkkkklklkkklgkgkgkkgkgkgkkkhk.

Therefore, keep your writer's brain sustained with lots of liquid hydration. Born of the planet. H2O. Filtered.

7. Bananas, along with Calcium and Magnesium supplements. See number 6. Feed the muscle in the brain. Keep it happy, keep it relaxed.

8, 9, and 10. Music, Photos, Namaste. Enough said.
Feed the Writer soul.
Stay connected to the wider world.
I'm at a time limit here, so it's back to work for me.

NaNoWriMo, and carry on!