Speaking of Libraries...

Trinity College Library, University of Dublin

"In a good bookroom you feel in some mysterious way that you are absorbing the wisdom contained in all the books through your skin, without even opening them." --Mark Twain

In a couple of posts recently, I've mentioned fun excursions to branch libraries in our local area (a children's program, a fun MG title), but the other day I came across this wonderful tease--an article on "10 Mind Bending Libraries from Around the World." Oh, the places we could visit, the wisdom we could absorb!

Of the ten listed (check out the link for ideas for your travel wish list), there's the Philological 'Brain' University in Berlin, Germany--shaped like a human brain, and the National Library of Belarus which has 22 floors. The name for the shape of its building? Rhombicubocatahedron. (What??) San Diego's University of California hosts the Giesel Library, named in honor of Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss). The French National Assembly Library in Paris was originally created with books belonging to the clergy and aristocrats who left France during the French Revolution. Book lovers can only imagine the wealth behind these walls.

Photos of the libraries in the article show how truly mind-bending these places look, outside and inside. The one that shouted "visit me!" is pictured above, the Trinity College Library at the University of Dublin in Ireland. They say its history goes back to the the founding of Trinity College back in 1592. How would you feel walking through those doors?

Just thought I'd share. If you check out the link, I'd love to hear from you which of the mind-bending libraries you'd like to visit. Which one could you imagine yourself getting lost in?

We can dream big can't we?

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On Summer Reading, and a Story of an Amazing Reading Streak

"Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory." --Dr. Seuss

Pinkalicious came to town this week and visited one of our local libraries. We joined with a gazillion other mothers, grandmothers, and kids to get a look at her. The room was packed.

Familiar with the Pinkalicious books? I'd guess most of the five-year old population knows her. She's a figment of Victoria Kann's imagination and has captivated little girls now for several years. Who can resist her? All the pink, frills, and sparkles. Not to speak of adventure. Fun books to encourage reading at an impressionable age.

Speaking of encouraging the love of reading--which we're all in the business of doing, right?--I came across an article entitled "Seven Ways to Inspire Your Kids Summer Reading," by Jim Denney. You can read the article here. Among Denney's ideas, he suggests creating a cozy reading nook for your child, starting a family book review blog, and/or encouraging your child to write (yes!) and illustrate their own book.

But the best tip came with a story that tugs at the heart. The tip? "Read with your kids." Something I think most of us loved--and love--to do. But the story that illustrates the point? See if this doesn't touch your heart, too...

Denny writes of a single father, Jim Brozina, who desired to maintain a close bond with his daughter Kristen, ten-years old at the time. So they made a pact--they would read together every night for 100 nights. They started with L. Frank Baum's The Wizard of Oz.

Guess what? 100 nights turned into 200, then 300, then..well...all the way up until nearly nine years passed, up to and including the night Kristen moved into her college dorm. They even read on Kristen's prom night--she all decked out in gown and upswept hairdo. Can you believe it? And the book they read that last night? The Wizard of Oz--the tale that started it all (shared, it is said, as both choked up)! Their streak went for 3,218 consecutive nights.

Isn't that the sweetest story of reading to your kids you've ever heard?

Postscript...the story of Kristen and her father's reading streak has been recorded, by Kristen herself, in her book The Reading Promise: My Father and the Books We Shared. Written under the pen name Alice Ozma (taken from "Alice in Wonderland," and the "Oz" books), Kristen is now dedicated to spreading the word about reading. Her story is quite the testimony to a most important practice. I haven't yet gotten a copy of My Father and the Books We Shared, but the title is high on my list. You can check out "Alice Ozma" at her website, The Reading Promise.

Any "reading to your kids" stories you have to share? What inspirational stories have come your way recently that tugged at your heartstrings? Maybe even some special something that you do in your own family? Do you like Pinkalicious?

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The Artistic Playground

"Writing is very much a playground--an artistic playground. It's the most fun thing I do." 

                                                                                                                                                                                                      --Shania Twain

We headed for a playground a day this last week with the little ones. Clear skies, cool breezes, slower pace, children's laughter. Perfect for recharging a writer's battery!

As always, I kept the camera close. The above image that I captured will be my inspiration this upcoming week when I head off to play with words. I plan to have fun. How about you?

And the photo begs a caption. If you were to write one, what would it be?

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Baseball and Writing, A Connection

"Baseball is ninety percent mental and the other half physical."--Yogi Berra

We have a few Cincinnati Reds baseball fans in the family--my almost-90 year old mom and my hubbie the two biggest ones. Me, not so much--only because I can't seem to sit still long enough to finish a game in its entirety. But when Mom came to spend a few days with us, the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum down by the stadium topped the list of things to do.

The museum was a whole lot bigger than we expected. Of course there was history--of players, ball fields, records, owners. There were interactive stations--a batting cage, umpire's window, the *catch* at the outfield wall. There was the batter's box, the bullpen, the announcer's booth. Awards and record-breakers. It was all fun, even for a lackluster fan.

Before long the writing side of the brain kicked in, and I began to see analogies to the writer's life.  (No surprise here, I'm sure.) Like the writer who dreams of publication, the team started with a dream. In the case of the Reds that meant visionaries back in the 1860s. Add skill, talent, and practice--all things writers need to develop, too. Build a bull pen of fellow writers, view the manuscript through the umpire's eyes of critique partners, enter the batter's cage of submissions ('let them fly'), and walk boldly into the announcer's booth of marketing.

Let's turn it over now to words from some professionals of the game itself, and see what they say:

#1. "Never allow the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game." --Babe Ruth

#2. "There are three types of baseball players: Those who make it happen, those who watch it happen, and those who wonder what happens." --Tommy Lasorda

#3. "No matter how good you are, you're going to lose one-third of your games. No matter how bad you are you're going to win one-third of your games. It's the other third that makes the difference." --Tommy Lasorda

#4. "I've never questioned the integrity of an umpire. Their eyesight, yes." --Leo Durocher

#5. "Poets are like baseball pitchers. Both have their moments. The intervals are the tough things." --Robert Frost

And the classic of all classics: #6. "It ain't over 'til it's over." --Yogi Berra

Ah, do you see connections here to the world of writing? A few lessons we can apply in order to achieve our dreams?

Summer pastimes, summer fun. Any writerly connections to other warm-weather activities come to mind?

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A Rainbow Sky

"You'll never find a rainbow if you're looking down." --Charlie Chaplin

I looked out my porch room window this evening and, lo and behold, this is what I saw. A gorgeous rainbow! Seems like a neat way to end one month and usher in the next. Not to speak of the fact that I could have missed it if I had failed to look up...

So Rainbow is my word of the week. Here's to looking up--and being open to possibilities--in all things writing and life in general in the days ahead. Cheers to rainbows!

What might your word of the week be?

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In A Nutshell

sxc.hu

"A story is a tale with a beginning, a middle, and an end. It's a quest...Whether it's returning to Kansas (Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz) or killing the witch (Hansel and Gretel), this journey is the story, the plot, the means by which your characters' strengths and weaknesses are unveiled, his or her lessons learned." --Barbara Shapiro



That's it in a nutshell. Sounds simple enough, doesn't it?

I for one am looking for a super-duper novel-writing nutcracker. What kitchen gadget do you think would help you on your quest to "crack" the story code?

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3 Reasons You Might Want to Build a Collage

"Try using visual form to free your novel ideas. Then watch as the images guide and inspire your words." --Leah Tribolo

My WIP was progressing pretty well until...well, until it dried up. My wheels were stuck, the words stopped. And then I realized what was wrong. I couldn't "see" a character in the scene.

I knew my main character. I had her picture in front of me. I had other images, too--setting ideas, mood triggers, details I wanted to draw from. But something was missing.

And then I knew. It was time to build a collage. It's something I did for my first MG historical fiction--and had great fun doing, actually--images that settled somewhere deep and felt real. Inspiration. Imagination. Visualization.

Yes, I knew what was wrong this second time around. It was time to build a collage...

What is a collage, and why is it a useful tool for the novel writer?

A collage is:

1. A Visual Encyclopedia. "Writers are artists. Our medium of expression is words. Like any art form, writing is about communication. Since humans do not exist in isolation, the ideas we have are not unique. Indeed, in this Information Age, we are bombarded with others' ideas. The originality of our art is in how we choose to express our creativity. This makes collage an ideal writing tool. Collage gives the author a visual encyclopedia to reference while writing." --Leah Tribolo, Create a Writing Collage

2. A Spark. "Using visuals can...spark ideas not directly related to specifics of what you are writing or seeing, but of that elusive third thing that you may sense is missing but aren't sure what it is or how to find it. Use visuals to get your imagination working...to add depth, texture, and even new out-of-YOUR-box ideas for your writing. Add aspects to your writing and story that you don't yet know exists." --Kathy Steffen, How to Write Shop

3. Prewriting. "There is a time before I begin a book that I panic," says Jennifer Crusie at jennycrusie.com. "...I don't know everything that's going to happen in the story, I don't understand the characters...( I feel) the book is going to be a disaster...but I've found a way to get started that doesn't terrify me but that does open up the story and make me want to write: I make a collage." Ms. Cruise (terrific article in full, by the way, if you want to read more details) goes on to say how "this is hardly" her discovery, and she lists other writers who use this technique.

I think subconsciously I'm always looking for collage images--through my camera, in faces that speak to me in newspaper and magazine articles, in an object that catches my interest and I'm not sure just why, or a google search based on a word that I can't shake loose. I build files up as I go; the collage does not come fully complete at the beginning. And then one day I spread all the bits and pieces out in front of me, and an overall picture unfolds.

The focus of a collage can vary. Tribolo speaks of character profiles, structure, clarification (particularly theme). She points out that you might notice recurring colors or imagery which suggest the mood you want to set. "Perhaps," she suggests, "you keep cutting out pictures that will make powerful metaphors within your setting."

"With practice," she concludes, "collage can become an essential tool in your writing arsenal, saving you time by providing information and inspiration in a condensed visual form."

So what do you say? Have you experimented with collages? If not, do you see yourself attempting one to see if it's helpful? Just think, as Ms. Crusie says, "the story you're meant to write (might be) just a glue stick away"!

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