Voice of the Young

  

We are two weeks into the new school year and my students already love "read aloud" time. They are engrossed with the story "Ramona Quimby, Age 8" by Beverly Clearly. They hang on each word I read and let out a collective groan when it's time to stop for the day. 

  Beverly Cleary is a master at writing in the voice of an eight year old girl. One of my students even asked me if a child wrote the story. She captures the thoughts of a child so well, the students believe an eight year old is telling the story.

   I'm currently working on writing my first draft of a new young adult story. Although, this is my favorite genre to write in, I often catch myself writing in my grown up voice.  I'm fortunate that I live with three teenagers to fall back on for input. 

   The conversations between my teens and their friends are intriguing to me. There's little that I enjoy more than having a house full of young people in genuine conversation.  Of course there's much texting along with it and scrolling through social media on their phones. The social media aspect is still a little shaky for me.( I'm learning though.) It's their world and they celebrate it fully. I love it!

 So as I finish up my first draft, I will strive to write in my young voice with first hand knowledge from the experts.

Daily Writing Tips is a website loading with information for writers. Click here for a tip on writing in a unique voice.

World Wide Blog Hop

Hello writers! This week I'm joining  "The Writing Process World Blog Tour". I was invited by Katy Newton Naas.
She wears many hats: Christian; wife; mother to her young son, Aven, and her four-legged sons, Shakespeare and Poe; teacher of middle school reading and high school English; and now – her lifelong dream realized – author. Her debut novel, THE VISITORS, will be released September 16. She resides and teaches in a small town in southern Illinois. You can find her at katynewtonnaas.wordpress.com or http://www.facebook.com/katynewtonnaasauthor .

I'm happy to be included in this blog tour. Here is some information about me:

I live and teach in the small town in which I grew up. I'm married with four children. Three girls and one boy. Their ages range from 12-22.  Nothing makes me happier than my time spent with them. I treasure every minute of it. Besides teaching third grade, I LOVE to write! I'm an avid reader of  young adult books. Contemporary is my favorite. I enjoy writing in this genre as well.  My young adult novella, Beyond Vica, was released by Astraea Press on July 8. You can find me on Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/tcbooth1 and  Twitter: https://twitter.com/BoothTammi.


All authors are answering the same four questions for this blog tour. Here are my answers:

1) What are you working on?
     I'm working on a full length YA novel. It's a contemporary novel about a teenage girl who learns to cope with an alcoholic parent by withdrawing into her artwork. She' revisited by a young boy from her childhood that draws her out of hiding and into world of hope. She revels in the new light that shines on her life.  She finds out a family secret that's been kept from her until she turned eighteen, causing her light to dim once again.

2) How does your work differ from others in your genre?

  My just released novella, Beyond Vica, deals with teenage friendships, first love, grief, and acceptance of others.
   The story has a unique element with the made up constellation Vica. The tales of this constellation connects the three main characters, Gabby, Sam, and Brody, from childhood into teen years. The constellation is a source of imaginative play for the trio as children, then serves a deeper meaning as they learn of Sam's cancer. Sam uses the constellation to make up a new tale that reflects the close knit friendship of the three. Gabby uses the constellation as the theme of her writing to express how she feels about losing Sam.
Gabby took over the story as I wrote. I hope you enjoy her story as much as I did writing it for her.

3) Why do you write what you write?

  I love to write, so I use it to express things that are close to my heart. Living in a world of children and teens gives me a perspective into the struggles of growing up. It also allows me to celebrate the uniqueness of each one. 
 To be able to tell a story that young people can relate to and enjoy is what drives me.

4) How does your writing process work?

    I don't have an exact formula for writing. I usually decide the life struggle that my main character will deal with first. Then decide on the character, personality , unique characteristics, etc. I branch out from there to family and friends. After that, I sketch out a very rough outline of the plot. I find that once I'm started on the story, the heroine takes over and I allow her to drive the story.

Young Writers

 

 I received a message via Facebook this week from a seventeen year old girl asking me about how to get stories published. She loves to write and is considering her major in college based on that. Her message was music to my ears. I can't help it. It's the teacher/mom/ writer in me!

My heart leaps when young people are excited about reading and writing. My experience has allowed me to read the creative works of children. Their imaginations leave me in awe at times. Imagination is the building block needed to develop their writing. Nothing motivates my kids to write more than when I tell them their stories don't have to be real. Their little wheels turn. I like to eavesdrop on their conversations as they bounce ideas off one another.

My FB message this week gave me an idea for this blog. I'd like to post advice and information for young writers beginning today.  I think a good place to start for writers 13 and over is the Young Writers Society. It's an online community for young writers to interact and showcase their writing.

For children under 13, with parental permission, I like Poetry 4 Kids. Kenn Nesbitt is the author of many funny poems that kids love. He has a poetry contest for kids once a month. The winner's work is published on the website.

My advice for writers of all ages is to read and write as much as you can!

Meet the Author of the Teen Wytche Saga

I'm please to introduce this Friday's Feature YA Adult Author,  Ariella Moon,  author of the Teen Wytche Saga.
                                                              





What inspired you to become a writer?

In sixth grade I won a national essay contest. Talk about a confidence booster! Plus, I have always been a voracious reader. But my biggest inspiration has been my daughter. She was an advanced reader from a very young age and it was difficult to find complex books for her that were age appropriate. She's grown now, but there are many kids like her. So I write clean teen romances with relatable subjects like sibling rivalry, friendship issues, mental illness, high school, and first love.

What book(s) have you written that you would like to tell us about?

I have written three contemporary, paranormal teen romances (working on #4) in the Teen Wytche Saga. In Spell Check, Evie must prevent her best friend Parvani from casting a binding love spell on Jordan, Evie’s secret crush. Evie enlists the help of goth outcast Salem, who stars in Spell Struck, book #2.

In Spell Struck, the spell book from Spell Check has morphed into a priceless gypsy grimoire. Salem hopes to unlock its mysteries and discover a Get Well Spell for her suicidal sister. But Salem's boyfriend must destroy the grimoire before it falls into the hands of his kidnappers.

Spell Fire introduces my most controversial heroine, Ainslie. She works hard to escape her Crazy Girl past, but it's difficult when her parents ditch her at Christmas and a dragon wants to be her new BFF. And no one will explain the hissing spell book. She meets a boy who calms her obsessive-compulsive disorder, but his deadly secret may be their undoing.


                                                                                 

 

Do you have any favorite childhood books?

 I loved The Chronicles of Narnia. The series has magic, adventure, fascinating worlds, strong female characters, and romance — basically everything a girl could want.

Do you have advice for aspiring writers?





 Study your craft and never give up. Join writing organizations like the Romance Writers of America or the Society of Book Writers and Illustrators. They will help you hone your craft and stay updated on industry news. And RWA has excellent writing contests

Where can we find you and your books?

 

The Teen Wytche Saga can be found at:
http://www.amazon.com/Ariella-Moon/e/B0071NUOAK/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0
http://www.smashwords.com/books/byseries/8187
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/spell-check-ariella-moon/1108368570?ean=2940014028592
http://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/Spell-Check/z8Ff8HtryUC2zWcfy2eYaQ

You can find me at:
http://www.ariellamoon.com
http://ariellamoon.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/ariellamoon.author
http://www.goodreads.com/AuthorAriellaMoon
http://www.pinterest.com/ariellamoon

 

Use Your Talent

A person's talents are often referred to as gifts. Sometimes talents are unknown until we unwrap them layer by layer and the gift is revealed. Once the talent is revealed, it's time use it. Talent is not to be wasted, it's given to us to help others.

 There are times when I get overwhelmed and want to choose one gift over the other. I know in my heart that God gave me the gift of teaching and compassion for children to be used together. I also know that writing is talent that has been slowly unwrapped and also used to benefit young people.  Teaching and writing in themselves take a tremendous amount of time to plan and develop. I often get discouraged when trying to make time for both.  I think of the quote from Erma Bombeck, put my game face on, and set to work.

I too one day want to stand before God and say "I used everything you gave me."

Click here for more inspirational quotes.
     



Young Adult Novella

 My young adult novella, Beyond Vica, was released by Astraea Press yesterday.  I've always had a passion for helping young people along with writing. The combination of the two is my inspiration for writing this novella.

  The four most important young people in my life have experienced more than one tragedy that has taken a loved one from them too soon. The latest tragedy occurred after this story was already written and in the process of being published. As a result of this, I 'm now raising two more teens. My family grew and so has the love in my heart. 

  The most difficult part of this journey was to watch the grief of my two new children. There were nights I wished I could rub their hearts and heal them. Unfortunately, grief is a process.  I have to love them through this.

  My story shows the process of grieving through the eyes of Gabby. Just like Gabby, my new children have the support for young people grieving through our local hospice. I can't say enough how thankful I am that we have this resource available to us. Click here to read more about the services they provide.


Enjoy and love the people in your life.   

Book Trailer Images & Music

      

   Last week I talked about stepping out of my comfort zone in order to take my writing to the next level.  I enjoy the challenge of  improving my writing, it fuels me.

   I run out of fuel when it comes to promoting my writing. I admit that this is my least favorite part of the process. Sigh.  With that said, I suck it up and keep working.

Book trailers are a popular way to promote a book.  I'm venturing to create my own and found some websites that have public domain images and music that I'd like to share. I've been able to find free images and music on these sites. 

Fellow writers, do you any advice or tips on creating book trailers?



Wikimedia Commons

US Government Photos and Images

Wikipedia: Sound

 ccMixter