Happy Mockingjay Day!

Woohoo! It's here! It's here!

It's a day that's been on my calendar for so long that I marked it in pencil, knowing that the publishing world is often fickle (read: hoping they would move the date up), and all it says is "3rd HG release!" because the title wasn't even announced yet! And now it's here and I'm super pumped!!!

I have a pre-ordered copy coming my way, courtesy of one Ms. Frankie Diane Mallis, but I have no idea if it will get here today or tomorrow or next week sometime. I'm giving it until I get home from work, since I can't really read until then anyway, then I'm caving and buying a copy. I figure I can donate the extra copy to orphaned children or my teacher-friend's classroom or the library or host a giveaway or something. I'll find a place for it. Because I think the world could use a little more Mockingjay.

HEY! Speaking of MORE MOCKINGJAY! Have you seen this video of Suzanne Collins reading from the first chapter?


OMG THAT LAST SENTENCE GIVES ME CHILLS. CHILLS, PEOPLE.  

Happy reading everyone! (And if you're not reading Mockingjay I assume it's because your eyes have been ripped out of your head by mutations. You should really get that fixed so you can read the series. Like, yesterday. You can thank me when you're done.)

More proof that Outstanding Writers Have No Rules

We all know there are rules that writers are never, ever, ever supposed to break. Don't use adverbs. Don't start with your character alone in a room. Don't use dream scenes, flashbacks, or prologues. Seriously, the list goes on and on (and on and on). But the truth is, writing rules were made to be broken - as long as you do it well, and are awesome.  

Rule: Don't Start Your Story With the Weather!!
Broken in: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling

The hottest day of the summer so far was drawing to a close and a drowsy silence lay over the large, square houses of Privet Drive. Cars that were usually gleaming stood dusty in their drives and lawns that were emerald green lay parched and yellowing; the use of hosepipes had been banned due to drought. Deprived of their usual car-washing and lawn-mowing pursuits, the inhabitants of Privet Drive had retreated into the shade of their cool houses, windows thrown wide in the hope of tempting in a nonexistent breeze. The only person left outdoors was a teenage boy who was lying flat on his back in a flower bed outside number four. 

Why it works: Aside from the fact that this is J.K. Rowling who we're talking about, the references to the weather are intermingled with other excellent descriptions of parched lawns and the like. What's more, Rowling makes the outdoors sound so unappealing that you instantly wonder why anyone - including Harry - would bother staying outside in such heat. She also manages to let the misery of the intro reflect the misery that's to come in the rest of the book. This definitely isn't a perfect execution of the weather-as-opener, but in general it does what weather openers need to do - have a character interact somehow with the weather.

Rule: Don't start your story with dialogue!!
Broken in: Don't Let's Go to The Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller

Mum says, "Don't come creeping into our room at night." 

They sleep with loaded guns beside them on the bedside rugs. 

She says, "Don't startle us when we're sleeping." 

"Why not?" 

"We might shoot you." 

"Oh." 

"By mistake." 

"Okay." As it is, there seems a good enough chance of getting shot on purpose. "Okay, I won't."

Why it works: The reason you may have heard people say not to start with dialogue is because there's no context. It's hard to establish who is talking (narrating), where they are, or what their situation is if you open with just dialogue. But here, even though I didn't give you the next line (which is brilliant, but it mentions spiders, which I don't talk about on this blog), you know that the narrator is a child, probably living somewhere rural or lawless, and the voice is fabulous. Don't you want to keep reading? I do.


Rule: Don't start with your MC falling asleep or waking up!!
Broken in: The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

When I wake up, the other side of the bed is cold. My fingers stretch out, seeking Prim's warmth but finding only the rough canvas cover of the mattress. She must have had bad dreams and climbed in with our mother. Of course she did. This is the day of the reaping. 

Why it works: Mostly because The Hunger Games brings the awesome. It's really the last sentence of that paragraph that works, and knowing that Prim had bad dreams. What's going to happen today that would cause bad dreams? I want to know, so I keep reading. (For two days straight, right through two books, bringing them with me to meals and the movies and thoroughly irritating my husband...until he gets the sense to read it, too. Now we're arguing over who gets to read our copy of Mockingjay first when it comes in.)  
 

Can you think of any examples of writing rules that were broken well? (Or not well?) Share them in the comments!

It's Library Appreciation Day!

This week is National Library Week, and to honor the occasion, the blogosphere has decided to declare today (Monday) Library Appreciation Day! Woot! This is excellent news because I definitely appreciate my library. It is gorgeous, and right on the water! (Though I loved it even when it was a hot mess. You can probably tell it was renovated within the last ten years.) Check it out:

Ah, the library. Calmer of my soul. Keeper of an awesome YA collection. Saver of my book budget. (In more ways than one...that Friends of the Library store has books in near-perfect condition, and none for more than $2!)

The library is an amazing place. Where else can you get free books? True, you don't own them forever, but it's even better, because you get to share the books with the people who came before and after you. Because of this sharing aspect, I have found letters and bookmarks inside my library books, and once I left $10 inside a book I loved for the next patron to find (a random act of kindness inspired by Heather Zundel).

Most of the library workers are very good to me. (Though there is one not-so-nice lady at the main branch, but I won't tell her story today.) A guy at the check-out desk at the main branch adjusted the due date on my late books once even though I returned them a day late, and he knew that they wouldn't get to checking them in until the next day, so he didn't want to charge me extra late fees. At the East Branch (another, smaller branch which is also very close to my house), a woman at the check-out once charged me half price for a used book because I was friendly to her, and she said that the world needed more people like me. Because of the library, I discovered a love for Garth Stein, The Overlander Series (Suzanne Collins' must-read pre-HG MG novels), Rick Riordan, Jim Dale, Patricia C. Wrede, Megan McCafferty, and Neil Gaiman (who, consequently, is the honorary chair of ALA's National Library Week). The library is my happy place. I love it so.

But the library isn't just about great books! Most libraries have career seminars, movie nights, Internet access, various classes, and even (OMG!!!) author appearances! When I was in high school, I even went to a swing dance class at my library, and had a very awkward encounter with a boy...then again, about 95% of my encounters with boys in high school were very awkward. If you never have, you should definitely check out your local library to see what's coming up on the calendar. For example, at various branches in my area, upcoming events include a Sherlock Holmes film festival, a writer's support group (hey! I didn't know about that! I might check it out...it's at 1PM on Wednesday, but I could go during my lunch break!), various book clubs, Zumba at the library!, and classes teaching Microsoft programs, drawing, interview skills, and chess strategies for children. Wow! And it's all FREE!!!

Sadly, many libraries across the country are facing budget cuts, staffing shortages, and even threats of closing. All of this while usage is up, especially among job-seekers and children - if you're interested in seeing numbers, check out the ALA fact sheet. You should show your support for your library by using it, and maybe even go a step further by donating, and writing or calling your local representative about how important your library is to you and your community.

Now, you tell me...do you use your library? Why or why not? What do you use it for? Just books, or do you hang out there, take classes, go to events, etc.? Why not take just five minutes to visit your library's Web site and see what events they have to offer? You might find something new and exciting! (I did! And I'm on my library's Web site all the time!)

And while we're appreciating libraries, check out this post from Market My Words - tell her why you appreciate libraries, and enter for some fab prizes!

Is Your Novel Re-Read Worthy?

I'm a re-reader and a re-watcher. Need evidence? Currently in my car, Jim Dale is reading Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire to me, while in my DVD player season three of The Office plays for the 100,000 time...and I just took out season 5. (Hilariously, the episode I watched over dinner, which is the only time I have for watching TV, one of many reasons we don't have cable, was "The Convict," which features Prison Mike discussing demontors. I wanted to post the scene for you, but there wasn't anything on YouTube that was remotely watchable. But there are so many HP references on The Office it makes me giddy.)

I love revisiting my favorite shows, movies, and books. There is something magical about picking up a book for the second (or third...or tenth) read and knowing that you will be returning to that comfortable, familiar place, or even finding something new that you didn't notice the first time. And since you already know that you loved the book, there is zero chance that you'll be disappointed by the ending. You can just savor every moment.

I'm definitely a re-reader, and I always have been. You could always tell which books were my favorites growing up - The Monster at the End of this Book, The Enchanted Forest Chronicles, anything by Daniel Pinkwater or Roald Dahl, and in high school Youth in Revolt, got thumbed through so much that the copies I have today are literally falling apart. I'm glad that my tendency to re-read has followed me into adulthood, although I have much less time for it now than I used to. There are so many great books I want to read, I don't have the time to dedicate to the old favorites anymore.

I know it used to drive my mom crazy when I re-read books. She didn't see the point. She wasn't a re-reader. She enjoyed a book, then moved on. But she also made her way through the library more than once. My husband also fails to understand my desire to re-read - part of the reason I'm listening to HP this time rather than reading (aside from the awesomesalsa that is Jim Dale) is that I don't want to hear it from the hubs.

But all of this led me to thinking...what makes a book re-read worthy? Is it simply a great plot with outstanding characters? Or is there more to it?

I think a big factor in the re-read is whether the book is a series. HP is easy and fun to re-read, because I want to see how all the pieces connect and interweave throughout the books (and boy do they!) The HG series will be a definite re-read, right before Mockingjay comes out, and again and again over the years. Many of my favorite re-reads are series books, but Youth in Revolt was a stand-alone for a long time before I got the sequel in my hands - and I still re-read that so much that my friend bought me a new copy. But that book was simply laugh out loud funny, ridiculous, and unlike anything else I had read at the time. Plus my big brother recommended it to me, and I pretty much worshiped him when I was 15.

Then again, some of my favorite recent reads I probably won't pick up again. Some Girls Are was fantastic, but I'm not sure I'll read it again. I may. I own it, and I want to...but it would be difficult (or maybe not, since i know what's coming. Or would that just make it worse?)

I think YA writers are in a unique position because they are writing for a demographic that is much more likely to re-read than adults. Not that you should only write something that is re-readable, or make that your sole goal...but you definitely want it to have a certain re-read factor. You want to create a world that readers want to come back to, that they want to send their friends to, and that they want to have on their bookshelf for years to come.

Are you a re-reader or not? What do you think makes a book re-read worthy?

P.S. I'm planning a vlog for this week, but I'm short on ideas. I have a few, but I'm afraid they're lame. Any suggestions? And no, I won't just do whatever you say - I'm going to be selective. I'm not Shannon Messenger, after all. 

Why I'm Taking a Break from my Favorite Genre

Just a few quick things before my post gets underway...

1. I have a guest post today on Steph Bowe's Hey! Teenager of the Year! It's about dystopian YA literature (which is what this post is about also, in a different way). 
2. You might notice I have a new background! If you were visiting between 8:30 and 10 ET, I apologize, because you got to see the Great Changing Background Spectacle of 2010. I have a graphic designer friend who is working on something custom for me, but she's in school, so I don't pretend that I'm the most important thing in her life. And my black background was getting a bit depressing. So I hope you like the new background! If you have problems reading it, etc., please let me know - nothing bugs me more than when I can't see content through a blog's background, so I won't be offended by the truth. 
3. Have you entered my 100 followers contest? It ends tomorrow! Enter to win two books on craft and some additional goodies.

OK, now let's get down to it...I have a huge dillema, and I am so upset about it. I've had to give up reading my favorite genre, dystopian literature, because I know reading it right now will make me absolutely crazy. Why?

My WIP is a dystopian YA novel. And, like most neurotic totally sane writers, I'm so paranoid that I'm going to read an idea that's similar to mine, have a major meltdown, and collapse in on myself like a dying star that I've decided my best course of action is to just avoid the genre altogether.

For awhile, I was OK with this. It meant I had to put off The Handmaid's Tale, and The Maze Runner, as well as some other dystopian books I've recently discovered that I've added to my TBR list (Life as We Knew It, The Knife of Never Letting Go, Unwind....just to name a few.) And I thought I could handle it. My experience reading The Giver while I was working on this project only cemented my resolve.

Then March 4 rolled around, and a little book called The Line by Teri Hall hit bookstores. I cannot tell you how excited I have been to read this book. It's been on my radar for quite some time. I probably would have run out today and immediately purchased it, except that The Line is a dystopian novel, and I don't want to break my rule.

Then I had a thought - what if August comes, and I'm STILL not done with this project? (Which would be totally unacceptable, according to the new Timeline for Success I've set up for myself, which includes attending SCBWI-LA with a completed MS.) Does that mean I can't read Mockingjay??!!! (I decided it does not. I already know that world, anyway. Besides, it's MOCKINGJAY. I'm even contemplating taking a day off work to read that one.)

Here's the great thing about this rule, though; as my list of dystopian literature to-read grows, so does my desire to finish this WIP faster. I want to be able to get back to the genre I love so well. I miss it. That doesn't mean I'm rushing through revisions, but it does light a fire under my butt to get them done.

Another great thing about this rule is that I'm reading a lot more contemporary novels than I might have otherwise. I just finished Thirteen Reasons Why, and next up is Some Girls Are (apparently I am trying to get in touch with my moody, tortured teen side - the side that makes you squirm it's so awful.) I would have read both of these books eventually, but it's safe to say they got moved up the pile because of my desire to stay away from any and everything that might remind me of my WIP.

So what about you? Do you try to read books similar to yours while you're writing? Or do you stay away from them, like me?

THE HUNGER GAMES 3 HAS A COVER!!

And it's gorgeous.

 

Click here to read what David Levithan has to say about the cover and the book.

And click here to read my real blog post from tonight, which is about creating kick-ass female characters. Since Katniss got a mention, I thought this announcement deserved its own post.