WFMAD Day 19 – Focus & non-WFMAD news, including Frío

Summer is hurrying to a close. I saw geese migrating a few days ago and when we were running last night, we passed a huge flock of birds gathered on the phone wires; the equivalent of people flooding an airline terminal as they prepare to fly to Florida for the winter.

I’m bummed because I am so busy with writing and getting ready for October’s booktour, it doesn’t look like I’ll have time for any canning this year. ::pouts::

Good thing I made a lot of jam two years ago!

I’ve had a couple of tabs open that need to be closed. First, a review of the Spanish version of WINTERGIRLS, Frío. The author of the post loved the book, saying “Me ha encantado. Me ha emocionado. Me ha hecho llorar…. Frío es una historia dura y real.” She also has the following to say about the publisher’s decision to change the title:

“Puedo entender que cambien los títulos al traducir los libros porque en la lengua origen puede sonar genial pero no en la lengua meta, pero ¿tan mal sonaría “Chicas de hielo”? El libro se titula Wintergirls, lo que en realidad sería Chicas de invierno (vale, ése no suena tan bien), pero si durante toda la novela Wintergirls ha sido traducido como Chicas de hielo, ¿por qué no lo han hecho también en el título? Frío me gusta, pero, a mi modo de ver, ese título no dice nada de la novela, no tiene nada que ver con la historia. Chicas de hielo, por el contrario, es, simplemente perfecto y precioso. Pero bueno, aparte de esto, recomiendo esta novela al 100%.”

I agree!

Next, the poem I wrote about reader’s reactions to SPEAK was featured on the website for Grrl Power! Girls Studies at UCF.

And last, BUT NOT LEAST AT ALL, FORGE made the Autumn 2010 Children’s Indie Next List!

Ready….

“This is the moment when faith is called for. Faith in the creative spirit within me, which is part of what I’ve been given by God; faith in the process, faith in my intelligence and my imagination… I suit up and show up. I sit down at the computer and I do the work, moving it forward a sentance at a time, which is ultimately the only way there is to write a book.” Elizabeth George

Set… dig a hole in the ground and bury your doubts. Cover them with salt and then spit on them. Now that you have put your doubts where they belong, you can write.

Today’s prompt:

I had an interesting Twitter exchange with a reader yesterday about book pirating. She had tweeted about an illegal download site where her friends could get stolen copies of my books. I wrote to her and asked her to direct her friends instead to the library where they could read free books that had been purchased, not stolen. She wrote back:

“I don’t steal books, just that one.”

That, my friends, is an awesome line. (Even though it frustrates the hell out of me.) And it sparked today’s prompt.

Which rules (big or small) does your character break when no one is watching her? Which rules would she break if she knew she would never be caught? OR which rules would YOU break if there were no consequence?

Write a scene in which your character breaks those rules. Extra points – write another scene in which she gets caught anyway. How will she react? What is so important to her, she is willing to risk something for it?

Scribble… Scribble…. Scribble!!!

Oh Happy Day!

There is a lot of music in my head. I always have a song playing in the background of my mind and I ALWAYS wake up hearing a song on Radio Laurie. That song often reflects my mood. This makes it easy to figure out what I’m feeling.

Yeah, weird. I know. But it is the only brain I have.

The selection of songs makes things stranger. I grew up on a college campus in the 60s, fell in love with "classic rock" in the 70s, survived disco (barely – polyesther still makes me break out in hives), and became a fan of hip-hop, indie rock, and country. The only music I don’t enjoy is opera and I’m sure one of these days I’ll get around to it.

Oh, and I’m a preacher’s kid who sang in a gospel chorus. So the playlist on Radio Laurie is rather…. eclectic.

I have more thoughts to add to our ongoing discussion about the suckitude of book pirates. (You really should read through the comments posted on Tuesday and Wednesday – totally fascinating. Thank you to everyone who posted!) But not today.

Today I woke up with this song in my head:


(Much love to our Canadian sisters and brothers a snowball’s throw away from the Forest!)

Today is a happy day for MANY of reasons. Play the music clip above while you read through them.

    1. CHAINS (paperback) has made the New York Times Bestseller List!!!! (The list of February 7th.)

2. AND, CHAINS (paperback) made the Top Ten list of the National Association of Independent Booksellers.

    3. AND, WINTERGIRLS was honored with spots on the American Library Association’s Best Books for Young Adults list AND the Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Readers list!

4. But wait! There’s more! WINTERGIRLS earned an Honorable Mention Cuffie from America’s booksellers. (LOVE this award – best sure to read the entire list.)

5. Still not dancing? There’s MORE. Amazon.com named me to their list of the 8 most influential YA authors of the past decade. Was flabbergasted by that one.

Whew! All this joy is balancing out my book pirate frustration rather nicely, I must say.

I am off to the Kindling Words writer’s retreat today. Not sure if I’ll be blogging there or not, but I’ll come home with lots of pictures, I promise.

I’ll leave you with another version of this song, just to keep your toes tapping all day. (It is from Sister Act 2. The lead singer is Ryan Toby.)