Thanks to my computer-giftedly kid, adastraperasper, we are making some design changes here at LJ-land.
What do you think about the new look?? What do the colors look like on your computer?
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Wolf whistle
Does anybody know what that means? A wolf whistle is the obnoxious tweet-tweeeee whistle that some men make to show appreciation of/interest in a passing woman. Note to guys: girls do NOT like this. Ever. In fact, it pretty much guarantees that in her head she is condemning you to the lowest level of hell. Running after her screaming “shake it, mami, shake it hard” is also a Bad Thing. If you want to let a girl know you think she’s hot, then a polite, restrained nod of the head is the way to go.
Anyway, in my daughter’s China journal today, she points out that construction guys in China do it, too. Kind of makes you want to sing “It’s a Small World,” doesn’t it?
(The reason it is funny that she would be mistaken for a Latina, is that she has blazing white skin and red hair. Mostly, she gets mistaken for a tourist from Dublin.)
Congrats to Sarah Dessen writergrl (and my in-laws Darice, Gregg, Eric, and Anna) on the win of the Caroline Hurricanes, and to Alex Flinn on the Miami Heat.
Back to the doc today for more tests about the stupid infection. Bah.
And more fact-checking and obsessing about words in the picture book.
fact checking
One of the things I love most about the world of children’s publishing is that the people involved are (generally) very serious about keeping their facts straight. If you write historical fiction for grown-ups, I am told you have lots of latitude to make stuff up. Not in my world. There are legions of librarians and teachers out there who trust us to present accurate information, even in a fictional setting.
You can imagine how tight the rules are when it comes to non-fiction!
I am taking some time off from the new WIP to go back to my historical (non-fiction) picture book, due out next summer. I received the manuscript back from the very nice Expert Historian, and I have the sketches from the artist. At my meeting with my editor last week, we discussed a couple of design changes that should make the information flow more easily. So I have a lot to do this week!
Right now I’m combing through my notes looking for the sources of information about those points that the Expert questioned. Once she and I agree about a couple of interpretations, I’ll work on fixing the text to accommodate the design changes.
This might sound tedious, but really, it is very exciting.
Trust me.
Note to Olivia in Florida
I am sorry that I haven’t returned your book yet, but I cannot read your street address.
Can you send me a note with the correct address on it?? Thanks!
nose in books
I’ve been researching the new WIP like a fiend, but will lift my face out of the musty library books briefly for this update.
Happy Belated Father’s Day to all. We had a grand time – hung out with our dads, feted BH, called G (dad to daughter’s #1 & #3), and ate massive amounts of barbequed chicken and strawberry shortcake. I baked the shortcake, much to the puzzlement of my family which so rarely sees me in the kitchen. #1 Son and Jess, daughter #2, made BH feel very proud and paternal. If you want to make your dad laugh, send him here.
A couple of teachers have written to tell me that SPEAK made it into their school’s yearbook as one of the students’ favorite books. This feels very nice. Even better is the fact that Best Books is now a yearbook category. Maybe there hope after all.
Summer solstice is coming up this week. When I lived in Denmark, it was a night of great parties and amazing bonfires. Might have to recreate a little of that here in the Forest.
If any of you are bored out of your skulls, see if you can track down a copy of the diary and sketches (1762-1780)of Lt-general Archibald Robertson. I think the formal author names are Robertson and Henry Miller Lydenberg. There is a microfilm copy at SUNY Oswego, but I would like to find a hard copy to borrow so I can photocopy and blow up some of the sketches of New York in the time period of the WIP.
One more thing. I tried to watch TV yesterday. Miami Ink, to be precise. I enjoy tattoos and the stories behind them, but I wanted to find the directors/editors of the show and through them to the sharks. They stretch 5 minutes of story-telling into half an hour by repeating things over and over and over again. One guy, about to ship out with the Navy, wanted a koi fish to remind him of his son. OK, let’s leave the fact that they never explained the fish=son connection alone for a sec. They told us that he was getting the “koi fish for his son” seven freaking times before the artist even fired up the machine. ARGH!!!!!!!!!!! My brain was shrinking by the second.
Most television sucks.