Caroline Starr Rose

picture book and middle-grade author

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The best book you can write in the time you’ve been given.

3 Comments

Nine and a half weeks, almost 235 hours of work, and first-round edits are done!

During the last few months overhauling my book (I think 60% or so of the story is new), I had fabulous days, I had terrible days, and I had plenty of days with nose-to-the-grindstone satisfaction. It is so good to return to a book world I love. No part of the writing process is better than revision!

I try to be real here about the writing life, and with that in mind, I wanted to share an email I sent to my dear friend, Valerie Geary, after a very hard day.* Val’s response was incredibly encouraging and got me moving again. I read it over and over during my last weeks of revision. It left me believing I could keep on with the hard, steady, wonderful, mysterious work that is turning a vague collection of ideas into a bonafide book. If you ever feel creatively stuck or overwhelmed, I hope it might encourage you, too.

First, here’s my email:

I debated sending this because I’m feeling like a whiner. But I want to kind of put out there where I am. OH, man. Today was hard. And I thought I’d really get in there and have fun! I thought with some tweaks I could knock out two chapters. Nope. I ended up with a really, really shaky placeholder sort of thing for one of them. It’s probably not even taking the story in the right direction. It will probably need to stand for now, too, because when will I have time to fix it? I have a feeling the rest of this time will probably look more like today than earlier days as I push through the fog. I feel shy and vulnerable and all my shame bells are ringing. I’m a fraud with a deadline. AHHH!

I think one of the hardest parts of writing for me is not to get my worth wrapped up in it. Because it gets pretty demoralizing when the stakes increase (deadline) and I flail around and panic and draw a blankity blankity blank.

But I’ll show up tomorrow and try again. I know this isn’t my only shot (thank goodness). I can’t have the same approach as I’ve had today, though. It’s not sustainable. It’s not enjoyable. It doesn’t support creativity! I took breaks. I exercised. I got outside. I even parked in the library parking lot to work for a few hours (a favorite getaway of mine and somewhere I haven’t gone for months). The stress stayed pretty high, though. It’s the deadline! I hear the clock ticking. It’s hard to relax into the work when I feel like time is slipping away and I’m producing stilted stuff that doesn’t quite fit the story and has no heart. It’s kind of terrifying.

I’m trying to see these struggles as curious. But honestly, I’m approaching overwhelmed.

Thanks for listening. Onward. Bird by bird. Fresh fresh fresh start tomorrow.

Here’s Val’s response:

You are not a whiner. And I’m glad you sent it because the last thing you need to feel right now as you work so hard on this book you love is alone. You are a hardworking writer writing on a deadline [during a really challenging year]. That is a lot to handle on its own, yet here you are, coming to the page every day anyway and getting to work. Because this work matters to you.

I hear grit and determination in your words here. I hear strength and courage. Not panic, not failure. A struggle, perhaps, but one you are capable of overcoming. I hear you digging in your heels, ready to do what you need to do to make this book the best you can make it in the time you’ve been given. Because that’s all you can do. You will get through this and it might not be fun and probably you’ll cry more than you want to, but in the end, you will have nothing at all to be ashamed of. You will have a book you can be proud of because you gave it everything you had to give. You are a warrior with a deadline. And your vulnerabilities are what make you the perfect writer for this book (and ALL your books). Fresh start tomorrow. You’ve got this!!

*During edits, I sent almost-daily reports to Val as a way to keep track of my progress (and so I could get some writerly cheerleading).

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Filed Under: encouragement, publication, the writing life

Reading and Writing Links

2 Comments

Wow wow and wow.
Zen and the Art of Quicksand: My Twenty-Three-Year Descent Into Literary Failure, Rejection, and Redemption :: Poets and Writers

“As an agent, I do give priority to referrals, but I think there might be some confusion among writers concerning what actually constitutes a referral. So let’s break it down.”
Referrals: A Powerful Tool When Used Wisely :: Pub Rants

“According to a recent Penguin Random House Publishing Services report, as a whole, both children’s fiction and nonfiction are up, with sales of nonfiction being particularly strong.”
Non-Fiction Rocks…Even During COVID! :: The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators

“The strongest surviving tether reveals the core value of a character in a moment in time; it is that thing that remains even in the fiercest winds when we’re still in possession of our will, with our feet still barely under us.”
The Edge of Now, and Its Gift for Writers :: Writer Unboxed

“It is…impossible to give correct advice for one person in one situation. The best you can do is give advice that unlocks a door. Something that suggests a path. An edit is not a decree, it’s a question. And that question can lead to better answers. But not right ones.”
This is Advice :: Publishing is Hard

“All of Austen’s novels are about misinterpretation, about people reading other people incorrectly. Catherine Morland, in Northanger Abbey, reads General Tilney wrong. Elizabeth Bennet reads Mr. Darcy wrong. Marianne Dashwood, in Sense and Sensibility, gets Willoughby wrong, and Edmund Bertram, in Mansfield Park, gets Mary Crawford wrong. Emma gets everybody wrong. There might be a warning to the reader here: do not think that you are getting it right, either.”
How to Misread Jane Austen :: The New Yorker

A look at working on the art and design of picture books from home.
Making Children’s Books in the Era of COVID-19 :: Publisher’s Weekly

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Writing Links

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“Creative work is so hard. Writers aren’t supposed to worry about external validation and yet external validation is precisely what determines so much about your career.”
Thoughts on External Validation :: Erin Bowman

This is a fabulous look at writing non-fiction and reminded me a bit of the shrunken manuscript method.
Behind the scenes of the Don’t Overthink It writing process :: Modern Mrs. Darcy

“Before and After the Book Deal: A Writer’s Guide to Finishing, Publishing, Promoting, and Surviving Your First Book by Courtney Maum is the ultimate guide to finishing, publishing, promoting, and surviving your first book. And I would add – every additional book you write.”
The Book with Answers to All Your Publishing Questions – Before and After the Book Deal :: The Winged Pen

“If you want to be a writer, you have to be a reader first.”
Your Output Depends on Your Input :: Austin Kleon

“Narrative is key. The more you can add elements of fiction the better: narrative arc, character development, plot, tension, etc. While demand exists for survey-type books or how-to books, narrative has a better chance to capture an editor’s attention.”
What I’ve Learned Writing Middle Grade Non-Fiction :: Jane Friedman“

“Make a place to sit down.   
Sit down. Be quiet…
Communicate slowly. Live   
a three-dimensioned life;”
“How to Be a Poet” by Wendell Berry :: The Poetry Foundation

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