Discovering feelings to write about

If you clicked on through to Lisa Papademetriou's web page yesterday, you probably discovered it led first to her blog and you've probably already read her entry about driving in a thunderstorm. She was another third semester student who lived in Martin House with me during our residency at Vermont College of Fine Arts.

This is an all-too-true tale about the feelings that overcome you when hit by an impossible-to-see-through storm while driving.  You can't stop because of the fear that cars behind you can't see you and will crash into you.  You can't even see the side of the road in order to pull over. You just drive, hoping nothing bad happens.  Lisa, being an excellent writer, decides to remember all of her sensations so she can use it in her next story. Do you find yourself thinking this, too?

Side note -- meanwhile, the rest of the class who did not leave directly after graduation but planned to leave the next day from Residency, were at a restaurant in Montpelier.  Half of them walked there and back and there was no sign of rain at all.

Back to college

In case you were wondering where I've been/ why there have been no posts for two weeks, I've gone back to Vermont College of Fine Arts to work on my MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults and was in Vermont at the two week residency there.  This is a low residency course where we attend lectures from 8:30 in the morning to dinnertime and Readings in the evenings.  Then go home to write, write, write for 5 months.

Now, you're probably thinking, Hey. She's retired.  She's a published writer.  Why the heck is she going back to college to learn how to write?

Well, like most of the people taking this course, I want to learn to write better.  At least half of the third semester class -- my current classmates -- are already published, including one of my favorite writers, Lisa Papademetriou.  Look her up on Facebook (link here = Lisa Papademetriou) or her website.  

So, how was my college adventure?
It was a wonderful two week residency. (all the rest of the course is done at home with me in email contact with my Advisor and responsible for turning in 5 packets of work.  The first packet?  A draft of my Critical Thesis.  (yikes!)

Well, the weather wasn't the usual balmy Vermont weather.  It was cold the first week and I found myself wearing practically everything I brought to keep warm in the evenings. (I now live in Southern California.)  Then the weather flip-flopped and it became close to 90 degrees with hazy, hot, and humidity.  Ack!  The same weather we used to have when we lived in the Baltimore, Maryland area.  Hot and sticky.  Yuck.

I stayed in Martin House with a great group of third semester students and was able to participate when they revealed their class name -- Allies in Wonderland -- where we all dressed up representing different children's books.  I was Professor Minerva McGonagall, complete with a feather in my witch's hat.  (wearing my daughter's college graduation gown plus that wonderful Professor McGonagall hat)

One of the lectures so inspired my friend Jean Gralley that she skipped lunch and spent the afternoon in her room above mine, writing, writing, writing.

Being a third semester student (there are four semesters to this course), I spent a lot of time in the thesis room, reading and deciding what to request the administration to send to me to print out at home.

Now I'm home and busy doing research and playing around with the molding of my thesis.  More about that later.

Saturday and Sunday at the Writing Retreat

Vermont is beautiful in March, especially when surprised by a heat wave of 65 degrees, which will go up to almost 80 degrees later this week. (The skiers expecting snow probably weren't so happy.)

Al three of the faculty at this writing weekend were fabulous, pointing out things that made us all sit up and take notice.  (Invite Coe Booth to come to your conference to talk about Secondary Characters!) I had a consultation with Little Brown editor, Alvina Ling, who pointed out some major changes I could do to my work in progress. And the third thing I jammed into this day was a 4+ hour stretch of learning how to use my new composing software -- Scrivener. (I think I may have a bit of it figured out now)

In the evening we did readings from our works in progress.  Most of them were YA, some of them were Middle Readers (which means older Elementary and into Middle School).  I think mine was the youngest one there, and, deducing from the laughter, the funniest.  Many people did say it was the most dramatic, but what can I say? I'm a children's librarian who loves to perform.  A quiet person with a drama queen inside of her.

Sunday was so sad.  None of us wanted to leave.  But, since I had an early flight to catch, I had to leave at 1:30, right in the middle of an interesting panel discussion of all three of our faculty -- Coe Booth, Holly Black, and Alvina Ling.  Another participant had an even earlier flight, so she joined my on my drive up I-89 from Montpelier to Burlington.

She made her flight.
Me?  not so much.

As I was passing through security, I got a call from the airlines that my flight had been delayed and wouldn't leave for an hour.  Grrrrrr.  I could have stayed longer! Then I was called up to the podium and told that, naturally that meant my connecting flight in Philadelphia would have to be changed.  Double Grrrrr.

I began getting email after email from the airline -- more flight changes.  At this point I didn't know if I were getting a connection in Philadelphia at 7 or 8 or 8:30 --
but they assured me that I DID have a seat.
In some plane.
That would get to Baltimore.
Sometime.

Philadelphia airport was -- interesting.
You do remember that I left Montpelier at 1:30 pm, right?
It was now 5:30 and I was only halfway home.  I picked up a sandwich for dinner (the wing of the airport that I was in was under construction and there was only one choice of food supply), found my boarding place and sat.  and sat.

It turned out that half of the people there were waiting for a flight to New York City.  And waiting.  Finally, they announced that they couldn't fix the broken window in their airplane and they were getting a different craft for them.
What about the Baltimore group?  We were asked to move to a different boarding place and would be informed as to when our flight would leave once we got there.

This was a dangerous spot to be.  It was right opposite a pastry shop in the terminal. I got myself a cupcake.  Then an almond pastry. If we were to be delayed here much longer, I think I would gain at least 5 pounds!

Oh joy!  our plane was announced -- we left after 8 pm. Landed in Baltimore and I had no problems finding my car in the long term parking lot. (where I ate the other half of the sandwich I had bought in Philly.)

I should be home in a half hour, right?
wrong.
There was a traffic jam at the Harbor Tunnel on I-895 (the old tunnel).  It took more than an hour before I pulled into my driveway.

Meanwhile, the 12-year-old had been sending me messages (which I could read while we were stopped dead at the toll booths of the tunnel.)  "Are U home yet?"  She stayed away until I could give her a good-night hug -- at 10:30 pm!!!

Let's see.  Left Montpelier at 1:30.
Got home at 10:30.
Nine (9) hours.
I don't think that I'll fly US Airways again.

The last Packet of Writing (for this year)

Packet 5 is SENT!
My second semester at Vermont College of Fine Arts Writing for Children and Young Adults is done.
Done, done, done.
(except for the end of semester reports, but that's no problem.)

This has been a wonderful, eye-opening experience, this learning to write fiction. It's so very different from writing nonfiction. Writing wonderfully descriptive passages? No problem. Nonfiction writers are good at that.

On the other hand, creating a personality who is pursuing a goal and staying inside that person's head, feeling/ showing his reactions to events, etc. That's hard. (I tend to pull out into omnipotent view too often.)
Being too nice to your hero -- easy.
Putting your hero up a tree and throwing apples at him -- hard.

I could go on, but it's been an exhausting two semesters and I'm going to take a small break, now.

What did you learn you could or couldn't do when you began writing fiction?
-wo

Katherine Paterson to Speak Today

I have no idea how these phone in things work -- but you could try it:

Authors Guild announces two-week preview of its Booktalk Nation initiative to support traditional booksellers

Children’s book author Katherine Paterson, selected by the Library of Congress as the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, will answer questions from writer Tanya Lee Stone at 7 p.m. tonight in a live, national, phone-in event hosted by the Flying Pig Bookstore in Shelburne, Vermont. Readers can sign up for the call at booktalknation.com.

A two-time winner of the prestigious Newbery Medal and the National Book Award, Paterson is the author of more than 30 books, which include contemporary and historical fiction, in settings that range from realistic to fantastical. She is best known for Bridge to Terabithia.

Paterson’s latest title, The Flint Heart, is a retelling of the 1910 fairy tale of the same name by Eden Phillpotts. Paterson’s husband, John, first tried to get publishers to bring the original back into print. But Phillpotts’s style was deemed too long-winded for modern audience, so husband and wife collaborated on a new version, picking up the pace but preserving Phillpotts’s plot, characters and tone.

“It still has that sort of old-fashioned voice,” said Paterson “It’s a charming voice; it’s a storyteller’s voice.”

In the book, a Stone Age man demands a talisman that will harden his heart so he can rule his tribe. The tribe’s magic man creates the Flint Heart, which leads to the destruction of the tribe. Thousands of years later, the Flint Heart reemerges, threatening to cause trouble all over again.

Readers from across the country can order personally-inscribed books including Paterson’s The Flint Heart, Bridge to Terabithia, Brother Sun, Sister Moon, and The Great Gilly Hopkins through booktalknation.com. The Flying Pig Bookstore will fulfill the orders after Paterson inscribes the books next week.

Booktalk Nation is a new series of phone-in author interviews sponsored by the Authors Guild, which seeks to support traditional, physical booksellers and highlight the key role they play in promoting a vibrant literary culture. Each talk in the series will be hosted by a local bookstore with ties to the featured author. The Guild is previewing the service over the next two weeks and will formally launch it in January. A few additional events for the two-week preview will be announced on Monday, along with more details on the program.

“I just hope everybody will support their independent bookstores,” said Paterson, who lives in Vermont. She said she was eager to participate because she’s seen first-hand how knowledgeable, committed booksellers help readers find just the right book.

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NonFiction Monday And Vermont

Nonfiction Monday is being held at Chapter Book of the Day today. Click on over and follow the links to good books.

Sunday we had the morning off, so I drove around the Montpiellier area and discovered the Ben and Jerry's factory -- free samples, yum. As we exited, I bought some Ice cream themed PJs for the 11 year old and a scoop of (strange new flavor) ice cream for me. Hmmm, it's NOT on the way back to the airport. I wonder if I'll have time to bop back there for more before I head to the airport. But it'll be right after breakfast.... maybe not.

I'm enjoying having a car up here which means that I can occasionally get off campus.

After the graduation ceremony on Wednesday, our class will go out to eat together. This time at an Italian place. And this time I don't have to beg a ride from anyone. I can be the driver, instead. The college is on top of a steep hill and, although I can walk down it, walking back up takes twice as long, for me.

I'm trying to build my stamana by walking up the stairs to one of the lecture halls, instead of taking the elevator.

During readings in the evenings, I knit.

I've completed one scarf and are almost done with another. (I'm not attempting anything complicated -- just straight knitting.)

-wo

Making snow

Now why, you are asking yourself, would someone want to make snow when there is already two feet of snow on the ground in Vermont?

Oh, I don't know.
It was an experiment.

My roommate made more bubbles this morning, wondering if they would shatter in the minus 23 F. degree weather. No, so far all the bubbles she blew simply froze. (one is still there. We are going to keep checking to see if it will last the whole day.)

Then she went on to the next experiment -- making snow.
She went outside with a cup of hot water and a cup of cold water.
When she threw the cup of cold water into the air -- it instantly made largish, hail-sized lumps of ice that fell to the ground.

But the hot water?
Amazing!
When she threw the hot water in the air, it came down as fine particles of SNOW.

Another student has told us that, when the weather is much, much colder (minus 50? who knows?), hot water will evaporate completely when you throw it out of the cup. But minus 23 is the coldest it's supposed to be this week, so we'll never know.
-wendieO

Vermont College Residency is over

Vermont College was overwhelming. The picture book certificate group was separate from, and yet part of the whole experience. We went to the same lectures, but met as a separate group for our workshop session -- where it was picture books all the time. (The people in the four semester program had people doing all types of writing in their workshops.)

Now to digest what I've heard and try to apply it. I've already discovered that the other people in the regular program are learning more literary techniques than we picture book people are, but we'll have enough trouble just producing the number of picture books we are assigned -- 20 to 25. We send in five packets -- one each month. They include annotated list of 25 books we have read. 3-5 picture books we wrote. Parts of a research essay we are working on (and will give a lecture on in the Winter residency) and a cover letter talking about what we've done and some of what we are thinking. There may be more. I have to check my notes.

My family is hoping this series of over 95 degree days here in Maryland will break soon. (although it is making the swimming pool warm enough for me to consider swimming in it.)

During my 10 days in Vermont, the temps were in the 70s and low 80s, but it could also be sticky when the humidity rose, so it had some rotten days, too. (because very few places had air conditioning -- and those that did have it, turned off the air conditioning during the lectures because nobody could hear over the roar of the window airconditioner.) The best days were when we simply opened the windows and let the breeze blow through.

I hear that the winter session has minus 5 degrees. Yikes!

Now to finish doing the wash and then to try to organize a Vermont College corner in my office. hmm, that means I have to organize the piles that are already here -- right?
-wendieO