Alice in Zombieland

Check it out at Pentales.

Agent tip of the week, month, whatever

Agent Amy Tipton has left FinePrint Literary Management to join Signature Literary Agency.

Go forth and query.

Monster Blood Tattoo

This book is so good it makes me want to throw down my pencil and give up. (Not that I write with pencils, mind, it just sounds better than computer.)

D.M. Cornish's imagination is so huge, I don't see how he keeps his head from exploding.

Brilliant stuff. Charles Dickens meets Gormenghast.

Go read it.

Why artists matter

Beautiful. Uplifting. Melancholy. You have to see it.

And also check this out.

Can your story do this?

It's Freytag's Pyramid. You know old Fry, right? No? I'm sure a lot of people are familiar with it from writing courses or school.

Take a look at your novel and see if it follows this structure. I would think that, even if you've never heard of it, your novel can't help but follow this pattern. If you're a reader, and I certainly know you are, it's instinctual to follow this structure when attempting to write a book. (Even if you didn't know you were.)

So, how about you? Are you adhering to the doctrine of Herr Freytag?

It's National Punctuation Day! It's National Punctuation Day!

That's right, kids. You remember it. Dad coming home with nicely wrapped apostrophes, mom dressed in a flowing gown made of semicolons. Ahh, the memories.

No seriously, today is, in fact, National Punctuation Day. Don't believe me? Look here.

So what's your favorite punctuation mark? I don't have a favorite, but I despise semicolons. Just make up your mind and decide whether you're a period or comma for God's sake.

I also have a particular fondness for the old em dash--love it.

Chicago Celtic festival

I've always enjoyed reading about Celtic mythology and history. My novel (out to agents now) borrows from Celtic legend in a few places: names, creatures, flora and fauna. This means I never miss the Celtic Festival every September in Chicago. It was here again this past weekend and I went down to check it out.

One thing I had to do there was replace a ring I bought the year before from a vendor called Sean's Celtic Creations. It was a Tree of Life ring. Unfortunately, I took my old one off once when I washed my hands in Baltimore Washington International Airport and left it on the sink.

Right now, a custodian somewhere is wearing a very cool ring.

Or some businessman.

So I ventured down to get the new ring and see the sights. Fortunately, I found the vendor. Once I saw the sign for his booth the name clicked. Sure enough, I found the same ring!

I also saw a lot of fun stuff but I didn't get many good pics because I only had my camera phone.

Fringe Widget

My addiction

As much as I try, I can't beat my addiction: buying new books.
Lucky authors. I hope they return the favor when I'm published (think positive!)

I bought The Hunger Games, which needs no introduction (unless you're some kind of literary snob and don't think there could be anything of Real Cultural Importance in a YA book.)

I also picked up a book that has been getting some buzz. The Magicians, by Lev Grossman. I've already read about 100 pages and can't stop. It's really good fiction. Harry Potter for grown-ups,
is what some reviewers are calling it.

The premise: what if there really was a school for magic, concealed right on the edges of our world. That's what perpetually daydreaming high school senior Quentin Coldwater finds at a school called Brakebills in upstate New York.

When we read fantasy for kids and young adults, we accept that the worlds of magic, vampires, faeries, etc. are real. We buy into it. That's something you have to accept on page one. In adult fiction, we have to be convinced. Grossman tackles this concept with great wit and wonderful literary abilities. There are a few other books that come to mind in this field of Literary Fantasy Fiction: Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke; The Stolen Child by Keith Donohue, and of course many others including Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere and American Gods.

Know of any great books by "literary" authors in the field of fantasy or speculative fiction? Tell me about them.

Look for my spoiler-free review of The Magicians soon.

Cindy Pon's Silver Phoenix

I loved this book. It's beautifully written and full of wonderful prosaic passages. Cindy's character, Ai Ling, is a spunky--wait a minute--she's not spunky. She's smart and a little reserved, determined, brave and grows over her journey.

If you have ever stopped by Cindy's blog, you know that she likes food.
And taking pictures of food.
Well, don't read Silver Phoenix on an empty stomach. There are wonderful Asian delicacies throughout, described with sumptuous detail. Ymmm.

As for Ai Ling herself, hers is a journey through a world she thought was only myth, in search of answers to her father's disappearance. She is joined by Chen Yong, a young man in search of answers, too.

It seems to me that the thread of Family runs throughout the book. There are moments of great beauty, pain and violence, some of it rather gruesome, but I'm all for the gruesome. Cindy handles it well and with a sure hand.

Silver Phoenix is a treat. If you don't have it, go buy it. It's a good, classic book, unaffected by trends or modern cliches.

I think it will be around a long time.

The Nettlehorse

There's an elementary school in my neighborhood called Nettlehorst. On weekends in the summer they have a nice, outdoor French market where one can buy fresh vegetables, flowers, wonderful breads and other goodies.

Today, as my wife and I walked by, I was drawn to this incredible horse made up of scrap frames. The name on the plaque below it reads: The Nettlehorse.

It looks wonderful. Of course, this got the gears in my fantasy-inspired brain churning and I'm already thinking of a way to use this name in a story. Maybe it's a short story. The horse comes to life after the kids build it! Yippee! I'm off to go work on this. (Click photo to enlarge for a better view.)

Overheard on cell phone

First in an ongoing series:

Twenty-something guy walking down street:

"Because I'm not going to go to a straight sports bar at ten a.m."

Cold Love

I was lucky enough to snag an ARC of Maggie Stiefvater's novel Shiver at the American Library Association convention here in Chicago a few months ago.

I haven't read her other book, Lament, but I plan on it.

Shiver is a well-written novel about two souls who have known each other from a distance for a long time. But they don't really know each other. They just have this connection.

Only problem is, one of them isn't human. Well, at least not all the time.
It depends on the weather.
That's all I'm going to say.

You probably know the storyline already anyway, but I'll keep it quiet for the few visitors who might drop by who don't read MG and YA fiction as obsessively as I do.

At its crux, Shiver is a neat concept. It's about transformation, shedding a cloak, wild nature, the beast in us all.

I really enjoyed the community of creatures and how they interacted while in their human form.

Grace, our heroine, is very genuine. We can relate to her. Her parents are distant and have no idea what she's doing half the time. Mom's a flighty painter. Dad is invisible to her.

It's a love story, of course, and has a very lyrical style.

The more I think about it, as I write this, I really liked this book. She's definitely a good writer.

Check it out.

Magnificent Mile, Indian Style

Michigan Avenue in Chicago is the premiere posh shopping strip. They call it the Magnificent Mile. Saks, Bloomingdales, all the designer names.

The other day, amidst the bustle of shoppers and tourists, I heard singing and the sound of bells and whistles. I looked up, hoping to see Legolas and Glorfindel, or maybe even a band of dwarves, but instead, passing right by the Chanel store, was a long, colorful
caravan proceeding down the Michigan Avenue sidewalk, complete with this chap on a horse!

A wedding!




It was fantastic. I got a few pics on my camera phone. Not the best quality but you get the idea.

It was a nice moment.

The giant under the snow

Last year, when I had a very rough draft of the Glimmerlings & The Book of Sleep, the middle-grade novel I am querying now (I have a few partials out and hoping for good news) I sent it out to an editor. This is an editor who does manuscript consultation. I know now it was way too early for anyone to review, but he did like it, and gave me some good feedback I used in subsequent drafts.

He compared my writing to the Narnia books, the Dark is Rising series and one other, one of his favorites, he said, the Giant Under the Snow by John Gordon.

Well, first of all, I was flattered and over the moon that a Real Live Writing Professional thought my scribbles were actually a story; and secondly, that he had compared it to such great books.

I was curious about the Giant under the Snow, as I had never heard of it. I looked on Amazon but couldn't find it. (I do see now that it has been re-issued.) I think I called Borders and they found a used copy for me and I ordered it.

Anyway, the book is fantastic. It is written with a sure hand and in a very literary style, which doesn't dumb things down for its intended audience. It is truly dark and sinister, with a malevolent thread that runs throughout it.

A young girl, Jonq (Jonquil) wanders away on a school trip in an unnamed city and meets a ferocious black dog. This dog is described in chilling detail and we know that there is something about it that isn't quite...right. She is saved by a woman who lives in a small house that seems to appear out of nowhere. Sometime later, Jonq finds what she thinks is one half of a simple old belt buckle, but is actually an ancient artifact that has been lost for centuries.

With her two friends Arf (Arthur) and Bill, they set out to discover what this buckle really is. Little do they know, it is being sought by dark forces, the creepiest of which are the Leathermen, who...well, I really shouldn't say, as it would spoil the suspense.

The author John Gordon, wrote the book in 1968, and has written a few other books of a supernatural bent for kids. I highly recommend it.

Agent tip of the day

Michael Stearns has left Firebrand Lilterary to start a new venture, Upstart Crow Literary. He will be joined at the company by Chris Richman and Danielle Chiotti, both of whom were most recently with Firebrand Literary, and all three agents will be bringing all their clients to the new venture. The company's new Web site, www.upstartcrowliterary.com, will be live soon.

Go forth and query.

Uh, when their Web site is live.

ALA Convention in Chicago

I have to thank my crit partner, Juliette, for letting me know that author Cindy Pon would be signing her book, Silver Phoenix, at the American Library Association Convention in Chicago this past weekend. Until she told me this I had no idea this convention was going on here in my fair city. And even if I had, I probably wouldn't have gone. Library Association? I mean, I love libraries and books but I had no idea it would be an incredible two days of networking.

After studying the ALA website, which was very hard to navigate, I just decided to go down to the convention center to see how much it would cost to get in. (I couldn't even find that out on their website.) I made my way there and it was mobbed with people. I had to register ($25) which allowed me in for the whole event, but only in certain places, which were publishers and authors, the place I wanted to be anyway.

So I got my badge and wandered around. I met Cindy Pon at the Harper Collins booth and had her sign my book. She was very nice and seems like a cool person. Sitting next to her was David Macinnis Gill (Soul Enchilada) who also signed my book.

So I wandered around some more and got ...more books. One is the sequel to a book I reviewed on my blog last year: Elfquest, by Daniel Kirk whom I met, he seemed nice, but a little taken aback when I said I loved his book. Maybe he thought only kids would read it? I don't know.

Met Ellen Jensen Abbott who wrote Watersmeet, and is a member at Enchanted Inkpot, along with Cindy. She was very nice and we talked for a long time. I bought her book at half price, because she was so nice and the book looks interesting. (I also felt I should give some money to authors since a lot of books were free!)

Got a lot more books and then something struck me. Dude, you're at a convention. Publishers and editors are here...helllooo?

I'm not going to name any names but I proceeded to make some great contacts from really wonderful editors.

It was an incredible networking event and I had no idea the ALA was that type of convention. It wasn't swarming with writers looking for agents, so the editors/publishers were easy to talk to.

Neil Gaiman was there but a line of at least 300 people prevented me from joining the queue. Saw Holly Black chatting with people. I think they were friends of hers. She is very striking and I was intimidated. Didn't want to be a fan wanker boy.

Wow.

So day two I set out with a list of a few more editors/publishers to talk to. Success again. Yay! One highlight was getting an uncorrected proof of a book a lot of teen girls would probably kill for: Maggie Stiefvater's Shiver. Also picked up Patricia C. Wrede's new one-- The Thirteenth Child.

I have to say, I left the convention center with a backpack of books and a bunch of business cards. Suffice it to say I had a very good weekend!

Agent tip of the week

Stephanie MacLean has been promoted to literary agent at Trident Media Group, where she started in 2007 as Dan Strone's assistant. She is specializing in romance, women's fiction and YA.

Go forth and query.

Agent tip of the week

Nancy Yost is leaving Lowenstein-Yost Associates Inc. to start up her own literary agency. She may be reached at nancy@nyliterary.com.

Go forth and query.

A rediscovered memory

It is common knowledge in my family that I don't remember much of my childhood. It's a running joke. Sometimes I think I was abducted by aliens and had my memory erased. The reality is that, growing up an Air Force Brat, we moved every few years and all the places I called home blurred into a mish-mash of small, military airbase homes.

I was born in Maine and have lived in Japan, South Carolina, Delaware, Michigan, Ohio, Alabama, Washington, D.C. and a bunch of other places.

But one vague memory has always been in the back of my mind, and, as my life has led me to become a writer, it's interesting that this memory has always been with me.

The memory is of a poem.
Actually, a poet reading a poem.
In school.
About trains.

Was I in Kindergarten?
First grade?
Who knows?
(Remember, I have issues with memory.)

I don't remember what the poet looked like, but the first few words of that poem have been stuck in my head for decades. The rhythm of it was what captured me:

"Stop Look Listen/as gate stripes swing down/count the cars hauling distance/upgrade through town:/

This mantra stuck in my head for years. Trouble was, that's all I could remember--that first line. I remember being so impressed by the poet that I memorized the whole poem (or, at least I think I did as a child.)

I've often thought about that poem over the years. Only recently, maybe about a year ago, I realized there's this thing called the Internet and I could look for it!

With a minimum amount of searching I found it. The poem is called The Crossing and the poet is Philip Booth. It was a joy to read the rest of the poem, and hear the wonderful rhythm of those words.

And the more I read about Philip Booth, the more I unraveled a piece of my own scattered memory.

Booth was known as Maine's "clearest, poetic voice."

Maine.
Hmm.
I was born in Maine.
So maybe Philip Booth came to my school when I was a little kid in Maine!
Eureka!

This was a great revelation for me.

Here's the poem, The Crossing, still in print, and accompanied by some amazing illustrations. I'll have to get it from Amazon.

If you have a child who likes trains, or just wonderful words strung together, I promise you and your kid will enjoy it.