tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75365966939622783332023-11-16T08:58:10.634-05:00Hunt and PeckWriting blog of authors Bernie Kohn and Gina M. SmithGina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-54908127380368605942014-12-13T16:52:00.001-05:002014-12-13T16:52:03.552-05:00Gift Book & Reading Recommendations from Author Jen Malone<span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As a huge fan of author/editor <a href="http://www.jenmalonewrites.com/" target="_blank">Jen Malone</a>, I'd likely buy an igloo from her if I were an Eskimo. What does that mean? Simply: I trust her taste. So much so that I am sharing her holiday book-gifting recommendations here. It's never too late for a good book!</span></span><br />
<span><span style="font-family: Arial;">You can contact Jen at her website <a href="http://www.jenmalonewrites.com/#!contact/c1kcz" target="_blank">here</a>, where you can also request a signed bookplate for her book, <strong><a href="http://www.jenmalonewrites.com/#!at-your-service/c1l3w" target="_blank">At Your Service</a></strong>. Follow the links on her site to take you to her editing services website or her Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest pages. (Remember-good taste!)</span></span><br />
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<span><span style="font-family: Arial;">Here's what Jen has to say:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Perfect For:</strong> Kids ages 2-6, anyone who loves a good rhyme and cuddly friends<br /><br /><strong>Why:</strong> Every December my family counts down to Christmas by opening one holiday book a night (these stories only come out once a year so they're "like new" each time! My kids are getting a little old for some of them, but they don't care one bit and we all snuggle on the couch to read!) This book will be hanging out under our tree this year because the rhyming is a sheer joy to read aloud and the premise (a boy's monster needs a tree for the holidays, but chaos ensues) is giggle-inducing.</span></span> </span> <br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Perfect For:</strong><span> Kids ages 7-11, anyone who loves funny and sweet, ice hockey, or cats in bathtubs </span><br /><br /><strong>Why:</strong><span> I read this one aloud to my twins' class this spring and it went over HUGE! There are tons of laugh-out-loud scenarios in this sweet story that is reminiscent of Beverly Cleary or The Penderwicks, but with a Modern Family sensibility (the family it follows through a school year is made up of four adopted boys and their two dads). I love the way it portrays an untraditional family in such a traditional setting- it's very non-preachy but includes a lovely lesson on what it means to be a family today.</span></span></span> </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="mcnTextContent" style="-ms-text-size-adjust: 100%; -webkit-text-size-adjust: 100%; color: #606060; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 11px; line-height: 125%; mso-table-lspace: 0pt; mso-table-rspace: 0pt; text-align: left;" valign="top"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Perfect For:</strong><span> Kids ages 7-11, anyone with an annoying sibling</span><br /><br /><strong>Why:</strong><span> My twin boys complain a lot about how annoying their little sister can be, but at least they've never woken up with plastic flowers superglued to their hair! Not so for Masha, who has the injustice of having a certifiable genius (she would say "<em>evil</em> genius") as a little sister. This is a very sweet story (pun </span></span></span><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">intended) about sibling rivalry that includes a ton of outrageous and funny scenarios.</span> </span> </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Perfect For:</strong><span> Kids ages 9-13, anyone who loves NYC, mysteries, or art</span><br /><br /><strong>Why:</strong><span> Marcia Wells and I both participated on a Books of Wonder panel called "Only in New York" this fall, which highlighted books that were love stories to the Big Apple. This book is definitely that and her hero, Eddie, is a great little detective. Eddie's drawing skills land him a job helping the police scout out a potential museum heist and I adored the sketches throughout the book. Those, plus the fast pacing, make this one great for reluctant readers!</span></span></span> </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Perfect For:</strong><span> Kids ages 9-13, anyone who loves presidential history and/or girl power</span><br /><br /><strong>Why:</strong></span></span><span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> This is one of my top picks for the year. It follows a First Daughter who is not so thrilled about how her mom's new job as President is cramping her social life. When Audrey uncovers Alice Roosevelt's diary in her bedroom floorboards she discovers she's not the first rebellious daughter to occupy the White House Residence. Alice's diary entries were absolutely my favorite part of this book- her voice jumps off the page and it's a perfect mix of history meets modern!</span> </span> </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Perfect For:</strong><span> Teens ages 12 and up, anyone who loves travel, reality TV, or has a sister. </span><br /><br /><strong>Why:</strong><span> My 2016 YA is all about a younger sister doing something crazy for her older sister, so I'd be pre-disposed to love this book even if I didn't already love its author even more. But I promise this story doesn't require any bias to adore- it's a hilarious trip around the world as two sisters compete in an Amazing Race-style reality contest, hellbent on getting revenge on the cheating ex-boyfriend (who happens to be on an opposing team) of the older sister. This is So. Much. Fun!</span></span></span> </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Perfect For:</strong><span> Kids ages 12 and up, anyone who loves superhero movies and plenty to action</span><br /><br /><strong>Why:</strong></span></span><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> We listened to this on audiobook as we drove from Boston to Buffalo this summer and, even after nine cramped hours, my kids didn't want to get out of the car when we got there! We kept trying to find a place to pause, but every chapter ended on a cliffhanger. This one is Oceans Eleven meets The X-Men and is full of characters with supercool abilities and fast-paced action</span>. </span> </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>Perfect For:</strong><span> Kids ages 12 and up, anyone who loves teen romance from the hottest YA authors. </span><br /><br /><strong>Why:</strong></span></span><span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> This is what I plan to recommend to anyone who isn't sure which books their gift recipients have already read. This one is brand new and includes twelve stories from bestselling YA authors (Rainbow Rowell, Stephanie Perkins, Gayle Forman...), so there's something for everyone! Plus holiday romance- what could be better? Bookplates will be signed by the adorable Myra McEntire, who is credited with helping inspire the book (and contributes a fantastic story).</span> </span> </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span><strong>One for the Adults!</strong></span><br /><br /><strong>Why:</strong></span></span><span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> While I can attest from a few short meetings that Rainbow Rowell is one lovely human being, we're not yet on bestie terms (don't worry; it's on my bucket list). Therefore, I can't offer signed bookplates for this one, BUT this book is a Top Five of 2014 for me and I couldn't resist the chance to share it. While the premise is a bit "rom-com" (a woman having marital problems retreats to her childhood home where she finds a telephone that lets her speak with her husband pre-wedding, pre-kids) it packs a huge emotional punch that had me shedding tears.</span> </span> </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span><strong>Another for Adults!</strong></span><br /><br /><strong>Why:</strong></span></span><span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;"> Technically a young adult novel, I think this would appeal equally- if not more- to adults. The writing is BRILLIANT. it left me sweaty, and scrubbed-clean, and very, very humbled. Jandy Nelson is a genius. That's really all I can say about this one. Sadly I can't offer signed bookplates for this either, but hopefully the awesome cover will make up for that.</span> </span> </td></tr>
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Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-53771858296202427572014-10-28T01:34:00.000-04:002014-10-28T01:43:27.377-04:00Vestal Wins Major Literary Prize<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I could claim to have know him <em><a href="http://huntingandpecking.blogspot.com/2014/09/on-faith.html" target="_blank">when</a></em>. But the glory belongs only to author <a href="http://www.shawnvestal.com/" target="_blank">Shawn Vestal</a>. I simply had the good fortune to talk with the recipient of the <a href="http://www.pen.org/literary_awards/penrobert-w-bingham-prize-25000" target="_blank">PEN/Robert W. Bingham literary prize </a>a couple weeks before he was presented the award this fall in New York City.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">The $25,000 award, the richest from the <a href="http://www.pen.org/" target="_blank">PEN American Center</a>, is presented for an outstanding work of debut fiction. Vestal was brought to the podium by acclaimed author <a href="http://www.harpercollins.com/cr-100712/louise-erdrich" target="_blank">Louise Erdrich</a> as he sat among other notable novelists and playwrights. An account of his win and subsequent discussion of the literary climate in Spokane, WA where he is a columnist is related in his home newspaper, <a href="http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2014/oct/05/vestal-stunned-at-winning-literary-prize/" target="_blank">The Spokesman-Review</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Vestal's short stories are collected in <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Godforsaken-Idaho-Shawn-Vestal/dp/0544027760/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1414472560&sr=1-1&keywords=godforsaken+idaho" target="_blank">Godforsaken Idaho</a>. In The Spokesman-Review piece, Gregory Spatz and Sam Ligon of <a href="http://www.ewu.edu/" target="_blank">Eastern Washington University's</a> <a href="http://sites.ewu.edu/mfa/" target="_blank">MFA program</a> discuss Vestal's story collection which was written as his master's thesis. They also talk about the wealth of writing talent in Washington state and specifically, Spokane, home to another acclaimed author and former Spokesman-Review journalist, <a href="http://www.jesswalter.com/" target="_blank">Jess Walter</a>, one of Vestal's pals. They are but two on a long list of writing talent in or from that region of the great Northwest. Check out the Spokesman-Review <a href="http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2014/oct/05/vestal-stunned-at-winning-literary-prize/" target="_blank">article</a> for much more name-dropping. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Vestal joins an amazing list of writers. I'm thrilled and lucky that a fellow journalist, <a href="https://twitter.com/GLgraham" target="_blank">Gary Graham</a>, <a href="http://www.spokesman.com/staff/gary-graham/" target="_blank">Editor-In-Chief</a> at Spokane and formerly state editor at the Fort Wayne (IN) News-Sentinel links us all together. Graham edited me a hundred years ago when I was a stringer and newly-turned out reporter and journalism grad from <a href="http://www.bsu.edu/" target="_blank">Ball State University</a> in Muncie, IN. Today, he edits <a href="https://twitter.com/vestal13" target="_blank">Vestal</a> in Spokane at the same paper where <a href="https://twitter.com/1JessWalter" target="_blank">Walter</a> once worked and where his brother, <a href="http://www.spokesman.com/staff/ralph-walter/" target="_blank">Ralph Walter</a>, still does. A little drinking water from Spokane, anyone?</span>Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-49240183615402565482014-10-15T20:41:00.002-04:002014-10-15T22:25:17.993-04:00Looking forward 1.27.15<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-52528359163680226222014-10-11T20:37:00.000-04:002014-10-11T23:29:23.273-04:00Meeting A Great One, King of Roadkill Tales<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As a long-time reader and fan of Carl Hiaasen, it was great to finally meet him recently at a book-signing in Bethesda, MD. Hiaasen addressed some 250 fans, many of them kids, at the Bethesda Public Library Oct,. 7.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Like his other adult fans, I've been reading Hiaasen since way back in the <b>Double Whammy</b> days. That one's a personal fave, along with <b>Tourist Season, Skin Tight, Stormy Weather </b>and <b>Lucky You</b>. I was reminded about <b>Strip Tease</b> and its movie during his verrrry dry talk. And I never even knew he was a co-writer of the Michael J. Fox movie <b>Doc Hollywood.</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What I do know, which was reinforced this night, is that Hiaasen has a whole new generation of fans coming up, and they're starting early, from the look of things, in about sixth grade<b>. </b>I introduced my own son, now 23, to Hiaasen when <b>Hoot</b> came out. Until this week I didn't even know Hoot was made into a movie, or that it is based on actual events from Hiassen's boyhood. More importantly for this quasi-Parrothead, I didn't know Jimmy Buffett figures prominently in <b>Flush</b>, the book, the movie, the music. Jimmy Buffett as a science teacher? Where have I have been?!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Determined to catch up quickly, I ordered Hiaasen's latest kid's book (Middle Grade to Young Adult) <b>Skink No Surrender</b>. Hiaasen's signing landed on the calendar before I had the chance to read it. The eager, young faces in the audience Tuesday with their sincere questions left no doubt this will be great. How could it not be -- Hiaasen brings back his wacked-out renegade roadkill-eating runaway former Florida governor, now known famously, and only, as Skink. Gotta love it. Hiaasen's advice to a budding junior author in the group who earnestly asked for writing advice? "Don't write about roadkill," he deadpanned.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hiaasen shared more dry stories from his writing life, including the inspiration for other characters and stories, how he got into children's books, and his sometimes nutty fan following. His discipline to write every day, good or bad, want to or not, comes from his experience as a daily newspaper journalist, he said. Hiassen remains equally well-known for his columns in the <b>Miami Herald</b>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And stories involving roadkill.</span> Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-18581699224506350172014-09-24T01:32:00.000-04:002014-09-24T01:42:18.413-04:00A Shout-Out to Editor- Author Jen Malone!<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I first joined Twitter, one of the people I met was author <a href="http://www.jenmalonewrites.com/" target="_blank">Jen Malone</a>. Her author website drew me in. Then I read her bio and found there was a long version and a short version-- an official bio and a not-so-official bio. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jen's entire bio is enchanting. Here's an example:<i> "</i></span></span><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span">I met my husband on the
highway. Literally. He passed my car and I made a face at him (I was
with my BFF and we sometimes- fine, often- did
silly stuff like make faces at total strangers). Then HE made a face
back at me the next time we passed, which was both nerdy and cool. I
happen to like nerdy and cool. So I wrote my BFF's cell phone number
(because this was the Dark Ages and I didn't own a cell phone yet) on a
piece of paper and held it up to the window. He called. We married.
There was some dating in between."</span></span></span></i><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span">This person was already Double-AA-OK in my book!</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Then in the run-up to <a href="http://www.brenda-drake.com/pitch-wars/" target="_blank">#PitchWars</a> on Twitter, Jen graciously offered free critiques for query letters. I sent her the query letter for the book I am now writing. While <i>free</i> is always good, as starving artists will agree, what struck me about Jen's offer was not the price but the spirit in which it was offered.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span">The comments she offered on that query letter were fact-based, on the skill of writing, rather than personal-opinion based. She kept her suggestions upbeat and encouraging while still noting what could and should be fixed. She was professional, delivering much-needed advice and support at the same time. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span">I've paid much more for advice that was delivered in a snarky, personal-opinion-based manner and was much more critical than constructive. I say, bring on all the criticism you can to help me make the work better, as long as it is <i>constructive</i>.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Given Jen's style, it is no surprise I gravitated to her editing <a href="http://www.jenmaloneblogs.com/" target="_blank">"un-blog,"</a> as she calls it. There, she posts excerpts from posts she has contributed to other writing blogs, and it is where she houses her editing services. I'm excited to say Jen will be taking her red pen to <b>Boxed Set</b>'s first 50 pages and its query letter. I'm excited because I know her comments and constructive criticism can only serve to make the manuscript tighter and stronger and the query letter more compelling. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span">I'm thrilled to be meeting Jen this Friday at the <a href="http://www.baltimorebookfestival.com/" target="_blank">2014 Baltimore Book Festival</a>, in her hometown. Jen will be speaking 12-1 Friday Sept. 26 at the Enoch-Pratt Library's children's stage and signing her book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/At-Your-Service-Jen-Malone/dp/1481402838/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1411535955&sr=1-1&keywords=at+your+service" target="_blank"><b>At Your Service</b></a> afterwards. This may be her first book, which recently launched at the end of August 2014, but the amazing Jen has at least, count 'em, <i>four </i>more books on contract and coming out in the next couple of years. As if her previous life as a publicist for Miramax Films and 20th Century Fox was not exciting enough! </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Jen writes for 'tweens and teens--Middle Grade (MG) and Young Adult (YA) fiction. I just finished <b>At Your Service</b>, and although I exceed the target audience age range for MG by just a little bit, I was enthralled by this sweet story. The first three words of the book are: Oh. Holy. Yikes. I was a goner. The cover is just perfect also. No one is too old to enjoy this book. Judge for yourself. The blurb which follows is from Jen's site. The picture is of my copy, which I will be getting signed Friday for a special 'tween I know. I'm looking forward to getting to know Jen and working with her.</span></span></span><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span">"</span></span></span></i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="color_5"><span style="font-family: spinnaker,sans-serif;">Chloe
Turner has pretty much the BEST life. She gets to live in the super
fancy Hotel St. Michele, New York City is her home town and her dad
Mitchell Turner, concierge extraordinaire, is teaching her all the
secrets of the business so she can follow in his footsteps. After
helping him out with a particularly difficult kid client, Chloe is
appointed the official junior concierge tending to the hotel’s smallest,
though sometimes most demanding, guests.<br />
<br />
Her new position comes with tons of perks like cupcake parties,
backstage passes to concerts, and even private fittings with the hippest
clothing designers. But Chloe hasn’t faced her toughest challenge yet.
When three young royals, (including a real-life PRINCE!) come to stay,
Chloe’s determined to prove once and for all just how good she is at her
job. But the trip is a disaster, especially when the youngest
disappears. Now it’s up to Chloe to save the day. Can she find the
missing princess before it becomes international news?"</span></span></span></i></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="color_5"><span style="font-family: spinnaker,sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></i> </span></span>Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-8954768132774714002014-09-10T23:29:00.003-04:002014-09-10T23:34:16.097-04:00On Faith<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I had an opportunity to talk with author <a href="http://www.shawnvestal.com/" target="_blank">Shawn Vestal</a>, a columnist for the <a href="http://www.spokesman.com/" target="_blank">Spokesman-Review</a> in Spokane. Vestal's short story collection <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Godforsaken-Idaho-Shawn-Vestal/dp/0544027760/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1368487867&sr=1-1&keywords=godforsaken+idaho" target="_blank">Godforsaken Idaho</a> </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">was shortlisted for The Story Prize in 2014. It was longlisted for the
PEN/Robert W. Bingham award, and the William Saroyan International
Prize for Writing.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">His prose is magnificent; a joy to read. Exciting. The first story in the collection, "The First Several Hundred Years Following My Death," opens the book with much more than a bang. I kept re-reading passages for their beauty and new-ness. I dog-eared pages I couldn't wait to share. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As fellow Spokane author <a href="http://www.jesswalter.com/" target="_blank">Jess Walter</a> says on the back cover of Vestal's book, "Wickedly funny and surprisingly profound, these nine stories of prophets and parents, of doppelgangers and pocket dogs, form a thrilling introduction to one of the wryest, most inventive new voices in fiction."</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yes.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our conversation was not intended as an interview for this blog, nor to talk about his book, although it arrived in the mail the very afternoon we spoke. Instead, Vestal was kind enough to share his story of querying for an agent (and another agent) with me. Although his genre differs and his agent search was a short one (both times), the ultimate take-away I heard is this: keep the faith in your own project, and don't let too much outside noise erode that. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We also discussed the importance of an MFA for a serious writer. Vestal believes it was a great fit for his writing growth and career.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lastly, after a day and last few weeks when I've been consumed with writing critiques, challenges, contests such as <a href="http://www.brenda-drake.com/pitch-wars/" target="_blank">#PitchWars</a>, <a href="http://www.brenda-drake.com/pitmad/" target="_blank">#PitMad</a>, and Chum Bucket (from 'the' <a href="http://queryshark.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Query Shark</a>, Janet Reid), and considering which in-person writers' groups to attend via <a href="http://www.meetup.com/" target="_blank">MeetUp</a>, it was quite nice to stop and just listen. My visit with Vestal was calming yet exciting, re-affirming and inspiring.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Reading his collection later in the day was perfect timing; exciting, re-affirming and inspiring. Calming, it was not. In a good way.</span></span><br />
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Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-46261811178908482822014-08-24T02:06:00.001-04:002014-08-24T02:06:17.040-04:00Going the distance<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There were times when I thought <b>Boxed Set</b> might never be finished. More accurately, there was a period when I didn't know when it would be finished. I think the end was always more or less in mind, but the middle was stuck for quite some time. Now that it has been finished for awhile, left at room temperature and seriously edited, I wonder when the <i>next</i> book will be finished.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Instead of worrying when, if or how <b>Boxed Set</b> will be published, because I believe that it will, that it must be one way or another, I spend more time thinking about going the distance again in a second book. I am about 20,000 words in, and at this point 60-80,000 words seem a lofty goal.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As for <b>Boxed Set</b>, we hope to publish traditionally, but I know as a last resort it could be self-published. The digital age has made that much more sophisticated, attainable and easy to move right onto selling platforms. Still, for two journalists, traditional publishing has much more significance for us. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So query we will, and meanwhile, I write. Different genre, different style. Must. Keep. Writing. That's what every author advises.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As for what it takes to finish a novel, <a href="http://writerswrite.co.za/pages/about-amanda-patterson" target="_blank">Amanda Patterson</a> says on her blog, <a href="http://writerswrite.co.za/what-does-it-take-to-write-a-book-the-five-qualities-published-authors-share" target="_blank">Writers Write</a>, that the five necessary characteristics are self-belief, the ability to learn and grow, the ability to pay attention, perseverance and obsession.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since I've got perseverance and obsession pretty well covered, I need to remind myself what she says about self-belief. "</span><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Too much self-belief can make you blind to your shortcomings. You
can become convinced that your way is the only way. Authors who want to
publish know they are creating a product. If you’re writing for an
audience, you know that you have to consider what that audience wants.
This could mean <span style="color: black;">taking a writing class, </span>doing your own research, or reading books on how to write. If you want
to become an artist, you take art classes. If you want to learn how to
play a musical instrument, you take music lessons. Why would you believe
becoming a writer is any different? Being arrogant about your abilities
could lead to many wasted years."</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Patterson's thoughts on the <i>ability to pay attention</i> are interesting also. "Writers </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">are readers first. Reading is your first step in learning how to pay
attention. Published writers read a lot. Writers are also observers of
human nature and human behavior. The writers who succeed are curious as
to why people, including themselves, do the things they do. They want
to know what gives people pleasure and pain. They see patterns in
people’s lives. They listen to their words and see if their actions
follow what they say. They create characters who are real. If you want
to create a memorable book, watch and listen. Most of your material is
closer than you could ever imagine."</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">But my favorite thought from her article is really about obsession. It makes me feel good to be obsessed with our book. "It </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">is easy enough to write a bad book, but authors who make a living out of
writing spend an extraordinary amount of time and effort to get things
right. You should care about the final product. This is when being
obsessive is a good thing. Every rewrite, every edit, and every stage of
your book’s life should be important to you. No mistake, no matter how
insignificant, should escape your notice."</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue",Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The above tells me I am right on track to go the distance, and I'm loving every step of the process. </span></span>Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-37661403223033828132014-08-17T23:05:00.002-04:002014-08-23T18:34:57.559-04:00On Wound and Want, and Comps, again.<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In a flurry of editing for the <a href="http://www.brenda-drake.com/pitch-wars/" target="_blank">#PitchWars</a> deadline 8.18.14 in the Twitter-sphere, I've been trading critiques with other writers, published authors and <a href="http://www.brenda-drake.com/2014/08/pitch-wars-mentor-wishlist-blog-hop/" target="_blank">mentee</a> hopefuls like me, and seeking feedback from a second round of beta readers (gamma readers?) and even neighbors. Sent the manuscript last night to my son, 23, who promised he and a friend would both read and report back.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I asked in the supportive environment on Twitter where writers gather under hashtags like <a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=realtime&q=%23amwriting&src=tyah" target="_blank">#amwriting</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/pitchwars?f=realtime&src=hash" target="_blank">#PitchWars</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=realtime&q=%23pitchwarssupportgroup&src=tyah" target="_blank">#pitchwarssupport group</a>, and more, how much advice is too much? </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Turns out the unanimous answer was: no amount of advice from fellow writers, published or not, is too much. But, said one person responding, you still have to consider your own manuscript. Well, geez. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So as I sort through the critique notes, print them out so I can see them all together, and as I type up other notes, some from phone advice by a multi-awarded best-selling author, I am "considering" the manuscript we've completed for <b>Boxed Set</b>, before I start any surgery.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One interesting expression from all of this stands out.I have a scrap of paper from a note I took a couple weeks ago. "Remember the Wound and the Want." I love that! It was from <a href="http://www.lorigoldsteinbooks.com/" target="_blank">Lori Goldstein</a> on <a href="http://www.yatopia.blogspot.com/2014/01/the-wound-and-want-how-to-breathe-life.html" target="_blank">YATopia</a>.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As explained, the intensity of <i>want</i> which the main character experiences is key for the reader. It instills doubt in the reader about whether the protagonist can achieve whatever it is, the more intensely he wants it. This also creates needed tension in the plot, especially if circumstances conspire to thwart the main character's achievement(s).</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The <i>wound</i> is the thing that makes them want. It's that situation, happening, antagonist, set-up that causes the main character to have to do something. The wound also provides the depth to the story, the motive(s) and back-story. Gotta have that.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So as I study our Jack Wroblesky and Holly Anderson, I'm looking to see if we have fully-captured their <i>Wound and Want</i>. I love a great saying, especially when it speaks to me loudly and clearly.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In an earlier post, I mentioned <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Financial-Lives-Poets-Novel/dp/0061916056/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1408330369&sr=8-1&keywords=the+financial+lives+of+the+poets" target="_blank">The Financial Lives of the Poets: A Novel</a> by <a href="http://www.jesswalter.com/" target="_blank">Jess Walter</a>, which was suggested as a similar theme to <b>Boxed Set</b>, a comp, then. I finished reading it, and haven't found a book I have loved so, so much in many years. It's just a beautiful piece of literary fiction, and so damn funny at the very same time the prose is making your heart swell. It's only a comp in terms of theme: unemployed, sometime hapless journalist. Our book is not literary fiction, and even if it were, I could not compare it to Walter's book. That would require hubris. Another unemployed journalist, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_kk_3?rh=i%3Astripbooks%2Ck%3Alaura+lippman+tess+monaghan+in+order&keywords=laura+lippman+tess+monaghan+in+order&ie=UTF8&qid=1408334049" target="_blank">Tess Monaghan</a>, leads the crime series novels of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Laura-Lippman/e/B000AQ51GM/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1408334075&sr=1-2-ent" target="_blank">Laura Lippman</a>, also a former <a href="http://www.baltimoresun.com/" target="_blank">Baltimore Sun</a> writer.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What I've also learned about comps is that it's important to find some comps in tone, rather than theme or even setting. I'd thought about searching for non-genre fiction set in the Midwest, until a very smart author-friend reminded me I should search for tone.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We've said before our book leans toward the humor of Hiassen or Dorsey, with a dose of reality and moral message. That may work, although our book does not open in a humorous spot. So the comp search continues...seeking a coming-of-age/second-time-around story for grown-ups in adult contemporary/commercial fiction. Not Young Adult (YA) or New Adult (NA). But our Jack is going to have to make himself into a *new* adult in this book. Different kind of new adult from the genre.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you have a suggestion, please leave a comment! And if you're the one who told me all about Wound and Want, let me know so I can credit you.</span></span>Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-71212089138432414352014-08-09T15:55:00.001-04:002014-08-12T23:53:21.608-04:00A wisp of an idea and then, 300 pages<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In pitching and querying <b>Boxed Set</b>, I've used the phrase, <i>based on actual events</i> and, <i>loosely based...</i></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We wrote the first half of this story about an unemployed journalist while one of us <i>was</i> an unemployed journalist. <a href="http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/sun-magazine/bs-sm-david-simon-20120513,0,5336130.story" target="_blank">David M. Ettlin</a>, a legend at <b>The Baltimore Sun</b>, describes </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">the day the real debacle hit its crescendo, on his blog <a href="http://ettlin.blogspot.com/2009/04/baltimore-sun-massacre.html" target="_blank">The Real Muck</a>. He uses the words <i>bloodbath</i> and <i>massacre</i>, and five years later they still do not seem like hyperbole. Print journalism was <i>having a moment</i> in 2008, 2009, and it hasn't gone away.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I had forgotten about Ettlin's blog post until recently, although I had read it a couple times in past years. Lived through April 29, 2009 with my co-author, who recovered very nicely and returned very successfully in 2010 to his first love, journalism, after six months of not working and a hateful one year on the dark side in PR.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The column resurfaced as I looked again at our protagonist, Jack Wroblesky, the out-of-work sports writer, to make sure his voice is as authentic as possible. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But the key reference in Ettlin's column is not about my co-author. It is this: </span></span><a href="http://ettlin.blogspot.com/2009/04/baltimore-sun-massacre.html" target="_blank"><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Wednesday afternoon, (sportswriter Rick) Maese was back at work at Oriole Park doing an interview when he got the news of his layoff by telephone, according to accounts from colleagues at the newspaper.</span></span></i></a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Boxed Set</b> is not about Maese either.</span></span><i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></span></i><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We heard about what happened to him when it happened, but we also learned of and heard from too many other journalists in the same predicament Ettlin describes, and not just at the <b>Sun</b>. And specifically there were others notified by cell phone while out in the trenches covering the news they had been assigned to cover: sportswriters, photographers, top editors. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These threads wove themselves together into the first tiny swatch of an idea for our book. And then we ran with it, adding the color to make it fiction. Fiction based on fact.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The second half of the book and the ending happened when we were both gainfully employed, one of us back in journalism and one (me) working in the field of sales and marketing, a fairly distant cousin several times removed from our matching undergrad journalism degrees. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Interestingly, once the book was finished, shelved and waiting for edits, I also lost my job in a so-called layoff or downsizing: a financial decision by my large hospital system-employer, just one of so many overgrown entities falling victim to the same overarching issues and diseases as print journalism. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So although I couldn't know internally whereof I wrote in the beginning, I quite unexpectedly got to know whereof I edited after. And still do. I'm not sure an attack on one's beloved profession and individual employment status is ever really forgotten. It's tucked away when a new job is gained, but it's near enough to inspire us to avoid unemployment in the future. As if we have full control of that. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After about seven months off for me in 2013-2014, when work on <b>Boxed Set</b> was too far from either of our minds, my own unemployment stint has informed the return to edits and shopping the book. Unemployment leaves you <i>hungry</i>. Inspired. And hopefully, a little smarter.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today, I am a little smarter and a lot happier/sadder, having just finished <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Financial-Lives-Poets-Novel/dp/0061916056/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1407613781&sr=8-1&keywords=the+financial+lives+of+the+poets" target="_blank"><b>The Financial Lives of the Poets</b></a> by <a href="http://www.jesswalter.com/" target="_blank">Jess Walter</a>, a smart, hip, literary genius rock star of a writer with whom I am enamored now and forever. His unemployed journalist Matt Prior is a little bit of all of us, journo and non-. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In a related non-fiction endeavor, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/warren.watson" target="_blank">Warren Watson</a>, </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">another journo who is six degrees to <a href="http://cms.bsu.edu/" target="_blank">Ball State University</a> and a</span></span> former executive director for the <a href="http://www.sabew.orf/" target="_blank">Society of American Business Editors and Writers</a>, is working on a book, <b>Surviving Journalism</b>, due out in 2015. And see more here at <a href="http://surviving-journalism.com/the-book/" target="_blank">Out of the News</a>, a book and blog by <a href="http://surviving-journalism.com/category/blog/" target="_blank">Celia Wexler</a>.</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i> </i></span></span>Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-29503577665656818152014-08-02T14:48:00.000-04:002014-08-17T23:09:13.032-04:00In the search for comps, one is foundIt was suggested to me today that this little tale might be unbelievable. Discussing the novel last night at length with a new old friend and fellow journalist, a mention of author <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jess-Walter/e/B000APTHRC/ref=dp_byline_cont_book_1">Jess Walter</a> was made. When receiving back a paid-for query- and synopsis-edit this morning from writing coach <a href="https://twitter.com/larathelark" target="_blank">Lara Willard</a>, she suggested I check out Jess Walter's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Financial-Lives-Poets-Novel/dp/0061916056/ref=la_B000APTHRC_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1407003613&sr=1-2" target="_blank">The Financial Lives of the Poets: A Novel</a>. <br />
<br />
I am embarrassed to say that until yesterday I was not familiar with the work of Jess Walter. So I honed in on his latest, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Beautiful-Ruins-Novel-Jess-Walter/dp/0061928178/ref=la_B000APTHRC_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1407003613&sr=1-1" target="_blank">Beautiful Ruins: A Novel</a>, hoping to lose myself on the Amalfi Coast or in someone else's romance.<br />
<br />
Then I read the summary for <b>The Financial Lives of the Poets</b>. And got goosebumps.<br />
<br />
This is the Amazon synopsis:<b> "<i>The Financial Lives of the Poets</i> is a comic and heartfelt novel from National Book Award nominee Jess Walter, author of <i>Citizen Vince</i> and <i>The Zero</i>, about how we get to the edge of ruin—and how we begin to make our way back.</b><br />
<b>Walter
tells the story of Matt Prior, who’s losing his job, his wife, his
house, and his mind—until, all of a sudden, he discovers a way that he
might just possibly be able to save it all . . . and have a pretty damn
great time doing it."</b><br />
<br />
The search for any comps for <b>Boxed Set</b> has been a challenge. Tagging on to the tails or tales of<a href="http://www.carlhiaasen.com/" target="_blank"> Carl Hiassen</a>, <a href="http://www.timdorsey.com/" target="_blank">Tim Dorsey</a> and <a href="http://www.chrismoore.com/" target="_blank">Christopher Moore</a> either for humor or moral messages delivered with a light hand, felt just okay, not exactly right.<br />
<br />
Before I go on, let me say that in finding comps (comparable titles) a writer, especially a debut author, does not mean to assume 'Gilt by Association.' Hiassen, Dorsey and Moore, as well as Walter now, are best-selling authors I admire from afar. I don't seek to imitate or even emulate, or imply that I could.<br />
<br />
Nevertheless, agents will ask authors about comps for their work. This, not only to ensure the author is a well-informed, well-rounded reader and current member of the human race, but more importantly, to figure out where the proposed or queried novel would fit upon a bookstore shelf. Are there too many books like it already? How big is the potential audience for a work like this? Can the agent successfully sell this work to a publisher? Can the agent or publisher gain shelf space for it with book-sellers?<br />
<br />
So I've been looking endlessly for a good comp (or two) and somehow missed Jess Walter's <b>The Financial Lives of the Poets: A Novel.</b> I wonder how fast I can get it into my hands and my head? And heart? I'd buy it for my Kindle right this minute, but I have this 'thing' that important books have to be held and felt, and slept with, and inhaled. Soonest.<br />
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<br />Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-65639632920574011602014-08-01T15:30:00.000-04:002014-08-12T23:52:45.657-04:00The query for our novel<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
I promised earlier a peek into <b>Boxed Set</b>. This is an except from our query letter to agents and publishers. Would <i>you</i> want to read this novel? Leave us a comment and tell us why or why not.<br />
<br />
Sports writer Jack Wroblesky thought his life was dandy. Tolerable, at
least. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sufficient</i>.<br />
<br />
Twenty-plus years as a journalist, awards, his face on local billboards and
a city bus, nuclear family plus dog, swimming pool, dream car. He takes it all
in stride and for granted until, within a few mind-boggling days, all that he
had is suddenly gone or out of reach.<br />
<br />
Very far out of reach: Jack’s job is abruptly eliminated, he is without available
cash or access to any, his car stripped of its wheels and vandalized. He gets
served with divorce papers and kicked out of his own house…swindled by his
spiteful, soon-to-be ex-wife and father-in-law…just for losing the job, status
and income his Ice Princess wife demanded.<br />
<br />
As he follows a homeless man to an outdoor shelter in the Chicago suburbs,
Jack can’t imagine his life turning around <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">there</i>.
But thanks to some intervention from the unlikeliest of characters, and the
affection of Holly Anderson, a charming lab tech at the local plasma center
where he sells his blood for cash to survive, Jack’s on his way to finding a
much more meaningful, satisfying and successful life.<br />
<br />
An almost-forgotten family connection to the late Beat Generation Author Jack
Kerouac proves both eerily significant and financially valuable as Jack uses
his writing skills and heart to turn around his own dire situation and that of
the local homeless. His new job will be nothing he ever could have imagined.<br />
<br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Boxed Set</b> is a
contemporary fiction work, written from our own
experiences as "down-sized" journalists and loosely based on actual
events. The all-too-relatable themes of unemployment, financial hardship and
self-doubt are balanced with a healthy dose of humor as well as family,
friendship and love in this fast-paced story of redemption with a surprising
but realistic and satisfying conclusion.<br />
<br />
Stayed tuned for many more writing tips we've gathered and gleaned from published experts, and excepts from <b>Boxed Set</b>. <br />
Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-14470401997248425542014-07-24T23:51:00.000-04:002014-08-12T23:52:45.628-04:00So We Wrote A Book. Now What?<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Yep. So....</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We wrote a book.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But is it really, <i>really</i> a book until it is published, printed, bound up with a cover and a spine and some smart author photos and snappy blurbs, and offered up for sale on someone's, anyone's website or on a real, live bookshelf somewhere, anywhere?</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That's the problem. It's not yet really a book to me. We need to make it real.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's.....well, it's just a thing right now.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's a zillion different documents stored between two or three different computers. It's 73,423 words, big and little. It's 302 printed pages, and a goofy art collage I made to stand in for a real cover.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's a scrap of torn paper with
the very first ideas and notes we brainstormed during a six-hour road
trip, top-down, headed south on a beautiful spring day. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's an important thing for certain; it's one of the most fulfilling things I've done so far in my life. Just as other writers call their project "my baby," this thing most definitely feels like a child. I want to protect and nurture it until it is ready to go out into the world. I only want what's best for it. It's a Love Child. It doesn't just <i>feel</i> like something we conceived and birthed and bathed in love. It is.</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Writers talk about <i>sweat equity</i> and <i>blood, sweat and tears</i> while putting their words down in hopes of creating a book. There was no sweat here; only love. This project was a work of love from the first inkling of an idea to the final edit. There was no bloodshed nor tears.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There are two of us, my co-author and I, to agree with every concept, every character, every chapter; to agree to a beginning, middle and end. I had expected writing a book could leave one of us with a murder conviction and/or one less friend. For two Type A writers who might have been expected to walk 20 paces in opposite directions and duel over every page, writing the book was a surprising gift. It was a gift of love to each other in the truest sense. An individual dream, shared, respected, handled carefully, and brought to fruition with the help of a best friend -- what could be a greater gift?</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ideas were jotted down as fast as we could play them off each other, more than five years ago now. Writing was done in inspired fits and spurts, wedged between work, unemployment and job searches, sports, children, Midwest to East Coast travels and back, and electronic swapping of notes, ideas and full chapters. For three months' time in 2009 and another three months in 2011, we banged and pinged and zinged along on our keyboards, 600 miles apart and completely connected. So smoothly did we trade back and forth that three years later it is hard to remember who wrote which chapter. We truly became one voice for the project. And it was exhilarating!</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">From the beginning of 2012 until the end of June 2014 we let it set, gel, percolate and any other word to choose so as not to say: life got in the way and we neglected the work. Neglected may be harsh; we simply chose to let it rest by not choosing to do anything with it. Now, more than five full years since our first discussion and <i>what if?</i>, the project is new and exciting to us again. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The same inspired blended voice was just waiting for us; edits were easy, obvious, made sense and were agreeable. A re-organization of chapters and a new starting point were unanimous. So we're ready to see our gift to each other become a real book. Our baby is a toddler now: standing up, eager to run, ready to see the world. It's time to let go.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-26916536017449278142012-02-11T17:35:00.001-05:002014-08-12T23:52:45.632-04:00Friends in a No-Friends WorldIt was the first class of the first day of the first year of college at Ball State University, minds more open than our eyes as our group of 20-some aspiring Woodwards and Bernsteins scanned the room for any sign of familiarity or reassurance. Journalism 110 professor Ken Atwell was having none of this babes-in-the-wood thing. A crusty police reporter who'd moved into academia after a long career at the Kokomo, Indiana, <strong>Tribune</strong>, Atwell was as Joe Friday as the people he'd covered. No actor had ever played Ken Atwell in a movie; that wasn't the journalism he knew, and if we were looking for glamour, he was going to disabuse us of that right away.<br />
<br />
"A good journalist," Atwell began, straightening his 6-3 frame and pausing for effect, "has no friends." <br />
<br />
Eyes darted about the room. As I panned left, doing my best not to appear to be turning away from Professor Atwell's gaze toward the first row, there she was, panning right, toward me. <br />
<br />
Not that I hadn't noticed on the way in. Blond pigtails, Love's Baby Soft T-shirt, ripped jeans, and a smile that caused temporary breathing stoppage - the stuff of a hundred teen-geek movies playing out in front of Ken Atwell. Our eyes met. And we fought not to crack up.<br />
<br />
So was the nature of the casual friendship between Gina Spradlin and me in the mere 2 1/2 years before -- in her earnestness to move on with life -- she graduated cum laude after just five semesters, got married to the fiance as planned, a week after receiving her diploma, had two kids, and displayed the good sense to understand there was something to all that stuff Atwell had loaded on us about the thankless, lonely life of a journalist. I could never understand why she was so doggone serious, why she was in so much of a damned hurry; why she had to be, well, too smart and too pretty to be attainable. We were always friendly, but never close.<br />
<br />
I caught a brief glimpse of her almost two years later when I arrived for an interview at the newspaper in Warsaw, Indiana, where she worked. We hadn't stayed in touch - there was no reason to - so seeing her was a surprise. We didn't have time for anything more than a passing hello as she ran off to cover a story. I was offered the job, but turned it down after being offered $20 a week more by another paper 30 miles away.<br />
<br />
I wouldn't see Gina Spradlin again for 28 years.Berniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15980171774276094856noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-68246539252822793692012-02-07T09:37:00.002-05:002014-08-12T23:52:45.662-04:00We just wanted to write<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggCNRSfI3FIv98mnBsyVun-mmhBR1_5TbtIeo04eF90-uNYRF-Sm_88_M9Ut9cjxQiH4us0gMvnu_Bkgg3k25tS1n4ntsx0zY3vN9ivmrD09MVl0Uadc02nawCP7ZLDezh-o0vvPggxV9T/s1600/nerd2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggCNRSfI3FIv98mnBsyVun-mmhBR1_5TbtIeo04eF90-uNYRF-Sm_88_M9Ut9cjxQiH4us0gMvnu_Bkgg3k25tS1n4ntsx0zY3vN9ivmrD09MVl0Uadc02nawCP7ZLDezh-o0vvPggxV9T/s320/nerd2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwyiJmvBS1EmJHLiEwQso3ic1hlWK081WMFxYQXvFXCoscut9bQQVKM7yEN_QxkehQWdDUu73QR0EhyphenhyphenWZ1HsZYcmYj5TCNkrP77jaQDUzbGIb31WP0DJtf_wFyOB4f8SyoIoL7x1gHv5xx/s1600/pianist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwyiJmvBS1EmJHLiEwQso3ic1hlWK081WMFxYQXvFXCoscut9bQQVKM7yEN_QxkehQWdDUu73QR0EhyphenhyphenWZ1HsZYcmYj5TCNkrP77jaQDUzbGIb31WP0DJtf_wFyOB4f8SyoIoL7x1gHv5xx/s320/pianist.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>We joke about having been nerds in school, but maybe we were just good kids given great opportunities by our parents and teachers. Being born in 1960 on the tail end of the Baby Boom generation allowed us to be both disproportionately indulged and constantly challenged to realize every potential.<br />
Being an oldest son or a first girl/baby-of-the-family daughter brought its own indulgences and the mantle of our parents' dreams for us. I remember being told quite often that I was going to be Miss America as well as the first female president of the United States. Not a casual pat on the head, this was routine reinforcement on almost a weekly basis from parents, grandparents and teachers. I don't know if I ever believed it, because I wasn't much interested in either title. Oh, the beauty pageant crown might have meant I wasn't as nerdy as I felt, but it would have required a talent. And not being able to carry a tune, dance with any rhythm despite years of lessons, or play a musical instrument after four years with a hateful clarinet kept me from the sash and sceptor. Besides, who could go on stage and demonstrate <em>writing a story</em>?<br />
Writing really was what I wanted to do. I told myself I would write a book <em>some day</em>. I made up assignments for myself over summer breaks (nerd). While other kids were raking in the cash from babysitting, I collected 30 cents an inch through high school writing for the local daily. I wrote <em>really long</em> features. Truly. Often I was given <em>an entire page</em> in the newspaper, since none of the other youth correspondents turned in any copy.<br />
Besides news and feature writing, I got interested in poetry when a visiting writer came to my sophomore honors English class. <a href="http://faculty.dslcc.edu/tvanlear/precis.htm">Margaret K. Woodworth</a> from the <a href="http://www.indiana.edu/~polishst/Artist%20in%20Residence.shtml">Artists in Residence</a> program through Indiana University inspired my creative side and selected one of my poems to be published in a book she was doing. I've never forgotten that and still have the book, called <strong>Indiana Writes</strong>. My poetry was later published in the daily newspaper and helped me earn the <a href="http://www.diannedrake.com/news.html">Rylan Harris Memorial Scholarship</a> to the <a href="http://www.midwestwriters.org/">Midwest Writers Workshop</a> in 2009.<br />
I was also encouraged to write fiction and turned out plenty of short stories as well as an epic poem combining styles of John Milton and Alexander Pope. The subject matter concerned sylphs (fairies) helping princesses maintain lovely fingernails. By then people had stopped predicting I would be the first female POTUS.<br />
Although newspaper was my first love during college and immediately after, I kept up my poetry and my creative writing efforts. And while serving as an associate editor for <a href="http://www.timesuniononline.com/">The Warsaw Times-Union</a>, I was also a stringer for <a href="http://www.news-sentinel.com/">The Fort Wayne News-Sentinel</a> and an occasional correspondent for <a href="http://www.southbendtribune.com/">The South Bend Tribune.</a><br />
While working in Warsaw I was forced to improve my photojournalism skills above the 'C' I earned in college. Reporters at small-town dailies were expected to be one-man bands. We covered the story, shot accompanying pictures, typed up our copy, and in some cases, broadcasted a radio version of the news ourselves. Somehow I had managed to get through both high school and college, as a journalism major, without ever touching a computer or taking a typing class. Computers -- the first Macintoshes -- arrived at <a href="http://www.bsu.edu/">Ball State University's</a> journalism department just after I graduated in the fall of 1980. Keyboarding proficiency testing was also implemented after I left. As for cameras, by the time I got my first full-time newspaper gig in Warsaw, I had advanced from a cheap used 35mm SLR to the company's exotic and large <a href="http://www.hasselbladusa.com/">Hasselblad</a> camera, which I wore around my neck with pride. Yes, that is <em>camera</em> <em>singular</em>. The newspaper owned one camera.<br />
When I moved into public relations in 1985 as a director for the local school system, there was plenty of writing to be done: news releases hand carried to the newspaper I had just left, annual reports, brochures; I created a corporation newsletter for our several hundred employees. From there it was a similar job and similar writing for the local hospital for three years, before a one-year stint at an advertising agency - the single year in my 32-year career where I worked for a for-profit company.<br />
A turn from PR and marketing into non-profit healthcare group purchasing meant less writing so I replaced news releases with blogging, beginning in 2007. While creating three different blogs myself, I also edited or contributed to several different national blogs. I edited a poetry blog and managed an ongoing daily group poem effort with contributors from around the world. At the same time I also wrote book reviews and travel articles for the still-highly regarded <a href="http://vintageindie.typepad.com/vintage_indie/about_.html">Vintage Indie blog</a>, founded by <a href="http://vintageindie.typepad.com/vintage_indie/about_.html">Gabreial Wyatt</a>.<br />
I also managed to squeeze in a little poetry and short story writing as well as non-fiction, having an article about Fiestaware published in <a href="http://www.romantichomes.com/current.html">Romantic Homes</a> magazine. By then my partner-in-writing, Bernie Kohn, served as my unofficial editor before I submitted the article. And although my other creative outlet became making art (jewelry, painting, drawing, mixed media collage, assemblage and more), I had -- mostly in secret -- never once given up the idea of writing a book. In 2007-08 I dabbled with some proposals for how-to art books while artist friends were getting published. While I did manage to get some of my artwork published, I never followed through on the book proposals. But I held onto the dream of a fiction novel, writing ever longer short stories as a warm-up of sorts.<br />
When I encountered my Journalism 110 classmate again, 28 years after that first day of college, it wasn't very long until we started talking about not only our careers but our work left to be done: hopes and dreams. Seems we had a little intersection at "always wanted to write a book" and off we went.Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-29212552891470057412012-02-05T09:57:00.004-05:002014-08-12T23:52:45.638-04:00Bernie's path to the pen<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirfQu7qOIMG13O2QQoZ4YzVtdMFc5SyIqPqqcMxL6NcWBkqZ9CBO427xhYlfV5pXmaHbzsvBebdYTFr1DCQXOl9EGov8lj2tOcPwNO-ys4OgI-d2DOSpa_5xJI_lLSuO6YO1cQUIS_R5Da/s1600/Sr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirfQu7qOIMG13O2QQoZ4YzVtdMFc5SyIqPqqcMxL6NcWBkqZ9CBO427xhYlfV5pXmaHbzsvBebdYTFr1DCQXOl9EGov8lj2tOcPwNO-ys4OgI-d2DOSpa_5xJI_lLSuO6YO1cQUIS_R5Da/s320/Sr.jpg" width="256" /></a></div>I decided to change the world in seventh grade by ending the Vietnam War. I knew I had all the answers and those clueless adults didn't. This was an attitude that had made me a semi-regular in the office of James Bowen, the principal of Van Antwerp Junior High School in Schenectady, New York, as he would remind me years later when I encountered him by happenstance. Mr. Bowen had little patience for seventh-grade lawyer wannabes. Fortunately, my English teacher, Dorothy Meyer, either believed in my own self-importance or was willing to let me make a fool of myself trying to show it.<br />
<br />
The day before our three-page writing assigments were to be returned, Mrs. Meyer asked me to stay after class. I couldn't imagine what I'd done to piss Mr. Bowen off this time. Instead, she told me it was one of the best assignments she'd seen in her teaching career. I showed great promise as a writer, she said, and that she wanted to encourage me in that direction. Whether Mrs. Meyer really saw something in me or was merely displaying a bias - years later, I learned she was my aunt's college roommate - didn't and doesn't matter. Before long, I was spending my "draw-off" period in the school library reading coverage of the war and of a certain break-in at a Washington office building that seemed to involve the President of the United States in ways I couldn't yet grasp.<br />
<br />
My parents, sister, brother and I listened to President Nixon's resignation speech on a handheld radio while eating Kentucky Fried Chicken on the floor of an unfurnished house the day we moved from Schenectady to the eastern Ohio town of <a href="http://www.visitcoshocton.com/">Coshocton</a>. I was hours away from leaving my mentor, Mrs. Meyer, not to see her again until my wedding 13 years later, and yet my life's course was set. Woodward and Bernstein had brought down a president, and it was the coolest thing in the world. On my first day at <a href="http://www.coshoctonredskins.com/coshoctonhighschool_home.aspx">Coshocton High School</a> three weeks later, a strange kid in a strange town sought out the one place that seemed familiar - the journalism/school newspaper room of Mr. Jeffrey Watson.<br />
<br />
Thirty-four years later, the craft still calls. With the exception of a single year, when I took a government communication job out of desperation following a layoff, I've been a journalist since the day I walked into Mr. Watson's room in the fall of 1974. Reporting and writing has been my way of exploring the world and finding my place in it.<br />
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Mrs. Meyer, thanks for not sending me to the principal's office.Berniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15980171774276094856noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-79396526483801241922012-02-04T11:26:00.003-05:002014-08-12T23:52:45.672-04:00A writer is born and wrapped in newsprint (but so are fish)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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My first real memory of wanting to be a writer or journalist is from eighth grade. Oh sure, I'd always loved literature, grammar, even spelling -- from the first day of kindergarten. And no one would dispute I was an A+ teacher's pet (a.k.a. Suck-Up). That sucking up paid off when my eighth grade art teacher took me under her wing and directed me to the school newspaper, which she sponsored.<br />
I don't even think I displaced any freshmen when, within a few days after volunteering, I was not only writing but typing the entire thing. We used some kind of multi-part legal-size blue tissue "thingy" to type on, the kind that required a special liquid to repair the tissue in the event of a typo. Having never had a typing lesson (as it was called then, as opposed to keyboarding), I ruined many an expensive master with globs of correction fluid. The paper was run off on a Gestetner machine and hand-stapled. I was in love immediately, although I felt more like I was playing teacher than a 13-year-old Lois Lane, since I got to hang out in the teachers' work room to copy and assemble my new baby.<br />
Two junior high years of newspaper staff pointed me directly to journalism classes in high school, even with a healthy dose of drama club and lead roles that might have lead me elsewhere. I was smitten with covering and reporting the news! I also didn't mind editorializing- awarding "Onions or Orchids" to anyone and anything around the school I deemed worthy.<br />
In <a href="http://www.and.lib.in.us/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=195&Itemid=295">high school</a> I was lucky enough to be able to take a journalism class every semester for three years and to have a journalism teacher who took me under his wing. I owe my college choice, academic scholarship and early career to the late Mr. Lee Pursley, an Ernie Pyle sort who also taught me to play euchre in our spare time. And he taught me everything very well.<br />
At the same time I studied journalism and ascended the ranks of our school newsletter, <b>The X-Ray</b>, I also wrote for the literary magazine, <b>The Little Chief</b>, and worked on the News Bureau. I had a wonderful creative writing teacher, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=1523114369">Toni Shoemaker</a>, and a masterful honors English teacher, Dr. Susan Mullarkey, both of whom still cheer me on today.<br />
While serving as editor-in-chief of both the school newspaper and literary magazine at the same time, I didn't have enough high school periods left to both run the News Bureau and take all the classes I wanted (not <i>needed</i>), so I convinced the school system to let me take two classes during the same period with the blessing of both teachers. Told ya, first class suck-up!<br />
I also managed to find time in my school day to go across town to the vocational school, where <b>The X-Ray</b> was printed so I could generally bug the daylights out of the print shop teacher, a grouchy old cuss who somehow found the patience to teach me about printing and finishing in his spare time. I'm <i>very</i> young, but old enough to have seen both hot and cold type being set! Egads, my kids would think I went to school with Gutenberg, and no, not Steve.<br />
My fondest memory of that adventure was driving the student teacher's very hot and very new red Firebird to the print shop and ending up in a snow bank facing a fence. No harm done to the car, and the student teacher went on to become managing editor of the local daily, the Anderson Herald, now <a href="http://heraldbulletin.com/">Herald-Bulletin</a>, where I was a youth correspondent for three years, working with the likes of <a href="http://authorsjustwrite.blogspot.com/2008/01/holly-miller-author-and-editor.html">Holly Miller</a>, a future author and editor for <a href="http://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/">The Saturday Evening Post</a>.<br />
One of my fellow editors-in-chief two years ahead of me at The X-Ray went on to become Washington DC Bureau Chief for Bloomberg News, where he recently worked with my <a href="http://sabew.org/2010/11/former-sabew-president-returns-to-journalism/">co-author</a> before moving on to The New York Times. If I was a geek back in the day, so were you, <a href="http://www.politico.com/blogs/michaelcalderone/0210/Changes_coming_to_Bloombergs_DC_bureau_.html">Mike Tackett</a>!<br />
All this writing stuff did get me the <a href="http://cms.bsu.edu/AdmissionsLanding/ScholarshipsandFinancialAid/TypesofAid/Scholarships/BallStateScholarships/JohnREmensandAlineBEmensScholarships.aspx">Emens Scholarship</a>, a nearly full-ride academic scholarship to <a href="http://cms.bsu.edu/">Ball State University</a> in Muncie, IN and the <a href="http://www.bsu.edu/libraries/archives/findingaids/RG-09-20-12.html">Sharley B. DeMotte</a> (not Shirley) honorary journalism scholarship. (Honorary scholarship = oxymoron). On a sunny fall day in September 1978 looking as I did pictured here, I drove my metallic turquoise Mustang hatchback (geek) 20 minutes east to college, having decided to commute for the first quarter (who knows why?).<br />
I am sure I parked my car plenty early to get a front row seat for my 8 a.m. Journalism 110 (newswriting) class with legendary professor <a href="http://newspaperarchive.com/kokomo-tribune/1998-04-04/page-12/">Ken Atwell</a>. Although the class was taught by a memorable graduate assistant, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/fred.blevens" target="_blank">Fred Blevens</a>, it was Atwell who kept me on my newspaper course, cheering on my dream of being the next <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_the_President%27s_Men">Woodward or Bernstein</a>.<br />
Atwell helped me get my first paying internship at <a href="http://www.timesuniononline.com/">The Warsaw Times-Union</a>, a daily which has touched my life every day since. A second summer there allowed me not only more experience, pay and college credit, but also counted towards a separate diploma from the <a href="http://cms.bsu.edu/Academics/CollegesandDepartments/HonorsCollege.aspx">Honors College</a> as an independent class and allowed me to test out of feature writing for still more credit. I'm seeing my own pattern here: not much patience for sitting still or spending four years <i>locked away</i> at high school <i>or</i> college when I could be out <i>beating the streets for news!</i><br />
While at BSU two other professors had lasting impact. <a href="http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=1496058033">Lois Breiner</a> sponsored the literary magazine and put me to work on it. Gerry Chaney instilled in me a lifetime love of hyper-correct grammar, punctuation and copy-editing. I probably would have pursued that direction had I not loved to write so very much.<br />
With college diploma firmly in hand, I returned to the Warsaw newspaper just a couple weeks after early graduation in 1980, where I remained until 1985 when I moved into public relations. As the first person in my family or on either parent's side as far back as known to graduate from college, you could have popped my puffed up little head with a ballpoint. I was justifiably proud, but at the same time pretty sure I knew absolutely everything about everything -- and that the world was just waiting for me to write about it.<br />
But back to Newswriting 110....first day of college, 8 a.m. class, front row, shiny new No. 2 pencils, groovy hippy <i>sophisticated</i> college student threads...I took the far left seat. A tall, tan, curly-permed guy with those very 1970s, very short shorts sat beside me. Piercing blue, sparkling, lively eyes, friendly smile, he was chatty and had <i>tennis legs</i> to go with the short shorts. I remember this much well.<br />
<a href="http://huntingandpecking.blogspot.com/2012/01/from-classmates-in-78-to-co-authors-in.html">Bernie Kohn and I</a> went on to have all three quarters of our freshman year together in Newswriting, Copyediting and Photojournalism. We both trotted over to the <a href="http://www.bsudailynews.com/">Ball State Daily News</a> early on to become reporters. I was busy zooming through college; Bernie took the proper route and became editor-in-chief of our college newspaper.<br />
Our paths crossed a lot our first year, and I am quite sure there was friendly flirting. But nothing more. We only saw each other once a few years after college when Bernie came up from <a href="http://www.chronicle-tribune.com/wabashplaindealer/">The Wabash Plain Dealer</a> to interview at The Times-Union. Lucky for him on two counts: he didn't take the Warsaw job, and he quickly left Wabash and the Midwest. We wouldn't meet again until July 2008, when we both drove to central Ohio-- he from the Baltimore area and I from the same Midwest locale where I had been for 30 years.<br />
The collaboration that became our novel, <b>Boxed Set</b>, and our entertwined lives began that hot and humid summer day during a mosquito-infested canal boat ride, some Pad Thai at sunset and a convertible ride in the dark with malfunctioning headlights. It was all perhaps indicative of our path these last few years. But we still completed our first fiction work together without fatalities.Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7536596693962278333.post-49524027962781144202012-01-25T07:46:00.002-05:002014-08-17T05:40:04.465-04:00From classmates in '78 to fiction co-authors in 2012<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Bernie Kohn</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> has been a reporter and editor for 30 years at news organizations including the Washington Post, the Baltimore Sun and Bloomberg News.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He conceived and edited a series on land-ownership abuses that was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in local reporting in 2007.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A recipient of numerous national, state and local writing awards, Kohn is a past president of the Society of American Business Editors and Writers, a guest lecturer at professional seminars, and a winner of the Outstanding Journalism Alumnus Award at Ball State University in Muncie, IN.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Gina Smith</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> is also a journalism graduate and spent six years as a reporter and editor at a small Midwestern daily before moving into public relations and marketing. She has national, state and local publication awards and credits in news features, publication design, poetry, fiction and non-fiction. A prolific blogger and mixed media artist, her writing and artwork have been featured recently in national magazines. She met her future writing partner in the front row of Journalism 101 on the first day of college in 1978.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Together they have created <b>BOXED SET</b>, a 74,000-word adult contemporary novel, their first joint effort.</span></div>
Gina M Smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02153527688211264822noreply@blogger.com0