Monthly archive for July 2014

Thicken thou Skin

By on July 16, 2014   /   Book Lists  

Writers often stay in the closet about their writing. Why? Because admitting you’re an author opens you up to feedback, critique, and rejection – more than any professional outside of arts and entertainment.

reject-stamp-100108266Staying in the closet, however, means never getting published. For this reason, writers are encourage to thicken their skin and get used to rejection. Easier said than done, especially since most writers are sensitive and empathetic by nature.

I am hyper-sensitive to rejection of any kind, even outside of my writing life, and self-doubt has been my worst enemy for as long as I can remember. After five years in the business of being an author, my skin has not been thickened – wrinkled, but not thickened – and my ego is more fragile than ever.

At first, I thought the self doubt would disappear after I finished my first manuscript. Nope- that was when I first came out of the closet and faced the rejection of publishers.

First published book? Nope – then it was reviews and sales records.

Second published book? Nope – ditto to above followed by the rejection of my third manuscript.

Agent? Well, this is the stage I’m at now, having just signed my first (and hopefully last) contract with a literary agent earlier this month. I am excited about this new step in my career but I have to admit, by this time in the game I am grizzled and wrinkled enough to know that the need for thick skin does not end here. As we work on another set of edits before she makes my first agented submission, I know we heading back at stage one (only this time in a tank with bigger fish – and sharks).

ID-10086055Since my skin is not thickening on its own, I’ve collected a list of links that can help writers – and anyone with a heart beat, really – face the world of feedback, criticism, and rejection. Not exactly light summer reading but maybe, just maybe, it can help bring us into fall with something more useful than a sunburn.

Rejection: 3 Methods for Coping (Gotham Writers) A good, quick place to start.

 25 Things Writers Should Know About Rejection (Terrible Minds) Digger deeper with ideas that go beyond the standard “suck it up”. Caution: mostly flowery, but occasionally foul, language.

5 Ways for Writers to Overcome Self-Doubts (write to done) While some of these pointers apply to more seasoned writers (NOT authors), I love The Pimple Rule. Great links to other posts on making peace with criticism and why feeling like a failure boosts creativity.

The Seven Stages of Publishing Grief (Writer Unboxed) Describes the ups and downs of writing in the age of google and amazon with a demonstration of how a writers reaction to bad book news follows the seven stages of grief.

Famous Writers Who Were Rejected Before Making it Big (Bubble Cow)In an industry where comparison is paramount, remembering that all the great ones – our mentors, our role models, the objects of our envy – have also been rejected can literally help keep us sane.

I truly believe that if you are not getting rejected you are not getting published but sometimes – okay, often – a gentle reminder is in order. And since the web is littered with them, here are some more:

Best Sellers Originally Rejected (Literary Rejections)

Famous Authors Harshest Rejection Letters (Flavorwire)

Literary Rejections on Display: When all else fails, it helps to know you are not alone. This blog is for the not-so-famous among us to share the pain of rejection.

Famous Writers on Literary Rejection (Aerogramne Writers’ Studio) And finally, some words of inspiration from writers who have been through the tunnel and reached the light of success but still faced rejection.

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If you have any tips to share, please comment! I’d love to hear how you’ve thickened thou skin. Or have you given up?

 Yolanda Ridge is represented by Amy Tompkins of the Transatlantic Literary Agency. Her books include Trouble in the Trees (Orca Book Publishers, 2011) and Road Block (Orca Book Publishers, 2012).

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Good Reads for the Road

By on July 14, 2014   /   Book Lists  

imagesOne of my favorite things about family road trips has been listening to audio books all together in the car. My family often drives from Portland to Spokane to visit the zillion Parry cousins. It’s about a 7 hour trip in good weather and although we all love to sing in the car and engage the time honored traditions of the alphabet train game and counting railroad cars passed and rivers crossed, there is really nothing  like settling in for a good hour or two of stories read aloud by an expert reader.

We had our favorites over the years. The Jim Dale readings of the Harry Potter stories are masterfully done. In a series with more than a hundred named characters Mr. Dale does an astonishingly good job with making each voice distinct.  Emperor_Mage_TNWe listened to audio books for the Chronicles of Narnia and the wonderful Full Cast Audio productions of Tamera Pierce’s stories. What is unique about the FCA recordings is that each book is recorded by a full cast and is very often narrated by its author. Bruce Coville is the founder of this project and the results are unique and very engaging. My kids particularly loved it that the child’s parts are almost always read by children.

 

We also enjoyed the work of a story teller called Odds Bodkin who has a broad collection of stories for all ages. Long before the Percy Jackson series my kids were enthralled by mythology from Odds Bodkins renditions of the The Odyssey and The Iliad. My all time favorite of his is a Celtic justice tale called The Winter Cherries. And I’ve recently found the resource Open Culture media which has a huge library of the classics in audio. Most of the titles are adult books but there is plenty there for a young reader to enjoy including The Wizard of Oz, Sherlock Holmes, The Three Musketeers, Neil Gaiman reading his own Graveyard Book and also Green Eggs and Ham, Anne of Green Gables and short stories from Rudyard Kipling and Jack London. Best of all these audios are free! Your library most likely has audio books and your local librarian no doubt has great books on tape to recommend. How about you? Does your family have a great read for the road? Let us know in the comments!Winter-Cherries

 

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Cool Off with a Refreshing READ!

By on July 11, 2014   /   Book Lists  

What’s your favorite way to keep cool during a long hot summer? Is it curling up with a book in an air-conditioned library, making a pitcher of iced tea or taking a nap under a shady tree? Well, here’s another idea – what about an ICY COLD book, as in, a story that takes you to chilly climes? Maybe by the time you’re done, you’ll need a blanket, or at least a cup of cocoa! (Please add your favorite COOL reads in the comments below.)

The Long Winter

THE LONG WINTER by Laura Ingalls Wilder
The Ingalls’ family struggle to survive seven months of brutal winter is recounted here in agonizing detail. Here, the pioneer spirit comes particularly to life as the family must make the best of their rapidly dwindling supplies to eke out light, heat and food. At times, tempers flare (Little House style, of course – Laura and Mary argue testily over what kind of stuffing would be best for a non-existent turkey), but the Ingalls family endures with both body and spirit intact.

My Name is Not Easy

MY NAME IS NOT EASY by Debby Dahl Edwardson
When I go off to Sacred Heart School, they’re gonna call me Luke because my Iňupiac name is too hard. Nobody has to tell me this. I already know. I already know because when teachers try to say our real names, the sounds always get caught in their throats, sometimes, like crackers. Luke, an Iňupiac boy living near the Arctic Circle in the 1960s, must leave his family to attend the Sacred Heart School. There, his own language and customs are forbidden, and Luke must navigate the complex tension between the various children at the school. A National Book Award finalist.

Peak

PEAK by Roland Smith
With the help of his famous father, “Peak” Marcello avoids juvie after scaling the tall buildings of New York, and instead finds himself getting ready to summit Mount Everest. However, Peak finds that his father’s intentions may be less than completely noble, and must make some hard decisions of his own. The author brings the reality of summiting Mount Everest to life with detailed accounts of the multiple base camps and approaches. Young readers may be interested to know that the record for youngest climber was recently broken in May by a 13-year-old Indian girl, a month after 16 sherpa guides were killed in a deadly avalanche.

Sugar and Ice

SUGAR AND ICE by Kate Messner
If you’re looking for a cooler climate in a more familiar setting, then this book, set in the world of competitive figure skating, may be for you. Seventh-grader Claire Boucher divides her time between her family’s maple tree farm and the local ice skating rink, when her life is upended by a surprise offer to train with an elite Russian coach at Lake Placid. In this new world, Claire must cope with mean girl, her own fears and the double toe loop.

Shackleton's Journey

SHACKLETON’S JOURNEY by William Grill – Ernest Shackleton’s attempts to conduct the first land crossing of Antarctica is a story of both disaster and heartbreak as well as resourcefulness and courage, and this story is lovingly rendered in colored pencil in William Grill’s new book. Readers are rewarded with detailed accounts of the ice-locked ship Endurance, crew members, each dog (warning: while all humans safely returned, the dogs were not so fortunate), the unusual supplies on each ship and maps. Slightly older readers may want to also check out Nick Bertozzi’s graphic novel, SHACKLETON: ANTARCTIC ODYSSEY.

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