Posts Tagged fiction

Author Spotlight: Sydney Dunlap

Today, I’m thrilled to shine the Author Spotlight on children’s author and fellow MUF member Sydney Dunlap! Sydney’s latest MG novel, Racing the Clouds, praised by Kirkus as a “hopeful, heartfelt story of resilience… handled with a gentle touch,” is out February 18 from Jolly Fish Press.

Interview with Sydney 

Melissa: Welcome to the Mixed-Up Files, Sydney! It’s always a pleasure to shine the Author Spotlight on a fellow MUF member, especially a new(ish) one.

Sydney: Thank you so much, Melissa! I’m very excited to be a part of MUF.

Melissa: Racing the Clouds, comes out in just FIVE days (!). What’s going through your mind right now? (I can only guess. 🙂)

Sydney: Honestly, that after working on this book for such a long time, it’s hard to believe it’s about to be out in the world. And I’m looking forward to my launch events. I’m very lucky to get to have an in-conversation event with Lynne Kelly (one of my blurbists) at a great independent bookstore called Buy the Book near my home in Texas, as well as one with Kate Albus (another of my blurbists) at the wonderful Scrawl Books in northern Virginia, close to where I lived for many years. I love going to my friends’ book launches as well as having my own. Gathering with friends and family to celebrate is so much fun!

About the Book

Melissa: Can you tell readers a bit about the novel? Also, what was the inspiration behind it?

Sydney: Racing the Clouds is the story of a 13-year-old girl named Sage who has a big secret involving her mom’s whereabouts. The story begins after she hears from her grandparents—her mom’s parents, who she’s never met—for the first time in her life. They invite her to visit, and she wants to fix what’s gone wrong in her family, so she flies to Ohio by herself as soon as school gets out for the summer. She feels an almost immediate connection with her grandfather, but her grandmother is so strict and formal that it doesn’t seem they’ll ever see eye-to-eye. Sage learns that family relationships—and people—can be much more complex than they appear on the surface. She also begins to understand more about the power of forgiveness and how to find her way forward during a difficult time.

As for the inspiration, I like writing about topics that are very real and part of a lot of people’s lives but aren’t always discussed that much, like drug addiction, which is a component of the story. I also thought it would be interesting to explore what might happen when a person hears from relatives they’ve never met and never heard anything good about, and to find out their perspective.

Hiding in Plain Sight

Melissa: Sage, the protagonist, is hiding more than she’s telling—especially when it comes to her mom. (I’ll avoid spoilers, so I won’t say more.) What was it like to get into the head of such a guarded character? Carrying a secret is such a heavy burden to bear.

Sydney: I used to be involved in theater when I was growing up, and I think that acting gave me a chance to feel like I really was the character. When I write, I have that same kind of experience, so I only revealed what it felt like Sage would be okay revealing at different points along the story. It was a huge relief when Sage could finally tell her friend Marla the whole story. I felt a burden off my chest, the same as Sage did, after writing the scene where she reveals what really happened.

Exploring Real-Life Issues

Melissa: Your previous novel, It Happened on Saturday, is also a contemporary novel that deals with real-life issues, namely human trafficking. What compels you to write about difficult issues for young readers? I know this is something you’re passionate about.

Sydney: As a child, I loved to read books about real things that could happen to kids in real life, and I especially enjoyed books written by Katherine Paterson and Judy Blume, because they wrote so honestly about all kinds of difficult topics. My experiences volunteering with child trafficking survivors and my realization that I couldn’t find any middle grade books with that subject matter – even though kids ages 11-14 are an especially vulnerable group — led me to write It Happened on Saturday. As for Racing the Clouds, I feel that there is room for more books for young readers dealing with addiction in the family, as it is a huge part of life for many children.

It’s a Dog’s Life

Melissa: Another passion of yours is animals, which is evident in your sympathetic portrayal of Nicky, a stray dog Sage rescues while visiting her estranged grandparents in Ohio. Can you tell us more about Sage’s bond with Nicky, and how it helps Sage to connect with her prickly grandmother?

Sydney: The Philadelphia apartment where Sage and her family lived until their recent move didn’t allow dogs, so Sage has never had a pet. When she meets Nicky, she is drawn to him because he seems so lost and like he could really use a friend. Sage is utterly flabbergasted to discover that her strict, formal grandmother has a soft spot for dogs. Taking care of Nicky together gives them a common purpose and something they can be in complete agreement about. Dogs bring such positive energy wherever they go, and I’ve seen people in my own extended family who disagree on pretty much everything else find common ground in their love for dogs.

Drummer Girl

Melissa: Like her dad, a once-almost-famous musician, Sage is a talented drummer. Is this a common interest, or did you have to do extensive research on how to play the drums?

Sydney: My son used to play the drums when he was in elementary and middle school, and I got to sit in on lots of drum lessons and of course see many concerts. We still have his old drum set in our house and my husband likes to play around on it, so drums are pretty familiar to me.

Path to Publication

Melissa: Switching gears, can you tell MUF readers about your path to publication? I know you were an elementary school teacher for many years. What led you to writing for kids?

Sydney: I’ve always loved books and writing, and ever since elementary school, I’ve had the idea that one day I wanted to be an author. I took creative writing classes in high school and college, then became a member and also a conference organizer for the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, where I studied the craft and business aspects of writing for a long time. I drafted some manuscripts and sent them out here and there, but it wasn’t until I had the idea for It Happened on Saturday that I got really serious about pursuing traditional publication. Once I started working on that manuscript, I began writing almost every day and eventually signed with my agent, Ann Rose.

Writing Is Rewriting

Melissa: As a follow-up, your debut MG novel, Jeremy Norbeck: Animal Whiz Kid, came out in 2014. What have you learned about the publishing industry—and about writing—since then?

Sydney: I wrote that story while I was an elementary school teacher, and I used to read it out loud to my students while I was working on it. I wanted to use it right away in my classroom because it fit right in with our unit on animal adaptations, so I published it through CreateSpace (now Kindle Direct Publishing) to have it available immediately. I had already learned a lot about the publishing industry through my experiences with SCBWI, but I learned much more once I signed with my agent and then got a publishing contract for It Happened on Saturday.

My biggest takeaway is that writing is really rewriting over and over, and that you are almost never done, because there will always be something to edit or improve, up until your last look before a book goes to the printer. You work as hard as you can (with help from your critique group if that’s part of your process) to have a story be its very best before your agent sees it, and then you do the same thing with their assistance until it goes to your editor, and then you do the same thing with their expertise and guidance. And when you compare what you started with to the finished product, you realize how amazing it is that the spark of an idea could turn into a finished story, and that you are incredibly lucky to have had so many wonderful helpers along the way.

Confessions of a Pantser

Melissa: While we’re on the subject of writing, what does your writing routine look like? Also, are you a plotter or a pantser?

Sydney: My writing routine varies a lot, depending on what else I have going on. I’ve been traveling quite a bit lately, and I’m trying to learn to work while on the go, such as editing a manuscript while on a flight. At home, I sandwich writing in between my other responsibilities, my part-time work tutoring students, and my activities, and I find I’m always better able to write if I get some exercise first, usually walking my dog, going running, or doing yoga. I am a pantser through and through; I have to start writing a story to figure out who my characters are, what they want, and what obstacles will be in their way.

Sydney’s Writing Advice

Melissa: What advice would you give to fledgling MG authors?

Sydney: I’d say to read a lot of books in your chosen genre and try to think of them as texts showing examples of different ways to start/end a story, describe settings, keep up your pacing between action and dialogue, reveal character, etc. And I’d highly recommend joining a critique group. Writing friends are the BEST. You can provide each other an amazing listening ear, as well as sharing and getting helpful feedback on your work. And you all speak the same language. Non-writer friends might have no idea what you mean when you talk about queries or MG, YA, plotting vs. pantsing, etc.

Melissa: What are you working on now, Sydney? Can you give Mixed-Up Files readers a sneak peek?

Sydney: I’ve been working on a story told from two points of view that involves themes of freedom and standing up for yourself, both within one’s own family and within society.

Lightning Round!

Melissa: No MUF interview is complete without a lightning round, so…

Preferred writing snack? Granola bar

Coffee or tea? Tea

Superpower? Flying. I would LOVE to fly, not just to get places quickly, which would be amazing, but also for the experience of soaring through the air with the birds.

Favorite travel destination? Anywhere with a beautiful mountain view

If you were stranded on a desert island with only three things, what would they be? I’m not sure about the rules, but if allowed, I’d bring my dog, my cat, and a horse from the stable where I ride! Exploring a desert island on horseback with my furry pals running along beside me could be kind of fun! 😊

Melissa: Many thanks for joining us today, Sydney, and congratulations on the forthcoming publication of Racing the Clouds. It’s an engaging and heartfelt book, and I’m sure MUF readers will agree!

Sydney: Thank you again for your kind words and thoughtful questions, Melissa! I’m very grateful for the opportunity to share this behind-the-scenes look at Sage’s story with the MUF audience!

Bio

Sydney Dunlap is an award-winning author and former elementary school teacher. She enjoys reading and writing heartfelt, hopeful books that explore tough topics that aren’t often addressed in middle-grade literature. Her 2023 debut novel, It Happened on Saturday, has received several medals and was named a 2025 OLA Masterlist selection and Utah Beehive Award nominee, as well as a Crystal Kite Honor Book. A lifelong animal lover, Sydney lives with her family in a home where the dogs and cats outnumber the people. You can find her online at www.sydneydunlap.com.

The Liberation of Lefties

Lefty book cover

I grew up as the youngest of five very ordinary children. Well, we each had our individual personalities, preferences, and idiosyncrasies, but we were mainstream in the obvious ways — like being right-handed.

 

So, when my niece’s son turned out to be left-handed, it was a source of great curiosity and excitement in the family. This trait was viewed as unique. Cool. Special. And then his sister turned out to be left-handed as well. Then two of my three grandchildren turned out to be lefties. The excitement was almost too much to handle!

 

A Book Called Lefty

With love for so many lefties, you can imagine my delight when I learned about the book Lefty: A Story That is Not All Right (Union Square Kids, 2024), with words by Mo Willems and pictures by Dan Santat. Oh, how I smiled. Well, the work of these two creators often makes me smile, but this was different. This book evoked images of some children who are very dear to me, so I smiled for a really long time. In fact, I’m still smiling.

Lefty book cover

 

The book opens with a question: “Did you know there was a time when you could get into trouble…really, really big trouble…for being left-handed?” The question is being asked by a left hand, held puppet-style, who happens to be speaking to a right hand.

 

The right hand is incredulous, as many young readers might be. But the book goes on to explain that left-handedness was once feared, maligned, and viewed as something sinister…because it was a variation from the norm.

 

While that might sound crazy to children who are free to use the hand that feels naturally dominant, it wasn’t that long ago when people were still forcing children into right-handedness. I remember this happening to a few friends from my childhood. The rationale was that life would be easier for them as a right-handed person. 

 

To my horror, I later discovered that in some communities, left-handedness was interpreted to be a sign that the child had been “touched by the devil.” When I first started teaching, I actually had students who referred to a left-handed classmate as “evil-handed.”

 

According to a 2015 Time magazine article entitled “How Lefties First Gained Acceptance,” the association of evil with left-handedness goes back to the Middle Ages. (Believe me, I did NOT start teaching in the Middle Ages. These attitudes hung around for a LONG time.) The article goes on to identify some very famous and highly-regarded southpaws, including Leonardo da Vinci, Marie Curie, Bill Gates, and Barack Obama.

 

A book like Lefty can be very powerful in helping us normalize a trait that, according to the National Institute of Health, has belonged to 10% of the population dating back to the time of Neanderthals. This made me wonder….Are there middle grade books that celebrate left-handedness? Yes, there are! Here’s a sample of some literary lefties middle grade readers can enjoy.

 

Middle Grade Books Featuring Left-Handedness

 

The Left-Handed Shortstop cover

The Left-Handed Shortstop (Yearling, 1989) by Patricia Reilly Giff

When fourth-grader Walter Moles is assigned the role of shortstop in the big rivalry game, he’s overcome with the fear of failure. After all, there hasn’t been a left-handed shortstop since 1892! This book was published just a couple of years after one of my students was referred to as “evil-handed.” I hope that in its time, it found its way into the hands of some kids who needed it.

 

Choosing Up Sides cover

Choosing Up Sides (Viking Books for Young Readers, 2000) by John Ritter

Lefty Luke Bledsoe discovers that he has a talent for pitching. It’s the first time he’s felt good about being left-handed. That’s because Luke’s dad is a pastor who believes that the left hand is the side of Satan. This award-winning book evokes empathy for lefties as well as for those who struggle to balance family expectations with personal passions.

 

The Clue of the Left-Handed Envelope cover

The Clue of the Left-Handed Envelope (Simon and Schuster, 2004) by George E. Stanley

Left-handedness is right there in the title. It’s a clue to solving the mystery of who sent Amber Lee Johnson an anonymous letter. This chapter book is the first in a mystery series that will delight young readers while building a bridge to longer texts.

 

Little Lefty cover

Little Lefty (Bella Rosa, 2009) by Matt Christopher

Despite his small size, Bill Bailey can throw harder than anyone else on the team. He’s encouraged when he hears stories about “Little Lefty,” a small pitcher who made it into the big leagues. However, a freak accident puts Bill Bailey’s dream in jeopardy. Matt Christopher has pulled many reluctant readers into the world of books with his sports stories, and it’s great to know that this one features a left-handed protagonist.

 

The Left-Handed Fate cover

 

The Left-Handed Fate (Henry Holt & Co., 2016) by Kate Milford

Lucy and Max try to end the war between their home country of England and Napoleon Bonaparte’s France. But then the plot thickens when their ship, The Left-Handed Fate, is taken by the Americans. Some exciting historical fiction with a twist of left-handedness makes for a highly engaging story. (And for some added trivia, Napoleon Bonaparte happened to be a lefty.)

 

Literary Liberation

How lovely to live in a time when lefties are liberated! And how wonderful to know that literature can build a sense of belonging by featuring characters and situations that help us become comfortable with our differences. In a world that finds solace in sameness and order in the ordinary, may we continually look to literature as a means of dispelling fear and building empathy.

Do you know of other middle grade books that feature left-handedness? Please share them in the comments! And remember to share all of these books with young readers who might identify with the characters, grow in empathy, or just simply enjoy a good book.

 

Use Four Acts to Get Through the Murky Middle

Focus on the Midpoint

When I outline a novel or graphic novel, I love to reference Save the Cat. If you’re not familiar with this plotting method, it’s based on screenplays and breaks a movie into Act 1 (the first 25% of the book), Act 2 (the next 50%), and Act 3 (the last 25%).

I more or less stick to this, except I put even more emphasis on the midpoint.

A strong midpoint not only gives the reader a high-impact scene to break up the long slog of the middle, but it’s a great chance to change up gears. In fact, I try to make this moment so huge that it effectively breaks that long Act 2 into two acts, so each of the four acts is 25% of the book.*

Act=Goal

To do that, I think of each act as a goal for the MC. Act=goal.

So, in a sense, the flow of a novel could look like this:

  • Act 1: the MC is pursuing a goal, one that makes sense for their ordinary world. Then a catalyst happens to either put that goal in jeopardy or catapult it forward.
  • Act 2: Reacting to that catalyst, the MC sets forth to achieve a new goal. Then another catalyst happens (the Midpoint) that either puts that goal in jeopardy or catapults it forward.
  • Act 3: repeat, bringing us to the All is Lost moment, which is the catalyst for the last act.
  • Act 4: reacting to the All is Lost, the MC makes a final goal.

Sometimes the catalyst in each act is subtle. Sometimes it’s an accumulation of things learned in the act up to that point. Sometimes it’s huge, like a bombshell of information. Whatever it is, each catalyst prevents the MC from continuing to pursue the goal that they are currently on; they have to change gears.

Examples

Star Wars

Let’s look at how this works in Star Wars: A New Hope.

Act 1

  • Goal: Set up droids on the farm.
  • Catalyst: Ben Kenobi asks Luke to go with him to Alderaan and Luke’s aunt and uncle are killed, making his Act 1 goal of getting the droids set up on the farm irrelevant.

Act 2

  • Goal: Get the plans to Alderaan.
  • Catalyst: The Death Star blows up Alderaan and captures the Millennium Falcon.
image from Star Wars: A New Hope. Standing behind Han Solo, Obi Wan looks tense, gazing at something in front of them, saying "That's no moon."

Our Star Wars heroes are about to discover that they cannot achieve their Act 2 goal.

Act 3

  • Goal: Rescue the princess from the Death Star
  • Catalyst: They escape, but the Death Star follows them to the hidden rebel base.

Act 4

  • Goal: Destroy the Death Star to save the rebel base.
  • Result: Luke destroys the Death Star.

Other Examples

Movies:

  • Raiders of the Lost Ark (this goal shift is huge, as Indy’s goal goes from finding the Ark to getting it back from the Nazis; in fact, the entire second half of the movie is Indy trying to get and keep the Ark from the Nazis)
  • Monsters, Inc. (this is subtle, but Sully switches from wanting to save his career to wanting to save Boo, a goal shift that causes conflict with Mike)
  • Lion King
  • Up

Books: The Last Mapmaker and A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat are great examples of the main character’s goal shifting in at the midpoint.

Does It Really Matter?

I don’t think it matters to the reader whether you outline your story with a goal change in the middle, as long as the story moves along. But as the writer, I find splitting up that long middle to be incredibly helpful for getting through the murky middle. Basically, it’s chunking up a huge task into two more manageably sized tasks.

For example, imagine you’re writing Star Wars. Woud it be easier to plot if you had a list of goals for Luke that were:

  1. Set up droids on the farm
  2. Get plans to the rebel alliance
  3. Destroy the Death Star and save the rebels

Or:

  1. Set up droids on the farm
  2. Get plans to Alderaan
  3. Rescue the rebel princess and escape to the rebel base
  4. Destroy the Death Star and save the rebels

You could interpret Star Wars either way, but personally, I would find the second to be much easier to build a story around. The specificity helps me to keep the middle of the book moving along. It would give me something more concrete to write toward.

I can think of many stories that do not approach the Midpoint this way. (I can think of many that don’t even really have a Midpoint shift). But if you’re stuck in the murky middle, try breaking that long Act 2 into two goals, and give each a catalyst that disrupts that goal.

*For more information on four-act stories, click here to read about Joyce Sweeney’s plot clock.