The Working Routine

This is the time of year when I get into a rut. And as I have said before, that's not necessarily a bad thing. Ruts are routines, and routines can be very comforting. Ruts feel a lot better than chaos, a lot better than the unknown, at least for those of us who prefer our comfort zone. (Hey, that rhymes!)

So, I have spent the last three weeks buried in essays. I just dug myself out -- though I still have some quizzes to grade. In addition to grading papers, I've also been juggling other work responsibilities. I was evaluated this semester, and I serve on a tenure committee, an evaluation committee, and of course the curriculum committee. Lots of work stuff going on -- and I feel proud to belong to a place like Moorpark College, it's truly a beautiful campus and a beautiful learning community.

My working routine, however, seems to have squeezed out my creative routine. Other than a few doodles here and there, I haven't been producing much. (I'm not keeping up with this blog, either!)

Part of it might be that I have been holding my breath, waiting for responses from Duck Town. (I believe I have received six rejections -- and there are still eight more places that have yet to decide.) I did send a new story to my agent, just to start thinking about what's next -- but I feel like my creative life is on hold until I carve out more free time (which seems very difficult right now) or until I become so super-inspired by a new project that I shove other stuff aside. (And then my working routine will be thrown out the window!)

Turning Reality Into Literary Magic

Just wanted to write a quick note about my English 1A students. They continue to amaze me. Usually the first essay I assign in class is a narrative essay about a person they respect (someone who embodies wisdom, compassion, or courage). I've read a lot of compelling essays based upon that assignment, but I noticed over the last few semesters that the students were becoming more focused on listening and recording the narratives of others, and not sharing their thoughts and opinions.

Years ago I use to assign autobiographical essays, but I stopped doing that because many students claimed they didn't have anything relevant to say. However, looking back I think it may have been that their teacher (yours truly) just didn't give them the right inspiration.

This semester I asked the students to write an essay inspired by this phrase:

"We can do this the hard way or the easy way." And I asked them, what life lesson did you learn the hard way.

Turns out, every student has a story about this. (At least they do in my classes.) And some of them have created something that's far beyond a typical homework assignment. I'm so grateful that so many of my students are already pushing themselves this semester. Hopefully, they'll take what they've learned about narratives and apply it to their argument essays.

October Begins

Yesterday was October 1st, and I am happy to report that temperatures have gone down into the high 80s -- which means it's time for us southern Californians to put on a sweater.

I'd like to return to blogging (or at least journaling) on a more regular basis. This blog doesn't really gain many followers or readers -- but I do like using it to record the days. I do this in an old fashioned journal too -- and in there I'm much more personal -- but I rather like this forum because I know that there's a slight chance I'll connect with others.

So, what did we do with our Saturday?

We had a matinee performance of "Around the World in 80 Days." (About 70 people in the audience, small but appreciative.)

Some of the cast and crew went to the Food Court at the mall. I devoured a Pepperoni Cheese Steak sandwich.

Aside from that, the rest of my day consisted of grading papers. It's the price I pay for having an otherwise awesome career.

How is your October going?

It's Quiet Here... Too Quiet...

So the Duck Town editor tally has remained the same for over a week:

The graphic novel was sent to 14 editors.

Four editors have passed on the project. Ten editors have yet to respond.

I am not sure what to make of the quiet. In the past, when my agent submitted my picture book manuscripts, most of the responses arrived within two to three weeks. Perhaps in this case the slow responses are due to the length of Duck Town? It might be as simple as that. Longer works have a longer response time.

There could also be a more negative reason: the editors do not respond well to the art and/or story, and so they don't even want to bother with a rejection letter.  Or, there could be a more positive reason: The graphic novel has won the editor's heart, and now she's showing it to her marketing team, and art directors, and publishers -- and they are trying to decide how many zeroes to put on my first advance.

I can dream, can't I?

Around the World in 80 Days - Opening Weekend

Our premier of Around the World in 80 Days was a success. It wasn't perfect (what community theater production is, right?) but it was an absolute pleasure to hear the audience respond positively to the hard work of the cast and crew.

Here's a promotional photo featuring our Philea Fogg (AKA Samual Novak). It definitely captures the spirit of our production:

Waddling through Rejection

As you can see -- the blog posts have slowed down to a crawl since the summer ended.

I've been back to work, teaching up a storm, not to mention attending meetings, and sifting through papers with my purple pen.

We are in the home stretch of rehearsals for AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS. Our first show is this Saturday!

And rehearsals for the Radio Play (which is now called CHANGE THE STATION) are just in their infancy stages.

But the thing I've been most focused upon is MY GRAPHIC NOVEL... I have been (im)patiently waiting for responses from editors. My awesome agent sent Ducktown into the world on August 31st. It went out to 14 places. So far, we have received four rejections. They are all friendly rejections -- one in particular said a lot of very nice things about the plot of my graphic novel. However, the rejections share a common theme: They are not in love with the illustrations. It might turn out that my little drawings are too amateurish to make it past the gate-keepers.

My wife recently said, "You deal with rejection letters all the time. Why are these ones different?" And I guess the answer is, I'm really in love with these characters I have created... and I'm going to be sad if my fledgling skills as an illustrator prevent the story from being shared with others.

So, there's a very strong possibility that the 10 remaining editors will pass on this project, and Rainbow's story will go into the drawer with some of my other beloved novels that haven't found an audience yet. I've made peace with that possibility. There's a chance that, if this round of editors don't connect strongly enough with the story to overlook the visual flaws, maybe in the future, when my picture books become a big hit, I'll have stronger connections with publishers...

But perhaps I should be thinking more positively about Plan A instead of already emotionally resorting to Plan B. Ducktown still has a chance. Keep your feathers cross.

Labor Day Weekend in a Nut Shell

We built sets and props for "Around the World in 80 Days."

Cheri and I watched four episodes of "Game of Thrones" season two.

I graded a stack of in-class essays.

Mackenzie traveled with friends to Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles.

Emily is hard at work at algebra, and takes SNL breaks between problems.

"Duck Town" Update: Haven't heard anything from my agent. No news is good news, at this point. If an editor replied on Thursday or Friday, it probably would have been another rejection, similar to the one I received last week.

I am feeling positive and curious about what will happen next. "Duck Town" has twelve chances to connect with publishers. It might not pass the gatekeepers and waddle into bookstores, but right now, at this moment, the future is wonderfully unknown.