Back to Duck Town (Summer - Day 77)

With Cheri's blessing and encouragement I have spent practically the entire day working on a new scene for Duck Town. My agent is very excited about the work, and suggested two ways to enhance the emotional conflict within the graphic novel -- so I've taken her ideas and I've been running with them.

I must say, it feels so good to be drawing Duck Town again. I hope this book sells... and my not-so-secret wish is that a publisher likes Duck Town so much they'll want to create an entire series.

#pipedream

Back in California (Summer - Day 76)

Two weeks of summer vacation and then -- BOOM -- it's back to work for me.

I'm going to miss all of this wonderful free time, but I am looking forward to teaching again. (I love to talk about composition and literature -- if only there weren't all of those pesky papers to grade.)

Today was our first full day back in he land of heat. It actually wasn't as hot as I feared... Only in the low nineties. But the house is stuffy amd the AC doesn't work properly. And our yard is dead. The grass has packed up and moved somewhere cooler.... Perhaps Hell.

I had a dental cleaning today, which always depresses me before (due to anticipation) and after (due to the shame of lackluster flossing).

The rest of the day, however, was encouraging and productive. I am adding several new panels to Duck Town, based upon my agent's sage advice. These extended scenes will add a bit more pathos.

Cheri and I watched Game of Throne, episode one of season two. I hope these characters will recognize their differences and many similarites and learn to get along with each other.

13 Hours on the Road (Summer - Day 75)

Whew! I'm sitting on my couch in California. It's 11pm, but it's still hot... Don't want to think how warm it will be tomorrow.

Yesterday we drove from Camano Island to Canyonville Oregon. We stayed at the Seven Feathers Casino -- which is an awesome hotel for dog owners.

On the road, we listened to our recently purchased soundtracks once again:

Into the Woods
Jane Eyre
and
Kinky Boots

Lots of mixed cds too, along with The Beatles, Indigo Girls, and High School Musicals Parts One and Two!

"We're all in this together!"

Following SCBWI (Summer - Day 74)

Like I said last post, I am not attending the SCBWI conference this weekend. However, I am following the official blog and a lot of Twitter feeds. That way, I can live vicariously through my writer friends (or writer strangers whom I stalk).

I'm going to use this blog post to record any bits of wisdom I find online. Here are some highlights:

"As writers, how do we change the world? One reader at a time." & "Your work is never good enough, no matter how much you've been published." & "Most of the time, writing is banging your head against the wall. That isn't writer's block. That's the process." - Neal Shusterman

"What makes something successful is a very personal thing." - Laurent Linn

"Live your life like you're writing your own book."  - John Parra

"You have to be careful who you share your work with and at what stage" -- Barney Saltzberg

"A successful PB is about invention and knowing what you love and turning it on its head." & "We need to ask a picture book: what if? then what? so what" -- Susan Rich

"A premise is a promise that your manuscript will deliver on." - Carole Boston Weatherford

"The better the character, the worse the trouble, the better the story." - Bruce Coville

"Gorgeous writing doesn't have to be lyrical but must serve the story. Satire and humor can be gorgeous."  -- Tina Wexler

"The envy monster is incredibly destructive to the creative process—and it's difficult to tame. But a high tide lifts all boats." -- Marie Lu

"I consider writing time sacred. I've had to learn to say no to things." -- Marie Lu

""Secrets will draw a reader through a book like nothing else." - Bruce again...
                          

"Don't be afraid to write crap." -- Marie Lu (but this is also what I tell my students when  they are working on their first draft!)

 

"Get out of your own way. This thing that walked out of your limitations. It's all yours but entirely not yours" - Jon Klassen

 

"Being creative is not so much the desire to do something as the listening to that which wants to be done..." -Anni Albers

Missing SCBWI (Summer - Day 73)

For the past five years I have been attending the Los Angeles conference of SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators). Before that, I attended as often as I could, but had to miss a couple. I first went in 2007, and I thought I was just going to learn about the business. I did. But I also found my tribe.

The conference is three days of living and breathing children's literature. It's a time to connect with writers, both seasoned veterans and wide-eyed newcomers. And it's a place where you can learn more about your craft -- and in certain cases discover new pathways. Last year, I took myself way out of my comfort zone and decided to pose as an illustrator with my Duck Town pages. That personal challenge really forced me to put a lot of time and effort. It gave me a deadline -- more than that, it gave me a forum for others to see my work, and that terrified me (in a good way).

So, it's kind sad that I'm not in Los Angeles right now, mingling in my own awkward way with fellow writers, as well as artists, agents, and editors. But I keep imagining how excited I am going to be next year when I attend -- and I am DEFINITELY not missing 2017. My new book will be out, and I'll be showing off my new wares with the rest of the tribe.

Let's see... what else did we do today? We've started packing things up around Mom's house. We'll be leaving soon, and we don't want the house to be filthy! I will be sad to leave this weather and the green surroundings out Washington state. Due to the fires back in California, I am expecting that we will arrive to hillsides which look like piles of ash.

The coolest thing we did: We went bowling with my sister and my niece. Emily kicked our butts. Bowling has officially become a Bradford summer tradition. I think this was the third summer in a row in which we have bowled. Yep, that makes it official.

Now that I've received positive feedback from my agent about Duck Town, I've been focusing my thoughts on what I need to revise, and I've also been turning my creative attention to "Around the World in 80 Days." That's the show in which auditions happen on August 7th -- so I guess I better get my act together!

Duck Town News! (Summer - Day 72)

It's been a while since I hit send. If you're a writer, you know what that's like, to send off your creation (to an editor, agent, publisher, producer) and then you must play the waiting game It's slow and it's hard -- at least it is for those of us who have the patience of a three year old. Which I do.

My agent has been on hiatus (for an excellent reason -- she had her second baby boy!), so I've done my best to wait for about a month...

And the wait was worth it. She really likes what I've been doing with Duck Town. I'm going to add a bit more pathos to a couple scenes, and then it should be good to waddle out into the world.

I was a bit overwhelmed when I read her email. A flood of relief and happiness washed over me. That's what happens when you work on something for 13 months. You get invested -- and it's scary to think that your hard work might wind up in the drawer. (Of course, that's what happens to most of our stuff anyway! You'd think I'd be used to it.) But Duck Town is very special to me. And I am hoping to will be special to young readers somewhere out there right now. Hopefully Rainbow and her family will get the chance to share their story with the rest of the world.

That was the big, momentous thing that happened today. But I also had a wonderful little date around town with Cheri. We went to the Camano Market Place for the first time. It's this wonderfully homey community store that features lots of local gifts, locally made art, a bakery, a meat market, a sandwich shop and a candy store.

Take Me out to the Ball Game (Summer - Day 71)

After doing some writing and walking the dogs, I drove down to Everett, taking Mom along with me. We met Emily, Cheri and her family at the Aqua-Sox game. They are a minor league baseball team, and it was a much more pleasant experience than being at the Angel or Dodger stadium. With a minor league team, there's less people, better seats, close-up action, and popcorn is only a dollar.

The worst moment: a foul ball hit somebody... But later on I met a kid who said, " I Got hit in the head with a ball and they signed it for me," So I guess it turned out okay.

The best moment: In the final inning, the Aqua Sox were down by two. A lot of people left early, thinking that the Everett team had been vanquished by the Canadians. But then the stadium payed this montage of inspirational movie speeches (with the Henry V music in the background). It was awesome, and the Aquasox loaded up the bases and won!

Back on Camano, Cheri and Emily settled back into things. We have started packing for home. We still have a few days to enjoy Washington, but Cheri always wants to have an early start.

I have been revising the picture book version of Bug Scouts. I've been trying to come up with something better than the current ending. I think I might actually incorporate elements from my recent One-Act comedy. We'll see what works.

At night we watched a strange little movie called "The Lady in the Van." I was sleepy so I didn't enjoy it as much as I should have.