I’m officially out of school, for about two weeks. I will be taking two classes this summer and that is sure to keep me hopping. I’m looking forward to a couple of weeks of reprieve though. I spent a wonderful weekend in the mountains with my family and the weather could not have been nicer. I slept well and just had some time to breath and think, which was very nice!
I survived the semester and came out on the other end with straight A’s. I’m not sure I’ve ever been more proud of good grades. This was a tough semester with so much on my plate, but I did it and that’s all that matters!
On the writing front, I’ve been working on The Lost again and I feel super re-invigorated with the story. My goal is to finish the first draft this summer and I think that is definitely doable. I’ve also been outlining a new historical fiction middle grade novel. I’m getting excited about that, but I have to be careful not to give too much energy to the new shiny novel idea and abandon my current project. Repeat after me, “I am not a cheater. I’m not a cheater!” I am committed to The Lost and that’s that 🙂
I started working on a website for Monkey Beth Media as I prepare for marketing/promoting/continued selling of TCC for the 2010 year. I have some interested independent book stores and there has been interest in an audio book and e-book as well. I had to learn a lot of the ropes as I went along last year and I feel much more prepared this time around. Lots to plan and plot!
I read an incredible book by Rebecca Stead called When You Reach Me over the weekend. I haven’t read a book this well written in a long time. It was like a weekend master class in storytelling. It has wonderful, rich characters and great pacing – I loved every page. The book talks a lot about one of my other favorite books, A Wrinkle In Time. I loved that book so much when I was younger and read it more times than I can count. It’s really awesome to think that Madeleine L’Engle has touched so many readers and writers with her brilliant storytelling.
I love to think about the ripple effect of creative endeavours. If A Wrinkle In Time hadn’t been written I would have never been able to enjoy reading When You Reach Me. That’s reason enough to put your artistic works out into the world – you never know who needs to read it, hear it, see it…What amazing works of art will the world be missing out on if you don’t?
So, the summer will be pretty busy with school and some not so fun back surgery that my mom will have to go through, but I’m looking forward to playing outside, maybe rolling down some hills, BBQ’s with friends and lots of creative fun!
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