I VOTED! A Voices and Votes Celebration

This morning, when it was still dark, my kids and I walked to the neighborhood community center that serves as our polling place.  On the way there, we talked about how voter turnout today will likely be higher than in any modern election.  Seven-year-old E, scuffing her feet through the leaves along the curb, wanted to know what that meant.

"That more people who are allowed to vote will actually show up and vote today," I told her.

She stopped.  "You mean some of them don’t?"

We talked about countries where things are different, where the right to vote is much newer and never taken for granted.  And then we turned the corner to the park and said hello to the election volunteers who had just unlocked the door.   I was the fourth person in line to vote.  

One of the things I love about Election Day is the way it brings us all together. As promised…here’s my celebration of all of our VOICES AND VOTES — a picture of me outside the polling place next to the playground.  You can see the light is on inside.  There’s just one voting machine — the old-fashioned kind where you pull the levers.  It will be replaced by a new, electronic one next year, but today, pulling the lever was just right.  

By the time we walked back home this morning, it was getting light. 

It’s time to get the rest of the day going now – time to get the boy to jazz band and the girl to school, time for me to teach revision strategies for personal narratives.  But this hopeful feeling?  I’m keeping it with me all day long.

I’m not alone in enjoying my moment at the polls today…not by a long shot. Visit these bloggers and citizens…a whole collection of us, celebrating our VOICES AND VOTES with stories & photos online.

I’m not alone in enjoying my moment at the polls today…not by a long shot. Visit these bloggers and citizens…a whole collection of us, celebrating our VOICES AND VOTES with stories & photos online.

kimmiepoppins  blogs about voting…and how lucky we are.
kellyrfineman  voted and posted a poem that says it all.
jmammaywrites  voted in Florida today.
Kurtis Scaletta shares some images from his trip to the polls.
maryecronin  voted and then ate pancakes to celebrate!
madrobins  went to the polls with her 18-year-old daughter – a first time voter!
seaheidi  shares her voting story and her voting outfit.
missrodeo  shares pictures of her early morning trip to the polls.
goadingthepen  voted early today, too.
cynthialord  talks about the need for us to be extraordinary on Election Day.
halseanderson  voted by absentee ballot before her book tour.
newport2newport voted early and shared her thoughts on the election today.
elspeth47  stood in line to vote in Texas.
janni  voted in Arizona this morning.
vivaler  talks about changing…from a non-voter to a voter.
jbknowles  voted and feels big and strong now (me too, Jo!)
jeannineatkins  was voter #273 at her town hall.
pdlloyd  enjoyed the sense of community in voting.
lurban  voted today and invites  you to share your favorite part of voting.
jamarattigan  stepped out of the kitchen today to vote!
lillpluta  voted with her homeschooled son today.
thunderchikin  talks about voting with a sense of hope.
kbaccellia  shares her thoughts on tough choices.
wordsrmylife  is celebrating high voter turnout.
marsha_brantley  voted early and blogged about it today.
writerross  voted with tears in her eyes.

And my mom, artist gailschirmer  voted  (I suspect Dad did, too, but wasn’t as eager to be photographed…) after volunteering to make lunch for the election volunteers.  Go, Mom!

Want to join us in celebrating?  Just post your voting story and/or photo, drop me a comment or an email (kmessner at katemessner dot com) and I’ll add you to the roundup.  Happy Election Day!

Edited to add:  I’m having trouble with this post when I update, and I’ve had to redo it a few times. If I’ve missed you, or if you were on the list and you’re missing now, please drop me a note and I’ll fix it.  Let’s all hope the election technology is working out much better than mine!

Blog the Vote!

Tomorrow morning, before school, I’ll walk to the tiny community center building in my neighborhood park to vote.  The election volunteers there will know me. They’re my neighbors — the walkers I see out on my morning run, the people who handed my kids candy a few nights ago, the volunteer firefighters who showed up in the middle of the night when squirrels chewed through the wires in our basement last winter. They’ll greet my kids by name and hold the curtain as the kids crowd into the booth with me to help press the levers.  When I leave, they’ll wish me a great day.  All of this will happen, whether or not we agree on who should be President of the United States, and this is what I love about voting – the way it brings us together.

This will be my 6th time voting in a Presidential Election, and I’ve never been more excited.  For the first time, I’ve been actively involved in a political campaign, making phone calls and talking with voters in states far away from mine.  Two nights ago, I chatted with a 68-year-old Pennsylvania woman while I was boiling water for pasta.  Her name was Fiona, and she’s never been more excited to vote either.  She actually thanked me for the phone call that no doubt interrupted her dinner.  I’ll be thinking about her when I vote tomorrow morning.  Even though we’ll be in different buildings, using different systems, in different states, Fiona and I have a connection.

We all do on  Election Day.  I’ve voted in different places over the years — in a big community center in Syracuse right after I graduated from SU, in an elementary school in Burlington, Vermont when I worked there as a tv reporter, and now, in the one-room community center between the swing set and the soccer field.  In all those times and places, whether or not the election workers knew my name, they greeted me warmly, and I headed back out into the November day feeling important and connected and…well…American.

Soon after the polls open at 6am tomorrow, I’ll walk to the park with my kids.  I’ll sign my name on the election roster and lift my daughter so she can reach the levers in the booth.  I’ll referee when the kids argue over who gets to press the one for President, and then I’ll pull back the curtain and say goodbye to my neighbors and take my son to jazz band rehearsal at 7.  But that feeling will last all day long…the feeling of being part of something big…something important, along with the election volunteers, and with Fiona in Pennsylvania, and with you.

Visit Colleen at Chasing Ray for a full list of Blog the Vote posts on the importance of voting…and please stop back here tomorrow.  To celebrate all of our VOICES AND VOTES on Election Day, I’ll be posting a photograph of myself at my polling place right after I vote, and I’m inviting you to do the same.  I’ll be posting a VOICES AND VOTES roundup with links, so If you want to participate, drop me a comment or email (kmessner at katemessner dot com) and I’ll include your link.  Happy Voting!

Votes and Voices – An Invitation

As writers, we value individual voices, and this Tuesday, all of us — writer and non-writers alike — have a powerful opportunity to show that our voices matter. 

I’ve been an eligible voter for 20 years now, and this will be my sixth Presidential election. I’ve never been more excited to cast my vote, and I’m excited that on this coming Election Day, America will likely see one of its biggest voter turnouts in memory. 

I’m excited for people who will be voting for President for the first time on Tuesday —  people like my friend Stephanie, getting her master’s degree to be a librarian right now.  I’m excited for the thousands of older people voting for the first time,  already lining up in states like Florida and Georgia, because they believe this year, their voices are important.  They’re right.

On Tuesday morning, I’ll be stopping to vote during my morning run.  My polling place is actually a tiny little building — a one-room community center in our neighborhood park. 

To celebrate Election Day, I’ll post a photograph of myself on my way in to vote, and I invite you to do the same on your blog on Tuesday.  I’ll post a round-up of links here, so please drop me a note or comment if you plan to participate, and I’ll be sure to include you in my VOTES AND VOICES celebration.

Just three more days to go…

The Magic of YouTube

I’m working on a new middle grade novel that I absolutely love, but recently, I hit one of those rough spots.

I’ve been putting off Chapter 7 for about a week.  How come?  It involves my main character, a figure skater, trying to do something she hasn’t mastered yet — a double toe loop.  She falls a bunch.  I knew that much.  And then there’s an interaction with her coach and the other skaters that’s important to the plot.  I was fine with all that, and ready to write it. 

What I didn’t know — and can’t research properly until an appointment in Lake Placid comes through — is what it looks like when you try to land a double toe loop and miss.  How do you do one successfully?  And what might she be doing wrong?

I couldn’t bring myself to just skip that scene and keep writing, but I really wanted to move forward, so last night, I had an interesting thought.  Might there be video of someone doing a double toe loop on YouTube?  Might there even be video of someone trying one and falling?

There were, in fact, numerous videos of people landing toe loops, bobbling toe loops, and completing messing up toe loops.  This one was especially helpful.


Not only did the girl in the pink shirt attempt a double toe loop and fall in slow motion, allowing me to see what went wrong, she did it over and over again. (And the people who responded to the video clip with comments, letting her know what she was doing wrong were pretty darn helpful, too.)

Obviously, watching a video — even a bunch of videos — isn’t the same as being there.  When I take my research trip to Lake Placid, I’ll be able to ask questions, see things, hear things…even smell things about the rink that a video can’t provide.  I’ll use all that in my revision of this chapter, but last night,  I needed to keep moving forward. 

So just in case the girl in the pink shirt stumbles across this blog entry…

I know I’m not the reason you shared your skating video, but you should know that you inadvertently helped me through Chapter 7.  Even beyond the research, I have to tell you that I admire the way you kept trying over and over and over again.  (Writing is like that sometimes, too, only with fewer visible bruises.)

Anyway, I hope you’ve got that double toe loop down by now.  And thanks.

Historical Fiction & Revision at the NYSEC Conference

I spent Thursday at the NYS English Council Conference in Albany, giving presentations on historical fiction and revision, chatting with other writers on a children’s literature panel, and signing copies of Spitfire and Champlain and the Silent One.  The fabulous Merritt Bookstore handled book sales for the conference & took terrific care of the authors – Thanks, Scott &  Alison!

When I first arrived, Scott sent me to pick up my paperwork, including this name tag that helped me to introduce myself to the teachers. 


Hello, I’m Kate Messner. I’m  a presenter and…er….a fish.

There were apparently two stickers printed out for each presenter – one with his or her name and the word presenter.  That one was supposed to go on the name tag.  The second sticker, which also included the speaker’s choice of dinner entrees, went on the envelope with the meal ticket, but apparently my stickers got switched, which amused me to no end.  It could have been worse, though, as one of my colleagues pointed out.  What if I had ordered the chicken?  Or the ham?

After a morning of book signing, I gave two workshops.

At this one, we talked about recently released historical novels like Laurie Halse Anderson’s Chains, a National Book Award Finalist, and ideas for using historical fiction in the classroom.  Teachers were excited to learn about some upcoming 2009 releases in historical fiction, too.  My second presentation, Walking the Walk: How Teacher-Writers Encourage Student Revision led to some great conversations about how we choose to model what we teach and how sometimes that means taking risks. 

The afternoon panel discussion with fellow children’s writers & illustrators was fun for me, too.  I was on a panel with talented people like Ann Burg, Jack Rightmyer, James Ransome and Will Moses. The teacher-writers who came to fire questions at us were enthusiastic and thoughtful, and no matter how long I write, it’s always fascinating for me to hear about other people’s processes.

I’m reveling in a pile of new books tonight and have already dipped into a couple of them.  I’m loving Jack Rightmyer’s  A Funny Thing About Teaching, a must-read for anyone who values a sense of humor in the classroom.  I’m also devouring an early copy of Ann Burg’s April 2009 novel-in-verse with Scholastic, called All the Broken Pieces, which tells an incredibly moving story set in the aftermath of the Vietnam War.  Readers who know my blog know that I never shut up about books that I love, so rest assured I’ll be posting a full review of this one when we get closer to its release date. For now, though…just….wow.  Ann sat next to me at the bookstore tables, where she signed copies of her beautiful picture books with Sleeping Bear Press, and is not only an incredible writer but a kind, friendly, funny person, too. 


Here we are at dinner…That’s Ann on the left and me on the right, looking even sleepier than I felt after a day that started at 5:30am.

If you were at the conference and stopped by to say hello at the book signing or panel discussion or one of my workshops – thanks.  It was truly an inspiration to spend the day with people who are so passionate about reading and writing with kids.

The Amazing Boomerang Manuscripts

What sounds like a circus act is actually the reality of having several different projects going on at once, all at different stages.  Out on submission, revising, copy editing, Lately, when I sit down for my writing time at night, I have to ask myself… What’s on my desk right now, and what’s off it?

Tonight’s status report…

On my desk:

  • Two presentations for the NYS English Council Conference in Albany on Thursday.  I’ll be giving two workshops: Historical Fiction as a Bridge to Content Area Literacy and Walking the Walk: How Teacher/Writers Encourage Student Revision. My PowerPoint presentations are updated and ready to go, but I need to get my materials packed AND I need to finish reading a pile of fantastic ARCs from some fellow 2009 debut authors so I can talk them up to the teachers and then give them away.
  • My second MARTY MCGUIRE chapter book for Scholastic.  I’m wrapping up a first round of revisions before I send Marty off to some critique partners.
  • SUGAR ON SNOW, the middle grade novel that’s my current WIP.  I finished Chapter 6 tonight.  I’m really excited about this one, but I think I need to make a trip to Lake Placid for research before I write too much more.

(Truth be told, there’s also a whole bunch of other stuff on my desk, including a few newspaper clippings, some books, a pen holder made of popsicle sticks, index cards, rocks, notebooks, photographs, bookmarks, a kid’s homework that I hope is not due tomorrow, and an orange Tootsie Pop.  There used to be a chocolate one, too, but I ate that while I was writing the end of Chapter 6.)

Off my desk for right now:

  • THE BRILLIANT FALL OF GIANNA Z, my Fall ’09 middle grade novel with Walker Books.  Gianna is spending some time in NYC for copy editing.  (Do you think she’ll get to see a show while she’s there?) I expect her home around the end of the month.
  • MARTY MCGUIRE, FROG PRINCESS, my first Marty chapter book for Scholastic.  My latest Marty revision went back to my editor last week.
  • OVER AND UNDER THE SNOW, my picture book with Chronicle Books.  I’m waiting for a decision on an illustrator.  I’ve heard bits and pieces of some very exciting possibilities, but nothing definite yet.
  • A new picture book that’s out there in the world right now.  Think good thoughts for it, okay?  I’m very fond of it and have high hopes that I’ll be able to make it what it needs to be to find a home.

Off my desk for good:

  • Son’s leaf collection project (which wasn’t on my desk, exactly, but it meant that the boy was hogging my computer and dripping pine needles all over the living room floor, so it still counts.)  He is turning it in tomorrow, and we will both rejoice.

What about you? What’s on your desk right now?  What’s off your desk for now and could use some good thoughts from the rest of us?

The Truth About Leaf Collections

As a middle school teacher in a school where the huge 7th grade leaf collection project is downright infamous, I thought I’d done my research for THE BRILLIANT FALL OF GIANNA Z (Walker Books, Fall ’09).   It’s a funny, contemporary novel about a girl whose 7th grade leaf collection project is ruining her life.  I’d heard the horror stories of kids getting caught in mean neighbors’ yards, stealing leaves off their trees.  I’d heard tales of the all-nighters kids pulled, securing the last few sets of leaves into their binders.  But until this fall, I’d never watched my very own 7th grader complete a leaf project of his own. 

To be sure, it’s meant some beautiful autumn hikes for leaf collecting…

Point Au Roche State Park on Lake Champlain

But the leaf project also has a dark side. This is what my living room looked like last weekend, when son and his two friends were working…

My manuscript is in copy edits right now.  Do you supposed I’ll have a chance to go back and add a few more details about the impact Gianna’s leaf project had on the rest of her household?  We’re still vacuuming pine needles here (Or are they spruce needles…? I’ll have to check the key…)

Detour for the Snow Geese

A Columbus Day author visit this week meant a sunny day drive through some of the most beautiful October scenery in the Northeast.  I enjoyed every minute of the mountains and the maples.  Helen wasn’t as appreciative of the scenery, though.  This is Helen…

…my GPS unit.

Usually, Helen and I get along, even though we’re very different.  I daydream and look out the window a lot.  Helen is very responsible and never gets lost.  I like that in a travel companion, so I generally put up with her bossiness in the interest of arriving places on time.  This week, though, we had it out while I was driving home from my school visit.

Helen: Turn left in one mile.

Me:  Yeah…only I think I’m going to go straight and turn later on because then we can see the snow geese at that wildlife management area up by Route 17.  I’d really like to see the snow geese.  Wouldn’t you?

Helen:  Turn left in point two miles.

Me:  I’m going the snow geese way.  (passes turn)  It’s not that far.

Helen: Make a U-turn.

Me:  They’re really pretty, and it’s just the right time of year.  You can hear them honking and everything.

Helen: Make a U-turn.

Me: No. I haven’t seen the snow geese since I lived in Vermont, more than ten years ago, and it’s October. I’m never in this part of Vermont in October.  We’re going this way.

Helen:  Turn left in point two miles.

Me:  I’m turning left on the snow geese road.  Not before.  (passes left turn)  You’ll like this…you’ll see.

Helen:  Make a U-turn.

Me:  Oh come on… It’s going to take us nine minutes out of our way.  Nine minutes. That’s it. You said so yourself.  What’s nine minutes when we’re talking about thousands of amazing migratory birds?  Where’s your sense of adventure?  Where’s your sense of wonder?

Helen:  Make a U-turn.

Eventually, Helen gave up on me and we arrived at the Dead Creek Wildlife Management Area to join the dozen or so bird watchers taking in the spectacle of the Snow Geese. 

Every fall, huge flocks of Greater Snow Geese stop here to rest and feed on their way to the Chesapeake Bay for the winter.   I loved listening to their honking and the rush of their wings when they took off.  It was worth the extra nine minutes, no matter what Helen says.

Note for Vermont friends… I’ll be doing a presentation and signing books this Saturday from 11-12 at the fabulous Flying Pig Bookstore in Shelburne, and I’d love to see you there!  

Encounters of 1609…
Native Americans had lived along the waterways of the Northeast for generations when French explorers and fur traders began arriving in the late 16th century. What must the two groups have thought of one another?  In this interactive presentation, Kate shares images, artifacts,  and excerpts from her historical novel Champlain and the Silent One as we travel through time to explore the Champlain Valley of 1609.

Huzzah!!

The National Book Award finalists have been announced, and some of my favorite books of 2008 made the list!

Laurie Halse Anderson, Chains (Simon & Schuster)
Kathi Appelt, The Underneath (Atheneum)
Judy Blundell, What I Saw and How I Lied (Scholastic)
E. Lockhart, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks (Hyperion)
Tim Tharp, The Spectacular Now (Alfred A. Knopf)

I was lucky enough to read an advance reader copy of CHAINS last spring, and I already have 30 copies on order for my 7th grade classroom.  You can read my full review here; it’s an incredible, incredible book. (Way to go, halseanderson !)

I read THE UNDERNEATH during our family trip to Washington this summer and stayed up way too late one night to finish.  It’s a powerful, beautifully written American fantasy.  THE DISREPUTABLE HISTORY OF FRANKIE LANDAU BANKS was one of my summer-on-the-back-deck books. I laughed out loud and loved every minute of that one, too.  I’m off to the library now to pick up the two titles I haven’t read yet.

Congratulations to all of the finalists.  Let the reading begin!

An Author Visit in Vermont

It’s been a long day, but I’ve promised some new friends that I’d post blog photos tonight, so here are some highlights of my author visit to Lothrop Elementary School in Pittsford, Vermont.

A town hall full of 4th, 5th, and 6th graders greeted me as soon as I arrived.  We talked about Spitfire and the American Revolution on Lake Champlain.  I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a room of kids with more questions!  Good ones, too – those Lothrop readers are astute.

After a quick break, I met up with the 5th graders again in their classroom for a second presentation: Encounters of 1609.  I read from my new historical novel, Champlain and the Silent One, and we talked about the Champlain Valley as it existed 400 years ago, when French and Native Peoples were meeting one another and encountering one another’s cultures for the first time. 

After lunch, I spent some more time with the 6th graders for my historical fiction writing workshop. The kids tried out 18th century games, foods, and tools and brainstormed sensory details about their experiences that they’ll use in writing their own stories later on. After spending the afternoon with these kids, I can assure you that the future of historical fiction is in very good  hands.

Before I hit the road, I stopped by one last classroom — this one in the home of a fifth grader whose health concerns have prevented him from attending school lately.  Jamee had read Spitfire with his mom and was waiting with it in his lap when I arrived.  After we talked about the Revolutionary War and the fur trade in New France, we took time out for a photo with our favorite historical hats — one that I promised Jamee I’d post tonight.

Thanks, Jamee and family, and everyone at Lothrop Elementary, for a fantastic day of reading, writing, history, and learning!


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