Today, I am not thankful for sub-zero temperatures that forced me to scrape the INSIDE of my car windshield this morning as soon as I breathed out. What’s up with that?
I am thankful for the following:
- Everything I learned being a panelist for the Cybils this year for MG fiction. I’ll blog about this soon. (By the way, they’re running a trivia contest at the Cybils site that you ought to check out. You can win a pop-up version of The Chronicles of Narnia!)
- Julie Berry, the writer friend and crit buddy who will not let me get away with including a preachy, overstated paragraph about peace in my Champlain manuscript, no matter how many different places I try to sneak it in. She’s always nice about it, too.
- The fact that I’m done with my revisions for Champlain & the Silent One (as soon as I remove that one preachy, overstated paragraph from the Author’s Note)
- A writing retreat in my near future. This year, I’ll be attending Kindling Words for the first time. I’ve heard amazing things about this retreat, and I’m so excited I can hardly stand it. (Okay…the truth is I’m also nervous, since I’m going by myself and won’t know a soul there, as far as I know.) But mostly, I’m looking forward to a late January weekend of quiet writing and conversations about craft
The KW retreat sounds heavenly! Such great presenters and a chance to really dig deep. Can’t wait to hear all about it!
Kate! How did I not know you and Julie were friends. I love Julie. Tell her hi for me. Your manuscript is in very good hands.
In junior high school, I was best friends with Julie’s big sister (back when Julie was a very cute, noisy, precocious eight-year-old!). We reconnected at last year’s New England SCBWI conference and figured out we were both writing MG fiction. It’s been great knowing her as a grownup! And yes, she’s brilliant!
I’m so looking forward to it – thanks!
Yeah, I had to scrape the inside of my window yesterday!
There’s something about it that’s just wrong… I ended up with little snowflakes in my coffee.
Have fun at Kindling Words, Kate! You deserve a nice retreat after this busy fall …
Loree
Kindling Words! I’m so jealous!
That used to be one of the main reasons I wanted to hurry up and have a book published, so I could go!
I’d love to participate in a writing retreat! That would be wonderful! Have fun…and thanks for the friend.
Hey! I”ll be at KW too! I’m SO excited to meet Laurie Halse Anderson and YOU!
Thanks! I hope you end up taking time for a writing getaway, too – I know you were considering one.
I remember hearing about it at a writers conference about six years ago, being all excited to go, and then finding out you had to have a book out. I’m very excited to finally be there!
It’s my first one, and I’m really looking forward to it!
Yay!! Now I DO know someone! Thanks for letting me know. I hope it’s warmer in the Champlain Valley when retreat time rolls around, though — it was well below zero today!
And I can’t remember if I said so already, but congratulations on PURGE! It sounds fantastic.
Thanks! I’m Really, REALLY excited about that book. I just want it to be out so I can go out and speak in schools about eating disorders and my experiences.
I’m so very jealous — I was wait-listed AGAIN this year. Have a great time!
Oh – I wish you were going. I think I registered the minute I was allowed to because this was the first year I was eligible.
What a neat name for a retreat. I can feel it warming my writing muscles already! I hope it inspires you. 🙂
Your interview is up, by the way!
“Death to preachy paragraphs.” I should post that on the wall over my writing desk. 🙂