Betty Birney’s Blog

I was thinking about firsts in author’s life because of something I’ll tell you about later on in this post. I was amazed at how many there are.

  There’s the first book that you can actually buy in a store that has your name on it. Actually, this had three names on it, but one of them was mine and I was thrilled.

 There were other Disney books but after a lot of hard work, there it was – the first book with my own characters – not someone else’s.

Then, there was my first middle grade book published. I didn’t know it would also be my first series. (Yes, this was the original cover.)

 If you’re lucky, there are the first starred reviews which I got for this book.

Each book has its own set of firsts. There’s the first time you see the cover, the first time you hold the book in your hands, the first review. Fingers crossed that it’s a good one- even if there are less flattering ones to come, you’ll have that in your pocket. (Whew, Humphrey’s were all positive.) It goes on and on. The first fan mail, the first award, the first time a book earns back its advance, the first school visit.

          I was thinking about this when I learned about author Bridget Zinn. I don’t know Bridget and I never will because though her debut novel, Poison, just came out this week, Bridget didn’t live to see this first. But she wrote it and and she sold it and she knew it would be published and that’s quite an accomplishment. If you haven’t done it, try it – it’s not as easy as it sounds. I haven’t read Poison yet but I’ve ordered it. Who can resist a 16 year old heroine who’s a specialist in poisons and potions and oh, yes, she has a pet pig. The pig sold me. And so did Bridget – you can read about her, see her and hear her on her website.   You’ll wish you knew her — and you can. One of the greatest thrills about having a book published is that it’s there, somewhere, on a shelf and it doesn’t go away. Eventually, you may not find it in a bookstore, but it’s still in a used bookstore, a library, on a shelf in a home – and ebooks will probably always be available. I’ve ordered the book because it sounds like a great read. And also because of Bridget. Why not see for yourself?

Time after time, when I talk to aspiring young writers – or even aspiring not-so-young writers, I hear their frustrations about how they have good ideas but the stories just don’t turn out well when they put the words on paper. It’s possible that they’re not good writers. But it’s more probable that they simply stopped too soon.

I certainly had that problem when I was a kid. I loved writing stories and I had tons of ideas. But I had trouble finishing my stories. Usually, I just abandoned a story and started a new one. That’s why I was happy to find a childhood story that I actually finished. It’s not a good story but I’m extremely pleased with it because it has a great structure. After all my failed attempts, I was unlocking at least one of the “secrets” of writing. A story needs a beginning, a middle and and end. Also, unlike some of my great failures based on subjects I knew nothing about (the Southern plantation girl, the Hawaiian girl) the story that worked was simple, age appropriate and relatable.

I think a lot of writers who give up in frustration have forgotten the most important thing about writing: revision. Getting the first draft down on paper is the hard, sweaty labor. But then you have something to work with – something you can hone and craft and play with and make better and better with each draft. That’s the stage I’m currently in.

I just completed a manuscript and I’m guessing I did about 20 revisions – which isn’t a lot for me.  That doesn’t count the mid-writing revisions. For instance, I was well into the revisions when I realized that I needed to add a lot of detail to create a complete, believable and appealing world. So I stopped there and revised what I’d already written, building in that world before continuing. As usual, when I reached the end, things had changed along the way and I had to do several revisions to focus the story more sharply toward that ending. And then, I had to take out some of the detail I had added and make some changes in the lead character. Now I find I need to dive in again and re-define two of the characters.

I thought about revisions when I pulled out some of my father’s carvings. My dad was a great amateur artist and he did a lot of wonderful, whimsical wood carvings.  Late in life, he had eye problems and although he didn’t abandon art, he put down his carving knife. After he died, I found some unfinished carvings and as soon as I looked at them, they reminded me of a writer’s rough drafts. The shape is there but the sharp cuts aren’t. The little details aren’t there either and none of the color. And yet, in each one, I can already see the personality emerging! Dad always put a lot of character – and movement - into his carvings.

This dog is just a beginning – the shape is very rough. But already I know that he’s an inquisitive hound.

 This gnome-like creature looks like a cranky Hobbit to me. He’s definitely not a happy one.

 This lady skater didn’t fare well in my suitcase. She’s rough as well – no defined skates yet, the hands are very rough. Still, I see the breeze picking up the ends of her scarf and the way he was going to catch her in an off-balance pose. Dad did a lot of skaters and they always could stand on their tiny carved skates, except for the one on his rear end.

(By the way, Uncle Alf’s magical Christmas village and the woodcarver who makes the angel – both in The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs – were inspired by Dad’s incredible Christmas village.)

When you write a series, you end up answering the same questions over and over, which is understandable. Who wouldn’t wonder if I have a hamster or what was the inspiration for the book? Deborah Kalb recently interviewed me for her (adult) book blog and dug a little more deeply. I always like questions that make me think. Here’s the interview: http://bit.ly/T6l9Hw.

I recently was at a school where I did two sessions (third and fourth grade) and we had a lot of time, so it was more relaxed than usual. The students asked all the usual, obvious and again, perfectly understandable questions. But then a miracle happened: they started to ask questions about writing. Really good questions about writing. I wish that happened more often at school visits. Yes, the author is there to inspire the students, which is what I try to do. And entertain as well, so they don’t fall asleep. But often, people miss the opportunity to have a writer all to themselves and ask for answers they’d never get off my website, for instance, or in the bio on the back of a book.  Once the kids loosened up that day, they dug more deeply and I hope they enjoyed it as much as I did. I love it when a child asks a question that really makes me think!

I guess at a perfect school visit, the teachers would have had time beforehand to explore the possibilities of asking a real writer questions about how they really write. But I know how limited their time is.

It would be ideal if the students were asked to listen to each answer instead of waving their hands and hoping they’ll get called on. (They all do this, but if you really think about it, it’s rude to have your hand up while a person is answering another question.) And the students would not repeatedly ask questions that were already answered because then it’s obvious that they weren’t listening. (One of my son’s previous teachers, whose class I’ve visited several times calls students on that bad practice but she’s the only one.)

It would be really lovely if the teachers listened and didn’t do their paperwork while I spoke. When they do that, I realize that there’s no hope that they’ll take what I said and reinforce it back in the classroom. Most of the time, teachers do go back and talk to their students about what I said and give them a project that builds on that. But not the ones who don’t listen.

In the end, this is what school visits are like and 99%  of the time, the students and teachers are enthusiastic, interested and lots of fun.

Life isn’t perfect anyway, after all. But please – don’t hold back from asking those burning questions.

Luckily, I’m not superstitious. So just because there’s that “13″ in this  brand-new year, I’m not worried. However, if I did suffer from Triskaidekaphobia, I would have plenty of reasons to think that this would be a strange year.

Here we are, not quite three weeks in and:

- Our five-year old Prius, which up until now I have loved, has been in the shop three times, for a total of six days and finally, the mechanics had to call on Toyota engineers to figure out what the problem was. It’s healed now – fingers crossed. Oh, wait, I can’t cross my fingers if I’m not superstitious. My theory is that the Prius wanted attention. We just hadn’t been showing it the love. Lesson learned. Have you hugged your car today?

-I got locked OUT of my office for the better part of a day – which is very difficult for me because my life is in that office! This was due to the Prius unexpectedly spending the night in the shop – along with one key to my office. AND I’d locked my other key IN the office, thus locking me OUT. Needless to say, we now have a lot of extra keys.

-I got locked IN my office two days later. That’s right, I couldn’t get out because the doorknob was broken. I suffered some mild panic, because my office is wonderful and cozy but it doesn’t have a bathroom! Luckily, the locksmith came quickly and I was relieved – in more than one way. And of course, there were plenty of people suggesting I need a lock-that-doesn’t-lock for my office. My husband is convinced I could have gotten out through the window, but the window is small and high and there are those windowboxes ….

My mother always told us that whatever you do on January 1, you’ll be doing the rest of the year. For all my life, that’s made me be careful about what happens on New Year’s Day. This January 1, I wrote all day. I imagine that is what I’ll be doing the rest of the year – though I have quite a bit of travel coming up. Anyway, I’m not superstitious.

I also didn’t make any resolutions this year, which is a first for me. (My mother also used to make resolutions FOR her husband and children.) It’s still not too late, is it?

And another strange thing: it really was cold here in Southern California, but the warm temps have returned and I am grateful.

I hope 2013 turns out to be a lucky day for one and all. Bring on the strangeness!

Whew! It’s that time of year again!

In The World According to Humphrey, our curious, adventurous classroom hamster spent Christmas at Mrs. Brisbane’s house. He does it again this year, but not until he’s already had quite a spin on the Hanukkah dreidel and helped Room 26 get through a very rocky holiday program at Longfellow School! Singing snowflakes, jingle bell horses …. Do-It-Now-Daniel is not practicing the piano for the show. Eeek! But I feel the most sympathy for Helpful-Holly, who has gotten a little out-of-control with the need to make a multitude of handcrafted gifts and make the holidays super-special for everyone. I think we’re all in danger of falling into that trap. Luckily, Humphrey helps her and you know what? He’s helped me, too! If I don’t get to post before the end of the year: HAPPY-HAPPY-HAPPY-holidays to all of Humphrey’s friends — and mine!

By the way … in the U.S. the book is WINTER ACCORDING TO HUMPHREY. In the UK, it’s CHRISTMAS ACCORDING TO HUMPHREY. It’s the same book (though we dropped the tamales from the UK book- too bad because they’re so delicious!) In fact, for our recent 30th anniversary, my husband and I went to Santa Barbara and visited La Super Rica Tacos- haven’t been there for awhile, but it’s iconic …. Julia Child’s favorite restaurant!!! Thank you, Frank, for 30 adventurous years! And Happy Holidays to one and all!