Epiphany!

I've been working on a picture book manuscript for well over a year.  It has changed MANY times.  But last night, while I was painting in my art journal I had an awakening of sorts.  I set up a dummy (a mini-book) drawing my pictures along with the manuscript lines on the pages.  And do you know what happened?

CLARITY!!!

It all came into focus.  Seeing the images helped me understand what parts were relevant to the story and what parts weren't.  I'm feeling giddy!  Only a week away from my critique group meeting and I can't wait to share.

What's created epiphany moments for you?  What gives clarity to your writing?

Highlights Fiction Contest

Highlights Magazine for Children is having a fiction contest this month!  The theme is fiction based on a true story from your family.  So, for all of you children writers (or writers who dabble in different genres) here's your chance.  Three prizes for $1,000 OR tuition to Highlights Foundation Writers Workshop at Chautauqua!  Here's the details:

GUIDELINES
HIGHLIGHTS 2010 FICTION CONTEST

CATEGORY:
Fiction based on a true story from your family.

PRIZES:
Three prizes of $1,000 or tuition for the Highlights Foundation Writers Workshop at Chautauqua.

ENTRY DATES:
All entries must be postmarked between January 1 and January 31, 2010.

RULES:
No entry form or fee is required.
*Entrants must be at least 16 years old at the time of submission.
We welcome work from both published and unpublished authors. All submissions must be previously unpublished.
Stories may be any length up to 750 words. Stories for beginning readers should not exceed 475 words. Indicate the word count in the upper right-hand corner of the first page of your manuscript.
No crime, violence, or derogatory humor.
Entries not accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope will not be returned.
Manuscripts or envelopes should be clearly marked FICTION CONTEST. Those not marked in this way will be considered as regular submissions to Highlights.

SEND ENTRIES TO:
FICTION CONTEST
Highlights for Children
803 Church Street
Honesdale, PA 18431

WINNERS:
The three winning entries will be announced on Highlights.com in June 2010. These stories will become the property of Highlights for Children and will be published by Highlights. All other submissions will be considered for purchase by Highlights.

Wing Tip #5: Composing Art

"Ink on paper is as beautiful to me as flowers on the mountains; God composes, why shouldn't we?" - Audra Foveo-Alba

This page is from my art journal.  (Sorry the picture's not very clear.)  I liked this quote and thought it fit the first of the year.  Whatever your bent is (painting, scrapbooking, writing, cooking, poetry, music, drama, photography or whatever) I hope it encourages you to go forth today and create!

Note: If anyone's interested in making art journals, check out Suzi Blu's inspirational video here.  I find her quirky and hilarious.  She uses strong language at times, but not in this video.

Sunday Scribblings 196: New Leaf

Due to the move, Alycia had cleaned every last box out of the attic except this one.  A celebratory trip to the coffee shop awaited her when she finished.  Heaving the box from where Brock had placed it, she tugged it into the living room.  A knife slid through the unmarked lid.

"More of Evan's clothes we forgot to pass down to Michael and Brian?"  Brock teased.

She stuck her tongue out at him.  "The box is too small for that."

Pulling apart the cardboard folds she threw newspaper wads off the top.  A purse-sized book faced her.  She didn't recognize it at first.  Withdrawing it into the light she examined the cover.  Collaged across the front, yellowed under the glaze, were pictures from high school with the words:  "I'm a Grown-Up!"  and  "Freedom!"  decoupaged across it.

Alycia smiled.  She'd forgotten what her younger self dreamed about.  The book crackled as she opened it.  The first page had her as an eighteen-year-old graduate on it.  The next few pages held comments, collages and paintings of friends, thoughts and struggles.  Alyicia smiled, reminiscing the life she'd had then.  The last page was vibrantly painted but held only one line that said:  Life'll only get better from here!

The hope in that one statement made Alyica tear up.  Her younger self couldn't have known what life would bring.  How succeeding in her first job made her forget the dream of being an artist.  The difficulty of trying to have children.  Being surprised after adopting Evan to get pregnant with the twins.  Watching her children grow up and the return of her longing to paint.  While life hadn't gone exactly as she'd dreamed, she'd been right about it getting better.  Her children were adults now and she found herself once more "all grown up".  Alyica emptied the box tucking the journals into her hope chest to be browsed again later.

After Brock went to bed that night, she pulled a sketchbook out of the drawer along with paints and brushes. Sitting at the kitchen table she opened it to the first page and wrote:  Life'll only get better from here!

When It's OK to Open With Dialogue -- Les Edgerton's comments

A few days ago, I quoted tips from Les Edgerton's book here.  He graciously wrote back on my comments.  Since I only highlighted sections of his book, I probably didn't make it as clear as I could have, but he helped by putting this:

I'd like to correct a misconception that seems to have arisen, if I may. I'm not advocating that stories don't begin with dialog. What I weigh in against is beginning with a line or more of dialog where the speaker and/or the addressee isn't identified, or the context of the dialog doesn't make it clear who's speaking and to whom. That's where the problem is--not that it begins with dialog per se. Beginning with dialog in that manner means the reader has to read further to figure out all that, and then backtrack in her mind to make sense of the dialog she's just read, and that means the fictive dream has been interrupted, a definite no-no. For instance, if a story begins with a snatch of dialog like this: "She may turn left at the next light." then we know nothing about the speaker, who that person's speaking to, or what her sentence is about. That's what I mean by not beginning with dialog. However, if that same sentence is written this way: The perp was getting away. We'd almost lost her. "She may turn right at the next light, Barry," I said. "Be prepared." Then that works. (Admittedly, neither of those represent great beginnings, but I'm writing this on the fly. I just wanted to show the distinction. I'm not against opening with dialog in the least, nor are editors/agents et al--it's opening with dialog that doesn't let the reader know the circumstances and who the speaker is. There are also instances where even though we don't know the speakers, we can get from the context of the dialog what's going on. As in: "I wouldn't mind going to bed with her, Ralph, but then I'd have to touch her." Something like that doesn't necessarily need dialog tags or setup, etc. Make sense? I just want to make sure that folks don't misunderstand and think that I or any agent/editor is against opening with dialog--that's not the case at all. It's dialog which requires the reader to have to backtrack in their mind a bit further on in the read that's a no-no. Hope that helps clarify this! Blue skies--Les Edgerton