In Which I Am Very Excited!

I did it. I made the leap I have been "going to do one of these days" for a couple of years now. I joined SCBWI. Today, February 4th, 2011. I am excited about it. Are any of you members? After reading about the New York conference, I just couldn't put it off any longer. I knew it was "put up or shut up" time, so I just leaped in and did it. While I know that this is not some magical key that will instantly make me a "real" writer, it is a giant step for anyone wanting to be published in the children's market, which I do. I don't talk a lot about my writing, but maybe I should......sometime. Currently, I'm aiming at the Middle Grade mark, which tends to be the majority of what I read anyway, so it makes sense. That is what I know best, which is what 'they' always say to do, write what you know, and I know Middle Grade. (this is what you call the area between picture books and Young Adult)

So, while I was iced in, I did do some blogish writing, mind you, it is not really great stuff. Let me see if any of it is worth posting. It is mostly incoherent babbling, I fear.

I’ve been reading Fat Vampire: A Never Coming of Age Story by Adam Rex. This story is very different from Frankenstein in that it is most definitely YA. This is the story of a 15 year-old who becomes a vampire. As the title suggests, this is no Edward Cullen. Doug is short, overweight and kind of geeky. If you click the link, you can actually read the first part. Rex is very funny, and has obviously been a teenage boy. This book is definitely YA. I am having fun with this one.

Also, this weekend I’ve been reading the SCBWI blog updates from the winter conference in New York. What a cool thing this is by all accounts. I was struck though by the fact that this awesome group of people has their summer conference in LA and winter one in NYC. Doesn’t that seem a bit backwards to anyone else? Personally, especially given the weather lately, I would much rather go to Los Angeles in January. Just saying. Still, weather aside, it really sounds amazing. Click over and read about it yourself. If you have never had any aspirations of writing or illustrating children’s literature, you probably wouldn’t see the attraction. I did price the thing……shooeee….not in my current financial situation. I am saving up for membership. SCBWI (society for children’s book writers and illustrators) is an awesome, global network of writers, illustrators, agents, editors……pretty much everyone involved in KidLit. Yeah, I wanna be part of that world. Membership first, conferences down the road farther.

Well, here I am iced in at home for the second day. Don’t get me wrong, the sleeping in, lazy day yesterday and relative comfort of hearth and home are great. I kind of enjoy being stuck at home. It is the fact that I don’t know if we’ll be able to get out tomorrow either that worries me. My daughter is stuck in town alone, she is house sitting for a friend. She could walk to Grandma’s or the store if she needs anything, so that is a comfort.

I have decided that I love face book. Not only can I chat with friends and family, people I talk to everyday, or haven’t talked to (face to face) for years, but I can also talk to authors, and random people that I don’t actually know. It got me to wondering why more authors aren’t accessible in this way. If Anne Rice can start deep conversations with her “People of the Page”, why does J.K. Rowling not have an online presence? (as an example) Rick Riordan has a great blog, and face book, and he seems like a pretty busy guy. Meg Cabot, busy busy, but has an active online presence. I am not complaining, nor would I ever begrudge Ms. Rowling her privacy or time with her family. There hasn’t been anything new on her website in years. YEARS. Just seems like someone, a publicist or assistant or something could say “Hey, she’s not dead or abducted by Yeti or anything.” If there is anyone who’s career is not in danger it is J.K. Rowling. That said, she is an excellent writer, and I would love to know if she is working on anything new.

That said, this is what I am currently reading. XVI by Julia Karr (whom I have met, and is coming to my library on the 24th of this month), and Fat Vampire by Adam Rex. So. Funny.

There was the day that the e-reader on which I was reading Fat Vampire glitched due to a low battery (the cord to charge was at work on my desk), and being iced in, I really wasn't in a dystopia mood. That is when I picked up Stardust by Neil Gaiman. SUCH a great story teller! (shhh....I've only seen the movie so far) Beautifully written, as you would expect.

So there you go, ramblings and not especially proofed, but we can't have everything, can we? Wait, can we? I'd settle for that new bed.....and a massage.....and a vacation....

(This made me giggle a bit...)

Have a WONDERFUL weekend everyone!