It's November 10-19th at the Riverside Art Center in Ypsilanti. Here's a link for details:
http://www.ptdproductions.com/ Be sure to stop by and say hi if you come. I'll be working front of the house every day.
Now onto today's post. I'm thrilled to have author Monika Schroeder here to share about her MG contemporary BE LIGHT LIKE A BIRD. It really sounds like something I know many of you will like.
Here's a blurb from Goodreads:
Now here's Monika!
Thank you for inviting me to
"Literary Rambles" and for giving me the opportunity to share a bit
about the process of writing Be Light
Like a Bird.
Be Light Like a Bird is the emotional, realistic fiction story of 12-year old
Wren who is heart-broken after loosing her father in an airplane crash. Wren's
father always told her to be "light like a bird, not like a feather"
- - to control her own destiny, to make her own choices. But Wren is adrift
after her father dies and her mother acts distant and angry. Over the course of
the story Wren needs to heal and grow, and when she finally learns the reason
for her mother's behaviour, they both have to learn to forgive.
In early drafts of
the book the focus was on Wren's trouble being the new girl in school and her
fight to save the bird sanctuary. Over many revisions I felt that I hadn't
reached the core of who she was and what was hurting her. But I didn't know how
to fix it and left the manuscript in the drawer for a long time. In fact, this
was actually the second book I wrote, but it became the fourth book I
published. Leaving it in the drawer helped. One day on my morning walk I suddenly
knew who Wren was: her father had died and her mother had dragged her to
northern Michigan. From there I rebuilt the emotional arc of the novel,
focusing on the grieving and her relationship to her mother.
It still took me a lot longer to
finish Be Light Like a Bird than my
previous novels. In
Since it took so
long to finish the book I experienced many moments of frustration. Like many
writers in those moments I thought I could never shape this manuscript into a
decent book. My poor husband had to listen to me whine frequently and repeat
the question, "Will I ever finish this book?" I appreciate his
patience and constant encouragement. He reminded me that time actually doesn't
matter while writing a book. What matters is to get it right -- and not to
loose faith.
Monika Schröder writes novels for middle grade readers. Among
her books are Saraswati's Way, a story of an Indian street
child and The Dog in the Wood, set in eastern Germany at the end of
WWII. She grew up in Germany but has lived and worked in American
international schools in Egypt, Oman, and Chile. Before moving to the US she
was the elementary school librarian at the American Embassy School in New Delhi,
India. She now lives and writes in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina
with her husband and her dog. Visit her at: www.monikaschroeder.com
Monika generously offered a signed copy of BE LIGHT LIKE A BIRD for a giveaway. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (just click the follow button if you’re not a follower) and leave a comment through November 19th. If your e-mail is not on your Google Profile, you must leave it in the comments to enter the contest.
Here's what's coming up:
Next Monday I have an interview with debut author Jenny Moyer and a giveaway of her YA science fiction FLASHFALL.
Tuesday that week I'll be participating in the Gratitude Giveaway Hop.
Then I'm starting my holiday slowdown because everything slows down so much with NaNo and the holidays. I'll be visiting you but not posting as much.
On Monday, December 5th I'll be back with a guest post by MG Jenny Lundquist and a giveaway of her new MG THE CHARMING LIFE OF IZZY MALONE and a 10 page manuscript critique. Jenny is a fantastic middle grade author who nails her characters' voices, so this is a great opportunity for someone.
Hope to see you on Monday!
