January Reading Challenges Update

As I’ve mentioned, I’ve upped my reading goal to 80 books for this year. That’s a little insane since I’ve never met my reading goal. Ever. I did come close last time, so maybe I was feeling brave and a little drunk on new year’s resolutions the day I made that goal. Who knows?

I’ve made a sizable dent already by reading eleven books this month. Woohoo! That is a personal record. Maybe I wasn’t so crazy setting that goal.

Anyway, I am currently participating in three reading challenges (I picked up a Reading Bingo Challenge from a blog friend and fellow book lover) and I want to share my progress for this month, and some of the books I’ve read so far.

 

#RockMyTBR 2016 Reading Challenge I’ve tweeted my accomplishments, but haven’t taken advantage of the buddy reads idea, yet. I think I’ll try that next month.

The books from my TBR pile I’ve managed to clear off already are:

THE SKIN GAME (The Dresden Files #15) by Jim Butcher

Jim Butcher really knows how to layer a story with complex plots and how to keep you guessing to the very end. One thing I love more than anything is his use of humor. Even in the midst of the worst moments, his main character, Harry, can throw out a fantastic quip that has me rolling and also wondering if he isn’t just a bit insane. I absolutely love this series, and I am fascinated by the depth of characters and story lines that Butcher weaves into each one. The dynamic between Harry and his badass pint-sized sidekick Murphy is pure genius and she is also one of my favorite female characters in this genre – yep, the vanilla human with no magical powers who dares to fight monsters.

Butcher is the king of taking his characters so close to what they want and having it ripped away from them, just to be put through the worst possible scenarios while taking a hell of a beating as they try to survive by any means necessary. On occasion they don’t survive, which breaks our hearts even more. And yet, I still can’t stop reading each book at a break-neck pace. I’m already anticipating the release of PEACE TALKS (book #16) later this year.

Harry Dresden, Chicago’s only professional wizard, is about to have a very bad day….

Because as Winter Knight to the Queen of Air and Darkness, Harry never knows what the scheming Mab might want him to do. Usually, it’s something awful.

He doesn’t know the half of it….

Mab has just traded Harry’s skills to pay off one of her debts. And now he must help a group of supernatural villains—led by one of Harry’s most dreaded and despised enemies, Nicodemus Archleone—to break into the highest-security vault in town so that they can then access the highest-security vault in the Nevernever.

It’s a smash-and-grab job to recover the literal Holy Grail from the vaults of the greatest treasure hoard in the supernatural world—which belongs to the one and only Hades, Lord of the freaking Underworld and generally unpleasant character. Worse, Dresden suspects that there is another game afoot that no one is talking about. And he’s dead certain that Nicodemus has no intention of allowing any of his crew to survive the experience. Especially Harry.

Dresden’s always been tricky, but he’s going to have to up his backstabbing game to survive this mess—assuming his own allies don’t end up killing him before his enemies get the chance…(Plot summary from author’s website.)

Learn more about Jim Butcher here.

Follow Jim on Twitter here.

 

SIMON VS. THE HOMO SAPIENS AGENDA by Becky Abertalli

I was intrigued by the title and the cover and by all of the online love this book received by writers I respect. This debut novel was well worth the time. I really enjoyed the secret relationship Simon had with Blue and how honest he could be with someone he didn’t really know. The lengths he went through to protect this relationship from being harmed – what made this one more real than others in his life? Great concept and so well executed.

Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.

With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met. (Plot summary from author’s website.)

Learn more about Becky Abertalli here.

Follow Becky on Twitter here.

Follow Becky on Tumblr here.

Follow Becky on Instagram here.

 

What books are on your TBR pile?

 

2016 Book Riot Read Harder Challenge – I managed to read a couple off this list, too. Yay! I actually also read a book under 100 pages when I read through the entire SHATTER ME series, which included a couple of novellas, but I don’t want to count that towards this goal. There are some suggested readings in the discussions of the Book Riot’s Goodreads Read Harder Group that look more enticing. I love looking through the conversations here – so many great reading suggestions for each category! (You can also follow the Twitter hashtag #ReadHarder, if you’re curious.)

Books I’ve read for this challenge:

 

ORBITING JUPITER by Gary Schmidt

(Read a middle grade novel)

This is another beautifully written book by the master storyteller. If you haven’t read any of his books, I urge you gather them all up now, sit back and enjoy. And I envy you that first-time read of some truly amazing stories.

Schmidt crafts a wonderful and heartbreaking story that draws you in and makes you feel everything for Jack and Joseph and makes you want so much more for them.

I love it when I close a book with tears still fresh in my eyes. Ah! such a great story!

When Jack meets his new foster brother, he already knows three things about him:

Joseph almost killed a teacher.

He was incarcerated at a place called Stone Mountain.

He has a daughter. Her name is Jupiter. And he has never seen her.

What Jack doesn’t know, at first, is how desperate Joseph is to find his baby girl.

Or how urgently he, Jack, will want to help.

But the past can’t be shaken off. Even as new bonds form, old wounds reopen. The search for Jupiter demands more from Jack than he can imagine.

This tender, heartbreaking novel is Gary D. Schmidt at his best. (Plot summary from Goodreads.)

Learn more about Gary Schmidt here.

 

SHATTER ME by Tahereh Mafi

(Read the first book in a series by a person of color)

 

I was drawn to the cover and the description of a character who’s touch is deadly. I wanted to know her story. Then this series fit in with this challenge as my selection for the first book in a series by a person of color. Of course, once I read the first book, I couldn’t just stop; I read the entire series, including the two novellas told from the two main male characters, Warner and Adam.

Mari has such a unique writing style. She has a beautiful use of language that paints vivid emotional pictures, and really draws you in to her story. Her heroine, Juliette was fantastic. I loved following her struggle to self-discovery and finding her own inner strength. Such a wonderful series.

Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war– and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice:
BE A WEAPON. OR BE A WARRIOR. (Plot summary from author’s website.)

 

What books have taken you out of your normal reading pattern this year?

 

Bookish Cassie’s Reading Bingo Challenge – Cassie is the dynamic gal behind the Books and Bowel Movements blog that I just love. Cassie is doing this reading challenge on her Instagram account, which makes fun and really easy. If you’re on Instagram, feel free to copy the picture and join in with the hashtag #readingbingo2016. It’s that simple. You can find me on Instagram at litbeing. You can find Cassie there at bookishcassie.

Books I’ve read for this challenge this month:

THE COLOR PURPLE by Alice Walker

(A book that became a movie)

This is a book I’ve been wanting to read for a long time. What finally made me pick it up was hearing how much the book impacted one particular reader. Author Matt de la Peña mentioned how influential this book was on him personally, and how surprised he was to see similarities in his life with that of Celie, the main character. Good enough recommendation for me.

I really enjoyed reading this book, and watching Celie discover her own inner strength and seeing her way to forgiveness over bitterness. Beautiful story.

Celie is a poor black woman whose letters tell the story of 20 years of her life, beginning at age 14 when she is being abused and raped by her father and attempting to protect her sister from the same fate, and continuing over the course of her marriage to “Mister,” a brutal man who terrorizes her. Celie eventually learns that her abusive husband has been keeping her sister’s letters from her and the rage she feels, combined with an example of love and independence provided by her close friend Shug, pushes her finally toward an awakening of her creative and loving self. (Plot summary from author’s website.)

Learn more about Alice Walker here.

 

WE WERE LIARS by E. Lockhart

(A book rec from someone in your family)

My daughter recommended this book to me. She rarely steers me wrong. This one was no exception. I love when a book surprises me and moves me. This one did both.

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate,
political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth. (Plot summary from author’s website.)

Learn more about E. Lockhart here.

Follow E. Lockhart on Twitter here.

Watch E. Lockhart read the opening of WE WERE LIARS here.

Follow the WE WERE LIARS Tumblr page here.

 

So what have you been reading, lately? What are you looking forward to reading next?

 

 

#TBT Post – Take Your Imagination and Play with It

I wrote this #ThrowBackThursday post for The Great Noveling Adventure blog and it was originally published on October 7, 2014. 

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For this Travel Tuesday, I’ve decided to send you on a journey with your imagination. Story ideas come from many different places. Everyone has their own process and sometimes that process needs a little nudge.

It never hurts to practice. To stretch. To limber up the imagination and prep it to receive THE BIG IDEA. I mean, not every great idea falls fully formed out of the sky and smacks us on the head. Sometimes, the great ideas are cultivated. Grown. Here are a few sites that can help you find the seed to begin your next great idea.

Have some fun and play with your imagination. After all, that’s what it’s for.

Oneword

If you work better when given a scary, looming deadline, how about sixty seconds? Oneword is a prompt site that gives you just that. One minute to write a story.

You click GO and your prompt word appears. You then have one minute to write about it. You are encouraged to, “Don’t think. Just write.”

This is a great exercise for warming up or for getting unstuck. Maybe even sparking a new idea.

The site stops your cursor when time is up, so you can’t cheat. You can then share your work if you like and even read what others have created. Here’s one I did with the word “underdog”.

He always liked the show. You know, the cartoon, but he never thought he’d be categorized like that. Underdog. Not him. He wanted to be the hero. The one to get the girl. But it was always his best friend. The rugged athlete.

The time goes really fast! Although I probably wouldn’t use this actual passage in a manuscript, I could see this kindling the idea for a character or storyline. Who is this person? Why does he secretly feel like the underdog in his own story? I wanted to know more about him.

So tempting to keep clicking for new words.

WRITEWORLD

This Tumblr site has all the bases covered – it gives you three different rabbit holes to choose from

• Image Blocks – “A picture is worth a thousand words. Find the words.” From fantastical landscapes to expressive faces  – shown in varying mediums, from original artwork to intriguing photographs – you’ll always find an image that arouses your imagination.
• Sentence Blocks – “In one sentence is the spark of a story. Ignite.” Some start with a quote, some start with a question that begs to be answered, some give a hint of a situation that could lead to anywhere.
• Music Blocks – “Music is love in search of a word. Find the words.” Think of it as the most eclectic playlist you’ve ever heard. Pick a track and listen. What mood does it evoke? What story springs to mind? Let it out on the page.

The infinite possibilities will help stir up those plot bunnies in no time.

I hope you enjoy these sites. Feel free to share your favorite idea-prompting sites with us. We love hearing from you!

Happy Writing, Adventurers!

• Book Lists –  which feature all sorts of helpful book links from emotional thesaurus to books on writing to where you can obtain free books legally
• References – a page full of helpful reference links for writers like grammar links, dictionary links, and writing resource links.
• Word Lists – which features a collection of lists of descriptive words like Important Infrequently Used Words to Know, and 23 Emotions People Feel, But Can’t Explain.

January #okscbwichat – Special Guest Sonia Gensler

 

I co-hosted this month’s #okscbwichat on Tuesday evening with our Special Guest, author Sonia Gensler.

 

Sonia Gensler

Sonia is the award-winning author of Ghostlight, a contemporary middle grade novel, as well as The Dark Between and The Revenant, both young adult historical novels. She is obsessed with Gothic horror and loves to write ghostly mysteries.

Sonia grew up in a small Tennessee town and ran with a dangerous pack of band and drama geeks. As an adult she experimented with a variety of impractical professions—museum interpreter, historic home director, bookseller, and perpetual graduate student—before finally deciding to share her passion for stories through teaching. She taught literature and writing to young adults for ten years and still thinks fondly of her days in the classroom. Sonia currently lives in Oklahoma with her husband and cat.

Learn more about Sonia Gensler here.

Follow Sonia on Twitter here.

Follow Sonia on Facebook here.

Follow Sonia on Tumblr here.

 

Sonia opened our 2016 Twitter Chat season to an enthusiastic group. She shared her loathing of first drafts and her love of all things Gothic, including some of those Gothic influences that shaped her own writing. Sonia also discussed how setting shapes her writing, and how it actually comes before character or conflict.

Sonia discussed some of the differences in publishing and marketing she’s experienced between her YA and MG novels, and gave her younger writer self some sage advice. She also talked about her latest work in progress.

If you missed the chat, you can view the Storify version of the entire conversation here.

**Join us next month when our guest will be Picture Book author Gwendolyn Hooks. See you February 23rd!

 

**Stay tuned next month when our guest will be picture book author Gwendolyn Hooks. See you February 23rd!

To see a full list of our upcoming Twitter chats on #okscbwichat for 2016 CLICK HERE.

January Flash Fiction Prompt

One of the new blog features I’m introducing that generated the most excitement when I discussed it earlier on the blog was this one, the Flash Fiction prompt. I hope you’re ready to light up your neurons and spark some creative genius (or at least get in some good writing practice).

Here’s the visual prompt for this month…

(Image courtesy of Gratisography.)

Write a story inspired by this image in 1000 words or less.

If you’d like to share your story, email it to me at valerierlawson@gmail.com. Put Flash Fiction Prompt in the subject line.

I’ll share my story next month. I may post yours, too. If I have enough people participate, I’ll post the best one on the blog!

Introduction to My Relaxed & Groovy Book Club

 

As you may recall from my earlier post about blog changes, I’ve decided to start a read-along book club to share some of my favorite reads and introduce new readers to some of my favorite authors.

As I want the focus to be on the joy and discovery of wonderful books, I’m calling it the Relaxed & Groovy Book Club. Nothing too stressful or demanding, but I do hope it will encourage some interaction and lively discussion.

If nothing else, I hope you’ll tell me whether or not you like the books we read. (It’s really okay if you don’t!)

To start things off with a bang, the first book we’ll be reading for February is…

 

PLEASE IGNORE VERA DIETZ by A.S. King.

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—Is it okay to hate a dead kid?

—Even if I loved him once?

—Even if he was my best friend?

—Is it okay to hate him for being dead?

Eighteen-year-old Vera’s spent her whole life secretly in love with her best friend, Charlie Kahn. And over the years she’s kept a lot of his secrets. Even after he betrayed her. Even after he ruined everything.

So when Charlie dies in dark circumstances, Vera knows a lot more than anyone—the kids at school, his family, or even the police. But will she emerge and clear his name? Does she even want to? (Plot summary from author’s website.)

Learn more about A.S. King here.

Follow A.S. King on Twitter here.

King has become one of my must-read authors, and I am knocked out by each new novel she publishes. She is a master at using magical realism with astounding impact. This book is where it all began, and it won her a Michael L. Printz honor in 2011. She’s accumulated many more accolades since.

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I hope you’ll join me in reading this phenomenal book. This most relaxed and most groovy of book clubs will meet on February 25th to talk about it. (Tie-dyed tees and funky shoes optional.)

Happy reading!

Upcoming SCBWI Oklahoma Twitter Chats for 2016

 

As the newly appointed Social Media Coordinator for the Oklahoma SCBWI region, I am very excited to announce the first half of this year’s Twitter Chat lineup. Most chats are held on the fourth Tuesday of each month, however, we do have a few special dates running up to our Spring Conference in April, when some of our speakers will be joining us. How amazing, right?

No matter the date, each Twitter chat session will last one hour, from 7-8pm CST, and we’ll be using the hashtag #okscbwichat.

 

Here is our Twitter Chat Line-Up:

JANUARY- Sonia Gensler

Sonia Gensler is the award-winning author of Ghostlight, a contemporary middle grade novel, as well as The Dark Between and The Revenant, both young adult historical novels. She is obsessed with Gothic horror and loves to write ghostly mysteries.

Sonia grew up in a small Tennessee town and ran with a dangerous pack of band and drama geeks. As an adult she experimented with a variety of impractical professions—museum interpreter, historic home director, bookseller, and perpetual graduate student—before finally deciding to share her passion for stories through teaching. She taught literature and writing to young adults for ten years and still thinks fondly of her days in the classroom. Sonia currently lives in Oklahoma with her husband and cat.

Sonia will be our guest on January 26th, from 7-8pm CST. Her Twitter username is @soniagensler. To participate in the chat, please use the hashtag #okscbwichat.

 

 

February – Gwendolyn Hooks

Gwendolyn Hooks is the author of twenty published books, including her popular Pet Club series. Two of her Scholastic early readers, The Mystery of the Missing Dog and Three’s A Crowd, sold over 100,000 copies each. She’s also written nonfiction picture books, including Arctic Appetizers: Studying Food Webs in the Arctic.

Her latest book, Leona Mitchell: Opera Star, was released this past fall as part of the I AM OKLAHOMA series. In 2016, Lee & Low will publish her picture book biography, Tiny Stitches – The Life of Medical Pioneer Vivien Thomas. 

Gwendolyn blogs on The Brown Bookshelf to push awareness of the myriad of African American voices writing and illustrating for young readers. The American Library Association selected The Brown Bookshelf as a Great Website for Kids.

Gwendolyn will be our guest on February 23rd, from 7-8pm CST. Her Twitter username is @GwenTheGweat. To participate in the chat, please use the hashtag #okscbwichat.

 

 

March – Victoria Selvaggio

Victoria Selvaggio is an Associate Agent with The Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency. She has a strong background in business ownership, and she worked for over seven years as a volunteer and Regional Advisor for SCBWI: Northern Ohio. Drawn to the publishing scene first as an author writing all genres, with her most recent publication in the 2015 Children’s Writer’s and Illustrator’s Market, Vicki’s passion for honing the craft carried over into reading manuscripts for the agency in 2013.

Currently, she is excited to read compelling manuscripts that will resonate with her long after she’s done.

Victoria will be one of our fantastic speakers presenting at our OK SCBWI Spring Conference in April. To learn more about our conference and to register for this event, CLICK HERE.

Her current wishlist:

“I am currently looking for all genres (lyrical picture books, middle grade and young adult fiction, new adult, mysteries, suspense, thrillers, paranormal, fantasy, narrative nonfiction, adult fiction), but find I’m particularly drawn to middle grade and young adult. I especially love thrillers and all elements of weird, creepy stuff. If it’s out of the box, and it will make me think and think, long after I’m done reading, send it to me. On the flip side, I yearn for books that make me laugh, cry and wonder about the world.” (From agent’s website.)

Victoria will be our guest on March 29th, from 7-8pm CST. Her Twitter username is @vselvaggio1. To participate in the chat, please use the hashtag #okscbwichat.

 

 

April – Karl Jones

Karl Jones is an Associate Editor with Grosset & Dunlap/ Penguin Young Readers. Karl works on a variety of licensed and original middle grade and activity books, as well as some early YA projects. He acquired and edits the Just Jake series from New York Times best-selling kid author, Jake Marcionette and edits a middle grade/YA transition series by established stage and screenwriter, Justin Sayre-the first book in this series, Husky published in September 2015.

He also develops, acquires and writes unique original activity books like Day of the Dead Activity Book and Build A Boyfriend, as well as hiring work-for-hire authors for several licensed book programs for entertainment and gaming properties including Star Trek, Powerpuff Girls, Uncle Grandpa, Regular Show and Shovel Knight.

He is particularly interested in realistic middle grade and YA fiction and format-bending storytelling projects. In his free time, he enjoys comedy and storytelling events, outdoor adventures, and live music. He is a native Oklahoman.

Karl will be one of our fantastic speakers presenting at our OK SCBWI Spring Conference in April. To learn more about our conference and to register for this event, CLICK HERE.

Karl will be our guest on April 5th, from 7-8pm CST. His Twitter username is @karljones. To participate in the chat, please use the hashtag #okscbwichat.

 

 

May – Timothy Lange

Timothy Lange has been a graphic designer, illustrator and fine art painter for over 30 years. He graduated from the Colorado Institute of Art in 1982 and studied at the Art Students League of Denver (off and on) from 1989 to 2003.

He is an active member of the Oklahoma Chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). He was was transplanted to Broken Arrow, Oklahoma in 2003. Aside from the bugs and humidity, he says its not a bad place to call home.

Tim will be our guest on May 24th, from 7-8pm CST. His Twitter username is @TJ_Lange. To participate in the chat, please use the hashtag #okscbwichat.

 

 

June – SPECIAL FACEBOOK EVENT!!! Saturday, June 11th, Q&A Event with YA Author Courtney Summers & her Literary Agent Amy Tipton – This is a special event for our SCBWI Oklahoma Members ONLY.

Courtney Summers was born in Belleville, Ontario, in 1986 and currently resides in a small town not far from there. She likes writing books about girls who only have themselves because sometimes that realization is the scariest and most important thing–the slow untangling of the difference between ‘lonely’ and ‘alone.’ Her favourite kind of stories are the ones that make you wish so badly they’d ended differently but deep down you know they really couldn’t have gone any other way.

To date, she has authored five novels. Her first novel, Cracked Up to Be, was published when she was 22 and went on to win the 2009 CYBILS award in YA fiction. Since then, she’s published four more books. They are 2011 YALSA Top Ten Quick Pick and White Pine Honor book, Some Girls Are, 2012 YALSA Quick Pick, Fall for Anything, 2013 YALSA Top Ten Quick Pick and White Pine Honour book, This is Not a Test, and most recently, Please Remain Calm (an e-novella sequel to This is Not a Test) and All the Rage. All the Rage was an Official Tumblr Reblog Book Club pick and named a Best Book of 2015 by Bustle, Book Riot, Chicago Public Library and the B&N Teen Blog.

When Courtney is not writing, she enjoys playing video games, watching horror movies, Supernatural and planning for the impending zombie apocalypse. Her favorite color is green.

Amy Tipton joined the Signature Literary Agency in 2009. She graduated from Naropa University with a B.A. in Writing and Literature and received her MFA from New College of California in WRiting. She comes to the agency after working as a literary assistant and office manager at several literary agencies including JCA Literary Agency, Diana Finch Literary Agency, Gina Maccoby Literary Agency, and Liza Dawson Associates. Amy has also worked as a book scout for Aram Fox, Inc. dealing with foreign rights. She became an agent with Peter Rubic and continued to agent with FinePrint Literary Management. In addition to her agenting experience, Amy also worked as a freelance editor to Lauren Weisberger, author of The Devil Wears Prada. Her work is published in the anthology, Controlled Burn, and pieces of her first and second novel can be found in a variety of literary journals.

Courtney & Amy will be our guests on FACEBOOK on June 11th. On that day, Members who have been invited to join in this private chat can post questions for Courtney & Amy to answer. Our guests will be popping in and out of Facebook during the day to answer questions. This is NOT a live chat. 

In order to participate in this Q&A an OKSCBWI member must:

1. Have a Facebook account
2. Visit the event page and select JOIN to be invited into the private group
3. Once someone has approved you, post your questions for Courtney & Amy BEFORE the event begins on June 11th.

 

 

July – Brenda Drake

Brenda Drake, the youngest of three children, grew up an Air Force brat and the continual new kid at school until her family settled in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Brenda’s fondest memories growing up are of her eccentric, Irish grandmother’s animated tales, which gave her a strong love for storytelling. So it was only fitting that she would choose to write young adult and middle grade novels with a bend toward the fantastical. When Brenda’s not writing or doing the social media thing, she’s haunting libraries, bookstores, and coffee shops or reading someplace quiet and not at all exotic (much to her disappointment).

Brenda is the host of the ever-popular Pitch Wars, Pitch Madness, and the Twitter pitch of all pitches, #pitmad. Brenda will be discussing what it’s like to host these mind-boggling contests, and how in the world she still makes time to write! Her debut novel, THIEF OF LIES: A Library Jumpers Novel, experienced a very successful release this month.

Brenda will be our guest on July 26th, from 7-8pm CST. Her Twitter username is @brendadrake. To participate in the chat, please use the hashtag #okscbwichat.

What an outstanding lineup!

The chats really are a lot of fun. Don’t worry if you can’t make it to every event; I’ll post a link to the Storify version of each chat after every event has concluded.

We have a few more surprises we’re working on. Once we can announce them, I’ll update this page.

I hope you’ll join us!

 

 

August – Topic Chat: Support Through Social Media

We will be having another special MEMBERS ONLY event this month on August 20th, a Social Media Hangout, to discuss and share ideas on how our members can better support each other and their books through social media, from pre-ordering books to using Goodreads effectively, and much more. Details on locations and times will be posted on our SCBWI OK website.

To supplement that, our Twitter chat for the month will be on a specific topic: “Sharing Ideas of Support Through Social Media”. During the chat, we’ll exchange our favorite ways of supporting each other through social media.

This topic chat will take place on August 23rd, from 7-8pm CST. To participate in the chat, please use the hashtag #okscbwichat.

 

 

September: We have two chats this month!

 

Brett Wright

Brett Wright is an Editor at Bloomsbury Children’s Books, where he’s worked for the past five years on everything from picture books through YA. He will also be one of our off-site critiquers for our SCBWI OK Fall Workshop in October.

He has worked with authors like E.D. Baker, Jennifer Brown, Nikki Grimes, Carrie Jones, Paul Tobin, Sarah Crossan, and many more. He has also written three books in Random House Children’s OMG Shakespeare series, including Yolo Juliet. He lives in New York, NY. You can follow Brent on Instagram or Twitter.

Brett will be our guest on September 6th, from 7-8pm CST. His Twitter username is @BrettWright. To participate in the chat, please use the hashtag #okscbwichat.

 

Benjamin Myers

Benjamin Myers is a professor of literature at Oklahoma Baptist University and is the current Oklahoma Poet Laureate. He is the author of two books of poetry LAPSE AMERICANA and ELEGY FOR TRAINS, which won the Oklahoma Book Award for Poetry.

His poems may be read in numerous literary journals, including The New York Quarterly, Nimrod, Tar River Poetry, Borderlands, Salamander, and the Chiron Review, as well as online in Devil’s Lake, DMQ Review, The Pedestal Magazine, Elimae, Poetrybay, and elsewhere. He lives in Chandler, Oklahoma.

Benjamin will be our guest on September 27th, from 7-8pm CST. His Twitter username is @OK PoetLaureate. To participate in the chat, please use the hashtag #okscbwichat.

 

 

October: We have two chats this month as well!

 

Adriana Domínguez

Adriana Domínguez is a literary agent with Full Circle Literary with 20 years of experience in publishing. She will also be one of our off-site critiquers for our SCBWI OK Fall Workshop in November.

Her author client list includes award winners and best sellers such as Michaela and Elaine DePrince, Reyna Grande, Katheryn Russell-Brown and Angela Cervantes. Adriana is interested in picture books that are funny or endearing, with an element of the unexpected; voice-driven contemporary and historical middle grade and young adult novels, and narrative nonfiction, including biographies, and memoirs written by authors with strong platforms. Twists, strong concepts, and diverse points of view are all on her general wish list; works that are at once timely and timeless will always get her attention. Adriana also represents artists with distinctive styles, and not-so-secretly yearns to bring more diverse illustrators into the market.

**To view her full bio and complete manuscript wishlist, visit her agency website.

Adriana will be our guest on October 4th, from 7-8pm CST. Her Twitter username is @VocesBlog. To participate in the chat, please use the hashtag #okscbwichat.

 

 

Joe Hight (BOB at Best of Books)

Joe Hight is not only the president of Best of Books, an independent bookstore in Edmond, Oklahoma, he’s behind the online persona, BOB, and the delightful tweets of the store’s Twitter account @bestofbooksok.

Best of Books is a family-owned bookstore celebrating its 30th anniversary as an Edmond institution. Joe and his family took over ownership a few years ago after they moved back from Colorado Springs, Colorado, where Joe was the editor of The Gazette. While working there, his paper won the Pulitzer Prize. Prior to the move to Colorado, Joe worked for The Oklahoman. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame in 2013.

 

Joe will be our guest on October 25th, from 7-8pm CST. His Twitter username is @JoeHight. To participate in the chat, please use the hashtag #okscbwichat.

 

**There will be no monthly #okscbwichat scheduled for November or December as they fall close to the holidays – see you next year!

 

 

 

A New Year, A New Blog – Let’s Get Serious!

After a most tumultuous year, I’m ready to get back to work on my writing in earnest. I have two manuscripts that need one good revision each, and then some beta reading and feedback, and one final polish before I’m ready to shove them out of the nest to watch them soar to the sky or crash and burn. I also have one other manuscript with some exciting interest that I need to finish. Pronto. This means making some changes to my daily routine to ensure I’m focused and productive.

Every. Single. Day.

 

My office bulletin board before changes…

…and after! Complete with goal-tracking calendar and shiny stickers! (This is an older picture; there are a lot more stickers on there, now. Trust me!)

 

 

Another thing I’ve done is reviewed my outside commitments. As I’ve taken on a much larger role with my local SCBWI group, (I’m now the Social Media Coordinator for SCBWI Oklahoma and co-host for the monthly #okscbwichat we hold on Twitter) I’ve decided to pull back from participating in the group blog The Great Noveling Adventure. I will miss TGNA tremendously, but this will allow me to spend more time completing my manuscripts, and prepping them for submission – my major goal for the year!

I’ve also revamped my vision for this blog and have planned out some exciting ideas for the coming year.

Here are some of the changes coming soon:

A preview of my current TBR pile numbering 50 books at present. I hope to read all of these before the end of the year…and then some!

I will continue to read, read, read, and to encourage you all to do the same.

I’m participating in a few reading challenges, and I will share my progress along the way – as well as any fantastic books I discover. As always, I hope you share any books you fall in love with, too.

I will also introduce a read-along book club to share some of my favorite reads this year. Nothing too stressful or demanding, but a bit more interactive. And an excuse to re-read some of my faves of all time. (And get others to read them!)

Speaking of interactive, I have a strong desire to practice writing short stories. I know it’s an area that can help me expand my writing skills. (We should never stop learning or expanding or skills, right?)

To encourage others to write, write, write, along with me I’ll be introducing a monthly flash fiction writing prompt that might even involve some prizes to add some excitement.

 

One Flash Fiction prompt could be using a picture like this and prompting you to tell a story about this boy…

 

I’ll still include the popular book reviews and craft posts and the odd personal story or interview from time to time to keep things lively.

One more new addition will be a monthly #TBT (ThrowBack Thursday) post where I will share some of my favorites that I originally posted over on the TGNA blog.

I hope you enjoy the changes, and join in the some of the more interactive activities.

Should be fun!

Here’s to a productive new year to all!

-Valerie