Introducing...my Meditor!

Look at this, no word for weeks, and suddenly, new posts almost every day! What can I say, I'm just psyched for all the amazing bookstore/writing news coming my way this week.

Breaking news! This just in!

My mentor/editor - hereafter referred to as my Meditor - has officially been announced! Kaylan Adair, come on down!

For those of you wondering, who? huh? what?, take heart. I'll explain.

I haven't spoken much about my Simmons grad program, for various reasons, (top of the list being I'm spending a ton of time actually doing the program instead of writing about it), but this is one of the most exciting aspects. As I'm about to enter into the second, and final, year of the MFA, my cohort of classmates and I have the honor and privilege to work with some of the best editors in today's publishing world. Each semester, we Simmons students will submit a proposal of a current project - about 10-20 pages of work + a synopsis + pseudo-query letter. The Simmons program directors, in their infinite wisdom, will send out these proposals to prospective editors and will try their hardest to match us up with appropriate editorial choices to act as mentors throughout our work for one semester. The editors get to read over the proposals and decide with whom, and most importantly with whose work, they would like to be working.

Let me tell you, we submitted these proposals for first semester this coming year back in APRIL, and these have been some of the most intense, nail-biting, "Oh god, I'm sure no one's going to want to work with me," "What if my writing is horrible and my kind cohort has been too nice to say anything?" months of my life. Finally, finally, finally, news began to trickle in - a few people had been matched, and then a few more, and still, no word for poor Eddie&Gina (my two main characters of the piece I submitted). What's a girl to do?!

Wait it out, apparently, because when I checked my email today, wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles (btw, 10 life points for naming where "wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles" comes from WITHOUT googling it), there was an email announcing MY Meditor! After bouncing up and down and some Google stalking, here are a couple of links I found to info about my Meditor and her publishing house:

Five Scribes Interview / Candlewick website

Brief Meditor Bio: Kaylan Adair
(taken from the Five Scribes Interview - see above for the complete article)

Kaylan Adair is an Associate Editor at Candlewick Press in Somerville, Massachusetts. Kaylan acquires everything from picture books through upper YA, although she specializes in middle-grade and young-adult fiction. Among the projects she's edited are the YA novels DOWN SAND MOUNTAIN by Steve Watkins and SWIM THE FLY by Don Calame, and the early reader SQUIRREL'S WORLD by Lisa Moser, illustrated by Valeri Gorbachev. She is the American editor of the YA novel THE KNIFE OF NEVER LETTING GO by Patrick Ness, winner of the 2008 Guardian children's fiction prize. Previously, she was the American editor of the Maisy books by Lucy Cousins. Kaylan is looking for fresh, original voices and compelling stories. She loves characters with a lot of heart, whether the story itself is humorous, quiet, sad, or gritty. She tends to shy away from poetry, non-fiction, sci-fi, and fantasy.

BTW, LOVED The Knife of Never Letting Go - not only did I pick it up in-store to read and couldn't put it down (it has SUCH a cliff-hanger ending, it drives me insane!), we had to read it for my grad school class, who all also loved it, AND I've recommended it to some customers (actual kids who are the best judges of a work) who loved it as well. I'm astounded that the editor who worked on that book chose to work with me! (Maybe she didn't, maybe they couldn't find me an editor and someone bribed her to do it, but either way, still fills me with awe.)

So that's the news as I have it, folks. You heard it here first, and I'll keep you posted on any exciting new developments!

P.S. Does anyone else think of "Minotaur" from Role Models when I say "Meditor"? Or is it just me? (Annie, I'm talking to you.)

Writing Prompt One

For whatever reason, I'm finding it difficult to sit down and make the time to write. You'd think with no more class twice a week nor the homework required for them, I’d be writing reams every day. Sadly, this is not the case. While I want to blame it on the myriad of other interesting things I’ve found to do with that “free time”, I have to admit to a certain lack of inspiration. Some of the voices have become more subdued. As odd as it sounds, I have to chalk it up to my own summertime happiness; I seem to write better when I’m angsty and stressed (if I can find the time – go figure, huh?). I think it also has to do with the lack of a weekly writing group, like the one I have during my actual school year. This will not do, I’ve told myself, and as a result of last weekend’s grad school BBQ, I’ve made a firm resolution to write a little bit, if not every day, then certainly every week.

To get back in the spirit of things, I've decided to post my weekly responses to a writing prompt featured on this blog. The blog belongs to (or is written by) a former professor of mine, Jo Knowles, who has one published teen novel (Lessons From a Dead Girl) and is eagerly awaiting the publication of her second (Jumping Off Swings). When she was my professor, we would begin each class with an 8 minute writing prompt – she would give us the prompt, we would scribble away furiously for 8 minutes, and then go around the room reading these little unedited gems of whatever monthly, weekly, or daily neurosis had worked its way into our creative brains. We all agreed that those prompts were the best way to begin any creative writing class. In my own experience, the first inkling of what is now my teen novel-in-progress came out of one of these prompts, so I owe Jo quite a lot.

As much as I would like to commit to “every Monday morning at x-o’clock, I will sit down for this 10-minute writing exercise,” the reality of that happening is a little shoddy at best. Instead, I will firmly announce that sometime over the course of a week, I will answer the call of the prompt, and will not only write it, but will also post it for the world to see and possibly comment upon, if they so see fit. Comments are accepted, though not expected, and they don’t have to be nice either, feel free to tell me my writing is crap. I can take it.

Of course I’ve taken so long to write this post announcing my intention, that I have not left myself any time to actually answer this week’s prompt. I’ll have to get back to you on that. Stay tuned!

Word of the day: Awry

I like this word because it’s fun to say with a silly inflection, and also can be defined with one-word definitions that also both start with “a”.

Definition: 1) askew; 2) amiss