It is rare that I watch an entire game of football, and even more rare that I don't mute or fast forward through commercials. I saw one commercial today that I was glad to see, in fact it brought tears to my eyes. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9WxC1PtIvsY
The commercial is promoting an electric car, and it includes a grateful hug from a polar bear. I have blogged in the past about how emotional I get when I think about the melting Arctic. I'm especially moved by the struggle of the polar bears, so this commercial is quite touching.
The image is of the polar bear painting from my book, "Through Endangered Eyes."
I'm one of those people that loves numbers in titles. "Eight Ways to Reduce Stress," "Three Things You Should Know About...," "Twenty-Five Ways to Blow Your Nose," you get the picture. I've decided to give it a try and see if anyone else has five things that has shocked them about writing their novel.
Over this past year I have learned a lot about writing a young adult novel.
1) It isn't as easy as Stephanie Meyer (author of "Twilight," in case you've been asleep) said it was for her.
2) Re-writing is not an option - it's mandatory.
3) Most of my family and friends are not as excited about the details of my characters as I am, and talking about my protagonist as if she is alive can get really annoying to them.
4) A critique group is a necessary ingredient in my process. The people in my critique group can relate to having their heart ripped out, stepped on, and put back in their chest only to ask for someone to do it again.
5) I miss my characters if I haven't visited my pages after a couple of days.
Next year I'd like to write about the Five Things I Learned About Getting my Novel Sold. Wouldn't that be great?
