How to use this Page

These are the months where I have the most time to play with my camera, but the subject matter is limited.  My loons have gone to the coast.  The eagles roam, not yet tied to a nest full of chicks, the heron has migrated, turtles are buried deep and the fox kits are just a gleam in their parent’s eyes  . . .

So I turn to my backyard chicks.  If they were my children, they’d roll their eyes at the number of times I stand in my little front yard with my biggest lens trained on their feeders.  You can almost hear them say, “Really?  Really?  Isn’t that a little bit of overkill there? Go find a snowy owl for goodness sake!”

But it’s more challenging than one would think.  Over the last couple of days, whenever I was stuck in my manuscript, I’d take the camera outside for a few minutes.  Then at night I’d pour through the photos to see what I’d caught.  From the five hundred I took over the last couple of days, perhaps twenty to twenty-five were salvaged.  Ten of those are sharp and crisp.  Some I wish I had do-overs for . . .

Grand Central Station

Right before a storm is best.  The feeders are a hub-bub of activity, the birds almost don’t pay me any mind at all as they choose their seeds.

Finches devour the seed, leaving a chickadee waiting in the wings

Emotions are high on these days . . . . everyone wants their turn at the feeder.

Wait your turn!

Downy Woodpecker

Mourning Dove with snow for a hat

Focusing and shooting birds who are perched and chowing down is fun, but I longed for a bigger challenge.  Incredible photos.

Flight photos.

So I turned my camera on my newest feeder, a shiny glass ball, where the flight in and out was constant.

Well, almost constant.

With a little guidance from my husband, the photos became sharper and more interesting.

But there were still a lot of photos I had to cut, interesting photos, but not clear enough, crisp enough to save.  I had to take comfort in the knowledge that I could try again another day.

Last night it hit me, for me, revising a manuscript is a lot like revising my photos. For every 1,000 strings of words, perhaps two hundred make the cut. Some need a little sharpening and re-focusing from a editor.  Some are put aside as a maybe.  Some you never need to touch, perfect in their rawness, from the minute you first wrote the words. Some are junk and just have to go.

Add color and substance here.  Move a chapter there.  Try to find the very perfect combination of contrast, exposure and depth . . . .

And cheekiness . . . .

Today.

Today was one of those wonderfully, perfect days where I was reminded why I write for children.

And why I’m a teaching assistant.

And why those two things fit together perfectly.

A few weeks ago, I posted here about visiting the classroom of an author friend, who’d  created a campfire for her students to sit around, as they read Cooper and Packrat.  When I gushed about the experience to my reading/writing students and co-teacher Shannon Shanning, they insisted we try it too.

Shannon brought in the hot cocoa and  popcorn.  I found some leftover graham crackers and chocolate in my cupboard from the campground.  And together we scraped up the Fluff, yellow, red and white tissue paper, paper bags (to make logs) and lights to create an indoor campfire read aloud!

Our students actually tried to warm their hands over the flames!

I can’t explain in mere words how rewarding it is to read aloud from the Cooper and Packrat books to my own students.   Their reactions; gasps, giggles, questions and shout-outs inspire me constantly.

When Gavin burps the alphabet aloud, and the boys started trying it too, as the girls and I rolled our eyes?  Priceless!

I read two whole chapters, just because I love doing it, so!  But then we had the students take turns reading as well.  I especially enjoy letting them in on the little behind-the-scenes notes;  like the bathroom scene from book 2 where the goons take Oscar from Packrat and hold him . . . . well, . . .   anyway . . . and how that scene was inspired solely from my editor having asked for Oscar to make an appearance in book 2 – and my wanting to put Oscar in trouble.

Days like today, really warm my heart.  And when I’m back at my home desk, alone,  fingers poised over the keyboard, wondering if all my ideas have been used up, if I’ll ever find the perfect combination of words to finish a scene, I remember those students.  I remember their questions, their praise, their groans from a cliff-hanger-chapter-ending.  And I press forward, trusting in myself to find the next exciting scene that’ll make them, and all my readers,  gasp out loud, turning the page, looking for more.

So much has happened in the month since I last posted.   The campground was super busy with our themed weekends, especially our Halloween ones!

And mid-month, Mystery of the Eagle’s Nest launched!  Over 200 people came to the campground, and sat on my front lawn to celebrate with me, my family and Islandport Press.  For a special treat, we invited Hope from Wind Over Wings to give a presentation on raptors and ravens.

Teddy – A Northern Saw-whet Owl

The crowd was enchanted with each and bird, and their hearts were touched by their stories and how they came to stay with Wind Over Wings.

Zachariah – Common Raven

Hope and Skywalker have a special bond, it was easy to see.  Sky sang to Hope, as Hope told Sky’s story on how he was shot out of the sky. He came close to death, but pulled through, only to find one wing had to be amputated.  Can you imagine being an eagle, only to find yourself grounded?

Angry, Sky turned his back on his caregivers. Literally.  It was only after much patience, love and special care on the part of Hope and her staff,  that Sky turned back to the world.

Hope with Sky – a golden eagle

Now he stars in many presentations each year to educate humans on the life and adventures of being an eagle.

The photo below shows Sky saluting me for my work on Mystery of the Eagle’s Nest.  I was very honored.

While my staff helped children make s’mores, and Maxwell Moose wandered around showing everyone who would listen about how he was a character in Mystery of the Eagle’s Nest, I signed books for my readers and campers and friends.

The campground was still in full swing, but I did find time for a few kayaking trips to see the loons

They are preening . . .

and gathering in preparation for their journey to the coast for the winter.

And I even caught the heron, who frequents the marshy area every Fall . . .

School has started as well, and it feels good to be back in the classroom, talking up books, and writing and helping students make the most of each and every day.  We are planning an event at the school which will include Hope, and Wind Over Wings.

Going through my photos tonight, I realized I’ve taken many, but posted few.  This is mainly due to the time involved in editing them.  But now that the campground is slowing down, I can start going through them and will be be able to post summer-time photos well into the winter months!

And you’re going to have to hear all about my research and writing ups and downs, while I tackle book 3:  Mystery of the Missing Fox!

When Islandport asked me to meet with a videographer, to talk about the inspiration behind Cooper and Packrat, I said, “Sure!”

But as the date got closer and closer,  I became more and more nervous. What should I say?  How would I stand?  Where would we film it?  And more importantly,

What would I wear!?

The morning of, I still hadn’t finalized all I wanted to say.  What hadn’t been said or blogged about already?  I found myself awake at 5am, so I headed out in my kayak, determined to find some inspiration.

And there, in the middle of the lake, it all came together.

I remembered why I’d written Cooper’s story.  I remembered the reader’s letters I’d received so far, and some of the questions they’d asked me along the way.

Looking back, I need not have worried so.  The videographer, John McCain, put me right at ease by asking about all my favorite things.  The books, the campground and the wildlife.   We took a walk around the campground first and of course, he wanted to film on the lake’s edge.

After we were done taping my talk, Dave and I took John on a tour of the lake to find the loons and eagles.  It happened to be a glorious day, and we spent quite awhile out there, enjoying the views.

After I’d said goodbye to John, and he assured me the video would be wonderful, I looked at David and said, “Whew!  That wasn’t so bad.  But I’m glad it’s done.”

Little did I know, right at that moment, there was an e-mail in my in-box from Melissa, telling me they were sending a photographer in a couple weeks to get “a few photos”.

Ack!

Our eaglets are getting quite big!  They’re spreading and flapping their wings.  Before you know it, they’ll be catching the wind with them too.

The adults still bring food, but they’re ripping and tearing dinner apart on their own.  One day, an adult and an eaglet played tug a war with a hunk of meat.  The adult won, before flying to a branch above the eaglets. (I took thirty pictures of that scene, but not one came out . . . see?  Not all my pictures are . . . well . . . picture perfect)

I see the adult eagles quite often when I kayak, but never know where I’m going to find them these days. Especially now that the eaglets can be left alone for longer periods of time.

My favorite sighting so far this year happened one gorgeous, quiet spring morning. I was paddling along when I rounded a corner to an adult eagle resting on a log which lay just  below the surface of the water.  It almost looked like he could stand on water.

I wish I’d witnessed this scene before finishing the edits to Mystery of the Eagle’s Nest.  I stilled, almost forgetting to take photos of this grand creature  It took a sip of water, then stared across the water, its reflection mirrored below.  A fisherman slowly meandered up the shoreline from the other direction, toward us, and the eagle turned to look at him.

Then silently spread his wings, lifted off and flew off along the log . . .

out over open water . . .

to a quieter spot on the lake.

The fisherman never looked up.  Never heard, and so, never saw that graceful exit.

That vision stays with me still.

Okay, I admit it, I’ve been withholding information.

I was afraid to show you.

But you see, right around May 1st (not the date on the video) I was going through the videos, watching cute little fox kits tumbling all over the place, wondering which one I was going to show you on FB next,   when I saw a image that stopped my heart.

I gasped. “No!” I watched the video again.

Ben and David ran into the room to see what I saw.

Fox Den In Danger

I quickly watched the next video which showed an adult frantically sniffing the den opening.  So did the one after that. It wasn’t until four videos and two hours later (on the cam)  that I finally saw this.

Two Hours Later

But, five days later (still cam time), there was nothing.  No videos with kits.

Two weeks went by.  No kits.  Just adults.

I began to worry.

Obsessively.

Until an eighth grade neighbor found me between classes at school.  “Mrs. Wight, Mrs. Wight!” he called.  “Guess what I saw this weekend?  Me and my family, we were coming home and a fox crossed our driveway with a line of kits behind her!”

I just stared at him for a minute.  Then I grinned.  “Gabe!  You have my foxes! How many kits?”

“I think there were six,” he told me.

As it turns out, they moved to an abandoned den on his property. In my research I discovered that fox have a series of dens they use.  One by one, that mom took her kits across my property to his.  And I can tell you, it’s quite a hike.

But that’s what you do, to save your family when it’s in danger.

I couldn’t resist going to their den that very afternoon.  I was sitting on the grass taking photos of the kits through the brush, when my neighbor arrived on his bike.

As we talked in hushed tones about the fox behavior we’d seen on our trail cams , the fox kits watched us warily.

“Are you really writing a book about them?” he asked.

“I am!” I told him.  “Book 3. It’s just an idea right now, but I’m researching.”

“Cool.  Anything I can do, Mrs. Wight, you let me know,” he said, as he rolled his bike back and forth.

“I’d love to know if you see anything  interesting through your trail cam that they do,” I told him.

He nodded.  “I can do that.”

I can’t wait to hear what he discovers.

I felt like Pooh Bear today:  Think, think, think, think, think.  How could I choose a winner for my latest book giveaway?

Then a light bulb lit up . . . what would Cooper and Packrat do?

And I had it!

First I took each name, wrote it on a slip of paper and shook them up.

Then I put one slip of paper into each pocket of the vest I use for my describing game at  school visits.

It reminds me of Packrat’s coat because it has sooooo very many pockets.  Some on the front, some on the back and even some inside . . .

Then I picked a pocket . . .

And pulled a name!

Aaaaaaand the winner is . . . .

Yay!!!  Deb, let me know who you’d like it signed to! Message me with you address and I’ll get it right out to you.

I’ve only visited the fox den a handful of times, and recently I was lucky enough to catch either one or two kits peeking out from the den opening.  Last year there’d been five, so I admit to being a little sad at seeing only two.

And then I saw this clip from the trail cam.

Hold Still So I Can Count You!

Can you imagine feeding that many??   I have forty clips to wade through . . . and I’m enjoying every minute of it.

Here’s another of my favorites so far

Tumbling Kits

Mom and Kits

Each of these is research!  Glorious first hand, research!

Such a tough job, watching these cute little buggers over and over and over so I get all the details right on their behavior.  But somebody’s gotta do it.

Well, it’s official!  Mystery of The Eagle’s Nest is off to the printers!

The release date?  August 17th!  We’ll be having another book launch here at Poland Spring Campground.  I’ll post more details as we get closer.  I couldn’t be more excited to share this story with all of you!

So what’s next?  I’ve begun research on Book 3, which will feature fox kits.  It’ll be set in late April, early May, so I’m doing my setting research now, taking notes about weather, foliage (or lack of!), what we’re doing to get the campground ready to open -

and what the fox family is doing.

I’m lucky enough to be able to do this research first hand, just like with the loons and the eagles.  Two years ago, I found a fox den on the property quite by accident.  You can read about it here.  Those little faces just melted my heart and I knew I had to put them in a story.  I have the trail cam on them now. Up until last week, I had only seen the adults coming and going and bringing furry mammals to the den.

But last Friday, after changing out the SD card from the cam, I walked a few yards away before stopping to safely tuck it into a zippered pocket.  Then I checked my phone.   I was putting it away in my back pocket when I heard a noise, like falling sand. I turned in time to see an adult fox exit the den and shake himself off.

I froze.  How gorgeous, he was!   He sniffed the air, then turned back to the den.  A tiny reddish-brown fuzzball stumbled out.  The adult licked it across the head, then it’s back.  Gently it nudged it back toward the opening of the den.

I was so in awe, I forgot to take a picture of the moment.

But sometimes, it’s more rewarding just to watch. To soak it up into your memory.

I’ll wait a few more days before I collect the SD card from the trail cam again.

And if I’m lucky enough, I might get to see a kit as well.

This morning, as I gathered my things to go to school, I saw a flash of orange through my office window.  I looked again, and smiled to see the fox trotting down what we call Main Street in the campground.  Heading home from a night of hunting, I guessed.  Instead of passing by, he turned toward my front yard, and stepped a paw on it, I gasped.  He seemed to change his mind, backing off the lawn and continuing past our house on the other side of the hedge, toward our campground gate.

But where the hedge ended, he again turned onto the lawn.  I grabbed my camera, which still had the big lens on it, and  flew to the living room window.

And there he was, investigating under the bird feeders.

I really didn’t need that large lens, but I didn’t want to take the time to switch it out.

Click, went the camera. He turned my way . . .

What amazing hearing they have!  He stayed for a minute or two, even came next to the house to sniff around under the bird feeder in the window.  Again, when I snapped a photo, he seemed to look right at me.

Write the story, he seemed to say.

I knew what story he meant.  His story.

But I shrugged it off.

Later today in class, the students were issued three writing prompts and told to choose one. Most dove right in.

Two did not.

I coaxed.  I gave my best helpful tips.

And yes, I threatened to make them work through our read-aloud.

“Buuuuut it’s soooo hard!”  One young man moaned.  He was quite angry with me as he lives for the read-aloud.

“Yes, the first words ARE hard,” I explained.  “Write anything, anything that comes to mind.  And once you start, the rest will come more easily.”

“It’ll just be junk though!”  He closed his ipad, crossed his arms and put his chin in his chest.

“You’re right,” I agreed, deciding honesty was best.  “But you can delete what you don’t want once you get going.  The important thing is to begin.  Don’t be afraid of the blank page-”

I stopped talking mid sentence.  All the students looked at me, waiting.  Finally, I sighed, shook my head and laughed.  I confessed to the young man how I’d been holding back from writing those first words too.

Then I thanked the class for teaching me something.  I needed to follow my own advice.

I haven’t started a brand new project since 2011.  Mystery on Pine Lake was complete when I sold it, and Mystery of the Eagle’s Nest was half done.  Starting from scratch IS scary!   And I’d been losing myself in fox research instead of taking a chance and writing those junky first words.

Well, it’s time.

Consider Book 3 officially started.

I created a Pintrest board.

Or two . . .

Okay. five!  Five Pintrest boards in all.

One board for Cooper and Packrat’s images from launches and signings and Carl’s illustrations.

The second board is for Cooper and Packrat inspiration. Photos of loons, campground life and kids hanging out at Poland Spring Campground.  I was hoping teachers would find it helpful for writing prompts and such.

There’s the board for Cooper and Packrat as it’s being used in the classroom. Here I’d like teachers to share the ways in which they’ve integrated the book into their curriculum. Mostly recently, Nancy Cooper, teacher and author, shared a Cooper and Packrat crossword puzzle.

I’ve posted some of my favorite books and movies too, of course.  I especially liked how my childhood books are now labeled as vintage.

Vintage!

*shakes head*

These are the books who shaped my reading and writing childhood.

If you’re on Pintrest, follow me!  Let me know how you’re liking or using Cooper and Packrat.

Otherwise, I’ll just be procrastinating by searching for the newest, yummiest,  s’more recipe.

This is the last weekend of the 2013 camping season.  Where has the time gone?  As always, there’s a mixed bag of emotions involved.  I’m sad to see close friends, my parents and my campers leave .. .

but glad to get weekends off to walk the property . . .

Sad not to have groups of people around my campfire . . .

but glad to have family time again . . .

Sad not to have little campers stand at the counter and talk to me about books, wildlife, and other kid-like interests . . .

but very, very glad to gain some writing time!

Cooper and Packrat’s second book has a working title now. Cooper and Packrat: Mystery of the Eagle’s Nest. It makes it all the more real somehow to have settled on that.  I’m 95% done with the revisions to it, the last of these based on a talented friend’s critique. It should be in my editor’s hands by the end of the month. She’s going to send me some revision notes (Yikes!) and I’ll revise again.

And probably again.

And maybe one more quick revision.

Then I’ll start research for a new book!

Buuuuut, I’m getting ahead of myself here.

I’ve been assisting the very knowledgeable   Shannon Shanning  Maine’s 2013 Teacher of the Year) as she creates a curriculum guide for Mystery on Pine Lake.  It’s incredible!  A  chapter by chapter guide for educators, complete with the common core standards it covers.  I’m putting the finishing  touches on it now and will post it under the Teacher heading very soon.

You’ll also be glad to hear the trail camera is going out next week, too.  Last year I caught the fox family, some squirrels, a fischer and a neighbor (walking the trail). This year I hope to catch much more, as I’ve been watching for signs and I’m more aware of where things are happening on the outer reaches of the property.

With the camp closing, I’m going to have more time to post here, too.  Come back often so I can update you on where I’ll be with Cooper and Packrat and what’s happening with book two.

So I’d  finished my very rough draft of a second Cooper book and using a cool tip I’d learned from a fabulous Kate Messner presentation,  I began to read it through while charting my characters, their habits, the weather, setting locations, clues and much more

in order to make sure I used all these elements consistently throughout the manuscript.

And there, standing out like a sore thumb was my very clever subplot. I loved it’s subject matter.  I gave me one very funny scene for Cooper and a new character for him to hang out with.  But it had wicked major flaws when written with the main plot.   No matter how I tried to finagle it, it didn’t really fit.

“That’s it.  We have to cut it,” said my practical dot-your-i’s-and-cross-your-t’s self.

“But we looooooove it,” said my hate-to-let-any-words-escape self. “And we’ll have to cut our new character too!”

It took some sun in the fun to convince my word-loving self I wasn’t really cutting-cutting,  I was cutting-saving for another story.  And it could be the “major” plot next time in (dare I say it) Book 3?

So I replotted all the chapters and created another new character, getting more and more excited as the pieces fell into place.

All except one.  One teeny tiny worry in the back of my mind.

Wouldn’t Cooper tell his Mom if this *un-named problem* happened?

I thought about it during the school day.  It kept me up at night.  I doodled it all over my notebook while staring at the words ‘Chapter Six’, on my computer screen.

So I did what any writer would do.  I asked my teen.

He said, “Nah.”

“You wouldn’t?” Relief poured through me. My plot was good!

One second later, eyes narrowed, I slowly said, “What do you mean you wouldn’t?”

He grinned.

“Really??  Really?” I said.

Still, I thought he was messing with me.  I was the Mom, right? That was his job.  So the very next day, while I was in the middle of explaining the importance of hands-on research such as watching loons behavior, throwing cement blocks out of kayaks for cause and effect and watching people interact, I threw my hands in the aira and said, “Hey! You can all help me do some research.”

They enthusiastically agreed.  I asked my question; If you had this *un-named problem* happen to you, wouldn’t you tell your Mom or Dad?”

The students looked at each other, then at me with grins.  Every single one of them shook their heads giving me clear reasons why not.  At first I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.  But then, some of their responses reminded me of my own childhood, and of all the things I hadn’t told my mom for one silly reason or another.

And then it hit me.  I was thinking like a mom again, darn it.

Now I have a sticky on my writing desk to remind me:

“Find Your Inner Middle-schooler – Then Begin to Write”

Edited to add:  Mom, if you’re reading this, I survived, so it’s all good, right???  Love you!

Have you ever felt like you were in the perfect place, at the perfect time in your life?  That’s how I feel about working as an Ed Tech with the Whittier Staff.

When I mentioned I was developing writing presentations now, because I knew I wouldn’t have time over the summer, I was encouraged by Shannon, the teacher I work with, to test it out on our class.

It was a hit.  Our students asked some amazing questions and gave me great feedback. So, I went back and tweaked it a bit.

Once I had, another set of co-teachers asked if I’d be willing to present to their English Language class too.

I talk with my hands a lot!

Shannon and I worked it out with my schedule and what a blast I had!

I know almost every seventh and eight grade student at Whittier (thanks to having lunch duty every day!)  Presenting my writing though, lets me connect with them on another level.  They’re seeing what Mrs. Wight does outside of school . . . and learning what a nature geek I am!

Look how crooked that is!

The presentation shows what my personal writing process looks like and how hard writers work to use exactly the right words, in exactly the right order, to keep a reader turning pages.  They’re amazed by the lengths I, and other writers, will go in our research so we can create a scene that lets the reader see, feel, hear, smell and almost touch it.

In both classes, the students gasped when I showed Cooper and Packrat’s cover.  How I wish Carl DiRocco could have been there to see that!  One young man said the characters looked like they were jumping off the screen.  And of course, everyone loved Oscar, the three-legged frog.

Being able to test and tweak the presentation based on the comments of real life audience members has been a blessing.  Students and teachers have given some ideas for more specific presentations, as well as wonderful  curriculum ideas for the book.  The latter have been posted under the For Teachers link above, as Pre-Reading Strategies.

Since then, I’ve been asked to present in a couple more classes at Whittier.  I’m very much looking forward to it!

None of this would be possible though, if I hadn’t signed on as an Ed Tech last year at Whittier.  Everyone takes an interest in my writing, and in Cooper and Packrat itself.  The staff has given me marketing ideas, shouted my successes, and encouraged me to move forward as a writer and a presenter.

Thanks Whittier!  What would I ever do without you?

A good friend of mine called a couple weeks ago.  He hadn’t heard about my book sale, and after I told him, he said, “I really admire you!”

At first I was speechless. Then I babbled and stuttered some kind of thank you and I think there was a “whatever for?” in there too.

“For your determination to sell a second book,” he said.  “That you never gave up.”

Well.

Today, I went through every Cooper and Packrat file I had, getting ready to talk to my class about the story’s journey from an idea to a published-hold-in-your-hands book.

I knew it’d been years in the making.  But I was a little surprised myself, at exactly how many.

The summer of 1999, our loon nest flooded.  Both eggs lost.  I watched our loons re-nest and go on to raise two beautiful chicks.  I became totally and utterly smitten with this amazing creature.  They had flown to winter waters when I put fingers to keyboard to write the picture book;  Lily Loon.  It turned out to be an equal mix of non-fiction and fiction.  I subbed it to editors  nine times where it received so-so comments, but no takers.  One comment suggested they were turning it down because of the mix, they weren’t quite sure where it fit in on the genre list.

That same winter, I wrote another picture book, Victoria’s Loons. This one resembled Cooper and Packrat more. It was mostly fictional, with a little bit of loon facts thrown in.  This received very good comments so I continued to alternate subbing and tweaking it right up until 2005 or so, about 20 times total.

One of the comments suggested the story was bigger than a picture book could hold.  Simplify it or broaden it, they suggested.  I’d been trying my hand at middle grade novels, on the advice of an agent.  I’d also recently heard the phrase, ‘to sell a manuscript, write what you know’.  A light bulb turned on.  “Here is my campground early chapter book!” I thought.

It was now 2006.  I wrote it.  I loved it.  But George Wilder: Game Warden in Training was never sent out.  My trusted critiquers thought it should be bigger still.  A full middle grade.  “That’s your voice,” one said.

So I rewrote from scratch.  I changed George to Cooper.  I gave him a mystery to solve, a bully to antagonize him, a family to drive him crazy, a campground to play in (as long as his chores were done first) and a best friend to have his back.

And I gave him a loon family to monitor

photo courtesy of Joyce, camper at PSC

My author friends finally gave their approval to submit it to editors in 2009.  The first rejections came in;  very positive, personal notes, with ideas for improvement I could sink my teeth into. But I won’t kid you, there were times when I wondered if Cooper would find a home. Heck, it’d been many years since The Three Grumpies had been released.  What if . . . but I didn’t want to think like that.

I rewrote Cooper two more times until finally, just after the last revision, it found a perfect  home with Melissa Kim at the award winning Islandport Press.  As it turns out, she’d been looking for a middle grade.

It was Fate.

Yes, the journey was long.  Yes, I was determined.  And yes, I think my friend is amazingly awesome for noticing.  But I’m far from the first author to have had this experience.  The road to publication is seldom straight, smooth and perfectly routed on a GPS.  It’s curvy and surprises you with forks around most every bend.  It’s full of potholes. And detours. And traffic jams.  Sometimes it’s a three lane highway, ending jarringly as a cart road leading to the  looming mountain in the distance.

But if I hadn’t had this exact journey, route for route . . . would Cooper and Packrat still be Cooper and Packrat?

I don’t think so.

So, am I glad I experienced the journey I did?

Absolutely.

I have an imaginative student who is a reluctant writer.  It doesn’t matter how sparkly  the writing prompt is, the song and dance hype I give it, or the rewards I dangle in front of her nose, we always end up at the same impasse after the assignment is given.

Fifteen minutes into it, student shows me an empty page.

Me trying the teasing tactic:  Really?  Really?  You can’t think of one word to write?  I gave you a princess, with a sword, and a handsome prince.

Student:  I tried!  Nothing comes to me.

Me – (who is honestly sympathizing, thinking of my own work in progress sitting on my desk)  “Did you try my writer’s block tips to add to your word count?”

Student – “Maybe.”

Me – “Maybe.  Huh.  Did you try to describe your setting?  Is it a stone castle?  Is there a drawbridge?  What kind of princess is she?  A ninja princess who saves the prince?  Or a damsel in distress in sparkly pink clothes.”

Student sighs.  “I just don’t know.”

Me – “Okay.  Start with senses then.  What do you see?  What do you hear? The roar of a dragon or the sweet singing of some birds?  Do you smell the moat?  The prince?  His horse?”

Student taps pencil on the table, not even remotely amused.

Me – “Well, you can add anything you like to your story, you know.  A giraffe.  A lemonade rainstorm.  The principal in a clown wig. A zombie.”

Several boys start scribbling madly, but she just sighs again.

So I pitch my lots-of-famous-writers-do-this-warm-up-exercise-on-a-daily-basis speech.  I even drop some well known  names!  It doesn’t help in the least.  The class ends and I hope I’ve given her food for thought as her assignment is now homework over the long weekend.

Fast forward to Sunday.  I’m sitting down, faced with the next- to-the-last chapter in my own first draft.  This chapter isn’t coming easily.  It’s the climax, and an exciting, dangerous one it is too! There’s lots of characters, all come together, and the battle against right and wrong has begun.

I’ve written my character so his back is against a wall.  Literally.  And I’m having a hard time getting him out so he can personally save the day.  I sigh.  I tap my pencil on my notebook.  I watch the San Fran-Atlanta football game. I pour over my plot ideas. I’m thinking, “I’ll work on this tomorrow,”  when my in-box dings.

There’s a school Edmodo e-mail from the student.  To summarize her paragraph, she was letting Shannon and I know she was still stuck.  “It takes me awhile to think of something”  She didn’t think she could turn in her writing prompt of 400 words by Tuesday.

I wrote her right back.  I re-told her all the tips for adding to your word count.  “Plow forward,” I said.  Then I paused and remembered that I was just about to give up too.  “I’m at home, writing too!  Let’s write together!” I suggested.

I didn’t hear back from that student.  I wrote though.  And I hoped she was, maybe, writing too.  Imagining it, kept me writing for awhile.

This morning, I ran into the student.  “Hey!” I said, “Did you get my message?”

Student shyly:  “Uh, huh”

Me:  “Did it help?”

Student beams:  “I wrote 600 words!  How many did you write?”

Me:  “About the same.”

And once again, a student has taught me something.  Sometimes, it’s more fun, and more inspiring to know someone is writing right alongside you.  And that they find it hard too.