Making of a Writer (9780307820464) (9 page)

To please them, I did.
The Mystery of Hurricane Castle
was rejected by the first twelve publishers to whom I sent the manuscript, but the thirteenth—Criterion—liked it, offered me a contract, and published it in 1964.
Young Readers Press
bought paperback rights, and the book was chosen as a
selection of the
Calling All Girls
Magazine Book Club, so I knew the first twelve publishers had made a mistake. I hoped they were all very sorry. I enjoyed writing for children so much, I kept going and didn’t stop.

Before I sent this manuscript to my editor, my husband read it and complained, “You didn’t put me in your book.”

“That’s because it’s about events that had a bearing on my writing from the time I was a toddler through my teen years.”

“I met you when you were a teen,” he said. “You were nineteen, two weeks away from your twentieth birthday. That should count. And I’ve always been your best critic and your number-one fan.”

I gave in easily. “What you just said is important,” I told him. “Every writer needs someone who will read what she writes, then speak the truth. And every writer has discouraging moments when she needs to be told—truth or not—that she’s the very best. I’ll put you in the book.”

And I did.

Whether you want to be published or just write for your own enjoyment, I hope you’ll find your own writing niche and love creating with words as much as I do.

Not everyone needs to be published. Not everyone wants to be published. You who do, however, know that writing is not just a talent and an art. It’s also a craft with rules to be learned. Just as a musician must learn and practice, so must a writer. Here are some suggestions.

There is never a shortage of good things to read. Whether you’re a reader who zeros in on one particular subject or a reader with a wide variety of tastes, find out what is being written and ask for recommendations. Let your librarian and teacher know what you like to read. Talk about books. Ask your friends what they’ve read that they really liked. The best way to become a good writer is to be a good reader.

Sometimes the setting of a story plays only a minor part, but in some stories the setting becomes more important because it’s necessary to the plot. A girl who raises a prize bull has to live on a ranch. A boy who works as a bike messenger will probably ride the busy streets of New York City. Sometimes writers visit and study new places while they’re researching stories because they want their descriptions to be accurate. However, mostly they write about places they know well. Your neighborhood is old and familiar to you, but it’s new and exciting to readers who live in other states.
Take a good look around you. What makes your house, school, or neighborhood an interesting place in which to set a story?

A story consists of a series of scenes leading to the climax of the story—the most intense scene of all. Scenes contain the story’s action. Through dialogue, action, and visual description, they show what is taking place. Dialogue should sound natural and logical. Sometimes it helps if you read it out loud. Write your scenes through your character’s emotions, showing at all times how he feels about what is taking place, and your readers will be pulled into the story, living those emotions with him.

Try to see the world from different viewpoints, because when you write you’ll have to place yourself inside your characters’ minds and think the way your characters think. While you’re writing, you’ll become your main character. Learn as much as you can about her likes and dislikes, her friends, her interests, her beliefs, hopes, and fears. Try to understand the reasons behind your characters’ actions so that they’ll seem logical and believable. Live with them. Make friends.

Each story contains a conflict or problem that has to be solved (the plot). The only one who can solve the problem
is the person to whom the story belongs—the main character. Sometimes it’s tempting to allow an adult or the character’s best friend to step in and handle the situation, but writers can’t do that. The secondary characters can help, but the final resolution of the problem is up to the main character herself. Let her use the courage and cleverness you gave her when you first dreamed her up. The story belongs to her.

Toss readers into the action of each story with the beginning paragraphs. Make them want to keep reading. Keep up the action throughout the story, and make sure to include plenty of suspense. Suspense simply means using the elements of surprise, tension, concern, or fear (sometimes in a mystery story) to keep readers guessing, unable to put the book down until the very end.

At some time during your life you’ve probably listened to a storyteller. Storytellers choose stories to please their audiences. Preschool, intermediate, teen, or adult—each group will hear stories of special interest to them, told in ways they like best.

Writers are storytellers without visible audiences, but they keep their audience/readers in mind. Naturally, writers please themselves with what they have written, but they are also saying to their readers, “I want you to enjoy this story so much you’ll ask for another book to read, and another and another.” The love of reading, passed from author to reader, is what writing is all about.

When I was ten I was given a rhyming dictionary. When I was twelve my parents bought me a thesaurus. In my teens I bought a copy of Strunk and White’s
The Elements of Style
. And I have always kept a dictionary close at hand.

Even though we all get instant help from our computers—who hasn’t been thankful for the spell checker?—the correct use of language, punctuation, grammar, and spelling is an important part of being a writer.

Writers like approval of their work, and they like to be with other writers who share the same dreams. It’s fun to know people with the same interests as your own, and it’s great when those people listen to your stories, give their advice, and ask for your advice in return.

Many schools offer writing clubs for students, as do quite a few libraries and bookstores. Even meeting sometimes with just two or three of your writer friends can give you the encouragement and help that’s needed. You may not have a Dora or an Aunt Gussie in your life, but look for people among your family, teachers, or friends who believe in your talent and are eager to share your interest in writing.

Those of you who want to be published writers should be alert for publishing opportunities. There are magazines that invite young people to submit stories and articles, newspapers that conduct writing contests for kids, and national writing contests of all types, all of which your teachers can help you enter. If your school has a newspaper, yearbook, or
literary journal, get involved and contribute your work. Don’t be afraid to compete. To be published, you must submit what you’ve written and take the risk of rejection.

I know from experience that rejection slips hurt. I don’t know a single published writer who hasn’t received rejection slips. But none of them gave up. I didn’t, either.