Craft Articles
Join us in exploring others’ craft and building our own.
Here you will find explorations of mentor texts – articles that dive into specific craft elements in published books, interviews with authors, and tips on growing and improving as a writer.
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Backstory for Writers
As writers, we hear all the time that you absolutely have to develop your characters’ backstories. We can spend a lot of time laboring over our characters’ pasts--creating, inventing, discovering--only to have someone read a draft and tell us: “Take out all the backstory!” Too much backstory can drag the pace of a story. Too little, and characters seem unmoored and unmotivated. So what to do?
Confessions of a (Not So) Reformed Pantser
"I understand more clearly that an outline need not be a construct that dominates my writing, a rigid form that must be adhered to, but it can be a tool to help manage what I write, to help me not get distracted or sidetracked, and instead work toward my goal--even if that goal isn’t completely clear to me as I shuffle, twist, and rearrange things on the page, the way I am prone to do."
SUMMER RETROSPECTIVE: TAKING A PAGE OUT OF CLASSIC MYSTERIES TO KEEP TENSION ALIVE AND WELL
To find good mentor text for “tension till the bitter end,” I went directly to one of my most beloved authors—Agatha Christie. Yes, I know. She’s not a middle grade author. However, when I was in my middle grade years, I devoured her books. Surely, that counts. Plus, for a mentor text, why not go straight to the Queen of Mystery?
SUMMER RETROSPECTIVE: OPENING LINES IN JEWELL PARKER RHODES’ “TOWERS FALLING”
Jewell Parker Rhodes uses five different types of opening lines in her novel Towers Falling. Great mentor text for how to hook a reader in the beginning of a scene.
The Secrets to a Great Non-Fiction Picture Book: Q&A with author Evan Griffith
"This isn’t specific to PB writers, but I would just say to any writer: Be kind to yourself and your drafts. Many writers, myself included, struggle with self-criticism or perfectionism, so I try to give myself this advice daily. First drafts can and should be messy. Second and third and seventh drafts, too. There is beauty in the mess. Writing is mostly re-writing. When you’re feeling discouraged, reach out to some writer friends for support. Seek community."
SUMMER RETROSPECTIVE: SPARE AND LYRICAL STORYTELLING: FULL CICADA MOON, A NOVEL IN VERSE
Verse happily sacrifices parts of the story to the reader's imagination in an effort to draw a more immediate emotional response.
SUMMER RETROSPECTIVE: RELATABLE RELATIONSHIPS IN HELLO, UNIVERSE BY ERIN ENTRADA KELLY
Erin Entrada Kelly masterfully sets up a series of relationships that require her introverted main character, Virgil, to take a stand or forever feel like a failure.
SUMMER RETROSPECTIVE: HERO’S JOURNEY ARCHETYPES IN BOOK SCAVENGER BY JENNIFER CHAMBLISS BERTMAN
By identifying archetypes in my story, I figure out how to strengthen the conflicts as I revise. In researching this blog post, I realized that I’d chosen the wrong character to be the Shadow in the novel I’m currently writing. Understanding the role of the Shadow archetype, and selecting a more appropriate character to play it, made my book’s external plot and main character’s growth path stronger.
Feminist, Funny, and Fierce: Q&A with Emma Kress, Debut YA Author of Dangerous Play
I first heard Emma read from a chapter-book-in-progress, and her voice blew me away. Emma's writing as such attention to detail, such personality, such emotional resonance. She can write funny and serious--sometimes in the same sentence. Emma's debut YA novel, DANGEROUS PLAY comes out August 3, and I'm so glad we get a peek into Emma's brain and writing process. I highly recommend both DANGEROUS PLAY and Emma herself.
SUMMER RETROSPECTIVE: CHANGING POINTS OF VIEW IN THE PENDERWICKS
Birdsall establishes a strong narrative voice for her omniscient narrator in the opening pages, and then seamlessly slips from one point of view to another without losing the reader.
Summer Retrospective: CONNECTING READER AND CHARACTER IN GHOST BY JASON REYNOLDS
Soaking up the sun and reposting some favorite craft posts, starting with Jen Jobart's analysis of Jason Reynold's GHOST through the lens of Cheryl Klein's THE MAGIC WORDS craft book.
Deepening Character Relationships Through A Shared History: The Last Shadow Warrior by Sam Subity
Subity blends humor, action, Norse mythology, and character beautifully to make a story that’s sure to be a hit with middle grade readers.
Grounding Fantasy in the Familiar: An Interview with Sam Subity
With contemporary fantasy, it doesn't take such a stretch of the imagination for the reader to follow along when you blend the familiar with the unfamiliar.
Day Job Connection: Author Susan McCormick, Doctor
Dr. Susan McCormick: Accept the unexpected. Sometimes as a doctor, a diagnosis that had eluded me would appear in the night or while I was running or in the shower. These messages from my inner brain were always right. Similarly, accept any magic that pours from your fingers while writing, or any miracles that come while your brain is on break. These ideas from nowhere are often the best.
KidLit Craft Goes to the Movies: Endowed Objects in The Mitchells vs. The Machines
The moose is meaningful to both Dad and Katie, and the movie creates additional layers of meaning through the old movies (flashbacks) and the way the moose moves from person to person. We know what the moose means, so we can imagine what the characters are feeling, and ultimately, we feel it too.
Crafting Magic From a Small Idea: A Q&A with Christine Evans
I choose the stories (fiction or nonfiction) that give me a fluttery feeling. It’s been true of all my projects so far. When an idea takes hold, you can’t shake it off, and you just have to learn more, then that’s the idea to follow.
SIDEWRITING TAKEOVER: Sidewriting Challenge Roundup
The authors and contributors we interviewed had so many wonderful sidewriting challenges, we thought we'd put them all in one place. Each exercise will have a link back to the original post so you can learn more about the author and how sidewriting works for them. Enjoy!
SIDEWRITING TAKEOVER: The Finale--Create a Dream Team of Defenders to Answer Your Inner Critic
Thank you for coming along on this sidewriting journey with us. We hope you’ve found some compelling exercises AND some compelling reasons for sidewriting. Just as every writer is different, the way each writer uses sidewriting is different--as you’ve seen from our contributors.
SIDEWRITING TAKEOVER: Your Favorites! (a crowdsourced post)
Writer Friends! You shared with us the ways you sidewrite, and we listened. It was so fun and enlightening to get the scoop on your favorite exercises and tricks to get deep into your characters and figure out your plot.
SIDEWRITING TAKEOVER: Entering Characters' Points of View with Amber Lough
Amber Lough: Sidewriting helps me most when the story starts to feel dry or forced, or if I feel like the characters are shutting me out. I also sidewrite when I am losing motivation, and in that case, I write about why I want to tell this story.