Welcome to Day #6 of the A Season for Fireflies Blog Tour!
To celebrate the release of A Season for Fireflies by Rebecca Maizel (6/28/16), blogs across the web are featuring exclusive content from Rebecca and 10 chances to win a copy of A Season for Fireflies, as well as a chance to win a Summer Reading Prize Pack in the Grand Prize Giveaway!
A Season for FirefliesAuthor: Rebecca Maizel
Genre: YA Contemporary Romance
Release Date: June 28, 2016
Publisher: HarperTeen
Description:
A captivating contemporary novel about first love, second chances, and the power of memory, by the author of Between Us and the Moon, perfect for fans of Sarah Dessen and Katie Cotugno.
One year ago, Penny Berne was the star of her high school’s theater department, surrounded by a group of misfits and falling in love with her best friend, Wes.
Now her old friends won’t talk to her, her first love, Wes, ignores her, and her best friend is the most popular girl in school. Penny is revered—and hated.
But when a near-fatal lightning strike leaves Penny with no memory of the past year, or how she went from drama nerd to queen bee, Penny realizes she may have the second chance she never expected.…
1. Always go to the character. Let the emotion of that character dictate the story.
2. Write non-linearly. Let the emotion of what YOU want to write dictate when/what scene you should write. If you write in the order and not by what is moving you then you might miss out on an emotionally charged and important scene.
3. Make sure your trusted readers are trusted, meaning that they won't just tell you what you want to hear, but rather what you need to hear so that you can make your work as strong as it needs to be. People that tell you "it's good" without explaining why aren't helping you.
4. Many people, especially adults who read YA, process and analyze the character's motivations based on his/her adult sensibilities. Yet, you are writing for teens and about teens so your mature life experiences give you a sense of perspective that teenagers do not have. Remember that you are writing for teens and the emotional sensibility of a teen experience must be authentic.
5. That said, if you write for YA then your character needs to sound like a teenager. Many times people want to sound like a teen so much that the voice or dialogue just sounds forced. I highly suggest you listen to teens speak to one another, especially if you aren't around teens very often.
6. Write the WORST draft ever. Read Ann Lamott's essay about the worst first drafts. Give yourself the permission to write the horrible, messy draft so you can find the heart of the story - the emotions. That's why we read. For it to break our hearts. Kind of sadistic, right?
7. I can't remember where I heard this or read it, but it's so true. The energy you spend talking about your work to others or the creative ideas you have should be spent actually writing because you can/could exhaust your creative energy. Chances are you won't go back and work on your manuscript after you've spent hours talking about it.
8. Don't protect your characters and don't be afraid of hurting your characters. If you don't feel it, your characters can't feel it, and then we don't connect with the trials and tribulations that your characters have to experience.
9. Study craft. If you study why you love your favorite book or how it is effective/successful, you will learn how to write your books in the most successful and emotionally powerful way possible.
10. Read read read. I deeply believe if you want to write, you need to read. How can you write YA or write a novel if you don't read what's in the genre that you want to write?
*****
Stop by The Book Cellar tomorrow for Day #7 of the tour!
Blog Tour Schedule:
Blog Tour Schedule:
June 20th – The Fandom
June 21st — Bookhounds
June 22nd — Daisy Chain Book Reviews
June 23rd — Mundie Moms
June 24th — Supernatural Snark
June 27th — A Dream Within A Dream
June 28th — The Book Cellar
June 29th — PageTurners
June 30th — Bookish
July 1st — Parajunkee
Rebecca Maizel hails from Rhode Island, where she teaches high school literature at her alma mater the Wheeler School. She tries not to force her students to read her books, though. Rebecca is the author of several published novels for young adults, and recently achieved an MFA in Writing for Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She also enjoys Indian food, her dog Georgie, and running moderately long distances.
Follow Rebecca: Website | Twitter | Facebook
Follow Rebecca: Website | Twitter | Facebook
Buy: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Indiebound
Giveaway: (1) Hardcover copy of A SEASON FOR FIREFLIES - Open to US only!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
GRAND PRIZE GIVEAWAY
Giveaway: (1) Hardcover copy of A SEASON FOR FIREFLIES - Open to US only!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
GRAND PRIZE GIVEAWAY
- One (1) winner will receive a Summer Reading Prize Pack featuring a beach bag stuffed with A Season for Fireflies, flip flops, sunglasses, a beach blanket, and a waterproof Bluetooth speaker (total value $96) — everything readers need to hit the beach in style!
- Enter via the Rafflecopter below
- US Only
- Ends 7/3 at midnight EST
I will have to add this to my TBR list! It sounds like a great read!!
ReplyDeleteThis book has a fascinating plot. I'm excited to read it.
ReplyDelete