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My Journey as
a Writer

See where it takes me.

MY BOOKS ON AMAZON

Grateful for the Creative Support

12/26/2015

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     Today is a day to be grateful and to acknowledge the support I have received from friends and colleagues as I have struggled forth as a new writer and author. My journey began with the desire to write for children, and that desire has grown into books and articles that have shaped the kind of writer I hope to become. However, it was not just the desire that inspired me, but the creative support I have found. 

     Knowing that my desire required additional education, I turned to the Institute of Children's Literature in 2012. There I worked closely with two outstanding instructors. Renee Heiss, author of "The Beaded Kingdom" and "Woody's World", was the first. Renee guided me through the basics and helped me realize my potential with an outline of my non-fiction book The Great Camel Experiment of the Old West. The novel writing course was next, and that introduced me to Linda Crotta Brennan, author of multiple books including "Marshmallow Kisses" and "When Rivers Burned: The Earth Day Story". Linda mentored my journey from non-fiction author to novelist. Without her, The Search for the Red Ghost--my first tween adventure novel--would never have seen the light of day. But as outstanding as these instructors are, it was the support group I met through the ICL Writer's Retreat led by author and mentor, Jan Fields, that taught me what it meant to be an author. 

     My gratitude extends even further to the publishers who have helped me grow. My first experience was with Collca Books and the wonderful Mike Hyman who passed away last year. He was a kind and insightful editor and publisher, and brought my camel book to life as part of his Bite-Size History series. And, when two editors rejected my picture book, Oliver's Hunger Dragon, with "hunger doesn't sell", I turned to Halo Publishing International and discovered a friend. Lisa Umina's expertise has been invaluable as both an editor and a publisher. I now have two books through Lisa--my picture book and the printed version of my camel book. Now, I am thrilled to be part of the MuseitUp Publishing family. Through them, I have met very caring and supportive authors. 

     Today is a day of gratitude for me. I am seeing my dream become reality thanks to the village of nurturing and inspiring friends.

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Listening to the rhythm . . . .

12/13/2015

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Are you old enough to remember the song that began, "Listen to the rhythm of the falling rain . . . ?" It is one that the Cascades, The Everly Brothers, and Ricky Nelson recorded many years ago. While in essence it is a love song about the girl who got away, it reminds me today of the rhythm we, as writers, try to impart to our readers with our words.

Rhythm is usually defined as the regular pattern of notes found in a stanza of music or a poem. However, I prefer to think of it as John Hartford, American bluegrass composer, said so eloquently, "The whole universe is based on rhythms."

As a writer, I am well aware of the rhythm contained in each and every story I read. It doesn't matter what genre the book is--crime or historical, adventure or action, romantic or mystery. They are all written with a regular pattern of long and short sentences and words to set the mood, and to move the reader either quickly or slowly through the story. 

Today, though, while I sit here at my computer, I am trying to decide how to switch my mind from one rhythm to another.  The tween novel that I have been working on all day, is another action/adventure novel. It requires a fast paced rhythm. Set in the present in a small community wracked by a hailstorm of fire, the main character, 13 year old Colton, is forced to face his fear of fire in order to save both himself and his sister. Yet, he holds a secret that not even his sister remembers. Working on this new novel is like running a race, and if you know me at all, you know, I am not a runner. Nope! Not me. So, I left today's writing on an arc that will take me to the first crescendo, so to speak, because frankly, I was out of breath. But, I found I am not finished with writing--at least not for today. So, I began work on another novel, and there lies my problem--switching rhythms. 

The other novel is a slower, more thoughtful story of a young pregnant teen who sinks into depression. It is not one that takes you to the front line of a firestorm, but one that makes you take a walk in Sara's shoes. Instead of sentences such as, "The monster raced behind us, snapping it's jaws, and gobbling up tree after tree," I find myself writing, "I am but a maple tree that has been milked of its life-sustaining sap--alone and empty."

Moving from one work to the other is the reason I find myself thinking about the lyric's of "Listen to the Falling Rain." I am trying to get in Sara's mindset. What is it like to be a teenager who discovers her pregnancy months after party she barely remembers? What is it like to hide that pregnant from her friends and from her parents?

Now I know of several authors who work on multiple books at one time. Today, I have discovered that I am not one of them. I am a writer who can only work on one rhythm at a time. So the rest of my day will be spent reading the rhythm other authors create. How about you? Can you switch rhythms when you write?










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    Photo by Patrick Tomasso on Unsplash

    Sherry Alexander

    Dreamer, believer, reader, writer

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