Ha-ha! Every day. If the adventures of Tyler and his friends don't make it into my books, I might also mention them in my Readers newsletter. Besides that, I'm always collecting other people's kids' stories. Every parent's life is fascinating because kids are such interesting people!
Every book isn't for every reader. I cherish the good reviews, of course. Especially the ones that are written my readers (actual kids). I read the bad reviews for specific things I can learn to make my books better. Once a boy told me he felt confused because I didn't explain who the Dudes are right at the beginning. A writing teacher might tell you to start in the middle of the action, but that doesn't work for all kids. I took his critique to heart and started writing prologues in my books to orient the reader.
Read more. I used to limit my reading time to have more time to write, but the manuscript I was trying to write wasn't working out. Getting pregnant and then nursing my children forced me to spend more time reading. I began to see how other writers structured their books. It helped me understand my own writing better.
I actually started writing as soon as I learned how to hold a pencil. I wrote a book about a hidden Indian tribe as a school project in second grade. I submitted stories to Analog science fiction magazine when I was a teen. Of course, they weren't published, but that was good experience too. Even when I didn't have time to write, I wrote stories in my head. I wrote fan fiction before there was an internet to share it on. I think stories are integral to who I am as a person.
I would never invite people for a dinner party. I'm too shy. When I write, I'm inviting you into my imagination and giving you a taste of my sense of humor. This is more open than most people are. But I could never do it in real life. Aside from my husband, my deepest connections are on the page.
Science fiction, definitely. You can have adventure at the same time that you can explore ideas that are "too political" for some people in the real world. Realistic literature can be very depressing and turn kids off. But science fiction dystopias can be intriguing. It is important to think about positive futures too. I'm a big fan to Star Trek. Kids should be thinking ahead about the world they want to live in.
I actually really like myself. As a kid, I felt pressured to be a certain way (less shy), but now I know that it's important to accept who you are and grow from that rather than trying to change something. My fears make life a challenge sometimes, but, since I can admit that it's who I am, I can congratulate myself when I do something that is brave for me that would be no problem for someone who wasn't shy.
I write best with uninterrupted time, so I go to my home office as soon as the kids leave for school. I try to work a couple hours on each of my big writing projects during a day. I really love to turn on my computer and open a writing file and immerse myself in that story for a while. What a great way to start the day!
I take a 20 minute lunch break that includes eating leftovers while I watch a superhero show on TV: love Flash and Black Lightning! When I'm done eating, I do a few exercises (superhero shows are great to motivate you to exercise). Then I'm back in my office chair where I spend at least an hour (but often more--too much) on marketing stuff like creating ads and posting on my website or social media. I try to save that marketing stuff for after lunch when I'm less focused.
When the kids get home, I pack it up and take a reading break while they do homework. I make supper and have some time with my husband (more stories on TV). Then I read again for about an hour in bed before lights out.
It's actually hard to write comedy. You think, oh this funny thing happened. But some people tell it well and others don't. To get the laugh, I need to set up the event well with details that the readers can imagine so they are anticipating. Then, when the funny moment arrives, it helps to tell it with a twist to surprise them. For instance, in Dudes in the Middle, when the Elephant Gun goes off in carpool: the picture's on the front of the book, and you've seen the Dudes shoot the overpowered dart gun on purpose, and you've seen them put it in the car, so you're just waiting for it to go off. What you don't expect is the police presence that makes it that much funnier because you're imagining Officer Morgan seeing this, and it's like the reader is now sharing the joke with him.
I assumed I'd need to get a paying job and do writing on the side. People advised me to be a teacher because then I'd have summers to write. I think that is one problem with our educational system. People see teaching as a part-time job for people who care about other things. I think teaching is a calling and a profession and should be treated (and paid) like one.
But, to get back to writing, it's true that it's hard to make a living as a children's book author. Even though I publish my own books and make a higher percentage on sales than I would working with a traditional publisher, I couldn't live on what I currently make from this series alone.
In college I studied English literature, but I have also taken several writing, publishing and marketing courses since I left college. If you're self-publishing, which I recommend, a degree is not as important as being willing and able to learn all parts of the business. I'm continually learning, but I am the judge of what I need to know.
Absolutely necessary. That's why I pored over portfolios on hireanillustrator before finding Jacquelyn B. Moore. She does a great job of portraying the action of a hilarious Dudes scene while capturing the expressions on their faces and the camaraderie of their friendship. Just take a look at the covers of the Dudes books to see for yourself!
I never get writer's block. But I always have more than one story I'm working on. If I'm stuck on the Dudes I might work on a fantasy book I'm writing about a wizard. Also, I take time off--like when we go on a family trip. When I come back I've usually got all this pent-up creative energy ready to come out on the page.
Knowing when it's really finished. I usually finish a piece and let it sit for a week or more before I go back and read it again. If I see changes that need to be made, I'll do them then let it sit again. I might do that for six months or more before I'm fully satisfied that a new reader, coming to the story will be drawn in and given everything they need to imagine it properly and come along on the journey to which I am inviting them.
The Dudes are all male, of course, and I'm female. But I feel like I know how they think because my kids are all boys. Growing up, I thought I would write female characters like myself, but I actually find it harder to write female characters for the reason that they can't all be just like me and I don't know a lot of young girls right now.
Of course, it's important, even in comedy, that I'm writing real people, not stereotypes. This is especially the case since not all my characters are the same race/religion as me. I work to make each character a real person like my readers might have met at school. You can't write by thinking "this is how I think Asian people are" or "this is how boys are". I think, "this kid behaves like this real kid I've met". I want readers to recognize that reality, because this is what we do when we meet people and make friends. We get to know them so as to see the real things about their specific personality: like Deven's need for attention or Nate's obsession with robots, or Ryan's need to control any situation. Hopefully, my readers find friends in my fiction and want to spend more time with them.
