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Muffins and Mayhem, Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life
AUTHORBUZZ: Discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win: Goto: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader
Dear Reader,
I'm on vacation this week, baking and building a tree house with my four grandchildren. Young Adult author Beth Kephart was kind enough to write today's column. Beth says she was a child writer-dreamer who never strayed far from that path, and now she is an award-winning author of fourteen books.
Email and say hello to Beth. Not only would she love to personally answer, she is giving away three copies of her book, SMALL DAMAGES, that's being featured in our Teen Book Club the week of September 3rd. You can reach Beth at: [email protected]
Welcome, author Beth Kephart...
On the Virtues of Writerly Patience
Patience was never my virtue as a kid. Immediacy was my bread and butter. I ran toward the sun. I hurried--first, always--to the beach. I ate dessert before I ate dinner. I warred with math simply because math took too much time.
How odd, then, that I would choose writing as a career--a profession that does not reward hurry, an obsession that, in so many ways, cannot be controlled, metered, or scheduled. I have spent years on books that will never see the light of day. I have waited for responses that never came. I have sent manuscripts out and heard nothing at all--no echo, no reverberation, no cry.
Writing has not only taught me persistence, then. It has taught me patience. It has taught me to wait until the time is right. It has taught me, too, that sometimes the time is never right for the books we write. It is okay to walk away.
SMALL DAMAGES, a young adult novel which Philomel is publishing this summer, is a book about which I was forced--many times--to decide. For nearly a decade, I researched and wrote this story, reconfigured the characters, adjusted the plot. It was never perfectly right. The details--about southern Spain, the old cortijo, the breeding of bulls, the dancing of flamenco, a bathtub filled with oranges, an old cook--were always there. It was the framing that shuddered and shook. Keep going, or walk away? I asked myself the question many times. I sided, repeatedly, with patience.
The dividends have been many. Patience enabled me, fortified me, led me toward the story that SMALL DAMAGES now is. This story about a pregnant teen who is sent to stay with an old, war-hardened cook until her baby can be adopted by a young couple. This story about the meaning of home and the consequences of walking away. This story, that found its home at Philomel, among an editor and an entire team that has extended such kindness toward me.
I'm still running toward the sun; don't get me wrong. I'm still snatching a cookie at 4 PM, while slipping the dinner into the oven. I still rise at weird hours to see if that anticipated email has come. But SMALL DAMAGES, of all my books, has taught me the virtue of patience.
Email and say hello (Beth answers all of her mail) and your name will be entered in her book giveaway. Send your email with your mailing address (in case you win) to: [email protected]
Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.
Vacationing,
Suzanne Beecher
[email protected]
www.muffinsandmayhem.com
P. S. The 8th Annual Write a Dear Reader Contest! Cash prizes $600, signed copies of my book Muffins and Mayhem: Recipes for a Happy (if disorderly) Life, and winning entries will be published in my column and at BookTrib.com. Simply write for fun. Read all about it at: http://www.dearreader.com/contest2012/
* This month's Penguin Classics book is THE HARBOR by Ernest Poole. Start reading now and enter to win a Penguin totebag. Go to: http://tinyurl.com/July12Classics
AUTHORBUZZ: LUCKY BANG (Mystery) by Deborah Coonts
Having a blast on the 4th of July in Vegas takes on a whole new meaning for Lucky O'Toole, head of customer relations for the Babylon Casino, when she discovers a bomb and narrowly escapes becoming part of the "explosive entertainment." Missing dynamite, an old grudge and whispers from the past, force Lucky to delve into dark secrets best left alone.
Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader click on LUCKY BANG to read more and to email author Deborah Coonts, you'll get a reply.
A privilege to be here, Suzanne.
Posted by: Beth Kephart | July 23, 2012 at 08:34 AM
Wonderful post about patience...something I need more of and I'm sure my daughter will teach me.
Posted by: Serena | July 23, 2012 at 09:15 AM