What is great writing?

All writers strive to be the best they can. We spend countless hours thinking and dreaming, outlining and storyboarding. We clack away at the keyboard. We revise, submit, and do it all over again. But what makes some writing better than others? In my opinion, its the connection readers feel to the characters.

As a reader, you want to feel the deep connection with the characters in the book. That's what keeps you turning the pages. You may feel like they're your best friend, someone you could pick up the phone or meet on the street and have an ordinary conversation. Sometimes, the characters or story evokes a feeling of days gone by or of long ago friendships and memories. At any rate, you feel a connection. Connection is key.

As a little girls, my earliest experience with this was the book, Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. I jumped into it with both feet. As the story progressed, I was to the point I read awhile and sobbed awhile. It really touched me partially because I'm a huge dog lover, but also I felt a connection to the characters and events. I still have the book on my shelf and as crazy as it sounds, I won't let it go from my collection, but I may never read it again. It's engrained in my memory and I can't put myself through it at this point in my life. How powerful writing can be!

Fast forward many years, and a recent example is a PSB TV Series my husband and I are watching. We are so caught up in the story and characters, we talk about them later. What if he did....or do you think she's going to...or I sure hope it works out for so and so. I actually wake up thinking about these people with concern or happiness. Once again, the written word is powerful. Those words were just acted out in front of a movie camera. From what I've heard, it's a similar experience. It all starts with a writer and a connection felt to the characters.

There are many, many great writers today in all genres, but a some writers are just a notch higher. They write things you just can't shake. You dwell on them for weeks, months, and in the case of Where the Red Fern Grows, decades. My goal is not to be a good writer or a great writer, but an exceptional writer. Is it an attainable goal? Time will tell. In the meantime, I just keep plugging along, learning all I can, clacking away on the keyboard, and following Dolly Parton's advice, "Think big, dream big, pray big!" Seems my bases are covered.

Kansas Literary Festival

Here's the five Oklahoma authors that made the trek to Kansas for the Literary Festival on Saturday. What a great day of fun in the sun, fellowshipping with other writers, and books, books, BOOKS! 
(Susan York Meyers, Timothy Lange, Marla Jones, David Roper and me, Sandra Byrd Lawson, aka Sandi).

Just What Is A Chapter Book?

At the SCBWI Fall Workshop last week, Author Darlene Bailey Beard spoke about what exactly is a chapter book. It seems many people, even some in the writing community, are confused. To steal Darlene's words, a chapter book is a "transitional" book or a bridge from a very early reading books (like the old Dick and Jane) to more complex books. Chapter books are not terribly long, usually around 7000 words, have short chapters, have illustrations to help clue in the reader to what the words are saying, have a larger print, have a lot of white space and the key is...they are non-threatening. Children should not look at a chapter book and feel anxious or think they could never finish one. I think chapter books are where children can learn to love reading, and to actually enjoy a story on their own. 

At one class I had taken for writing chapter books, the instructor said writing chapter books is very liberating. After working with picture books that have such an attention to word count, I had to agree.  When I started writing my chapter book (and the middle grade novel that I'm currently working on), it felt awesome. I could let the thoughts and words flow freely. 

If you have an interest in Chapter Books or Middle Grade Novels, visit the children's section at your local library. Those books are fun to read, even if you are an old timer like me. You can also check out local author's work, like Darlene Bailey Beard's The Flimflam Man or of course, my new book, Mila Denton's Worst Week Ever! Happy Reading and Writing!

  

Mila Denton's Worst Week Ever! Book Trailer

Here's the link to the trailer for my new book. The book is scheduled to arrive in a couple of days. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbtdeX689jc

It's Here! (...well, almost)

Here are a few of the illustrations for my early chapter book coming out this fall. (Miller Denton's Worst Week Ever!) Written by me, Sandra Byrd Lawson, Illustrated by Holly Abston, Published by Doodle and Peck Publishing.

Pioneer School

Last week, I was invited to read to the second grade classes at Pioneer School. What a great time we had!

I was asked to read my book, The Best Baker in the World! and to also choose another of my favorites to read. It was an easy choice. I read Brian, the Smelly Bear, written by Mark Chambers. It's written in verse and is about a bear that refuses to take a bath. Everyone thinks he smells atrocious, but he thinks he smells just fine. When his friends can't stand to be around him any longer, they trick him into taking a bath by telling him they have a tub full of mud. He sails into it discovering, all too late, that it's filled with warm, soapy water. Afterwards, Brian decides he likes smelling clean. 

It's That Time of the Year Again!

There are great things that happen in the month of November. The weather starts to cool down, the leaves change, Thanksgiving and the beginning of the holiday season, my birthday, and the list goes on. Also, it's PiBoIdMo! Picture Book Idea Month, the month where you commit to one idea per day. It can be frustrating and rewarding, but I trudge on. I've actually come up with some pretty good ideas over the past two PiBoIdMos. Come December 1st, it'll be fun to look back over my notebook and see what crazy and fun possibilities I've imagined for stories! 

Christmas in....September??

Is it me or does it come earlier every year? The stores pushing Christmas, I mean. When I was a little girl, I couldn't wait until the day after Thanksgiving when the Christmas season officially began. Now, I don't know when it starts! Let me say, I love, love, love Christmas! It's my favorite, but at Wal Mart yesterday, I was a little bit disheartened to see them putting up the Christmas trees. For heaven's sake, people! Halloween decorations are in the opposite isle. I'm putting my foot down right now. I will not start Christmas until Thanksgiving afternoon. Then I'll jump on the bandwagon and plow ahead full force until Christmas Eve. I might shop on Thanksgiving evening (it's easy for my family because we have no extended family in the area and shopping gives us something to do). I will likely do the black Friday thing, as well. Until then, I'm closing my mind to Christmas...unless some cute ornament reaches out and snags me in passing.

Live with a happy heart!

I believe happiness is a choice we make. We choose to be thankful, happy, in love, etc. I hate to see people in a rut and constantly "down".  Do whatever it takes to pick yourself up and live like there's no tomorrow. We all have problems, but when I think about my problems, I always see someone else who has a life much worse than I can even imagine. Eat some chocolate, keep your chin up, feel God's blessings and enjoy your day!

Busy,Busy, Busy!

It's been like close to forever since I've posted on here, but life is busy! I'm in two critique groups with several manuscripts to critique each month. I'm also on Facebook, twitter, and Instagram. I'm working frantically on my MG Novel, One Kansas Winter, which I would love to have completed in the next 2 months. If writing were as easy as reading, I guess everyone would be doing it!

In my 'spare' time, I'm working on a family history scrapbook going back several generations. I'm not complaining. I love everything I'm doing...I just need more hours in the day. Most days, I have to pick and choose what I want to accomplish on that particular day. Blogging and tweeting take a back seat to finishing my novel. One day, I will have a great blog OR a great novel. I hope I juggle everything that long!