Writing the Novel for Young Readers – An Interview with Richard Peck

May 29th, 2010 by Alan | No Comments | Filed in Writing

I’m a member of the Society of Children’s Bookwriters and Illustrators. The other day I came across this video which is a master class by Richard Peck, fellow SCBWI member. I was impressed. Perhaps you’ll find it valuable too.

Richard Peck has been a preeminent and prolific voice in literature for young readers. He has twice been honored as a National Book Award finalist, and garnered both a Newbery Honor (A Long Way From Chicago) and a Newbery Medal (A Year Down Yonder). Now, SCBWI Master Class takes you inside the craft and creative process of a writer whose beloved and award-winning novels have inspired generations of readers and writers alike.

Hosted by SCBWI Executive Director and best-selling childrens book author Lin Oliver, each SCBWI Master Class offers a one-of-a-kind conversation with the most important writers and illustrators working in childrens literature today. Filled with practical information and inspiring insight, SCBWI Master Class is an essential tool for every author or illustrator whether aspiring or professional.

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Reviews of The Monster on Top of the Bed

May 24th, 2010 by Alan | No Comments | Filed in Book Reviews

The Monster on Top of the Bed The Monster on Top of the Bed by Alan H. Jordan

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I wrote this book, so I’ll post some of the reviews that others have written:

Princess Sleeping Beauty book review of The Monster on Top of the Bed

“Like Pixar’s “Monsters, Inc., children. . . [who read:] this book . . . [like:] the fact that a monster, as might be afraid . . . of them, but it does so in a very different, almost cerebral way. Also, as children read the story, it [has:] a mantra that they can say . . . to banish monsters, “You’re welcome to stay until I say ‘yes’, then it is time to go, and then can not say no. “Children who love the magic spell, and the mantra to ensure a good Comfort[able night's sleep:].” Order in the format you prefer: Book/CD/iPod/Book and CD.

“Last weekend, I had occasion to drive home four rowdy children, ages 5 to 10. One of them found the CD to The Monster on Top of the Bed and asked me to play it. Another one found the book and turned the pages for the others. For the next 15 minutes, I had four rapt children in my car as the CD played twice. Any story that captures the attention of these four kids is definitely very good.” – Sharon Wood, parent.

“I like the fact that Karrit’s smaller than Suzy, and I love the monster’s eyes. You can’t tell if the monster is Asian, Eurasian, or American, and I like the ponytail. Every boy and every girl can identify with Karrit.”

- Belinda Chua, S. F. Bay Area

Donna McDine

The Monster on Top of the Bed . . . is sure to become a new bedtime classic. All the components are perfectly intertwined to make the story jump off its pages and come to life. And in fact it does, in several different versions that are available . . .” – Donna M. McDine – Donna has been published in Stories for Children Magazine, and Newsletter for Writers, Kid Magazine Writers, Long Story Short, Institute of Children’s Literature Rx for Writers, Once Upon A Time Magazine. She contributes articles for the SCBWI Metro NY Newsletter, Cross & Quill, The Christian Writers Newsletter, and Mom Writer’s Literary Magazine.

Parenting Times Mums Gather Blog review of the Monster on Top of the Bed
“. . . These are things that they relate to and when they read a book it helps them to understand the situation better and feel that they are not alone.

For example to overcome my girl’s Nighttime Fears, we read a delightful online book called The Monster on Top of the Bed from Lets Be Creative.org. The ebook is also available on CD and hardcopy, you’ll have to visit the site for more details. . . The book tells the tale of a monster who lives under the bed who believes that the girl sleeping on the bed is a Monster on Top of the Bed. My girl was really amused to think that the monster would think of the little girl in the book as a monster. . . . ” Parenting Times

Mom is Teaching review of the Monster on Top of the Bed. . So, instead of asking every 5 minutes if it was time to go, I set them up with a copy of the book and the CD. I let the CD do the reading and Walker held the book so that he and Jace could both see. We didn’t hear from them again until it was time to get ready to go to the game. . . . Believe it or not, Walker has listened to the CD with the book several times and I’ve heard him trying really hard to read the book to his brother without the CD already. Can’t get much better than that! – Mom is Teaching blog.

Tree, Root & Twig Review of the Monster on Top of the Bed. . . The Monster on Top of the Bed is a sweet story about a young girl who has traded places – in a sense – with the monster underneath her bed. It turns out that she has been frightening him, and once the two finally communicate with and listen to each other, the misunderstanding is resolved. It’s a lovely story about overcoming fears and misconceptions to become friends . . . The book was sent to me as part of a CD set – in fact, the “book” itself is actually a full-color book inserted into the CD case. I thought this was very clever, as the packaging comes completely self-contained, and the size of the book is perfect for little hands. The illustrations are wonderful, and I particularly love the adorable gap between Suzy’s teeth. – Tree Root & Twig blog.
Read the book Review by Brenda Silver in eZineArticles.comThe author has created a captivating story. Manuela Pentangelo, the illustrator, has crafted ice-cream-parlor-delicious artwork. On the accompanying audio-book CD (available separately) the book is performed in English (2 versions), Italian and Spanish (2 versions.) As children listen to the different performances, they cannot help but develop an appreciation for the beauty of different languages. Just by listening, they pick up many Italian and Spanish words, and start to develop an appreciation of different cultures.Like the Pixar movie, Monsters, Inc., this book allows children to discover the fact that a monster might be as afraid of them, but it does it in a very different, almost cerebral way. Also, as children read the story, they find a mantra that they can say to themselves to banish monsters, “You’re welcome to stay, until I say ‘nay,’ then it’s time to go, and you can’t say no.” Children love to have magic enchantments, and this mantra can provide great comfort. – Brenda Silver – Book Reviewer eZineArticles.com

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Review of Water for Elephants

May 24th, 2010 by Alan | No Comments | Filed in Book Reviews

Water for Elephants Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Characters. This book is all about character. It’s a great study of one person’s life, and I learned quite a bit about the circus in the process.

It left me with the feeling that people are remembered. Some might find that the different points of view of the same character confusing. I enjoyed the different POV.

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Review of Eldest

May 24th, 2010 by Alan | No Comments | Filed in Book Reviews

Eldest (Inheritance, #2) Eldest by Christopher Paolini


My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I found Eldest to be a typical sequel. It, perhaps, had a bit too much violence for my taste. It was a good read, but was too long, and I feel it didn’t add anything new to the concept of Eragon.

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Review of Eragon

May 24th, 2010 by Alan | No Comments | Filed in Book Reviews

Eragon (Inheritance, #1) Eragon by Christopher Paolini


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
It’s a fast read, filled with action and with excellent characters. Lengthy, I nevertheless read it quickly, within a week. I liked the use of magic in the book.

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Writing Help: My Reasons for Writing a Series

March 31st, 2010 by Alan | No Comments | Filed in Writing

Writing help and guidance is often requested, particularly when it comes to making decisions regarding questions like, “Should I write a single book or a series?” I’m decided to go out on a limb here and share my reasons for writing a series of books instead of a stand-alone book.

  • A structure that makes it easier to write – When I writing a book, book, I want to put everything in that one book. This is true for me whether I am writing a picture book like, The Monster on Top of the Bed, a novel or a non-fiction book. I want to convey a wide variety of values to the reader, to share my expertise and to teach by allowing the reader to discover those things that I want to share. Many bestselling novels convey factual information, but too much means that the novel or book suffers. By planning a trilogy, I can spread out the facts that I want to convey, and keep each book engaging.
  • Wider sales appeal – editors may be more likely to buy a series because if even the first book is not a best seller, it can create demand for other books in the series. Take, for example, Dan Brown’s book Angels and Demons. It was not a best seller at first, but it evolved into a best seller after the success of The Da Vinci Code.
  • Broader recognition – An example of this would be the success of Hominids, Humans and Hybrids. Not only do the books in this sci-fi fiction series have recognition in their own rights. They also have recognition in as the books in the Neanderthal Parallax trilogy by Robert J. Sawyer.
  • Increased Financial Rewards – When a publisher has agreed to a three-book contract, I can’t help but make more money. I’m likely to get a larger advance, and because the publisher in investing in three books, there’s a good chance that the publisher will put more effort into marketing the books, increasing the likelihood that they well sell well.
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Scrying Balls

February 28th, 2010 by Alan | No Comments | Filed in Writing

Scrying Balls in the Widow of a Shop in Virginia City, NV

These scrying balls are inside a shop in Virginia City, NV. They will make their way into my forthcoming novel, The End of All Times.

They are a completely man-made material.

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Writing Help: My Reasons for Writing a Series

February 5th, 2010 by Alan | No Comments | Filed in Harmony123, Writing

Writing help and guidance is often requested, particularly when it comes to making decisions regarding questions like, “Should I write a single book or a series?”  I’m decided to go out on a limb here and share my reasons for writing a series of books instead of a stand-alone book.

  • A structure that makes it easier to write – When I writing a book, book, I want to put everything in that one book.  This is true for me whether I am writing a picture book like, The Monster on Top of the Bed, a novel or a non-fiction book.  I want to convey a wide variety of values to the reader, to share my expertise and to teach by allowing the reader to discover those things that I want to share.  Many bestselling novels convey factual information, but too much means that the novel or book suffers. By planning a trilogy, I can spread out the facts that I want to convey, and keep each book engaging.
  • Wider sales appeal – editors may be more likely to buy a series because if even the first book is not a best seller, it can create demand for other books in the series.  Take, for example, Dan Brown’s book Angels and Demons. It was not a best seller at first, but it evolved into a best seller after the success of The Da Vinci Code.
  • Broader recognition – An example of this would be the success of Hominids, Humans and Hybrids.  Not only do the books in this sci-fi fiction series have recognition in their own rights.  They also have recognition in as the books in the Neanderthal Parallax trilogy by Robert J. Sawyer.
  • Increased Financial Rewards – When a publisher has agreed to a three-book contract, I can’t help but make more money.  I’m likely to get a larger advance, and because the publisher in investing in three books, there’s a good chance that the publisher will put more effort into marketing the books, increasing the likelihood that they well sell well.
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Poetry Written in a Poetry Workshop in Grassroots Books, Reno NV on 1/30/2010

January 30th, 2010 by Alan | 2 Comments | Filed in Poetry, Writing

I worked with five people in a writing workshop at Grassroots Bookstore, and each of them are invited to post the poems that they wrote in a reply to this workshop.

It’s okay to put in a first draft, and then later to add additional versions.  Part of what we learned is that perfection is not immediate.

If you’re reading this, you may want to know that we used props.  Stuffed animals, and one stuffed puppy that was battery driven and laughed whenever someone walked past it’s motion-sensitive eyes.  Here’s the poem that I wrote about that animal which I named Puppy Puppy.

Puppy Puppy Puts a Smile on My Face

Nothing makes me smile
Like a good laugh

Puppy, puppy laughs and rolls
Whenever I walk by

Puppy Puppy with his
Golden-and-white hair
and human laugh

Loud friendly and rapid
It never fails
To light the twinkle in my eye.

I think I’ll buy rechargeable batteries
So I always feel good
About letting him surprise me
When I walk by.

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Writing a Novel – Tip 6 – The Honesty Test

January 16th, 2010 by Alan | No Comments | Filed in Harmony123, Uncategorized, Writing

I find it is important to constantly ask myself if my writing is honest.  Here are some of the tests that I employ:

  • Does the writing ring true to me?
  • Am I making myself vulnerable, exposing my true feelings?
  • Am I obscuring?  For me when I obscure, it usually means that I’m not convinced that I truly want to share.
  • Am I still excited about the manuscript, or am I just plodding along.
  • Is the manuscript still aligned with what I want to accomplish?  (What I want to accomplish may have gradually changed, or I may have had a sudden “ah-ha moment.”

Sometimes, my writing fails my honesty test and I must make a decision:  Make changes that bring it back to an honest manuscript, kill off the project, or settle.  Usually, I make changes.  While writing The Occluded Emerald, part of the Jeweled Planets series I found that the project failed the honesty test because it was not aligned with what I want to accomplish.  The concept of an emerald ring that had an occlusion that turned out to be unicorns was a good working thought.  It helped me to start a novel, but as I entered into writing the novel I discovered that it was an interesting part of the story, but it was a device, not a central theme. The central theme I want to explore in the series is the secrets of living in harmony with the universe.  The first area that I want to explore is the concept of an interdependent web of all existence.

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Sometimes, my writing fails my honesty test and I must make a decision:  Make changes that bring it back to an honest manuscript, kill off the project, or settle.  Usually, I make changes.  While writing a novel in a science-fiction fantasy series, I found that my work was no longer aligned with what I wanted  to accomplish.  I realized that I the central theme that I wanted to explore in the series had evolved into the secrets of living in harmony with the universe.

I experimented with changing the name of the series as well as changing the name of the first book of the series. To do this, I created new graphics.  The graphic for the new series name pinpoints exactly what I want to say.  ( I realize that this is a working graphic, and I expect that it wilbe replaced by an illustration prepared by a professional illustrator.)

To help me whether I wanted to the title of the first book, I created a graphic for the book title.  My reaction was mixed.  At first the new name felt terribly congruent.  After a little while, I felt like retaining the original title.

I haven’ t made a final decision yet, but regardless of my decision I will adopt the attitude of Thomas Edison, who experimented with creating a light bulb thousands of times before he achieved a successful design.  When asked about his failure his response was that he had learned from each iteration how now to create a light bulb.  Edison founded General Electric, one of the world’s premiere companies. I have chosen to make myself vulnerable by sharing my writing experiences on line.  My basic philosophy is that one needs a series of interim successes, and it is a success to redefine a goal.  The additional clarity provides me with energy.

Sometimes, my writing fails my honesty test and I must make a decision:  Make changes that bring it back to an honest manuscript, kill off the project, or settle.  Usually, I make changes.  While writing a novel in a science-fiction fantasy series, I found that my work was no longer aligned with what I wanted  to accomplish.  I realized that I the central theme that I wanted to explore in the series had evolved into the secrets of living in harmony with the universe.

I experimented with changing the name of the series as well as changing the name of the first book of the series. To do this, I created new graphics.  The graphic for the new series name pinpoints exactly what I want to say.  ( I realize that this is a working graphic, and I expect that it wilbe replaced by an illustration prepared by a professional illustrator.)

To help me whether I wanted to the title of the first book, I created a graphic for the book title.  My reaction was mixed.  At first the new name felt terribly congruent.  After a little while, I felt like retaining the original title.

I haven’ t made a final decision yet, but

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