Anticipation

“A climactic scene should not come as a total surprise for the reader. If anything, it may come as a relief, because scenes prior to this one should have increased in tension and suspense, and become more emotionally dramatic for your protagonist, clueing the reader in that a terrible collision (literal or figurative) is on its way.”

-  From Make a Scene by Jordan E. Rosenfeld (recommended for the retreat)

Often, anticipation falls short of the actual event. Especially when we’re waiting for something big for months, the payoff can seem small in comparison. Last week, I saw Arcade Fire perform in Manchester, MA at the Xfinity Center, which is outdoors. The weather was perfect. The band was AMAZING. I ordered those tickets during pre-sale in November 2013. It took me 45 minutes of trying to order before I finally snagged a pair. And I’d already been waiting for the tickets to go on sale since the album Reflektor came out.  When the band finally performed, I certainly wasn’t disappointed. But somehow the excitement of the wait was as much a part of the concert experience.

Does that make sense?

I worried that when I attended the Revision Retreat run by Eileen Robinson and Harold Underdown at the Highlights Foundation that the retreat couldn’t possibly be as good as I built it up to be.

It would be my first formal writing retreat.  

Back in February, I wanted to take class at Salem State University. I needed a prerequisite, but the professor thought I was ready. So I received permission from the university. This would make it easier for me to finish my special education certification by May 2015.

The happiness was short-lived when I realized the second weekend of the course would take place the same weekend as the NE-SCBWI Conference.

Clearly, I couldn’t attend both.

In the end, my “hobby” had to take a backseat to my paying career. This epiphany hurt.

I still wanted to do something. But what? I thought about going to another conference, hiring an editor to review a manuscript, or attending a retreat. The people who attended the Highlights retreats always raved about them.  They were more than I spent for conferences, so I hadn’t seriously considered them before. I checked with Harold and Highlights to find out if there’d be a revision retreat. Several times. When the dates were confirmed, I think I was the first to sign up.

Back then, shoveling snow, August seemed too far away.

I should’ve known all I had to do was wait for summer. What moves faster than summer?

On the drive to the retreat, I hit downpours and drizzles until I reached the NY border. The blue skies seemed like a good sign.

All I can do is gush about the retreat. I learned a lot at the tour of Highlights Magazine and Boyd Mills Press. Then we headed the 8 miles to The Barn.  They thought of everything. If you take a plane, someone will pick you up. We were given a bag of goodies. There are flashlights in the rooms, in case you’ll be out after dark. The accommodations are comfortable. They supply unlimited drinks and snacks any time of day or night. The chef cooks gourmet meals. Yoga if offered each morning. We took walks in the picturesque paths each afternoon. There are writing spaces inside and outside—designed for inspiration. 

Loft for yoga, writing, and critique sessions.

A deer-muse visited me outside my bedroom window.

But besides the accommodations and the food, what made the place special was the people. The staff working at Highlights, Harold and Eileen, and the writers made those 5 days critical to my revision process.  I learned a tremendous amount from the workshops and critique sessions, and other writers also provided invaluable resources. I got a lesson on how to use Scrivener. People set up impromptu critique groups. Best of all, we all had so much to talk about—both writing and non-writing related topics. During meals, I felt like I was hanging with old friends.

Those 5 days went by too quickly.

As I drove down the highway on my way home, I noticed it was 5:30pm. I sighed. Wonder what the chef is serving for appetizers tonight.

A couple of nights later, I attended the Arcade Fire Concert. In 1 week, I was lucky enough to have 2 amazing experiences. And the next day, my son turned 16, and he passed his Learner’s Permit test.

Maybe it’s like what Jordan E. Rosenfeld says in the book, Make a Scene. As writers, we want to build up to the climax so that the readers are in a high state of anticipation. Then that climax needs to pay off.

The excitement of the week has passed. Life goes on. School begins just after Labor Day.

But I keep the memories close. We knew each other for such a short time but all connected so well. And I found guidance for my manuscript, which has reinvigorated me (and my story). Best of all, I can use the tools I’ve learned for other projects.

I’m already saving my pennies in anticipation of next year’s retreat.

Writers, have you attended a formal writing retreat? 

What was your experience? 

Revision

“Any minute now, my ship is coming in

I’ll keep checking the horizon”

 - Song “Waiting for my Real Life to Begin” by Colin Hay

Revision

I stare at the page—

Daunted.

Hopeless.

My moxie has fled for

Prolific pastures.

What’s the point?

My pencil’s nub

Rubbed down by cliché.

Rejection.

Cracked in half by this

Introspection.

This pen bleeds

Ink ‘til it runs dry.

And rips this

Paper, wrinkled.

I ball it in my fist

Crushing, crinkled.

Laptop keys used to

Flutter under fingers

Like wind chimes.

Music no more.

I’ve lost the melody

Trampled the score.

Well-worn words

Mock me.

Guffaw.

The lighted screen—

Like a moth I am drawn.

- Theresa Milstein

http://magpietales.blogspot.com/2014/08/mag-233.html

This poem is dedicated to the writers at the Revision Retreat  run by Harold Underdown 

 and Eileen Robinson  at the Highlights Foundation. 

UPDATE: I actually wrote this poem a few weeks ago. My critique experience at the retreat was actually positive, and gave me direction and inspiration + I learned some beneficial revision techniques. 

August Artistic Aspirations

I want to tell you about 3 artistic endeavors that have inspired me this August:

1)

                                                                   un-perfect moment

capture that perfect un-perfect moment

locked within that bring-you-back memory

and while you dance within those medleys

those blood-bond circles of life swirl

through the past and towards the future

you sweep away in a shared moment

as hot and sweet as summer’s breath

on the peripheries as fleeting as fireflies

sidestep broken fragments before they pulverize

while the evening’s a clock that no longer ticks

these frozen hands a blessing from time’s tyranny

hold on tight to the tumultuous melody

just like you hold on tight to your

tired girl’s hands for just one more song

  - Theresa Milstein

http://magpietales.blogspot.com/2014/08/mag-232.html

2)

I’ve known the illustrator Nata Romeo for several years. Her artwork has always impressed me. She’s now illustrated a beautiful picture book. Cleverly, she left the animals black and white to encourage children to color them on the hardcover edition. And the pictures can be enlarged on the e-book edition in order to appreciate the detail.

Biography

Nata Romeo a.k.a ArtistaDonna, is the author and illustrator of her first children's book, titled Alphabet Wildlife A to Z. Originally from Toronto, Canada, she now brews and sprinkles her art and stories from the Philadelphia skies. She dreams that her imagination gets swept up into a massive storm, traveling across the universe and beyond!

http://www.nataromeo.com

3)

This week, I’m attending the Highlights Foundation Revision Retreat.  
It's my first organized retreat.

I hope that the retreat's inspirations help me reach my aspirations.

Happy August!

xo,

Theresa

Harold Underdown, Editor

Last year, I met Harold Underdown at the NE-SCBWI Conference. We're also Facebook friends (which means we're TIGHT). Since he's been a part of so many facets of publishing, I thought he'd be a great person to interview on my blog. 

Harold, thanks for agreeing to be interviewed.

Theresa, thanks for the interview request!

On your website The Purple Crayon http://www.underdown.org/ it states:

I'm a children's book editor, working as a consulting or independent editor and writing teacher. Previously, I was Vice President and Editorial Director at ipicturebooks. Before that, I was editorial director of the Charlesbridge trade program, and have also worked at Orchard Books and Macmillan.

I am the author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Publishing Children's Books, now in its third edition. I give workshops through Kid's Book Revisions. I speak at conferences, provide editorial services to publishers and authors, and maintain this web site.

I see you switched from working in some high-level editorial positions for some traditional publishing companies to becoming an independent editor. How did the change come about?

Like many editors who go into independent work, it wasn’t something I chose to do. Most folks go independent after being laid off or because a spouse has to move out of NYC. In my case, the company I was working for, ipicturebooks, ran out of funding—we were a children’s ebook company in 2000, years before there was a viable market.

Also like many editors who go independent, I found that there many aspects to working independently that I liked, which I’ll comment on later in response to one of your other questions. I’ve been able to make a go of it long-term by having a “day job” as an editor at McGraw-Hill Education.

Do you miss anything about working for a publishing house? If so, what?

I do miss the process of finding and acquiring books, and connected to that I also miss working on books from start to finish, since many of my projects involve one pass of editing or a critique only.

Having said that, I do stay in touch with clients after a project and it’s satisfying to hear about manuscripts I worked on being signed up and published.

What exactly does an independent editor do for a writer?

I do a number of different things, depending on the project and the needs of the author. Some people have a first draft that needs a critique. Some people have a more finished draft but want a developmental edit.  In both cases, I’m helping people get their manuscript closer to publishable, and/or improve their writing skills.

I also work as a consulting editor, helping someone self-publishing with their book, or with publishers, standing in for an in-house editor and helping to complete an acquired manuscript.

You can find some more information about services here: http://www.underdown.org/pced.htm

I also give workshops on writing and revision, both on my own and with my colleague Eileen Robinson. At those I also give writers feedback on individual manuscripts, but in the context of learning writing and revision techniques that they can apply to other manuscripts.

What is the best part of being an independent editor?

Hearing that my comments or edits have helped someone move forward! I work hard to support writers in moving to the next stage and so I strive to do more than say what’s wrong with a manuscript. I try to get inside the manuscript and understand where the author wants to go with it, and then tell them what they need to do to get there. It’s always satisfying to hear that I succeeded.

Your website is a wonderful resource for writers and illustrators. How did you develop the site? Did you see a need that needed to be filled?

My website, http://www.underdown.org/, goes back to 1996, when the Web was just getting started. At the time, I used it to post copies of articles and talks so that they could reach a wider audience. I soon realized that there WAS a need for the kind of information I provided, and I added material over the years.

Now, of course, there are many websites with information about children’s publishing, but 15 years ago that wasn’t true.

How did you get involved with The Complete Idiot’s Guide series?

They contacted me, after finding me through The Purple Crayon. They do a lot of their books by deciding there is a market for a particular topic, and then going out and finding an expert to write the book. They have quite a system! The author gets a detailed guide, creates a detailed outline, and then produces the chapters, working entirely electronically. We went from contract to completed manuscript in less than 9 months. I joke that the “complete idiot” of the title is me, for not saying “no” when I learned what was involved in writing the book. Fortunately, the revised editions have not been as stressful as the first.

If anyone wants to learn more about my book and see some sample chapters, they should go here: http://www.underdown.org/cig.htm