I am related to a Romanian prince. At least that's what my grandma always said. Shari Green interviewed me for her blog, Shari Green, and that was one of the things I told her.
Shari's interview format is fun and breezy! Come on over and I'll tell you my nickname!
This story does not begin at the Driver License Bureau. It begins a few days before that, a few days earlier when I could not stand the bangs wisping all over my eyes, covering them. I chopped them off. I exercised no finesse, thinking only that I wished to see, I wished to be free. I even chopped the sides and had my daughter cut the back.
When the hair stopped flying, I looked in the mirror. "Oh, no," I said. "Jack in the Beanstalk."
"More like Willie Wonka," my daughter said. This would be the Johnny Depp version.
In the days following, I had to use my license a couple of times at the bank, only to be reminded that it was expired. Expired? Why those incompetents at the DMV!* I renewed by mail in January! I now realized I'd never received it. After several phone calls, it came down to this: I had to go in, stand for hours in line, and replace it.
So I did. And lucky me, after I settled in for the wait, a lady said if anyone was just replacing their license, they should leave the waiting area, bypass the line, and head to the counter. WOOHOO!
Then she told me to step up to the camera. SNAP! OH NO! I'm Jack in the Beanstalk for the next six years. Of course, I decided right then and there to not get any tickets for six years. And to always pay cash.
It was later, when I was in my room, I remembered I'd once written myself a note on the back of an unopened letter, sometime in January. The note's been sitting under my curling iron since then.
I leaped up, snatched the envelope, and tore it open. There, in full glory, was my renewed license, with the old, much more presentable picture.
Oh, happy day!
*my apologies!
Today's the last of my blog tour! Samantha Clark is hosting me on her blog Day By Day Writer.
Day By Day is definitely a blog for writers. In other posts, Samantha discusses query letters, synopses, and time-wasters. I could relate to every word.
Check it out! I know you'll enjoy her blog, and I hope you'll enjoy the interview.
Margo Dill is one of the contributing writers for WOW! Women on Writing, and today, she's interviewed me for her blog Margo Dill's Read These Books and Use Them!
Come visit! Anyone leaving a comment on her blog will have their name entered into a drawing for a free copy of Violet Raines!
The Divine Miss Mommy talks about Violet Raines today. This is a cool site, reviewing products and samples; check it out!
Hi, everyone! Courtney Summers here. I write YA novels and my debut, Cracked Up to Be, came out late last year. When Danette asked me to do a guest-blog about book trailers for Summer Friend, I was thrilled. I've been reading her blog since the beginning and I'm a huge fan of her entries, as well as her charming and extraordinary middle grade debut, Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning. I hope I can do her space on the web justice and offer y'all something helpful and interesting to read at the same time!
So. Let's talk book trailers! I should say right off the bat this guest blog is not going to question their usefulness--it's going to be about how to make one yourself. My personal opinion about book trailers is that they're great and why not? There are worse things to do than, you know, use a new and exciting medium to get word out about your work!
That said, here is the book trailer I made for Cracked Up to Be:
I love book trailers. I love watching them. The unveiling of a new book trailer for an upcoming release is comparable to a cover reveal because, much like a fabulous cover, a well-executed book trailer can get a reader totally amped for a book. That's an exciting experience for author and reader alike! I'm going to take you through the process of making mine and share with you some tips and tricks I learned along the way.
Shortly after Cracked Up to Be sold (September of 2007), I immediately started thinking book trailers. I didn't want my release date to sneak up on me and have nothing to show for it (well, besides the book), so I was teaching myself the in and-outs of Windows Movie Maker (the software that came with my laptop) as early as that October. That's my first tip: don't wait to familiarize yourself with the tools that are freely available to you. Do it as soon as possible. I ended up making A LOT of mock book trailers so I knew how to take full advantage of the program when it was time for me to really start cracking. Playing around on WMM also enabled me to get a sense of how book trailers worked in terms of pacing and structure etc.
After I had the program pretty figured out, I had to decide what I wanted my book trailer to feel like, what kind of tone it would convey. Cracked Up to Be was not a light read, so I wanted to aim for something a little gritty in sound, but "clean" in look (I'm a minimalist at heart and adore white space). A book trailer is a hook; a hint of what's to come. Don't think of it as a literal interpretation of your book--think of it as a teaser, a taste.
In the case of book trailers, I'm a firm believer that shorter is better. You don't have to cram in every bit of information into one. Immediately think of the most concise and compelling way you can get the essentials of your story across. Write the script for your book trailer first. Your script will inspire the other pieces needed to complete the final produce (visuals, sound). So before I started thinking on the visuals and the sounds, I opened up notepad and made up my script.
For Cracked Up to Be's trailer, I took this plot summary from the catalogue copy (written by my wonderful editor):
Perfect Parker Fadley isn’t so perfect anymore. She’s quit the cheerleading squad, she’s dumped her perfect boyfriend, and she’s failing school. Her parents are on a constant suicide watch and her counselors think she’s playing games…but what they don’t know, the real reason for this whole mess, isn’t something she can say out loud. It isn’t even something she can say to herself. A horrible thing has happened and it just might be her fault. If she can just remove herself from everybody--be totally alone--then everything will be okay...The problem is, nobody will let her.
And turned it into this:
Perfect Parker Fadley isn't perfect anymore.
She's quit the cheerleading squad
dumped her perfect boyfriend
her parents are on suicide watch
and she's failing school.
But what no one knows...
the real reason for this whole mess...
isn't something she can say out loud.
A horrible thing has happened
and it just might be her fault.
What's the worst thing you've ever done?
cracked up to be
a novel by courtney summers
coming Janury 2009 from St. Martin's Press
http://courtneysummers.ca
It seems like a lot of text, I know, but I think it translated into a book trailer pretty well. If you'll note, it's broken up into three parts: 1) plot summary 2) the hook ("what's the worst thing you've ever done?") and 3) all the must-have information (title, author, release date, author website). The great thing about scripting your book trailer is it provides you with a HUGE launching pad in terms of figuring out how you're going to do what you're going to do next. How do you want this text to look? What visuals does it inspire? What kind of music would complement it? It will also help you figure out your pacing. Pacing (next to music) is crucial.
In my case, I looked at each line as a beat. I wanted to keep a steady rhythm throughout the book trailer with appropriate pauses for emphasis, building toward the space between "and it just might be her fault" and "what's the worst thing you've ever done?" Having a general idea of what kind of pacing I wanted the book trailer to have, I started to look for music and sounds that would fit it. Music. Is. So. Important. Music will drive your book trailer like nothing else and it will really give your audience an idea of how your book might make them feel to read it.
Getting permission for music or finding free/license free music is crucial--and not as difficult as you might think. In my case, I used a song that fit my end goals (it had a steady rhythm and great beats I could take advantage of) by Brad Sucks. He's a talented, Canadian based musician who encourages people to use his music in their projects for free.
When it comes to finding free/easily licensed music, there are many options out there. Google is your best friend. Look into Creative Commons licensing. Check out The Free Music Archie ("please visit the track page to discover what you can and cannot do with each track"). Is there a talented but little-known band whose music you would LOVE to feature in your book trailer? Don't be afraid to email and ask! You may let you use it under agreeable terms. Cross-promotion is beautiful thing.
And if you play an instrument, perhaps getting the perfect music for your trailer is as simple as sitting down and recording it on your computer. Also, if you're not interested in music for your trailer, think of how you can best use sound. While C.K. Kelly Martin incorporates guitar music in the trailer for her latest release, One Lonely Degree (watch it here), she also uses the sound of someone breathing to great effect.
I edited all of my audio in Audacity, which is a free digital audio editor, and one I found to be very easy to use (but I didn't wait until the last minute to learn how to use it! I played around with it a great deal of time before as well.).
Your script will also give you a great idea of what kind of visual cues to use. I could have picked very literal visual interpretations of each line of my script (perhaps pictures of pom-poms, a couple walking away from each other, a bottle of pills etc), but in the end, I decided to hand draw and scan images, which I felt helped support the kind of gritty feel I wanted to achieve. This approach worked for the first half of the trailer. For the second half, I knew I wanted to incorporate some photographs as well. If you have an eye and a digital camera, getting the perfect images for your book trailer could be as simple as taking them yourself.
While I dabble in photography, my general style wasn't really appealing to me for my trailer (although I did ultimately use one of my photos--the girl in the bathroom). Luckily, I'm blessed to know some very talented photographers and my friends, Kim Hutt (the photo of the girl holding her hair belongs to her) and Veronique Moisan (the party photos belong to her), graciously gave me permission to use their work.
When looking for images yourself, again, check out those that have Creative Commons licensing (but make sure to pay close attention to the type of license! Just because it says cc doesn't mean you can use it freely for every purpose). In fact, Flickr enables you to search specifically for cc works on its search page. Do you have friends who are into photography? Maybe they'd love to be involved in that part of your book trailer.
Once you have the script, the visuals and the sounds you need, it's time to put them all together in the movie making program that comes with your computer! And that should be reasonably easy enough because you've been practicing on it for fun all this time... right?
Happy book trailer making!
All this said, there are many fantastic people out there who will make a rockin' book trailer for you, for a fee. Circle of Seven Productions leads the pack when it comes to making book trailers and I am a great admirer of their work. But if you are unable to hire someone to do it for you, as I was, don't be afraid to DIY! The total cost of Cracked Up to Be trailer was my time. The end result is a trailer that I am incredibly happy with and that has been--thankfully--received very positively.
Hope this was a helpful read!
Thank you, Courtney! It was a very helpful read. Please visit Courtney's website and check out Cracked Up to Be.
Suzanne Kamata and I are doing a bunch of name calling at her blog Gaijin Mama. Here's the lead in:
Any of us who are parents know how important a name is. A name has the power to shape the impression others have of us before they even meet us. Would you ever believe that someone named Bill Bailey would be a rock star? What if his name was Axl Rose? Could Eleanor Gow rock the cover of Sports Illustrated? She did, under the name Elle Macpherson. Who would you be more interested in: Paul Hewson or Bono, Cherilyn Sarkisian or Cher, Mary Cathleen Collins or Bo Derek?
Planning your summer vacation? Why not visit Square Butte, Montana, or Elephant Butte, New Mexico? If those don’t sound good, you can go to Hell—Michigan, that is, about an hour west of Detroit.
What's in a name and how do writers choose monikers for their characters? Well, come on over and tell us how you do it!
Well, it was bound to happen--my character has outshone me. Violet Raines is over at Joyce Anthony's blog today talking about her friends and what it was like to be in a book. I got in a few words edgewise.
Come on over!
Come visit me today at Mary Jo Campbell's blog, Writers Inspired, where we'll be talking about--what else?--writing and being inspired!
Please join us!
All of us who write have tools and rituals we consider essential to the craft of writing. Coffee, of course, is the main thing--the first thing!--and beyond that we have a world of books, social networking, and other opportunities that help make us better writers.
That's what we're talking about over at A Good Blog is Hard to Find. Come join us!
We had more than six inches of rain yesterday. Most people in Central Florida attribute this to natural weather phenomena, but those who will track this deluge will find the source to be the tears streaming from my eye sockets.
Adam Lambert did not win American Idol. It's true.
Oh, it started off pleasantly enough. Norman Gentle, I was glad to see him. Kris's journey, nice guy, good runner up. It had been raining all day here and lightning flashed in the windows behind me, giving the effect of strobe lights through the window. I hated the group songs; they just don't sound good together.
Then, just as they started to introduce Adam's journey, LIGHTNING TOOK OUT MY SATELLITE! The world spun crazily and I clawed my way to the phone. "MAC! MAC!" My sister, my only lifeline--she's on vacation, but I knew she'd answer for me. I clutched the phone. "What's happening? Who's Adam singing with?"
"KISS!"
Oh, man! Stupid satellite dish. Desperately, my kids and I (and even my husband who hates AI but nevertheless thought Adam superior) tried to restore the signal manually, but to no avail. Then, just as suddenly, the signal returned--at the commercial break following Adam's performance.
Coinkidink? I think not.
Exhibit #1 Despite repeated dialings, I got only one vote in for Adam.
Exhibit #2 None of my text votes received confirmation notices (until the next day).
Exhibit #3 After not receiving confirmation, I repeatedly texted to 5705. That was my fault; I had never texted AI before and thought it followed the phone format. Still, I blame Idol.
Excitement surged through our little family, stirring us to our feet in the final moments. I wonder that I didn't fall to the ground, crack my head on the floor, and require emergency services when Adam's name was not announced.
As some of you know, this season was my first American Idol experience. I don't know if can withstand another.
It's still raining now; forecasters say it will rain all week. If only they would look more closely at their radars and see the tracks of my tears. It's such a mad world.
Cindy Hudson is hosting me today at Mother Daughter Book Club. We're talking about change and the trials of adolescence. Come on over!
I've always thought I was dead.
With these words, our mystery guest opens his new story. Please join me in welcoming a budding author--my son!
My youngest son wants to write his own stories--funny stories and maybe comics. He's a voracious reader and an insightful boy. This is his rough draft; he plans on developing a full manuscript later. (If he doesn't, he's given me exclusive rights to use any of his words. I love the first sentence, so I'm not going to forget this promise!)
He wanted me to share the rough draft with you, and I am pleased to do so. (Click on picture for full-size image.) Enjoy!
I'm blogging today with Andi Fisher at Misadventures with Andi. We talk about growing up military, thoughts on creating a series, and whether or not to use a real setting in a novel.
Come on over!
Hope you're having a good weekend! Please stop by this Tuesday when I feature a new author. He's written a story for middle-grade readers, and here's the first line:
I've always thought I was dead.
I love that line! If you want to read more, come back on Tuesday!
Also, St. James Cathedral School of Orlando put on a great book fair this month at Barnes & Noble. My bb, Sandy Nawrot arranged for me to come and sign books, and the pleasure was all mine! Such talented students! Chimers, guitar players, and more!
A few days ago, I traveled deep into the jungle and held an alligator. Okay, it wasn't that deep but it was Jungle Adventures, a twenty-two acre spread that includes a natural wetland, a spring, and a beautiful stream covered by duckweed. The facility houses lots of exotic animals, including Goliath, a 1700 pound male alligator. Though I didn't know that male alligators clamp their jaws shut with 3000 pounds of pressure or that females clamp with 1500 pounds of pressure, I did shout the correct answer for how many teeth alligators have--eighty. Ha! I knew that from my research for Violet Raines. But there was more about the teeth I didn't know: Alligators' teeth are like stacked cups; there's always another tooth growing under the visible tooth. The jaw produces teeth for every socket (unless the socket suffer infection or injury) for the duration of the alligator's life. So you'll never see a pumpkin smile on an alligator.
Here is Safari Todd with some of Jungle Adventures' toothy residents:
Don't try this at home!
After spending the day on a field trip and the evening at basketball games, I took my two little boys to Chili's, and while we were waiting, I saw this kid holding a book, the back of which looked familiar. I couldn't see for sure. After we were seated, I made one of my sons go to the other section and ask that kid what book he was reading.
Can you believe it was Violet Raines! It was his sister's book. A few minutes later, the brother and the sister appeared at our table, wanting me to sign the book, and I, of course, had bookmarks in my purse! I'm sure they'll never know it how thrilling it was for me to see them with my book in a setting outside the context of book signings and schools.
I need to call my mom.
Today, I'll be at Jillian Clemmons, hosted by Jillian Clemmons! Please stop by!
Today, Anne-Marie Nichols is hosting me on her blog, A Mama's Rant. We're talking about the pros and cons of working from home in my guest post: "Wash My Laundry or Write my Book: How does a stay-at-home-writer do it?"
Come on over!
Climb aboard! The next stop on my blog tour is The Friendly Book Nook, hosted by Sally Riley. Sally provides an overview of the Violet Raines, then gives us her take on it. Check it out!
In other news, I met my online buddy Sandy Nawrot at the B&N book signing! We had much to talk about--books and our telephone-voting strategies to slip Adam Lambert into first place. Pictures and more in a later post!
Also, I spent fifteen minutes in heaven yesterday--oh, wait! I spent a few hours at the Scholastic Book Fair office yesterday and had a great time! Photos and more in a later post. Scholastic people are wonderful!
Busy morning:
ADAM LAMBERT ROCKED THE HOUSE! YES!!
Now I have to get back to voting!
WOO!
Kim Zook is hosting me at her blog, Zook Book Nook. I know, great name, right?! Kim's interview centers on the relationship between Violet Raines and nature. I loved answering these questions!
Please come!
Happy Monday!
Today I'm a guest over at WOW! Women on Writing. Jodi Webb interviewed me and we're holding a Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning book giveaway! Come on over! You don't even have to be a woman to win!
Blueberry news: Last Thursday, I turned in my rough draft for The Hotel of Blueberry Goodness, and Friday morning, my editor sent me an email saying this: I was blown away by the story. Hooray! and YAY! Revisions are next.
In other news, I had an epiphany over the weekend: American Idol is not a contest of who sings the best. It's a contest of whose fans dial in their votes the fastest and are willing to do so for the full two hour voting window. Adam Lambert fans, we cannot have a repeat of last week.
With this in mind, I have been doing finger push-ups and thumb squats, twenty reps, three times a day. Timed drills on my land line and ATT cell phone prove that my speed is improving. LOOK OUT, NON-ADAM fans--I'm feeling AMBIDEXTROUS!
Sandy N., MAC, AprilGarden, AnnaG.--I'm talking to you! Team Adam has been mobilized!
If you live in the Orlando area, I would love to meet you! Thanks to Sandy Nawrot, bb extraordinaire, and Geoffrey Shoffstall of B&N, I'll be doing a meet-and-greet book signing at Barnes & Noble in the Colonial Plaza Market Center (2418 East Colonial Drive, Orlando). Please come!
Other events include an interview May 4th at The Muffin, WOW! Women on Writing blog, followed by a blog tour. Please visit me at some of these wonderful sites:
May 5th ZookBookNook
May 8th FriendlyBookNook
May 12th A Mama's Rant
May 20th Mother Daughter Book Club
May 22th A Good Blog Is Hard to Find
June 4th Read These Books and Use Them
Hope to see you there!
I have the best readers! They buoy me on hard days and make good days even better! Here are a few snippets (don't forget to check out the pics at the end!):
Dear Danette Haworth,
I am Violeta. I love Violet Raines Almost Got Stuck by lighting, it is now officially my favorite book. My favorite part is the chemistry between Violeta and Eddie. Danette Haworth when are you going to releasing your next book? Now you're officially my favorite author.
~Violeta
I just finished reading it and loved it-- I wish I could meet Violet. Her struggles and angst are so typical of a girl her age. . . .Your book will be one I will remember when moms and daughters come in looking for a good book.
~Nancy, librarian
My favorite part was her conversation with Eddie about the bra.
~Kathryn
Guess what i read the whole book in one day thats how good your book is. . . . I think you should make a second book in this one it should be Violet in middle school and how she gets along. . . . Thanks alot for writing such a good book.
~Love your #1 fan
Thank you so much for coming in and presenting! The kids loved it and so did I!
~ Pat, 4th grade teacher
Dear Ms. Haworth,
I just wanted to tell you that I just finished reading Violet Raines and I thought it was an amazing book. . . . Are any of the characters in the book based on your family or friends?
~Christina
Hi!! I just finished reading your book,"Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by lightning". It is now one of my favorite books along with some of the books you listed on your blog. I was wondering if were planning on making another book? I think it is a very interesting book and it is a brilliant write. Please write back or take writing another book into consideration. Thank you for your time. ~Vanessa :)
P.S. It IS MY FAVORITE BOOK!!
Please write another violet book. I would love to read about her 6th grade years
~Chris
I feel just like Violet of course i never got struck by lightning, but i have people like Melissa at my school and i have friends like Eddie and Lottie! . . . i did a book report on your book. . . . If you write back that will be great but if you cant ill understand.
~ Tiffany
P.s. I think you are really pretty.
hi Haworth!
I finished your book in a day it was the best book i`ve ever read! Can you please make a series about Violet Raines please. i wanna know what happens to them when they are in junior high. here are some ideas:::::::::::maybe all of them might run in to problems in there life's-----maybe all of them might find someone special well, i have more ideas but i dont want to get struck by lighting!
~ CC
I just finished reading Violet Raines Almost Got Struck By Lighting and I was wondering if you were planning to write a sequel to the book because I love it .
~Tori ;-) P.S I'm you're new biggest fan!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dear Mrs. Haworth, how are you? i'm fine, I absolutely love your book "Violet Raines Almost Got Struck By Lightning"!!!!!!! You know I tried to find a director and suggest making your book into a movie!!!!!!! I couldn't find one so.......anyways i'm emailing you, hope you liked my letter!!!111
~ ur #1 fan, Cassie
In another email from Cassie: The dog is sable and the cat is Izzy
Hi everyone!
I'm back from the Smokies and hard at work on the keyboard. The deadline looms for The Hotel of Blueberry Goodness; I'm kicking it into gear to finish the first draft.
THE BIG NEWS: I GOT TICKETS TO U2!
I have lots of other stuff to tell you, but these days I feel like I'm already late for something, so here are the highlights:
I am going to the Smokies today for spring break! HOORAY! The cabin we rented is extremely remote--it's the only cabin in a 200-acre spread set on a ridge in the mountains. I can't wait! I'm bringing my camera in hopes of capturing mountain wildlife (with telephoto, not too up-close-and-personal).
Interviews: Sandy Nawrot is an Orlando writer who read Violet Raines, and--drumroll, please--she recognized the bridge in the book! Yes, Sandy not only recognized the bridge, she has actually walked across it! I, on the other hand, was too scared and sailed under it in a canoe with my husband. Please check out the interview at Sandy's blog: You've GOTTA Read This! Also, MG/YA writer Jennifer Blom interviewed me for her blog Jen K Blom. Both writers were fun to work with and I hope you'll check them out.
Adam Lambert: YES! What else is there to say? I actually voted. Ten times. Was it just me, or did Smokey have tears in his eyes?
My dream: I dreamt about The Hotel of Blueberry Goodness last night! (My new manuscript, yay! Due 2010 with Walker Books.) We were trying to get a room and there was so much trouble that my husband got frustrated and just bought the hotel. I was thrilled because now I could legally sneak into all the abandoned floors and the tunnels below. The living suite was opulent, reds and dark cherry furniture, a little too formal for me; I wanted to sleep in the Honeymoon Suite, which, in the dream, was set up like a porch room with one wall of windows that were thrown open to the glorious smell of summer. (In my dream, it was not hot.) Then I started to think my sister would need to quit her job and help me, and my husband would have to quit his job too, because I can't run this place by myself. The dream ended with me telling my sister, "And we get to eat the Sunday brunch FOR FREE!"
Okay, I've got laundry to do and all kinds of packing! If you're going on spring break, too, have fun. For now, Danette has left the building.
Thanks to Verla Kay's blueboards, I've discovered an excellent blog for writers. Alan Rinzler, Executive Editor at Jossey-Bass Publishing, puts out The Book Deal: An Inside View of Publishing. Tips, articles, interviews--Mr. Rinzler's blog is a primer for writers at every level. Check it out!
