Used Book Stores: RIVERBY BOOKS

One of life's greatest pleasures is visiting used book stores.  Don't you agree?

Here's a painting of the interior of a store I love.  Riverby Books in Fredricksburg, VA.

The incomparable, Julia Goll suggested we meet there before going to dinner the night before my visit to H.H. Poole Middle School. 

Julia is a media specialist at H.H. Poole. I've been so blest to visit 7th graders there for the last two years.

The store is bright and funky.

With fun spots to cozy up to a book.

The paintings of the store's interior remind me of the book within a book concept. 

Fascinating!

Do you have a favorite used book store or other indie store? 

STORY QUILTS BY H.H. POOLE STUDENTS

Earlier in the week I posted images of student projects based on Blue. One was a really cool quilt. Today I'm posting all the quilt projects. Wish you could see them better. Every quilt square tells a part of the story and each is a touching experience. Try clicking on the image to get a better view!

THE WRITER'S DILEMMA: To blog or to actually write a book?

A "quilt" based on my book BLUE, created by a middle school student at H.H. Poole Middle School in Stafford, Virginia. I love how each square shares a bit of the polio story or a piece of history.

I have a theory that one reason blogging is so popular is because it represents the fulfillment of our dreams to be published. We toss a few words on the page, move them around a little, add a pic for emphasis, and then, Voila! we click on a button that says PUBLISH POST!

This is heady stuff.  And guess what?!  We don't even have to go through an editor, marketing team, copyeditor, or book designer.  Just like, that with no roadblocks in the way, our words are out there!

Never mind that relatively few people are reading those words.  Never mind that the words do not shake the earth or even make a reader laugh or cry.

It just feels good.  Blogging satisfies a writer's needs to express herself.  And that, my dear imaginary readers, can be dangerous!

Because, in my case anyway, blogging can take an unexpectedly large chunk of time. Usually, it takes the most valuable time in my day - my writing time!  By the time I get that blog post, up my bones are begging to move about.  My brain requests a change of activity.  The clock reminds me of some unavoidable activity that I need get to.

Therefore my work-in-progress does not progress!  Some days it becomes a work-in-stagnation.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do about this because blogging wisdom says that regular and frequent posting keeps my imaginary readers coming back.  Publishing wisdom (out there in the for-real publishing world) seems to indicate something similar. 

At least, in the real world of publishing, I do get requests for more books.  I'm not sure anyone has ever begged me for another blog post!

Now that ought to tell me something...

I'm not saying I'm giving up blogging. I'm just saying, don't be surprised if I start posting lots of fabulous middle school book related projects and go back to de-stagnating my work-in-progress.

If they make you laugh or cry or if you beg for more, I'll know I've hit on something.

Another H.H. Poole project based on BLUE.  This one gets me at an emotional level.  Something about those health dept. officials/polio experts arriving at Ann Fay's house.  It doesn't look good for Ann Fay.

I know this scene is depicting the emergency polio hospital in Blue but it also reminds me of a potential scene from Comfort - physical therapists attending polio patients at Warm Springs, GA.

MORE Q & A WITH MIDDLE SCHOOLERS FROM H.H. POOLE

Oneof these books is not about a disease.  Do you know which one?

1. Why do you write about diseases?

This is multiple choice. There could be more than one right answer. And no, you don’t want me to be your doctor.

A. I am a sick person.
B. I should have been a doctor.
C. I  probably have a fear of getting sick.
D. I am fascinated with the emotional aspects of illness and the way it changes people’s lives.

2. Who’s your favorite character in your books?

• Well, in every book, I’m always attached to my main characters.
• I think Imogene Wilfong in Blue is very cool.
• But I also happen to love Junior Bledsoe in Blue and especially in Comfort! He’s a very hot item you know. One of my readers sent me an email saying if her husband ever divorced her she was going to drive to North Carolina and track Junior Bledsoe down!

3. How did you get ideas for your stories?

There are so many fascinating hidden stories in history. When I'm working on one project I discover some story that grabs me by the heart and tries to drag me away with it. Usually I force myself to ignore it until I finish the project I’m on. But in the back of my brain a story begins to take shape and as quick as I can I go after it!

Example:  I was writing Vacation Bible School curriculum when I discovered Father Damien. I only needed a short story about leprosy for the curriculum.  But the research led me to more info and I wanted to do something longer with it. So I eventually wrote and published Healing Water, about a boy who is banished to Hawaii's leprosy settlement on the Kalaupapa Peninsula. He meets Father Damien there.

On the Kalaupapa Peninsula.

4. What was it like to go to Kalaupapa? 

I had to hike down a steep trail for a few miles. That was challenging. I had to hike back up. That was hard. The next day my legs hurt so badly I could barely walk.

Being there was cool but also a little bit frustrating because I wanted to roam freely and spend lots of time alone, getting to know the landscape and thinking about my story and my characters. But I had to stick to the guided tour and of course, there were other people around. I understand why people like me can’t just roam freely in this very private place but still, I wanted to.

CONTINUING THAT CONVERSATION WITH H.H. POOLE MIDDLE SCHOOL

1.  How did you feel when you finished the book BLUE?

The first time (after I wrote the first draft) I was thrilled. Each time after that, I was just relieved to have revisions done. By the time it was actually, factually done, I was so sick of it I wanted to throw up!

But now, I like it again.

2.  Why did you make the book so sad?

What do you think? This is multiple choice. There could be more than one answer.
A. I am a very mean person.
B. I’m not a funny writer. Since I can’t make you laugh, then I’ll at least make you cry.
C. I am trying to figure out why bad things happen in the world. One of the ways I do that is through exploring tragedy through storytelling.
D. Polio was a very sad chapter in America’s history. I thought someone needed to tell it.

3. Have you ever had any experiences with the things you wrote about? Like did anyone you know have polio? Did you know anyone who was in the war? 

No one in my family had polio so this story did not grow out of personal experience. But, through my research, I’ve made some dear friends who had polio.  They’ve answered lots of questions for me. Whenever I have another question I just ask them.  I do know some vets but I haven’t actually had personal family experience with someone serving in a war.

Here I am with Jackie, one of my polio experts.  We met in a restaurant in Florida.

 4. How did you think of the characters’ names?

•  I  found Ann Fay’s name on a piece of paper and knew immediately that was the double name I wanted. (She had to have a double name because so many southerners do!)
•  And I had to have a Junior because there are so many of them around here where I live.
•  I had a best friend named Peggy Sue growing up so I wanted to use it to honor her.
•  I once knew a woman named Immogene. I thought it was perfect.

I think, for most of the characters, I just thought of names that fit the time period and seemed right for my characters.

5. Why is the book called BLUE?

Here's a little hint.

It’s all about symbolism. (which I love, BTW) As I was writing the story, blue kept cropping up – it wasn’t planned but it all worked together so beautifully. (And I like to make connections like that as I write.)  You may have noticed there are a bunch of blue items in the book.

So I’d like to throw the question back at you. Feel free to leave a comment below with a list of items that might have helped to name the book.  (Or Ms. Goll can email it to me.) I'll post a picture for each one you get right.)

And just so you know – I actually called it Tough as Hickory – but authors don’t always get to choose the titles for their books.  My editor is very good at keeping me involved with such decisions. She actually came up with the idea of Blue and I wisely agreed with her!

Oh, BTW, I hope your teacher or librarian will enter the book and DVD contest announced below.  You could possibly get a free book (or books) for your school!

BLUE MONDAY: A Reader is Born!

Scene from Blue, created by a student at H.H. Poole Middle School, Stafford, VA. (Immogene & Ann Fay sneak out of hospital to meet each other.)

I'll be speaking to Rugby Middle School students next week. Today, I received an email with the following paragraph from Karen Maxon, the media specialist there.

The first 2 conversations I had this morning (the first day after spring break) were about how amazing Blue is! One teacher stopped me on the way in to the building and then a student came into the media center to tell me how she could not put it down.

Her exact words were "I usually hate reading." Her testimony for the book was so awesome, I asked her to share it over the PA this morning. She did a great job!

Wow! If that doesn't make an author's day, nothing will.

And on top of that I had a terrific visit with 8th graders at Grandview Middle School this morning. But I will save that report for another day!

THANKFUL THURSDAY: Small Gifts

When I do school visits I often receive gifts of some sort. I usually take pics and never get around to posting them. But I'm going to remedy that - beginning today. Back in February I visited H.H. Poole Middle School in Stafford, VA.

Media Specialist, Julia Goll had been to my webpage where she discovered two of my loves. (used books & Heidi)

And so she presented me with this.

It's a condensed version. In perfect shape.
The illustrations have that old fashioned charm that takes me way back. And look at the beautiful endpapers!
I'm smitten!

WHAT I LEARNED IN SCHOOL THIS WEEK: The meaning of lachrymatory

If you've read BLUE you probably remember that Imogene Wilfong comforted Ann Fay with a story about God's collection of bottles - "one for each of his childrens". This idea was inspired by a passage from the Old Testament.

Put thou my tears into thy bottle. Psalm 56:8. This week the students at H.H. Poole Middle School in Stafford, Virginia presented me with a book. It's quite thick as you can see - each page represents a student's idea of what his or her tear bottle would be like. They drew pictures of their bottles and explained the symbolism behind the colors, shapes and designs.
There are some incredible entries. They're so personal and so beautiful. It is truly a sacred thing to see how these sixth graders have used this section of BLUE as a springboard for thinking about their personalities, life experiences, and their relationship to pain.
The students made dozens of dioramas depicting scenes from BLUE. Note the blue bottle in the window and more in this corner cupboard. (I love dioramas!)

One of the teachers at H.H. Poole told me you can actually go online and buy a tear bottle. So I checked it out and...

Who knew?! There are multiple sites!

Here's one that gives some info on the tear bottle tradition. I discovered the tear bottle is called a lachrymatory (tear catcher). The Comfort Company , like all these sites, will sell you a tear bottle. Check them out if you're so inclined.

And also check out these tear bottle projects created by students at H.H. Poole! Click on the pics to read the poetry and descriptions and to see the exquisite details.

THANKFUL THURSDAY

1. Safe travel and hubby did the driving
2. An already fine motel room was upgraded to a suite - nice!
3. H.H. Poole Middle School is one happening place. I was inundated with enthusiasm and incredible hospitality. (More on this when time permits.)
4. Friends made along the way!
5. The realization that a story can connect so powerfully with readers and that readers can touch the author in return.
6. Homemade banana bread and the hands that prepared it!

MORE Q & A FOR H.H. POOLE MIDDLE SCHOOL

1. Where did you find your publisher and editor? (Sara) Blue is published by the organization that publishes Highlights Magazine. They run a writer's conference very year and I met my editor there. She's an expert in research and history writing and I liked her immediately. What I liked most was how tough she was. I knew she could teach me to write well. So I signed up for a workshop she was teaching. And that led to BLUE and she wanted to publish it and I’ve been deliriously happy every second of my life since. Unless you count the times she wants me to reread my manuscript and make revisions or I can’t find my car keys or I have to pay taxes and well, you get the picture. Getting published is wonderful but the life of an author is much like everyone else’s.

2. What advice would you give for young authors? – Mrs. Fredrick (the teacher) (Sara)
Read a lot! And make friends with your eraser which is to say, be willing to revise.
3. Where did you get the ideas from BLUE and your other stories? Did you write any books that weren’t published? – Will
I find my ideas in history. Basically I love to find a hidden piece of history and bring it out into the open by writing fiction about it.
Books I haven’t published? Yes tons of them. Okay, not tons but more than the ones that I have published. It took me awhile to figure out that I’m really a history writer.

4. Besides the Miracle of Hickory, did anything else cool happen in your life? (Will)
As for cool things that have happened in my life. The Miracle of Hickory happened in my hometown but I wasn’t born then yet.
But after I was born?
-The United States put a man on the moon. (1969
-Schools became racially integrated. (about 1967 in my school)
-The Berlin Wall came down. (1989)
-First black president - (2009)
-Today, a girl told me she read Blue at least 24 times! I think that is way cool!

In 2003 I visited remnants of the Berlin Wall which once divided the city of Berlin, Germany and separated family members from each other. There are lots of images painted on it.

I forget the exact story behind this picture but it seems to represent the fall of the wall when people from East Berlin flooded into West Berlin.

5. What happened to Pete?
See page 192 of BLUE. I’m afraid I don’t know the cause of his death. But “legend” says he died of a broken heart.

6. Where did you get the picture for the girl on the front cover? – Andrea
Ah, the girl on the cover. My daughter took that picture. The girl is a friend of the family. The cover artist shared her design with me and it looked much like the cover does now except it had a different girl. I didn’t think that girl looked like Ann Fay so she invited me to help find the perfect girl. We could not find a photo so we took one. BTW – I have an extraordinary publisher and a very generous book designer. This would probably not happen in most publishing houses.

7. Have you met any polio patients? – Samantha
Yes, and I keep meeting more of them all the time. I ask them lots of questions about what it was like to have polio, to walk with crutches, etc. They are my experts and many have become my friends.

8. Did this happen in your life? (what happened in BLUE) – Alex
No, I wasn’t alive yet. I never had polio. And no one in my family has had polio. I became interested in polio when I discovered the story of my hometown’s epidemic.

9. How were you inspired to write the storyline of BLUE? Did you change anything from the rough draft of BLUE to the final copy? – Emily
I’ll tell you about the inspiration part when I get to your school. Sure I changed lots of things. I wasn’t finished interviewing people or researching yet so I had to change things as I gathered more information. And you can believe my editor noticed lots of problems that needed fixing. So I changed it many times.

10. When will COMFORT be released? (Emily)
March 2009 – I just realized it’s only about a month away!

Q & A FOR H.H. POOLE MIDDLE SCHOOL

When you were little did you always want to be a writer? (Erin) What inspired you to start writing? (Ibrahim)
For some reason I thought I wanted to be a nurse. It’s a good thing my 8th grade teacher told me I’d be a writer someday because I’d make a lousy nurse. I became a teacher first. Eventually I realized I really did want to be a writer. Recently I had a fabulous visit with my 8th grade teacher. Here we are together!
Mrs. Cunningham and me. (She sent me a fan letter for Healing Water. It was like getting an A all over again!

What else were you good at in school besides writing? (Jenna)
Hmmm – spelling, reading, art, history and geography. And I was very good at talking when I wasn’t supposed to be.

If you were to go back and read your book would you feel sad about it or would it not affect you? (Rebecca)
Sometimes I do reread parts of the book – especially when I speak to schools. And yes, sometimes it chokes me up. I haven’t reread the whole thing for a long time but I think it would make me cry if I did.

How long did it take you to write the book? When is the sequel coming out? (Nikki)
I wrote the rough draft for BLUE in about 9 months. Then I revised it many times over a period of 3 more years. The sequel is due in March. (Fingers crossed. )

After you finish the sequel to BLUE, do you plan on writing more books? (Megan)
Try to stop me!

How did you give each character their personality? (Sean)
One way I show the character’s personality is through speech. But as to how they get their personality – hmmmm I think it usually reveals itself to me. I don’t consciously go into it thinking Junior will have a big heart and Ida and Ellie will be whiny. I just start writing and figure it out as I go. It’s a good idea to plan characters out if that works best for you. I just don’t usually do it that way. Sometimes you just know you need a certain kind of character for the story. Ann Fay needed lots of emotional support so it was logical for Junior to be the kind of person who would give it to her.

Why did Bobby have two kinds of polio? (Jessica)
I wanted to tell as much of the polio story as I could through Ann Fay’s eyes. Giving Bobby a more serious case of polio was one way to do that. I know it wasn’t nice but you’d be bored if I didn’t have conflict in there.

Why did a lot of the main characters die? (Kevin & Erin)
I think maybe it’s because I am trying to understand death and why people die in real life.

Why did you choose the time period that you wrote the book? (Katie)
I really didn’t pick the time. I was looking for a local story and discovered the polio epidemic. It just so happened to be a 1944 story. And it just so happens that the WWII era is a time I’ve always been interested in. I think it is because of Ann Frank's book, The Diary of A Young Girl. That story began my passion for holocaust literature.

What was it like visiting the Concentration Camp? (Tyler)
Overwhelming. There was so much to see and read and feel sad about. And so little time to take it all in.
A sculpture at Auschwitz Concentration Camp.

Bunks at Auschwitz.

Auschwitz Camp

Did you ever get writer’s block while writing? (Olivia)
I don’t always know what should happen next in my story. When that happens I start moving which helps my brain to work better. I am a kinesthetic learner. While I walk or mow or dig in the dirt my mind is working out the plot. I ask myself what should happen next. If I think about my characters and what is missing from the story, and if I’ve done enough research it’s usually not that hard to know what needs to happen.

What’s your favorite sport? (Morgan)
To watch? Winter Olympics. Skating and skiing.
To participate in? Running - to the dinner table. I used to love softball before I turned old and lazy. I still enjoy hiking.