Street Portraits: Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Scenes from this day.
Can you tell which one is my fine city's fine mayor, Michael Nutter?
Read more...
You Are My Only: The Very First Review
I quote from the final paragraph. The rest will be posted closer to release date (October) on the YA Books Central site. But as an author eager to hear how this book will be received, reading and being able to share this now (right now) means the world:
Read more...In some books, it’s the story that captures you and in some, it’s the characters. In You Are My Only, it is that rare combination of story and character. Kephart has created two (almost) separate but equal stories, both intriguing and engrossing. In addition, she has created the perfect characters. I defy anyone not to fall in love with Sophie, Joey and Aunts Cloris and Helen or Emmy and Autumn and even Harvey, the dog. I defy anyone not to hate (maybe intensely dislike) Sophie’s mother or Peter. As always, Kephart chooses her words with care, and while the language is not as ‘ethereal’ as in some of her recent books, her images and descriptions and wording remain essential in understanding the characters and surroundings. There are secrets that need to be unearthed and things to ponder. There are relationships that you are jealous you are not a part of and those you are glad you have not experienced. You can read You Are My Only quickly and enjoy the story or you can read it slowly and savor every word and nuance and description. Either way, you must read Beth Kephart’s latest addition to Young Adult literature, You Are My Only. More than likely, after you’ve read it once, you’ll go back and read it again. I know I will.
My Life, The Theater, and Other Tragedies/Allen Zadoff: Reflections
Friday, April 29, 2011
What's that? You think you know the answer already? You think you've read somewhere over there that Fantasy rules, Fantasy titillates, Fantasy has it all going on? You think Fantasy gets all the big bucks, the movie deals, the figurines, the very special lunch boxes?
(Okay, you can chill, I'll give you this: Fantasy really does get all the very special lunch boxes.)
And yet, and but, and forever however: Hold your horses and your gunfire. Having just read Allen Zadoff's spanking-new YA novel, his work of Realism art, My Life, The Theater, and Other Tragedies (Egmont USA), I'm thinking this: If anyone can make the eloquent case for YA Realism, it's Mr. Zadoff, who knows kids, knows funny, knows where teenage angst lies, and knows—beyond all else—how to leverage (novelistically speaking) all the eruptions and allegiances and societal reconfigurations that define those awkward, blessed years.
With Life, Zadoff introduces Adam Ziegler (alter ego?), the kind of theater techie of which Tina Fey would be most proud. Ziegler (you might also call him Ziggy) is a true backstager, a catwalk prowler, a guy who paints the world with light, or at least the stage during Montclair High's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Darkness is deep sadness for Ziegler—the color of nothing, the color of his father's untimely death. Light is Ziegler's artistry, but as a techie he's not supposed to think; he's supposed to do whatever his arrogant, nemesistic, and British-accent-flecked director says he must.
Girls are involved. A best friend. An overweight adult-in-charge who needs some babysitting. There's a brother gone to Cornell and a mother who drives so slow Ziegler thinks she is driving backwards. But mostly, you theater lovers out there, this is Theater, capital T, and this is Realism (note the bold, note the red), and this wins my vote in the smackdownistry that is about to kazam in LA.
I'm going to spend some time on this blog, in days to come, talking to Mr. Zadoff. Send me your questions in advance. Read more...
School Visits
Dreaming Out Loud with the Central League Championship Writers
Thursday, April 28, 2011
It was the perfect question—the launch for what became thoroughly moving testimony as I asked the nearly 100 high school freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors to tell me why they write. What is writing good for? He writes, I soon learned, to escape. She writes when she cannot draw the thing she's trying to record. She writes so that she can imagine the lives of others—see the world through their eyes. He writes to discover. She writes because her world is full of stories, things too ripe to let pass by. He writes to exercise his imagination. She writes to bare her soul. She writes because, she says, she has to, and he because he can.
Yes, I said. And yes. While in a room across the hall, a dozen teachers from schools throughout the region read the stories that these students had written in response to the contest prompt. Does it matter who wins? Does one write to win? Or do we write, as I ultimately suggested, so that we can more thoroughly know—ourselves and the world we are born into, the possibilities ahead?
I drove home through rain, a smile on my face. Drove home thinking that if all my writing life ever became was a chance to dream out loud with other dreamers such as those bright-faced kids, it would be enough.
Thank you, Central League, for the opportunity. And write eternally on. Read more...
Finding my balance
In the middle of the middle of everything else, I received a note from my cherished son about a paper he had written. He's not a boastful kid, my son, only one who shares his happiness, and I was elated with him, for him, after he had shared his news. "What do you suppose enabled you to write a paper that got such a response?" I asked him.
"I think the key was that I was really comfortable with the material and therefore I know what I needed to say and what examples to use to make my argument," he emailed back. "It helps that I really enjoy what I'm learning, too."
Note to self: Do not forget the basics. Love what you do. It might just love you back. Read more...
Meet me at the BEA
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
YOU ARE MY ONLY Book Signing: 10 AM (author autographing area)
AUTHOR TEA: 3 PM
Perhaps our paths will cross? I can't promise you a Googer's Cake or Thing. But I can promise you conversation, and maybe the Famous Elizabeth Law will walk by and sing a tune in your direction, or maybe Egmont USA's Katie Halata or Greg Ferguson or Mary Albi or Doug Pocock or Rob Guzman will lay down some ink for you. Or maybe Nico Medina will at last wear a costume on my behalf.
A girl can dream.
Big thanks to Florinda. She knows what for. Read more...
Answering the Zionsville Middle School Readers of UNDERCOVER: A VLOG
A few words to the Zionsville Sixth Graders to Miss Rachel Bing, their remarkable cadet teacher. I have never managed to talk to a camera without making some silly mistakes. So please forgive those as you listen.
That there is smoke between where I (and the students) lived and where the president lives
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
I'd made the students chapbooks of their work and carried them across campus in my bag. I'd run to the campus grocer's (for grapes and strawberries, cheese and bagel crisps, chips and salsa, carrot cake and chocolate) and then to Kelly Writers House (for platters and for the knife with which I'd eventually slice the tip of my index finger off). It was a muggy day, and my heart was heavy, and in the midst of it all, I stopped right here and took my camera out.
To the left is the building in which I taught my sweet sixteen. To the right is where Amy Gutmann, Penn's president, lives. The smoke in the middle is what interests me. The ephemera. The mystery. Of what gets taught, and what remembered. Of what lives, and lives.
I don't imagine that Amy Gutmann knows who I am. I can't imagine that she could imagine how much I loved her kids. These University of Pennsylvania students who were mine each Tuesday afternoon, who believed in me because (perhaps mostly) I believed in them.
"Don't go anywhere," I told them. Or, "Don't go far."
But does the smoke rise, or does it fall, and can it hold us?
Time will tell. Read more...
UNDERCOVER letters from Zionsville Middle School, final entries in the series
I post now the final UNDERCOVER letters from my continuing series featuring the sixth-grade students of Miss Rachel Bing's Zionsville, IN, class. See Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 for background on this exceptional (high school, as in, Rachel is in high school) teacher and her students. These letters are breeze and sun, indelible. These letters bring me hope.
From Peyton:
Elisa dropped her mouth in shock, she had won! She had won first place! She ran off the ice into her father’s arms, happy tears running down her cheeks. “Oh, Elisa,” cried her mom, “you were wonderful!” Just then, Theo came up to Elisa, “Can I talk to you?” he whispered. He led her over to a corner. “I want you to know that I’m sorry. I’m done with Lila. When I was with her I was a jerk.” Then he leaned over and kissed her. Elisa looked at him, smiled, and walked away.
Hello Mrs. Kephart! My name is Peyton, I’m twelve years old, I go to ZMS and that is my prediction of what I think would happen after the book ended. Miss Bing is my cadet teacher and she read my class your book, Undercover. When Miss Bing started reading Undercover, I was immediately drawn into it. Every day, she would read us a chapter, but that wasn't enough. We begged her to read more, so finally we were at two chapters a day.The book was great, but the words you used were amazing. The way you use words is indescribable. One line especially got my attention, “Cruelty is its own brand of hideous.” That was my favorite line in the book. I was wondering you are going to write a sequel to Undercover? I know for sure that a ton of people would read it. Also, are you considering making Undercover a movie? If not, I would consider it. Can’t you see it in your mind? It would be amazing! I too, like you, love to write. I could literally write you pages, and pages, but, we are only aloud to write one page, tops. When I heard that you actually responded, I almost screamed. We were all so happy! Then, Miss Bing said that you said you might feature some of your letters on your blog which made me want to write an even better letter than before. As, we were reading, I was seeing a little bit of myself in each character. Are any of the characters based off you when you were Elisa’s age? I am really looking forward to reading some of your other books, because I will for sure look for them. I hope you know that you are an amazing author and that I hope you continue to write more!
From Ryan:
My name is Ryan and I'm in sixth grade in Mrs. Plantan's class. Miss Bing, our cadet teacher, read us a great book called, Undercover. This book really inspired me to read more and it taught me not to be mean to people. The character Lila taught me this. I really like the unpredictable plot that was in this book. I think my favorite part was at the end of the book when Elisa's dad was there and her whole family was reunited. My least favorite part was at the end when Lila cut Elisa's beautiful dress for her ice skating concert. You had a lot of great similes and metaphors. I also like the part 1 and the part 2 concepts. Part 1 was more of Elisa writing her letters and trying to be undercover. In part 2 Elisa is out of her shell and starts to feel content. I also like the symbolism of the marble girl; it reminded me of friendship. It also reminded me to keep my friends and not treat them badly. It was a really good book and it also was very emotional. It was very hard for me that Elisa's parents were having troubles because I never want that to happen to my parents. I love the way that Elisa and her sister were in the book, especially when they got along. I love your book, Undercover and I love listening to people read to me. I don't like reading to myself because there is no expression. I know you like to read in your head and you have people to edit your own books, which you're lucky for that. We only have Miss Bing and Mrs. Plantan to help us and edit our letters. Now I know you have more notes to read so that's enough from me.
From Sam:
The profound effect that those love poems Elisa made had on the females in your book was outstanding! I never knew a lonely girl would turn out to be an award winning figure skater! This book showed me how families could get together even in hard times. My family is having some hard times. Now I know that I can count on myself that we will get through it. I feel like Elisa, or I'm most like her. I love writing and enjoy doing sports. I am very swift on my feet and don't like to be vulnerable. I have never made poems for anybody before. Although, I give advice to people to help them with their lives. All of the elements in this book were unpredictable. (In the good way). The plot itself was so good and I was sitting on pins and needles when listening to this book.I noticed that part one was more about the literature and part two was more about her personal life. All of the information that I got was outstanding. Your book enhanced my vocabulary by 1,000!!! This happened more in part one. Part two was more suspenseful then part one to me. Most of the people in my class said, “NASTY!” when Miss Bing read the part when Theo and Lila almost kissed. I was very surprised that Theo and Elisa didn't hug at the end. We all predicted what would happen at the end of the book, or after the skating. Some people were silly and said that Elisa would die. I didn't believe them. I truly think that Elisa's dad will stay with them and that there family will come together at the end.
I was wondering why you wrote the book. Was it because one of the characters in your life is like Elisa? I have no idea. The ending was so mysterious. I have inspiration to do anything. I could write a book right now and never stop. Undercover was a very enjoyable book that took some understanding.
My favorite part of the book was when the English teacher gave her the word book and said to start putting her words of her own in the book. This could also be at end the end about her finishing the book. This book helped me understand the way of listening to other people and that I must love everybody in my family and to have hope. Your book gave me hope.
From Zach:
We recently read your book, Undercover. I was wondering if you ever considered making the book into a movie because I think if you did that, many people who have read the book would like the movie, too. If it did become a movie, I would definitely want to see it because I really liked the book. The book was great because it is full of suspense and you never know what would happen next. I also really liked how Elisa was like an undercover agent and that few people knew that she wrote poems and how she never really saw her dad much because of his job.
I also wanted to know if you are planning to make a squeal to the book? If you do make it into a book, I hope I get a chance to read that book. If you do, I think I would definitely want to get a chance to read it. I want to thank you for spending your time to read this letter.
Stepping Out for the Central League Writing Contest
English 135.302, preparing for the final class
Monday, April 25, 2011
And so I make ready for a final day with the students I love.
It's an unbearable thought.
Read more...
The UNDERCOVER letters from Zionsville Middle School, Part 3
The next several letters, then—candid and exhilarating:
From Jordan:
In class we have a cadet teacher named Miss Bing. She is thinking about becoming a teacher someday and she would want to teach Literature/English. Our teacher Mrs. Plantan gave her permission to read us a book. She chose your book, Undercover. At first no one was excited, because the book didn’t sound interesting. Then that day when she started to read it we all got so into it and especially the drama and poetry. Just recently we finished the book. Everyone is so curious at what would have happened after the ice skating championship. I would think that she would go to find Theo standing there no longer dating Lila, because he finally realized that cruelty is its own kind of hideous. I would hope that Elisa and Theo would get together and create their own happily ever after. I thought that because everyone loves and wishes for a happy ending. That is just what I would want to happen, but my question for you is what would you include in it if you were to write a sequel or follow-up to Undercover? Also since Undercover had such great description and detail it is easy to visualize. My class and I wanted it to become a movie, because we think it would be a great one. Have you ever thought about talking to a movie director and turning it into screenplay?
You described all of your characters with much detail and personalities of their own. Did you base any of your characters off of you? If not, out of your characters which character reminds you most of you? I remind myself most of Jilly because she is girly, creative, and she loves clothes. Another thing that I loved about the book was all of the similes and metaphors in the book. It made it more interesting. When you heard a couple in a row it made you look up and listen that much harder. Your book for me was one of the best books I have ever heard, because of the amount of passion and creativity put into it. I loved how in the first part it was mainly about the honors English and the secret love letters. Then Part II was more about the drama with Theo and Lila and then Elisa secretly having a huge crush on Theo. I overall loved the book. I am very glad that Miss Bing picked your book, Undercover to read to our class. I am also going to look at some of your other books.
From another Jordan:
Hi, my name is Jordan and I love reading. When I found out that we were going to read one of your books I was really excited. I have some beginning questions for you. What inspires an author to write a book? How does your life relate to any of the characters in your book Undercover? Who is your favorite character in your famous book Undercover? This is what I want to know from an incredible author just like you.You write amazing books and in our classroom Miss Bing, our cadet teacher chose your book for her to read to us every day in Literature class. Undercover in Part 1 was more about Elisa's writing and all of her love letters that she has written for other people to give to their crushes. Then the second part was more about Elisa trying to bring her family back together and she did at the very end of the book by ice skating. It made you think beyond the book in the ending. I love how Elisa had so much passion for the marble girl and ice skating. Also, each of the characters had their own different personalities, like how Elisa would always go to the pond. The relationship between everybody in the book is amazing. I was wondering if there was any relation to you and Elisa or really any of the characters in this book.
From Joseph:
Theo was like a wave in the beach, repeating to hit the black rocks on the sea shore. When the wave pulls back he is choosing between Lila and Elisa. Your writing kept me on my toes, wondering what would happen next. I am like Theo, except, I can’t find the perfect friend until the end of the year when I have to leave and almost never see them again except for when I come back to school.
My class and I all believe that this amazing book deserves to be a virtual picture and be placed in the minds of all people that know “cruelness is its own brand of hideousness” and that you can stand up to the popular one in the school and that nothing is in your way and you can chase anything. Elisa isn’t average; she has to chase what she wants. Lila has everything going for her no matter what Elisa does except when Elisa is undercover. This book let me understand that whenever I chase for my dream of writing music I can do it as long as I don't stop running.
I really loved Undercover and I think my class did too. I hope that you will write many more books and please make it into a movie.
From Julia:
I really enjoyed your book Undercover. I thought it was a very inspirational book. The poetry in part one of the book taught me to love poetry more and to learn it is not as boring as it seems. My life kind of did relate to the book, but I was more connected to some of the characters. I was most connected to Jilly because I always put on lip gloss, make sure my hair is perfect, and I love fashion magazines. This book was very inspirational and my whole class kept begging for Ms. Bing to read another chapter. I liked how Part 1 was more of where it was poetry and she was totally undercover. The Part 2 was more about her family and she was more revealed to the people around her. This book was funny and brought our class more together in discussions and opinions. I thought this was a great book to read and I thought it was a good book for kids to understand poetry and a day in the life of someone without a father and their struggles. Thank you for making such a good book.From Kate:
My name is Kate and I am in sixth grade at Zionsville Middle School. My cadet teacher, Miss Bing has been reading our class your book, Undercover. We really enjoyed it and our cadet teacher is very nice. I personally liked the part at the end where Elisa is competing at the ice skating rink. I like how Elisa's ice skating brought her family back together. The only part I thought was a little weird was when Theo and Elisa almost kissed (I am glad they didn't).
I was wondering what the end meant because I assume that her family got back together and I hope Elisa's dad is there to stay, too. I don't know what will happen with Elisa, Theo, and Lila. Every time the story turned back towards Elisa and Theo I was afraid they were going to kiss. I am a tomboy and I am disgusted by thought of people kissing. Other than that, I thought Undercover was interesting. Although, I was worried that another “nasty” moment would come up again between Elisa and Theo. I compare to Elisa because I like nature and the outdoors. I also like to ice skate along with my family. I would never want my dad to be gone that long like Elisa's dad was. I have a really close relationship with my dad like Elisa does and I wouldn’t want my mom and dad to separate for a while either.
This book really inspired me to be a better artist just like Elisa became and even better poet. I think your book is amazing and I cannot believe that I am able to write to you. You are a great model for my class and me. You showed us how important it is to love your family and not let it tear you apart.
From Lindsey:
My name is Kate and I am in sixth grade at Zionsville Middle School. My cadet teacher, Miss Bing has been reading our class your book, Undercover. We really enjoyed it and our cadet teacher is very nice. I personally liked the part at the end where Elisa is competing at the ice skating rink. I like how Elisa's ice skating brought her family back together. The only part I thought was a little weird was when Theo and Elisa almost kissed (I am glad they didn't).
I was wondering what the end meant because I assume that her family got back together and I hope Elisa's dad is there to stay, too. I don't know what will happen with Elisa, Theo, and Lila. Every time the story turned back towards Elisa and Theo I was afraid they were going to kiss. I am a tomboy and I am disgusted by thought of people kissing. Other than that, I thought Undercover was interesting. Although, I was worried that another “nasty” moment would come up again between Elisa and Theo. I compare to Elisa because I like nature and the outdoors. I also like to ice skate along with my family. I would never want my dad to be gone that long like Elisa's dad was. I have a really close relationship with my dad like Elisa does and I wouldn’t want my mom and dad to separate for a while either.
This book really inspired me to be a better artist just like Elisa became and even better poet. I think your book is amazing and I cannot believe that I am able to write to you. You are a great model for my class and me. You showed us how important it is to love your family and not let it tear you apart.
Read more...
Kephart-abilia: Horace Kephart Days, The Kephart Glen
George Kephart, my grandfather, was one of Horace Kephart's two sons. When his father departed for his Appalachian journey, George moved, with his mother, Laura, and his five total siblings, to Ithaca, New York. All six Kephart children ultimately attended Cornell University, while Laura took in boarders to try to make ends meet.
Toward the end of his life, George Kephart made two important decisions: to leave his own papers to Cornell University and to dedicate a glen in his wife's name within the Cornell Plantations.
This weekend I saw those plantations for the first time. With my husband and son, through mist then heavy rain, I searched for the glen. There was hardly anyone about, and no one to ask, and if I never found the glen itself, if I will have to return with a guide (and I will), I did discover the tremendous beauty of this place—even in rain, even before most any flower has had a chance to bloom. This is peaceful, water-streaming, well-considered country. This is ravines and slopes and green, a tumble of hellebores. My grandfather was a quiet man, a forester, a rose gardener, a lover of things alive and growing. No wonder, I kept thinking as I walked. No wonder this place was his eternity. Read more...
The UNDERCOVER letters from Zionsville Middle School, Part 2
Today, I'm running the next several letters, as a celebration of what a teacher can teach and of what students can do. I've promised to answer all the students' letters in a final blog in this series.
From Evan:
My name is Evan, if you might have heard our sixth grade class decided to read your novel, “Undercover”, because a young adult teacher named Miss Bing came in to observe our class and see what we do. Throughout the book we kept notes, learned literature, and even tried to listen intently. The plot of the book had such profound meaning and suspense. Every chapter was leading to the next and every time that we would meet our two chapter quota for the day, we would beg for one more. I have to say that everyone in our class loved your book. We all took it all in and adored it. Like my teacher Mrs. Plantan says, we have to enjoy books like these, like a sweet bar of Belgian chocolate.
I do have a few questions about the book though; do the characters have any relation with your life? Does Elisa win the skating competition, or does something else happen? Lastly, if you would make a second book for Undercover, would you?
To make a book that is as adored as Undercover, I know that you must be very busy, so all that I would like to say is, thank you for writing this book, and thank you for your time to make Elisa, Theo, Lila, and Elisa’s parents sound like they could hold a conversation with us, because of their complex personalities and moods throughout the novel. I hope that everyone that has read your book has found the thought behind the nature box, the skating competition, and even the marble girl, to be part in one of the best books they have ever read. This is what I have found about this novel. It is made for everyone to enjoy.
From Hannah:
Your book, Undercover, has some very life-like characters. I think the character I relate to most is Elisa. I may not be so creative with words, but I am creative with pencils. My poems are in art, not in words. I also am undercover (or at least I try to be). I don't like to meddle in the affairs of the popular, only in my own little world, do I actually be bold. My life is also like Elisa's. I help give advice to those who need it, and try to help people, in almost every way I can.
My favorite part of the book is when Elisa is saying her part in the play, and can't continue because she feels like she is being uncovered. I like that part because it almost is explaining what she does and this has happened to me when we were reading an in-class book. I felt exposed as I read, embarrassed even.
Throughout the book, you learn more about this mysterious character named Elisa. At the beginning, you hardly know anything, and by the end of the book, you feel like you have known her your whole life. In the words you write the story with, it feels like I am right next to her, living each day as if I were an undercover operative, hired to watch her.
Our class enjoyed reading this book so much that we thought it would make a good movie.
Thank you for writing this book. I have enjoyed reading your marvelous work. Your work gives me hope that someday, I might write a book that is as great as yours. Right after reading, Undercover I wanted to start writing, and never stop. Thank you.
From Emily:
When my class read Undercover as a read-a-loud book, we all loved it. Who would have thought that Elisa could be an ice skater, and who would have thought that would bring her whole family together!? I think that the idea Dr. Charmin had with the book of words was great. I would like to do that, it would help me write.
I could put some words that you used in Undercover in it. The words you used helped to improve my vocabulary. They were all great descriptive words, and they made the story more interesting and helped it come alive.
Have you thought about writing a sequel to, Undercover? I would love it if Theo broke up with Lila and got together with Elisa. They would have to get together secretly though so Lila doesn't do anything bad to Elisa. Our student teacher suggested that Jilly will get revenge on Lila for ruining the dress she made for Elisa to wear at the ice skating competition. When Jilly gets revenge, it will be embarrassing and it will ruin her reputation. I like that idea, even though revenge is not the key.
From Emma:
We recently got a cadet teacher named Miss Bing. She is going to be a teacher one day. We were in the school library one day and she found your book and thought we might try it out. When we first started reading it we thought it was not going to be as good as it was. I like how you put so many metaphors in your book. It just made the book even better. In your book I think that I relate to Jilly the most. I think this is because she is creative and very girly. Jilly is also my favorite character in your book. I think that you did a really good job picking your characters, and making their personalities different.I really enjoyed your book, and I think it was a great story for my age group and class. I was wondering if you ever thought about making your book into a movie. If you haven’t then if I were you I would really look into it, because I think it would make a great movie. If you have, have you thought about the scenes and who the characters would be?I like how you made two parts to the book. Part one was mostly about the love letters and poetry Elisa made for Theo to give to other girls and part two was more about Elisa’s family, love, and skating. I think that you made the book very realistic because Lila was the popular girl and always trying to take over and she liked Theo and always tried to steal him away from Elisa. We just finished your book a couple days ago. We all loved your book, and we were so sad when it was over. I thought that it was a great ending because it does not really matter if she won the skating contest; all that matters is that her family got back together.
From Hari:
Read more...This year we read your book “Undercover” in our literature class. First I want to congratulate you on how good it was. I loved the end where it just leaves a cliffhanger and leaves me to think about what will happen next in the story. Just a question, in my opinion this book is one of those books that absolutely needs to be made into a movie. Why hasn’t it yet? What would you put in a sequel or prequel to the book? Those are the questions that first came to mind when I read “Undercover”.My suggestions for a sequel would take place right after the skating competition and in the middle of the book Theo breaks up with Lila or Lila breaks up with Theo. Then, I would put in a cliffhanger after they break up, where Theo is mad at Lila and Elisa for reasons unknown. (You choose because you are the author). That is a beginning for a sequel.My idea for a prequel is here. The book takes place before Elisa is in high school. It would show how they become best friends and then how they grow apart and become friends again. (Two parts because it might be too long for one.) That is my idea for a sequel or a prequel.Thank you again for the amazing book. Good luck Mrs. Kephart.
Easter Prayer
Sunday, April 24, 2011
But there we were, earlier this morning—my husband, son, and I, in the hills of Ithaca, New York. We were dressed for church but not certain where to go. It had been raining on and off. We sat together, deciding.
"I can't not go to church on Easter," I said. But then, "What I really think I need most is Easter music."
It happened by accident. Or it happened another way. We set out walking. We opened a door. We found our music—sweet, extraordinary. Do you know what twelve trombones can do when united in Easter song? When one finds them, serendipity, in the midst of a private rehearsal? When one is allowed to stay among them?
Twelve trombones answer a prayer. Read more...
The UNDERCOVER letters stream in from Zionsville Middle School; p.s.: these students want a movie!
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Elisa, the protagonist and narrator of Undercover, is a young poet who dares to see and define the world in unique ways; her special gift also leaves her on the margins until a certain English teacher (Dr. Charmin) and an engaging young man (Theo) draw her out of a place of loneliness and toward a kind of belonging. Do words separate us, or do they unite us? They can, of course, do both, but Rachel is clearly a unifying angel—a young woman who asked her students to reach all the way from Indiana to Pennsylvania through the bridge of letters.
Over the next few days, I'll be running these exceptional, smile-inducing, happy-tears-provoking letters. I begin with the first five.
Alison writes:
Hello, my name is Alison, and I attend Zionsville Middle School. My peers and I read your book “Undercover”. I enjoyed reading your book and think it would make a fantastic movie. In “Undercover”, Elisa, a girl with the gift of poetry finds herself going through hard times with her family. Once you start liking the book you realize that the title, “Undercover” was created because Elisa writes letters for boys to give to girls which is ‘undercover’. If I were a character in your book, I would probably be Elisa because I am quiet and love to turn anything into a story. Also, I think I could be Jilly because I am an older sister out of two. I can also understand Elisa’s stress because I moved to Zionsville two years ago and when I moved, I was so sad that I couldn’t see my friends that often anymore. I made new friends and am happy to be in Zionsville now and I like my teachers at Zionsville Middle School.
My class and I couldn’t stand not knowing what would happen next in your amazing book. The suspense was taking over me and I was taking in every word like dessert after dinner. Your book changed my way of thinking about what can happen to a person just because of their poetic writing. When my cadet teacher, Miss Bing read “Undercover”, I was extremely overcome by the abundance of words in your story, which pulled me into your book. I have read many books in my life time, but this book was one of the best books I’ve read and I was amazed at how well you wrote about Elisa’s emotions. I hope that you keep on writing spectacular books that my class and I will love. I also hope that you will try to turn your book into a movie because it would definitely make a superb movie. I wish you good luck in any other book that you are working on and thank you for writing your extremely, beautifully written book. It changed me.
Alex writes:
Undercover is a book that leaves you thinking- it was an unpredictable plot! It was written very well with romance, friendship, love, family, and poetry! A situation in my life is actually related to when Elisa wanted Theo to like her and she cared about him. Elisa could feel her getting jealous of Lila and Theo together. It relates to me because I have wanted a lot of things to happen my way, and you’d just have to find out what happens! I liked how you didn’t make Part I and Part II about the same thing. You focused on two major points. Part I was about the letters that Elisa wrote and about love. Part II was about figuring out things with family and friends. One point I specifically liked about the book was the suspense because you never knew if Elisa was ever going to be with Theo again. If you really thought about it, Undercover would make a great movie! You should definitely contact someone about that! The character that I most relate to is Elisa. I relate to Elisa the most because I always bump into situations where I just want everything my way sometimes. It kills you when something terrible happens right in front of you, like in the book, Elisa always having to watch Lila with Theo- Theo, her love. At the end of the book, the ice skating competition seemed to bring everyone together. It brought Theo and Elisa back together, and especially Elisa’s family that struggled to keep it together with Elisa’s dad and mom “crumbling down.” Some themes in this book were friendship and love. Undercover has taught me some lessons, such as to stay true to yourself. Elisa gave up on Theo for a while because she never thought he would leave Lila. Also, another lesson was believing in yourself and other people. This lesson relates to how Elisa thought that her family was just going to break apart when her mom and dad didn’t seem to love each other anymore.
Anthony writes:
My name is Anthony and I am in sixth grade. Recently my teacher read out loud your book, Undercover, and I thought it was an outstanding piece of work and you have amazing talent. I wanted to know where you came up with this idea and does this book relate to your life? Your story was amazing and I was also wondering how you came up with part two. In part one, Elisa was just a girl who wrote poems and was an undercover high school student. Also, have you ever thought about making this novel into a movie? I was also wondering if you were going to make a sequel to Undercover and show what happened to Elisa and Theo after the skating competition and Elisa's life. I would go see your movie the first day it came out. I'm sure you would make the movie an outstanding story because of your great talent and creativity. What I've learned from your book is that even though you can be pretty, you can also be very mean. In the book Lila was the girl that every boy wanted to date, but Lila was also mean when she cut up Elisa's dress and when she got jealous of Elisa. I can relate to Elisa's character because I am a good writer too and I like to write stories just like you. I was inspired while listening to your book and I hope to see a sequel or a movie in the near future!
Cameron writes:
In class we have been reading your fabulous book Undercover. I love Undercover not only for its amazing story but mostly for its incredible grammar, metaphors, and similes. I would love for you to make a movie out of this. It would be so cool. I would see it the first night it came out. Even though I am a boy that has read Undercover I don't really take it as a girl book. I take it as a book that everyone can learn a lesson from. What I learned from this book is that some people can be really pretty on the outside, but their inside could be dark and evil, making them ugly even though they are pretty. I also learned that your family will always be there for you no matter what.
Charlie writes:
In my 6th grade class we have had a student teacher come in. Her name was Miss Bing. She has emailed you before. I bet you have heard from her. Anyway, she read us one of your best- selling books, Undercover! I thought that it was a pretty good book. It had poetry, romance, and other things that I liked. Also I liked it because there was two parts to it. The first part was about Elisa writing love poems for other people. The second part was kind of about getting her family back together and skating. Also I wanted to know if or how this story related to your life? Also, I wanted to know what you like specifically about the book?
Did you know that I am writing a book too? But, enough chit chat about me let's get back to the book. I really thought that this book can make a huge movie. You should ask some directors to make your book a screenplay. Just think about it! Undercover on the big screen! You could even get to walk the red carpet. I think you should totally write a second book. I have even thought of some ideas! Maybe Lila gets another boyfriend and she tries to get revenge on Theo!
Also I thought that your book had an amazing ending. I thought it had a good ending because it brought everybody together. Also I had another question. What lessons did you learn from this novel? Please share. I was also wondering if some of the characters were based off of people in real life. Some other things that I wanted to say was that I liked how Elisa stuck out from the rest of her family because her family was girly and Elisa wasn't just “girly” she didn't try to be girly she was herself.
Also I thought that it was cool how Elisa and her sister's relationship grew as their parents started to separate. I thought that was very creative. Maybe their parents going separate ways for a while was a good thing.
I'm still drying my tears, reading this letters. I'm imagining myself in that classroom with Miss Bing and her students. I'm going to answer everybody's questions in the final blog in this series. For now, Zionsville Sixth Graders (and Miss Bing), just know that I'm listening and that I am deeply moved. A sweet Easter weekend to you all.Thank you so much for writing this amazing book. My favorite part of the book was when Lila ripped Elisa's dress because it showed the power of Lila and how Elisa overcame it and still performed. I love a happy ending.
Not perfection (and Jonathan Franzen on David Foster Wallace)
Friday, April 22, 2011
This is also not my life—this quiet, green perfection. My life is more like last night—those 45 minutes of sleep that I finally got—or more like this morning, when, after deciding that further sleep was not an option, I turned on my computer only to experience a three-hour computer crash. My email files have now been restored, thank you very much. But it's 11:20 AM, and I have not dressed for the day.
What I have done, while wading through no sleep and no connectivity is to read and blurb a book, to talk to my father, and to read Jonathan Franzen's essay, "Farther Away," in last week's The New Yorker. This is the piece my dear student brought to me on Tuesday. This is the quality of work she finds inspiring. And no wonder. I share with you now the passage my student read aloud to me, on that gray day, in that dark and too-cold room, her voice the warmth, her presence the light. It's Franzen reflecting on David Foster Wallace:
People who had never read his fiction, or had never even heard of him, read his Kenyon College commencement address in the Wall Street Journal and mourned the loss of a great and gentle soul. A literary establishment that had never so much as short-listed one of his books for a national prize now united to declare him a lost national treasure. Of course, he was a national treasure, and, being a writer, he didn't "belong" to his readers any less than to me. But if you happened to know that his actual character was more complex and dubious than he was getting credit for, and if you also knew that he was more lovable—funnier, sillier, needier, more poignantly at war with his demons, more lost, more childishly transparent in his lies and inconsistencies—than the benignant and morally clairvoyant artist/saint that had been made of him, it was still hard not to feel wounded by the part of him that had chosen the adulation of strangers over the love of people closest to him.What we learn from our students. What they yield. Read more...
Peregrine magazine: standing among giants (and friends)
Thursday, April 21, 2011
It is perhaps fitting, then, that this past Tuesday, Peregrine, the Creative Writing Program magazine of the University of Pennsylvania, began to make its way into mailboxes and classrooms. It's the fourth issue of this beautiful publication, and all credit goes to the great poet, teacher, and CWP director Gregory Djanikian, who quietly sifts and mingles the fiction, nonfiction, and poetry of faculty, students, and alumni to bring this book to life.
I am so honored to be included in this magazine, and I am so touched to find myself here among the likes of C.K. Williams and Charles Bernstein, Alicia Oltuski and Rick Nichols, and my dear friends Karen Rile, Alice Elliott Dark, and Kate Northrop. I've set this afternoon aside to read. It will be time extremely well spent. Read more...
You Are My Only, the galleys read through
And so, these past many months—through corporate projects and student papers, through the finishing of another novel and the start of a memoir—the galleys of You Are My Only have been sitting here, awaiting my attention. When you get the time, I kept telling myself. When you are ready.
This morning I made myself ready. I sat, and I did not move. I stayed with Sophie and Joey, with Emmy and Autumn, and I read all the way through.
I emerge at peace.
Thank you, Amy Rennert, Laura Geringer, and Team Egmont USA. Read more...
When the body quakes and the heart can't say goodbye
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
The room was cold and dark. Their hair was damp from the rain. I began, two hours in, to shiver. By the end a certain palsy had set in, a fire in my throat and ears, an inner convulsion. Only one week left with these students whom I love, and it wasn't just my heart protesting; it was every bone and fiber.
Do you think you could pick me up at the station? I called and asked my husband, for by the time I reached 30th Street and got back on that train I was incapable of going any farther. He picked me up and brought me home. I slept from dusk to dawn. Love hurts like that. Goodbyes do. Read more...
UNDERCOVER goes to Zionsville Middle School thanks to one sensational cadet teacher
I am a cadet teacher this year and have been working with sixth graders at the middle school. My mentor teacher, Monica Plantan and I found your book, Undercover in the middle school library and were captivated by your writing style.Return, for a moment, to that first line: I am a senior at Zionsville Community High School.... This work, then, this idea, this carefully constructed, touchingly thoughtful letter emerging from a young woman months away from her first days at college.
I have been a writer since elementary school and knew English would be the subject I would want to teach kids. I have been reading Undercover to my sixth graders and they are admiring the story line. They are engrossed in the book and always want me to read one more chapter to them. We have discussions everyday and answer the study guide questions I made for them.
After we finish Undercover I plan to lead up to a creative writing project and have the kids write their own story. I'm going to use Elisa as an example since she is a writer, too. I will ask them, "What would Elisa do?" to remind them to find examples from Undercover. As a beginning activity I would like to have my students write letters to you. If this is possible, is there a mailing address we may write to?
Thank you,
Rachel Bing
Cadet Teacher
Zionsville Community High School
Zionsville Middle School
Of course, I said, I would be happy to participate in any way possible, and so soon, on this blog, you'll be meeting some of Rachel's students. You'll be seeing the impact that a young woman with a sure ambition is already having on the world.
I am honored to serve as one means of conveyance. Read more...
One student at a time
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
On writing (and improving) a novel for adults. For real this time.
Monday, April 18, 2011
I have written three novels for adults in the past. One became, after fifteen years of radical reworking, the El Salvador memoir, Still Love in Strange Places. One, following equally radical shifts and reimaginings, became the young adult novel due out this October, You Are My Only. The third former adult novel is at the tail-end of a redrafting process; you'll be reading more about that no-longer-an-adult novel soon.
Last year, I sat down to write my fourth novel for adults. This time, I would not tolerate the ersatz in me. This time, I would work the novel and set it aside, work it and set it aside, until finally I asked my agent, Amy Rennert, and my friend, James Lecesne, to read. They had wise things to say, loving things, hopeful things, and I listened to them—reworking the structure of the book at Amy's brilliant suggestion and intensifying the heart of the story, at James's. I worked the book, set it aside, worked the book, and made a decision: Before sending this book to any editor in the land, I would mail the whole to my friend Marjorie Braman, who recently stepped down from her role as editor-in-chief of Henry Holt to launch a literary consultancy. I value what Marjorie has to say; I have learned from her counsel in the past. I wanted to know what she would make of a story that means so much to me.
This is to say that I made the right choice, for Marjorie's notes, like Amy's notes, proved to be invaluable. It's not just that she was so enthusiastic about this project. It's that she read with care, wrote notes with precision, pointed me to places that needed rounding out and places that needed trimming. She was honest and she was galvanizing. I could not sleep (and I have not slept) for I had been given a new key to my own strange land. I have rounded passages and abbreviated others. I have softened and also clarified.
This blog post, then, is a thank you—to Amy Rennert, for sharing my hope, for believing in this dream, and for so conscientiously delineating ways that I could make this novel better; to James for being the love and light that he is; and to Marjorie for demonstrating her continuing commitment to the clarified page. Read more...
Which portrait seems most authorial?
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Which of these, I wonder, would you most want to encounter on the back of a book jacket? Read more...
Standing with the Narcissi/Beth Kephart Poem
I have denied the dahlias their second season,
leaving their fretwork earthed in for the winter,
their prospects overcome by white ice.
Beneath the lilacs, in the tulip bed,
the gnawing hunger of the mole,
and in the crush of azalea nearest the house,
proof of the deer that came in the season
of my insomnia and flared the window
With its stoked breath. This leaves
the burden of forgiveness on the red ranunculus
and also the heather, dug in yesterday,
as also the yellow broom that sweeps the teeth
of the iris you sent to me in a box from California,
marked Yours. The burden of living forward
stands with the narcissi. The burden of truth
with the bleeding heart beside
the shaft of wintered grasses.
Read more...
Just a month and days away from the Devon Horse Show
books in progress, a writer in un-progress
Friday, April 15, 2011
But today it seemed too much—three manuscripts in their piles—on the floor, on the chair, on the glass pane. Three manuscripts, waiting. The You Are My Only galleys, to be read one final, change-it-now-or-never time. The one hundred pages of memoir proposal. The adult novel I've been giving myself deliberate distance from, now returned to me after a marvelously close reading. Three utterly separate worlds in one small space requiring an enhanced version of me. Three different voices. Three different things I'd come to say. Words the only tool I have. Words insistent and inadequate.
I pulled weeds instead (there are plenty of those to go around). I took a walk.
I was, I'll admit this to you, afraid.
Tomorrow is another day. Read more...
We sit at lunch, we chat,
"Do all of your young adult fictions take place in the Philadelphia area?" I was asked, the other day.
I thought about it for a moment, just to be sure. "They do," I said. And smiled. Read more...
Rocking the Drop
Get out there, or get here, and check it out! Read more...
Teen Lit Day: Rocking the Drop with Readergirlz
I'm about to go out and Rock the Drop for Readergirlz in support of Teen Lit Day. What's that, you say? You don't know about Teen Lit Day? You don't know about Readergirlz and its mission to promote teen literarcy and corresponding social service? You don't know about Figment? Stop all traffic. Take a moment here. Get yourself involved. Read more...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)