Since Cooper and Packrat are sooooo into nature, I’ve decided to begin posting a Nature Pic every Wednesday. Some will be past favorites . . . some will be new.
This Wednesday’s picture is of two of our 2012 Eagle Triplets. The oldest is on the verge of flying . . .
A good friend of mine called a couple weeks ago. He hadn’t heard about my book sale, and after I told him, he said, “I really admire you!”
At first I was speechless. Then I babbled and stuttered some kind of thank you and I think there was a “whatever for?” in there too.
“For your determination to sell a second book,” he said. “That you never gave up.”
Well.
Today, I went through every Cooper and Packrat file I had, getting ready to talk to my class about the story’s journey from an idea to a published-hold-in-your-hands book.
I knew it’d been years in the making. But I was a little surprised myself, at exactly how many.
The summer of 1999, our loon nest flooded. Both eggs lost. I watched our loons re-nest and go on to raise two beautiful chicks. I became totally and utterly smitten with this amazing creature. They had flown to winter waters when I put fingers to keyboard to write the picture book; Lily Loon. It turned out to be an equal mix of non-fiction and fiction. I subbed it to editors nine times where it received so-so comments, but no takers. One comment suggested they were turning it down because of the mix, they weren’t quite sure where it fit in on the genre list.
That same winter, I wrote another picture book, Victoria’s Loons. This one resembled Cooper and Packrat more. It was mostly fictional, with a little bit of loon facts thrown in. This received very good comments so I continued to alternate subbing and tweaking it right up until 2005 or so, about 20 times total.
One of the comments suggested the story was bigger than a picture book could hold. Simplify it or broaden it, they suggested. I’d been trying my hand at middle grade novels, on the advice of an agent. I’d also recently heard the phrase, ‘to sell a manuscript, write what you know’. A light bulb turned on. “Here is my campground early chapter book!” I thought.
It was now 2006. I wrote it. I loved it. But George Wilder: Game Warden in Training was never sent out. My trusted critiquers thought it should be bigger still. A full middle grade. “That’s your voice,” one said.
So I rewrote from scratch. I changed George to Cooper. I gave him a mystery to solve, a bully to antagonize him, a family to drive him crazy, a campground to play in (as long as his chores were done first) and a best friend to have his back.
And I gave him a loon family to monitor
photo courtesy of Joyce, camper at PSC
My author friends finally gave their approval to submit it to editors in 2009. The first rejections came in; very positive, personal notes, with ideas for improvement I could sink my teeth into. But I won’t kid you, there were times when I wondered if Cooper would find a home. Heck, it’d been many years since The Three Grumpies had been released. What if . . . but I didn’t want to think like that.
I rewrote Cooper two more times until finally, just after the last revision, it found a perfect home with Melissa Kim at the award winning Islandport Press. As it turns out, she’d been looking for a middle grade.
It was Fate.
Yes, the journey was long. Yes, I was determined. And yes, I think my friend is amazingly awesome for noticing. But I’m far from the first author to have had this experience. The road to publication is seldom straight, smooth and perfectly routed on a GPS. It’s curvy and surprises you with forks around most every bend. It’s full of potholes. And detours. And traffic jams. Sometimes it’s a three lane highway, ending jarringly as a cart road leading to the looming mountain in the distance.
But if I hadn’t had this exact journey, route for route . . . would Cooper and Packrat still be Cooper and Packrat?
I don’t think so.
So, am I glad I experienced the journey I did?
Absolutely.
I have an imaginative student who is a reluctant writer. It doesn’t matter how sparkly the writing prompt is, the song and dance hype I give it, or the rewards I dangle in front of her nose, we always end up at the same impasse after the assignment is given.
Fifteen minutes into it, student shows me an empty page.
Me trying the teasing tactic: Really? Really? You can’t think of one word to write? I gave you a princess, with a sword, and a handsome prince.
Student: I tried! Nothing comes to me.
Me – (who is honestly sympathizing, thinking of my own work in progress sitting on my desk) “Did you try my writer’s block tips to add to your word count?”
Student – “Maybe.”
Me – “Maybe. Huh. Did you try to describe your setting? Is it a stone castle? Is there a drawbridge? What kind of princess is she? A ninja princess who saves the prince? Or a damsel in distress in sparkly pink clothes.”
Student sighs. “I just don’t know.”
Me – “Okay. Start with senses then. What do you see? What do you hear? The roar of a dragon or the sweet singing of some birds? Do you smell the moat? The prince? His horse?”
Student taps pencil on the table, not even remotely amused.
Me – “Well, you can add anything you like to your story, you know. A giraffe. A lemonade rainstorm. The principal in a clown wig. A zombie.”
Several boys start scribbling madly, but she just sighs again.
So I pitch my lots-of-famous-writers-do-this-warm-up-exercise-on-a-daily-basis speech. I even drop some well known names! It doesn’t help in the least. The class ends and I hope I’ve given her food for thought as her assignment is now homework over the long weekend.
Fast forward to Sunday. I’m sitting down, faced with the next- to-the-last chapter in my own first draft. This chapter isn’t coming easily. It’s the climax, and an exciting, dangerous one it is too! There’s lots of characters, all come together, and the battle against right and wrong has begun.
I’ve written my character so his back is against a wall. Literally. And I’m having a hard time getting him out so he can personally save the day. I sigh. I tap my pencil on my notebook. I watch the San Fran-Atlanta football game. I pour over my plot ideas. I’m thinking, “I’ll work on this tomorrow,” when my in-box dings.
There’s a school Edmodo e-mail from the student. To summarize her paragraph, she was letting Shannon and I know she was still stuck. “It takes me awhile to think of something” She didn’t think she could turn in her writing prompt of 400 words by Tuesday.
I wrote her right back. I re-told her all the tips for adding to your word count. “Plow forward,” I said. Then I paused and remembered that I was just about to give up too. “I’m at home, writing too! Let’s write together!” I suggested.
I didn’t hear back from that student. I wrote though. And I hoped she was, maybe, writing too. Imagining it, kept me writing for awhile.
This morning, I ran into the student. “Hey!” I said, “Did you get my message?”
Student shyly: “Uh, huh”
Me: “Did it help?”
Student beams: “I wrote 600 words! How many did you write?”
Me: “About the same.”
And once again, a student has taught me something. Sometimes, it’s more fun, and more inspiring to know someone is writing right alongside you. And that they find it hard too.
Over the last few weeks, the trail camera captured several 5am fox pictures,
while in two different locations. And I was really pleased by that. (the fox really gets around!) But I was hoping to “catch’ something different now.
So I put on my snowshoes and filled my backpack with a Bio Rock Salt Lick, my little camera, and a bag of vegetable peelings. With my big camera and lens around my neck, Cookie and I set off to move the trail camera to a new location. I had a hunch on where the deer might be crossing. It’s kind of hard to tell though when your faithful pup runs ahead sniffing anything and everything, mucking up any tracks you might have found.
But she’s so darned happy doing it!!
After we’d set everything up just right, we headed down to the point to see if the eagles were out and about.
Looking toward the beaver hut . . .
Looking toward the state park
Lots of ice fisherman . . ..
But sadly, no eagles. I knew it was a long shot. Normally, I start seeing them more frequently in February when their adding to their nest in earnest and getting ready to start a family.
Even though they’ve rebuilt, I admit to being a little nervous as to whether or not they’ll use this location again. Time will tell.
This photo of the nest I took much further up along the trail as you head from the picnic area back uphill toward the 20’s. I’m standing about even with site 24! Not too bad a picture from that distance, huh? (This is cropped of course) You can actually almost see down into the nest.
What great pics I’m going to get this spring! I just LOVE this new lens!
As I write this, Cookie has been lifting her head toward the window and growling low. Whatever it is, it’s not scarey enough for her to get up from her snooze. I’m hoping it means something has discovered my little feeding station. I’ll keep you posted!
I’ve always been a goal setter. I tend to hold the important goals close in case I fail or turn into a scaredy-pants right when I’m about to try it. One such goal I made two years ago but didn’t post on my blog. I did tell it to my husband though. “If I haven’t published another book by the time I turn 50, I’ll walk away from it and try something else.”
“Like what?” he asked.
I had no answer. And thank goodness I didn’t actually have to figure it out, since Cooper and Packrat is being launched by Islandport Press just four months before the big birthday. Whew! That was close! Because honestly, I don’t think there’s anything else I want to do.
2013 promises to be a fabulous year. I’m very anxious to start it!
This year, I decided to post all my goals. And then I’m going to bookmark this page. It doesn’t matter who reads them and who doesn’t, I’ve put them in a public place and I think it will help me if I keep coming back to read the list when I feel off track or lost.
2013 GOALS
* Exercise six times a week. (I might as well get the most obvious one out of the way first) I’d been doing so well in keeping off the 25 lbs I’d lost . . . until for some reason, with the start of this school year, exercise slid down to the bottom of the must-do-list. Yet, it’s key to keeping my metabolism up and the weight down. I want to look good when I turn 50! And 51. And 52. Time to get back on the wagon treadmill daily. Veggies and Fruit are my friends!
* Find more quality writing time. Quality is the word to stress here. All too often I squeeze in a little bit of writing time here and there between other things, even though I know I need large chunks of time to make significant progress. That’s my preferred method of writing. So the goals are to finish Cooper and Packrat’s second adventure, begin work on Lillie’s story, send my sci-fi novel out to editors . . . and a couple of my picture books too.
And THIS is going to help me . . .
Hubby gifted me with this fabulous writing-only-no-camp-work-allowed space for a reason . . .I plan to show him just how much I appreciate it by using it. A lot.
* Read an hour a day – My to-be-read piles grew in 2012, but my reading log was waaay short of my goal. Embarrassingly short. Again, I acknowledge there isn’t much time left after two jobs, exercise and writing. But there has to be a way! I’ll find it.
* Marketing myself and Cooper and Packrat – It’s been ten years since The Three Grumpies was released. A lot has changed in the book world and my marketing file is woefully out of date!
Those who know me well, know standing up to speak in front of a group of adults/children/inanimate objects puts me in the scaredy-pants frame of mind I mentioned earlier. So the biggest goal here is to take a deep breath and step out of my comfort zone to do some public speaking and also some speaking up!
Other goals are to create new school and library visits, do more frequent blog posts, finish updating my website, develop teacher curriculum guides and find creative ways to get the word out about Cooper.
I know my editor Melissa, and the whole Islandport Staff will be on hand if I need them. Thank goodness I have them!
* Family Time – More of it needed, doing fun things. I realized during the last few months that we only have three short years left with Ben at home. Gotta make the most of it.
* Hubby Time – David has taken on so many (of what were my) camp and house chores so I can teach and write, such as answering camp phones, meal planning, grocery shopping, Ben’s appointments, and even laundry. I resolve not to take him for granted.
So, I think that’s it. When you put it all together, the overall goal here seems to be for me to manage my time more wisely!
With just a little over two hours to go to 2013, I’m raising my glass to wish all of you a bright, happy and safe New Year! May all your dreams and wishes come true.
The official cover is here! The official cover is here!
(Insert me, doing a goofy happy dance here)
I’m in awe of Carl DiRocco’s art. This cover is absolutely perfect! As one of my facebook friends said . . . it says, ‘pick me up!’
Here’s the blurb Islandport Press chose for the back of the book . . .
LOOK OUT, LOONS!
What kind of person would want
to destroy a loon nest?
Cooper and Packrat are determined to find out.
All they have to do is fend off a bully, clean the
bathrooms, build a raft, find the culprit, get the loons
to come back, save the family campground, and make
sure they still have time for s’mores!
I’m telling you, August can’t come fast enough . . .
For my birthday, I didn’t ask for jewels or a fancy dinner out. I asked for a trail camera. I just had to see what the Poland Spring Campground wildlife was doing when they thought I wasn’t stalking them with my camera.
Dave and I found the perfect spot to set it up this past Sunday. The weather was so gorgeous, we decided to continue down to the point, hoping to see our eagles. Cookie bounded ahead of us, never quite out of sight. At one point she startled a flock of (what I believe were) mallards.
I think they startled her too, because she ran right back to me.
Once on the point, we could see the eagle nest stood empty, but I think a few more sticks have been added. I’m very much looking forward to getting more pictures this coming spring with my new, super-duper lens.
Ben gave me a stabilizing pole for my birthday. It attaches to the bottom of my camera in much the same way a tripod does, but it’s quicker and easier to use. When I have the big lens attached, it’s heavy to hold and my hand tends to shake after a bit. Sometimes, when I’m out for a couple hours, my arm aches the next day. I’m not complaining, mind you!
I noticed my long distance pictures were a little clearer.
Geese hanging out by the State Park end of the lake
Flock of ducks just off the golf course
These Hooded Mergansers had been quite elusive these last few months, but I was about to get my chance. Four pair were feeding half way across the lake . . .
This time it wasn’t Cookie, but two pair of hikers at the State Park who sent these beautiful birds soaring . . .
I’ll check the trail camera Wednesday or Thursday. Through the winter and early spring, I hope to capture pics of the deer, turkey and beaver who move into the campground after the campers move out.
Has anyone out there had any unusual bird sightings this fall or winter? You might just find me on your doorstep!
Just because everything’s turned gray, and the temps have dropped into the *shiver* 30’s, doesn’t mean I put my new lens high on a shelf until spring. Even if I was so inclined, my faithful pup Cookie would never let me hole up for the winter.
Cookie- waiting patiently for me to snap some pics
Taking wildlife pics with my new lens is still one of my favorite ways to de-stress. There’s no such thing as a “quick walk”. Sometimes I just like to stand still under the trees, listening, waiting for the wildlife to come to me.
Hairy Woodpecker
Downy Woodpecker
I always end up down at the point to check for my eagles. I’m so relieved their fallen nest didn’t cause them to move from the island. Each time I see their new one, I take a bunch of pictures just because I can! I don’t see the eagles themselves quite as much this time of year, as they’re eaglets are off on their own, but I do catch site of the adults about once a week. Most days, they’re in the distance . . .
One of our adult eagles
When the wildlife is elusive, I set my sites on some pretty scenery.
Full November Moon over the new Eagle Nest
Did I mention that we had a pair of mallards still hanging out as late as last week? I hope they moved on, as the ice has begun to form.
These two were fun to watch. He stood guard as she fed with her butt in the air and her head in the water.
A Pair of Mallards
And then there were the geese. This year they hung out down by the State Park more than they did in our cove. I missed their chatter.
Geese
Lately I’ve been going through my loon and eagle photos (click the tags to the right) as I think about ordering souvenirs for the camp store. The photos I’ve taken this summer will also come in handy when I plan school visit presentations for next fall after Cooper and Packrat is released. I hope to take tons of photos of the loons next spring with this new lens!
Next on my wish list of photo ops, is owls. Anyone out there ever manage to take a good owl photo? If so, how’d you manage it?
No sooner had I gotten home from Whittier Middle School’s 5K race today, I found hubby and Cookie heading out for a walk to the lake. I quickly switched camera lenses and joined them. When we got there, I couldn’t believe my eyes . . . .
but let me back track a bit.
Remember how the eagle nest fell at the end of August?
This is what it looked like when I kayaked in September . . .
And what it looked like 3 weeks ago . . .
I was sooooo worried the eagles wouldn’t stay, even though I’d read they might rebuild if they’d had successful nests in the past. And we all know these two certainly were! Most years they had two babies and then Triplets in 2012!
Still, I had faith . . . and look what I witnessed today!
Not only was this adult on the new nest, but two trees over was the second adult!
I am sooooo relieved to know I’ll have some more time to study these marvelous creatures.
One of the triplet eaglets is still hanging around . . .
In between teaching, some miscellaneous camp work and quick walks to the lake, I finished the copy edits on Cooper and Packrat’s adventure. As I hit send on this final draft, I felt a mix of overwhelming pride and a little bit of pure terror. This is really happening! By next summer, I will be holding Cooper and Packrat; Mystery on Pine Lake in my hands. I’ll be sharing it with family, friends and campers!
*falls to the floor in a faint*
I know from having talked to my writing friends that these feelings are somewhat normal and the only cure is to dig into a new story. Soooo I’ve re-opened a Cooper and Packrat adventure I’d plotted last winter and I’m moving forward with it. I’d forgotten how much I like this storyline, too. It feels good to be first-drafting again!
