All Things Middle Grade

[Britwriter]

ITA Kitty about some longer fantasy having pacing issues. I've found that several times, where suddenly the epic battle takes three pages, done, and everyone's back home, after ten meandering chapters where nothing really happens. It leaves the reader feeling very dissatisfied.

Judy, that's what I'm thinking about the Fun and Games, especially as my rework is on a book where the fun and games are pretty hilarious. I had cut one chapter already, and reading Save the Cat confirmed to me that I was right. But it's hard to see which others to cut, to keep it to the page balance for the Beat Sheet. For now, I'm going to leave them in, even if it means my page #s are not balancing. I'm wondering if it's so important for a novel. You don't have your audience for just 110 minutes, they can put a book down and come back later, so if the fun and games is really engaging and draws the reader on, I'm not so sure it matters if it's longer.

It's going to be a lot of work, but I'm excited about the prospect of reworking the second half to try to get that more in line with the beat sheet.

This is an exercise I'd really recommend to anyone, either with a completed work or a new idea. Just seeing where my plot fitted the formula and where it didn't was really enlightening. Some fixes were very simple, others will be more complex and take some work. And so far, all the fixes I've made have felt right, and not forced.

I will be plotting out new ideas from now on using the beat sheet. It's taken me out of a fog into some moments of real clarity.

[writer_laurie]

I am rivising my first MG WIP and I absolutely love this genre! So much fun.

[SheilaJG]

Did any of you catch the hoopla over Scholastic's new "How to Survive Anything" books? One is for boys, and includes how to survive a snakebite, being lost in the forest, a plane crash, broken leg, forest fire, avalanche, swarm of bees, etc. Then there's the girl version - How to survive a "BFF fight," a breakout, how to keep stuff secret (really, Scholastic?), "How to handle becoming rich," "How to pick the perfect sunglasses," and how to spot a frenemy.

Wowza. There you go, girls. You don't need to venture out in nature. All your challenges will take place during sleepovers with your friends.

Anyway, here's a link that shows all the chapter titles, if you haven't seen it already:


http://www.buzzfeed.com/donnad/schol...nistic-message

[wampuscat]

Originally Posted by SheilaJG

Did any of you catch the hoopla over Scholastic's new "How to Survive Anything" books? One is for boys, and includes how to survive a snakebite, being lost in the forest, a plane crash, broken leg, forest fire, avalanche, swarm of bees, etc. Then there's the girl version - How to survive a "BFF fight," a breakout, how to keep stuff secret (really, Scholastic?), "How to handle becoming rich," "How to pick the perfect sunglasses," and how to spot a frenemy.

Wowza. There you go, girls. You don't need to venture out in nature. All your challenges will take place during sleepovers with your friends.

Anyway, here's a link that shows all the chapter titles, if you haven't seen it already:


http://www.buzzfeed.com/donnad/schol...nistic-message

Yuck.

[The Kidd]

How to survive a "BFF fight," a breakout, how to keep stuff secret (really, Scholastic?), "How to handle becoming rich," "How to pick the perfect sunglasses," and how to spot a frenemy.

Why couldn't they just make the boy-book unisex and add a few more 'girl-friendly' things to the list ? This is puzzling :S

[playground_king]

Originally Posted by The Kidd

Why couldn't they just make the boy-book unisex and add a few more 'girl-friendly' things to the list ? This is puzzling :S

Oh god, I can just imagine Scholastic trying to be "fair" with these type of books. I can picture it now for the girls: "How to cook the perfect cupcake!" "How to make your toy baby the best baby in the world!" I thought we'd be past this clear sexism when it comes to literature, especially with such a strong company as scholastic. I'm a guy and I hate it.

Girls can be adventurous and daring!

[RuthD]

Arrgh. That's just wrong. Why would anyone want to limit girls to one sphere of interest? My daughter can be all about the social drama at times, but that's not all there is to her. If you want to see a pic of her hanging out with a rat snake (not a cottonmouth, thank goodness, which they also found on that particular camping trip), go to my blog and scroll down the sidebar.

Also, I have to say, plenty of boys would benefit from social skills tips sprinkled in amongst the disaster survival advice.

[wampuscat]

I understand the marketing angle of "boys only" and "girls only," but the fact that these are sold almost like companion books is the part that really makes me angry. Maybe some girls do want to know how to spot a frenemy, but some girls also want to know how to survive an earthquake. If you want to do these books with similar covers and released at the same time, you're basically comparing boys to girls, and the fact that all the boys things are adventure oriented and all the girls things are boy/popularity/beauty/shopping oriented makes me really sad.

[Britwriter]

Oh my gosh.

On the Scholastic website they say they are stopping further publication of this book, and that it has had only limited distribution. But it's still up on amazon today. It seems that no action to actually pull the book is going to happen, they'll sell what they've printed first.

I can't believe that this rubbish ever saw the light of day. What were they thinking?

[heza]

Originally Posted by Britwriter

I can't believe that this rubbish ever saw the light of day. What were they thinking?

I know, right? Do any women actually work at Scholastic?

[The Kidd]

I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt, because surely someone would have thought 'you know, this is going to come off as sexist' but since that didn't happen, it makes me wonder. I mean, I KNOW there are intelligent people that work at Scholastic but how did this even happen?

[ruecole]

Wow. Just wow. I'm surprised the first one isn't How to Survive a Broken Nail. Geez.

I don't have a problem with a few of these. How to Survive a Crush/Embarrassment/Shyness could be useful (and probably could've appeared in the boy version too) and I think How to Survive Brothers could be hilarious. But the fact there's absolutely no REAL survival tips is rather appalling!

I suggest we make our own list (and then send it to Scholastic!):

How to Survive on a Deserted Island
How to Survive the Jungle
How to Survive a Viral Outbreak
How to Survive a Hurricane
How to Survive a Kidnapping
How to Survive Getting Lost
How to Survive an Ice Storm
How to Survive a Power Outage
How to Survive a Heat Wave
How to Survive a Paranormal Encounter (Ghost Attack?)

Okay, that's all I've got for now. Anybody else?

Rue

[ruecole]

Thought of a couple more:

How to Survive Drowning
How to Survive a Babysitting Emergency

See! USEFUL stuff! Geez.

Rue

[The Kidd]

I could write the How to Survive a Hurricane section

[MJWare]

Originally Posted by heza

I know, right? Do any women actually work at Scholastic?

Yes, but they aren't qualified to be in management or marketing. Their smaller brain size, and unholy baby making powers means they are limited to acquisitions and editing.

If we do an AW version, put me down for the chapter on Surviving the Zombie Apocalypse.

I did have an idea like this some years ago, 101 Things Every Man Should Know.
Everything from emergency survival swimming, to tying a tie, to sowing a button. I figured it would make a good graduation gift. But the subject was too boring to actually write =-)

[heza]

Originally Posted by mware01

Everything from emergency survival swimming, to tying a tie, to sowing a button.

Your typo made me giggle because I'm picturing groves of button trees now. There's a red plastic button tree and a tree with those silver ones that always have some crest-looking thing on them and a wooden tog tree... and there might even be a stray hybrid in there for snaps.

[ruecole]

Sorry, mware, it's been done before:

http://www.dangerousbookforboys.com/

Not only does it include stuff like tying a tie and sewing a button, but it also has how-to info on building tree forts and go-karts and skinning rabbits and shooting guns and everything boys used to know how to do 30+ years ago. So, of course, I bought it for my son.

Thought of a couple more:

How to Survive a Car Accident
How to Survive on $10
How to Survive a Head Injury
How to Survive a Broken Heart
How to Survive the Death of a Pet
How to Survive a House Fire

Gee, I think Scholastic should pay me for this.

Rue

[ruecole]

Heza, I think that would be a great idea for a picture book.

Rue

[ruecole]

Thought of another one:

How to Survive Phobias

Rue

[Britwriter]

How to survive rampant sexism.

[ruecole]

Indeed. :P

Rue

[MJWare]

Originally Posted by ruecole

Sorry, mware, it's been done before:

http://www.dangerousbookforboys.com/

Not only does it include stuff like tying a tie and sewing a button, but it also has how-to info on building tree forts and go-karts and skinning rabbits and shooting guns and everything boys used to know how to do 30+ years ago. So, of course, I bought it for my son.

Thought of a couple more:

How to Survive a Car Accident
How to Survive on $10
How to Survive a Head Injury
How to Survive a Broken Heart
How to Survive the Death of a Pet
How to Survive a House Fire

Gee, I think Scholastic should pay me for this.

Rue

Hey, I had the idea before that one came out, I just didn't actually write it. And I didn't have nearly as good of a title.

Oh well, I'm still calling it my idea!

As for sowing, I knew it didn't looks right--I almost spell checked it--but I was like, hey I can spell sowing! I'm the product of public education's experiment with phonics.

[Kitty Pryde]

They also have those "Worst Case Scenario" books for kids now*, and they managed it. There's a "junior" edition and a "Middle School Edition" about friends, drama, and middle school trauma. It has a boy and a girl on the cover (imagine! boys have problems in their social lives too!). The adventures are in the "Extreme" edition. Heck, they even have a boy and girl on the cover of the "gross" edition, and the majority of girls would not be caught dead reading a book about boogers and barf.

[spacejock2]

When I do school visits the most popular parts of my talk are the anecdotes about growing up in rural Spain in the 70's. Motorbikes (no license or helmet), air rifles, camping trips, you name it.

I know when the talk is going well because the teachers at the back have their heads buried in their hands...

[timp67]

How To Survive a Day of Cleaning the House :P