My guest this week is Elizabeth Dulemba. She's a talented picture book author who has ventured into the middle-grade world with her debut novel A BIRD ON WATER STREET, already garnering great praise. Elizabeth is also my new "agency-sister" at Erin Murphy Literary Agency, so I'm doubly thrilled to have her here. And her question - why write for kids and not for adults - is one I encounter all the time, and I share her passion for the answer to that question.
Elizabeth has graciously offered to host a giveaway of a signed copy of A BIRD ON WATER STREET, so please comment to enter, and if you've reposted let me know for more points!
Here's Elizabeth:
Elizabeth has graciously offered to host a giveaway of a signed copy of A BIRD ON WATER STREET, so please comment to enter, and if you've reposted let me know for more points!
Here's Elizabeth:
Most authors of
mid-grade novels get the question at some point, "Why do you write for
teens? Why not write for adults?" And within the kidlit community,
"Why write mid-grade? Why not write Young Adult?”
As a picture book
author/illustrator for thirteen years, I'd heard the stories of such
conversations, but I thought it was a cliché, a myth of the writing community.
That was until word got out about my debut historical fiction mid-grade, A BIRD ON WATER STREET, and I
started getting the questions myself. Happily, I have an answer.
Adult novels seem to
me to be about solving problems (mysteries!), or finding that perfect mate, or re-discovering oneself. The first two
elements might be indicative of any good story (replace mate with
friend/companion/whatever). But the third is where I like to dwell. But I skip
all of the re-discovery nonsense and
go straight to the source, in the beginning, when a main character isn't re-discovering anything - when they are discovering who they are and what the
world is all about for the first time.
To me, it makes for
unpredictable scenarios. Young teens aren’t
yet set in their ways. They don’t
know if they are generally good or bad, if they tend to make smart
decisions or not. It's all new territory and the pendulum could swing either
way.
Like
thirteen-year-old Jack in A BIRD ON WATER STREET… will he stand up for what he
believes in, or follow the generation of miners in his family into a career
that causes him anxiety and distress? When Jack’s uncle is killed in a mine
collapse, will he stand by mining as a viable option for his future, or will he
try to do something to improve the damage that has been done to the land after
a century of poor copper mining practices and pollution? His family may love
everything underground, but Jack loves everything above - or what is supposed to be above anyhow. His denuded home
has no weeds, no trees, no bugs, no birds.
How can Jack follow his heart and support his community at the same time?
In the hands of a
young boy, these are enormous questions - how to be true to yourself, or who
you think you might be, especially when it runs counter to who you’ve been taught to be.
It's all about firsts
really, when the world is still a wonder. When a teen is trying to make sense
of things. It’s an exciting and unpredictable time. There is such promise and
possibility - the world is wide open! It's a powerful sensation, which is why I
find it especially profound to explore those emotions when they're happening
for the first time. It's why
mid-grade may very well be a sweet spot for me. I hope for my readers too!
Awards for A BIRD ON WATER STREET:
·
Southern
Independent Booksellers Alliance OKRA Book Pick
·
Gold
Mom’s Choice Award
·
ABOWS
has been chosen as THE 2014 title to represent the state of Georgia at the
National Book Festival in Washington, D.C.
Website: http://dulemba.com
Twitter: @dulemba
Sign
up for my newsletter and get free coloring pages at: http://dulemba.com/index_ColoringPages.html
Elizabeth
O. Dulemba is an award-winning children's book author/illustrator with two
dozen titles to her credit. She is Illustrator Coordinator for the Society of
Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) Southern Breeze region, a
Board Member for the Georgia Center for the Book, and a Visiting Associate
Professor at Hollins University in the MFA in Children's Book Writing and
Illustrating program. She speaks regularly at schools, festivals, and events,
and her "Coloring Page Tuesday" images (free to parents, teachers and
librarians) garner around a million hits to her website annually with over
3,500 subscribers to her newsletter. A BIRD ON WATER STREET (Little Pickle
Press) is her first novel and has already won three awards: it is a Southern
Independent Booksellers Alliance (SIBA) Okra Pick; a Gold Mom’s Choice Award Winner; and is THE 2014
National Book Festival Featured Title for the state of Georgia in Washington,
D.C. Learn more at <http://ABirdOnWaterStreet.com>.
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