Wordcraft blog by Avi

Q&A: Why do you have dedications in your books?

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When an author dedicates a book to an individual—sometimes to more than one person or even to a group of people—it is a gift of appreciation, recognition, or in some way acknowledging a very positive personal connection. (The detective book writer, Robert Parker, always dedicated his books to his wife.) The writer is bestowing a gift only an author can give. I usually put a lot of thought into it. And, since I have published many books there are many dedications.

Dedication to Teofilo F. Ruiz

The dedication in Crispin: Cross of Lead

It may be believed that a given book has a particular meaning to the person. Sometimes yes, sometimes no. I dedicated Nothing but the Truth, to my dear friend and writer, the late Betty Miles, because she was so involved in education.

Crispin was dedicated to Professor Teofilo Ruiz, the historian. It was a brilliant lecture he gave that got me thinking about medieval times. At the time I didn’t know him. Since that dedication we have become good friends. Poppy and Rye has the dedication “To Us.” I’m not sure who “us” is.

Dedication to Dan Darigan

The dedication in City of Orphans

When I published my first book, Things That Sometimes Happen, the dedication was for my son, Shaun. I did so because I had created the stories for him in the first place. Since then all of my kids have had books dedicated to them, and to their kids as well. My forthcoming Ragweed and Poppy will be dedicated to my newest grandchild, Henrietta. It will be a while before she reads it. When Rachel Vail and I together wrote the book Never Mind, we each dedicated the book to the other.

Gary D. Schmidt

The dedication in Catch You Later, Traitor

There have been dedications to my sister, brother, cousins, aunts and uncles. Any number of friends have been cited, as well as people in my publishing world, in particular editors and agents. When I dedicated a book to my wife (for the first time) it was my way of acknowledging she was going to be my wife. When I set down a dedication in the book that became The End of the Beginning, it was done in the spirit of the book’s characters: “To Avon from Edward: With Surprise.” Some books like, A Place Called Ugly, have no dedication. I don’t know why. To be completely honest there are a couple of dedications—from long ago—that I no longer know who the person was.

dedication to Natalie Babbitt

the dedication in Punch with Judy

How do people react to having a book dedicated to them? The range is extreme. A few folks have told me “I’m greatly honored.” One person said, “It’s about time you did that.” Most often they just say, “Thank you.” A fair number of people say nothing. I’m never sure if the folks who get a dedication ever read the book.

I’m not sure it matters. I like putting down a dedication. I think when I write my last book, I should put down, “To Avi, from Edward. Thanks for all the fun.”

(Can you figure that one out?)

Titles

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While Shakespeare once wrote, “A rose by any other name will smell as sweet,” a good (or bad) title can make a difference for a book. The book’s title is the introduction of a book to the reader. It is enormously important.

Curiously, you cannot copyright a title. That explains why some titles reappear for different books.

Titles, some famously, change. When Stevenson’s Treasure Island was first published (in a magazine, as a serialized work) it was called The Sea Cook. Only when published as a hardback book was the title (as we know it today) changed, by an editor, if I remember correctly. The original titled referenced Long John Silver.

Wolf RiderOver the years, with so many books written, I have had my share of titles, both good and bad. When I begin a book I give the work a title, not with a sense that it is the one that is final, but more like a label, a way of thinking about it, and referencing it. In book contracts a title is given, but that does not mean it is used.

Wolf Rider was not a good title, insofar, as it doesn’t readily connect with a reader. Even those who have enjoyed the book (and many have done so) have asked me to explain the title. Not good.

The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle was first called The Seahawk. That title derived from the ship on which the story takes place. Curiously, when I first thought of it, I had to check, finding it hard to believe it had not been previously used.

Nothing but the Truth was titled Discovery. That word references the legal term for the evidence in a case, which is the way the book is organized.

School of the DeadPoppy was called Pip. I had been reading the manuscript to a class when a boy showed me a book called Pip, the Story of a Mouse. “Is this,” he asked, “the book from which you got the name?” In fact, the name “Pip” came to me from Dickens’ Great Expectations. In any case, I changed the name of my character (and book) to “Poppy.”

Crispin: The Cross of Lead, my Newbery book, was titled, No Name.

School of the Dead was originally called The Weird History Club.

The forthcoming Gold Rush Girl was called Rotten Row.

Catch You Later, Traitor had the title Season of Suspicion, which cross-referenced political suspicion with a famous baseball season, both subjects of the book.

The Fighting Ground was called Twenty-four Hours.

Forty!

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Working togetherI work on a book for a year, or more, rewrite it endlessly, read it aloud to my wife, share it with a friend whose criticism I greatly trust, rewrite some more, and it is, I tell myself, mostly done and not bad. I send it to my editor, and don’t hear anything for a while, which is fine because I’m delighted to finally stop working on that text. Indeed, I start working on something else.

Then I get word from my editor that she has started to read the book. What happens? I rush back to that book and start to review and read. OMG! I discover many things that need to be corrected, changed, improved. My heart sinks, and I plunge back into the book and start to rewrite—again.

In so doing I am reminded of the words of the 18th century essayist and lexicographer, Samuel Johnson: “When a man knows he is going to be hanged in a fortnight it concentrates the mind wonderfully.”

It’s one of the hardest things about writing: It’s never perfect. And sometimes, truth to tell, it often doesn’t even feel good.

I pick up a published book by a favorite writer. How come he/she can write so well? Why can’t I do that?

Is it any wonder that the primary occupational disease of writers is depression.

Is there a cure?

Actually, there is. It is to remind oneself that writing is really not a solitary art. I once asked publisher Emma Dryden how many people actually work on a book. She thought for a moment and then said, “About forty.”

Forty!

Of course, this includes everyone from the writer, to the folks who work the binding machines, from the editor to the person who ships out the books from the mailing section, from the editor’s assistant, to the person working in marketing, to the book designer and her/his assistant and so on and on and on. All make, more or less, a contribution. For the most part I have no real contact with these people. But they are all working on “my” book. The point is, “My” is a myth.

I can think of only one time when I met this legion of folks. I had won the Newbery and was invited to a gathering to celebrate this fact at the office of the publisher, Hyperion Books. There they all were—the folks who did something to make that book—celebrating our success.

It was humbling. As it should be.

Lonely writer, fear not. You are not truly alone. Lots of good folks are waiting to steer you on and hold your hand, your writing hand.

Gold Rush Girl reviewed

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My thanks to J.B. Petty, who wrote in this Booklist starred review of Gold Rush Girl, “With his characteristically suspenseful style, Avi crafts a rousing historical adventure helmed by a spirited protagonist whom readers will love. Tory’s first-person narration further connects readers to the gold rush–era story, which concludes with room for future exploits. One of Avi’s best.”

Gold Rush Girl

 

Q&A: Nothing But the Truth

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Nothing But the TruthQuestions I am often asked about my book, Nothing but the Truth.

Q: Is the story based on something that happened to you?

A: Not at all.

Q: Then what gave you the idea for the story?

A: I was living in the East Coast (Rhode Island) and read a news story about the turmoil that erupted in a small town when a school student got into trouble about singing (or not singing—I don’t recall) the Star Spangled Banner. What interested me was that apparently the whole town became involved, with people taking all kinds of positions. 

Then too, I remembered something I read, about how a teacher staged a fight in a class room, and then asked students to write down what they just saw. As you might guess, the students reported many different versions of what happened. It was a lesson about how when people tell the truth, and that truth can be many things—often in conflict. 

Consider a trial (from which the book title derives): people give different versions of the truth. They are not necessarily lying. They see thing differently. That fascinates me.

Q: Why did you write it in the style you did?

A: I wanted to take myself, the author, out of the story. That is, I just wanted to give the “facts” and what people said about those facts. Thus, it is for the reader to makes sense of it all. A traditional mystery story lays out a puzzle: Who did it? I wanted to lay out a different kind of puzzle: What happened?

Q: How did people react to the story?

A: What astonished me is how many teachers asked me: “Did someone tell you what happened in my school?”  One teacher even sent me a piece of school stationary from a “Harrison High.” It actually had the same lamp of knowledge logo! Many readers, when they get to the last line of the book, get angry. That’s okay with me. That tells me they cared.

Q: Will you write a sequel?

A: I’ve never considered it. I think of the book as about a situation, and less about the characters. I don’t know what more story would add to the book. It’s very much a stand-alone.

For more information about how I came to write Nothing but the Truth, go to my blog post for September 18, 2018.

Q & A: Do you ever become jealous of other authors?

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The community of children’s book authors is quite wonderful. I love being a part of it. I find illustrators and writers in the field to be friendly, open, and welcoming, willing to share of themselves and their experiences. Is that one hundred percent true? I suppose nothing in this world is one hundred percent. But my experience is such that when you gather a group of children’s lit professionals together, there is endless chatter, laughter, and camaraderie. I always look forward to such gatherings, and over the years I have made many friends of people I only see at festivals, conferences, and meetings.

I suspect one of the reasons for the good feelings is that the world of children’s books is ultimately in the service of kids and reading. I can’t expect or even want to have young people read only my books and read nothing by Will Hobbs, or Pam Muñoz Ryan, or Gary Schmidt, or……and on and on.

Will Hobbs, Pam Munoz Ryan, Gary D. Schmidt

Q & A: Do you do your own book covers?

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No.

That said, these days most publishers extend me the courtesy of showing me potential covers and responding to my reaction. (They are not required to do so.) Early on, that was not always the case. There have been covers I have liked, and covers I liked far less. I have even disliked some. But I’m not at all sure I’m the best judge. Cover design is a special skill. I’m a writer, not an artist. There is that saying that “You can’t tell a book by its cover.” But the cover art can be a powerful incentive to pick up a book or leave it on the shelf.

Among my favorite covers are the original hardcover edition of The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle. Compare that with the original Avon paperback of the same book. I disliked that one.

Two versions of the Charlotte Doyle book coverThere have been a couple of covers that, in essence, I designed. That is, I suggested the nature of the image to the publisher and it was accepted. Those book were hardback edition of The Button War, and Don’t You Know there’s a War On? The back-headed image of the boy on the cover of Don’t You Know… derives from a photo I took of my son, Robert.

The Button War and Don't You Know There's a War On book covers

Some of my favorite covers are those from foreign editions. These artists consider the books in different ways, and some of the results are stunning.

Other covers I really liked are Old Wolf and The Unexpected Life of Oliver Cromwell Pitts.

Old Wolf and Oliver Cromwell Pitts book covers

Reading A Christmas Carol Every Christmas

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You said you read Dickens’ A Christmas Carol every Christmas. Why?

A Christmas Carol by Quentin BlakeI have no idea when I first read A Christmas Carol. Perhaps it was read to me. I might have heard it on the radio, if you can believe in such ancient times. Many times I have seen the British film, in black and white, with actor Alastair Sim who played Scrooge quite wonderfully. I took my kids to see stage adaptations of the book. I have read the book to my wife any number of times. Indeed, it has been said that the best way to enjoy the book is to read it out loud. I’ll do so this Christmas eve.

Dickens wrote the book quickly, apparently within a six-week period in 1843 even as he was working on a much larger serial novel, Martin Chuzzlewit, not, in my view, one of his better efforts. As he wrote A Christmas Carol in a frenzy, he described himself alternating between crying and laughing aloud. Still, the first draft was not perfect. The original manuscript is in the Morgan Library (NYC) and, yes, I have looked at it when it’s been put on display there. Here, look at it for yourself.

When visiting classes, I used to show kids pages from this MS by way of demonstrating that even a writer of genius revises his or her work.

But I note that the opening words, “Marley was dead: to begin with,” was not altered, and I think of that sentence as one of great brilliance.

I think the writing throughout is quite wonderful, so deep and incise in delineating character and place, while swerving madly—like a racecar driver on a twisty course—from humor to pathos.

A Christmas Carol, Quentin Blake

a British postage stamp featuring an illustration by Quentin Blake
for Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol

I admire the construction and pace—a perfect novella—which allows me to read it on a Christmas eve—the very best time to enjoy it.

When the book was first published, it was an instant and enormous cultural and publishing success. It has never ceased to be. It has been suggested that the book invented modern Christmas.

The most curious thing is—after all these readings and years—it never fails to move me.

Why? Why does it always bring tears to my eyes?

I suspect I feel there is a bit of Scrooge in me—as I suspect there is something of Scrooge in everyone. Accordingly, it reminds me that I regret having done this or that—however small—or maybe big. I connect too—if you have been a child you know it—to the feelings of abandonment that Scrooge as a child experienced.

So, in my experience, A Christmas Carol is ultimately a tale of forgiveness, of redemption, and it is redemption by virtue of giving, the power to make others happier, better—by love.

How could I not need that message? How could I not be moved?

 “And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God Bless us, Every One.”

For the 80th time …

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Revised stampBack on February 19, 2019, I posted a note about my difficulties with a book on which I was working. It was something of a pep-talk to me, trying find ways of pushing on. Now, I have the first full draft of the book—which is to say the eighty something drafts of the book. In fact, I really don’t know how many times I have re-written it. Sometimes I rewrote because it was inept. Sometimes I rewrote because I shifted the plot. Or added to the plot. Or discovered a hole in the plot. Or just to make it better. Or was continually bugged by a word in that second sentence of Chapter One.

I informed my editor I had a draft of the book. True, but not true, because I continued to work.

I ran the text through my Word spell and grammar checker. I ran it through Grammarly. (They point out different things.) Such apps don’t catch all my mistakes (spelling, commas, dropped words, double words) but enough to make it worthwhile. Easier to read. All this as I continued to rewrite.

I sent the book to a friend who always reads my work and awaited her criticism. I sent it to my agent. Her thoughts. Then, I asked my wife if I could read it to her. That I did, over successive nights. “This is good,” she finally said, to my enormous relief because she is a very tough critic. (Trust me: She has not always said “good.”) From time to time she would say, “Wait……. Didn’t you…?.” and she would point out a misstep, a flaw, a problem.

Most importantly, as I read, I noticed things to change, add, cut. Here a sentence. There a paragraph. Put something in. Take something out. Most important of all, gaps in logic, missed connections, better ways to tell the tale, better words. Rewrite…rewrite…….

Then back over the whole book. Change the font. Change color of the screen. Margins. Anything to let me see the book anew. Rewrite, rewrite……….

And always, always, always, I find things that can be bettered. Sure, I tell myself, no perfect book, but still, how did I miss that? Wait a minute; doesn’t this character need to…………

In a couple of weeks I’ll send the manuscript to my publisher. Nervously. Changes will always be requested. Back to work. Will it be published? Stay in touch………

Oh, by the way: it’s my next year’s income………….

Charlotte Doyle Q & A

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True Confessions of Charlotte DoyleWill you write a sequel to The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle?

In my eyes, at least, the story of The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle is about how a young woman achieves the ability to think for herself, become truly independent, and do as she chooses. Thus, at the end of the book, she leaves her past life altogether, returns to The Seahawk and heads for an unknown life and adventure.

The last lines of the book are: “Something Zachariah told me filled my mind and excited my heart: `A sailor,’ he said, ‘chooses the wind that takes the ship from safe port … but winds have a mind of their own.’”

True Confessions of Charlotte DoyleIn other words, Charlotte decides to free herself from all constraints and is willing to choose what will happen in her life. But anything might …

I hope readers who identify with Charlotte can decide what might happen to her.

If I, as author, said what happened, it would, I think, diminish what the reader might imagine.

I won’t do that. Therefore, no sequel.

Would you like one of your books to become a movie?

That’s relevant here because the only book of mine that has come close to filmdom is The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle.

True Confessions of Charlotte DoyleWould I like it to be turned into film? A good film, yes, not a bad one. Mind, Hollywood does not have a positive reputation for turning good books into good movies. Moreover, when an author agrees to the making of a film he/she loses almost all control as to how the film is made.

But a film would bring more readers to the book, which I would like.

As I write this, True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle is under option to be made into a film. That is, a producer has bought the contractual right to make the book into a movie. He has committed to making a good movie. But that option will soon expire. Will the film be made? The truth is, I have no idea.

But wait—here is a quirky fact. When an option contract is agreed upon, the would-be producer gains the right, if a film is made, to do a sequel. But that sequel (see above) would not be written by me.

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