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Story Opening: Insignificant Events In The Life Of A Cactus by Dusti Bowling
The opening to Dusti Bowling’s middle grade novel, Insignificant Events In The Life Of A Cactus, is notable for its lists.
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Hairy Maclary, Sit by Lynley Dodd Analysis
Hairy Maclary, Sit! (1997) is a carnivalesque rhyming picture book written and illustrated by New Zealand storyteller Lynley Dodd. The story follows on from the immensely popular Hairy Maclary From Donaldson’s Dairy (1983).
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Story Opening: Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters
Detransition, Baby is a contemporary novel that hooked me right away. How did author Torrey Peters do that? Let’s take a closer look.
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Schnitzel von Krumm’s Basketwork by Lynley Dodd Picture Book Analysis
Schnitzel von Krumm’s Basketwork is a children’s picture book by New Zealand author-illustrator Lynley Dodd, first published in 1994. The star and only character of this one is… Schnitzel von Krumm… already familiar from the uber-successful Hairy Maclary from Donaldson’s Dairy. Schnitzel von Krumm of course puts the reader in mind of crumbed schnitzel, a…
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White Streets, Blue Skies, Blue Seas
Two artists who remind me of each other: Wayne Theibaud and Richard Diebenkorn. Header image: Albert Marquet (1875-1947) Bordeaux, France Landscape of Sidi-Bou-Said, 1923
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Opening Sentences: Middle Grade Novels
Let’s take a look at openings to various middle grade novels. How do contemporary storytellers hook young readers?
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What is Aporia?
Aporia is a concept from philosophy but I’m talking about aporia when describing a literary (or rhetorical) device.
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What Is Writing Voice?
[W]hat many people call and value as “voice” in fiction is often the author manipulating grammatical rules and mechanisms in order to best support their story. The best editors & CEs I know read for voice and believe in/seek out internal consistency. Tracy Deonn This answer is in response to a tweet by Wesley Chu,…
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Kissing In Art And Illustration
And it seemed to her that kisses, voices, tinkling spoons, laughter, the smell of crushed grass were somehow inside her. Katherine Mansfield A kiss on the forehead-erases misery.I kiss your forehead. A kiss on the eyes-lifts sleeplessness. I kiss your eyes. A kiss on the lips-is a drink of water. I kiss your lips. A…
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Arnold Lobel’s Frog and Toad: A Case Study In Kindness
Conflict, conflict, conflict. Writers seeking storytelling advice are constantly bombarded with the message: Every story needs conflict; nay, every scene! But is this really true? When advice-givers say ‘conflict’, what are they really talking about? Successful stories don’t need conflict… if conflict means arguing, wrestling and wishing each other dead. Stories need opponents. Here’s the…
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The Phantasia Spectrum And What It Means For Writers
When reading a book, do you ‘see’ scenery in your imagination? If so, you are a phantasic person. Most people have minds which do this, which makes you one of the majority.
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Carnivalesque Plot Type: Visitors Who Outstay Their Welcome
Something feels different about some stories made for children. Not all of them. Just some. Take The Cat In The Hat or The Tiger Who Came To Tea. It’s not easy to find stories for adults with a similar blueprint. In these children’s stories, a visitor arrives in a child’s house and makes merry mischief.…
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What happens in Hunted Down by Charles Dickens?
“Hunted Down” was published in instalments across 1859-60, almost 20 years after Poe’s well-known detective story which kicked the genre off.
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The Power of the Dog: How Did Phil Die? and Other Questions
The Power of the Dog is a 2021 film directed by Jane Campion, based on the same-named 1967 novel by Thomas Savage. Like a lyrical short story, this film is designed for a repeat viewing.
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Distorted Houses In Illustration
There’s a style of house, popular in Hallowe’en illustration and in children’s books about witches, which looks distorted and crooked. You know it when you see it. This house is a creepy inversion of The Dream House, so it is always two-storeyed with an attic, and you just know it has a basement as well.…