This is what inspiration looks like

Pure passion - taken completely by his talent...


Greyson was 13 when this was filmed and he now has an official website (and following) at http://www.greyson-official.com/.
     I so would have been crushing on this kid when I was that age! (Is this Archie?)

The Mid-grade Revelation

So my friend Vicky and I did a book swap today. We realized that between us, we owned several titles we each wanted to read, so first we stopped by her house (I borrowed three), and then we stopped by mine. And that's when the revelation occurred. I pointed to my orange shelves and said, "Most of my Young-adult novels (age range 13 and up) are over there." After browsing for a bit Vicky said, "Most of these are Mid-grade" (age range 10-13).
     What?
     Then I started really looking. They may not all have been classified as Mid-grade by various book sellers, but when you thought about the themes, the topics, the overall adultness of the titles, they were mostly on the young side. Maybe not officially Mid-grades, but definitely young "YA's" at best. Talk about a shocker!
     I know I'm not into chick-lit, or romances, or so many of the themes that define YA. But I do love magical realism and paranormals and those can oftentimes range up in age. Or not.
     So upon really studying my own collection, I have realized that I'm more of a Mid-grade reader than I ever thought. Maybe that's why my novel was going that way. Unbeknownst to me, I was there all along!

Getting Back on Track

Some friends are talking about Michael Hedges on facebook. Nothing like reminding me of my hero to get my inspiration flowing again.
     The book tour ended yesterday (for THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS IN GEORGIA), and teaching ends Wednesday (illustration at UGA). So Thursday I'm back on board with fresh edits from my agent (I did get a new version to her per my previous post - #7) and a slightly new direction... Mid-Grade.
     Yup. Seems I'm not dark enough for Young Adult fiction. Who knew? Ummm, apparently everybody except me. Ha!
     My agent suggested the switch and although I really wanted to argue with her, the more she talked about it, the more it sounded absolutely right. Like a good hat. And when we talk Mid-Grade, we're talking Percy Jackson, Harry Potter, etc. I could be in worse company!
     So off I go again on another version of my work-in-progress novel. And craziness, I'm actually really excited about it.
     Wish me luck!