Chasing Gold Stars

 Everyone's a Winner, Babe 8 x 10 print, $7 from Madman Incognito

At a young age, I found that doing certain things I loved led to solos/awards/gold stars/whatever validation, and that felt good.  The problem came when I started to think that the point of these activities was the validation.  And because I was destined for the chorus, I ended up not trying out for musicals.  You see, if the point of being in a musical is the validation, then getting a part in the chorus is just validation that you’re not a star yet. 

I forgot that I started doing the activities because of all the fun in the doing. If the point of being in a musical is the doing, then a part in the chorus doesn't just mean not being the star - it means being on stage, doing all the things I like to do, like singing and dancing and wearing pretty costumes, it means a little acting, and lots of time with fun people doing something fun with you, being part of a team.

I'm so glad I figured this out before too long so I could be in this play!  What have you avoided because you're afraid you won't be the BEST?  Is that keeping you from doing something you really enjoy?

I Chose "The Westing Game."

I decided to start with The Westing Game.  Good choice!  I have loved it from the transition from the first to second page:

End of page one:  Then one day (it happened to be the Fourth of July), a most uncommon-looking delivery boy rode around town slipping letters under the doors of the chosen tenants-to-be.  The letters were signed Barney Northrup.

Turn the page:  The delivery boy was sixty-two years old, and there was no such person as Barney Northrup.

Muah ha ha!  Brilliant.  More on this book when I finish.

Also brilliant is this post by new-to-me blogger Natalie Whipple, It Comes Down to One Thing: The Book.  The book is the thing, aspiring writers.  Go forth and read this helpful post.

Fun & Alexander Calder

Someday, it would be nice if it were said of me that I was a great writer...style, dialogue, plotting, what have you.  But it would also be really nice if I were remembered for having some fantastical, fun ideas - a great imagination.  I thought of this shelving a book about the artist Alexander Calder the other day.

I have always loved Calder, who is most famous for creating the mobile.  I love his mobiles.  But what struck me as a kid watching a video about him in middle or high school was the footage of this funny old man tinkering around making the Calder Circus.

"The 'Circus' was a miniature reproduction of an actual circus. Made from wire, cork, wood, cloth and other easily found materials, the 'Circus' was a working display that Calder would show regularly. A mix between a diorama, a child’s toy, and a fair game, Calder’s 'Circus' found many eager fans among the avant-garde. One of the methods used to create the 'Circus' was the bending of wire to form realistic figures."

Whoa.  How fun does that sound?  How fun does this look?

"In a time of constant artistic upheaval, Alexander Calder’s aesthetic revolution concerned itself with a somewhat taboo topic in the art world — fun." - from PBS.org*

  I think perhaps all children's writers can relate to this interest in making fun art that the kid version of you would have loved.

When I imagine that footage - Calder puttering around with what could be seen as a playset with dolls - I'm reminded of myself, playing pretend on the page, characters acting out grand schemes, inventing wild things that the very young Virginia might have dreamed up on the playground.

All writing is supposed to be fun - it's an act of choice.  But as a children's writer, I have a special privilege to have fun.  I hope I use it. 

 *It later says that he "was living in Paris off the proceeds of his regular performances." We should all be so lucky!

Too Many Novels!

So many novels checked out right now!  Must read faaaast!  

Will finish Savvy tonight, at least.

Which should I read after that?