MiG Writers Update: Middle Grade versus Young Adult Fiction

For those who write for young people, I've posted about the differences between Middle Grade (MG) and Young Adult (YA) fiction in the MiG Writers' site.

Catching up

I have been sadly neglected these Blatherings, I know. The main reason: writing and prepping for the annual summer conference of the Society of Children's Book Authors and Illustrators. Also, because I've decided to move most of my writing-related posts to Inkygirl; I'll be posting my SCBWI conference reports in Inkygirl, for example.

But there's so much other stuff I have to catch up on. Like the fact that critters in our garden have continued to ravage my plants! And that friends and family have now spotted my cards in shops in Vancouver, Toronto and Paris! (I'll post addresses of those shops soon) That I'm more in love with my iPhone than ever! That I've upgraded to Corel Painter 11! So much more.

First, though, I need to finish unpacking and reorganizing my office. The latter still looks like a whirlwind of chaos just rampaged through. Meanwhile, I am so SO looking forward to not travelling for a while. The trips have been enjoyable, of course, but right now I'd like to go back to my Office Cave and get back to my regularly scheduled program.

Inkygirl Haven's first author/illustrator chat tonight on Second Life

Inkygirl Haven For Children's Book Writers and Illustrators is having its VERY FIRST CHAT tonight on Second Life tonight at 8 pm EST (5 pm Second Life time). Anyone interested in writing and/or illustrator for young people is welcome!

If you've been curious about Second Life, feel free to drop by the Inkygirl Haven For Children's Book Writers & Illustrators tonight. Kristen Darbyshire will be at Inkygirl Haven, and I'll also be lurking about to help the chat run smoothly. Before or after the chat, you might also want to check out the building and grounds. Visit Beckett Gladney's new artist office on the second floor! Pick up a free copy of the e-book From Keyboard To Printed Page, a joint project between Inkygirl Haven and the Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators (SCBWI).

If you've never been on SL before, I strongly recommend that you sign up at least an hour in advance so you have a chance to get used to the interface.

Highly recommended (before you sign up):
Joan Kremer's Guide For Writers About Second Life

Chat with Kristen Darbyshire tonight:

URL: http://tinyurl.com/kidlit
Date: Monday, March 23rd
Time: 8 pm EST (5 pm Second Life time)

Inkygirl interview with author on Second Life

I did my first interview on Second Life recently. My interviewee: writer and editor Joan Kremer, who is also the co-founder of Story Mountain Center on SL.

Interviewing on SL is much more fun than interviewing by e-mail -- questions and answers are more spontaneous. Plus I have no cat allergies on SL:



That's me checking out Milton, the Center's cat. Note the stiletto heels I'm wearing. I don't wear stilettos in real life, but I testing out a pair of shoes before I start selling them. What's cool about these shoes: if you click on the shoes, you can change the colour and pattern as well as adjust the size, PLUS I'm including a range of shoe brooch ornaments to choose from...again, with a pop-up menu.

If you have a female avatar on SL and are willing to help me test these shoes, please IM me from SL and I'll send you a FREE pair (please mention Blatherings). This offer lasts until about mid-February.

I made these shoes for myself but figured I may as well sell them; the materials for making extra pairs don''t cost me anything, after all. :-) Hey, and check out the Squashed Fairy Chair I made on Friday night while hanging out with Jeff and our gaming buddies:



Heh.

I'm not going to be promoting my SL shop much because it's a low priority for me right now (I'm focusing on writingstuff), but I'll occasionally be sticking stuff up for sale when I feel like it.

This afternoon, I attended a live interview with the original Cybergrrl, Aliza Sherman, on SL as well as applying for a paying blogger gig. Anyway, I was familiar with Aliza's name as a Web pioneer; Newsweek magazine named her as one of the '“Top 50 People Who Matter Most on the Internet" way before I ever heard of Second Life.





I had expected a text interview, but Aliza and Copper Robot did a live chat for the latter's podcast. I was just signing off when Copper Robot announced the guest for an upcoming interview -- I missed the name (hopefully it'll be posted on his blog soon) but it was an actor from Dr. Horrible! Must check that out.

If you're on Second Life, feel free to send me a Friend request! My SL name is Inkygirl Omizu. Please mention that you read my Blatherings/Inkygirl else your request may be ignored. I'm only online sporadically, usually in evenings hour or weekends.

Back from NYC

I had a wonderful, WONDERFUL time in New York. Many thanks to our friend Arline for hosting Jeff and me, and I enjoyed hanging out with Arline, Harry, Jean and Jeff before and after the SCBWI convention.

As for the convention itself -- WHOA. I am -so- going to attend this convention every year if I can possibly swing it. I found it incredibly inspirational in many ways, and everyone was super-friendly. I'll be posting a more detailed report in Inkygirl: Daily Diversions For Writers soon.

After a week of jury duty and our NYC trip, I am WAY behind in e-mail so will be spending the next while catching up. If you've written and haven't received a response, that's probably why; I hope to catch up by the end of the week. If you haven't heard from me by Friday and are still expecting an answer, please feel free to nag me!