By Elly Swartz
One great story with a dash of life lessons and a heaping portion of heart. That may be a winning recipe, but getting there can feel less like a straight path from the cookbook to the platter and more like kitchen chaos.
So how do you find your way from chaos to blue-ribbon?
Here are a few tips that have worked for me.
But first, a little backstory. My journey to publication took 15 years! And the first book I published, FINDING PERFECT, was the 5th book I wrote! The other 4 are now known in my house as practice.
So, after 15 years of rejection, and now 5 books in or soon-to-be in the world, I’m familiar with finding my way through the chaos.
WRITE WHAT MATTERS TO YOU
When it comes to middle grade readers, there is no more honest bunch. So, be sure to write from that place of true authenticity. Don’t preach. Don’t judge. Write what matters most to you. Because if you write a story that tugs at your heart, then you’re writing from that place of truth. And that’s where your readers live.
SPEND TIME WITH YOUR 12-YEAR-OLD SELF
Forget the shoulds and worries of your adult life and wrap yourself around your younger self. Be that kid again. Write as if you ARE your main character. I always know that I’m truly in it when my story weaves itself into every fiber of my being and every moment of my day. Like when I was writing DEAR STUDENT and the main character, Autumn, flooded my dreams. You see, I wasn’t dreaming about Autumn, I was dreaming as if I was Autumn. My world and hers had become completely enmeshed.
Sometimes going back to your 12-year-old self is hard.
But when you’re willing to truly go there, it can also be truly magical.
EMBRACE THE SWISS CHEESE
I have lovingly named my first drafts, Swiss Cheese—they have lots of holes and they stink! After 20 years of writing, I’ve finally accepted that all of my first drafts are a hot mess. And, that’s okay.
This recognition gives me permission to just write. Without expectation. Without consequence. It’s freeing. And with that freedom comes the brain space to create.
It also gives me a place to start. A place to work from.
And we can’t create the blue-ribbon dish, without the recipe. So give Swiss Cheese a try!
EMOJIS
Every great story needs a character that feels all the feels. All happy, you’ve written a giant Hallmark card. All sad, well, no one really wants that.
But how to do you get there?
Emojis. I use them. And I promise, I’m not kidding.
After I write my Swiss Cheese draft, I put an emoji at the top and bottom of each chapter. What’s the emotion coming into the scene and what’s the emotion coming out. This way, I can visually cue myself when I need to mix things up.
Emojis keep me in check and allow me to create a story with true emotional resonance.
JUST BE YOU
Don’t compare your writing to anyone else’s. There is nothing that kills creativity faster than competition. There is room for ALL the books on the shelves. So just be you. Authentically. Wonderfully you.
Write the story you want to read. And write it in a style and voice that is uniquely yours.
Because in that space of true authenticity, lies the story of your heart.
GET RID OF THE GOAT
As shared, kids are wonderfully honest. So be sure to get rid of the goat.
Ha! What’s the goat, you ask? It’s the part of your story you want to work so badly. The part you love. But the part that’s just too good to be true.
It’s the goat in Times Square, for instance.
The part of your story that doesn’t really make sense. Like, why is a goat wondering around Times Square? And keeping it in will only cast doubt on your credibility with your readers. They trust you to be honest. They trust you to be real. Don’t break their trust. It’s a privilege.
Just get rid of the goat!
FINAL THOUGHTS
One reader asked why I continued to write during my 15 years of rejection. I had to think about that. Then I told him that I love writing more than I hate rejection. I also shared that rejection didn’t define me. And it doesn’t define you. Don’t ever give rejection that power.
You are a writer because you write.
And I believe in you!
Happy writing, friends!
Elly Swartz is the author of four contemporary middle grade novels. Her debut novel, FINDING PERFECT (FSG 2016) is about 12-year-old Molly, OCD, and a slam poetry competition that will determine everything. In her second book, SMART COOKIE (Scholastic, 2018), you meet the spunky and big-hearted Frankie who is all about family with a dash of mischief and mystery! Then in October, 2019, we said hello to Maggie in GIVE AND TAKE (FSG). With the help of a foster baby named Izzie, Maggie learns that sometimes love means letting go. And in the spring of 2022, we’ll get to know Autumn in DEAR STUDENT (Delacorte/Penguin Random House). Autumn is a girl with social anxiety and a pet guinea pig named Cheetos, who becomes the secret voice of the advice column in her middle school newspaper.