Kristin Butcher... has novel ideas

The Last Superhero -- that's the title of a new book I have coming out next spring. And here is the cover art. I just received it today. It's done to look like an Archie type comic book, because one of the superheroes in the book is a comic book creation. Yes, I said ONE. There are actually several superheroes in this story. It's up to the reader to figure out who they all are and who the LAST one is. After all, a writer has to set challenges for her readers.

Allow me to introduce the evangelist on the table. It is none other than Miss Willa Rae Ellen Nott -- aka Wren, or Miss Nott as the librarian calls her, a form of address Wren dislikes because it sounds like she is being called Miss Snot. Wren is a unique soul -- and a unique dresser. She may be small, but that doesn't stop her from taking on the school bullies single-handed.

Jas is the young man in the blue sweater. All he wants to do is get accepted into an elite summer art program, but circumstances keep throwing Wren in his path, and he finds himself dragged into her crusade whether he likes it or not.

Then there's Miss Holmes in the background. She's the librarian, and all she would like is for the school gang wars to take place somewhere other than her library.

Absent from the illustration but very important to the novel are the library regulars -- a group of bookish kids who double as victims for the school bullies, and, of course, PeeWee and Garth, the grade 8 goons Wren is out to vanquish.

The novel is topical, thought-provoking, and just good fun. Cheer for the good guys and blow raspberries at the bad guys. You may be surprised who wins.

Literally.

I have had new glasses for a week, and for a week I have strained to see and  have been living with an ongoing headache. Now I know that new spectacles take some getting used to -- I've worn glasses since age three -- but I have never experienced anything like this. Definitely not fun, especially since I'm coming down to the wire on a book which requires a lot of research as well as writing. In other words, a lot of eye work.

Many people have offered suggestions, and I've tried them all. I've even tried looking through the glasses upside down on the off-chance that the lenses were inserted the wrong way up. They weren't. As bad as looking through them the normal way is, upside down was worse. Yesterday I made a return visit to the eyeglass place and related my difficulties. The associate changed the nose pieces to silicon -- so they wouldn't slip -- with the hope that that would do the trick. I was hopeful too, but to no avail.

Then, this evening, my husband suggested that magnification might be an issue. Being too close to my eyes -- or too far away -- the glasses could be incorrectly positioned. Since I couldn't get them any closer, I tried pulling them away, and VOILA! By setting the glasses a half inch farther away from my eyes, I could see! No more fuzzy far away and blurry close up. No more adjustment time needed as I went from looking at something mid-range to close up and then in the distance. I could drive without feeling like I was on drugs. My eyes relaxed and the pain in my head disappeared.

Of course, now I look a tad weird with my spectacles sitting halfway down my nose, but I can see, and tonight that's all I care about. I'll visit the eye glass people tomorrow.

Okay, I'm officially there. I have slid into panic mode. As August evaporates and September pushes its way into my face, I realize that I have just six weeks left to finish this book. GULP!

Take deep breaths, Kristin ... deep breaths. 

Look at the bright side -- I'm over half way. I have just three secret societies left to write about. That's good, yes?

Yes, except that I have to research each one before I can do the writing. That's two weeks per society. Originally I had three weeks. (More gulping and deep breathing.) 

But I can do it. I just have to work faster, read faster, think faster, write faster. And ignore all the other parts of my life. Forget housework and cooking. Stop running errands. Tell my sister she can't come to visit. Hang up on my mother and kids when they call. Stop answering emails. Jam out on my volunteer commitments. Skip my dentist and eye doctor appointments.  

All right so I have a plan. Blinders on and full speed ahead.

Honey, you're on your own. The fridge is full. The laundry soap is in the cupboard. See you in six weeks. 

Well, here it is -- hot off the press -- Zach & Zoe Bully and the Beagle! This makes book #3 for me this year. It's #2 in the Zach & Zoe series, chapter books for readers in the 6 - 10 age range. This one finds the twins dog-sitting a sweet but spoiled beagle named Molly Manners. It's a job that keeps Zach and Zoe going non-stop. But when their cousin, Howie, comes to visit from Vancouver for a week, things heat up even more. Howie is a bully, and he doesn't like Molly. But the twins are expected to entertain their cousin, and it's not an easy task. Their hands are full just trying to keep the peace.

Enjoy! 

When I found out I had been chosen to tour for TD Canadian Children's Book Week in November/09, I was thrilled. I'd toured once before, and I still remember how intense and exhausting it was. On the other hand, I also still remember how thrilling and rewarding it was. So when I learned I was going to Quebec -- a place I have always wanted to visit -- I was ecstatic. Visons of Quebec City, Montreal, and Trois Rivieres floated through my mind. This was going to be great.

Well, a few days ago I found out where I shall actually be touring. Quebec City? Non. Montreal? Non. Trois Rivieres. Non. 

I am going to be visiting the Lower North Shore. I'm ashamed to say that until three days ago I had never even heard of the Lower North Shore. Just shows you how small my world is -- about 10' by 10' -- the area of my office.

So I zipped onto the Internet and started searching, and let me tell you, the Lower North Shore is there -- BIG TIME! It lies in the mouth of the mighty St. Lawrence River across from the Gaspe Peninsula and adjacent to Newfoundland. It is made up of a string of tiny villages, in a region associated with the early Canadian fur trade!

The photos on the Net are awesome. The landscape is rugged, but breathtaking. Imagine an iceberg at your doorstep or a whale performing outside your window.  

Roads aren't abundant -- which means I shall be travelling from village to village via small planes and helicopter.  

All I can say is, "Wow!" I am stoked. This is going to be the adventure of a lifetime. My audiences will be smaller than most I present to, but that means we are going to get to know each other very, very well. These visits will be more intimate and telling than any others I have ever done. I know in my heart that I shall remember the experience always, and I shall do my best to make the time just as wonderful for my audiences. 

I am busy. The Order of Death -- and Other Secret Societies is taking up most of my time. The first draft has to be done by October 15th. That might seem a ways down the road, but it really isn't. Though it's great fun researching the various secret societies and then selecting the most interesting and pertinent information to weave into stories and sidebars, it is time-intensive. The plan is to look at 7 secret societies, and so far I have completed 2 -- Skull and Bones and the Yakuza. I am currently working on the third one -- the Knights Templar. I don't know how my research is going to manifest itself into a story yet, but I have an inkling I shall be inspired soon. I love that "AHA!!" feeling, when the muse strikes and I know I've hit pay dirt. In the meantime, I shall continue to dig.

I recently heard from Orca Book Publishers informing me that they are going to publish Cheat, in Currents, a hi-lo series they offer for reluctant readers. It's been three years since I last had a book with Orca, so I'm looking forward to working with them again. The bonus here is that the book is already written. The normal pattern for submissions to this series is to write an outline and sample chapter. I did that last fall. And Orca liked it. But because I didn't want the book published until 2010, Orca was reluctant to offer a contract. The editor suggested I complete the book and resubmit. The downside to that scenario is that if, upon reading the complete draft, Orca decided not to publish it, I would be stuck with a manuscript that was written to such specific criteria that it would basically be unsellable anywhere else. However, I was pretty certain the editor wouldn't have made the suggestion if she wasn't fairly confident it would be a go. And it is. So now I don't have to write the book. I just have to rewrite it. (sigh) Ah, well, as my mother would say, it keeps me off the streets.

So back to work. 

I knew it was time to get up this morning (6ish), when my mind was busy writing. I say 'writing', since I was actually composing sentences. This made me ecstatic, because it meant it was time to stop researching and start working on the next chapter of The Order of Death and Other Secret Societies. I have a pretty good general knowledge of the Yakuza -- that's the secret society I'm currently working on, so now I'm ready to begin weaving it into a story. I have a general plot, and as for the rest, I'm confident the details will present themselves as I go along. Certainly I'll have to hunt down more information as I go, but I'm ready to get at the writing.

The thing that is so cool is that the appearance of those first sentences in my head as I lay in bed set the tone for the story, and that tone is totally different than the one for the Skull and Bones story. The writing style for this story will be matched with the nature of the country -- Japan -- where the Yakuza are headquartered. I didn't set out to do this intentionally, but my inner muse must have known it was the right thing to do. The story will still have lots of action and suspense, but it will be told differently.

Somehow I know that this will be the case with the other five stories too. The narrative style will automatically change with the subject. I find that magical, mysterious, and absolutely wonderful, because it's an unconscious adjustment. It's intuitive. I am not doing it on purpose. But I am totally confident it is the right thing to do.

The Writing Gods are smiling on me.

Return to Bone Tree Hill is off to a good start. Last week it was reviewed in CM Magazine, a well-respected online journal, and it was highly recommended. Yippee! The reviewer didn't have one negative thing to say, which is exactly what we anxious writers hold our collective breath for. I always want my books to be well-received, but for some reason, I have a special stake in this one. I think perhaps it's because the writing is a bit different than my usual style, and therefore a bit of an unknown commodity for me.

But early feedback is all positive, so I'm able to start breathing again. There will be an article about the book -- and me -- in the summer issue of Prairie Books NOW. I'm not sure when that comes out, but it can't be long. I was also recently interviewed by aspiring teen writer, Lin Wang, who is posting the interview in two parts on her blog, Flames and Shadows. She too has reviewed the book, and I understand the review will appear in What If Magazine.

I'm happy. 

Well, my book launch and mini-tour in Winnipeg went very well. McNally Robinson Books in Grant Park Plaza did an excellent job of hosting my reading/signing. About 40 people showed up at the event and bought loads of books. Not only did Return to Bone Tree Hill sell well, but the store sold out of all my other books too, even after bringing in extra stock from other stores. Thank you all so much for your support.

My school visits were fabulous too. Students were well prepared, courteous, attentive, and full of questions. I couldn't ask for more.

Despite electronic this and virtual that and instant everything else, it would appear that books are still alive and well, and people are still reading. Even my youngest grandchild!