My first Three for Tea generated some thoughtful discussion among my readers. Please join our conversation in the comments below. I also welcome your questions and cookie recipes for future Three for Teas.
Today's Three: JoAnn Early Macken, Stephen Messer, Kate Messner
Today's Tea: White tea
Today's Cookie: Jama's Lemon Bars (generously provided by Jama Rattigan)
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| Help yourself! Recipe below. |
Question: For some writers the world is a distraction when they’re deeply into a project. They find it hard to read other people’s books, socialize, or tolerate much stimulation. Others remain open, continuing to soak in what’s out there while remaining creative. Where do you fit in on this spectrum? What activities do you allow—or invite—in while you’re writing, and what do you exclude?
"When I write, I crave silence and solitude. But when I’m really involved in a project, I’m oblivious to everything around me. I love that phase when nothing else seems as important or as urgent as my work in progress. When our dog comes in and nudges my elbow, she startles me into the present. Walking her along Lake Michigan is as much a part of my daily routine as writing in the morning, teaching in the evening, and reading at night. My social time is limited, so I spend it all with my family and other writers."
Kate Messner is the author of the middle grade novels The Brilliant Fall of Gianna Z. and Sugar and Ice (Walker/Bloomsbury), the forthcoming Marty McGuire chapter book series (Scholastic, May 2011), and Sea Monster's First Day, a picture book coming from Chronicle Books in July 2011. She is also a middle school English teacher and a frequent presenter at conferences. Sugar and Ice was a Fall 2010 Junior Library Guild selection. Kate's website is here and her blog is here.
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| JoAnn Early Macken |
JoAnn Early Macken’s recent books are Baby Says, “Moo!”; Waiting Out the Storm; and Flip, Float, Fly: Seeds on the Move. JoAnn teaches at a Milwaukee college, contributes to the Teaching Authors blog, and speaks about poetry and writing to children and adults at schools, libraries, and conferences. Visit her website here.
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| Stephen Messer's next book |
"I immerse myself in anything that engages me with the invented world of my book – each one has its own soundtrack that I listen to while writing, as well as art which surrounds me in my study, and books and movies too. I even go so far as to make thematic screensavers for my writing laptop. I don’t exclude much. This could be seen as distracting, but for me it helps keep my mind fixed on the mood and feel of the story. It’s desirable to have outside stimulation that might encourage an unpredictable choice or a striking detail."
Stephen Messer writes novels for middle grade readers. His books include Windblowne (May 2010), The Death of Yorik Mortwell (coming September 2011), and Colossus (coming 2013), all from Random House Books for Young Readers. Windblowne was named to the New York Public Library's Children's Books 2010 list. Visit Stephen's website here.
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| Kate Messner |
"I think I'm more of a "let-the-world-in" writer when it comes right down to it. While I do need uninterrupted time to draft, I find that when I'm not physically writing, having outside stimulation is actually a great help. Going to a movie or concert or art museum, for example, gets me using more than just my writer-brain and opens up creative connections in my brain, possibilities that I probably wouldn't have considered just sitting at my desk. In the thick of a recent revision, for example, I took a break to take my daughter and her friend to the movies, and I loved watching the film through my writer eyes. (I wrote a blog post on this: What I Learned from Rapunzel, in case anyone would like more details!)
Kate Messner is the author of the middle grade novels The Brilliant Fall of Gianna Z. and Sugar and Ice (Walker/Bloomsbury), the forthcoming Marty McGuire chapter book series (Scholastic, May 2011), and Sea Monster's First Day, a picture book coming from Chronicle Books in July 2011. She is also a middle school English teacher and a frequent presenter at conferences. Sugar and Ice was a Fall 2010 Junior Library Guild selection. Kate's website is here and her blog is here.
What are your thoughts?
Jama's Lemon Bars (makes 32 bars)1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup flour
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2 T flour
3 T fresh lemon juice
lemon rind
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cream first three ingredients and press into a 9-inch square pan. Bake 15 minutes at 350 degrees.
Mix together the beaten eggs, the sugar, baking powder, salt and flour. Then add the lemon juice and lemon rind.
Pour over the baked crust and return to a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes.
When cool, dust with powdered sugar.
Note: You may use an 8-inch square pan if you like thicker lemon bars.
Note: You may use an 8-inch square pan if you like thicker lemon bars.
7 comments:
I need blocks of time when I can write in solitude and blocks of time when I let the world in. But without the former, the latter drives me crazy. :)
Like Stephen, I like to immerse myself in whatever I'm working on. I also need long, uninterrupted chunks of time. Or maybe I should say that I really *want* long uninterrupted chunks of time...I have been known to write in the carpool lane at school while I'm waiting.
Great question, Toby, and it was really interesting to need the answers. Balances seem to shift depending on where I am in the process. There's defintely the adherence to some routine and time-guarding that JoAnn speaks of, but I can relate to the flinging open the windows moments Kate alludes to, too. At the beginning I need to hunker in, but once a poem or piece is going, something random I see on the street or at a movie or in a museum may add the spark that sets a new direction.
Thank you! And Jama's lemon bars showed up on the perfect day. Tomorrow I'm visiting a friend who's been shut in with an illness, and these will be just the thing.
Three for Tea is such a great idea. And those lemon bars look really good. These days, I find myself so busy with work and life that it is hard to find time to really immerse myself in my writing. But that is the way I prefer to do it--with no distractions. I've also found that my muse comes and goes as it pleases, and when it is here, I have to try extra hard to take advantage of it. Once I hit a good writing streak, I don't like to do anything else, because I never know when the muse will decide to leave me again...
Alison - exactly! When I have the former, I'm serene enough to allow in the latter. It doesn't seem to work in reverse, though.
Tabatha, I, too, liked what Stephen said, especially the idea of having a soundtrack for each book. I had music for the most important scenes in the novel I wrote, and listening to it helped immerse me in that world. So this kind of immersion takes the things from out there and pulls them in here.
Jeannine, how solid our created world feels may be part of it. When it's still fragile and mostly unknown, maybe we just need to attend to it with our whole selves. And yay for the timing of the lemon bars! I hope your friend enjoys them.
Kerry, thanks! And, by the way, your blog is looking very good these days. I may not have had much time to comment lately, but I've been reading it.
What interesting glimpses! Thank you all. Stephen, you have a such multi-media type of process...really interesting that it isn't distracting but just more fodder for the very imaginative worlds you create.
Hi, Jenny - I found that interesting, too, and enjoyed the way Stephen creates his book's world around him. Thanks for stopping by!
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