Actually, graphic novels and comics have moved away from the "meanwhile" schtick, at least in the Vertigo line that I tend to read in. Readers are getting too sophisticated to put up with the campy stuff from the 60s and 70s now, unless it's a retro-style book. All I can say is, thank the gods!

You know what sucks the worst about time? Grave markers. I try to stay away from mentioning the year, because I don't want this bugger to be outdated by the time it's published, but when I've got a character standing at a gravemarker, it's hard to get away from. [:p]

Glynis, I want to live in one of your novels. I really do. I want to live in a time and place where the exact minute on the clock doesn't matter, and in fact, who owns a clock? Sometimes, I think that would be wonderful. Then I remember the problem with the backbreaking physical labor, the lack of advanced plumbing, and the fact that there's no Wal-mart, and I decide I'm better off putting up with the clock....

Hrystya, you've found an excellent method for dealing with age: Mom. Oh, man, do Moms ever love to talk about the kids' ages. Maybe not all moms, but mine adores it. And of course, the more embarrassing the memory she wants to share, the more anxious she gets to share it.

Do you guys humiliate your characters with the parents?

In my manuscript, Lydia's mom is very career oriented, so she neglects her college-age daughter a bitteen.

Makes perfect sense, glynis. It's a believable dynamic, too. Lots of mother-daughter relationships are exactly like that.

I feel so guilty! I only read the first page.

But on the aspect of characters, I know I have a mental problem. But it's okay, because I like it. My writer friend writes sometimes dozens of pages of day, spins excellent plot, and has some poetry published, but he still can't get past this. I, on a daily basis, open a clean word document, and interact with my characters. I run it like a chat room. When I press a certain letter combination (for example B + C for Brett Carson), words, BRETT CARSON: come up, and and I type.

The point that I can't get across to my friend is that I don't decide what they say. It all comes from my subconscious, and I interact as if they're real people, so I don't think it really matters. Whereas my friend thinks it's all about simulating the effect. I just shake my head.

This is why when a character dies, it's more than just a loss to me. I can no longer write about that character. Non-writers talk about bringing back characters like it's an easy thing to do. I seriously no longer can talk to Brett Carson, as he died in the second book in the series I'm writing. The words don't just come.

As some of you may know, I study psychology to further my character research and my imaginary friends inside my head. So in the end, it's a writing disorder, a type of schizophrenia.

Got to go,

-X

Hey, everyone--no Internet at my house, so I was gone for a few days. Sorry. I'm back.

Welcome, Xavier. Believe me, you're not alone in your interactions with your characters. To me (and other writers I know), characters are real, and by "creating" them, I have an obligation to tell their stories, not my story. I don't feel like I'm crazy or schizophrenic by my interactions with my characters. Like Dana said, it's like talking to a pet. Or, to take another perspective, I'm Christian, and I pray to saints to ask them to pray for me. Does that mean I'm crazy? I talk to my deceased grandfather and ask him to keep an eye on my family for me. I must be certifiable, eh? In the writer's world, anything and everything is possible.

You know, I've been toying with the idea of addressing this very issue in my livejournal. I think I will. I'd encourage you to check it out (any of you, not just Xavier). Visit: www.livejournal.com/users/baristanikki

Ah, I missed you all so much!! It's so good to be back!!

Moving sucks. [:(!] I hope it goes well for you, Hrystya!

Nicole, I couldn't find Jasper Fforde at the bookstores we went to in San Diego. Do you know how sad that is? I think I'm just going to place an order with Amazon soon.

Wish I had something useful to say about writing, but my brain's still on vacation mode.... [:p]

Nicole,

I have read The Eyre Affair. I have even recomended it to others. I would like to ask how different are the other novels in the series?

Hrystya,

How is publication of your novel coming along?

The Death thread isn't dead - just mostly dead. Give it a Chocolate-covered Miracle and we should be good to go.

Teen and preteen favorites? Hmmm. Brace yourself: it's a long list!

Black Stallion series
Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew
Christoper Pike's novels
Witch of Blackbird Pond
Canyon Winter
Little Princess of the Flowers
King of the Wind
Where the Red Fern Grows
Summer of the Monkeys
Birth of the Firebringer
Sweet Valley High [*^_^*]


These books share a few common threads. They're detailed: I could see, touch, taste, smell and hear what was happening. They don't talk down - somehow, the authors managed to be clear and explained unfamiliar concepts without making it look like they were explaining anything. They had exotic elements, showing me things I didn't experience in my everyday life - I remember learning a smattering of Arabic from Walter Farley and everything from crime scene investigation to fashion from the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew. But they also talked about issues that meant something to me: wanting things you couldn't get, fitting in, love and loss. None of these books shied away from the tough issues, like death and drug abuse. They were all fast-paced, didn't lag anywhere before they had the next crisis or interesting event, but also took time to show me around the author's world. In other words, they're a lot like the best writing for adults, only with more young protagonists (most of these characters were close to my age) and less complicated language. The authors would use beautiful prose, but not too many tricks with extended metaphor, alliteration, or any of the other complexities that adult literary authors tend to use.

This list is a sampling of what I read from about age 10 to 13. After I started high school, I stopped reading "young adult" books and jumped straight into books for "adults": d*** Francis, Louis L'Amour, and so forth. But I can still read YA books like Birth of the Firebringer and enjoy them immensely, because they have something on offer for all ages: you don't have to be in a high school mentality to read them, like I would with Sweet Valley High.

Hope that helped!

Congratulations! That's so awesome - your first published book! When does it get released?

Well, it's being released in Ukraine first, and I don't know the exact date yet. And about the party, I hven't had my graduation party yet, and we just built a house so we're moving next week, and we're having an open house so there will be many ocasions to party.