Grover "Near and Far"

Here's a great example of character. This guy will do anything to reach his goal... to the brink of collapse!

SOS ~ kg

Writing a Children's Picture Book

As I’m working on my first children’s picture book, I checked out my all-time childhood favorite from the local Santa Monica Public Library:

“Corduroy” by Don Freeman.

It turns out the 40th Anniversary edition includes correspondence between Freeman and his editor Annis Duff - in addition to a copy of his original manuscript with the editor’s penciled notes in the margins. Amazing insight to the story-editing process!

For anyone interested in writing for children’s literature (from picture books to YA-Young Adult novels), I highly recommend joining the online Yahoo Group for children's writers and Illustrators.

This wonderfully supportive virtual community is a rich resource for information. The 2600+ members will answer most any question you have, no matter where you are in the creative process. Many are published veterans.

May I one day join their lot!

SOS ~ kg

Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing

Elmore Leonard’s 10 Rules of Writing:

   1.  Never open a book with weather.

   2.  Avoid prologues.

   3.  Never use a verb other than "said" to carry dialogue.

   4.  Never use an adverb to modify the verb "said”…he admonished gravely.

   5.  Keep your exclamation points under control. You are allowed no more than two or three per 100,000 words of prose.

   6.  Never use the words "suddenly" or "all hell broke loose."

   7.  Use regional dialect, patois, sparingly.

   8.  Avoid detailed descriptions of characters.

   9.  Don't go into great detail describing places and things.

  10.  Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip.

 My most important rule is one that sums up the 10.

 If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it.

Ira Glass on Story

The great Ira Glass, host of NPR’s ‘This American Life’, discusses the building blocks of storytelling.

Elizabeth Gilbert On Creativity

Elizabeth Gilbert, author of the best-selling memoir ‘Eat, Pray, Love’, offers some thought-provoking ideas on where *creative genius* comes from... It’s “on loan” to us, she says.

Check out her TED talk below.

SOS ~ kg

Storytelling Around Town

Where do you find your source of inspiration? Many people find it through books, movies, etc. For me, my muse most often comes through real life experiences--my own experiences as a human being in the world, and hearing others talk about their personal journeys.

For the last seven years, I have been helping produce a spoken word series that does just that... It creates a space for people to share their stories. True stories from their lives. Over time “SPARK Off Rose” has become popular through word-of-mouth. We don’t advertise and yet we sell out our black box 80-something-seat theatre nearly every month. Why? Because people are yearning to hear others’ talk about their life experiences -- and they are needing to share their own.

To hear and be heard.

If you haven’t already, come check us out sometime. I will post the upcoming show on my home page, or you can also email Spark Off Rose to be added to our mailing list.

Personal storytelling has exploded across Los Angeles, each venue with a different twist on what is essentially a re-invention of oral tradition. If you live in the area, here are some other storytelling events happening around town:


Four Stories and a Cover @ UCB Theatre

WordPlay @ The Fake Gallery

Sit ‘n Spin @ Comedy Central Stage

Tasty Words @ Every Picture Tells A Story

The Moth Story Slams

SOS ~ kg