ROCK 'N' ROLL PRINCESSES WEAR BLACK by Kelly Polark

Okay, so I'm here today with my good friend and long-time blogger, Kelly Pollark! Her debut middle grade novel, ROCK 'N' ROLL PRINCESSES WEAR BLACK, just came out! I hope you'll all get a copy to support her!

About ROCK 'N' ROLL PRINCESSES WEAR BLACK: Music class and recess totally rock, but being teased in school and ignored at home totally stinks. Stefani Lucas is a rockin’ sixth grader who loves music and dresses like a mini hipster in all black, but there's one thing cramping her style - her lame baby brother who manages to hog all the attention from her parents.

When classmates tease her about her clothes and even double dare her to (gasp!) wear another color, Stef decides a minor makeover may be in order. Can Stef change for others and still stay true to herself?

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About Kelly: Kelly Polark is a married mom of three and educator/author from the great Midwest. ROCK 'N' ROLL PRINCESSES WEAR BLACK is Kelly's debut middle grade novel. She is also the author of the ABC picture book, ROCKABET: CLASSIC EDITION and two Meegenius books: BIG SISTER, BABY BROTHER and HOLD THE MUSTARD! In her free time, Kelly loves to hang with her fam, read books for all ages, and sing along at rock concerts.

FIND HER, STALK HER:

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I hope you'll get a copy of ROCK 'N' ROLL PRINCESSES WEAR BLACK!!

ELEVATED on sale!

Dude, so it's the last Thursday of April, which means that National Poetry Month is coming to a close. So I thought it would be fun and appropriate to put my verse novel on sale. So from now until the end of April, ELEVATED is on sale for only 99 cents!

I hope you'll consider getting a copy if you haven't yet, and helping to spread the word to anyone who likes YA romance.

About ELEVATED: The last person seventeen-year-old Eleanor Livingston wants to see on the elevator—let alone get stuck with—is her ex-boyfriend Travis, the guy she's been avoiding for five months.

Plagued with the belief that when she speaks the truth, bad things happen, Elly hasn’t told Trav anything. Not why she broke up with him and cut off all contact. Not what happened the day her father returned from his deployment to Afghanistan. And certainly not that she misses him and still thinks about him everyday.

But with nowhere to hide and Travis so close it hurts, Elly’s worried she won’t be able to contain her secrets for long. She’s terrified of finally revealing the truth, because she can’t bear to watch a tragedy befall the boy she still loves.

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How to Establish a Great Magic System, Part Four

Okay, onto Part Four today! We're flying through these! I hope that you've found them somewhat useful as you consider writing a fantasy or science fiction novel. (See Part One, Part Two, and/or Part Three.)

Onward and upward to Question 4: How Is Magic Viewed?

• By society
• By other magic users
• By the MC
• Not only magic, but how are magic users viewed? By the public? Each other?

This is where you establish how the magic is viewed in society. Is it generally accepted? Unaccepted? Laws against using magic, or being a magician? How does the MC view magic and magic users? If s/he is a magic user, how do they feel about their society’s limitations or opinions on magic? How is the magic viewed among magic users? Is that different from society?

How are magic users viewed? Feared? Respected? Abhorred? All this should be established as you’re building your magic system. A lot of this can go toward limiting your magic users and your main character as well. So don’t skip over this step.


I did use Google to aid me in my research. I found three places that provided me with the most insight and useful information: Brandon Sanderson's Laws of Magic (Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3), WikiHow (don't laugh, it had good stuff!), and The Four Part Land (he has six parts, but they're all linked at the top of this one).

So I read (ahem, maybe I skimmed a little. Some of the posts are long!) up on magic systems. I thought about what *I* liked in a magic system. I thought about the fantasy novels I'd read (because I don't read high-high fantasy like Sanderson or many of the authors/titles they talk about in these posts). I thought about Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, the TV show Merlin, movies like The Prestige, and other -- in my opinion -- accessible references. (Basically I'm saying I was too lazy to take the time to read those high fantasy novels. I reflected on what I was familiar with. And that's a tip I always give when I'm teaching: Use what you know to draw conclusions and create learning for what you don't.)

How To Establish a Great Magic System, Part Three

Okay, so I'm back again, now onto the third question you might consider as you build and establish a magic system. (You can see Part One and Part Two here.) I think it's important to consider all aspects of the system, but if that freaks you out before writing, never fear! I answer some of the questions before writing, some as I'm going, and some after I'm done. So if you're not an outliner, you can still use the questions you need, in the order YOU need them.

Question 3: What is the Purpose of the Magic?

• Contributes to character motivation?
• Main element or mysterious?
• Plot-based?
• Serves the story?

Maybe this should be question 1, but you need to know the purpose of your magic system. Is it the main element of your book, or something more mysterious, happening behind the scenes? How much does it affect your main character, what they do, their motivations?

The purpose of the magic should be to serve your story. If it’s just some “cool” element and has no real place in the plot, you’ll have a well, not a very good book. The purpose of the magic must be convincing and cohesive to both character development and plot, or it’s just lame. So make the magic integral to both character and plot.

I think any time you can make the elements of world, setting, character, and plot cross -- meaning one impacts the other in a meaningful and uncontrived way -- your novel will feel like it was done deliberately, and readers always want to feel like the author is in control of what's unfolding on the page.

So examining the purpose of the magic can help you develop character motivation, character flaws, character strengths, and determine character growth. The purpose of the magic can (and should!) advance the plot. The purpose of the magic can be tied up in the world/setting. Everything can be intertwined so that when things start going bad, everything starts going bad -- which allows your main character to develop into a hero.



I did use Google to aid me in my research. I found three places that provided me with the most insight and useful information: Brandon Sanderson's Laws of Magic (Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3), WikiHow (don't laugh, it had good stuff!), and The Four Part Land (he has six parts, but they're all linked at the top of this one).

So I read (ahem, maybe I skimmed a little. Some of the posts are long!) up on magic systems. I thought about what *I* liked in a magic system. I thought about the fantasy novels I'd read (because I don't read high-high fantasy like Sanderson or many of the authors/titles they talk about in these posts). I thought about Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, the TV show Merlin, movies like The Prestige, and other -- in my opinion -- accessible references. (Basically I'm saying I was too lazy to take the time to read those high fantasy novels. I reflected on what I was familiar with. And that's a tip I always give when I'm teaching: Use what you know to draw conclusions and create learning for what you don't.)

THE SOUND OF LETTING GO by Stasia Ward Kehoe

Okay, so it's Thursday, and I've been spotlighting an amazing verse novel every week this month for National Poetry Month.

Today's title is THE SOUND OF LETTING GO by Stasia Ward Kehoe. This is Stasia's second verse novel, and the first, AUDITION, is just as compelling and beautiful.

I sort of stumbled onto Stasia's work through a group I used to be involved with, The Bookanistas. We formed several years ago as a support system, and one of the things we did was mail around ARCs for review. Sometimes they were just ARCs we got from publishers, but sometimes they were our own ARCs.

That's how I came upon AUDITION. I read it early in my genre exploration of verse novels, and I loved it. Since then, I've left The Bookanistas, but I didn't forget about Stasia's writing. So when THE SOUND OF LETTING GO came out earlier this year, I couldn't wait to read it.

About THE SOUND OF LETTING GO: For sixteen years, Daisy has been good. A good daughter, helping out with her autistic younger brother uncomplainingly. A good friend, even when her best friend makes her feel like a third wheel. When her parents announce they’re sending her brother to an institution—without consulting her—Daisy’s furious, and decides the best way to be a good sister is to start being bad. She quits jazz band and orchestra, slacks in school, and falls for bad-boy Dave.

But one person won’t let Daisy forget who she used to be: Irish exchange student and brilliant musician Cal. Does she want the bad boy or the prodigy? Should she side with her parents or protect her brother? How do you know when to hold on and when—and how—to let go?

I even blurbed the book. Here's what I said: “Achingly beautiful, The Sound of Letting Go takes readers down a dangerous path while touching the heart and encouraging hope.”

And that's how I feel about it. It is achingly beautiful. It is about hope, about Daisy learning how to stand up for what she believes while still being a sister and a daughter. I loved the struggles she goes through, because they felt real -- and they're struggles that don't stop just because we become adults. So the book felt real to me, even outside of being a YA novel. It felt true to life, true to having to make hard decisions in many different areas of life.

But it was also hopeful. I don't need a perfect ending. I just want to feel like the main character will find their way, whether I see it on the page or not. Because I want to feel hopeful about my own life. I don't know what's going to happen yet, but I want to believe that I can figure it out -- just like Daisy does. And THE SOUND OF LETTING GO does that.

What have you read that has provided you with hope?

How To Establish a Great Magic System, Part Two

So we started exploring how to establish a great magic system earlier this week. (Click here to see it.) I said there why and how I started exploring this topic, as well as citing the Internet resources I used. I won't bore you with those again, but I am going to link the resources again at the end of the post.

But for today, let's dive right into question 2.

Question 2: Where Does the Magic Come From?

• what powers it?
• where does the energy come from?
• do the characters, the setting, or the world contribute to the magic?

I think the best way to form a cohesive book is to tie elements together. They don't operate independently of one another. The magic in your novel should facilitate the character development and plot. The plot should facilitate character development and world-building. The character development should facilitate the magic system and the setting. If you can tie them all together, the individual elements won't feel tacked on or extraneous. Your book will feel well-thought out and cohesive.

So as you're planning and developing your magic system, use it to tie your world elements, your setting, your plot, and your characters all together. One way to do that is here, in Question 2: Where Does the Magic Come From?

The source of the magic, or what’s powering it, can provide conflict if you want it to. Conflict for the plot. Conflict for the main character, either externally or internally. Look for things that have good ties to the nature of your world. The elements, the characters, the setting. How can these contribute to where the magic stems from? Look for things that tie the magic to other setting elements and which make life hard for the practitioners--especially the main character (if they're a magic user).

So now we've examined who can use the magic, and what's powering the magic. Stay tuned for part three, coming next Monday!


I did use Google to aid me in my research. I found three places that provided me with the most insight and useful information: Brandon Sanderson's Laws of Magic (Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3), WikiHow (don't laugh, it had good stuff!), and The Four Part Land (he has six parts, but they're all linked at the top of this one).

So I read (ahem, maybe I skimmed a little. Some of the posts are long!) up on magic systems. I thought about what *I* liked in a magic system. I thought about the fantasy novels I'd read (because I don't read high-high fantasy like Sanderson or many of the authors/titles they talk about in these posts). I thought about Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, the TV show Merlin, movies like The Prestige, and other -- in my opinion -- accessible references. (Basically I'm saying I was too lazy to take the time to read those high fantasy novels. I reflected on what I was familiar with. And that's a tip I always give when I'm teaching: Use what you know to draw conclusions and create learning for what you don't.)

How To Establish a Great Magic System, Part One

Okay, so a while ago, I was asked to speak at a teen writer's camp at BYU. I love talking to teen writers, so I said yes. A few months pass, and finally I have to give a topic I'm going to teach about. Well, it's a science fiction and fantasy camp, so I decided to go with "How to Establish a Killer Magic System" -- something I'd been studying and learning about myself.

See, I've written a futuristic fantasy that I'm going to self-publish this summer, and I've got a contemporary fantasy I'm hoping my agent can sell in the traditional market. I love fantasy. I read a lot of fantasy. But I always think there's room for improvement in my own craft, and as I've been revising the futuristic fantasy for publication, I realized that I needed to really cement my magic system.

So for myself and for the class, I came up with 10 questions authors can ask themselves as they establish their magic systems. Oh, and this works for technology systems in science fiction novels as well.

I did use Google to aid me in my research. I found three places that provided me with the most insight and useful information: Brandon Sanderson's Laws of Magic (Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3), WikiHow (don't laugh, it had good stuff!), and The Four Part Land (he has six parts, but they're all linked at the top of this one).

So I read (ahem, maybe I skimmed a little. Some of the posts are long!) up on magic systems. I thought about what *I* liked in a magic system. I thought about the fantasy novels I'd read (because I don't read high-high fantasy like Sanderson or many of the authors/titles they talk about in these posts). I thought about Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, the TV show Merlin, movies like The Prestige, and other -- in my opinion -- accessible references. (Basically I'm saying I was too lazy to take the time to read those high fantasy novels. I reflected on what I was familiar with. And that's a tip I always give when I'm teaching: Use what you know to draw conclusions and create learning for what you don't.)

After I'd done a little light Internet reading, I formed my 10 questions. Today, we'll just explore the first.

Question 1: Who Can Use the Magic?

• the main character?
• special characters?
• everyone?
• the wealthy?
• a specific gender?
• only those trained?

You must decide who in your world can use the magic (or who has access to the technology in the world). Only a few people, designated to do so? Is the main character included in this group, or not? Can everyone use it? Only the wealthy? Or the poor? Only men, or women, or children? Only those who are trained? Those who are genetically capable? (Which leads us to another question we’ll get to later.)

But you have to know who can and who can’t use the magic, or who does and who doesn’t have access to the technology, in your world. This will help you establish weaknesses and limitations on the magic--also something we'll discuss in a later question.

So when creating a magic system, the first step is determining who will be able to access that power -- and why. Why them, and not everyone? Why only a select few? The why is important too.

So there's Question 1. I'll be back over the course of the next several weeks exploring all 10 questions, and I hope you'll join me!

I HEART YOU, YOU HAUNT ME

Okay, so in celebration of National Poetry Month, I thought I'd share with you the very first novel in verse I'd ever read. It was I HEART YOU, YOU HAUNT ME by Lisa Schroeder. I've since read a few more of Lisa's books, and they're all everything a verse novel should be: angsty, precise, vivid, and tense.

Since you have so little room in a verse novel, every word has to count. And Lisa knows how to choose the right words to make them worth their weight in gold.

So let's learn a little bit more about I HEART YOU, YOU HAUNT ME.

Girl meets boy.


Girl loses boy.


Girl gets boy back...


...sort of.

Ava can't see him or touch him, unless she's dreaming. She can't hear his voice, except for the faint whispers in her mind. Most would think she's crazy, but she knows he's here.

Jackson. The boy Ava thought she'd spend the rest of her life with. He's back from the dead, as proof that love truly knows no bounds.

It's got a paranormal slant to it, which in my eyes, makes it that much better. If you're looking for a novel in verse to read as your first introduction to the style, I highly recommend I HEART YOU, YOU HAUNT ME.

What book have you loved that introduced you to a new genre?

Celebrating National Poetry Month!

Okay, so it's April, which means it's National Poetry Month. I know, I know, some of you are madly blogging with the A-Z blogging challenge. My hat goes off to you! I can barely think of anything to blog about these days, though I do have something up my sleeve!

Anyway, since I wrote a novel in verse, I thought I'd spotlight a few books this month that are written in verse that are absolutely wonderful.

Up today is INSIDE OUT & BACK AGAIN by Thanhha La. It is a brilliant novel that you can read in about 45 minutes. It details the story of Ha as she leaves Saigon and comes to America.

Here's the official blurb: For all the ten years of her life, Ha has only known Saigon: the thrills of its markets, the joy of its traditions, the warmth of her friends close by, and the beauty of her very own papaya tree. But now the Vietnam War has reached her home. Ha and her family are forced to flee as Saigon falls, and they board a ship headed toward hope.

This is the moving story of one girl's year of change, dreams, grief, and healing as she journeys from one country to another, one life to the next.

I loved how the story came to life with just a few words. I loved the relationships between Ha and her brothers, as well as her mother. The sparseness of the words allows the emotion to flow freely. I think that's one of my favorite things about verse novels in general. INSIDE OUT & BACK AGAIN is no exception. It's a beautiful novel about a girl and her family surviving terrible things.

I hope if you're looking for a novel in verse to read this National Poetry Month that you'll try INSIDE OUT & BACK AGAIN. I don't think you're regret it.

Have you ever read a novel in verse? Which one did you like?