All Things Middle Grade

MsJudy

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Welcome, Sandhya! Lots to see and do around here. Enjoy yourself, and help yourself to a few virtual cookies!

All this talk of twitter reminds me of Bambi. Y'know, when everyone gets twitterpated.
 

kellion92

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Hi Sandhy. Welcome.

Sometimes twitter makes me feel connected and sometimes it makes me feel very, very unconnected. Sometimes in the same minute.
 

starbeam

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Welcome Sandhy!

Hey everyone, I've just gotten twitterpated! I've finally given in to the twitterverse. I'll definitely look into the places Amarie mentioned. I'm strangely iffy about posting on facebook and stuff, but I'm willing to give this a try.
 

Marzipan

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For those of you with an e-reader, amazon has a ton of free classic fairy-tale and myth books. I was in a rut recently and now that I'm reading all of these stories I've never even heard of before, it has sparked my interest and put me on the right track.
 

Dawminator

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So I am a first time poster, with a question I think I know the answer too. For the past five years I have been working on an adult fantasy but recently stepped away to pursue a MG Sci-fi. I really like where it is going.

I have seen a lot of different things for approx. page requirements for MG, anything from 20K to 50K. I think mine would be about 65K when its all said and done. Is that okay?

I mean I know that the first Harry Potter was over 75K, but is that just a fluke?
 

Smish

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65K is okay for MG sci-fi. Sci-fi and fantasy can be a bit longer than the average MG novel, because of the world-building.

Good luck! Read lots. Write lots.

And :welcome:
 

Kelkelen

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Hi! Just poking my head back in to say hello, and Happy Holidays! My NaNoWriMo was a bit of a crash and burn -- 2 1/2 weeks of productivity, followed by a complete stall-out, and December is eating my soul even worse than November did. Darned real life, being all busy and suchlike. However, I'm happy with what I did write, and now, the important thing: I'm off to go food-shopping for a Christmas Eve feast! Hope everyone is having a very nice time of year, and good luck in all your writing endeavors!
 

MorganMarshall

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Hi all and Happy Holidays! :Hug2:

Kelkelen, this has been a difficult December for me too. My muse is being a total pain in the butt. Pfft. But hey, spring is just around the corner!

So I have a question for my fellow MGWers. Do you ever find yourself overthinking how a character would react in a given situation to the point that you've now gone on a tangent, but aren't sure how to make the scene shorter and still have them react realistically? I'm not asking about any specific scene or character here. I just find myself doing that a lot and wanted to know if I was weird. LOL
 

sissybaby

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Can't answer your question, MorganMarshall, but I wanted to butt in here and welcome Dawminator and hopefully encourage Kelkelen a bit.

Sorry Nano was a bust for you - I tried it last year and failed miserably, and didn't have the courage to try it again this year.

Remember that this is the time of year for rejoicing and remembering friends and family. And thinking back on all you DID accomplish this year and looking forward to all the possibilities for next year.

We all fall short, every day, so rejoice in every triumph, no matter how small it may seem to you. It may be huge to someone else. Surround yourself with those who will encourage and support you, and smile at those who try to make you feel small. The joke's on them.

Okay, enough preaching and ranting. Remember Annie and Scarlet O'Hara. They didn't let anything get them down.

Have a wonderful, wonder-filled holiday, everyone.

cordelia dinsmore
 

Morrell

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Remember that this is the time of year for rejoicing and remembering friends and family. And thinking back on all you DID accomplish this year and looking forward to all the possibilities for next year.

We all fall short, every day, so rejoice in every triumph, no matter how small it may seem to you. It may be huge to someone else. Surround yourself with those who will encourage and support you, and smile at those who try to make you feel small. The joke's on them.

Thank you for those words of wisdom, Sissy.
 

Ferret

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So I have a question for my fellow MGWers. Do you ever find yourself overthinking how a character would react in a given situation to the point that you've now gone on a tangent, but aren't sure how to make the scene shorter and still have them react realistically? I'm not asking about any specific scene or character here. I just find myself doing that a lot and wanted to know if I was weird. LOL

Without a specific situation, this question is difficult to address, but I'll do my best.

You don't have to show everything that happens. Try to hint at the reaction but have most of it take place off page. For example, you might show a character get mad right before the scene ends. In the next scene, you might hint at the continuing tension between characters. But you don't need to show the entire fight if you don't think it adds anything.

I find that ending a scene before it starts dragging can solve a lot of problems.
 

MsJudy

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Sometimes you have to write it all before you can figure out what's important and what isn't. Just give yourself permission to take care of the excess when you start revising!
 

Smish

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Is that your name, Sissy? My daughter is named Cordelia!

It's weird when you learn AW friends' real names, isn't it? I mean, Cordelia is a lovely name, but I'll always think of sissy as sissy!

Wait? Does that mean you guys think my name is really Smish?

:D
 

Ferret

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It's weird when you learn AW friends' real names, isn't it? I mean, Cordelia is a lovely name, but I'll always think of sissy as sissy!

Wait? Does that mean you guys think my name is really Smish?

:D

Of course your name is Smish, Smish. And I'm a ferret.
 

profen4

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My Wip (MG adventure) centers around a camp for kids; the campers are separated into teams. I really want the teams (boys and girls - 12 - 15 year olds) to sleep in the same cabins. They have competitions that happen at a drop of a hat (all hours), and they need to react together. Showers and changing areas are all out of the cabin (ETA: and separated, male/female), but is it still just too far out there for that to work?

I've read a couple books where they do this, but those books were based in the future, and so there is an assumption of different social norms.
quan ao tre em cao cap do lot nam sieu mong ty gia ao so mi nu ban buon quan ao cac loai chup anh studio dep
Thoughts?
 
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Polenth

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My Wip (MG adventure) centers around a camp for kids; the campers are separated into teams. I really want the teams (boys and girls - 12 - 15 year olds) to sleep in the same cabins. They have competitions that happen at a drop of a hat (all hours), and they need to react together. Showers and changing areas are all out of the cabin (ETA: and separated, male/female), but is it still just too far out there for that to work?

I've read a couple books where they do this, but those books were based in the future, and so there is an assumption of different social norms.

Thoughts?

In some countries, boys and girls in youth groups routinely share tents/rooms. So if US culture doesn't allow it, you could move it somewhere in Europe. Just check with a local that you've picked a country where it is considered normal.
 

Morrell

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All those hormones running amok! I wouldn't want to be the adult in charge. Seriously, though... perhaps there's a house on the campground that's been divided into a duplex--half for the boys and half for the girls. Maybe they are supposed to stay out of the opposite-sex sleeping area, but there's a common room in the middle. Write it convincingly, and it'll work.