NaNoWriMo: Wrapping it up

Obviously November is over, and so it seems December is already more than half over.  Anyway, I figure I need to wrap up Nano in case you were wondering how it went for me.  Well, here it goes:

November 1-20 I wrote like made, wracking up 28,000 words - yay!  And then I got sick.  Not like the flu & cold kinda sick - but the "I've got a baby growing in my belly" kinda sick.  Did you catch that?  I'm expecting child number 3 in late June 2013!

So, I found that I felt so icky a lot of the time and to top it off, after my kiddos went to bed at 7:30, I hit the hay myself.  How sad is that?  A grown woman going to bed at 8pm.  Fun!

So needless to say, I fizzled out at the end this year during Nano and I am so bummed.  I really wanted to make the word count goal this year, and I figure I would have if it weren't for the nausea and tiredness.

Now all my excuses are out of the way for why I didn't make the 50K word count goal - now all there is left to do is to go on and finish the Nano novel and then start making plans for next year's Nano!

Writing Tips: Opening Lines

Have you ever picked up a book, flipped it to the first page and read the first couple sentences and were utterly bored to tears?  Or perhaps you pushed on hoping the first page would get better, only to find that, no, it didn't.

No?  That's wonderful!  Your scope of reading must be incredible!

Yes?  Well, that's what I'm here to talk about today.  Err...write about today?  Anyway, in writing the novels I have (either started or completed) I've come to realize the EXTREME importance of the opening lines of the book.

I'm sure we've all perused a bookstore looking for our next read only to be deterred by opening lines such as:

Yesterday, my dog peed on my shoe.  I hate when that happens.
or
She woke up feeling exhausted from her restless sleep.
or
I really hope I will ace my trig exam today.

Okay - those are all made up first lines...and they are really bad.  Honestly, would you want to read on using those first lines as the basis of the whole story?  I shouldn't think so.

Alright, so here we're going to get into the opening lines of some of my favorite YA novels.  After reading each one, think about if the lines make you want to read on.  If they do, why?  If not, why not?

Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder
Locked in darkness that surrounded me like a coffin, I had nothing to distract me from my memories.  Vivid recollections waited to ambush me whenever my mind wandered.

Divergent by Veronica Roth
There is one mirror in my house.  It is behind a sliding panel in the hallway upstairs.  Our faction allows me to stand in front of it on the second day of every third month, the day my mother cuts my hair.

The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale
She was born Anidori-Kiladra Talianna Isilee, Crown Princess of Kildenree, and she did not open her eyes for three days.

Eve by Anna Carey
Ignoring the letter to Eve in the very beginning....
By the time the sun set over the fifty-foot perimeter wall, the School lawn was covered with twelfth-year students.  The younger girls leaned out of the dormitory windows, waving their New American flags as we sang and danced.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
When I wake up, the other side of the bed is cold.  My fingers stretch out, seeking Prim's warmth but finding only the rough canvas cover of the mattress.  She must have had bad dreams and climbed in with our mother.  Of course, she did.  This is the day of the reaping.

Graceling by Kristin Cashore
In these dungeons the darkness was complete, but Katsa had a map in her mind.  One that had so far proven correct, as Oll's maps tended to do.

So here is my advice, take a look at your writing.  Read over your opening lines, do they draw you in as a reader or do they leave you feeling blah?  If you're having a hard time determining the catchyness of your first page, hand it off to someone else and ask their opinion.  It never hurts to get someone else's take on the matter.

My Reading List: Reached

Reached by Ally Condie

Cassia’s journey began with an error, a momentary glitch in the otherwise perfect façade of the Society. After crossing canyons to break free, she waits, silk and paper smuggled against her skin, ready for the final chapter.

The wait is over.

One young woman has raged against those who threaten to keep away what matters most—family, love, choice. Her quiet revolution is about to explode into full-scale rebellion.

With exquisite prose, the emotionally gripping conclusion to the international–bestselling Matched trilogy returns Cassia, Ky, and Xander to the Society to save the one thing they have been denied for so long, the power to choose.

My Reading List: The Pregnancy Project

 

The Pregnancy Project by Gaby Rodriguez

It started as a school project…but turned into so much more.

 Growing up, Gaby Rodriguez was often told she would end up a teen mom. After all, her mother and her older sisters had gotten pregnant as teenagers; from an outsider’s perspective, it was practically a family tradition. Gaby had ambitions that didn’t include teen motherhood. But she wondered: how would she be treated if she “lived down” to others' expectations? Would everyone ignore the years she put into being a good student and see her as just another pregnant teen statistic with no future? These questions sparked Gaby’s school project: faking her own pregnancy as a high school senior to see how her family, friends, and community would react. What she learned changed her life forever, and made international headlines in the process.

In The Pregnancy Project, Gaby details how she was able to fake her own pregnancy—hiding the truth from even her siblings and boyfriend’s parents—and reveals all that she learned from the experience. But more than that, Gaby’s story is about fighting stereotypes, and how one girl found the strength to come out from the shadow of low expectations to forge a bright future for herself.

NaNoWriMo: Ack! Nano has taken over my life!

I'm still here, just trying to write, write, write and keep on top of word count goals.  Haven't had any time to do any reading this month, and I have a couple books on my shelf that keep calling my name.  Alas, come December I will be reading once more.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, I hope you make tons of memories!

NaNoWriMo: Day 12

Today is the 12th day of Nano and I'm a little behind. Ugg.  For whatever reason I did no writing on Saturday and Thursday and Friday I didn't make the daily word count goal.  I really hate it when that happens.

You know what though?  Sunday I picked it up and wrote a bunch, but didn't quite make it to the 18,333 mark, I was about 800 words shy.  So today, my goal is to get to 20,000 words and then push myself a little further.

That's the great thing about Nano.  The daily word count goal is 1667 - as I've mentioned before - and if you think about it, it's not a heavy goal.  So, if you get behind a day or two (like I've done), don't worry, just write a little bit more each day and you'll get caught up.

NaNoWriMo: Writing Over the Weekend

Four days into Nano and 7018 words into the project, I see how helpful a chapter breakdown can be.  When I attended the Story 101 workshop a week ago, one of the three presenters gave us a handy tool for planning a writing project.

At first I was like: this is cool, maybe I'll use it one day.  And then I was like: this is COOL!  I'm going to try to use it for Nano.  And I have been.  And let me tell you, it's making the project stay on task and helps me know where the story is supposed to go.

Of course, being a pantser at heart, when I looked at the chapter breakdown, I had to logically think about what would happen to someone after they attempted suicide.  Obviously there would be a hospital involved, and then treatment afterwards.  I've done a fair amount of research on how people who have attempted suicide feel when they find out they were unsuccessful, so including this into Natalie's character has been an interesting challenge.

My original chapter breakdown had 24 chapters listed, but I'm guessing there will be handful more than that when it's all said and done as chapters 2&3 have both ended up being 2 chapters each.  But, I'm still on track with the basic outline. Yay!

So far, Nano has been fun and challenging and I'm proud of myself for meeting or exceeding the daily word count goal.

NaNoWriMo: Day 2

The closing of day 2 brings on a total word count of 4344 - and my main character (MC) has just died...or so she had hoped!  I do hope I do her story justice, and I hope you end up loving her as much as I do.

NaNoWriMo: Day 1

As day 1 of Nano comes to a close I feel like I've had a really good start.  Your daily goal should be writing basically 1700 words, and I'm closing word tonight with 2200 words!  I have to say that with this Nano novel, I did do more planning than I've done on my other novels.

I've created character profiles (it's the best way to keep track of your characters making sure you keep them consistent), I've created a chapter breakdown - even though it's really rough, I feel it gives me a good way to keep track of where the story should go.

As I write my main character Natalie (Nat), I realize how complex her character is.  She's depressed, as someone who is alone as much as she is probably would be.  She has a humorous side to her that comes out in the story.  She lacks confidence in herself, though she has no reason to.  I hope to portray her in the best light, even though she's dealing with complex issues, and ultimately tries to end her life.  I'm excited to write her character and show how she overcomes these issues.  I hope you will enjoy her journey as much as I am.

NaNoWriMo = Research

When I decided to sign on for this year's Nano, I wasn't expecting to be struck with an idea I find somewhat controversial.  But I was - nonetheless.  The story I'll be working on is about a 17 year old girl that attempts suicide and what her road to recovery is like.  This is not something I'm familiar with, but it feels like a story I need to write.

So how does one go about writing about teen suicide when they know nothing about it?  The answer, plain and simply, is, research.  Of course, I'm not saying go try to commit suicide (seriously, don't do it, your life is worth so much).  The area in which I need to research is what happens to a teen after the suicide attempt occurs.  In my story, she is sent to a Equine (horse) Rehab Camp along with other teens with health risks.  She meets other struggling teens, participates in private and group Psychology sessions and befriends an abused rescue horse.

My character learns a lot about herself through life at camp and with the Psychology sessions she learns to love and trust others, and becomes a better person.  For those interested, this is a Young Adult novel, so (of course) there is a love interest with his own set of problems.

Okay - now, how do I do Psychology research?  Obviously I don't have a degree in Psychology so the next best thing is to find someone who does.  When I attended a writing workshop this past weekend (great by the way), the two presenting authors recommended writing to people in the profession in which you need help.  Seriously, why didn't I think of that?  Today, I've sent an email to a College Regent Professor in hopes of gaining knowledge for my novel - I do hope I'll hear back from her as I know it will only make this novel that much stronger.

By the way, NaNoWriMo starts tomorrow!  Are you ready?

Writing Tips: More On Plots

Let's talk more about plots. You know you want to!

Remember the last post I wrote about plots?  Today I'm going to have you read an excerpt by author (and former literary agent) Nathan Bransford on his description of a plot.  His is amazing and really nails it on the head, in my opinion.  When I read through his description of a plot, it just clicks and makes sense.

And now Nathan's excerpt on plots:

Think of a book like a really big door, preferably one of those Parisian ones that are thick and heavy and last hundreds of years. Here's how it breaks down. Bullet point time!

• The premise is what happens to knock the door ajar. Something sets the protagonist's life out of balance. Preferably something really intriguing or like totally deep man.
• The climax is when the door closes. Maybe the protagonist made it through the door, maybe they didn't make it through the door but learned a really great lesson about door closing, maybe the door chopped them in half.
• The theme is how the person opening the door changes along the way.

What's the plot? The plot is what keeps the door open!! Why can't that person close the door?

So basically, plot is a premise plus a major complication that tests the protagonist. It's what opens the door plus what's keeping the door from being closed.

Check out these examples:

GILEAD: An aging man writes a letter to his young son (premise) because he doesn't think he'll live long enough for his son to really know him (complication -- also don't you want to cry already?)

THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET: A young orphan in Paris wants to repair an automaton because he thinks it will give him a letter from his deceased father (premise -- also tears), but in order to do so he must avoid the Station Inspector and enlist the help of a mysterious toy store owner (complication).

A good plot starts with an interesting premise and an interesting door-block. A great plot also implies a quest and a resolution, which is what makes the reader want to read more. We don't like chaos, we want to see order restored, we want an interesting journey along the way, and we want to see the ways a character changes after facing these obstacles.

Read more from Nathan Bransford on his website:  NathanBransford.com -- trust me, you'll be glad you did!  Be sure to bookmark his site too.

NaNoWriMo or Bust

November is National Novel Writing Month or NaNoWriMo for those who may be interested (and if you're reading here, you should be).  30 days to write 50,000 words beginning November 1 and ending November 30.

Crazy.

I know.

But, it's possible!  The proof is on their website, where dozens of participants have gone on to publish their NaNoWriMo novels.

Here's the catch, the novel you write in NaNo has to be a brand spankin' new project.  This means you can not have written ANY part of the actual novel before November 1st.  This DOESN'T mean you can't have been writing up some majestic outline and character traits and world building.  Actually, all that is encouraged and there are workshops all over the US (and I'm sure outside of the US) that you can attend and start story building -- just not story writing.  Does that make sense?  Good.



So (notice I begin a lot of sentences with that?) I'm not saying that I'm going to make the 50K word count goal in 30 days, but I'm going to give it a shot.  I tried about 5 years ago and didn't get very far.  Remember?  Pantser here.  A pantser then, a pantser now.  BUT, I've actually written down a very basic outline for a new project, oddly enough.  So who knows, maybe I will make it this year...cross my fingers.

Of course, that makes typing quite difficult...

My Reading List: Finale

Finale by Becca Fitzpatrick

Nora is more certain than ever that she is in love with Patch. Fallen angel or no, he is the one for her. Her heritage and destiny may mean they are fated to be enemies, but there is no turning her back on him. Now Nora and Patch must gather their strength to face one last, perilous trial. Old enemies return, new enemies are made, and a friend's ultimate betrayal threatens the peace Patch and Nora so desperately want. The battle lines are drawn—but which sides are they on? And in the end, are there some obstacles even love can't conquer?

My Reading List: The Evolution of Mara Dyer

The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

Mara Dyer once believed she could run from her past.
She can’t.
She used to think her problems were all in her head.
They aren’t.
She couldn’t imagine that after everything she’s been through, the boy she loves would still be keeping secrets.
She’s wrong.
In this gripping sequel to The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, the truth evolves and choices prove deadly. What will become of Mara Dyer next?

Alright, was anyone as excited as I was to read this?  My copy just arrived in the mail yesterday and I couldn't wait to open it up!

My Writing: How Music Influences My Writing

I listed a playlist a while ago in one of my posts and today, I thought I'd expand upon that a bit.  When I write, I listen to music.  Always.  I'm lucky to have a pretty fantastic amp in my family room that plays Pandora radio (thanks dear hubby for being the techie that you are).  I have my Pandora station tuned to the Gotye channel.  Always.

While I was writing The Phoenix, as song would come on and it would spur the creativity like crazy.  Now, I don't mean I would hear a song and write the lyrics into the novel; but more like it steered the direction of the scene.  Remember, I'm a pantser.  My stories take on a life of their own at times.

So, in the song Run by Snow Patrol, the chorus his incredible - well, the whole song is really.



In this particular song, the chorus really moves me:

Light up, light up
As if you have a choice
Even if you cannot hear my voice
I'll be right beside you dear

Louder louder
And we'll run for our lives
I can hardly speak I understand
Why you can't raise your voice to say

It's one of those bits of music that invokes such a great mental image, that unfortunately, the video (neither the one above or the "official" one) live up to - sorry Snow Patrol.  I still LOVE you.

In my head, I see a man and a woman standing in parking lot on a dark, cold night.  She has her back to him and he's trying to convince her to run away with him.  She's afraid and he doesn't understand her hesitation.  He's reaching for her and she pulls away; but he won't stop trying to reach her...

Okay, now let's talk about Mumford & Sons, specifically their song Thistle & Weeds.  Again, the whole song is great, filled with angst and powerful lyrics.

Just for good measure, here are all the lyrics:

Spare me your judgements and spare me your dreams,
Cause recently mine have been tearing my seams,
I sit alone in this winter clarity which clouds my mind,
Alone in the wind and the rain you left me,
It's getting dark darling, too dark to see,
And I'm on my knees, and your faith in shreds, it seems.

Corrupted by the simple sniff of riches blown,
I know you have felt much more love than you've shown,
And I'm on my knees and the water creeps to my chest.

But plant your hope with good seeds,
Don't cover yourself with thistle and weeds,
Rain down, rain down on me,
Look over your hills and be still,
The sky above us shoots to kill,
Rain down, rain down on me.

(There's a bunch of 'hold on's' here)

I begged you to hear me, there's more than flesh and bones,
Let the dead bury their dead, they will come out in droves,
But take the spade from my hands and fill in the holes, you've made.

But plant your hope with good seeds,
Don't cover yourself with thistle and weeds,
Rain down, rain down on me.

Good stuff, huh?  There are so many great songs out there that inspire me in my writing.  What inspires you?

My Reading List: Little Women

 

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

 Little Women is one of the best loved books of all time. Lovely Meg, talented Jo, frail Beth, spoiled Amy: these are hard lessons of poverty and of growing up in New England during the Civil War. Through their dreams, plays, pranks, letters, illnesses, and courtships, women of all ages have become a part of this remarkable family and have felt the deep sadness when Meg leaves the circle of sisters to be married at the end of Part I. Part II, chronicles Meg's joys and mishaps as a young wife and mother, Jo's struggle to become a writer, Beth's tragedy, and Amy's artistic pursuits and unexpected romance. Based on Louise May Alcott's childhood, this lively portrait of nineteenth- century family life possesses a lasting vitality that has endeared it to generations of readers.

Writing Tips: What is a Plot?

As someone who has only recently began to dig deeper in to the realm of writing, I thought it would be interesting to learn more about the basics of writing.  For the purpose of this blog post, let's talk about the Plot.

Merriam-Webster defines a plot as: "the plan or the main story."

Wikipedia has this to say about a plot: "the events that make up a theme, particularly as they relate to one another in a pattern, in a sequence, through cause and effect, how the reader views the story, or simply by coincidence."

One of my favorite people on the web, Nathan Bransford writes this about a plot: [the] "plot is a premise plus a major complication that tests the protagonist. It's what opens the door plus what's keeping the door from being closed."

For today's plot post, we'll focus on the Wikipedia's definition.  We'll get into Nathan's plot tips in a later post (trust me, the wait is worth it!) .

We all vaguely remember grade school English classes where we learned about the basic plot outline, right?  Okay, admittedly, it's been a long time since I've even seen one of those things, so I've found a sample online for us all to look at.

10 points for anyone that remembers what this diagram is actually called...Give up?  I only remember because I've just looked it up (ha!).  The diagram is called "Freytag's Pyramid", now the lights are flashing on - because for me, after reading the name, it totally clicked and brought back memories of reading through Middle Grade books and picking out the "rising action" the "climax" and the "falling action".  None of which I EVER enjoyed doing.  Maybe that's why I'm a pantser now.

Anyway, getting back to the plot.  So, if you follow Freytag's Pyramid, you begin your novel with the exposition.

The exposition introduces all of the main characters in the story. It shows how they relate to one another, what their goals and motivations are, and the kind of person they are.  Most importantly, in the exposition, the audience gets to know the main character (protagonist), and the protagonist gets to know his or her main goal and what is at stake if he or she fails to attain this goal.

The next phase would be the rising action, or conflict.  Generally, in this phase the protagonist understands his or her goal and begins to work toward it. Smaller problems thwart their initial success, and in this phase their progress is directed primarily against these secondary obstacles. This phase shows us how he or she overcomes these obstacles.

Thus, at the end of this phase and at the beginning of the next they are finally in a position to go up against their primary goal. This part begins after the exposition. It consists of a beginnings of a tension or complication that continues with the development of conflict between the characters.

Ah the climax, the turning point of the story, where the main character makes the single big decision that defines the outcome of their story and who they are as a person.  The beginning of this phase is marked by the protagonist finally having cleared away the preliminary barriers and being ready to engage with the adversary. Usually, entering this phase, both the protagonist and the antagonist have a plan to win against the other. Now for the first time we see them going against one another in direct, or nearly direct, conflict.

This struggle results with neither character completely winning, nor losing, against the other. Usually, each character's plan is partially successful, and partially foiled by their adversary. What is unique about this central struggle between the two characters is that the protagonist makes a decision which shows us one's moral quality, and ultimately determines one's fate.

The climax often contains much of the action in a story, for example, a defining battle.

The falling action is where the loose ends are being tied up. However, it is often the time of greatest overall tension in the play, because it is the phase in which everything goes most wrong.

In this phase, the villain has the upper hand. It seems that evil will triumph. The protagonist has never been further from accomplishing the goal.

The resolution is the final confrontation between the protagonist and antagonist, where one or the other decisively wins. This phase is the story of that confrontation, of what leads up to it, of why it happens the way it happens, what it means, and what its long-term consequences are.

Okay, now that we know the technical definition of a plot, the next time we talk about it, we'll get into the fun part, digging into Nathan Bransford's plot topics!

My Reading List: Before I Fall

 

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

What if you only had one day to live? What would you do? Who would you kiss? And how far would you go to save your own life? 

Samantha Kingston has it all: looks, popularity, the perfect boyfriend. Friday, February 12, should be just another day in her charmed life. Instead, it turns out to be her last. 

The catch: Samantha still wakes up the next morning. Living the last day of her life seven times during one miraculous week, she will untangle the mystery surrounding her death—and discover the true value of everything she is in danger of losing. 

My Reading List: Midnight in Austenland

 

Midnight in Austenland by Shannon Hale

Charlotte Kinder is in need of true escape when she heads from Ohio to Pembrook Park, a Jane Austen-themed retreat in the British countryside. But as it turns out, this vacation is no time to relax. Hearts are racing and stomachs fluttering in a tangle of intrigues-real and pretend, sinister and romantic-increasingly tough to sort out. It's midnight in Austenland, and Charlotte is about to prove herself a heroine worthy of Austen herself.

 

My Writing: On Smiles

I've noticed that in my writing, my characters do a lot of smiling.  A.  LOT.  Okay, you may think.  That's not a bad thing, is it?  Smiling is good for the soul.

Yes.  That's true.

Unless every page has someone smiling, or grinning, or they smile...

As in - Jane smiled at Bobby's joke.
Next page:  Bobby grinned while Jane grabbed the rolling pencil.
Next page:  Susan's lips curled into a smile wider than the English Channel.

I just went  through the 109 pages of Untouchable (still a work in progress) and reduced the "smiles" from 100 to 33.  How does one do that?  Let me show you:

Before:  Her mother forces a smile as she tells me now is not a good time.
After:   Her mother’s face draws tight, almost pinched as she tells me now is not a good time.

Which way do you prefer?  I feel like the "after" gives you a better feel for the look on the mother's face, don't you?

Contests: 6 Word Pitch

Author Natalie Whipple is hosting a creative contest that I decided to enter.  It's kind of crazy, here are the details:

How To Enter: In comments, pitch your book in six words. Yup, six. It'll be like extreme Twitter.

Prize: Each winner will receive a query and 10-page manuscript critique.

How You Win: I will choose SIX favorite pitches—those will be my winners.

Deadline: Midnight (Mountain Time), October 14th, 2012 (Winners will be announced Monday, October 15th)

Visit her website for more info: http://betweenfactandfiction.blogspot.com/

By the way, here is my 6 word pitch for The Phoenix: A Gathering.

Girl meets boy.  Boy combusts...naturally.

My Writing: On Inspiration

An idea popped in my head the other day and I was able to write it down.  I love it when they come to me unexpectedly, though sometimes it interferes with a project I'm already working on.  But -- when inspiration strikes, you've got to run with it.  At least with the main thought that occurs.

I've found when the inspirations hit, if I don't write them down then they flit away.  Faster than I would like to admit.  So my advice to anyone that has a desire to write, or if you already write, is to have a notepad and pen handy at all times just for those moments when an idea strikes.  You never know what it may turn in to.

Below is the inspiration that I was able to write down.  If you care to comment about what you think the ending to the last sentence should be, feel free.  I'm cool with input, and who knows, if this idea becomes a novel, maybe you'll get credit for those four little words!

UNTITLED

My Query Critique

I received my Query Critique back the other day and was more than thrilled with the comments and suggestions.  You may recall I won a Query Critique by the members of the Writer Therapy blog [see here].  I've removed names for privacy, not that it really matters I suppose, but I thought it would be fair.

Here is what the email said about my query:

Kristie,

Wow, you have a great query here! I was really impressed. I think the biggest things you need to look at are

1. Shortening your query pitch -- the MAXIMUM length an agent wants to see is around 2 paragraphs. That will help you really get to the heart of the story, and give your query great focus. 
2. The consequence (the final sentence of the query pitch) is too muddled. She is faced with enslavement, but I'm not quite sure what that means. I would cut the "breaking down defenses" bit, because it just confuses me further, and focus on the enslavement, and how she'll lose her freedom forever (or whatever that entails) -- that is an AMAZING consequence if you nail it right.
3. You mention the Phoenix, and I am never clear if they are paranormal creatures (ie: werewolves) or if that is just the name of their group. Rather than clarifying, it might be easier just to take the name out and leave it vague in the query. You want the reader to be asking the right questions -- questions that pull them in -- rather than questions about the clarity of the story. If you do want to keep it in, just move Phoenix closer to the area where you describe what that is. I think that will solve the issue easily.   
4. The Title: Titles changes so often in the publishing company, but it is something that can really be used in a query letter to set you apart. Mostly because it is in the subject of the email, and if it is something that really appeals to an agent, they might be tempted to open it right away. So use the title to your advantage. The Phoenix: A Gathering -- that doesn't set it in a genre. It could even be non-fiction about the city of Phoenix (which is how I read it, at first). So you want something that really sets apart your story. 
5. Paranormal - I don't read this as a paranormal. The paranormal genre has pretty much trimmed down to anything that is werewolves/vampires/paranormal creatures. Your Phoenix people seem human enough. So I would look at the story and see if it is light scifi or fantasy, or some sub-genre of those. Also, paranormal is out, so sometimes that means automatic rejection. Sometimes it won't, but you don't want that risk. It reads more like a suburban fantasy to me (if it's set in a city and has a darker edge to it). 

I have more notes in the query itself. If you have any questions, feel free to email me to clarify. Hope this helps!! You really have a great story idea there, and I'd love to see this on the book shelf someday. Good luck!

So, in case you were wondering what a critique looks like, here you go (click on the image to enlarge).

 

Thanks to everyone at Writer Therapy, you guys are great!

My Reading List: Wesley the Owl

 

Wesley the Owl by Stacey O'Brien

This New York Times bestselling "sweet, quirky memoir" (USA TODAY) tells the "heartwarming story" (Publishers Weekly) of a biologist and the owl she rescued and raised. 


A book of unforgettable emotional resonance, Wesley the Owl took the book world by storm, with a 4-star review in People and a starred review in Publishers Weekly. Stacey O’Brien’s pioneering work about the emotional lives of owls is nothing less than enthralling.


When adopted, Wesley could not have survived in the wild. O’Brien watches him turn into a voracious carnivore (eating up to six mice a day), an avid communicator with whom she develops a language all their own, and eventually, a robust adult who preens in the mirror and objects to visits by any other males to "his" house. She makes important discoveries along the way, and tells how the playful, reasoning, and loving creature she set out to save ended up saving her.

Charting a unique partnership, Wesley the Owl is for animal lovers everywhere.

My Reading List: Destined

 

Destined (Wings) by Aprilynne Pike

Tamani looked at her gravely, and reached up to tuck her hair behind her ear.
He hesitated for an instant, then his hands found the sides of her face, pulling her to him. He didn't kiss her, just held her face close to his, their foreheads resting together, their noses almost touching.
She hated how much it felt like good-bye.
Laurel now knows the truth: Yuki is a rare Winter faerie, the most powerful—and deadly—of all, and Klea plans to use her to help conquer and destroy Avalon. But Klea's reach extends far beyond one wild Winter faerie. With Tamani, David, and Chelsea by her side, Laurel prepares to face what may be Avalon's final days, in the stunning conclusion to the Wings series.

My Reading List: Illusions

 

Illusions (Wings) by Aprilynne Pike

"I don't do patrols, I don't go hunting, I just stick close to you. You live your life. I'll keep you safe," Tamani said, sweeping a lock of hair from her face. "Or die trying."
Laurel hasn't seen Tamani since she begged him to let her go last year. Though her heart still aches, Laurel is confident that David was the right choice.
But just as life returns to normal, Laurel realizes that a hidden enemy lies in wait. Once again, Laurel must turn to Tamani to protect and guide her, for the danger that now threatens Avalon is one that no faerie thought would ever be possible. And for the first time, Laurel cannot be sure that her side will prevail.

My Reading List: Spells

 

Spells (Wings) by Aprilynne Pike

"I can't just storm in and proclaim my intentions. I can't ‘steal' you away. I just have to wait and hope that, someday, you'll ask," Tamani said.
"And if I don't?" Laurel said, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Then I guess I'll be waiting forever."

Although Laurel has come to accept her true identity as a faerie, she refuses to turn her back on her human life—and especially her boyfriend, David—to return to the faerie world.
But when she is summoned to Avalon, Laurel's feelings for the charismatic faerie sentry Tamani are undeniable. She is forced to make a choice—a choice that could break her heart.

My Reading List: Promised

 

Promised by Caragh M. O'Brien

After defying the ruthless Enclave, surviving the wasteland, and upending the rigid matriarchy of Sylum, Gaia Stone now faces her biggest challenge ever.  She must lead the people of Sylum back to the Enclave and persuade the Protectorat to grant them refuge from the wasteland.  In Gaia's absence, the Enclave has grown more cruel, more desperate to experiment on mothers from outside the wall, and now the stakes of cooperating or rebelling have never been higher.  Is Gaia ready, as a leader, to sacrifice what--or whom--she loves most?

My Reading List: Wings

 

Wings by Aprilynne Pike

Laurel was mesmerized, staring at the pale things. They were terrifyingly beautiful—too beautiful for words.
Laurel turned to the mirror again, her eyes on the hovering petals that floated beside her head. They looked almost like wings.
Laurel's life is the very definition of normal . . . until the morning when she wakes up to discover a flower blooming from her back. As it turns out, nothing in Laurel's life is what it seems. Now, with the help of an alluring faerie sentry who holds the key to her true past, Laurel must race to save her human family from the centuries-old faerie enemies who walk among them.

My Reading List: Cinder

 

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

 Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . .

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

Contests: WriterTherapy

I'm so excited!  I won a Query critique from the awesome folk at WriterTherapy.com.  Don't know what a query is?  Well, you will :)

From AgentQuery.com

"A query letter is a single page cover letter, introducing you and your book. That’s it. Nothing more, nothing less. It’s not a resume. It’s not rambling saga of your life as an aspiring writer. It’s not a friendly, “Hey, what’s up, buddy. I’m the next John Grisham. Got the next best selling thriller for ya,” kind of letter. And for the love of god, it is NOT more than one-page. Trust us on this.

A query letter has three concise paragraphs: the hook, the mini-synopsis, and your writer’s biography. Don’t stray from this format. You won’t catch an agent’s attention by inventing a creative new query format. You’ll just alienate your chances of being taken seriously as a professional writer. A query letter is meant to elicit an invitation to send sample chapters or even the whole manuscript to the agent. It’s not meant to show off how cute and snazzy you can be by breaking formatting rules and going against the grain. Keep it simple. Stick to three paragraphs. The goal is to get the agent to read your book, not to blow you off because you screwed up the introduction.

Paragraph One—The Hook: A hook is a concise, one-sentence tagline for your book. It’s meant to hook your reader’s interest, and wind them in.

Paragraph Two—Mini-synopsis: This is where you get to distill your entire 300 page novel into one paragraph. Lucky you.

So think of it this way. You had trouble writing the gist of your book in one sentence, right? Now, you get a whole paragraph. About 150 extra words. Here’s your chance to expand on your hook. Give a little bit more information about your main characters, their problems and conflicts, and the way in which adversity changes their lives. Read the back flaps of your favorite novels and try to copy how the conflict of the book is described in a single, juicy paragraph. You can do this. You really can. You just have to sit down, brainstorm, then vomit it all out onto the page. Afterwards, cut, paste, trim, revise, and reshape.

Paragraph Three—Writer’s bio: This should be the easiest part of your query. After all, it’s about you, the writer. Okay, so it’s a bit daunting, especially if you’ve never been published, never won any awards, hold no degrees from MFA writing schools, and possess no credentials to write your book. No problem. The less you have to say, the more space you have for your mini-synopsis. Always a plus.

Your Closing: Congratulations! You’ve finished your query letter. As a formal closing, be sure to do two things. First, thank the agent for her time and consideration.  If it’s fiction, alert the agent that the full manuscript is available upon request. And in case you still don’t believe us, we want to reiterate: don’t query agents until you’ve finished your full fiction manuscript. Agents will want to read the whole novel before they offer representation to you and your book."

So...are you ready to read my Query Letter for The Phoenix: A Gathering?  I'm sure it's not quite perfect, but I've revised it probably 10 times in the last month or two.  I hope it's close!

Dear Agent (this will obviously be personalized),

Seventeen-year-old Ivy Watson has just met the gorgeous Dane Phillips who's annoying, mysterious, and...naked. Unfortunately, just after she finds him, he commandeers her trusty blue Chevy and holds it hostage for a kiss.

As if meeting this strange boy isn't enough, he helps her to finally meet the recluse father she’s never known, who, along with Dane, turns out to be part of an ancient society of regenerating humans. Ivy learns she is a hybrid, a genetic anomaly that shouldn’t exist - humans and Phoenix are incompatible.

Nathaniel Williams, an extremist member of the Phoenix kidnaps Ivy for an experiment hoping to eradicate the human race. Nathaniel soon discovers that Ivy is immune to the effects of his experiment and that she could actually be the destruction of his people. She must learn to embrace the part of her that is Phoenix in order to save herself from a life of enslavement to the one man that has the power to break down all her defenses.

THE PHOENIX: A GATHERING is a Young Adult Paranormal novel complete at 81,000 words.  This is my first novel.

Thank you for your consideration,

Contests: WriterTherapy

 

The talented team at Writer Therapy are holding yet, another great contest.  But first, they have some great new webisodes that have just been released.  Here is the first one:

And the second one:

I hope you enjoyed these two webisodes as much as I did. Keep checking back at WriterTherapy.com for upcoming videos.

My Writing: Round 1 Revisions...DONE!

Ha!  Take that round 1 revisions.  I have finished thee.  On September 5th I gave my self a goal of two weeks to complete my first set of revision and now 17 days later I'm done (ahem...please ignore my 3 day overage, this is my first editing attempt after all).

So, what have I learned?

1. When you write your first draft (pantser style as I do) your fingers tend to type one or two words behind your brain, such as: Yesterday, I to the mall to buy a new shirt.  Did you catch it?  The missing word?  Read it again, you will.
2. Correcting the tense may seem quick and easy, but in reality, it's a lot harder than I thought.  Sure changing 'did' to 'do' or vice versa is easy, the hard part is when a sentence or paragraph is written in the wrong tense.  You have to go in and rearrange the whole structure to make sure the flow is just right.  Not.  That.  Easy.
3. First revisions lead to second revisions.  And most likely third.

So what's next?  Revision #2 of course.  Oh, and a few select test readers.

My Reading List: Hidden

 

Hidden by Sophie Jordan

A dangerous journey.

Shattered bonds.

Undying passion. 

Jacinda was supposed to bond with Cassian, the "prince" of their pride. But she resisted her fate long before she fell in love with Will—a human and, worse, a hunter. When she ran away with Will, it ended in disaster, with Cassian's sister, Miram, captured. Weighed down by guilt, Jacinda knows she must rescue her to set things right. Yet to do so she will have to venture deep into the heart of enemy territory. 

The only way Jacinda can reach Miram is by posing as a prisoner herself, though once she assumes that disguise, things quickly spiral out of her control. As she learns more about her captors, she realizes that even if Will and Cassian can carry out their part of the plan, there's no guarantee they'll all make it out alive. But what Jacinda never could have foreseen is that escaping would be only the beginning. . . .

Loyalties are tested and sacrifices made in the explosive conclusion to Sophie Jordan's Firelight trilogy.

Contests: WriterTherapy

So have you ever wanted to enter a writing contest?  I never knew I could ;)  Today, I found out about this contest by WriterTherapy.com and decided to toss my hat into the mix.  Here's a little info about the contest:

We know how important that first line is for hooking an agent, editor, and reader. Now show us some great beginnings! We have three fabulous agents giving prizes for three talented winners of our first page contest. So what are the prizes?

Grand Prize for 3 talented winners
Query critique from agent Sara Crowe, Harvey Klinger
Query critique from agent Molly Ker Hawn, The Bent Agency
1st Chapter critique from Nicole Resciniti, The Seymour Agency

Runners-up will receive awesome prizes, including more 1st chapter critiques, books, mouse pads, and more!

 

So, wouldn't it  be great to win any number of those prizes???  If you're a writer, you should go check it out - who knows, maybe you'll be one of the lucky winners!

My Writing: Revisions

Revisions, day 1: first 25 pages - DONE!

This is what the first page of my manuscript looks like after I've made my initial revisions with the good old red pen.  Oh how I love thee!  Actually, I really do.  I find that I feel a sense of accomplishment when I see the red ink on the page, it's good to revise and edit your work.

Now, I'm on to typing up my changes on the first 25 pages.

My Writing: Let the edits begin

Round 1: Read my novel...

Sounds easy enough...right?

Right.  Right?  Okay, we'll see...

Here's what I'm looking for:

• Pieces of the plot that may be missing
• Pieces of the plot that don't make sense
• Pacing
• Tense (as in past and present tense...believe it or not, it's harder than you think to keep it all the same)
• Are my characters likeable?  Believable?  Annoying?

Everything else will come in round 2!

Time frame for Round 1: 2 weeks (I can do it!  Right?)

My Reading List: The Forgotten Garden

 

The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton

From the #1 internationally bestselling author of The House at Riverton, a novel that takes the reader on an unforgettable journey through generations and across continents as two women try to uncover their family’s secret past.

A tiny girl is abandoned on a ship headed for Australia in 1913. She arrives completely alone with nothing but a small suitcase containing a few clothes and a single book—a beautiful volume of fairy tales. She is taken in by the dockmaster and his wife and raised as their own. On her twenty-fi rst birthday, they tell her the truth, and with her sense of self shattered and very little to go on, "Nell" sets out to trace her real identity. Her quest leads her to Blackhurst Manor on the Cornish coast and the secrets of the doomed Mountrachet family. But it is not until her granddaughter, Cassandra, takes up the search after Nell’s death that all the pieces of the puzzle are assembled. A spellbinding tale of mystery and self-discovery, The Forgotten Garden will take hold of your imagination and never let go.

My Reading List: Silver

 

Silver by Talia Vance

“As I step into the room, a silver flash blurs my vision.  Before I can take a breath, the world falls away.”

Brianna has always felt invisible. People stare right past her, including the one boy she can’t resist, Blake Williams. But everything changes at a house party when Brianna’s charm bracelet slips off and time stands still. In that one frozen, silver moment, Blake not only sees her, he recognizes something deep inside her that she’s been hiding even from herself.

Discovering she is descended from Danu, the legendary Bandia of Celtic myth, Brianna finds herself questioning the truth of who she is. And when she accidentally binds her soul to Blake, their mutual attraction becomes undeniable.

But Blake has his own secret, one that could prove deadly for them both.

Bound together by forbidden magic, Brianna and Blake find themselves at the heart of an ancient feud that threatens to destroy their lives and their love.

My Writing: I'm a pantser...and proud of it!

Now that I've completed (yay!!!) my first novel, I've determined my writing style.  I'm a pantser, or, someone that writes what comes to them and then revises when they are done - see: flying by the seat of their pants.  There are generally two types of writers out there, pantsers like myself and outliners.

I have to say, that since finishing The Phoenix: A Gathering, I've started working on another project.  So far, it's called Untouchable, but sadly, I don't think the title will stay.  Here's a little peak into my writing process:

Step 1 - Begin with a sentence or a vision.  What usually happens for me is I will hear a little voice in my head (not the crazy kind) and I will have an opening line that appears typically out of nowhere and I'll write it down.  The Phoenix began on my iPhone, believe it or not!

Step 2 - Reread sentence.  I'll stew on this opening sentence or paragraph for a day or two and see what comes about.

Step 3 - Write, write, write.

With Untouchable (working title), I got my general thoughts down on the computer and then tried outlining as well as trying to come up with the conflicts and climaxes, etc.  Oh my gosh!  I am just not that kind of girl.  Outlining at this point in my writing is just not happening.  Perhaps it never will.

I did however, come up with some valid questions I felt I needed to answer before continuing.  In case you were wondering, here they are:

1. Why is the main character (MC) important?
2. What is the disease? - which now has since been changed altogether
3. Where does the story take place?
4. Why are the men and women separated? - which spurred one of my major conflicts
5. Why does the populous live like they do?
6. Who is in control?
7. What are the conflicts? - not all are known to me at this time
8. What type of novel will this be?

I also get A LOT of inspiration from the music I can't live without while writing.  So, I have to give a shout out to PANDORA, and the channel I'm tuned to almost all day...every day...GOTYE!

Here is my playlist for writing:

• I Will Follow You Into The Dark by Death Cab For Cutie
• Roll Away Your Stone by Mumford & Sons
• New Slang by The Shins
• White Blank Page by Mumford & Sons
• The Funeral by Band Of Horses
• Welcome Home by Radical Face
• Little Lion Man (LP Version) by Mumford & Sons
• Cosmic Love by Florence + The Machine
• Comes And Goes (In Waves) by Greg Laswell
• Flightless Bird by Iron & Wine
• Arms by Christina Perri
• Faster by Within Temptation
• Fade Into You by Mazzy Star
• Hearts A Mess by Gotye
• Set The Fire To The Third Bar Feat. Martha Wainwright by Snow Patrol
• The Lonely by Christina Perri
• Just Breath (Live: On Ten Legs) by Pearl Jam
• Love The Way You Lie, Pt. III (Original Demo) by Skylar Grey
• Thistle & Weeds by Mumford & Sons
• Somebody That I Used To Know (Tiesto Remix) by Gotye

My Reading List: Once

Once by Anna Carey

When you're being hunted, who can you trust?

For the first time since she escaped from her school many months ago, Eve can sleep soundly. She's living in Califia, a haven for women, protected from the terrifying fate that awaits orphaned girls in The New America.

But her safety came at a price: She was forced to abandon Caleb, the boy she loves, wounded and alone at the city gates. When Eve gets word that Caleb is in trouble, she sets out into the wild again to rescue him, only to be captured and brought to the City of Sand, the capital of The New America.

Trapped inside the City walls, Eve uncovers a shocking secret about her past—and is forced to confront the harsh reality of her future. When she discovers Caleb is alive, Eve attempts to flee her prison so they can be together—but the consequences could be deadly. She must make a desperate choice to save the ones she loves . . . or risk losing Caleb forever.

In this breathless sequel to Eve, Anna Carey returns to her tale of romance, adventure, and sacrifice in a world that is both wonderfully strange and chillingly familiar.

My Writing: an Update

I'm so excited to tell you that I have just completed the first draft of The Phoenix: A Gathering!  It's complete at 82,000 words.  I'm sure after edits/revisions, etc. it will gain or lose a few of those words, but right now I'm just taking a break from The Phoenix and letting it sit for about a week.  I figure, after staring at the computer screen for the past 40 +/- days, it's best to let it stew a bit.

I have to say that when I was vacationing in June/July, that I never thought the idea that came to mind on the first of July would ever develop into an 82,000 word novel in 40 days.  The characters and story poured out of my fingers so easily, that I'm so inspired to keep writing that I have already started on a second novel, with brand new characters!

You can visit My Writing page to read the unedited Prologue of The Phoenix: A Gathering.  Keep in mind, what you read is the rough, first draft, completely unedited and raw.  I do hope you enjoy it, and if you do, feel free to leave a comment!  Also, the writing samples I leave on this blog belong to ME.  I've spent hours upon hours creating them, so please do not copy anything of mine without permission.  Thanks!

~Kristie
"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend.  Inside a dog it's too dark to read - Groucho Marx"

My Reading List: Shatter Me

 

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

"You can't touch me," I whisper.
I'm lying, is what I don't tell him.
He can touch me, is what I'll never tell him.
But things happen when people touch me.
Strange things.
Bad things.
No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal, but The Reestablishment has plans for her. Plans to use her as a weapon.
But Juliette has plans of her own.
After a lifetime without freedom, she's finally discovering a strength to fight back for the very first time—and to find a future with the one boy she thought she'd lost forever.

My Reading List: Eve

 

Eve by Anna Carey

Where do you go when nowhere is safe?

After a deadly virus wiped out most of Earth's population, the world is a terrifying place.
Eighteen-year-old Eve has never been beyond the heavily guarded perimeter of her school, where she and two hundred other orphaned girls have been promised a bright future in The New America. But the night before graduation, Eve learns the shocking truth about her school's real purpose—and the horrifying fate that awaits her.

Fleeing the only home she's ever known, Eve sets off on a long, treacherous journey, searching for a place she can survive. Along the way she encounters Caleb, a rough, rebellious boy living in the wild. Caleb slowly wins her trust . . . and her heart. But when soldiers begin hunting them, Eve must choose between true love and her life.

My Reading List: Insurgent

 

Insurgent by Veronica Roth

One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so. 

New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth's much-anticipated second book of the dystopian Divergent series is another intoxicating thrill ride of a story, rich with hallmark twists, heartbreaks, romance, and powerful insights about human nature.

My Reading List: Divergent

 

Divergent by Veronica Roth

In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

Debut author Veronica Roth bursts onto the YA scene with the first book in the Divergent series—dystopian thrillers filled with electrifying decisions, heartbreaking betrayals, stunning consequences, and unexpected romance.

My Reading List: The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

 

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells—taken without her knowledge—became one of the most important tools in medicine. The first “immortal” human cells grown in culture, they are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than sixty years. If you could pile all HeLa cells ever grown onto a scale, they’d weigh more than 50 million metric tons—as much as a hundred Empire State Buildings. HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom bomb’s effects; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions.

Yet Henrietta Lacks remains virtually unknown, buried in an unmarked grave.

Now Rebecca Skloot takes us on an extraordinary journey, from the “colored” ward of Johns Hopkins Hospital in the 1950s to stark white laboratories with freezers full of HeLa cells; from Henrietta’s small, dying hometown of Clover, Virginia—a land of wooden slave quarters, faith healings, and voodoo—to East Baltimore today, where her children and grandchildren live and struggle with the legacy of her cells.

Henrietta’s family did not learn of her “immortality” until more than twenty years after her death, when scientists investigating HeLa began using her husband and children in research without informed consent. And though the cells had launched a multimillion-dollar industry that sells human biological materials, her family never saw any of the profits. As Rebecca Skloot so brilliantly shows, the story of the Lacks family—past and present—is inextricably connected to the dark history of experimentation on African Americans, the birth of bioethics, and the legal battles over whether we control the stuff we are made of.

Over the decade it took to uncover this story, Rebecca became enmeshed in the lives of the Lacks family—especially Henrietta’s daughter Deborah, who was devastated to learn about her mother’s cells. She was consumed with questions: Had scientists cloned her mother? Did it hurt her when researchers infected her cells with viruses and shot them into space? What happened to her sister, Elsie, who died in a mental institution at the age of fifteen? And if her mother was so important to medicine, why couldn’t her children afford health insurance?
         
Intimate in feeling, astonishing in scope, and impossible to put down, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks captures the beauty and drama of scientific discovery, as well as its human consequences.