2013

In early September, the Canadian Children’s Book Centre named Yesterday’s Dead as one of five finalists for the Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction for Young People, one of the 2013 TD Canadian Children’s Literature Awards to be presented on October 22, 2013 in Toronto. We were travelling when I received this exciting news.

Being a finalist is equal parts thrilling and daunting because all of the finalists are terrific books by incredibly talented Canadian authors:

I’m staggered by the degree to which historical fiction continues to offer compelling stories that young people want to read. Like me, all of these authors are fascinated by stories from the past. Like me, they love the research and the possibilities they uncover, And like me, they probably tear their hair out, too, as they work to get the story right. I encourage you to read all of this year’s nominated finalists and share them with your favourite young readers.

Writing for young people is about being the very best writer you can be, every single day, because our audience has the highest standards of all. I’m honoured to have my first novel stand shoulder-to-shoulder with these outstanding books. Stay tuned for the results from the October 22 gala in Toronto!

When I was a math teacher, I spent a lot of time on equations: writing them, solving them, using them to test my students’ math skills. Knowing how to solve equations is one of the most useful, and comforting, skills we can gain from studying mathematics.

As a writer, I still find equations useful and comforting. After all, you know exactly where you stand with equations: the whole idea is that the bits on either side of the equal sign are … well … equal.

abacus_14056_smHow is that useful or comforting for writers?

Stories are like math problems. Say that my hero, Ms. X, faces a series of obstacles in accomplishing a task. Her story will only be interesting if those obstacles are big enough and difficult enough to force Ms. X to stretch and grow in order to overcome them.

 

In equation language: original Ms. X + growth in Ms. X = size of obstacles

Now I can use my math brain to test my writing equation. If the obstacles are too big, Ms. X will not be able to stretch or grow enough to overcome them, and the story will fizzle out. If they’re too small, the changes in Ms. X won’t be compelling enough to make the reader care whether Ms. X succeeds. The trick is to get the balance right by creating obstacles that are big enough to make Ms. X change in a believable way.

When faced with a writing roadblock, a writer can ask: How big is the challenge facing this character? What action or change will the character have to make in order to overcome it? Does that action or change fall within the character’s capability, or have I created a an equation that doesn’t work?

 

I’m thrilled to announce that Yesterday’s Dead has been shortlisted for the 2012 IODE Violet Downey Book award, alongside books from four very accomplished, award-winning Canadian authors:

Finding the right words to tell important stories is challenging and exhilarating, and it’s an ongoing learning process. I’ve learned a lot about writing from these authors, and to have Meredith’s story recognized alongside their work is hugely encouraging. I hope you’ll read their books. 

The award is offered annually for the best young children’s English language book containing at least 500 words of text.The winner will be announced at IODE Canada’s 113th National Annual Meeting in Calgary, Alberta on 31 May 2013. IODE Canada is a national women’s charitable organization dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for individuals through education support, community service and citizenship programs.