A Boy In The Girls' Bathroom (Re-Post)

I'm going through old blog posts from the archives and have decided to re-post a few. Here is one from 2010:

A few weeks ago, I subbed for an elementary school art teacher who had a kindergarten class at the end of the day. For those of you who teach or sub, you probably know that kindergarten can be adorable and fun... but they can also be exhausting and difficult.

I had one boy in particular who made my day a bit challenging. We'll call him David. My initial impression of David was that he was a sweet little five-year-old, eager to please. He handed me a folded piece of paper that read, "I Love You." Awww, right? Until the girl next to him started to cry, because he had ripped off the corner of her paper to use for the note!

(Off topic story real quick: That wasn't the only note I got from a kindergarten student that day. Another boy gave me one that said, "You are a nice teacher. I live near Giant." Priceless!)

So, I kept an eye on David, who was still a sweet kid, but just had a knack for getting in trouble. He asked me if he could go to the bathroom, so I let him go. A few minutes later, he returned to the classroom, doing that I-have-to-go-potty dance.

"What happened? You didn't go to the bathroom?" I asked.

"There was a spider in the boys' room!" David cried. "Can you kill it for me?"

"I can't, David. I have to stay here and teach the rest of the class. I can try to find someone to take care of it for you..."

Then he pointed to one of his friends. "Can I take him with me to the bathroom? Maybe I won't be scared."

I gave him permission to bring his (male) friend to the bathroom with him. They came back to the classroom minutes later, neither of them doing a potty dance. Good sign. But when a little girl tapped me on the arm and said, "David and [his friend] went to the bathroom in the girls' room," things did not look good for David.

Because, just in time, another staff member happened to walk in. When I told her the situation, she was fuming. She pulled David aside and gave him a strict and memorable lecture.

"Don't you ever, ever, EVER, go into a girls' bathroom again! Not even for the littlest reason! A girl should never go into a boys' bathroom, so you should never go into theirs! Ever!"

Did I mention she said "ever"?

I let my writer hat creep onto my head for a moment, and I wished that David was one of my characters. I would take this situation in his early childhood and burn it into his memory. I imagined David as a high schooler in gym class, playing basketball with his classmates when the ball bounces out of the gym and into an adjacent room. The girls' room.

"Go get it, David," someone says. "No one's looking."

But he remembers kindergarten too well. Don't you EVER.

That's the thing about working with kids. I often wonder how much of what they're experiencing now is going to stay with them years down the road. And when I build my characters, I also take a glimpse into their childhoods to see what significant moments have affected them. It might not be as silly as going into the opposite bathroom, but then again, we as adults do remember the strangest things!

Any thoughts on specific childhood memories, either in your own life or (if you're a writer) in your characters'? Writers, have you given any thought to your adult characters' childhood?

Read More

"That's Not Who I Am"

If you're a writer, you know your characters. You know their background, what they like and dislike, and how they'd act in certain situations. It's like they're, well, real. (Some writers may insist their characters ARE real, in fact.)

But just like getting to know a person in real life, this takes time. And every writer's process is different.

I usually start out with a very basic personality type (I ask questions like, is he/she extroverted or introverted? More left-brained or right-brained? Spontaneous or a planner?) Then as I get to know the character from the inside, his/her physical description pops into my head. This is usually pretty subconscious, because if I think too hard about what I want a character to look like, I get too picky. So I go with what immediately comes to mind.

Then I name him or her. This takes longer, because I love names and want to make sure the character has just the right one.

And then I press "play". I imagine how the character will react to each situation in the story. I imagine his or her interactions with every other character. I write it all down.

But sometimes I don't get it right.

I was drafting an outline of a potential novella a few days ago, and my original idea was to have two characters (a guy and a girl) argue with each other on a regular basis. But even in the outline phase, I couldn't make it work. The guy character just wouldn't approach her and wouldn't respond when she initiated an argument.

He basically told me, "That's not who I am. I don't fight. I avoid conflict."

(Not that, you know, he actually spoke to me, but I wouldn't judge writers who do have this happen!)

I realized... this isn't about me. I've created fictional people who are so real, they've almost got minds of their own. Just like we humans have ways about us that are "in character" and "out of character", these guys have to be authentic to themselves, too.

And in the end, I've got a much stronger character because of it.

Any other writers have experience with characters who know themselves a little too well? Any readers feel like characters in books they've read must actually be real?

Read More

It's Here -- The Brand New ShelleySly.com!

In my last post, I said changes were coming, and here are (most of) the changes!

I know it might seem a little too forward of me to have a domain name when I'm not published yet or about to be published soon. But I'm kind of a techy girl and I'd always wanted one ever since creating my first website at age 13. So here it is, ShelleySly.com!

I'm not exactly married to the color scheme I chose, so that might change over the next few weeks/months. But I do like the link slider on the main blog page. If you haven't seen it yet (I forget if it shows up on individual blog post pages), check it out here. I didn't write that code or anything; it came with the blog template, but I did some editing to it to make it mine.

I don't really have anything of more substance to post about today, but I'm hoping to have some bigger posts (including maybe eventually an announcement) in the weeks to come.

Has anyone else changed their blog's look lately? Anyone have or consider a domain name?

Read More

Under Construction

Over the next few weeks, I'll be making some changes around here, so I won't be writing any regular posts. This blog is getting a new look and will hopefully serve as my author website, complete with a shiny domain name. (*insert "oohs" and "ahs" here*) It's a time-consuming process full of lovely HTML and CSS. Let's hope I can balance it all with my other work and get it finished somewhat soon.

See you guys when it's done! Hope you're all doing well, and for those who are about to participate in NaNoWriMo, good luck to you!

Read More

If You're A Creative Person, Consider Yourself Lucky

I don't like to be a downer on the internet. I know I sometimes share unfortunate news on here and on Twitter, but for the most part, I try to stay somewhat positive. I'll be honest, though -- the past couple of months, I've gone through some tough times. (But I've had quite a number of good times too, actually.) One of the best ways I've dealt with it all has been through creativity.

Creative people are lucky. When we hit a rough patch, we can look around us and take pieces of what we see and feel, and use those pieces in our creations. I don't even mean just writers. Musicians, artists, anyone who does a craft can use that art to express what they've experienced. If I wasn't creative, I wouldn't have all of these outlets.

I feel really fortunate. Despite my circumstances.

One of the hardest, most painful things I've had to deal with lately is the passing of my cat, Zo. She was in seemingly good health until only a week or two before her death. I didn't think I'd lose her so soon. I'm coping all right now, but there's still a peculiar emptiness in my heart that wasn't there before.

(That's Zo, two years ago, sitting on her favorite scratcher. Even with all the comfy places to sleep around the house, she preferred cardboard. So strange.)

Losing Zo brought out in me a strong feeling of missing someone. I currently miss a lot of people, but this fresh wound made me relive that initial heartbreak when you realize you can't be with someone anymore. It's almost a beautiful feeling, because it means you loved someone very much.

I plan to explore the depth of that feeling in a future story.

So, thank goodness I'm a creative person. It's certainly helped me deal with tragedy. How about you? Have there been times when you've found inspiration from an unfortunate time? Do you feel fortunate to be creative?

Read More

THOSE WHO TRESPASS Paperback Release & Interview!

Today's a happy, happy day, folks! It's the paperback release of THOSE WHO TRESPASS by Melody Valadez! The e-book released on 8/27, and I've read it and totally adore it! If you like realistic, flawed characters, suspense and plot twists that make you gasp, and an adorably fun romance, you will love this book!

Here's the cover:

Awesome, isn't it? And here's the premise:

Seventeen-year-old Jenn Alistor is a murderer.

For months, she and her brother, Jake, have stayed one step ahead of the FBI. Now Jake is missing, maybe even kidnapped, and Jenn's last hope is a risky deal with the feds: if they'll help her find her brother, she'll turn herself in. But their so-called help comes in the form of 21-year-old Clayton Ford—brother of the guy she killed.

Lives aren't the only thing at stake any more. This is Jenn's one shot at forgiveness. But she has to choose.

Time is running out.

Publisher's Weekly even called it "an adrenaline rush in book form." Wow!!

To celebrate this exciting day, I interviewed Melody Valadez with some unique, THOSE-WHO-TRESPASS-related questions!

Interview with Melody Valadez
Shelley Sly: Hi there, Melody! Great to have you here.

In the story, Jenn Alistor has a very specific style. Black and white, nothing colorful, but she used to accent with red until recently. If you had to wear the same outfit nearly every day, what would it look like?

Melody Valadez: Well, my first answer was a skirt, because they make me feel pretty. But then I realized how utterly impractical and cumbersome that would be, to wear a skirt for the rest of my life. Thus, the answer is skinny jeans. :) With brown boots {Katniss boots, not cowboy}, brown shirts, brown scarves, and brown fingerless gloves. I, uh, like brown. It is, after all, the color of chocolate, creamed coffee...and chocolate with cream in coffee: mochas.

SS: I agree that a skirt would be a bit impractical, but I love the idea of an almost all-brown outfit!

Okay, so Jenn notes the differences between Jake's and Clayton's gum flavor preferences (lime vs. cinnamon). What's your favorite gum flavor?

MV: Nothing beats tropical/citrus.

SS: I'm currently going through a mango gum phase, so it's all about the fruit-flavored gum for me. :)

If you had to make a fairly quick and discreet Target run, what key items would you buy?

MV: Oooh, that's hard... Target has so many useful things! A booklight, for reading whatever book was in my bag when I went on the run...and for finding my way through dark alleys. Advil, for headaches and the occasional gunshot wound. {My headaches aren't nearly as long-lasting as yours, and they're probably not half as bad, either, since Advil *usually* takes care of them, but I don't fancy the idea of criss-crossing the state with a throbbing head.} And chocolate, because this is most likely a high-stress venture, and stress demands chocolate.

SS: Oh yeah, I hear ya about headache meds. Gotta be prepared. And those pesky gunshot wounds... *shakes head*

So, if you were in the library with someone else while he was doing some really interesting-sounding research, but you were ordered to ignore him and read for 2-3 hours, which books would keep you occupied?

MV: If this guy is as good looking at Clayton, he's a bit hard to ignore, but I would *attempt* it by grabbing one of Megan Whalen Turner's Queen's Thief series...can't read those too often!

SS: I'll have to check those out. :)

Jenn is well-known for being a murderer, famous enough that she makes the news. What (besides being an author) would you be well-known for that you'd make the news? (Can be something good, not necessarily a crime!)

MV: It's surprisingly hard to imagine myself being that famous! Since I'm also a physics major and {about to be} involved in some research, I'm tempted to say that we'd {they'd} make a scientific breakthrough important enough to merit a couple of minutes on CNN. Not that I'm holding my breath. Physicists don't get particularly famous in the real world, and major breakthroughs come around about once every fifty years {feels like}. And we thought the publishing industry was a lot of work with little to show for it, haha

SS: A scientific breakthrough? That's incredible! Fingers crossed that you'll be double famous as an author and a physicist!

Thanks for coming by and answering these questions, Melody! You are your book are both fabulous.

Check out the new paperback (and e-book) of THOSE WHO TRESPASS on Amazon!

Read More

Happy Release Day to A MISSING PEACE by Beth Fred!

I'm a couple of days late, since the official release was on Sunday (but I tweeted about it, if you follow me. If you don't follow me, I'm @ShellSly.)

Beth is hosting a Twitter release party for her YA novel, A MISSING PEACE, at 9PM EST. There will be a $10 gift card up for grabs, so don't miss it! Follow the hashtag #AMISSINGPEACE.

Here's some more about the book:

A turbulent, emotionally charged YA novel that breaks down barriers and challenges the status quo...

Angry, seventeen-year-old Iraqi war refugee Mirriam Yohanna hates her new life in Killeen, Texas, where the main attraction is a military base, populated with spoiled army brats like Caleb Miller.

Caleb has much to be angry about too, including Mirriam who turns him down flat in front of everyone. Eager for retribution, Caleb agrees to a dare that will see him take Mirriam to the prom and regain his pride.

But their relationship soon moves beyond high school antics. Mirriam and Caleb are bound together by more than location, and as they are forced to work closely together on a school assignment, they start to uncover an explosive story that has the potential to ruin lives — and both of their futures. One single truth changes everything and strengthens their bond.

When Mirriam's family discovers their relationship, they decide it's time to arrange her marriage to a proper Iraqi man. Caleb must convince Mirriam that he is in it for forever — or risk losing her for good. (Summary from Amazon.com)

* * *
I'm a fan of sweet love stories, and this one sounds like a refreshing change from the "insta-love" that I often see in romance books. (I haven't read the entirety of A MISSING PEACE yet, so I'm just going by what I can tell. It's next on my list to read, though!) Sound like your kind of book? Buy it here!

Congratulations on your release, Beth!

Read More