On Jazz, Robotics, and Revisions 💖⚙️📚
Plus BTS of my school visit + join me on Tome? 📚
Hello,
I hope that you’re keeping well. Last week I had so much fun being the guest author for the fifth graders at Fellows Elementary! We had an excellent discussion about creating characters that make readers feel seen and writing with empathy. The students asked fantastic questions, too.
After the presentation, I spent the rest of the day running around Ames with my mom. We went to Cornbread for lunch, then we visited Dog-Eared Books and Cook's Emporium. I loved spending time with Mom and having an afternoon off.
Once upon a time, I was in both Robotics and jazz band. (I was also in Art Club, Writer’s Ink, marching band, and concert band, but that’s a story for another time.) I’ve always had a need to improvise and experiment. (I’ve always said I’d try just about anything once for science. It usually pays off, or at least I have an interesting story to tell after the fact. 😂) Lately I’ve been thinking about how those experiences have influenced my writing process, especially as I’m working on revisions.
In jazz band, we played from sheet music, but there was always wiggle room for improvising. The key provided the structure, so even if someone were playing a solo, they’d have guidelines for what notes would sound right within the framework of the song. When I’m plotting, I plan out my major story events and characters, but there’s room for me to improvise. If my character gives me a more compelling idea, I’ll do it.
During my time in Robotics, I primarily worked on the electrical systems of the robot. This often meant a lot of waiting around on the mechanical team to build a functional chassis and drive train so that our electronics had somewhere to go. (When I got bored of waiting, I learned how to help build the base, too.)
Sometimes, we’d build a prototype robot out of whatever material was available in the shop. One year, we used an old orange crate as our mockup. It looked ridiculous with all of the components stuck on this crate with wheels, but it worked! We were able to test out different configurations while waiting on the mechanical team. By the time the robot’s metal body was built, we had time to make the electronics shine and even add flourishes like neon lights. (Hooray for being extra! 💖)
The orange crate prototype reminds me so much of why having multiple drafts is important. My first drafts may not look like the finished book, but I need to write the first draft, get through the ugly phase and test out my plots. During edits, I’ll refine the process until eventually the story works and I can add style.
Since the school visit last week, I’ve been deeply entrenched in revisions for my WIP. It’s going well, but I’m at the point where I’m anxious to have my rewrites done and hand the book off to beta readers. I’m not quite there yet! It has been fun shaping this novel into the story it’s meant to be. I can’t wait to share more soon!
In other news, I decided to try Tome, a brand new app devoted to fantasy books (and all the various subgenres of fantasy.) It went live on Tuesday.
Though I haven’t been able to spend much time on there yet beyond creating my profile, the chaotic energy in my feed has been fun! It’s been a mix of book reviews, fan art, and memes, along with readers and authors connecting. You can find me on Tome here. You can learn more about the app by visiting their Discord server here.
Tome for Android (it’s just a browser for now.)
Upcoming Virtual Events
This week there are a couple of fun steampunk events happening virtually that I’m planning on attending:
Third Annual Tippy Golden Teacup Awards on Friday, Jan 31st at 8:30 pm Central time, hosted by Madame Askew and the Grand Arbiter. I listened in last year and had fun. It’s sort of like Oscars for people in the steampunk community, but with more heart and whimsy.
Tea Time Treats hosted by the BrassGears Adventurers Society on Sunday, Feb 2nd at 2 pm Central time. Susanna Davenport will be teaching us via Zoom how to bake scones and participants can bake along with her virtually. I love cooking, but I don’t bake often (it’s much harder to improvise.) I’m excited to learn!
Happy reading!
Kelsey
