WOW Wednesday: Jessica Corra on Letting Your Crazy Out

by Martina Boone

Jessica Corra, today’s guest, eats, sleeps, and breathes words. Really, she’s only nominally crazy. In real life, she has a degree in English/Creative Writing which qualifies her to type really fast and point out your comma splices. She lives in Philadelphia, where she is working on more books. She is represented by Suzie Townsend of FinePrint Literary, but you can find her on her blog or on Twitter.

“My Crazy, Let Me Show You It”

by Jessica Corra

When I found out my debut novel, After You, would be published by Dial in Spring 2013 (look, I got my plug out of the way in the first line, I’m efficient), I was standing in a Barnes and Noble. I began flapping my hands up and down in front of my face, squeaking, “My book’s going to be here. My book’s going to be here.”

Because no matter how excited I am about everything else related to publishing, the whole endeavor is summed up in that line: my book’s going to be here. You’re going to be able to read my book. The gravity of that astounds me at the most basic level. We often say we write because we want to share our stories with people, but until your story is going to be shared with people, it’s an abstract idea. At least, it didn’t hit me until it was going to be a reality. (This is as it should be, I think. I would never have finished a novel if I had any real sense of an audience. Your mileage may vary.)

I think it took a full day for me to realize precisely what that meant: you’re going to be able to read my book? Oh. Em. Gee. I’m a practical writer; I believe in deadlines and wordcounts and the daily unbeautiful work of it. But I also believe that books are truth, words have magic, and that good writing is a piece of our souls made manifest.

So, basically, I’m writing to show you my soul. And you’re going to see it, in all its broken, vulnerable beauty. You might not like it. I have to be okay with that. Thing is, souls are resilient. They can be shaped and molded into stories, tossed around between the writer and the reader, and when caught, still shine their truths out. They’re soft things, vulnerable but resilient. Haven’t you noticed that about the books you love? They are fierce things, and they can burn themselves out in their fierceness. They leave you hollow and aching because they took a piece of you with them. I hope my books could be like that for someone.

Writers are some of the most courageous people I know, emotionally. We’re not afraid to let our crazy out, and we get that you have your own crazy. Heck, we write because of that. We want you to see you aren’t alone. So, come Spring 2013, I hope you’ll like my crazy. I worked very hard on it.

Martina Boone

Martina Boone is the award-winning author of the romantic southern gothic Heirs of Watson Island series, starting with COMPULSION from Simon & Schuster, Simon Pulse and the Celtic Legends Collection of novels set in Scotland, Cornwall, and Ireland beginning with LAKE OF DESTINY. She’s passionate about improving lives through literacy and the love of books, and she runs the Compulsion For Reading program to distribute books to underserved schools and libraries.

She lives with her husband, children, Shetland Sheepdog Phinney, and Zoey the lopsided cat, and she enjoys writing contemporary romantic fiction with a hint of magic set in small towns and beautiful places. When she isn’t writing, she’s addicted to travel, horses, skiing, chocolate flavored tea, and anything with Nutella on it.

Post © Martina Boone and/or Adventures in YA Publishing. All rights reserved.

Posted: Aug 31, 2011

Category: Imported from AYAP

Tags: Literary Agents | WOW Wednesday

Welcome to Transmedia Mutts

Yellow origami dog on a teal background

Unleash your creative bark!

Shout out to AYAP!

Logo for Adventures in YA Publishing

Thank you to the women who started Adventures in YA Publishing and ran it for years. AYAP and TMM have merged to form Adventures in PUPlishing, and the legacy AYAP posts are now part of TMM. Click here to learn more about the earlier AYAP team.

Click to Join our Facebook Group

Share advice, practice pitching, celebrate successes, and support each other through writing and publishing adventures.

← Previous: Tumblr - The Missing Link for Writing and Social Media Next: Winners, TWO New Giveaways, and an Interview with Cinda Williams Chima →

The first slide is an animation of a science/magic room in a castle. A cartoon character of a mad-scientist looking man in in the foreground says: “Hello! Dr. Frankenstein here to say, Well Done on kid lit zombie week! I’m an expert at reviving the dead, and let me assure you, with a little spark, you can bring dead projects to life. Especially if you dig up parts from other dead things. I’ll even let you have a sneak peek at my laboratory’s store room to consider potential parts for your dead project. If you see something with a yellow glow, that means you should click it. Have fun!”

He points to the right side of the screen and a new scene slides in of a castle science/magic storage room. There are various cartoon Frankenstein body parts scattered around. Some of them have a yellow glow. If you click on them, the images below appear (I’ve added alt text to them, so I hope it works).

The Heart of your story is the main character. The protagonist is the beating core that truly brings your story to life. If your MC doesn't make kids (and their grown-ups) care within the first few pages, your story will flatline. </p>
<p>Your main character needs to be:<br />
• Relatable enough for kids to see themselves<br />
• Unique enough to stand out in the slush pile<br />
• Active enough to drive the story<br />
• Memorable enough to survive multiple readings at bedtime</p>
<p>Where do you find this amazing donor heart? It might be the very thing you loved so much about the manuscript you want to revive. It might be the younger sister from your shelved YA novel. Or maybe it’s the hilarious kid you blogged about meeting at a school visit. Find a character beating with potential and place it in the center of your story.<br />

The Brain of your story is the theme or central message. The theme is the big idea that controls everything else. Picture books are more than stories - they're tiny life lessons disguised with humor and heart.</p>
<p>But your theme needs to be:<br />
• Subtle enough not to trigger the dreaded "didactic" rejection<br />
• Clear enough for a four-year-old to grasp<br />
• Universal enough to speak to both kids and adults<br />
• Fresh enough to prevent agents and editors from responding with "Not another sharing/bedtime/first-day story!"</p>
<p>Check your other dead manuscripts to see if there is a recurring theme, something that really seems to be speaking to you. Find the bit of poetry you scribbled on the back of a receipt to see what theme inspired it. Reread the pep talk you texted your critique partner at 1am. Pick the theme that will drive your story, giving it purpose, direction, and deeper meaning.<br />

The Legs of your story is the plot. Not to be confused with a grave plot.🤪 The plot is what keeps everything upright and moving, as well as providing support for all the other elements. You have very few words to use in a picture book, so you need to do a lot with each plot point.</p>
<p>In general, your plot should:<br />
• Hook readers fast<br />
• Build tension that a child can follow<br />
• Create page turns that feel natural<br />
• Wrap up in a way that satisfies</p>
<p>You can borrow a plot twist (a leg) from one manuscript and the opening (the other leg) from a different manuscript. Consider if the subplot of the middle grade novel you trunked would work better as a picture book. Or maybe your Facebook post about a disastrous camping trip could become a story for kids. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other until you have your storyline.

The Arms of your story are the side characters.

The Torso of your story is the setting. Setting helps a story breathe and connects all the elements of the story. It isn't just where your story lives, it's what makes your story ALIVE. It's the difference between "this happened in a park" and "this happened in that park, the one with the twisty slide that burns your legs and the creaky swing that sounds like a baby crying.”</p>
<p>Your setting should:<br />
• Make your character's world feel real<br />
• Contain your story in a way that makes sense to young readers<br />
• Connect different scenes and moments organically<br />
• Give your illustrator enough room to add visual subplots</p>
<p>Half-finished manuscripts are a great place to dig up settings, since you worked out the place details before the plot petered out. Or maybe you had to cut a second fantastic location from your chapter book. You can also revisit the detailed caption from your Instagram carousel documenting your tour of that delish candy shop. Disinter a robust setting that can house all of your story's vital organs.

After you press the Click When Done circle button, the lights flash with the sound of electricity buzzing. Then the screen goes black and lightning zaps across the screen with the sound of thunder.

The screen then lights up to show the storage room, and all the Frankenstein pieces have been assembled into the whole monster. An upbeat song plays in the background. Then a speech bubble pops up with the words, “I’m alive! I’M ALIVE!” Then the screen goes to black.

Dog holding a sign that says Pupdates!

Sign up for our newsletter for pupdates and publishing advice