Monique's Blog

You will, no doubt, be asking yourself what the point of this first pic is! I took the pic this morning, during my third day of writing workshops at St. Thomas High School. I was in the middle of telling Miss Murphy's grade nine class about how writers need to observe interesting details -- when I noticed that a student named Koby had a rather interesting eraser. (That eraser is the large blob in the pic.) Then, because part of Koby's pencilcase is mesh, I noticed he had two smaller chunks of the same eraser inside his pencilcase. At first, I thought maybe he had munched on the eraser, or that maybe Koby was the kind of person who does not approve of waste. But Koby told me that the little chunks of eraser come in handy. He also said, "I make a lot of mistakes in writing." Hey, Koby, maybe it'll cheer you up to know that I'm a professional writer -- and I make lots of mistakes too! I don't use an eraser very much these days, but I do hit the delete key on my computer a lot!!

When I was talking about how it helps to make writing a regular habit, I asked Mrs. Killorn (who was subbing for Miss Murphy) to tell us about her son Alex, who plays left wing for the Tampa Bay Lightning. "Does he only practice occasionally?" I asked Mrs. Killorn. She told us that Alex practises seven days a week. She also told us that he began playing hockey at age three. She said she knew he was going to be a serious hockey player when as a little boy, he played without any encouragement at all. So you see -- practise matters whether we are talking about writing -- or sports!

In this next pic, you'll see a group I am calling my LUNCH BUNCH. These are all students who turned up at the library to keep me company during senior lunch -- and to show me their work. Thanks, you guys, for totally making my day. I liked all of the stories I saw -- and I was impressed by how you all have a strong sense of voice in your writing. That's super important. And don't forget -- DEATH TO ADVERBS!!

I'm heading out now to teach Journalism and Writing for Children at Marianopolis College. You'd think I'd be tired -- but instead I feel energized after working with the classes (and my lunch bunch) at St. Thomas. I'll be back again on Monday for my final set of writing workshops there. Come for lunch and bring me your writing if you feel like it! Special thanks to teachers Miss Murphy, Mrs. Killorn, Mr. Katz and Mr. Cloney for sharing your classes with me -- thanks to librarian Carolyn Pye, for the invite and for feeding me delicious fruit -- and of course, thanks to the kids for being wonderful and for caring about writing and stories!!

I'm just home from my second of four visits this winter to St. Thomas High School. In all, I'll be working with eight classes and I'll see each group twice -- which gives me time to talk about writing, tell some stories, and get the students writing, too!

In today's pic (sorry that it isn't quite right-side-up), I am chatting with Hailie. Like me, Hailie gets shivers when she hears a good story. Hailie also told me why she loves writing. She said, "I feel like I have so much to say and writing is the only way I can get it all out." I LOVED THAT -- BECAUSE I THINK IT'S HOW ALL WRITERS FEEL. Like we have no choice except to write! Hailie struck me as a natural storyteller. She explained how the other day she saw a picture of a blue house by the beach, and now she is inspired to write about a girl who lives in that house.

As I told the students today, writers need some talent. But I told them what my opa (the Dutch word for grandfather) told me -- that talent is only a small part of artistic success (Opa was a painter). He told me that what matters -- perhaps even more than talent -- is HARD WORK!!

With a few of today's groups, I tried a writing exercise in which the students had to come up with two characters who are opposites (we call that FOILS) and put them in an interestig situation ... and then produce some dialogue. A student named Sean was planning to write about himself and his younger brother, who is a bit of a troublemaker. I'd love to read a story about you two, Sean!

Later in the day, I was explaining that my mum is a Holocaust survivor. I asked the class, "How do you think she survived?" A student named Olivia said, "Did she have a talent?" I thought that was a great answer. In fact, it was my grandfather who had a special talent that kept his family alive.

At lunch time, I worked with two junior students -- Charlotte and Sarah -- who came to show me the stories they have been writing. Super work, you two! I gave them some basic feedback (DEATH TO ADVERBS! Show; don't tell!), and encouraged them to read each other's work. I'm hoping they will continue to exchange their writing now that they have met.

I'll be back at St. Thomas on Wednesday, and then on Monday next week. I'm planning to have my lunch at the library with the senior students on both those days -- so if any of you want some feedback on your writing, bring your lunch and come on by!

Special thanks to the students, their teachers and librarian Mrs. Di Maulo, who was filling in today for Mrs. Pye! See you guys on Wednesday!

I love today's pic -- that's because you will notice that all the kids in the pic are WRITING! (There is nothing a writer and teacher likes more than seeing kids WRITING.)

Today's blog entry is called "St. Thomas High School -- Part I" because I am doing four visits there in the next few weeks. I get to work with four different classes and I'll see each group twice. I love that because it means I can get a lot done, and there is time for writing excercises!

I'm kind of a familiar face at St. Thomas. I've been visiting there for several years -- and in fact, one of my spring 2016 books, Leggings Revolt, was written with the help of a small focus group of students at St. Thomas. And guess what? The book is dedicated to my friend librarian Carolyn Pye. If she hadn't invited me to St. Thomas in the first place, well, Leggings Revolt might have been just a dream!

I had a whole sheet of notes to use for today's blog entry, but unfortunately, I think I left them on Miss Ditchburn's desk. Hey, if you're in her class, can you ask her to stash those notes safely until I come back next Monday?

Because I don't have my notes (boo!), I need to rely on my 55-year-old memory to write this blog entry. I showed all the classes today the journal that I write in every single day -- and a student in the first group (remind me of your name and I'll adjust this blog entry!!) noticed that my journal says "120 pages" on the cover. You know what? I never noticed that. And as I told the class, being OBSERVANT is an important trait in a writer.

I must say that a student named Alena in my second group stole my heart. That's because she got a little choked up when I told the story of my monkey-man necklace and how another prisoner gave it to my mom when she was in Theresienstadt, a Nazi concentration camp, during Wolrd War II.

I told the students that writers need to ask the question "What if?" in order to advance a story's plot. I explained that I can't turn off the "what if?" switch in my brain. Alena told me her parents sometimes get upset with her for asking "what if?" so much. So I told her to tell them to stop getting upset --  and simply to explain that she is a writer-in-training.

Today's pic was taken during my third session when I had two classes together in the library. To be honest, I thought it might be hard to manage such a large group, but they were wonderful. (As you can see from how hard they worked on my writing exercise!) You might be wondering what writing exercise worked so well... and it so happens that I INVENTED THE EXERCISE THIS MORNING IN MR. KATZ'S CLASS. I got the idea when we discussed the importance of trouble. I told the students that without trouble, you don't really have a story. So I asked them to remember a time they got into BIG trouble.

Last period, I asked the students why they think I bother writing in my journal every single day. A student named Anthony answered, "So it won't be as hard to write." You know what I LOVE about that answer? It's Anthony's understanding that writing IS HARD -- even if you practise a lot in a journal the way I do. But you know what else? I think I'm hooked on writing because it is hard. If it were easier for me, I might get tired of it.

So, I hope that even without my trusty notes, this blog entry came out okay. Special thanks to Mrs. Pye for inviting me back; to Mr. Katz, Mr. Cloney, Miss Murphy and Miss Ditchburn for sharing your students with me; to the students I worked with for being such a great audience; and also to some of the members of last year's focus group for coming by to say hello -- and admire the advanced reading copy of Leggings Revolt! Three cheers for all of you at St. Thomas High School!

I'm writing this blog entry from the train -- we're about to leave Quebec City. I was in town to work with three Grade Nine classes at Ecole Secondaire de la Seigneurie in Beauport, a suburb of Queec City. It was my fourth visit to the school -- so I must say I feel very at home there!

My morning started with a laugh when a student named Emilie (tht's her in today's pic -- sorry that it's upside-down) asked, "Why do we need to write down your tips?" My first answer was BECAUSE, but then I added that I know that if I don't write things down, I forget all about them! And I do hope the students I met today will remember at least SOME of what we talked about.

Students in all three classes I visited are reading my historical YA novel, What World Is Left -- and so, though I talked about writing tips in general, I also told the students about the story behind the story they are studying. For instance, I told them that my mum, whose story inspired the novel, knew the real Anne Frank, but that my editor felt it would be a bad idea if the real Anne Frank appeared in my novel -- so we changed her name to Eva.

I explained that one of the reasons I like to do school visits is that I believe it's important to tell the truth about writing. When I was 14 and 15, the ages of the students I met today, I never met a professional writer. So when I do school visits, I try my best to tell students what I wish someone had told me way back then! Such as that WRITING IS FRUSTRATING and IT IS NORMAL TO BE DISAPPOINTED WITH YOUR WORK and SOMETIMES YOU FEEL LIKE GIVING UP!!

A student named Fréderique wanted to know if my mum ever read the book I based on her story. The answer was: not at first, but eventually. I had to explain to my mum that I was fictionalizing her story in order to make it appeal to young readers. I know my mum would have preferred if the girl in my story did not question her father's actions, but when I told her what I planned to do, my mum gave me her blessing. She said, "Do what you need to do to make it the best possible story. But I won't read it." Only, she did end up reading the book, and in fact, last week, she told me that she was going to start re-reading it all over again.

Elodie (of the upside-down pic) wondered whether writers need to be selfish. I must say that remark gave me pause. I told Elodie that writers need to be RUTHLESS. But you know what? It's my own mum, who was an amazing storyteller, who taught me that the story comes first!

With two of the groups, I did writing exercises to help them access old memories. "Our memories are stories asking to be told," I said to the students.

And a student named Gabriel helped me to translate the only writing rule I really teach (I'm not a rules-sort-of-person): "Show; don't tell." En français, it's "Montrez; pas dire."

So, many thanks to teachers Yves Lord and Maxime Jacques-Gagnon for sharing your students with me. I had a great day with all of you. Thanks for your interest in a book that is so close to my heart. And thanks to the students -- you guys were wonderful and I miss you already!

The Moniques are back in action! That means this Monique is teamed up again with her dear pal, photographer extraordinaire Monique Dykstra! This winter, we're working with four grade nine classes at Kahnawake Survival School, helping them to produce a chapter in this year's version of Quebec Roots. The project, which aims to help youngsters across the province tell their stories through words and photographs, is sponsored by the Blue Metropolis Literary Foundation.

I'm always the one who goes first. That's because -- let's be honest -- the students tend to be a lot more interested in learning about photography than writing. So Monique Dykstra is their reward after they've worked with me!

One of our goals today was to help the students brainstorm to come up with a topic for their chapter. That exercise went super well. The students had several good ideas including the prevalence of guns in their community, as well as depression in their community. But the topic that was by far the most popular had to do with the creation of their school and how it was a response to Bill 101, which limited students' eligibility at English schools. Many of the students know people who were involved in the walk-out that led to the creation of Kahnawake Survival School nearly 40 years ago.

Though I have heard Monique Dysktra do her photography workshop before, I always learn something new when she works with young people. Today, for instance, she told them, "Building a photo is like building a house. You need to start with a good design." That made me think about writing too -- and how having an outline (or in building terms, a blueprint) can help a lot!

A student named Kiana wanted to have a look at my historical novel, What World Is Left -- and next thing I knew, she was busy reading it. Later she told me, "I look forward to the writing. I like writing -- but for myself." That is something for you to think about, Kiana -- are you ready to write for others? When I start out, I am always writing for myself -- but the longer I work on something, well, the more I want to share it!

A student named Gary made me laugh when he told me that when he heard we were coming this afternoon, he wanted to skip class! But luckily, he didn't because he said, "You got me excited about writing!" YAY, Gary! He also recommended a book called Spirit Bear by Ben Michaelsen. I'm going to order a copy!

And I was impressed by a student named Luna who took a creative approach to our topic. She suggested that someone could write about what the world would have been like if their school was never created. "Maybe I wouldn't have even been here," Luna said. I think that would make a great addition to the chapter, Luna -- and perhaps a perfect concluding piece.

So big thanks to the teachers -- Jocelyn Dockerty, Heather White, Krissy Goodleaf and Christie Chandler -- for sharing your kids with the Moniques -- and to the kids for being so positive and attentive. See you bright and early on February 3 -- until then, start interviewing folks about their memories of their old high school and the walk-out... and of course, take lots of photos!

Oh no, another upside down photo! (I think that means it was taken upside down on my phone.)

I'm not going to fret about the upside down photo. (Or the fact that the roofer can't figure out why my roof is leaking!) Instead I'm going to tell you about my special morning with some very special students at John Rennie High School in Pointe-Claire.

This was my last school visit for 2015 -- and I'm considering it a gift, since it was not only a privilege, but also a lot of fun to work with this gang.

These were students with special needs. Some are in John Rennie's Resource Department; others are part of the LIFE (Learning Independence Through Functional Eduction) at Lindsay-Place High School.

I took a lot of notes -- so get ready for a lively blog entry.

When I told the students that trouble helps fuel a story, Hayley, a student with long red hair and a giant smile, called out, "I'm born with that!" It turns out Hayley loves to write and has been hard at work on a short story. Hayley, turn your trouble into art! (That's what I do.)

I gave the students several writing exercises. One excercise involved accessing a memory from long ago. A student named Tevin started his piece by writing, "Lost in bushes beside swimming pool." Well, that opening certainly has trouble in it -- and makes me want to know what happened next.

A student named Maria spent recess WRITING!! She remembered an incident at pre-school when she accidentally swallowed bubbles. Maria's story had a happy ending: "My teacher fed me some grapes and I think I felt better." Maria shared her story with the class and everyone loved the swallowing bubbles part -- not only is it trouble, but it's the kind of trouble that most of us never got into. So it's INTERESTING. INTERESTING TROUBLE is better than regular trouble!

A student named William remembered Miss M, his gym teacher at Forest Hill School. William wrote: "She would make me set up the gym and she would always make me happy. I still remember her smile." Hey, if any of you blog readers out there know Miss M, maybe you could send her the link to today's entry. I also suggested to William that he write a postcard to Miss M and let her know that he has not forgotten her. See, that's the power of words for you!

I ended my session with an observation exercise. I asked the students to explore the library and find something interesting to observe. Maria found nearly a dozen things! A student named Josh discovered yellow tape on some of the shelves. Mrs. Lukian, the John Rennie librarian, explained that she uses yellow tape to indicate where the reference books are. Nice observing work, Josh!

If it sounds like I had fun, it's because I did. Special thanks to the Pointe-Claire Library for making today's visit possible and to Pointe-Claire Library's children's librarian, Madame Blanchet, for coming to the workshop -- and for being fun. Thanks to Mrs. Lukian for hosting us in your library; thanks to Margo Edwards, the special ed. tech at John Rennie who helped organize my visit; and to your team. But thanks most of all to the students for listening, for doing such a great job on the exercises and for sharing your stories. You guys are my favourite Christmas present!!

Okay, the picture is WRONG-side-up, but my second day at Horizon School was ALL RIGHT. In fact, it was better than ALL RIGHT -- it was WONDERFUL (well, in my opinion, anyhow!).

Horizon is an alternative high school in Pointe-Claire. The classes are small and let's just say these students have plenty of stories. I've been working with junior and senior students at the school. Yesterday, I shared a lot of writing tips and did one writing exercise. Today was mostly about writing.

We started with a couple of playful exercises (I explained to the students that for me, writing is a constant mix of work and play -- I need to work hard, but I need to have fun with words too). We started by making a giant list of words that start with w. A lot of us included the word wonder, but I especially liked how one student came up with the word withdrawal. That led us to discuss how people don't just suffer from withdrawal when they try to get off drugs or alcohol; we can also experience withdrawal when we try to get over someone who has meant a lot to us.

The next playful exercise was writing with the non-dominant hand. (I've found this is a good warm-up activity in my home office too.) A student named Elizabeth came up with the line, "Smoke the devil's lettuce." I really like how she combined the devil and a vegetable. That inspried me to write a Ray Bradbury line on the board: "Creativity is continual surprise." Good work, Elizabeth, in the creativity department!

I asked a student named Arkela for her permission to share what she wrote with her left hand -- and she agreed -- so here goes: "I am writing with my left hand/ Although my writing is all messy and ugly/ I think I am doing an okay job." Arkela seemed surprised when I told her I thought what she had written was beautiful. I tried to explain that, for me, her words are very symbolic. Maybe that's all any of us can ask for -- to think we are doing an okay job.

I'm not supposed to have favourites in a class, but a guy named Darren wrote some amazing stuff. And a guy named Tazz, who was born in Nunavik, also earned a special spot in my heart when I asked him about his experience up north and he said, "Ain't about that life." I wrote that on the board and told Tazz it would make a great book title. So, Tazz, when are you gonna get started on that book?

Today, the senior students' teacher, Miss Pion, was with us. Miss Pion and I had a short, but interesting talk about different approaches to working with students who have gone through tough times. Miss Pion says she has found that it's important for her students to take a break from the drama. Or as she put it, "I choose not to bathe in problems that are happening here, and to go somewhere else for fifteen minutes." Which led us to talk about writing as both a form of escape, as well as a way of turning our own difficulties into something beautiful we can share with others.

So... I must say the students (and teachers!) at Horizon gave me a lot to think about. Hopefully, I gave you guys some ideas for your own stories and creative projects. Special thanks to Madame Dubreuil from the Pointe-Claire Library, who not only helped to make my visits to Horizon possible, but who attended both workshops and did ALL the exercises.

On the home front, my roof is leaking and so far, the roofer has not been able to locate the problem. But hey, writing is a mix of work and play -- and living is a mix of problems and sweet moments. Overall, I'd say my visit to Horizon had more sweeet moments than problems. Thanks to the kids who participated. NOW GO WRITE!!!

I am just home from my first of two mornings at Horizon High School -- an alternative high school in Pointe-Claire. I was there to do a writing workshop with a group of students from grades eight to eleven. I must admit some of them were a bit of a handful -- and two students didn't make it through my entire session. (I'm still hoping they might give the workshop another go tomorrow, but who knows?)

I started with my usual writing tips and we ended with a writing exercise. Tomorrow, I hope to focus more on writing. Today, a student named Taz asked, "Does it [meaning whatever the students might write] have to be an appropriate story?" My answer was ABSOLUTELY NOT. I don't think writers should worry about being appropriate. I think we need to worry about WRITING WHAT MATTERS. (Even as the author of many books, I still need to remind myself that this, for me, is what writing is all about: finding stories that matter to me, and telling them in a way that will make them matter to my readers.)

A student named Hayden told me, "I'd rather read than write." I shared my view that if a person enjoys reading (Hey, Hayden -- I hope you noticed that I did not say "if a person loves reading"), then that person usually also has a gift for writing. That's because reading and writing are so deeply connected. Sometimes, for me anyhow, they feel like one activity.

To be honest, it's a little discouraging when students are not open to what I have to share -- so I was disappointed to lose two of them this morning -- but I did cheer up when I read the work that some of the students did during the writing exercise. One student wrote about an old memory having to do with sports and I was deeply moved by his words; another described her memory of having an allergy attack (I suggested she ask the question "What if?" in order to develop her piece); and another student wrote about her preference for drawing over writing (I suggested maybe she could write about her earliest memory of drawing -- and that seemed to get her pen moving on paper). Hey, you can see on of this student's drawings in today's pic!

So... all this to say, it was a special morning for me. Not always easy, but always interesting. And hey, I'd take interesting over easy any day.

Special thanks to the junior students' English teacher Qaadira Decoteau for your help and for sharing some of your students with me. And thanks to the Pointe-Claire Library for making these workshops possible -- and to librarian Marie-Andrée Dubreuil who attended the workshop too. And finally, thanks to the students. Get ready for more Monique tomorrow morning!

Here's my secret about school visits: I get invited to schools to help inspire students to write... but guess what? I'm the one who ends up getting inspired!! That's what happened to me this morning when I worked with three of Mrs. Russell's classes at Lindsay Place High School in Pointe-Claire.

I worked with grade seven and eight students. Mrs. Russell's grade seven groups are doing a unit on prejudice, and some of the students have read (or will be reading) my historical novel, What World Is Left, which is based on my mum's experience in Theresienstadt, a Nazi concentration camp. With all three groups, I started by sharing some tips about writing, but then I moved on to talk about my mum and the research that went into writing What World Is Left.

I had a great time with all three groups. The first group was the smallest and included many students who love writing; the second group was larger, also focused and bright; and the third group (they were the grade eights) had so many great questions that Mrs. Russell worried she might get a detention if she let them stay any later than she did!

Today's pic was taken at the end of my last presentation. The blonde girl next to me is Angelica and I got the impression she is very angelic -- which makes me think I should include an angelic-looking girl named Angelica in my next book! (Only I might make MY Angelica a bit of a trouble-maker, which Mrs. Russell assured me the real-life Angelica is NOT!). On my other side is a student named Melissa. I loved her answer when I asked the students, "What do you think I did yesterday when I re-read the writing I had done in the morning and found it crappy?" Are you ready for Melissa's brilliant answer? She said, "You see where it went wonky and then you work backward to see where you can fix it up." Right on, Melissa! Plus, I loved how you used the word WONKY -- which definitely describes how writers often feel about their writing!

I told all three groups that one of the reasons I do school visits is because when I was in grades seven and eight, I never had a chance to meet a professional writer. So, during my visits, I try to tell students the things I wish someone had told me long ago -- such as that writing is hard, and that we are seldom satisfied with our work, and that our first drafts are total disasters!

So, many, many thanks to the students I worked with this morning. Like I said, you inspired me with your energy and questions (and interesting body language such as sharpening a pencil!!). Thanks too, to Mrs. Russell for doing such a great job with your classes, and to librarian Betty Dunning for arranging the visit.

Yesterday, a friend and I got a private showing of Thomas Kneubuhler's exhibit, Land Claim. Thomas came to meet us at Galerie B-312 in the Belgo Building downtown, where his work is being displayed. (He has a second exhibit going on now in Montreal too. More about that later.)

Thomas and I became friends when we traveled together to Nunavik for a Blue Metropolis Literary Foundation project called Quebec Roots. What I never expected is that I would learn about writing from a visual artist! And it happened again yesterday when the three of us were chatting while we looked at the photos and videos that were part of Thomas's show.

That was when I whipped out a sheet of paper and a pen from my purse (Writing Tip #1: Always have paper and a pen handy!). Thomas was explaining to my friend how he comes up with a subject for a visual art project. What he said applies to writing too -- and how we need to feel inspired in order to begin a project -- and stick with it! "There's usually a trigger," Thomas said. He explained that the trigger for Land Claim came when he heard about Raglan Mine, an iron mine in Nunavik, and learned that the company's head office is located in Switzerland, where Thomas was born. Thomas added that a subject may be "something where you have access that no one else does, something that is personal and that you have a personal connection to." Thomas also explained that there's a great deal of research behind his projects (same is true for writing stories, of course). Finally, Thomas talked about the effort that goes into his art. He never just snaps a photo or turns on his video recorder. Here's how Thomas put it: "It's often very hard work and it involves a lot of things!"

Thomas's show at Galerie B-312 runs until Dec. 19. Same for his show at Patrick Mikhail Gallery. If you're in Montreal, check them out! (I've included a link to his website at the top of this blog post -- you'll find the addresses and times for the exhibits there.) Hey Thomas -- thanks for the private tour -- and the inspiration!!

Okay, it's a slight exaggeration to say that my mom and I traveled today to Dumas, Texas -- but we were certainly there, and we certainly connected with about 200 students at Dumas Intermediate School, thanks to Skype and the miracles of modern technology.

This was "our" third "visit" to Dumas Intermediate. Our is the right word because Cathy Craigmiles, the school librarian, asked me to speak about my historical YA Novel, What World Is Left, which is based on my mom's experience as a prisoner in Theresienstadt, a Nazi concentration camp -- and so I went to my parents' house to do the visit, which meant that the students could have a chance to meet my mom too.

I worked with two groups of Grade Six students -- and they were wonderful. A virtual visit can usually never compare with a real-life one, so maybe it was the students (they were really engaged and focused), or the material, or the fact that my mom made a guest appearance (so did my dad, but my mom is the real star of today's blog entry), but today's visit felt pretty wonderful. Most of the students were 11 or 12 years old, which made the experience especially moving for me since my mom was 12 when she was rounded up by the Nazis and shipped to Theresienstadt.

I could not resist sharing some writing tips, but mostly the students wanted to know more about the story behind my book. We talked about propaganda and I explained how my opa (the Dutch word for grandfather) was forced by the Nazis to create propaganda art. As an author, I am especially interested in "grey" areas because, to me, the world is never black and white. My opa could not have been glad to do what the Nazis forced him to do, and yet he must have known that his actions might help keep him and his family (including me) alive.

My mother is 86 (and-a-half), quite deaf and fragile, but she was well enough to say hello at the end of both sessions -- and to answer a few questions. Luckily for us, the students had amazing, thoughtful, deep questoins.

A student named Keaton wanted to know what the scariest part of my mom's experience was. She told him it was the transports -- never knowing if she would be on the list of prisoners who would be transported to Auschwitz.

A student named Andrea asked about my mom's immediate post-war experience, and you know what? My mom ended up telling a little story I had never heard before. She told Andrea, "I went back to Holland. I remember the first time I saw a slice of white bread. It was so bright it hurt my eyes." Hey, Andrea, good interviewing work!

Raigan wanted to know if, after the war, my mom ever saw anyone she knew from Theresientadt. I helped my mom with the answer to this question -- I told the students about an old friend of my grandmother's -- this woman had lost her husband before the war, and her only son was sent to Auschwitz where he was murdered, and yet she had it in her to be loving to my mother... and, in 1960, when I was born, the woman (who by then was living in New York) took the Greyhound bus to Montreal so she could come in person to meet my mother's first daughter -- me!

I told the students how, when I hear something beautiful, the insides of elbows tingle. And you know that happened to me today when, after my first session, my dad was chatting with Mrs. Craigmiles and he asked her, "How come your students are so interested in the Holocaust?" -- and she answered, "They've been studying it for the last six weeks." All I can say to that is -- wow, and thank you, and that gives me hope for the future.

I think it's only fitting to close today's blog entry with my mom's words. When we were about to say good-bye to the kids at Dumas Intermediate, I asked her what advice she could offer young people who may be experiencing their own hardships. She told them, "Food they can take away. But hope is in you. Hope is the most valuable thing. Nobody can take it away."

So many many many thanks to my young friends in Dumas -- for being great listeners, for opening your hearts to stories, and for caring about other people's experiences. May you open your hands to catch many stories, and may you always have hope. Thanks, too, to Mrs. Craigmiles, who has become my friend over the years.

I spent part of today with a group of keen, talented Grade 11 students from Laurentian Regional High School in Lachute, and their English teacher Mrs. Vero. We are working together on a Blue Metropolis Literary Foundation project called Heroes in My Backyard. The goal of the project is for students to make a one-minute film related to the subject of war and heroes -- and I'm helping with the script.

I had two one-hour sessions with the students -- one this morning with Mrs. Vero present, and one in the afternoon with just the students. And though you might think it would be hard to do a virtual brainstorming and writing workshop, thanks to the wonders of Skype, it worked!

This morning, I shared a bunch of writing tips -- such as that it's important to make writing a habit, that reading is every bit as important as writing, and that revising is essential. This afternoon we spent our time bouncing around ideas for a possible narrator. We also have a possible title for the project. It's "Dear Future" and it was invented by a student named Cassandra. Another student, Liane, turns out to already be a talented filmmaker. A short film she posted on line entitled "NUmbers" has already had 36,000 hits! We talked about using a female narrator for the film, and Liane suggested our narrator might be a girl who becomes a drummer for the army. Since our story is set in the past, the girl would have had to pose as a boy. Which makes for all kinds of interesting story possibilities!

As yoy can probably tell, I am starting to get excited about this project. What's especially fun is the fact that it's a group collaboration. I asked the students to do a short writing exercise in which they imagined being the girl drummer. They came up with some beautiful material. Haily wrote about how the girl traveled "through nights and into city" -- which I found beautiful and poetic. Brianna pictured a scene at a loading dock, where her narrator "tastes the salt of her tears" and Brad imagined gunfire "choking" his narrator's lungs.

So... for now, we're just tossing around ideas. Playing. For me, writing is a curious mix of work and play. Thanks to the students I worked with today for reminding me of the playful part -- and for working hard. I look forward to reading more of your work and to our film project!

This fall, I'm doing a series of writing workshops at a Montreal centre for women who have left abusive relationships. It's a project that's close to my heart because many years ago, I fled an abusive relationship myself.

Today was the first of the workshops -- and I think it was a moving experience for all of us. I spent the first half hour sharing writing tips, but then we quickly moved on to writing exercises. (And by the way, I did most of the workshop in French because that's the first language of nearly all the women who attended.) Rather than telling you about the tips, I'm going to tell you about what some of the women said -- and wrote.

Many of the women already have an interest in writing. One of the participants -- I'll cal her V -- said, "J'écris pour mieux comprendre" -- which I thought was just gorgeous. If you need help with the translation, it's: "I write to understand better." Another participant, Eve (not her real name) really worked hard during the writing exercises. Afterwards, she observed, "I haven't expressed my emotions in writing for a long time." Interestingly, Eve explained that it's easy for her to tak about her emotions, but that putting those emotions on paper has always been more difficult.

Many authors (including me in my YA novel So Much It Hurts) have written about abuse. The challenge, I think, is to TAKE readers THERE. V did that beautifully when she told us how, after she left her abusive partner, she felt sad for her dog who missed him. That detail touched me and I know I won't forget it. V, you took us there with your story.

A little over a week ago, I was walking along the beach in Tofino, British Columbia, thinking how as a writer I need to focus on the stories that matter most to me. Today was a reminder of exactly that -- what matters most. For me, it's courage and resilience. I'm the one giving the writing workshop, but I'm aready getting a lot from it. A grand merci to the participants and to the organi2ers for bringing me there...

I'm just back from the Victoria Public Library's main branch, where I had a whirlwind session with three groups of Grade Seven French immersion students from Central Middle School. It's not too often that I meet anybody with hair as wild as mine -- but you'll see from today's pic, that I met my match today -- a student named Gabe. And half of Gabe's hair is GREEN! What do you think, blog readers, wouldn't a half-green-haired kid make an interesting character in a kids' book?

The best thing for me about today's session was the number of questions and comments from the audience. In all my years of doing author visits, I don't think I've ever had so much reaction from a group. And the question and comments were great. I'm going to share some of them in today's blog entry. When I talked about the importance of getting stories from grandparents (if you are lucky enough to have grandparents -- if not, borrow someone else's!), a student named Katya looked at me in a way that told me she was close with a grandparent. Later, Katya told us about her grandmother, and I hope you get started on interviewing her, Katya!

When I showed the students my daily journal, Echo asked, "Qu'est-ce que tu écris IN ça?" (We all thought the bilingual question was fun.) I told Echo that for me, my daily journal serves to keep my writing muscles limber, and that I do whatever I want in my journal -- say why I'm happy when I'm happy, complain when I'm grumpy, and try to find solutions to my writing problems when I am grappling with a story. Many of the students wanted to know whether I had read the book, or seen the movie, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. I told them I hadn't, but their question made me think that maybe I should.

This was the last of my school visits in British Columbia for this week. Some people get really wiped out from doing visits and talking to groups of students, but I'm the opposite. Working with students during my visit to Vancouver Island has given me EXTRA ENERGY. Plus it's made me realize I had better get back to work on my newest book project ... how else am I going to get invited back to this beautiful part of our country?

Many thanks to librarian Sarah Isbister, for making today's visit happen, and to the students' teachers, including Mrs. Martin, who turns out to be a former Montrealer. To Mrs. Martin and her fellow teacheers, thanks for sharing your students with me. They were smart and fun. Lucky me!

The very best thing about today's session was that in all my years of doing author visits, I don't think I ever had so many questions and comments from an audience.

I'm writing today's blog entry from Serious Coffee, a café in Esquimalt, British Columbia. I got walked over here by the loveliest group of grade sevens (that is them in today's pic) from Ecole Victor-Brodeur, after I did a reading/writing workshop this morning at the Esquimalt branch of the Greater Victoria Public Library. Victor-Brodeur is a French school and because these students rarely get to meet a French-speaking author, I was asked to do my presentation in French. It's also handy that two of my books have been translated into French.

I told the students how I am always on the look-out for stories -- especially ones involving trouble. For example, one of the liveliest participants this morning was a guy named Hamzah, whose wrist was bandaged up. So I asked him what happened -- and learned he'd had an accident playing soccer. That experience could go into a story, Hamzah! I also demonstrated how I use the question WHAT IF? to fuel my stories. What if, I asked the students, I kidnapped Hamzah and brought him back to Montreal with me on Wednesday morning? Don't worry, blog readers, I'm not planning to commit a felony -- just playing with story ideas!

We also discussed how, for most writers, myself included, publication only comes after numerous (often frustrating) attempts. Together, we came up with the perfect way to say this in French: "L'échec conduit succès." (Special merci to the students' teacher, Madame Carole, who contributed to that translation.) I'll be doing a second presentation this afternoon to another group of kids from Victor-Brodeur. If they are even half as wonderful as this morning's group, I'll be in for a happy afternoon.

PS: The second group was just as wonderful and fun. I don't know what the folks are doing at Ecole Victor-Brodeur, but whatever it is, keep doing it. The students I met today were bright and enthusiastic; it was a real pleasure for me to work with them. Special thanks to librarian Joy Huebert for your company -- and for ferrying me around today.

Question: What happens when an energetic author-teacher who has not taught a class in five months gets invited back into a classroom?

Answer: Let's just say she causes quite a kerfuffle!

I think that's an accurate description of how things went down last night when I did a writing workshop at North Island College in Port Alberni on Vancouver Island! I haven't had so much fun in a long time!

One of the things that made the evening so special was that my "students" were a really mixed group. There were several young people from the local high school, as well as professors from the college, and a couple who traveled all the way from Nanaimo to hear the talk. Another thing that made the evening special was that it began with a welcome from Irene Robinson, a member of the Tseshaht First Nation. (That's Irene in the left corner of today's pic, wearing a grey top and waving.) Irene welcomed me to the Tseshaht territories and told us about the value the Tseshaht have always placed on stories. "Stories," she said, "are important to our people. Stories are a way to pass on knowledge and to teach."

When I do talks like the one I did last night, one of my goals is to tell the truth about the writing process (well, my writing process anyway). How it's not all la-dee-da, and how I sometimes feel discouraged, and how sheer persistence helped me get published in the first place. The group was great -- lively and responsive, and when I gave them a writing exercise, no one groaned! Grace (she was one of the people who came all the way from Nanaimo) used the exercise to remember a painful moment in her past -- when, at the age of fifteen, she discovered her mare had been abused. That was an example of something else we talked about: how difficult, troubling experiences can fuel stories.

This was my second visit to NIC. I was there in 2006, as part of a Canadian Children's Book Week tour. That's when I met librarian Sherry Kropninski, who helped get me invited back this year. Special thanks to Sherry, and to the English Department's Peter McGuire, who also made it possible for me to return to NIC. And to Sherry's daughter Savanna, for her excellent company -- anf for letting me pick her brain for the new story I am working on. And thanks, too, to the Quebec Writers' Federation for sending me to Vancouver Island in the first place.

I'll be doing four more talks in Victoria last week... but my visit to Port Alberni will always hold a special place in my heart. Thanks to all of you who were there for reminding me why I love to share what I've learned about writing!

Question: What happens when an energetic author-teacher who has not taught a class in five months gets invited back into a classroom?

Answer: Let's just say she causes quite a kerfuffle!

I think that's an accurate description of how things went down last night when I did a writing workshop at North Island College in Port Alberni on Vancouver Island! I haven't had so much fun in a long time!

One of the things that made the evening so special was that my "students" were a really mixed group. There were several young people from the local high school, as well as professors from the college, and a couple who traveled all the way from Nanaimo to hear the talk. Another thing that made the evening special was that it began with a welcome from Irene Robinson, a member of the Tseshaht First Nation. (That's Irene in the left corner of today's pic, wearing a grey top and waving.) Irene welcomed me to the Tseshaht territories and told us about the value the Tseshaht have always placed on stories. "Stories," she said, "are important to our people. Stories are a way to pass on knowledge and to teach."

When I do talks like the one I did last night, one of my goals is to tell the truth about the writing process (well, my writing process anyway). How it's not all la-dee-da, and how I sometimes feel discouraged, and how sheer persistence helped me get published in the first place. The group was great -- lively and responsive, and when I gave them a writing exercise, no one groaned! Grace (she was one of the people who came all the way from Nanaimo) used the exercise to remember a painful moment in her past -- when, at the age of fifteen, she discovered her mare had been abused. That was an example of something else we talked about: how difficult, troubling experiences can fuel stories.

This was my second visit to NIC. I was there in 2006, as part of a Canadian Children's Book Week tour. That's when I met librarian Sherry Kropninski, who helped get me invited back this year. Special thanks to Sherry, and to the English Department's Peter McGuire, who also made it possible for me to return to NIC. And to Sherry's daughter Savanna, for her excellent company -- anf for letting me pick her brain for the new story I am working on. And thanks, too, to the Quebec Writers' Federation for sending me to Vancouver Island in the first place.

I'll be doing four more talks in Victoria last week... but my visit to Port Alberni will always hold a special place in my heart. Thanks to all of you who were there for reminding me why I love to share what I've learned about writing!

Question: What happens when an energetic author-teacher who has not taught a class in five months gets invited back into a classroom?

Answer: Let's just say she causes quite a kerfuffle!

I think that's an accurate description of how things went down last night when I did a writing workshop at North Island College in Port Alberni on Vancouver Island! I haven't had so much fun in a long time!

One of the things that made the evening so special was that my "students" were a really mixed group. There were several young people from the local high school, as well as professors from the college, and a couple who traveled all the way from Nanaimo to hear the talk. Another thing that made the evening special was that it began with a welcome from Irene Robinson, a member of the Tseshaht First Nation. (That's Irene in the left corner of today's pic, wearing a grey top and waving.) Irene welcomed me to the Tseshaht territories and told us about the value the Tseshaht have always placed on stories. "Stories," she said, "are important to our people. Stories are a way to pass on knowledge and to teach."

When I do talks like the one I did last night, one of my goals is to tell the truth about the writing process (well, my writing process anyway). How it's not all la-dee-da, and how I sometimes feel discouraged, and how sheer persistence helped me get published in the first place. The group was great -- lively and responsive, and when I gave them a writing exercise, no one groaned! Grace (she was one of the people who came all the way from Nanaimo) used the exercise to remember a painful moment in her past -- when, at the age of fifteen, she discovered her mare had been abused. That was an example of something else we talked about: how difficult, troubling experiences can fuel stories.

This was my second visit to NIC. I was there in 2006, as part of a Canadian Children's Book Week tour. That's when I met librarian Sherry Kropninski, who helped get me invited back this year. Special thanks to Sherry, and to the English Department's Peter McGuire, who also made it possible for me to return to NIC. And to Sherry's daughter Savanna, for her excellent company -- anf for letting me pick her brain for the new story I am working on. And thanks, too, to the Quebec Writers' Federation for sending me to Vancouver Island in the first place.

I'll be doing four more talks in Victoria last week... but my visit to Port Alberni will always hold a special place in my heart. Thanks to all of you who were there for reminding me why I love to share what I've learned about writing!

Sorry about the upside down picture! Hopefully by the time you read this blog entry, I'll figure out how to turn it right-side-up!

I'm writing to you today from the Victoria Public Library (children's section, of course!), where I came to deliver MONTREAL BAGELS. I'm in Victoria and other parts of Vancouver Island for a book tour.

One of the many amazing, wonderful things about being here in BC is that I get to hang out with my many friends from Orca Book Publishers. In today's upside-down pic, I am with my friends/editors/authors Sarah Harvey (in the middle) and Robin Stevenson (in the cool hat). Sarah made me delicious breakfast this morning, and then we met up with Robin at the Cornerstone Café in Fernwood. And because I am always thinking of YOU, dear blog reader, I whipped out my notebook and asked them both a question I've been thinking a lot about lately: WHY DO WE WRITE ANYWAY?

Like me, Robin, whose latest YA novel is called The Summer We Saved the Bees, and who has two books coming out with Orca this spring (Pride: Celebrating Diversity and Community -- she's holding an advance reading copy in the pic -- and Under Threat), usually has a book in progress. When I asked her why that is, she answered, "Because reasons" -- and then she explained that this is something her 11-year-old son would say. I decided that that was a really profound answer! Robin added that, "Even if I'm ignoring it, I like having something to think about."

Sarah had a slightly different, but equally interesting answer. She told me, "I do not always have to be writing, but I always have to be reading." She speculated that because she spends so much time editing other people's writing (inclduing mine and Robin's!) that she needs occasional breaks from writing. When earlier this morning, Sarah and I stopped in at the Orca Book Publishers office, we visited with associate publisher Ruth Linka and Ruth passed on her copy of Louise Penny's latest novel, The Nature of the Beast, to Sarah. Well, Sarah was so glad to get the book that she clutched it to her chest. Proof that she needs to read all the time -- and that books make authors happy!

Sarah's upcoming YA novel is called Spirit Level -- both Robin and I got to read early versions of the manuscript and we loved it. For Sarah, and I think it's the same for many of us in this business, writing is not only about getting words on the page. Here's how she put it. And get ready... there are hand gestures involved! "I don't think of writing as being this [Sarah tapped at an imaginary keyboard]; I think of it as being this [Sarah tapped at the side of her head.]" ALL THIS TO SAY... I thought this was a wonderful conversation, and I hope you've enjoyed it too. Here's to tapping at keyboards and tapping into the imagination -- and to great conversations with good friends!

You know your writing is going well when someone else talks about your characters as if they are alive!

That's what happened last weekend when I met up with Raphaella -- the young writer I am mentoring as part of a special Quebec Writers' Federation Project.

Rapahella is working on a book project, and if you look carefully at today's pic, you'll notice the names of some of her characters such as Owen and Parker. If anyone was listening to my conversation with Raphaella on Saturday when we met up at a coffee shop in Laval (which is when I wrote the notes that I photographed for today's pic), they'd definitely have thought that Owen and Parker were real people. That's because we were talking about what makes these two boys tick, what their relationship is like, and whether Parker ever gets fed up with Owen. At one point in our meeting, I told Raphaella that it felt to me as if we were discussing flesh and blood people -- and that, for me, is a sign that a story is really working!

This is my second blog entry about Raphaella. The last time I told you about her and the work we are doing together, I explained how impressed I was that Raphaella is so open to comments and suggestions. Some young writers are less open to input. I had the same positive impression of Raphaella when we got together on Saturday. Lucky me!

I'll finish up today's blog entry by sharing something Raphaella told me when I asked her why she enjoys writing. She said, "I'm not expressive orally, but the writing pours out. I've always had trouble saying it out loud." How wonderful, I thought, to have the writing pour out! Hopefully, in the not-too-distant future, you'll get to read about Owen and Parker too -- and find them as real as I do!

"Every Holocaust story is amazing," Dana Bell told me yesterday. That's Dana is the pic that goes with this blog entry. We shared a table at yesterday's Holocaust Survivor Memoirs event organized by the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre. I must admit that when I first sat down next to Dana, she was deep in serious conversation with someone else and I didn't expect that we would hit it off -- but you know, sometimes life brings happy surprises, because by the end of the afternoon, Dana and I were chatting like old friends. What a fun, inspiring and wise woman!

Dana is the author of Danusia: The Story of a Child Survivor. It took Dana nine years to write this book and in the end, she decided to self-publish it. (Which led us to a interesting discussion about the world of self-publishing). In her book, Dana describes what happened to her and her family after they were deported to Siberia. Dana was only two years old at the time.

Dana told me that for her, the biggest compliment is when her readers say, "When I read your book, I heard your voice in the room with me." I consider that high praise. As I tell my students, one of the hardest and certainly one of the most important parts of writing is finding your voice. For me, I always feel like my stories begin to come alive when I hear my narrators' voices in my head.

Like me, Dana enjoys doing school visits. She also speaks to visitors and classes of students at the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre. I hope to catch her in action one of these days. In the mean time, I look forward to reading her book. And I couldn't agree more with Dana -- every Holocaust story is amazing.

"Every Holocaust story is amazing," Dana Bell told me yesterday. That's Dana is the pic that goes with this blog entry. We shared a table at yesterday's Holocaust Survivor Memoirs event organized by the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre. I must admit that when I first sat down next to Dana, she was deep in serious conversation with someone else and I didn't expect that we would hit it off -- but you know, sometimes life brings happy surprises, because by the end of the afternoon, Dana and I were chatting like old friends. What a fun, inspiring and wise woman!

Dana is the author of Danusia: The Story of a Child Survivor. It took Dana nine years to write this book and in the end, she decided to self-publish it. (Which led us to a interesting discussion about the world of self-publishing). In her book, Dana describes what happened to her and her family after they were deported to Siberia. Dana was only two years old at the time.

Dana told me that for her, the biggest compliment is when her readers say, "When I read your book, I heard your voice in the room with me." I consider that high praise. As I tell my students, one of the hardest and certainly one of the most important parts of writing is finding your voice. For me, I always feel like my stories begin to come alive when I hear my narrators' voices in my head.

Like me, Dana enjoys doing school visits. She also speaks to visitors and classes of students at the Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre. I hope to catch her in action one of these days. In the mean time, I look forward to reading her book. And I couldn't agree more with Dana -- every Holocaust story is amazing.

Marianopolis College resumes next week, but I won't be back in the building till the middle of January. That's because this semester I'll be on a writing sabbatical. However, it doesn't mean I won't have any students. Thanks to a special Quebec Writers' Federation project, I have begun mentoring a young writer named Raphaella.

To be honest, I was not looking for another project, but when the QWF approached me about this opportunity, I said, "I'll only do it if I really like Raphaella's writing" -- and you can guess what happened next. I liked it -- a lot!

Tonight, Raphaella came to my house for our first meeting. I had reviewed the first chapter of her work in progress -- and we went over it together in detail. We also discussed some basic principles such as the need to SHOW, NOT TELL; that ADVERBS ARE EVIL AND SHOULD BE ELIMINATED WHEREVER POSSIBLE; and that RESEARCH is often an essential part of the fiction-writing process. One of Raphaella's characters is a songwriter, and it turns out Raphaella has a cousin who writes songs -- so she is going to interview him and get interesting details to work into her story.

Not only is Raphaella a fine writer, but she was receptive to my comments and suggestions. When I asked her at one point whether she could handle more suggestions (I'd already given her a lot), she said, "This is what I wanted." That comment inspired me. Like Raphaella, I work with editors too -- and it's good to be reminded that being edited is a privilege.

Before I dropped Raphaella off at the metro station, I asked whether I had overwhelmed her -- that's because I know I can have an overwhelming effect on people and also because I gave Raphaella the attention I usually store up and give to 105 students! Here is what Raphaella answered: "You're very quirky [this could be because she saw me wipe the cat's feet when he came in from outside] and also very interesting. You cover all the bases at the same time." If you know me, you'll agree this assessment is right-on!

Next time, I'll ask Raphaella's permission to let me quote a little of her story. As for me, I'm delighted to work with such a bright, receptive and talented young writer. I expect I'll learn a lot from the process too!

The reason I haven't been such a faithful blogger lately is that I've been juggling three book projects. My last deadline was July 1st -- and I made it! Now, if I was a more normal sort of person, I'd probably be glad to have some time off from writing books. But the thing is I'M HOOKED AND I CAN'T STOP.

So, I thought I'd use today's blog entry to explore why that might be.

I love having a project on the go. And I love having an imaginary world to think about. And I also love doing research -- exploring new subjects and asking lots of questions. That's why for today's pic, I took a photo of the four sheets of notes currently on my desk. Each sheet has a different book idea. Over the next few days and weeks, I plan to start doing preliminary research on all four topics... and the one that "calls" to me most, well that'll be my next project!

And because I think it's important for authors to be honest about their work -- especially authors like me who want to help inspire others to write -- I should tell you that even after having published 17 YA novels, and with three more books due out in spring 2016, I still find writing difficult. And you know what? That's also why I'm hooked. Because even if it's hard work, and often frustrating, I think I like doing difficult, challenging things.

You may know that I am a great fan of Lewis Carroll's -- and that I wrote my MA thesis on the Alice books (and that yesterday was the 150th anniversary of the day Lewis Carroll, whose real name was Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, told Alice Liddell and her sisters the story that led to the first Alice book). Well, my very good friend Kevin recently sent me a wonderful new biography of Lewis Carroll called The Story of Alice by Robert Douglas-Fairhurst. Writing about our need for fiction, Douglas-Fairhurst quotes Julian Barnes's novel, Flaubert's Parrot: "Books say: she did this because. Life says: she did this. Books are where things are explained to you. Life is where things aren't. I'm not surprised some people prefer books." I LOVED THOSE LINES. They also help explain why I'm hooked on writing books. I hope you are, too!!

See that sweet young woman kneeling next to me in today's pic? It's Lea Beddia -- whom I taught at Marianopolis College some 15 years ago. Today, I drove northeast of Montreal to Joliette, where I worked with Miss Beddia's Grade Seven English classes at Joliette High School. Miss Beddia (Lea to me!) is just as smart and funny as I remember her and I must say it was a special delight to see one of my former students doing such great work with her own students!! I know I shouldn't take credit... but I still do!!

I turned up at lunch time, so I got to hang out with Miss Beddia and some of the school's budding authors. Afterwards, I worked with about 40 students, sharing writing tips and, of course, telling a few stories. Then Miss Beddia divided the students into smaller groups so I could give them some one-on-one advice about the creative writing pieces they have been working on. 

Whenever I do school visits, I like to share highlights of my day -- so here they come! At lunch, a student named Chloe said, "If you write about yourself as a character, you can find out more about yourself." That comment led those of us sitting at our table to discuss the connection between ourselves and the characters we create. I think that in some way, our characters are reflections of us -- and that sometimes they represent the parts of ourselves we seldom ,if ever, get to express! Why else do I keep writing about troublemaking boys?!!

Many of the students at JHS spend a lot of time on the schoolbus. Julia (who kindly corrected some French notes I am preparing for a radio column next week -- grand merci, Julia!) told me she uses her time on the bus to "observe people and imagine their stories." Spoken like a real writer, Julia!

When I was sharing writing tips, I asked the students, "What do you think happens when I write?" A young man named Nikolas came up with a great answer. He said, "You make a lot of mistakes!" And that's totally true -- and helps explain why I spend even more time REwriting than I spend writing my first drafts!

I also met a student named Blanche. When I told her how much I liked her name, Blanche told me her middle name is Neige. For those of you blog readers who do not speak French, that translates into "Snow White." Beautiful, don't you agree?

During a short writing exercise, Sebastien wrote about the last time he saw his great-grandmother. Here's a line that gave me shivers from Sebastien's piece: "Just by shaking her hand, I knew something was wrong."

I wish I had taken notes when I was looking at the students' stories -- but I was too busy reading and trying to provide some useful feedback. But I do remember a few of the suggestions I came up with: add dialogue to add life to your writing; show -- don't tell; take the reader with you by providing sensory details; and lose the adverbs.

Thanks, Miss Beddia, for staying wonderful all these years and for sharing your classes with me today; thanks Miss Murphy for letting us use your beautiful Community Learning Centre; and thanks to the students for working so hard! You guys were great!!!

Heritage Regional High School in St-Hubert is one of those schools I have visited so often that I feel at home in the hallways and the cafeteria -- and especially the libarary. Over time, I have also become good friends with Mrs. Eva, the head of the school's English department and a devoted creative writing teacher.

Today, I did three writing workshops at Heritage -- and I thought I'd use this blog entry to share some of the high points. For me, the first high point was during Mrs. Eva's introduction, when she told the students: "You need to find your voice. You need to find what interests you." I could not agree more. Whenever I am thinking about a new book, I always asks myself a similar question -- what interests me most at this point in my life? The answer often leads to a new project!

In one of my workshops, I asked students to observe an object, but to make sure that the observation was connected somehow to an emotion. A student named Charles observed the clock on the library wall. The clock has a green Heritage school crest on its face. As Charles wrote, "it gives me the feeling of obligation." Nice obseration, Charles! Make sure you work that clock into your next story!

I talked a little about my mom today, too. I told the students how she has given me permission to talk about some of the difficulties she's had in her life, and how she once told me, "If you think it helps young people to tell them these things, go ahead and tell them." On his way out of the library, a young man named Tristan stopped and said, "Tell your mother I appreciate what she's done in her life." Will do, Tristan!

My last session was with Mrs.Eva's enriched English group. I tried to tell them the truth about writing -- that for me, it is often a difficult, frustrating process and that even after having published 17 YA novels, I still feel sometimes like I am groping in the dark when I write. So I was happy when, at the end of the day, a student named Sarah said, ""I liked that you were honest." A student named Lydia added, "When people hide you from reality, you end up getting hurt."

So, a big thanks to Mrs. Eva -- for your dedication to your students, and for being such a good host. And a big thank you to the students for being such excellent workshop participants. Now, remember what I told you: stay out of trouble, but if trouble strikes, use it in a story! And never ever stop reading and writing!

Meet Alan! That's him in today’s pic. Alan was in my last workshop today on the final day of the MASC Young Authors Conference at Ottawa’s Aviation Museum. As you may already have figured out, Alan collects bookmarks! Usually, I only hand out one bookmark per student, but Alan collected a few extra, and when I was discussing examples of body language I happened to catch him in the act – making a fan out of my bookmarks. I decided it was photo-worthy.

So I had two more great groups of students today. In her introduction this morning, MASC’s Faith Seltzer told the students: “Pick the authors’ and illustrators’ brains and I’ll let you in on a secret: they’ll be picking your brains too!”

That’s definitely the truth!

In today’s entry, I’ll tell you about some excellent brains I picked! I learned that a student named Aashaz has an indoor rink in his basement. Though it’s made of plastic, Aashaz and his brother skate on it while wearing real skates! (I had never heard of that before, and I think it’s super-interesting and belongs in a book. Don’t you agree?)

This week I began experimenting with a new writing exercise. I asked students to use any of their five senses to observe something interesting in our room, but I told them that I wanted their observations to evoke emotion. Here’s what a student named Moumita came up with – she saw one lone marker on a shelf, and for her, it represented “one lonely person at school.” Nice work, Moumita!

If you’ve been following my blog over the last few days, you’ll know I had an amazing time at the MASC Young Authors Conference. I got to hang out with great kids, and great authors, and work with a great team from MASC and their out-of-this world volunteers. Hey, how am I going to get back to real life tomorrow?

The young man in today's picture is named Anderson -- and he was in my workshop today at the MASC Young Authors Conference in Ottawa. See those beautiful front teeth? There's a story behind them! When we were discussing how it's important to have trouble in our stories, Anderson shared a real-life story with us. When he was out skiing, the T-bar hit Anderson in the mouth and his two front teeth got knocked out. YIKES! Luckily, the dentail surgeon was able to save both teeth -- and now Anderson sure has a story to tell! I asked whether when he was holding his teeth in his hand there was blood -- Anderson said no. That's when I gave him a good tip for fiction writing: LIE! We all agreed that readers would enjoy as gorey a description as possible -- and I even suggested he could add a few drops of blood to the snow.

It turned out that several students in my morning workshop had tooth stories of their own. A couple thought it was a sign that I should use teeth trouble in one of my new book projects.

Another interesting thing we discussed: how our shoelaces reveal something about us. That was because my shadow (meaning my personal assistant) this morning, a student named Jessica, was wearing sneakers -- and the laces on one of them were untied. We did a count, and about half of the kids in the workshop, double-tie their laces. We decided that double-tiers are probably more careful people, that they worry about tripping -- and that non-tiers like Jessica are freer spirits. This, I thought was a great moment to teach students the writing rule SHOW; DON'T TELL. Rather than saying a character is careful, consider having him or her take an action such as double-tying his or her shoelaces!

In the afternoon workshop, I asked students to come up with interesting observations about our room. Alex observed "one empty chair" -- and I thought that would make a great title for a book. One Empty Chair -- haunting, don't you agree? A student named Moira gave me permission to quote from a beautiful piece she wrote about her memory of being forced to take a nap at daycare. Here comes the quote -- get ready for some super writing! "I didn't want to admit that I slept well. I tried to think of what I had dreamed about, but the memory had already slipped away. This confused me. I thought someone had stolen my dream." I LOVE LOVE LOVE the bit about the stolen dream.

So, you can probably tell that I've been enjoying myself at the MASC Young Authors Conference. To the students I've been working with -- thanks for the inspiration -- and for your hard work!!

It seems appropriate that I am FLYING HIGH after Day 1 at the MASC Young Authors Conference in Ottawa -- since it was held in the Canada Aviation and Space Museum!

The two groups of students I worked with were amazing. In the first group, a student named Abdel told me, "I read a lot because it enhaces my vocabulary" -- and Abdel is only ten. Then a student named Laura raised her hand to say she reads the dictionary sometimes. Which led me to discover that Natassia, Cohen, Meisha, Briana, Mikael, Oliver, Ketsia, Rebecca, Kindra and Ella are also dictionary readers!

If you are wondering what is going on in today's pic... I took it when I gave the students an exercise to write a book blurb, and a student named Kindra wanted to hide what she had written. As I told Kindra, I consider that a sign that her work must have been important and terrific. Write that book, Kindra!

A student named Allegra asked me a question that I thought was just brilliant: "What if you have so many great ideas -- how do you choose one? And what if you start one, but then you feel like starting another? How do you ever finish?" Wow, Allegra, that question makes me think you really understand what goes on in a writer's mind. You know how I finish? By sheer stick-to-it-iveness.

In my second group, a student named Brenna started writing a story that I really really hope she will continue working on. Here's how it begins: "The shotgun felt heavy in my five year old arms. My uncle holds my arms steady as he takes off the safety." Now aren't you eager to know what is going to happen next?

It's time now to go to a party with my fellow writers and illustrators. I'll keep posting about my adventures here in Ottawa over the next couple of days. Thanks MASC for inviting me, and thanks to the students I worked with today -- you guys were amazing. Keep reading the dictionary!! And writing and reading books of all kinds!!!

When I was a girl, my dad's law office was in Dominion Square Building, on the corner of Peel and Ste. Catherine Streets in downtown Montreal. On Saturday mornings, my dad sometimes let me tag along when he went to the office to do extra work. One reason I loved going was that he used to let me raid the supply closet -- I'd load up on pens and steno pads and because photocopy machines had not yet been invented, something called carbon paper. But the other reason was that on the Saturday mornings I went downtown with my dad, he'd always let me stop at W.H. Smith, the bookstore that for many years was located in the building's lobby. That's where my love of bookstores first began.

On Saturday, May 2, Authors for Indies comes to Canada. Begun by one of my favourite writers, Sherman Alexie, Authors for Indies is a way to support independent booksellers. At last count, 104 Canadian bookstores have arranged to participate. These stores will be hosting authors -- including me. For one day, we'll be volunteer booksellers, talking to customers about our favourite subject -- books, of course!

I'll be volunteering at two West Island bookstores that day. From 11 AM until 1 PM, I'll be at Librairie Clio. Other authors who'll be in-store that day include my friends Kit Brennan and P.J. Bracegirdle. Then from 2-4 PM, I'll be at Livres Babar in Pointe-Claire Village. Livres Babar has two locations -- the one in Pointe-Claire Village, and the other on Greene Avenue. We're still waiting to get the names of the other authors who'll be at the two Babar stores on May 2. The Babar stores are Montreal's only bookstores specializing in children's books... so you can understand why, over the years, I've become good friends with the Byers family, who own the stores, and with all of the stores' employees. In fact, I often run my story ideas by them!

Since the time I was a little girl, bookstores have always felt like home to me. In a bookstore, I can never be in a bad mood. There are too many books to look at, and flip through, and get hooked by... to be in a bad mood. I often tell my students that books -- both reading and writing them -- have saved my life. I know it sounds dramatic, but it's true. Books and bookstores, reading and writing are my safe place. So wherever you live in Canada or the United States, make a point of dropping by your local independent bookstore on May 2. Hey, don't forget to tell them I sent you!

Marymount Acadmey is in my neighbourhood -- in fact, I regularly jog by the building, but today was the first time I ever got to go inside! And I had a great time working with Mr. Harris's Grade 7 English class.

My day started with a hug -- from the school's vice-principal, Ms. Vourdousis. Thanks for getting my day off to a happy start, Ms. V! I don't think I've ever been hugged by a vice-principal before -- and it was fun!

Librarian Mr. Langdon kindly let us set up shop in his library. When I said I'd like the desks grouped more closely together, Mr. Harris asked for help from a student named Cody. Mr. Harris told Cody: "Show me your muscles." That was when a student named Tahleah who was sitting next to Cody piped up and said, "I've got muscles too!" I thought that was a great line, and I wrote it down so I could use it in a book. (Coincidentally, two characters in the story I am revising happen to be having a similar conversation.)

Hey, can you tell what we are doing in today's pic? The idea came from a student named Celeste, who it turns out is also one of the winners of the school's recent public speaking contest. Can you tell which word we are trying to "write"? If you need a clue, that's Mr. Harris sitting in front of us, doing the thing we are trying to demonstrate!

The students had loads of great questions for me. Henry had the most questions, and he also provided some sensitive, intelligent answers. Great work today, Henry! A student named Katherine asked a question I really liked and that I've never been asked before: "How do you get better at writing?" I told her the answer is by writing and reading A LOT!

It's nearly time for me to go and teach my own classes at Marianopolis College, but I also want to share an interesting observation from a student named Ebony. She thinks that the boys at her school are even more interested in their appearance than the girls are, only Ebony put it better: "Nowadays boys be the ones caring about their hair, shoes and clothes. And the girls are like, 'We don't care!'"

Both writing exercises I did with the group today went well. Three students didn't want me to read what they had written -- I always get excited when that happens. As I see it, it means that these students REALLY NEED TO WRITE THOSE STORIES.

So, thanks to the students for being great workshop participants; to Mr. Harris for sharing his class with me; to Mr. Langdon for sharing the library; and to Ms. Vourdousis and principal Ms. Cresta for making today's visit happen.

My morning started with a hug from the school's vice-principal, Ms. Vourdousis --

The title of today's blog entry, "She almost made me cry -- but don't tell anyone I said that" comes from a comment overheard (not by me) in the hallway after the first of my two presentations this morning at Westwood Junior High School in Ste-Lazare.

I was at Westwood Junior to speak with Grade Eight students about how I got to be a writer, and to talk about my historical novel, What World Is Left, which many of the students had read over the summer. I guess it was my stories about interviewing my mom -- whose experience in Theresienstadt, a Nazi concentration camp, inspired that book -- that made the student almost cry.

I told the groups I worked with that when I was growing up, I had a difficult relationship with my mom. But everything changed when I learned the story of what she had been through during the Holocaust. So I recommended the students interview people in their own lives who sometimes drive them crazy. Once you know a person's story, you can't be angry with them any more.

We also talked about the importance of passing stories on -- and I told the story of my monkey man charm, and to the first group, the story of the prison guard who was kind to my grandfather after the Nazis imprisoned him in the Hague.

At recess, I met with the school's Battle of the Books team. They are hoping to make it to the final championship -- when they will have to answer in-depth questions about a number of books, including my novel, Straight Punch. It's a great project and you'll read more about it here since I am going to be one of the people asking questions on the final night of the contest, which takes place on April 23.

There were some special treats for me today. One was that Mrs. Quinn, a Grade Eight teacher, presented me with a thick white envelope -- inside are letters about What World Is Left, written to me by her students. I am looking forward to reading each one -- and to sharing the letters with my mom.

Another pleasure was that a student named Emily came to say hello to me after my presentation. (That's Emily in the white skirt in today's pic.) I have not seen Emily in many years, but I knew her and her family when she was a baby. And you know what, Emily? I'm pretty sure the first present I ever gave you was a BOOK!!

Now I'm going to do some writing. If I don't, how am I ever going to keep getting invited to visit cool schools?! Special thanks to librarian Mrs. Conroy (she's standing at the left in my pic) for arranging my visit today, and to teachers Mrs. Quinn and Mr. Savard for sharing your students. And to the students -- thanks for making my morning so much fun!

There are a lot of reasons why my morning was special. For one thing, I was working with special needs students at John Grant High School -- and they were terrific! Usually, I get about an hour or maybe 90 minutes with a class, but today, I had nearly three hours! That meant I could take my time and also that I had a chance to get to know the young people I was working with. These students are in the JOP stream. JOP stands for Job Orientation Program. That means they have classes on Mondays and Tuesdays, and from Wednesday to Friday, they are out doing internships in the community. I'll bet they have a lot of interesting stories about their time in the workplace!!

Another reason the visit was special is that my book Hate Mail is dedicated to David R, a student in the class. David R didn't want to be in the photograph, but he kindly agreed to be our photographer.

And another reason why the visit was special is that John Grant is located in what used to be Wagar High School -- my old high school. I haven't been back in the building for nearly forty years -- and I was surprised by how familiar things felt. Even the room numbers on the doors are still the same.

So, back to the students! We were talking about the link between writing and reading, and I asked the class if they enjoy reading. Jabbaar answered, "50-50." You know what I love about that answer? It's honest! Romy said, "I used to hate reading, but now I love it." I also noticed that Romy took amazing notes. Good job, Romy!

I told the students how hard it was for me to get my first book published. "What do you think that felt like?" I asked them. A student named Mitchell came up with a poetic answer. He said, "It must have felt like you were all alone and the walls were closing in." Mitchell, something tells me you should be writing poetry!

I ended the session with a writing exercise. Usually, I have to shush a few students at this point in my workshops, but not today! Claudio wrote a cool story about his grandmother hitting a mouse with her bare hands. And what do you think of the way William started his story: "I first heard the word 'tantrum' when I was ten years old." William, I definitely want to keep reading that story!

Thanks to the JOP students for being such focused participants; thanks to your teachers Miss Yankowsky and Miss Toffoli, for sharing you; and thanks to librarian Mrs. French for arranging my visit. I can't imagine a happier start to this week!

Hello blog readers! This seems to be eraser-week! If you read Monday's blog, you will know that during my visit to Westwood Senior, I spotted a young man trying to melt his eraser on a nearby radiator. Today, during my workshops at Lasalle Community High School, I noticed that Carissa, the student sitting next to me, was rotating her eraser and dropping it on the table in what struck me as a rhythmic way. So, because I enjoy being OBSERVANT and am CURIOUS (useful traits in an author), I asked Carissa whether she might be musical. And guess what I found out? Not only is Carissa musical, but she plays the DRUMS. Now, even though I have plenty of story ideas to keep me busy for a while, I am starting to think about writing a YA novel about a GIRL DRUMMER. So, thanks for the inspiration, Carissa!

I spent the morning working with Miss Ryan's two Grade Nine English classes. When I was talking about the importance of re-writing, and how, even after I have re-written a manuscript several times, my editor still has many suggestions for improving it, a student named Shevan had a super question. He wanted to know, "How come you can't fix your writing yourself?' I told Shevan that we writers tend to get too close to our own work -- it's kind of like trying to be objective about your own child. An editor has distance, not to mention lots of experience with other writers' work. The funny thing is that as a teacher, I do a lot of editing -- but I still need an editor to help me improve my stories.

I stayed to have lunch in the school library, where I met students on the school's Battle of the Books team (they are competing with other schools to answer questions about 14 YA novels -- and one of them is mine). That's me with the team in today's pic. (The two women at the back of the pic are librarian Miss Susan, who is wearing grey; next to her is Miss Ryan.) One of the girls on the team, Sephrah, told me that she has spent a lot of time developing an idea for her own novel. But, Sephrah says that the writing part is not going so well: "The minute I try to put it into writing, it sounds cheesy." I told Sephrah that what she feels is perfectly natural and part of the writing process. Sephrah, just get your story down -- cheesy or not. Once you have a first draft, then you can go back and make it better and better. For me, feeling dissatisfied with my writing is all just part of what goes into producing a book.

Special thanks to Miss Susan for inviting me to Lasalle Community High School, to Miss Ryan for sharing your classes, to the students for being good listeners, and to the Battle of the Books team for keeping me company at lunch -- and sharing your stories.

I'm just home from my visit today to Westwood High School Senior Campus in Hudson, a beautiful town about a forty-minute drive from downtown Montreal.

I worked with three English classes, all taught by the charming and kind Mr. Roy. It's funny how every single class has its own character. I think that's one of the reasons why, after more than 30 years in the classroom, I'm still hooked on working with teenagers! I never know what to expect and that keeps life interesting!

Here are a few highlights from today's visit. If you are a regular reader of this blog, you will know that I am hooked on interesting observations. Well, today I noticed a student named Daniel trying to melt his eraser on the radiator near his desk. I must admit that even after so many years in the classroom, that was a new one for me! Later, I noticed that a particularly bright student (I learned his name was Matt) happened to be wearing a Harvard sweatshirt. A propos, perhaps?

A student named Lilly told me that today was her 16th birthday! (That's Lilly with me in today's pic -- we are upside-down at the moment, but I'll fix that later!) Happy birthday, Lilly! She also told me she has read my novel What World Is Left FIVE TIMES! Yay, Lilly! Lilly told me she sometimes feels discouraged when she is writing. She said, "I like writing, bu when I write, I feel like I do a very bad job." That made me laugh because ... well... I often feel that way myself! I explained to Lilly that in my experience, people who are really super confident about their writing tend not to be the best writers!

I did a writing exercise with every group. Here's an excerpt from one of the best pieces that came out of the exercise. A student named Kate was remembering back to when her parents announced they were getting a divorce. Kate wrote: "I couldn't smell anything because I had a runny nose from crying." When I read that line I felt like I was in the room with Kate and her family. That's a sure sign of writing that works.

And ... one final moment that made me happy. We were talking about interviewing and I asked the students in my first class of the day, "What quality does a reporter or researcher have to demonstrate in order to get a really good interview or story?" I gave the students the hint that the answer was a verb, that it started with C and had four letters. Well, a student named Tristan came up with the answer: "Care!" he called out.

So that's my word for the day: care. If you care about stories; if you care about writing and reading -- you're on the way to becoming a writer. Thanks to Mr. Roy for inviting me to Westwood Senior, and to librarian Ute Wilkinson for arranging today's visit. And thanks to the students for being so much fun!

If you're wondering why some of the kids in today's pic are wearing pajamas, it's because it was Pajama Day at Kuper Academy. I was there to pay my third of three visits to the school. This morning, I visited another one of Miss Machaca's Grade Eight classes -- and they were wonderful.

Because I spoke a little about how important it is for authors to make observations (so that they include interesting details in their stories), I asked some questions about the pajamas the students were wearing. Several were dressed in onesies -- can you figure out my question? I wanted to know how they manage to go to the bathroom! (Admit it! You were wondering about that, too!) Imagine trying to go to the bathroom when you are wearing a onesie -- that would be a good scene to include in a story!

When we were discussing body language, I asked students to have a look at how people were holding their pens. A student named Alex observed that one of his classmates was ready to write. "Pen at the ready!" said Alex. I liked Alex's use of language -- "Pen at the ready!" sounds lively and fun, and it makes me think that Alex is the poetic type.

We talked a little about my historical novel, What World Is Left, and I told the students how the book is based on my mom's wartime experience. My mom lived in Amsterdam, but after the Nazis invaded the Netherlands, she and her family were sent to a concentration camp in what is now the Czech Republic. A student named Wiske stayed to talk to me after class. Wiske moved from the Netherlands to Canada six months ago. We spoke about Anne Frank -- which made me realize I had forgotten to tell this morning's class that my mom and Anne Frank attended the same high school for Jewish students in Amsterdam. If Anne Frank was alive today, she would be my mom's age -- 85.

On my way out today, I stopped at the library to thank the librarian, Mrs. Mohammed, for inviting me to Kuper -- I really had a great time. The kids were super -- focused, interested, and perfectly behaved. I also had a chance to meet Mrs. Salette, the head of school. It is always fun for me to meet the administrators who run the schools I visit. And then I had a happy surprise. Mrs. Salette's son, Rob, is the school's director of admissions. And guess what? I taught Rob at Marianopolis!

Here's to interesting observations, turning trouble into stories ... and happy surprises! Thanks to all the students I worked with at Kuper. You guys were a pleasure!

If you have read my YA novel, 121 Express, you will remember Mr. Adams. What you may not know is that the fictional Mr. Adams is based on a wonderful real-life teacher named Mr. Adams, who is now the head of the English Department at Lauren Hill Academy, Junior Campus, here in Montreal.

I met Mr. Adams several years ago, when I worked with him and his students on a Blue Metropolis Literary Foundation project, which ended up inspiring 121 Express. Which meant that I got to spend a lot of time at Lauren Hill's Junior Campus.

So you will understand why I was so pleased to be invited back there this morning! I am just home from doing three workshops at the school -- and the first one was for TEACHERS! Basically, I did the same thing with the teachers that I did later with their students -- shared my writing tips, and got them WRITING!

Afterwards, I worked with two large groups of students -- I think I probably spoke to over 200 students in all... and they were great. It's not easy for participants in such large groups to stay focused, but these kids were just about perfect.

I talked about the important link between our memories and the stories we need to write. During a short writing exercise, a student named Azur asked, "Can we keep it in the present?" I thought this was a sophisticated question and I told Azur, yes, absolutely, use the present. I find that when I am writing about memories, the present tense adds immediacy -- something that Azur was discovering on her own. A student named Kiki wrote about a difficult memory involving violence. Kiki gave me permission to share a few lines here: "Not again. Not another bruise. Not another day." Those are powerful words, Kiki, and they make me want to keep reading your story!

When he was introducing me to the second group, Mr. Adams said, "Writing is a life skill -- not just a school skill." I thought that was so smart and well-put that I had to write it down in my notes. See, writers are ALWAYS TAKING NOTES, even during our own presentations!

I showed the students (and the teachers) my book of "pages" -- the journal I write in every morning. After I was done with my last presentation, a student named Matthew asked, "May I read the book you write in every morning?" I had a quick answer for Matthew: "NO!"

I also got to meet the school's vice-principal. And it turns out that she has read one of my books. Plus, she has the best name for a vice-principal: MS. EXCELLENT. Ms. Excellent, you are definitely going into one of my future books!

A big shout-out to my friends at Lauren Hill Academy, Junior Campus -- thanks for being a great audience, thanks to Mr. Adams for the invite, to the other English teachers for coming to the teachers' workshops, and to Ms. Excellent for living up to her name!

 real

I'm just home from Riverdale High School -- a school that's close to my heart. That's because my last book, Hate Mail, was written with the help of a wonderful group of students at Riverdale and their teacher Karen Scott. The book grew out of an amazing Blue Metropolis Literary Foundation project called Libres comme l'art.

Today, I did writing workshops with two of Miss Blake's English classes and I must say they were both lively crews. But I also had a few visitors from Miss Scott's group. It was great to see you guys!

In today's pic, I am working with the class I saw this morning. One of the students in the pic is named Briyaunah -- when I was teaching the writing rule (I don't usually like to teach rules, but this is my one exception) SHOW; DON'T TELL, I explained how there's a semi-colon... which was when Briyaunah drew a semi-colon in the air and smiled at me. If you are a regular reader of this blog, you'll know that I am crazy about body language -- well, Briyaunah's drawing that semi-colon was very cool body language and it showed me that a) she was paying attention and b) she knows what a semi-colon is!

When we talked about revising, a student named Zac said, "I only hand in first drafts." When I asked Zac how that is working out for him, he admitted, "I might be failing English." Luckily, before I finished my session, I got Zac to solemnly promise that he will now revise and re-do his work before handing it in. Let me know if that helps pick up your English average, Zac!

THe group I worked with this afternoon was even LIVELIER -- by that I mean it was a bit of a challenge to get them to focus. But hey, they did -- and they turned out to be wonderful, too. Also, they had a ton of questions for me, which made my day more fun and interesting. My favourite question came from a guy named Jack who, when I told them that I write every single day, asked, "Doesn't writing get boring?" I responded by asking Jack a question: "Does thinking ever get boring?" and he said, "No, I like to think"... so I explained that for me, writing IS thinking.

Anyway, it's nearly time for me to head to Marianopolis to teach my own Writing for Children class. But first I need to say a special thanks to Mrs. Strano, the librarian at Riverdale, for the invite, and for making me the best lunch EVER. Thanks to Miss Blake's classes for your energy, and to Miss Scott's former students for coming to say hi.

I'm just back from my second of three visits this month to Kuper Academy in Kirkland. This afternoon, I worked with three Grade Eight classes -- and there were many interesting and fun moments.

I'll begin with an interesting moment: a student named Mathew told me his grandfather, who is German and whom Mathew calls "Opa" (the same name I used to call my Dutch grandfather) helped Jews in hiding during the Holocaust by bringing them food. Luckily for Mathew, his opa is still alive... so I told Mathew he needs to hang out with him and learn his stories! As I pointed out, sometimes older people are more comfortable sharing their pasts with their grandchildren than with their own kids. So get to work, Mathew!

I got Ms. Machaca's class to write about the book each of them most wants to read. Interestingly, three students wrote about soccer. Alexander imagined a story that combined soccer and aliens; Efren was interested in a story about a kidnapped soccer player; and Amrit had a story idea about a poor Brazilian kid who becomes a soccer star.

Another fun moment happened when I was advising the students that in order to get a secret, they might try giving a secret -- in other words, tell one of their own. A student named Brandon asked, "Does it work if you make it up?" My immediate answer was no -- because I think that if we want to have honest, deep conversation with someone, we need to be honest ourselves. But then I gave Brandon's question a little more thought and I decided to give him credit for even coming up with it -- since his question is really about using imagination. In a way, Brandon, all fiction writers are liars -- and now the concept gets even more complicated -- what we aim to do in our fiction is get at essential human truths!

I ended the afternoon with Miss Caughy's class. (Today's pic was taken in Miss Caughy's classroom.) You know how I love making observations and asking questions? Well, I noticed there seemed to be interesting students in the back corners and near the door in Miss Caughy's classroom ... so I asked her about it. Guess what I found out? That Miss Caughy uses a system called "four corners." Ah ha... let's just say that that's where Miss Caughy puts the students who function best with a little extra space. You know what I'm thinking? That "Four Corners" would make a great book title! Hey, maybe one of you guys in Miss Caughy's four corners should write it!

I'll be back to do one last class at Kuper on Monday, Feb. 23. If any of the students I've met want to show me your writing, I could meet you in the library at lunch and we could talk stories. Let Miss Mohammed know if that sounds like a plan.

You'd probably expect a writer who just got home from doing FIVE sessions with students at Kuper Academy would be ready for a nap, but hey, I'm full of energy. I think that's because instead of tiring me out, the kids I worked with today gave me the best kind of buzz!

Okay, so you're wondering about today's pics. In the first one, I am in the library with a student named Justin. Justin had heard me speak in Miss Machaca's class, where I mentioned that writers need to be careful observers of life around them. When I finished up in Miss Machaca's classroom, I was chatting with another of her students, when I noticed that Justin was well... waiting around. So I asked him, "Do you have a question for me?" -- and he answered, "No, I'm just following one of your tips!" That was when I figured out Justin was OBSERVING! (Nothing makes a visiting author happier than knowing young writers are following her advice!!)

There is lots more I can tell you about today's visit, but I'm going to give you a few highlights. If you are one of my regular blog readers, you'll know that I have started work on a new project involving school rules. That's why I took the second pic. It's the plastic basket you find on every teacher's desk at Kuper. When students come in, they deposit their cellphones in the basket. Clever idea, no? Maybe I should get them to try it at Marianopolis College!! Anyway, it's an interesting approach to the cellphone-in-the-classroom problem... and maybe I can find a way to work it into my new story. See? That's what we writers do... spend our days collecting material, the way a bird collects stuff to build a nest.

A happy moment from my day: I was telling the students about my opa, who inspired the character of the father in my historical novel What World Is Left. I explained that during the Holocaust, my Opa had to compromise his own priniciples in order to protect his family. Then I told the class, "May the rest of us never find ourselves in a similar situation." At just that moment, I happened to look at a student named Tyus and Tyus gave me a small nod. But that nod (you may know I have an obsession with body language) showed me that Tyus is smart and has a big heart -- and that he understood exactly what I meant.

I also collect possible names for future characters. So you can imagine my pleasure when a student told me her name is Love. And she has three sisters named Faith, Hope and Peace. Love, if you're reading this, I think you need to write a story about you four sisters and whether you live up to your names. I am wondering for instance ... does a girl named Peace ever get into a fight?

Another observation: I met a student named Melina who has two pencilcases. One is for pens and pencils; the other is for other stuff like her erasers and calculator. As a writer, I am always on the hunt for interesting details ... that double pencilcase situation might make it into my bird's nest, too!

And you can imagine that I was impressed by a student named Jack, whom when I told his class that I have been writing three pages in a journal every day for 20 years (except for one day when I had a terrible flu), Jack raised his hand and said, "That means you wrote, 219,897 pages!" And Jack didn't even use his calculator to figure that one out.

I'll be doing two more visits to Kuper this month. Watch the blog for more reports.

Special thanks to teachers Mr. Welik, Miss Machaca, and Mr. D, for sharing their classes with me; to librarian Mrs. Mohammed for inviting me back to Kuper; and to my new pal, Mrs. Katz, for the excellent company during my break!

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you may remember that early in 2015, I paid four visits to St. Thomas High School. I was there to talk about writing and to inspire the students, but let's just say they inspired me, too!

At the time, I told the students about my latest book idea (it had to do with school rules), and I asked students who had some insights into how school rules work to drop by at their lunchtime to chat with me. Which was how the lunch bunch was born.

It also explains why today, a snowy day in Montreal -- the kind of day when the roads are slick -- I drove out to St. Thomas to meet with the lunch bunch!I tested out the first chapters of my new project on them. Overall, I'd say the verdict was a thumbs up, though they had lots of good comments and useful suggestions for me. For instance, they like the word "revolt" more than "mutiny," and they think one of the characters I am writing about -- who happens to be gay -- would be more reluctant about going along with his peers' macho behavior.

Special thanks to librarian Mrs. Pye for rounding up the lunch bunch, and to the lunch bunch for your terrific input. My favourite part of the visit? When a couple of students asked, "Are you coming back to read us more?" The answer, by the way, is YES! Aren't I a lucky writer to have these bright young people to test my story out on?

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you may remember that early in 2015, I paid four visits to St. Thomas High School. I was there to talk about writing and to inspire the students, but let's just they inspired me, too!

At the time, I told the students about my latest book idea (it had to do with school rules), and I asked students who had some insights into how school rules work to drop by at their lunchtime to chat with me. Which was how the lunch bunch was born.

It also explains why today, a snowy day in Montreal -- the kind of day when the roads are slick -- I drove out to St. Thomas to meet with the lunch bunch!I tested out the first chapters of my new project on them. Overall, I'd say the verdict was a thumbs up, though they had lots of good comments and useful suggestions for me. For instance, they like the word "revolt" more than "mutiny," and they think one of the characters I am writing about -- who happens to be gay -- would be more reluctant about going along with his peers' macho behavior.

Special thanks to librarian Mrs. Pye for rounding up the lunch bunch, and to the lunch bunch for your terrific input. My favourite part of the visit? When a couple of students asked, "Are you coming back to read us more?" The answer, by the way, is YES! Aren't I a lucky writer to have these bright young people to test my story out on?

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you may remember that early in 2015, I paid four visits to St. Thomas High School. I was there to talk about writing and to inspire the students, but let's just they inspired me, too!

At the time, I told the students about my latest book idea (it had to do with school rules), and I asked students who had some insights into how school rules work to drop by at their lunchtime to chat with me. Which was how the lunch bunch was born.

It also explains why today, a snowy day in Montreal -- the kind of day when the roads are slick -- I drove out to St. Thomas to meet with the lunch bunch!I tested out the first chapters of my new project on them. Overall, I'd say the verdict was a thumbs up, though they had lots of good comments and useful suggestions for me. For instance, they like the word "revolt" more than "mutiny," and they think one of the characters I am writing about -- who happens to be gay -- would be more reluctant about going along with his peers' macho behavior.

Special thanks to librarian Mrs. Pye for rounding up the lunch bunch, and to the lunch bunch for your terrific input. My favourite part of the visit? When a couple of students asked, "Are you coming back to read us more?" The answer, by the way, is YES! Aren't I a lucky writer to have these bright young people to test my story out on?

  I'm just home from the last of my four writing workshops at St. Thomas High School -- and it was hard to say good-bye. The students did some amazing work and I have to admit they provided a ton of inspiration and input for the manuscript I am hoping to start this week. So, instead of saying good-bye, I asked them whether, once I've produced a few chapters of the new project, I could come back to the library some lunch time and test it out on them. I got the distinct impression my plan might work! YAY!

Because this was my second session with the students I worked with today, there was time for a writing exercise. If you know me, or if you read this blog, you will know that I am really interested in the connection between memory and writing. That's why I asked the students to explore a memory from when they were either five or ten years old. Many of them produced powerful pieces. One that stood out for me was Stephanie's memory of the death of her guinea pig Snoopy. Her piece was written in the present tense and she included the simple, but moving line, "I pet him one last time." When we were chatting afterwards, Stephanie told me that after Snoopy's death, she could not go into the computer room where his cage used to be. I told her that that was a detail she should definitely include as she continues to work on her piece.

Oh, I nearly forgot to tell you about today's pic! That's a drawing I spotted on a student named Cynthia's hand. Pretty amazing, don't you think? Cynthia told me she did the drawing during cooking class, just before English. Cynthia is one of the students who's been meeting up for lunch with me at the school library -- Cynthia, you've been a great inspiration this week. And I think you're an amazing artist too. Do you draw on paper and canvas also, or just on hands? ;) Anyway, I hope you'll come back for lunch in a few weeks when I've written some chapters to share with you guys.

I also told the students a few stories today -- one about the Holocaust, one about a talking bird. I explained how for me, it's as if all I have to do is cup my hands (today's theme seems to be HANDS!!) and stories come to me. I think if we are interested in stories and in people and in things, then stories come to us. It's up to writers -- young ones like the ones I've been working with at St. Thomas, and older ones like me -- to share those stories.

Speaking os sharing, special thanks to the teachers for sharing their students, and birthday wishes to Mr. Katz (who helped me refine one of today's exercises), and a shout-out to Mrs. Pye, the librarian at St. Thomas, for having me back and for sharing her library with all of us.

So don't you like the title of today's blog entry, "Write like a lot"? It's a direct quote from one of the ninth grade students I worked with this morning at St. Thomas HIgh School in Poointe-Claire. This was my third of four days of writing workshops at the school, and the quote comes from Philippe in response to my question, "What do you think my first tip for you guys is?" Philippe was right -- my first tip is always to tell aspiring writers to WRITE, but I liked how Philippe put it -- and that's because he sounds like a teenager talking and not a fifty-four-year-old writer. And since I write for teens, I need to hear teenage voices in my head.

That's me at the left in today's pic. I'm with a student named Averie (she had some great ideas to share about school rules -- the topic of my upcoming book project). Next to Averie is the lovely Miss Murphy, next to her is the lovely librarian Mrs. Pye, and next to Mrs. Pye, is Matthew.

Miss Murphy and I have met before, but today, I had a chance to learn a little more about her teaching methods. It turns out she does meditation exercises with her students. Not only am I interested in incorporating some of those exercises in my own classroom, but it occurred to me that Miss Murphy would make a cool teacher to include in my new story. So thanks, Miss Murphy, for the inspiration!

I was telling the students how writers need to be curious -- and I have an example of how curiosity leads to interesting discoveries. I noticed a student named Madison was wearing a T-shirt with a chihuahua on it, so I asked her whether she has a chihuahua. Madison told me she has a Jack Russell Terrier (they look a little like chihuahuas). She also told me the T-shirt was a birthday present from her step-mom, and that her birthday was yesterday. See how much info I found out all my asking one small question!

At lunch, a lively group of students came to keep me company while I ate my egg salad sandwich. William, whom I had met last week, let me have a look at the horror story he's been writing. He's got some great names for his characters: Raith, Myst and Curce. He's also good at creating a creepy atmosphere. Averie (to my right in today's pic) took out her cellphone to show me a poem she's been working on. I made a couple of suggestions for tightening up the language, and I asked her permission to quote my favourite line: "All I know is that I crave you more than before." Beautiful work, Averie!

I experimented this afternoon with a new writing exercise (I invented it during my RUN this morning) -- I asked Mr. Katz's class to write about their relationship with writing by personifying writing. I got some interesting results. Hailie wrote: "She's the type of friend that I can rely on, yet I only seem to visit her when I'm bored." Joseph wrote: "I feel llike writing wants to be with me, but I don't want to be with writing."

Aaahh, the pleasure of reading creative, honest stuff. On days like this, I can't help thinking I have the best job in all the world! See you tomorrow, St. Thomas High!

If you're wondering why the title of today's blog entry "Lache pas la patate" is in French, it's because I spent today in Beauport, near Quebec City, working with francophone students at Ecole Secondaire de la Seigneurie -- and I had a great time.

It was my third visit to the school, and I worked with four grade nine classes who are studying English as a Second Language. I warned them that sometimes I talk pretty quickly and to slow me down if they had trouble keeping up, but no one had to rein me in -- the way you need to do when you are riding a horse who gallops when you're in the mood for a relaxing ride!

I tried to tell the students everything I know about writing, and I also gave them a writing exercise to help them figure out if there's a story in their pasts that is calling out to be written!

I also told the students how I got into publishing books, and how I faced many obstacles along the way. I told them my advice to never give up, and then I said to their teacher, Mr. Lord, "That's lache pas in French, right?" and Mr. Lord said, "It's lache pas la patate." Which made me laugh since that basically translates into don't leave the potato. In fact, I think from now on, I will tell all the students I meet "lache pas la patate"!

We discussed how trouble is the fuel that helps move a story forward. William, a student who is into video games, explained to me that even the simplest video game has trouble in it. Simon added, "A video game is like a story." Afterwards, Simon and his friend Charles showed me a book they wrote together. Their book is called "Hashima Island" and though I only had time for a quick look, I found it funny. One of my favourite parts were the biographies at the end. Here's my favourite line from Charles's biography: "Before working with Simon, Charles wrote a book that wasn't very successful." As I told the students, it's great when you can add humour to your stories!

During my talks today, I also mentioned that though writers probably need to know what trouble FEELS LIKE, it's wise to STAY OUT OF TROUBLE. Of course, when you are in Grade Nine, trouble sometimes knocks on your door! So I suggested next time trouble comes knocking, they should say, "I can't come out now. I'm busy writing my book!"

Anyway, I'm writing this blog entry from the train -- I'm headed home to Montreal. Thanks to the Grade Nine ESL students at Ecole Secondaire de la Seigneurie. You were lively and fun, and I really liked your writing. I'm impressed that you can express yourselves so well in a second language. And thanks to your teachers, Mr. Lord and Miss Delgado (that's Miss Delgao in the left corner of today's pic), for arranging my visit. I already miss you guys!

I'm very proud of today's pic. That's because it's taken at lunch time during my second of four visits this month to St. Thomas High School in Pointe-Claire. When I visit schools, I try to stick around at lunch in case students want to come OF THEIR OWN VOLITION (!!!) and chat with me about writing. Usually, I get a handful of keen young writers, but today I had quite a crowd! I think it was because I had mentioned to the three classes I worked with this morning that I am beginning to brainstorm for my next book project which is going to involve school rules and what it's like to be a boy beginning to get interested in girls. So I told the students if they wanted to discuss any of this stuff with me, they should drop by -- and let's just say it was quite a discussion!

I went to St. Thomas today to teach about writing, but I think I learned as much from the students as they learned from me! Thanks to the lunch bunch for turning up, and for sharing your stories. I hope that in a small way, you learned some more about what I do -- keep my feelers out for interesting issues in the lives of today's teens, ask questions to the experts (meaning you guys!), and take a ton of notes.

I'll be back at St. Thomas on Monday and Tuesday next week. By then, I hope to have a story outline to show you. And I hope you'll be writing stories for me too... so I can provide some feedback. Sometimes, being a writer feels a little lonely, but not today. Today being a writer feels like it's about finding inspiration and energy in connecting with others. Thanks for that, you guys!

I'm very proud of today's pic. That's because it's taken at lunch time during my second of four visits this month to St. Thomas High School in Pointe-Claire. When I visit schools, I try to stick around at lunch in case students want to come OF THEIR OWN VOLITION (!!!) and chat with me about writing. Usually, I get a handful of keen young writers, but today I had quite a crowd! I think it was because I had mentioned to the three classes I worked with this morning that I am beginning to brainstorm for my next book project which is going to involve school rules and what it's like to be a boy beginning to get interested in girls. So I told the students if they wanted to discuss any of this stuff with me, they should drop by -- and let's just say it was quite a discussion!

I went to St. Thomas today to teach about writing, but I think I learned as much from the students as they learned from me! Thanks to the lunch bunch, for turning up, and for sharing your stories. I hope that in a small way, you learned some more about what I do -- keep my feelers out for interesting issues in the lives of today's teens, ask questions to the experts (meaning you guys!), and take a ton of notes.

I'll be back at St. Thomas on Monday and Tuesday next week. By then, I hope to have a story outline to show you. And I hope you'll be writing stories for me too... so I can provide some feedback. Sometimes, being a writer feels a little lonely, but not today. Today being a writer feels like it's about finding inspiration and energy in connecting with others. Thanks for that, you guys!

I'm very proud of today's pic. That's because it's taken at lunch time during my second of four visits this month to St. Thomas High School in Pointe-Claire. When I visit schools, I try to stick around at lunch in case students want to come OF THEIR OWN VOLITION (!!!) and chat with me about writing. Usually, I get a handful of keen young writers, but today I had quite a crowd! I think it was because I had mentioned to the three classes I worked with this morning that I am beginning to brainstorm for my next book project which is going to involve school rules and what it's like to be a boy beginning to get interested in girls. So I told the students if they wanted to discuss any of this stuff with me, they should drop by -- and let's just say it was quite a discussion!

I went to St. Thomas today to teach about writing, but I think I learned as much from the students as they learned from me! Thanks to the lunch bunch, for turning up, and for sharing your stories. I hope that in a small way, you learned some more about what I do -- keep my feelers out for interesting issues in the lives of today's teens, ask questions to the experts (meaning you guys!), and take a ton of notes.

I'll be back at St. Thomas on Monday and Tuesday next week. By then, I hope to have a story outline to show you. And I hope you'll be writing stories for me too... so I can provide some feedback. Sometimes, being a writer feels a little lonely, but not today. Today being a writer feels like it's about finding inspiration and energy in connecting with others. Thanks for that, you guys!

I'm very proud of today's pic. That's because it's taken at lunch time during my second of four visits this month to St. Thomas High School in Pointe-Claire. When I visit schools, I try to stick around at lunch in case students want to come OF THEIR OWN VOLITION (!!!) and chat with me about writing. Usually, I get a handful of keen young writers, but today I had quite a crowd! I think it was because I had mentioned to the three classes I worked with this morning that I am beginning to brainstorm for my next book project which is going to involve school rules and what it's like to be a boy beginning to get interested in girls. So I told the students if they wanted to discuss any of this stuff with me, they should drop by -- and let's just say it was quite a discussion!

I went to St. Thomas today to teach about writing, but I think I learned as much from the students as they learned from me! Thanks to the lunch bunch, for turning up, and for sharing your stories. I hope that in a small way, you learned some more about what I do -- keep my feelers out for interesting issues in the lives of today's teens, ask questions to the experts (meaning you guys!), and take a ton of notes.

I'll be back at St. Thomas on Monday and Tuesday next week. By then, I hope to have a story outline to show you. And I hope you'll be writing stories for me too... so I can provide some feedback. Sometimes, being a writer feels a little lonely, but not today. Today being a writer feels like it's about finding inspiration and energy in connecting with others. Thanks for that, you guys!

I'm sure you've heard of a home-awy-from-home -- a place you feel so comfortable it feels like home. But I think I might have just invented the term "school-away-from-school." That's how I feel about St. Thomas High School, where I've done author visits for several years now. And this year, I'm doing four days of writing workshops with Grade Nine students at the school.

In today's pic, I'm standing next to Katarina. I met with four classes today, and Katarina was in my second group. When I told her class that reading and writing have both saved my life -- that they've always helped me get through my hardest times -- Katarina caught my eye, and I knew she was what Lucy Maud Montgomery would call "a kindred spirit." As Katarina told me afterwards, "Reading helps keep me calm. The people in my house are sometimes hot-tempered." You'll notice that Katarina is wearing a sweatshirt with a horse on it -- which led me to ask if was into horses, which led to my discovery that Katarina has two horses! See what happens when you're snoopy like me!!

I'll get to meet with the grades nines I'm working with twice -- today was mostly introductory material... I told the students how I got into writing and shared my favourite writing tips. In our next sessions, I'll get more into the nitty-gritty and give the students some writing exercises.

If you've been to one of my writing workshops, you'll know I have a special fondness for TROUBLE which I believe helps to fuel stories. So I laughed when a student named Michael called out, "Trouble happens to be my middle name." Don't you think that would make a great book title?

One of my favourite questions today came from a student named Maathangi. She asked, "As a writer, shouldn't you not stick to routine and isn't it better to write when you feel spontaneous?" I liked the romantic sentiment behind the question, but as I told Maathangi, I don't think there's much that's romantic about writing. If I only wrote when I felt spontaneous, I'm afraid I wouldn't get much done! I think discipline has a lot to do with writing. The trick for me is to write when I don't feel like writing!!

I'll be sticking around in the library at St. Thomas for lunch on my workshop days -- that way I'll have time to work one-on-one with students who are especially keen. Today, I had four delightful visitors. Christian has a great idea for a modern re-telling of a popular kids' story. Here's how Christian described himself to me: "I'm a guy who can turn a small story into something giant." Christopher, I say go for it -- and I love your idea. William is writing a fantasy with an unlikeable protagonist. I told William that's a great idea, too, but I suggested that by the end of his manuscript, readers should change their minds about the protagonist -- that once we know his story, we should like him more. Teague is a member of the Glenmore Curling Club and he'll be competing this spring in the Jeux du Québec -- I suggested he take notes for a book about teens and curling. As I told Teague, I've never seen a book on the topic and I have a feeling it would catch the interest of young readers (and older editors!). And Lauren is writing short stories about monsters. She wanted some tips for beginning her stories and I suggested she start some place dramatic, or with exciting dialogue, or with a funny incident.

You might think I'd be tired after four sessions today, but instead I'm feeling energized and inspired. That's what happens when I get to work with bright, open young people. Thanks you guys for being a great audience, and to your teachers, Mr. Cloney, Miss Ditchburn, and Mrs. Puliatti, for sharing you with me today. And special thanks to librarian Mrs. Pye, who over all these years, has become my friend. Long live stories and books!!

That's YA author Karen Spafford-Fitz smiling at you in today's pic. I just finished reading Karen's novel Dog Walker (Orca) and I liked it so much, I arranged a Skype interview so you could meet Karen too. (If you're looking for me, I'm in the bottom right corner snapping her pic on my iPhone!)

Karen was born near Kingston, Ont., but she now lives and writes in Edmonton, Alberta. Over the last couple of years, we've become Facebook friends -- mostly because we keep surprising ourselves with how much we have in common: we both write; Karen used to teach (I still do); we both run (and do errands on our runs); and we both love eavesdropping and coffee.

Dog Walker is about an attitude-y guy named Turk who comes up with a great idea to earn extra money: he starts a dog-walking business. But he's got an ulterior motive -- he and his friends want to meet girls. It turns out dog-walking is a great way to do that! I asked Karen how she got the idea for the book. And of course, her answer came in the form of another story (that's what happens when you interview an author!!). Here's what Karen told me: "In 1992, when my husband Ken and I got our first dog together, a German shepherd puppy, we noticed how people were constantly stopping us to admire the puppy. Afterwards, Ken asked me, 'Did you notice that most of the people who stopped us were female? Why didn't I think of that when I was a teenage boy?' That stayed with me." Fun, no?

I also asked Karen if she had some writing tips to share with you, dear blog readers -- and lucky for you, she did! "Besides read read read and revise revise revise, I tell students I work with when I do writing workshops to eavesdrop in order to pick up juicy tidbits that will help them build a better story. You should also inflict lots of problems on your characters. It's so much fun!"

Karen is also the author of Vanish -- I need to read that book next. She is completing a manuscript about the restorative justice process and though she doesn't want to say too much about that work-in-progress, she will say there's running in it.

Now if only Karen lived a little closer -- then we could go for a run, have a coffee, do errands and talk writing all at the same time. Aren't you glad you met her? I know I am!

That's me in today's pic with some of the students I worked with this morning at Rosemere High School. It was a special visit organized by my friend, English teacher Abigail Lawrence. My workshop was open to any students in grades nine, ten and eveln who love writing. So let's jsut say it was a pretty easy crowd to work with!

There were about 25 students in the workshop - some of them had special permission to miss math because they were with me. And I had nearly three hours with them, which was great because I got to do it all: talk about how writing works for me and where I get my story ideas, read a little, and give some writing exercises as well as feedback on the students' work. I warned the group that my writing exercises are a little weird -- for instance they start without pens and pencils. So I was super pleased when a student named Sahira announced, "It worked!"

Some of the students shared their work with me -- and I got to read some interesting stuff. Anne remembered being a kid and building "a fort made of coats and chairs." Good use of detail, Anne! And a student named Rosalie wrote about a terrible haunting memory in which she found her cat drowned in her family's backyard pool. That could not have been an easy thing to write about, Rosalie, but as I was telling you guys this morning, it takes courage to be a writer!

I stuck around at lunch to answer individual questions and look at more writing. Rafael had a a lot of smart questions for me. But my favourite is the one I used as the title for today's blog entry: "How do I make my paragraphs larger?" I must say that question gave me a good laugh! I told Rafael not to worry about making his paragraphs LARGER; he needs to concentrate on making his paragraphs BETTER. I suggested he could add interesting details or examples.

Rafael also wanted to know if I had advice to help him "explain main ideas better." I told him that for me, writing is a way of thinking things through. So I think Rafael could clarify his main ideas by writing out every single thing he thinks about then idea, then re-reading it all to select what is most important, and trim back the rest.

I really had a fun visit at Rosemere High. Thanks, Miss Lawrence, for getting things organized and for doing every writing exercise with your students. And hey, students, if I touched any of your papers, I hope you disinfected them... I don't want you to catch my cold. Happy writing, you guys. Like I told you, it's hard work, sometimes frustrating, but hey, there's nothing like it. And if it weren't for my writing, I'd never have gotten to meet all of you today!

You might get the impression from today's pic that I spent this morning in someone's livingroom -- someone who likes to read! Actually I was with photographer Thomas Kneubuhler, doing a class visit at Outreach High School, an alternative school here in NDG. Thomas (he's not in the pic since he was behind the camera) and I were at Outreach because we're helping the grade eleven class produce a chapter for the 2015 edition of Quebec Roots, a publication that is part of a Blue Mteropolis Literary Foundation project. Ten classes from around the province will each contribute a chapter to the book -- students will get to tell their stories through words and images.

I started the day off by talking a little about my writing process, but mostly, I wanted the students to get started on some writing of their own. We discussed one of my favourite subjects: TROUBLE, and how, without trouble in it, a story doesn't really go anywhere. Then later, when Thomas was outside with the students, helping them shoot photographs, I got to work one-on-one with some of the students on their writing.

And I got some beautiful stuff -- so I asked the students' permission to share a little of it here today. In a powerful piece, a student named Marco recalled being bullied when he was in grade seven. I loved how Marco ended his story with the line: "If I see him [the bully] now, I would only say one word to him: 'Why?'" A student named Karina described what it was like to battle against an alcohol problem. I was very moved by her words, especially when she wrote, "In a weird way, I am grateful for all of it." Karina wrote about how she dreams of becoming a social worker. I have a hunch she'll do a great job! Another student named Aviva took a super creative approach by writing a counting song about cutting. I don't think I'll ever forget the opening line: "Cut one: I'm not done."

I know the students had a blast taking photos. I hope they learned a little about writing, too. The writing they did today really touched me -- and I'm sure it'll touch the readers of their chapter. Special thanks to their teacher, Annelise Ogle (that's her in the stripes in today's pic, with her daughter on her lap.) Today is one of those days where I can't help feeling that telling our stories matters more than anything else. Thanks also to Mrs. Ogle's students for your hard work. I look forward to reading more of your stories!

The title of today's blog entry "Always keep hope" comes from my mom. That's her in today's pic, and that's my dad watching her. And on the computer screen you can see 150 students from Dumas Intermediate School in Dumas, Texas. I was invited to do a Skype visit with two groups of students from Dumas -- and because I was speaking about my novel, What World Is Left, which is based on my mother's real-life experience in a Nazi concentration camp, it made sense for me to do the Skypes from my parents' house so that the students could meet my mom.

It's hard -- even for a writer -- to find words to tell you about what happened this morning. My mom is 85, a little frail, and far less connected to people than she used to be. Sometimes, she has trouble finding words for her sentences, but today, well, she was amazing. I did most of the talking (about writing in general, about how I did the research for What World Is Left), but I think it's safe to say that my mom stole the show!

The students deserve credit, too. Not only did they listen attentively, but they had prepared excellent, sensitive questions. A young man named Fabian asked my mom, "Who or what did you miss most?" My first reaction was that I should have thought of asking that question back in 2007 when I was researching the book! My mom paused for a moment before answering Fabian's question and I could feel her going back in time. She did not miss anyone or anything when she was in Theresienstadt, a Nazi concentration camp in what is now the Czech Republic. "You only could think of survival," she told Fabian.

Joaquim wanted to know what my mom ate for breakfast when she was imprisoned at Theresienstadt. "It's a very short story," my mom answered -- displaying her trademark sense of humor (I told the students that for me, my mom's humour is a sign of her resilience and courage.) Then she went on to explain that breakfast was a cup of fake coffee and two slices of dark bread.

Even the school's prinicpal, Mr. Rhodes, had a question for my mom. "I hope it won't be too difficult," my mom said, joking again. Mr. Rhodes wanted to know how the Holocaust affected my mom's view of God. "Did you ever feel that God had forgotten you?' he asked. I have to tell you that the question kind of took my breath away -- it's another question I've never asked my mom. Her answer? "God must have tried to stop it, but He didn't succeed."

I am feeling very privileged that I got to "travel" to Dumas today, and that I got to bring my parents along, too. Just as the title of today's blog entry comes from my mom, I'm also going to give her the last word. Before we shut down Skype, I asked my mom to say good-bye to the students. She told them, "Thanks. It made me feel hopeful."

Thanks to the Grade Six classes at Dumas Intermediate School, to your teachers who prepared you so well, to Mr. Rhodes, and Mrs. Craigmiles for arranging today's visit.

The title of today's blog entry "Always keep hope" comes from my mom. That's her in today's pc, and that's my dad watching her. And on the computer screen you can see 150 students from Dumas Intermediate School in Dumas, Texas. I was invited to do a Skype visit with two groups of students from Dumas -- and because I was speaking about my novel, What World Is Left, which is based on my mother's real-life experience in a Nazi concentration camp, it made sense for me to do the Skypes from my parents' house so that the students could meet my mom.

It's hard -- even for a writer -- to find words to tell you about what happened this morning. My mom is 85, a little frail, and far less connected to people than she used to be. Sometimes, she has trouble finding words for her sentences, but today, well, she was amazing. I did most of the talking (about writing in general, about how I did the research for What World Is Left), but I think it's safe to say that my mom stole the show!

The students deserve credit, too. Not only did they listen attentively, but they had prepared excellent, sensitive questions. A young man named Fabian asked my mom, "Who or what did you miss most?" My first thought was that I should have thought of asking that question back in 2007 when I was researching the book! My mom paused for a moment before answering Fabian's question and I could feel her going back in time. She did not miss anyone or anything when she was in Theresienstadt, a Nazi concentration camp in what is now the Czech Republic. "You only could think of survival," she told Fabian.

Joaquim wanted to know what my mom ate for breakfast when she was imprisoned at Theresienstadt. "It's a very short story," my mom answered -- displaying her trademark sense of humor (I told the students that for me, my mom's humour is a sign of her resilience and courage.) Then she went on to explain that breakfast was a cup of fake coffee and two slices of dark bread.

Even the school's prinicpal, Mr. Rhodes, had a question for my mom. "I hope it won't be too difficult" she said, joking again. Mr. Rhodes wanted to know how the Holocaust affected my mom's view of God. "Did you ever feel that God had forgotten you?' he asked. I have to tell you that the question kind of took my breath away -- it's another question I've never asked my mom. Her answer? "God must have tried to stop it, but He didn't succeed."

I am feeling very privileged that I got to "travel" to Dumas today, and that I got to bring my parents along, too. Just as the title of today's blog entry comes from my mom, I'm also going to give her the last word. Before we shut down Skype, I asked my mom to say good-bye to the students, she told them, "Thanks. It made me feel hopeful."

Thanks to the Grade Six classes at Dumas Intermediate School, to your teachers who prepared you so well, to Mr. Rhodes, and Mrs. Craigmiles for arranging today's visit.

I am just home from a happy visit to Royal Vale School, where I worked with Mrs. Frank's two Grade Five English classes. (That's me with students from the first group in today's pic.) When I first meet students, I always ask, "How many of you enjoy writing?" -- but I have never had so many answer "Yes" to that question. In the first group, 20.5 students out of 24 said they enjoy writing. (The .5 reflects one young man who could not quite decide!)

We talked about some of my favourite subjects such as trouble and secrets. When I suggested to the students that they try to uncover their grandparents' secrets, a student named Imani gave me a great big smile. (Imani is standing next to me in the pic, wearing a grey sweatshirt.) Later, Imani told me she and her grandmother Alanna are super close and that she happens to be seeing her grandmother later today!

I told the students how I am always on the look-out for interesting material. Two students in the first class reported that their grandparents live downstairs from them. I thought that would make great story material.

I gave both groups a writing exercise that required them to access an old memory. This is how a student named Alex started the piece he wrote afterwards: "One day, I forgot to close the birdcage and my bird flew out." As I told Alex, this beginning really caught my attention -- and makes me want to know what happened next. Hey, Alex, finish that story -- and though you've started with a real-life memory, you might consider changing things up to add even more drama -- though I do hope there will be a happy ending.

At recess, a student named Lily told me her dream is to become an author. When I asked her what she learned from my visit, her answer made me laugh: "I learned basically everything!" I don't know if I taught you everything, Lily, but you sure made my day.

One of the students in the second group has the coolest name: Vegas. I asked him if he is named after Las Vegas -- and if perhaps he was conceived while his parents were on a trip to Vegas. It turns out he is named after another guy named Vegas. You see, there I was again making up stories!

Special thanks to Mrs. Frank for sharing her classes with me, to Miss Michelle, the student teacher, for participating in the writing exercises and being such a great role model to the students, and to Mr. Timpano, the vice-principal, who helped get my visit organized. I'll end today's blog with something Mrs. Frank told me when we were talking about the importance of re-writes. She shared a line she heard on the reality TV show 19 Kids and Counting: "Practice doesn't make perfect; practice makes progress."

It was great to start my day with you guys at Royal Vale. Here's to practice and progress and writing and reading!

That's me in today's pic -- psoing with a bloody bride and a scarecrow! I'm just back from a happy visit to Mother Teresa Junior High School, where I spoke to Miss Farrell's Grade Eight English classes. I talked about how I got to be a children's writer, shared my favourite writing tips, answered questions and got the students to do a little writing exercise.

I thought I'd share some of the highlights of my morning in today's blog entry.

Well, first there were the costumes. Imagine teaching a student who is dressed up to look like a bottle of Heinz ketchup! There was also a Fidel Castro lookalike ("my beard broke," he told me), as well as many zombies and soccer players.

One of the things we talked about is how writers don't always get their ideas when they are at their desks or in front of their computers. A student named Alyssa raised her hand to say that J. K. Rowling got the idea for her Harry Potter books when she was on a train. I didn't know that -- and now I'll be able to work that info into my presentation. Thanks, Alyssa! At recess, Alyssa came back to the library where I was doing my presentation and showed me an excellent short story she's working on. "I don't really like it," she told me. So I took that opportunity to tell Alyssa she should try to speak more kindly about her own creations! I suggested she try saying, "I know my story still needs work." I think the words we use to talk about writing matter -- and it's great to know our stories need work -- mine certainly do.

A student named Alex seemed to know a lot about the writing process. This is how he described it to me: "You're on a page and it's hard to imagine what to write when you get to another page." I told Alex I feel the same way. Partly, the feeling makes me a little anxious, but you know, it's also exciting not knowing what's coming next. Sometimes, when we're lucky, we writers surprise ourselves with our own stories!

I told the students that I am obsessed with asking the question, "What if?" -- and that that question "fuels" my stories. A student named Bridget, who during the writing exercise wrote a lovely paragraph about how distressed she felt as a little girl when she lost a necklace, told me she aks "What if?" a lot too. Especially, Bridget said, when she is dancing: "I often think, 'What if that one event happened and the chain effect it could create.'"

I get invited to schools to help inspire students to write... but as you can tell from today's blog entry, it often works the other way too. I've come home totally inspired by these young writers at MTJHS. Thanks, Miss Farrell, for the invite, and Miss Venditti for sharing your beautiful, recently pruned library with all of us today!

That's me and YA author Gillian Chan in today's pic. For now, we are upside down... but I am too excited to tell you about Gillian to worry about us being upside down. Besides, we look good that way!

Gillian lives in Dundas, Ont., but she was in town last week and I got to hang out with her -- and discuss life and books. I've been reading her historical YA novel, A Call to Battle, part of Scholastic's I Am Canada series, and finding it super good. Gillian is really into history, so it's not surprising that the book is full of interesting historical material, but what I like even more is how good Gillian is at capturing what goes on in her young narrator's mind. It is 1812 and Sandy MacKay is eager to fight for his country -- even if his dad thinks that is not a good idea.

I made sure to ask Gillian a few questions about her writing process so I could share them with you, dear blog reader. Heere's some of what I learned. Gillian generally writes in the mornings. She uses her afternoons to do research and for "goofing off" (Gillian's exact words). It turns out that Gillian is a great believer in goofing off. Here's why. She explained, "I get many of my ideas when I'm goofing off."

I asked Gillian if she had a little kernel of writing advice that I could pass on, and she kindly obliged. "Like bread dough," she said, "once a piece of writing is done, it needs to be set aside, to let it rise. In the mean time, you shouldn't touch it or think about it. When I come back to it, I see it with fresh eyes."

Hope you can use that advice. Here's to goofing off, fresh eyes -- fresh writing and fresh bread! Looking forward to our next visit together, Gillian!

Lucky me! I'm just back from Lennoxville, where I did a talk for students at Champlain College. I'm lucky because not only were the students a great audience, but also because I could not have asked for a more beautiful time of year to make the visit.

Lennoxville is about two hours from Montreal and I passed through the Eastern Townships on my drive there.

I talked to a group of about 100 students. I managed to tell them just about everything I know about writing and how it works for me (of course I pointed out that every writer has a different process and that they should find the process that works best for them). For many of the students at Champlain, English is their second language, but they seemed to be able to follow me without difficulty.

One of the things I discussed was how TROUBLE makes for great stories. First, I warned the students to STAY OUT OF TROUBLE!! But then I explained that for some of us (me included), sometimes trouble comes knocking -- even when we try to stay out of trouble. So I told students that should trouble come knocking they must remember one thing: TO USE IT FOR STORIES.

As I pointed out, no one wants to read a story about a character's best day ever. We are much more interested in what happens and how a character feels on his or her worst day imaginable. I also suggested that students who keep journals might try writing a sensory account of trouble. What, for instance, does trouble smell like? Gunpowder? Cigarette smoke? Alcohol? And what does trouble feel like, taste like, look like and sound like?

After my talk, a few students stopped to say hello. One was a young man named Daniel from Colombia who is studying nursing at Champlain. Daniel told me that when he was growing up in Colombia, his mom was a nurse and he sometimes accompanied her to work. He said that as a boy, he saw a lot of trouble: "I saw too much blood." When he told me that, I got goosebumps (always a sign for me that I am in proximity of a good story). A part of me felt sympathy for the boy this young man used to be, who saw "too much blood," but another part of me couldn't help but think... if you're going to be a writer (or in Daniel's case, a musician -- he told me he makes music), then USE IT.

Thanks to Ms. Evans for inviting me to Lennoxville. Thanks to the students for being a receptive audience, and to the other teachers for bringing their classes too! And to Ms. Evans's mom for the great cookies!

In two weeks' time, members of the Jane Austen Society of North America (JASNA) will gather here in Montreal to spend Thanksgiving weekend discussing Austen's 1814 novel, Mansfield Park.

But in a small way, my colleague Mary Frauley and I got the conference off to an early start -- because today we did a one-day literature and creative writing workshop (officially called the J. David Grey Young Writers' Workshop) for local teens. As you will have guessed, the focus of the workshop was Mansfield Park. Mary started the day with a lecture and lively discussion about the novel. She talked about how many of the novel's themes -- friendship, romantic love, the meaning of home, how we are affected by money and social standing -- remain relevant today. As Mary told the group, "A writer has an obligation to set things up and maybe wind them, then the writer stands away."

That pretty much sums up how the group spent the afternoon -- working on their modern-day renditions of Mansfield Park, setting things up and then letting their characters take over. I had the lovely job of reading and responding to their early drafts.

I should mention that it was a perfect fall day in Montreal -- but the eight teens who turned up for today's workshop never complained about being stuck indoors at the Atwater Library where the event took place. In fact, they didn't want to stop writing... and most of them were going to go home and keep working on their stories!

Mansfield Park is about Fanny Price, whose life changes when she goes to live with her rich relatives. The fact that she is an outsider at Mansfield Park means she sees the goings on there more clearly than anyone else.

Several of the students decided to write about outsiders.

Emma, a Grade Nine student from Macdonald High School, pictured her Fanny in an insane asylum (talk about a cool setting!). Here are a couple of lines from Emma's story: "Her family left Fanny in the hands of the orderlies. She was certain that she would die of fright all alone. Then she met him." As I told Emma, those lines really catch my attention and make me want to keep reading.

Michelle, a Grade Eleven student at Heritage Regional High School, came up with a creative approach to the assignment -- her Fanny wrote a thank you letter to her best friend, a character Michelle was going to base on the novel's Mary Crawford.

And Ishini, a first year student at Marianopolis College, described a Fanny who had recently been placed in a new foster home. Ishini did a great job of capturing the foster home in a single sentence: "The room smells of pot roast." I thought that description was a great example of SHOWING, NOT TELLING!

So you can see why I felt privileged to spend my day with these talented and passionate young writers. They have until the end of the week to finish their pieces of writing. Then their work will be entered in a contest. In additon to modest cash prices, three winners get a very cool invitation: to the upcoming JASNA conference!

Thanks to our eight young writers, to Mary for pitching in, and to JASNA for making today's workshop happen! And to Fanny Price -- for the inspiration!

No time for a long blog entry today -- that's because I have a launch to get to. My own! And I need to go and buy half-a-dozen cartons of chocolate milk. Usually, people serve wine and cheese at book launches. But today's launch of my latest YA title, Hate Mail, takes place at a school (no wine allowed!). That's because I wrote the book last year with the help of Miss Scott's Grade Nine class at Riverdale High School in Pierrefonds.

If you've read my blog before, you may remember that the novel grew out of a project called Libres comme l'art, sponsored in large part by the Blue Metropolis Literary Foundation. Thanks to the project, I was writer-in-residence last year at Riverdale and my task was to write five chapters of a story having to do with autism and depression. And then a wonderful thing happened: the manuscript grew and grew (thanks in large part to the students' input) and my publisher, Orca Books, acquired the manuscript. And now it's a real live book!

Yesterday, CBC Radio's All in a Weekend broadcast an interview with me and Hamza Bashir, one of Miss Scott's students. Hamza is the young man who came up with the idea behind Hate Mail. Here's a link to the interview in case you want to check it out. (And special thanks to reporter Sonali Karnick, who not only did a lovely interview, but who gave Hamza and his pals Shane and Bhahee Shan a a great tour of the CBC headquarters.)

As I said during the interview, this project was the most fun I ever had as an author. Imagine having your very own focus group -- a team of bright teenagers who told me what they liked about my story, what needed fixing, and who shared their own stories with me. Along the way, I hope they learned about the writing process -- the brainstorming behind a book, the research, the multiple drafts, and the not giving up when things get tough. I promise to post a pic from the launch later. Okay, time to get the chocolate milk!

PS: It's seven at night and I'm back home... reporting to tell you that the launch was wonderful. Special thanks to the parents and grandparents who turned up. None of this could have happened without teacher Karen Scott, principal Roger Rampersad, librarian Sue Strano and Suzanne Nesbitt from the Lester B. Pearson School Board-- and of course the students. One student, Fahad Elsabawi, made a great speech and I asked his permission to quote from it. Here's what Fahad told the audience: "Thanks to a wonderful and interesting project made possible by Blue Metropolis, we were able to help Monique write a novel. That's a pretty big accomplishment for a high school student! I can tell you I'm proud!" Me too, Fahad! Thanks so much to all of you. You made this the most fun I have ever had working on a book!

It's Labour Day weekend and I've been back at school, teaching full-time, since August 20th. I was a little apprehensive about going back. Since the middle of May, I've been writing full-time, working on a new YA book project that will be published in the fall of 2016, and it was hard to let go of those long blocks of writing time. But on my very first day back, during the first class I taught, I remembered all over again why I love teaching -- because I love working with 17 and 18-year-olds who are more full of life and hope than any other people I know.

But that's not what this blog entry is going to be about. It's going to be about my favourite, most basic writing tip. In fact, the tip is only one word long. You ready?

CARE!

Yesterday, in my Humanities class at Marianopolis College here in Montreal, we were reviewing a hand-out I use in every class I teach. It's full of writing tips -- and even after all these years, I still get excited when I go over it. One of the tips suggests that students write about issues and experiences that affect them personally. Which led to my telling them, "Write about stuff you CARE about!" Then I went on to explain that though the writing may not be easier, chances are it will come out better.

And because I love examples and happened to have one handy, I told my students how I recently heard from a Montreal social work professor who has written a non-fiction book about her work with aging Holocaust survivors. Her research indicates that when seniors who have undergone severe trauma age, their minds often return to these traumatic memories (seniors who have not undergone trauma are apparently more likely to focus on happy memories). I explained to my students that because my mom, who is 85, is a Holocaust survivor, I really care about this subject. So guess what? I'm going to write about it for the Montreal Gazette. It doesn't mean I won't have to work hard (I will, there's going to be a lot of research involved in this assignment); and it doesn't mean the story will be easy to write (even after all these years, writing always feels like a challenge to me). But I know already it's going to be good... really good. Not because I'm such a talented writer. But because I CARE!

Happy Labour Day weekend. Hope you have lots of things to care about!

Hi blog readers!

I am writing to you today from Mississauga, Ontario, where I am busy researching for a new book project.

It's kind of top-secret, so I can't tell you too much... except that it has to do with crime scene investigation.

I was kind of surprised to learn that there are important links between CSI and writing. Yesterday, when we were at the University of Toronto Mississauga's crime scene house (a very cool place), one of the university's forensics students told us, "Slow down! Focus on one piece of evidence!" She also explained that after crime scene investigators make sure they are safe, the next thing they need to do is be organized and methodical.

All that got me thinking that slowing down, focusing, and being organized are important parts of the writing process too. Sure I am excited about my new project, but like a crime scene investigator, I need to plan and focus!

Here are some of the things I'm learning about: DNA extraction, liquid chromatography and how to locate a hidden gravesite. It's one of those weeks where being a writer feels like the best job in all the world!

Hello Monday morning! It’s just after eight and I’m already home after an early morning interview at Breakfast Television here in Montreal. (When the link to the interview gets posted later today, I’ll add it to this blog entry.)

Reporter Laura Casella (that's us in today's pic) interviewed me about my books, but mostly about my tips for getting kids reading this summer. So, I figured I’d use today’s blog entry to share those tips – especially since I came up with a few more on my way home!

1. Parents who want to encourage their kids to read need to model good reading habits. There is no better way to turn kids into readers than by showing them that you love to read, too!

2. Start a family book club. Agree on a book you all want to read. Read it, then discuss it at your next barbecue or family brunch.

3. Read a book; see the movie. The ideal one for this summer is John Green’s The Fault In Our Stars, which recently came out as a movie. Discuss the differences between the novel and the movie. Which did you prefer? Why?

4. Start a two-word-a-day journal. This is my favourite tip on today’s list. I used to do this with my daughter when she was little, but it can be done with kids of all ages (even grown-up ones!). At the end of the day, write down one word to describe how your day was, then another word to describe how you want tomorrow to be. One of the benefits of this mini-journal is that it encourages us to evaluate our days, and to give some conscious thought to our tomorrows.

5. Take advantage of the next rainy day to check out kids’ authors’ websites. Most of us have websites where, in addition to promoting our work, we talk about how we got into writing and offer writing tips. I wish that when I was a young aspiring author that that kind of material would have been widely available … if it had been, I think I might have gotten serious sooner about becoming a professional writer!

What in the world, you must be wondering, do meringues have to do with writing? Here comes the explanation: I am writing this blog entry to the background sound of my mom's old mixer -- inside the mixing bowl are five egg whites I am hoping to turn into a beautiful, delicious meringue. There's more to this story: I made a previous attempt at meringue-making last week, and it didn't turn out so well. Another person might give up on meringues altogether... but not me. I am the sort who soliders on. It is something I have learned from writing novels.

I have recently started working on what I am hoping will be my eighteenth YA novel. You'd figure that after all those other books, I'd know exactly what I'm doing, right? Instead, here I am... feeling like I am figuring out the process all over again!

I do love starting a new story. It's always a little scary, but for me, it's a time of endless possibility and of hope for great things. Unfortunately, those good feelings don't last forever. I keep writing and then, well, I begin to see the flaws and the problems and my own weaknesses. But I keep slogging, going backwards to fix up what I have already done, and slowly, slowly moving forwards.

I have found that sometimes a book comes to the rescue, even when I am not looking for a book to rescue me. Well, that's what happened when a friend, fellow writer Elaine Kalman-Naves, gave me Ann Patchett's collection of essays, This Is The Story of a Happy Marriage (Harper, 2013). Elaine had told me that though the book is partly about Patchett's marriage, it is also about writing.

So, during the last couple of weeks, after my days at the computer, I have taken solace in Patchett's wisdom. It turns out that she, too, goes through similar ups and downs when she writes. Here is, for instance, her description of writing a novel: "Novel writing, I soon discovered, is like channel swimming: a slow and steady stroke over a long distance in a cold, dark sea." Well, I keep telling myself, if Patchett feels that way too, I must not be doing such a bad job of it! Patchett also talks about working through those rough patches: "I holed up in my apartment and wrote, and plenty of times I got stuck."

I just checked on those egg whites. I wish I could say they are making stiff peaks the way the recipe says they should, but just like writing, this meringue business may require that I keep trying, working through those rough patches. Here's to fancy summer desserts, first drafts, and advice that brings comfort!

The reason I am smiling in today's pic is that I am reading the letters that came for me in yesterday's mail. They are from the students I worked with at Selkirk Elementary School in Whitehorse.

So, I thought I'd use today's blog entry to reply to you guys...

Dear Morgan, Caleb, Logan, Thaeron, Chanelle, Ritik, Ralph, Jessica, Cole, Kayden, Isaiah and Jess,

I am writing to thank you guys for your great letters. They came in yesterday's mail. I was in kind of a bad mood yesterday. You remember how I told you that sometimes writing feels frustrating and how I have to fight with myself to stay at the computer and continue fixing up my sentences and paragraphs? Well, it was that kind of a day. And guess what? Your letters cheered me right up!

I am glad that you seem to have enjoyed my visit. I also like that some of you (Isaiah, Kayden, Cole, Jessica, Ralph, Ritik and Chanelle) included drawings in your letters. Also, a couple of you made jokes about not listening to your dads -- that made me laugh out loud. You know what they say? That it's easier to make a reader cry than to make a reader laugh... so, good work!!

Jess, I'm glad you learned that writers need to leave the house to find inspiration. Thaeron, I'm happy that you enjoy writing about your personal life. Logan, don't ever give up! Caleb, it's great that my memory exercise worked for you. And Morgan, yes I remember your cool nail art!

I think school is over for you guys, but I hope that some of you will read this blog entry anyhow.

I miss the Yukon! You are lucky to live in such a gorgeous place! Look out for bears, okay? (I saw a grizzly bear with her two cubs on the day before I left.)

I will keep your letters in a special place -- and read them whenever I need cheering up. Have a great summer. Make time to read and write!

Thanks again for your letters!

Signed, Your Monique

One of the highlights of my recent trip to the Yukon was meeting fellow author Lian Goodall.

Lian writes non-fiction for kids. Her books include Photographing Greatness: the Story of Karsh (Napoleon), and Singing Towards the Future: the Story of Portia White (Napoleon). Lian was born in St. Catharine’s, Ontario, but has lived in Whitehorse since 2012. When she heard I’d be touring the Yukon for TD Canadian Children’s Book Week she got in touch … and invited me for dinner. What neither of us could have expected is that we would become fast friends. Funny how that happens sometimes, isn’t it?

Lian has many of the qualities I look for in a friend: she’s kind and fun and funny and smart. It also helped, of course, that we share a love for research and writing. I did not only have a delicious dinner at Lian’s house, I also brought along my notepad so that I could do a little interview and report back to you, dear blog reader. Here is some of what I learned from Lian.

Lian has been interested in stories since she was a little kid. “I’ve been story-izing since I was two.” Don’t you like how she invented that word “story-izing”?

When I asked her why she thinks stories matter, Lian told me: “I think storytelling is a fundamentally human act.” Lian has been researching the stories of real-life girls who were born and lived in the north – from Alaska to Greenland -- before 1900. After nearly four years of research, Lian recently began writing her first draft of the project. “Non-fiction is a long process,” she said. “You have to keep knitting your books for years. You need patience and dedication.”

Lian has found that there are hardly any books about young people born in the north. She’s trying to fix that. “My goal,” she told me, “is to give stories to kids who need these stories. Girls from the north need to read about themselves in an earlier time.”

Lian has three kids, including a daughter who lives here in Montreal. I’m hoping that means I’ll get to meet up with Lian soon so that we can continue our conversation – and our friendship. If not, I’ll have to find my way back to the Yukon – and Lian!

I’ve been home from the Yukon – where I was lucky enough to travel for this year’s TD Canadian Children’s Week – for a couple of weeks, but my heart is still there. So I decided to do a couple of blog entries about some of the interesting, creative folks I met when I was there.

Today I thought I'd devote my blog entry to the subject of courage and tell you about a group of students who've taught me a lot this year.

Can you believe I visited 14 schools in the Yukon in five days? Today I woke up in Mayo, a little town four hours north of Whitehorse, so that I could work with grades seven to twelve students at J.V. Clark School.

Guess what? I saw a black bear today! We were on the road between Stewart Crossing and Mayo!

I'm feeling so at home here in Whitehorse. It could be because when I walk into the local café Baked, people say, "Hey, weren't you at my school yesterday?"!

The Yukon is out-of-this-world gorgeous and every school I visit seems to bring a fresh adventure. Here's what I mean...

I had a big day here in the Yukon. I did four school visits in the Whitehorse area, but instead of feeling tired, I am flying high!

It’s not every day a Montreal children’s writer gets to do a writing workshop at the Whitehorse Public Library – but thanks to TD Canadian Children’s Book Week, that’s exactly what I did today.

TD Canadian Children's Book Week officially kicks off on Monday, May 6 this year... but author-editor Sarah Harvey and I got an early unofficial start. 

Warning to readers of this blog entry: you might need to take a nap after you read it. I'm going to tire you out when I fill you in on all the excitement over here!

See the two special guests who came to visit my Writing for Children class today (they're sitting in chairs at the front of the picture)?

I'm just home from my morning visit to Westwood Junior High School in Saint-Lazare. I worked with nine Grade Eight English classes, and though the library got pretty packed, the students were focused and fun.

I've been doing school visits for nearly ten years -- so when I was invited to speak to students today at the Dollard-des-Ormeaux Library, I figured I'd probably already visited the school they go to. But it turns out the students were from a school I'd never even heard of: Emmanuel Christian School.

I'm just home from a lovely morning spent with three Grade Five classes at Terry Fox Elementary School in Pierrefonds.

I started the day with a Skype conversation with a reader in Baie-Comeau. Vickie Bouchard (that's her in today's pic) is a Sec. IV student at Baie-Comeau High School and she and her classmates have been studying the Holocaust.

I started my day today at Honoré-Mercier School, where I did writing workshops with three groups of Grade Four students. Each class had its own “character.” Mademoiselle Elisa’s students were wide-awake and focused (even though it was 8:30 in the morning). Ms. Dina’s students were quiet, but they produced some terrific writing. And Miss Angela and Madame Marnie’s students had loads of excellent questions – and made me laugh.

Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of interviewing a real star on the Canadian YA book scene: Amy Mathers.

Last night, one of my former students, Elizabeth Knowles, invited me to come and meet her girl guides troop. The girls, who are aged nine to eleven, are working on their reading and writing badges... so it made sense for them to meet someone like me -- who reads and writes A LOT!

In case you're wondering why, in today's pic, I am reading (with a little help) from the Dutch version of What World Is Left -- it's because I did a visit at William Latter School in Chambly, and I met a student named Amber, who moved from Nijmegen in the Netherlands, to Quebec when she was eight. I happened to have Een Andere Wereld in my book bag and it was great fun to hear Amber read from it!

Last week, my friend and fellow teacher Mary Eva invited a bunch of kid-lit fans over to her house to meet Nova Scotia YA author Sylvia Gunnery. 

Today is my second day of writing workshops at St. Thomas High School this winter. By this afternoon, I’ll have met all the grade nine students here.

Some of the teachers have wanted me to do writing exercises. Other have asked me to focus on telling their students everything I can about writing.

This morning, I asked one group to remember back to when they were ten years old and to jot down details about their memories. This exercise – one I use with my students at Marianopolis College – yielded some interesting results. A student named Giovanna began her piece with the line, “I rang my friend’s doorbell.” I told Giovanna her beginning works because it has energy and the reader can’t help wanting to know what happens next. I also suggested she use the “what if?” question if she wants to turn this memory into a fictional piece. What if, for example, her friend’s parents were having a big fight? Or what if her friend was packing up to run away from home? (Notice that both my examples involve TROUBLE. As I pointed out to the students today, trouble is like gasoline -- it helps move a story forward.)

A student named Maryam remembered being at school and realizing that, “people standing away from us … [were] staring [at us].” As I pointed out to Maryam, this line, too, makes for an intriguing story. Why were the people staring – and perhaps even more importantly, how did that make Maryam feel?

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you will know I am obsessed with details and observations. Every time I visit a school, I look for interesting details I might be able to use in a future book. Here come two I found today:

A student named Megan has a cool birthmark on her forehead. Megan was kind enough to tell me a little about her birthmark. She said, “Once when I was camping, someone said, ‘There’s a sticker on your forehead.’” Megan says she’s used to people commenting on her birthmark; she added that there’s also something positive about her birthmark. “I find it makes me different,” she explained.

My second observation has to do with body language. There were a lot of students in my third group, which meant they were sitting close together. Well, I spotted an example of student body language I had never seen before – not in 30 years of teaching! A student was braiding her neighbour’s hair! The two students (the braider and the braid-ee) kindly agreed to be photographed for this blog, though I promised I wouldn’t divulge their names.

You know what I find? If you’re the observant sort, you’ll never ever be bored. Let me know if you have any interesting or funny observations about classroom life. Maybe I’ll use your observation in my next book. Hey, if I do, I promise to thank you in the acknowledgments!

Speaking of thank you's ... many thanks to St. Thomas librarian Carolyn Pye for inviting me to her school. Over the years, Mrs. Pye and I have become friends – one more bonus that comes with being a writer!

I teach my Writing for Children class on Wednesday and Friday afternoons -- so the timing was perfect this year for us to celebrate Valentine's Day!

Last week, students drew names out of a baseball cap. Their assignment -- due today -- was to write an anonymous love letter to the student whose name they drew. 

On Wednesday this week, I gave the class a crash course in writing a love letter. I explained that this was a vital life skill! For starters, I explained that when you write a love letter, you have to indicate that you love your person for the right reasons. By way of example I told the class that if my husband wrote me a love letter in which he praised me for my calm, quiet, introverted personality... well, it would be a very bad love letter because I'm not calm or quiet and certainly not introverted.

So I went through the class list slowly and we took time to admire each student. And I explained that they had one goal: to write a letter so beautiful that one day, many years from now, when the recipient is packing up to move to an old age home, he or she will bring the love letter they received on February 14, 2014.

Students had to deposit their letters before class in my specially-made box (see today's first pic) and you should have seen people's faces when they were reading their letters. They looked TRANSPORTED! I asked how many got great love letters and I'd say about half the class raised their hands.

So if this doesn't prove the power of words, well, I don't know what does!

In today's second pic, you can see my wonderful students. This picture was taken post-Valentine's celebration and pre-test.

Happy Valentine's Day to one and all. Here's to love and language and love letters!

“Should I throw it out?” a student named Alexandra asked me this morning. Alexandra is in Grade Nine at St. Thomas High School in Pointe-Claire, where I did a school visit today. Alexandra was considering throwing out something she had written for a writing exercise.

Of course, I told Alexandra, “DO NOT THROW IT OUT!”

I then asked if I could take a look at what she’d written and it turned out it was a super interesting set of notes about a childhood memory. Alexandra had even made my job easier by underlining the word bullied, the most important part of her story. 

It happens to be lunchtime at St. Thomas as I’m writing this blog entry and how’s this for a coincidence? Alexandra just came by to say hello! Which is handy because I was thinking how I wished I’d told her something author Tamora Pierce once told me: “No word a writer ever writes is wasted.” In other words, everything we write is part of our process. (Of course that doesn't mean you should never throw anything out -- but I wouldn't go throwing out a set of fresh notes.)

Some of the Grade Nines at St. Thomas are working on writing memoirs. I stressed the importance of including details to bring scenes alive. I also explained that writers must be good observers.

Here are a couple of observations I made at St. Thomas today….

While I was speaking to the first class, I noticed a student had turned the bookmark I had given her into a paper airplane! She had hooked the bookmark through the clip on her red pen. This invention (see today's pic!) demonstrated both this student’s creativity and also the fact that she might not have been paying 100 per cent attention to my presentation!

 Later, I OVERHEARD (writers should also be good at eavesdropping) a student named Eric say that only the IB (which stands for International Baccalaureate) students bring their books to class. When I mentioned this to the class, Mike, a non-IB student, smacked his book down on the table. That made all of us laugh and of course, it was Mike’s way of saying he is just as studious as an IB student. Also, Mike’s action tells us something about him, doesn’t it? Details like these are great for including in stories.

In addition to teaching St. Thomas students a little about writing, I couldn’t help also doing my favourite activity – hunting for stories. There was an assembly this morning to honour Miss Cyr, the principal who is about to retire. I asked some students whether anything funny happened during the assembly and they told me a good story: that when he was making his speech, one of the vice-principals said to Miss Cyr: “I was hoping you’d retire earlier so I could get your job!” Now that’s the kind of funny remark I might be able to use in a book some day!

I ended my day with a lovely, most amusing group of students. When we talked about how trouble fuels stories, I asked the class whether they should ever get into trouble themselves. I was hoping, of course, that they'd say no, but Diason answered: "Get into trouble sometimes!" And when we were talking about odd places to get story ideas, Emily and John both agreed that, like me, they get good ideas in the SHOWER. Then John added, "Or on the toilet!"

I’ll be back at St. Thomas next Monday to meet with the rest of the Grade Nines. If any of you want to show me your work, come by at lunchtime – I like to have good reading material when I eat my sandwich!

As you may know if you are a regular reader of this blog, I am back to being a full-time teacher at Marianopolis College here in Montreal. Life feels way busier, but also more full. And what can I say? I get a big kick out of teenagers. They're fun, they're funny, they ask good questions, and of course, they give me inspiration for my YA stories!

The title of today's blog entry is "I Smell Talent!" That's a comment I write on some of my students' assignments -- and I've been smelling a lot of talent even though we are only two weeks into the semester.

For their first assignment, I asked students in my Writing for Children class to visit either a children's bookstore or the children's section of a local library. I told them to hunt for specific details. And so, for today's blog, I'm going to share some examples of really good writing that came from the class. (I got the students' permission to include their first names.)

Here goes!

Emily wrote: "The book stacks were less intimidating -- it was as though they had lost a few inches in height." In class, we discussed why this line works so well and decided it had to do with the fact that Emily SURPRISED us. We expect people's heights to change, not book stacks!

Isabella described the scene she encountered as "a teleportation device back to my childhood." Here, Isabella shows us she is a playful writer and she manages to communicate an important message in just a few words.

Mrittika described a little girl she saw at the library: "After playing with her gum, which she later stuck underneath the table." We loved Mrittika's observation and how she managed to capture the girl's mischievousness!

Brian did a great job of describing Montreal kids during winter: "hat-hair... red cheeks and dripping nose, along with the permanent snow pants/overalls." Even if you live in the Caribbean (lucky you!) and have never visited Montreal, Brian's description will "take you there."

Laura showed us her sense of humour when she wrote: "My career goal in kindergarten was to be a cowgirl." As I told the class, they say it's harder to make a reader laugh than to make him or her cry... so great job, Laura -- and thanks for making your teacher laugh out loud when she read your paper!

Stephanie is in the Music program at school, so it's not a surprise that she did a great job describing sounds in the library, "swishing pages" and a little boy who is having trouble with the word "van": "at first stuck on the word... then forgetting he's reading, just enjoying the sound of the letter 'v.'''

I'll end today's blog entry with two students who captured a similar wistful feeling. Joyce described the children's library she visited as "feel[ing] so different. Louder. More colourful. And also somehow happier." Similarly, Amanjot described a girl she observed whose name is Mina: "Mina has a wonderful imagination which allows her to get lost in the book she is reading. I want to be more like Mina."

BEAUTIFUL, NO?

So... here's to teenagers learning from little kids (and of course from their teachers too). And here's to teachers taking joy in their students' talent and being inspired by them.

So after an eight-month writing sabbatical, I am back to teaching full-time at Marianopolis College here in Montreal.

To be honest, I was a little anxious about going back to full-time teaching. I think it's because I got used to long blocks of writing time -- and now I'll need to carve out writing time whenever I can find it.

But it didn't take me long to re-discover that I really do love teaching, and that I especially love being around teenagers. For me, teens are THE MOST INTERESTING PEOPLE IN THE WORLD. They wonder about things and they ask questions and they're SPUNKY! Besides, how do you think I get all the characters in my YA novels? I find most of them in my classes and in the hallways at Marianopolis!!

Okay, now back to the title of today's blog entry: It's All About ... Pierre!

One of the courses I am teaching this semester is called "Writing for Children." On Day 1, I announced that I had a special treat -- I read the class Maurice Sendak's Pierre. If you've never read it, here's a link where you can actually hear American actress and singer Tammy Grimes reading it to you! (She does an even better job than I did!)

Pierre has a terrible problem: he doesn't care!

Which led us into a great discussion about the need to CARE. I told the class that if they don't care about what they're learning (not just in my class, in all their classes), they won't learn much. And I explained that writers need to CARE about their subjects and their characters and their readers if they hope to tell good stories. In fact, now that I think about it, I can't think of any pursuit that does not require caring!

I'm also teaching a course in Print Journalism. There, we'll be working on a very different kind of writing. But you know what I did yesterday with my class of future reporters? I read them Pierre. 

And I think they understood why. Here's to writing and teaching, and especially to CARING!

If you happened to read yesterday's blog entry, I mentioned I had a happy surprise. Here she is -- MISS SIMPSON!

As usual, I need to TELL A STORY to explain the surprise. 

In November, I paid a visit to St. Lawrence Senior School to do some writing workshops. I was working with Grade Six classes. I like to finish my workshops with a writing exercise and because I'm super-interested in the link between writing and memory, I asked the students to remember being five years old.

While they were writing up their memories, I circulated in the library (shout out to Miss Wendy, the St.Lawrence Senior librarian!) and read what the students were writing. When one wrote about memories of being in a kindergarten class with a teacher named Miss Simpson, I didn't think much about it. But when I continued circulating and discovered that about the half the class was writing about Miss Simpson, I GOT GOOSEBUMPS (goosebumps happen to me when I am in the proximity of A GOOD STORY).

So... here's what happened next. I told the class I was going to write about Miss Simpson in that day's blog entry. Then, one of the teachers said she knew Miss Simpson and that she'd tell her to read the blog. And then... (warning, there's a lot of AND THEN's in this story!!), a day or two later, I got a lovely email from a young woman named Jodi. Jodi told me she had volunteered long ago in Miss Simpson's classroom and that Miss Simpson had read the blog and was really touched that her former students still remembered her so warmly. Jodi finished her email by adding one more detail: she was Miss Simpson's daughter!

But the story's not over yet!

I phoned Miss Simpson and we had a lovely chat -- and agreed that one day we must get together with Miss Wendy, the librarian I mentioned before. Miss Simpson also told me her son teaches at Sunshine Academy and that she heard I'd be visiting there this January. But to be honest, I kind of forgot that part of the story.

And then... yesterday, when I arrived at Sunshine, Miss Susan, the lovely librarian there, told me there was going to be a surprise for me. (I wondered if it would be FOOD!) But it was better than food!!

I was just starting my workshop with Mr. P's class when a lovely woman walked in and said hello in a way that indicated she knew me. I said hello back -- I tried not to let on I had no idea who she was. And then she told me, "I'M MISS SIMPSON!"

So, I hope the students from St. Lawrence Senior are reading today's blog entry. That's because I asked Miss Simpson if she had a message for you -- and she did. She said, "You touched me immensely. Teaching kids is my life. That's why [even though I am retired], I still go into schools whenever I can. And I'm coming to your grad!"

For Mr. P's students, who may also be reading today's blog entry, I asked Miss Simpson if she had a memory of Mr. P she might share with you, and she did. Here it comes: "He used to have an imaginary friend named Saintsouvel. One day, we had to stop to let him out of the car!"

There are many reasons why this surprise made me so happy. I got to meet Miss Simpson and her son (and get a message from her daughter). And it's all because of STORIES. And I get to pass on Miss Simpson's message to her former students who still love her, and also her message to her son's students, who seem to love their teacher too! So, today, I celebrate stories and teachers and memories ... and happy surprises! Sometimes, we get to be part of stories!! Thanks to all of you who helped make this one happen!!

It's cold and grey in Montreal, but I still had a sunshine-y day -- thanks to Mr. P's, Miss Jennifer's and Miss Houlihan's students at Sunshine Academy. (Plus a really fun and surprising thing happened... but you'll have to check tomorrow's blog entry to read about that.) 

Okay, back to my sunshine-y day. I've visited Sunshine Academy several times, so I know my way around! My first stop was the library, where I chatted with my friend, school librarian Mrs. Susan. 

Then it was on to the classrooms. I met two groups of students -- both quite different, and fun in their own ways. Mr. P's students were wide awake and focused. I told them several stories, then moved on to writing tips and a short writing exercises. Many of the students already enjoy writing. Some have great stories to tell. For example, Yasin, who was born in Haiti, but who traveled last summer to Rwanda. He knows a lot about Rwanda's history and about the terrible genocide that happened there. In fact, Yasin knows someone whose mother lived in Rwanda during those years. If you know me, you can guess what I told him: INTERVIEW THE WOMAN, ASK QUESTIONS, GET HER STORY! THEN WRITE IT DOWN!

When I do school visits, of course I'm there to teach the students, but sometimes I end up learning cool stuff, too. For instance, I learned it is possible to talk and yawn at the same time (thanks, Jesse, for the demonstration!), and that Sneha (the name of one of the students) is Hindi for "affection." (I told Sneha that I love saying her name -- it's the kind of word that rolls on your tongue in the most pleasant way!)

During the writing exercise, a student named Ryan wrote about a game he used to play with a friend in elementary school. I won't say too much about it here -- except that it makes a great story, Ryan -- and I hope you'll write it!

There was a short break between my two sessions -- that's when events relating to the surprise took place -- and then it was onto Miss Jennifer and Miss Houlihan's class. As soon as I walked into the classroom, I knew it was going to be an adventure. That's because a man who looked like he could be a cop (only he wasn't in uniform!) was sitting at the back of the room. That turned out to be Mr. Garen, who was there to keep his eye on students' behavior. (I might have to use that scene in a book one of these days.)

The second group was what I'd call high-energy! But they did keep me entertained. We talked about how trouble fuels a story. Then we found a case of trouble in the classroom: a young man named Abedin happened to be coming down with a cold precisely during my talk. Poor Abedin was sneezing and sniffling, but being extremely polite about it -- and not being insulted when I started backing away from his desk!

This second group had loads of questions. Alex loves writing and wanted to know the best way to start a story. He explained that his last story begins with the classic opening, "Once upon a time." I told him "Once upon a time" is great for fairy tales, but he might shake things up by beginning with an exciting scene, or a surprising twist, or great dialogue.

Because there wasn't time to answer every question, I spent lunchtime in the library, where several students dropped by to show me their work or ask more questions. A student named Khyleigh told me she read my book 121 Express in a day -- that she even read it while she walked home and also at Tim Hortons. Daphne asked about the steps that go into making a book (great question, Daphne!) and I tried to give her a good answer, which was basically: getting the idea, doing research, starting to write, re-writing, re-writing, developing more ideas, doing more research as necessary, re-writing and re-writing! 

I'm afraid I've written a very long blog entry today, but that's because there was so much interesting stuff to tell you. Some days, school visits demand a lot of my energy. Other days, and today was one of them, I get energized by the young people I meet. (Okay, the surprise helped too -- read tomorrow's blog entry to find out what the surprise was. Hey, I didn't know I could write cliffhangers!!!)

Thanks, Mrs. Susan, for the invite. PS: You make good coffee!

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you will know I've been doing a stint as writer-in-residence at Riverdale High School. Thanks to an amazing Blue Metropolis Literary Foundation  project called Libres comme l'art, I've been writing a YA novel with the help of Miss Scott's Grade Nine English class.

I first met the class in September, when we tossed around ideas for the story. Blue Met asked us to include the subjects of autism and depression, so that was the first challenge -- coming up with a story that would explore those subjects while appealing to teens.

Today, I read the class the last six chapters of the story's first draft.

Check out today's pic -- I think it is one of my favourite pics ever. (Thanks Mrs. Strano, for taking the pic.) The reason I love it so much is because YOU CAN SEE THE STUDENTS GOBBLING UP MY STORY. (Yippee!!!!)

There are many fun things about being a writer, but sometimes writing makes for a solitary life. We writers often try to imagine our audiences, so you can understand what a gift it was for me to actually meet my readers -- and to see them concentrating on the story I've been writing with -- and for -- them.

You know what my favourite sound was today? When I heard the students flipping from one page to the next!!! (I could tell they wanted to know what would happen next!!!) (Sorry for all the exclamation marks, but hey, I'm excited.)

During today's session, Fahad kindly helped me by reading out loud when my voice got tired. Later, I asked the students to jot down what they'd learned about writing by participating in this project. I thought you might enjoy some of their answers. Fahad wrote, "The thing I've learned in writing stories is that every story has to have a problem (or more than one) and every problem has to have a solution." Christian said, "I learned that it is very important to read your work out loud in front of people for criticism and to correct your mistakes" and Jordana said, "being a writer is writing many drafts."

Though my official residency is now over, I think I'll be visiting the students once more this winter. To be honest, I've come to rely on their ideas and feedback. For me, this project was a wonderful gift -- and I like to think I taught the students some real-life lessons about writing.

Here's to stories and teamwork and solving problems (in stories, and in real life, too)!

Special thanks to Miss Scott for sharing her class, to Mrs. Strano for sharing her library, to Suzanne Nesbitt for bringing the project to Riverdale, to Mr. Rampersad for being a super supportive principal, and to Laure Colin and the Blue Met team for making this project happen. And finally thanks to Orca Book Publishers, who'll be publishing the book in fall 2014.

PS: To my friends at Riverdale, I'll be revising the manuscript this winter. I'll make sure to blog about the process -- so check back in here if you want to know how the rewrite's going!

PSS: I already miss you guys!

One day this fall, when I was walking into Riverdale High School, I heard a student tell his friend, "That's our writer." I must say it was one of my proudest moments EVER! This year, thanks to the Blue Metropolis Literary Foundation, I am writer-in-residence at Riverdale. I'm working with Miss Scott's Grade 9 English class on a project called Libres comme l'art: I write a story and the students give me input and feedback.

Yesterday was my sixth visit to the school ... and the PLOT THICKENS. Not only did I tell the students my latest real-life story (this one is about a budgie), I read them six new chapters of the story I am calling Hate Mail.

I don't want to give too much away, but I will tell you that the idea of using hate mail in the story came from one of my star pupils: Hamza. (He is the tall student at the back of today's pic. Not the one saluting -- that's Shayne. Hey Shayne, if you're reading this, let me know if there's a Y in your name, or if I got it confused with another star pupil!) The boy standing next to me in the pic -- Jarred -- also did some great research about airplanes, another element in the story.

We had a few special visitors at my session yesterday, William St-Hilaire, president of Blue Metropolis, came to meet the students -- and so did Frédérique Belair from Conférence Régionale des Elus de Montréal and Régane Bougé from the Conseil des Arts de Montréal, two agencies that have helped make this project possible.

But I haven't told you the best news of all. This little project I've been working on -- which includes the five chapters I read to the students yesterday -- it's going to be published as a book this coming fall by Orca Book Publishers.

You know how people say, "I couldn't have done it without you"? Well, in this case, it's really true. I may be the author of the book, but this one is a real team effort. Thanks to the organizations that are making it possible, thanks to Miss Scott and Suzannne Nesbitt from the Lester B. Pearson School Board, librarian Sue Strano, and principal Roger Rampsersad, but most of all, THANKS TO THE WONDERFUL STUDENTS. (And don't worry, you guys, I will call it basketball, not b-ball!)

Looking forward to seeing all of you in January -- and reading you the end of the first draft. I wish you happy holidays -- filled with interesting stories!!!

Oops, excuses-moi Hélène Blanchet, I keep slipping in French words when I speak to your étudiants... I just did it again!

I'm at the train station in Quebec City, reporting in after a fun day with Hélène's three Sec. III enriched English classes at Ecole Sécondaire de la Seigneurie in Beauport, a cozy suburb just outside of Quebec City.

The students were great and I'm impressed with how bilingual they are. If you know me, you will know I'm a speedy talker and that I have a habit of telling a lot of stories... well, even though the students' first language is French, they seemed to have no trouble keeping up with me! I told them how I wish I was even more bilingual. (My spoken French is quite good, but I'd never dare to write an article or a story in French.) So, in this way, I am a little envious of the young people I worked with today!

We discussed many things about writing. I told one group how I was influenced by writer/illustrator David Small who advises writers to "Write about the things that keep you up at night" -- and I explained how those words spurred me on to write my latest novel, So Much It Hurts.

I also told the students about my interest in doing research and uncovering secrets. I explained that my historical novel, What World Is Left, is based on a sad chapter in my mum's life, events she kept secret for over 60 years. I asked the students to guess how I managed to find out my mum's story. A student named Marie-Laurence answered, "Maybe you found a book or a diary that she wrote." Though that isn't what happened, I was impressed with Marie-Laurence's answer -- it shows she has the mind of a writer. She was imagining an interesting story! Later, when I gave the students a writing exercise, Marie-Laurence got a little emotional. I told her that that's another sign she might be a writer. I shared a wonderful quote from American writer Ring Lardner: "How can you write if you can't cry?"

A student named Etienne also seems to have embarked on the writing life. Etienne has already written 70 (!!) pages of a novel -- in French. You know what I was thinking, Etienne? That it would be cool if someone (maybe you!) tried to write a BILINGUAL novel. What do you think?

Another interesting person I met today was Julie Bouchard. A graduate of Ecole Sécondaire de la Seigneurie, she is now doing her Ph.D. in linguistics at Texas A&M -- Commerce. Julie is doing research at her old high school -- taping students' conversations with each other in the classroom. If you ask me, she could probably write a novel with all that info!!

So, Hélène, thanks for inviting me back to your school -- but most of all, thanks for sharing your students with me. As you told your classes, writing is writing -- no matter what language we do it in.

A final word for Hélène's students: I'm finishing up this blog entry on the train... if it hadn't been for all of you, I might never have learned the story of the talking budgie. I'm already trying to figure out how I can find a way to include that bird in one of my books!! Remember what I told you: "Use it!" Bonne chance with your reading and your writing! Great to meet you all today!

I have to admit -- I think I've fallen in love with a class. That's them in today's pic. They're Sebastian Piquette's students from Mackay Centre School. My pal, photographer Monique Dykstra (that's her in the white sweater), and I have been working with Sebastian's class (that's Sebastian standing by the window, in a grey top), helping them use words and photos to produce a chapter in this year's edition of Quebec Roots: The Place Where I Live. Quebec Roots is an educational program sponsored by the Blue Metropolis Literary Foundation.

Several classes from schools across Quebec are participating. Each class comes up with their own topic. Sebastian's students decided to write and take photos about what life in a wheelchair is like.

I've certainly learned a lot from these terrific terrific kids.

If you've been at one of my writing workshops, you may remember that I get a lot of ideas in the shower! Well, before our last workshop with the Mackay students, I took a quick shower and came up with what I thought was a good idea -- to get the students to work together to produce a list of what they want the rest of us to know about how to treat them.

Later that morning, we did a brainstorming exercise and I was deeply moved -- and also enlightened -- by what the students had to say. We produced the following list. (It'll appear in this year's edition of Quebec Roots, so consider this a sneak preview!). 

1.  We don’t like it when you stare at us.  We are not strange.

2.  Be friendly to us. We are regular kids who happen to go to school in wheelchairs. Yeah man!

3.  If you see us struggling to pick something up or open or close a door, ask us, “Do you need my help?” Don’t just walk past us without saying anything.

4.  Be patient with us. Some of us stutter or have difficulty speaking.

5.  We are powerful. We can do everything even if it is sometimes hard.

6.  Don’t feel sorry for us. We are happy.

Now I bet you can tell why I've fallen in love with this class. And wait until you see the photos they've been shooting!

I'm just in from a happy day at Orchard Elementary School in Lasalle. I worked with two groups of Grades Five and Six students -- and they were lively!

In today's first pic, meet Madison who, along with her friend Amanda, decorated the library door for my visit. I had to take a picture of course! And in the second pic, you can see two students engaged in my favourite activity: WRITING!

You may notice that in the second pic, the student on the right, Kayla, has a small booboo on her nose. Well, believe it or not, that ties into some of the writing tips I shared with the students today. First of all, a writer needs to be observant. Second of all, a writer needs to be snoopy. So, first I observed the booboo, then I inquired about it. Kayla told me she sometimes has trouble breathing, so she uses a nose strip -- only she put it on too tight and it left a blue mark.

This turns out not to be the end of the story. When I was leaving the school with Miss Wendy, the librarian, we spotted Kayla -- with gauze on her forehead!! So, once again, this snoopy writer asked what had happened. Well, during recess Kayla whacked her head on some ice. You know what? I just might need to include a girl like Kayla in one of my stories -- a girl who is having an accident-prone day. (Kayla, I hope you get a good sleep tonight and wake up booboo-free tomorrow!)

I told the students as much as I could about how writing works -- how it's important to make writing and reading daily habits, and how both those things have saved my life! I also explained that writing doesn't only happen at a desk, and that sometimes I write when I am in the shower or making tea. A student named Jaden remarked, "Writing doesn't always come from a pen" -- I thought that was a beautiful, creative line.

We also talked about interviewing people in order to learn their secrets. I suggested that students interview their grandparents and if their grandparents are not available, to round up someone else's grandparents! A student named Jahni said that when his grandpa was recently visiting Montreal, he stopped strangers to tell them stories. Now that grandpa sounds like a perfect person to interview!

We also talked about how trouble fuels stories. A student named Lytia asked me, "So you don't use good?" I thought that was a brilliant question, Lytia. It is true that, generally, I use a lot of trouble in my stories, but usually, the characters develop because of the troubles they experience ... and I think that's definitely a good thing.

So, I must admit my house feels kind of quiet after being at Orchard Elementary. Thanks to Miss Wendy for inviting me. And to the students, thanks for the inspiration. Don't forget to read and write -- and stay out of trouble. But if trouble happens, use it in a story!!