Bio: Erin Bow
Name: Erin Bow
'10 Book Title: PLAIN KATE
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine/Scholastic
Favorite bit of writing advice: Ribe Tuckus. (Most of writing is the ability, courage, or muleheaded stubborness to sit and look at a page until something happens.)
Favorite part of writing: Surprising myself. It doesn't happen often enough, but sometimes, if you keep pushing, if you go beyond where you thought you should stop, something amazing happens, seemingly all by itself. And sometimes you have to hit select all/delete.
Least favorite part of writing: Wrist pain. And the feeling you get when you hit page 78 and realize you just can't tell this story anymore.
Outline or Let it fly?: Let it fly! I never know what's going on in my stories, and I like it that way. It astounds me that outlining works for people. But, alas, right now I'm outlining, because I have to write a book proposal, and because the new book has time travel in it and so I have to know the whole story before I can tell it.
Five things about me:
1. I have a deeply useless degree in particle physics and worked briefly at CERN and at Los Alamos National Labs. But not the bomb making part. That's important.
2. I've been officially excommunicated from the Catholic Church (Lincoln, Nebraska diocese) for campaigning for the ordination of women. Fortunately, I don't live in Lincoln (anymore) so this, like having a book banned in Alabama, is a point of pride.
3. I am working on a book of new translations of lyric poems by Catullus and Ovid, and another book of autobiographical haibun. Because just plain poetry isn't obscure enough! (My poetry is published under my maiden name, Erin Noteboom.)
4. I'm an American living in Canada, where I now have citizenship. Because just plain Canadian isn't obscure enough!
5. I'm married to another YA writer, James Bow, and we have two girls: Vivi (born in 2005) and Nora (born in 2008).
About PLAIN KATE:
In a market town by a looping river there lived an orphan girl called Plain Kate ....
Kate's is a colorful world of brokenhearted magicians, wandering gypsy clans, carved charms and stolen shadows. It's a dark world of ghosts, fog and questions. It's a dangerous world of witch burnings, persecution and plague. Her story is a coming-of-age story, a story about friendship and family, trust and betrayal, loyalty and bravery, death and what lies beyond. Also, there's a talking cat in it.
A Russian-flavored historical fantasy for ages 12 and up.
'10 Book Title: PLAIN KATE
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine/Scholastic
Favorite bit of writing advice: Ribe Tuckus. (Most of writing is the ability, courage, or muleheaded stubborness to sit and look at a page until something happens.)
Favorite part of writing: Surprising myself. It doesn't happen often enough, but sometimes, if you keep pushing, if you go beyond where you thought you should stop, something amazing happens, seemingly all by itself. And sometimes you have to hit select all/delete.
Least favorite part of writing: Wrist pain. And the feeling you get when you hit page 78 and realize you just can't tell this story anymore.
Outline or Let it fly?: Let it fly! I never know what's going on in my stories, and I like it that way. It astounds me that outlining works for people. But, alas, right now I'm outlining, because I have to write a book proposal, and because the new book has time travel in it and so I have to know the whole story before I can tell it.
Five things about me:
1. I have a deeply useless degree in particle physics and worked briefly at CERN and at Los Alamos National Labs. But not the bomb making part. That's important.
2. I've been officially excommunicated from the Catholic Church (Lincoln, Nebraska diocese) for campaigning for the ordination of women. Fortunately, I don't live in Lincoln (anymore) so this, like having a book banned in Alabama, is a point of pride.
3. I am working on a book of new translations of lyric poems by Catullus and Ovid, and another book of autobiographical haibun. Because just plain poetry isn't obscure enough! (My poetry is published under my maiden name, Erin Noteboom.)
4. I'm an American living in Canada, where I now have citizenship. Because just plain Canadian isn't obscure enough!
5. I'm married to another YA writer, James Bow, and we have two girls: Vivi (born in 2005) and Nora (born in 2008).
About PLAIN KATE:
In a market town by a looping river there lived an orphan girl called Plain Kate ....
Kate's is a colorful world of brokenhearted magicians, wandering gypsy clans, carved charms and stolen shadows. It's a dark world of ghosts, fog and questions. It's a dangerous world of witch burnings, persecution and plague. Her story is a coming-of-age story, a story about friendship and family, trust and betrayal, loyalty and bravery, death and what lies beyond. Also, there's a talking cat in it.
A Russian-flavored historical fantasy for ages 12 and up.