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For middle readers…and adults who never grew up: The Owl Motel
Climbing the Crazy Family Tree, work-in-progress
Lena: Wild Girl on the Prairie, the story of Laura Ingalls Wilder's cousin, work-in-progress
Chuck Mall
About Chuck
Author of middle-grade fiction. Former writer for men's fitness magazines. Author of Middle-Grade short story collection, The Owl Motel: And Other Places Where You Are Not Welcome. Avid cook and gardener who lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. Amazon author page: Chuck Mall on Amazon
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Author Archives: Chuck Mall
This is Why Agents Send Form Letters
And I Can’t Blame Them My friend called me after the writing seminar, on the verge of tears: “You won’t believe what happened at Words in the Woods!” “What?” I gasped. I dunno–when I hear “the woods” I automatically think … Continue reading
The 1000-Page Year
I’m Exhausted and Crabby Sometimes I think the universe put me in a rural place and made a pandemic just so this could happen. Then I think how narcissistic and inherently dumb that thought truly is. Then I think one … Continue reading
Easy & Fun Writers’ Education
A Gift from the Pandemic First, a list. After the list, why it’s included. Most important: I saved this list for you. Kira-Kira – Cynthia Kadohata (2004) The Lonely Heart of Maybelle Lane – Kate O’Shaughnessy (2020) Holes – Louis … Continue reading
Posted in writing
Tagged #childrensbooks, #fiction, #kidlit, #middle grade, #writing, pandemic
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Way Back in the Wayback Machine
To write kidlit, you need to mine your own past and reflect Continue reading
Posted in fiction, MG fiction, Words, writing, YA fiction
Tagged #middle grade, fiction, kidlit, memory, writing
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Throwing Out the Misdirection
I am going to publicly embarrass myself. I decided to be a writer in elementary school, and by the time I was in high school, I was prolific. There was no emotion or reality in my fiction, though. Being a … Continue reading
Imbue Your Work with Love
The secret to writing well lies with experience, and another “magic” ingredient you didn’t know. Continue reading
Posted in fiction, Words, writing, Writing Angst
Tagged amwriting, litchat, novel, writersblock, writerslife, writingtips
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Book Review
Oddball entry: my reviews are on Amazon and Goodreads, but this one deserves a place in my space. Hope is a Ferris Wheel by Robin Herrera I’m a bit late to the game on reading this 2014 MG novel, but … Continue reading
3 Hot Tips to Make Your Middle-Grade Novel Saleable
If you’ve been studying writing awhile, you’re well-versed on how to create a character, how to structure a plot, and how to find the novel’s “voice” (by far the hardest thing). But did you know these three extras that really … Continue reading
Posted in fiction, Words, writing, writing for children
Tagged #childrensbooks, #fiction, #kidlit, #middle grade, #writing
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Middle-Grade Book Know-How
Write Well, Learn the Genre, and Learn Advanced Techniques I can’t tell whether I’m writing a middle-grade book, a chapter book, or a YA. Have you ever thought about this? I’ve heard it at writers conferences and critique groups for … Continue reading
Posted in fiction, writing, writing for children, YA fiction
Tagged #childrensbooks, #fiction, #kidlit, #middle grade, #YA
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Transforming Fear into Fiction
How to use these strange times to propel your words Never have we seen such widespread fear in our society. Yet we were warned. Scientists have predicted a major pandemic. We all coasted along, visiting the world easily, indulging ourselves, … Continue reading
Chuck Mall 