The Office of Letters and Light Blog

Let’s Get Philatelic

Even though we at OLL remain big fans of writing letters (and of shipping radical new merch, like these YWP “First-Class Novelist” buttons), the U.S. Postal Service is having some tough times lately. Business is down more and more each year, and 3,700 post offices are being considered for closure.

Fortunately, that’s not stopping them from cool initiatives, like the 2012 poetry stamp series! Who doesn’t want to think about Sylvia Plath’s “Daddy” while addressing a Father’s Day card, right? Anyway, this new set got me curious about which authors the USPS has honored before.

On this list, all the biggies (Cather, Faulkner, Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Hughes, Steinbeck, Seuss, etc.) are accounted for. Even Ayn Rand is there, but I think rational egoists only send self-addressed stamped envelopes.

Which literature folks do you think deserve a stamp, either now or eventually? (This is not a US-exclusive question, though we’re tempted to exclude the UK based on jealousy of their Harry Potter series.) Do you buy special stamps, or are you happy with whatever generic ones your post office has at the ready? Have you ever saved an especially neat stamp from a received letter?

– Chris A.

What do you “do” to your books?

Geoff Dyer’s New York Times column this week is about what we do to the books we own—how we interact with them as physical objects. It’s an interesting topic, as every book lover seems to have a different approach to the condition of his or her library. Some of us like to keep our books in tip-top shape; others, like Dyer, prefer that they show the wear of reading:

[T]he book should be in near-mint condition when I start reading it, but I am not obsessive about keeping it that way. On the contrary, I like the way it gradually and subtly shows signs of wear and tear, of having been lived in (by me), like a pair of favorite jeans.

He gives the example of a World War II book that he read and dragged around for a long period of time, to the point that the pages curled and the spine wrinkled—in addition to his usual pencil marks and blood stains (that part’s kind of gross).

Me, I like to keep books as close to new as I can, but I dig the idea of accidental marks that indicate the circumstances of my reading. My Fitzgeralds and Hemingways still bear the price tags from my college bookstore, and I’m sure a fair number of pages in my collection have coffee drips from my hours in cafés (but no blood, sorry weirdos). Still, I’ve never made notations in anything, as I want any re-readings to be fresh.

How about you? Do you like your books to show wear or gleam brand new? Do you write in the margins? What book in your library is the most beat-up and well-loved?

– Chris A.

Photo by Flickr user Jon Madison

Potent Quotables

We’ve been thinking a lot about quotes around here lately. We’re designing some merch for NaNoWriMo 2011 that is very… quotable, shall we say? (Teaser alert!) The process has me considering the pithy ideas that we surround ourselves with, whether it be at our writing desks or in our email signatures.

I keep a Google Doc of quotes about creativity by folks I admire. I don’t look at it every day, but I’ll add to it when I come across something, and give it a good skim when I need a creative boost. An entry, for instance, by Louis C.K. (from a recent Louie episode):

“I’m bored” is a useless thing to say. I mean, you live in a great, big, vast world that you’ve seen none percent of. Even the inside of your own mind is endless; it goes on forever, inwardly, do you understand? The fact that you’re alive is amazing, so you don’t get to say “I’m bored.”

What quotes about writing, creativity, or life in general do you keep nearby? How do you display or remember them? And why do they appeal to you?

– Chris A.

Photo by Flickr user ingridtayler

A Random Story Challenge

I had trouble coming up with blog post for this week, so I decided to leave my topic up to fate. Do you guys know that site “Wikipedia”? Well, in addition to lots of interesting facts about otters, it has a cool “Random Article” search function. A perfect resource for the idea-starved! (Take note for November, pantsers.) Here’s a quick story based on what it popped out for me today:

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The Young Writers Program July Writing Contest: Results!

A couple of weeks ago, we announced the first annual Young Writers Program July Writing Contest. It was just a little idea—a way for our students to get in some writing during the summer. Almost 150 entries later, we’re proud to say that the contest was much bigger and better than we’d ever hoped.

Our only prompt was “Compose a brief story (300-word limit) that starts on a bright, sunny day.” The directions these kids and teens went with that simple concept were inspiring. We had sci-fi, horror, war, comedy, romance, and more—all unique takes and ideas. We were so impressed with everybody who submitted, and choosing a winner was a very hard task. Eventually we narrowed it down to three stand-outs…

Grand Prize Winner:

Samantha Tatum (WordsToSay), Middle School

It was a bright, sunny day.

That was the problem.

My brother spent the morning curled up on the front porch, his thin, young legs poking out from his position as a replicated armadillo and his soft breath panted quietly, whispering warnings of what he saw to the wind.

I sat behind him, worrying his hair. He did not sleep under my touch, his tiny body trembling.

I watched as his friends rushed around on the streets, every once in a while staring up at the sky—but only fleeting glances. They did not absorb panic as quickly as my brother always did.

Mum was quarantined at work, though I wasn’t sure why. The government was rushing to explain and in their haste, put down strange regulations anywhere they would stick, trying to convince everyone that the situation was under control.

It wasn’t.

My skin prickled and I slathered more sunscreen over my skin, my fingers shaking lightly as I rubbed it in. I had to stay calm. Soon, I had to feed my brother dinner. We could go inside and escape from this madness for a few hours. It wasn’t like I was going to catch on fire or anything…

What if?

Suddenly confused tears rushed down my cheeks and my eyes stung as I struggled to see through the moisture to my brother.

I scooped his body up into my arms as he kicked and yelled, asking me what I was doing. I opened up the front door to my house and pulled both of us into the safe darkness.

I wondered why there were no government-issued guides to surviving this.

But then again, who anticipates waking up to two suns in the sky?

Honorable Mention Winners:

Thayanora, High School

Ceana Leonard, Elementary School

Photo by Flickr user Thomas Hawk

A Letter Writing Project

We’re always working on—and talking about—creative writing here on the OLL blog. Lately, though, I’ve been working on another kind of project: composing letters.

No, not long-hand. Who am I, Emily Dickinson? I’m writing in a mode that actually seems quaint in the age of text-messaging and wall posts: just nice, substantial, old-fashioned e-mails. I’ve lived in a few different places in my adult life, and made a lot of great friends along the way. Unfortunately, as I’m sure you know, it can be tough to stay in touch. (I’d argue that Facebook exacerbates this issue, as it gives the illusion of proximity. How far away can your friends be when you can get to them in just a few clicks, right?) So, I devised a system:

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The Bloggy Award

You are looking at an object very much prized here at the Office of Letters and Light. “But why is it so valuable?” you might say. “It just looks like a sparkling-water bottle covered with stickers and tied with a lopsided bow.”

Though I’m tempted to respond “HOW DARE YOU?!” (cue: echo and thunder sound effects), I suppose I should calmly explain. That, kind reader, is a photo of the prestigious OLL Bloggy Award.

Just like the incentive goodies you get at the end of NaNoWriMo and Script Frenzy, we use it to give props to especially awesome blog posts. It’s been frequently passed around the office the last few months; whoever currently has the Bloggy gets to choose the next recipient. Lindsey is the latest, for her great “Exploring Life Through Art and Writing.” Who will get it next is anybody’s guess. (Bribery doesn’t work. Lindsey is very ethical.)

From now on, we’ll indicate winners via this tag, always accessible on the left sidebar. And if you see a new post you love, feel free to make a nomination suggestion in the comments!

– Chris A.

The Young Writers Program July Writing Contest

As many NaNoWriMo participants are midway through their first month of Camp, we thought it would be fun to give our young writers (17 and younger) a chance to get into the noveling spirit of the summer months (or, the winter months for our Southern Hemisphere folks). So, we hereby present to you…

What To Write

Compose a brief story (300-word limit) that starts on a bright, sunny day.

Where you go from there is completely up to you. We’ll be looking for intriguing description, characters, and plot. Be sure you’re able to pack a lot into a short word window!

The Prizes

We will award one Grand Prize Winner, and two Honorable Mention Winners. (One of these will come from each grade level—elementary, middle, and high school.)

The Grand Prize (This is pretty awesome. Be sure you’re ready.)

• Your story published on the OLL blog
• A 30-minute consultation with The Book Doctors. (They can help you with planning the next steps for your 2010 NaNoWriMo novel, assess your 2011 idea, or just give some good advice on the publishing industry.)
• A $50 gift certificate for the Office of Letters and Light store
• A specially designed contest winner web badge for your website or social media pages

The Honorable Mention Prizes

• A link to your story on the OLL blog
• Your choice of a NaNoWriMo t-shirt or poster from the Office of Letters and Light store
• A specially designed contest honorable mention web badge for your website or social media pages

How to Submit

Just post the text of your story in the comments section of this blog entry, along with an indication of your grade level (elementary, middle, or high school). If you want to post your story elsewhere, provide the complete URL link. The deadline is July 31, 2011.

Read the complete terms and conditions below, and please contact ywp@nanowrimo.org if you have any additional questions.

By submitting to the Young Writers Program July Writing Contest, you agree to the following Terms and Conditions:

• Participation in the contest is free.
• Participants must be 17 or younger.
• Story must be submitted before midnight (PST) on July 31, 2011 to be eligible for prizes.
• Story must be submitted via the OLL blog.
• Story must be 300 words or less to qualify.
• Limit one submission per person.
• By submitting your story, you agree to grant OLL the right to publish it on our blog.
• Winners will be determined by OLL staff.
• Prizes may not be exchanged.

Chris A. and Sarah Debate… The Comedy Emmy Nominations!

Sarah: As we have written about in the past, Chris A. and I are both television enthusiasts. We are also both people with a lot of opinions, and thus are prone to frequent overzealous discussions about various shows we watch.

Naturally, then, last week’s announcement of the Emmy nominees began a spirited debate over the various categories. Although we have plenty to say about other genres (I for one am thrilled to see Cat Deeley get recognized for Reality Show Host, because she is a total delight and very good at maintaining order while still being charming), the comedy category is definitely where we have the strongest opinions. So we thought we’d break down those thoughts in another installment of our ongoing “Chris A. and Sarah Debate Things” blog series.

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Where do you jot your ideas?

I’ve been trying to get into more of a creative routine lately. I started coming into work earlier, so I could get a little more evening productivity, and I’ve found a good coffee shop spot whose feng shui seems to work for me. (There’s a plant directly behind me. I’m sure that’s it.) But the most beneficial step has been something that seems very obvious: actually writing down my ideas.

Before, stuff just rattled in my brain and was easily forgotten; I didn’t have a great method like Max’s to tame my brainstorms. Now, I’ve become a jotter. Even vague thought fragments get written down, in hopes that I’ll be able to use them in a story or essay later. “Too intimidated to go into specialty denim store,” for instance, isn’t much of a concept yet, but I’m glad I have it just in case.

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Students’ Words in Print

A couple of weeks ago, I received a special delivery from a fifth-grade classroom in San Jose, CA. In November, I had a great time visiting Linda Ulleseit and her students—even though they made fun of me for my then-paltry word count. I was especially excited to see the classroom copy of Novel Central, a collection of Linda’s kids’ NaNo-novels from the previous year. The delivery I got was the new, wonderful sequel, Novel Central: Volume 2. I’ve been flipping through it whenever I have a chance, and I am continually blown away by the creativity of these young writers. From the back cover:

These NaNoWriMo novels include something for everyone: dragons, super computers, TacoGuys, robots, unicorns, spy camp, zombies, teenagers, friendships, and even a sewage monster.

I’ve seen a few collections like this (as well as a lot of books individually published by students), and I believe that they are ideal culminations of the noveling process. The kids and teens who write during NaNoWriMo are shown that their work is real and valuable, and printed copies of their novels can be permanent proof. (Not to mention, educators, that the publication process is an opportunity to teach a whole bunch of real-world editing skills.) As Linda Ulleseit says in her introduction to Novel Central: Volume 2,

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Blobby Meets His Cousins

“GUMPO!” we heard Blobby say yesterday afternoon. This was an unusual occurrence, as his heavy lunch usually soothes him into a slumber that lasts well into the evening.

“GUMPO! GUMPO!” he said again, as he plopped himself down from his perch and began waddling to our front window. He pressed his face (sideways, because that’s where his eyes are) against the glass and let out one more—this time in wonderment: “GUMPO?”

We had to see what had so intrigued our normally demure dinosaur friend, so we crowded around him to look out. And there they were: two bearded lizards who live in our neighborhood, and who had come by to say hello to their office relative. Now, we’re not entirely sure how reptile family trees work, but we think these are cousin’s of Blobby’s (perhaps a few times removed). As you can see, it was a very happy reunion:

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