By MAGGIE MCMURRAY
Moapa Valley Progress
Aspiring young writers got a treat on Saturday with an opportunity to attend a young writer’s workshop hosted by the Moapa Valley Library in Overton. The workshop featured local author, Ellie Askeroth Terry.
Terry grew up in Moapa Valley. Her middle grade book, “Forget Me Not” was recently published by Macmillan and has received rave reviews.
Attendees spanned a broad age range from the very young to a recent high school graduate. While girls vastly outnumbered the boys, the presentation was perfect for all budding writers trying to hone their craft.
Terry used an object lesson throughout the presentation to help the kids visualize the steps to writing. She compared a lump of red playdough to the steps of the writing process. The first step was to “think it.” She told the kids that when you start playing with playdough, the first thing you have to do is think about what to make. Likewise before you start to write, you need to have an idea of what you’re going to write about.
The group discussed various ways to obtain ideas for stories including from their own lives, dreams, other art, and hobbies. Then Terry gave the kids a few minutes to come up with a list of ideas.
The next step, said Terry, is to “write it.” She told the kids to write a beginning, a middle, and an end; not worrying about anything other than just getting something down on paper. To demonstrate, she said that she had decided to make a flower with the playdough so she pulled off several chunks and put them in a circle, explaining that a rough draft is meant to be rough. She had the kids take one of their ideas and write an opening paragraph.
Terry went on to explain that the third step is to “revise it.” “That means,” she said, “that you pay attention to the big stuff by adding things and taking things away until it looks more like a story.”
The fourth step is to “polish it.”
“That means to make it pretty,” Terry said. “This is the step where you pay attention to the little details like spelling and punctuation, working with it over and over until it is perfect. You want it to be something you can be proud of.”
The last step was to “share it.” Terry explained that although this step was not necessary, especially if it is just journaling for yourself, sharing your work brings joy to you and often joy to others.
Terry said that writing has been a lifelong passion of hers since she was 10. “I started writing and thought I’d just send my books to publishers and watch my dreams come true,” she said.
The reality of the process, however, was much different. It took Terry four years to find a publisher willing to take her work.
But she told the youth that they can’t get discouraged. It is important to keep working toward their goal and pushing forward, she said. Prior to “Forget Me Not” she had written a total of 40 children’s books and 4 other middle grade novels that all were rejected and never published. She said that over the last 11 years, she received 326 rejection letters, before finally being able to sell “Forget Me Not” to a publisher.
After the workshop, Terry held a book-signing event and several community members brought copies for Terry to sign.
Terry said that she also has several workshops that she does all across the country through Skype. “My Skype workshops are so fun,” she said. “I love interacting with the kids and answering their questions.”
“Forget Me Not” can be purchased at most book stores and about anywhere online, including Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
