Tag Archives: YA novel

Year of the Earth Dog

Happy Chinese New Year.

For me celebrating the Year of the Earth Dog is timely as I have been hunkered down this week, completing a final (I hope) edit of The Dog with Seven Names. It’s a young YA novel set in the Pilbara during 1942 told from the POV of a dog. Yes, I can’t seem to get enough anthropomorphism!

While I’m a boring old buffalo, those lucky people born in dog years are honest and loyal with a strong sense of duty, just like my main character; Flynn/Princess/Gengi + 4 other names.

Welcome to Dianne Wolfer's Website

The research for this book has been fascinating and I’ve learnt so many things about WW2 Australian history. My dog character is a terrier cross, smaller than Harry (pictured above) and writing a story using dog senses has been both fun and challenging.

The Dog with Seven Names will be published by Penguin Random House in August 2018 (assuming I finish this draft!) and I’ll post more news and a sneak peek of the gorgeous cover in a few months. In the meantime, may your Earth Dog celebrations be joyous.

International Shark Week – Reef Adventures

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Happy International Shark Week!

I’m fortunate to be celebrating the occasion on a Pacific island, taking a week’s break before August; a month of Festival/Library/School visits and Bookshop events (more details next post).

Snorkelling here everyday reminds me how observing the busy minutiae of life on a coral reef inspired my novel The Shark Caller. So much is happening on even the smallest reef. Tiny fish, bright coloured, striped, spotted and plain, dart under rocks, hide in anemone or between coral scaffolding, while larger fish chase them or snuffle through sand or chew coral. Meanwhile the slower sea slugs and starfish make interesting patterns in the sand.

snorkelling trimmed

The island we are visiting is a sanctuary for turtles and sea snakes. Swimming with the former is a bucket-list delight. I’m trying to get used to the latter. Overcoming fear of strange creatures is something Izzy needed to do in Shark Caller to complete her quest. Like Izzy, I often find that adventure involves duality, it’s one of the themes that interested me during the long writing process of this book. The Shark Caller plot explores twin bonds and aspects of our shadow sides. It’s about light/darkness as well seeing degrees of ‘good’ and ‘evil’ within characters (and ourselves). And as I snorkel, I still wonder why creatures like octopus and sea snakes spook me whilst I seek out other (also strange) creatures like turtles.

The lagoon here seems too shallow for sharks (certainly no mako…), however yesterday I did see another creature from the story. From the vantage point of the jetty at low tide, I watched three different octopus, none as scary as Pyrena thank goodness although one was largish… I find octopus exquisitely creepy as they writhe across the sea floor uncurling their arms then suddenly jetting away when they’re disturbed. They’re intelligent and noble in their own weird way, but I prefer to have space between us.

Swimming above gaps under rocky overhangs reminds me of another aspect of the story, imagined passages to ocean vents and otherworldly creatures. I don’t think this lagoon hides underwater tunnels, but I guess you never know!

When I began writing this blog I found a long ago shark post which I forgot to publish. I drafted it soon after the release of The Shark Caller, as the first reviews began to arrive – always an exciting moment when they’re positive. I smiled when I read the opening line of the very first review by Joy Lawn in Books +Publishing:

The Shark Caller breaks new ground in junior YA fiction.

And was honoured to receive the following praise from living legend Hazel Edwards OAM (author of the famed Hippo on Roof books) in Goodreads:

This is the best book for the 10-12 ish age group that I have read this year. Highly commended for adults too. And it’s a pleasure to savour the language.

Author Heather Waugh‘s comment was rather octopus-like: ‘it lured me in and held me. It’s been a while since I’ve read magic realism, and I sank back into it like a comfy couch.’

But my favourite review came from primary student Lila, who says:

Dad, Mum and I have just finished your book Shark Caller and we all loved it. Mum and Dad loved it so much they had to read it after I went to bed, and Dad couldn’t put it down so he accidentally stayed up ’til 1:30am reading it! My favourite part was reaching Sephone after escaping Pyrena and onwards. For me the most tense part was in the Cavern with Pyrena and escaping her. I also loved the words especially solwara, puripuri and tumbuna.

Happy Shark Week everyone, may you also find clear waters in which to celebrate with some friendly marine creatures.

Wordcounts

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WA author Sandi Bowie recently shared an interesting article about the word count habits of several well-known authors. I found their different feedback on ‘a successful day’s work’ fascinating. And then I looked at my own approach…

The article claims that writing routines are important. That is so true. Reading the different methods of these successful writers reminded me again of the value and importance of ‘just writing’, especially whilst working on the first read-through draft of a new manuscript. Not censoring, researching, or checking emails, just setting a daily word count deadline and getting on with it. Permitting yourself to write junky sentences, but not leaving the desk before the word count is achieved .

The word count tab on my laptop is my favourite function. I often set myself mini targets and update the figure on the first page at least once a day. When I write, it also helps to know that what I am working on is a draft. And that I will edit it many times. Arthur Conan Doyle’s entry in the article states: ‘Anything is better than stagnation.’ Again, so true!

Another quote I liked was by Somerset Maugham: “There are three rules for writing a novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.”

After years of work and countless drafts, my YA novel The Shark Caller is now out of my hands being typeset. One part of me is relieved, another part wants to take back the manuscript and do another draft (or two or three). I know that it’s time to ‘let it go’, but each time I read the story, some sentences still feel clunky.

So this week I have returned to my other semi-completed novel, The Dog with Six Names. After reading the article Sandi posted, I decided to revive the word count habit. Yesterday I managed 700 words, enough to creep over the 29,000 tally. Those authors who achieve 3000 words a day are an inspiration. Today was an ambitious (for me) 1000 words. I was itching to pass the 30,000 mark. As I type, the story now sits at 30,194. Two thousand more words to go till my final target of 32,000. Then the hard part begins; editing!