Category: GKP Writing News

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GKP Writing News

Hoarding Books

I’ll admit I’ve been hoarding books most of my life. I love books. I love reading them and writing them.

Used book sales were the highlights of my year. Every sale sacks of new books came home to fill my bookshelves.

How many bookshelves? Eight four foot by eight foot, two three foot by eight feet and a few smaller bookcases lined my front room walls, sat in side rooms and tempted me with their titles. That doesn’t count the stacks on the tops or on the floor.

Meeting Reality

Some of those bookcases held reference books. Teaching science requires a science library for lesson ideas. Researching plants requires guide books. Raising livestock requires veterinary and care books.

But the other bookcases held hundreds of books waiting to be read. I claim a thousand now, although I’ve never really counted them. Since I read about fifty of them a year, the last will be read about twenty years from now.

I am a senior citizen, an older senior citizen. Those books waiting for me to read them will probably end up going for fifty cents a box or tossed into a dumpster.

My solution was to stop going to the used book sales. I’m reading and giving away many of my books to people or book sales so others can enjoy reading them. I hope they will be read, not sit gathering decades of dust as they have on my shelves.

cover for "Capri Capers" by Karen GoatKeeper
This book was downloaded for free several times during holiday giveaways. And disappeared. So many people won’t look at a book unless it has lots of reviews, yet they won’t take the time to review a book themselves, even if they have gotten the book, a product of months of work, for free.

Book Reviews

As an author, I want other people to read my books. It’s hard work to write a book, rewrite it, edit it, create a cover and publish it.

The book market has changed. When I choose a book, I look at the dust jacket to find out something about the book. Reviews are nice, but they do not persuade me to read a book.

Why? Because there are books I enjoy reading and books I don’t enjoy reading. Take Stephen King. Many people love reading his books. I tried one, well two. The novel was enough for me. The one on writing was interesting and helpful.

The book market emphasizes book reviews. It’s vital to get reviews of your books.

Gift Giving Time

Now there are opportunities for me to give digital copies of my books away over the holidays. I’ve done this thinking people will read my books and do reviews of them.

Instead people download hundreds of free books just like the sacks I used to lug home in my hoarding books days.

The books sit on their phones or tablets or ereaders unread as so many of mine on my shelves. And then they are erased. Hoarding books is now guilt free as the books don’t sit there in front of you.

No one read them. No one reviewed them.

I don’t think I will participate. My digital books are $2.99 each. Maybe, if someone purchases one, they will actually read it and maybe do a review of it.

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GKP Writing News

Ending Two Novels

National Novel Writing Month makes November special for me. It gives me license to write madly with no or few doubts about what I’m writing. It’s often the beginning of a new novel. This year is hopefully ending two novels.

Most of my novels began as NaNo drafts. Sometime in September or October the shadow of an idea occurs. It’s at the edge of my mind, teasing me, eluding me for a time.

One day this little idea grows up into characters and plot. The new novel waits for me to write it down.

cover for "Dora's Story" by Karen GoatKeeper
I was driving when the idea of a Black Beauty type novel about a goat occurred to me. I was only going a few miles, but had thought of the goat and several possible events for this new novel begun during another November NaNo and finished during two Camp NaNo sessions.

Planning For November

This year I didn’t go looking for an idea for a new novel. I have three sitting around waiting for my attention. One is a disaster in need of a total rethinking and rewriting.

The other two are unfinished. It’s not that I don’t know or have a good idea what that ending is. I do. I just haven’t written the endings down yet.

So I decided to spend NaNo ending two novels.

The goal is 50,000 words, a novella. Both of my novels are three quarters done. Neither needs another 50,000 words. Together I should have the word total.

NaNo asks the potential writer to say what novel is being worked on. I thought about it and decided to go with “The Carduan Chronicles”.

In between “The Chemistry Project” investigations and puzzles and the “Dent County Flora” pictures, memories of Cardua surfaced. I remembered names, events, where the novel left off.

November Begins

November 1 dawned. I sat down at my computer. And opened my flood/isolation novel instead.

It’s a good thing I’m ending two novels this November. I’m 16,000 words into Mindy’s story and building to the climax. About 10,000 more words will end this draft.

That won’t end work on this novel. I have lots of research to do, people to interview, rewriting to do. But it will finish the rough draft.

And it will leave me about 25,000 words to use about Cardua.

Maybe I won’t have a new novel this December. But ending two novels is reason to celebrate.

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GKP Writing News

Chemistry Puzzles

One of my favorite parts of my science activity books are the puzzles. At least they have been. Devising the chemistry puzzles has been a challenge.

There are lots of fun sayings about water and pumpkins. There are lots of fun facts. Putting lists of words about these is easy too.

Not for chemistry.

Looking For Word Lists

I’ve found lists of famous chemists. Since “The Chemistry Project” will have many younger experimenters, the things these chemists did won’t mean anything to them. Thermodynamics is studied in college, not in high school. Electricity, while it can involve chemistry and explains some of what chemistry is about, is not familiar below high school or college.

That means my usual word searches and word skeletons will be few in number. Even mazes need something going from one place to another, and I’m still searching for these things. I did find one, but that isn’t nearly enough.

Other Possible Puzzles

Deduction problems are one of my favorites. I can probably do several chemistry puzzles of this kind. Not everyone likes these.

cover for "Goat Games" by Karen GoatKeeper
Although not a science activity book, “Goat Games” has lots of pencil puzzles of many kinds about goats. This book gave me the idea for the science activity books.

I’m reaching into “Goat Games” for more puzzle ideas. I have a couple of word puzzles now. Maybe I can think of a few more.

There will be lots of chemistry sayings and chemistry tales. These are challenging to devise. I like using a Scrabble board and letters to change the saying or tale into words for the clues.

Each part of “The Chemistry Project” has about six puzzles. I am now working on part 3 on solutions for the investigations and activities. I am short two puzzles for part 2 on matter. Part 3 needs another five puzzles.

Because chemistry puzzles are so hard to come up with, I could cut back on how many puzzles are in “The Chemistry Project”. That would solve my dilemma. But I would hate to do that. I just have to search harder for more puzzle material and ideas.

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GKP Writing News

Chemistry Investigations

The genesis for my Chemistry Project goes back decades to when I taught chemistry in high school. It was one of several subjects I taught every day. I developed chemistry investigations for my classes.

The advantage of school was my access to many chemicals and lots of equipment. That meant I could develop challenging experiments.

I considered these experiments challenging. The real challenge came later when I was developing the chemistry investigations for my new website.

Authors are supposed to have websites to promote their books and connect with fans.

cover of "The Pumpkin Project" by Karen GoatKeeper
Science is a ‘hands on’ subject using investigations and activities to encourage students to think about what they are learning and apply it to new circumstances. I use investigations, activities, pencil puzzles, trivia, stories, recipes and more in “The Pumpkin Project” to try to do this. And the supplies and equipments used are mostly things easily available.

My website did promote my books, only a couple at that time. What I wanted to do was attract people to my site. “The Pumpkin Project” was coming out soon.

To me, science is science. It is looking for why things happen the way they do and are as they are. Chemistry was a familiar subject so I decided to post chemistry investigations on my website.

Doing Chemistry At Home

At home I had none of the equipment or the chemicals I had used at school. The topics were the same. The challenge was to develop ways to suit these topics using equipment and chemicals anyone could find.

Why chemistry? One reason is how interesting it is. Another is that every other science has some relationship with chemistry. Yet another involves reactions, seeing things change form and color.

“The Chemistry Project” is taking shape using the posts I put up nearly ten years ago. A couple have needed changes. One Activity had to be redone entirely.

So far, the first part on the metric system is complete. The chemistry investigations are done for the second part on matter. I’m short a couple of puzzles, trivia and a Chem Story.

Importance of Science

Another problem has appeared. Putting “The Chemistry Project” together will take a lot of work. It is a science activity book. And science is now suspect.

People question the validity of science. They ban science books.

To me, this ignores the fact that most of those people would be dead without science just as half of all children died before the age of five only a couple of hundred years ago. Science created the materials in their clothes, the engines in their vehicles, the appliances in their homes.

And future scientists, the ones who will give us more technology, begin now with books like “The Chemistry Project” that challenge them to think, to use the knowledge they gain through experiments. There’s a lot riding on those chemistry investigations I’m developing. I hope they measure up.

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“The Cat Who Saved Books”

What is the power of books? Do you really love books? “The Cat who Saved Books” by Sosuke Natsukawa explores these questions.

The book is translated from the Japanese. The ideas it brings up should make you think, maybe re-evaluate your relationship with books.

Synopsis of “The Cat Who Saved Books”

Rintaro Natsuki is a high school student living with his grandfather who owns an old used book store filled with hard-to-find books. Rintaro hides himself away as a hikikomori burying himself in the books he loves and reads.

After the grandfather dies, Rintaro is left adrift. An aunt pushes him to close the shop and move in with her. He stands staring at the bookshelves thinking of nothing when he hears someone. All he sees is an orange tabby.

A tabby who announces the name Tiger Tabby and asks Rintaro to help rescue some abused books. Even as numb and uncaring as he is, Rintaro can’t refuse.

Three times the pair enter a Labyrinth. Three times they meet people who say they love books, but have somehow lost sight of that love. Each time there is a different approach to books and people’s relationships to them.

The fourth Labyrinth leaves Rintaro struggling to understand the immense power of books.

“The Cat who Saved Books” may be fiction, but books are under attack today because of their power. That power is frightening to those who would dictate to others. That power is why books are one of the first targets of such people.

Power of Reading Books

What is this immense power? Read “The Cat Who Saved Books” and find out even as you contemplate society’s changing attitudes toward books.

How do you access this power? By reading widely. It’s comforting to read only one genre or one author. By doing this you are robbing yourself.

Set a goal to read a book that stretches you out of your comfort zone once a week or a month or every fifth book. Try a book that challenges your view of the world or takes you to a time or place unfamiliar to you.

Open your mind to the power of books.

cover for "The City Water Project" by Karen GoatKeeper
So many people now seem to dislike or distrust science. In “The City Water Project” it becomes clear that we depend on science to supply, use and dispose of our water.
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Choosing Books

Choosing books to read is personal, a reflection of a person’s likes and dislikes. When I was young, nine or ten, my reading fell into two camps: Nancy Drew and Judy Bolton mysteries and horse stories.

The mysteries were on the shelf at home. I knew exactly where to find both fiction and nonfiction horse stories in the library. I read them, then reread my favorites.

Broadening My Horizons

One day my mother laid down the law. I was allowed only one horse story and had to take out some other kind of book each trip to the library. I was furious.

My mother encouraged me to read the classics. I met the Three Musketeers. I hated Gulliver’s Story and still do. Nature books came home often.

Teachers at school pushed my horizons even further with their reading lists. A list would have fifty to one hundred books on it with a requirement of four or five. Choosing books from the lists was up to the students.

At that time, I started out resenting such interference. I was happy with my few choices.

cover for "Waiting For Fairies" by Karen GoatKeeper
As in my reading, I stretch my writing to challenge my boundaries as with “Waiting For Fairies”, a picture book that I illustrated as well as wrote.

Reading Widely

Now I’m glad I was pushed out of such a narrow book focus. There are so many kinds of books by so many authors available. Many aren’t be to my taste. Others are welcome discoveries.

So many people seem to only read mysteries or thrillers or Westerns or romance or horror. Some even limit the number of authors they will read. What a shame. They are missing out on so many good books.

There are series I read all of. Tony Hillerman, the Cat Who books and Mrs. Pollifax come to mind. But these are not the only books I read.

I just finished “Zorro” by Isabel Allende translated from the Spanish. I’m reading “The Cat Who Saved Books” by Sosuke Natsukawa translated from the Japanese. Reading books from other cultures opens a window into the cultures of other countries.

“The Hate You Give” and “On the Come Up” by Angie Thomas opened a window into life in the inner city. “They Called Us Enemy” by George Takai taught me some U.S. history I was unaware of.

Choosing books from many authors, from and about many times and from many countries enlarges my life. Give it a try. You might find your world getting bigger too.

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Banning Books

An article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch was about how banning books has become popular. For me, as both an author, reader and citizen, this is frightening, infuriating and frustrating.

An English teacher I had in high school told us about an incident in Arizona. It seems there were new literature books with selections from various time periods. A parent came to the school board decrying a story in which a knight put on his girdle and demanded the books be discarded.

Knights? Remember about the Dark Ages, Medieval Europe? Or maybe you don’t as so much of history seems skipped now.

At that time girdle was the name for a belt. It had nothing to do with women’s undergarments. What this parent was saying was that they were ignorant and wanted to punish everyone rather than learn something about how vocabulary changes over time.

How many other books are on the banned lists because vocabulary used in them is not today’s accepted form? Or attitudes? Use these as lessons in how we’ve changed, hopefully for the better.

Another book was a graphic novel about the Holocaust. A graphic novel is not a comic book although some are very close. This one is not.

I read a graphic novel “They Called Us Enemy” by George Takai. It was about the Japanese internment camps of World War II, camps ignored by history, denied by the government and educators. He had an interesting comment: We need to learn both the good and the bad in our history. The first makes us proud. The second is a way to do better, not repeat our mistakes.

Banning books is popular with dictators as a way to stifle thinking, knowledge, different viewpoints. Is that what we want here?

There are many books I choose not to read. Horror, romance and violent thrillers are among them. But I do not think I have the right to forbid those who like these genres to read them. And, yes, I’ve read a book or two in these genres before deciding to avoid them.

That is a most frustrating point about the present book banning. Most of these people have never read the books they want to ban. They heard about them on social media from some entity who may or may not be who they say they are.

We have many problems in our country. I choose not to write about them or politics or religion. But banning books thereby shutting off other viewpoints, facts we may not like, is not the way to solve those problems.

Problems are solved by getting them out in the open and listening, really listening, to each other. Respect is a two way street. And no one is always right about everything.

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Fast Novel Writing

I came across an article about writing novels for Kindle. It seems this author was turning out a book every nine weeks. That is fast novel writing time.

Now, I can write a novel draft in four weeks. NaNo (National Novel Writing Month) has taught me how to do that.

The steps are easy. I get an idea and think it through. Then I write down a bullet point list of plot ideas which may or may not appear in the draft. The last step is writing the draft of at least 50,000 words.

This is a rough draft. The characters aren’t really fully developed until half way through. Sometimes they even change names.

The plot has holes I can drive a semi through, if I drove a semi. There are side trips to places totally unrelated to the plot.

Facts are made up. I plan to check them out later.

In short, this is a draft, not a novel. It may be fast novel writing, but it isn’t ready for anyone to sit down and read.

cover for "Dora's Story" by Karen GoatKeeper
It took eight weeks to write “Dora’s Story”. It took a year to edit the novel. The draft timeline was wrong. The goat shows needed linking. I needed an illustrator. Then the grammar and spelling had to be checked. “Dora’s Story” was definitely not a product of fast novel writing.

Finishing Writing a Novel

Rewriting and editing can take months. All those facts need to be checked out. If I guessed wrong, the whole premise may fall apart leaving me writing an entirely new draft.

There is another reason I will never do fast novel writing for Kindle. I have a life outside of writing.

An author in my old writing group wanted to make it as an author. She raised sheep at the time. She sold all of them. Her husband joined her as they went to conferences.

The last I heard, she had made it as an author. All she did was research and write for her novel series.

I like my life. Going hiking and taking plant pictures. Milking the goats. Gardening. Watching the chickens.

Yes, I like writing. But fast novel writing consuming my life is not the way for me.

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Teaching Basic Chemistry

Teaching basic chemistry was something I looked forward to when I was teaching high school sciences. Every year brought new challenges.

I suppose chemistry can be taught strictly from a book. That is so boring to me because science is hands on, experiments, seeing how things work. So my classes spent a lot of time in the lab.

There are lots of experiments available for a chemistry class. Most of them take lots of expensive equipment and chemicals. Small schools like the ones I was teaching basic chemistry in often don’t have lots of money for such supplies.

Some of those chemicals can be dangerous. Acids, poisons, fumes. These were not things I wanted to use a lot of in my classes. High school students aren’t always the most careful people.

Writing Science Activity Books

After I left teaching in a classroom and started writing books instead, science activity books seemed a good fit. Except I didn’t want a textbook, I wanted something more fun, more challenging.

I tackled botany first with “The Pumpkin Project” and found the concept of a science investigation, science activity, trivia, puzzles, stories and more fit the bill. But I also found writing such a book was a lot of work.

cover of "The Pumpkin Project" by Karen GoatKeeper
Fall investigations in “The Pumpkin Project” ask things like how to count all the seeds in a pumpkin (There’s more than one way.), just before you use the recipe for roasting them. How much water is in a pumpkin? Find out and make some pumpkin cookies too.

Instead of writing another book, I put chemistry projects first and motion physics later on my website. This brought up the challenge of how to do these without all the equipment I used to use from my storage closet. That forced me to take a good look at the experiments to find ways to achieve the same goals using everyday supplies.

This led to my second science activity book, “The City Water Project”. It has the investigations, activities, trivia, puzzles and stories I like to include. Lots of work went into doing all the investigations, activities and puzzles.

Tackling Basic Chemistry

Those chemistry projects sitting around bugged me. I started playing around with the idea for “The Chemistry Project”. Trivia and puzzles are harder for chemistry. Story ideas are harder too.

Still, there is the challenge of teaching basic chemistry for fifth grade up and all those projects using easy to obtain equipment and supplies.

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Writing Fear Procrastination

Many writers have this little voice inside that says their writing stinks. I have that plus a legacy of being told I couldn’t write anything worthwhile. These blossom into a writing fear procrastination that kills books.

At present there are four writing projects begging to be worked on. Two are nearly ready for a final rewrite as soon as I finish up another twenty to thirty pages of draft. One is a new attempt to finish up an old idea for a science activity book. The last is my Dent County Flora, a project I have little hope of ever completing.

I do love to go hiking and taking pictures. The Flora project encourages me to do both. It’s easy to immerse myself in this project, especially in the spring and summer when so many plants are blooming. This year alone has added at least a dozen new plants and completed the picture series for even more.

passion flower lure away from writing fear procrastination
Passion flowers are one of many Ozark wildflowers luring me away to go hiking and taking pictures instead of working on my novels. It’s so easy to justify writing fear procrastination.

Except there are 2,000 plants to find in Dent County. Many grow in places some distance away from home where I have difficulty getting due to time constraints.

This should be a fun hobby, not my main writing project.

All summer I have done little except the website posts and the Flora pages. My two novels have been ignored. Even worse, I see my writing fear procrastination in full force when I even think about them.

There is a cure, sort of. Nothing really makes those little voices go away. However, they can be shoved into a corner and ignored.

The cure? Sit down at the computer. Open the novel file. Find where I left off on the draft. And write 500 words every day. In two weeks the draft will be done.

Except today I have to finish the two posts for the website for tomorrow. This means downloading pictures. So much for another hour.

And writing fear procrastination wins for another morning.