By Lacey Gunter
Tonight I was fortunate enough attend the keynote address for the Children's Book Festival at Provo City Library, given by Katherine Applegate. She is the author of the Newbery Medal winning book The One and Only Ivan.
In addition to being a wonderful author, I thought she was an enjoyable speaker. She had a warm and gracious disposition that easily drew the audience in. She of course discussed the ups and downs of being a writer.
First she talked about the long road she traveled in writing before finally finding her true literary voice and encouraged any would be writers to not use age as a barrier. She also talked about the long and difficult road to completing her award wining book. It went through several different forms and countless edits. She even showed us a slip of paper she had written at one point debating whether she should abandon the project. Lucky for us she did not. She said writing and editing a book often feels like getting a high school English paper back all marked up in red ink.
Despite all this, what shined through the most was her infectious passion for her story. She made me want to seek out every bit of information on it. It never ceases to amaze me how authors can be dragged through Hades and back trying to create a story and still be so passionate about it on the other side.
After all that, she ended with the insisted statement, "You, my friend, have potential." Great inspiration!
Tonight I was fortunate enough attend the keynote address for the Children's Book Festival at Provo City Library, given by Katherine Applegate. She is the author of the Newbery Medal winning book The One and Only Ivan.
In addition to being a wonderful author, I thought she was an enjoyable speaker. She had a warm and gracious disposition that easily drew the audience in. She of course discussed the ups and downs of being a writer.
First she talked about the long road she traveled in writing before finally finding her true literary voice and encouraged any would be writers to not use age as a barrier. She also talked about the long and difficult road to completing her award wining book. It went through several different forms and countless edits. She even showed us a slip of paper she had written at one point debating whether she should abandon the project. Lucky for us she did not. She said writing and editing a book often feels like getting a high school English paper back all marked up in red ink.
Despite all this, what shined through the most was her infectious passion for her story. She made me want to seek out every bit of information on it. It never ceases to amaze me how authors can be dragged through Hades and back trying to create a story and still be so passionate about it on the other side.
After all that, she ended with the insisted statement, "You, my friend, have potential." Great inspiration!
