Anna Staniszewski

Archives: August2009

• Why Was Your Character Chosen?

  It’s my birthday! Now that I’m turning the big 3-0, I asked my father if I needed to stop being so goofy all the time. He said he hoped not, because if I stopped, then he’d have to stop too. That was reassuring; it means I have a few more years of silliness ahead of

• WIP Update

  My work-in-progress (code name Lightning) is still a long way from being done, but I’m slowly making some progress. Usually when I set a writing goal for myself, I try as hard as I can to stick to it, but this time my goal of a 50,000 word first draft by September 1st was a

• “Catching Fire” Preview!

  I’ve done quite a few posts on free book previews recently, which indicates that they’re becoming an increasingly popular trend. The latest one I’ve come across is for Catching Fire, the much anticipated sequel to The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. Though the release date is quickly approaching, for those of us who can’t wait

• Another Free Book Preview and an “Enchanted” Interview

  Continuing the recent trend of online book promotion,  Random House Teens has made the  first seven chapters of The Maze Runner available on its website. This is a book that’s been getting a lot of buzz and the online preview makes me intrigued to read more (so it seems to have done its job well).
  In

• August 2009

  I interview a middle school librarian about trends in fantasy books on The Enchanted Inkpot.

• How Unique Should a Character Be?

  I was at an open mic last night at a small bar, enjoying listening to original music and people watching. While one of the acts was on stage, I realized that he looked very much like a conglomeration of other musicians I’d met; everything from his hair, to clothes, to posture, and even his music,

• Dealing With Rejection

  Rejection is a natural part of trying to get your writing published, but that doesn’t make it any easier. We’re always told not to take rejection personally, but it’s almost impossible not to when the project you’ve been working on for months (maybe years) has been deemed not good enough. I think it’s perfectly fine

• Free “Fire” Preview and Deer!

  The trend of offering free previews of books online continues. This time it’s for a book that everyone has been anticipating for months. I’m talking, of course, about Kristin Cashore’s Fire, the followup to Graceling. The book has received starred reviews in every review journal you can imagine and all the buzz says that Fire

• What Makes a Book Trailer Work?

  As book trailers have become more popular, I’ve been trying to figure out what makes some  more successful than others. One large factor is length. I’ve noticed that I tend to lose interest if a trailer is more than a minute or so long. Also, live action trailers can work if they’re well-done, but I

• WIP Update

  It’s Work-In-Progress Wednesday and I’m happy to report that I’ve actually made some progress! After hitting a bit of a wall with my latest project (code name Lightning) I went back and looked over my writing group’s suggestions and managed to get things rolling again. I did have to take out a few chapters, which