Kristin Wolden Nitz

Author: Kristin Wolden Nitz

  • Back-to-School Writing

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    Kristin Wolden Nitz
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    Buy one!  Get the second one half off!   That’s what a good percentage of the signs seemed to read at the mall today.  I didn’t study them very carefully though.  My college-age daughters were doing their back-to-school shopping.  I came along to bankroll the expedition.  But instead of watching them try on things,  I was back to…

  • I Second that Emotion

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    Kristin Wolden Nitz
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    “Feel what your characters are feeling, Kristin! Don’t treat them like marionettes.”

  • Sampling Words

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    Kristin Wolden Nitz
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     While waiting for a library visit to begin, I found this quote by the award-winning author Lois Lowry on the wall: “You don’t become a great cook if you never taste good food. The same is true for writing.” Now I’m guessing that Ms. Lowry expanded on this thought considerably in some speech or article. …

  • Practice Swings

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    Kristin Wolden Nitz
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    When I stepped up to home plate last Sunday night for a friendly game of softball,  I was a bit worried.  It had been almost six years since I’d faced an opposing pitcher.    Most of my practice swings since that time had come during various school visits around Michigan. During one of my talks, I share…

  • Peachtree Publishers: People Who Share Books

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    Kristin Wolden Nitz
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    I’ve never liked selling things.  In fact, I could hardly sell Girl Scout Cookies. I did try, but I usually felt physically sick as I climbed the steps to press someone’s doorbell.  As a writer, I have to sell my words.  But one lovely aspect of this, is that I typically don’t have to make a…

  • ALA National Conference

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    Kristin Wolden Nitz
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    It was such a pleasure to spend a couple of days in Chicago at the ALA National Convention talking to people who love books.   Jeanie Franz Ransom and I kept returning to the Peachtree booth like a pair of homing pigeons. One highlight for me was getting a chance to meet the talented illustrator, Yoshiko Jaeggi,…

  • Letting Go For Awhile

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    Kristin Wolden Nitz
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    I’ve been struggling with a new first chapter for a novel revision.  It’s been a process of arranging and rearranging words instead of adding to the plot.   But it can be really difficult to draw the reader into the world of your character especially if it’s a fantasy.  It’s important to throw out clues about…

  • Chicago Bound!

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    Kristin Wolden Nitz
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    I’ll be signing books at Peachtree’s booth in “The Stacks” during the ALA National Conference on July 11 at 12:30.  Please feel free to drop by and say hello. I’d be delighted to answer any questions about SAVING THE GRIFFIN or DEFENDING IRENE or talk about the process of writing them.

  • NaNoWriMo in July

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    Kristin Wolden Nitz
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    Late last week one of my writing friends sent out a notice. Somehow she missed the fact that she was supposed to bring a completed novel to a master class with Linda Sue Park at the SCBWI National Conference.  Clearly this was a writing emergency that required drastic measures. Lynnea decided to embark on a…

  • A Bach Symphony?

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    Kristin Wolden Nitz
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     I had completely immersed myself ina very nice mystery for kids when I crashed headlong into the following line:  “A symphony, that’s what the place is like–a complex Bach symphony that sharpens your mind even if you can’t comprehend every strand of harmony. ” A Bach symphony?  I knew that J.S. Bach had written preludes, fugues,…