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Every Well-written Book Is A Light For Me. When You Write, You Use Other Writers And Their Books As Guides In The Wilderness.
-Kate DiCamillo
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Every Well-written Book Is

Kate DiCamillo
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Every Well-written Book Is A Light For Me. When You Write, You Use Other Writers And Their Books As Guides In The Wilderness.

Understanding the Quote: "every well-written book is a light for me. when you write, you..."

This quote by Kate DiCamillo reflects deeply on the theme of book. It connects to the universal human journey of purpose, motivation, and reflection. Often categorized under Book, Writing, Light, the quote offers insight, emotional clarity, and intellectual inspiration to readers worldwide.

Whether you’re a student exploring new ideas, a leader trying to motivate your team, or someone seeking direction in life — this quote provides value. It resonates because it’s more than words — it’s a bridge between experience and wisdom. It shows how Kate DiCamillo interprets life's core challenges and triumphs.

Lessons From the Quote

This quote teaches resilience and focus. It reminds readers that no matter where they stand in life, reflection and self-awareness lead to growth. Each word has meaning, and when studied, it becomes clear how impactful thoughtful language can be.

About Kate DiCamillo

Kate DiCamillo is celebrated for insightful thoughts on book and writing. Their legacy lives on through writings that guide, comfort, and inspire. Discover more on their profile page.

Actionable Takeaways

  • Reflect on how this quote applies to your current life path.
  • Share the message with someone who needs inspiration.
  • Write your thoughts on this quote in a journal or blog post.
  • Use it as a daily affirmation or reminder.

Closing Thoughts

Quotes like this endure because they capture universal truths. They comfort us in solitude and empower us in groups. Carry this quote forward — live by its wisdom, share its message, and keep its essence alive.

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Book
Writing
Light
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I Am Just Always, Always Paying Attention - Waiting For The Words, Or Image, Or Name That Will Be The Beginning Of A Story.
Names
Waiting
Attention
I Like To Think Of Myself As A Storyteller.
Thinking
Storyteller
I Journal For About Half An Hour, And By The Time That's Done, The Business Day On The East Coast Has Begun. The Phone Starts To Ring, And The Rest Of The Day Is Spent Dealing With The Business Of Writing. My Workday Is Done At About 3:00.
Writing
Phones
East
I Think Of Myself As An Enormously Lucky Person.
Thinking
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Persons
Love Is In All Of The Books, And That's The Connective Tissue Between Them. There's A Lot Of Hope In Me; I Can Feel It. These Stories Are Balls Of Light For Me.
Book
Love Is
Light
I Don't Think About Being A Celebrity.
Thinking
A Friend Of Mine Said Winn-dixie Is The Way That People Want The World To Be And Tiger Rising Is The Way That It Is.
People
Dixie
Rising
She Was Working To Remind Herself Of Who She Was. She Was Working To Remember That Somewhere In Another Place Entirely She Was Known And Loved.
Remember
Known
I'm Predisposed To Think That As A People, We're Hardwired To Understand Things Through The Telling Of Stories. I Think That As Human Beings It's Part Of Who We Are.
Thinking
People
Stories
I Didn't Start Working On Children's Books Until I Got A Job At A Book Warehouse On The Children's Floor. When I Started Reading Some Of The Books, I Was So Impressed.
Jobs
Children
Book
I've Been Recognized In Airports Lots Of Places, But Mostly Getting Recognized Is At Home.
Home
Airports
There's A Buddhist Precept That The Only Thing You Deserve Is The Chance To Do The Work, And I've Been Given The Chance To Do The Work.
Buddhist
Chance
Given
I'm At The Mercy Of Whatever Character Comes Into My Head.
Character
Mercy
There Ain't A Body, Be It Mouse Or Man, That Ain't Made Better By A Little Soup.
Men
Body
Soup
You Don't Realize What You're Going To Get, And You Can't Prepare Yourself For It.
Realizing
As Far As Books Getting Turned Into Movies, I Fared Very, Very Well.
Book
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They Were Always On The Move.but In Truth Said Bull We Are All Going Nowhere
Moving
Bulls
Said
Farewell” Is Not The Word That You Would Like To Hear From Your Mother As You Are Being Led To The Dungeon By 2 Oversize Mice In Black Hoods. Words That You Would Like To Hear Are “take Me Instead, I Will Go To The Dungeon In My Sons Place.” There Is A Great Deal Of Comfort In Those Words.
Mother
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Son
Everything, As You Well Know . . . Cannot Always Be Sweetness And Light.
Light
Sweetness
Wells
Edward Knew What It Was Like To Say Over And Over Again The Names Of Those You Had Left Behind. He Knew What It Was Like To Miss Someone. And So He Listened. And In His Listening, His Heart Opened Wide And Then Wider Still. (page 103)
Missing Someone
Heart
Loss
There Are Hearts, Reader, That Never Mend Again Once They Are Broken. Or If They Do Mend, They Heal Themselves In A Crooked And Lopsided Way, As If Sewn Together By A Careless Craftsman.
Heart
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I'm Just Doing What I've Done My Whole Life, Which Is Talking To People About Books And Making Them Read. It's What I Do In My Friendships. "here, You Have To Read This, You Have To Read This."
Book
Talking
People
It Is Always Just Telling A Story, Regardless Of The Age Of The Reader. Except, If I'm Writing Something For Kids, I Know There Has To Be Hope. I Don't Necessarily Feel That Responsibility For Adults, But I Emphatically Feel It For Children. That's The Only Difference. There's No Syntax Difference. There's No Semantics Difference. There's No Thematic Difference.
Children
Kids
Responsibility
So Many Miracles Have Not Yet Happened.
Miracle
Happened
I Am Single And Childless, But I Have Lots Of Friends And I Am An Aunt To Three Lovely Children.
Children
Aunt
Lovely
You Must Be Filled With Expectancy. You Must Be Awash In Hope. You Must Wonder Who Will Love You, Whom You Will Love Next.
Love You
Next
Wonder
The Tale Of Despereaux Is The Story Of An Unlikely Hero, A Mouse, Who Falls In Love With A Princess And Then Must Save Her. It's A Triumph Of The Human Spirit, Via A Mouse.
Falling In Love
Princess
Hero
During The Night, While Bull And Lucy Slept, Edward, With Ever-open Eyes, Stared Up At The Constellations. He Said Their Names, And Then He Said The Names Of The People Who Loved Him. He Started With Abilene, And Then Went On To Nellie And Lawrence And From There To Bull And Lucy, And Then He Ended Again With Abilene: Abilene, Nellie, Lawrence, Bull, Lucy, Abilene. See? Edward Told Pellegrina. I Am Not Like The Princess. I Know About Love.
Princess
Eye
Night
What Was It Like...to Have Someone Who Knew You Would Always Return And Who Welcomed You With Open Arms?
Arms
Return
Open Arms
I Think Of Mercy Watson Like A Superball; There's A Bouncy Kind Of Optimism To Her Stories. She Allows Me To Play, And She Makes Me Laugh. Hopefully Readers Feel The Same Way.
Thinking
Play
Laughing
The Draft That Finally Goes To My Editor Doesn't Get Into Her Hands Until I Have Read It Out Loud Innumerable Times - Sometimes Into A Tape Recorder - To Make Sure That It Sounds Right.
Hands
Editors
Sound
The Sound Of The King's Music Made Despereaux's Soul Grow Large And Light Inside Of Him.
Kings
Light
Soul
Perhaps," Said The Man, "you Would Like To Be Lost With Us. I Have Found It Much More Agreeable To Be Lost In The Company Of Others.
Men
Lost
Found
This Is The Great Thing About Writing For Kids. Adults Might Not Do Anything If They Recognized Me. But If They Do See Me, And They're With A Kid, They'll Tell The Kid Who I Am. They Think They Should Give That To The Kid. So Generally That Sends The Kid Over.
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I Write Two Pages - That's All I Write. It Takes Me About An Hour. I've Learned That's All I'm Capable Of And To Push Myself Beyond That Is Foolhardy. It's A Very Delicate Thing, And I Will Not Abuse It. So I Write Two Pages, Then I Get Up From The Computer.
Writing
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Two
Once Upon A Time," He Said Out Loud To The Darkness. He Said These Words Because They Were The Best, The Most Powerful Words That He Knew And Just The Saying Of Them Comforted Him.
Powerful
Darkness
Once Upon A Time
A Typical Day For Me Is I Get Up At 6:00, The Coffeemaker Goes On Automatically And The Computer Gets Turned On. I Pour A Cup Of Coffee, Listen To Garrison Keillor's The Writer's Almanac, And Then I Write.
Coffee
Writing
Typical
I Was Visiting My Mother In Florida When The September 11, 2001 Attacks Happened. I Was Working On The Tale Of Despereaux At That Point. I Had Already Gone Into Writing It With A Great Deal Of Trepidation And Fear, And Then This God-awful Thing Happens And It Was Really Hard To Even Get Back Home To Minneapolis.
Mother
Home
Writing
There Ain't No Way You Can Hold Onto Something That Wants To Go, You Understand? You Can Only Love What You Got While You Got It.
Moving On
Letting Go
Leaving
Say It, Reader. Say The Word 'quest' Out Loud. It Is An Extraordinary Word, Isn't It? So Small And Yet So Full Of Wonder, So Full Of Hope.
Quests
Wonder
Loud
I Need To Write, And I Can't Write When I'm On The Road.
Writing
Needs
I Can
I Always Go To The Agriculture Building, Where They Make Apple Cider Popsicles For A Dollar.
Apples
Agriculture
Dollars
If The World Held Magic Powerful Enough To Make The Elephant Appear, Then There Must Exist, Too, Magic In Equal Measure, Magic Powerful Enough To Undo What Had Been Done.
Powerful
Elephants
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The Miraculous Journey Of Edward Tulane Began With A Friend Giving Me A Rabbit Doll - Forgive Me, Edward, For Using That Word; He Doesn't Like "doll" - For Christmas. I Said, "oh, He's Lovely, What's His Name?" And She Said, "edward." And A Few Days After I Received The Rabbit, Who Was Dressed Very Handsomely In Edwardian Kind Of Clothes, I Saw Him Stripped Of His Finery And Face Down On The Bottom Of The Ocean Floor. Why? I Don't Know. But That's Where His Story Began In My Head.
Ocean
Journey
Names
Normally, Edward Would Have Found Intrusive, Clingy Behavior Of This Sort Very Annoying, But There Was Something About Sarah Ruth. He Wanted To Take Care Of Her. He Wanted To Protect Her. He Wanted To Do More For Her. (page 135)
Ruth
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The Origin Of Each Story Is Unique.
Unique
Stories
On The Return Flight From My Mother In Florida , I Sat Next To A Businessman Who Asked Me What I Did For A Living. I Said, "i Write," And It Seemed Totally Ridiculous In The Face Of What Had Just Happened. I Mean, I Couldn't Think Of Anything More Pointless Than Telling Stories. He Asked, "what Do You Write?" I Said, "i Write Children Books."
Mother
Children
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Every Well-written Book Is A Light For Me. When You Write, You Use Other Writers And Their Books As Guides In The Wilderness.
Book
Writing
Light
I Thought I Was Going Nowhere. Now I Can See There Was A Pattern.
Patterns
I Can
Don't Drop Him," Said Peter's Mother To His Father. "don't You Dare Drop Him." She Was Laughing. "i Will Not," Said His Father. "i Could Not." For He Is Peter Augustus Duchene, And He Will Always Return To Me. Again And Again, Peter's Father Threw Him Up In The Air. Again And Again, Peter Felt Himself Suspended In Nothingness For A Moment, Just A Moment, And Then He Was Pulled Back, Returned To The Sweetness Of The Earth And The Warmth Of His Father's Waiting Arms. "see?" Said His Father To His Mother. "do You See How He Always Comes Back To Me?
Mother
Father
Air
There Ain't No Point In Making Soup Unless Others Eat It. Soup Needs Another Mouth To Taste It, Another Heart To Be Warmed By It.
Heart
Needs
Mouths
Did You Think That Rats Do Not Have Hearts? Wrong. All Living Things Have A Heart. And The Heart Of Any Living Thing Can Be Broken.
Heart
Thinking
Broken
It's A Weird Kind Of Disconnect That This Whole Story [he Miraculous Journey Of Edward Tulane] Grew Around A Real Doll Of Mine, And Here He Is, With His "edward" Expression On His Face. It's Kind Of Reality Bumping Into Fantasy.
Real
Journey
Expression
The Themes In My Books, Like In Life, Are About Grace And Redemption And You Never Know When They're Going To Show Up And What Form They're Going To Be In. Stories Emerge From Keeping Your Heart Open To The People That Cross In Front Of You Or The Dogs Or The Mice, And Their Ability To Open You Up And Enrich Your Life.
Dog
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Heart
I Think, Oh My God, Kids Are Reading, And They Care About A Book Enough To Come Over And Talk To Me About A Book That They Care About. If I Think About It As Being A Celebrity, It Would Freak Me Out. But I Just Think, Lucky Me, That I Get To Be A Part Of This Whole Thing.
Book
Reading
Kids
Mercy Watson Is Pure Fun For Me As A Writer, Because I Think Of Her As Kind Of Sorbet - A Palate Cleanser - Between Larger Works. It's Always A Relief To Come Back To Her.
Fun
Thinking
Relief
I Was A Kid Who Lived To Read. It Was The Primary Pleasure Of My Existence. It's Still One Of The Primary Pleasures Of My Existence. It's Where I Draw My Sustenance.
Kids
Pleasure
Existence
Pea Was Aware Suddenly Of How Fragile Her Heart Was, How Much Darkness Was Inside It, Fighting, Always, With The Light. She Did Not Like The Rat. She Would Neverlike The Rat, But She Knew What She Must Do To Save Her Own Heart.
Heart
Fighting
Light
Hands Down, The Biggest Thrill Is To Get A Letter From A Kid Saying, I Loved Your Book. Will You Write Me Another One?
Book
Kids
Writing
Life Is Hard. Life Is Beautiful. Life Is Difficult. Life Is Wonderful.
Beautiful
Life Is Hard
Hard Life
When I Get To A Point In My Book Writing When I Don't Know What I'm Going To Do Next, I'll Come Back Look At Underlined Passages And See If The Images I Wrote Still Have A Certain Amount Of Resonance For Me.
Book
Writing
Looks
Seasons Passed, Fall And Winter And Spring And Summer. Leaves Blew In Through The Open Door Of Lucius Clarke’s Shop, And Rain, And The Green Outrageous Hopeful Light Of Spring. People Came And Went, Grandmothers And Doll Collectors And Little Girls With Their Mothers. Edward Tulane Waited. The Seasons Turned Into Years. Edward Tulane Waited. He Repeated The Old Doll’s Words Over And Over Until They Wore A Smooth Groove Of Hope In His Brain: Someone Will Come; Someone Will Come For You.
Summer
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Mother
The Funny Thing Is, When I've Gone Through The Relentless Editing Process, My Editor And I Are Amazed The Mercy Watson Books Still Make Us Laugh. The Same Jokes That Made Us Laugh The First Time Around Still Make Us Laugh In The 16th Rendition.
Book
Editors
Editing
Sometimes Strange And Wonderful Things Will Pop Into My Head. And Sometimes I Will See Something In The World That Is The Beginning Of A Story. I Always Have A Notebook With Me So That I Can Write Down What I See And Hear.
Notebook
Writing
Stories
We Were 15 Minutes Into It And Nothing Was Happening; I Thought, Well, That's Not Going To Work. Then All Of A Sudden Everything Clicked. I Don't Know How Long It Took Us, But I Would Just Show Up At Alison's [mcghee] Office. She Would Type And We'd Just Kick It Back And Forth. Writing Is So Scary For Me, Such A Lonely Endeavor, And It Became A Wonderful Thing To Show Up And Have Somebody Else Go Through It With Me. It Was Actually A Wonderful Experience.
Lonely
Writing
Long
It Distresses Me That Parents Insist That Their Children Read Or Make Them Read. I Think The Best Way For Children To Treasure Reading Is For Them To See The Adults In Their Lives Reading For Their Own Pleasure.
Children
Reading
Thinking
I Am Busier Now Than I Ever Imagined I Would Be, But I Feel Blessed In That I Have Found What I Am Supposed To Be Doing With My Life. It's Wonderful To Tell Stories And Have People Listen To Them.
Blessed
People
Would Be
The Closest I Can Get To Describing What Happens Is That Voices Come To Me. I Feel Like I'm Accessing Something That Is Deeper And Richer Than Me.
Voice
Deeper
Feels
While We Were Working, We Were Writing About A Tall Girl And A Short Girl, Which We Thought Was Funny, Because Alison's [mcghee] Tall And I'm Short.
Girl
Writing
Tall
I Want To Remind People Of The Great And Profound Joy That Can Be Found In Stories, And That Stories Can Connect Us To Each Other, And That Reading Together Changes Everybody Involved.
Reading
People
Profound
I Think Tony Fucile, Who Did The Illustrations [for Bink & Gollie], Is An Absolute Genius. I've Never Met Him.
Thinking
Illustration
Genius
Magic Is Always Impossible.... It Begins With The Impossible And Ends With The Impossible And Is Impossible In Between. That Is Why It's Magic.
Magic
Impossible
Ends
But, Reader, There Is No Comfort In The Word "farewell," Even If You Say It In French. "farewell" Is A Word That,in Any Language, Is Full Of Sorrow. It Is A Word That Promises Absolutely Nothing.
Farewell
Promise
Sorrow
So, Yes, At Least From My End. You Could Say There's A Lot Of Alison [mcghee] In Gollie Too.
Ends
The Book [the Miraculous Journey Of Edward Tulane] Is About The Fact That Living In This World Means That Your Heart Is Necessarily Going To Get Broken. But The Book Also Says That's Okay. That's The Only Way To Live A Truly Human Life - With Your Heart Getting Broken - And Eventually Getting Flooded With Love.
Book
Mean
Heart
There Is A Lot Of Love In Him, A Lot Of Love In His Heart...and He Is Up There With No One And Nothing To Love. It Is A Bad Thing To Have Love And No Where To Put It.
Heart
Bad Things
You Can Always Trust A Dog That Likes Peanut Butter.
Dog
Peanut Butter
Likes
I Hate To Cook And Love To Eat.
Hate
And Love
I Hate
Fairy Tales Dont Tell You That Dragons Are Real, But That They Can Be Defeated!
Real
Dragons
Fairy Tale
As A Kid Books Changed How I Looked At The World And Helped Me Understand Things. Books Still Deepen Me And Open My Heart.
Book
Heart
Kids
To Me The Book Is Like Having A Kid. I Have To Let It Go Out In The World, And Great Things Will Happen. Maybe They Won't, But It Has To Keep On Moving.
Moving
Book
Kids
There Is Nothing Sweeter In This Sad World Than The Sound Of Someone You Love Calling Your Name.
Sadness
Names
Sound
All Of God's Creatures Have Names, Every Last One Of Them. Of That I Am Sure: Of That I Have No Doubt At All.
Names
Doubt
Lasts
Love, As We Have Already Discussed, Is A Powerful, Wonderful, Ridiculous Thing, Capable Of Moving Mountains. And Spools Of Thread.
Powerful
Moving
Mountain
Reading Is My Passion.
Reading
Passion
My Passion
The Watsons Have Lost Sight Of The Fact That Mercy Watson Is A Pig, And They Love Her Truly, Madly, Deeply. They Live Next Door To Two Elderly Sisters, Eugenia Lincoln And Baby Lincoln. Eugenia Lincoln Is Horrified That A Pig Is Living In The House Next Door. Baby Lincoln Secretly Likes Mercy A Great Deal.
Baby
Sight
Pigs
I Grew Up In Florida, And I Wanted To Go Home And I Couldn't. I Didn't Have The Money. The Book [the Tiger Rising] Was A Way To Go Home.
Book
Home
Florida
I Never Want To Be A Role Model.
Role Models
Roles
Want
Look At Me, He Said To Her. His Arms And Legs Jerked. Look At Me. You Got Your Wish. I Have Learned How To Love. And It’s A Terrible Thing. I’m Broken. My Heart Is Broken. Help Me. The Old Woman Turned And Hobbled Away. Come Back, Thought Edward. Fix Me
Heart
Broken
Wish
Holly Mcghee Said I Should Come To Dinner With Them. That First Dinner, I Said Something Pretty Smart-alecky, And Alison [mcghee] Laughed Really Hard At It. It Made Me Happy.
Smart
Hollies
Dinner
Do You Think Everybody Misses Somebody? Like I Miss My Mama?” “mmmm-hmmm,” Said Gloria. She Closed Her Eyes. “i Believe, Sometimes, That The Whole World Has An Aching Heart.
Believe
Heart
Eye
There," She Said. She Rocked Him Back And Forth. "there, You Foolish, Beautiful Boy Who Wants To Change The World. There, There. And Who Could Keep From Loving You? Who Could Keep From Loving A Boy So Brave And True?
Beautiful
Boys
Loving You
It Is A Bad Thing To Have Love And Nowhere To Put It.
Bad Things
I Don't Know What Alison [mcghee] Thinks, But I Very Strongly Doubt That We Will Ever See The Parents Of Bink Or Gollie. However, I Do Think It Would Be Fun To Make Tony Fucile Draw Portraits Of The Parental Units And Have Those Portraits Sitting On Bink's Mantel Or In Gollie's Kitchen. Glowering. A Little.
Fun
Thinking
Parent
Reading A Story Should Be A Fabulous, Wonderful Thing. The Most Important Thing That Parents Can Do For Kids Is To Read With Them And To Let Their Kids See Them Reading Books For Their Own Pleasure.
Book
Reading
Kids
In A Dark Time, Doors Will Sometimes Magically Open And Let Us Step Inside To The Warmth And Light Of A Community.
Dark
Light
Doors
He Was Weeping. Although 'weeping' Really Is To Small A Word For The Activity The Kind Had Undertaken. Tears Were Cascading From His Eyes. A Small Puddle Had Formed At His Feet. I Am Not Exaggerating. The King, It Seemed, Was Intent On Crying Himself A River.
Kings
Eye
Rivers
At Least Lester Had The Decency To Weep At His Act Of Perfidy. Reader, Do You Know What 'perfidy' Means? I Have A Feeling You Do, Based On The Scene That Unfolded Here. But You Should Look Up The Word In Your Dictionary, Just To Be Sure.
Mean
Feelings
Looks
Anybody Who Puts A Book Into Someone Else's Hands Inspires Me - Teachers, Librarians, Booksellers, Parents.
Teacher
Book
Hands
This Is A Wonderful Joke To Play Upon A Prisoner, To Promise Forgiveness.
Play
Promise
Wonderful
If I Am Just Home And Writing, I Become Very Strange.
Home
Writing
Strange
I'm Grateful For Every Teacher Or Librarian Who Reads A Book And Says, "this Is Exactly The Book That So-and-so Needs To Read; I'll Get It In His Hands." I'm Amazed At The Network Of Adults Who Make Sure That Kids Get Books.
Teacher
Book
Grateful
In Luggage Claim At The Minneapolis Airport, The Guy Came Up To Me And Said, "maybe You're Wrong, Maybe Stories Do Matter." I Wrote That On A Scrap Of Paper And Put It Above My Desk. That Was The Thing That Pushed Me Through To The End Of Telling Despereaux, That Comment, "maybe They Do...maybe Stories Matter."
Airports
Guy
Matter
For Children: I'm Writing A Picture Book About The Big Dipper And A Novel About A Cricket, A Firefly And A Vole. For Grownups: I'm Writing Poems.
Children
Book
Writing
I Believe, Sometimes, That The Whole World Has An Aching Heart.
Believe
Heart
World
I Actually Do Like Traveling.
Things Are Not At All What They Seem To Be: Oh No, Not At All.
Seems
Reader, You Must Know That An Interesting Fate (sometimes Involving Rats, Sometimes Not) Awaits Almost Everyone, Mouse Or Man, Who Does Not Conform.
Fate
Men
Interesting
Writing Is Seeing. It Is Paying Attention.
Writing
Attention
Pay Attention
Miracles And Magic Pervade The Things That I've Written, But Yet There Are No Miracles And There Is No Magic.
Miracle
Magic
Written
I Think We Sent Tony Fucile Pictures Of Ourselves, Photos From Like When We Were Seven Years Old. That's What He Worked From. He Captured Exactly What We Looked Like. I'd Love To Do Another One With Alison, Not Just For The Joy Of Writing, But Also For The Joy Of Watching Tony Bring It To Life With His Illustrations. I'm Hoping At Bea, Or Ala, I'll Get To Meet Tony And Shake His Hand And Thank Him.
Writing
Thinking
Illustration
May God Strike Me Down With A Hammer On The Head Before I Write A Book With A Teach-y Goal!
Book
Writing
Goal
The Image I Had Was Very Clear, And So In That Way The Miraculous Journey Of Edward Tulane Began Like Other Books.
Book
Journey
Way
In My Stories For Children, I Sometimes Show A Hard, Harsh, Dangerous World. I'm Going To Show You The Way It Is, But I'm Going To Also Tell You That There's Every Reason To Hope.
Children
Dangerous World
Stories
The Undoing Is Almost Always More Difficult Than The Doing.
Undoing
Difficult
Stories Are Light. Light Is Precious In A World So Dark.
Dark
Light
Stories
Every Morning For, I Don't Know How Long, I Came Over To Alison's [mcghee] House And We Sat In Her Office And Wrote The Stories "out Loud" Together. We Yelled At Each Other And Made Each Other Laugh. It Was A Lot Of Fun.
Morning
Fun
Laughing
I Have Been Loved Said Edward To The Stars
Stars
Said
Has Beens
I'm Continually Astonished With Myself How Different People Bring Out Things In Me That I Never Knew I Had Inside Me. Each New Friendship Can Make You A New Person, Because It Opens Up New Doors Inside Of You.
Doors
People
New Friendship
I Didn't Know Anything About Writing A Screenplay, But Somehow I Ended Up Rewriting A Screenplay.
Writing
Rewriting
Screenplays
No Matter How Hard You Try To Be Present At Home, You're Always Doing The Things That You Have To Do.
Home
Trying
Matter
If There Is Anything That I Think I Might Use Later, I Underline It.
Thinking
Might Use
Ifs
Understand, I Had Absolutely No Interest In Writing; I Wanted To Be A Writer.
Writing
Interest
Wanted
I'm Not Exactly Sure How Old The Girls Are [in Bink & Gollie], But I Can Pretty Much Guarantee That Their Parents Will Never Show Up. That Would Mess Up The Fun. I Do, However, Very Much Like Kate's Idea Of Having Tony [fucile] Draw Their Portraits.
Girl
Fun
Guarantees That
It Is Our Duty And Our Joy To Communicate Our Hearts To Each Other. Words Assist Us In This Task.
Heart
Joy
Tasks
What's My Weirdest Adventure? Yikes, There've Been So Very Many. Perhaps The Pig+vegetable+taiwanese-army-guys Boat Ride To The Island Off The Coast Of Taiwan Qualifies As The Weirdest. Or At Least The Most Seasick.
Adventure
Army
Islands
Like Most Hearts, It Was Complicated, Shaded With Dark And Dappled With Light.
Heart
Dark
Light
The Shapes Arranged Themselves Into Words, And The Words Spelled Out A Delicious And Wonderful Phrase: Once Upon A Time.
Once Upon A Time
Phrases
Shapes
There Are Those Hearts, Reader, That Never Mend Again Once They Are Broken. Or If They Do Mend, They Heal Themselves In A Crooked And Lopsided Way, As If Sewn Together By A Careless Craftsman. Such Was The Fate Of Chiaroscuro. His Heart Was Broken. Picking Up The Spoon And Placing It On His Head, Speaking Of Revenge, These Things Helped Him To Put His Heart Together Again. But It Was, Alas, Put Together Wrong.
Revenge
Heart
Fate
It Seems To Be That Way With Most Things. No One To Do The Really Disagreeable Jobs Except Oneself.
Jobs
Way
Oneself
I Feel Like I've Been Blessed. I See The World Through Stories.
Blessed
Stories
World
I Always Write With Music. It Takes Me A While To Figure Out The Right Piece Of Music For What I'm Working On. Once I Figure It Out, That's The Only Thing I'll Play.
Writing
Play
Pieces
But Still, Here Are The Words Despereaux Tilling Spoke To His Father. He Said, "i Forgive You, Pa!" And He Said Those Words Because He Sensed That It Was The Only Way To Save His Heart, To Stop It From Breaking In Two. Despereaux, Reader, Spoke Those Words To Save Himself.
Father
Heart
Two
This Is The Danger Of Loving: No Matter How Powerful You Are, No Matter How Many Kingdoms You Rule, You Cannot Stop Those You Love From Dying.
Powerful
Dying
Kingdoms
I Love Words; I Love The Way They Sound. Once I've Worked On Everything Else, The Last Drafts Of My Books Come Down To How They Sound.
Book
Sound
Way
I Always Wanted To Be A Character, When I Worked At Disney, But I Wasn't Short Enough For Certain Characters And I Wasn't Tall Enough For Others. I Wanted To Be A Chipmunk; I Think 4'10" Was The Cutoff.
Character
Thinking
Enough
I've Never Worked With A Co-author Before [alison Mcghee]. Writing For Me Is A Pretty Scary Thing, So It Was A Huge Comfort To Have Someone In The Room Working With Me. It Became Less Like Work And More Like Play.
Writing
Play
Scary
That You Can Go Anywhere In America And Get A Book From A Library Is Just The Most Amazing Thing In The World. It's Not A Duty; It's A Privilege And It's A Joy. That Joy Is Doubled And Tripled And Quadrupled If You Read With Other People.
Book
America
People
Nothing New Ever Happens In The Books. It's The Same Old Theme.
Book
Theme
Happens
The Tiger Rising Is, Again, About A Motherless Child. His Name Is Rob Horton. He Is Dealing With The Death Of His Mother, When He And His Father Move To A New Town. And Two Things Happen The Same Day That Rob Gets Sent Home. One Is He Meets A Girl Named Sistine Bailey, Who Is What My Mother Would Call "a Piece Of Work," And He Finds A Real Tiger In A Cage In The Woods Behind The Motel Where He Lives With His Dad. And That's The Story: What Happens With The Sistine Tiger, The Real Tiger And Rob's Grief.
Girl
Mother
Children
Love!' Said The Princess. She Stamped Her Foot. 'why Must Everyone Always Speak Of Love?
Princess
Feet
Speak
I Loved School; I Loved The Rules, And I Liked There Being Right Answers, Wrong Answers, And Being Able To Give The Right Answer All The Time. And That Goes Against Who Many Would Predict Is Going To Go Out And Break Rules And Tell Stories For A Living.
School
Giving
Wrong Answers
You Are Down There Alone, The Stars Seemed To Say To Him. And We Are Up Here, In Our Constellations, Together.
Stars
Together
Constellations
When I Journal, I Write About Images That I've Seen That I Think Might Make Good Stories. I Write About Things That I Hear That I Think I Can Turn Into A Story. I Write About The Story That I'm Working On And Where I Think It Might Go.
Writing
Thinking
Stories
There's A Notion Of Art In This Country That You Have To Be Nutty Or Special Or "called" In Order To Be An Artist. I Believe The Questions Everyone Should Ask Themselves Are, "do You Want To Do It? Are You Willing To Do It Poorly? Are You Willing To Do The Work Of Doing It? Are You Willing To Persist When Everybody Tells You It's Silly?" If You're Willing To Do That, Then You Can Do It.
Country
Art
Believe
Stories Are Light. Light Is Precious In A World So Dark. Begin At The Beginning. Tell Gregory A Story. Make Some Light.
Dark
Light
Stories
[our First Dinner With Alison Mcghee] Was At Figlio's [in Minneapolis]. I Know Exactly What I Had, Because It Was So Good: Their Three-cheese Ravioli. But I Can't Remember What I Said To Alison That Night That Made Her Laugh So Hard. But She Got Me Right Away And I Got Her Right Away.
Night
Laughing
Three
What I Hope Is That The Book [bink & Gollie] Delights Children. What I Hope Is That They Laugh And Laugh And Laugh, Just As We Did When We Wrote Them.
Children
Book
Laughing
Mr. And Mrs. Mr. And Mrs. Watson Love Mercy [watson]. Eugenia Hates Mercy. Baby Likes Mercy. Mercy Loves Toast. And The Plot, If You Want To Be So Generous As To Call It A Plot, Turns On Those Elements. Love Mercy. Eugenia Hates Mercy. Baby Likes Mercy. Mercy Loves Toast. And The Plot, If You Want To Be So Generous As To Call It A Plot, Turns On Those Elements.
Baby
Hate
Likes
He Was Reading From The Beginning So That He Could Get To The End, Where The Reader Was Assured That The Knight And The Fair Maiden Lived Together Happily Ever After.
Reading
Knights
Together
I Have Learned How To Love. And It's A Terrible Thing. I'm Broken. My Heart Is Broken. Help Me.
Heart
Broken
How To Love
If Memory Serves Me Correctly, And It Doesn't Always, Kate [dicamillo] And I Met In The Fall Of 2001 At The Former Figlio's Restaurant In Minneapolis. We Were Laughing Within A Minute Of Meeting - Always A Good Sign.
Memories
Fall
Laughing
My Favorite Six Letter Word Is Always Because It Promises So Much. My Favorite Five Letter Word Is Never Because It Insists On Contradicting The Promise. My Favorite Four Letter Word Is Once Because It Says It Happened Then. My Favorite Three Letter Word Is Yes Because I’m Just Now Learning To Say It To My Heart. My Favorite Two Letter Word Is If Because It Makes All Things Possible Like This: If Not Always If Not Never Then Once. Yes.
Heart
Two
Promise
We Must Ask Ourselves These Questions As Often As We Dare. How Will The World Change If We Do Not Question It?
World
Dare
Asks
And So He Was Reading The Story As If It Were A Spell And The Words Of It, Spoken Aloud, Could Make Magic Happen.
Reading
Magic
Stories
We Forget That The Simple Gesture Of Putting A Book In Someone's Hands Can Change A Life. I Want To Remind You That It Can. I Want To Thank You Because It Did. - 2010 Indies Choice Award
Book
Simple
Awards
It's Hard Not To Immediately Fall In Love Witha Dog Who Has A Good Sense Of Humor.
Dog
Falling In Love
Dixie
I Would Hesitate To Say The Characters [ In Bink & Gollie] Are Too Related To Either To Us [me And Alison Mcghee], But They Certainly Draw On Our Physical Traits And Personality Traits And Then Exaggerate Them To The Nth Degree.
Character
Personality
Degrees
The Only Control You Have Over A Movie Is Whether Or Not You Decide To Sell The Rights.
Rights
Sells
My Favorite Food Is Deep-fried Ravioli. I Always Get That Every Year.
Years
Favorite Foods
My Favorite
As Elmore Leonard Says, I Write To Find Out What Happens.
Writing
Happens
It's A Book [bink & Gollie] About Shortness And Tallness, So I Think It's Appropriate To Discuss The Virtues Of Shortness.
Book
Thinking
Virtue
I Have Not Googled Myself. I Have Not Looked At Myself On Amazon. It Could Drive You Wild.
Amazon
I Have Been Loved, Edward Told The Stars. So? Said The Stars. What Difference Does That Make When You Are All Alone Now?
Stars
Differences
Doe
I Was Born In Philadelphia And Currently Live In Minneapolis. I Write For Both Children And Adults.
Children
Writing
Philadelphia
Take This Squirrel, For Instance. Ulysses. Do I Believe He Can Type Poetry? Sure, I Do Believe It. There Is Much More Beauty In The World If I Believe Such A Thing Is Possible.
Believe
Squirrels
World
No One Cared What She Wanted. No One Had Ever Cared. And Perhaps, Worst Of All, No One Ever Would Care.
Care
Worst
Wanted
But Let's Not Speak Of What Might Have Been. Let Us Speak Instead Of What Is. You Are Whole.
Might
Speak
Whole
[he] Had The Soul Of A Poet, And Because Of This, He Liked Very Much To Consider Questions That Had No Answers.
Soul
Answers
Poet
When We Read Together, We Connect. Together, We See The World. Together, We See One Another.
Together
World
One, We [with Alison Mcghee] Laugh A Lot - That Was Great. Two, I Enjoy Writing, But It's A Lonely Undertaking. To Have Someone In The Room With Me Is An Absolute Delight And Makes It Seem Less Impossible. It Became A Kind Of Comforting, Joyful Process.
Lonely
Writing
Two
All Of That Loneliness And Longing In My Heart Got Transferred Into The Book Because Of Winn-dixie, I Guess.
Loneliness
Book
Heart
The Words, "i Have A Dog Named Winn-dixie," Popped Into My Head In The Voice Of A Small Girl With A Southern Accent. I'd Been Writing Long Enough At That Point To Know Not To Ignore That Kind Of Red Flag. The Next Day, I Put Aside What I'd Been Working On, Started With That One Sentence, And Followed It All The Way To The End.
Girl
Dog
Writing
We [me And Alison Mcghee] Probably Wouldn't Have Said That When We Were Writing The Stories, But It Is So Apparent To Me In The Finished Product. For Me, Looking At Bink, It's Like Looking At Myself On The Page In A Way That I've Never Experienced With Any Other Book That I've Written.
Book
Writing
Stories
The Tale Of Despereaux Came At The Request Of Luke, My Friend's Then-eight-year-old Son, Who Asked, "write For Me The Story Of An Unlikely Hero With Exceptionally Large Ears."
Hero
Writing
Son
... Every Time You Look At The World And The People In It Closely, Lovingly, Imaginatively, It Changes You. The World, Under The Microscope Of Your Attention, Opens Up Like A Beautiful, Strange Flower And Gives Itself Back To You In Ways You Could Never Imagine.
Beautiful
Flower
People
I Read My Books Out Loud To Myself Because Of The Demands Of The Story And Demands Of Language.
Book
Stories
Demand
I Think For Everybody Reading Can Be A Solace, Illumination, Education.
Reading
Thinking
Illumination
When I Was A Kid I Loved To Read, But I Didn't Write And I Didn't Create Imaginary Worlds. So, If One Student Walks Away Thinking, "she's Obviously Just An Ordinary Person, Yet She Gets To Make Her Living Doing What She Wants To Do. Maybe That Applies To Me, Too," Then I Feel Like My Time Has Been Well Spent.
Writing
Kids
Thinking
I Think That That's Part Of How People Have Responded To The Tiger Rising. It's What I Call My Dark Child. It's Gotten Sandwiched In Between Two Overachieving, Tap-dance-performing Kids - Winn-dixie And Despereaux.
Children
Kids
Dark
We Appreciate The Complicated And Wonderful Gifts You Give Us In Each Other. And We Appreciate The Task You Put Down Before Us, Of Loving Each Other The Best We Can, Even As You Love Us.
Appreciate
Giving
Tasks
You Can't Always Judge People By The Things They Done. You Got To Judge Them By What They Are Doing Now.
People
Judging
Done
My Goal Is Two Pages A Day, Five Days A Week. I Never Want To Write, But I'm Always Glad That I Have Done It. After I Write, I Go To Work At The Bookstore.
Writing
Two
Goal
In The Tale Of Despereaux, There Is A Lot Of Darkness, A Lot Of Despair. There's Also A Lot Of Light, Redemption, Hope. There's Forgiveness, There's Friendship, There's Love. But The World In All Of Its Potential Craziness Is Also There.
Light
Darkness
Despair
I Am Really An Introvert, And I Need That Time Alone For A Variety Of Reasons.
Needs
Introvert
Reason
Everything When I Was A Kid Was Illustrated.
Kids
Mercy Watson Is A Pig. She Lives With Mr. And Mrs. Watson, Who Are Not Pigs. I Had That Basic Premise, But I Couldn't Make It Work. I Would Come Back To It, Try It, See That I Was Failing, And Put It Aside.
Pigs
Trying
Failing
My Father Leaving The Family Shaped Who I Was And How I Looked At The World. By The Same Token, My Father Telling Me Fairy Tales That He Had Made Up Shaped Me Profoundly, Too.
Father
Leaving
World
Mercy Watson Is Obsessed With Toast. What Was Blocking Me Was The Challenge Of Trying To Understand What She Loves, What Motivates Her. That Was The Missing Piece. Toast Became The Physical Symbol Of Mercy's Hopefully Endearing Greed And Obsession. Without That Element In Place, It Didn't Make Sense.
Block
Greed
Missing
Men And Boys Always Want To Go Fight. They Are Always Looking For A Reason To Go To War. It Is The Saddest Thing. They Have This Abiding Notion That War Is Fun. And No History Lesson Will Convince Them Differently.
Fun
War
Fighting
I Was Over At Alison's [mcghee], I Think We Were Playing Scrabble. I Remember We Were Both Complaining - Yeah, We Sound Like Whiners - About How Hard Writing Is, And How We Didn't Have A Story To Work On. Alison Said, 'why Don't We Work On Writing Something Together,' And I Said, 'eh, I Don't Know If I Could Work That Way.' She Said, 'well, Just Show Up Here And We'll See,' And I Said, 'well, What Would It Be About?' She Said, 'duh, It'd Be About A Tall Girl And A Short Girl.' So I Agreed To Come And Try It For A Day.
Girl
Writing
Thinking
When I Do It [writing] By Myself, There's A Lot More Terror And Uncertainty.
Writing
Terror
Uncertainty
I Love Adventurous Travel. I Also Love Pancakes, And Making Pancakes For Other People. You Would Definitely Find Me In The Airy Treetop As Opposed To Below Ground.
People
Pancakes
Adventurous
Nobody Ever Learns Anything.
Allow Me To Congratulate You On Your Very Astute Powers Of Observation.
Astute
Observation
If You Have No Intention Of Loving Or Being Loved, The Whole Journey Is Pointless.
Journey
Intention
Whole
How Will The World Change If We Do Not Question It?
World
Ifs
Despereaux Marveled At His Own Bravery. He Admired His Own Defiance. And Then, Reader, He Fainted.
Bravery
Defiance
Reader
[a Businessmen In Plane After 911] Asked Me, "what Are You Working On Now?" And I Said I Was Writing A Story About A Mouse Who Tries To Save A Princess. I Was Mortified. Here The World Is Falling Down Around Us, And I'm Trying To Tell The Story About A Mouse Who Saves A Princess. I Said "it Doesn't Matter At All Now."
Princess
Fall
Writing
There Can Be A Lot Of Longevity In The Repetition Of Things Being Told Again And Again In A Variety Of Ways.
Way
Repetition
Longevity
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