First Friday Favorite Authors: Lloyd Alexander

From the NY Times
E.P. Dutton about 1971

The first author I ever met was Lloyd Alexander.

He was everything a kid would want in an author.  Alexander was very suave; cool without being aloof; very friendly; adult yet very interested in what those of us still in our first decade in life had to say about his books and books in general.

He was also one of the people who inspired me to become a writer.

Back in the late 60s I was part of what I now realize was a very special group.  The absolutely wonderful and fabulous Birdie Law (winner of the ALA's 1981 Allie Beth Martin Award--only the third winner at the time), Head Children's Librarian at the Oxon Hill Library had, a few years before, started a book discussion group called CRABs, or Children Raving About Books.  It was there, every Friday afternoon, that my friends and I found other misfits like ourselves who really, really liked books.  We loved reading them and we loved talking about them.

The first generation of CRABs (just a few years older than we were) had all read Lloyd Alexander's Chronicles of Prydain.  (Alexander won the Newberry award for the sixth and final book in the series, The High King)  That group of kids wrote a group letter to Alexander, expressing their appreciation for the books and his writing.  They were stunned several months later when he wrote back saying he was going to be in the DC area and wondered if they would mind if he stopped by for a visit.

This was a very active, performance-oriented group of kids.  In true Andy Hardy "Let's Put On a Show!" spirit, those first CRABs put together a play based on Lloyd Alexander's characters and performed it for him during his visit.

Those kids who put on the play were given the title of Royal Prydainians.  It was a very big deal.

They alone were the only ones allowed to sit in the chair Lloyd Alexander himself had sat in during his meeting with the CRABs.  They alone were the elite of the CRABs.  Forget about being older--they had been blessed by Lloyd Alexander himself.

The last time Lloyd Alexander visited the CRABs it was understood that a new play was going to be written by the CRABs playwright (Stephen Hayes) and that the older kids (who were already Royal Prydainians) were going to perform in it.  I had only read one of his books, Time Cat, and somehow (thank you, Mrs. Law) I was asked to play the part of Jason, the human character in Time Cat, in the play.

That makes me the last person inducted as a Royal Prydainian.

So, what does all of this have to do with Alexander as a writer?

If winning the Newbery Medal, the National Book Award (multiple times), the School Library Journal Best Book of the Year, and being a founder of Cricket Magazine isn't enough, if writing engaging, fun and adventurous fiction for boys and girls isn't enough, then it's simply this:

Lloyd Alexander made a heavy-set, awkward misfit of a kid feel special.  He made me feel that life could and would be better.  And even if he never said it, he made me understand that if he could write and get published, so could I.

Thanks, Mr. Alexander.  Thanks, Mrs. Law.


-- Tom

First Friday Favorite Authors: Charles de Lint

Photo from www.charlesdelint.com

Ten years or so ago a nearby town put on an annual writer's conference, bringing in authors in a variety of genres to discuss writing, give readings and sign books.  It was an impressive event considering it was free and the authors that they brought in weren't just NC area authors, but nationally known writers as well.

I was working on an MG story at the time and was so plagued with self-doubts and how awful my writing was coming out that writing anything at all was becoming extremely difficult.  I'd sent out a number of picture book manuscripts, only to have them returned in short order.  (Very short order.  I swear one came back so fast the publisher must have made a deal with the local post office to automatically return anything addressed to them)

In the midst of this, I attended the annual writer's expo.  I attended group sessions on writing for children, writing mysteries, and writing fantasy.  The person who was the head of the fantasy session was a kind, bearded guy who was being treated with great reverence by everyone else in the room.  I had no idea who he was,  but he seemed very approachable.  When he asked if anyone had questions, a scattering of hands went up.  When he called on me I asked something about how much time and effort he put into creating his settings.  Did he create a street map?  Did he know what buildings were on each street?  And how did he know when it was time to stop creating the world and start writing the story?

Sensing newbie panic, Charles de Lint asked, "Are you a writer?"

Hedging my bets, I said, "Well, I'm getting a lot of rejections."

He smiled and said, "Then you're a writer."

That simple confirmation, from a stranger, lifted a burden of uncertainty from me.  Writing didn't need to mean being published, it simply meant writing, trying, and having the courage to submit my work.

Shortly after that conference I looked him up at the local library and found a collection of his short stories.  They were a type of fantasy story that I'd never considered before -- fantasy elements appearing within an urban downtown area.  It was as if a subsection of New York was cracked open and all of Fairie poured out into the streets, only they remained hidden from those who could not or would not see them.

Even more impressive was his writing style.  It was emotional but succinct.  Each of his stories are written from a different character's perspective, meaning each story is told in a slightly different voice.  But, through each voice, de Lint's own voice is heard, woven into them like background harmony singers.

I think each of us have writers who speak very directly to us.  Charles de Lint, with his quiet sense of the sad romantic and infusions of celtic music, is one of those writers who speaks directly to me.


-- Tom

Who are some of the writers who speak directly to you?