Interesting things I'm hearing from New York responses to Banquo's Son: some have expressed concern that Duncan and Fleance are too old for the YA market (being, of course, the eldery age of 21. One house has alreay passed the opportunity to read the manuscript with the explanation that "... no matter how well the novel reads, it just won’t work for us if he is that old and adult things happen to him."
Interesting.
Personally, I can't see the problem. He's a young man and he will age 10 years over the course of the trilogy but Keavy and Bree will also become teenagers during this time and be important players as well.
Here in New Zealand, The 10PM Question,a novel aimed at YA with a 12 year old main character won not only the award for YA but for the whole lot and has just been selected for our national book awards (not children).Read what Mary Mcullum has to say about this here
It always amuses me what people think teenagers will read esp if they aren't around teenagers. The girls in my class (and my own children) read books with young protagonists and adult - it's the story and the characters they care about.
I told my editor and agent about the conversation between Nicola and Angela from my Y9 English class - these 13 year olds are looking forward to reading what I've written of Bloodlines.
Anyway, I'd be interested, girls, if you posted your comments about what you think about the age of characters so that those NYC houses hear it from the 'horse's mouth' so to speak - not that I'm saying you are nags.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
updating the blog
This is not an excuse and, I'm really glad to have this blog. But, I guess, all those months ago it was for Mum and my friends and the babes to keep them up to play with the progress of Banquo's Son. What do you do then, when the book is, um actually finished and the author is awaiting the final product? What do you do when said book is now doing the rounds of New York publishing houses and the author turns on her phone at 3am in the hope there's an encouraging email from her agent?
You go: get a life Tania and damn well keep writing cos we want to know what happens next!
This blog was started as a playground for Banquo's Son. When we did create it, I didn't know that my concept would turn into a trilogy.
However, I do enjoy knowing people from all over pop by and I'm happy to say that Jessica Napper (Y13 at Columba College) is creating my very own website in anticipation that this concept will go global.
As to the rest? My life consists of: Anytime between 4 and 5 am: getting up and letting the two cats out. Turning on the jug while I start up my computer; having a cup of tea while I check out blogs and respond to emails. Then, I make the lunches for my two children. Then I put on a load of washing (or unstack the dishwasher or any other domestic chore you can think of).
At 7am EXACTLY, I collect the newspaper (we are the last street to be delivered - torture!) and I pour myself another cup of tea, wake the children (yeah right) and read the paper, do the code cracker and attempt the Sudoku but only if it's medium or hard (hey, I have standards!)
At 7;30, I yell at all - get out of bed. And, often, I go get the dogs up and leave them to their sniffing and woofing while I continue to bang on the shower door: it's been 20 minutes!!!
Hopefully, by 8am, I'm dressed, the other two are dressed, and all things necessary for a successful school day is in place (Tui ad here peoples).
All who are wiser and more experienced than me say – this too shall pass.
I say. Praise the lord and can those houses in NYC make me an offer that will pay for kids’ education – please.
You go: get a life Tania and damn well keep writing cos we want to know what happens next!
This blog was started as a playground for Banquo's Son. When we did create it, I didn't know that my concept would turn into a trilogy.
However, I do enjoy knowing people from all over pop by and I'm happy to say that Jessica Napper (Y13 at Columba College) is creating my very own website in anticipation that this concept will go global.
As to the rest? My life consists of: Anytime between 4 and 5 am: getting up and letting the two cats out. Turning on the jug while I start up my computer; having a cup of tea while I check out blogs and respond to emails. Then, I make the lunches for my two children. Then I put on a load of washing (or unstack the dishwasher or any other domestic chore you can think of).
At 7am EXACTLY, I collect the newspaper (we are the last street to be delivered - torture!) and I pour myself another cup of tea, wake the children (yeah right) and read the paper, do the code cracker and attempt the Sudoku but only if it's medium or hard (hey, I have standards!)
At 7;30, I yell at all - get out of bed. And, often, I go get the dogs up and leave them to their sniffing and woofing while I continue to bang on the shower door: it's been 20 minutes!!!
Hopefully, by 8am, I'm dressed, the other two are dressed, and all things necessary for a successful school day is in place (Tui ad here peoples).
All who are wiser and more experienced than me say – this too shall pass.
I say. Praise the lord and can those houses in NYC make me an offer that will pay for kids’ education – please.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Stop Press! The news is official (though many of you already know)
BANQUO’S SON, author Tania Roxborogh, represented by Writers House agent
Josh Getzler.
Top New York City literary agency Writers House, LLC has taken on New Zealand author Tania Roxborogh's Shakespeare follow-up epic trilogy BANQUO’S SON.
Getzler said, “I am thrilled to be representing Banquo’s Son and its sequels. I believe Roxborogh’s characters are complex; the emotions are real; the friendships, love affairs and heartbreaks transcend the 11th Century exactly as they should. It is absolutely clear to me that this is a book, and a series, with the potential to break through into the zeitgeist.”
He continued, “I knew I had a real winner in Banquo’s Son when I walked into our office to find one of our young interns, a girl just out of high school, sitting on a chair with tears streaming down her cheeks, rocking back and forth and saying, over and over, ‘Why didn’t he just DUCK?’”
This is the story of Fleance, (Banquo’s son from the play Macbeth), who escaped from the men who murdered his father near the Castle of Forres and ran away to England to live with a poor family. He’s no longer a child,and is out for revenge.Many of Shakespeare’s characters do reappear as Flea (as he is now called)returns to Scotland, but this is a fast-moving, action-packed thriller,only with chivalry.
About Writers House
Ken Follett, Stephenie Meyer, Nora Roberts, Neil Gaiman, Stephen Hawking,and Christopher Paolini are just some of the extraordinarily successful authors on the books at literary agency Writers House, where much-loved bestsellers, award-winning thrillers and record breaking sales have become a way of life. Getzler has been at Writers House since January, 2007, and represents authors ranging from literary novelists to thriller writers to serious nonfiction authors to middle-grade mystery and fantasy writers.
www.writershouse.com
http://www.publishersmarketplace.com/members/jgetzler/
Josh Getzler.
Top New York City literary agency Writers House, LLC has taken on New Zealand author Tania Roxborogh's Shakespeare follow-up epic trilogy BANQUO’S SON.
Getzler said, “I am thrilled to be representing Banquo’s Son and its sequels. I believe Roxborogh’s characters are complex; the emotions are real; the friendships, love affairs and heartbreaks transcend the 11th Century exactly as they should. It is absolutely clear to me that this is a book, and a series, with the potential to break through into the zeitgeist.”
He continued, “I knew I had a real winner in Banquo’s Son when I walked into our office to find one of our young interns, a girl just out of high school, sitting on a chair with tears streaming down her cheeks, rocking back and forth and saying, over and over, ‘Why didn’t he just DUCK?’”
This is the story of Fleance, (Banquo’s son from the play Macbeth), who escaped from the men who murdered his father near the Castle of Forres and ran away to England to live with a poor family. He’s no longer a child,and is out for revenge.Many of Shakespeare’s characters do reappear as Flea (as he is now called)returns to Scotland, but this is a fast-moving, action-packed thriller,only with chivalry.
About Writers House
Ken Follett, Stephenie Meyer, Nora Roberts, Neil Gaiman, Stephen Hawking,and Christopher Paolini are just some of the extraordinarily successful authors on the books at literary agency Writers House, where much-loved bestsellers, award-winning thrillers and record breaking sales have become a way of life. Getzler has been at Writers House since January, 2007, and represents authors ranging from literary novelists to thriller writers to serious nonfiction authors to middle-grade mystery and fantasy writers.
www.writershouse.com
http://www.publishersmarketplace.com/members/jgetzler/
Saturday, May 23, 2009
we need Spock's mind meld here!
What we desire most, we writers, is to take you, the reader, to the viewing room of our imagination. We want you to see EXACTLY what we see - hopefully as WE see it. Sometimes, I lament that I'd have heaps of books written if only I could use Spock's mind thingy and plug a USB cable somewhere into my imagination and have it download into my computer - so much quicker.
Take, for example, the scene I SEE fully with Rachel arriving at a sea port: I can smell and hear and feel every detail as she sees it. It takes but moments for me to do this. But, to write it (as I've tried to do today) is excruciatingly laborious which means I stop and go play with the dogs (who are so cute. Despite what anyone says, Border Collies DO smile and DO laugh).
Then, there is the problem, with the blogsphere, of clicking and clicking onto writers all around the world who are so interesting and have such fabulous things to say about life and writing.
So, that's three paragraphs which are basically saying I'm procrastinating. Hey, here in Dunedin, it's been raining now for a week - Yep, every day; sometimes snow. If I hadn't had to take eldest to work and youngest to piano lesson, I'd have been in my PJs all day.
For the parents out there: tonight is the Y12 Ball at Larnach's castle. I shall drop child and the boy (love him to bits) at school at 7:15, buy a bottle of wine, make may way home through the weather and sit in front of fire with said bottle and glass and good book and stay up until 1am before hubby drives us to pick up tamariki. (for those not of En Zed tamariki is Maori for child/children)
Take, for example, the scene I SEE fully with Rachel arriving at a sea port: I can smell and hear and feel every detail as she sees it. It takes but moments for me to do this. But, to write it (as I've tried to do today) is excruciatingly laborious which means I stop and go play with the dogs (who are so cute. Despite what anyone says, Border Collies DO smile and DO laugh).
Then, there is the problem, with the blogsphere, of clicking and clicking onto writers all around the world who are so interesting and have such fabulous things to say about life and writing.
So, that's three paragraphs which are basically saying I'm procrastinating. Hey, here in Dunedin, it's been raining now for a week - Yep, every day; sometimes snow. If I hadn't had to take eldest to work and youngest to piano lesson, I'd have been in my PJs all day.
For the parents out there: tonight is the Y12 Ball at Larnach's castle. I shall drop child and the boy (love him to bits) at school at 7:15, buy a bottle of wine, make may way home through the weather and sit in front of fire with said bottle and glass and good book and stay up until 1am before hubby drives us to pick up tamariki. (for those not of En Zed tamariki is Maori for child/children)
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