John Zeleznik
@johnzeleznikauthor.bsky.social
Father, Husband, Teacher & Writer. Jedi Knight & friend to Captain Solo. Winter is coming. Mets, Orange, Isles, Bills fan. Novelist & writer NOT the artist with the same name! Opinions stated are mine alone. Winter's Discord: https://a.co/d/03HllUfX
I thought that I would give a general publishing update thread to my followers because I am feeling ambitious and have big plans. First the "old" news: I have been working hard on SPRING'S TEMPEST, the follow-up to WINTER'S DISCORD, but it's not quite there yet.
I have become wildly obsessed with urban planning, land use and urban renewal. It's really unhealthy at this point.
I'm actually late to MG and regretting it. I love it so much. I was all-in on YA after the graduate course. My professor really encouraged me to try writing it. I'm still trying 20 plus years later. #kidlitchat
And, quite frankly, I feel like the stories are so good. I mean the quality of what's out there in the kid lit arena is just astonishing! Why wouldn't you read it and want to write it? #kidlitchat
I mean sure I read Encyclopedia Brown and the stuff we read in school, but for fun I was reading the old TSR tie-ins...the announcement of the return of Dragonlance and Drizzt to D&D brings me so much joy...not to mention an obsession with TTRPG manuals. #kidlitchat
Honestly, I didn't read a lot of kid lit as a kid. From 9 to my late 20s, I read adult books. Some books a 13 year old had no business reading. But then again, kid lit wasn't what it is today. #kidlitchat
Plus, I teach HS, so I like to read the stuff my kids might be interested in. Plus, honestly...I don't want to grow up. #kidlitchat
And honestly, I seriously always wrote for 17-year-old me and 13-year-old me. Even my early attempts at writing my big epic fantasy book (that was complete dreck!) #kidlitchat
I took two classes as part of my work towards my teaching masters: an undergrad Children's Lit and a YA Lit class towards my masters. The YA lit class got me thinking about writing it. #kidlitchat
Greg Pincus@gregpincus.bsky.social · yesterdayTOPIC: Continuing our celebration of 17 years chatting, tonight we're re-upping the very first topic from the first #kidlitchat: "Why children’s literature? What excites you about it, whether it’s reading, writing or ???"
It's so exciting that #kidlitchat is almost old enough to technically "age out" of kidlit.
You ever look at some of these old school authors like Robert Caro and think, "Y'know, he's probably never worn a pair of jeans or sweatpants in his life."
C-Span 2 is showing a Robert Caro special and I missed most of it. Kind of bums me out. The man's become one of my heroes.
Not one of these guys the Mets got will play an inning in the bigs. What a waste of a summer.
Just discovered a new channel on our Hulu Live called Antenna TV. It might be my new favorite channel. All the sitcoms from my youth. It’s really enjoyable.
I had this wild dream the other night that I'm still dreaming about. The best way to describe it was like an over-the-top Wes Anderson meets Quentin Tarantino political thriller in a unnamed city where a rebellion is happening.
Posting another comic cover I love.
John Zeleznik@johnzeleznikauthor.bsky.social · last wk.Posting a comic cover I love.
@mrmaresca.com You know I'm a massive fan, but I wanted to ask you a random question about Maradaine...how much is based on big cities like NY in the early half of the 20th century. I only ask b/c I had an idea stumble into my brain that definitely has some commonalities with Maradaine!
So here's where I am with my writing: 1. I'm working slower than I want on SPRING'S TEMPEST. I'm really, really, really hoping to finish it before school starts at the end of August. We'll see. I've got to get my daughter working on the cover for the next three books. 1/3
Sheesh, I just had a whole jumble of elements to something I want to write roll into my head. Like I have time for this shit.
Post a character you think is cool and give no explanation why:
Chris A Field, Otherverse Games@otherverseg.bsky.social · last wk.Post a character you think is cool and give no explanation why:
I remember wanting the Goofy wristwatch and my parents giving me crap about it. Sneakers were always a big deal, but my folks almost always let me pick what I wanted. #kidlitchat
Heartbreak is one that I think we see a lot of...maybe too much...I try to be more lighthearted but it is a huge milestone in life. #kidlitchat
For YA, I think the driver's license has to be a big one. #kidlitchat
Other milestones I've written about: prom, dances, parties, fights (both verbal and physical) and first kisses. #kidlitchat
One of things I write is epic fantasy. In one of them I have an opening scene involving an assassination attempt. The MMC kills for the first time & one of his childhood friends dies in his arms. I spend some time with him dealing with that. It's heavier than I thought. #kidlitchat
