Book of the week: Mortal Engines

Let me catch my breath

What a fast pace novel, that one. Sooo fast, I’m glad I purchased #1 and #2 at the same time.

It’s a good book, perfect for kids and tweens who actually don’t like to read or find it a long, boring, pointless exercise. You ain’t gonna have time to be bored with that one, m’dear young reader!

I really enjoy it. I will read all four. That being said, I feel like I have no choice but to read the whole series, not only because it’s good, but because I am dying to know what will become of the main characters.

Clever author Philip Reeve makes sure to hook the readers, with his harsh and wonderful dystopian universe and complex characters.

No wonder the book became a massive movie thing, every scene in every chapters reads like a movie. Everything is to the point. From the emotions the characters go through to the descriptions of the complex mecha, no word is superfluous.

No time to waste anyway. Even if you wanted to rest a little with the character in the beautiful place they reached, and have a longer look around, you can’t.

And, that’s exactly why, you know, I liked the book buuut.

So much hastiness!

The art of pacing

Philip Reeve gives us a fast-paced story, which works great for everybody, especially people who, like I said, don’t like books to begin with, or have a lot of other books to get to, aged from 11 and beyond.

In a universe where who could easily spend several chapters to describe one place since there’s so much that could be said about it – great worldbuilding, by the way, a beautiful masterpiece of worldbuilding, well delivered – a fast-paced story is crucial.

Still, sometimes, the story cuts short.

Some details are, sometimes, given at random just so the story can move along. The same goes for the unraveling of a supposedly super well-buried secret a character suddenly puts together and voilà, moving on.

Mortal Engines, was first published in 2001. It is a great #1 to this fast-paced quartet by the excellent Philip Reeve, a prolific UK author.

I read the book in French. Published by Gallimard and translated by Luc Rigoureau, Mécaniques fatales as one flaw that kept putting me off: the translation of the names.
When it comes to names, I understand one can’t just leave the names untouched and explains the meaning in footnotes all the time… but one should.


How to Master the Writing Routine

The Muse is super fun to hang out with, but since she has many places to be…

For years, I would only write at night, after school. Then, I would only write in the early morning, before work.

After my baby finally started to sleep through the night, at 15 months (if you are curious, that’s sums up to 450 nights of 3-4 hours of sleep; yes, I know I was lucky.), I needed a new, well, everything. Including a writing routine.

The snowstorm of writing routines

As I am writing, well within March, dear Mother Nature unleashed yet another snowstorm. The snowflakes are big and fluffy. From my wanna-be office window, I cannot see the small frozen lake anymore; I can barely see the houses on the street parallel to us.

Lost within the snowstorm of tips, hacks, methods and what’s more, the keys for establishing a good writing routine.

I stumbled upon so many sh**** ideas, oh dear Calliope and sisters! I even found one fellow giver of tips&tricks with a what-number steps for a magic writing routine.

Heck yeah, I listened to what that person had to say, but, yeah no, I couldn’t go through with the meditation and « say hi to the sun » part.

Writing routine : the gathering

I ended gathering the most relevant, for me anyway, tips & tricks on how to establish a good writing routine.

That means I came up with a mix of Common Sense, guilt-free tips and effective tricks to master the writing routine.

  • Forget the Muse

Feeling inspired is great, but it is NOT going to help you write, yet finish, a novel.

Sit your butt down, put glue on the chair if you have to, and write (that’s from an francophone author who wrote more then a 100 kids novels; proven tip if there was ever one).

  • Set realistic writing goals.

Of course, you can write a book in 10 days, 30 days, 3 months… although the quality of the end result may vary.

Better be realistic when it comes to writing goals and set for ourselves easily attainable writing goals.

500 words a day, 5 days&nights a week is how I started. Once the routine was established, I soon revised increase the word count goal, but not up to a point where I would feel guilty to not have been able to reach the said goal one day.

100 words a day, 5 days a week could also be an excellent start to master the writing routine.

  • Reward yourself at the beginning of your new writing routine.

Many trustworthy authors and bloggers give that tip. It is a fun and effective way to make any new routine work.

After a while (I read it takes 17 to 21 days to form a new habit, but this is NOT a writing routine deadline of some sort) the new writing routine should start to feel like a part of yourself.

  • A writing routine should always go with your flow.

Translation: Writer, know thyself.

If you early riser, work with that. If you can’t muster the energy to write at night, don’t. The important thing is, while not being a total dictator toward yourself, to stick to your writing goal at the beginning, whether you’re feeling like writing or not.

  • Stick to your goals… and to happy writer face

Writing should be enjoyable, it should be fun. Writing should make you happy.

It is a lot of hard work, of course, but still, if you cannot enjoy it, why bother?

The ones who helped me master the writing routine

From a fun place I found thought the best place for writers, Pinterest: https://www.well-storied.com/blog/11-tips-for-creating-writing-routine

Super useful and to the point tips. No magic nor miracles there, just good old Common Sense: http://www.savannahgilbo.com/10-tips-creating-writing-routine/h

This one helped me de-stress about the whole writing routine game, which at first seemed like a bigger deal then having to plan a wedding (at this point, I swear, I am getting married in my pj’s and we’ll have bbq chicken with the fridging champagne): https://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/there-are-no-rules/4-writing-routine-myths-that-kill-creativity

I hope those tested writing routine tips will help you out. They certainly helped me!

Book of the week ​: Brave

That book rocked my writing world too! I am so so glad to have taken the time to read it.

I am in book love.

I read many great books lately, but oh ! this book by Svetlana Chmakova!

I read Brave, then I immediately ordered the other ones. I read them more than two times each already. Brave, I am currently re-re-re-reading.

I told you. I am in book loooooooooooove !

About Brave

Brave is in the middle of a graphic novel series for middle-grade and even tweens. And, may I dare say, every teacher, every librarian out there with a bit of love for kids should buy and share those books with them.

It’s about a daydreamer Jensen, a middle-grader who learns what it means to be brave through a rough ride coping with bullying.

The main character is sooo much fun, and the crew around him is a lot of fun. Even the bad guys, that we kinda almost like at the end.

An absolute must read

I am currently writing a novel about friendship and the aftermath of bullying. What becomes of the victims? What becomes of the bully/bullies? Can you really be friend with someone who bullied you, and vice-versa? And all that jazz!

That book rocked my creative writing world! I am so so glad to have taken the time to read it.

It does get a tincy tiny bit on the explanation side of the bullying matter, for this grown-up taste anyway. That being said, I am many years older than the kids for whom this story was written.

Of course, it needs to be said, what is bullying and how to deal with it. It also needs to be said, what being friends mean and what true friends really are.
When I was Jensen’s age, I had a couple of so-called friends. It, unfortunately, took me a little while to admit they were mean jerks.
Today, I remember only one of those mean jerks name’s, and only one bully thing she did to me. More than 30 years later, it still sting a little.

To admit that we might be bullied is a big step since sometimes it means we are going to be friendless. At an age where being accepted by people our age matters more than anything, it is really really hard.

For that reason and many more, this graphic novel is a must read.

Mr. Racoon

Not only did I love the story, but I also quite enjoy the afterword. Svetlana shares her process and what inspired her to write that story.

There’s also a super fun sketch gallery with commentary. She explains what is behind her characters designs and her creative process. And Mr. Racoon shows up too.

Overall, dear readers, those graphic novels are worth buying, worth sharing, worth having in your life.