Some days,' I say, 'I feel like I don't belong anywhere in that world. That world out there. 'I point to Grant. 'People walk down our street and people drive down it and people ride their bicycles down it and all of them, even the ones I know, could be from another planet. And I'm a visiting alien.' And aliens don't belong anywhere,' Adam finishes for me, 'except in their own little corners of the universe.' Right,' I say. ~pgs 57-58 Hattie and Adam on alienation
Ann M. MartinI think reading is a gift. It was a gift that was given to me as a child by many people, and now as an adult and a writer, I'm trying to give a little of it back to others. It's one of the greatest pleasures I know.
Ann M. MartinI love to read, and I don't believe that you have to finish one book before you start another. --Mallory Pike
Ann M. MartinBecause, you see, you only need one friend for a party. One is enough. Two is enough. Anything is enough.' ~pg 107; Adam on friendship
Ann M. MartinThere's so many different kinds of rights to consider these days: computer, e-book, all sorts of things. Forget foreign rights and entertainment rights. There are so many things to consider and an agent is going to know how to wade through all that much better than you are.
Ann M. MartinA couple of pieces of advice for the kids who are serious about writing are: first of all, to read everything you can get your hands on so you can become familiar with different forms of writing: fiction, non-fiction, poetry, journalism. That's very important. And also keep a journal. Not so much, because it's good writing practice. Although it is, but more because it's a wonderful source of story starters.
Ann M. MartinEvery time I finish a book, it's my favorite. I have a lot of favorites. I did just finish Jane Eyre and it was fabulous. I didn't want it to end.
Ann M. MartinSome people say that success equals money, but frankly, I don't think success is money at all ... Success is being the best at whatever you want to do well at.
Ann M. MartinMaybe one thing is that you have to find the best way to write whatever works better for you.
Ann M. MartinIt's great that there are so many different kinds of books for kids and adults to choose from. I think an eclectic reader is the best kind of reader to be, which would be why I was always so satisfied to hear that kids read the Baby-Sitters Club books and then went on and discovered other authors and other genres.
Ann M. MartinFor now, I just want things all safe and familiar. My life may not be perfect, but it is what I have known.
Ann M. MartinI think the complaint that I hear most often from kids, even kids who like to write is that don't know what to write about. A journal is a great source of story starters.
Ann M. MartinI've discovered that in order to make big changes in the world, we have to begin at home -- within ourselves
Ann M. MartinYou got to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative, and latch on to the affirmative. Don't mess with Mr. In Between.
Ann M. MartinIt was the kind of terrified look that reminds you that no matter how rational or grown up a person might seem, some part of him is absolutely sure - knows - that an evil other-world exists just outside of our regular, everyday world. And that although we don't expect that world to collide with our calm, predictable one...well, really, at any moment that is exactly what might happen.
Ann M. MartinIf you're very serious about writing it's helpful to find an agent. It's becoming more and more competitive to have your manuscript even looked at by an editor. Many companies don't accept unsolicited manuscripts anymore, so they'll pay more attention to something that comes in through an agent.
Ann M. MartinI am fairly certain that my independent, high-spirited grandmother must have had a childhood similar to Betsy Ray'sAs I read about the School Entertainment and ice cream socials, about ladies leaving calling cards and the milkman with his horse-drawn wagon, I felt that I was having an unexpected and welcome peek into Granny's childhood-a gift to me from Maud Hart Lovelace
Ann M. Martin