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Mindy Hardwick
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Mindy Hardwick published her first short story, Hurricanes, with Blooming Tree Press in the anthology Summer Shorts. Her middle-grade ghost story was published in the Fall 2007 edition of the Canadian journal, Crow Toes Quarterly, and her article, Multiple Voice Novels, was published in The Children's Writer Guide 2008. She recently had an essay, Teaching Josh, published in My First Year in the Classroom: 50 Stories that Celebrate the Good, the Bad, and the Most Unforgettable Moments (Adams Media). Her new young adult romance, Ghost in the Batting Cage, will be published this October in a collection of short horror stories from Bridgehouse Press (U.K.). Mindy's articles on the craft of writing have been published with Children's Writer, Instructor Magazine, ALA Book Links, The Writer Magazine, and Funds for Writers. Mindy is one of the featured authors on the 2010 Bylines Writers' Desk Calendar.
According to Mindy, the inspiration for I Believe came from a young writer she met while co-sponsoring a creative writing conference for youth. The winners of the contest were given free admission to a young authors' day. "During the day," she said, "one young writer turned to me and said, 'I believe in dragons, fairies and Santa Clause,' and I began to think about a character who believed in her imagination, though others told her she should grow up and out of childish beliefs. Is there really a certain age when we should set aside our imagination? Or can we hold on to a belief in the unseen? I hope that the story will encourage listeners to hold onto their imaginations and stand up to those who might tell them otherwise."
Mindy is currently working on a young adult romance novel and a picture book series. She holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College. When she isn't writing, Mindy facilitates a writing workshop for teens at Denny Youth Detention Center and teaches educators about writing for children at Seattle Pacific University. She lives in Lake Stevens, Washington.
Links
Mindy's website
Mindy's blog
My first published work was a middle grade short story, "Hurricanes." The story is included in an anthology entitled, Summer Shorts published by Blooming Tree Press. I framed the flyer, which included a picture of the cover, and it hangs on my office wall. Every time I look at the picture, I remember the way it felt the day I got the e-mail from the editor telling me they were publishing the short story: Amazing!
How does the reality of being a published author differ from the dream?
The reality is that being a published author involves more than just creating the story. Once the story is published, the journey is to help the story to find its audience which includes marketing, giving workshops/presentations, and maintaining blogs, websites, and social media such as Facebook. The journey is not over when the story is published--sometimes it's just beginning!
As a fellow Sniplits author, I wonder if you prefer writing short stories to other forms of writing. Always interested in the opinion of a published writer. Thanks, Tom Anselm
Thanks for your question, Tom. When I get an idea, I ask myself: What is the best "container" that can tell this story or hold this information? Some ideas are best told as short stories that take place in one moment in time that change a character's life or how the character sees the world around them. Other stories need more space and are best told in novel format. A lot of my article writing is what I call, "spillover" from my fiction writing. I do a lot of research to write stories, and often that research becomes articles. For example, I've been working on a young adult romance in which mosaics play a key part of the story. In order for me to write the story, I had to learn about mosaics! During that time, I got to interview a local mosaic artist about her business. This article was sold to "Stories for Children,"ui an e-zine for kids, and was recently selected to be included in their yearly anthology. I think the key thing I've learned is that I am a writer, and a writer does one thing - she writes! So, I try not to limit what I write to one genre or form of writing. All of which keeps me very busy!
Ask Mindy a Question
Twelve-year-old Samantha has always believed in unicorns, dragons and fairies, but when her new Junior High history teacher says she must put away her childish ideas, Samantha is determined to stand up for her belief in the unseen.
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