Making reading a pleasure

“When we talk about good books, we often talk about good sentences, but what we rarely talk about is reader pleasure. Yet it is reader pleasure that is going to make a book break out into the kind of success that makes it into a household name.” – Holly Black
 

Born on this date in 1971, Black is perhaps best known for The Spiderwick Chronicles, a series of children's fantasy books she created with writer and illustrator Tony DiTerlizzi.  But, it’s her 2013 novel Doll Bones that made the biggest splash, earning her a Newbery Medal honor.

A native New Jerseyan, who graduated from the College of New Jersey and started her career as a medical books editor, Black broke onto the creative writing scene in 2002 with a bang with her fantasy book Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale.  The book won a handful of awards and started her down a distinguished writing path.    Every one of her books has won some sort of award, led by the resounding success of Doll Bones.                

                                 At least 3 of her books or series have now been optioned or made into movies.   

Black’s advice to new writers is to not let writing overwhelm you.  “Can you write 200 words a day? 100? 50? In six months, 50 words a day is 9,000 words,” she said.  “That's 2-3 short stories. If you did 200 words every day, in three months that's 36,000 words. That's half a short novel.”

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