Birthdays: Marjorie Flack (1897), Harvey Penick (1904), Michael Crichton (1942), Laurie Halse Anderson (1961), Gordon Korman (1963), Augesten Burroughs (1965), Trudi Canavan (1969), Aravind Adiga (1974), Antjie Krog (1952), James Hendry (1976)

Tip: Your characters need to be multidimensional, believable, and interesting.

Thought for the day: “Be nice to your parents, because if you want to be a published author, you’ll probably wind up living with them after college. For a decade.” – Laurie Halse Anderson

Jumpstart: Each year when the roses bloom… (use: garden, trophy, retreat)