Episode #154: What word do you hate to use when you’re writing? with Rhode Montijo
Hello! Welcome to another episode of Kids Ask Authors! Today Grace and Rhode Montijo answer a great kid question, “What word do you hate to use when you’re writing?” Wonderful question!
TRANSCRIPT:
Grace Lin: Hello, I'm Grace Lin, children's book author and illustrator of many books including the middle grade novel When the Sea Turned to Silver. And the picture book, A Big Moon Cake for Little Star. Today I'm here with Rhode Montijo, the author and illustrator of picture books like Cloud Boy and The Halloween Kid, as well as the author and illustrator of the Gumazing Gum Girl book series, which is co-written with Luke Reynolds. Hi Rhode.
Rhode Montijo: Hi, Grace.
GL: Thank you so much for joining me today.
RD: Oh, it's an honor to be here.
GL: Are you ready for today's kid question?
RD: Let's do it.
GL: All right. Today's question is from a kid named Sabrina. And Sabrina asks, "What word do you hate to use when you are writing?"
RD: Ooh, thank you for the question, Sabrina. This is a tricky one. I mean, hate is a strong word. I think writing books is a journey, and initially I start off just writing as loosely as I can, and I try not to hinder myself, so I just write freely and it takes a couple versions to go to the final script. And then along the way, I look out for words like very and when, which a lot of people try to shy away from and try to make those better. But yeah, so I think, I don't know exactly one word that I hate, but those are the words that I look out for and... I don't know if that helps.
GL: No, that's good. That's kind of the common rule of thumb. If you're using the word very, then probably you could use a stronger word, and that happens to me all the time too. I'll go through and I'll see that I said very, very, and one word that I always use, which is kind of a crutch, is because. I'll start-
RD: Oh yes, yes.
GL:... because, because. And so I'll be like, because. And I'll use that five or six times in three paragraphs and I have to figure out, "Okay, can I say however in one of these times?"
RD: That's right.
GL: But I know there's certain words that it's not that I hate using, but there's words that I use over and over again, and I kind of kick myself every time I see it.
RD: That's right. Sometimes they're necessary, but yeah, if possible there could be other solutions.
GL: Though, I have to say, when I first started writing, one of the things that I kept changing was the word said. I would write, Sally said, then Janet said, and I was like, "Oh, that doesn't sound good." So, I'd be like, Sally yelled, and then Janet screamed, and then Jose shouted. And I keep using different words instead of said, and then finally my friend who's also a writer said, "You could just say, you don't need to have so many adjectives for different ways of saying said." And I realized that she was right. That sometimes said just disappears and you don't have to worry about it sometimes. You don't have to worry about being too creative sometimes.
RD: It's true Grace. That's a good reminder. I remember being self-conscious about that too, because you use it so much, but like your friend said it kind of just disappears when you're reading. It does its job and then it goes away. But yeah, I remember overthinking that myself.
GL: Yeah, it's interesting how there's some words that you should just let it be, like said. But then there's other words like what you used is very and I use it too, where you probably should overthink that, and think of something else, something stronger. I think in school they call them juicy words. Think of a juicier word.
RD: Ah, nice. I like that.
GL: All right, well, thanks so much, Rhode. That was so much fun.
RD: Thank you, Grace. Thanks for the opportunity.
GL: Yes. And thank you, Sabrina, for asking such a great question. Bye.
RD: Bye-Bye.
Today’s KID BOOK REVIEW comes from Dorrie! Dorrie is reviewing The Gumazing Gum Girl! Stick Together! by Rhode Montijo.
Hi, my name is Dorrie and I’m eight years old. The book I would like to talk about is The Gumazing Gum Girl! Stick Together! by Rhode Montijo with Luke Reynolds. This book is about a Mexican American girl with a substitute teacher that turns into a giant hamster. Her friend Brainstormer helps her on her adventures. I like this book because the girl needs gum to have power and because I like that they have to help the substitute teacher hamster away from the food. I also like that she works together with her friends and that she has a little brother (just like me).
Thank you Dorrie!
More about today’s authors:
Rhode Montijo is the creator of the Gumazing Gum Girl! chapter book series, as well as the picture books Cloud Boy and The Halloween Kid. He also published Pablo’s Inferno, an indie comic series, and illustrated a number of other children’s books. Rhode received a BFA in illustration from California College of Arts and Crafts and now lives in the Los Angeles area. Skeletown: Sí. ¡No! is the first book in his series set in Skeletown, a fun, imaginative world inspired by Día de los Muertos.
Grace Lin, a NY Times bestselling author/ illustrator, won the Newbery Honor for Where the Mountain Meets the Moon and her picture book, A Big Mooncake for Little Star, was awarded the Caldecott Honor. Grace is an occasional commentator for New England Public Radio , a video essayist for PBS NewsHour (here & here), and the speaker of the popular TEDx talk, The Windows and Mirrors of Your Child’s Bookshelf. She is the co-host of the podcast Book Friends Forever, a kidlit podcast about friendship and publishing (geared for adults). Find her facebook, instagram , twitter ( @pacylin) or sign up for her author newsletter HERE.
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