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For this project thirty-four authors
collectively wrote and edited a complete work of
fiction in 18 days. The 184-page book was bound and
donated to libraries in Erie County, Pennsylvania.
Working from a common outline, these authors wrote
the first draft of 64,000 words in five days. Four
of the authors then served as editors, and the text
was trimmed to 52,000 words in ten more days. Book
layout, cover design, and printing was accomplished
in three more days. Total time: 18 days. |
The really exciting news,
is that you can do it, too. Build-A-Book is now
available on Amazon, and it includes Lara's
Gems, the novel produced by
thirty-four writers in three weeks, and
instructions on how to replicate this experiment
in intensive literacy in your own community.
Everything needed to hold a Build-A-Book event
is in this book, including the complete story
outline and step-by-step instructions.
34 Authors
3 Weeks
1 Book
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Lara's Gems: an excerpt:
Chapter One
“Stop making that face, Lara.”
“But Father, it smells.”
“That’s no excuse. Be a little lady.”
Lara sighed. It did smell in here—a nasty mix of ammonia and
starch, eye-stinging soap, old varnish,
vomit and the privy. Lara hated it when
her parents brought her to Shady Oaks to
visit Grandfather. It wasn’t just the
smell that was so unpleasant, or the
tall shadowy hallways, or the echoing
footsteps on the hard linoleum floors,
or the cold light cast off by the bare
bulbs. The worst thing was the people
who lived there.
Only they didn’t really seem like people at all. They were like
husks of people—all dried out and frail,
their whispery skin like parchment,
collapsed into the hollows of their
skulls. They sat silently gathered in
wheelchairs in the Main Room or, even
worse, in the halls, as if their efforts
to venture out had faltered and died
just outside their own doorways.
How they stared! Everywhere she went, the damp spots in the
withered, corn-husk faces followed her
as she walked by. What were they staring
at? Why did some of them look so hungry,
and others so sad? Were they trying to
remember what it was like to be eleven
years old? Mother said she should be
charitable. Lara was simply afraid.
But she was expected to be a lady. Even though the ladies Lara saw
in the movies and read about in books
had glorious adventures and did all
sorts of daring and exciting things,
Lara had learned that in real life,
being one meant having to do things you
didn’t like to do, without letting on
how much you didn’t like them. So she
found herself walking between Mother and
Father, trying to hide her fright at the
stares, trying to keep her nose from
screwing up at the smell, and, as they
stepped into Grandfather’s room, trying
to pretend she was glad to see him.
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How did they do it?
Each author wrote one or more sections of the work of
fiction as outlined. There were 78 sections, which
became 78 chapters. Each
author knew the starting and ending point of
their own section, based on the outline, and were responsible for writing the details that made the
transition between these two points. The project
started on a Sunday, and the deadline for all
sections was 5pm the following Friday.
The end result integrated the outlook,
creativity, and ability of each writer into a
completed work of fiction.
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The Thirty-Four Authors
Alex Jacobowski
Anthony Jerrod
Carla J. Behr
Carolyn Esser
Chelsea Schaaf
Christiana Reuling
Clayton Burke
Clive Levine
D. Jean Kimura
Einar Torbjornsen
Erica Whiting
Frank Witgen
Grace Kennedy
Jack Wonner
Julie Anne Lewis
Kathleen Berklite-Manzella
Kristina Cooper |
Linda A. Robinson
Lois Heise
Mary Pearson
Melissa R. Long
Sean Swick
Nancy Crawford
Nikki Caserta
Raeann Wolf
Rita Kilbane
Sallie Mitchell
Sarah Foster
Sheila Young
Stacy Loncher
Thomas Bennett
Vicky Wittuck
Zoraida Otero
Sara Beth Horne |
Most of the writers were from northwest
Pennsylvania, primarily Erie and the surrounding
area. One was from Georgia. None were professional
writers. For the most part the participants simply
read an article in the newspaper about the
Build-A-Book project, were intrigued, and joined in
the fun.
Where do we go from here?
The edition of Lara's Gems
produced by Build-A-Book was a spiral-bound book
with a hastily designed cover. An enhanced version
(except for the text, which will remain as is) is
under construction for purchase on Amazon. This
edition will include notes about the Build-A-Book process,
as well as information on how to replicate
Build-A-Book in your own community. It will be available by
February of 2010.
In an exciting new development,
Build-A-Book for classrooms is in development. A new
outline is in production, and a presentation was
made at the Edinboro University "Literacy in a
Multi-Modal World" conference on October 12, 2009.
More to follow.
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The story: An eleven-year-old girl
meets an old man. He tells her something. This sets
her on a journey that lasts until her death at age
seventy-six.
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Click
on book to
find
it on Amazon |
| cover of Lara's
Gems from first Build-A-Book |
Links to articles in the Erie Times are below.
Build-A-Book in
the Erie Times
Build-A-Book in
the Erie Times Second Article
Check out the video expose' that was
shown at the EUP Literary Conference:
Build-A-Book Video from
Literacy Conference
Download the Build-A-Book documents
provided at the EUP Literary Conference:
Build-A-Book Pre-High School
Outline
Build-A-Book High School
Outline
How to Implement Build-A-Book
in your Classroom
If you would like to be on the email
list for Build-A-Book news and updates, send me an
email:
Build-A-Book Email List
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