Wednesday, February 8, 2023

The World Needs Weird!

By Kari Lavelle


Like many others, I was not very productive during the pandemic. My brain could not easily move to creative endeavors because it was too preoccupied with parenting 24/7 or stressing about COVID.

When I read an article about farmers in Botswana painting eyes on the behinds of their cattle to confuse predators, my tired, worrying brain actually started playing the “what if” game. What if a lioness said to herself, “Is that a butt or a face?” BOOM! A bootylicious idea of a title sparked in my head!

One day, with loads of giggles, I bravely shared my hare-brained idea of BUTT OR FACE? with my pandemic Zoom writing friends. They immediately loved the idea and were very encouraging (as always), but deep inside, I didn’t think it was very marketable and doubted it would turn into a sale. Still, it felt so good to have a project that captured my attention and researching animal derrieres daily was fascinating.

When my agent liked BUTT OR FACE? and sent it off on submission, I had very low expectations. Let’s be real - it has the word “butt” in the title! What editor would connect with this super weird idea? Turns out, Kelly Barrales-Saylor at Sourcebooks did and not only did she want that manuscript, but she thought it had series potential. Our initial Zoom to chat about ideas made my (facial) cheeks hurt from laughing so much.


So, my suggestion to you, my nonfiction friends, is to get weird. The weirdest you’ve ever been. Yep, even weirder than that.

Exercise 1: Think of a manuscript draft you’re stuck on. As you read through it, conceptualize where you can take it further. How can you get weird? It could be funny weird or strange weird but get funky in there!

Exercise 2: Think of three of the weirdest words or nouns you can. Can’t think of anything? How about gobbeldygook, snood or poppycock? Or fungus, bumfuzzle or kerfuffle? Brainstorm a story that uses these concepts as much as you’d like. Then, take the same words and brainstorm a different story. Which one is weirder? If one tickles your fancy, then keep going through the writing process. If not, congrats! You just pushed your brain to deeper depths of oddness!

Exercise 3: Brainstorm strange characters or stories (books, movies, shows, etc.) that you connect with and consider the elements you love about them. i.e. the dysfunctionally charming cast of characters from Schitt's Creek, the witty Matilda from Roald Dahl, or more recently the quirky, clever Wednesday Addams from the show, Wednesday. Are there any of these elements that you can infuse into your own WIPs?

Of course, I realize that getting weird isn’t a great solution for all manuscripts, but it does help us stretch our brains into new creative possibilities. Take risks, have fun - the world needs weirdness!

 




Meet the Author:

Kari Lavelle is the author of WE MOVE THE WORLD (HarperCollins), the BUTT OR FACE? series (Sourcebooks, 2023) and an unannounced picture book biography. She has always had a love for words: as a kid reading books, as a speech pathologist helping children communicate, and now as a writer creating stories. She lives in Austin, Texas with her husband, their two children, and doggo, Dobby. Learn more about Kari and her books at karilavelle.com.

86 comments:

  1. Post COVID there is a real need for humor and laughter in us all. And reality has a lot of fascinating weird in it every day. Thanks for pointing it out!

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    1. It's so true, Robin! I've found myself gravitating towards more humor, less serious in my books, shows, etc.

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  2. Ha! Great suggestions, Kari. Thank you. I'm a huge fan of WE MOVE THE WORLD and I can't wait to read BUTT OR FACE?

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  3. Thank you, Kari, for the encouragement to "stretch our brains into new creative possibilities."

    Suzy Leopold

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  4. KARI: Your post is right in time to CELEBRATE today's holiday: "HAPPY Laugh and get Rich Day!" NO LIE! It's a REAL holiday! And THANKS to you, we have some GREAT ideas on how to do so! THANK YOU for INSPIRING us to look to the WEIRD and WACKY to INFUSE our stories with elements kids (let's face it--ALL of us!) can relate to. I LOVE that doing so helped pull you out of the pandemic creativity lull. THANKFULLY, humor has a way of doing that. And, BOY, DO WE ALL NEED IT NOW, MORE THAN EVER! I TOTALLY AGREE: "the world needs weirdness"!!! THANK YOU for sharing yours!

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  5. Thank you, Kari! This will be fun!

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  6. I LOVE this!!! Be still my weird heart. Thank you, Kari.

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  7. Karyn Friedman-EverhamFebruary 8, 2023 at 12:23 PM

    Oops, keep forgetting to identify myself in comments. I wrote the above re weird heart and loving your post and exercises, Kari. Thank you again.

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  8. Weird and funny is just what I needed to hear today!

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  9. This is just too funny! And I love, love, LOVE the googly eyes! Not that they show up in nature, but they are funny. I can imagine a fast-paced card game based on this.

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    1. Ooh, yes, Sue! I'm going to look into creating a card game - thank you so much!

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  10. What kid isn't going to want that book, Butt or Face? And as a curious adult, I'd probably look at it too (to be sure it's appropriate!-right). Thanks for the exercises to get our funny bones rattling!

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  11. Congratulations on your new books! I love the title and cannot wait to read it. I like the idea of thinking weirdly and out of the box. I will go back on some of my manuscripts and see if any could have some of this weird factor:)

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    1. Thanks, Marianne! Hope these exercises help!

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  12. This is delightful. Can't wait to try it. Thanks, Kari!

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  13. Not only does this become marketable in nonfiction, but it is a hallmark of sci fi. And often what was thought weird yesterday is the tech of today. It all starts with imagination.

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  14. Wow, I thought about so many STEM stories while reading this, thank you!

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  15. Congratulations, Kari! You've added the funny to my day and I'm looking forward to reading your story. Thank you for the exercises.

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  16. I feel this post in my bones! Thank you :)

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  17. Thank you for such wisdom. Weird is the actual hook, especially for boys. Learning has to be fun.

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  18. Tthanks so much, Kari! What a great way to unhinge your mind for brainstorming and trying new angles!

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    1. Thanks, Melissa! Hope it proves helpful to you!

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  19. Love this idea. I have a hard time letting myself go--but thanks for the prompting!

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    1. Thank you, Carol! It's good to get out of our comfort zones and try new things occasionally!

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  20. It’s a great reminder to trust your imagination which clearly turned into a life preserver for you during Covid!

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  21. Things that are weird are all around us. We just have to notice, give them guidance, help them tell their story.

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  22. Love wierd and wacky. Thanks for the reminder.

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  23. Thanks, Kari! We're surrounded by "weird." Often it just takes a shift of perspective.

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  24. Love these weirdo exercises Kari! Thank you for getting my mind to stretch :)

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  25. Brilliant! thanks for the great invitation to get wild and think outside of the box, Kari.

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  26. Great ideas for finding and incorporating weirdness! Thanks, Kari!

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    1. You're so welcome, Melissa! Hope it's helpful!

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  27. Love reading where the inspiration for this book came from, Kari! I'm sure kids are going to love it.

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  28. What a fun story! I'm sure kiddos will eat it up. The weirder the better! Thanks for sharing.

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  29. Good Luck with your book and thank you for a really light-hearted post!

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  30. Montana Cat Tales for Life-Long Learners will publish NF PB for grades 4-8 in earth science, feelings/emotions, and (SEL) social-emotional learning. Thank you for reminding me not to shut down the weird and wacky POV of my Inner Child! (Retired teacher here.) She will see the humor in things; I get so serious sometimes, I squish the funny out of me. Appreciate all you do!

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    1. Thank you, Carla! I adore your phrasing of "squish the funny!"

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  31. I love this post! And cannot wait to read BUTT OR FACE!

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  32. Loved your practical tips about how to incorporate weirdness into manuscripts!

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  33. Oh, I love this! As both an author and a HS librarian, I purchase many PBs for my ESE and ESOL students. They will love this Butt or Face series. Ordering now! Thank you.

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  34. Great post. This is just so much fun and such good ideas. Thanks.

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  35. This is weird and wonderful! Now I am curious about the next in the series. Congratulations.

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    1. Thank you! I'm having so much fun with the research!

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  36. Yes, yes the world needs more fun weird!

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  37. Such fun! I can this being a great interactive brainstorming activitiy with a critique group, too. Off to play with odd words my grandfather used to say! Thanks.

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    1. You're so welcome. Have fun playing with odd words!

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  38. Thanks for much for the great post! You've given me much to ponder! (And, I'm certainly glad you found something creative and wonderfully productive to come out of that whole weird and challenging Covid season!)

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    1. Thank you, Julie! Yes, one never knows where/when that next great idea will sprout!

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  39. Hurrah for weird! Loved your post. Thanks!

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  40. You've given me a new angle to consider when working on a manuscript- WEIRD! Thanks for this great post!

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  41. What a great, encouraging, post! I really appreciate the advice to lean into the weirdest of the "what ifs". Thanks!

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  42. Love the concept of your new book ... and the fact that it came from a real-life story makes it even more weirdly wonderful.

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    1. Thank you, Suzanne! - Kari Lavelle

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