East Northport woman learns “write” stuff

By Michael R. Ebert
michael.ebert@newsday.com

Karen Cleveland of East Northport has been writing since she was a little girl, but didn’t “get serious” about her craft until she returned to college a few years ago.

Since then, the Elwood Middle School secretary has earned a B.A. in English from Dowling College, while authoring her first mystery novel, “The Secret at Lakeview Cove.” In mid July, she took her love of literature a step further by spending a week upstate at the Highlights Foundation Writers Workshop, a program offered to children’s writers.

“I really wanted my work to become more genre specific,” explained Cleveland, who heard of the workshop through the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. “The program sounded like everything I needed. And it was.”

The Chautauqua-based clinic, which wrapped up its 23rd annual event on July 21, includes one-on-one sessions, roundtables and keynotes from industry leaders for $2,500. Genres span fiction to feature style with a focus on interaction between faculty and students. This year, 100 children’s writers from four countries and 32 states were in attendance.

As part of the program, Cleveland met in manuscript sessions with Joy Cowley, author of the kid’s book “Mrs. Wishy-Washy.” Cowley critiqued Cleveland’s pending novel, a middle-grade mystery about boys who spend the summer at their uncle’s fishing camp.

“She asked me if I had ever done an outline, which I hadn’t done,” said Cleveland, citing an example of Cowley’s advice. “It gave me a better sense of my story’s direction.”

Besides networking and writing tips, Cleveland also learned the value of discipline.

“Regardless of a writer’s busy schedule, we need to make time to write,” she said. “If we focus on writing a certain amount everyday, it really adds up over time.”

Cleveland, whose work is geared to children ages 8-12, is also a member of the Mystery Writers of America and Sisters in Crime, a worldwide organization for mystery-writing women. She expects to complete her second novel within the next five months and is still seeking a publisher for both books.