Fangirl at the ALAN Workshop of the NCTE

by with No Comment The Field

I am excited to be participating in the ALAN Workshop portion of the NCTE (National Conference for Teachers of English) in Boston this November. ALAN stands for Assembly on Literature for Adolescents at the NCTE conference. There will be over 500 teachers at the conference and they will all receive a copy of THE FIELD.(!) I am on the Sports Panel discussion to talk about THE FIELD – which has a sports theme – and also to talk about being a publisher. The three other authors on the panel are pretty heavy hitters.

Andrew Smith author of WINGER (getting Prinz buzz!)

Carl Deuker author of SWAGGER

David Klass author of SECOND IMPACT

So I am honored and thrilled to participate, but also a bit terrified!! Being selected to be on the panel gives me a feeling legitimacy and validation for my work as an author and a publisher, but I still have that fear – you know what I’m talking about – that they will discover that I’m just a poser, not the real thing. These other three authors have written several YA books apiece and they are all frankly, awesome. I’ve read WINGER by Andrew Smith and loved it, and stayed up until 1am last night finishing SWAGGER by Carl Deuker. They are both such powerful books. And also entertaining. And have such clear and distinct teen voices. YIKES!! (Look for reviews of their books in later posts.)

Next on my list is SECOND IMPACT by David Klass. I haven’t gotten to his book yet because I’ve been reading his “FIRESTORM – Caretakers Trilogy” first. In that series he uses many of the themes that are in THE FIELD. Environmental issues, sports and some science fiction/metaphysical bits, too. I’ve been looking for a book that is similar in part to THE FIELD and I think I found it in the “Firestorm” series.

THE FIELD isn’t actually my first book. INDIAN SUMMER is the story of Eric’s younger sister, Marcie, and is more for middle school readers. I have the beginnings of the next companion book to THE FIELD in outline form, too. So it’s not like I’m a total newbee, but still. These guys have written numerous of books. I sent them all THE FIELD and Carl Deuker sent me a note that he’s looking forward to reading it and that it looks great. 🙂  I’ve been going over and over my six minute ALAN presentation in my mind. Now I just have to get it down on paper. The trick will be not to act like too much of a fangirl at the workshop. Chris Crutcher is giving a presentation and John Green is receiving an award, along with dozens of other well-known and accomplished authors. So you see how it could be overwhelming for a YA lit lover like me.

The most exciting thing, though, is what if it turns out that they don’t think I’m a poser? What if they think I’m the real deal?

Signing at Heartland Fall Forum

by with 4 Comments The Field

Last weekend I did a book signing for Independent Booksellers at the Heartland Fall Forum conference. I must have signed 100 books.  When I described THE FIELD as being about a high school boy trying out for the soccer team and connecting with the Universal Energy Field, they were very intrigued and said they are always looking for books for boys. I can attest that THE FIELD has been read and critiqued by teen boys and given the seal of approval!

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Goodreads Reviews of THE FIELD

by with No Comment The Field

Here’s what Goodreads reviewers have to say about The Field ~ Launch Date October 12th! Launch Party Thursday, October 10th!

“Sports, science, paranormal activity and strong realistic teenage characters, male and female. There is nothing not to like about this book.” ~ Ann Jones – Goodreads

“If you enjoy soccer or any sports and have been through high school it is an overall enjoyable and easy read that opened my eyes to new environmental practices and the mystical and magical energy fields.” ~ Lexie Miller – Goodreads

“The Field” by Tracy Richardson is an amazing combination of a clean cut, coming of age soccer athlete with a hint of a precognition type trait mixed in with educational science, scietific experimentation based in factual past practices mostly during war times, and a little magic and mysticism all rolled into one. Overall, I really liked The Field by Tracy Richardson and enjoyed so many different aspects of the story, even the fact that I can say that the cover on the ARC copy of the book is derived from page 154. That is so awesome.” CJ – Goodreads

“A fun book about soccer and tapping into hidden abilities. You don’t have to be a fan of soccer to like this book. I felt that the characters were credible. I enjoyed the psychic experiments that Eric works on in the lab. I also like the connection between Eric and Renee. I like Eric’s character. He is genuine and really cares about everyone, especially Will, even after he is mean and disrespectful to him. I also really like Renee. She is a down to earth girl who continually supports Eric. I enjoyed this book!” ~ Erin – Goodreads

Buy your copy today!

Skokie Lagoons

by with One Comment The Field

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I grew up not far from the Skokie Lagoons in Northfield, IL. In fact I drove past them several times a week in high school and college on the way to various waitressing jobs in Northfield. I fictionalized them for THE FIELD and they actually play a key part in the story, Earlier this summer I was in Chicago for the ALA (American Library Association) conference. We decided to stay in the suburbs to avoid the traffic and hassle of the city and the hotel my husband found randomly through one of those price-cut websites was right across the street from the lagoons! Mere coincidence? I think not!

A lot of Chicago was swamp and marsh generations ago – the lore of my childhood was that Chicago was an Indian word for ‘smelly onions’ and Winnetka, the town I grew up in, meant ‘beautiful land.’ I research the Skokie Lagoons for my book and discovered another Indian connection. They called them the  ‘Chewab Skokie’ which means ‘big, wet prairie.”

It was lovely to see them again!

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What is the double meaning of THE FIELD?

by with No Comment The Field

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My YA novel, THE FIELD is really about two fields (actually three, but telling you would be a spoiler and I want to see if anyone even figures it out, Evil laugh.)

The first field is the soccer field ~obvious from the cover. Eric is a soccer goal keeper competing for the starting spot on his high school varsity soccer team. Soccer is like a thread woven through the story, moving the action forward and linking the characters together. The struggle to play and win on the soccer field is a major theme of the book. But it is not the only theme.

The other field is the Universal Energy Field that many scientists believe exists all around us, everwhere in the Universe. What is this Universal Energy Field? I could say that you’ll have to read my novel to find out, but that would be mean. (another evil laugh.) Dr. Auberge, a character in THE FIELD says, “Scientists theorize that there is enough energy in a square inch of space anywhere in the Universe to power all of New York City for a year.” Intrigued? Here are some non-fiction books on the topic that you might find interesting.

The Holographic Universe by Michael Talbot

The Field ~The Quest For The Secret Force of the Universe by Lynne McTaggart

The Intention Experiment – Using Your Thoughts to Change Your Life and the World by Lynne McTaggart

The Divine Matrix by Gregg Braden

The Great Field – Soul at Play in a Conscious Universe by John James, PhD

What the BLEEP Do We Know? ~ Feature Film by William Arntz

I will continue to add books to this reading list and post it to the site. I hope you find THE FIELD entertaining, engaging and perhaps even enlightening. There is more to space than space.

Goodreads Review of THE FIELD from R3id Libby

by with 2 Comments The Field

Here is the first official review of The Field by R3id Libby posted in Goodreads. He was also the inspiration for one of the characters of the book. See if you can guess which one?!?! It should serve as a warning to all of you who know an author – you may find yourself (or a caricature version of yourself) in the pages of a book. Thank you R3id!

This book is a good summer read, and you may very well find yourself reading several chapters at a time. I finished the book in about a week; the plot is easy to follow, the characters relatable, and each word positively absorbing.
Whether you’re on the soccer field with Eric and Will during each thrilling play, or on top of the mysterious rock watching the stars with Eric and Renee, or just kidding around with Cole, (with whom I feel a deep emotional resonance,) every scene is at once thrilling, thoughtful, and absorbing. Middle and high school students will find “The Field” exciting and easy to read, and parents will be fascinated to know what a day in the life of a high schooler is like nowadays.
However, the appeal of “The Field” is not limited to any demographic– readers needn’t be soccer fans, workers for clean coal, or cosmic energy field enthusiasts to get into every part of this story.
On a side-note, Richardson’s simple, accessible writing style contrasts well with her husband’s bold prose in his work “Fragile”, and reading both books is an interesting experience: Two very different writing styles from under the same roof! Not to mention that their talented son did the cover art for “The Field”. To connoisseurs of art, I say to expect great things from this family. And to readers, I say, “Bon appetit!”

Signing Books at ALA Chicago 2013

by with No Comment The Field

This past weekend at was at the American Library Association conference in Chicago signing books and meeting librarians.

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Rita Kohn of NUVO Newsweekly said in a review of THE FIELD that will run this summer “Tracy Richardson is a worthy heir to Madeleine L’Engle”. WOW!!! Is it hubris of me to call THE FIELD, “A Wrinkle In Time for the 21st century?” It certainly got the attention of the librarians.

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I also attended the Newbery Caldecott Wilder awards dinner. This is my beautiful dessert with a white chocolate wafer displaying the artwork for the evening. And, yes, I ate it. It was delicious!

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The speeches by Jon Klassen (Caldecott winner for This Is Not My Hat) and Katherine Applegate (Newbery winner for The One and Only Ivan) were funny and touching and self-deprecating. I couldn’t stay to hear Katherine Patterson’s speech for winning the Wilder award. 🙁 I had to catch the Red Line subway back to Rogers’ Park to my brother’s house where I was staying. Riding the ‘L’ (for elevated train) in Chicago is interesting to say the least. The Gay Pride parade had been held that day and there was no shortage of supporters wearing rainbows in new and unusual ways. A real slice of life. There was also some sort-of girl fight going on further down the platform and while I was very curious, (purely from a  writer’s point of view) I had enough sense not to investigate.

All in all, a great weekend!