Birthdays: Verner von Heidenstam (1859), Dhan Gopal Mukerji (1890), Will James (1892), Gloria Skurzynksi (1930), 14^th Dalai Lama (1935), Norman Sherry (1935), Bessie Head (1937), Bernhard Schlink (1944), Hilary Mantel (1952), Cheryl Harness (1952), Hilary Mantel (1952), William Wall (1955)

Verner von Heidenstam won the 1916 Nobel Prize in Literature

Dhan Gopal Mukerji won the 1928 Newbery Medal for “Gay Neck: The Story of a Pigeon”

Will James won the 1927 Newbery Medal for “Smoky the Cowhorse”

Quote: “If you get stuck, get away from your desk. Take a walk, take a bath, go to sleep, make a pie, draw, listen to ­music, meditate, exercise; whatever you do, don’t just stick there scowling at the problem. But don’t make telephone calls or go to a party; if you do, other people’s words will pour in where your lost words should be. Open a gap for them, create a space. Be patient.” – Hilary Mantel

Tip: Symbols or props can be important in a story. Where would we be without the light sabers in Star Wars or the Sherlock Holmes’ pipe and hat? Do you have any symbolic props in your stories? Can you add them? Just be sure to use them in a way that adds to the story and is not just a “prop” there for no reason.

Jumpstart: Use the following in a mystery scene: school bell, blush, barbed wire