More Writing Myths for Busting

"How many of us have been held back by myths? ....I’d like to add my own favorite writing myths to be busted. (Whether these are myths or delusions, I’ll leave to you to decide.) 1. You have to be neurotic to be a good writer/poet/artist/actor.
Reality: Health and happiness are ever-so-much-more-pleasant states of being.
You don’t need to be miserable to be a successful creative artist! If, however, you like creating suffering characters, what you do need is empathy. That, plus observational skills. Of course, you’ll still tap into your own experiences to some extent as you write, but you don’t need to go to extremes in your own behavior. All you need is to amplify a quality to make it stand out in a character. In other words, the personality quirk that allows someone to justify stealing a car is not that different from the person who steals a paperclip."
Read the rest of my article at Buried Under Books, then, add some of your own myths that deserve busting!

When is a Picture Book Not Just a Picture Book? Ed Young's The House Baba Built

This beautiful book captures author-illustrator Ed Young's life in Shanghai during World War II. He tells a story that will captivate young and old alike, a story that functions on many levels. Most touchingly, it is a tribute to his father, whose concern for his family led him to build the house, and whose message to his children has been carried out in Ed Young's numerous books over the past fifty-some years.
The message is basically this: Be a good person; do good work.
Ed Young can be seen in this BBC video, discussing the book, its meaning, and how it was made.