Wow, thank you to patron Cathy Krull who teaches @ Kimberly High School and invited me there today to meet author Chris Crutcher. He writes books for Young Adults and I am a big fan! You can check out his titles in Infosoup. It is also exciting that he will back in our region, in April, for the Fox Cities Book Festival. I will be sure to blog here where and when he will be appearing.

Chris did a great talk for the high school students. He said because so much of what he writes about is tragedy he believes in offsetting that with humorous/comedic situations. He knows so much about teens and their plights from his years as a child-family therapist specializing in child abuse. He said that losing one's temper and using angry words can be just as harmful as physically beating on someone. Chris stated that at all ages of the life spectrum we need to learn to GRIEVE WELL or we will become sick. He admitted that some of his subject matter even makes him queasy but he thinks realism is critical and that it is helpful for everyone to talk about REAL LIFE.

As far as his writing process, he mentioned that authors do not have to overdo description when the readers are bringing their own imaginations to the pieces and can fill in the blanks. He loves connecting with people and hearing that his stories resonate with readers. One student asked if anything he has written has changed HIS way of thinking. (What a great question!) The answer was "yes". He said through being a therapist and a writer he has learned that all people have dignity despite their negative behavior. **Every single one of his books has been challenged so please note that these books DO deal with sensitive and ponderous material.