Mina Witteman – author | editor | teacher of creative writing

Posts tagged “Books

How to make your reader sweat!

Posted on September 5, 2015

What have I been up to? This summer, I finished the second book of my Dutch middle grade series Boreas and the Seven Seas (Boreas en de zeven zeeën). The first book came out in June and reviews are coming in now summer is over. It seems kids, adults and reviewers alike love this new adventure book that tells the story of 12-year-old Boreas, who has to go on a round-the-world trip with his parents. On a sailboat. For three years! Needless to say, Boreas isn’t psyched about this adventure. Which 12-year-old wants to spend three years on a small boat with his parents? Boreas wants to hang out with his friends, go to soccer games, start high school after summer break. But he has no…

Daily Distraction: Do We Need to Pay Facebook?

Posted on January 18, 2014

Veritasium‘s Derek Muller made me think about the value of having a Facebook Fan Page. How does that page contribute to an online presence if you have to pay for every post to be seen by your fans? Fans that already have said they’d like to see your page. Even a page like Veritasium with over 109K fans and a lot of interaction sees his views drop by the day.

Do authors need to pay to reach their fans? Or should they concentrate on writing good books?

Bart Moeyaert: Introspection as a state of motion

Posted on November 22, 2012

Bart Moeyaert is one of the most famous, if not the most famous of writers in the Dutch language. He writes novels and short stories, for adults and children alike. I love his work, I love his thoughts, I love the way he provokes thoughts. We had the privilege of having him teach a masterclass at our school, early November. If you are looking for inspiration… you will find it with him. Sit back and listen to his address at TEDxFlanders, where he talks about silence and introspection.

Scary Stuff

Posted on August 9, 2011

The 40th Summer Conference of the SCBWI is over. I’m at the airport lounge looking out over the airport, seeing friends leave the hazy city that shimmers in the background. It makes me sad that I have to leave, knowing that it will take quite a while before I will see most of my friends and my mentors again. While writers work in solitude and –usually– love the quietness, just like I do, there is nothing more energizing than being around kindred spirits. We’ve shared a lot these past week: break-throughs, new publications, leaps-forward, staggering discoveries, stirring workshops, riveting keynotes and above all continuing friendships and the making of new ones. Being at the conference as the Regional Advisor of the Netherlands chapter was…