Randall Platt

THE LIKES OF ME

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SILVER MEDAL - Willa Literary Award

Cordelia Lu Hankins is half-Caucasian, half Chinese - and all albino. She has grown up isolated from the world, with her distant father and a giant stepmother named Babe (after Paul Bunyan’s blue ox), in a remote lumber town in the Pacific Northwest. She is convinced she is ugly and that her father has deliberately hidden her away. Then in the summer of 1918, when she is fourteen, she meets the dashing Squirl. Squirl is charming and handsome, and Cordy falls desperately in love with him. But her father forbids her to go near Squirl. One day they meet on the mountain and Cordy receives her first kiss, as well as a wild ride down a log flume that gets Squirl fired.

Determined to follow Squirl, Cordy runs away. She begins an exciting adventure that takes her to the sideshows of Seattle’s Luna Park, where her unusual looks bring her fame. But her journey also brings tragedy in this through-provoking coming-of-age novel. Randall Platt has created an original, resourceful teenage heroine with a strong voice and a gutsy determination to make her way in the world.

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Reviews

"The Likes of Me is both a lyrical fairy tale and an intriguing coming of age story that is engrossing from the first page."
--- Teenreads

"Cinderella trades her prince for the determination to choose her own shoes in this brawling bildungsroman."
---Kirkus

"This is an original, creative story, and Cordelia is an unusual, engaging heroine."
--- The Book Report

"The eccentric cast is finely sketched from start to finish...A satisfying story of self-acceptance."
--- Publishers Weekly

TEN CHANGES I'VE MADE TO BOOST MY CREATIVITY

STOPPED LISTENING TO AUDIO BOOKS - I love being read to, but I can't think about MY stories while listening to someone else's story. So, unless it's a long, boring drive or flight, I no longer listen to audio books. Instead, I think about my current project.
CREATE MY OWN SOUNDTRACK - I create IPod "soundtracks" for my own work in progress. I create a playlist of the tunes which inspire my story and characters.
CUT BACK ON THE FREE ADVICE - I am the sort who will stop and talk to anyone, anywhere about anything. So I don't answer letters or phone calls, but will zap a quick email instead.
SET REALISTIC GOALS - Just because I CAN write fast, does not mean I should, so I no longer try to get it written in two months.
FEWER GROUPS AND FORUMS - I used to belong to several writers forums, clubs and newsgroups, but now only belong to a few and I open my yap only when I have something important to add.
PICK MY BATTLES - Too many things far outside of my control were taking control of my time and mental energies. So, I write fewer letters, join fewer campaigns and stick to the business at hand - being a writer.
TOOK COMPUTER GAMES OFF MY COMPUTER - A minute here and a minute there adds up to vanished hours. I now play only ONE game a day - and that is a crossword puzzle the first thing in the morning to make my head come to life.
CUT BACK ON INTERNETING - Well, if you have read this far, maybe you need to do the same thing. Nah, just joking. Keep Reading. Number 10 scores!
TAKE WORK AND MUSIC EVERYWHERE - I am never without my work-bag. The time we spend waiting adds up. So, even if there is a ghost of a chance that I will be kept waiting wherever I go, I know I will fill that time with work.
TAKE SUNDAYS OFF - Okay, as you can see from the above nine items, I am a workaholic and it's taken me many, many years to realize I need one day to recharge, rethink and reset. Sunday is for family, food, reflection, and many times, sipping champagne. So when 4 am Monday rolls in, I am set for another week.... providing there hasn't been too much of that champagne thing.