Write This Down

by Claudia Mills

An aspiring young writer wins a contest with an essay that is a little too personal in this middle grade novel from "master of the school story" Claudia Mills.

Twelve-year-old Autumn loves to write, and she can't wait to grow up and be a published author. She finds inspiration all around her, but especially in Cameron, the dreamy boy in her journalism class who she has a major crush on. When her older brother Hunter makes fun of one of her most personal poems―about Cameron―Autumn decides to prove that she is talented enough to become a published author.

But when her essay about Hunter wins a contest, and her dream of being published is finally within reach, Autumn has to decide whether being a real writer is worth the cost of sharing her family's secrets and hurting people she loves.

This touching story is sure to resonate with readers and prove that the heart is mightier than the pen. A great selection for preteens and aspiring writers.

A Margaret Ferguson Book

Praise for Write this Down :

"In a believable slice-of-life story, Mills (the Nora Notebooks series) writes eloquently of sibling rivalry, dreams turned sour, hard choices, and the insecurities that come with entering adolescence. Readers, especially younger siblings and budding writers, will easily identify with Autumn’s plights." ― Publishers Weekly

“Mills does a good job of showing the turbulence of being a preteen. The central focus of the novel is the sibling relationship . . . The girl’s pain and confusion over being pushed away by an older sibling are honest and relatable . . . Realistic situations and a nuanced protagonist make this a recommended purchase.” ― School Library Journal

Genres: Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Writing, Family, Juvenile, Friendship, Childrens

272 pages, Paperback

First published September 26, 2016

About the author

Claudia Mills is the author of Nixie Ness, Cooking Star, 7 x 9 = Trouble!, Zero Tolerance, Write This Down, and many other books for children. She was born in New York City in 1954. She received her bachelor's degree from Wellesley College, her master's degree from Princeton University, and a Ph.D. in philosophy from Princeton University. She also received an M.L.S. degree from the University of Maryland, with a concentration in children's literature. She had a second career as a professor of philosophy at the Colorado at Boulder, until leaving that career in 2014 to write full time. She now teaches in the graduate program in children's literature at Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia. All of her books have been written between 5 and 7 in the morning while drinking Swiss Miss hot chocolate.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/claudi...

Reviews

[Michelle Stimpson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I'd had this book when I was twelve.

[Vicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a sweet story that builds beautifully. Autumn seems like a pretty privileged kid, raised by two well intentioned parents. Not much conflict there, it would seem, and yet the conflicts grow slowly and steadily. Autumn's older brother has turned into a mean, volatile teenager, Autumn is a writer going through some craft growing pains. It all pays off really well, and it's nice to watch this girl grow up a little bit.

[Brittany · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish a book about a young writer (was me!) who has a weird relationship with her drummer brother (also was me!!) wasn’t tarnished by slut shaming and fat shaming and subtle racism, oh my!
Bummer. Really. Cause it was otherwise pretty good.

[Reina Tan · Rating 5 out of 5]

⚠ subjective opinion || 4.5⭐
° ° °

Opening words: I LOVE THIS BOOK

I picked Write this Down on Bid Bad Wolf Indonesia because of impulsive. I bought it with my beloved twin sister but different ages also parents, Ci Olive. We planned to read it together and we finished today. We love this book so much.

I have so many reasons why I love this book that much!

first
I love the family theme. Mills wrote the strongest family story in middle grade books that I've ever read. How broken parents when their child yell at them. How messed up a family when a child always being a denial.

Ugh, I lost words because I was too excited with this book 😂

second: the characters development
Autumn is twelve. And Hunter, her brother is fifteen. And they have their own characters like the way a puberty progress. To be honest, I almost hate Hunter for being such annoying child. But, if we see the puberty things, fifteen years old is the place when a person getting temperamental 😂

But still, I don't like the way he diss his sister, and his parents.

third: a common things that can be found in our daily life
I can easily into the story. It was simple, yet so familiar. This book was such a comfortable read! I love the ending. The typical cutie problem solving between a brother and sister relationship.

Ah, really. Why this book doesn't have much attention? 😭

Anyway, if you asked me about the minus things, I only can say...

I don't know 😂😂

[Carolina Colleene · Rating 2 out of 5]

Language – PG (3 swear, 0 “f”), Mature Content – G; Violence – G; Nothing is going right for Autumn anymore: her brother, Hunter, was the best brother ever a few months ago, but is now unkind at every turn; her dream of becoming a writer was no question, until she sent in some of her work and started receiving rejection after rejection; and her secret crush may now know that she’s in love with him. With problems like these, what is a twelve-year-old to do?
As I was reading, I felt connected to Autumn and her problems that seem so overwhelming as a middle schooler; however, now that I’m finished, I’m not sure I can pinpoint the main idea of her story. The struggle the resonated with me most is the fear of being passionate and having a dream, but becoming discouraged with every step forward. Autumn is used to praise and encouragement for the things she writes, so, when the rejection starts, it’s hard for her to adjust—it’s easier to quit. I admire her courage to continue, even when her dream became more difficult to achieve.
Reviewed for http://kissthebook.blogspot.com/

[Hanis Amanina · Rating 4 out of 5]

http://www.hanisamanina.com/2019/12/w...

The book is about a twelve-year-old Autumn, who was closed to her brother, Hunter when they were young. But Hunter who is going through a rebellious, trying-to-find-his-own-path phase, keep on doing stuffs that annoyed Autumn and frustrating their parents.

Hunter is not into academics and sports, while Autumn is excellent in at least academics and kinda acceptable in ballet so Hunter felt left out when the parents seem not to understand his passion and keep on pushing him to do stuffs he dislike.

Autumn has a crush on Cameron, a friend in her journalism class. Cameron is actually a brother of David, where David is Hunter's band mate. There was one day where Hunter and his band mates accidentally read Autumn's poems for Cameron and since then Hunter keep on making fun of her sister for the cheesy lines. Since then, Autumn is passionate on getting her writing to be published to prove Hunter that her talent is not that bad.

There were ups and downs for Autumn to be a recognized writer. At first, the story line was bit boring for me as it shows how Autumn as a complicated girl, who always think of so many possible results of one specific event. Read the book and you will understand when I said Autumn thinks too much.

"She might even write something about him to show the world what a terrible brother he's turned out to be. But what if publication comes at the cost of revealing painful family secrets? Is being published worth hurting those you love?"


From the book, there are few things I learned.
Oh, I love Autumn's name, anyway, as much as I love the name Summer. :)

1. "Personal essays have a theme. They take the writer's personal experience and find some universal truth in it."

Well, seem this book has a lot to do with writing, these specific sentences remind me of blogging. There were few times, my friends asked me why I love blogging and why exactly I love reading stories of others?

That's the answer, I guess. Reading stories help me to learn new stuffs and at least learn about myself too.

2. When parents get extra irritated, they tend to call their kids by full name.

Little did I know it happened in the Western world too. Haha. When my mother called me by my full name, I know there is something that needs explanation. :D

3. How to write a book review?

In this book, there is a part of Autumn's journalism class that shares about how a review should be. Well, this is a subjective question to me, but the things Ms. Archer, Autumn's teacher described are quite nice to ponder on what good contents should have.

But, still, I am writing reviews my style and I see no problem as I am writing for self reflections and memories. :) Hehe

4. "The pen is mightier than the sword."

Oh myy, this is very true. In this current world we are living, words are obviously something that can soothe someone yet can also kill people. I still remember few patients coming to ED with alleged assault by family member, mentioned that they usually being attacked mentally with those harsh words before the physical assault came into picture.


Enough with four above, I guess. :)

------------

So...

Do Autumn gets to know Cameron at the end? What happen to them?
Do Autumn managed to get her writing published?
What will happen to the relationship between Autumn and her brother, Hunter?
What about their family?

I must say, the ending is cute actually :)

[Kate Simpson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just loved Write This Down, by Claudia Mills. Twelve year old Autumn is spunky and adorable. She wants to be recognized as a famous writer. She wants her relationship with her older brother to stay the way it was before he jumped ahead to being a teenager. And she wants the cute boy who sits next to her in class to think she's a special as she thinks he is. Claudia captures the enthusiasm and dreaminess of being 12, the power of a great best friend, and the difficulty we all face when a dream come true can hurt someone we love. Told with humor, wit and skill, I disappeared quickly and willing into Autumn's universe and returned a wiser woman. I highly recommend this book.

[Jennybug · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book a lot. It would be a really good book for kids to read to help them discuss feelings they are having in their family. There were quite a few quotes I really liked in this book.

Pg 1 "Please don't annoy the writer. She may put you in a book and kill you."

Pg 25 "What do modern poets have against rhyme? It gives a poem structure. It delights the ear. Robert Frost, who wrote that famous poem about stopping by the woods on a snowy evening, said writing poems without rhyme is like playing tennis without a net."

Pg 45 "Heart banging around like a tennis ball in a dryer. Great line. But as often happens when an especially wonderful line springs into my head, I have a bad feeling I read it in a book somewhere."

Pg 73 "Have a good day --or not. The choice is yours."

Pg 234 "When you're in a family, it's not clear where one person's story begins and another person's story ends."
This quote is one of my favorites. Our stories are so closely intwined. Who is to say what parts of the story only belong to you?

Very good book.I loved the ending.

[Jtimko · Rating 4 out of 5]

Autumn is an aspiring writer. She pens poems to her classmate Cameron on whom she has a crush. But when her brother Hunter reads one of her poems to his band (one of the members is Cameron’s brother), disaster occurs. Autumn vows revenge and enters a writing contest to retaliate. She wins but must decide if the revenge is worth exposing family secrets that are better kept hidden.
Claudia Mills has done an excellent job exploring the changes that occur in the middle and high school societies. The relationship between Autumn has changed and the angst that she feels is realistic. The writing is compassionate and heart-warming. Her persistence in her writing is encouraging as she continues to pen poems. Her discovery of Cameron’s talent is enlightening. This is an entertaining book that middle schoolers will enjoy and be able to relate to realistically. Highly recommended for grades 5 (mature) through 8.

[Maura · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this middle grades book about an aspiring writer, I found the most interesting and worthy plotline in the story of her older brother, a lackluster student with a passion for music who had morphed from a happy-go-lucky screwup into a hostile, mean older brother to the protagonist, Autumn. I was less interested in Autumn herself and even less interested in the fiction she described writing, but I found the depiction of her brother's hostility to be pitch perfect, especially in the thin veneer over a deep well of pain that his parents and sister can't recognize. What caused him so much pain was realistically depicted, as was his parents' very human mistake in causing him pain. It is entirely plausible to me that it would have been the source of his dramatic mood changes, and I enjoyed how it was resolved. Autumn's story itself was...meh. Her maturation over the course of the book was satisfying, but I'm not sure how much a middle grades audience will enjoy it.

[Courtenay · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I enjoyed a number of things about this book - the family conflict, Autumn's very best friend being so supportive (and also protective) of her friend's feelings, but there were some character traits that didn't quite feel realistic to 12 years old. For one, what modern kid LIKES old black-and-white movies? And who knits at 12?

I get the challenge of writing about a high school brother and middle-school sister; Mills does this pretty well but Autumn feels more like 8 in some ways and 15 in others. Tough to find the balance. As a writer, I love all nuances about the challenges of writing seen through a 12-year-old's eyes.

The ending feels like Autumn's transformation (the trifecta of storylines being her crush, Cameron, her anger toward her estranged brother, and her passion for being an outstanding writer) came about too quickly (won't reveal more due to spoiling the story). So while I hate to give this a 3 - it's better than that - I can't quite give it 4 stars.

[Pubudini Jayakody · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book in Big Bad Wolf Sri Lanka this month. I read the sample a little and I knew I would buy it.
Autumn and I had so much similarities (Writing, imagining thing , love towards her brother, but not the crush thing bcz Cameron is not totally my type). I had a similar problem she had with Hunter few years back. So I knew Hunter would be alright. And when I was reading I was not me anymore; I was Autumn who was trying to figure things out. I knew what I would do, and that's exactly what Autumn did at the end. I was glad that Autumn had such a friend like Kylee. And totally I loved everything in this book.
I'm eargerly waiting to read ZERO TOLERANCE by Claudia Mills. I hope that would be a blast too.❤

[Merrilyn Tucker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Autumn, a 12-year-old, has two loves: writing and a boy named Cameron. When Autumn's brother, Hunter, shows the love poems Autumn's written to Cameron to all of his bandmates, she is devastated. How could her beloved big brother do that to her? He used to be her favorite person and he is pure evil now, evidenced by this latest meanness and betrayal. Autumn's best friend sticks with her through all of the travails she goes through, trying to get published in the New Yorker, trying to win Cameron's love, and hating Hunter. The story ends satisfactorily with peace between Autumn and Hunter, and Cameron definitely sidelined.

[Katy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars. I ended up liking this book better than I thought I would. The protagonist has a voice that, while realistic of a girl her age, just annoyed me and made me keep putting the book down. Once I finally got about a quarter of the way into the book, it was easier to pick up and read in larger segments. Despite my dislike of the the character's voice and how she feels she's deserving of being the best and winning everything, I do think the book has a good message about there being more to people than you see, words matter and can't be erased, and a few other life lessons that didn't feel too forced and that I didn't think this book would actually have that level of depth to it.

[Rikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read alikes:
Rhyme Schemer by Holt
Free Verse by Dooley
Paper Things by Jacobson

Questions:
Who wrote the song that Autumn thought Cameron wrote?
Her brother Hunter
What did Autumn's friend Kylee do for the animal shelter?
She knitted sweaters for dogs
Where was Paradox's first paid gig?
At the Southern Peaks school dance
What does Autumn say to Hunter before she leaves for the dance?
"I wish you were dead."

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book. I loved how much the main character is dealing with--a boy she kind of likes, her problemmatic teenage brother, and jealousy. Along with learning about her love for writing, and disappointment, and persistence. I especially love how, at the end of the book, she realizes that she loves writing most of all, more even than her best friend, who she loves more than the boy she thought she liked.

Go, Claudia Mills! Thank you so much for your work.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.6 stars? I always like Claudia Mills for the old-school family + friendships middle-grade low-grade drama. This one gets almost too cringey sometimes, being about a 12-year-old aspiring writer who's working on developing self-awareness but is painfully not quite there yet. But it's nice, in the end, to watch her grow.

[Athena Condray · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a wonderful book it was a very relatable book I feel if you have siblings (which I don’t) but it gave me more of a view of siblings and what it is like to have an older sibling... She makes me understand the struggles of writing stories because my dream is to be an author and she shows to never give up your dreams. Good for all ages!

[Stacy · Rating 4 out of 5]

First of my 10 possible RC pics for 2020. Loved it. Great story about a seventh grade girl who is feeling disconnected with her brother, now is high school, who is dealing with his own personal issues. Autumn loves writing and finds comfort in it, but she also needs and wants readers who will love and appreciate her writing. Very realistic, plus some good writing advice!

[Jeni · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was a great book. Very relatable to preteens. The struggles the main character faces are very understandable and, besides her best friend, everyone in the book is realistically flawed. (Sidenote: I don't think it should have been chosen for the 2018-19 Charlie May Simon nominee books. It's better for 6th and up. Nor will it be appealing to both girls and boys.)

[Luisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you like books about siblings rivalry I think Write this Down is the right book for you. This juvenile fiction was written by Claudia Mills. Twelve-year-old Autumn wants more than anything to be a real author, but when she wins a contest by writting something too personal about her brother, she has to decide if her dreams are more important than their relationship.

[ARNOLD · Rating 5 out of 5]

don't judge the book by recommended age(10-12). Many books are written by testimonies of the redemptive storyline of the prodigals but too few are written from the struggles of the "good kids".
The story is sweet and honest. It has a simple and familiar conflict but successfully gives an impact - saying, this is a huge deal for me and people like me.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book begins so boring and stale but hang in there and keep reading! It has really good ending! Too bad the author didn’t listen to her own advice about starting a novel and create a better beginning.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great old fashioned story about love and family and pursuing your life's dreams. Brothers and sisters may argue and hurt each other deeper than anyone can, but in the end they are family and family comes first.
It's always good to hear from Claudia Mills who gave us Gus and Grandpa.

[Riddhi_345 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very inspiring realistic fiction book. I love the characters and plot line. Mills did a wonderful job of including many different elements in the writing piece. I loved how relatable it could be, even if you're not a writer.

[Renee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book but it seemed more like a book for middle school and wasn't for the elementary level I was looking for. (boy-crazy main character)

[Victoria Kimble · Rating 4 out of 5]

The main character is someone you want to root for. Mills captured the voice of the adolescent girl perfectly.

[Mia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. I don't usually like books with this much romance in them, but this one is an exception.

Autumn loves to write, especially about the cute boy she has a crush on who is in her journalism class. When her brother finds one of her poems about the boy and reads it out loud she is humiliated and mad. She wants to prove to her brother that her writing isn't as stupid as he thinks it is, but all the places she submits her writing reject it. When her writing finally is picked to be published she has to decide whether or not letting them publish it is the right decision.

[E. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm diving into MG for the first time in years and I'm not sure where to start. The voice for this book was spot on for the age and content but just not for me.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

❤️