School's out! Many libraries sponsor summer reading programs and offer summer reading lists for all ages. I thought I'd compile one of my own: a summer book list for middle grade readers. Publishers aim the middle grade genre at children ages eight through twelve who are looking for more challenging reading.

My daughter and I collaborated on the recommendations. I contributed some older, tried-and-true classics while she shared more modern titles:

• The Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg
• Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
• The Wrinkle in Time series by Madeline L'Engle
• Blood on the River by Elisa Carbone
• The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
• Old Yeller by Fred Gipson
• Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
• The Giver by Lois Lowry
• Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper
• The Lemonade War series by Jacqueline Davies
• Rules by Cynthia Lord
• The Chronicles of Prydain series by Lloyd Alexander
• Anything at all written by Kate DiCamillo

And here's some interesting nonfiction:

• Bomb by Steve Sheinkin
• Chasing Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson
• World Without Fish by Mark Kurlansky
• Girls Who Looked Under Rocks: The Lives of Six Pioneering Naturalists by Jeannine Atkins

Encourage your children to keep reading over the summer. A paperback is a trusty companion that can go just about anywhere.

For more about summer reading programs in your area, check with your public library. Many libraries use themes and materials from the Collaborative Summer Library Program (CSLP) or the Illinois Reading Enrichment and Development (iREAD) program.

If you have other books to recommend, please list them in the Comments section. My daughter is always looking for new favorites, and I'd love to hear from you.

What's at stake? Playwrights and authors of screenplays are always aware that each scene must answer that crucial question. A character must want something and take action to get it.

No scene in a tightly written script can afford to be merely exposition or a character study. Something should always be at stake. Sometimes novelists and short story writers need that reminder. We know that the whole work is an arc in which a protagonist grows or changes, but each individual chapter, scene, and interaction should have something at stake too.

After you've written your first draft, examine each interaction between characters. Ask these questions:

• Who wants something? More than one character in an interaction can want something. They may want opposing things or at least different things.
• What does each character want? If you're having trouble answering, perhaps the scene is too expository or driven by the demands of the plot. Rethink the interaction. Who wants what?
• Why do the characters want that?
• Does what the character wants make sense for that character? The answer determines if the character's desires and actions are integral or forced on the character by the plot.
• What does the character do to get what he or she wants? Remember, actions drive a story.
• What happens if the character doesn't get it? Are there consequences? If not, then why should the reader care about the outcome of this particular interaction?
• Do the characters get what they want? If so, the scene is over unless new desires crop up. (Or the scene can pivot. Sometimes getting what you want is the worst thing that can happen.) If a character doesn't get what he or she wants, then the character should try a new tactic to get it.

If two or more characters enter a scene, use the questions above to make sure that something interesting happens. Grab and hold the reader's attention by having something at stake in every interaction. 

All stories begin when something happens. Somebody has to do something. Those "somethings" become the plot, which carries the story in an arc to a climax and the end. So where to begin? How does a writer go about constructing a compelling, believable plot? I decided to ask someone who writes in a genre that demands twisty, complicated plots. Laurinda Wallace, author of the Gracie Andersen mystery series, shared her thoughts about plot construction.

Laurinda says that plotting for her begins with the seed of an idea. For her third mystery set in western New York, Laurinda wanted something quirky, combined with something native to the setting. She came up with UFO sightings and windmill farms.

Next, she works on the murder. She imagines a murder victim and why someone would want to kill that person. Her conclusions lead her to flesh out the murderer. For Laurinda, murders (and mysteries) are "all about relationships." She starts with the murder and the people involved, building the plot from there.

After she's churned ideas in her head for a few weeks, she may run her plot by someone else. Laurinda says a brainstorming partner can be helpful. That person could be a fellow writer or a friend who acts as a sounding board. A brainstorming partner can point out inconsistencies and ask questions, showing the writer where the story is confusing.

The hardest part of plotting for Laurinda comes after the main plot is hammered out. She has to develop all the subplots, twists, and red herrings, and then find the right place for them in the narrative.

If plotting an entire novel seems too daunting, Laurinda advises writers to start with the plot of a short story instead. "It's easier to carry a plot over 20 pages instead of 270," she notes, "and it's a great way to see how you can move a story."

Laurinda Wallace is the author of two Gracie Andersen mysteries, Family Matters and By the Book and working now on the third one in the series, called Fly by Night. She has also written a novel, The Time Under Heaven, and a 30-day devotional called Gardens of the Heart.