Formatting a Picture Book

Ever see a slush pile in an editor's office?  We hear the horror stories - so how does one get their manuscript to stand out?  With so many manuscripts waiting to be read, it doesn't take much of a reason for an editor to reject a manuscript.  The wrong manuscript formatting shows a lack of professionalism and an editor will be quick to set it aside.  So if you're new to the field, how do you know the proper format?  Kathy Temean has this post on her blog that gives us the expert's knowledge from Simone Kaplan of The Picture Book People.    Check out the post and set your worries aside!

April Showers, May Flowers, and June Writing!

Wow - June is normally filled with graduations, end-of-school parties, report cards, track and getting ready for the beach.  But this year, in addition to all those happy events, June was filled with two fantastic writing events.  I had the pleasure of attending the Highlights Foundation "Concentrated Course in Nonfiction".  Peter Jacobi led a terrific workshop packed with information on how to interview your subject, bibliographies, writing magazine articles and much more.  The three days were filled with wonderful meals, meeting the Highlights staff, discussing ideas, country living, and long walks through the woods.  We each had our own cabin surrounding the "Barn".  This is country living at its best!  Everyone I know who has attended on of the various Highlights workshops has all good things to say about the experience.  And I can't say enough about the Highlights folks - every one of them is gracious, professional and down-to-earth.  Kent Brown has built a great new facility to encourage and develop aspiring authors and those perfecting their craft.  Check out the Highlights writing workshops and put it on your bucket list for this year. 

The next weekend I jumped right into the SCBWI-NJ conference in Princeton, NJ.  Kathy Temean, Regional Advisor, really knocked herself out this time!  Over 300 attendees, 30 editors/agents, numerous publishing houses and literary agencies and scores of workshops.  Keynote speaker was Kate DiCamillo, author of Because of Winn-Dixie.  Workshops ranged from the basic "How to Write a Query Letter" to "Developing Your Book Into an App". I followed the nonfiction track and participated in workshops on What is a Book Packager?,  Making a Living as a Freelance Writer, Creating Apps for Your Book, and Meeting Academic Standards.  Check out Kathy Temean's blog for interviews with the editors/agents who attended the conference and a summary of the workshops.  We all left feeling inspired and spent the rest of June writing!

So You're Writing a Picture Book? Um, That Might Be a Magazine Article

In this post by Institute of Children's Literature author Christine Kohler gives us all the important details on how to tell if your work is a picture book or magazine article.  The line can be vague and authors can spin their wheels marketing a picture book that might be a fantastic (and contracted quickly!) magazine article.  But how do you know?  Kohler's article gives us specific pointers:  how many illustration possibilities?  Are the illustrations moving your manuscript forward?  Is it horizontal or vertical?  What is the word count?  After reading the post, you'll look at your manuscript with new eyes and more possibilites.   Check out the post here.  And thanks to Mentors for Rent for posting the article on Facebook. 

Freelance Writing? Check out this site!

You might be doing a lot of freelance writing and editing, like yours truly.  Freelance covers everything from submitting to magazines, authoring a book for an educational publisher or perhaps copywriting for the business arena.  The advantages of freelance include quicker pay and a variety of topics.  Brian Scott, http://www.freelancewriting.com/ provides constant updates on available jobs.  As an added bonus, Brian recently posted a flowchart titled "How I Find Freelance Jobs".  It's excellent!  Check out the flowchart here.  Thanks Brian!  

Looking for a Picture Book Agent?

If you are writing picture books, there is a good chance that you are feeling frustrated in today's market.  But here is the good news - the picture book market is turning around!  Sure, the competition is stiff, but doesn't that make you write a BETTER picture book?  We all benefit.  With downloadable apps, school visits, and interactive books, the picure book market is developing better opportunities for creativity. And if you want to start with an agent, SCBWI NJ Regional Advisor Kathy Temean has this agent list on her blog that directs you to the folks that are accepting picture book manuscripts.  Go for it! 

SCBWI Winter Conference - Get In On the Action!

Miss the annual SCBWI winter conference in NYC this year?  Lucky for you, updates on the fabulous editors, agents and authors are available on the SCBWI link.  Live bloggers gave us the details, interviews and action happening on stage and behind the scenes.  Check out the page for what's happening in the industry.  Are you writing what is marketable?  What will help YOU get published?

Highlights: Writing for Magazines, Fiction and Non-fiction

I love writing for Highlights Magazine, and with over 2 million subscribers, who wouldn't want to get their name in print with this well-known magazine?  So how do you craft articles that Highlights, National Geographic Kids, BabyBug and Cobblestone will accept?  What do they want to see?  How about their current needs?  Highlights has the answer for you with their March workshop: Writing for Magazines, Fiction and Non-fiction.  The all-star cast includes editors from National Geographic Kids, Highlights, and the Cobblestone Publishing Group.  Mark your calendars and get ready to submit!

December: A busy month of school visits!

When you author a Christmas book, you have to expect a crazy month of school visits, Christmas bazaars and book signings, right? December 2011 proved to be just as busy as past years - and that's good news for me! I'm blessed with all the new friends I met through my school visits. The kids asked great questions, I lunched with budding authors, teachers/principals/parents were extraordinarily gracious. Thanks to all who shared their Christmas season with me. You've brought me great joy. Below are two of the school reviews:

St. Catherine of Sienna, Reading, PA - Jeannine told the story in such a beautiful, poetic way....I felt like Mary was talking to me! What a wonderful gift she brought to all of us with her soothing voice, wonderful story and the amazing illustrations. I wish that all children could be as lucky as ours were to "hear" Mary's story!

Our Lady of the Assumption, Strafford, PA -

What a wonderful way to start the holiday season. Mrs. Jeannine Norris came to our school and introduced the children to her beautiful book, Tonight You are My Baby: Mary’s Christmas Gift.

The children were riveted as she read the story and it was projected large than life on the whiteboard. Mrs. Norris kept them engaged in the story all the while sharing her experiences with them.
Many of the teachers commented that Mrs. Norris had such a beautiful “way” with the children, just as she has a beautiful way with words. This book and this author are both truly a gift from God.
Patty Welsh Principal, Our Lady of the Assumption Preschool and Kindergarten”Strafford, PA

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm one of those lucky people who have an abundance of blessings. Wonderful family, good friends, laughter and love in my life. But I also count my writing life among my blessings:

* the gift of words

* the schools who have shared their day with me

* the editors who have shaped my writing

* those who have given me opportunities

* the kids who ask questions and tell me I've taught them something

* the gift of sharing the Christmas story

* the schools who have donated to our foundation, At Least Kids

* my critique group who offers support and laughter

* friends who I've met through SCBWI

I am thankful to all of you for sharing my writing life. Happy Thanksgiving!

What's A Writer To Do? Agent Ammi-Joan Paquette Gives Tips on Writing

So much conflicting advice we picture book writers hear ...

* write quality manuscripts, focus on making one better - Wait! - write many manuscripts and find the gem.
* start with a PB manuscript under 500 words - Wait! - write as much as you want to tell the story, THEN cut words
* you must write an original story - Wait! - it has to have a universal theme

What is a writer to do? Agent Ammi-Joan Paquette, a guest blogger on Tara Lazar's website, gives an excellent overview. Ammi-Joan creates a unique perspective, as she's not only an agent, but a picture book and novel author. Check out Tara's website for the skinny....

Inspiration? It's Everywhere!

Tara Lazar is hosting the wonderfully creative Picture Book Idea Month (PiBoIdMo). Each day of November means you come up with an idea. But, Tara is not only creative, she is especially generous :). In return, she is giving us a guest blogger. Day 4, and we have author Joan Reidy (Too Pickley, Too Purpley, Too Princessy, and the newest Light Up the Night). Inspiration for ideas really just comes from looking at the world around us. Stay open to possibilities. Joan talks about a few of her favorites: YouTube videos, newspaper articles, illustrator websites and the "rhythm of life sounds". Check out today's post on Tara's website.

PiBoIdMo is ON!!

Okay my writer friends - Picture Book Idea Month is almost here! The ever-creative Tara Lazar has planned another awesome PiBoIdMo. Her blog is chock-full of interview with agents, editors, prizes, ideas and even critiques! Run, don't walk, to Tara's blog and sign up. One picture book idea, every day, for the month of November. But don't panic - Tara's daily blogs will keep those creative juices flowing. Join me in the fun!

Do You Have Character? Does Your Book?

So you have the perfect picture book character and can't wait to get started on the manuscript. Or maybe you already started writing. Is your character lovable? Memorable? Does she have flaws that make her relatable to kids? Are we getting an inside peek to who the character really is? And how does this move the story along? Character-driven picture books fly off the shelves (think Fancy Nancy), and yet writing them can be as complex as the characters themselves. Highlights is here to help with a special weekend workshop "It's All About the Character". Join Lindsay Barrett George and Kim Griswell for a fall weekend in the poconos, as you learn the importance of page turns, moving the character forward and catching an editor's eye. Find out how to make the reader love your character as much as you do.

Looking for an agent? What a website will tell you...

Harold Underdown, editor of the Purple Crayon Website and author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Publishing Children's Books, understands the dilemma in searching for the right agent. In his blog post, Harold gives a great overview on what to look for when perusing agency websites. Harold narrows it down:

Impressions
Qualifications
Clients
Terms
Conclusions

His case study of Adams Literary Agency, a well-respected children's literary agency, gives the reader insight to carry forward when reviewing other websites.

Hurry, hurry, hurry to a New Jersey SCBWI event!

Many of my writer friends have been to the NJ SCBWI events. For those of you who are interested, but not quite sure which event is best for you, Kathy Temean gives a wonderful overview. Kathy is the regional advisor for the NJSCBWI chapter. She and Laurie Wallmark work dilligently to provide members with a slew of interesting workshops, first page sessions, intensives and the annual conference. They provide wonderful access to top-notch editors, agents and art directors. You simply can't get this opportunity elsewhere. So, what is best for you? The networking dinners? First page sessions (which led to the publication of my book)? The writer's intensives? Check out Kathy's blog for a description of the events. Just a warning though...it's hard to choose just one!

Would you like to see your picture book in a million Cheerios boxes?

Did you enter the Cheerios New Author writing contest? 2011 was the fifth year that Cheerios/Simon & Schuster held a writing contest for previously unpublished picture book writers. The winning prize was $5,000 cash and a book published by Simon & Schuster!

My friend, Tara Lazar (The Monstore, Alladin/Simon & Schuster, 2013) interviewed winner Laurie Isop. Laurie won the Cheerios New Author contest in 2009 and her book debuted this July in a million Cheerios boxes. Wow - talk about an introduction!

Laurie explains the process and talks about her idea for How Do You Hug a Porcupine? A great premise, and the idea was born while chatting around the dinner table.

Check out Tara's interview with Laurie and you'll be inspired to enter the next Cheerios New Author contest too! Good luck!

Does Your Book Title Pop?

If you are like most writers, your head is full of book titles. Titles may seem to be the easy part, and the title is often the impetutus for writing the book. But does your book title stand out? Jan Fields, Institute of Children's Literature, has an interestesting article on the art of book titles. Jan has broken it down into several categories:


* Titles Are Not Labels

* Titles Should Be True-ish

* Titles Need Memorable 'Oomph"

* Bait And Switch With Care



Check out the article in Institute of Children's Literature, and use your title to tempt the buyers.

NJ SCBWI Conference and Industry Report

As always, the June NJ SCBWI conference was FANTASTIC! Kathy Temean, Laurie Wallmark and the gang do a terrific job. The days are full of interesting workshops, a great line-up of editors/agents, brainstorming, the chance to catch up with old friends, and meet new ones. Each year, David Carumba presents an industry report. This year, Kathy Temean has graciously provided an overview of David's report on her blog.

A quick look at the questions asked of 30 editors and agents:

* what are editors buying?
* the current trend? new trends?
* the impact and crossover appeal of YA?
* how does the bankruptcy of Borders affect the market?

Check out Kathy's blog for the details.

Happy July!

Is Your Picture Book Character Flawed?

Rob Sanders writes a terrific blog on the art of picture books. In this post, he describes the necessity of a flawed character who makes a reader feel connected. The interview with Tammi Sauer (who has 5 picture books debuting just in 2012!) describes the three characteristics http://robsanderswrites.blogspot.com/ that Tammi thinks are essential to picture book characters: active, relatable and flawed. Check out the post and take the quiz. Have you perfected the imperfect?

Highlights Gallant Kid: June Issue

I'm happy to announce that my article, Gallant Kid: Katie Stagliano appears in the June issue of Highlights Magazine. Katie is AMAZING! It all started with one seedling. Katie planted the cabbage seed as part of a school program - that one seedling grew into a 40 lb. cabbage! She donated the cabbage to a homeless shelter, and launched her dream of Katie's Krops. Katie now has seven gardens and has donated over 5,000 pounds of vegetables to shelters and soup kitchens. A team of volunteers assists in watering, weeding and finding land for more gardens. Check out her website http://www.katieskrops.com/ for a good dose of inspiration. As Katie said, "We can make a huge difference in the fight against hunger."