Hurray! It's Wednesday! That means it's time for everybody's favorite game... duhn-duhn, duhn-duhn - (dramatic music!) Would You Read It!
Now, I know a lot of you authors out there are up to your eyebrows in WriteOnCon (which is totally awesome, BTW, and if you haven't checked it out you owe yourself a trip over there to see what's up!), but surely you will have a moment around midnight, or at least mid-afternoon Thursday while you're refilling your tea cup, or certainly by Friday when WriteOnCon is over, to help out this week's Would You Read It contender! And parents, teachers, and librarians - this is your chance to get your two cents in before the writers :)
This week's entry comes to us from Paul, a New York City area art director who is quite new to the world of writing children's books and will be grateful for any pointers you can give him.
Here it is:
Title: The Big Red Boat
Genre: Picture Book Series entitled Adventures With Benjamin Blueberry and Wally The Goat.
The Pitch: Wally the Goat is steering the boat... Look at him go around that duck and through the waves. He sure is saving the day.
So. Would You Read It? YES, MAYBE, or NO?
If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest. If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Paul improve his pitch. Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome. (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful. I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)
Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks! For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on the Would You Read It tab in the bar above. (I figured y'all would get tired of me rewriting the same paragraph every week about the rules of the game so I put them up there :))
Paul is eager to hear your thoughts on his pitch!
I'm not sure, I think I need to know a little more, so I guess that makes me a maybe, because obviously I'm interested.
ReplyDeleteYes. I'm interested, and I think the toddler that I read with now would love it, especially if you added in a choo choo. Is Benjamin Blueberry a bear? I like rhyming books, they are fun to read and great for the kids, even if they don't follow all of the pb 'rules'. Go for it, Paul!
ReplyDeleteMaybe. I like the rhyming, but need to know a little more about Wally and what he wants.
ReplyDeleteCynthia, Jenny and Natasha - thanks for your comments so far! I'm hoping Paul will get a chance to check in and maybe give us a little more info since everybody seems to want more.
ReplyDeleteGoats driving boats? I'm in! I'm a sucker for little animals, though. :-)
ReplyDeleteWriteOnCon has been awesome!
EJ
I'm with the others - it sounds great but I'd like some more info - particularly around the situation that Wally is needing to save everyone from. :-)
ReplyDeleteI think it has potential, but I'd recommend eliminating some words (like 'sure') and trying to use words that are a bit more specific. I love the idea that he is steering the boat and having an adventure!
ReplyDeleteE.J., Cally and K - thanks for you comments!
ReplyDeleteThat's cute! But why is he saving the day? Is it a special kind of job or a special kind of boat?
ReplyDeleteOkay I love the idea so I'm totally in, but I think the pitch could be a bit more exciting. Goats in boats avoiding ducks in this crazy etc. is a bit more exciting. I'd like a hint at how he is saving the day too please. What is the problem?
ReplyDeleteSorry I'm a little late to chime in on this. As a kindergarten teacher, I like the potential for rhyme with goat and boat.
ReplyDeleteI know this is a short pitch, but I'd like to know what is unique about this story and will make it stand out. Maybe try to capture more of the conflict of the story in the pitch?
I wrote a rhyming story. My only one. It was fun to write, but I'm worried it sounds a little preachy. I think I would read more of Paul's book if only to find out what's going to happen. Love the boat goat rhyme. I wonder if the rest of the story rhymes as well. Rhyming books are hard to write. The meter has to be just so.
ReplyDelete(I'm late to the party.) *sigh*
Andrea and Robyn - it's never too late to chime in! Thanks for you comments!
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks too to Theresa and Catherine!
Hi All - here are responses from Paul who had trouble posting:
ReplyDeleteCynthia
Thank you for your interest, I will keep you glued.
Jenny
Benjamin Blueberry is a little boy with a blueberry head
and a choo choo is a great direction. Thank you for your response.
Natasha
Wally wants to be rescued, he fell off the boat!
Thanks for the interest and helpful comments.
E.J. Wesley
Thanks E.J. .. my dad just got a bunch of goats on his farm ... thats where Wally came from.
Cally
Wally is just saving Benjamin from the ocean... Benjamin went overboard.
Thanks for you advice and direction
K
Thanks K, I will be more direct with the story... Thanks for your help
Theresa
He is saving the day by saving Bejamin from the water. I see your point, the pitch leaves to much open for conclusions.
Thanks
catherinemjohnson
Thank you for the positive energy and reminding me about who Im writing for. Thanks again
Andrea Mack
Sorry for being so late on my response...
The direct approach seems to be the way to go in the future.
This is just one part in the story ... I should have made that more obvious.
Thank you so much for the comments and direction.
Robyn Campbell
Thanks for the support in my Rhyme . I am eager for everyone to find out what happens.
Special Thanks to Susanna for giving me the opportunity to share my thoughts with the rest of the class. I am so appreciative of all your responses and will keep them all in mind as I continue on my path of Children's Book writing and Illustration.
Sincerely,
Paul