Whilst you are munching your Something Chocolate (might I recommend the pain au chocolat this morning?)
and sipping your coffee, I am wandering around in the Pine Tree State, hopefully not hopelessly lost, as we continue our quest for institutions of higher learning. (The Pine Tree State's connected to the Green Mountain State, right?... Or is it connected to the Granite State?.... Or the maybe the Bay State? Or the hip bone... You know, I put far too much trust in my GPS. She could totally take advantage of me if she wanted to! Her name is Jill, by the way. After all that wondering what to call her, I discovered on the way to Nantucket she already had a name. But I digress...)
So anyway, I have a question for y'all today. And it actually has to do with Would You Read It - can you imagine? An on-topic question? What is the world coming to? :)
What I'm wondering is this:
Are you all happy with the Would You Read It system the way it stands, or do you think people who have pitched should have a chance to enter a new and improved version of their pitch for the pitch pick at the end of the month if they wish? Poll below. (You know how I love polls :)) Please opinionate:
Alrighty then! Now that we've addressed that little issue, it's time for everybody's favorite Wednesday dilemma, Would You Read It!!!
Today's pitch comes to us from the amazing Rita whom I'm sure you all remember from her Elephant And Dolphin Pitch last month, and from her wonderful and helpful post on self publishing Meg The Egg. But in case you somehow missed her bio, Rita says, I have always loved writing letters, plays, stories any thing really since the age of 9. I have 3 kids that have made me stop writing for awhile but now two of them are at university and the youngest is 15. I used to be a dog sitter, an airline hostess and a secretary but now I spend lots of time as storyteller (costumes and strange voices and all) and my most frustrating of jobs: a writer. I write in my basement and I love children, animals and travelling. Teaching children how to read is a parental necessity. My website is www.ritaborg.us
Here's the pitch!
Working Title: What's Wrong With Molly Zwirl
Age/Genre: Chapter Book (ages 6-9)
The Pitch: Molly, an immigrant girl from Europe settling in the USA, is just like the girl with the curl in the middle of her forehead. She tries so hard to be good but when her grandparents come she just has to be bad.
So what do you think? 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 Rita improve her 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 Itor on the Would You Read It tab in the bar above. There are openings in August, which is not very far away at all at this point, so we could really use some new pitches!!
Rita is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!
And I am looking forward to seeing you all on Friday for the next installment of Summer Short & Sweets!
P.S. If you missed Monday's post with the Q&A by editor Erin Molta click HERE - you won't want to miss it! And if you missed Monday's post with the June pitch pick click HERE and let your voting voice be heard! (Those of you who are alert at this hour of the morning may notice that both HEREs lead to the same there, but I'd hate for you to miss anything good :))
Apparently I have too many things to post for the number of post days I have. I have no idea how this happens. I'm usually so reserved with my words :) (I hear you laughing! Don't worry - I couldn't say it with a straight face either :))
ANYWAY, today we have a bit of a smorgasbord.
First, we're a little behind on the June Pitch Pick. See what happens when we all go on vacation? :)
Here is a little refresher:
#1 Laura
Working Title: Uncle Larry
Age/Genre: PB
The Pitch: A true story about Uncle Larry, a special child/adult who grew up on a farm, trained and loved animals, liked to play and work, got into mischief, and taught us how to love someone a little different by loving everyone himself.
#2 Rita
Working Title: Elephant And Dolphin
Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 3-7)
The Pitch: Elephant and Dolphin meet every morning by the sea. But Elephant lives on the land and Dolphin lives in the ocean. Elephant eats grass while Dolphin eats fish. Elephant trumpets and Dolphin clicks. How can these two play together with the differences they have between them? Elephant and Dolphin find out how friendship overcomes everything.
#3 Lori
Working Title: These Little Piggies
Age/Genre: Rhyming Picture Book (ages 4-8)
The Pitch: In this Mother Goose mash-up, five little piggies are living happily in a shoe until a callous old woman forces her way in and turns their lives head over tails. The piggies decide to set a trap for the old woman so, the first little piggy goes to market... the second little piggy stays home... Will they succeed in giving the old coot the boot?
#4 Anna
Working Title: Hug-A-Bug Travels To Egypt
Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 3-8)
The Pitch: Fasten your seat belts and prepare for a high-flying trip with Hug-A-Bug to the famous Giza Pyramids. On his visit, he wows the reader with the exploration of hieroglyphics and Egyptian phrases. During his travels, he meets up with someone who needs a hug. Who will he meet this time?
Please vote below for your favorite by Wednesday July 11 at 11:59PM EDT.
The winner's pitch will go for a read by editor Erin Molta (who is here with us today! - so exciting!)
But hang on for one more second before we get to Erin because I have other exciting news, too - the winners of the giveaways from our generous self-publishing mini-series authors!
And the winners (as chosen by random.org) are.....
For the set of 3 hardcover Gator's Gang picture books from Suzanne McGovern - Catherine J!!!
For a paperback copy of the fabulous Show Me How from Vivian Kirkfield - Beth S!!!
For an e-book of The Adventures Of Lucy Snigglefritz from Patrick Milne - Vivian K!!!
And for a paperback picture book of Meg The Egg from Rita Borg - Erik (I don't know you're last initial :))!!!
Catherine, Beth, Vivian, and Erik, please email me so we can organize book signing and mailing!
And now, the post we've all been looking forward to for some time, our Q&A with the fabulous Erin Molta. Erin is an experienced senior editor of picture book, early readers, chapter, middle grade, and YA books, as well as novelty and licensed titles. She has been in children's publishing for more than twenty years and has a keen understanding of early reader through YA audiences. She has an excellent reputation with established authors, illustrators, and agents. She is currently evaluating manuscripts for publishers as well as freelance editing for prospective authors before submission to publishing houses.
Questions from readers are below in blue, answers from Erin in green.
From Clar: For Erin: I wonder if a ms with monsters and bedtime is has been written about too much and if she would just throw it in the trash without reading the whole pitch or does she think there's a chance for it to go through.
Though it has been done, it’s all in the matter of the telling -- because it’s such a universal topic a fresh take on it is always welcome.
From Coleen: I'm always curious to hear what kinds of manuscripts publishers are buying right now. :)
Ha! They wish they knew! Publishing usually goes in cycles. For a while it was Harry Potter and fantasy. Then there was Twilight and other paranormal-type books. Now it seems, in YA at least,that suspense is the up and coming genre. For middle grade books there doesn’t tend to be such a flocking to the genres and subgenres. Every publisher is looking for the next best thing—the next Harry Potter or Goosebumps, Percy Jackson . . .
From Julie H: I guess I'd have to say my top curiosity right now is whether editors are still finding picture books to be a hard sell and, if so, whether she thinks that will change any time soon.
I think the picture book market is picking up a bit—mostly because it follows the baby booms. And there are more babies now. Even with e-books and Apps, parents still want books to sit down and read to their kids.
From Darshana: Any tips for PB authors (not PB author/illustrator) for writing unique/quirky PB under 300 words. I have noticed a lot of PBs I like are written by author/illustrators that are short on text, where the humor and quirkiness is carried in the pictures. I know I can come up with clever stories however since I am only a PB author, I get nervous about using too many illustrator notes, as that could turn-off an editor.
Illustrator notes don’t necessarily turn off an editor, but they should only be used to point out what may not be obvious from the text—for instance if you are imagining that the characters are animals as opposed to people or if you are envisioning a twist that must be present in the art. No need to describe clothing or setting unless it directly impacts the story.
From Julie R-Z: Questions for Erin: Vocabulary: when and why does an editor like or dislike BIG words (son's 1st gr. teacher called them million dollar words!) in a PB manuscript?
It’s all about appropriateness. If big words further the plot or are essential and are the best word choice for the story, then they are OK. You don’t want to have the story that as a parent etc. is reading they have to stop to explain every 5th word to a child. Then it becomes a vocab lesson and not an enjoyable read. The more important part of writing is not the words themselves but how they are used. If you say Jane is melancholy you are saying she is sad but if you show us why she is sad—“Usually when Jane came home from school, Gramma would be sitting at the table stirring milk into her coffee, reading the historical romances they liked to share. There would be an apple on a plate for Jane. Today there was no Gramma and no paperback book. Just an apple—on a napkin. Jane’s chest felt heavy and her eyes welled up.” You bring the scene alive and a reader will get the melancholy feeling by showing rather than telling.
Cliches: I understand that's a no-no, but when used sparingly is it not appropriate if it can teach apre-schooler about the meaning behind a cliche?
In general do editor's agree on common mistakes or are the peeves more often personal? If so, give us the dirt Erin!
There are no general peeves—but words for the sake of the words as opposed to the story is a common mistake that most editors detest –and typos and spelling mistakes in a query are a no-nofor us all.
From Jarm: I also would like to know what place there is in the publishing world for picture books with more than 800 word counts. I was thinking of PBs for older children on non-fiction topics, that are woven into a story, such as "Amelia and Eleanor Go For A Ride" by Pam Muñoz Ryan.
Any place—again it depends on the editor. Nonfiction normally does lend itself to longer text, but check publisher’s lists and see who tends to publish more nonfiction picture books. Clarion tends to, as does Charlesbridge and smaller presses like Eerdmans and Bearport Publishing.
From Kirsten: I'm most interested in hearing what makes it out of the slushpile (for nonfiction) and why. What are editors looking for on the nonfiction side?
Editors tend to follow the school curriculum so check out a standard curriculum—say 4th graders do the American Revolution and 2nd graders learn about the night sky and maps. Seasonal topics, too—books about apples, pumpkins, and growing things, if done in a fresh unique way, are some popular topics. Animals are popular, too, but again, something new like unusual animal friendships or animals that have strange stories—like a penguin who shows up on a beach in Florida. Cute animals don’t hurt either.
From Penny: a question that I have been wondering about...when I read online in submission guidelines that a publishing house/agent is closed to submissions except for folks they've met at a conference OR REFERRALS FROM OTHER PROFESSIONALS...I always wonder just who all is included in those OTHER professionals. Does it mean just other editors/agents? Can it mean another published author? Does it ever happen that a published someone that runs a critique service happens upon a manuscript they refer onto one of the publishing houses/agents who is closed to submissions except for the circumstances I mentioned.
Yes J A referral from a published author will make it past the editorial assistant’s eagle eyes. It has happened that a published author has recommended someone and they have been published.
From Erik: I would like to know the top three common mistakes writers make and what makes her want to read a MS.
Hmm . . . top three mistakes. #1 is when an author tells the story rather than showing—see above for how describing a scene and making a reader feel the character’s feelings works better than using big words or just saying, Jane was sad. #2 is sending manuscripts full of errors. That’s an immediate turn-off. #3 When an author tells you how their kindergarten class or their kids and kids friends love the manuscript. Of course they do. What kids are going to tell their teacher/parent/grandparent that they DON’T like their story?
I do hope you all enjoyed that as much as I did, and Erin's answers will be helpful to you!
Come on over on Wednesday and help Rita with her MG pitch! Have a great day!
I'm happy to report that we celebrated with homemade blueberry pie and vanilla ice cream (that's white and blue, anyway, even if we a little short in the red department) and watching the fireworks above the valley from my parents' back deck :)
And now, at last, it's finally Friday and time to kick off Summer Short & Sweets!!!
First things first.....
Please help yourself to a beach cookie (or 2 or 5)...
...and some fresh lemonade :)
Ah! Summery :)
And now, the moment you've all been waiting for (or at least the moment I've all been waiting for :)) duhn duhn duhn.... the big unveiling!!!
Just look at this creation of beauty which you may all help yourselves to if you so desire!!! I hope you're able to read the part that says "Writing For Kittens" :) (I also hope that if you need any art work done for any reason you will contact Loni - she does such great art and is a joy to work with :) Same goes for Heather... but more about that in a few weeks... I am all about the surprises up my sleeve :))
Let's start with a brief explanation of SS&S because I'm not actually sure I wrote this down yet anywhere :)
The object of Summer Short & Sweets is to keep our writing oars in even as we are caught up in the happy, busy, outdoor fun of summer. We do not want our writing brains to go on luxury vacation because they are SO hard to jump start when school starts. The Short & Sweets will be little fun exercises we can do together and share to keep those writing sparks flying and to make sure we write a little even while we're playing whiffle ball, backyard volleyball, and frisbee golf, making sure our toddlers don't fall in the pool or get swept away by ocean waves or buried by their older siblings in the sandbox, taking our pre-teens to Little League or Lego Tournaments or tap lessons, teaching our 16-year-olds to drive (I personally am sporting a whole new streak of gray hair, and the imaginary brake on the passenger side of the car is getting quite a workout :)), and tending campfires while we watch the summer sun swim down below the western hills and the fireflies come out (and if you're at my house, watch the marshmallows catch on fire and become charcoal covered goo on a stick :))
Short & Sweets will last for 8 weeks, each Friday from today through Friday August 24. For every Short & Sweet entry you write into the comments you will receive 1 point. You may of course write 2 entries, (or even 3 or 5 or 7 if you are feeling inspired!) At the end of Short & Sweets there will be prizes (which I am still working on) that will be based on the total points for the summer. The minimum number to qualify for a prize will be 8 points - 1 each week of Short & Sweets. If you choose to do more, you can rack up points and I'll make sure you get something good! but you must do at least one each week to qualify. The more points you have, the better the prizes. I'm going to try to get you some critiques as well as signed books and other goodies :) Feel free to let me know if there's something in particular your little hearts desire as a prize.
The other advantage of Short & Sweets? We will all inspire each other's creativity. Once you've put your challenge response in the comments, scroll through everyone else's and see what they came up with. Maybe your own entry won't spark a story idea for you, but maybe someone else's will! (And don't worry - everything will be vague enough that there's no way 2 people will ever write the same story off the same prompt. It just doesn't work that way :))
Now then. Are you ready for some Short & Sweet fun???
Here's today's challenge. We'll start nice and easy :)
In the comment section below, list the first five nouns, the first five adjectives, and the first five verbs that come to mind when you think about either the beach, the town pool, or the local ice cream shop. (And when I say the first five, I just mean don't spend forever on it - you can tweak the words that come to mind into more descriptive ones if you like - run into chase for example - but this whole exercise shouldn't take more than about 2 or 3 minutes.) Then pick one each of your nouns, adjectives and verbs and write a sentence that could start a story!
Here's an example for the beach:
Nouns: shells, waves, sun, seagulls, kite
Adjectives: windy, salty, bright, wet, sandy
Verbs: dig, chase, squeal, laugh, splash
Howard was digging down through the wet sand when his shovel hit something hard that glinted in the sun.
See how easy? Now you try!
And as an example of where you might go with this, if anyone wants to take Howard and run with him while you're lifeguarding at the edge of the pool later or chauffeuring the littles around town, the obvious thing for his shovel to hit would be a pirate's treasure chest, but what if it was something else? An old English car that had somehow crossed the ocean and wound up on Howard's beach... A genie's lamp... A silver medallion with a huge emerald in the center and words in a mysterious language around the edge... A dinosaur scale... that was still attached to the dinosaur!... A giant's gold-capped tooth...! :)
I hope you will think this is Short, Sweet, and fun! I'm really looking forward to seeing what people come up with! And if anyone ends up getting a story idea out of this, please tell us! Any 12x12ers, this might be a great place to start thinking for your July manuscript :)
Have fun, have a great weekend, and please tune in Monday for Q&A with the fabulous editor, Erin Molta!
Thank you all for your patience while I was on vacation! I missed you all dreadfully!
There is nothing like a week away from your desk to make you realize just how fast you can get utterly and completely behind, but being swamped upon return was totally worth 7 days of sun and sand, wind and waves, frisbee and family dinners and flashlight tag and feeding ducklings off the dock, Madagascar III on the only rainy afternoon and marshmallows roasted over a very sketchy-looking grill :) Sometimes I'm really not sure there's anywhere on earth as beautiful as Nantucket...
... but then I get home, and it's so beautiful here too :)
... and I have two little friends who are very glad we're back :) Woof :)
And I am glad to see you all again!
Before we get to our pitch today, I want to remind anyone who hasn't had a chance yet to please take a minute and check out the self-publishing mini-series. Suzanne McGovern, Vivian Kirkfield, Patrick Milne, and Rita Borg generously shared a wealth of hard-won wisdom about their experiences self-publishing, and even more generously donated books for giveaways which you can still qualify for by commenting before Thursday July 5 at 11:59 PM EDT!
Now then, grab your Something Chocolate and get ready for Would You Read It! :)
Today's pitch comes to us from Carrie. She says, I worked in educational software publishing for about 10 years, and wrote content (mostly nonfiction) for children as part of my job. It was wonderful and creative but left me little time or energy for my own writing. Like many parents, my real writing journey began when my son was born and I started reading to him. I started trying to write what I was reading to him, mostly picture books and poetry in magazines like Babybug. I committed myself to practicing as much as I could, took some classes, read some books, and started to submit some of my work to magazines. Four years later, my poems have appeared (or are forthcoming) in Babybug, Ladybug, and High Five magazines. I feel lucky to have found some fabulous critique groups and supportive communities like the 12x12 group that are helping me grow as a writer in so many ways. Please pop over and visit her website :)
Working Title: Friendly Sam, The Ice Cream Man
Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 4-8)
The Pitch: Sam loves dishing out ice cream to his favorite customers at the park each afternoon. But when a rival ice cream truck shows up on ‘his’ corner, Sam must find a way to out-sing, out-scoop, and out-serve the competition to keep his customers — and himself — happy.
So what do you think? 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 Carrie improve her 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 Itor on the Would You Read It tab in the bar above. There are openings in August, so you have time to polish :) for a chance for it to be read by editor Erin Molta!
Carrie is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!
And I am looking forward to Friday, the inaugural day of Summer Short & Sweets!!! Are we going to have fun or what?! I am SO tempted to show you the gorgeous SS&S badge that the awesomely talented Loni Edwards has made for us... SO TEMPTED! But I will restrain myself (and by restrain myself I mean will someone please tie my hands behind my back!)
So tune in Friday - same bat time, same bat channel!!! :)
Today I'm thrilled to introduce you to the lovely and talented Rita Borg! Thank you so much for joining us, Rita!
First, a little background. Rita says,
I started writing when I was 9 years old. I loved the Waltons and Little House on the Prarie. John boy and Laura set me off writing. But when my 7 year old sister died of cancer, I could not pick up a pen. I was 23 then. But after my third child was born, my husband told me of a writing competition he found on the local newspaper. I entered but I did not win. But the editor called me up and told me how much she enjoyed my essay about the murder of a toddler in England. She asked if would I like to start writing articles for the paper? I said yes and my writing career started.I have been writing and learning about writing ever since.
I was educated at Blessed Sacrament School and St. Jean Baptiste High School in New York and studied children's writing with the Institute of Children's and Teen's Literature in Connecticut. I also read for a diploma in child psychology at the European Institute of Education. I reside on the Mediterranean island of Malta, where I regularly perform storytelling and creative writing workshops in schools across the country. I am also a freelance writer for local magazines and newspapers, a mother of three, and have published four picture books aimed at early readers, as well as an anthology of short stories for older children. My books have received multiple printings as well as peer-acclaim and recognition at the Malta National Annual Literary Awards. My last book, Don't Cross the Road, Holly!, was chosen as the best 2009 Children's Book in English. I am a member of the Society of Children's Writers & Illustrators of the USA, as well as its chapter in the British Isles.
Now then, onto the interview and all those helpful tidbits you guys are eagerly awaiting :)
SLH: Did you try the traditional publishing route? What was your experience?
RB: I have been studying the craft of writing for the past 12 years. Lately, I got in contact with an editor. She helped me out with several picture book manuscripts. I chose the best one and sent it off to 20 publishers and some agents in England. Most of the publishers I contacted wrote back saying how charming the book was, or it is a great story, or it would be great illustrated. Yet, no one wanted to take a chance of publishing it. Is it because I live so far away in Malta? So I decided to do it myself.
SLH:What made you decide to pursue self-publishing?
RB: I already have two published books but they are in the Maltese language. The publishers here in Malta obviously want to promote their language. However I grew up in New York City, my first language is English. So, I self-published three bilingual Maltese English picture books. But they could only be distributed in Malta which has a population of only half a million people. So I started thinking about self publishing outside the country with a company like CreateSpace.
Rita's office
SLH: How did you go about self-publishing? (specific details about how you researched and located the company you went with would be great)
RB: I didn’t do that much research to be honest. I heard about CreateSpace; many authors were using it, so I decided for my first book it would be good to go with the experts.
SLH: Did you hire an editor?
RB: Hiring an editor is a must. I had one during the writing of the story and hired another one through the company and was part of the publishing package.
SLH: How did you choose your illustrator? How did you work out paying the illustrator and did you have a contract? Did you have a lot of back and forth discussions with your illustrator about the art?
RB: The illustrations are again part of the package if you so wish. CreateSpace sent me four names of illustrators and I chose the one that I saw best fitted the theme of my book. I chose two that I really liked. My first choice was available to work and in six weeks she drew all the illustrations. There was one or two which I changed some aspects of the pictures. But I was lucky, I had little to change and I loved the simple, colourful illustrations at the start.
SLH: Did you hire a cover designer or did your illustrator design the cover?
RB: I hired both. The cover designer was again part of the package which I purchased. The cover designer sent me 3 different types of covers. I especially liked one and then the illustrator drew it. I just added more hay in the nest under the egg for comfort’s sake :)
SLH: What formats is your book available in? Hardcover? Paperback? E-book? Print-on-demand?
RB: So far, my book is only as a Print-On-Demand paperback picture book. I first want to see how well the book sells before I turn it into an e-book. Self-publishing can be quite expensive if you are not careful with your money.
SLH: How have you gone about marketing your book? What has been most successful?
RB: Along with advertising on Facebook, being interviewed here is my first attempt at marketing. I still have lots of work to do! I need to contact reviewers, give giveaways, and do more interviews. It’s going to be fun. Also, if I had been traditionally published, I still would need to market myself. So I am learning a great deal from all of this.
SLH: Do you do school/library visits or library/bookstore readings/signings? How did you go about getting them? How have sales been in relation to those visits?
RB: I visit libraries and schools all the time in Malta. I am a storyteller by trade. This is the best way to sell books. It is the personal touch rather then a book on the shelf. I plan to do a lot of visits to bookshops, libraries and schools for my book Meg the Egg, too.
SLH: What advice would you give other authors who are thinking about self-publishing?
RB: JUST DO IT! Don’t let the people at the gateways of publishing ruin your dreams.
SLH: Any particular pitfalls to avoid?
RB: Check and check everything you do. Don’t be flippant; be diligent. No one cares about your book more than you do.
SLH: Anything else you'd like to say? :) RB: This was an adventure, a scary, intrepid adventure but if my book sells and the children love reading it, it is very worth it when you have given up on traditional publishing.
Thank you so much, Rita!
If you'd like to find Rita online, you can visit her Website and like her on Face Book.
And, as if all that information weren't enough, Rita has kindly offered to be available to answer any questions you might have so fire away, AND she is giving away a copy of Meg The Egg (which is very cute - I have read it!) to one lucky winner!
All you have to do is leave a comment saying why you'd like the book. And if you want to be nice and "like" Rita on Face Book while you're here, that would be lovely but we are not twisting any arms :)
And that, my friends, concludes our mini-series on self-publishing. I know some of the posts were long - our authors were so very generous with their knowledge and expertise! I hope you all learned a lot, and that those of you who were previously hesitant about self-publishing now feel more confident and prepared to take it on!
