Category: The Nitty Gritty of Children’s Writing

scrabble tiles spelling out goal on a bulletin board surface
Posted in It's Not Just Books, The Nitty Gritty of Children's Writing

Ready, Set, Goal

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

“Writers, it’s getting close to the new year. Do you set goals? Forget dropping pounds. Pound out more words.” James Scott Bell

His tweet is so apropos. Just Tuesday on #kidlitchat people were discussing their 2011 goals and it reminded me that I needed to assess my 2010 writing goals and create 2011 goals. Last year I was fortunate to have a writer friend challenge a group of us to come up with a list of goals and due dates and bring them to a meeting. (Thanks again, Heather!) We learned from each other and revised our goals.

Here’s the general outline of mine, post meeting:
EMAIL, TWITTER
– Don’t read until afternoons – Monday through Friday
NOVELS
– Keep my two completed novels out until someone is willing to represent one of them. I listed novels and had lists of agents I planned to submit to
– Finish rewrites on mg mystery and get it out by end of year
– Complete first draft of YA WIP by certain date
– Complete first draft of boy mg WIP by certain date
PICTURE BOOKS
– Get pb revised and submitted by certain date
SHORT STORIES and ARTICLES
– Submit 2 magazine pieces each month
BLOG
– Post minimum of 1 article per month
– Post 2-4 book reviews each month
WEBSITE
– Make the following changes to my website

I could have added my twice a week writing appointment and my monthly critique group meeting, but those have become engrained through years of habit. I also am an instructor for The Institute of Children’s Literature (ICL) and have weekly student assignments, but since they come in email and by UPS, they are hard to forget.

The Whys and How My Goals Worked
Email, Twitter
– I’m strongest and best at writing in the morning, so besides a quick check on when/where my writing buddies and I are meeting, I wanted to cut down the time spent on those easier tasks. Not as successful as I’d like, but at least I had the frequent reminder of my goal.

Novels
– I’m not a speed novel writer. Probably because I work on too many projects at once. But I know from my years of experience that works for me. Still I thought goals might speed me up and keep me on task.
– I determined one novel needed lots more rewriting, so I quit submitting early in the year. Haven’t gotten to rewriting.
– The second novel kept going out until I heard Deborah Halverson (aka Dear-Editor) talk in LA at the SCBWI conference. Now I’m going through it with her Ultimate Novel Checklist. (If you get a chance to hear her speak, jump on it!)
– Finish rewrites on mg mystery – not done
– Finish two WIPs – neither is done, but I definitely made more progress

Picture Book
– Got it rewritten and sent out. No response. Got professional critique at conference in September and was told I had two stories. Light dawned. Must rewrite. When I get good idea on how best to do so . . .
– In November I got an opportunity to submit a picture book based on a fable on spec to a Korean publisher doing ESL. Wrote, submitted, revised by specifications, got contract. Still working on revisions. Asked to do other projects for them on spec – in progress.

Short Stories, Articles and Blogs
– I’ve been more successful in the past selling short stories and articles than I have in the last five years. If I don’t write and submit, I can’t sell them. I have stories written that have never been submitted. That needs to change.
– I created charts of the months where I recorded the number of submissions/posts in each category. Was I 100% successful in 2010? No. Was I more successful than in 2009? YES!
– I blog on my website for several reasons – it’s a good way to add content, I have things I like to share about writing (they make a great place for me to refer other writers), and I enjoy sharing books I like/love. Oh, yeah, and it’s fun. This one is the most easily measurable. I increased posts by 16 in 2011. Some book posts mentioned multiple books.

Website
This was at the bottom for a reason. I made more pressing changes. Asked for help on harder ones from my computer experts in the family. Some are done and some aren’t.

Overall
Was I over optimistic about how much I’d get done in 2010? Unfortunately, yes. Will I continue with goals in 2011? Oh, yes. After revising.

I learned for my Works-in-Progress that I need to make those goals more tangible. For 2011, I plan to list where I am in the novel at the start of the year–probably by word count since chapters get combined or inserted. Each month I plan to see where I am in word count. I think it will point out how much I am progressing or not.

I didn’t write it down, but I also had weekly schedule goals. Usually they were:
Monday – finish up student assignments
Tuesday – write or revise WIPs
Wednesday – get ss and article submissions ready and/or sent out, work on blog posts, do general writing recordkeeping
Thursday – write or revise WIPs
Friday – work on student assignments
This year I think I’ll write those down, too.

Some writers have word or page count goals per day. Others have a goal of finishing a chapter in a certain amount of time. Illustrators might have a number of paintings or sketches to accomplish in a certain time. What matters is to have what in the business world of project management is called a S.M.A.R.T. goal. Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely. A goal such as “get an agent” isn’t really under your control. A goal of “submit so many queries to agents by this date” is under your control and measurable.

I also think we writers need to be flexible in our goals. Writing a picture book on spec was not one of my goals at the beginning of the year. Revising the two novels yet again were not my goals. But the former resulted in a sale and the latter is going to make them so much better.

Another goal I may include for 2011 is which craft books I plan to read this year. I have this list, but don’t get to many. Writing it down will give me a better chance. I already read some helpful writing magazines and list serves on a regular basis. If you don’t, you might want to put that on your goals list.

So are you ready to set your own goals?
Write them down and share them with someone. Throughout the year share how you each are doing on meeting your goals. Don’t use it as a chance to beat yourself up at what you’ve missed, but an opportunity to encourage yourself to press on.

Posted in The Nitty Gritty of Children's Writing, The Publication Process

An Editor’s Day

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
Why isn’t the editor getting back to me? If your manuscript was unsolicited, it ends up in the slush pile. The slush pile gets read last. But even if your manuscript was requested, it will take time for the editor to respond. Here’s why:

Editor 1: 5 Ms that occupy one editor’s day:

  • Meetings – they are “not what’s get in the way of my work, they ARE my work”
  • Marketing – “performances” – includes flap copy, which is so important
  • Mail
  • Mechanics – looking at the different stages of the book in the manufacturing process
  • Manuscripts

His “M” for manuscripts includes the ones he’s editing now. That doesn’t leave much time to look at new projects.

Editor 2: A glimpse into what one senior editor does:

  • Budget for next year – chart of all books – project costs, copies selling, etc.
  • Budget for conference, conventions, staff, salaries
  • Manage staff – pour oil over troubled water – part the Red Sea
  • Balance list
  • Manage up – be aware of what managers want
  • Proposals for books that she’s bidding on
  • Look at profit and loss statements for individual books and the department
  • Schmooze with authors, agents
  • Make print and buying decisions
  • Read books the house may acquire
  • Communicate with colleagues about books
  • Edit
  • Marketing, presale, sale meetings
  • E-mail, phone calls

This senior editor probably does not read many manuscripts that have not been vetted by other editors in the house, or by an agent.

Editor 3: An yet another view:

  • Meetings
  • Interruptions
  • Trying to read manuscript
  • Lunch at desk
  • E-mails
  • Phone calls
  • Brainstorming
  • Take the above and remix

I’ve heard many editors say they do the reading of submissions away from the office. That might include on the train ride home, evenings, and over the weekend. So, they often read manuscripts in their “free” time.
Further Editor Info from a Q&A
How do you balance lists?
– We pick books we will love in 3-6 years
How do editors determine marketing budget for an individual book?
– Make a wish list for each book, balance with colleagues
– Every season there’s a book that is a sleeper – it rises to the top unsuspected
How do bidding auctions work?
– The editor gets a call – this is going to be big and why (credentials)
– Reads it (may not even be that great a book but upper management wants them to look at it)
– Come up with marketing plan, proposal
– Date is set for auction
– Call on date and give bid
– Oh, but we already have that bid, relook and rebid perhaps
– Phone tag
– Next day – are you in or not?
What do editors discuss at an editorial meeting?
– Great voice
– Ability for writer to keep interest – some foreshadowing
– Is this story something new – a fresh perspective – honest look
– Fully realized characters – subtle quirks and nuances so readers can develop a relationship with character
– What’s the best way to get this book out there – whether hardback or paperback
– Platform – quotes from other writers, etc. – not the writer’s worry

The above info collected from a variety of editors.

What can we control? Our writing. And hope someday to be a part of an editor’s day.

Posted in Business Side of Writing, The Nitty Gritty of Children's Writing, The Publication Process

How’d You Get That Gig?

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

I’ve heard that question and others like it when people found out about my sale of a picture book to the Korean publisher, Unibooks (μœ λ‹ˆλΆμŠ€), for their ESL program for young children.
Is it who you know?
Yes, and no. Yes, a friend of mine posted the information about the publisher, but it wasn’t directed specifically to me. It was posted on a list-serve in August (I think). Here’s what she said:

I have a writing opportunity that may interest some of you or some of your members. A respected Korean English language publisher is looking for writers to do work-for-hire books for grade levels kindergarten – Jr. high.
Books are nonfiction and fiction, based on set content area themes or topics, for example, upcoming social studies topics are “feelings” and “values.”
Word length is 250 – 1500 words and fee ranges from $300 to $1200 per book depending on target age range for each series.
If you, or a writer you know, would be interested in doing this kind of work, please shoot me an email so I can find a few good candidates to suggest to this company. Someone with some magazine experience or published credits would be preferable. I’d like to get something to them in the next couple of weeks. Writing projects would start immediately in October.

So that was about networking really. Talking and listening to other writers. Paying attention. Being open.
eee7.jpgWhat happened next?
I told my friend I was interested and gave her a brief bio. I think she received interest from at least 30 other writers. She asked us to answer some questions and then she sent the whole batch of info to the publisher.
November 3rd, someone from the publisher contacted me via email. (Normally I delete emails coming with any foreign language in the “from,” but fortunately, not this one!) She mentioned my friend sending her the info, had visited my website, told me briefly about the project and asked if I was interested. Of course, I said “yes.”
Next step, I received more details and suggested topics. I chose one, “Belling the Cat,” refreshed my memory on the original story, followed the publisher’s specific guidelines and wrote it up and submitted. Here’s what I got back on November 17th: “We like your script. It’s like a piece of musical. And embedded parts are well settled. At the same time, we feel you abbreviated the story because of word count. You can use up to 250 words. So we’d like to suggest you several things.” And it went into very specific details. Payment was discussed, but no contract.
I rewrote; sent it back. This time, November 29th, I got a contract . . . along with other rewrite suggestions. And encouragement to write one or two more stories for them. I’ve rewritten “Belling the Cat” again and am waiting for their feedback. I think it is much stronger and clearer, but what makes sense to me as a native English speaker may not make sense to Koreans who learn English as a second language.
Meanwhile, another person from Unibooks contacted me. She’s working on the next level up and read one of the first two versions of “Belling the Cat” and would like me to write something for them. Of course, I said, “yes.” I imagine the future books for both projects will go along a similar process: write on spec, make changes, and if they like them, I’ll get a contract, then make more changes.
What can you do?
So my advice to you is network with other writers, read writing list-serves, pay attention to opportunities, be willing to try out for them, and work hard on your writing and rewriting.

Posted in It's Not Just Books, The Nitty Gritty of Children's Writing

On the Hunt for Ideas

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

hunt.jpgAfter a recent discussion about story ideas, I decided to come up with this list especially for the children’s magazine writer. So here you have it: 22 places to find story and article ideas.

  1. Theme lists. Many magazines post the themes for future issues. Market books and guidelines will tell you which magazines have theme lists or editorial calendars. If you can’t find the list online, write to the magazine.
  2. School calendars and newsletters. What special events are happening at your local school? What topics are being discussed by the principal, teachers, or the PTA?
  3. Find out what kids are learning. Ask your kids or a teacher what topics are being studied. Check out some home school curriculums. Some teachers and/or schools have blogs. Does yours?
  4. Study the stages of childhood. Learn about their fears and desires. A good site for both this and the previous topic is http://www.education.com/all-topics/. And, of course, there are books about this subject.
  5. Observe kids. Go to the park, a play area, a mall, a fast food restaurant. See what they are doing.
  6. Listen to kids ask questions. An easy place to find what older kids want to know is at http://answers.yahoo.com/. They’ll be asking about help for homework, what to do for a birthday party, how to take care of a pet, and much, much more.
  7. Find out what kids think. Children have opinions on many topics. Here’s a site that shares kids’ favorites: http://www.imbee.com/discover/grooves.
  8. Read what kids write. Check out the high school newspaper. Some elementary classrooms put out school newspapers, too. Or here’s a website where children share their writing: http://www.stonesoup.com/sample-issues/.
  9. Volunteer. Schools, churches, organizations often need volunteers for a variety of events that involve children and teens. Your experiences may inspire you.
  10. Listen to adults talk about kids. People complain, tell funny stories, relate accomplishments and failures about their own kids and/or about the kids they work with.
  11. Hobbies and recreation. Would kids be interested in what you’re interested in? Very possibly. Especially if you can look at it from a kid’s viewpoint. But what else are people doing?
  12. Local newspapers. Read reports on school projects, special things kids have done, sporting events, etc.
  13. Try writing prompts. If it is one for adults, such as this one: http://www.writersdigest.com/TipsPrompts/, think about how a child could be on the scene and what his or her part in it might be.
  14. Read magazines written for children and teens. What’s being done? What’s missing?
  15. Don’t forget the past. Yours especially. What incidents from childhood are engraved in your memory? How did you feel? Is it something that could happen to a kid today?
  16. Check out “today in history.” Some newspapers have a section on this topic and many websites do as well. http://www.answers.com/ also includes birthdays.
  17. Diaries and letters. Libraries and museums have historical documents that you can read.
  18. Look at pictures. Stills and videos both. There are many online sources of pictures, such as flickr, google, morgue file for the former, and of course, a favorite for the latter is you-tube. You may discover a setting or place, a picture of your next character, or an event you want to write about.
  19. Go to an art gallery. Are there pictures that evoke emotion or a memory?
  20. Learn something new. Take a class, try a sport or a game, a new food. Do something outside your normal routine.
  21. Step outside your comfort zone. Go somewhere that you are one of the minority or feel you don’t fit in. Go to an event you think you’ll dislike or don’t understand why others like it. (I’m not saying where you know you’ll be bored.)
  22. Attend a children’s writing workshop, conference or retreat. It’s amazing the ideas generated around other creative minds. When a group does writing exercises, the variation you’ll see is incredible.

Not only will you track down ideas, you’ll have some fun doing it.

Posted in The Nitty Gritty of Children's Writing, You Are Not Alone

Bloggers Supporting Other Bloggers

Posted on by Susan Uhlig

versatile.jpgI met Kristen Hilty at the Kansas SCBWI Conference last month. We talked and later she started reading my blog. Last week she awarded me the Versatile Bloggers Award, saying, “I thought some other authors could benefit from your great articles. Thanks for the advice.” Thank you, Kristen, for the award and the kind words.
Being of inquisitive mind, I wondered how the award got started. The earliest reference I could find on the net was a May 14, 2009 entry on Bits and Bytes of Life blog. The creator, Arpit, wanted to recognize fellow bloggers and created a list of awards, including this one, in celebration of the blog being a year old. Arpit is no longer blogging, at least not since January of this year. I wonder if he’s aware of where his award has gone.
Here’s the award definition from Bits and Bytes:
Versatile Blogger Award: This award is meant to appreciate the versatility of the bloggers who have the capability to divulge into different areas and yet emerge victorious. Be it sports, politics, entertainment they have always emerged with flying colors by impressing us with their opinions and posts.
I found this award scattered all over the internet with a variety of different award images. Some were personalized. Many were the image you see above. I couldn’t locate who created this image. If anyone does know who created it, I’d love to know.
I also discovered that rules vary. The rules Kristen and I received are:
Award Rules:
1. Thank the person who gave you this award and provide a link to their blog.
2. Share 7 things about yourself.
3. Pass the award along to 5 other bloggers whom you have recently discovered and whose blogs you think are fantastically versatile/resourceful/functional/adaptable.
4. Contact those bloggers you’ve picked and let them know about their award.
Seven things about me.
1. I hate chain letters, which this reminds me of. Yet, recognizing other bloggers is a good thing, so I’ll play.
2. My husband and I have been happily married for 35 years.
3. I grew up in Oregon and really miss the Oregon coast.
4. Dark chocolate is my preferred flavor.
5. I was very shy as a kid.
6. In some ways I’m a perfectionist, which is why not all of these 7 points can start with “I.” But only in some ways, which is why I don’t have five “recently discovered” bloggers in my list below.
7. I believe children’s writers are the friendliest writers on the planet. πŸ™‚ I met Sharon Mayhew, who award this award to Kristen, at the same conference. If you’ve never gone to a children’s writing event, they are a great place to make friends!
So here’s my list of bloggers I’ve discovered recently:
Mary Kole at Kidlit.com – She is an associate agent at the Andrea Brown Literary Agency and writes young adult and middle grade, too.
Mike Jung‘s Little Bloggy Wog – a writer whom I had the privilege of meeting at the LA SCBWI conference this summer. I’d already been amused by his tweets.
From the Mixed-up Files…of Middle-Grade Authors – started this spring by 30 middle grade authors who celebrate MG books.
Do you have any blogs you’ve come across recently that you’d like to celebrate? Go for it. We all like receiving encouragement now and then.